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■JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
September  8  U98. 
in  Bowing  the  seeds  is  well  repaid  by  the  labour  saved  later.  Some 
may  say  that  the  time  spent  in  dibbling  seeds  separately  could  not  be 
afforded  when  much  of  it  has  to  be  handled,  but  this  is  one  of  the 
mistaken  notions.  If  it  pays  on  a  small  scale,  it  will  pay  much 
better  on  a  large  one  without  a  doubt. 
Again,  with  regard  to  giving  fresh*  soil  annually.  Tn  a  large 
market  garden  in  the  East  of  England  the  oft-advised  plan  of 
clearing  out  every  bit  of  old  soil  annually  has  been  carried  out  each 
season  until  the  present,  with  the  result  that  the  crops  have  always 
been  heavy  and  good.  But  this  season,  for  reasons  unavoidable,  a 
portion  of  new  soil  only  was  dug  into  the  borders  in  several  long 
span-roofed  houses,  with  the  result  that,  though  plenty  of  fruit  formed, 
owing  to  the  plants  being  well  treated  in  the  earlier  stages,  a  large 
proportion  of  the  plants  have  gone  off  with  the  troublesome  drooping 
disease,  while  a  far  greater  percentage  of  fruit  than  usual  is  “  spotted.” 
During  the  last  six  years  I  have  never  had  a  single  plant  “droop,” 
and  the  percentage  of  diseased  fruits  has  been  very  low  indeed — 
almost  entirely  confined,  in  fact,  to  plants  that  have  been  grown  in 
vineries,  Peach  houses,  or  some  makeshift  position  rather  than  in  a 
house  devoted  entirely  to  this  crop ;  and  the  atmospheric  conditions 
required  by  Tomatoes  render  it  necessary  for  the  best  culture  that  they 
should  be  grown  alone,  or  at  least  that  any  other  crop  grown  must  be 
subordinate  to  them.  A  brief  resume,  of  their  culture  as  practised 
may  be  of  interest  to  amateur  growers,  or  to  any  that  are  not 
entirely  successful  with  this  useful  crop. 
The  seeds  are  dibbled  in  an  inch  apart  in  pans  or  boxes,  the 
time  of  course  depending  on  when  the  fruit  is  required.  A  good 
time  for  the  general  crop  indoors  is  about  the  middle  of  February, 
and  earlier  or  later  sowings  may  be  made  according  to  requirements. 
Have  the  soil  firm,  and  cover  the  seeds  about  a  quarter  of  an  inch. 
One  soaking  of  water  applied  before  sowing  will  keep  the  soil  moist 
until  the  plants  appear.  A  night  temperature  of  55°  to  60°  is  the 
most  suitable  for  raising  the  seeds,  and  as  soon  as  the  seedlings  are 
visible  place  .the  pans  in  a  light  and  warm  position  where  the  young 
plants  will  get  abundance  of  air. 
This  will  keep  them  short  and  sturdy,  and  the  slower  they  grow 
in  the  earlier  stages  the  better.  By  the  time  they  are  in  the  rough 
leaf  the  stems  ought  not  to  be  much  more  than  an  inch  high  if  they 
have  been  properly  treated,  and  as  they  are  that  distance  apart  each 
little  plant  will  lift  with  a  certain  amount  of  soil  adhering  to  the 
roots.  Pot  them  singly  in  60’s,  and  make  the  soil  about  them  as  firm 
as  possible  with  the  thumbs,  but  without  using  a  potting  stick.  Give 
a  thorough  soaking  of  water  at  a  little  higher  temperature  than  that 
of  the  house,  and  if  die  weather  is  very  bright  shade  with  a  few 
sheets  of  newspaper  until  they  are  established ;  also  keep  the  house  a 
little  closer  and  more  moist. 
