ALBERT R. MANN LIBRARY New York State Colleges OF Agriculture and Home Economics Cornell University Cornell University Library SB 453.L89 1860 The horticulturist; or, An attempt to tea 3 1924 002 832 552 Cornell University Library The original of tiiis book is in tine Cornell University Library. There are no known copyright restrictions in the United States on the use of the text. http://www.archive.org/details/cu31924002832552 THE HORTICULTURIST OB, AN ATTEMPT TO TEACH THE SCIENCE AND PEACTICE OP ^tK €ttltttt^ antf Msinaqtrntnt THE KITCHEN, ERUIT, AND EORCING GARDEN THOSE WHO HAVE HAD NO PREVIOUS KNOWLEDGE OR PRACTICE IN THESE DEPARTMENTS OP GARDENING. J^cftoUDON, P.L.S., F.H.S., fee, AUTHOB OF "THE VILLA aABDENEE," "THE ENCYCLOPEDIA OP COTTAGE, FARM, ANn TILLA ABCHITBCTIJEE/ . " ENOTCLOPiEDIA 01' GABDEKDfO," ETC. ETC. NEW EDITION. ILLUSTRATED WITH NUMEROUS ENGRAVINGS ON WOOD. LONDON : HENET a. BOHN, TOEK STEEET. COVE]N"T GAEDEN. MDCCCLI. PREFACE. The present work is the same as that published by Mr. Loudon, shortly before his death, under the name of The Suburban Horticulturist; the title having been changed under the impression that it was too limited for the scope of the work. He considered it, as he states in his original Preface, " as by far the best Treatise on the culture of the Fruit and Kitchen Garden" which had ever "been produced by his pen." He adds that he had "bestowed more than common care in compiling it;" and that in so doing he had "had the inestimable advantage of being assisted by Mr. Thompson, the superintendent of the fruit and culinary departments in the Horticultural Society^s Garden," by whom the fruits and culinary vegetables have either been selected, or approved of. Mr. Loudon also had the assistance of Mr. Ogle, gardener to the Earl of Abergavenny, at Bridge Castle, who prepared the Calendarial and General Indices; of the late Mr. Lymburn; and of several other practical gardeners. The important note at p. 706, on the subject of charcoal, and the use of rough, turfy, rooty soil, and on small stones in potting plants, was furnished by Mr. Barnes, gardener to Lady RoUe, at Bicton Gardens, for the Gardener's Magazine. IV PREFACE. The companion volume, formerly published by Messrs. Longman and Co. as " The Suburban Gardener," has since been reprinted, uniform with the present work, and much improved, under the title of " The Villa Gardener." This work embraces the whole subject of Villa and Suburban Gardens and pleasure grounds ; garden structures (particularly of orna- mental greenhouses, a number of designs for which have been made expressly for this edition) ; laying out flower gardens, and floriculture in general ; and the two volumes will be found to contain together a complete system of garden culture and arrangement. In the present edition only such corrections and additions have been made as were absolutely necessary to bring the work up to the state of gardening knowledge at the present day. J. W. L. CONTENTS. Names op the Fruits and Culinary Vegetables cultivaxed in British Gardens, in different lansuages, &c. . . xxiv List op Engravings . ... xxviii Introduction . . . . . . .1 PART I. Facts relative to Plants, the Soil, Manures, the Atmosphere, &c., ON which Horticulture is founded . . .2 CHAPTER I. Plants ooksidered with ilefbrence to their Culture in Gardens 2 Sect. I. — The Analogy between Plants and Animals, considered with reference to Horticulture . . . . .2 Sect. II. — Classification of Plants, with a View to Horticulture 22. E'xogens. 23. E'ndogens. 24. A'crogens. 28. Thalamiflora. 29. Ranunculaoeae. iiO. Cruciferse. 31. Malvaceae 32. Geraniaceee 33. Magnolikceaj, bcc. 34. Calyciflorae. 35. Leguminosee. 36. RosaceEB. 37. Umbellaceae. 38. Compdsitae. 39. Ericaceae. 40. Rhamniceae. &c. 40. CoroUiflbrEe. 41. Scrophulariacese. 42. Labiaoese. i3 Epacridacese, &c. 44. MGQOchlamydeae. 45. Amentkcese. 48. Coot ferae. 47. Plantaginese, &c. 48. E'ndogens. 49. OrchidKceie. SO. Scitamiaacese. 51. IridacesD. 52. AmaryllidkcesB. 53. Liliacese. 54, Palmacese. 55. Gramin^ceaa. 56. Alismacese, &c. 57. A'crogens 58. FiUces. 59. Miisci. 60. Lichenes. 61. A'lgae. 62. Fuugi. 63. EquisetaceEc. 66. Evergreens. 67. Subevergreens. 68. Persistent- leaved plants. 69. Deciduous-leaved plants. 70. Ligneous plants. 71. Suf&uticose plants. 72. Trees. 73. Shrubs. Sect. III. — Nomenclature of Plaids with a view to Horticulture . 19 Sect. IV. — Structure of Plants with a view to Horticulture . . 20 80. Elementary organs. 81. Compound organs. 82. The root. 83. The stfim. 85. The barjj. 86. The medullary rays or plates. 89. Nodi. 90. Buds. 91. Leaves. 92. Hairs. 93. Flower-buds. 94. Inflorescence. 95. The floral envelope. 96. The sexes of plants. 97. The ovulum. 98. The fruit. 100. The seed. Sect. V. — Functions of Plants with reference to Horticulture . 24 102. Germination. 103. Growth. 105. The stem. 109. Wood. 111. The bark. 113. Leaves. 115. Buds. 126. The Flowers. 129. The sexes. 130. The fruit. Sect. VI. — The Geographical Distribution of Plants, and their sta- tions and habitations, with reference to their Culture in Gardens S7 135. Temperature. 140. Physical circumstances. 142, Stations. 143. Light. 144. Water. 145. Soil. 146. Soils formed by particular rocks. 147. Atmosphere. 148. Stations. 150. The habitations of plants. TX CONTENTS. CHAPTER II. PAOB Soils considered with reference to HoRTicuXiTURE . . .45 Sect. I. — Origin and Kinds of Soils . . . .46 153. Sandy soil. 15S. Clayey soil. 156. Lime. 157. Magnesia. 158. Iron. 159. Alluvial soils. 160. Peat. 161. Organic matter. 162, Loose naked sands or gravels. 163. Calcareous soils or gravels. 164. Loams. 165. Loams are the best soils. 166. Texture. 167. Subsoils. 168. The surface of soils. 169. The plants which grow on a soil. Skot. II. — The Impi-ovement of Soils, with a view to Horticulture . 61 171. Draining. 172. Altering the texture and composition of soil. 173. Changing the inclination of the surface of soils. 174. Burning of soils. 175. Pulverising soils. 177. Rotation of crops. CHAPTER III. Manitres considered with reference to Horticulture . . 56 Sect. I. — Organic Manures . . . . .56 181. Fresh and tender vegetables. 182. Spent tanner's bark. 183. Peat soil. 184. Principal vegetable manures. 185. Animal manures. 186. Excrementitious manures. 189. Bones. 190. Yegeto-animal manures. Sect. II. — Inorganic Manures . . , .60 194. Lime. 195. Mild-lime. 197. Carbonate of lime, or chahc. 198. Marl. 199. Gypsum. 200. Sea shells. 201. The rationale of the action of lime. 202. The most important uses of lime. 203. Lime compost, 204. Saltpetre. 205. Common salt. Sect. III. — Mixed Manures . • . . .64 207. Coal ashes. 208. Vegetable ashes. 209. Soot. 210. Street manure. 211. Composts. 212. Mixed manure in a liquid state, 213. Application of manures. CHAPTER IV. The Atmosphere considered with reference to Horticulture . 67 Sect. I. — Seat, considered with reference to Horticulture . . 67 219. Conduction of heat. 220. Radiation. 223. Dew, or hoar-frost. 224. Dew is never formed upon metals. 225. The formation of dew. 226. The effects of radiation. 227. Refrigeration. 228. Protecting plants. 229. The secondary effect which radiation has upon the climate. 230. The influence of hills upon the nightly {emperature of the valleys. 231. Exalting the powers of the climate. 232. Houses for growing the plants of warm climates. 234. Increasing the heat of the atmosphere and the soil. 235. Frost. 236. Straw mats, bast mats, cloth, wool, or wood. 237. Wall trees. 238. Tender shrubs and trees. 239. A stream or river. 240. Watering. 241. Conclusions. Sect. II. — Atmospheric Moisture, considered with reference to Horti- culture •..;..... 76 242. Existence of water in air. 243. Hygrometers. 244. Their utility. 245. Evaporation. 249. Vapour. 250. Rain. 251. Moisture of the free atmosphere. 252. Artificial climates unnaturally dry. 253. Drain of moisture. 255. Dryness of the atmosphere of hothouses. 256. Coolers of wet porous earthenware. 257. Plants in living rooms, CONTENTS. Vll Sect. II. — Atmospliefic Muutare, considered with refeiance to Horti- culture — continued. p^uk 258. Absorbent function. 2.59. A strict attention to the atmosphere. 260. Tropical plants. 261. The heat of the glass of a hothouse at night. 262. The skilful balancing of the temperature and moisture. Sect. III. — The Agitation of the Atmosphere considered with refer- ence to Horticulture ....... 83 2G3. Motion. 264. Perspiration. 265. Shelter. 266. Agitation of the air in plant structures. 267. To heat the air before it is admitted among the plants. 268. Effect on the human feelings, 269. The im- pression of an atmosphere saturated with moisture. 270. Mr. Penn's method of warming and ventilating. 271. Heating by pipes in the ordinary manner. 272. Greenhouses. 273. Pits and cucumber-frames, 274. Change of air and ventilation. 275. The climate, during the growing season. 276. Ventilators. 277. General principle. Sect. IV. — Light, considered with reference to Horticulture . . BS 279. Light follows the same laws as heat. 280. Radiation of light. 281. Transmitted. 282. Refracted. 283. Disperses. 284. Perpen- dicular light. 285. The efficiency of light. 286. A due proportion between light and heat. 287. Absence of light. CHAPTER V. WcitMS, Snails, Slugs, Reptiles, Birds, &c., consiueked with REFERENCE TO HORTICULTURE . . . . .93 Sect. I. — The Earth-worm, considered with reference to Horticulture 94 290. Lumbricus terrdstris. 293. Natural uses. 294. Injury Sect. II. — Snails and Slugs, considered with reference to Hortiaulture 98 297. Helix asp^rsa, and H. nemoralis. 298. Slugs. 299. Snails and slugs. 300. Snails and slugs are hermaphrodite and oviparous. 301. Natural uses of the snail. 302. Retires. 303. To destroy snails. 304. To destroy slugs. Sect. III. — Insects, considered with reference to Horticulture . . 99 SuBSECT. I Of the Nature of Insects^ and their Classification . . 99 306. Insects. 307. Winged insects. 308. Insects without wings. 309. Crabs and spiders. 310. Arrangement here given. SuBSECT. II. — Transformation of Insects ..... . 101 311. Eggs, 312. Larvse. 313. Nymphae or pupse. 314. Perfect insect. Subsect. III. — Food of Insects , 102 315, Nourishment. 316. Roots, stem, and branches. 317. Fo- liage. 318. Flowers. 319. Number. 320. Food. 322. Transforma- tion. 323. Gluttonous. 324. No nourishment. 325. Eat Subsect. IV. — Distribution and Habits of Insects . . . .104 326. Distribution. 327. Water. 328. Land insects. 329, Other animals, Subsect, V. — Uses nf Insects 105 332, Uses, 333. Medicine. 334. Insects destroyed by other in- sects. 335. Consume dead animal substances. Subsect. VI Means contrived by Nature to limit the Multiplication of insects ,.......« . , , 105 336. Continued rain. 337. Late frosts. 338. Inundations. 339. Enemies. 340. Insectivorous Mammalia. 341. Birds. 342. Wood- lU CONTENTS. Sect. III. — Insects, considered with reference to Horticulture — continued. '■'■'>' pecker race. 343. Sparrow tribe. 344. Cuckoo. 345. Crows. 346. Insectivorous birds, sometitoes granivorous. 347. Amphibious ani- mals. 348. Equilibrium. 349. Beetles. 350. Ichneumdnida;. 351. Ants, and field or tree bugs. SuBSECT. VII. — Means devised hy Art for arresting the Progress o} Insects in Gardens^ or of destroying them there .... 1^° 352. Insects may be destroyed in all their different stages. 353. De- terring the perfect insect. 354. Preventing the perfect insect from laying its eggs. 356. Catching the perfect insect. 356. Destroy- ing the perfect insect. 357. Luring away the perfect insect. 358. Col- lecting the eggs of insects. 359. Preventing eggs from being hatched. 360. Collecting or destroying larvae. 361. Collecting the pupa, or chrysalids. Sect. IV. — Amphibious Animals, considered with reference to Hor- ticulture ........•• 11"* Sect. V. — Birds, considered with reference to Horticulture . .115 364. Raptores (seizers). Insessores (perchers). 367. Rasores (scratchers). 368. Grallatores (waders). 369.Natat6res (swimmers). 370. ThedifFerentmodesof deterring birds. 371. Thedestructionof birds. Sect. VI. — The smaller Quadrupeds, considered with reference to Horticulture . . . . . .. . . ■ 120 .372. FeriE (wild beasts). 373. Glires (dormice). 374. Ungulata (hoofed animals). CHAPTER VI. Diseases and Accidents op Plants, considered with refek- ENCE to Horticulture ... .... 123 375. Canker. 376. To prevent canker. 377. Cure. 378. Gum. 379. Mildew. 380. Honey-dew. 381. Blight. 382. Flux of juices, 383. Accidents. 384. Otlier plant diseases. PART II. Implements, Structures, and Operations op Horticulture . 127 CHAPTER I. Implements op Horticulture . . . . . . . 127 385. Tools, instruments, utensils, machines, and other articles. Sect. I. — General Observations on the construction and uies of the Implements used in Horticulture ...... 128 387. The mechanical principles on which they act. 388. Construc- tion of implements. 389. Repairs. Sect. II. — Tools used in Horticulture . . . . . , 129 390. The common lever. 391. Perforators. 392. The dibber. 393. Picks. 394. Draw-hoes. 396. Scrapers. 396. Thrust-hoes. 397. Spades. 398, Turf-spades. 399. Turf-racers, 400. The trowel and the spud. 401. Transplanters. 402. Forks. 403. Rakes. 404. Besoms, 405, Beetles and rammers, 406. The mallet. 407. The garden hammer. 408. The garden pincers. CONTENTS. IX PAGfc Sect. HI. — Instruments usedin Horticulture . . , 137 409. Garden knives. 410. Bill-knives, or hedge-bills. 411. Prun- ing-saws. 412. Piuning-chisels. 413. Shears. 414. The axe. 415. Verge shears. 416. Grass shears. 417. The short grass scythe. 418. Other instruments. 419. Chests of tools, and instruments. Sect. IV. — Utensils used in Horticulture . . . . . 142 420. Earthenware pots for plants. 421. Porosity. 422. Earthen- ware saucers for pots. 423. Rectangular boxes. 424. Wooden tubs. 425. Watering-pots. 426. Money's inverted rose watei'ing-pot. 427. Sieves and screens. 428. Carrying utensils. 429. Baskets. 430. Basket-making. 431. Carrying-baskets. 432. Measuring-baskets. 433. Baskets for growing plants. 434. Portable glass utensils. 435. Sub- stitute for bell glasses. 436. Powdering boxes. 437. Other utensils. Sect. V. — Machines used in Horticulture . . , . 15'J 438. Wheelbarrows for gardens. 43i). Rollers. 440. The watering engines. 441. Garden bellows. 442. The mowing-machine. 443. Other machines. Sect. VI. — Miscellaneous articles used in Horticulture . . . 158 444. Articles for protection. 445. Mats of straw or reeds. 446. Wooden shutters. 447. Asphalte covers. 448. Oiled paper frames. 449. Oiled paper caps. 450. Wicker-work hurdles. 451. Props for plants. 452. The durability of wooden props. 453. Garden tallies and labels. 454. Nails, lists, and ties. 455. The garden line. 456. Ladders. 457. A levelling instrument. 458. Thermometers. 459. A hydrometer. 460. Other articles. CHAPTER II. Structubes and Edifices of Horticulture .... I7l Sect. I. — Portable, Temporary, and Movable Structures . . . 171 461. Wicker-work structures. 462. Portable substitutes for hand- glasses. 463. Canvas coverings. 464. Canvas shades to hothouses. 465. The common hotbed frame. Sect. II. — Fixed Structures used in Horticulture . . . 176 SuBSECT. I. — Walls, Espalier rails, and Trellis work . . . . 176 466. Walls. 467. Direction and material. 468. The materials of walls. 469. The height of garden walls. 470. The foundations. 471. The copings of walls. 472. On the construction of walls. 473. Trel- lised walls. 474. Colouring the surface of walls black. 475. Flued walls. 476. Conservatory walls. 477. A substitute for a wall of brick. 478. Espalier rails. 479. Trellises and lattice-work. SuBSECT, II. — Fixed Structures for growing Plants with Glass roofs 187 480. Plant houses. 481. Situation. 482. The form. 483. Cur- vilineal roofs. 484. Ridge and furrow roofs. 485. Materials. 486. The law of the reflection of light from glass. 487. Iron roofs. 488. Heat. 489. Fermenting substances. 490. Fermenting materials and fire heat combined. 491. Heating from vaults, or from stacks of flues. 492. Flues. 493. The best materials for building flues. 494. The furnace. 495. On substitutps for smoke flues. 496. Steam. 497. Hot water. 498. The modes of heating by hot water. 499. A reser- voir of heat. 500. The pipes. 501. The situation in which the pipes are placed. 502. The boiler. 503. The furnace. 504. Rogers's co- nical boiler and hot-water apparatus. 505. Rain-water. 506. To pre- vent the water in the apparatus from freezing. 507. Open gutters. 508. Retaining heat by coverings. 509. Atmospheric moisture. 510. Steaming. 511. Ventilation. 512. The agitation. 513. Light. 513. Water. 514. The difi'erent kinds of fixed structures for plants. 515. X CONTENTS. Sect. II. — Fixed structures used in Horticulture — continued. fjoe Pits. 516. The greenhouse. 517. The orangery. 518. The conser- vatory. 519. Botanic stoves. 520. The pine stove. 521. Forcing- houses. 522. A plant structure for all or any of the above purposes. SuBSECT. III. — Edifices used in Horticulture ..... 224 523. Gardener's house. 524, Journeyman gardener's lodge. 525. The fruit-room. 526. Seed-room. 527. Root-cellar, and other con- veniences. 528. Tool-house. 529. Open sheds. CHAPTER III. Operations of Horticulture ....... 227 Sect. I. — Horticultural Labours ....... 227 SuBSECT. I. — Horticultural Labours on the Soil .... 227 631. Object of labours on the soil. 532. Marlcing with the garden line. 533. Digging. 534. Trenching. 535. Trenching ground that is to be cropped with culinary vegetables. 536. Operation of trenching. 537. Forking soil. 538. Hoeing. 539. Raking. 540. Rolling. 541. Screening or lifting. 542. Other labours on the soil. SuBSECT. II. — Garden Labours with Plants ..... 235 544. Sawing. 545. Cutting. 546. Clipping. 547. Clipping hedges. 548. Mowing. 549. Weeding. 550. Other labours with plants. Sect. II. — Operations of Culture ...... 239 SuBSECT. I. — Propagation ....,,., 239 § 1. On Propagation by Seed . . ..... 240 552. The seed. 553. Process of germination. 554. The period neces- sary to complete the process of germination. 555. The quantity of moisture most favourable to germination. 556. The water requi- site to cause old seeds to germinate. 557. The depth to which a seed is buried in the soil. 558. The degree of heat most favourable for the germination of seeds. 559. The degree of heat which the seeds of plants will endure. 560. The degree of cold which seeds will endure. 561. Atmospheric air. 562. The influence of light. 563. Accelerating the germination of seeds. 564. Various experiments have been made to accelerate germination. 565. Electricity and alkalies as stimu- lants to vegetation. 566. The length of time during which seeds retain their vitality. 567. The length of time that seeds wiU lie in the ground without growing. 568. The season for sowing seeds. 669. The mechanical process of sowing. 570. Sowing seeds in pow- dered charcoal. 571. Sowing seeds in snow. 572. The discoveries daily making in chemical science. § 2. — On Propagation by Cuttings 249 573. A cutting. 574. Selecting plants from which the cuttings are to be taken. 675. Selecting the shoot. 576. Shoots which have formed blossom-buds. 577. As general rules. 578. The time of taking off cuttings. 579. Preparation of the cutting. 580. The number of leaves which are left on the cutting. 581. Taking off a cutting. 582. Treatment of cuttings from the time they are made till they are planted. 583 Cuttings of succulent or fleshy plants 584. The soil in which cuttings are planted. 585. The depth. 686. Planting cuttings. 587. The distance at which cuttings are planted. 588. After-treatment of cuttings. 589. The most proper form of bell-glass for covering cuttings. 590. Watering cuttings. 691. The temperature most suitable for cuttings. 592. Cuttings of hardy deciduous trees and shrubs. 593. Cuttings of hardy evergreens. 594. Cuttings of all the Coniferse and Taxacese. 595. Cuttings of hardy or half-hardy herbaceous plants. 596. Piping. 597. Cuttings of soft-wooded green- house plants. 598. Cuttings of hard-wooded greenhouse plants. 599. CONTENTS. XI Sect. II. — Operations of Culture — continued. page Cuttings of heath-like plants. 600. Cuttings of succulent plants. 601. Cuttings of the underground stems and roots. fi02. Striking cut- tings in water or moist moss. 603. Striking plants in powdered char- coal. 604. Propagation by joints and nodules. 605. A nodule. 606. Propagating by joints of the vine. 607. Propagation by bulbs and entire tubers and tubercles. 608. Propagating by bulb-bearing leaves. § 3. — Propagation hy Leaves 266 609. The principle on which the propagation of plants by leaves is founded. 610. The conditions generally required for rooting leaves. 611. Rooting portions of leaves. 612. The plants usually raised by leaves in British gardens. 613. Propagation by the leaves of bulbs. 614, Rooting leaves and parts of leaves in powdered charcoal. 615, Leaves with the buds in the axils root freely. 616. Immature fruits have even been made to produce plants. 617. The essence of all the differ- ent modes of forming plants from cuttings. 618. To induce stems or shoots to produce leaves or growths from which cuttings may be formed. § i.-^Propagation by Layers ........ 272 619, The theory of layering. 620. The operation of layering. 621. The state of the plant most favourable for layering, 622. Hardy trees and shrubs, 623. Shrubs with very long shoots. 624. Layering by insertion of the growing point. 625. Plum and paradise stocks. 626. Roses. 627. Hardy herbaceous plants. 628. Shrubby plants in pots kept under glass. 629. The soil in which plants are layered. 630. Hooked pegs. 631. The time which layers require to produce roots. § 5. — Propagation by Suckers, Slips, Offsets, Runners, and Simple Division 277 632. A sucker. 633. Stem suckers or slips. 634. Offsets. 635. Runners or stolones. 636. Simple division. § 6. — Propagation by grafting, inarching, and budding . . . 280 637. The term graft. 638. The origin of grafting, 639. The phenomena of grafting. 640. The condition. 641. Anatomical analogy. 642. Physiological analogy. 643. The modifications effected by the graft. 644. The influence of the scion on the stock. 645. The uses of grafting. 646. The different kinds of grafting. 647. The ma- terials used in grafting. 648. Grafting-clay. 649. Grafting-wax. § 7 Grafting by detached Scions ....... 287 651, Splice-grafting. 652. Splice-grafting the peach. 653. Cleft- grafting. 654, Cleft-grafting the vine. 655. Saddle-grafting. 656. Side-grafting. 657. Wedge-grafting. 658. Grafting the mistletoe. 659. Root-grafting. 660. Herbaceous grafting. 661. Grafting the pine and fir tribe. 662. Grafting the tree-peony. 663. Grafting on fleshy roots. 664. Herbaceous wedge-grafting. 665. Herbaceous grafting for shoots with opposite leaves. 666. Herbaceous grafting annual or perennial plants. 667. Grafting herbaceous shoots of succu- lents. 668. Grafting the melon, 669. The greffe etouffee. I 8. — Grafting by approach or inarching 297 671. Side inarching. 672. Terminal inarching. 673. Inarching with partially-nourished scions. § 9. — Budding or grafting by detached buds 300 675. The uses of budding. 676. Performing the operation. 677. Prepared wax for budding. 678. Plastic wax. 679. Shield-budding in the end of summer. 680. Shield-budding in June, 681. Shield- budding in spring. 682. Shield-budding without a bud or eye. 683, Eudding with a circular shield. 684. Budding with a shield stamped out by a punch. 685. Budding with the shield reversed, 686, Bud- ding with the eye turned downwards. 687. Shield-budding for resinous trees. 688. Budding with the shield covered. 689. Budding with a U CONTENTS. Sect. II. — Operations of Culture — continued. page square shield. 690. Shield-budding with a terminal bud. 691. Flute- budding, or tube-budding. 692. Flute-budding in spring. 693. Ter- minal flute-budding. 694. Flute-budding with strips of bark. 69S, Annular budding. 696. The after-care of grafts by budding. SUBSBCT. II. — Rearing 308 § 1. — Transplanting and Planting . ..... 309 698. To transplant. 699. The uses of transplanting. 700. The theory of transplanting. 701. Seedlings. 702. Deciduous trees and shrubs, and perennial hei'baceous plants. 703. Whether deciduous trees and shrubs ought to be transplanted in autumn or spring. 704. Different modes of transplanting large trees and shrubs. 705. Transplanting with large balls of earth. 706. Transplanting by shortening the roots, so as to induce them to throw out fibres. 707. Sir Henry Steuart's prac- tice in transplanting large trees. 708. Fulling down the tree and rais- ing it out of the pit. 709. Transporting and replanting the tree. 710. Transplanting by shortening the roots, without permitting them to throw out fibres at their extremities. 711. Transplanting by thin- ning and pruning the roots and branches. 712. The removal of large trees and shrubs. 713. Transplanting by heading-in, that Is, cutting in the branches. 714. The staking or supporting of newly-trans- planted trees, and the protection of their stems from cattle. 715. The machinery for moving large trees. 716. Transplanting evergreens. 717. The best season for transplanting evergreens. 718. The drying of the roots of evergreens. 719. Planting evergreens. 720. Trans- planting evergreens with balls. 721, The machines and implements for transplanting large shrubs with balls. 722. Packing evergreens. 723. Methods of planting small plants. 724. Planting with the dibber. 725. Planting with the trowel. 726. Planting in drills. 727. Laying in by the heels. 728. Trench-planting. 729. Slit-planting. 730. Hole- planting. 731. Planting in pits. 732. Hole-planting, and fixing with water. 733. Planting in puddle. 734. Planting out plants which have been grown in pots. 735. Watering, mulching, and staking newly- planted plants. 736. Taking up previously to planting. 737. As a summary of general rules for planting. § 2. — Potting and Repotting or Sliifting .... 329 738. To pot a plant. 739. The main object of growing plants in pots. 740. The disadvantages of growing plants in pots. 741. Potting. 742. The same soil which is suitable for the open garden is not always suitable for using in pots. 743. Bottom drainage. 744. The mode of sowing or planting in a pot. 745. Transplanting from the free soil into a pot or box. 746. Care of newly potted or shifted plants. 747. Shifting or re- potting. 748. Seasons and times for potting and shifting- 749. The most difficult plants to manage in pots. 750. Growing hardy plants in pots. § 3. — Pruning ....... 335 752. The specific principles on which pruning is founded, and its general effects. 753. Forest-trees. 754. Ornamental trees. 755. Ornamental shrubs. 756. Fruit-trees and shrubs. 757. Herbaceous plants. 758. Close pruning. 759. Shortening-in. 760. Fore-shortening. 761. Spurring-in. 762. Heading-in. 763. Lopping. 764. Close lopping. 765. Snag-lopping. 766. Lopping-in. 767. Cutting down. 708. Stopping and pinching out. 769. Disbarking. 770. Ringing. 771. Disbudding. 772. Disleafing. 773. Slitting and splitting. 774. Bruising and tearing. 775. Clipping. 776. Root- pruning. 777. Girdling and felling. 778. The girdling machine. 779. The seasons for pruning. § i.— Thinning . . . . . . 349 781. Seedling crops in gardens. 782. Thinning plantations. 783. Thinning ornamental plantations. 5. — Training . , . , , , .351 CONTENTS. xiii Sect. II. — Operations of Culture — Training — continued. „„;, 784. To train. 785. The principles. 788. Manual operations of training. 787. Training herbaceous plants. 788. Herbaceous and shrubby plants in pots. 789. Training hardy flowering shrubs in the open ground. 790. Evergffeen shrubs. 791. Training fruit-trees. 792. The different modes of training bushes and trees in the open garden. 793. The different modes of training fruit-trees against walls or espaliers. 794. Dwarfs in the open garden. 795. Spiral cylinders. 796. Standards in the open garden. 797. The spurring-in system. 798. Conical standards. 799. Hayward's quenouille- training. 800. Fan-training. 801. Fan-training in the common English manner. 802. Fan-training according to Seymour's mode. 803. Fan-training in the wavy or curvilinear manner. 804. Wavy fan-trainiug with two stems. 805. Wavy fan-training with a single stem. 806. Horizontal training. 807. Fan-training and horizontal training combined. 808. Perpendicular training. 809. Instruments and materials. 810. Com- parative view of the different modes of training. 811. A standard tree. § 6 Weeding . ...... 378 81.^. A weed. 814. Annual vfeeds. 815. Perennial weeds. 816. Weeds in gravel-wallis. 817. Weeds in lawns or on grass-walks. 818. Weeds in shrubberies and plantations. 819. Weeds in woods and park scenery. 820. Weeding ponds, rivers, and artificial waters. § 7 — Watering ....... 382 821. Water. 822. The specific purposes for which water is used in horticulture. 823. The ordinary sources from which water is obtained in gardens. 824. The distribution of water. 825. The ordinary mode of giving water to plants. 826. When it is proper to water, and how much water to give. 837. Whether plants siiould be watered over the leaves, or only over the soil in which they grow. 828. Watering plants in pots. 829. Aquatic aad marsh plants. 830. Watering with liquid manure. 831. To economise the water given to plants. § 8. — Stirring the soil and manuring . ... 388 § 9.— Blanching . ...... 389 § 10. — Protection, from atmospherical injuries . . . 389 8,35. The object of shading. 836. Sheltering from wind. 837. The principles of protecting from cold. 838. Protecting from rain. § 11. — Accelerating vegetation ..... 391 839. Acceleration. 840. Artificial heat. 841. Hotbeds. 842. Pre- paration of materials for hotbeds. 843. M'Phail's hotbed or pit. 844. The formation of common hotbeds. 845. Ashes, tan, and leaves. 846. The nightly covering to hotbeds and pits, 847. Management of hotbeds and pits heated by dung. § 12. — Retarding vegetation ........ 395 § 13. — Resting vegetation. ......... 396 849. In the natural state of vegetation. 850. Nightly temperature. 851. What the night temperature of a hotbed or hothouse ought to be. 852. Double glass roofs. 853. The annual resting of plants. 854. The natural period of rest in hardy plants. 855. The advantages of putting trees that are to be forced into a state of rest. § 14. — Operations of gathering, preserving, keeping, and packing . 401 856. Gathering. 857. Preserving. 858. Keeping fruits. 859. Packing and transporting plants and seeds. 860. Packing fruits and flowers. § 15. — Selecting and improving plants in culture . . . 403 862. Cultivation. 863. Selection. 864. Selecting from accidental variations. 865. Cross-breeding. 866. Precautions again&t promiscuous fecundation. 867. Fixing and rendering permanent the variety produced. 868. The production of double flowers. 8f)9. Duration of varieties. § 16 Operations of order and keeping ...... 409 871. Order. 872. Keeping. 873. Rule^• XIV CONTENTS. CHAPTER IV. Operations of Horticultubal Design and Taste . . •411 875. Taking plans. 876. Carrying plans into execution. 877. Re- ducing a surface to a level, or to a uniform slope. CHAPTER V. Operations of Genebal Management ... . . . 412 879. General management of a garden. 880. On undertaking the charge of a garden. 881. The books to be kept by a gardener. 882. The ordering of seeds and plants. 883. The management of men and the distribution of work. 884. The wages of a gardener. PART III. The Culture op the Kitchen, Fruit, and Forcing Garden . 416 CHAPTER I. Laying out .ind Planting the Kitchen and Fruit Garden . 416 Sect. I. — Laying out the Kitchen Garden . . . . . 416 885. The situation and general management of the kitchen garden. 886. Trenching and levelling. Sect. II. — The Distribution of Fruit-trees in a Kitchen Garden . 420 SuBSECT. I. — Wall-fruit Trees ........ 4^ 888. Select list of fruit-trees adapted for walls of different aspects. 890. The distance. 891. For low walls. 892. Training. 893. Planting. SuBSECT. II. — Fruit-trees for Espaliers and Dwarfs .... 424 894. Espaliers. 895. Dwarfs or standards trained in the conical manner. 896. Espalier-rails. 897. A. wooden espalier rail. 898. Es- palier rails of cast iron. 899. Espalier rails of wrought iron. 900. Dwarfs. 901. Select list. 902. The plants. 903. Standard fruit-trees. SnBSECT. III. — Fruit Shrubs 429 904. Gooseberries and currants. 905. Select list. 906. Plants. SvBSBCT. \V.— Selection of Fruit-lrees adapted for an Orchard . . 430 907. A plantation or orchard. 90S. The plants. 909. Select list. 910. Training. 911. Culture of the soil. CHAPTER II. Cropping and General Management of a Kitchen Garden . 434 Sect. I. — Cropping ......... 434 913. The herbaceous vegetables grown in kitchen gardens. 914. Gene- ral proportions of crops. 916. The quantity of seed. Sect. II. — Rotation of Crops ....... 435 918. Successional cropping. 919. The object to be obtained by a system of cropping. 920. Successional cropping. 921. The simulta- neous mode of cropping. 922. Modes of cropping. 923. Successional and simultaneous cropping combined. 924. Order of rotation. 925. Secondary crops. 926. Times of sowing and planting. Sect. III. — Planting, Sowing, Cultivating, and Managing . . 439 928. Management of the fruit-tree borders. 929. Management of the culinary crops. 930. Gathering, storing, and keeping of fruit. 931. Management of the fruit-room. CONTENTS. CHAPTER III. PAGE The Forcing Depabtment ....... 442 Sect. I. — Culture of the Pine-apple, and Management of the Pinery 443 SuBSECT. I. — Natural data on which the Culture of the Pine-apple is founded 443 932. The conclusions to be drawn from these data. 933. Soil. 934. Water. ScBSECT. II. — Culture of the Pine-apple in British Gardens . . 444 935. Construction of the pit. 936. Kinds grown. 937. Water- ing and sprinkling. 938. Worms. 939. Heat, air, and moisture. 941. Jamaica pines. 942. Starting pine plants into fruit. 943. Air. 944. Propagation. 945. Bottom-heat. 946. As the season declines, the temperature is lowered. 947. Culture of the queen pine, so as to have the fruit ripe in February and March. 948. Sizes of the pots in which the plants are grown. 949. Culture of queen pines for early fruit. 950. Growing the pine-apple in beds of soil. 951. Fruiting suckers on the stools. 952. To grow the pine-apple to an extraordinary size. 953. Insects. Sect. II. — Culture of the Grape Vine under Glass and on Walls . 462 SaBSECT. I. — Natural data on which the Culture of the Grape Vine is founded ............ 452 954. The grape vine. 955. With respect to atmospheric moisture. 956. Soil. 957. Form of house. Sttbsect. II. — Propagation^ Pruning, and Training the Vine . . 454 958. Propagation. 959. Pruning. 960. Training. 961. Essential points. 962. The long, or the renewal system of pruning. 963. The spurriog-in method of pruning. 964. The fan-system of vine-training. 965. The Thomery system. SuBSECT. Ill Culture of the Grape Vine under Glass . ,. . . 457 966. Vine border. 967. Planting. 968. To raise the plants. 969. When planted in the vinery. 970. The sorts. 971. A diary of the course of culture applied to the grape vines at Oakhill. 972. Growing two or three crops of grapes in one house. 973. Growing three crops of grapes in one house together with pines. 974. Another mode of growing three crops of grapes in one house. 975, Keeping grapes. SuBSECT. tV. — Growing the Grape on open walls, and on cottages . 464 976. Frait-bearing powers of the vine. 977. Aspect. 978. Soil. 979. Manure. 980. Walls. 931. Propagation. 982. Pruning. 983. Training. 984. Mr. Hoare's mode of training. 985. Training the vine on the walls of cottages. 986. The appearance of a portion of the front of a house covered with vines in Mr, Hoare's manner. 987. The walls and roof of a cottage of the most irregular architecture. 988. Kinds of grapes most suitable for the open wall or for cottages. SuBSEOT. v. — Insects, Diseases, ^c, of the Grape Vine .... 472 Sect. III. — Culture of the Peach and Nectarine under Glass . . 472 SuBSECT. I. — Natural data on which the CuUvre of the Peach is founded. 472 989. The peach. 990. Natural and experimental data. SuEoECT. II. — Culture of the Peach under Glass in British Gardens . 474 991. Construction of the peach-house. 992. Peaches and nectarines best adapted for forcing. 993. Plants and mode of training. 994. Pruning. 995. The summer pruning, 996. The fruit is thinned before and after the stoning season. 997. The peach border. 998. Gene-al treatment. 999. Insects and diseases. lOUO. Peaches may be forced in pots. svl CONTENTS. Sect. TIT. — Culture of the Peach and Nectarine under Glass— ccntinued. paoz SuBSECT. Ill — The details of a routine course of forcing the Peach for two years .... 47/ 1001. Soil. 1002. Border. 1003. Planting. 1004. Forcing in the first season. 1005. Watering and fumigating. 1006. Summer pruning. 1007. Routine treatment during tlie first season. 1008. Winter treatment. 1009. Forcing in the second season. 1010. Applying a preventive composition. 1011. Forcing in February. 10 ■ March. 1013. Thinning the shoots and fruit. 1014. Stoning. 1015. Watering. 1016. Ripening. 1017. Duration of the crop. Sect. IV. — Culture of the Cherry under Glass . . ■ • 480 SnBSECi. I. — Natural Data for the Culture of the Cherry . • ■ 480 SuBSECT. II. — The practice of Cherry Forcing in British Gardens . .480 1019. The cherry-house. 1020. Kinds of cherries for forcing, pot- ting the plants, &c. 1021. Time of commencing to force. 1022. Progress. 1023. Insects. 1024. Thinning and stoning, &c. 1025. Treatment of the plants in pots after they are taken out of the house. 1026. To have a constant succession of cherries. 1027. Forcing cher- ries by a temporary structure. 1028. German practice. Sect. V. — Culture of the Fig under Glass . . . . . 486 SuBSECT. I Natural data on which the Culture of tlie Fig is founded , 485 SuBSECT. II. — The forcing of the Fig as practised in British Gardens , 485 1031. The construction of the fig-house. 1032. The varieties best adapted for forcing. 1033. The time of beginning to force. 1034. The forcing of fig-trees in pots. 1035. Winter treatment. Sect. VI. — On forcing the Plum, Apricot, Gooseberry, and other Fruit-trees, and Fruit-shrubs ...... 487 Srct. VII. — Culture of the Melon 487 SuBSECT. I — Natural and experimental data on which the Culture of the Melon is founded ....... . . 487 SuBSECT. II. — Culture of the Melon as practised in British Gardens . 490 1038. The sorts. 1039. A''ery early melons. 1040. Seedlings. 1041. Cuttings. 1042. Planting out. i043. General treatment, 1044. Persian melons. 1045. Culture of the melon in the open air. 1046. Insects and diseases. 1047. The red spider and the damp. Ekct. VIII. — Culture of the Cucumber ..... 494 SuBSECT. I. — Da'a rm. which the Culture nf the Cucumber is founded . . 494 SuBSECT. II. — Culture of the Cucumber in a Dung-bed . . . 49G 1051. The formation of a dung-bed. 1052. The seed-bed. 1053. Soil. 1054. Seeds and treatment of the young plants. 1055. Raising plants from cuttings. 1056. Fruiting-bed. 1057. Ridging out the plants. 1058. A temporary lining. 1059. Air. lOSO. Earthing-up. 1061. Linings of cucumber beds and their management. lOBs" Water. 1063. Stopping. 1064. Moulding up. 1065. The covering at night. 1066. Setting or impregnating the fruit. 1067. To procure seed. 1068. Inlaying, or earthing in, the vines of the cucumber. 1069. When extraordinary fine fruit is desired. SuBSECT. III.— Cute'/e of the Cucumber in pits heated by dung linings flues, or hot water .•,.... , _ ^' cao 1070. Of pits heated wholly or in part by dung linings. 1071. Pits to be heated by flues or hot water. 1072. A pit to be heated by a flue. CONTENTS. XVll ^ SrcT. VIII. — Ctilture of the Cucumber — continued. """ 1073. A pit to be heated by hot water, and by a flue from the fire wtiich heats the boiler. 1074. Corbett's cucumber pit. 1075. Green's cucumber pit. 1076. The advantages gained by this pit. 1078. The culture of the encumber in pots. 1079. Construction of the cucumber house. 1080. Treatment of the plants. SuBSECT. IV. — Culture and treatment of the Cucumber for Prize Ex- hibitions . . . 510 SuBSECT. V. — Cultivation of t7w Cucumber in the open air . . . 510 10S2. Cucumbers grown in the open air are commonly protected by hand or bell glasses. 1083. Increasing the atmospheric heat of the soil. 1084. Cucumbers against a south wall. 1085. Growing cucumbers on balconies, or in court-yards. 1086. Watering cucumbers in the open garden. 1087. Cucumber and melon culture compared. Sect. IX. — Culture of the Banana ...... S12 Sect. X. — Forcing the Strawberry . ..... 514 1090. Data on which the forcing of the strawberry is founded. 1091. Koutine practice in forcing Keen's seedling, and the old scarlet or Virginian strawberries. 1092. How grown and protected before forcing. 1093. After forcing. 1094. The Alpine strawberry. Sect. XI. — Forcing the Asparagus, Sea Kale, Rhubarb, Chicory, and other fleshy roots . . . , . . .516 Sect. XII. — Forcing the common Potato, the sweet Potato, and other tubers . . . . . . . . .519 1100. The common potato. 1101. A substitute for new potatoes. 1102. The sweet potato. 1103. O'xalis Deppei. Sect. XIII. — Forcing Kidney Seans and Peas . . . . 620 Sbot. XIV. — Forcing Salads, Pot-herbs, Sweet-herbs, and other culinary Plants ........ 521 1106. Lettuce, chicory, radish, cress, mustard, rape, parsley, chervil, carrot, turnip, onion, and similar plants. 1107. Small salading. 1108. Radish. 1109. To produce full-grown cabbage-lettuces through- out the winter. 1110. Perennial pot and sweet herbs. Seht. XV. — Forcing the Mushroom . . . . . . 523 ScBSECT. I. — Data on which the Culture and Forcing of the Mushroem isfownded 523 ScBSECT. II. — Forcing the Mushroom in British Gardens . . . 524 1112. The ordinary form of a mushroom-house. 1113. The spawn. 1114. To grow the mushroom. 1115. Growing the mushroom in a cellar. 1116. Management of the bed. 1117. Mushroom spawn. 1118. Gathering mushrooms. 1119. The duration of a crop of mushrooms. CHAPTER IV. Catalooue op Fkuits ........ 52G 1120. The fruits usually cultivated in British gardens. 1121. Ar- ranged botanically. 1122. Geographically and horticulturally. 1123. Suitable for climates analogous to that of Britain. 1 1 24. For climates analogous to that of the South of France. 1125. For climates sub- tropical, or tropical. Sect. I. — Hardy or Orchard Fruits 628 SuBSECT. I. — The Apple 528 1128. The uses of the apple. 1129. Properties of a good apple, 5 XVUl CONTENTS. Sect. I. — Hardy or Orchard Fruits — TheAppk — continued, '" ' 1130. Varieties. 1131. Early dessert apples. 1132. Dessert apples to succeed early kinds. 1133. Early kitchen apples. 1134. Kitchen apples for winter and spring use. 1135. Cider apples. 1136. Dessert apples which may be used as kitchen apples. 1137. Kitchen apples which may be used as dessert apples. 1 138. Apples for cottage gardens, where the soil and situation are favourable, and which may be used either for the table or the kitchen. 1139. Apples for training against the walls or on the roofa of cottages, or on the walls of cottage gardens. 1 140. Apples for cottage gardens in situations liable to spring frosts. 1141. Apples for a cottage garden in an unfavourable climate. ^^*"' Apples adapted for walls of different aspects. 1 143. Apples adapted for espaliers, dwarfs, or conical standards. 1144. Apples suitable for an orchard. 1145. Apples remarkable for the form of the tree, or the beauty of the blossoms or fruit. 1146. General principles of selecting varieties of the apple. 1147. Propagation. 1148. Soil and situation. 1149. Mode of bearing, pruning, and training. 1150. Spurring-in pruning. 1151. Pruning with reference to the entire tree. 1152. Ga- thering and keeping. 1153. Diseases, insects, casualties, &c. SUBSECT. II.— The Pear 545 1155. Uses. 1156. Properties of a good pear. 1157. The varieties. 1 158. Dessert pears arranged in the order of their ripening and keep- ing. 1159. Kitchen pears arranged in the order of their ripening and keeping. 1160. Perry pears arranged in the order of their merits. 1161. A list of pears adapted for walls of different aspects. 1162. A list of pears for espaliers, dwarfs, or standards, trained conically or spurred-in. 1 163. A list of pears adapted for an orchard, or being grown as standards. 1164. A selection of Pears where the space is very limited, or for cottage gardens. 1 165. Pear-trees of forms adapted for landscape scenery. 1166. The propagation, nursery, culture, and choice of plants. 11G7. Soil, situation, and final planting. 1168. The mode of bearing, pruning, and training. 1 169. Gathering and keeping. 1170. The diseases, insects, and casualties. StresECT. 111. — The Quince ■"•Jl 1172. Varieties. 1173. Propagation, soil, and other points of cul- ture and management. SuBSECT. IV The Medlar 552 1175. Varieties. 1176. Propagation, soil, and other points of cul- ture and management. Sdb.'sect. V. — The True Service 6'j2 1177. The true service. 1178. Pyrnst6rminMis. 1 1 79. Pyrus A ria var. erotica. SuBSEcr. Yl.~The Cherry 553 1181. Use. 1183. Varieties. 1183. Dessert cherries, arranged in the order of their ripening. 11'84. Cherries for preserving. 1185. Cherries adapted for being trained against walls of different aspects. 1186. Cherries adapted for espaliers or dwarfs. 1187. Cherries adapted for being grown as standards. 1188. Cherries for a cottage garden. 1189. Cherries for the north of Scotland. 1190. Propagation, nursery culture, and choice of plants. 1191. Soil, situation, and final planting. 1192. Mode of bearing, pruning, and training. 1193. Gathering and keeping. 1194. Diseases, insects, casualties, &c. 1195. A Dutch cherry garden. SuBSEd. \I1.— The Plum .559 1197. Use. 1198. Varieties. 1199. Dessert plums arranged in the order of their ripening. 1200. Kitchen plums arranged in the order of their ripening. 1201. A selection of plums for walls of different aspects, espaliers and dwarfs, and for an orchard. 1202. Dessert and kitchen plums for a garden of limited extent. 1203. A selection of dessert CONTENTS. xix Sect. I. — Hardy or Orchard Fruits — I'he Plurfi — continued. '■'>«" plums for a very small garden. 1204. Dessert and kitchen plums for a cottage garden. 1205. Propagation, nursery culture, and choice oi plants. 1206. Soil, situation, and final planting. 1207. Mode of bearing, pruning, and training. 1208. Gathering, keeping, packing, &c. 1209. Insects, diseases, casualties, &c. 1210. The plum may be forced. ScBSECT. VIII.-^Tfte Gooseberry B60 1212. Use. 1213. Varieties. 1214. A selection of gooseberries for a suburban garden. 1215. The largest prize gooseberries. 1216. Gooseberries for a cottage garden. 1217. Large Lancashire goose- berries adapted for a cottage garden. 1218. Propagation, nursery cul- ture, and choice of plants. 1219. Soil, situation, and final planting. 1220. Mode of bearing, pruning, and training. 1221. The growers of gooseberries for prizes. 1 222. Gathering and keeping. 1223. Insects, diseases, and casualties. 1224. Forcing. SuBSECT. IX. — The Red and White Currant 566 1226. Use. 1227. Varielies. 1228. The propagation and future treatment. SuBSECT. X. — The Black Currant 567 SuBSECT. XI. — The Raspberry 567 1231. Varieties. 1232. Propagation, soil, and other points of cul- ture. 1233. Gathering. 1234. Forcing. 1235. The cloudberry. 1236. The Nootka raspberry. SoBSECr. XII. — The Strawberry 570 1238. Use. 1239. Varieties. 1240. Selection of strawberries from the above classes in the order of their ripening. 1241. A selection for H small garden. 1242. A selection for a cottage garden. 1243. A selection for a confined, shady situation. 1244. Propagation, soil,&c. 1245. Culture. 1246. Culture in rows. 1247. Culture in beds. 1248. Mulching and watering. 1249. Culture of particular kinds. 1250. Retarding a crop. 1251. Accelerating a crop in the open garden. 1252. Xiathering. 1253. Forcing. ScBSEcr. XIII The Cranberry S76 SuBSECT. XIV.— TAe Mulberry 577 SdB!:ect. XV.— The Walnut 678 1257. The Walnut. 1253. Pacane-nut hickory, and the shell-bark hickory. SuBSECT. XVI The Sweet Chestnut 578 Sdbsect. XVII.— rAe Filbert 579 SuBSECT. XVIII. — The. Berberry. Elderberry, Cornelian Cherry, Buf- falo-berry, and Winter Cherry 580 1261. The berberry. 1262. The Magellan sweet berberry. 1263. The Nepal berberry. 1264. The alder-tree. 1265. The cornelian cherry; 1266. The buffalo berry. 1267. The winter cherry Seot. M.— Half-hardy or Wall-fruits 682 SuBSECT. I The Grape S82 1270. A selection of grapes for early forcing. 1271. The selection of grapes grown at Hungerton Hall. 1272. A selection of grapes of va- rious flavours and colours. 1273. Grapes for a late crop in a vinery. 1274. Grapes for a house in which pines are grown. 127£. Grapes •with small leaves, and hardy ; adapted for the rafters of a greenhouse. 1276. Grapes with small leaves, less hardy than the preceding selec- tion, and fit for the rafters of a plant or stove. 1277. Grapes with small bunches and berries, adapted for being grown in pots or boxes. 1278. Grapes for a cottage garden where the climate is not very favour- J2 SX CONTENTS. Sect. II. — Half-hardy or WaU-fruiU — The Grape — continued. able. 1279. Grapes suitable for the open wall, or for cottages. 1280. Propagation. 1281. Culture, pruning, training, &c. 1282. Pruning. 1283. Tiiinning. 1284. Setting the blossom. 1285. Growing grapes in pots. 1286. General treatment of the Tine. 1287. Growing grapes for wine-making. ScBSECT. II. — The Peach and Nectarine ;..