216 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER, 
March  6,  1902. 
indeed,  cross-fertilisation  is  desirable  in  all  cases,  being  attended 
with  _  the  best  results,  both  as  regards  setting  the  fruit,  its 
swelling,  and  perfecting. 
MIDSEASON  HOUSES. — The  Vines  to  afford  ripe  fruit  in 
August  and  September  of  the  Black  Hamburgh,  Foster’s  Seed¬ 
ling  and  similar  type  must  be  started  at  once,  and  with  the  tem¬ 
perature  kept  at  50deg  by  night  and  55deg  in  the  daytime  from 
hre  heat,  with  65deg  from  sun  heat,  they  will  break  gradually 
and  strongly.  tVlien  movement  takes  place  in  the  buds  the 
temperature  may  be  gradually  raised  so  as  to  bring  the  Vines 
into  leaf,  with  a  temperature  of  60deg  at  night,  65deg  by  day 
in  cold  weather,  70deg  to  75deg  with  gleams  of  sun,  and  SOdeg 
to  85deg  on  bright  days.  Vv  ith  starting  in  this  way,  the  Vines  will 
need  little  artificial  heat  during  the  months  of  June,  July,  and 
August,  and,  having  the  benefit  of  the  summer  for  growing  and 
perfecting  the  fruits,  better  results  will  be  attained  than  from 
starting  late,  and  having  to  fire  hard  in  late  summer  to  perfect 
the  crop. 
LATE  VINES. — The  thick-skinned  varieties  require  a  long 
time  to  grow  and  ripen  fully  for  satisfactory  keeping.  Those 
started  at  the  beginning  of  March  have  a  better  chance  to  perfect 
the  crop  than  others  not  started  before  April,  the  latter  losing 
fully  a  month  of  the  best  growing  weather.  The  inside  border 
must  be  brought  into  a  thoroughly  moist  condition.  Sprinkle  the 
rods  two  or  three  times  a  day,  maintaining  a  night  temperature 
cf  oOdeg  to  55deg,  and  65deg  in  the  daytime,  by  which  means  the 
Vines  v.  ill  start  freely,  and,  having  the  whole  of  the  summer  to 
grow  and  mature  their  crops  in,  they  will  prove  most  satis¬ 
factory  in  produce  and  cost  of  production.  Where  hard  Vines 
have  yet  to  be  pruned  and  the  house  put  in  order,  this  should  be 
attended  to  without  delay.  If  the  Vines  are  pruned  and  the  tem¬ 
perature  kept  low,  there  may  not  be  any  bleeding  when  started, 
provided  the  cuts  are  carefully  dressed  with  styptic  or  patent 
knotting,  or  French  polish  immediately  the  wounds  are  dry  after 
pruning.  The  dressing  of  the  Vines  is  a  needful  precaution 
against  insect  and  fungal  pests,  which  to  be  of  use  necessitates 
the  removal  of  the  loose  bark  without  very  close  peeling  and 
scraping  into  the  quick.  Also  remove  the  loose  surface  soil  from 
the  border,  and  supply  fresh  turfy  loam,  using  about  4oz  per 
square  yard  of  some  approved  fertiliser,  which,  distributed  on 
the  surface  and  lightly  scratched  in,  will  benefit  the  Vines 
immensely  later  on.  Protect  the  stems  of  Vines  in  outside  border, 
and  supply  a  top-dressing  of  sound  enriching  material, 
which  vill  be  all  the  protection  necessary. 
LATE  HOUSES  OF  HAMBURGHS. — Where  the  structures 
are  kept  cool  and  dry,  and  the  border  sufficiently  inoiM  to  pre¬ 
serve  the  roots  in  a  sound  condition,  ventilating  fully  at  and 
above  SOdeg,  the  Vines  will  start  naturally  when  the  mean 
temperature  of  the  external  air  reaches  SOdeg,  or  a  little  before, 
which  usually  takes  place  during  April.  The  only  assistance  such 
Vines  require  is  to  maintain  a  temperature  of  SOdeg  to  SSdeg 
at  niglit  and  on  dull  days,  sun  heat  doing  the  rest  of  the  work, 
for  the  crop  sets  by  the  early  part  of  June,  is  swelled  with  the 
solar  warmth,  and  a  little  fire  heat  in  September  or  after  the 
Grapes  commence  colouring,  perfects  the  crops.  Of  course,  sun 
heat  must  be  husbanded  during  the  summer  months  by  early 
closing  and  the  Vines  well  nourished,  then  Grape  growing  is  one 
of  the  easiest  and  most  satisfactory  processes  in  horticulture. 
