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JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
October.!),.  1902. 
Willow,  with  shoots  6in  or  Tin  long,  and  looking  as  healthy 
as  ever  I  wish  to  see  any  plant,  the  sole  survivor  of  my  three- 
dozen  ill-fated  slips ! 
The  next  thing  to  be  considered  was  what  should  I  do 
with  it  ?  Move  it  I  must ;  but  with  the  fate  of  its  companions 
still  fresh  in  my  memory  I  hesitated  about  taking  it  up. 
However,  at  last  I  got  a  large  pot,  drained  it  well,  and  filled 
it  about  half  full  of  good  rich  garden  soil,  mixed  with  a  little 
leaf  mould.  I  then  carefully  dug  out  the  plant,  putting  it 
into  the  pot,  tab  and  all,  taking  particular  care  not  to  injure 
or  disturb  the  roots,  and  kept  it  close  and  warm  for  a  few 
days  until  I  saw  that  it  was  settled,  giving  very  little  Avater. 
Directly  it  began  to  grow  I  placed  it  in  the  hottest  part  of  the 
stove,  where  it  could  have  plenty  of  sun.  It  grew  rapidly, 
filling  the  pot  with  roots  in  the  course  of  the  summer,  and 
forming  a  nice  bushy  tree.  I  kept  it  dry  all  the  winter, 
repotting  it  early  in  spring,  when  it  started  afresh,  growing 
with  great  vigour,  and  in  August  it  bore  three  large  greenish 
flowers. 
Up  to  this  time  I  had  not  the  faintest  idea  what  my  tree 
was  ;  but  one  day,  while  I  Avas  show  ing  my  plants  to  a  gentle¬ 
man  who  had  recently  returned  from  India,  he  exclaimed, 
“  Why,  you  have  got  a  Sweet-Sop  tree  !  ”  and  so  it  was.  My 
cutting  had  turned  out  to  be  the  Anona  squamosa,  or,  as  it  is 
commonly  called  abroad,  the  Sweet-Sop. 
After  this  I  had  much  trouble  with  it,  as  the  fruit  would 
neither  grow  nor  ripen,  dropping  off  soon  after  the  flower  • 
and  for  more  than  two  years,  although  I  obtained  plenty  of 
blossom,  I  did  not  get  anything  else.  At  last,  howTever,  I  hit 
upon  the  plan  of  growing  the  trees  (for  by  this  time  I  had 
several),  in  smaller  pots  and  pooi-er  soil,  and  I  then  had  the 
satisfaction  of  seeing  the  fruit  grow  and  ripen. 
When  ripe  the  fruit  becomes  of  a  yellowish  colour,  and  is 
covered  over  with  large  scales  on  a  thick  rind.  It  is  about 
the  size  of  a  small  Pine  Apple,  and  when  cut  open  is  not 
unlike  one  in  appearance,  only  instead  of  having  a  firm  flesh, 
it  is  filled  with  a  delicious  pulp,  tasting  uncommonly  like 
Strawberries,  or  Raspberries  and  cream,  with  the  creamy 
taste  predominating.  Even  in  this  country,  when  well 
ripened,  the  flavour  is  delightful,  and  I  have  little  doubt  but 
that  in  its  own  it  is  far  better.  The  fragrance  of  the  pulp, 
too,  is  remarkable,  being  like  rosewater,  or  rather  sweeter — 
more  like  the  scent  of  an  old-fashioned  Cabbage  Rose. 
There  are  several  other  species  of  Anona,  cultivated  for 
the  sake  of  their  fruit,  particularly  A.  Cherimolia  and 
A.  muricata.  They  are  all  natives  of  the  tropical  parts  of 
Asia.  Africa,  and  America  ;  but,  as  I  know  little  about  them, 
I  shall  confine  my  remarks  to  the  Sweet-Sop  (A.  squamosa)! 