••' 1289. Use. 1290. Properties of a good peach ornectarine. 1291. Varieties. 1 292. Select peaches arranged in the order of their ripening. 1293. Select nectarines arranged in the order of their ripening. 129^. Peaches and nectarines for a wall to come in, in succession. 1295. Peaches for a cold late situation. 1296. A selection of peaches for forcing. 1297. Propagation and nursery culture. 1298. Soil, situa- tion, &c. 1299. Mode of bearing, pruning, &c. 1300. Mr. Callow s mode of training. 1301. Shortening the young wood of the peach. 1302. In summer-pruning the peach. 1303. Thinning the fruit. 1304. Treatment of the peach border. 1305. Over-luxuriant peach trees. 1306. Old decaying peach trees. 1307. Protecting peach trees dunng winter and spring. 1308. Growing the peach on a flued wall. 1 309. The acceleration of the ripening of a crop of peaches. 1310. Gathering. 1311. Diseases, insects, &c. 1312. The essential points of peach cul- ture. 1313. Forcing the peach and nectarine. SuBSECX. \l\.— The Almond 596 Sdbsect. IV. — The Apricot ^9^ 1316. Varieties. 1317. Apricots for walls of different aspects. 1318. Apricots for the walls of a cottage. 1319. Propagation, nursery culture, iSc. 1320. Final planting, pruning, &o. SuBSECT. \.—The Fig ... 598 1322. Selections of the best figs for forcing, and for walls of different aspects. 1323. Propagation, culture, &c. SuBSECT. VI. — The Pomegranate ....... 599 SnBSECT. VII. — The Peruvian Cherry . . ■ . . . 601' Sect. III. — Tropical or Sub-tropical Fruits .... 600 StjBSECT. I. — The Pine-Apple ....... 600 1328. Pines cultivated chiefly for their high flavour. 1329. Pines cultivated chiefly for their large size. 1330. Culture. SunsECT. II. — The Banana 601 Sdbsect^ III. — The Melon 602 1334. Melons with red flesh. 1335. Melons with green flesh. 1336. Persian melons. 1337. Winter melons. 1338. Water melons. Stibsect. IV. — The Cucumber 603 SuBSECT. V. — The Pumpkin and Gourd 604 Subsect. VI. — The Tomato, the Egg-plant, and the Capsicum . . 606 Sdbsect. VII. — The Orange Family 608 1347. The common orange. 1348. Bigarade, Seville, or bitter orange. 1349. Thebergamot orange. 1350. The lime. 13S1. The shaddock. 1352; The sweet lembn. 1353. The true lemon. 1354. The citron. 1355. Propagation and culture. SuBSECT. VIII — The Guana, Lo-quat, Granadilla, and other fruits little known in British Gardens . . . , , .611 1356. The guava. 1857. The lo-quat. 1358. The granadilla. 1359. The Indian fig. 1360. The pawpaw. 1361. The olive. 1362. Other exotic fruits. Subsect. IX. — Remarks applicable to Fruit-trees, and Fruit bearing Plants generally '. , " . ^ gjg CONTENTS. CHAPTKR V. PAGH Catalogue of Cuhnaby Vegetables ..... 616 1364. The culinary vegetables usually cultivated in British gardens. 1>^65. Classed Horticulturaliy and Economically. 1366. Propagation " and seed-sowing. 1367. The selection of varieties. 1368. Whether acrop which is raised from seed ought to be sown where it is finally to remain, or sown in a seed-bed and transplanted. 1369. Soils. 1370. Proportion of each crop, Sect. I. — Brassicaceous Esculents, or the Cabbage Tribe . . 622 1372. The white cabbage. 1373. The couve tronchuda. 1374. ' Cabbage coleworts. 1375. The red cabbage. 1376. The savoy. 1377. Brussels sprouts. 1378. Borecole. 1379. Cauliflower. 1380. Broc- coli. 1381. The turnip cabbage. 1382. The Chinese cabbage. 1383. General culture and management of the cabbage tribe. 1384. Substi- tutes for the cabbage tribe. Sect. II. — Leguminaeeous Esculents ..... 630 SuBSECT. I.— The Pea 630 1386. Varieties, 13i37. Culture. 1388. The earliest crops. 1389. Portable walls for early crops of peas, &c. 1390. The summer and autumn crops. 1391. Diseases, vermin, &c. SuBSECt. II.— The Bean b'34 SoBSECT. HI. — The Kidney-bean 635 1396. Varieties. 1397. Culture of the dwarf sorts. 1398. Culture of the twining sorts. 1399. Gathering. 1400. The lima bean. 1401. The common lentil. 1402. The white lupin. 1403. Substitutes. Sect. III. — Radicaceous Esculents 638 SoBSECT. I. — The Potato 638 1406. Varieties. 1407. Culture. 1408. For an early crop. 140!). The Lanc^shir^ praptice. . 1410. Gathering. 1411. Messrs. Chap-, man's new spring potatoes. 1412. For a main or late crop. 1413. Young potatoes during widter. 1414. Selecting and preparing the sets. 1415. Greening potatoes for sets. 1416. Taking up and pre- serving a crop. 1417. Diseases, insects, &c. Sdbsect. II. — The Jerusalem Artichoke 646 SuBSECT. III. — The Turnip 647 1420. Varieties. 1421. Culture. 1422. In gathering. 1423. Pre- serving turnips through the winter. 1424. To save seed. 1425. Dis- eases, insects, &c. 1426. Forcing the turnip. SuBSECT. lY.—The Carrot 649 ' 1428. Varieties. 1429. Culture. 1430. Gathering and keeping. 1431. Diseases and insects. 1432. Seed saving. SaBSECT. V. — The Parsnep 6S1 SuBSECT. VJ. — The Red Beet 651 SCBSECT. VII. — The Skirret, Scorzonera, Salsify, and CEnoth^ra . 6S2 1436. The skirret. 1437. The scorzonera. 1438. The salsify. 1439. The Spanish salsify. 1440. The tree-primrose. SuBSBCT. VIII. — The Hamburgh Parsley 653 SuBSECT. IX. — The Radish 653 1443. Varieties. 1444. Soil. SuB.SECT. X. — Ojialis Deppei, O. crenala, and Tropceolum tuberosum , 65 1 XXU CONTENTS. PAGtt Sect. IV. — Spinaceous Esculents ... . • * . 656 Sdbsect. I. — The common Sptnach ■ _ SuBSECT. II. — Orach or French Spinach SnBSECT. III. — New Zealand Spinach SnBSECT. IV. — Perennial Spinach • " SvBsucT.y.— The Spinach Beet, and the Chard Beet . • ' .„ SUBSEOT. VI. — Patience Spinach • SCBSECT. VII. — The Sorrel Sect. V. — Alliaceous Esculents ^^^ SuBSECT. l.—The Onion ^*^ 1462. Varieties and species. 1463. Propagation and culture. 1464. An autumn and winter crop of onions. 1465. A transplanted crop 1466. The potato onion. 1467. Tlie bulb-bearing onion. 1468. Treat- ment common to allthe kinds. 1469. Diseases, insects, &c. 1470. The onion fly. 1471. Gathering the crop. 1472. To save seed. SVBSE.CT.U.— The Leek 663 SuBSECT. III.— TAe Shallot . . 664 SrBSECT. W.— Tlie Garlic 664 SvBSKCT. v. — The Chive 664 SuBSECT. VI. — The Rocambole 664 VI. — Asparagaceous Esculents ..... 665 SuBsECT. I. — The Asparagus ........ 665 1481. Soil, and sowing or planting the asparagus. 1482. Routine culture. 1483. Gathering. 1484. Culture after gathering. 1483. The duration of an asparagus plantation. 1486. To save seed. ScBSECT. U.—Tlie Sea-Kale 668 1488. Propagation and culture. 1489. Gathering. 1490. The cul- ture after gathering. 1491. Diseases and insects. 1492. The dura- tion of a plantation of sea-kale. 1493. To save seed. 1494. Forcing. SnBSECT. III. — The Artichoke 670 SuBSECT. IV.— TAe Cardoon 671 1498. Cookery of the cardoon. 1499. Varieties, propagation, &c. SuBSECT. V The Rampion 672 SoBSECT. VI. — Substitutes for Asparagaceous Esculents . . . 672 Sect. VII. — Aeetariaceous Esculents ..... 673 SuBSECT. I. — The Lettuce 673 1504. Varieties. 1505. Propagation and culture. 150C. Lettuces as small salad. 1507. To save seed. SuBSECT. II. — The Endive , 675 SuBSECT. Ill The Succory 676 1512. An excellent substitute for the succory. SoBSECT. IV. — The Celery 677 1514. Varieties. 1515. Propagation and culture. 1516. Trans- planting into trenches. 1517. Blanching. 1518. Late spring celery. 1519. Taking the crop. 1520. Celeriac. 1521. Diseases, insects, &c. 1522. To save seed. 1523. The alisanders. 1524. The Naples parsley. SuBSECT. V. The Lamb*s Lettuce, Burnet^ the Garden CresSf fVinter Cress, American Cress, and Water Cress . . .681 SrBSECT. VI. — Small Salads . . ..... 682 Sdbsect. VII. — Substitutes for Aeetariaceous Esculents . , . 593 CONTENTS. XXIll Sect. VIII. — Adornaeeous Esculents ..... 084 SuBSBCT. I. — The Parsley 68J SuBSBCT. II. — The Chervil, the Coriander, the Anise, Dill, Fennel, Tarragon, and Purslane ........ (Jfi4 SuBSECT. III. — The Indian Cress, Borage, and Marigold . . . 686 SvBSECT.IV.— The Horse Radish and Substitutes .... 686 Sect. IX. — Condimentaceous Esculents ..... 687 SuBSECT. I The Rhubarb 687 1551. Propagation and culture. 1552. Substitutes. SuBSECT. II. — The Angelica, Elecampane, Samphire, Caper, c|-c. . 688 1559. Excellent substitutes. 1560. The ginger. 1561. Theflowera of Magnolia grandifl6ra. Sect. X.—Aromaceotis Esculents ...... 690 1563. The common thyme. 1564. The lemon thyme. 1565. The sage. 1566. The clary. 1667. The common mint. 1568. The pen- nyroyal mint. 1569. The pot marjoram. 1570. The sweet marjoram. 1571. The winter marjoram. 1572. The winter savory. 1573. The summer savory. 1574. The sweet basil. 1575. The bush basil. 1576. The tansy. Sect. XI. — Fungaceous Esculents ..... 691 1577. The garden mushroom. 1578. The truffle. 1579. The morel. 1580. Substitutes. Sect. XII. — Odoraceous Herbs ...... C93 1582. The lavender. 1S83. The rosemary. 1584. The peppermint. Sect. XIII. — Medicaceous Herbs G93 1586. The medicinal rhubarb. 1587. The chamomile. 1588. The wormwood. 1589. The rue. 1590. The horehound. 1591. The hyssop. 1592. The balm. 1593. The blessed thistle. 1594. The liquorice. 1595. The blue melilot. Sect. XIV. — Toxicaceous Herbs 694 1597. The tobacco. 1598. Propagation and culture. 1599. After management. 1600. Curing. 1601. The white hellebore. 1602. The foxglove. 1603. The henbane. 1604. Walnut leaves. Supplementary Notes ....... 697 A Monthly Calenbab op Operations . . . . .715 January, 715. February, 715. March, 716. April, 716. May, 717. June, 717. July, 718. August, 718. September, 719. Octo- ber, 719. November, 719. December, 720. Gp:nehal Index ......•• 721 Addenda ...»•••••• W' NAMES OF THE FRUITS AND VECETABLE3 B. S'4 s £ 60 j3 a-0 « a ." a i3=a « p. " o « o ls2| o >,& If? d <^ U 3 ^ s.ii C = £ "r- 1' „, •S55 to If) -^ 0^1 et v. - ^< '^ ..a '-i^.sal .>^ B (.ra s 3 3 ill •fe: a W cT ^' rt S =2 fe s'j 3^-s %Ss^ s l.2< '■2.3 ".3 Hi S-u o ri '■' C ^ aj ni s-S.^gF « rt C o^-" " 3 5^ n (O o >n (O CO ^ oo 00 00 O) oi o> 01 •o iO ift in to lO m ■« £ S S a ? a ■& S)g g d-O O ID >• fe cQ S <; "fe 5 . a^ ■£ 3 g S •3 S 2-2 n.SSsgsgC'a ■ass °^«a3:ao S j^^S o a.o:: < -: — ^ . Pi o Sa g •! » £J d 3 ^ 3 ^ 3^ § S ;u a-a tpg S " " ■.§■§■"» § Is. ^ '&s'^3l"S tc B .S '3 H t-Jt* 2 9 ** "^ '^i S. 91 u V u a-c J3 rt ■" 3 C ka .2 • &D - 3 a 3K1 3 g-a >. *.2 « '»V?^ m-" JH S?w 2.SJ .2 m a->,c; 3 a s4:~ ae=i-3 > IV a, S -S .3 g -3 fi I: a • d a u C cj o < O o Pi n Cd w I, « d c d c: 3 o : a '3'-' . "^ « 3>^ 2 CULTIVATED IN BRITISH GARDENS, XXV S sS ^^MOtOiOOCT a s 32 o T3 M S 9 o S P o S £ u d 3 2 c s * '§ = £=! § a-Sa aS.S, eS d B 6 " £|a ■iJSa « S s o •S-ggS (^ a m d 9 •S -S -2 g a S g-i §S ^ I, S a B "- a •3g3aag£.> *C *h *>^ "u 'C ^ ^ V n m m nns»a • •S • P4 t< - m SB O O O U > > o C3 d »4 rs -3 ? M W W o 5 OM Mm 03 - g « . O O .rt 5 u Vi b o O > CO w cnOCQx a J ? oUta a; 3 ^-."^ .3^2 S o a .5J -^ IB " ►- O J- • O O, 3 n a — .4) a) o , gjj ai 0.3 3 a i J OQ OOP, ffi fn Cf? CQ • g ■ .■c ■ J ■stega •S'2'3 fl Z •S d ES3.g '£2 5 5 a . . . q i= ft "^ (3 Cio'=l S'3 5 *3 « " « eg, ■a g "=^.2 213 2 si 2 a OD «fiKai>w — « n W w ^ . . • 'S ■s- • 1 a-i^gS.« 41 ■3 " ■3 3 3 2 2 2 3 s-s s-c as ^ 3-1 m nnsmso H uu ■a . . .'S a g . C Si'V a a •> M a S a a o O o •S So'E'SS'S Sag 3 ||:saS:s g -el Is o Ed o"SSiSSa3 0*33 ^^11 ill! £1| t: S » o '3-3 - p. IS;; S S S s ■ « jr o .id ^ .0 • M a £ a 3 M CO S: I S S 2 E » M a u a S o» ( tS a a « J ^ ,*3 e --a (- g'C H 2 fli a " ^ a 3.2 S-^^"" ^'S "'C a a is'2 1 §s 3 ; '^ ■ a|. •I ^1 ■2 a S a o „ It CO caPQ (D »^ r^ cb 00 *0 « (O <0 (O 1" • & = - a -a a .Bt - a n cc ^ Cs. w-S S § 3 a g a if Sill M< -^ M M : i I ,5 "S a a ,3 ** B.^ a « 'S. 3 M S O n in N • o Si Sa • a3 is SS-H 2 S'3 rt"^ S'B'^ aj ■S -3 o g M ^ I b .d •" o 3 «J « C fc P aS ^ m u P ri • '2 h iS-- . - -^ « o -o t-q t^ -B .2 S 2 g^ M k ^ • ,^ • ^ • fl E.a g § a ^ as S .S B K o i; « o. oj o OO fi< 03 fa CQ XXVI NAMES OP THE FRUITS AND VEGETAB en pL^pq pq I go o M M c a c3 n 'C C d a a M « M « « uHnn pa n SSSSiSSBSo^o .2(1)3) "cs ew a o o Q..2 5^s5 3 3 d o ov a ■ S d S u o B •a 5>S g-o O Ph H-?^^ ^^ • * "3 g s o a o Ill .S, ■? -3 31 d S o v ° i 1 i ^ H ■Sr S= §1 -s U Pi cs a tn CO aa i •I ■a 's'S I d u .d ^ '.A §■•311 ^, . . . g"» a.2-a s '-v-ooopS % gJdS 3 i^l^ >4 ■I J a.2s-2 -SI'S" S d o a -S ^ "^ n S ^ ■ • ^ (do ^ . d c « d-o a il.8&||.asS^ o to O^ d -'w :5 B» »■ I. 'C S'S'^'d a „- _ oj d "a *3 .S 3 tfc 4-§Mm - -a. H g ■E . _ II I g't'S '^"iwlid .S.SSISSKSjSSg I w Mn s« =g I a .2 8 g ^^4 •2§ • = CO a; • . M H o St g«Sr_ w ■ ■ ■ :■ I ■ ■ ^ s s gll 1 8,1 s i I il g-Sl a § • ■So a .s;s *M 3 2*- III t >■§, 111 lis II -I ••I'i li a a o S g" o5 ifl^-S? Sal §• ^ aSSS .S « =Q« '3 ' CD 43 i I g I » = = 3 E-txO.^a.5 CO oq :« « 1^ S^M a a s « §2 >.> > n a BO a F,a ■^ s '^ •c iS a ■S to a "S. I 1 e ia U I 5 s s " g ■E fe •g •< H a a a u fg ■s i.i V 01 3< ,• • J • 1.2, ■ag.S'Ta is^£.s5|g' 5 o o §.S a '3 '3 a "^ iiaggJit SoK . . .a I :§- .gn.s|l I ■ai-IS:as- bj t? ffi -< »S S u cn ■° 2 « § " ■ f" - — -g M „■ .a .'-''^ :'js- ':f M.3 .£.2sSa t|Siilil| § 2 S ^'3 ^ " 2 c a ■S»a'-OTS5?? — ■S • • • " • 2 a «'S 13 3 .S^S^So a -Ho ;S5|| .go, SS ^ a a P = o « C a a a.^ u V a ■2-1-3 isilr pass's « J= « B =2 S o K> 2 * So *i T a a i =.S ;S a o 00, s.aB 3 1 S a-r- a* J •a S o a <""^a H a M a ■'3 (S cs ^a .a s-sS-S S t = ^ g.t; 60^ fc J3ja M R o LIST OF ENGRAVINGS. Tools. FIG. PAGE no. PAGR 236. Godsall's budding-knife im- 12. The common lever 130 proved . . . , 302 13. Kneed lever and crow-bar 130 203. Splitting-knift and opening pick, 14. 15. Perforators . 30 for using in cleft-grafting 290 16. Dibbers . 31 41. Asparagus knife. . . . 138 17. Potato-dibber . . 31 42. The scimitar bill-knife . 138 18. Caat-iron sheaths for dibbers . 31 43. Dress bill-knife 138 19. Picks .... 131 48. Garden-axe 140 20. Draw-hoes . 131 50. Garden-scythes . . . 140 162. The Leicestershire, or shifting 44. Garden-saws 139 blade, draw-hbe 232 202. Bow-saw for cutting off branches 21. Spanish hoes . 132 of trees . . . . 290 23. Thrust hoes 132 45. Pruning chisels 139 381. Siclile hoe . . . 660 46. Shears for clipping hedges and 382. Drill hoe . 660 box-edgings 139 22. Lawn scraper . 132 49. Verge and grass shears 140 24. Spades 133 47. Pruning shears 139 25. Turf spades 134 243. Punch used for punching out 32. Transplanting spades 135 shield-buds 306 26. 27. Verge-cutters or -turf-racers 134 28. Garden spud 29. Trowels . . . . 134 135 Utensils. 30. Daisy weeder 135 6. A fly glass .... 111 31. Saul's transplanter 135 10. Inverted fiowcr-pot for catch- 33. Dung and tan forks 135 ing mice .... 121 34. Digging forks . 135 5. Cap for covering the holes in 36. Garden rakes . 136 the bottoms of pots 96 35 , Daisy and grass rakes 136 65. Pot carrier . . . . 148 383. Drill-rake 660 SI. Sizes of flowerpots 142 37. Beetles and rammers 136 52. Propagating pot 143 38. Wooden mallet and garder 53, 54. Pots with raised bottoms to hammer l."7 prevent the entrance of worms 143 39. Garden pincers 137 55. Pot with channelled bottom. 324. Weeding pincers 381 to facilitate the escape of water 143 335. Orchardist's crook 441 56. Ornamental flowerpot, with the base serving as a receptacle luSTHnMENTS. 259. for drainage water A double pot . . . . 143 331 40. Garden Knives 137 57. Pot with pierced rims and bands 95. Giafting-knife, reaiio to servf for introducing wire-work . 143 also for a budding-knife . 28R 333-342. Sectionsofpots for pines 448 ,449 LIST OF ENQBAVINGS. rxa. PAGE 58. Blanching pot 143 .59. Isolating saucer . . . 144 ()0. Annular water saucer 144 61. Plant box 145 62. Sucker, kneed-spouted, and over-head watering-pots 146 63. Money's inverted-rose watering P»t 147 64. Wire screen for soil, old tan. or gravel .... 147 66- —74. Baskets, and illustrations of the mode of making them . . .349 151 75. Punnet baskets . . . . 152 323. Trainer's basket . 37G 76. Bell glasses . . . . 152 78. Substitutes for bell glasses 152 77. Cast-iron hand glass 152 79 Mode of preparing hand glasses to serve as ily traps , 111 112 Machines. 79. Garden wheelbarrow , ,153 80. Read's garden syringe , , 154 81. Readme pneumatic hand-engine 154 82. Section of Read's pneumatic hand-engiiie . . . 155 '83, Read's barrow-engine . . 155 84. Read's fumigating bellows . 156 85. Section, of the canister of Read's fumigating bellows . . 156 87. Powdering bellows . , . 157 86. Iron fumigating pot , . 156 258. Shrub and tree transplanter . 323 261,262. Side, and perspective view of the girdling machine 347, 348 325, 326. Water-barrow and distri- butor . , . .384 Miscellaneous Articles. 4, Eggs of , the earthworm , . 95 88. Wisps of straw used as pro- tectors .... 158 89. Mode of making straw mats . 159 90 — ^93. Oiled paper cap for pro- tecting flowers . . . 162 94. Props for climbers . . 163 95. Cast and wrought iron props for supporting climbers . 164 96—99. Labels and tallies . 165. 166 100. Nailing wallet . , . 167 101. Iron reel and pin for a garden line . . . . .168 102. 103. Portable ladder open and shut , . . .168 104, 105. Rule joint and orchard ladder . . . . ' 169 106. Garden level . . .169 107. Bridge plank for wheeling across box edgings . ... 1 70 FIG. 108. Leather bearing straps . 264. Wire frame -work for climbing plants in pots 26€, 267. Wire standard and rings for supporting climbing plants. 270. Umbrella trellis for climbing plants .... 271. Trellis over a walk , . . 361. Netting for covering a cherry- garden .... 373. Hooked stick for training prize gooseberry, bushes . , . 374. Forked stick fop training prize gooseberry bushes 170 355 355 355 357 557 664 564 Diagrams. 1 . Part of the trunk of a disbarked lime tree . , . . ' 31 11. Mode of forming a triple f^nce for excluding cattle, sheep, and hares . . . .123 66 — 74. Illustration of the mode of making baskets . 149 — 151 130. Section of an iron sash-bar . 1.91 131. Section of a wooden sash-bar . 191 133. Vertical profile of part of a ridge and furrow roof . . 192 134. Section of a dung bed, with a tube for supplying hot air . 196 155. Lap of glass panes' puttied and painted . . . . 219 161. Diagrams showing the angle which the blades of draw-hoes ought to make with the handle . . . .232 163. Section of the head of a garden rake 233 253. Modes of protecting trees from cattle .... 318 254, Mode of securing newly planted trees from the effects of high winds 319 255—257. View, profile, and section of a tree guard , . . 320 328. Details of a mode of fafiteuing coverings on frames . . 394 359. Outline of a Pearmaiu apple . 531 270. The term oblate exemplified . 554 372. Section through a cherry'garden covered with netting , . 557 378, 379. Section and view of a prop for climbing plants . . 637 380. Sections of ground prepared for planting potatoes . . 642 Moveable and Portable Garden Structuhes. 109. Wickerwork protector for low shrubs . . . . 171 LIST OF ENGRAVINGS. 110. Wickerwork protectors of va- rious kinds . . . 172 111 — 113. Details of a hand box, as a substitute for a hand glass. 172 114. Iron bracket for supporting a temporary wooden coping . 174 115. Apparatus for rolling up and . letting down canvas shades . 1 75 322. Thatched hurdles for protect- ing plants in the open garden. 401 377. Cover for peas and other early crops ..... 633 Fixed Garden Structures. 2, Sectionof a hothouse heated by hot-water according to Mr. Fenn's manner ... 85 3. Section of a hothouse heated by hot-water in the ordinary manner .... 86 116. A stone for fixing temporary rafters , . . ,179 117. Mode offixing temporary rafters 179 118. Plan of a hollow brick wall . 180 1 19. 120. Plan and end view of a brick wall 74 Inches thick . ISO 121. Longitudinal section of a liued wall 182 122, 123. Plan and section of a reed wall .... 183, 184 324. Trellised arcade for fruit-trees. 186 125. Trellis for climbers . . 186 126. Plan showing the intersection of trellised walks . . 186 127. Steep-roofed house for winter forcing of plants in pots , 189 128 Ciirvilineal glass roofs . . 189 129. Ground plan of curviUneal plant house . . .190 132. Perspective view of the original ridge and furrow house at Chatsworth , . .191 135. Perspective elevation and section of a pinery heated by dung linings .... 196 136. Section of a vinery heated by dung. .... 196 137. Section of a furnace and double flue 198 138. Section of a greenhouse, with reserve flue and common flue 199 139. Section of a common brick flue, with a zinc cistern over it . 200 156. Section of a span-roofed pit, with the roof over the path opaque . . . .221 157. Ground plan of a pit to be heated in Mr. Corbett's manner . 222 159. Section of a pit to be heated by Corbet's system, or by smoke flues 222 317. Section of a pit on MTIiail's principle . . ■ • 332. Stake espalier rail . « - 333. Cast-iron espalier rail . 334. Strained wire espalier rail . . 336. Section of a pine-pit at Oakhill 337. Section of a pit at Oakhill for fruiting Queen pines . 356, Section of Corbet's cucumber pit 357. Section of Green's cucumber pit . 358. Section of Ayres' cucumber house .... PAGE 393 4-25 426 427 445 448 504 506 508 Hot-water Apparatus. 140. 144. 145. 146. 147. A hot-water apparatus for cir- culation on a level . . 202 141. Boiler and furnace for heating by hot water in rising and falling pipes . . . 202 142. Apparatus for circulating hot water below and above the level of the boiler . . 202 143. Syphon mode of circulating hot water . . . .203 Hot- water pipe, and reserve cistern for hot water . . 203 Section of a reserve cistern and hot-water pipes . . . 204 Perkins's double boiler . . 206 Roger's conical boiler . . 208 148. Mode of setting Rogers's boiler 208 149. Rogers's boiler set with tlie chimney added . - . 209 ] 50. Rogers's boiler with the heat- ing pipe joined to it . . 210 151. Rogers's substitute for a stop- cock . . . .210 666. Rogers's hot- water reservoir , 210 154. Zinc cisterns for double and single pipes . . . 216 Digging, Trenching, and Ridging. 1 59. A plot of ground properly marked off for digging or trenching . 229 160. A plot of ground disadvantage- ously marked off for digging or trenching . . . 229 160*. A section showing the differ- ence between proper and im- proper trenching . .231 380, Section of ridges prepared for planting potatoes . . 642 Propagation by Cuttings, Layeks, &c, 164. A slioot improperly, and one properly cut . . . 236 166. Prepared cutting of a Shaddock 254 LIST OP ENGKAVINGS. FTO. 167> A cutting of a Cape Heath pre- pared and planted 168. A cutting of an Epacris prepared and planted 169. A cutting of Acacia alata pre. pared and planted 1 70. Forsyth's mode of Btriking cut- tings .... 171. A cutting of Rosa semperflorena prepared and planted . 172. A piping of a pink prepared and planted .... 173. A cutting of a pelargonium pre- pared and planted 174. A cutting of a fuchsia prepared and planted 175. A cutting ofa camellia prepared and planted 176. 177. Eyes of vines prepared and planted 178, 179. The lower and upper half of the leaf of theophrasta rooted and sending up a shoot 180. Wedges inserted above and be- low buds to check the flow of the sap .... 181. A ringed shoot, to accumulate sap at the base of the buds, &c. 182, A shoot bent to cause the buds at the angles to break 183, 184. Layering with the tongue made in the under and upper aide of the shoot A stool with shoots layered A petunia layered A carnation layered . . . A cutting layered . A branch ringed, and prepared for rooting in a case Branch layered in a tin case . Branches of a coniferous plant pegged down, to force it to throw up a leader . 193. Injured bulbs throwing up offsets . . . . ■ Branch of a peach tree protected by fern , « . . GRAFTING ILLUSTRATED, Scion and stock illustrative of the principles on which they are united . . * > Splice-graftmg in its different 185. 186. 137. 188. 189. 190, 191. 192, 593. 194. 196. 197. The scion with its young shoots on and the heel of the stock cut off ... ' 198. Splice-grafting with a tongue , 199. Splice-grafting with a shoulder 200. Splice-grafting the peach . . 201. Cleft-grafting 256 256 257 259 259 261 261 262 262 265 268 270 270 271 273 274 275 276 276 276 276 279 279 593 280 288 289 289 289 290 290 ^^°- PAGR 204. Rind-grafting . . . . 290 205-207. Cleft-grafting the vine, rose, and camellia . . , 291 208. Epiphyllum trunc^tum grafted on Per^skia acule^ta , , 291 209, 210. Saddle,grafting . . 292 211. Grafting the lateral branches of fruit-trees , . . , 292 212. Side-grafting the orange . . 293 213. Side-grafting the vine . . 293 214. Wedge-grafting , , . 293 215. Herbaceous grafting the pine and iir tribe . . . . 294 216. Grafting the tree peony on the tubers of the herbficeouspeony 295 217. Cleft- grafting the dahlia on its own tubers . . . 295 218. Peg-grafting the dahlia on its own tubers . . . , 295 219-223. Different modes of herba- ceous-grafting . . , 296 Bttdding Illustrated. 237. The different steps in the pro- cess of shield-budding , 303 238. Shield-budding the roseinspring 306 239, Shield-budding the ciLmellia in spring , , , . 305 240, Shield-grafting without a bud . 305 241, Budding with a circular shield 305 242. Budding by the aid of a punch 305 244. Budding with the shield re- versed . . , . 305 245. Budding with a pointed shield for resinous trees . . 306 246. Budding with a double shield 306 247. Budding with a square shield . 305 248. Budding with a terminal eye . 306 249. Fiute-budding the mulberry in spring .... 307 250. Terminal flute-budding inspring or summer . . . 307 25 1. Flute-budding with strips of bark 307 252. Annular budding . . 308 Inarching Illustrated. 224. A scion and stock prepared for inarching . . , 298 225. The scion inarched to the stock and bandaged . , . 298 226. Inarching with the scion and stock tongued and united but not bandaged . . . 298 227, 228. A stock and scion prepared for saddle inarching . . 299 229. A scion and stock united by saddle inarching . . 299 230—232, Stocks and scion prepared for inarching . . . 299 233. A large stock and small scion united by inarching . , 300 LIST OP ENORAVINOS. V'Q. PACE 2..i4, Inarching with the scion nou- rished by water . . . 300 235. The camellia inarched with the Bcion nourished by water . 300 Diagrams illustrative of Pruning and Training. 260. Mode of causiug a pear-tree to produce blossom buds . 263. Mode of nailing a bent shoot straight .... 265. Mode of training the grape-vine in pots . . .' . 268. Mode of training climbers on a wall .... 269. A rose trained in the balloon manner .... 272. Spiral training, first stage , 273. Plan of spiral training 274. Elevation of spiral training 275 — 277. Progressive stages of the spurring-in system . 360, 278. Quenouille training . . 361 280. Conical training . . 361 281—284. Hayward^B quenouille training .... 362 285 — 288. Progressive stages of fan- training , . . 363, 364 2S9— 295. Progressive stages of Sey- mour's fan-training . 365 — 368 296—298, Wavy-training . 368, 369 345 352 355 355 356 35y o59 360 ,361 fig. 299- 307- 312, 314. 315- 319- 343- 348. 349- 360- 369. 375. 330. 331. 374 374 PAGB -306. Progressive stages of wavy-training . • 369 — »>/2 -311. Progressive stages of hori- zontal-training . • 372, 37a 313. Horizontal and fan-train- ing combined . • • Horizontal and pei-pendicular training combined —318. Progressive stages of half. fan training . . 374,375 —322. Progressive stages of per- pendicular-training . 375, 376 -347. Progressive stages of prun- ing the vine . . 456, 457 The Thomery system of train- ing vines .... 453 -355. Hoare's system of train- ing the vine . . 469—472 -368. Spur-pruning the apple exemplified . . 538—542 Method of training shy-bearing pears ' . . . t550 A trained prize gooseberry- bush 564 Plans of Kitchen Gardens. A plan containing one acie within the walls, and half an acre in the surrounding slip . 419 A plan containing one aero within the walls, and three- quarters of an acre in the slips 421 THE HORTICULTURIST. INTRODUCTION. Hating in a twin volume* treated of Gardening as an Art of Design and Taste, as relates to the laying out of villa residences, the management of pleasure-grounds, and the culture of flowers, our object in the present work is to treat Gardening as a useful Art, as applied to the culture of fruits and vegetables. We shall consider ourselves as writing for grown-up pupils, who have previously known little of the subject; and we shall embrace all that we think will be useful to the possessors of small gardens, whether in town or country, at home or abroad, and whether they belong to the retired citizen, the clergyman, the farmer, the mechanic, the labourer, the colonist, or the emigrant. The possessor of a garden may desire to know the science and the art of its cultivation for several reasons. He may wish to know whether it is properly cultivated by his gardener ; he may wish to direct its culture himself ; he may desire to know its capabilities of improvement or of change ; he may wish to understand the principles on which the diiFerent operations of culture are performed, as a source of mental interest ; or he may wish to be abl« to perform the opera- tions himself as a source of recreation and health. The last two are by far the most important purposes which this volume is intended to serve ; and hence we shall give, as far as we Qui practicable, the philosophy of every operation of culture, as well as practical directions for the manner in which it should be performed. Some topics we shall illustrate by Notes, in an Appendix at the end of the work ; and. all the technical terms will be foimd explained in the General Index. We shall commence with some preliminary chapters on Plants, Soils, Manures, and the Operations common to all the departments of garden cultivation ; and we shall next treat, in succession, of the kitchen garden, the fruit garden, and the forcing grounds. * The Vill» Gardener. 1849. 1 vol. 8to. B PART I. FACTS RELATIVE TO PLANTS, THE SOIL, MANURES, THE ATMOSPHERE, &c., ON WHICH HORTICULTURE IS FOUNDED. CHAPTER I. PLANTS CONSIDERED WITH REFERENCE TO THEIR CULTURE IN GARDENS. It is not our intention to enter into any scientific discussion on the nature of plants ; but it is necessary that we should strongly impress on the mind of the reader who has little idea of their culture, that they are living beings, and quite as sensible of good and bad treatment as animals. Because a part of the leaves and branches of a plant may be cut off, and the remainder which is attached to the root will continue to live and grow, it seems to be inferred that a plant will bear any kind of treatment with impunity. Many persons purchase a plant and plant it in their garden, a3 they would purchase a piece of furniture and place it in a room, thinking that the one act requires no more care than the other. Many labourers, and even not a few gardeners, when planting a plant, insert it in the soil with little more care than they would a stick or a post, crowding all the roots into a small hole and then pressing the earth on them with their feet, with apparently no other end than placing the plant upright and keeping it firm. A person that knows anything of the nature of a plant, and of the manner in which it draws its nourishment, by the means of the points of fibrils so tender as to be rendered useless by the slightest bruise, and furnished with mouths or pores so small as only to be seen by means of a powerful magnifier, will feel this treatment to be barbarous and injurious. Another person, on the contrary, who knows the grateful return that every plant makes to him who bestows on it the cares and labours of culture properly performed, wiU take a degree of interest in the operation of planting, and derive a degree of enjoyment from the future growth and development of the plant, of which a person ignorant of the subject can form no idea. As all men may be presumed to know something of the nature of animals, per- haps the easiest way of giving some knowledge of plants to those who have hitherto paid little attention to the vegetable kingdom, will be by first exhibiting the principal points of analogy between plants and animals, and next noticing the classification, nomenclature, structure, functions, geo- graphy, and habitations of plants. Sect. I. — The Analogy between Plants and Animals, considered with reference to Horticulture. 1. Plants are organised beings, that, like animals, depend for their exist- ence on nourishment, warmth, air, and light. Their nourishment they derive from the soil, their warmth and air jointly from the soil and the atmosphere, and their light from the sun. 2. Plants resemble animals in having an organic structure endowed with life, and in requiring nourishment to enable them to continue to exist. They absorb this nourishment through the small tubular fibres of their roots in the ANALOGY BETWEEN PLANTS AND ANIMALS. 3 Eame way as animals do theirs through the small tubes called lacteals, which convey it from their stomachs to their lungs. Plants differ from animals in. boing fixed to one spot, in having the principles of vitality and reproduc- tion diffused over every part of their structure, and in thus being propagated by division, as well as by ova or seeds ; in being without a brain or nervous system, and, consequently, incapable of feeling ; and in light being as neces- sary to their existence as air is to that of animals. 3. The soil in which a plant grows is, in general, as essential to it as the stomach is to an animal. Food, before it can be absorbed into the system, must be reduced into a pulpy mass, consisting partly of nutritious matter soluble in water, and partly of refuse. This process, in regard to animals, is performed in the stomach, and is called digestion; and when it is finished, the lacteals suck the chyle from the mass, and convey it to the lungs, where it is assimilated to the blood, and thence is distributed through the frame, while the refuse is passed off in the form of excrement. 4. The food of plants is rotted, or undergoes the putrescent fermentation or some other species of decomposition, (a process similar to digestion,) in the soil ; and is there brought, by the addition of water and gases, to a sufficient state of fluidity to enable the spongioles of the roots to absorb from it the part necessary for the nourishment of the plant. The matter absorbed is then carried up to the leaves, where it undergoes a process similar to that to which the chyle is subjected in the lungs of animals, and becomes the true sap of the plant, which contributes to its growtli as blood does to the growth of animals. 5. When a plant or an animal is in a state of disease, no application to the leaves and branches of the one, or to the external members of the other, will be of much use, if the soil or the stomach be neglected. The stem and branches of a plant, and the external members of an animal, may be injured, mutilated, and even diseased ; but if the soil of the plant and the stomach of the animal be invigorated, and placed in a healthy state, the whole plant or animal will soon recover from the injuries it had received, so' as to perform all the functions necessary to its existence. The first step, therefore, in cultivating or in improving plants, is to improve the soil in which they grow ; and in like manner the first step in improving animals is to improve the quality and increase the quantity of their food. 6. In all vertebrate animals there is a part at the back of the neck, between the spinal marrow and the brain, where a serious injury will occasion immediate death. There is a corresponding point in plants, between the root and the stem, which is called the neck, or collar ; and at this point plants may be more readily injured than anywhere else. Most plants, also, may be killed by covering this point too deeply with soil. In all seedling plants, this neck or vital part is immediately beneath the point where the seed-leaves originate ; and if the plant be cut over there when in a young state, the part which is left in the ground will infallibly die. In old plants, however, and particularly in herbaceous plants which have creeping stems, and also in various kinds of trees and shrubs, the roots, after the plant has attained a certain age, become furnished with adventitious buds ; and, when the plant or tree is cut over by the collar, these dormant buds are called into action, and throw up shoots, which are called suckers. No suckers, however, are ever thrown up by the roots of a plant cut through at the collar while in its seed-leaves. The branches of a tree may be all cut off b2 4 ANALOGY BETWEEN PLANTS AND ANIMALS, close to the trunk, and the roots also partially removed ; but, if the collar remain uninjured, the plant, in suitable soil, and under favourable cii-cum- Btances, will throw out new roots and shoots, and in time will completely recover itself. On the other hand, if the collar be cut ofiP, the stem or trunk is left without roots, and the roots without a stem, or the power (in general) to throw up one. 7. There are some plants of the herbaceous kind (such as the horse-radish, for example) that do not suffer, even if their collar should be buried two feet, or even three feet ; but by far the greater number of plants (such as the hepatica, the common daisy, the common grasses, &c.) are killed by having the collar covered two or three inches ; and nothing is more injurious to woody plants, whether large or small. It is easy to destroy a large tree by heaping up earth round the base of its trunk ; and easy to prevent a small one from growing, by lifting it and planting it six inches or a foot deeper than it was before. Hence the great importance of not planting any plant deeper in the soil than it was before taking it up ; and hence also the reason why trees planted in deeply trenched ground, and especially fruit trees, often disappoint the planter. In planting these trees the soil immediately under and about them is more consolidated by treading and watering than the soil in the other parts of the plantation ; and hence it soon sinks below the general level, to maintain which level the gardener fills up the depression every year, till the collar of the tree becomes buried several inches beneath the surface. It is said that all the peach plantations throughout the United States have been for some years in a state of disease, without any person being able to account for the circumstance, or point out a remedy, tUl one man discovered it to be too deep planting. He proposed to divulge the secret to Congress for a million of dollars; but, while Congress was deliberating on the subject, the secret was made public by Mr. Bridgeman, in a pamphlet published in 1838. The soil in America, Mr. Bridgeman observes, is light ; and the trees, when planted in it, if not staked, are apt to be blown aside, or even blown out of the soil, by high winds. Hence, to avoid the trouble and expense of staking, they are planted deeper in the soU, by which they are held firm, without the aid of stakes, and this is the grand cause of unfruitfulness and disease in all trees, more especially in the peach. This deep planting, Mr. Bridgeman continues, is practised not only with fruif trees in America, but with all other trees and plants whatever; and they are all injured more or less by it, ac- cording as the soil is more or less compact. 8. The cause why plants are so much injured by burying the collar has not, as far as we know, been physiologically and satisfactorily explained. 9. The next point of analogy between plants and animals which it may be useful to notice is that between the lungs and the leaves. An animal can no more live without its lungs than without its stomach. The stomach, as we have seen, is necessary for turning the food into chyle, and the lungs for turning that chyle into blood. Now, a plant can no more live and grow without leaves than an animal can without lungs. The use of the lungs is to expose the chyle to the action of the air, which they decompose, so that its oxygen may unite with the chyle, and thus change it into blood. The leaves of plants, which act to them as lungs, not only decompose air, but light, in the process of elaborating the sap ; and hence plants can no more live without light than without air or food, as light is necessary to turn their food into sap, or, m other words, to bring it into the proper state for CONSIDERED WITH REPEBENCE TO HORTICULTURE. 5 affording them nourishment. Hence, in the culture of plants, the great im- portance of solar light. An important difference, however, between the cir- culation of the sap in vegetables and that of the blood in animals is, that the former have no heart. 10. Plants and animals agree in requiring a certain degree of temperature to keep them alive ; and the warmth of this temperature differs greatly in the different kinds both of plants and animals. Hence, the constitutional temperature of any plant to be cultivated being known, that temperature must be maintained by art ; either by a suitable situation in the open air, or by its culture within a structure which admits the light, and is capable of having its atmosphere heated to any required degree. The temperature which any plant requires is ascertained by its geographical position in a wild state, making allowance for the difference produced in the habits of the plant by cultivation. 11. Plants agree with animals in requiring periodical times of rest. In animals, these periods are, for the most part, of short intervals of not more than a day ; but, in plants they are commonly at long intervals, mostly of several months. In warm climates, the dormant period of plants commences with the dry season, and continues till the recurrence of the periodical rains, which are peculiar to the tropical regions. In temperate countries, the dor- mant season in plants commences with the cold of winter, and continues till the recurrence of spring. When plants are in a dormant state, they com- monly lose their leaves, and, consequently, at that season, they are unable to make use of the nourishment applied to their roots ; and hence the injury done to them when they arc stimulated with nourishment and warmth, so as to occasion their growth during the period at which they ought to be at rest. Hence, also, arises the injury which plants receive, and especially oulbs, if the soil about them be kept moist by water when they are in a dormant state. Plants, having no feeling in the common sense in which tho word is used, can neitlier experience pleasure nor pain ; but they resent injuries, either negative or positive, by slow growth, or by becoming diseased. By their being fixed to the spot where they grow, they necessarily depend for their food, heat, air, and light, on the cu'cumstances peculiar to that spot ; and, hence, to increase their growth beyond what it would be if left to nature, additional food must be brought to them, and the warmth, airiness, and lightness of the situation increased. Hence, what is called vegetable culture, which, with plants in general, consists in stirring the soil, adding manure to it, regulating the supply of water by draining or irrigation, shel- tering from the colder winds, and exposing to the direct influence of the sun's rays. If we imagine any one of these points attended to, and not the others, the plant will not thrive. Stirring the soU, and mixing it with manure, will be of little use, if that soU be liable to be continually saturated with mois- ture, either from its retentive nature, from springs from below, or from continued rains from above ; or if it be continually without, or with very little, moisture, from its porous nature, the want of moisture in the subsoil, and the want of rain and dews fi'om the atmosphere. Improving the soil, without improving the climate (that is, without communicating a propor- tionate degree of warmth and light), will increase the bulk of the plant, but without proportionately bringing its different parts to maturity. For ex- ample, we wiU suppose two plantations of trees planted at the same time, on similar soil, and in the same climate ; that in the case of the one plantation 6 ANALOGY BETWEEN PLANTS AND ANIMALS, the soil was trenched and manured, and in the other not; and that the trees were planted in pqual numbers in both plantations, and at the same dis- tances : the trees in the prepared soil would grow rapidly ; and in the un- prepared soil, slowly. After a certain number of years (say twenty), we BhaU suppose both plantations cut down— when the timber produced by that which had grown slowly would be found hard, and of good q"3,lity ; whUe that produced by the plantation which had grown rapidly would be found soft, spongy, and, when employed in construction, comparatively of short duration. The reason is, that in this last case the rate of nourishment to the roots exceeded the natural proportion which nature requires m plants, between the supply of food to the roots, and of light and air to the leaves. Had the trees in the prepared soil been thinned out as they advanced, so as never to allow their branches to do more than barely touch each other, they would have produced more timber than the trees in the unprepared soil, and that timber would have been of equal firmness and duration with timber of slower gi-owth. It ought, therefore, to be strongly impressed on the minds of amateur cultivators, that though nourishment of the root will produce bulk of the top, or at least length of top, yet that it is only by abundance of light and air, that quality can be secured at the same time. 12. One very remarkable point of difference between animals and plants is that which has been before alluded to, viz., the much greater provision which nature has made for the propagation of the latter than of the former. Plants not only produce immense quantities of seeds, which are distributed by the winds and waters, by animals, and by various causes ; but they ex- tend themselves by shoots, which run on or under the surface of the ground, as in the case of the strawberrj', the raspberry, &c. ; and they produce buds, each of which, by human art, can be rendered equivalent to a seed, either by planting it (with a small portion of the plant from which it is taken) at once in the ground, or by inserting it in another plant of the same family. Hence, the great facility with which plants are multiplied both by natuie and art ; with the exception of a few, in which the process of propagation by artificial means is comparatively difficult. 13. Another remarkable difference, also before alluded to, between plants and animals, is, the absolute necessity of light to plants during the whole period of their existence. There are many animals of the lower description, such as worms, to which light, so far from being necessary, is injurious ; and there are instances of even the hiore perfect animals having lived for several years without the presence of light, either natural or artificial. Light is not necessary for either the functions of the stomach, brain, or lungs, in animals ; but in plants, though it is equally unnecessary for the functions of the ger- minating seed, the root, and the collar, it is essentially so for those of the leaves ; and the leaves are necessary to the elaboration of the sap, and, consequently to the nourishment of the plant . A plant, therefore, from wh ich the leaves are con- tinually stripped as soon as they are produced, soon ceases to live. Small and weak plants, from which the leaves are taken off as they are produced, will die in a single season ; and this practice, continued for two seasons, will kill, or nearly so, the largest tree. If, instead of stripping a plant of its leaves, the leaves are produced in the absence of light, and light never admitted to them, the effect will be precisely the same. Seeds germinated, or plants struck from cuttings, in the dark, will not exist a single season ; nor will trees, or tubers, Bucli as potatoes, placed in an apartment from which all light is excluded, CONSIDERED WITH BEPERENCE TO HOBTICULTUBE, 7 live more than two seasons. Hence, the importance of light to plants can scarcely be overrated ; for, while it has been proved that plants, even of the most perfect kind, will live for many months, or even years, in glass cases in which very little change of air has taken place, there is no instance of plants, even of the lowest kind, such as ferns and mosses, living for any length of time without light. Without light there can be no green in leaves, no colour in flowers, and neither colour nor flavour in fruits. 14. Plants agree with animals in having a sexual system; but they differ from animals in having for the most part both sexes in the same individual. In the improvement of plants, as in the improvement of animals, the sexual system is a powerful agent ; and what is called cross-breeding is employed with as great advantage in the vegetable as in the animal kingdom. It is remai-kable, that the general laws and results by which the process of cross- breeding in both kingdoms is regulated, are the same ; the two parents must be two varieties of the same or nearly allied species, and their qualities may be different, but must not be opposite ; the preponderating influence, in point of character, is also with the male, and in point of bulk and hardiness with tho female, as it is in animals. Many of the finest varieties of fruits, culinary vegetables, cereal grains, and grasses, have been produced by cross -breeding. When cross-breeding is effected between what are considered different species, the offspring is a mule, or hybrid, which, in most cases, is incapable of maturing seeds, and generally, in the course of a few years, degenerates. or reverts to its original parentage. The purple laburnum, which was raised from a seed of the common laburnum, fertilised by Cj^tisus purpureus, is an example of a true hybrid. The flowers partake of the colours of those of both parents ; and the plant, for two or three years, produced only flowei-s of this kind, which were never succeeded by seeds ; but in the sixth year, in some plants, and seventh and eighth in others, branches of Cytisus pur- pureus were produced on some parts of the tree, and branches of the com- mon yellow laburnum on others, the latter bearing seed. (See Gard. Mag., vol. xii. p. 225 ; and Arb. Brit., vol i. p. 500.) There are, however, instances of mules, or true hybrids, producing fertUe seeds ; for example, Epiphyllum MastersttB, raised between Epiphyllum speciosum and Cereus speciosissi- mus, frequently produces perfect seeds, from which plants have been raised partaking of all the characters of the parent hybrid plant. 