■ — St.  Albans. 
- »  I - 
Meteorological  Observations  at  Chiswick. 
Taken  in  the  Royal  Horticultural  Society’s  Gardens  at  Chiswick— 
height  above  sea  level  24  feet. 
Date. 
Direction  of 
Wind. 
Temperature  of  the 
Air. 
Rain. 
Temperatu'  e  of 
the  Soil. 
At  9  A.M. 
Lowest  1 
Temperature 
OH  Grass  | 
1902. 
February 
and 
March. 
At  9  A.M. 
Day. 
Night 
At 
1-ft. 
deep 
At 
2-ft. 
deep 
At 
4-ft. 
deep 
Dry 
Bulb. 
Wet 
Bulb. 
U3 
0) 
bO 
K 
CC 
V 
0 
Sunday  ...23 
Monday  ...24 
Tuesday  ..25 
Wed’sday  26 
Thursday  27 
Friday  ...28 
Saturday  1 
5.5. E. 
E.S.E. 
E.S.E. 
E.S.E. 
5.5. W. 
S.S.W. 
N.E. 
deg. 
45-4 
45- 9 
44-4 
39-9 
46- 7 
47- 9 
41-4 
deg.  1 
44-7  1 
44-6 
43- 9 
38T 
44- 4 
45- 9 
40-7 
deg. 
50-6 
47-1 
47.7 
47T 
50-9 
53-6 
52-4 
deg. 
390 
45-0 
44-3 
37-8 
40-0 
43-6 
35-3 
Ins. 
0-03 
0-29 
0-05 
0-15 
0’02 
0-05 
1 
deg. 
34-4 
37-9 
39-7 
39- 8 
40- 6 
41- 9 
41-7 
deg. 
37-3 
37- 8 
38- 9 
40  0 
40- 3 
41- 0 
41-8 
deg. 
41-3 
41-3 
41-3 
41-3 
41-5 
41- 8 
42- 0 
deg. 
35-5 
41-3 
41-0 
33-6 
35-3 
35-3 
28-5 
Means  ... 
44  5 
43-2 
49-9 
40-7 
Total. 
0-57 
39-4 
39*6 
41-5 
35-8 
A  week  of  foggy  mornings  and  dull  days,  with  frequent  showers. 
***  All  correspondence  relating  to  editorial  matters  should  b#  directed 
to  The  Editor,”  12,  Mitre  Court  Chambers,  Fleet  Street, 
London,  E.C.  It  is  requested  that  no  one  will  write  privately 
to  any  of  our  correspondents  seeking  information  on  matters 
discussed  in  this  Journal,  as  doing  so  subjects  them  to  unjustifiable 
trouble  and  expense. 
STRAWBERRIES  FOR  HOT  WEATHER  (A.  E.  R.).— A 
full  answer  next  week. 
CHRYSANTHEMUMS,  TIMING  (W.  B.  W.).— Postal  order 
for  3s.  received  for  answer  to  above  query.  We  will  hand  it  over 
to  Mr.  Brian  Wynne,  secretary  of  the  Royal  Gardeners’  Orphan 
Fund. 
FARM  PAGE  QUERY :  MANUFACTURERS  OF  FEEDING 
STUFFS  (Henry  S.). — It  is  outside  the  scope  of  this  column  to 
recommend  individual  firms.  Almost  every  corn  merchant,  how¬ 
ever,  supplies  feeding  cakes,  and  if  you  ai>ply  to  a  respectable 
firm  of  this  description  you  should  be  well  served.  When  buying 
oil  cakes  see  that  there  is  “  95  per  cent,  pure  ”  stamped  upon 
them. 
CARDINAL  NECTARINE  FOR  EARLY  MARKETING 
(F.  S.). — “  Will  you  kindly  say  ivhether  Cardinal  Nectarine  is 
likely  to  be  more  profitable  for  early  work  for  London  markets 
than  the  larger  Peaches  and  Nectarines  that  come  in  a  little 
later  .P  What  is  the  best  time  to  get  the  fruits  ripe  to  make  the 
best  prices  and  not  clash  with  the  imported  ones? 
