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JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER, 
December  10,  1903. 
Profitable  Varieties  of  Bush  Apples. 
[Continued  from  page  517.) 
A  comparatively  new  Apple,  though  still  outside  the  thirty 
year  limit  previously  mentioned,  is  Lord  Burghley,  which  was 
raised  in  the  gardens  of  the  Marquis  of  Exeter  at  Burghley,  near 
Stamford,  and  first  fruited  in  18(t5.  The  fruit  is  of  medium  size, 
golden  yellow  ivitli  red  on  one  side,  and  is  slightly  angular.  It 
is  very  tender  and  juicy,  with  somewhat  of  a  Pine  flavour.  It  is 
a  sturdy  upright  grower,  though  it  does  not  make  a  very  large 
tree;  in  fact,  is  said  to  be  unsuitable  for  standards.  It  has 
received  a  First-class  Certificate  from  the  Royal  Horticultural 
Society,  but  is  not  very  widely  grown  yet,  not  haying  been 
boomed  like  some,  and  is  not  so  frequently  seen  on  the  exhibi¬ 
tion  table  as  one  would  expect,  considering  that  it  is  both  hand¬ 
some,  good,  and  prolific.  It  is  in  season  from  January  to  May, 
and  should  be  allowed  to  hang  late  like  Stunner  Pippin.  The 
later  it  hangs  the  firmer  in  texture,  and  consequently  juicier,  it 
will  be  in  the  spring,  ivlien  it  is  much  appreciated.  I  may  seem 
to  be  departing  from  the  opinions  expressed  above  in  advocating 
a  comparatively  new  Apple;  but  this  is  one  I  am  growing  myself, 
and  I  am  very  pleased  with  it.  A  writer  in  one  of  the  gardening 
papers  lately  asked  why  people  grew  the  small  Old  Nonpareil, 
when  there  were  such  Apples  as  Stunner  Pippin,  Lord  Burghley, 
and  Duke  of  Devonshire,  all  as  good  in  flavour,  as  firm  in  texture, 
and  as  late  or  later,  with  the  great  advantage  of  being  consider¬ 
ably  larger. 
Adams’  Pearmain. 
As  a  contrast  to  the  recent  origin  of  Lord  Burghley  may  be 
mentioned  Adams’  Pearmain.  It  is  of  real  Pearmain  shape,  that 
is,  smaller  at  the  top  that  at  the  stalk.  The  tenn  Peannain, 
which  is  applied  to  so  many  Apples,  is  said  to  be  from  the  Latin 
words  Pyrus  magna  (great  Pear),  because  the  shape  bears 
some  resemblance  to  an  inverted  Pear.  It  is  a  handsome  scarlet 
fruit  when  it  gets  enough  sun.  Of  fine  flavour,  and  a  good  addi¬ 
tion  to  the  Christmas  dessert,  lasting  well  into  the  .spring.  At 
Covent  Garden  I  have  seen  it  selling  at  10s.  a  bsuhel  in  March 
and  April.  The  growth  is  slender  and  upright,  and  forms  a  most 
prolific  bush,  bearing  fruit  at  two  or  thr^  years  old.  It  has 
peculiar  spoon-shaped  leaves,  Avhich  make  it  easily  recognisable 
even  without  fruit  upon  it.  It  .should  be  only  lightly  pruned. 
Feabn’s  Pippin. 
I  will  now  mention  two  Apples  that  are  equally  good  for 
dessert  or  culinary  purpo,ses.  One  is  Fearn’s  Pippin,  a  bright  red 
Apple  of  medium  size,  a  compact  upright  grower,  and  abundant 
bearer.  Its  beautiful  colour  and  medium  size  proclaim  it  essenti¬ 
ally  a  dessert  Apple.  Its  good  looks  cause  it  to  be  one  of  the 
most  popular  Apples  in  the  .streets  of  London,  where  it  is,  how¬ 
ever,  of  nothing  like  the  flavour  it  is  when  allowed  to  mature  on 
the  tree  and  then  properly  .stored.  It  is  at  its  best  in  January  or 
February,  when  it  is  brisk  and  refreshing,  getting  sweeter  later. 
It  may  be  given  a  couple  of  feet  less  space  than  the  other  double 
purpose  Apple,  namely,  Dutch  Mignonne. 
Dutch  Mignonne. 