15. It would appear, from the case of the purple Laburnum, that a true hybrid or mule cannot always be propagated with certainty, even by por- tions of the plant, or by what is called extension ; since it never can be certain whether the portion taken off for propagation will produce the mule or one of the parents. As it is uncertain what are, and what are not, very distinct species, many of the plants originated by cross-breeduig, and con- sidered mules, may in reality not be so ; and may, consequently, prove per- manent and improved varieties. Some mules, also, such as that between the sweetwilliam and the common pink, are much less liable to degenerate than others. As some of the most beautiful and useful plants in cultivation are cross-bred varieties or mules, particularly among Geraniums, Heaths, Roses, Gloxinia, &c., the subject well deserves the attention of the amateur, who will find it a source of useful amusement and recreation. 16. Plants agree with animals in the ofi'spring, when it is raised from seed, bearing a general resemblance to the parent ; but as, in every family, tho children of the same parent differ individually in features, temper, disposition, 8 CLASSIFICATION OF PLANTS, &c., SO, among seedling plants, from the same seed-pod, no two plants will be found exactly alike ; and some wUl occasionally dififer considerably trom all the rest. Nevertheless, it is an undoubted fact, that aU seedhng plants not only possess the character of the species from which they have sprung, but even, in by far the greater number of cases, some of the peculiarities ot the individual. The seeds of any kind of cultivated apple, for example, will produce plants, the fmit of all of which will more or less resemble that of the parent ; though perhaps some one or two among a hundred may be considerably different. Hence, by selecting from beds of seedling plants those which are in any way remarkably different from the rest, new varieties are procured; and, till within the last half century, (when artificial cross- breedmg began to be practised by gardeners,) this was the only way m which an improved variety of any species of plant was procured. If the seeds of varieties did not produce plants closely resemblmg their parents, how could all the improved varieties of culmary, agricultural, and floricultural plants be pei-petuated ? That the same law which governs herbaceous plants holds good in trees and shrubs cannot be doubted ; and if the seeds of a variegated tulip are more likely to produce plants which shall have variegated flowers than those of a tulip of only one colour, so we should say the berries of a variegated holly are more likely to produce plants with variegated leaves than those of a gi-een-leaved holly. If this law did not hold good in ligneous as well as in herbaceous plants, how are we to account for the different varieties of fl'ibiscus syrtacus coming true from seed ? 17. Plants, like animals, are subject to various diseases, as well as to be preyed on by insects, most of which live on plants till they have completed their larva state. Plants are also injured by bemg crowded by other plants, either of the same or of different species. When these spring up naturally aromid the cultivated plants, they are called weeds, and the cultivated plant is cleared from them by weeding ; as it is in the case of being crowded by its own species, or by other cultivated plants, by t h inni n g. Plants are also injured by epiphytes, which grow on the outer bark, such as mosses and lichens ; and by parasites, which root into their living stems and branches, such as the mistletoe, &c. 18. The life of plants, like that of animals, is limited, but varies in regard to duration. Some plants vegetate, flower, ripen seed, and die, in*the course of a few months, and these are called annuals ; while others, such as the oak and some other trees, are known to live upwards of a thousand years. In both plants and animals decay commences the moment life is extinct ; and in both they are ultimately resolved, first, into a pulpy or other homo- geneous mass, fit for manures, and ultimately into certain gases, salts, and earths. After death, the decay both of animals and plants may be retarded by the same means; viz., drying, exclusion from the air, or saturating with saline or antiseptic substances. Sect. II. — Classification of Plants, with a View to Horticulture. 19. The number of plants is so immense, and the diversity of their ap- pearance so great, that without some kind of classification or arrangement it would scarcely be possible either to receive or retain any distinct notions respecting them. In communicating some positive knowledge of plants, therefore, the first step is to show the mode of simplifying this knowledge by throwing plants into clashes, and other divisions or groups. WITH A VIEW TO HOETICULTURB. 9 20. Plants have been classed according to the Linnean or Artificial System, and according to the Jussieuan or Natural System ; but the latter alone is of any use in a work like the present. By the Natural System plants are thrown into easily recognised groups, bearing a general resemblance, both iu exterior appearance and in internal properties, and for the most part also requiring the same kind of culture. Hence we are enabled to speak of plants in masses, which greatly facilitates the discovery and recollection of their names, the acquu-ing of knowledge respecting them, and the communi- cation of what we know of them to others. 21. AU plants may be divided into three grand classes, founded on their structure. The first class is caUed Dicotyledoneae, from the seedlings having two or more seed-leaves, and also Ex6geniB, from the growth being produced from the outside of the stem. The second class is called Monocotyledonese, from the seeds producing only one seed-leaf, and also Endogense, from the growth being added from the inside of the stems. The third class is called Acotyleddnete, from the seedling plants being without proper seed-leaves ; Cel- lulares, from their structure consisting entirely of cellular tissue ; and Acro- gense, signifying increasing by additions to the extremity merely, and not by the formation of new matter internally or externally, throughout their v^hole length, as in endogens and exogens. We shall use only the terms Exogens, Endogens, and Acrogens. 22. Exogens are flowering plants, vascular in their structure, furnished with woody fibre and spiral vessels ; with stems mostly having distinct layers of wood and bark, and having pith ; the leaves being with branching lateral veins, and the seeds vfith two or more cotyledons. By far the greater num- ber of European plants belong to this class, which is readily known, even when a fragment of a leaf or a stem is obtained, by the reticulated venation of the former, and the concentric circles of the latter. 23. Endogens are flowering plants with a vascular structure, furnished with spiral vessels, and imperfectly formed woody fibre ; they have leaves with longitudinal or parallel veins, but never reticulated ; and seeds with one cotyledon only, or, if two, they are not placed opposite and even with each other, as in exogens, but one of them is placed at the side of the other in the disposition which botanists call alternate. This class includes all the immense order of grasses, and also hyacinths, tulips, narcissi, crocuses, irises, and most bulbs ; the well-known yucca or Adam's needle, and all palms. From a single fragment of the stem or leaf\pf an endogen, the class to which it belongs can be recognised with as great ease as in the case of exogens. 24. Acrogens are flowerless plants with a cellular structure, consisting either of cellular tissue alone, as in lichens and mosses, or with tissue and some few imperfect vessels, as in ferns. They grow by additions to the upper extremity only, as the name implies. Their seed is produced without apparent flowers ; it is not furnished with cotyledons, and it grows from any part of the surface of the plant ; on the under side of the leaf, as in most ferns, on the edges of the foliaceous thaUus of lichens, and from the extre- mities on the sides of mosses. This class of plants is easily recognised by the general observer ; lichens, mosses, and fungi being universal, and ferns frequent and readily recognised by the markings on the backs of their leaves. 25. Of these three classes of plants, the exogens are unquestionably the highest in the scale of organisation even to the general observer. The leaves , of the endogens, at least of temperate climates, are almost all simple, and have little or no variety in their venation or margins. Those of the numc- 10 CLASSIFICATION OP PLANTS, rous species which constitute our bulbous flowers have all ribbon-like leaves, differing in little except in length and breadth ; and their floral envelopes, though splendid in point of colour, are generally more simple than those of exogens, being often of one piece or of one series of pieces ; and there is also very little variety in their fruit. Compared with acrogens, however, , endogens are still high in the scale. 26. To be able to refer any plant that may be met with to the class to which it belongs, is already a grand and useful step in the progress of bota- nical knowledge ; and in the practice both of botanising and of vegetable culture, it is of more real use than a knowledge of the whole system of Linnseus. The moment one botanist or gardener tells another that a plant is an exogen, he forms a perfect idea of its structure, and even some idea of its culture; because the leaves of exogens are more numerous than those of endogens, and hence, with the exception of the grasses, they suffer less from transplanting and mutilation. The leaves of endogens, on the other hand, as of all the bulbous plants, are compara- tively few, and therefore all of them require to be preserved unin- jured. If they are cut off, either in their growing state or when fully formed, they are not renewed the same season ; and the bulb not being nourished by them, will not flower the following year. Exogens, on tho other hand, may have their leaves cut off without much injury, especially in the early part of the season, as they have an indefinite power of renewing them ; and, consequently, wliat would render an endogen flowerless the fol- lowing year, would have little or no effect on an exogen. Grasses, however, form an order of endogens which possess the same properties of renewing their foliage as exogens ; and hence a grassy surface may be cropped by cattle, or mown with the scythe, all the summer, and yet live and thrive. But sup- pose a lawn composed of plants of hyacinth, tulip, narcissus, or crocus, the leaves of which are not unlike those of the grasses, to be mown when the leaves were fully grown ; in that case the plants would not produce another leaf that season, and instead of a green lawn we should have the naked earth till the following spring. 27. These three grand classes of plants are divided into orders and tribes, genera, species, and varieties. The orders of plants indigenous or cultivated in Britain, amount to nearly 300, and the tribes to perhaps a third of that number. The genera amount to upwards of 4,000, and the species to upwards of 85,000. ( ffort. Brit., 1849.) The varieties of botanists are perhaps 2,000 ; and those of culinary vegetables, fruits, roses, and florists' flowers, may amount to perhaps 20,000. Now, though it is not to be expected that any individual can know, and bear in his mind the names of one-tenth of these plants, yet it is extremely desirable that he should be able to speak of any one of them, when he meets with it, whether it has been previously seen by him or not. For example, a very slight degree of attention to a plant seen for the first time, will enable any one to determine to which of tho three grand divisions it belongs. Next, in each grand division, there are two or three of what may be called popular ordei's, which orders any person may recognise almost at sight; and to these orders belong fully half the plants which are commonly met with in Britain, either in a cultivated or a wild state. A knowledge of the grand divisions of these popular orders, therefore, will be a grand step gained, and give the gardener or amateur a notion of a gi-eat number of plants. The grand divisions .of Exogens are Thalamiflor'aa, Calycifldras, CoroUifldrsa, and Monoohlamydese. WITH A VIEW TO HORTICULTURE. ] 1 ThaLAMIPLOBjE. 28. This ia one of the subdivisions of Exogens, which is characterised hy the petals of the flowers heing distinct, and by the stamens being fixed to the receptacle. There are fifty-eight orders described under this subclass, in our Hortus Britannicus, of which those which will be most readily recognised by a general observer, or a beginner, are, — jRanunculaceae, Cru- ciferae, Malvaceae, and Geraniaceae. 29. RanunculdcetB. — Calyx with deciduous sepals ; petals 3-15 ; stamens numerous ; carpels numerous and generally distinct ; herbaceous plants, and a few of them suifruticose shrubs, natives of the temperate regions of both hemispheres ; leaves alternate or opposite, generally lobed or much divided ; flowers often large and showy ; properties, acridity and causticity. Familiar examples of this order are, the Clematis, Anemone, Hepatica, Ranunculus, Hellebore, Columbine, Larkspur, Monkshood, and Peony. 30. CrucifercB. — Sepals and petals 4 each ; the sepals deciduous, and the petals always arranged in the form of a cross. Stamens 4 long and 2 short; stigmas 2 ; fruit a pod with seeds in a double line. Herbaceous plants, mostly annuals and biennials, natives of most parts of the world. Leaves alternate, all simple, and not much cut. Flowers yellow or white, rarely purple. Properties antiscorbutic and stimulant, combined with acridity. Familiar examples are the Common Stock, the Wallflower, Honesty, Shep- herd's Purse, Rocket, Cress, Cabbage, Mustard, Sea Kale, and Radish. 31. MalvdcecB. — Sepals and petals five each ; the sepals generally with braots upon them ; the petals twisted before expansion, and unfolding^ snirally ; the stamens numerous and united together, forming a cylinder round the pistillum ; the fruit a ring of carpels, each single-seeded. Herba- ceous plants, trees, or shrubs, natives of every part of the world. Leaver alternate, stipulate, more or less divided. Flowers for the most part showy. Properties, mucilaginous and wholesome. Familiar examples are, the Mallow, the Hollyhock, the Lavatera, the Althaea frutex, and the Cotton plant. 32. Geranidcete. — Sepals 5 ; petals 5 ; stamens 5-10, united together ; car- pels 5, united to a long elastic style attached at the top to the beak of the receptacle. Herbaceous plants or shrubs with stems tumid and separable at the joints ; natives of various parts of the world ; and the more showy species almost everywhere cultivated. Leaves simple, either opposite or alternate, often lobed and divided ; frequently stipulate. Flowers showy and bright- coloured. Properties astringent and aromatic or resinous. Familiar ex- amples are. Geranium, Erodium, and Pelargonium. 33. Other orders belonging to this division, are, — Magnolikcead, containing the Magnolia and other trees and shrubs, (of which, however, there are very few,) bearing a close resemblance to this well-known ornamental tree. BerberidScete — The Berberry, and similar shrubs. NymphadcecE — The Water-lily, and similar plants. Vapmieracea — Plants with their flowers and fruits of the general structure of the poppy. FumanaceiS— Plants resembling the common Fumitory. Re«erface«— Mig- nonette, and similar plants. Cisiace^B— Cistus-like plants ; easily recognised by their flowers, and for the most part by their rough leaves. , ViolaridceiB — Violet-like plants. Caryophylldcece. — Plants bearing a general resem- blance to the pink. Alsindcece — Chickweed-looking plants. IjindcKai— Plants resembling the common Flax. TiViacecB— The Lime trees. Camel- 12 CLASSIFICATION OP PLANTS, .'iAceae — The Camellias, including the Tea plant. Aurantiaceai — The Oranp-e trees. HypericdcecE — Plants resembling and agreeing in characters with the St. John's Wort. Acerdcecs — Trees and shrubs resembling the Maple and Sycamore. HippocastandcecB—The Horse-chesnuts. Tropceoldceai — The Indian Cress species. "RalsamdcetB. — The Balsams. There are a number of these orders, such as Tiliacese, CamelliaceiB, ,4cer- acesB, Hippocastanacese, &c., which include only one or two genera ; and hence, whUe acquiring a knowledge of the order, a knowledge of the genera is obtained at the same time. To recognise these orders, it is necessary for a beginner to see the flowers ; but, after a little experience, most of them may be discovered by the leaves. CALYCIFLOR-ai. 31. This second subdivision of Exogens consists of plants having several petals with stamens attached to the calyx. It includes about sixty orders, of which the more remarkable are, Leguminosae, iiosacese, Cactaceae, Umbei- laceae, Compositae, and JSricaceae. 35. LeguminoscB. — Sepals and petals five each; the petals papilionaceous, or arranged somewhat like the wings of a butterfly ; stamens ten, mostly diadelphous, that is, in two bundles ; fruit superior, that is, formed above the calyx, and generally becoming a pod. This is one of the most ex- tensive orders of plants, consisting of herbs, shrubs, or trees ; natives of most parts of the world. Leaves generally compound, alternate, stipulate, with the petiole tumid at the base. Flowers in most species yellow, showy. Properties farinaceous, resinous, and furnishing various dyes. Almost all the trees are either useful or ornamental, and many of the herbs are valuable agiicultural and garden plants. Familiar examples are, the common Furze, Broom, Genista, Cytisus, Clover, Lucerne, Melilot, Indigo, LicLUorice, Locust Tree of America, Acacia, Mimosa, Bladder-Senna, Astragalus, Saint- foin, the Tare, Bean, Vetch, Pea. Kidney-bean, Lupine, and Judas Tree. There is scarcely any person who does not know one or other of these plants. 36. 'RosdcetB. — Sepals and petals four to five each ; stamens numerous ; carpels numerous, distinct as in the bramble, or enclosed in a fleshy calyx as in the rose. Trees, shrubs, and herbaceous plants, natives of every part of the world ; many of them producing valuable fruits, and most of them having showy, and in many cases fragrant, flowers. Leaves alternate, stipu- late, simple, or compound. Flowers large, showy, often of bright colours. Properties, astringency, gum, and hydrocyanic acid. Familiar examples are, the Almond, Peach, Apricot, Plum, and Cherry, which form a sub-order called ^mygdalese, the fruit and leaves of all the species of which contain Hydrocyanic or Prussio Acid. The common iSpiraa'a frutex and the yellow- flowered Corchorus are examples of another tribe ; and the Raspberry, the Strawberry, the Potentilla, and the herb Agrimony, exemplify a third tribe. The Ladies' Mantle and the Burnet also represent a tribe ; the Rose forms a, tribe by itself ; and the Hawthorn, Quince, Medlar, Apple, and Pear, represent the tribe Pomacese. 37. UmbelldcecB. — Sepals, petals, and stamens, five each ; styles two ; fruit achenia or pendent seeds; flowers in umbels. Herbaceous plants with f stular furrowed stems, natives chiefly of the northern parts of the northern hemisphere. Leaves alternate or opposite, usually divided or com- WITH A VIEW TO HORTICULTURE. 13 pound ; rarely simple, sheathing at the base. Flowers in umbels, white, pink, blue, or yellow, not in general very showy ; the umbel surrounded by an involucre. Properties of the leaves, stems, and roots, frequently poisonous, as in the Hemlock, Water Parsnep, &c. ; but sometimes wholesome, as in tho Parsley, Carrot, Parsnep, &c. ; the properties of the fruit are usually warm, aromatic, and wholesome ; gum is produced by some species. Familiar examples are, the Hemlock, Parsley, Caraway, Celery (the leaves of whicli are rendered wholesome by blanching), Angelica, Assafoetida, Fennel, Pars- nep, Cow Parsnep, Carrot, Chervil, and Coriander. Every one is familiar with some plant or other of this order, which may be known from all others by the umbels alone. 38. Composites. — Flowers compound, that is, numbers set closely together on a plate or disk ; anthers united ; seeds solitary, inferior, and mostly crowned with apappus or plume. Herbaceous plants, rarely shrubs; natives of most parts of the world. Leaves usually simple, though often much divided, alternate, or opposite, without stipules. Stamens frequently showy, for the most part yellow. Properties various ; in some astringent, in others resinous, mucilaginous, bitter, diuretic, emetic, &c. Familiar examples are, the Dandelion, the Lettuce, the Sow Thistle, the Endive, the Artichoke, the Burdock, the Thistle, the Everlasting, the Aster, the Golden Rod, the Daisy, the Groundsel, the Ragwort, the Marigold, the Chrysanthemum, (he Chamomile, Tansy, Southernwood, Milfoil, and the Dahlia. All who have seen the latter flower and the common Daisy, may distinguish the plants of this order at a glance, as readily as in the case of Legumin6sse or Umbel- lacese. 39. EncacecB. — Calyx and corolla four to five cleft ; stamens eight to ten ; the latter inserted under the ovai-y ; anthers opening by pores ; fruit four or five celled, a many-seeded capsule, or a berry. Shrubs or under shmbs, natives of Europe, North and South America, Asia, and very abundant in Africa, more especially in the neighbourhood of the Cape of Good Hope. Leaves simple, mostly evergreen, without stipules, rigid, entire, whorled or opposite, frequently small and linear. Flowers usually bright-coloured and very showy. Properties astringent and diuretic, and in some poisonous. Familiar examples are, the Arbutus, Andromeda, Heath, Kalmia, Rhodo- dendron, and Azalea. A beginner will more readily recognise this order by examining the flowers and fruit, than by the general aspect and habit of the plant. 40. Other orders belonging to this division, which are easily recognised by those who know the plant after which the order takes its name, are the fol- lowing : — iihamnScese, Calycanthacese, GranatScese, Onagraceae (including the (Enothera and Fuchsia), Philadelphacea, Jkfyrtacese, Cucurbitacese, Pas - sifloraceae, TuTnevdceee, Cactacese, Crassulaceae, Grossulacese, 5axifragacese, Araliaceae, Caprifoliacese, liohelidcea, Campanulaceae, GesneTidcece, and various others. To recognise these orders it is necessary, in most cases, to see the flowers ; but in the case of the UmbellJcese, as already observed, the order may be recognised by the appearance of the flower-stems ; and in Cac- taceae by the stems, and the entire plant. A number of the orders contain only one or two genera ; and though the list has a formidable appearance on paper, yet in the garden the plants of several of the orders occupy but comparatively a small space. 14 CLASSIFICATION OP PLANTS, CoROLLIFLORjB. The characteristic of this division is— petals united ; stamens fixed to the corolla. The most important orders are Scrophulariaccs and Labiacese : both very readily distinguished. 41. Scrophulariacea.—CaXyx and corolla irregularly four to five clett; stamens two to four; fruit, a two-celled, many-seeded capsule. Herbs, undershrubs, and occasionally shrubs; natives of, and found in abundance in, all parts of the world. Leaves simple, opposite, whorled, or alternate, with or without stipules. Flowers axillary or racemose, often showy. Pro- perties, acridity and bitterness ; sometimes purgative or emetic. Familiar examples are, Buddlea, Snapdragon, Scrophularia, Foxglove, Eyebright, (Calceolaria, Schizanthus, and Veronica. 42. iaftidcea;.— Calyx tubular, five to ten parted; corolla lipped; sta- mens two to four ; seeds four together, enclosed in a general seed-vessel, superior; flowers whorled. Herbaceous plants or undershrubs with four- cornered stems and opposite ramifications ; natives principally of the tempe- rate regions of both hemispheres. Leaves simple or compound, opposite without stipules; abounding in pores filled with aromatic oil. Flowers sessile, in axillary cymes. Properties tonic, cordial, and stomachic. Familiar examples are. Mint, Savory, Thyme, Pennyroyal, Hyssop, Germander, Rosemary, Day-nettle, Betony, Ground Ivy, Horehound, Lavender, Balm of Gilead, Balm, and Sage. 43. Other orders in this subdivision are :— EpacridaceEe, Cape and Aus- tralian shrubs resembling Epacris, and frequent in greenhouses, flowering in the winter, itfyrsinacese, Jasminaceae, AsdeT^'iaddcecB, Gentiandcece, Bigno- niilceae, Coboeacea;, PolemoniaceEE, Convolvulaceee, BoraginaceiB, Hydro- phyllaceae, Solanacese, Ferbenaceaj, ^cantliacea?, Primulacese, and various others. Monochlamy'de^. 44. Calyx and corolla not distinct ; that is, the flowers have only a single envelope. The principal orders are Araentaceae and Conifers. 45. Amentdcecd. — Flowers monoecious ; that is, the male and female in separate catkins, but borne on the savne plant; or dioecious, that is, the male and female on different plants. The stameniferous flowers in drooping catkins ; fruit solitary, or aggregate ; in some one-celled, enclosed in a sheathed capsule, as in the Oak, Cliestnut, Beech, Hazel, and Hornbeam ; in others with the fruit small and tufted with fine hairs, as in the Willow and Poplar; and ia others two-celled, with small seeds not enclosed in the receptacle, and not clothed with hairs, as in the Birch and Alder. Trees, and some shrubs ; natives chiefly of the tempemte regions of both hemispheres. Leaves simple ; flowers not showy. 46. ConifercE. — Flowers in catkins generally erect ; fruit a cone, as in Pines and Firs ; sometimes with scales compressed so as to resemble a berry, as in the Juniper and Yew. Seeds naked. Trees, and some shrubs, natives of every part of the world ; often called resiniferous trees. Every one has seen a Pine, a Fir, or a Cedar, and their cones ; and the fruit of the Juniper and the Yew are not uncommon. The Conlferae are frequently spoken of as in two divisions ; the one the jibietinse, or Pine and Fir tribe ; and the other the CupressinsB, or the Cypress and Juniper tribe. 47. Other orders belonging to this division are : — PlantaginesB, plants WITH A VIEW TO HORTICTJLTTIIIE. 15 more or less resembling the Plantago, or common Plantain, ^mavanth^cese, Chenopodiaceae, Begoniace^, Polygonaceas, iamiSceae, Proteaceffi, rhyme- liEacesB, Enj^hoihidcea, t/rticaceae, r/lmacese, »7uglandaceaB, Empetraceae. Of these tlie Comferaa may generally be known by their foliage; but tfte others, for the most part, require to be seen in ilower, at least by the begiimer. Endogens. 48. Endogens have no general subdivisions like the exogens ; but their principal orders, with a view to the general observer, are Orchidaceae, Scita- minaceae, /ridaceas, Amaryllidaceis, ^sphodelaceae, TulipdcecB, Palmaoeaa, and Graminaceae. 49. OrchiddceeB. — Flowers of six sepals, irregular ; stamen and style jmited. Herbaceous plants, often with the stems and leaves perennial ; many of them epiphytes, that is, growing on the trunks and branches of trees. Leaves simple, quite entire, often articulated with the stem. The flowers of this order are so remarkable in their external appearance, that when once seen they are easily recognised, either in the indigenous Orchises of British marshes and chalky downs which grow in the soil ; or in the tropical species kept in stoves, which for the most part grow on the bark of the trunk and branches of trees. .50. SeitamindcecE. — Stem formed of the cohering bases of the leaves ; never branching. Leaves simple, sheathing one another on the stem. Flowers in spikes, racemes, or panicles, with numei-ous bracts. Tropical herbaceous plants, of which the following are examples : the Ginger, the Indian Shot, Alpinia, Hedychium, Plantains, and Bananas. 51. \ridd,cecB. — Flowers superior ; stamens three, distinct, their anthers turned outwards. Herbaceous plants, chiefly bulbs, natives of the Cape of Uood Hope, but many of them also of Europe. Leaves ensiform, equitant, or alike on both sides. Flowers terminal, in spikes, corymbs, or panicles; bright-coloured, large, and showy. Familiar examples are, Iris, Ixia, the Tiger Flower, Gladiolus, and Crocus. The latter flower is familiar to all. 62. jlmarj/ffidaceae. — Flowers superior; stamens six, distinct; tiieir antliers turned inwards. Bulbous-rooted herbaceous plants, natives of most parts of the world, with ensiform leaves having parallel veins. Flowers with sheath-like bracts, large, bright-coloured, and showy. Familiar examples are, the Amaryllis, Crinum, Bloodflower, Hypoxis, Narcissus, Snowdrop, Summer Snowflake, and Alstroemeria. 63. hilideem. — Flowers inferior, of six divisions ; stamens six. Her- baceous plants with bulbous roots, natives of the temperate parts of the northern hemisphere. Familiar examples are, the Lily, the Seilla, the Hyacinth, Fritillary, Dog's-tooth Violet, Tulip, Star of Bethlehem, As- phodel, Butcher's Broom, Solomon's Seal, and Lily of the Valley. The Tulip and the Lily are familiar to every one. 64. Valmdcece. — Flowers enclosed by a sheath, six-parted ; stamens, six ; fruit fleshy or baccate. Trees, sometimes low plants ; always with simple stems, very seldom branched, and having the leaves in clusters at the top of the stem. Leaves large, pinnated or fan-shaped, folded before expansion. Natives of tropical climates, and in Britain only to be seen in hothouses. Familiar examples are, the Fan Palm, the Date, the Sago Palm, and the Xwaia.. 66. Gramindce(E. — Plants with hollow round stems, and mostly ever- 16 CLASSIFICATION OP PLANTS, gveen leaves. Sheaths of the leaves split on one side. Herbaceous pl^n**. and sometimes trees and shruhs, natives of every part of the world, and familiar to all. 66. Other orders belonging to Bndogens are : ^lismacea or Water-Plan- tain-like plants, natives of marshes or standing water. Sutomaceae, the Flowering Rush, the most ornamental of British water plants; Pistiaceae, the Duckweed ; Dioscorace«, the Yam; Tamacese, the Black Bryony, a twmmg plant occasionally found in hedges ; ifmilaceae, the Smilaxes ; Bromeljace«, the Pine Apple; Commelmace«, Spider Wort; Typhinaceae, Cat's Tail; vlroidaceae, the Arums ; Juncaceae, the Rushes; and Cyperace^, the Sedges, which are distinguished from the proper grasses by having solid stems. AcROGENS. 67. Acrogens, or vegetables which grow from their upper extremities, •.•outain the following principal Orders : i^lliees, il/usci, iichenes, ^'Igse, and i'^ingi. 68. Filices. — Plants often consisting of a single leaf called a frond, mostly without stems ; the leaves are rolled up before expansion, and with equal- sized veins. Herbs, and sometimes trees, natives of every part of the world in moist shady situations. Familiar examples are, the common Polypody of the hedges, which is found also on pollards and large trees in moist situ- ations. Maidenhair, the Brake, the Hart's Tongue, the Osmunda, the Ad- der's Tongue, and the Moonwort. 59. Musci. — ^Leafy cellular plants, with fruit in covered capsules. 60. LicAene.9. — Frondose plants with seeds in receptacles of various kinds, of the same substance as the frond. 6.1. KlgoB. — Cellular water plants, chiefly found in the sea ; bearing fruit in bladders either attached to, or imbedded in, the surface of the frond or loaf-like plate. A common example of this order is the green hair-like Conferva, found in ditches and stagnant waters. 62. Fungi. — Succulent masses without leaves, veins, or fronds, and bearing their sporules, or substitutes for seed, in tubular cells. Familiar examples are, the common Mushroom and Toadstool. 63. Other orders of Acrogens are £quiset&ceEB, or plants resembling the common Equisetum or Horsetail, which to general observers is distinguished by its terminal catkin from the Mare's- tail, in which the flowers are axillary. Characeae or floating water-plants, consisting of a leaf and root ; and Lyco- podiaceae, which are moss-like plants, bearing a general resemblance to the common club moss. All these orders may be recognised without refer- ence to flowers or fruit, and they are chiefly of botanical interest. C4. If the reader has profited from the preceding part of this section in the manner in which we have wished him, he will have learned, when endeavouring to describe a plant which he has seen to another person who has not seen it, not to begin with the leaves and flowers and similar details, but with the general appearance of the plant, and the resemblance which it has to known plants, either single species, or orders, tribes, or genera. It is in genera] of far more importance to be able to determine the order to which a plant belongs, than its mere generic and specific name ; unless, indeed, the knowledge of this serves as a key to books from which the natural order may be learned, and consequently something of the properties of the plant WITH A VIEW TO HOHTlCULTt'RE. I J ascertained. We therefore repeat our recommendation to grown-up pupils, to begin tlieir study of plants by looking at them in masses or groups ; antv wliich they may correct and render more definite the knowledge thus acquired, by a study of all the separate parts of plants. In like manner ii we were to recommend what we consider the best mode of getting a know- ledge of grammar, we should begin with sentences ; or of the exterior effect of buildings, we should recommend, first, attention to the outline and the general masses ; and next, an examination of the doors, windows, cornices and other details; and finally of the bricks or stones of the walls, and the slates or tiles of the roof. To a young person, on the other hand, we should recommend the contrary mode, in botany, in grammar, and in architecture. 65. Besides characterising plants according to the natural orders to which they belong ; when cultivators are speaking of plants with a view to their art, they employ a number of terms which, though not rigidly scientific, are all more or less useful, as enabling us to speak of plants in groups or masses. The principal of these are as follow : 66. Evergreens. — Plants which retain their leaves green throughout the winter. The principal British evergreen trees, are the Coniferae, the Ever- green Oak, and the Holly ; but there are many evergreen shrubs. Evergreen herbaceous plants are not very numerous ; but we have the Pink, Carnation, Sweetwilliam, many of the Saxifrages. Silenes, the Perennial Flax, some Campanulas, and all the perennial Grasses. 66. Subevergreens. — Plants which retain their leaves green through the winter, and drop them in spring, so that they are for two or three weeks without leaves. The principal trees are : the varieties of the Lucombe and Fulham Oaks, Turners Oak, Qu6rcus Psetjdo-jSuber, and one or two others. Of shrubs there are a number j such as Buddlea globosa, Aristotelia Mdcqui, Photinia serrulata, Cotoneaster frigida, some kinds of Genista, Piptanthus nepalensis, Ribes glutinosum, &c. Subevergrcen herbaceous plants are : OBno- thera biennis and several other species, Pentstemon, Chelone, Asters, &c. 67- Persistent-leaved plants are such as retain their leaves after they have withered and become brown, till the spring. Examples of trees are, the Beech, Hornbeam, and Turkey Oak when young, Quercus Tauzin, and some- times the common Oak ; and there are one or two shrabs, such as JZhus Cdtinus ; and some herbaceous plants, such as Pulsatilla. 68. Deciduous-leaved plants are those that drop their leaves in the autumn, which is the case with the great majority of plants, whether trees, shrubs, or herbs, in all extra-tropical countries. Ct). Ligneous plants are such as have woody stems and branches. 70. Siiffruticose plants are such as have stems intermediate between woody and iierbaceous ; as, for example, the Tree Peony, the Sage, the Carnation, the Tree Lavatera, &c. 71. Trees, when young, are scarcely to be distinguished from shrubs, both coming up with a single stem ; but a tree, if left to itself, ultimately becomes a plant with a single erect stem, and a branchy head. Thus the common Mountain Ash, though it seldom grows above thirty feet high, is a perfect tree ; wliile the common Laurel, which will attain the height of forty or fifty feet much sooner than the Mountain Ash will thirty feet, never has an erect stem, and has generally several stems rising together, and is therefore considered a shrub Trees are comiiK.nlj divided into large, small, and 18 CLASSIFICATION OF PLANTS. middle-sized. Most fruit trees are considered low trees; trees between thirty and fifty feet are middle-sized; and those of greater height large. V2. Shrubs are either large, as when tliey exceed twenty feet ;smaU, if under four feet ; or undershrubs if under two feet, such as the Thyme and Rosemary, and many Heaths. Shrubs climb by twining, as exempUfied in the Honeysuckle ; by claspmg with tendrils or leaves, as m the Vine, the Five-leaved Ivy, and the Clematis ; or by elongation, as in the Zycmm and .Solanum Dulcamara ; or by attachmentof the rootlets, as in the common Ivy. Shrubs are also distinguished as trailers, when the shoots lie along the ground without rooting into it; as stoloniferous, when the shoots ramble along the ground, and root into it at certain distances, as in the Bramble ; as creeping, when they root at every joint, as in some species of Rhus ; and as recum- bent, when the shoots recline without spreading or rooting, as in many species of Cytisus. 73. Herbaceous plants may also be similarly divided. With reference to their habits, plants are called alpines, hill, or moun- tain plants, marsh, aquatic, bog, heath, wood, copse, hedge, meadow, and pasture plants. With respect to soil, a very common division is into peat- earth plants or American border plants (from the soil for American plants being generally peat), and common garden soil plants. Herbaceous plants are also distinguished as florists' flowers, such as the Auricula, Tulip, Hyacinth, &c., which have been long cultivated by florists, who have laid down canons or rules, by which the merits of flowers are to be tested ; border flowers, or such as are adapted for growing in a miscellaneous ornamental border ; botanic plants, or such as are chiefly interesting to botanists ; shrubbery flowers, or such large coarse- growing species as are adapted for gi-owing among shnibs ; rockwork plants, or such as from their native habitation, and low compact habit of growth, are considered as adapted for rockwork ; and pot plants, or such as for the same qualities are adapted for growing in pots. There are also lawn plants, or such as are adapted for growing singly on a lawn, as the Peony ; and covering plants, such as the Terbena Melindren, which are adapted for covering beds and parterres with masses of flowers of the same colour. The common divisions of herbaceous plants into annual, biennial, perennial, bulbous, tuberous, ramose-rooted, and fibrous-rooted, it is unnecessary here to describe. 74. The uses of plants have given rise to several divisions ; such as horti- cultural plants, ag;ricultural, culinary, medicinal, tinctorial, pomological and other plants bearing edible fruit ; grauiferous, pasturage, and herbage plants ; hedge plants, or such ligneous species as are adapted for growing as hedges ; copsewood plants, or such as shoot up freely from the stool or collar when cut down, and are consequently adapted for copsewoods ; seaside plants, or such as are adapted for standing the sea-bi-eeze, &c. 75. Plants are also distinguished as having variegated foliage; or anoma- lous foliage, in which plants having naturally simple or entire leaves, exhibit them occasionally much divided, as in the Fern-leaved Beech, Cut-leaved Lime, &c. ; as having double flowers, which, in the earlier ages of gardening, was considered the greatest beauty which a plant could have; as being dwarfs, and lower than the normal size; or tall, and higher than the normal size. Considered with reference to climate, plants are described as hardy, growing in the open air without protection ; half-hardy, requiring some kind of protection ; frame, requiring the protection of elnas w.;bniii BTOMENCLATITEE OF PLANTS. 19 heat ; greenhouse plants, requiring glass with heat; and hothouse plants, which may be either dry-stove plants, such as Cacti, Aloes, Crassulas. &c., ■which require a high degree of heat with a dry atmosphere, or damp-stove plants, such as the Orchidaceae, which require a high degree of moist heat. Sect. III. — Nomenclature of Plants, with a view to Horticulture. 76. The principles on which plants are named ought to be known to the young gardener and the amateur ; partly because they ought not to be entirely ignorant of anything closely connected with their pursuit, and partly hecause the names of plants sometimes indicate ideas respecting their nature and culture. The names of the grand divisions, as we have already seen, are compounded of Greek words expressive of the structure or character of the division or subdivision. The names of the orders are, for the most part, without meaning in themselves, farther than as being the names of certain genera which are considered as the types of the orders, all the plants of which have a close general resemblance to that genus in struc- tu re and properties. The same may be said of the names of tribes. 77. The names of the genera of plants are chiefly compounded of Greek words signifying something respecting the plant, as Chionanthus, snow-flower, from the snowy whiteness of the blossoms, or Gypsophila, because the plant loves chalky soil; or they are commemorative of individuals, as Smithia, after Sir James Smith. Occasionally, but rarely, they are named after countries or a people, as ^rmeniaca from Armenia, and Araucaria from the Arauca- nians, a people of Chili. By far the greater number of generic names are after persons, and those in this volume, and in all our other works, are distinguished by having the letters additional to the name in italics, as explained with other matters at the end of the Preface. Specific names are generally Latin adjectives expressing some obvious quality of the plant ; or proper names used adjectively, to signify the change that has taken place in removing the species from the genus, of which the adjective was the name ; as for example. Veronica Chamaj'drys indicates that Chamae'drys was formerly the generic name of that species of Verdnica. Commemorative names are also used as specific names, sometimes in the genitive case, as Ferbena Drummondj, in- dicating that the plant was discovered or originated by Mr. Brummond ; or with the addition of ana as Terbena Tweedidna, indicating that the plant was named in honour of Mr. Tweedie. Specific names also often indicate the situation or the country where the plant is found naturally, as palustris growing in marshes, or edinburgensis growing about Edinburgh. 78. The names of varieties of plants given by Botanists follow the same laws as those of species ; hut the names given by horticulturists and florists are sometimes indicative of properties, as large, small, &c., and for the most part fanciful, and sometimes whimsical. In general, culinary vege- tables and fruits bear the name of the person who raised them, with the place where they were raised, with or without the addition of some adjective expressing their properties, as Forest's Large Upsal Cabbage, Reid's New Golden Pippin, &c. The names applied to varieties of gooseberries, florists' flowers, and roses, are for the most part given in honour of individuals; some- times they indicate a quality, as Brown's Scarlet Verbena, and sometimes they imply a superiority, or a challenge, as the Top-Sawyer gooseberry, or Cox's Defiance Dahlia. The Dutch give their florists' flowers many high- sounding titles, which at first sight appear ridiculous ; but in giving them c2 20 STRUCTURE OP PLANTS, CONSIDERED •tlicy intend at once to compliment their patrons, and to describe sometliing of the nature of the flower: thus the letters W.,Y.,0.,R.,C.,P.,V.,B.,&c., when capitals, are understood to mean white, yellow, orange, red, crimson, purple, violet, blue ; and hence, when a flower is named William the Con- querer, or Wonder of Constantinople, its colours are understood to be white and crimson ; Charming Phyllis, crimson and purple ; British Rover, blue and red, &c. It is always desirable to know the meaning of a name, or even to know that it has no meaning ; in the former case some positive ideas are obtained, and in both the memory is assisted. Sect. IV. — Structure of Plants, with a view to Horticulture. 79. The anatomy of a plant furnishes us with numerous component parts, of which we can do little else than enumerate those more imme- diately connected with the practice of horticulture. 80. Elementary organs consist of cellular tissue, or transparent vesicles which adhere together so as to form a substance more or less compact, which, in the lea\es, fills up the interstices between the veins, and forms the parenchyma. Woody fibre is an elementary organ consisting of elongated tubes, which are found more or less in most plants, and especially in the wood and inner bark, among parenchymous matter. Spiral vessels consisting of elastic tissue twisted spirally within a membrane, are found in the medullary sheath, but rarely in the wood, bark, and root, and they scarcely exist in acrogens. Plants furnished with them are called Vascu- iares ; a term which includes both exogens and endogens : and plants without them are called Cellulares, in which the acrogens are included. Other forms of elementary tissue are : the ducts, which are transparent tubes marked with lines or dots ; the cuticle, which is a thin skin covering the leaf; and the stomata, which are pores scattered over the cuticle, or epidermis, of the leaves. Grafting and budding are founded on the affinity of the elementary organs in difi^erent species. 81. Compound organs are combinations of the elementary organs and consist of the axis and its appendages ; two words which comprise the whole vegetable stmcture. The axis may be compared to the vertebral column of animals, and is formed by the development of a seed, a bulb, or other germ or of a leaf-bud. An embryo is the origin of a plant contained within a seed, and it differs from a bulb or bud in bemg produced by the agency of sexes. When a seed or a bud is excited by its inherent vital action, the tissue of which it is composed, and which has the power of generating new tissue t)y the growth of one elementary vesicle out of another, developes itself in three directions, upwards, downwards, and horizontally. The part which descends is called the descending axis or root ; the opposite part the ascending axis or stem ; and the horizontal elongations, which are chiefly leaves and buds, are called the appendages of the stem. 82. The root begins to be formed before the stem ; from which it differs anatomically, in the absence of spiral vessels, of pith, of buds, with certain exceptions, and of stomata. The uses of roots are to fix plants in the soil and to absorb nutriment from it by their spongioles. 83. The stem is generated by the development of the plumule of the seed, and incrpa.<)ed by the development of leaf-buds. Tf a rmg of bark be cut off from the <)tn-n of au exogenous plant, liolow a branch or even at the base of a Rowing shoot of the current year covered with leaves, or if a ligature be WITH A VIEW TO HOKTICULTUHE. 21 made round the stem in a similar situation, the part of the stem above the wound or ligature swells and increases in thickness, while that below it does not ; a proof that, in exogenous plants, the matter by which stems are thick- ened descends. Hence, when a shoot is cut through immediately below a leaf-bud, the portion of the shoot left dies back to the next bud. Hence, also, has arisen the technical expi-ession of " cut to the bud ;" which means that, in pruning or cutting off a shoot, the section should be made so close to a bud as that the wound may soon be healed over, and no stump left, as is the case in gardens where trees have been carelessly pruned. The greater the number of leaves on a shoot, or of leaf-buds on a stem or branchj the greater will be the diameter of the parts below the leaves, buds, or branches, and the contrary. 