This  tree,  even  in  its  own  country,  never  grows  above  7ft  or 
8ft  hi?h,  and  here  it  never  exceeds  the  size  of  a  bush.  To 
grow  it  for  fruit  it  should  be  planted  in  a  13in  pot,  and  kept 
plunged  up  to  the  rim  in  a  bark  bed,  as  it  will  not  thrive  with¬ 
out  plenty  of  bottom  heat.  The  soil  should  be  a  good  ordinary 
garden  loam,  not  stiff,  and  by  no  means  rich,  as  if  the  soil  is 
too  good  the  tree  will  flower  but  not  fruit.  Like  the  Mango, 
the  Sweet-Sop  delights  in  a  very  high  temperature,  with 
plenty  of  moisture  when  growing,  and  requires  little  air. 
Indeed,  it  is  best  grown  with  the  Mango  and  Mangosteen, 
and  treated  in  every  respect  as  these  trees  are,  excepting  that 
the  fruit,  requires  thinning  as  soon  as  it  is  fairly  set,  leaving 
no  more  than  ten  or  a  dozen  on  each  tree.  When  ripe  it 
should  be  cut,  although  it  will  hang  for  some  Aveeks  by 
removing  the  trees  into  a  rather  cooler  atmosphere.  Like 
many  other  fruits,  it  is  best  Avhen  gathered  fresh  from  the 
tree. 
At  dessert  the  Sweet-Sop  should  be  divided  into  two  or 
four  parts  lengthivise,  never  across,  a  very  sharp  knife  being 
needed  to  sever  the  thick  rind.  This  must,  however,  be  done 
at  table,  and  not  before  dinner,  or  the  fine  aroma  will  be 
lost.  When  first  opened  one  fruit  will  perceptibly  scent  the 
Avhole  room,  and  for  this  reason,  Avhen  practicable,  the  Sweet- 
Sop  should  always  be  served  along  with  the  Durion,  its 
delightful  oerfume  completely  overpowering  the  disagreeable 
scent  of  that  fruit. 
One  point  must  be  borne  in  mind,  which  is,  that  the 
flavour  of  the  Sweet-Sop  depends  entirely  upon  the  fruit 
being  thoroughly  ripened  in  all  the  sun  possible.  For  this 
very  reason  the  taste  often  varies,  sometimes  being  all  that 
could  be  Avished,  and  at  others  quite  tame  and  insipid,  the 
least  shade  when  ripening  being  quite  fatal  to  flavour. 
The  SAveet-Sop  grows  very  readily  from  either  seeds  or 
cuttings,  but  when  raised  from  seed  it  is  shy  of  floAvering, 
and,  therefore,  in  practice,  the  latter  is  the  best  mode  of 
propagating  it.  Care  must,  however,  be  taken  not  to  give 
the  cuttings  too  much  water,  as  they  are  exceedingly  liable 
to  damp  off  until  well  established.  They  will  not  bear  fruit 
for  two  years. 
The  Sweet-Sop  is  rarely  attacked  by  insects,  and  is  not,  I 
believe,  subject  to  any  disease  ;  it  is  easily  fruited  if  groAvn 
in  a  small  pot,  and  kept  constantly  in  a  high  temoerature  ; 
and,  Avhen  the  exquisite  flavour  of  the  fruit  and  its  delightful 
perfume  are  considered,  I  think  I  shall  not  be  far  out  if  I 
express  the  opinion  that  ere  long  this  luscious  fruit  will  be 
found  in  every  tropical  fruit  stove. — J.  H. 
The  Laclenalia. 
The  season  is  uoav  far  advanced  for  the  planting  and  potting  of 
those  bulbous  plants  intended  to  floAver  next  spring  or  early 
summer,  Avhether  for  the  embellishment  of  the  garden  out  of 
doors  or  the  conservatory  or  greenhouse.  One  of  the  prettiest 
and  most  indispensable  for  the  latter  purpose  is  certainly  the 
Laehenalia.  As  it  is  one  of  the  prettiest,  so  also  is  it  one  of  the 
easiest  to  groAV  successfully. 
The  Laehenalia  is  a  native  of  South  Africa,  and  comes  into 
floAver  at  the  end  of  April,  continuing  to  bloom  well  into  June. 