The  compost  used  at  this  first  potting  is  not  required  very  strong; 
rather  give  a  light  make  up  with  plenty  of  burnt  garden  refuse  or 
other  gritty  material.  In  this  the  roots  run  freely,  and  the  little 
plants  must  now  bo  kept  with  their  heads  close  up  to  the  glass  and 
all  the  air  possible  allowed.  If  the  house  is  ready  for  their  reception 
there  is  no  advantage  in  potting  the  plants  again,  but  it  is  better  to 
repot  into  5-inch  pots  than  to  allow  the  young  plants  to  get  root- bound 
and  hard.  Such  plants  are  difficult  to  start  growing,  and  it  is  much 
better  to  wait  a  week  or  two  longer  before  sowing  the  seed  than  to  let 
the  young  plants  be  starved  or  to  have  the  extra  work  of  giving  another 
shift. 
There  is  no  need  to  give  a  great  depth  of  soil  at  first  ;  it  is  far 
better  to  plant  in  about  3  inches,  and  add  to  this  at  frequent  intervals 
afterwards,  than  to  give  a  foot  or  so  of  sometimes  loose  material  for 
the  roots  to  run  in.  Nor  must  the  soil  be  rich ;  equal  parts  of  loam 
and  ordinary  kitchen  garden  soil,  with  a  very  liberal  addition  of  burnt 
refuse,  such  as  hedge  clippings,  leaves,  and  garden  rubbish  of  all  kinds, 
is  quite  good  enough.  Ram  this  in  as  firmly  as  possible,  whether  it  is 
on  the  floor  of  the  house  in  boxes  or  on  stages,  and  if  the  plants  are 
coming  from  the  small  pots  referred  to,  give  only  enough  to  just  cover 
the  ball  of  soil. 
Use  a  blunt  potting  stick  when  planting,  and  again  ram  the  soil 
very  firmly  about  them.  The  first  bunch  of  fruit  blossom  will  usually 
be  showing  by  the  time  the  pots  are  full  of  roots,  and  a  few  days  after 
planting  the  flowers  begin  to  open.  A  dry  buoyant  atmosphere  must 
be  maintained  in  the  house,  and  while  the  fruit  is  setting  the  plants 
are  not  the  worse  for  being  a  little  dry  at  the  roots.  When  the  sun  is 
shining  full  on  them  I  like  to  see  a  slight  flagging,  but  this  must 
not  be  overdone  of  course. 
With  a  pencil  or  small  stick  tap  the  bunch  of  flowers  daily  to 
disperse  the  pollen,  and  when  one  bunch  on  each  plant  is  set — which 
should  occur  from  6  inches  to  9  inches  from  the  soil — begin  to  give  a 
little  more  moisture.  After  this  the  rest  is  easyT  Keep  the  laterals 
pinched  out  and  take  the  single  stem  up.  Feed  liberally  when  plenty 
of  fruit  is  set.  After  attention  consists  in  lightly  thinning  the  bunches 
of  fruit  and  supporting  them  where  likely  to  break.  Always  maintain 
a  fresh  and  fairly  dry  atmosphere,  and  see  that  the  light  can  play 
freely  about  the  fruit,  thinning  the  foliage  a  little  when  this  is  necessary, 
but  not  taking  all  the  leaves  off,  as  is  sometimes  done.  Top-dress  the 
border  frequently  with  rich  soil,  and  use  such  manures  as  show  a  good 
percentage  of  potash. — H.  R.  Richards. 
PREPARING  FOR  AUTUMN. 
“Frost  comes  like  a  thief  in  the  night”  is  a  telling  sentence, 
which  enterprising  business  men  turn  to  good  account  in  their 
advertisements.  It  also  contains  a  truism,  which  cautious  gardeners 
know  well  should  be  kept  constantly  in  mind  during  the  next  few 
weeks.  Although  we  usually  consider  that  the  majority  of  plants  are 
safe  in  the  open  air  till  the  third  week  in  September,  still  it  is  necessary 
to  be  “  up  and  doing  ”  in  the  matter  of  getting  everything  ready,  so 
that  the  housing  of  plants  may  be  conducted  with  expedition  when 
the  time  arrives  for  doing  it. 