84. Stems are either exogenous, growing from the outside ; endogenous, growing from the interior ; or acrogenous, growing by elongation or dila- tation, and mostly without buds. Exogenous stems consist of the pith, a fungus-like matter occupying the small cylindric space in the centre of the stem, and never increasing in diameter; of the medullary sheath, consisting of a thin cylinder of spiral vessels and ducts immediately surrounding the pith ; and of the wood, which surrounds the medullary sheath in the form of concentric layers, which layers are penetrated by projections from the pith called medullary rays. In general every concentric layer requires a year for its production ; and henoe the age of a tree may be known by the number of rings shown in the section of the main stem. In woody stems of several years' growth, the interior of the wood is rendered hard by the deposition of secreted matter, and is called heartwood ; while the more recent exterior layers are known as soft wood or alburnum. 85. The ba7'k surrounds the young wood, and like it consists of concentric layers, one being added yearly on the inside, between the previously ex- isting bark and the alburnum. Every layer of bark consists of woody fibre, and duets covered with parenchymous matter ; the two former constituting the liber, or inner bark, and the latter the cellular integument, epidermis, or outer bark. The uses of th« bark are, to protect the alburnum, to servo as a channel for the descending sap, and sometimes to serve as a medium for the deposition of the peculiar properties of plants. 86. The medullary rays or plates consist of compressed vertical parallelo- grams of cellular tissue, which connect together the different layers of wood, and serve, at least in trees that are without dead wood in the centre of their stems, as a communication between the pith and the bark. Between the liber and the alburnum, a viscid secretion is found in spring, which renders trees easily disbarked at that season, and this secretion is called cambium. It has been supposed to nourish the descending fibres of the buds, and to originate medullaiy rays. 87. Endogenous plants have stems which offer no distinction of pith, medullary rays, wood, and bark ; the whole structure being composed of bundles of vascular tissue among a mass of cellular tissue, surrounded by a zone of cellular tissue and woody fibre : but, as this exterior zone is not sepa- rable from what it encloses by any natural division, it is consequently not bark. Endogenous stems increase by the successive descent of new bundles of vascular tissue into the cellular tissue towards the centre of the stem, and these bundles of tissue gradually distend those previously formed, by which means the diameter of the stem is slowly increased in thickness, and its circumference in hardness. After this hardness has reached a certain 22 STRUCT0BE OF PLANTS, CONSIDERED point, it can no longer be distended, and the diameter ceases to increase. Hence, generally, the life of an endogenous tree seems more limited tnaii that of an exogen ; because it is well known that trees of the latter kind will live for an indefinite period, and even for centuries, after the interior of the trunks have become entirely rotten, and .their circumference separated so as to form vertical sections, or fragments of trunks, with rotten wood on one side, and living bark and growing shoots on the other ; the increase both of bark and wood still going on. Endogens differ from exogens m commonly developing only a termmal bud, as in Palms, in which case the stem is of the same thickness throughout, and cylindrical; but when several buds deve- lope themselves, as in the stem of the Asparagus, and in that of the Bamboo, the stem becomes conical like the stems of exogens. 88. Though the normal direction of stems and branches is upwards, or at all events above the surface of the ground, yet there are exceptions in the case of creeping roots, as in the Everlasting Pea ; in rhizoraas, which are un- derground stems, as in the Water-lily, and the common Reed ; in tubers, which are stems under the surface, as in the Potato ; and in corras, as in the Crocus, the root of which, though commonly called a bulb, is, botanically, a dilated stem. 89. Nodi, or knots, are the places where buds are formed, and intemodla the spaces between them Whatever is produced by a leaf-bud is a branch, which, when in a growing state, is called a shoot. Leaf-buds sometimes are imperfectly developed so as to form a spine, with or without leaves, as in the common Hawthorn ; and such spines are therefore imperfectly developed branches. All growths from the stems which are not the evolutions of leaf-^ buds, as for example the prickles, are modifications of the cellular matter, and of the epidermis of the bark. The uses of prickles to the plant ajipear to be imperfectly understood. 90. Buds ai-e either leaf-buds or flower-buds, and the former are either regular or adventitious. Regular leaf-buds are only found in the axils of the leaves, or in the axils of their modifications. Hence, as scales, stipules, bracts, sepals, petals, stamens, and carpellas, are considered as metamor- phosed leaves, adventitious buds are believed to exist in their axils ; though they are rarely developed in a state of nature and only sometimes by artifi- cial processes. Regular buds alone develope themselves untouched by art or accident ; and, hence, whatever may be the arrangement of the buds, the same will be that of the branches. Adventitious leaf-buds are found surrounding the bases of regular leaf-buds, and in general where there is an anastomosis of woody fibre. They are found in the roots of a number of plants, and sometimes on the margin of leaves, or at the base of their petioles ; they are never visible either on the root or stem till they begin to develope themselves and burst through the bark. 91. Leaves are expansions of the bark, and only found at the nodi of the stem. They are developed as the stem advances in growth, one above and aftPr another, opposite, alternate, or verticillate, and in each of these modes with greater or less regularity. A complete leaf consists of a petiole or foot- stalk, a lamina or disk, and a pair of stipulse or small side leaves at the base of the petiole. The lamina is sometimes wanting or changed in shape, and sometimes the petiole is extended, and instead of terminating in a lamina, it assumes a cylindrical wirelike figure, and becomes a tendril. The veins of leaves luanch in all exogenous plants, with the exception of the orders Coni- ferso and Cycadeee, the stems of which have an exogenous structure, while WITH A VIEW TO HORTICULTURE. 23 the veins are parallel like those of endogens. The veins of a leaf are in two strata, the one forming the upper, and the other the under surface ; the former conveying the juices from the stem for elaboration, and the latter returning them when elaborated. Simple leaves have undivided laminae, or laminae divided hut not articulated ; in the latter case it is a compound leaf, as in the Mimosa, and in what would, at first appearance, seem a simple leaf, the Orange. Some leaves have a power of producing leaf-buds, but com- monly not till they have dropped off and lain some time on moist ground, as in Bryophyllum, Malaxis, and some tropical Ferns. 92. Hairs are minute expansions of tissue, found occasionally in all parts of the plant above ground, but chiefly on the under surface, and they are in- tended for the purposes of secretion, for the control of evaporation, and for the protection of the surface on which they are placed. 93. Flower-buds consist of floral envelopes and sexes, and they either pro- ceed from the axillae of common leaves, or from those of bracts or floral leaves. The floral envelopes are connected with the stem by a peduncle. The modes in which flower-buds are arranged on a stem, whicli are various, are called the forms of inflorescence ; and the order in which they expand is called the order of expansion. 94. Inflorescence is the ramification of that part of the plant bearing the flowers, and it is in general either terminal, that is, at the end of the branch ; or axillary, proceeding from the axils of the leaves. Both these kinds of inflo- rescence assume a great many dificrent forms which cannot be here detailed. 96. The floral envelopes consist of the calyx and corolla, both of which are generally present, but sometimes only one, which in that case is considered the calyx ; and sometimes both are wanting, as in apetalous flowers. The divisions of the calyx are called sepals, and those of the corolla petals. 96. The sexes of plants consist of the male organs, or stamens, and the female organs, or pistilla, with a process, usually an annular elevation, which occurs between them, refen'ed by former botanists to the nectary, but now called the disk. The pistillum occupies the centre of the flower within the stamens, and it consists of three parts, the ovarium, the style, and the stigma. The ovarium is the lowest part, and encloses the ovula or young seeds, in one or more vacuities called cells ; the stigma is the summit of the pistUlum, which is connected with the ovarium by the style. This last part is sometimes wanting, but the ovarium and stigma are always present. Those parts of the pistillum which remain, and continue growing after the floral envelopes and the stamens have decayed, are called carpels, which are sometimes united, as in the Poppy, and sometimes separated, as in the Ranunculus. 97. The ovulum is the infant seed united to the interior of the earpella by the placenta, to which it is attached by the funiculus, podosperm, or umbilical cord. 98. The fruit, in a strict botanical sense, is the mature pistillum ; but, in a less strict sense, it is applied to the pistillum and floral envelopes taken together, and united in one general mass. All fruit, except those of the Coniferae and Cycadeae which have no ovarium, indicate upon their surface some traces of a style ; and, wherever this is the case, what are apparently and commonly called seeds, as the grains of Corn and other Grasses, are pro- perly fruits. When, the pistillum has become mature fruit, what was tlie ovarium takes the name of peiicarpiuni. 2i FUNCTIONS CF PLANTS, CONSIDERED 99. Fruits are either simple, proceeding from a single flower, as in the Poppy, Rose, Strawberry, Apple, &c. ; or compound, formed out of several flowers, as in the Mulberry, the Fig, and all the Coniferffi. When simple fruits are formed of a single carpellum, they are called follicles, as m the Peony ; legumes, as in the Pea; drupes, as m the Peach; akenia, as in tlie strawberry ; cariopsis, as in Corn ; or utricles, as in the Chenopodium. The capsule is a many-celled dry pericarpium, as in the Poppy ; the silique is a pod, consisting of two or four carpella, as in the Cabbage tribe, and all the Cruciferae. The nut or gland is a dry, bony, one-celled fruit, enclosed in an involucmm, cupula, or cup, as m the Oak ; the berry is a succulent fruit, the seeds of which lose their adhesion when ripe, and lie loose in the pulp, as in the Grape and the Gooseberry ; the Orange is also a berry separable into an epicarp, or outer skin, and endocarp or central part in which the seeds are fixed, and a saroocarp or fleshy substance between the epicarp and the endocarp ; the pome consists of two or more inferior carpella united, as in the Apple ; and the pepo is a pulpy fruit in which the seeds are embedded, l)ut their point of attachment never lost, as in the Cucumber. Of all these fruits, the most remarkable are : the Pine -apple, which is a spike of inferior flowei-s grown together into a fleshy mass ; the Fig, which is the fleshy hollow dilated apex of a peduncle, in the interior of which the flowers are arranged, each flower containing a one- seeded pericarpium; and the cone of the ^bie- tinae, which is an indurated amentum ; and when reduced in size, and ita scales so firmly adhering as almost to resemble a berry, is called a galbulus, as in 3'huja and t/unlperus. 100. The seed is a mature ovulura, and consists of the integument or testa, the albumen or perisperm, and the embryo, which consists of the cotyle- dons, the radicle, the plumula, and the collar or neck. As all ovula are enclosed within an ovarium, and all seeds are matured ovula, there can be no such thing as naked seed, except in Coniferse and Cycadese, in wliich the ovula are destitute of every covering, and exposed naked to the influence of the pollen. In consequence of some ovula rupturing the ovarium in the course of their growth, the seeds become naked, as in Leontice ihalic- troides ; while in some, as in iieseda, the ovula are imperfectly protected by the ovarium, and in that case also the seeds are naked. When a seed is separated from the placenta, and the umbilical cord is removed, a scar appears on the point where it was attached, which is called the hilum or umbilicus. It is very distinct in the common Bean, and in all the Legu- minosae. The hUum always represents the base of the seed, or that part whence the roots proceed ; and hence it ought to be placed undermost when the seed is committed to the soil. In curved seeds, however, as in the Mignonette, the apex and base are brought together; and in sowing such seeds they should be laid on their side. There is much to study on the subject of seeds, both with a view to a scientific knowledge of plants and to their culture, and we must therefore recommend the reader to study either Lindley's Outlines of the First Principles of Botany, or his Introduction to Botany, 3rd edit., 1839 ; the last being by far the most complete work of the kind extant. Sect. V. — Functions of Plants, with reference to Horticulture. 101. The development of a plant takes place in consequence of the elas- ticity, excitability, and hygroscopicity of its tissue ; and it requires the WITH REFEHENCE to HORTICULTtTRE. 25 presence : 1. of •' substances containing carbon and nitrogen, and capable of yielding tlieso elements to the growing plant ; 2. of water and its elements ; and 3, of a soil to furnish the inorganic matters, which are likewise essential "to vegetable life." (^Liehig, p. 4.) A summary view of the whole process of vegetable development is thus given by Professor Henslow : " Plants absorb their nutriment by their roots ; this nutriment is then conveyed through the stem into the leaves ; there it is subjected to a process by which a large proportion of water is discharged ; the rest is submitted to the action of the atmosphere, and carbonic acid is first generated and then decomposed by the action of light. Carbon is now fixed under the form of a nutri- tive material, which is conveyed back into the system ; and this material is farther elaborated for the development of all parts of the structure, and for the preparation of certain secreted matters which are either retained within or ejected from the plant." (^Descriptive and Physiological Botav-y, p. 176.) This short passage comprehends the essence of all that can be said on the subject of vegetable development ; but, for the purposes of horticul- ture, it will be useful to go moi'e into detail, and to consider vegetable de- velopment under the form of germination, growth, function of the leaves, action of the flowers, and maturation of the finait and seed. 102. Germination. — The seed containing an embryo plant, its develop- ment is effected by its being placed in suitable circumstances for that purpose. These are, moisture, warmth, the absence of light, and contact with air ; to which may be added, with a view to cultivation, the presence of soil. The undeveloped seed is principally composed of concentrated carbon ; and, in the act of germination, this carbon, by the absorption of water, is converted into mucilaginous matter, which is decomposed and rendered soluble by the oxygen of the atmosphere. Thus it appears that the first act of germination is to reverse the process of maturation ; and hence the reason why all seeds, if sown fresh when they are nearly ripe, will germinate more speedily than when fully ripe ; and when fully ripe, sooner if sown immediately than if kept for months or years. The soluble mucilage of the cotyledons supplies the embryo plant with nourishment till it is able to extract food from the soil, after which it absorbs food from the soil by the points of its radicles. Seeds will not germinate without the presence of oxygen. In nitrogen, or in carbonic acid gas, if moistened with wafer, they will swell, but not vegetate. Hence seeds excluded from the atmosphere and from water may be preserved from decay for an indefinite period ; but it does not follow that during the whole of this period they will retain their vital principle. The presence of light is not only unnecessary to the germination of seeds, but injurious; and hence, in horticulture, they are always more or less buried in the soil, generally to a depth equivalent to the diameter of the seed. The temperature required to germinate seeds varies from 32° to 80° or 90° ; and some seeds, such as those of the Roblnio Pseud-^cacia, and of some species of Australian Acacias, may be immersed in water at the boiling point, and kept for some minutes in it, without destroy^ ing vitality. The seeds of no plant wiU vegetate under 32°, because below that degree water freezes, and consequently could not be absorbed by the tissue of the seed. The common Annual Grass (Poa annua) will vegetate at, or very slightly above, that temperature ; as will the Chickweed (^Isine media), the common Day-Nettle (iamium rubrum), and various others. The process of malting barley is exactly the same as that of germinating a seed. By moistening the barley, it swells, the starch of the cotyledon is changed 26 FUNCTIONS or PLANTS, CONSIDERED into sugar, and absorbed by the embryo, the radicle being protruded at one end of the grain or seed, and the plumule or commencement of the stem elongated at the other. 103. Growth in plants is effected, not as in animals by the expansion of all the parts of the embryo, but by additions to it. Thus roots and sterna lengthen by matter added to their extremities ; and are thickened by layers of matter deposited on their surface in the case of exogenous plants, and in the interior of thek stems and roots in the case of enddgens. In the embryo, the root first begins to move by the extension of all its parts, but imme- diately after it is protruded into the soil, and the young stem is elevated into the air, the root ceases to increase by the general distention of its tissue, and grows by the addition of new matter to its point. Hence the extreme delicacy of the points of young roots, which, like all the newly formed parts of vegetable matter, are extremely hygrometrical, absorbing water like a sponge, and hence are called spongelets or spongioles. Roots, from their organic structure, are not permeable by water throughout their whole length, and it is only by means of the spongioles at the extremities of the small fibres that they absorb nourishment. In general, the buds of plants have a power of producing roots from their base, in a manner analogous to seeds ; but much greater care is required on the part of the cultivator to bring about this process, and with many plants it wiU not succeed. In some, it may be effected by taking off a mature bud, and placing it in the soil, like a seed ; but, in most plants, it is requisite to preserve a portion of the stem along with the bud, as in striking Vines by buds ; in others it is re- quisite to have a plate of the bark, with or without a portion of the soft wood, as in propagating by budding on the living plant ; and in some a leaf or leaves are requisite. Roots are also protruded from all parts of the stems of some plants, as of most kinds of Willow ; and from the joints imme- diately under the buds of most plants. On this last property depends the art of propagating plants by cuttings inserted in the soil. In some plants cuttings of the matured wood without leaves will emit roots : but in many others, and indeed in most plants, roots are most freely produced from cuttings of unripe or partially ripened wood, with the leaves on, and in a growing state ; and even in those cases in which roots are produced fi-om cuttings having no leaves, if leaves are not speedily produced, the roots will decay, and the cuttings will die. In short, the connexion between leaves and roots is as intimate in cuttings, whether of stems, branches, or tubers, as it is betv/ecn the radicle and the plumule of the seed. A portion of the tuber of a Dahlia, which has no bud, will produce roots ; and we have known these to live, and the tuber to remain fresh, for upwards of a year, without leaves having been protruded ; ultimately, however, the roots decayed, and the tubers soon after- progress of the plant, in the growing season, yet they continue to perform their office even in the winter season, unless the soil which contains them should be frozen. In this case they are much injured, and the spongioles are wards rotted. Though roots are most active, and most essential to the ruptured and destroyed ; but, when the growing season returns, new spon- gioles are formed, commonly branching out from the fibres more numerously than before. This result is sometimes produced by overpowerful liquid manures poured on the roots of plants, which destroy the spongioles, and cause the fibres to throw out a greater number. As plants absorb their food chiefly, and almost entirely, by their roots, and as it has been proved that in general the spongioles have no power of selection, it follows that plants may WITH REFERENCE TO HORTICULTURE. 27 he poisoned in the same manner as they are nourished ; and hence it has been found that solutions of opium, mercury, arsenic, and even common salt, presented to the roots of plants, will destroy their vital powers. In general the roots of plants are not furnished with buds, and hence roots cannot be used in propagation in the same manner as branches : nevertheless, there are numerous exceptions, and some extensive orders of plants, such as the iJosacese, Campanulaceae, Cruciferse, and some of the Amentaceae, have roots abounding in adventitious buds ; and if these roots are cut into por- tions, and planted in the soil with the part of the root which was next the stem uppermost, and theu- points exposed to the air, or very slightly covered, they will produce plants. This, however, is never the case with the roots of annuals or biennials; and hence, in CrucxfersB, while the common Sea-kale produces buds in abundance from the cuttings of the roots, the same thing never takes place in the common Cabbage. The nature of plants in this respect is very different ; for while the fasciculated tubercles of the Dah- lia, if deprived of the plate which produces the buds, have no power of originating fresh budSj yet the tubers of the common Peony so treated produce them freely. 104. Every plant contains nitrogen in its albumen and gluten, and it has been found that this elementary principle abounds in a particular manner in the spongioles of the roots, and in all the newly-formed parts of plants, and that those seeds germinate the earliest which contain the largest quantity of nitrogen. Hence the great value of animal manures to plants, all of whioh contain nitrogen ; but especially those of carnivorous animals. (JL,ieb. p. 190.) 105. The stem of plants is not protruded so early as the root ; but as soon as the latter is in a state of action, and has penetrated a few inches into the soil, the seed-leaves appear above the surface, and from the centre of these arises the stem. Both the roots and stems of plants, when first springing from seed, are perpendicular to the earth's surface, or, in other words, they extend in the direction of radii from the earth's centre. The root, which penetrates downwards, always avoids light ; and the stem, which rises upwards, as constantly seeks the light, and avoids darkness. There are some apparent exceptions to this law ; as, for example, in the Mistletoe, the seeds of which, when deposited on the under side of a branch, send their radicles upwards, and their stem downwards ; and this may perhaps also be said of some orchideous epiphytes ; but, in general, few laws are so universal as that of the ascending and descending axis of a plant being always in the direction of a radiating line from the centre of the earth. 106. The stem at first is a mere point, scarcely so large as to be recognised as a bud ; but, as soon as it feels the effect of the nutriment impelled into it by the growing root, it becomes developed, enlarged, furnished with leaves, and solidified. From being a small portion of cellular tissue, possessing neither strength nor tenacity, it becomes, by the formation of woody matter, a slender rod or shoot, sufficiently firm and tough to require an effort to sepa- rate it from the root ; and in a short time it adheres to the latter so firmly, as, when drawn up forcibly, to pull the entire plant out of the soil. 107. Before the formation of leaves on the stem, it is quite succulent, and without woody fibre ; but, as soon as the leaves appear, woody matter is deposited in the form of tubes of extreme fineness, which, originating in the leaves, pass downwards through the cellular tissue, and are incorporated with it, so as to add to its bulk, strength, and flexibility. The first woody matter 28 FUNCTIONS OF PLANTS, CONSIDERED arises from the base of tlic SRed-leaves, and is in general in very small quantity ; but, as soon as the proper leaves appear, the quantity of woody matter formed is considerable, even during the first growing season. When this woody matter first penetrates the cellular tissue of the infant stem, it forms a little circle within its circumference, and thus separates the interior of the stem into two parts. These parts are, the bark or exterior portion, and the pith or central part ; and between these, at least in all exogens, there is a third portion, which constitutes the wood. 108. Organically, the stem may be said to consist of two parts : the cellukr tissue, which is not, from its nature, capable of increasing by growth more in one direction than in another ; and the woody fibres, which are trans- mitted from the leaves through the stem, and down into the roots. In speaking of the construction of stems, the cellular tissue in them is called the horizontal system ; and the woody fibres, as they increase longitudinally by the addition of new fibres or tubes having the same lengthened dh-ection. as themselves, are called the perpendicular system. 109. Wood, in exogenous plants, consists chiefly of the perpendicular sys- tem, while the pith in the centre of the stem, and the bavk on its circum- ference, are chiefly formed of the horizontal system. The bavk communi- cates with the pith by the continuation of the cellular tissue through the woody fibres ; and the cellular tissue, seen among these woody fibres in the section of a tree made smooth by the plane, is called the medullary rays, from the pith in plants being supposed analogous to the medulla of animals. Hence the section of the trunk of a tree has been compared to a piece of cloth ; the horizontal system, or medullary rays, representing the woof, and the woody system the warp. 110. ^yhen a stem is injured by the removal of a portion of the bark of such a depth as to reach the wood, the wound is healed over; firet, by the cellular matter oozing out of the last-formed wood, and granulating on the surface ; and secondly, by this ".ellular matter being penetrated by the fibres of the perpendicular system. Rings of bark are frequently cut from the stems of trees for the purpose of checking the returning sap, either to cause the tree to produce blossoms, or for the purpose of inducing the stem or bi'anch to throw out roots along the upper edge of the part from which the bark has been taken. The immediate effect of the process is the protrusion of granulated matter, or cellular tissue, along both sides of the wound, but especially on the upper side. Now, if the wound be surrounded with a quantity of moss, tied firmly on, and kept moist, the perpendicular system, or ligneous fibre, will penetrate through the granulated matter, and become roots ; while no roots whatever will be protruded from the granulated matter on the under side of the wound ; thus proving, firstly, the truth of the theory of the perpendicular system ; and secondly, that roots, in gi-owing plants, are formed by the protrusion of woody fibre through cellular matter. The first process of nature, when a cutting is formed and planted in the soil, is to protrude cellular matter round the edges of the section of its lower extremity ; this protmded matter, or callosity, as it is termed by cultivators, sometimes remains for several months before it undergoes any change ; but ultimately, if the cutting succeeds, the perpendicular system passes through it and appears in the form of roots, and the cutting is established as a plant. If a cutting be planted in the soil in an inverted position, though the portion in the soil be cut and urepared as in cuttings treated in the usual WITH REFERENCE TO HORTICULTtTRE. 2!) manner, yet in general it will neitlior produce a callosity nor roots ; though there ai-e some exceptions, as in the Willow tribe, and of these if the cutting is prepared at both ends,-and laid horizontally in the soU, then at both enda callosities, and ultimately roots, will be formed. Hence a shoot of a Willow inserted in the ground at both ends, being bent for that purpose so as to form an arch, will root at both ends ; but this is a result that wiU happen ia the case of very few plants. 111. The bark consists of two parts; the outer bark, formed entirely of cellular matter, and resting on the liber or inner bark ; and the inner bark, which consists partly of woody, and partly of cellular matter. The latter ultimately becomes wood, and the former ultimately hardens, cracks, and sometimes falls otF. No wound in the outer bark can be healed or filled up, but the reverse is the case with wounds in the alburnum. The wood in tdl exogenous plants of the tree kind is distinguishable into the heart wood, or that which is mature, and the soft wood or alburnum, which is wood in a young and growing state. The heart wood is for the most part of a darker colour than the soft or young wood, which is generally white, till by age its tubes and vessels become thickened with matter deposited by the sap in its ascent to the leaves, when it darkens in colour, at least in most trees. When the sap absorbed by the spongioles enters the solid matter of the plant, it passes upwards through the alburnum to the leaves ; and, being elaborated there, it descends through the liber, communicating horizontally, by means of the medullary rays, with both the old and the young wood. Wherever it penetrates, it deposits cellular matter, till at last in the old wood the pores become completely filled up and hardened. 112. The stems of all plants, and especially of exogenous trees, have, beginning at the centre, pith, old wood, medullary rays, alburnum, liber or inner bark, and outer bark. The medullary rays connect all the parts of the section of a stem or brauehes horizontally; and the ligneous fibres, which penetrate all the parts except the pith, connect them longitudi- nally, and complete the vegetable structure. In all plants whatever these parts exist ; but in many herbaceous plants, especially annuals, and others of short duration, they are not easily defined ; the wood, alburnum, and liber often appearing in one homogeneous body, and the bark and the pith only being quite distinct. The root stem differs from the stem above ground in being without pith, without visible buds, and without an outer bark ; or at all events without a, bark which cracks and decays, like that of the stems and branches. There are exceptions in the case of some root stocks of herbaceous plants, such as those of the Colchicum and the Crocus ; but nevertheless this holds true in the underground stems or tubers of the Potato, in the fasciculated tubercles of tlie Dahlia, and in most other tuberous-rooted plants. 113. ieaw« are formed on the surface of stems at certain distances, and in a certain order in each species of plant ; and at the base of the petiole of each leaf there is a bud either visible or latent ; in either case ready to be called into action and produce a new stem, shoot, or branch, when the neces- sary excitement is given. If the leaves are removed from a growing stem as soon as they appear, no buds are formed in their axils ; or, if the germs of them have existed there, they die for want of the nourishment of the leaf. Hence, by taking off every leaf as soon as it is protruded from an over- vjgorous-growing shoot of the current year, that shoot may be prevented 30 PTTNCTtONS OP PLANTS, CONSIDERED from maturing its buds and wood, and consequently deprived of the power of growing vigorously the following season ; and this is found a better mode of treating excessively luxuriant trees than cutting off such over- vigorous shoots, which would only throw more vigour into the heart of the tree. By taking off the incipient leaves the tree is allowed to exhaust itself of all its superfluous force. (See Beaton in Gard. Mag. 1837, p- 203.) 1 14. In general, buds are rarely found except in the axils of the leaves ; but occasionally they are formed in the spaces of the stem between the leaves, more or less distant from the base of the leaf, or from the joints whence leaves are pro- duced. They are also, as we have before observed, sometimes found in roots, though never visible in them to the naked eye ; and they are also produced in some cases on leaves, as in Kalanchoe (Bryophyllum) crenata, and in Car- damine hirsuta. Buds of this kind are said to be dormant or adventitious. When the bud of any stem has been once matured, if rubbed off, one or more other buds will arise from its base; and this will take place though the operation be repeated an indefinite number of times, provided the plant be furnished with leaves in some other part of its stem above the point whence the buds were rubbed off, so that the shoot or stem may be continued in a growing state. Thus the regular visible buds of vines are frequently cut entirely out, but still the adventitious buds throw out shoots with such vigour, other circumstances being favourable, as to produce abundance of fruit the same season. 115. Buds are of two kinds, leaf-buds and blossom-buds. It is only the former that can produce shoots, or by which, under ordinary circumstances, a plant can be propagated directly. But if a blossom-bud be taken off and inserted in a living plant by the usual operation of budding, though only blossoms will be produced the first year, yet the dormant leaf-buds will the second year produce shoots. In practice this does not hold good alike in aU plants, but it is the case with many of the iJosaceae. for example in the Peach. The nodule is a concretion of embryo buds found in the bark of various trees, and especially of the common Elm, the Birch, some of the Poplars, and the Olive; and by fragments of which these trees may be propagated. IIG. All bulbs are buds, and the scales of which they are composed are abortive or imperfectly developed leaves ; consequently, as at the base of every leaf there is a bud, so must there be, at the base of every scale of a bulb, a bud either regular or adventitious. Hence, by cutting over the bulb of a common Hyacinth about the eighth of an inch above the plate to which the scales are attached, a number of buds and young leaves wUl be produced from between the bases of the scales, and by these buds the plant may be increased. 117. The stem of a plant may be considered as the base, receptacle, or habitation of the leaves and buds ; by means of which they are exposed to the air and light, without being too much crowded, and are thus enabled to elabo- rate the sap sent to them by the roots, and to form buds and seeds for the continuation of their species. The watery matter absorbed by the spongioles ascends the stem by the soft wood, dissolving in its ascent a part of the stai-ch or sugar which it finds there, and hence becoming denser as it ascends ; its specific gravity increasing till it reaches the summit of the stem and branches. An it ascends it enters the leaves, where it is elaborated in consequence of the action of light on their upper surface, and it is then returned to the stem by WITH REFERENCE TO HORTICULTURE. 31 the vessels in the under surface of the leaves, whence it descends to the roots not however by way of the alburnum, where it would meet with and inter- rupt the ascending sap ; but by way of the inner bark, communicating hori- zontally, as we have before observed, with the interior of the stem by means of the medullary rays. Hence, the great importance of the alburnum and the inner bark to plants ; the former in conveying sap from the root to the leaves, and the latter in returning it from the leaves to the stem, branches and roots. Hence also we find that trees will live, and even thrive, with the interior of their trunk entirely rotten, provided the alburmim, the inner bark, and the leaves, are in a healthy state. The alburnum is constantly changing into hard wood, and the inner bark as constantly into hard bark or outer bark. As the heart wood when thoroughly hardened may be removed without injury to the growth of the tree, so also may the thoroughly hard- ened outer bark. The hard wood is to the tree what the bones are to an animal, the chief source of mechanical support ; and the outer bark, being a non-conductor of heat, protects the inner bark and the alburnum from too great cold, and in hot climates from too much heat, in the same manner as the outer coverings of animals. 118. Though the sap of plants circulates in general bj' rising through the alburnum, and descending through the inner bark, yet such is the effect of vitality, and the simplicity of their structure, that the sap can be made both to rise and fall by the alburnum, and to rise and fall also by the inner bark. Instead of ascending fi-om the roots to the branches, it can be made to enter by the branches and descend to the roots. To prove the truth of the first of these assertions, the trunk of a tree has been sawn through in opposite direc- tions in such a manner that there could not, by any possibility, be dii'eet linear communication between the portions below and above the wound, and yet the tree has lived. The wood of the shoot of a Willow has been extracted at the peeling season, and the shoot being supported by a stake has grown, and in the course of the first summer filled up the cavity left by the removal of the wood. That the sap will both ascend and return, not merely by the alburnum, but by wood of a considerable degree of age and hardness, is proved, among other instances, by a Lime-tree in the royal gardens at Fon- tainebleau, which continues to live and produce leaves every year, though a large portion of the stem has been without bark for thirty years. Fig. 1 is from a sketch made by M. Poiteau, a scientific cultivator and physiologist, in whose company we examined this tree in July, 1840. To prove that the sap will enter by the branches and descend to the leaves, take a ligneous plant growing in a pot, and elevating it on a post between two trees of the same or of allied kinds, inarch the extremity of a branch of each tree into the plant in the pot, and in two years ceast" to supply water to the earth in the pot, and at last shake this Lime-tree at Fontaine- earth away from the roots, and leave the plant suspended bieau. between the two trees. We have not seen this done, but we have seen branches which had inosculated with other branches cut through, and, being left attached by the inosculation, live for several years. Some curious experiments bearing on this subject, by Mr. Niven of Dublin, will be found in the Gardener's Magazine, 1838, p. 161. ll!l. The cause of the motion of the sap is a subject which has occasioned much discussion. The general opinion is, that it is in motion, to a certain n2 FUNCTIONS OP PLANTS, CONSIDERED extent, in winter as well as in summer ; but that an extraordinary absorp- tion by the roots, and consequent ascent through the alburnum, takes place with the development of the buds, in consequence of the stimulus of heat in spring. The swelling of the buds, and the expansion of the leaves, decom- pose a quantity of sap in the same manner as the swelling of the embryo of the seed (102); a portion is fixed in the plant, and a portion given off into the atmosphere ; and, to supply the consumption thus occasioned, the office of the spongioles of the roots is called into extraordinary action, and nature, always stronger than strong enough, produces a superabundant supply. 120. The haf of the plant is an organ of so much importance, that there can be no growth beyond the first development of the seed without it. No mode of treatment will compensate to a plant for the want of leaves, and the most vigorous plant that exists may be destroyed in a short time by the removal of all the leaves as soon as they appear. The important consequences that result from this fact, are not sufficiently known to many gardeners, ana they require particularly to be impressed on the minds of amateurs. We have seen in a preceding paragraph how trees may be weakened, and parti- cular shoots killed, by the removal of leaves. The most powerful weeds, for example, Perennial Thistles, Docks, Ferns, Rushes, and all similar plants, may be killed in grass lands on the same principle ; that is, by the removal of the leaves as soon as they appear, and before they are developed. 121. The normal form of a leaf consists of an expanded part called the disk, and a narrow prolongation called the petiole (91); but some leaves are solid and cylindrical, and others are so modified as to appear like scales ; for example, in bulbs, the bracts in the fruit of the Pine-apple, spines in the common Thorn, tendrils in the Vine ; and, consequently, all these organs or appendages ought to have buds, either visible or adventitious, in their axils. This is accordingly found to be the case. Shoots have been produced where the tendrils of a Vine have been cut off; and, in the fruit of the Pine-apple, every bracteal leaf having a " pip" or flower in its axil has produced a sucker. (^Cowel.) The disk of the leaf is considered as an ex- pansion of the inner bark (91) ; its veins are the continuation of the ligneous fibres of the bark, and its cellular substance of the horizontal system or cellular tissue of the trunk. The woody tissue which forms the veins of leaves, as already observed, is arranged in two layers; one forming the upper surface of the leaf, by which the sap is elaborated ;' and the other, the under surface, by which the elaborated sap is returned to the inner bark. The two plates of layers may be readily seen in a leaf which has been ma- tured, and afterwards anatomised, by the alternate action of water and the atmosphere. The upper layer has its vessels in communication with the interior of the stem, while the under layer communicates only with the inner bark ; the upper one mamtains a connexion with the soft wood, in order to receive the sap from it, while the under one is connected with the inner bark, m order to return the sap through it to the stem and roots. 122. The two plates of vessels and cellular matter which form the disk of the leaf, are covered with a thin skin or epidermis. This epidermis, when the leaf is beginning to expand, abounds with innumerable minute cavities fiUed in that early stage with fluid ; but ultimately, when the leaf is fully grown, these cavities become dry. In plants indigenous to moist and shady places, the epidermis is thin; but in tliose growing naturally in hot, dry, cx- j)osed situations, it is very hard and thick. It varies, indeed, not only 'with WITH REFEKENCE TO HORTICULTURE. 33 Ihe natural habitations of plants, but with their natures. In nil, vvhetJior thick or thin, it is pierced with numerous pores, called stomata, which can- not be seen witli the naked eye, but through which the leaf inhales and exhales gases, and perhaps watery matters. The stomata are generally largest and most abundant ui aquatic or marsh plants, or plants adapted by nature for shady places, and which can procure at all times an ample supply of liquid food ; and they are, on the contrary, fewest and least active, in warm, open, airy situations, where liquid food is less abundant. Thus it appears that the structure of a leaf being adapted to the particular situation in which the plant naturally grows, it may serve to indicate what sort of culture may be most suitable for plants of which we have previously known but little. It is evident, however, that this criterion must be of rather difficult application in practice, except by gardeners who are scientific bota- nists, and have been in the habit of using powerful microscopes. 128. There are some plants which produce no leaves, or in which the leaves are so small, and drop off so soon after they are formed, as to leave no traces of them on the bark. Instances of this kind are found in the genera Cactus, Epiphyllum, Opuntia, Stapelia, and even, but in a much less degree, in some species of jlsparagus, iSpartium, and Genista. In all such cases, the functions that in other plants are performed by the leaves, are performed in these plants by the bark. The functions of the leaves, and of the green parts of the bark, and of the plant in general, are to absorb carbonic acid, and, with the aid of light and moisture, to appro- priate its carbon. Carbonic acid may enter the plant by the roots, by the leaf, and by the green parts of its bark, ^rhen either of these parts is exposed to the action of the sun, the carbonic acid is decomposed, oxygen is given off, and the carbon is fixed in the leaf or bark. The escape of the oxygen may be proved by immersing a leaf in water, and exposing it to tlie sun. If a leaf be immersed in water in the shade, little or no air will be given off, and that little will be found to be carbonic acid gas. Plants, it has been found, decompose carbonic acid during the action of solar light on the leaves during the day, and form it again in the shade and during night ; and hence, in a healthy plant, the decomposition of carbonic acid and the liberation of oxygen during the day, and the absorption of oxygen and the liberation of carbonic acid gas during the night, are perpetually going on while the plant has leaves, or is in a gi-owing state. The healthiness of a plant, other circumstances being alike, is in proportion to the quantity of carbonic acid decomposed during the day ; and this will depend on the quantity of light it receives during the same period. Plants which naturally grow in shady situations form exceptions to this general principle ; probably, because the powerful action of the sun on their leaves would cause them to perspire water in too great abundance. 124. In conclusion, it may be observed, that all assimilations of matter by plants, whether of a general kind, such as carbon, or of a specific nature, such as acids and alkalies, resins, oils, &c,, are effected by the action of light on the loaves; and hence, as we have said before (9), the treatment of the leaves of plants is of far greater importance than the treatment of any other part whatever. 125. The action of the leaf generally ceases when the part of the stem to which it is attached is matured, or when the fruit which is nearest to it is ripened. At that period the ]eaf commonly changes colour, ceases to deeom- D 34 FUNCTIONS OP PLANTS, CONSIDERED pose carbonic acid, and, yielding to the chemical influence of the oxygen of the atmosphere, dies and drops off. Those leaves are called deciduous (G9), which fall off in the autumn after the maturation of the shoots of the current year; those are called persistent (68), which remain on in a withered state till the following sprmg; and those evergreen (66), which remain attached and green till the following summer, or later. Some of these evergreen leaves, as for example in certain species of Coniferse, remain on for several years. 126. The flowers of plants generally consist of the following parts : — 1st, The floral envelopes, comprising the calyx or exterior covering, which is generally green, and the corolla or interior covering, which is commonly of some other colour than green ; 2d, The organs of reproduction, comprising the stamens and pistil ; and 3d, The germen or rudiment of the fruit and seed. In general, the calyx and the corolla are present in every flower, and also both sexes are contained in the same flower : but there are numerous exceptions ; some flowers having a calyx without a corolla, as in .4tragene ; others having the calyx coloured, so as to resemble a corolla, as in Fuchsia and many bulbs ; many being without any floral envelopes, as in the Wil- low ; and the sexes being, in many cases, on different plants, as in Macluro and Salisburia, Populus and 5alix. No flower in a natural state, how- ever, is to be found in which there is not present one or other of the sexes, except double flowers, which are monstrosities, and those of some hybi-ids, which are anomalies. 