This,  though  compact,  is  much  branched  and  spreading  in 
its  growth,  instead  of  upright  like  the  preceding.  The  tree  is 
quite  remarkable  for  the  thickness  with  which  the  shoots  are  set 
with  fruit-buds,  and  I  have  seen  trees  litei-ally  so  clothed  with 
fruit  that  scarcely  any  wood  could  be  seen,  except  the  stem. 
The  fruit  is  rather  large  if  not  too  thick,  handsome,  very  hard, 
and  good  for  dessert  in  some  seasons  until  May.  Dr.  Hogg  says : 
“  It  is  a  very  valuable  and  delicious  dessert  Apple,  well  adapted 
for  dwarf  or  espalier  training.” 
Stirling  Castle. 
In  addition  to  the.s6  two  double-purpose  Apples,  three  purely 
cooking  Apples  must  be  given.  The  first  is  Stirling  Castle,  so 
called  because  it  was  raised  at  Stirling  about  1830.  It  is  a  fairly 
large  Apple,  at  its  best  in  October  or  early  November,  and  is  an 
enormous  bearer — ^so  much  so,  in  fact,  that  on  the  Paradise  it 
does  not  make  sufiicient  growth,  and  should  in  consequence  be 
grown  on  the  Crab  stock.  Even  then  it  needs  liberal  treatment 
to  perfect  its  heavy  crop,  as  there  is  no  fear  of  its  ever  growing 
too  strong.  Early  in  the  season  it  is  beautifully  crisp  and  acid, 
and  if  an  Apple  is  wanted  in  September  to  mix  with  Blackberries 
or  Plums  for  preserving,  none  more  suitable  could  be  selected. 
Lane’s  Prince  Albert 
is  another,  it  may  almost  be  said,  immoderate  bearer,  and  for  that 
reason  should  be  on  the  Crab  .stock.  It  is  a  large  Apple,  perfectly 
round,  and  is  good  till  April,  in  which  month  it  is  vei*y  fair  for 
dessert  if  well  matured  in  the  autumn.  Dr.  Hogg  desci'ibes  it 
as  “  A  marvellous  bearer.”  It  is  a  curious  instance  of  an  Apple 
being  neglected  for  many  years  and  then  discovered,  as  this 
Apple  was  rai.sed  by  Messrs.  Lane  and  Son,  of  Berkhampstead, 
and  fir.st  exhibited  in  1857.  This  and  the  preceding  variety  will, 
if  liberally  treated,  give  the  largest  quantity  of  Apples  off  a 
given  space  of  ground.  Both  often  need  thinning  to  get  large 
fruit,  both  have  a  rather  pendulous  habit  of  growtli,  and  this  is 
intensified  by  the  great  iveight  of  fruit  the  branches  bear.  On 
this  account  what  little  pruning  either  of  these  two  varieties 
need  should  be  to  a  bud  pointing  upwards,  soi  as  to  counteract  in 
some  small  measure  the  drooping  tendency.  These  two  varieties 
alone  are  sufiicient  to  supply  the  kitchen  for  the  autumn,  winter, 
and  early  spring,  Stirling  Castle  being  ready  for  use  the  begin¬ 
ning  of  September,  or  earlier,  and  Prince  Albert  lasting  almo.st 
to  May. — A.  Petts. 
Cordon  Gooseberries  and  Currants. 
Red  Currants  and  Gooseberries  are  such  prolific  and  regular 
cropping  fruits  that  no  private  garden  should  be  without  them, 
and,  indeed,  there  are  but  few  in  wdiicli  they  are  not  grown.  The 
bush  form  of  growing  both  is  the  one  usually  adopted,  and  excel¬ 
lent  results  are  undoubtedly  obtained  from  that  form  of  tree, 
but  under  some  circumstances  cordon  trees  have  sO'  many 
advantages  that  I  wish  to  draw'  particular  attention  to  their 
merits,  without  in  any  way  deprecating  the  value  of  bushes. 
In  some  gardens  very  little  room  can  be  spared  for  Goose¬ 
berries  and  C'urrants,  and  in  such  cases  I  unhesitatingly  say  that 
cordons  are  a  real  boon,  because  by  their  use  a  number  of 
varieties  can  be  growm  in  a  limited  space ;  and  it  is  an  open 
question  whether  or  not  a  greater  amount  of  fruit  can  be 
obtained  from  a  given  area  by  employing  cordons  than  by  plant¬ 
ing  any  other  form  of  tree.  Pences  formed  of  Gooseberries  and 
Currants  also  make  admirable  screens,  and  comsidering  how 
frequently  it  is  necessary,  even  in  a  moderate-sized  garden,  to 
break  up  the  space  into  numerous  divisions,  there  are  certainly 
hosts  of  opportunities  of  turning  cordons  to  good  account. 