Callas,  which  are  usually  grown  in  considerable  numbers  in  both 
nurseries  and  private  gardens,  are  a  class  of  plant  which  require 
early  attention,  as  they  are  often  injured  by  a  few  degrees  of  frost, 
when  “  Geraniums  ”  in  similar  positions  are  untouched.  It  has  of 
late  become  an  almost  universal  practice  to  pDnt  Callas  out  during 
the  summer  months,  and  if  lifted  now,  and  placed  in  a  shady  position 
in  the  open  air  for  a  couple  of  weeks  before  being  taken  into  the 
houses,  they  quickly  recover  from  the  check  they  invariably  receive 
in  being  potted,  as  during  the  operation  the  roots  have  generally  to  be 
considerably  curtailed  to  get  them  into  pots  of  the  right  size.  When 
a  house  can  be  devoted  entirely  to  Callas  this  early  potting  is  not  of 
so  much  consequence,  as  the  house  can  be  kept  close,  and  the  plants 
well  syringed  for  a  time ;  but  it  often  happens  that  Callas  have  to  be 
placed  in  houses  occupied  by  plants  which  require  abundant  ventila¬ 
tion,  and  in  such  instances  the  advantage  gained  by  having  Callas 
established  before  being  placed  in  such  airy  structures  must  be 
apparent  to  all. 
When  a  house  can  be  devoted  entirely  to  Callas,  and  is  not  likely 
to  be  wanted  for  other  purposes  till  the  time  arrives  for  planting 
them  in  the  open  air  again,  it  is  a  capital  plan  to  do  without  pots. 
The  plants  can  be  simply  lifted,  placed  on  the  floor,  bed,  or  stage 
with  a  little  soil  placed  round  the  roots.  The  advantage  of  thia 
practice  is  that  nearly  all  roots  can  be  preserved,  the  plants  feel 
scarcely  any  check,  and  will  usually  flower  much  more  freely  than  when 
grown  in  pots.  When  this  plan  of  action  is  settled  upon,  it  is  of 
course  not  necessary  to  lift  the  plants  from  the  open  ground  until 
there  is  danger  from  frost. 
Large  plants  of  Marguerites  are  much  better  for  supplying  cut 
flowers  than  small  ones,  and  at  all  seasons  there  seems  to  be  a  demand 
for  white  Marguerites  in  a  cut  state.  For  supplying  these  during  the 
summer  months  the  system  of  having  a  goodly  number  planted  in  the 
open  air  is  largely  adopted.  In  this  way  grand  plants  are  produced 
which  if  properly  handled  will  continue  flowering  throughout  the 
autumn  and  winter.  The  secret  of  success  in  the  matter  is  to  lift  the 
plants  early  and  get  them  established  in  pots  before  they  are  housed. 
We  have  about  fifty  plants,  varying  from  2  to  3  feet  in  diameter.  A 
week  ago  a  spade  was  thrust  into  the  soil  around  each,  about  9  inches 
from  the  stem,  and  in  the  course  of  a  few  days  I  hope  to  have  them 
potted  and  placed  in  a  shady  position^  then  with  a  little  syringing 
during  bright  weather,  and  proper  attention  in  watering,  they  may  be 
relied  upon  to  scarcely  lose  a  leaf,  and  continue  flowering  with  hardly 
any  break.  In  this  way  beautiful  specimens  3  or  4  feet  in  diameter, 
profusely  flowered,  may  be  obtained  by  the  November  Chrysanthemum 
shows,  when  they  would  make  a  bold  display,  eveu  if  staged  beside 
well*  grown  specimens  of  the  “  Queen  of  Autumn.”  Cuttings  put  in 
now  will  make  nice  plants  in  5-inch  pots  by  May  next,  a  season  of 
the  year  when  they  are  always  largely  in  demand. 