127. The floral envelopes may be considered as making the nearest ap- proach to common leaves ; and in many plants, particularly such as are in a high state of cultivation, they assume the appearance of leaves ; as, for example, in some varieties of Rose. In many plants the sexes are also changed into leaves, and this is the mode in which most double flowers are produced. Occasionally both the floral envelopes and the sexes are turned into leaves, as is found occasionally in wet seasons in the flowers of the common Parsley. In the earlier stages of the progress of gardening in Britain, when few plants were introduced from foreign countries, the great object of the curious cultivator was to produce double flowers, and other monstrosities ; and hence we have double-flowered varieties of most of the ornamental herbaceous plants that have been long in cultivation, and even of some trees and shrubs, such as the Double-blossomed Cherry, Double-blos- somed Hawthorn, Double-blossomed Peach, &c. 128. The art of causing plants to produce flowers sooner than they would do naturally, is one of great importance to the cultivator. The principle on which it is founded seems to be, that of causing a greater accumulation of nutritive matter in the particular part of the plant intended to produce flowers than is natural to that part ; or, in the case of annual plants, to con- centrate the nutritive matter of the entire plant, by growing it in a drier soil than that which is natural to it. Hence by ringing any particular branch of a tree, blossom-buds will be formed on the part of the branch above the ring, while shoots more watery than usual will be formed below it. Hence, al.so, by grafting a shoot from a seedling tree on the extremities of the Ijranches of a full-grown tree of the same species, blossoms will be produced aime years sooner than would have been the case had the branch remained en its parent plant. In this way new kinds of fruit, raised from seed, may be proved much sooner than if the seedling plairts were left a sufficient WITH REFERENCE TO nORTICULTCRE. 35 number of years to produce blossoms. Sometimes blossoms are produced Avhich, from defect or want of vigour, prove abortive ; and when this is the case, by removing from the plant aU the blossom-buds before they expand, for one or more years in succession, more vigorous blossoms will be pro- duced, and the production of fruit ensured. This is the reason why, on fruit trees, a defective crop is generally succeeded by an abundant one, and the contrary ; and why double-blossomed trees or hei-ba, which yield no fruit, pi'oduce abundance of blossoms every year. 129. The sexes consist of the stamens and pistils, of each of which there are one or several, and often a great many in every flower. The use of the stamens is to fertilise the rudimentary seeds which are contained in the germen, or lower part of the pistillum. Fertilisation is effected by the pollen of the anther applied to the stigma on the summit of the pistillum, in conse- quence of which an embryo plant, or ovulum (100), is generated in the. ovarium. In general the pistil of every flower is fertilised by pollen from the stamens of the same flower ; but it occasionally happens in nature by the action of bees or other insects, and in gardens by the instrumentality of man, that the stigma of the flower of one species is fertilised by the pollen of the flower of another species. The conditions of success are, for the most part, that the two species should, at least, belong to the same genus, and in this case the produce is said to be a hybrid ; when it is effected by two varieties of the same species, the plants produced are said to be crossbreds. The latter generally produce fertile seed, but the former only sometimes. 130. The fruit succeeds to the flower, the germen or base of the pistillum growing and increasing in size, after the floral envelopes and the stamens have decayed and dropped off'. In some cases, the calyx is retained tiU the fruit is ripe, (but without increasing in size,) when the fruit is said to be inferior : as in the Apple, where the remains of the calyx form what is called the eye, in the upper part of the fruit : whereas in the Peach, and all supe- rior fruits, only the upper part of the pistUlum is seen in that position. The superior fruit adheres to the shoot on which it grows by the base of the pistillum along, while the inferior fruit adheres to it by the base of the entu-e flower. For this reason inferior fruits are supposed to be less likely to drop off in consequence of frost during the blossoming season, or other adverse causes, than superior fmits ; and hence, other circumstances being the same, a crop of Apples, Pears, Quinces, Haws, Hips, Medlars, CuiTants, Goose- ben-ies. Melons, or Cucumbers, ought to be more certain than a crop of Strawberries, Raspberries, Peaches, Plums, Apricots, Cherries, Grapes, or Figs. 131. So long as the fruit is green, it possesses to a certain extent the phy- siological action of a leaf, and decomposes carbonic acid under the influence of light ; but as soon as it begins to ripen this action ceases, and the fi-uit is wholly nourished by the sap elaborated by the leaves. Thus the fruit has, in common vvith the leaves, the power of elaborating sap, and also the power of attracting sap from the surrounding parts. Hence we see that where a number of fruits are growing together, one or more of them attract the sap or nutriment from all the rest, which in consequence drop off". As the food of the fruit is prepared by the leaves under the influence of solar light, it follows that the excellence of the fruit will depend chiefly on the excellence of the leaves ; and that if the latter are not sufficiently developed, or not duly exposed to the action of the sun's rays, or placed at too great a distance from d2 ,*?(! FUNCTIONS OP PLANTS CONSIDERED. tlic- fniit, the latter will be diminutive iu size, and imperfectly ripened, or ir.ay drop off before attaining maturity. Hence the inferiority of fruits which grow on naked branches, or even on branches where there is not a leaf close to the fruit ; as in the case of a hunch of grapes where the leaf immediately above it has been cut off, or in that of a gooseberry where the leaf imme- diately above it has been eaten by a caterpillar. Hence it is evident that the secretions formed by the fruit are principally derived from the matter elaborated in the leaf or leaves next to it, and, as the sap of all the leaves is more or less abundant according to the supply received from the roots, the excellence of fruits depends ultimately on the condition of the roots, and the condition, position, and exposition of the leaves. As a proof that the fruit hds a specific influence on the matter it contains, independently of the influ- ence of the leaves, we have only to taste the leaf of an apple or a peach, and compare it with the taste of the fruit. The sweetness of fruits under ordinary circumstances is increased by warmth and light, and acidity is increased by the opposite q^ualities. An abundant supply of water to plants ripening their fruits, diminishes the intensity both of sweetness and acidity, as well as of all other secretions ; and hence the advantage of withdrawing water from plants in forcing-houses, or from fruit-bearing plants generally, at the ripening season. 132. The grand object of nature in producing fruit is to nourish the seed, and there appears to be no other intention with most fruits in a wild state ; but the art of man has, by enlarging and improving fruits by culture, ren- dered them in a superior degree suitable for his nourishment, without in general rendering them less fit for the nourishment of the seed. As, how- ever, in a wild state, the seeds of pulpy fruits must necessarily germinate in the decayed mass of pulp after the fruit is dropped and rotted on the surface of the ground, so in a state of high culture it has been recommended to bury the whole of the fruit, as of a peach for example, with the seed, when a young plant is intended to be produced. (^Beaton.) As the fruit attracts its food from the stem through the fruit-stalk, so the seed attracts its nourish- ment from the interior part of the fniit ; and hence in all coyored seeds, or what are commonly called fruits, the seed never can be separated from its envelope, without being destroyed, till it is perfectly ripe. Seeds in a young state are found to be of a mucilaginous consistency, like gum ; but as they ripen, more carbon is deposited, and the gummy mucilaginous sub- stance assumes the condition of flour or starch, which ultimately becomes nearly as hard as wood. This is a wise provision of nature for the preser- vation of the seed. In the immature or mucilaginous state of the seed, heat and moisture easily decompose it, and consequently unripe seeds do not keep well ; though when seeds are sown, it is necessary, before they germinate, that their solid part should be again decomposed and made soluble. Hence well-ripened seeds are so much more easily preserved than those which are imperfectly ripened ; and hence also the reason why unripe seeds, provided only their embryo be perfected, will germinate more quickly than ripe seeds; the starch of the ripe seed having to be again reduced to mucilage, before it can become soluble food. {Lymburn.) All seeds, when ripe, are dry and firm, and they retain their vitality a greater or less length of time according to Ihcir natures. In general oily seeds are the most perishable, and starchy seeds the most tenacious of life. There are, however, exceptions in the case of oiiy seeds, as ia the comnioii Ca'jbngc, the seeds of which will retain their GEOGRAPHICAL DISTRIBUTION OP PLANTS. SJ vitality for ten or twelve years. Melon and Cucumber seeds, which are mucilaginous, may be kept for thirty or forty years; Kidney-beans for nearly a century ; but not Scarlet Ruimers, which wiU not keep above two years'; a remarkable circumstance, since the two species are so nearly allied as to be considered by some to be only varieties. The seeds of many Leguminosa;, and particularly those of warm climates, where their carbon is concentrated to the hardness even of wood, as in the Australian Acacias, will keep an unknown period ; as a proof of which, all France continues to be supplied with seeds of the common Sensitive Plant fi-om a bag which was sent to Paris, we believe, above sixty years ago. In general the yoimger and more vigorous the seed, the stronger wiU be the plant produced, and the confraiy. Hence when it is wished to have plants of a vigorous- growing species, of more concentrated growth than usual, seeds weaker from being smaller and less abundantly nourished, or from being dried by long keeping, are chosen; and when vei-y vigorous plants are desired, the largest and freshest seeds are selected. Thus in the case of plants pro- ducing their flowers in corymbs, the seed is chosen from the summit of the corymb, as the first flowers open there, which, as well as the seeds which follow them, are always the largest. In general the first-formed flowers of all plants are the strongest, and the seeds produced by them the lai-gest and most vigorous of growth. 133. In this section there is necessarily some repetitions of facts stated in preceding parts of this chapter ; but it became necessary to do so in order to connect the process of development with structure. The reader who is de- sirous of studying the subject more in detail is recommended to consult Ltndley's Principles of Horticulture, and Lymburn, Beaton, and Niven, in the Gardener's Magazine ; from which source, and our own observation and experience, this section has been chiefly compiled. Sect. VI. — The Geographical Distribution of Plants, and their Stations and Habitations, with reference to thmr Culture in Gardens. 134. By the geography of a plant is to be understood the latitude and longitude in which it abounds in a wild state ; by its station or " habitat," tJie particular soil or situation in which it is found ; and by its habitation, the particular range of country to which it is limited. In a general view, the vegetation of the globe is distributed over its surface, varied according to its latitude, its inequalities of elevation, and its differences in regard to soils and moisture. The subject is of gi'eat importance to gardeners, because the culture of all plants must necessarily be more or less founded on a know- ledge of the climate and station in which they are found wild. In the natural distribution of plants on the earth's surface, the different species are found only in particular situations, which they prefer to others. Some prefer exposure to the full influence of the light and air ; others the shade of rocks or of trees ; some grow on mountains, some in plains, some in bogs or marshes, some on the banks of rivers ; some in the running water of rivers, others in the still water of lakes ; some in salt marshes, and others in the sea. Each of these different localities, in any one country, is charac - terised by a difference in physical circumstances ; such as more or less elevation above the level of the sea ; a greater or lesg exposure to light ; a soil more or less compact in texture; abounding more or less in water; or composed of particular earths. All this is independent of lempcrature, 38 GEOGRAPHICAL DISTRIBUTION OF PLANTS, CONSIDERED which varies with the latitude and the elevation in which plants grow, and considerably also with the nature of the soil, its condition with respect to water, and its exposure and shelter. The degree of temperature req[uired by different plants varies exceedingly; from that of the cold regions of the f ligid zone, through the temperate regions of both hemispheres, to the torrid zone. For the culture of the first description of plants, a shady situation, and a soil kept constantly moist, in order that it may be kept continually cool by evaporation, constitutes the artificial or garden station ; while to pro- duce a garden station for plants of the warmer regions the various kinds of artificial climates produced in plant houses are necessary. Hence the great importance, to cultivators, of a knowledge of the natural stations of the plants they cultivate, as well as of the structure and functions of plants generally. It will, therefore, be useful to notice briefly the external circumstances which influence the natural distribution of plants ; and these may be reduced to temperatuie, light, water, soil, and the atmosphere. 135. Temperature has by far the most important influence on the distri- bution of plants ; because it would appear, that each species is so constituted as to thrive only within certain limits of heat and cold, and that any excess beyond these limits is injurious to it. Hence the geographical boundary of any species is restricted by the extremes of temperature which the plant will bear, and yet bring its seeds to maturity. 136. The temperature of any place depends principally upon its latitude, and its elevatioji above the sea. From the poles to the equator, the temper- ature gradually increases ; and, measuring fiom the level of the sea into the air, the heat gradually decreases, tUl we arrive at a point, which is to be found on the mountains of all countries, where water exists only in a state of ice or snow. Hence, in forming an estimate of the temperature of any place, the latitude of that place, and its elevation above the sea, are to be jointly considered. From actual experiment, in the neighbourhood of London, by Green the aeronaut, it has been found that when the air was 74" at the surface of the earth, at an elevation of about 3000 feet it was 70' ; at 10,000 feet, 69^ ; and at 11,293 feet, 38°. The difference in time between making the first observation and the last was about 27'. According to De Candolle, heat decreases in France at the rate of one degree of latitude for every 540 feet of altitude ; so that the temperature of a place 3240 feet above the level of the sea in 45° N. lat. equals that of a place in about 61° N. lat. on a level with the sea. In the middle of the temperate zone, Humboldt found that the mean heat of the year diminished at the rate of 2" N. lat. for every 600 feet of altitude. From the powerful influence on temperature produced by elevation, arises the great variety of plants which are found between the base of a mountain and its summit ; though there are a vast number of plants in all countries that will grow indififerently on plains and on mountains as high up as plants will vegetate. There are a few plants, however, that have their range of elevation and of latitude comparatively limited ; as, for example, the Sweet Chestnut, the Olive, the Mulberry, and the Fig. 137. According to Humboldt, the geographical parallels of latitude do not indicate corresponding degrees of heat either in the old and new world, or in the northern and southern hemispheres. In the former, heat diminishes more rapidly as we recede from the equator; and in the latter beyond the 1 aiallel of 34°, corresponding latitudes indicate a greater degree of cold in WITH REFERENCE TO THEIR CULTURE. 39 summer, but of warmth in winter. Hence, Humboldt arrives at this con- clusion : " That the lines of equal mean heat, -which may be called isothermal, are not parallel with the equator, but intersect the geographical parallels at a variable angle." The mean annual heat of the same latitudes, in the new and old worlds, are shown in the following table : — Latitude. Mean heat of the Year in the Old World. New World. DiSferenoe. 0° 20 30 40 50 60 80° 77 70 63 50 40 80° 77 67 54 38 24 0° 3 9 12 IG Thus it is found that the old world is warmer than the new, and that the heat does not decrease from Florida to the Gulf of St. Lawrence in the same ratio that it does from Egypt to Scandinavia. In general, the summer temperature of North America, as far as 40" N. lat., is about 4" higher than in Europe, under the same isothermal parallel ; which accounts for Magno- lias, Rhododendrons, Annouas, and other trees, extending so far to the north as latitude 36°, where the summer heat scarcely differs from the mean annual heat of the equator. 138. A certain degree of difference is sometimes found in the vegetation of a country according to its longitude ; but as this is occasioned almost entirely by the nature of the face of the country, or its situation relatively to the oc*an, longitude by itself cannot be considered as having any influence whatever either upon temperature or vegetation. 139. The mean heat of any situation does hot enable us to judge of what particular species of plants will live there ; for the mean temperature found may be deduced from such extremes of heat and cold as would suit but few plants, as in the case of certain northern regions ; or it may be made up from moderate limits in which many plants wiU live ; as, for example, from the summers and winters of Ireland, or of the sea-coast of the middle of Europe. Thus the constitution of a plant which may be very well suited to the mean temperature of a place, may not be adapted to its extreme dif- ferences. ■ Hence many plants which will live in the open air at Belfast, would perish in the winters of Edinburgh ; and many which would live there, owing to the dryness of the air, and the moderate degree of cold from the prox- imity of the sea, would perish in Yorkshire, where the air is not only more highly charged with moisture, but much colder. Hence the mean annual temperature of any place is of much less consequence with respect to the stations of plants, than the mean monthly temperature and the extremes of each month. In general, " the western parts of continents are more nearly equable in their temperature throughout the year than the eastern, and the southern hemisphere than the northern ; and evergreens are found to affect the former, and deciduous trees the latter description of climate." (Ilenslow.) In all those parts of the world where the sea never freezes, the temperature is higher, and much more equable, than the temperature of inland situation in the same degree of latitude ; and hence plants which mature their fruit, or ripen their wood, at Edinburgh in the open air require protection at 40 GEOGBAPmCAL DISTRIBDTION OF PLANTS, CONSIDERED Warsaw and Moscow, though these cities are nearly in the same parallel of latitude as Edinburgh. ... « 140. Among the physical circumstances which affect the distribution of plants, the temperature of water merits notice. In many parts of the northern regions, water exists during great part of the year in the form of ice ; and hence, as it cannot be imbibed in that state by the roots, no plants can Uve in such regions, except those lowest in the scale, such as Lichens, &c. ; or such annuals as flower and ripen their seeds during the summer of these regions, though it does not extend longer than two or three months. Hence Barley and other corns can be ripened m the north of Sweden and Russia, where no perennial or ligneous plants equally "tender could live throughout the year. In countries which are early in autumn covered with snow, many herbaceous plants will live through the .winter that could not exist without this covering, which serves as an excellent non-conductor of heat. The bark of trees is also a bad conductor ; and as the roots of trees penetrate much deeper into the soil than frost, and as a slow circulation is canied on in their trunks and branches throughout the whole winter, the sap they contain is prevented from being frozen by tlie heat they obtain from the subsoil. " The internal parts of large trees retain a temperature which is about equal to that of the subsoil at one half the depth of their roots." {Herhslow.) Whenever the sap in the vessels of a plant freezes, they become ruptured and the plant dies ; and were it not for the supply of heat obtained from the subsoil by the trees, and the protection of herbaceous plants by the covering of snow, there could be neither trees nor perennial herbs in the more northern regions of our hemisphere. 141. Supposing the temperature of the subsoil and of the trees growing on the surface to be the same, then in high latitudes that temperature will be higher than the atmosphere during winter ; and in low latitudes where tJie atmosphere is of a high temperature, that of the trees will be lower during summer ; for the bark, which by its non-conducting properties retains heat in high latitudes, excludes it in low latitudes from penetrating into the wood of the tree. Von Buch found that the temperature of the subsoil is principally affected by the infiltration into it of the surface waters ; and hence, in the frigid zones, where the surface is in a state of ice or snow during winter, no infiltration can take place ; and thus the mean heat of the subsoil, in high latitudes, will be higher than the mean heat of the atmosphere. In those latitudes, however, where the surface water seldom freezes, the infiltration will continue during great part of the winter, and will reduce the mean temperature of the subsoil below the mean temperature of the atmosphere. In those countries in low latitudes where rain falls during the coolest season of the year, the subsoil will be more cooled than in those places where it falls both in hot and cold weathei'. " Hence the mean temperature of springs throughout the central and northern parts of Eui-ope, as far as Edin- burgh, is much the same as the mean temperature of the air ; whilst from tho south of Europe to the tropic of Cancer, the difference is gradually in- creasing in favour of the atmosphere ; but from the latitude of Edinburgh northwards, the difference increases in favour of the subsoil. The conse- quence is, that certain plants which naturally belong to the more temperate parts of our zone are enabled to extend themselves further north and south than they could do if the mean temperature of the soil imd air were every- where the same." (^Henslow.) WITH RliFERBNCE TO THEIR CULTURE. 41 142. The temperature of the natural stations of plants is always such as to enable the species to continue itself by seeds ; but as, in a state of culture, plants can be propagated by various modes which do not req^uire the pro- duction of either iiowers or fruits, it follows that in any given natural station a great many plants may be cultivated by art, which could' not exist there in a state of nature ; and which, if introduced by art, and not continued by the same power, would perish with the life of the individual. Hence tlie immense number of species, from all parts of the globe, which will grow in the open air in Great Britain, and which, if the island were to relapse into a state of barbarism, would for the most part disappear. Hence, also, by the artificial climates of our plant structures, we can gi'ow and propagate all the plants of the world, though there are many that for want of space cannot attain their natural magnitude in such structures. The mere fact, however, of our being able to grow tropical plants in air arti- ficially heated, shows that temperature has a greater influence on vegetation than any other element of growth. 143. The influence of light on the distribution of plants is very consider- able. As heat and moisture are the chief agents in calling the vegetable germ into existence, so, the plant once developed, light is the gi-and sti- mulater of vitality ; causing, by its influence on buds and leaves, the ab- sorption of the sap by the roots, and the exhalation of water and decompo- sition of carbonic acid by the leaves. It is probable, as Professor Henslow conjectures, that each species requires a diS^erent degree of light as well as of heat ; and, though no general laws have yet been discovered on this sub- ject, we find that succulent, resinous, or oily plants, and all plants with needle leaves, prefer situations where they can obtain much light j while almost all evergreens, except such as are needle-leaved, prefer situations somewhat shaded. As the density of air is diminished as we ascend in tlie atmosphere, so the intensity of light is increased ; and it has been sup- posed that as high elevations correspond with high latitudes in regard to lieat, they ought to correspond also in regard to light ; though this has not, as far as we know, been detennined by facts. But it is clear, from what has been stated, that in any given latitude the plants which grow on plains receive less light than those on mountains ; and that the two extremes, ui any country, are the sea-shore and the line of perpetual snow. The mean distribution of light is unquestionably much more equable in all latitudes than the mean distribution of temperature ; but the extremes, in its mode of distribution, are remarkably different. Plants in the northern regions generally are covered with snow more than half the year ; and those which reach above the snow, such as the trees, have perpetual sunshine for several weeks together during summer, and the absence of the sun for a similar period during winter. In all countries where snow falls, and rests on the country for some weeks or months, the mean degree of light received by herbaceous plants, such as the pasture grasses, must be considerably dif- ferent from the mean light received by the same species in climates where snow is unknown ; but as in all cases in wliich light is so entirely excluded from plants in a natural state vegetation is dormant, or nearly so, plants escape uninjured. From these facts some valuable deductions may be drawn as to the light which plants require, or may dispense with, in a state of culture. 144. The influence of water, whether in the soil or in the atmosphcrr, on 42 GEOGHAPIIICAL DISTRIBUTION OF PLANTS, CONSIDERED the distribution of plants, if not so great as that of temperature, is in some cases more striking. In general, plants are as diiferently constituted in re- spect to water as they are in regard to temperature. The quantity of water absolutely necessary for the nourishment of a plant varies according to its tissue. Plants with large and soft leaves, with little or no pubescence, with many pores or stomata, and with the texture of the entire plant loose and spongy, require most water ; and accordingly this is the description of plants which are found in marshes, and in lakes or rivers. Plants having their general texture firm and succulent, clothed with pubescence, and having few stomata, grow in dry warm stations. Trees and herbaceous plants, with roots which penetrate into the soil, require least water on the surface, and best resist extreme drought ; and, next to these, those that have succulent leaves and few stomata, because they evaporate but little moisture ^om theu' surface. Some plants live entirely on water, floating on its surface ; and others immersed in it, and attached to the soil at the bottom of the lake or river : in some, as in river-plants, the water is constantly in a state of motion ; while in lake-plants it is always at rest, except on the surface. In general, all aquatic and marsh plants require the water to be pure ; but in salt marshes, salt steppes, and on the sea-shore, it is strongly impregnated with s-ja-salt or soda, in which only a small number of vegetables wUl live. 145. The influence of soil on the distribution of plants is universally ac- knowledged ; though the difference in the selection of soils by plants depends much more on the condition of that soil with respect to water, than on its chemical properties. By soil is to be understood that upper coating of the earth's surface composed of earths or the rust of rocks, and organic matters; and the capacity of this coating for water will depend on the elevation or de- pression of its surface, on its texture, and on the nature and texture of the sub- soil. The relative proportions of the primitive earths do not appear to have much influence on the distribution of plants; but when a soil has any decided character, such as when it consists almost wholly of sand, of chalk, or of clay, the influence is considerable. In general, the greatest number of species are commonly found on soils having a loose sandy surface ; because their seeds being blown there, or otherwise conveyed, from the plants on ad- joining soils, readily take root ; whereas on chalky and clayey soils, from their greater hardness, and also from their surface being generally more clothed, the seeds which fall on them do not so readily vegetate. Many of the plants which spring up in sandy districts perish for want of moisture, or are blown out by the winds ; but they are nevertheless continually re- newed by the seeds furnished from adjoining surfaces. Those which are indigenous to gravelly soils, much exposed, are chiefly low, compact, or trail- ing plants, wliich offer but a small surface for the wind to act on, or such as have deeply-penetrating roots. Chalky and clayey soils, on the other hand, from their firm, compact texture, are adapted only to such species as have small fibrous roots, and which do not require any great depth of soil. 146. A few plants appear to prefer the soils formed by particular rocks such as limestone, chalk, granite, and slate ; yet the same plants which prevail on these rocks are frequently found abounding in districts of a totally diflcrent geological character. Thus according to De CandoUe although the Box in France is very common on calcareous surfaces it is found in equal abundance on such as are schistous or granitic. The Sweet Chestnut grows equally well in limestone soils and clays, in tlie volcanic WITH REFERENCE TO THEIR CULTURE. 43 ashes of ^tna, and in the sand of Calabria. The plants of Jura, a calca- reous mountain, grow equally well on the argillaceous rocks of the Vosges, or the granitic Alps. But though the kinds of earths in which plants grow naturall}-, seem of no great importance, yet the presence of metallic oxides and salts, such as sulphate of iron or copper, or sulphur alone, or alum, or other similar sutstances in a state to he soluble in water, is found to be injurious to all plants, of which the marernmes of Tuscany, and some parts of Derbyshire, are examples. As a general result of the facts which have been collected relative to the influence of soil on the distribution of plants, it may be stated that the chemistry and the geology of soils have much less influence on plants than their temperature, moisture, and texture; and that it is often a very bad method of culture to imitate exactly the soil in which a plant is found growing. 147. The influence of the atmosphere, considered with reference to its chemical composition, and the gaseous matters which may be suspended in it, or its motion as wind, on the distribution of plants, is not supposed to be great ; or at all events, that influence is not yet so far understood as to be reduced to any general law. Its difference of density at dififerent elevations produces, as we have seen, a corresponding increase in the intensity of light; and it is also found that humidity decreases as we ascend. This last result must be attended with some efifects on plants ; but, as the ratio of the de- crease of humidity has not been determined, its effects, separated from those of temperature and light, are not sufficiently understood. De CandoUe remarks that the rarefaction of the atmosphere by elevation may diminish tiie quantity of oxygen for absorption by the leaves, and ma)' at the same time facilitate evaporation ; but the precise result of these conditions is unknown. 148. The following are the principal stations of plants which require to be known by the cultivator, and all of which he can imitate by art, (1.) Marine plants, which grow in or on the surface of the sea, andwhioh, though practicable, it has rarely been attempted to cultivate by art. (2.) Maritime districts, as the sea-shore, where the soil is more or less impregnated with salt, which must be absorbed by the roots of plants, while those parts which are above ground must be afi^ected by the spray and sea- breezes. Some are absolute sea-shore plants, such as Salicomia, but others grow equally well on the sea-shore and in inland situations, as the JBry ngium campestre and the common Thrift. (3.) Saline steppes, where the soil is impregnated with salt, but where the foliage is not influenced by a saline atmosphere. (4.) Aquatic plants, or such as grow in fresh-water rivere and lakes, either immersed and rooted in the soil forming the bottom on which the water rests, or floating on the surface and sending down roots so as to touch the soil ; in some cases scarcely doing so, as in iemna. This kind of habitation is imitated by artificial ponds or currents, or by basins in which the surface of the water is kept in motion by jets or fountains. (5.) Marshes, bogs, and fens, easily imitated by suitable soil kept con- stantly saturated with water. (6.) Meadows and pastures, the plants inhabiting which may generally be cultivated in common soils and situations. (7.) Cultivated lands, of which the same may be said. (8.) Itocks, vrhich. are chiefly the habitations of cryptogamic plants, and 44 GUOGUAPIIICAL DISTRIBUTI'lN OF PLANTS. which in artificial culture, require the rock or stones for some species to ho kept dry, and in others to he kept moist by artificial springs of water. (9.) Sandy soils, in inland situations, dry or moist, which are easily imi- tated, and in which a greater or less number of plants will grow according to the supply of water. Bulbous plants are particularly adapted for such soils, because they are driest in summer when the bulb is at rest. When dry, sandy soils are warmer than any others. (10.) Forests, copses, and hedges, the plants of which include trees and shrubs, deciduous or evergreen, and the plants which grow in their shade. Among these are some few which grow under the constant shade of ever- green trees, as the Pyrola in pine-gi-oves ; and others which require light in winter and spring, and are found gi-owing only under deciduous trees, as the common (StiUa nutans and many bulbs, the Cowslip, and various other plants found under the shelter of hedges. Climbmg and twining plants are commonly found in stations of this description. (11.) Mountainous or Alpine regions, the plants of which include such as grow on mountains of moderate height, which are clothed with vegetation to their summits, and are consequently subject to greater drought in summer than in winter ; and those which grow on mountains, the summits of which are covered with perpetual snow, which, from its melting partially in summer, keeps the surface-soil of the mountain moister at that season than during winter. It is evident, however, that much must depend on the soil of the mountain ; for a peaty or clayey soil will be kept in a state of greater mois- ture than one which is composed chiefly of sand, and a deep soil will retain more moisture than a thin stratum on rock. In the culture of moun- tain plants, therefore, the particular kind of soil in which they are found naturally, and its condition with regard to moisture, are of much greater importance than its elevation. In short, it is found that the mountain plants of the Highlands of Scotland may, with scarcely any exceptions, ho cultivated with success in the botanic gardens of Edinburgh and Glasgow which are on a level with the sea. (12.) Subterranean stations are either dark caverns where some species of acrogens are found, or, as in the case of the Truffle, the interior of the soil itself. The culture of the Truffle is still a desideratum in horticulture. (13.) Living or dead trees or other plants constitute a station. Parasitic plants, such as the Mistletoe and the Dodder, root into the stems of living trees, and their dissemination can be effected by art as well as by nature. Epiphytes or pseudo-parasites grow either upon dead or living vegetables, but without deriving any nourishment from their vital parts. Of these, we have in Britain the common Polypody, a fern found on the rough bark of old trees, especially Oaks, in moist climates, as about the lakes of Cumber- land and Westmoreland ; and on old pollards in many situations. There are also numerous Mosses, Lichens, and Fungi, which live on the outer bark of old trees in temperate regions ; and an immense number of OrchidacesB which have their stations on trees in tropical climates, and the culture of which in British stoves has recently called forth an extraordinary degree of ingenuity among gardeners. ] 49. To these stations botanists have added some others ; such as the rub- bish near human dwellings, which is supposed to have an attraction for certain plants from containing nitrogen ; roadsides, &c. : but, with a view to culture, these, and several which have been mentioned, are of no great importance. SOILS CO^'SIDERED WITH REFERENCE TO noUTICULTtinE. 4', Some stations, on the other hand, are absolute ; such as maritime, maiiuc aquatic, marsh, subterranean, and parasitic, and cannot be dispensed with in our attempts at cultivation. 150. " The habitations of plants" is an expression used to denote the range of country throughout which any particular species is found distri- buted ; the stations being those soils or situations in that country in which alone, or chiefly, the plant is found. (134.) For example, a plant may be an inhabitant of mountains, and its station on these mountains may be a peat-bog. The habitations of plants are much less certain than their stations ; for the limits in latitude and longitude within which plants occur have little relation to those in which, judging from the stations and climate in which they are found, they might extend themselves. Thus we have certain species -growing in a particular station and temperature in the northern hemisphere, which are not to be found in stations and temperatures of exactly the same kind in the southern hemisphere. On the other hand, there are some species, such as certain Grasses, which are found extensively distributed in both hemispheres ; while some few plants, such as the Stre- litzia, have their habitations so limited as to be found only in one or two stations of very confined extent. Plants of this kind are called solitary, while those which grow in immense masses are said to be social. Tliose which have been long in cultivation are said to be domesticated ; but this term is not applied to such plants as have been introduced into gardens without undergoing any change in their habits there. CHAPTER II. SOILS CONSIDERED WITH REFERENCE TO HORTICULTURE. 151. In the last section of the preceding chapter we have seen, that though plants are less absolute in the choice of soils than of climates, yet that in the cultivation of plants, soils are much more under our iniluence than any other element of culture. The term soil is applied to that thin stratum on the surface of the ground which is occupied by the roots of the smaller herbaceous vegetables ; on uncultivated surfaces it varies in depth with the nature of the soil and the plants growing on it ; but on lands in cultivation, the soU extends to the depth usually penetrated by the imple- ments of culture. The principal materials of which soils are composed are earths formed of the debris of different kinds of rocks, combined with organic matter derived from decomposed vegetables or animals. Earths without organic matter will only support plants of the lowest gi-ade, such as Lichens and Mosses ; and where soils are found supporting the higher classes of plants, endogens and exogens, their vigour will generally be found to bo greater or less according to the propoi-tion of organic matter which the soil contains. This organic mattei-, when supplied by art, is called manure, and constitutes the food of plants ; while the soil may be compared to a stomach, in which that food is digested. The subject of manures will be most conve- niently treated in our next chapter. Here we shall confine ourselves to the consideration of soils, and treat, first, of their origin and kinds, and secondly, of their improvement. 46 ORIGIN AND KINDS OF SOILS, CONSIDERED Sect. I. — Origin and Kinds of Soils. 152. The earthy part of all soils must necessarily have been derived from the debris of rocks, and the organic part from flie intermixture of decayed vegetable or animal matter. The eartliy mass so produced varies in colour, but, from containing humus and mould (161), it is always darker in a greater or less degree than subsoils, which in general are without organic matter. Soils also contain mineral salts and metallic oxides, some of which are bene- ficial, others harmless, and some few injurious, to plants. The chemical constitution of a soil can only be known by analysis, which cannot, in gene- ral, be depended on, unless performed by professional or experienced che- mists * ; the mechanical state or texture of a soil is ascertained by digging up a portion of it ; and its actual fitness for plants, by examining the species growing on its surface. The rock, or geological formation, the earth of which forms the basis of any soil, will frequently be found to constitute the substra- tum on which that soil rests; but this is frequently not the case, because the earths of many soils have been held in suspension by water in a state of motion, and by that means have been transported to a great distance from the rocks of which they are the debris. From this suspension of the earths of soils in water, and their transportation to a distance, we are able to account for the circumstance of several different kinds of earths being almost always found in the same soil. Thus in alluvial deposits, on the banks of rivers, we find the earth of various rocks of the country through which the river has taken its course ; and as such soils are always the most fertile, we may conclude that a mixture of various earths in a soil is to be prefeiTed to any one kind of earth alone. From the earth of the alluvial deposits of every country being formed of the debris of the various rocks of that country, and fi-om every country containing nearly the same kinds of rocks, hence the alluvial deposits on the banks of all the larger rivers of the world consist nearly of the same earths. But as the rocks or geological formations from which the earths of soils are washed away still remain in their places, and are of many different kinds, it follows that there must be as great a variety in the upland soils of a country as there is uniformity in those of the lowlands, and of the banks of rivers. Thus there are between twenty and thirty geological formations in England, which form the substratum or bases of soils, and each of which must consequently be more or less different in its compositiont. For all practical purposes, however, soils may be charac- terised by their prevailing primitive earths ; and, hence, they are reduced to sands and gravels, clays, chalky and limestone soils, alluvial soils, and peat-bogs. 163. Sandy Soil. — Silica, which is the basis of sandy soils, is, perhaps, the most tmiversal of all earths ; and there is scarcely a species or variety of rock in which it does not abound more or less. Silica is found perfectly pure^ in rock crystal, and tolerably so in what is called silver sand, and also in the sand of some rivers and of the sea. The practical test of the earth, when tolerably pure, is, that when moistened it cannot be formed into * It 13 now becoming, a general custom for landed proprietors to send a pound or more of soil to an experienced chemist, to obtain an analysis of it, to know what mineral manures it may be best to use, in order to supply the salts the land may stand m need of. ^ t See Morton on Soils. 4th edit. 8vo, 1843. WITH REFERENCE TO HORTICULTURE. 47 a plastic mass, or consolidated by pressure, -whether in a moist or dry state, so as to form a compact solid body. Hence all sandy soils are loose never present a firm surface, and are never covered with a compact clothin" of grass or other herbaceous plants. Such soils, from being without cohesion are incapable of retaining moisture ; and, as they are readily permeable by both moisture and air, they powerfully promote the putrefaction of organic matter, whilst they as readily permit it to be washed away from them by rains, or to escape in the form of gas. Hence, in manuring sandy soils, no more should be applied at once than what can be consumed by the crop of the current year ; and hence, also, they should be cultivated to a greater depth than other soils, in order that there may be a greater mass of material for retaining moisture. One great advantage of a sandy soil over all others is its natural warmth. This arises from its greater looseness and porosity, in consequence of which the atmosphere penetrates into it more rapidly, and to a greater depth, than in the case of any other soil. Hence, in the absence of sunsliine, a sandy soil will be raised to the temperature of the atmosphere, to the depth of several inches, by the mere penetration of the air among its particles ; while a firm compact soil, the earthy basis of which is clay or chalk, could not be heated to the same depth without the direct influence of the sun's rays. Sandy soils are also more easily penetrated by water than any others, and hence they are sooner raised or lowered to the temperature of the rains which fall on them than a clayey or calcareous soil. As the water never rests on sandy soils, they are never cooled down by evaporation ; the reverse of which is the case with clayey and calcareous surfaces. Sandy soils being much less cohesive than soils in which clay or lime prevails, they are much more easily laboured; and, being always loose and friable on the surface, they are better adapted for the germination of seeds. Sandy soils may be made to approach alluvial soils by the addition of clay and calcareous earth, either taken from claj" ey or calcareous surfaces, or from subsoils in which these earths abound ; but the former source is greatly preferable, from the earths being already in combination with organic matter. 164. Whatever has been said of sandy soils is applicable to gravelly soils ; in some particulars in a greater, and in some in a less degree. The small stones of which the greater part of gravel consists being better conductors of heat than the particles of sand, it follows that gravels are both easier heated and easier cooled than sands ; they are also more readily penetrated by rain, and more readily dried by filtration and evaporation. Like sands, they are improved by the addition of clay and chalk, or by alluvial soil ; and they require also to be cultivated to a greater depth than clays or chalks. A gra- velly soil, isolated so as not to be supplied with water from higlier grounds is of all others the most suitable for a suburban viUa (5«6. Arch, and Land- scape Oard. p. 1 6) ; and therefore, though not so suitable for a kitchen- garden as a sandy or loamy soil, yet as a sufficient portion of soU, whatever may be its earths, may always be improved so as to render it fit for the cultivation of vegetables, a gravelly or sandy soil for building on should never be rejected. 