Where  north  or  west  walls  can  be  spared  for  the  purpose,  splen¬ 
did  crops  of  fruit  can  be  grown  upon  them,  wdiicli,  if  netted, 
may  be  kept  very  late,  and  at  all  times  fruit  grown  on  cordons 
can  be  more  easily  protected  from  birds  than  when  grown  on 
bushes. 
To  my  mind  one  of  the  greatest  blemishes  to  be  seen  in 
connection  with  allotments  is  the  irregularity  in  wdiich  bush 
fruits  are  dotted  about  with  a  total  disregard  for  order,  and  in 
such  cases  -a  few  lines  of  cordon  trees  would  certainly  look  much 
better,  and  also  be  capable  of  producing  a  greater  weight  of 
fruit  without  impeding  the  performance  of  w’ork  connected  with 
vegetable  growdng. 
Fences  five  feet  in  height  an.sw'er  admirably,  and  it  is  not  a 
very  expensive  business  to  erect  these  ivith  iron  uprights  and 
galvanised  wires,  although  a  cheaper  fence  can  be  formed  by 
using  wood  and  wire.  In  all  instances  one  foot  apart  ansivers 
for  the  wires. 
Before  planting,  the  soil  should,  of  course,  be  trenched ;  and 
if  it  is  deep  and  rich,  no  dung  should  be  given,  as  it  w’ill  only 
tend  to  make  trees  grow  very  strongly.  Basic  slag  or  super¬ 
phosphate  may,  however,  with  advantage  be  mixed  with  the 
upper  spit  at  the  rate  of  6ozs  per  yard.  On  poor  soils  I  cer¬ 
tainly  recommend  that  some  w'ell-decayed  manure  be  incor¬ 
porated  with  the  lower  strata,  and  the  surface  be  mulched  after 
planting. 
For  Gooseberries,  I  prefer  single  to  double  cordons.  Tw’o 
year  old  trees  answ'er  well,  and  these  should  be  planted  one  foot 
asunder.  Avoid  planting  when  the  soil  is  wet,  and  tread  it 
firmly.  Early  in  spring,  cut  the  side  shoots  to  within  one  bud 
of  their  base,  and  shorten  the  central  one  by  a  half  or  one-third 
its  length,  according  to  the  strength  of  each.  The  subsequent 
management  is  c^uite  simple,  and  consi.sts  of  pinching  the  side 
shoots  at  the  fourth  or  fifth  leaf  in  summer,  and  cutting  back 
to  two  eyes  at  the  spring  pruning.  The  central  leader  needs 
only  an  inch  or  twm  removed  at  the  point  each  year,  unless  it  is 
weak  and  thin,  then  harder  pruning  must  be  practised  until 
vigour  is  secured.  When  the  upper  wire  is  reached  treat  the 
leader  exactly  the  same  as  the  side  shoots. 
Double  cordons  answer  better  than  single  ones  for  Currants, 
for  when  they  are  growm  in  the  latter  form,  on  deep,  rich  .soils, 
they  often  groiv  too  strongly  to  be  fruitful.  What  the  Red 
Currant  delights  in  is  a  soil  freely  intermixed  with  stones.  Its 
roots  are  then  very  fibrous,  the  growth  made  is  sturdy  and 
fruitful,  and  wdien  heavy  crops  are  grown,  plenty  of  feeding  may 
be  given  without  fear  of  strong,  unfruitful  wood  as  a  result. 
Those  wdio  have  deep  soils,  and  find  their  Red  Currants  inclined 
to  grow'  too  strongly,  should  try  the  effect  of  a  heavy  dressing  of 
basic  slag. 
W’ith  regard  to  pruning,  the  cordon  Currant  should  be  treated 
in  a  similar  way  to  that  de.scribed  above  for  Gooseberries,  with, 
this  exception — the  leaders  usually  require  a  little  more  .shorten¬ 
ing  to  induce  them  to  send  out  plenty  of  side  shoots  to  form 
spurs.  The  double  cordons  .should,  of  cour.se,  be  planted  2ft 
apart,  and  the  followung  are  excellent  varieties  to  plant: — 
Gooseberries. — Bed:  Crown  Bob,  Keen’s  Seedling,  Lancashire 
