December  6,  1900. 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER, 
521 
pots.  To-day  they  occupy  8  and  9-inch  pots,  and  may  still  be  seen  in 
the  windows  at  Victoria  Street,  Cinderwood.  The  plants  are  dipped 
once  a  week  all  through  their  season  of  growth,  enough  water  being 
used  in  tubs  to  cover  the  fronds  entirely.  Great  credit  is  due  to  these 
ladies  for  their  perseverance  in  the  cultivation  of  these  beautiful 
plants  without  the  aid  of  a  greenhouse. — F.  J.  M. 
Fruit  Forcing. 
vines.— FarZy  Forced  in  Pots. — The  earliest  Vines  started  in 
November,  whether  in  pots  or  planted  out,  will  need  to  have  the 
temperature  increased  to  60°  at  night  in  mild  weather,  55°  in  severe 
weather,  graduatintr  it  so  as  to  have  it  60°  at  night  when  the  Vines  are 
coming  into  leaf,  65°  by  day  in  severe  weather,  and  70°  to  75°  in  mild 
weather,  with  a  little  ventilation  daily  to  insure  a  change  of  air.  The 
evaporation  troughs  need  not  be  charged  if  there  are  fermenting 
materials  in  the  house,  but  if  not  the  troughs  should  be  filled  and  kept 
so  with  the  drainings  of  the  manure  yard  or  stables  and  cow  byres,  but 
not  that  of  piggeries.  The  liquid,  if  strong,  must  be  diluted,  neat 
drainings  with  five  times  the  bulk  of  water,  or  employ  Peruvian  or 
“  ammoniated  ”  guano,  1  lb.  to  20  gallons  of  water,  straining  before 
placing  in  tbe  trough.  The  liquid  is  also  useful  for  watering  Vines  in 
pots,  always  applying  at  the  temperature  of  tbe  house.  Tie  up  the 
Vines  in  position  as  soon  as  the  growth  has  well  commenced,  and 
before  the  shoots  are  so  long  as  to  be  damaged  in  the  process.  Sprinkle 
the  house  two  or  three  a  day  in  clear  weather,  avoiding  a  very  close 
atmosphere  on  the  one  hand,  and  a  dry  one  on  the  other.  Disbudding 
should  not  be  practised  until  the  fruit  shows  in  the  points  of  the 
growths.  Only  supply  water  at  the  roots  to  keep  the  soil  moist,  not 
much  watering  being  needed  until  the  Vines  come  into  leaf. 
Earliest  Forced  Planted-out  Vines.- — In  order  to  have  a  supply 
of  ripe  Grapes  in  May  of  such  varieties  as  Black  Hamburgh  and  Buckland 
Sweetwater  the  Vines  must  be  started  at  the  beginning  of  December. 
A  good  start  is  favoured  by  a  bed  of  fermenting  materials,  such  as 
sweetened  stable  litter  and  leaves  placed  on  the  floor  of  the  house  and 
turned  daily.  The  outside  border  should  have  the  needful  protection 
from  cold  rains,  snow,  and  frost ;  a  covering  of  bracken  or  leaves  with 
litter  on  top,  so  as  to  throw  off  rain,  will  be  considerably  warmer  than 
exposed,  and  in  their  case  covering  with  fermenting  material  may  be 
dispensed  with,  but  a  covering  of  fresh  leaves  so  as  to  raise  gentle 
warmth  is  preferable,  especially  to  those  entirely  outside.  The  inside 
border  should  be  brought  into  a  moist  condition  by  applying  water,  or 
in  the  -case  of  weakly  Vines  liquid  manure.  Avoid  making  the  soil 
sodden  by  needless  waterings,  as  Vines  require  only  moderate  root 
moisture  unill  they  start  into  growth.  Start  with  a  night  temperature 
of  50°  in  severe  weather,  55°  in  mild  weather,  and  65°  by  day,  except 
the  weather  be  severe,  when  55°  will  suffice,  not  exceeding  these 
until  growth  commences.  Maintain  a  genial  atmosphere  by  syringing 
occasionally,  but  avoid  excessive  moisture,  as  it  excites  the  emission 
of  aerial  roots  for  the  rods.  Depress  the  canes  of  young  Vines  to 
the  horizontal  line  or  below  it  to  insure  the  regular  breaking  of  the  buds. 