155. Clay r'y Soil. — Alumina, which is the basis of clayey soil, is the most frequent of earths next to sand. It is found nearly pure in the ruby and sapphire, tolerably so in the blue or London clay, but more so in the white plastic clay which is found between the London clay and the upper chalk, and which is used for making tobacco-pipes. This soil, relatively to water, is the very reverse of sand ; for while in nature sand and water are never found 48 ORIGIN AND KINDS OF SOILS, CONSIDEnr.D cliemically combined, in clay they are never found ehemicalh' separate. Hence, though clay when prepared by the chemist, and kept apart from ■water, appears as a light dry powder, scarcely different to the eye from pure sand or pure lime, yet in soils it forma an adhesive mass, the particles of which cannot be permanently separated except by burning to expel the water held in fixation. When clay is burnt and reduced to powder, it be- comes for all practical purposes sand, and in that state it may be employed to great advantage for reducing the cohesive properties of stiff clay. Rela- tively to heat, clays do not admit the atmosphere between their particles, and an unimproved clayey soil is generally a cold one ; partly because the heat penetrates with difficulty into it, and partly from the evaporation which daring great part of the year is going on from its moist surface. The obvious improvement of clays is by the addition of sand or gravel ; and when the clay does not contain lime, by the addition of that material, either in a caustic or mild state, or as chalk. 16G. Lime, or the basis of chalk and limestone rock, is much less common lis a soQ than either clay or sand ; though there are scarcely any soils which aie naturally fertile that are absolutely without it. Lime is found in a state of carbonate in white or statuary marble, and more or less so in chalk-rock and in some limestone-rocks. Lime is never found- pure in a state of nature, but always combined with carbonic acid and water, which are driven off from it by burning, leaving the earth in the caustic state called quicklime. In this state lime rapidly reabsorbs water and carbonic acid from the atmosphere, or from any other material which comes in contact with it containing these elements. Hence its use in a caustic state in promoting the putrefaction of imperfectly decomposed organic matter in soils, and in attracting carbonic acid and moisture from the atmosphere. Relatively to the retention of water, a limy or chalky soil may be considered as intermediate between a sandy and a clayey soil, without becoming so tenacious as clay on the one hand, or parting with water so readily as sand on the other. Hence the use of lime or chalk in reducing the tenacity of stiff clays, and increasing the absorbent powers of sandy soils, and improving their texture. A calcareous soil is im- proved by sand and clay, especially if laid on in sufficient quantity to destroy the tenacity and compactness of its texture. 157. Magnesia, for all practical purposes, may be considered as lime ; it is not very common in soils, and though it is said to be inimical to vege- tation under some circimistaij,ces, j'et this appears very doubtful. 158. The iron of soils is mostly found in a state of rust, or oxide. There is scarcely any soil without it ; but it is never very abundant in soils naturally fertile. In a dry state the oxide of iron is insoluble in water, and not inju- rious to vegetation ; but when, in consequence of saline substances in the soil or applied to it, a salt of iron is produced, the iron becomes soluble in wafer, is taken up by the roots of plants, and is very injurious to them. Iron in this state is termed hydrate, and its evil effects are to be counteracted by caustic lime, with which it forms an insoluble compound. 159. Alluvial soils have been already described as composed of very fine paiticles of the debris of several kinds of rocks, which have been held in sus- pension by water, and deposited in plains, or along tlio banks of rivers, along with organic matter also held in suspension. The earthy character of tliis soil must necessarily always partake of the character of the rocks of the counu-y in which it is found. WITH REPEnENCE TO HORTICULTUUE. 49 160. Peat or hog is composed of partially decayed vegetable matter, soft, light, and spongy to the touch ; and the very reverse of sand with respect to vpater, holding that element like a sponge, so as, in its natural state, to be totally unfit for the growth of vegetables, except those of the lowest grade. 161. The organic matter in soils in its solid state may be considered as carbon, which is found pure in the diamond, and tolerably so in the charcoal of wood. In soils it is found in various states of decomposition, from recent woody fibre to humus, which is woody fibre in a state of decay. The proportion of organic matter varies exceedingly in different soils. In barren sands there is scarcely a trace of it, while in fertile soils it varies from 10 to 30 per cent. ; and peat-bogs which have been drained and cultivated contain often 80 or 90 per cent. Humus, according to Professor Liebig, exercises its influence on vegetation " by being a continued source of carbonic acid, which it emits slowly. An atmosphere of carbonic acid, formed at the expense of the oxygen of the air, surrounds every particle of decaying humus. The cultivation of land, by stu-ring and loosening the soil, causes a free and unobstructed access of air. An atmosphere of carbonic acid is, therefore, contained in every fertile soil, and is the first and most important food for the young plants which grow in it. The property of humus, or woody fibre, to attract from the surrounding air, its carbonic acid, dimi- nishes in proportion as its decay advances ; and at last a certain quantity of a brown coaly-looking substance remains, in which this property is entirely wanting. This substance is called mould (162) ; it is the product of the complete decay of woody fibre, and constitutes the principal part of browu coal and peat." (^Organic Chemistry, p. 47.) For practical purposes, all the soils ordinarily met with may be reduced to the following : — 162. Loose naked sands or gravels, without either clay or calcareous matter, and almost destitute of vegetation on the surface; exemplified on some parts of the sea-shore, and in Hounslow and other extensive heaths. 163. Calcareous soils or gravels, containing little or no clay or organic matter, and almost without vegetation on the surface ; found on the sea- shore in some places, and on the surface of chalky districts. 164. Loams. — Rich sandy loams consist of sand, clay, and more or less of calcareous soil, with organic matter ; they never become hard on the surface after rains followed by drought, and never retain water to such an extent as to prove injurious to vegetation. Vegetation commences some weeks earlier in sandy loams than in clayey loams, in the same climate, or even in the same garden ; and during summer plants on such sojls will be in ad- vance of those on clays ; so much so, as Mr. Lymburn has observed, as to attain maturity a month earlier. Clayey loams consist of clay with a proportion of sand and organic matter ; they produce large crops, but become hard and baked on the surface after heavy rains followed by drought. Stiff adhesive clays contain in their composition little or no sand or lime, and are almost without organic matter. All clayey loams are later than sandy loams. 165. Loams are the best soils, and are characterized according to the earths which prevail in them, as a sandy loam, &c. ; according to their degree of friability, as a fi-ee loam, a stiff loam, &c. ; or according to both, as a free calcareous loam, &c. These soils, with reference to geology, are gene- rally found on the sides of valleys, along the bases of hills or mountains, or 60 ORIGIN AND KINDS OF SOILS CONSIDERED. on the banks of upland rivers. Mechanically, they are of a texture easily penetrated by all the implements of cultui'e, and not liable to become hard on the surface, and ci-ack after heavy rains followed by drought; chemically, they contain clay, sand, calcareous matter, and humus ; and with reference to vegetation, produce abundant crops in all ordinary seasons, with moderate supplies of manure. 16C. In general, much more depends on the texture of a soil and its capacity for retaining or parting with water and heat, than on its chemical composition. Soils have been found consisting chiefly of clay, others chiefly of calcareous earths ; some, in America, without calcareous earths ; and all producing good crops for a series of years. Nevertheless, it has been found that no soil will remain fertile for many years that does not contain lime in some form natu- rally, or is not liberally supplied with manure containing animal matter, one ingredient of which is lime in a state of phosphate or sulphate. 167. Subsoils. — Next in importance to the texture of a soil, is the nature of the subsoil or substratum on which it rests ; because on the texture and other circumstances of this subsoil depends, in a great measure, the capacity of the surface-soil for retaining or parting with water or heat. The worst subsoils are those of clay kept moist by subterraneous water ; and the best, those of clay resting on gravel or porous rock ; because these retain a useful degree of moisture, and admit of increasing the surface-soil to any depth which may be required for culture. Sandy and gravelly subsoils, with but a thin coating of surface-soil over them, are not sufficiently reteniive of moisture ; and chalky subsoils are generally cold. 168. The surface of soils has, perhaps, as powerful an influence on theh- natural fertility as the subsoil ; beca,use on the inclination of the sur- face depends, in a considerable degree, the moisture retained by the soil, and consequently its fitness for the growth of plants. Too steep a slope throws off the rain with too great rapidity, and thus deprives the soil of a sufficient supply of water during dry seasons ; while a flat surface will retard its drainage and occasion loss of heat by evaporation. The colour of the surface of a soil exercises some influence on its heat. A dark-coloured soil will be sooner heated by the rays of the sun than a light-coloured soil ; but it will also part with its heat more rapidly when the sun does not shine. A white soil, such as we sometimes find on chalky or marly subsoils, is the longest of all soils in being wanned, because by all white surfaces the rays of light and heat are reflected, while by all black surfaces they are absorbed. Hence, taking into consideration colour, texture, and aspect, a dark sandy soil, on a surface exposed to the south or south-east, must be the warmest of all soils ; and a moist white clay of compact texture, similarly exposed, the coolest. It may be thought that such a soil would be colder on a surface exposed to the north than on a southern exposure ; and this will be the case when the soil is in a dry state, but not when it is supplied with moistnre from the subsoil ; because, in the latter case, the cold, produced by evapo- ration, is great in proportion to the warmth of the atmosphere. The aspect is not only of importance with reference to the influence of the sun in warming or cooling the soil, but also as to its effects in maturing the produce which grows on it. 169. The plants which grow on a soil are the surest indications, to a prac- tical botanist and cultivator, of the actual state of that soil with reference to culture ,■ though they do not always indicate the improvement of which the IMPROVEMENT OP SOUS CONSIDERED. 61 Boil is susceptible. Marshy soils are indicated with considerable certainty both by herbaceous and ligneous plants, and also very dry soils ; but the earths of fertile soils cannot be so readily inferred from the plants growing on them. Thus thorn-hedges will be found growing vigorously alike on clays, sands, and chalks ; though never on these soils, or on any other, when they are either very dry, or saturated with water. Some few plants, when found iu their native stations in considerable quantities, may be considered absolute in respect to the earths of the soil in which they grow ; such as the Tussilago i^'arfara, which always indicates clayey soil ; Clematis Vitalba, calcareous soil ; Arenaria rubra, sandy soil ; jRiimex Acetosa, ferruginous soil ; raccinium uliginosum, peaty soil ; Salicornia herbacea, saline soil ; Caltha palustris, marshy soil, &c. : but by far the greater number of plants only indicate the state of a soil relatively to water and organic matter. In short, nature may be said to have only three kinds of soil relatively to plants ; the dry, the moist, and the fertile. Sect. II. — The Improvement of Soils, with a View to Horticulture. 170. Having seen, in the preceding section, that the permanent fertility of a soil depends mainly on its condition relatively to water and heat, it follows that the improvement of soils must be principally directed to increase their capacity for absorbing and retaining these elements in the degree most suitable for vegetation. The principal operations for this purpose are : draining, to withdraw superfluous water from soils ; and mixture and pulverization for improving their texture, in order to admit more readily the moisture and the heat of the atmosphere. 171. Draining is the principal means for altering the condition of a soil with reference to water. Soils are affected by rains from above and springs fl:om below ; and the former are carried off by open gutters, and the latter by covered channels. AU draining is founded on the well-known hydrostatic law by which all fluids have a constant tendency to arrange themselves in a horizontal position. Hence, to carry off water, either from a surface or a subsoil, it is only necessary to form channels above or under ground in an inclined position. The kind of drains, and the number employed in any given case, will depend on the texture of the soil and the inclination of the surface. Flat surfaces and retentive clays require the greatest number of drains, and inclined surfaces and porous soUs the smallest number. There are very few soils that may not be improved by draining; and it is almost unnecessary to observe, that, where draining is requisite and not performed, the application of other modes of improvement will be made ia vain. 172. Altering the texture and composition of soil by the addition of other soils is the improvement next in importance to that of draining, and requires only to be mentioned to be understood. Too sandy soils will be improved by the addition of clay, and the contrary ; and both clay and sand by the addition of lime ; because without alkaline matter no soil can be permanently fertile. Though on a large scale the expense of this kind of improvement is too great to be generally adopted, yet m the case of the grounds of small country residences it is practicable at a moderate expense. To ascertain the proportion of one soil that must be added to any other soil so as to perfect its texture, can only be determined by experiment. The first thing to fix on is the depth to which the soil is to be cultivated. In kitchen gardens E 2 52 IMPROVEMENT OF SOILS, COSSIDKUED this may be between two and three feet ; but in pleasure-grounds, where the surface is to be chiefly in grass, nine inches or one foot in depth will suffice. " It is astonishing," Mr. Rham observes, "how small a portion of pure alumina will consolidate a loose sand, and convert it into a good loam, the parts of which, when moistened, will adhere and form a clod in drying." (Jour. Ag. Soc. vol. ii. p. 51.) If we take an extreme case, and suppose that any given soil is so sandy as to require the addition of one sixth its bulk of clay, or so clayey as to require one sixth its bulk of sand, then, in the case of kitchen gardens where the soil is three feet deep, every square foot of the clayey surface will require the addition of half a cubic foot of sand ; and in the case of a lawn where the soil is a foot in depth, every square foot of sand will require the sixth of a cubic foot of clay. To cover a statute acre with soil to the depth of one inch requires 121 cubic yards. Hence to add two inches to the soil of a garden of one acre, exclusive of the space occupied by the walks, would require 242 cubic yards or cart-loads, which, at 2s. each, amount to 24Z. 4s. The cost, however, will depend chiefly on the distance from which the soil is to be brought. A case is mentioned in the Journal of the Agricultural Society of England, vol. ii. p. 07, in which a white sand varying in depth from one to four feet, and so barren that it never had been cultivated to profit, had the surface improved to the usual depth penetrated by the plough (nine to twelve inches), by laying on clay at the rate of 160 cubic yards to the acre. The clay being dug from the subsoil, the expense was not more than 5/. 10s. per acre. It frequently happens that a sandy or gravelly soil is incumbent on a bed of clay, and the contrary ; in either of which cases the supply of the required soil may be obtained by digging pits, or sometimes even by deep trenching. The earth thus obtained will generally be without organic matter, but that can be sup- plied afterwards by manuring. Where the soil required for the improvement of another soil can be obtained in the state of surface soil, the effects produced wiU be more immediate from the organic matter which such soil contains ; but even when it is obtained from the subsoil, the change in the condition of the soil to which the new soil is applied will soon be rendered obvious ; though not so much the first year, as it will be in two or three years afterwards, when the amalgamation of the two soils is more complete. Much of the eifect of adding one soil to another will depend on their intimate mixture; and this can be best efi^ected by repeated trenchings or diggings in dry weather, when both soils are as nearly as possible in a state of dry powder. This point is of great importance, particularly when the soils mixed together contain a good deal of organic matter, because if a very intimate mixture of both soils is not effected, they wUl, from the difference in their specific gravities, in a few years separate into two different strata. There is, indeed, a constant tend- ency to do this in all soils under culture, and more especially in all such as have been improved by admixture. This takes place in consequence of the softening of the soil by rains, by which the particles are in a manner held for a time in suspension, and the heaviest grp,dually take a lower place than those which are lighter. Hence the necessity of digging or trenching such soils occasionally to the depth to which they have originally been im- proved. This is required even in artificial soils laid down in grass ; for sup- posing a clayey soil to have received a considerable admixture of lime or chalk, and sand, with rotted stable dung, and the whole to have been incorporated in a state of fallow, and afterwards sown with grass seeds. WITH A VIEW TO HORTICULTURE. 53 then in seven years the black matter or mould remuining of the dung will be found among the roots of the grass at the surface, the sand in a stratum three or four inches below the surface, and the lime at the bottom of the artificial soil. By placing the same mixture in a flower -pot, and watering it frequently during a year, the pot being plunged in the soil, the same result will take place sooner, and be more conspicuous. If the pot be kept con- stantly immersed in water to within an inch of the brim, the result will take place in the course of a few daj'S. These facts ought to be kept con- stantly in mind by whoever would improve soils by admixture ; if they are not, disappointment is very likely to ensue. When soils mixed together are comparatively without organic matter, and when the particles of which they are composed are very small, the mixture becomes more intimate ; the particles of the one soil filling up the interstices among the particles of the other, and the amalgamation as it may be termed is then so complete that the earths will never afterwards separate. In this way pure sands may be improved by the admixture of pure claj's, or by marls or chalks. The words pure and amalgamate are here used, not in a chemical, but in a popular sense. 173. Changing the inclination of the surface of soils is amode of improve- ment that may frequently be adopted on a small scale, by arranging a steep slope into narrow terraces, and a broad slope into level platforms. The former mode has been practised from time immemorial in the Land of Canaan, and in other countries of the East, and the latter is common in France and Italy, in order to admit of surface irrigation without waste of water. By this last mode, a field or garden is arranged into different plat- fonns, which may either be on the same or on different levels. In the former case, the water is let into one platform after another ; or, if there is an abun- dant supply, into several at the same time ; in the latter case the supply of water is conducted to the highest platform, which is first watered, and the others follow in the order of their elevation. Arrangements of this kind are not so important in British gardens as they are in those of warmer climates; but still they might in many cases be advantageously introduced with a view to watering summer crops. 174. Burning of soils has been resorted to as a means of altering their texture, destroying injurious substances, and changing or forming others which may act as a manure. Burning is useless on siliceous sands contain- ing little or no vegetable matter ; but on all soils containing chalk, lime, or clay, it may be practised with advantage. By burning calcareous or chalky soils, the same effect is produced as if quicklime had been procured and added to the soil ; and by burning clayey soUs the same result is obtained as if sand had been procured and mixed with them. The effect of burning clay is totally different from that of burning sand or lime. On sands and gravels burning can have no effect, except that in some cases it renders the particles . smaller. Burning lime drives off the carbonic acid and the water, and renders the lime caustic and well adapted for decomposing organic matter ; but the lime has no sooner lost its water than it begins to attract it again, and after a certain period will be found in the same state of combination with water and carbonic acid as it was before. Clay, on the other hand, when once the water is driven off by burning, will never regain it, but remains for ever after- wards in a state which, with reference to its mechanical effect on a soil, is £xact]y the same as that of sand. This is a fact, the great importance of 54 IMPROVEMENT OP SOILS, CONSIDERED which in the improvement, of clayey soils, and indeed of all soils which are of too compact a texture, is not duly appreciated. It is evident that, by means of draining and burning, any clayey soil may have its texture as much improved as can be desu-ed; and though the expense of this may, in many cases, be too great for application on an extensive scale, yet it may always be adopted in kitchen gardens ; and often over the entire surface of the grounds of small villas. It is indeed only by this kind of improvement that the heavy clayey soUs of many of the small villas in the neighbour- hood of London can be at aU rendered comfortable to walk on after rains in summer, and throughout the whole of the other seasons ; or suitable and agreeable for the cultivation of culinary vegetables and flowers. Clayey soils often contain iron, and the operation of burning them, by forming an insoluble compound of iron and alumina, lessens the risk of the iron ever becoming noxious to the plants. Burning also destroys the inert vegetable fibre ; and thus it at once produces ashes containing vegetable alkali, and supplies the soil with a portion of humus ; without both of which, according to Liebig, no BoU can bring plants to maturity. Where a strong clayey soil is covered with a healthy vegetation, as of pasture or wood, it may not be desii-able to burn the surface soil, on account of the quantity of organic matter which it contains ; bnt it may still be very desirable to bum such a portion of the clayey subsoil as may be sufficient, when reduced to a sandy powder, to render the surface soil of a proper texture. In this case the surface soil should be removed to the depth to which it has been cultivated, and a portion of that below taken up in lumps, and dried and burned. The burning is performed on the spot by the aid of faggot- wood, or any description of cheap fuel. The burned lumps being reduced to a powder, and scattered equally over the soil when also in a dry and powdery state, the whole should then be intimately mixed toge- ther by repeated diggings and trenchings. As an example of the strong clayey soil of a garden having been improved by burning, we may refer to that of WiUersley Castle, near Matlock, which the gardener there, Mr. Stafford, has rendered equal in friability and fertility to any garden soil in the country. " When I first came to this place," says Mr. Stafford, " the garden was for the most part a strong clay, and within nine inches of the surface ; even the most common article would not live upon it ; no weather appeared to suit it — at one time being covered by water, at another time rendered impenetrable by being too dry. Having previously witnessed the good effects of burning clods, I commenced the process, and produced in a few days a composition three feet deep, and equal, if not superior, to any soil in the country." {ffort. Reg. vol. i. p. 210.) The success was here greater than can be expected in every case, because the clay contained a large proportion of calcareous matter. l75. Pulverising soils comes next in the order of improvement, and is effected by trenching, digging, and other modes of reversing the surface and mixing and transposing all the different parts. By changing the surface, . fresh soU is exposed to the action of the weather ; by changing the position of all the parts, new facilities for chemical changes are produced ; and by loosening the whole mass of the soil, air and rain are more readUy admitted, and greater freedom is given to the growth of the roots. By loosening soil the air is admitted among its particles and confined there, and hence it becomes a non-conductor of heat, and is consequently warmer in winter and cooler in summer than if it were in one firm mass. By the con- WITH A VIEW TO HORTICULTURE. 55 finement of air in the soil, the heat imparted to it by the sun during the day is retained, and accumulates in all fi-ee open soils to such a degree as sensibly to raise their temperature over that of the air, especially during night. From thermometrical observations made at different places, it appears that the mean temperature of the soil, at about one foot below the surface, is somewhat higher naturally than the mean temperature of the atmosphere on the same spot ; and hence we may reasonably suppose that, by draining and pulverization, the temperature of the soil may be perma- nently increased as well as that of the atmosphere. From experiments made by Mr. Thompson, in the garden of the Hoi-ticultural Society of London, it appears, that " in the valley of the Thames, the maximum mean of terres- trial temperature, at one foot below the surface, has been found to be ei'Sl" in July, which is the hottest month in the year : but that the greatest differ- ence between the mean temperature of the earth and atmosphere is in the month of October, when it amounted, in the two years during which the observations were made, to between three and four degrees ; and that, in general, the mean temperature of the earth, a foot below the surface, is at least one degree, and more commonly a degree and a half, above the mean of the atmosphere. In these cases, if the terrestrial temperatures be com- pared with those of the atmosphere, it wiU be found that in the spring, when vegetation is first generally set in motion, the temperature of the earth not only rises monthly, but retains a mean temperature higher than that of the atmosphere by from one to two degrees ; and that in the autumn, when woody and perennial plants rec[uire that their tissue should be solidified and their secretions condensed, in order to meet the approach of inclement wea- ther, the terrestrial temperature remains higher in proportion than that of the atmosphere, the earth parting with its heat very slowly." {Lindley's Theory of ITort.,]^. 97.) In hot countries the sun often heats the soil to such a degree as to be injurious to the roots of cultivated plants, and pulveri- zation is there resorted to to diminish the force of its rays, which, as it is well known, are less effective on a porous and spongy than on a solid substance. This, as Chaptal informs us, is one of the uses of pulverization even in the south of France. 176. The free admission of atmospheric air to soil is also necessary for the nourishment of the plants ; as it is now found that plants derive a great portion of their carbon and nitrogen from the air penetrating into the soil in which they grow, and being taken up by the spongioles of the roots. The soil also, when loosened, becomes a rapid conductor of water ; and, sup- posing the texture of the soil to be suitable for culture, it will retain a suffi- cient quantity of moisture for the purpose of vegetation, and allow the escape of what is superfluous by filtration into the subsoil, or into the underground drains which have been formed as a substitute for a porous substratum. The mere act of pulverising any soil has a tendency to improve its texture, more especially if the operation be frequently repeated. In summer, by exposure of a soil to the air, the particles are separated by the evaporation of the water in their interstices by heat ; and by exposing a soil to the frosts of winter, the particles are separated by the expansion of the water in the form of ice. Clayey soils containing iron are in an especial manner improved by exposure to the atmosphere ; the iron being still farther oxidised, and thus acting like sand in separating the particles, as well as being less likely to be rendered soluble by the addition of saline matters. £6 ORGANIC MANURES, CONSIDERED 177. SoEs are improved by the modes in which they are cuitivated ; as tor example, by the order in which crops are made to succeed each other, by fallowing, by resting, and by the manner in which water is applied to grow- ing crops ; but these subjects will come under notice when we are treating of the practice of Horticulture. CHAPTER III. MANURES CONSIDERED WITH REFERENCE TO HORTICULTURE. 178. The improvement of the composition and the texture of a soil, and of its condition with reference to water and heat, will have but little effect on the plants cultivated in it, without the addition of manure ; for this article, it must be borne in mind, is the food of plants, while the soil is only the stomach, or laboratory, in which that food is digested and rendered fit for being taken up by the spongioles of the roots. In order to determine what substances are suitable for becoming manures, it is useful to know what are the constituent elements of plants. Of these we shall find that some elements are common to all plants whatever, such as carbon with oxygen and hydrogen in the proper relative proportions for forming water, and nitrogen ; while some elements are only found in particular plants, such as certain salts, earths, and metallic oxides. Every plant, therefore, may be said to have its general or common food, and its specific or particular food ; and hence, in this point of view, manures may be classed as common and specific. The most perfect manure for any plant would therefore seem to he, that plant itself in a state of decomposition ; but as the purpose for which plants are cultivated is to supply food, clothing, and various constructions and contrivances, for animals, hence, in a state of civilisation, it is among these, and from animals themselves, that we must seek for the most suitable manure for plants. The various substances which have been used for manures may be classed, with reference to their effect on plants, as general and speci- fic ; and with reference to the soil, as improving, enriching, and stimulating. Improving manures are such as, while they afford positive nourishment or stimulus, add some permanent matter to the soil; such as lime, chalk, marl, bones, &c. Enriching manures are such as supply only nourishment to plants ; such as stable manure, and every description of organic matter ; and stimulating manures are such as serve to aid in the decomposition of, or otherwise operate on, the organic matter. As some manures, however, par- take in an equal degree of more than one of these properties, such as lime, which is both a stimulating and improving manure, the most convenient aiTangement of manures will be organic, inorganic, and mixed. Sect. I. — Organic Manures. 179. Organic manures must obviously be either of animal or vegetable origin. Purely vegetable manure is exemplified in leaf -mould, malt-dust, rape- cake, spent tanner's bark, some kinds of peat, and green vegetables when they are buried in the soil in a living state. 180. Leaf-mould is perhaps the most universal manure for garden plants, because, when thoroughly decomposed, the most tender kinds will live in it, WITH REFEBENCE TO HORTICULTURE. 57 and all the more vigorous-growing vegetables will grow in it most luxuriantly if it be mixed with fine sand. The sand, however, is necessary to make it fertile, not only for growing many of the Cape and Australian shrubs, but also when, according to the present custom, it is used for growing melons and pine-apples. 181. Fresh and tender vegetables dug into the soil, produce an immediate effect, from the facility with which they undergo fermentation, and thus supply soluble matter for the spongioles. Sea-weed is still more readily decomposed than recent land or garden plants, in consequence of the mineral alkali which it contains ; and hence this manure is stimulating as well as enriching. Malt-dust is valuable for the saccharine matter which it contains, and rape-cake for its albumen and oil ; but these manures are only occa- sionally to be met with. Straw, haulm, and in general all the stems and leaves of herbaceous plants, and the shoots, vfith their leaves on, of trees and shrubs, form valuable manure when decayed ; more especially if, from the saccharine matter which they contain, or the addition of stable manure or of animal matter, they can be inade to heat and promote fermentation. Nevertheless, without fermentation, they form useful garden manures ; or moulds, which, like leaf-mould, may often be substituted for heath-soil. 182. The least valuable truly vegetable manure is spent tanner s bark, which, consisting entirely of woody fibre impregnated with tannin, not only contains no soluble matter, but the tannin, in as far as it can be taken up by the spongioles, seems to prove injurious. Nevertheless, even spent tanner's bark may be rendered fertile, by mixing it with sand, clay, lime, or some other earthy substance which will supply the plants grown in it with the necessary salts, and also keep its particles sufficiently open to admit the aii". From the porosity and lightness of tanner s bark, it is an excellent non- conductor of heat ; and hence, when laid on the surface of the ground as a covering to the roots of tender plants, it protects them better from the frost than a more compact covering, such as coarse sand, or than coverings which are great absorbents of moisture, such as leaves or half-rotten litter, or any other covering of this kind which does not act as thatch. Rotten tan, however, being peculiarly favourable to the growth of fungi, should be used with gi-eat caution when applied about young trees, and more especially Coniferse. 183. Peat soil is of two kinds, that formed in peat bogs by the growth of mosses, and that found in vallej's, or other low tracts of country, which, being formed of overthrown and buried forests, consists of decayed wood. The lat- ter being the remains of a much higher class of plants than the former, must contain a greater variety of the constituent elements of plants, and must conse- qnently be a better manure. Peat from bogs cannot be used till it has been reduced, either by time or fermentation, to a fine mould or a saponaceous mass; the former result is obtained by exposure to the air, and repeated tui-uings during several years, and the latter by fermentation vrith stable dung. A load of this material, mixed with two loads of partially dried peat, will commence the putrefactive process, in the same manner as yeast commences ferment- ation in dough ; and, in the one case as in the other, additions may be made by degrees of any quantity, so that two loads of stable-dung may be made to produce twenty, a hundred, or in short an unlimited number of loads of fer- mented peat. The peat of decayed wood is commonly reduced to mould by exposure and turning, and then applied to the soil, with or without lime. Both kinds of peat are frequently burned for the sake of their ashes. 58 OBOANIC MANURES, CONSIDERED The ashes of the peat of wood are always found richer in alkaline matters than those of the peat of moss, and on this account they form an article of commerce in the neighbourhood of Newbury in Berkshire, and in Holland. 184. The principal vegetable manures which are formed in suburban villas are, the mould of collected leaves swept up in autumn, and in all sea- sons when they fall ; the mould of grass mown from lawns, and either rotted by itself, or on dung-casings to pits ; and the mould from the common vege- table rubbish heap ; that is from a heap on which all decaying or refuse vegetable matters are thrown as taken from the garden, and sometimes, also, including the leaves of trees and short grass. This heap is, or should be, placed in the reserve ground of all gardens. The gi-ass mown from lawns, however, is most economically added to casings of dung to aid in producing heat by fermentation, as it is laid on dug surfaces round the roots of plants during summer to retain moisture. The leaves also are generally best kept by themselves, for the purpose of decaying into leaf-mould. In whatever way these vegetable materials are made use of, the gardener ought to have a vigilant eye to see that none of them are lost. 185. Animal manures require much less preparation than those derived from plants, from their greater tendency to the putrefactive process. The kinds of animal manures are chiefly excrement ; urine ; coverings of animals, such as hair, wool, feathers ; entrails of animals, such as blubber, the con- tents of the abdomen of fish ; entire animals, such as fish, vermin j parts of animals, such as hair, bones, &c. ; or articles manufactured from parts of animals, such as woollen rags, old leather ; or any article manufactured from skins, hair, wool, feathers, horn, bone, &c. Of all these manures by far the most valuable is nightsoil, next urino, and thirdly bones. The difi^irent excrements and urines of animals rank in value according to the kind of food with which the animal is nourished, and within this limit according to its grade j and hence the most valuable animal manure is that of man, the next that of horses as abounding with ammonia and nitrogen. The ma- nure of the horse ranks before that of the cow or the sheep ; and the manure of highly-fed animals before that of those which are lean. 186. Excrementitious manures, including urine, should never be applied to crops in a recent state, because from the abundance of ammoniacal salts wliich they contain, or perhaps from some other reason not understood, they are found in that state injurious to vegetation ; but when these manures are fermented they are the most powerful of all, producing an immediate effect on the plants. It is a remarkable fact that the recent urine of sheep is not injurious to grass lands, while that of horses and cows commonly injures the grass on the spot where it falls, which however recovers and becomes of a darker green than before in the year following. The loss of excrementitious manures in the large towns in England is immense, and while they are lost to the soU, they are poisonous to the fishes of our rivers, and injurious to those who drink their water. The great advantage of urine or other liquid manure is, that its manuring elements are consumed by the plants in a few months, and hence an immediate return is made on the capi- tal employed ; whereas, when solid excrementitious manures are employed, a period of two or three years must elapse before complete decomposition ensues. ( See Sprengel on Animal Manures, in Jour. Eng. Ag. Soc., vol. i. p. 473.) Liquid manure, also, from the ammonia which it contains, when poured on the soil destroys worms, snails, &c., as effectually as lime-water. WITH REFERENCE TO HORTICULTURE. 59 187. In every suburban vUla, arrangements should be made for collecting all the liquid manure into two adjoining tanks, and mixing it there with water ; one tank to be kept filling and mixing, wliile the other is fermenting and being emptied. Where urine cannot be got, excrement and water form Ihe best substitute. The fermented liquid may either be poured direct on the soil of the garden, among growing crops, at the roots of fruit trees, or on the naked soil, with or without other manure, and more especially with straw, or other vegetable matters, for the purpose both of enriching them and promoting fermentation. 188. Hair, wool, feathers, leather, horn, rags, &c., decompose much more slowly than excrementitious or vegetable manures ; but they are exceedingly rich in gelatine and albumen, and are therefore very desirable where the object is duration of effect, as well as luxuriance. Dead animals of every kind, including fish, make excellent manure ; and when there is any danger anticipated from the effluvia which arises during decomposition, it is readily prevented by covering or mixing the putrid mass with quicklime. In this way nightsoil and the refuse of the slaughter-houses in Paris, Lyons, and other continental towns, are not only disinfected, but dried under the name of poudrette, and compressed in casks, so as to form an article of commerce. Sugar-bakers' scum, which is obtained from sugar refineries, consists of the blood of cattle and lime ; it can be sent in a dried and compressed state to any distance, and forms a manure next in richness to bones. In gardens it may be used as a top dressing to culinary vegetables, and as an ingredient in the composition of vine borders. Animalized carbon consists of nightsoil of great age ; it is sent to different parts of -Eui'ope from Copenhagen, where it has accumulated during ages in immense pits and heaps, which some years ago were purchased from the city by an Englishman. It is an exceedingly rich manure. 189. Bones, though a manure of animal origin, depend fortheir effects a good deal on their mineral constituents. Next to nightsoil, bones are perhaps the most valuable of all manures. Chemically they consist of gelatine, albumen, animal oils, and fat, in all about 38 per cent. ; and of earthy matters, such as phosphate of lime, carbonate of lime, iluate of lime, sulphate of lime, carbonate of soda, and a small quantity of common salt. In consequence of the animal matters which they contain, cruslied bones when laid in heaps very soon begin to ferment, and when buried in the soil previously to being fermented in heaps, the putrescent fermentation goes on with great rapidity. In gardens they should seldom be used without being broken small and fer- mented in heaps for several months. Bones are valuable as a specific manure, because they contain phosphate of lime, which is an ingredient common to a great many cultivated plants both of the field and of the gar- den. Bone manure, if used on the same soil for a number of years, is found to lose its efiect ; the reason of which is inferred from one cause of their excellence, viz., that the animal matter which they contain acts as a ferment or stimulus to the organic matter already in the soil, by which means this organic matter becomes sooner exhausted than otherwise would be the case. The remedy for this evil obviously is, to discontinue the use of the bones, and to supply putrescent manure, such as stable-dung. 190. Vegeto-animal manures consist of a mixture of animal and vegetable substances, such as the straw used as litter in stables or farmyards, and the excrements and urine of the animals wliich are kept in them. It may be 60 INORGANIC MANURES, CONSIDEBED classed according to the kind of animal to which the litter is supplied ; and hence we have horse-dung, cow-dung, the dung of swine, sheep, rabbits, poultry, &c. All these manures require to be brought into a state of active fermentation, and reduced to a soft easily separated mass, before being applied to the soil. This is effected by throwing them into heaps, and occa- sionally turning these heaps till the manure becomes of a proper consistence. 191. In horticulture, advantage is generally taken of the heat produced by manures of this kind, in forming hotbeds, and in supplying heat to pits by what are called linings, but which are properly casings, of dung placed round a bed of dung, tan, or soil, supported by walls of open brickwork. The dung so placed can be taken away at pleasure, and applied to the soil when it has undergone a proper degi-ee of fermentation ; whereas, the dung of which hot- beds is formed cannot be removed without destroying the bed and the crop on it ; and hence it is generally kept till the fermenting process is carried much farther than is necessary, and often so far as to be injurious. Hence, in gardens, wherever economy of manure is an object, common hotbeds ought never to be made use of, but recourse had to exterior casings, such as those already mentioned, or to other modes of heating. 192. In many suburban villas, almost as much manure is lost as would suffice for enriching the kitchen-garden, and producing vegetables for the whole family. To save every particle of fluid or solid matter capable of becoming manure, the first step is to construct two or more large tanks for the liquid manure, and to form a system of tubes or gutters for conveying to, these tanks aU the soapsuds and other liquid refuse matters furnished by the mansion and offices, including the stables, unless they are at a distance. Similar tanks should be formed adjoining every cottage and dwelling be- longing to the villa ; such as the gardener's house, gatekeeper's lodge, and also in the back-sheds and in the frame and reserve ground of the kitchen- garden. In short, no water ought to be allowed to escape from the manure tanks but such as is perfectly pure ; for all dirty water, with or without excrementitious matters, will ferment in a degree of heat not much greater than that of the subsoil, even in winter ; and all fermented liquids contain one or more of the constitutent elements of plants. The second step to be taken with a view to saving manure is, to form a vegetable rubbish heap, on which all waste parts of plants and the remains of all crops, including mown grass when not otherwise used, clippings of hedges, summer prunings of trees, &c., are to be thrown as collected, left to ferment, and turned over occasionally. To this heap, lime, dung, or rich earth may be added, and the whole frequently turned over and well mixed. The third step is, to collect the cleanings of ponds, wells, ditches, hedge-banks, and similar eai-thy matters, and mix them with quicklime, turning the heap occasionally, as directed in the next section. Sect. II. — Inorganic Manures. 193. Inorganic or mineral manures are chiefly, lime in a state of chalk or carbonate, gypsum or sulphate, marl in which carbonate of lime is mixed with clay, saltpetre, kelp or mineral alkali, and common salt. The organic manures, as we have seen, act by supplying plants with the elements of which they are constituted, viz., carbon, oxygen, hydrogen, and azote or nitrogen ; but the mineral manures contain none of these elements, and hence, accord- ing to most agricultural chemists, they must act beneficially on some othci WITH REFERENCE TO HORTICULTURE. Gl principle. This principle may be stated to be the rendering more soluble of the organic matters already in the soil in most instances, and in some cases rendering soluble matters insoluble, so as to diminish excessive fertility, and prepare a reserve of the fertilising principle for future use. Quicklime, for example, effects the first of these objects, and slaked lime the second. According to some writers, inorganic manures also act specifically ; alkaline matters being found in all, and some sorts in many plants. 19-i. Lime. This is by far the most important of all the mineral manures. It is applied to soil in the form of quick or hot lime, mUd or slaked lime, and chalk or carbonate. Quicklime is procured by burning chalkstone or lime rock till the v\rater and the CMbonic acid gas are driven off. Immediately after burning, it forms what is called quicklime ; and in this state, when laid on the soil, having a powerful attraction for water (201), it assists in the conversion of woody fibre and other organic matters into the substance called humus, forming humate of lime, which again is rendered soluble and fit for supplying the food of plants by the action of the carbonic acid gas in the soil, or supplied to it by water or the atmosphere. 