[Though  the  fruits  are  only  of  medium  size  the  richly  coloured 
skin  tells  in  their  favour,  and  having  an  exquisitely  flavourdd 
flesh,  combined  with  ripening  ten  days  before  the  earliest  large 
Nectarine,  Early  Rivers,  Cardinal  is  likely  to  be  niore  profitable 
for  early  work  for  London  market  than  the  large  Peaches  and 
Nectarines  that  come  in  a  little  later.  It  is  well,  however,  to 
have  a  succession,  and  Early  Rivers,  being  of  the  largest  size 
(fruit  9Un  in  circumference),  ripening  a  J’ortnight  before  Lord 
Napier,  weighing  ^Ib  in  weight,  of  veiy  fine  luscious  flavour, 
and  of  a  brilliant  colour,  the  tree  a  free  cropper,  may  be  equally 
remunerative.  Similarly^,  Waterloo  Peach,  a  medium-sized  fruit 
(reaching  8oz  in  weight),  ripening  three  weeks  before  Hale’s 
Early,  also  medium  sized,  would  be  more  likely  profitable  from 
mere  earliness  than  the  large  and  bright-coloured  Condor.  At 
the  end  of  April  and  early  in  May  is  perhaps  the  best  time  to 
have  the  fruit  ripe,  continuing  up  to  the  early  part,  or  even  end, 
of  June.] 
VINES  SHOWING  FRUIT  INDIFFERENTLY  (A  Young 
Gardener). — The  bunches  of  embryo  fruit  were  strong  and  long 
in  the  footstalk,  the  shoulders  for  thel  most  part  blind  or 
defective  in  the  flower-knobs,  and  the  bunches  inclined  to  curl 
or  become  tendrils.  We  have  found  such  effects  caused  by  Vines 
being  grown  in  rich,  deep,  cold,  outside  borders,  which  have  a 
tendency  to  produce  gross  long-jointed  wood,  usually  imperfectly 
ripened.  YMurs,  however,  cannot  suffer  from  this,  the  roots  being 
in  an  inside  border,  and  completely  under  command.  You 
have  placed  a  foot  of  manure  on  the  inside  border,  and  you 
poured  cold  water  copiously  on  the  manure  to  wash  its  nutritive 
matters  into  the  soil.  This  cold-drenching  a  Vine  border  when 
the  Vines  are  but  little  advanced  in  growth- is  bad.  A  check  is 
given  every  time  the  cold  water  is  apjnied,  and  the  rootlets  form 
indifferently  in  a  cold  wet  border.  Y’ou  commenced  to  force 
early — at  Christmas — and  the  Vines  were  advanced  for  flower¬ 
ing  by  the  early  part  of  February.  You  brought  them  on  slowly 
at  first,  and  since  they  broke  have  kept  them  at  60deg  by  night, 
and  70deg  by  day  from  fire  heat.  This,  combined  Avith  the 
drenchings  of  cold  AA  ater,  is  sufficient  to  account  for  the  bad  con¬ 
dition  of  any  Vine  subjected  to  such  treatment,  especially 
Muscats,  iind  these  you  say  are  the  worst.  Had  the  water  used 
been  a  ferv  degrees  Avarmer  than  the  mean  temperature  of  the 
house,  so  as  to  bring  the  border  into  a  nice  moist  condition,  com¬ 
mencing  to  force  Avith  a  temperature  of  45deg  by  night  for 
the  first  fortnight,  increasing  it  to  50deg  at  the  end  of  that 
period,  in  another  fortnight  to  55deg,  and  in  another  to  GOdeg ; 
then  Ave  think  the  bunches  Avould  not  have  been  in  the  con¬ 
dition  of  those  sent.  ThroAving  the  houke  open  in  summer 
is  only  AAUse  under  certain  circumstances,  and  should  never  be 
done  until  the  wood  is  hard  and  broAvn,  or  Avell  ripened.  Keep  the 
border  moist  for  a  short  time  before  commencing  to  force,  and 
well  Avatered  when  groAvth  commences ;  decrease  the  amount  of 
AAmter  after  the  fruit  changes  colour,  and  leave  it  off  altogether 
after  the.fniit  is  ripe.  Bring  the  Vines  on  gradually ,_  and  do  not 
exceed  GOdeg  by  night  until  the  leaves  attain  their  full  size. 
Water  always  Avith  tepid  irater,  and  do  not  expose  the  Vines  or 
throw  open  the  house  until  the  Avood  is  thoroughly  ripened. 