Early  Muscats. — No  Grapes  pay  so  well  when  properly  grown  as 
very  late  or  early  Muscats.  Black  Muscat,  or  Muscat  Hamburgh,  may 
be  forced  so  as  to  ripen  at  the  end  of  April,  and  the  quality  is  first-tate, 
but  it  is  such  a  bad  setter  as  to  be  very  unsatisfactory.  Madresfield 
Court  is  just  the  opposite,  setting  freely,  or  may  be  made  so  by  careful 
fertilisation,  either  with  its  own  or  pollen  from  another  variety.  It 
also  finishes  well,  being  as  good  in  that  respect  as  Black  Muscat  is  the 
contrary  way  for  producing  red  and  shanked  berries.  There  is  no 
difficulty  in  having  it  ripe  in  May,  and  is  the  better  for  an  inside  border 
and  a  house  to  itself,  as  it  requires  less  water  at  the  roots  and  in  the 
atmosphere  when  ripening.  Muscat  of  Alexandria,  however,  is  still  the 
best  variety  for  forcing  to  ripen  the  fruit  in  May  or  early  in  June,  and 
to  effect  this  must  be  started  without  further  delay.  For  this  purpose 
the  roots  must  be  confined  to  the  inside  borders,  the  soil  of  which 
should  be  brought  into  a  proper  state  of  moisture  by  watering  with 
tepid  water. 
Nutriment  has  a  good  influence  on  the  presence  and  activity  of 
roots,  phosphates  promoting  their  emission,  as  also  does  liquid  manure, 
which  may  be  supplied,  but  not  to  make  the  soil  cold  and  wet. 
Commence  with  a  temperature  of  50°  to  55°  at  night,  60“  to  65°  by 
day,  and  10°  to  15°  rise  from  sun  heat,  sprinkling  the  Vines  in  the 
morning  and  early  afternoon,  damping  the  paths,  walls,  and  borders 
in  preference  to  keeping  the  Vines  constantly  dripping  with  water. 
Young  Vines  that  have  not  been  forced  early  will  require  bending  down 
to  a  horizontal  position  to  insure  even  breaking  down  to  the  base,  but 
old  Vines  may  remain  tied  to  the  trellis,  and  will  usually  break  freely. 
Midseason  Vineries. — Vines  in  midseason  houses  from  which  the 
Grapes  have  been  cut  should  be  pruned,  not  delaying  this  after  the 
leaves  are  all  down.  Any  Grapes  still  hanging  may  be  cut,  placed  in 
bottles  of  clear  rain  water  with  a  piece  of  charcoal  in  each.  The 
Grapes  often  keep  better  that  way  than  on  the  Vines,  as  the  temperature 
of  a  room  from  which  frost  is  excluded  is  more  equable,  and  there  is 
less  danger  of  damping,  than  can  be  commanded  in  a  vinery.  Keeping 
Grapes  hanging  after  they  are  matured  and  the  leaves  fallen  may  not 
prejudicially  affect  the  Vines,  unless  prolonged  to  a  late  period,  but 
there  is  a  sort  of  preparation  for  a  future  growth  going  on  in  the  buds, 
as  the  sap  is  more  or  less  in  circulation,  or  properly  diffusion,  and  there 
is  a  certain  amount  of  waste,  which  cannot  take  place  when  the  Vines 
are  pruned,  as  the  matter  is  then  concentrated  in  the  buds  left.  Prune, 
therefore,  directly  or  shortly  after  the  leaves  are  fallen,  cut  any 
thin-skinned  Grapes,  as  they  do  not  require  the  maturing  so  necessary 
for  such  varieties  as  Gros  Oolman  and  late  thick-skinned  varieties 
generally. 
In  pruning  adhere  to  the  practice  that  has  proved  satisfactory.  If 
the  Vines  are  in  good  condition  they  will  give  sufficiently  large  bunches 
if  pruned  to  a  couple  of  buds,  good  useful  Grapes,  large  in  berry,  and 
perfect  in  finish,  so  essential  for  marketing  or  keeping  the  table  supplied 
with  fresh  fruit  daily.  But  if  larger  bunches  are  required,  or  the  Vines 
from  weakness  or  other  causes  do  not  afford  them  so  large  as  desired, 
leave  more  growth,  only  be  careful  to  select  sound,  round,  well 
developed  buds  on  firm,  well  ripened  wood.  Large  bunches,  especially 
on  early  forced  Vines,  are  indifferent  in  setting,  uneven  in  swelling 
the  berries  and  defective  in  finish ;  aim,  therefore,  at  medium  sized 
bunches,  and  fine  berries  properly  finished.  Vines  that  afforded  well 
perfected  examples  when  pruned  to  one  bud  will  give  a  larger  bunch 
and  of  equal  finish  from  the  second  bud;  but  the  wood  and  buds  of 
Vines  are  greatly  influenced  in  fruitfulness,  and  the  character  of  the 
produce  by  the  soil. 
He  Kitcljen  Garden. 