195. Mild lime. When water is thrown on quicklime, it becomes what is called slaked, falls down into a fine white powder, and, re-absorbing great part of the water which had been driven off by burning, it becomes what chemists call hydrate of lime ; and soon after, from the absorption ot carbonic acid gas, it becomes what is called mUd lime. The use of lime in this state is pai'tly the same as that of caustic or quicklime ; and partly, also, when there is a superabundance of soluble manure, so as to cause crops to become too rank, to lessen the putrescence of organic matter by the for- mation with it of humate of lime. In short, quicklime may be said to inci'ease the solubility of inert organic matter, and mUd lime to render less soluble organic matter already in a state of solubility. 196. The application of lime to soil may also be useful in cases where there is not already a sufficient portion of that earth ; but, to ascertain this, a chemical analysis of the soil should be previously made. The smallest quantity of quicklime added to a soil in which little or none previously existed, will effect a great permanent improvement ; and the same may be said of a small quantity of clay added to a soil in which that ingredient did not pre- viously exist. (172.) 197. Carbonate of lime, or chalk, in its native state, differs from unburnt limestone in being of a much softer texture, and more easily acted on either mechanically or by the weather. 'When burned, it of course becomes lime, and may be used either in a caustic or mild state ; but in chalky countries it is most commonly laid on land in its natural state, and left to pulverise by the influence of the weather. It is supposed to have no effect upon inert vegetable fibre, and to be incapable of generally uniting with humic acid ; so that it appears to be destitute of the two properties of caustic and mild lime, viz., that of rendering insoluble matter soluble, and the contrary. Its bene- ficial effects are attributed to its altering the texture of soil, and to its pro- perty of retaining water without at the same time becoming adhesive. Hence it may be used both on sands and clays, to render the latter more friable without diminishing its retentive powers, and the foi-mer more absorbent without adding to its tenacity. Chalk, also, may be considered as a specific mairare, since carbonate of lime is an ingredient in almost all the plants which have hitherto been analysed by chemists. 62 INORGANIC MANUIIES, CONSIDERED 198. Marl is carbonate of lime mixed with clay at the rate of from twenty to eighty per cent of carbonate, with alumina, silica, and more or less of the oxide of iron. Its action on the whole is similar to that of chalk, though it is more adapted for sandy and peaty soils than for clays. It is found from experience that it is injurious when spread on soil before being exposed for some months to the action of the atmosphere ; though the reason of this has not yet been explained. J 99. Gypsum, which is sulphate of lime, is a calcareous compound which occasionally produces extraordinaiy effects as manure, though the rationale of its action does not appear to be thoroughly understood. All animal ma- nures contain more or less of sulphate of lime as one of their constituents; and this mineral compound has also been found in wheat, in clover, saintfoin, lucem, and many other leguminous plants, and in various pasture grasses. Hence it may in part be considered as a specific manure, and it has been so treated by Grisenthwaite in his very ingenious Essay, who contends that no manure that does not contain gypsum is fit for wheat. It is said to have little effect except upon light sand}', gravelly, or chalky soils. 200, Sea shells are very abundant on some shores, and may be either burned into lime or laid on without burning. Immense quantities are collected on tie shore at Whitstable, in Kent, and are laid on the soil without burning between Canterbury and Dover, where the soil is chiefly clayey. They are so much preferred to chalk or lime that they are fetched three times the distance. 201. The rationale of the action of lime in its different states is thus given by Sir Humphry Davy. " When lime, whether freslily burned or slaked, is mixed with any moist fibrous vegetable matter, there is a strong action be- tween the lime and the vegetable matter, and they form a kind of compost together, of which a part is usually soluble in water. By this kind of ope- ration, lime renders matter which was before comparatively inert nutritive ; and as charcoal and oxygen abound in all vegetable matters, it becomes at the same time converted into carbonate of lime. MUd lime, powdered limestone, marls or chalks, have no action of this kind upon vegetable mat- ter ; by their action they prevent the too rapid decomposition of substances already dissolved ; but they have no tendency to form soluble matters. It is obvious from these circumstances that the operation of quicklime, and marl or chalk, depends upon principles altogether different. Quicklime, in being applied to land, tends to bring any hard vegetable matter that it con- tains into a state of more rapid decomposition and solution, so as to render it a proper food for plants. Chalk, and marl, or carbonate of lime, will only improve the texture of the soil, or its relation to absorption, acting merely as one of its earthy ingredients. Quicklime, when it becomes mild, operates in the same manner as chalk ; but in the act of becoming mild, it prepares soluble out of insoluble matter. It is upon this circumstance that the ope- ration of lime in the preparation for wheat crops depends ; and its efficacy in fertilising peats, and in bringing into a state of cultivation all soils abounding in hard roots, or dry fibres, or inert vegetable matter. The solution of the question, whether quickhme ought to be applied to a soil, depends upon the quantity of inert vegetable matter that it contains. The solution of the question, whether marl, mild lime, or powdered limestone, ought to be ap- plied, depends upon the quantity of calcareous matter already in the soil. All soils are improved by mild lime, and ultimately by quicklime, which do WITH HEPERENCE TO HORTICULTURE. 63 not effervesce with acids; and sands more tlian clays." (Agricultural Che- mistry, 6th edit., p. 304.) 202. In the case of suburban villas, the most important uses of lime are first, the formation of lime-water for the destruction of insects, snails, worms, &c. ; and secondly, the formation of lime composts to be used as manure. For both these purposes lime must be obtained in its caustic state. In preparing lime-water, a very small quantity of lime in powder will be found to saturate many gallons of water ; and, by letting this settle a few minutes tiU it becomes clear, the plants or the soil may be watered with it without leaving any coating of lime, which only takes place when the lime is applied in a state of mixture and solution. The causticity of the liquid, owing to the alkali which it contains, lacerates the tender skins of cater- pillars, eaith-worms, snails, and slugs. 203. Lime compost is formed of caustic lime, at the rate of from sixteen to twenty-four bushels of lime to three times that quantity of earth taken from hedge-banks, cleanings of ditches or ponds, scrapings of roads, or even from the surface of any soil which is somewhat different in its nature or texture from the soil on which the compost is to be laid. Even the sub- stratum of any soU, where good, may be used, and afterwards laid on the surface soil. The compost should lie from nine to twelve months, and be turned over in that time twice or thrice. In every part of Britain this manure may be formed at a moderate expense ; and though it is better adapted for fields than gardens, y et in many cases, and particularly where manure is scarce, it will be found a valuable resource. (See Jackson s AgrU culture, published by Chambers, p. 47.) 204. Saltpetre, or muriate of potash, when analysed, consists of oxygen, nitrogen, and potassium. Saltpetre is found in almost all plants, and espe- cially those which are cultivated in rich soils. As a manure it sometimes produces extraordinary effects on grass lands and corn crops ; but its action is not understood, and it has been but little used in horticulture. Nitrate of soda produces nearly the same results as saltpetre. From some experi- ments with tliis salt lately detailed in the Journal of the English Agricultural Society, vol. i. pp. 418 and 423, it appears to have increased the produce of coi-n crops, but not more so than saltpetre. 205. Common Salt, or the chloride of sodium, consists of nearly equal parts of chlorine and sodium ; but when dissolved in water a portion of the water is decomposed, its hydrogen unites with the chlorine to form muriatic acid, and its oxygen with the sodium to produce soda. Hence salt in a dry state is chlorate of soda, and dissolved in water it becomes muriate of soda. Its action in the soil depends on the effect which the muriate of soda has on the carbonate of lime ; the latter, as we have before observed, being found in almost all soils. By the contact of these two salts, their acids and bases are intei-changed, and the compounds which are the result are carbonate of soda and muriate of lime. Hence, as chalky soils abound more in carbonate of soda than any others, salt is supposed to be most beneficial to them. Salt applied in large quantities, it is well known, destroys plants ; and hence it has been used in gardening, both in a dry and liquid state, to kill weeds and worms in gravel-walks, which it does most effectually. It has been used also for washing salads and other vegetables when gathered for the kitchen, when they are supposed to contain snails, worms, or insects. It forms a direct constituent of some marine plants, and plants of saline marshes or 64 MIXED MANUHES, CONSIDERED Steppes ; and, applied in small (iuantities, it appears to hasten the decompo- sition of organised matter in the soil. As a manure, however, it requires to be applied with very great caution ; and, in gardens, is perhaps safest when used in walks for the purpose of killing weeds and worms. 206. In suburban villas calcareous manures are often required for the im- provement of lawns and other grass lands ; and a stock of quicklime, un- slaked, should always be kept in a cask, or other closed vessel, to be ready for use with water. Where lime is not at hand, common potash or Ame- rican pearlash dissolved in water, or urine especially that of cows, will have the same effect on insects as lime-water ; but they are more expensive. Sect. III. — Mixed Manures. Mixed Manures include coal ashes, vegetable ashes, street manure, soot, and vegetable or vegeto-animal composts. 207. Coal Ashes are of very different natures in different parts of the country ; the constituents of coal varying in the quantity of clay and lime, and also of sulphur and iron, which it contains. Many persons object en- tirely to coal ashes as a manure, considering them poisonous rather than beneficial. The portions of coal which contain iron or other metallic ores are converted by burning into hard porous masses, which, when buried in the soil, absorb moisture, and consequently soluble organic matter ; and as the spongioles of the roots cannot be supposed to penetrate into cinders or scoria, that soluble matter must remain there till it is washed out by rains or set free by the disintegration of the cinder. Supposing this io be the case, the principal benefit to be derived fi-om coal ashes would appear to be that of increasing the friability of stiff clayey soils. 208. Vegetable Ashes are obtained by burning weeds, leaves, prunings, or roots of woody plants, and in general of all kinds of vegetable matter not readily decomposed by fermentation. The burning of vegetable substances must necessarily dissipate the whole of the oxygen, hydrogen, and nitrogen which they contain, together with more or less of the carbon, according to the degree in which the burning mass is exposed to the action of the atmosphere. Hence in burning wood for charcoal, the pile of logs is covered with earth or mud to prevent the production of flame, and consequent decomposition of the carbon, by the action of the oxygen of the atmosphere. The burning of vegetables, however, does not destroy the fixed saline ingredients which they contain ; and hence vegetable ashes, as manure, will be valuable as containing salts which are either of general or specific use to plants, and also as containing more or less carbon. If one kind of plant only were burnt at a time, then the ashes of that plant would form a specific manure for plants of the same kind ; but as a number of kinds are generally burned together, their ashes must contain salts of various kinds, and they may be considered as being useful to ]ilants generally. Among these ashes there is al ways a large proportion of vegetable alkali (carbonate of potass) ; and this, when mixed with soil, combines with insoluble organic matter and ren- ders it soluble ; and hence vegetable ashes form a useful manure for all soils, since potass is of almost universal existence in plants. It is therefore not only a general manure by its action on organic matter, but a specific con- stituent of plants. Soda, which exists but in few plants, differs from potass in not being a specific manure, its action being limited to increasing the ■VVITn REFEUEXCE TO nOUTICULTURE. B5 solubility of organic matter already in the soil ^ and in performing this office, il is found to be more efficient than potass. 209. Soot is composed of the various volatile matters derived from the burning of coal or wood, together with carbon, and earths which have been mechanically carried up the chimney with water in the form of smoke. PVom experiment it appears that soot owes its value as a manure to the saline substances which it contains ; and these are chiefly the carbonate and sulphate of ammonia, together with a small quantity of a bituminous sub- stance. The fact of carbonate of soda proving useful as a manure is un- doubted, though it is difficult to explain in what manner it acts, unless, like saltpetre, it stimulates the roots. Soot when applied in gardens is generally strewed on the surface, and it is considered as annoying snails, slugs, and woiTiis ; though by no means killing them, as is frequently supposed. Its effects are rarely perceptible after the crop to which it is applied ; and there- fore, like liquid manures, soot affords a quick return fur the capital em- ployed in it. 210i Street manure, or that which is swept up in the streets of towns, consists of a great variety of matters, animal, vegetable, and mineral. Ju the manner towns are now kept, it is small in quantity and of little value ; but formerly it was among the richest of all manures. When collected in quantities, even though containing a large proportion of earth and coal ashes, it ferments powerfully, and will continue giving out heat throughout a whole summer. For this purpose it has been used in forcing- gardens as a substitute for tanners' bark and stable-dung ; and it has the advantage of not subsiding so much as those materials. Wherever it can be obtained, it may be applied to all soils ; and when obtained from towns still under the old system, it may rank next to nightsoil and bones. 211. Composts of vegetable or vegeto-aniinal matter and earth r.re of various kinds. The most common in gardens is that produced by rotten leaves or vegetable refuse mixed with sand or with some other earth, or with stable- dung : composts of bones are likewise formed in this manner, and also of peat, where that material abounds. Peat composts have been already mentioned. 212. Mixed manure in a liquid state consists of the urine of animals, soap-suds, the foul water of kitchens and other offices, waste surface or rain water, and drainings of dunghills. The most advantageous way of employing it is by applying it, after being properly diluted and fermented (182), di- rectly to growing crops. It may also be profitably employed by throwing it on heaps of vegetable matter, such as moss, leaves, straw, or any vege- table refuse matter whatever not containing woody^ matter of several years' growth. In this way, Jauffret, a French agriculturist, proposed to create immense quantities of manure by fermenting weeds and other refuse collected by hedge-sides, or on commons or wastes. The fermentation of such matters does not take place without the aid of animal manure or stable-dung; but, when once commenced, it can be continued for an indefinite period by adding to the heap. If the liquid manure and the excrementitious matter accumulated in every large establishment, independ- ently altogether of the stable manure, were collected and fermented, we have httle doubt it would suffice for all the kitchen-garden crops ; the refuse of these crops and the weeds of the garden being added and fermented. It is highly probable that every individual animal produces as much manure as would raise the vegetables necessary for his support, because in the nourish- (iii MIXED MANURES CONSIDERED. nient of animals, as of plants, nothing is annihilated, but merely changed : what escapes into the atmosphere is counterbalanced by what is absorbed from it ; and what is embodied in the animal during life, is restored to the Boil at its death. 213. Application of Manures. — Too much manure is uijurious to all crops whatever, by increasing the proportion of watery matter, and by producing such an exuberance of growth as to prevent the maturation of the parts, the formation of blossom-buds, and the setting of fruit. It is particulai-ly injurious to corn-crops ; produces more sap than can be properly elaborated in the leaves, and hence disease. In this case the evil is counteracted by the application of lime or common salt. 214. All mineral manures ought to be employed in a dry and powdery state, and if possible, when the soil is equally dry and powdery ; and all moist manures, when the soil is somewhat drier than the manure. Other circunistances being the same, spring is better than autumn for applying manures, because the winter might wash them away, &c.; but universally, the jiroper time is immediately before sowing or planting the crop. Calm weather is better than windy weather, and bulky manure ought no sooner to be laid on than buried in the soil. Exhausting land of the manure which it contains by over-cropping, is like depriving a commercial man of his capital. 215. In consequence of the great value of manures in increasing the amount of the produce of land, many ingenious persons have contrived mixtures which, in small bulk, they allege will produce extraordinary effects; and this idea seems to have been long since indulged by some writers. Lord Kaimes, nearly a century ago, thought the time might come when the quantity of manure requisite for an acre might be carried in a man's coat-pocket ; a recent author speaks of "a quart of spirit sufiBcient to manure an acre ; " and even Liebig says, that " a time will come when fields will be manured with a solution of glass (silicate of potash), with the ashes of burned straw, and with salts of phosphoric acid prepared in chemi- cal manufactories, exactly as at present medicines are given for fever and goitre." {Organie Chemistry, p. 188.) To those who believe in the homceo- patliic hypotheses of medicine such speculations will not appear unreasonable; and there may be some truth in them, on the supposition that the soil to which these small doses cf spirit, or of silicate of potash, are to be applied, are to act as stimulants to the organic matter already in the soil ; but to ordinary apprehensions it seems difficult to conceive how bulk and weight of produce can be raised without the application of a certain degree of bulk of manure. All deference, however, ought to be paid to the opinions of philosophers who, like Hebig, have profoundly studied the subject. {See the notes to this chapter in our Appendix.) 216. All the manures mentioned in this section are easily obtained by the possessors of suburban villas. Soot and ashes are produced on their ouu premises ; compost may be formed by the mixture of various articles col- lected or procured ; liquids abound, and have only to be collected and pro- perly fermented ; and street manure may in general be purchased from the nearest town. It cannot be too strongly impressed on the possessor of a country residence who wishes to make the most of it, that no particle of organic matter, whether animal or vegetable, and no drop of water, witli whatever it may be discoloured, ought to be left uncoiiected or allowed to run to waste. HEAT, CONSIDERED WITH REFERENCE TO HORTICDLTURE. 6'7 CHAPTER IV. THE ATMOSPHERE, CONSIDERED WITH REFERENCE TO HORTICULTURE. 217. The influence of the atmosphere on the geographical distribution of plants has been noticed in a preceding chapter (147), and we shall here consider the subject with reference to the culture of plants in gardens, taking as our guide, Daniel's Essay on Climate with regard to Horticulture, (Hort. Trans, vol. vii.,^ Daniel^s Meteorological Essays, and examining also what has been written on the subject in subsequent works. Among the latter may be mentioned Howard's Climate of London, Hutchison's Treatise on Meteorological Phenomena, Murphy's Meteorology, and two excellent articles on the two latter of these works in the Athenmum for 1837, p. 561 and 580. The atmosphere on every part of the globe consists of the same consti- tuent parts, to wit, carbonic acid gas and water in a state of vapour about 1 part, oxygen 23, and azote or nitrogen 76, reckoning by weight. The aqueous vapour and carbonic acid gas are variable admixtures ; but in all cases they bear only a very small proportion to the other ingredients. All the variations, therefore, which are found in the atmosphere in different countries, and at different times in the same country, depend upon the modifications impressed upon it by heat, moisture, motion, and light. Sect. I. — Heat, considered with reference to Horticulture. 218. Heat, like light, is found to be capable of radiation, reflection, transmission through transparent media, and refraction ; but it is radiated, reflected, transmitted, and refracted, in a different manner and degree from light. Thus it appears that both light and heat can be transmitted through either gaseous, fluid, or solid media, provided they are transparent. Any opaque body is to light, however, an impenetrable barrier ; but to heat, or to its conduction, neither opaqueness nor solidity affords resistance. On the contrary, heat is conducted more rapidly by solid than by fluid or gaseoua bodies ; a fact which will be noticed in treating of artificial coverings for protecting plants. A solid body will obstruct the i-adiation of heat, as is familiarly exemplified in the case of the common fire-screen. The diffusion of heat by conduction and radiation is what chieflj' concerns the horticulturist. 219. The conduction of heat is effected by the contact of bodies heated in different degrees, when the tendency to equal diffusion immediatel)'- raises the temperature of the one body and lowers that of the other. This takes place with different degrees of rapidity, according to the nature of t)ic bodies in contact. If thermometers be placed on metal, stone, glass, ivory, and earth, all heated from the same source, we shall find that the thermo- meter placed on the metal will rise soonest ; next, that placed on the stone; next, that on the glass ; then that on the wood ; and lastly, that on the earth. The conducting power of bodies is generally as their density. The frveatest of all conductors of heat are metals ; and the least so, spongy and light filamentous bodies. Silk, cotton, wool, hare's fur, and eider-down, aie extremely bad conductors of heat, and hence their value as clothing. {Library of Useful Knowledge, art. Heat, p. 23.) They give us a sensation r2 fi8 HEAT, CO.NSIDEHED WITH of wanntli. not by communicating heat to the skin, but by preventing its escape into the aii-, in consequence of their non-conducting properties. TJie power which these bodies have of stopping the transmission of heat depends on the air which is stagnated in their vacuities ; for when the air is expelled by compression, their conducting power is increased. Hence, in covering plants or plant structures with leaves, litter straw, mats, or other light, porous bodies, the less they are compressed the more effective will they be found in preventing the escape of heat by conduction. AR tight coverings, whether of animals or plants, retain very little heat, when compared with loose coverings ; and hence mats, when drawn tightly round bushes, or nailed closely against trees on walls, are much less effective than when fas- tened over them loosely, and do not i-etain nearly so much heat as a covering of straw. Coverings of sand, ashes, or rotten tan, applied to the ground, oi to the roots of herbaceous plants, are, for the same reason, much less effective than coverings of leaves so applied ; and these, again, are much less so than coverings of litter or long straw. The heat of the tranks of trees is pre- vented from escaping to the extent it otherwise would do by their bark, •which is a powerful non-conductor (liO), and the heat of the ground by a covering of snow, which, by its spongy, porous nature, contains a great deal of air. Without this covering, the herbaceous plants of the northern regions could not exist ; nor would spring flowers, such as the aconite, snow- drop, crocus, daffodil, &c., in the climate of Scotland, come nearly so early into bloom. 220. Heat is diffused amongst bodies not in contact by the process called radiation, in consequence of which property a person standing near any body heated to a higher temperature than himself will experience a sensation of warmth. The radiation of heat from any body proceeds from its surface in every direction in straight lines, in the same manner as the divergent rays of light from an illuminated body, as, for example, a lighted candle ; and rays of heat, like rays of light, may be reflected from polished surfaces, and transmitted and refracted through transparent substances, and even polarised. But though it be true that heat, in proceeding from a body, begins by radiat- ing from it at right angles and in straight lines, yet this can only be strictly said of heat which is radiated perpendicularly into the atmosphere. Thus, from a pipe of water equally heated, the heat tends to radiate at right angles from its surface in all directions ; yet none but those rays which proceed from the uppermost part of the convex surface of the pipe will preserve their per- pendicularity. All the other rays, from their first contact with the air, will be deflected upwards, being in fact carried in that direction by the heating effects which those rays themselves produce upon the particles of air on which they impinge. The property of radiation, however, is that which chiefly concerns the horticulturist ; and the following description of this pheno- mena is given by JMr. Daniell, the author of by far the best essay which has yet appeared on climate, as connected with horticulture. 221. Radiation of heat is the " power of emitting it in straight lines in every direction, independently of contact, and may be regarded as a property common to all matter. Co-existing with it, in the same degrees, may be regarded the power of absoi'bing heat so emitted from other bodies. Polished metals, and the fibres of vegetables, may be considered as placed at the two extremities of the scale upon which these properties in different substances may be measured. If a body be so situated that it may receive just as REFERENCE TO HORTICULTnRE. 69 fiauch radiant heat as itself projects, its temperature remains the same; if ■ the surrounding hodies emit lieat of greater intensity than the same body, its temperature rises, till the quantity which it receives exactly balances its expenditure, at which point it again becomes stationary ; and if the power of radiation be exerted under circumstances which prevent a return, the tem- perature of the body declines. Thus, if a thermometer be placed in the focus of a concave metallic mirror, and turned towards any clear portion of the sky, at any period of the day, it will fall many degrees below the temperature of another thermometer placed near it out of the mirror ; the power of radiation is exerted in both thermometers, but to the first all return of radiant heat is ¥\jV escape of water and effectually prevent the ^•^ m/lWllKil'W'W^'W^"^'''^"''^''^ worms. It has been in use at ^'^~---ii g/iiiw;,iiiMmiiiiiiiiii MBi'^^ the gardens at Klvaston Castle for several I'll: .'i. {' 'p far covering tlielioles in years. the bottoms cf pots. Sect. II. — Snails and Slugs, considered with reference to Horticulture. 297. The only snail which interests the gardener is the Helix aspersa of naturalists ; for that which they have named the garden snail (H. hortensis) is rather a field than a garden species. The former is much the larger of the two, and has a dull shell marked with three faint mottled teownish bands, and a white rim round the aperture ; while the shell of the latter is glossy, distinctly banded with vivid colouia, and the oral rim is brown. WITH REFERENCE TO nORTICULTURE. 9? 298. The slvgs which frequent the garden are the iimax agr&tis, L, ciiirreiis, and L. ater. The L. agi-estis, the commonest, is of a greyish colour, and from one to two inches long ; the L. cinereus is, on the con- trary, from three to five inches in length, of a greyish or dusky colour, with darker spots and stripes ; and the L. ater is easily known hj the jet hlack and wrinkled skin of its back. 299. Both snaiis and slugs are furnished with tentacula placed in front of the head, and which, by a singular process, can be drawn entirely within it. The mouth is armed above with a semi-lunar horny jaw, having it? outer or cutting edge furnished with one or several serratures. On the right side or neck of the snail and slug there are three apertures, that nearest the head being the respiratory orifice, the next the anus, and the third the exit for the org^is of generation. Snails and slugs crawl on the flat sole which constitutes their foot and belly, and which is very muscular : but progression is principally performed by a pair of muscles which extend from thfi tail to the fore part of the belly, running along the middle of the foot. SOO. Snails and slugs are hermaphrodite and oviparous. They deposit their eggs under clods of earth, loose stones, or in the ground, in which the parent digs, with its foot, a, circular hole about an inch deep. The eggs vary from twelve to thirty in number ; they are white, oval or round, about the size of a common shot, with a smooth soft skin, which is entirely membranous in the slug, but in the snail contains innumerable minute cal- careous grains, always in a crystalline state, and usually of a rhomboid figure. They are, in ordinary seasons, hatched in about three weeks after being laid ; but the time is regulated much by temperature, so that in cold seasons it is greatly retarded. The young issue from the egg in the likeness of their parents, active and furnished with every organ ; and the young snails have even then a shell fitting their size and strength. The length, of life of the snail or slug cannot be determined. The shell of the snail is usually completed before the termination of the second year, when tlio animal may have been said to have reached maturity. The snail and the slug are very patient of injury, often recovering from severe wounds ; repairing their broken shells, and reproducing such parts of their bodies, posterior to the neck, as may have been cut away. In winter, snails and slugs retire under stones, clods, or into the crevices of wails : the slugs become merely less active than usual, but the snails hybernate ; and to protect them fronl annoyance during this dead sleep of a winter's continuance, they seal up the apertures of their shells with a homy membrane. (Abridged from an article in Gard. Mag. for 1841.) 801. The natural uses of the snail appear to be to serve as food for rep- tiles, birds, and the smaller quadrupeds, such as foxes, badgers, weazels. hedgehogs, &c. The blackbird and thrush are remarkably fond of them, and may be seen and heard flying off with snails in their bills, and after- wards lighting on trees, and breaking the shells against the branches. There is some apparent reason for supposing that the worm is more useful than injurious to plants, but none that we know of in favour of the snail being useful either to gardeners or farmers. 302. The snail retires under the cover of foliage or some other pro- tection from the sun and dry air during the day, and comes abroad to feed during the night, after ram, or when the weather is cloudy. It selects m preference tender seedling plan's, or the leaves of mat\ircr plants nl.ioU 98 SNAILS AND SLUGS, CONSIDERED. have become tender and somewhat sweet by incipient decay. Snails are very fond of greasy matter ; and where a snail has been killed by crusliiug:, its remains are preyed on by living snails, which crowd to it in numbers. About the end of autumn, when the weather begins to grow cold, the snail retires into sheltered places, where it will be protected from the weather during winter. Where there are evergreens, such as the Box or the Ivy, it resorts to them ; or if these be wanting, it will retire under loose stones, or rubbish of any kind, such as branches, spray, leaves, or litter ; and if no other covering is at hand, it has a power of burying itself in any soil not too hard on the surface. Whatever has been said of the habits of the snail will apply to those of the slug ; and the uses and the natural enemies of the two animals are exactly the same. 303. To destroy snails in gardens, the only effectual mode is hand-picking, either in the evening, early in the morning, or immediately after rain. Empty flower-pots reversed and distributed over the surface, if an opening under the rim is left on one side by making a small depression in the soU, will attract a great number of snails ; and the more so if some greased cab- bage-leaves or slices of turnip, carrot, &c., be placed under the pots. In the course of the autumn, winter, and early in spring, all their hiding- places should be searched, and the animals taken out and destroyed by crushing, or by giving them to swine, which are said to be very fond of them. Hedgehogs and weazels, being their natural enemies, may be kept in gardens, and poultry which do not scratch, such as the turkey, duck, &c., may be admitted occasionally ; though no mode of subduing the snail but hand-picking is to be depended on. 304. To destroy slugs in gardens, less labour is required than in destroying snails ; because, their bodies being comparatively unprotected, they are liable to be operated on by any caustic or bitter liquid as readily as worms. Cabbage-leaves in a state of incipient decay, with the side wliich is to be placed next the soil rubbed over with greasy matter of any kind, or even with the bruised bodies of recently-killed slugs, distributed over any surface, will attract them in great numbers during the night ; and if the leaves are examined every morning, and the slugs which are found destroyed, the piece of ground so treated will soon be freed from them. Pea-haulm being very sweet when in a state of incipient decay, forms a powerful attraction to slugs ; and if handfuls of it are distributed over a piece of ground in the same manner as cabbage-leaves, the little heaps of haulm may be examined every morning, and the slugs shaken from them and then destroyed by watering with lime-water. Thin slices of turnip or potatoe placed under inverted empty flower-pots form an excellent attraction, as do the dead bodies of slugs themselves, some parts or the whole of which are greedily devoured by the living animals. Where slugs are very abundant in a soil not covered with plants so large as to shelter them, as for example with rising seedlings, the slugs may be destroyed by watering the soil thoroughly with lime-water, or tobacco-water, late in the evening or early in the morning. Abundance of water should be applied, in order that it may sink into the soil, which the slugs penetrate a foot or more in depth, according to its state of pulverization. Quicklime has been laid round plants to protect them from snails and slugs ; but it soon becomes mUd and of no use as a protection. Coal-ashes and sawdust annoy slugs by sticking to their foot, but they will not be deterred by this annoyance so effectually as to starve NATURE AND CLASSIFICATION OP INSECTS. 99 for want of food. Soot is also a great annoyance to slugs ; but to keep them ft'om a plant, it requires to be frequently and liberally renewed. '• A stout coarse, horse-hair line, such as is used for hanging clothes out to dry, coiled round the stems of wall-fruit trees, and stretched along the wall, will operate as a protection to the fruit from both snails and slugs, in consequence of the bristly surface presented to them, and which they shrink from encountering. Care must of coui'se be taken that they do not get under it." (Penny Cyc, Limax.') No gardener ought to rest content with merely protecting his plants or fruits from snails and slugs ; because while they are in the garden, as they must live, if they are debarred from attacking one plant they w'Ul only have recourse to another. Nothing short of extermination, therefore, ought to satisfy him, and this he may accomplish by enticing the larger slugs into empty pots, or under cabbage- leaves or haulm; and by soaking thoroughly with lime-water the soil which he supposes to contain young dugs or eggs. Sect. III. — Insects, considered with reference to Horticulture. 305. The number of species of insects in the world greatly exceeds that of all other animals and plants put together, and the power which some insects have of multiplying themselves, such as the plant lice for exam- ple, is almost incredible. As by far the greater number of insects live on plants, some on several species, and others on only one, the importance of some knowledge of the natural history of insects to the gardener is sufficiently obvious. The subject, indeed, is one of great extent j nevertheless every gardener may readily acquire, from books and observation, such a know- ledge of it as will suffice for the pui'poses of his profession. We shall there- fore lay before him the essence of that part of it which more especially relates to the insects which infest British gardens. We shall notice in suc- cession the general nature of insects, their different stages of life, their nourishment, propagation, duration, their natural enemies, and, above all, the means employed by art to mitigate the evils which they occasion, or to destroy them. We shall take as our guide KoUar, from whose treatise v.'0 have abridged great part of the article ; and the whole has been revised for us by J. O. Westwood, Esq., Secretary to the Entomological Society. Subsect. 1. Of the Nature of Insects and their Classification. 306. Insects are animals which have a body consisting of one or more divi- sions, articulated feet, and a head conspicuously distinct from the body, on which are placed two movable horns, called antennae. They breathe through airholes, which are situated on the sides of the body ; the greater number have wings in their perfect state, and only a proportionably small number are entirely without them. With the exception of certain groups, all perfect insects have six feet, and their bodies are divided into a head, thorax, and abdomen, by notches or incisions ; hence the name insect, derived from the Latin word insecure, to cut or notch. Before they attain their perfect state they are subject to various transformations, which are called metamorphoses. For the sake of perspicuity the very numerous class of insects, the most extensive in the whole animal kmgdom, has been divided into two principal divisions — the winged, and the wingless. 307. Winged insects are divided into the following orders :— 100 N.MUllE AND CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. (1.) Coleoptera (Beetles; Sheath- wings). Six feet, and mostly fotii ■wicgs, the anterior pair of which are horny, in the form of a covering for the two posterior wings, which are sometimes wanting. They have upper and lower jaws (mandibles and maxillae) for gnawing or chewing : their mider wings are transversely folded. Examples — the may-bug, the long- horns (Cerambycidae), stag-beetles, ground-beetles (C'arabidae), weevils, &c. (2.) Orthoptera (Straight-wings). Six feet ; four wings, the two anterior of a leathery substance, serving as covers to the posterior, which are folded both longitudinally and transversely, but more generally only longitudinally, ^ whence the name straight- wings,) and which lie, when at rest, concealed under the others. They have upper and lower jaws (or mandibles and maxillae) for chewing. Examples — the earwig, the black-beetle, the cock- roach, the field-cricket, the migratory locust, and the green grasshopper. (y.) Hemiptera (Half-wings). Six feet; four wings, the two anterior form- ing hard coverings with membranous ends, or resembling the lower ones, but being larger and stronger. Instead of upper and lower jaws, the organs of the mouth are formed of bristles, inclosed in an articulated sheath, of a cylin- drical or conical shape, and forming a projecting beak or sucker. Examples — the field and tree bugs, house bugs, cicadae, and aphides. (4.) Neuroptera (Net-wings). Six feet ; four membranous naked wings, upper and lower jaws for chewing ; the wings are delicately veined, the under nearly the size of the upper, or even broader in diameter. Examples — the dragon-fly, or Libe'llula ; lace-fly, or Hemerobius ; and day-fly, or Ephemera. (6.) Hymenoptera (Membrane- wings). Six feet ; four membranous wings, upper and lower jaws ; the posterior wings smaller than the upper. In the abdomen of the female of most species is a sting, or ovipositor. Examples — the saw-flies (Tenthredlnidae), Slrex gigas, gall-fly, bees, wasps, humble- bees, and ants. (6.) Lepidoptera (Scale-wings). Six feet; four membranous wings, covered with small, coloured, mealy, shining scales or feathers. Instead of the upper and lower jaws, two hollow filaments exist, which together form a spirally rolled tongue. Examples — ^butterflies, moths, and hawk-moths. (7.) Rhiplptera (^Fan-wings). Six feet; two membranous wings, folded like a fan ; on the anterior part of the thorax are situated two small, bent, hard, movable bodies, like wing-covers. The masticatory organs consist of simple bristle-shaped mandibles, and two palpi. To this order belong two genera of parasites living on wasps and bees. (8.) Djjoiera 'Two- wings). Six feet; two membranous expanded wings, generally with two movable organs, called poisers or balancers, and which are situated behind the wings. The organs of the mouth consist of a sucker formed of a variable number of bristles, which are enclosed in an unarticu- lated sheath ; terminated in a double lip. Examples — gnats, midges, house- flies, ox and horse breeze-flies, &c. 308. Insects without wings consist of the following orders : — (9.) Myridpoda (Thousand-feet, Millepedes). They have more than six feet, twenty-four at least, and upwards, which are placed on a series of rings, extending the whole length of the body ; each ring has generally two pairs. The first, and sometimes also the second pair, form parts of the mouth, E.Kamples— the centipede, iulus, and scolopendra. (10.) Thysaniira (Fringe-tails). Six feet; on the under sides of the thanspohmation op insects. 101 aLdonien are situated flat movable appendages like pro-legs, and at the extre- mity is a forked apparatus, by which the body can raise itself and move by leaps. Example — ^the sugar-louse (Lepisma saccharinum.) ^ (11.) Paraslta (Parasites). Six feet; no other organs of sight except simple (instead of composite) eyes; the mouth is mostly internal, and con- sists of a snout, which contains a retractile sucker, or it forms a cleft with two lips, two mandibles, and hooks. Examples — ^the different species of lice. (12.) Suctoria (Suckers). Six feet, of which the posterior are the long- est, and adapted for jumping. These undergo a transformation, and acquire organs of motion which they had not at first. The mouth consists of a sucker, which is enclosed in a cylindrical sheath, and is formed of two articu- lated pieces. Example — the flea. 309. Crabs and spiders, which Linnseus included among insects without wings, are now formed into two distinct classes — Crustacea and Arachnida. 310. The arrangement here given is that of Kollar ; but other authors differ in their views of the subject. By some the earwig is formed into an order distinct from the Orthoptera. The Thrips is separated as an order from the Hemiptera, the caddice-flies (Phryganea) from the Neuroptera and the horse-flies (Hippobosca) from the Diptera. In a popular point of view the arrangement of Kollar may be considered as sufficiently detailed. Subsect. 2. Transformation of Insects. The greater number of insects properly so called, with the exceptioa of some without wings, change their foim several times during their life in BO striking a manner, that a person unacquainted with entomology would bs inclined to consider one and the same insect, in different periods of its exist- ence, as entirely different animals. 311. Insects, in general, are produced from eggs; a few species alone, in which the eggs are developed in the body of the mother, are viviparous ; for example, the aphis. Shortly after pairing, the female lays her eggs, wliioh aie often stuck on, and covered with, a sort of glue, to preserve them from the weather, instinctively in the place best adapted to their development, and which offers the proper food to the forthcoming brood. The white- thorn butterfly and the golden-taU moth lay their eggs on the leaves of fruit- trees or other leafy trees, and the latter covers them over with a gold- coloured covering of silk. The common lackey-moth (Bdmbyx neustria) fastens them in the form of continuous rings round the stems of the fruit-trees : and the gipsy-moth (Sombyx dispar) fastens them in a broad patch on the stems of trees or on paling, and covers them with a thick coating of hair. T'he winter-moth (Gedmetra brumata) lays them singly on the buds of the leaves and flowers ; the printer-beetle (Bdstrichus typdgi'aphus) introduces them between the bark and the albumen, &o. 312. Most insects are developed from the eggs in the shape of worms, which are called larvce. The larvae of butterflies, which are always provided with feet, are called caterpillars; those of beetles and other insects, grubs; and, when they have no feet, maggots. In this state, as their bodies increase, the insects often cast their skin, and not unfrequently change their colour. Many winged insects (e. g. cimices, cicadse, grasshoppers, and dragon-flies), in their larva state, very much resemble the perfect insect ; they only want the wings, which are not developed tUl after the last change of the skin. Tlae larva state is the period of feeding, and at this period insects are usua)Jy 102 FOOD or INSECTS. the destructive enemies of other productions of nature, and objects of perse- cution to farmers, gardeners, and foresters. 313. Tlie nympha or pupa state succeeds that of larva. In this state insects for the most part take no nourishment (with the exception of the Orthopterous, Hemipterous, and part of the Neuropterous species, which vary but little in form from the larva), and repose in a death-like slumber. The body is covered witli a skin more or less transparent, through which the limbs of the perfect insect are more or less apparent. To be safe from tlieir enemies, or from the weather, the larvse of many insects, particularly moths, prepare for themselves a covering of a silky or cottony texture; many burrow in the soil, or form themselves a nest of moss, leaves, grass, haulm, or foliage ; many even go deep into the earth, or bury themselves in decayed wood, or conceal themselves under the bark of trees, &c. 314. After a certain period, which is fixed in eveiy species of insects, and which can either be hastened or retarded according to circumstances, the per- fect insect appears from the pupa. It is usually furnished in this state with other organs for the performance of its appointed functions. It is incumbent on the perfect insect to propagate its species, therefore the organs for this purpose are only perfected at this period of their lives. The male insect seeks the female, and the female the most suitable place for laying her eggs; hence most insects are furnished with wings. Food is now a secondary consideration, consequently, in many, the feeding organs are now less perfectly developed than in the larva state, or very much modified and suited for finer food, as for example in buttertiies, which, instead of the leaves of plants, only consume the honey out of their flowers. Subsect. 3. Food of Insects. 