The  floAvers  are  produced  on  leafless  stems,  in  a  manner  similar  to 
the  English  Bluebell  (Scilla  nutans),  only  the  scapes  are  not 
quite  so  long.  The  colour  of  the  floAvers  A’aries  from  rich  gold  in 
the  varieties  taurica  and  Nelsoni,  to  bright  green,  red,  and  yellow 
in  tricolor.  Each  bulb  will  produce  from  tAvo  to  four  flowers, 
according  to  its  size  and  quality. 
Nelsoni  is  the  handsomest  variety  of  all,  and  Avhere  the  first 
desideratum  is  a  brilliant  show  of  flowers  in  abundance,  there 
only  tricolor  and  Nelsoni  need  be  groAvn.  Bulbs  of  the  tricolor 
species  are  abundant,  and  can  be  bought  at  small  cost.  Nelsoni 
bulbs  are  scarce,  and  command  higher  prices. 
The  compost  that  suits  them  best  is  loam  two  parts,  leaf 
mould  and  decayed  manure  one  part,  river  sand  one  part,  the 
Avhole  well  mixed  and  passed  through  a  half-inch  sieve.  They 
should  be  potted  into  5in  pots.  If  the  bulbs  are  of  good  size,  five 
bulbs  in  a  pot  will  be  sufficient ;  but  if  only  of  second  quality 
seven  or  eight  will  not  be  too  many.  Bulbs  of  various  sizes 
should  never  be  planted  together  in  one  pot,  but  selected  ;  the 
largest  by  themselves,  the  medium  sized  and  small  the  same. 
The  bulbs  should  be  covered  with  the  soil  to  the  depth  of  half 
an  inch,  and  the  soil  should  be  pressed  rather  firmly  over  the 
bulbs.  So  soon  as  the  potting  is  over,  the  pots  should  be  placed 
in  a  cold  pit  on  a  floor  of  ashes,  on  which  a  little  quicklime  has 
been  sprinkled  to  prevent  worms  getting  into  the  pots.  The  soil 
in  the  pots  should  now  receive  a  good  soaking  of  Avater,  and  no 
Avater  must  afterwards  be  given  until  the  young  growth  appears 
on  the  surface,  and  this  will  be  in  about  a  month  or  six  Aveeks 
after  potting.  The  days  will  noAv  be  shorter  and  colder,  and  the 
plants  must  be  remoA'ed  to  another  pit  or  some  other  structure 
from  which  frost  is  excluded ;  but  the  young  plants  should  not 
at  any  time  be  subjected  to  artificial  heat,  and  should  during  the 
winter  occupy  a  position  near  the  glass,  Avhere  they  may  enjoy 
abundance  of  cool  air,  protected  only  from  frost. 
GroAvth  will  make  good  progress  during  the  autumn  and 
winter,  and  the  plants  should  be  encouraged  by  careful  Avatering 
to  form  strong  plants  by  the  spring.  The  floAver  scapes  will 
appear  during  the  month  of  April  or  May,  and  a  little  artificial 
manure  sparingly  applied  at  this  time  renders  useful  help  in 
developing  the  size  and  brilliancy  of  the  floAvers.  Liquid  manure 
from  the  farmyard  is  the  best  to  use,  and  should  be  applied  in  a 
weak  state,  and  not  oftener  than  twice  or  three  times  a  Aveek. 
The  best  position  for  them  to  develop  their  flowers  in  is  a 
shelf  in  a  greenhouse  close  to  the  glass,  Avhere  they  can  have 
abundance  of  air.  So  soon  as  the  flowers  are  fully  developed, 
manure  Avater  must  be  withheld,  and  the  plants  arranged  in  a 
cool  and  airy  place  in  the  conservatory,  AA'liere  their  pretty  and 
brilliant  blooms  will  help  to  make  this  house  gay  and  interesting 
for  a  matter  of  five  or  six  weeks.  After  the  flowers  are  over, 
Avater  should  be  given  more  sparingly  until  the  foliage  decays, 
when  the  pots  may  be  placed  on  their  sides  in  a  cool  place  until 
the  bulbs  are  aga:n  wanted  for  potting  in  August.- — Oaven 
Thomas. 