Forcing  Asparagus. — No  vegetable  is  more  easily  forced  than 
Asparagus.  Breaking  up  an  old  bed  every  winter  is  a  simple  matter, 
but  it  entails  forming  a  new  bed  every  spring,  or  otherwise  there  will 
soon  be  a  breakdown  in  the  supply.  A  gentle  moist  heat,  such  as  that 
generated  by  a  hotbed  formed  of  leaves,  or  leaves  and  stable  manure, 
answers  well,  and  is  desirable  whether  the  forcing  takes  place  in  either 
a  heated  pit  or  a  frame  over  a  bed.  Cover  the  hotbed  with  a  layer  of  short 
manure  or  rich  soil,  and  when  it  is  certain  that  overheating  of  manure 
is  not  likely  to  take  place  introduce  the  Asparagus  plants.  These  should 
have  been  newly  and  carefully  lifted,  and  they  may  be  packed  somewhat 
closely  together  on  the  bed,  spreading  out  the  roots  and  covering  with 
4  inches  of  fine  rich  soil.  A  strong  top  heat  is  undesirable.  From  55° 
to  60°  is  ample,  and  this  means  that  fire  heat  is  not  much  required. 
Cover  unheated  frames  heavily,  and  the  pits  also  should  be  covered 
with  mats  most  of  the  time.  Keep  the  soil  steadily  moist  and  force  ^ut 
every  shoot  from  the  plants  before  throwing  them  away. 
Forcing  Seakale. — Seakale  may  be  forced  where  it  is  grown  by 
means  of  hotbeds  of  manure  or  manure  and  leaves,  taking  the 
precaution  to  cover  the  crowns  with  Seakale  pots  inverted  over  them 
before  banking  with  heating  material.  Enough  of  the  latter  should  be 
used  to  keep  up  a  fairly  brisk  heat,  but  trial  stakes  thrust  into  the 
bed  ought  not  when  drawn  out  and  the  heated  portion  grasped  in  the 
hand  to  feel  uncomfortably  hot.  The  plan  of  forcing  more  often 
followed  is  that  of  lifting  strong  sound  plants,  placing  these,  after 
slightly  shortening  the  roots,  thickly  in  deep  boxes  or  large  pots  of  rich 
soil,  the  forcing  taking  place  in  a  well-heated  house.  Only  well  blanched 
tops  are  acceptable,  and  it  follows  that  either  a  dark  position  must  be 
selected  for  the  pots  or  boxes  of  plants,  or  some  means  of  wholly 
excluding  light  from  them  must  be  adopted. 
Protecting  Seahale. — The  Lily  White  form  of  Seakale  is  not  so  hardy 
as  the  old  purple-tipped  variety,  and  is  liable  to  be  killed  if  unprotected 
during  the  prevalence  of  a  severe  frost.  The  best  way  out  of  the 
difficulty  is  to  lift  all  the  plants  required  for  forcing  as  previously 
advised,  while  any  to  be  saved  for  producing  late  dishes  should  be 
either  moulded  over  or  have  a  ridge  of  soil  placed  over  the  crowns  at 
once. 
Forcing  Rhubarb. — Much  that  was  advanced  concerning  forcing 
Seakale  in  the  open  also  applies  to  Rhubarb.  In  this  instance  large 
extra  deep  pots  or  tubs  with  movable  lids  should  be  inverted  over  them. 
Abundance  of  stalks  can,  however,  be  most  quickly  obtained  by  lifting 
strong  roots  of  early  varieties  and  placing  these  in  a  brisk  heat, 
covering  with  rich  soil,  and  keeping  this  moist.  The  mist  delicately 
flavoured  stalks  are  grown  in  the  dark.  More  clumps  to  afford  a 
successional  supply  of  stalks  may  be  placed  in  a  Mushroom  house. 
Endive. — Fully  grown  plants  of  Endive  are  liable  to  be  seriously 
damaged  by  frost,  and  smaller  plants  are  also  safer  under  cover  of  a 
glazed  frame.  If  the  stronger  plants  are  tied  up  before  moving  with  a 
ball  of  soil  about  the  roots,  and  packed  closely  together  either  in  a  pit, 
frame,  or  on  the  floor  of  a  vinery  at  rest,  a  portion  may  be  left  tied  up 
to  blanch,  and  the  others  be  dealt  with  according  to  requirements. 
Endive  blanches  perfectly  in  a  Mushroom  house,  but  only  a  few  dozen 
full  grown  plants  should  be  introduced  at  a  time,  as  it  does  not  keep 
well  after  being  blanched  under  such  conditions. 
Chicory. — Strong  roots  of  Chicory  packed  somewhat  closely  in  deep 
pots  or  boxes  of  rich  soil,  and  placed  in  a  Mushroom  house  or  other 
dark  moderately  warm  quarters,  quickly  produce  abundance  of  strong 
well  blanched  leaves,  which  are  usually  appreciated  in  winter  salads. 