315. Insects, like other anunals, derive their nourishment from the vege- table and animal kingdoms ; but a glance is sufficient to show, that they possess a much wider field of operations than the others. While the other animals make use for their subsistence of only a small portion of the inex- Laustible treasures of the vegetable kingdom, and reject the rest as insipid or noxious, the insects leave perhaps no vegetable production untouched. From the majestic oak to the invisible fungus, or the insignificant wall-moss, the whole race of plants is a stupendous meal, to which the insects sit down as guests. Even those plants which are highly poisonous and nauseating to other animals are not refused by them. But this is not yet all. The larger plant-consuming animals are usually limited to leaves, seed, and stalks : not so insects, to the various families of which every part of a plant yields suit- able provender. Some which live under the earth attack roots, others choose the stem and branches, a third division live on the leaves, a fourth prefers the flowers, while a fifth selects the fruit or seed. 316. Even here a still further selection takes place. Of those which feed on the roots, stem, and branches, some species only eat the ruid, like the bee-hawk-moth (iSphinar apiformis) ; others the inner bark and the albur- num, like the Tdrtrix Wcshmdna, and the injurious bark-beetle ; and a third division penetrates uito the heart of the solid wood, like the goat-moth (Cossus ligniperda), and the family of the long-homed beetles { Cciambycidse). 317. Of those which prefer /oSfl.^fi, some take nothing but the juice out oi the veins (aphides, in all their states) ; others devour only the substance of FOOD OP INSECTS. 103 the leaves, without touching the epidennis (mining caterpillars) ; others only the upper or under surface of the leaves (many leaf-rollers, Tdrtrices) ; while a fourth division devours the whole substance of the leaf (the larvae of many other Lcpidopterous insects). 318. Of those which feed on flowers, there ai-e some which eat the petals (the larvsB of iVSctua verbasci, the mullein-moth, N. linariae, &c.) ; others choose the farina in a perfect state (bees, the rose-chafer, Cetonia, the Lcpturidae, &c. &c.) ; and a still gi-eater number the honey from the necta- ries (most perfect Lcpidopterous insects, wasps, and flies). There are also insects which, not satisfied with any existing part of the plants as such, cause injury to one part or another, by occasioning a peculiar body or excrescence in which their young live, as the various sorts of gall insects and other sorts of flies. But insects are not confined to plants alone in their living and unused state. The death-watch, or ticking-beetle (Anobium), feeds on wood which for years has been used in our dwellings, and in vario\is articles of furniture and utensils. 319. From what has been said it will appear, that a single plant can support a host of various sorts of insects on its different parts ; whence it also appears, that the number of insects greatly exceeds that of plants. 320. An equal variety in the food of those insects which live on animal matter may also be pointed out. Some live as parasites on the skin of otlier animals, not excepting even insects themselves, suck their blood, and are a burdensome torment to the animals : to these belong the different sorts of lice (bird and sheep lice), ticks, and mites. Others attack man and the larger ani- mals only for a short time, and draw blood — gnats, midges, autumn-flies, breeze-flies, bugs, and fleas. Some breeze-flies (ffi'stridae) penetrate through the skin into the flesh of the red deer and homed cattle, others live in the stomachs of horses and asses, and one sort in the frontal sinus of sheep. The ichneum6nidaa feed on the flesh of the larvae of other insects, and often greatly contribute to the extirpation of noxious insects. 321. The Carabidae and other carnivorous beetles devour their prey entire, immediately after killing it ; while the Cimices and Hemerobii only suck out the juices. The larvae of the stinging-gnat and other flies which live in water devour whole swarms of infusoria alone. A great number live on carrion and the excrements of animals, and thus diminish and destroy the corruption proceeding from such matter : to these belong chiefly the blue- bottle fly, horse-beetle, carcass-beetle, and dung-beetle. Many feed upon prepared animal matter, and become very prejudicial to household economy. Many moths live entirely on hair, leather, wool, and feathers. 322. With the various transformations of insects their economy is also changed, and consequently their abode is also varied : the caterpillar requires very different food from the butterfly ; the maggot, from the beetle and fly. The larva of Sirex gigas feeds on wood, while the perfect insect preys on flies. The larva of the May-bug or cockchafer lives on roots and tubers; the beetle, on leaves. 323. Many insects are very gluttonous, and often consume more food in a day than is equal to the weight of their bodies. Thus the maggot of the flesh-fly, according to Redi, becomes 200 times heavier in the course of twenty-four hours. Caterpillars digest in one day from one third to one fourth of their weight ; and hence it is apparent that a comparatively small number of caterpillars can entirely strip a tree in a few days. 104 DISTRIBTJTION AND HABITS OF INSECTS. 324. Opposed to this gluttony of caterpillars, some insects in their poi-foct state appear to take no nourishment, such as the day-flies (£phemeridse), and the breeze-flies (CE'stridse); the latter of which, in their larva state as maggots, feed on the flesh of homed cattle and red deer. Even among the Lepidoptera, many of those which spin cocoons, especially ^ombycidae, seem to take no nourishment in the perfect state. 325. Many insects only eat'm. the day, others in the evening, and a third division, such as the caterpillars of the night-moths, only in the night. Most of them seek their own food; but a few, namely, the larvae of bees, which live in coinmunities, humble bees, wasps, and ants, are fed by the perfect insect. Many stow away their food ; others, indeed the greater number, live without making any previous supply of food. The larvae of the caterpillar-killing kinds of wasps (/Sphegidae), of wild bees, and of a few other insects, are provided by their parents with a stock of provisions suffi- cient for their nourishment in the larva state. Subsect. 4. Distribution and Habits of Insects. 326. The distribution of insects is in exact proportion to the diffusion of plants ; the richer any country is in plants, the richer it is also in insects. The polar regions, wliich produce but few plants, have also but few insects ; whereas the luxuriant vegetation of the tropical countries feeds a numerous host of insects. With respect to their habitation, insects are divided into those which live upon land or water. 327. Those which live in the water either never leave that element, or axe able to live at will either in the water or on the earth, at least for a short time ; for example, many water-beetles. Many live at certain periods of their development in water : at others, on laud ; such as many sorts of flies, and all the dragon-flies, which as larvae and pupae live in water, but as perfect insects on land, or in the air. 328. Land insects live in the earth, under stones, in decayed wood, in putrid animal substances, &c. Of these some pass their whole lives in these places, others only during a particular period of their development. The larvae of the dung-beetle live deep under the ground, while the perfect insect inhabits the excrement of animals ; many of the larvae of flies live in carrion or excrement, while the perfect insect flies about in the open air. A very great number choose the different parts of plants for their abode, as the roots, bark, inner bark, alburnum, wood, pith, buds, flowers, leaves, and fruit. They change their abode in every new^ stage of their development. Thus the bark-beetle, which in the larva state lived under the bark, swarms in its perfect state upon the trees ; the curculio of the apple-tree, the larva of which infests the bottom of the apple blossom, crawls on the trees, or on the surrounding ground ; the mining-moth, which as a larva lives under the cuticle of the leaves, flutters in its winged state about the flowers and leaves. 329. A small number live upon other animals, on the skin, such as lice, or in the inside of the body, as the ox and horse breeze-flies (CE'stiidae). The two latter leave their first abode before enteiing the pupa state, which they effect in the earth, and hover as flies round the animals to deposit their eggs upon them. 330. Most insects live solitarily, either without any definite dwelling, or they construct for themselves a house composed of various kinds of vegetable USES OF INSECTS. 105 or animal matter ; for example, many caterpUlars. A few species live in society, such as bees, ants, wasps, &o. 331. By obtaining a general knowledge of the abodes of insects, it is evident that the observer of the economy of insects will be able more satis- factorily to combat many that are injurious to him ; as thus he can, with little trouble, greatly diminish or entirely anniliilate those which he has ascertained to live in society, or in places of easy access. Subsect. 5. Uses uf Insects. 332. There are among insects no very inconsiderable number from which man derives, in many respects, immediate and important uses. We need here only to mention the bees and the silkworm. The different sorts of gall- nuts, ingredients so essential to dyeing and the manufacture of leather, are the productions of several insects, namely, the gall-iiies, which wound with their ovipositor various parts of oaks, &c., in order to deposit their eggs in the cavity, and which produce these useful excrescences. The most durable and most beautiful red (cochineal) we owe to a small insect, the Coccus cacti. Another, nearly allied to the above-named insect. Coccus mannlparus, is supposed to have saved the lives of the Israelites in their journey out of Egypt, for they would liave died of hunger if they had not been provided witli manna, — a sweet nutritive substance, which is regarded as identical with the material which, in consequence of a wound caused by this insect on the Tamarix gaUica mannifera, trickles on the ground. 333. The Cantharides, or Spanish blister-flies, are an essential article of medicine. Many insects accomplish the fructification of different plants. Whole nations in other quarters of the globe live on locusts. Many mammalia, a number of birds, amphibious animals, and fishes, Uve entirely on insects. 334. A great number of these creatures even live upon other species of insects, and destroy them : thus preventing the hurtful from preponderating, and disturbing the balance in the economy of nature. To these belong chiefly the /chneum6nid8e and spiders. 335. Lastly, how many diseases are obviated, particularly in warm cli- mates, by insects speedily consuming dead animal substances, and thereby preventing the generation of noxious gases ! Subsect. 6. Means contrived by Nature to limit the Multiplication of Insects. 336. Many appearances in nature, even such as at first cause anxiety and care on account of their injurious consequences, are found to be in many respects highly beneficial and salutary, although we may not always under- stand them. Thus, continued rain, which m many respects is extremely hurtful contributes gi-eatly to diminish the number of noxious insects, and for a series of years renders them entirely innocuous. This continued rain may, for example, take place at the pairing time of certain insects, which will greatly obstruct them ; or at the time when the insects are in the cater- pillar or larva state, when thousands die in consequence of bad weather, and our fields, orchards, and woods are cleared of a dangerous enemy for many years. Thus in the spring of 1832, after incessant rain, Kollar saw the caterpillars of tlie white-thorn buttei-fly (Pspilio cratse^gi), which for many years had not only stripped all the hedges, but also done considerable lOS MEANS CONTBIVED BY NATURE TO LIMIT injury to the fruit-trees, dying by thousands, as if of a dropsy. Tlie cater- pillars swelled, became weak, and died. If they did attain the pupa state, they suffered from the same evil, and the perfect insect was very rarely developed, on which account the gardens in the following years were entirely spared. 337. Late frosts are also very beneficial, as they entii-ely destroy many insects in their larva state. Kollar had an opportunity early in the summer of 1833 of observing great devastations on the fir-trees in the neighbourhood of Vienna, by a species of saw-fly (Tenthrddo rufa Klug). The larva of this insect had attacked certain parts of a young forest of Scotch pine, and the question was how their ravages were to be prevented fi-om increasing next year. Fortunately, in the month of May, a moderate frost set in, and thousands of these larvae were seen hanging to the twigs, as if scorched. In this manner their increase was limited for the future. 338. A multitude of insects are also destroyed by inundations, particu- larly such as undergo their transformations in the earth, or live upon it in all their stages, more especially if the inundation happens when they are near their final transformation. In meadows the different species of May- bugs (itfeloldnthidae) suffer by this means ; in kitchen gardens, the mole- cricket; in orchards, the pupa of the small winter-moth (Geometra bru- mata), when the water overflows the gardens late in the autumn, at the time when the moth is usually developed from the pupa lying in the earth. Besides the means of preserving an equilibrium by storms, and the effects of the elements, nature employs a multitude of others, although not so speedy and eflicient, to the same end. 339. To these belong the enemies of the destructive insects, which we meet with in all classes of the animal kingdom. Among the mammiferous ani- mals the bats hold a conspicuous place for their destniction of insects. We only see them flying about in the twilight, precisely at the time when many moths leave their hiding-places and hover round the flowers. As they live almost entirely on insects, they no doubt devour great numbers of the hurtful sorts ; and perhaps it is to be ascribed to this circumstance that fruit-trees standing near houses, churches, barns, &c., suffer less from insects than isolated trees. Bats do not confine themselves to moths, but eat the beetles which fly about in the evening ; and, among others, some of the weevils injurious to the flowers and buds of fruit-trees, as the Curculio ( Anthonomus) pomorum, and py ri. These creatures, as they do no inj ury, should therefore be carefully preserved. 340. To the insectivorous mammalia also belong various sorts of mice, the mole, badger, hedgehog, squirrel, fox, and wild swine. Whether the benefits derived from them in this way counterbalance the mischief which many of these creatures cause, it is difficult to determine. At all events, the squirrel and the hedgehog deserve to be spared. 341. Birds contribute much more than the mammiferous animals to the destruction of injurious insects. Many caterpillars know instinctively how to conceal themselves from the birds which prey on them ; in many their covering of stiff hair acts as a protection against their enemies ; others remain all day between rolled-up or flatly-united leaves, and only go out to feed at night ; others find sufficient protection in the buds, into which they soon penetrate. Gregarious caterpillars live while they are changing their skin, and when they are going into the pupa state, in webs, in which they THE MULTIPLICATION OF INSECTS, ]07 are inaccessible to birds. Others live under the bark of trees, and even deep in the wood. Notwithstanding these and other obstacles, a great number are yearly devoured by the birds, particularly during the breeding season. In winter a multitude of birds, driven by hunger into the villages, diligently search the branches of trees for the eggs of many sorts of moths that are glued to them, and which yield a scanty sustenance to these frugal animals. Reaumur states that the green-finch tears open the strong nest of the yellow- tail-moth (Bombyx chrysorrhoe'a), and consumes the young caterpillars. 342. Among the birds of the woodpecJeer race, the green and red wood- peckers (Picus viridis and major), the nut-hatch (iSitta caB'sia), and the tree- creeper (Certhia familiaris), may be considered the most useful. Although these birds seek beetles chieily, and consequently contribute to the diminu- tion of the long-hoi-ned and weevil tribes of beetles, they also consume a number of caterpillars ; but it must be acknowledged, that they also devour the honey-bee. 343. Among birds of the sparrow tribe, the starling deserves particular notice. It lives in summer chiefly in pastures, but comes in spring and autumn in large flocks to the meadows and orchards, where it devours a great number of insects, pupse, and larvse. The chaffinch is a determined consumer of caterpillars and moths' eggs. The titmice are particularly use- ful, viz. the ox-eye and tom-tit; then the goldfinch, redbreast, and red-start, and also the wagtails. 344. The cuckoo also particularly deserves to be spared ; it not only devours many of the smaller smooth-skinned larvae, but even consumes the hairy caterpillars of many moths, particularly of the Sombycidse. On examining the intestines of a cuckoo, in the month of September, Kollar found therein, besides the remains of various insects, a great quantity of the skins of the caterpillar of the large Bombyx pini, which is one of the largest European species, and has very stiff hair. The inner coat of the stomach was entirely covered with hair, but a close inspection with the magnifying-glass showed that the hair was not the hair of the stomach of the cuckoo, as some orni- thologists suppose, but only the hair of the caterpillars. This bird may therefore be of very essential service when there is a superfluity of the caterpillars of the lackey or processionary moths (iombyx neustria or processionea). 345. It is sufficiently knovm that great service is rendered by the whole race of crows to meadows and fields. Their favourite food consists of the larvae of the cockchafer, which are thrown up by the plough, and wluch they also draw out of the earth with theit strong beaks. It is a wonderful provision of nature, that exactly at the time that the insects injurious from their great numbers appear, the gi-eatest number of the insectivorous birds have hatched their broods, and their voracious young are ready to be fed upon them. 346. Insectivorous birds are also sometimes granivorous, and feast readily on our fruit, particularly cherries ; but the injury they cause in this respect is not to be compared to the use they are of in destroying insects. At least we liever hear of universal devastation caused by birds, though we do by insects. 347. Among amphibious animals which destroy insects, lizards hold a conspicuous plaee. Grasshoppers are the favourite food of many species. Frogs and toads also devour many insects. 108 MEANS FOR ARRESTING THE PROGRESS OP 348. Besides jnaramalia, birds, and amphibious animals, Nature, to restore the equilibrium among her creatures, and particularly to prevent the prepon- derance of some sorts of insects, makes use chieily of insects themselves, namely, those which feed upon others, and vchich by degrees obtain a supe- riority over those that are hurtful to us. 349. Thus many sorts of beetles, particularly of the family of ground- beetles (Carabidae), destroy a multitude of the pupae of moths lying in the earth. Many flies, allied to our honse-fly, but much larger, lay their eggs in living caterpillars and destroy them. But the most useful are the /clmeu- monidse. The females of this numerous family, 1300 species of which Pro- fessor Gravenhorst has described in Europe alone, lay their eggs entirely in the bodies of other insects. 360. The manner in which these Ichneumonidcs accomplish their work of destruction is highly curious and interesting. All the species are furnished at the end of the body with an ovipositor, composed of several bristles attached together, with which they pierce the larvae of other insects, and introduce their eggs into tlie flesh of the wounded animals. In some this sting is longer than the whole body, sometimes more than an inch long, namely, in those species which seek the objects of their persecution in the interior of trees or wood that has been much and deeply perforated by the insects which reside within. They perceive, either by their sense of smell or by their antennae, that their prey is at hand, and introduce their eggs, not without difficulty, into the bodies of the larvae living in the wood. Some attack caterpillars feeding openly on plants, others perforate the various excrescences, or gall-nuts, which also contain larvae : there are even many species, scarcely visible to the naked eye, which lay their eggs in the eggs of other insects, such as buttei-flies, and tlius anticipate their destruction. The eggs are hatched within the body of the living insect, and the young para- sites, in the most literal sense, fatten on the entrails of their prey. At last the wounded caterpillar sinks, the enemies escape through the skin and become pupae ; or the caterpillar, notwithstanding its internal parasites, enters the papa state, but instead of a buttei-fly, one or more /chneumonidas appear. To these wonderful animals we often owe the preservation of our orchards, woods, and grain. 351. Besides the above-mentioned /chneumonidse, ants, field or tree huas, and many sorts of spiders, contribute greatly to the extirpation of various insects. Subseot. 7. Means devised by Art for arresting the Progress of Insects in Gardens, or of destroying them there. 352. Insects may he destroyed m aU their different stages; in some, how- ever, with greater ease than in others. Some can only be taken or killed when in the perfect state, from the difficulty of discovering their eggs, or from their small size, or from the short period which elapses between the hatching of the insect and its maturity ; for example, the aphides. Others can only be destroyed in the perfect state, with great difficulty ; such as the different butterflies. A great number of the insects which infest British gardens are only to be destroyed in the larva state ; while some, such as the gooseberry-moths, may be destroyed in every stage. We shall briefly indicate the different practices which may be had recourse to in different stages, for deteiTing or destroying insects, by the gardener ; leaving particular INSECTS, OR DESTROYING THEM. 109 d'itails till particular insects come to be mentioned, when treatina; on the ciiitTire of the plants which they attack. We shall commence with opera- tions connected with the perfiect insect, and take in succession the eggs, the larvae, and the pupse. 363. Deterring the Perfect Insect. — The perfect winged insect may, in some cases, be deterred from approaching plants by covering them with netting or gauze, the meshes of which are sufficiently small to exclude the insect, but not too small to prove injurious to the plant by excluding light and air. Wasps and flies are in this manner excluded from vineries and peach-houses while the ft-uit is ripening. Bunches of grapes against the open wall are also protected by putting them in bags of woollen netting or gauze. Choice plants in pots are sometimes protected from wingless insects by placing the pot containing the plant in the midst of a saucer which surrounds the pot with water, which it is found the insect will not cross. The stems of plants, such as dahlias and gooseberries, are sometimes protected by a zone of glutinous matter, on wool, tow, or paper, over which the insect will not venture. A remarkable mode of deterring some insects from entering houses by the windows is described in the Architectural Magazine, vol. ii., as practised in Italy, and known even in the time of Herodotus. This is simply to place before the openings of the window a net of white or liarht- coloured thread, the meshes of which may be an inch or more in diameter. The flies seem to be deterred from entering through the meshes from some inexplicable dread of venturing within. If small nails be fixed all round the window-frame at the distance of about an inch from each other, and thread be then stretched across both vertically and horizontally, the network BO produced will be equally effectual in excluding the flies. It is essential, however, that the light should enter the room on one side of it only ; for if there be a thorough light either from an opposite or side window, the flies pass through the net without scruple. (\V. Spence in Transact. Entomol. Society, vol. i.) It would appear to be a general principle, that winged insects may be deterred by meshes of such a size as will not admit them with their wings expanded, and also that insects will not enter from bright light into darkness, more especially if deterred by the slightest obstacle, such as the threads stretched across before large openings in Italy. 354. Preventing the Perfect Insect from laying its Eggs. — Insects may be prevented from laying then' eggs on plants within reach by surrounding them with a netting or other screen ; or, in some cases, by sprinkling the plant with some liquid containing a very offensive odour. Thus moths are prevented from laying their eggs on gooseberry-bushes by hanging among them rags dipped in gunpowder and tar ; and probably there are various cheap liquids that might be used in the case of fruit-trees, and perhaps even forest-trees, and possibly for deteiTing butterflies from depositing their ova on the cabbage tribe. Insects which deposit thtir eggs in the soil cannot easily do so when the soil is very hard, and may therefore be enticed to depo- sit them in portions of soil made soft on purpose. Thus boxes or large pots filled with rotten tan, sunk in the soil, form an excellent nidus for the eggs of the cockchafer, and will prevent that insect from laying them in the com- mon soil of a garden. Hoeing or digging patches of soil here and there throughout the garden or plantation will have a similar effect, to a certain extent ; and after some weeks, when the larvae are some lines in length, the soil may be sifted, and the insects taken out and destroyed. \\ hje 110 MEANS FOB ARRESTING TQE PROGRESS OP looeening the naked soil serves as a trap fortlic cockchafer, covering that soil with straw is found to act as a defence against tlicm ; and hence one of the principal uses of mulching in the rose-gardens and trcc-nureerics in the neighbourliood of Paris. 355. Catching the Per/eel Insect, so as to prevent it from depositing its eggs. — Though tliis cannot bo done to any great extent with winged insects, such as the buttei-fly, moth, and some flies, yet it may be employed in tlie case of the cockcliafer, tlie rose-beetle, &c., wliich may he collected by children ; and in the case of wingless insects, such as wood-lice, ants, and earwigs, whicli may be enticed into hiding-places by food, or by other means. Hay, mixed with crumbs of bread, and tied up in little bundles, — 01', what is better, stuffed into empty flower-pots or boxes, — will attract wood- lice ; and the material may be taken out daily, and the insects destroyed, after which it may be replaced, occasionally adding some fresh gi-atings of cheese. Ants may be entrapped by sweetened water put in naiTOW-necked bottles and sunk in the soil ; or, better, by moist sugar, mixed with hay, and put loosely into flower-pots in the same manner as for wood-lice. Earwigs may be caught by placing hollow bean-stalks in their haunts, to which they will retire in the day-time, when they can be shaken out of the stalks into a vessel of water. A simple and effectual trap for both wood-lice and earwigs is composed of two pieces of the bark of any soft rough-barked tree, such as the elm, placed inside to inside, so as to leave in the middle between them a very slight separation, tying the two pieces of bark together by a wand or twig, part of which is left as a handle, and laying the trap where the insects abound. They will retire between the pieces in the day-time, which can be quickly lifted up by the twig and shaken over a vessel of water. No bait is required tor this trap, the more tender part of the bark being eaten by the wood-lice and the earwig. The same bark-trap will also serve for millepedes, beetles, and, to a cei-tain extent, for ants, 'ihe most effective mode of destroying ants in frames or hothouses is by placing toads in them. One toad will be sufficient for a frame or a hot- house. The toad places himself by the side of an ant-path, and by stretching out his tongue as the insects pass him, draws them in and devours them. Mr. Westwood suggests to us, that, where auts abound, it is most advisable to watch for the period when the winged males and females swarm ; when this is perceived, they should be destroyed by beating them down with the spade, and turning up the nest. By this means the coupling of the sexes is pre- vented, as well as the formation of fresh colonies. 356. Destroying the Perfect Insect. — This is effected in the open air by the use of washes or decoctions in the case of the aphides ; or, in the case of the wasp, by hot water being poured into its nest, or sulphur being burnt in it; or by pouring salt and water into ants' nests; or by lighting a tire over the holes of bun-owing insects, &c. In plant-houses, the perfect insect, such as the red spider, the green fly, &c., is destroyed by fumigation with tobacco- smoke, accompanied at the same time by steaming, which is found to con- dense the oil of the tobacco on the leaves of the plants. The perfect insect is also destroyed in hothouses by the sublimation of sulphur, which may be mixed with lime or loam, and washed over the heating flues and pipes, or jplaced on a hot stone or plate, or in a chafing-dish. Dusting the leaves of plants under glass with sulphur, in a state of powder, is found to destroy the red spider. Beetles, wood-lice, ants, and other crawling wingless INSECTS, OB DESTROYING THEM. U] insects, are also destroyed by tempting them with food containing poison. A remarkable but very efficient mode of destroying the vine-moth in France has been discovered by Victor Audouin, which might in many cases, we have no doubt, be adopted in British gardens. This mode is founded on the pT'aotice of lighting fires during the night in vineyards, to which the moths are attracted and bum themselves. M. Audouin has modi- fied this practice in a very ingenious manner, which has been attended ■with the most effective results. He places a flat vessel with a light on the ground, and covers it with a bell-glass besmeared with oil. The pyralis, attracted by the light, flies towards it ; and, in the midst of the circle which it describes in flying, it is caught and retained by the glutinous sides of the bell-glass, where it instantly perishes by suffocation. Two hundred of these lights were established in a part of the vineyard of M. Delahante, of about four acres in extent, and they were pkced about twenty-five feet from each other. The fires lasted about two hours j and scarcely had they been lighted, when a great number of moths came flying around, which were speedily destroyed by the oil. The next day the deaths were counted. Each of the 200 vessels contained, on an average, 160 moths. This sum multiplied by the first number gives a total of 30,000 moths destroyed. Of these 30,000 insects, we may reckon one fifth females, having the abdomen full of eggs, which would speedily have laid, on an average, 150 eggs each. This last number, multiplied by the fifth of 00,000, that is to say, by 6000, would give for the final result of this first destruction the sum of 900,000. On the 7th of August, 180 lamps were lighted in the same place, each of which on an average destroyed 80 moths, or a total of 14,400. In these 14,400 moths there was reckoned to be, not only one sixth, but three fourths, females : but, admitting that there was only one half females, or 7200; and, multi- plying this by 160 (the number of eggs that each would have laid), we Ijavs a total of 1,080,000 eggs destroyed. Two other experiments were made on the 3th and 10th of August, which caused the destruction of 9260 moths. (Gard. Mag. vol. xiii. p. 487.) 367. Luring away the Perfect /resec*.— Attracting the perfect insect from the plant or fruit by some other kind of food to which they give the pre- ference, and which is of less value to the gardener, may perhaps sometimes be efiectod. Thus honeyed water in narrow-mouthed glasses, ' such as fig. 6, is used to entrap wasps and flies from wall-fruit ; and decayed fruit or small portions of meat, placed under hand-glasses in the following manner, may be used for a simi- lar purpose ; — Take a common hand-glass, — the hexagonal or any other form Fig. 6. Fiy-giast will do (fig. 7) ; remove in the apex the whole or part of three of the panes, a, b, c. Then take a second hand-glass, which must be of the same form as the first, and place it on the roof of the first, so that the sides of the one Fig. 7- Hand-glasees prepared /or making afls-trap. j^g,y gojugiJe .^jtlj the sides of the other ; next stop all the interstices between the bottom of the one and the eaves of the other, at c,/, g, with moss, wool, or any suitable siibstance. i2 112 MEANS FOU ARRESTING THE PROGRESS OP Fig. % Hand-glasses ar ranged as a Jly-trap. Mliich will prevent the entrance or exit i-aw hoes. TOOLS USED IN HORTICITLTTTRE. 132 stronger soils, it should be less broad, and the iron should be thicker ; and for thinning seedlings, such as onions, lettuce, or turnips, the blade need not be more than two inches broad. The triangular hoe, fig. 20, a, is useful in light soils, and for separating, by its acute angles, weeds which grow close to the plants, to be left, and also for thinnmg out seedlings ; but for loosening the soil among seedling-trees, or other plants growing close together on strong soil, the pointed or Spanish hoe or pick, fig. 21, deserves the preference. One of these tools has a short handle, and is used for stirring the soil in narrow intervals among the plants sown broadcast in beds ; the other is worked with a long handle, like a common draw-hoe ; and it has a cross- piece on the neck of the blade, which serves as a guide to the operator in directing the blade perpendicularly downwards, instead of to one side, when it might ma- terially injure tap roots. In France and other parts of the Continent, there is an almost endlessvariety of hoes and hoe-picks, a number of which will be found figured Pig 21. Spanish noes. ^^ described in the Gard. Mag., and in the Encye. of Gard., 3d ed., ] 832. Sometimes a draw hoe and a rake, or a draw hoe and a hoe pick, are fixed back to back, as shown in fig. 20 ; but these instru- ments are not much used. The common draw hoe, also shown in fig. 20, will suffice for most garden purposes. 395. Scrapers, fig. 22, are narrow pieces of board, or of sheet- iron, fixed to a long handle in the same manner as a draw hoe, and used to scrape the worm casts from lawns or walks. Where worms ai'e kept under by the use of lime-water, these tools are between Fig. 22. Lawn-scraper. scarcely necessary. 396. Thrust hoes, fig. 23, may be considered as intermediate the draw hoe and the spade. The common form is shown at a, and a modification of it at e; but b, the blade of which is of steel, and sharp on every side, so as to cut either backwards or forwards, or on either side, is a more efficient implement ; though in the hands of a careless ope- rator it is liable to wound the plants, among which it is used for loosening the soil, or cutting up the weeds. Booker's hoe, c, is a very powerful im- plement, but liable to the same objec- tion ; as is Knight's hoe, d. Thrust hoes are best adapted for light soils, and for cutting over annual weeds; they are also most suitable for hoeing between plants in rows, where the branches reach across the intervals ; because no vertical stroke being ever given by the thrust hoe, as with the draw hoe, the branches are less likely to be injured. The hoes a and e are, perhaps, the strongest and safest for general use. 397. Spades, fig. 24. — The spade consists of the grasping-piece or handle, or upper extremity, a ; the shaft, which joins the handle to the blade 6 ; the hose, or part of the blade into which the handle is inserted, c / the hilts, Fig. 23. Thrustrhoes. TOOLS TJSED IN HORTICULTURE. ]33 ■wliich are two pieces of iron which crown the upper edge of the blade for the CfP to) P^'^P"^ °f receiving the foot of the operator, d, d ; and the blade, e. As the hilt or tread projects over the blade, however useful it may be in saving the soles of the shoes of the operator, it is found in many soils to impede the operation of digging, by preventing the blade from freeing itself from the soil which adheres to it. Hence, in some parts of the comitry, instead of a hilt being put on the spade to save the shoes of / ^f^ the operator, a plate of iron about two inches broad, Fig. 24. Spades. with leather straps, called a tread, is tied to his shoe, and effects the same purpose, while the spade requires much less cleaning. The spade e is for free easily worked soil, and is that most frequently used in gardens ; /, having the lower edge of the blade curved, enters more easily into stiff soil, while the upper part of the blade on each side of the hose being perforated, no soil can adhere there, and there- fore spades of this form clean themselves, and in working are always quite free from soil. The spade, g, has a semicylindrical blade, and is without hilts ; it is chiefly used in executing new works, such as canals, drains, ponds, &c., in strong clayey soil. In consequence of the cylindrical foim of the blade, and the lower extremity of it being applied to the soil obliquely, it enters the ground as easily as the blade of the spade /, while the sides separate the edges of the slice of earth from the firm soil ; and, after it is lifted up, serve as a guide in throwing it to a distance. There' is a variety of this spade in which the blade, instead of being semi-cylindrical, is a segment of a cylinder, and rather broader at the bottom or cutting edge than at the tread. This breadth at the entering edge diminishes friction on the sides of the upper part of the blade, by preventing them from pressing hard against the earth while passing through ; in the same manner as the oblique setting of the teeth of a saw prevents friction on the sides of the blade. This spade also, from the greater breadth of the lower part of its blade, lifts more completely the loose soil at the bottom of the furrow. It is chiefly used in engineering works, and in digging or trenching stiff soil. The handles of spades are almost always formed of sound root- cut ash, and their blades of good iron pointed with steel. The blade is not set exactly in the same plane as the handle, but at a small angle to it, in consequence of which, when the blade is inserted in the soil, the elbow formed between the blade and the handle serves as a fulcrum ; and the handle being thus applied to the lever at a larger angle, has considerably more power in raising up the spitful. Were the blade fixed to the handle in the same plane, and the blade in- serted m the soil perpendicularly, the first exertion of the operator would be employed in gaining that angle, which, in the former, is produced for him by the manner in which the handle is joined to the blade. In the Flemish and other continental spades, the blade is always fixed on in the same plane as the handle ; but in these cases the blade is longer than it is with us, and it is always entered at a considerable bevel ; and besides, the soil is generally lighter than in Britain, and requires less exertion to pene- trate and separate it. Shovels are seldom required for garden purposes, the broad blade of the spade, fig. 24, e, serving as a substitute. 398. Turf-spades, fig. 25, are used for the purpose of paring very thin 134 TOOLS USED IN HORTICULTURE. layers of turf from old pastures, for fonning or repairing lawns or pleasure^' grounds^ laying grass edgings, collecting turf for forming composts for plants, and for other purposes. One form, k, fi-equently called a breast-plough, from the handle being pressed on by the breast, has the edge of the blade turned up so as to separate the strip of turf to be raised, from the firm turf : another form, i, is used after Fig. 25. Tur/spades. the turf has been cut or lined off into ribbons or bands, by the tool called a turf-racer. 399. Turf-racers, or verge-cutters, fig. 28, are tools used either for catting grassy surfaces into narrow strips to be afterwards raised up by the turf spade, or for cutting the grass edgings or verges of walks. The com- mon verge-cutter, Jc, has a sharp reniform, or crescent - shaped blade; and the wheel verge-cutter, I, is a thin circular, plate of steel, with a sharp- Fig. 26. Verge-cntters or ivrf-racers. edged cil'Clunference, fixed to a handle by an axle, and operating by being pushed along before the operator. It is well adapted for cutting off the spreading shoots or leaves of grass edgings which extend over the gravel, without paring away any part of the soil. As the edges of these tools are very easEy blunted, they require to be made of steel, and frequently shai-pened. M'Intosh's wheel verge-cutter, fig. 27, is designed for cutting grass verges on tifcie sides of walks. With this instrument a man may cut as much in one day as he would cut in four or five days with the common verge- cutter without wheeb. Bell's verge-cutter, instead of a wheel, has a broad bent plate of iron, through the middle of which the cutting coulters aie inserted, and fixed and adjusted by screws. It is described and p. 177. In cutting turves from a piece of grass land, the line is first stretched in order that the cutting may be per- formed in a perfectly straight direction. This is also the case in cutting the verges of straight walks, but in cutting those of curved walks the eye alone serves as a guide. In gardens and pleasure-grounds of moderate extent, a sharp-edged common spade may be used as a substitute for the turf-spade, and also for the turf-racer and verge-cutter. 400. The trowel and the spud, the latter of which is also used as a spade cleaner, belong to this group of tools. Though the spud, fig. 28, can hardly be considered as a fit tool for a pro- fessional gardener, yet, with a suitable handle, it forms a most convenient walking-stick for the amateur gardener ; because by it he may root out a weed, or thin out a plant, wherever he sees pjj 33 it necessary. The transplanting trowel, fig. 29, a, is a very Garden spud. useful tool wherever careful and neat gai-dening is practised ; because Fig. 27. M'Intosh's wheel verge-cutler, figured in Gard. Mag. vol. xiv, Fig. 30. Daisy-vieeder. TOOLS USED IN HORTICULTnitB. ]35 by two of these, one in each hand, growing plants can be taken up with balls, put temporarily into pots, and carried from the reserve ground to the flower beds and borders, where they can be turned out into the free soil, without sustaining any injury. The trowel 6 is used for taking up plants and to lift soU as a substitute for the hand, in potting plants. A trowel with a flat blade and a forked point is sometimes used for raising up weeds from gravel or grass, and is called a weeding-trowel. The weeding-hook, which is a narrow strap of iron forked at the lower extremity, and a wooden handle at the other, is also used for raising weeds. There is a variety of this, with a fulcrum, for rooting daisies and other broad-leaved weeds out of lawns, fig. 30. The use of the fulcrum is to admit of a long handle which renders it unnecessary for the operator to stoop. Some of these tools have short handles, to adapt them for infirm persons and children. 401. Transplanters, figs. 31 and 32. — These tools are used as improved substitutes for the transplanting trowel. In Saul's implement, fig. 31, the blades are opened by pressure on the lever a ; and in the spade transplanter, fig. 32, the blades are pressed together by moving the sliding-piece, 6, downwards ; and when the plant is carried to its place of destination, they are opened by moving it upwards. Both these transplanters are more adapted for amateurs than for professional garden- ers,, and the manner in which they are to be used is sufficiently obvious from the figures. Trans- planters of this kind are generally supposed to be of French origin, but we are informed that the instrument of which fig. 31 is an improvement was an invention of the Rev. Mr. ThomliiU, Pi 3j Saul's vicar of Staindrop, in the county of Durham, about transplanter. 1820 ; who used it extensively on his farm for transplanting turnips. Forks, figs. 33 and 34. — The forks used in gardening are of two kinds ; broad pronged forks, fig. 34, for stin-ing the soil among growing plants, and as a substitute for the spade in all cases where that implement would be liable to cut or injure roots; and round -pronged forks, fig. 33, for working with littery dung, a, or for turning over tan, 6. There are hand-forks of both kiods, fig. 33, c, and , fig. 34, d, for working in glass-frames, \i, hotbeds, or pits. The digging-fork is al- ^g, 34. Egging. most as essential to every garden as the forks. spade ; and, wherever there are hotbeds, dung linings, or Fiy.si.Dungaruitan- tan, the dung-fork with three prongs, fig. 83, a, and the foriis. tan-fork with five prongs, 6, cannot be dispensed with. The three pronged digging- fork, see fig. 34, is used for shallow digging, or pointing fruit-tree borders, and also for taking up potatoes ; and the 402. ]36 TOOLS USED IX HORTICULTURE. Fig. 36. Garden rakes. has broad teeth. Fig. 35. Daisy and grass rakes. two-pronged fork is for stining the soil in narrow intervals between rows, and also for digging up carrots, parsnips, horse-radish, &c. 403. Rakes, figs. 35 and 36, are used for freeing the surface soil from stones and other ob- stacles, for raking off weedsor mown grass or fallen leaves, and for covering in seeds. The common garden ( \ ' h -!^^^ rakes, used for rak- N^^^^^W^ ^^^^^ ing soil and gravel, differ chiefly in size. See fig. 36. The daisy-rake, fig. 35, lancet-pointed, sharp at the edges, and set close together ; and it is used for tearing off the heads or flowers of daisies, plantains, dandelions, and other broad-leaved plants, which appear in grass lawns, in the early part of the season ; and thus it renders the necessity of mowing less frequent The short gi'ass rake, fig, 35, b, is formed of a thin piece of sheet-iron, cut along the edge so as to form a sort of comb, and riveted between two strips of wood, as shown in the figure. It serves for lakiug off cut grass, and also, to a certain extent, as a daisy-rake. 404. Besoms are used in horticulture for sweeping up mown grass, fallen leaves, and for a variety of purposes. The head or sweeping part is formed of a bundle of the spray of birch, broom, or heath, and lately the suckers of the snow-ben'y have come into use for this purpose. The handle is formed of any light wood, such as willow, poplar, or deal. One or more besoms are essential to every garden, and they require to be fi-equently renewed. For lifting matters collected together by the broom or grass rake, two pieces of board are used by the operator, one in each hand, by which the smallest heap of leaves or grass can be quickly and neatly lifted up, and dropped into a basket or whi.el-barrow. The pieces of board may be about 18 in. long, from 6 in. to 9 in. broad, and ^ in. thick. 405. Beetles and Rammers, fig. 37, are useful tools even in small gardens, for beating dovra newly-laid turf edgings ; for ramming and consolidating the soil about posts and foundations, and for a va- riety of other purposes. For example, where part of a gravel walk is taken up and relaid, unless the newly moved soil and gravel are consolidated, or rammed down, to the same degi-ee as the old part, there will be a depres- sion in that part of the walk, which will in- crease after the sinking in of rain, and thus Tig. !^. Beetles and rammers, require continual additions. In fig. 37, a is the common turf beater or beetle, the head or beating part of which is commonly made of a block of wood, though it would be much better of a plate of cast Iron, because that would be heavier ; ft is the common wooden beater, which is also used as a rammer, the whole of which is formed of wood ; c and d are two rammers, in which the heads are formed of cast iron, and which are very superior tools, invented by Anthony INSTRUMENTS USED IN IIOIlTICnLTTniK. ]37 Strutt, Esq. To retain the handle in the socket, a slit is made in the han- dle, and a small wedge entered in it, and afterwards it is driven home till it assumes the appearance shown in the section at e. The great art in conso- lidating turf or gravel with the heetle or rammer, is to hring down the tool in such a manner as that the face of the head may he perfectly parallel to the surface to be acted upon. When the operator does not succeed in this, he will be warned of it by the jarwhich the tool will transmit through his hands. 406. The mallet^ fig. 38, o, is formed of a piece of any tough wood, such as elm or oak, or of fir, though in the latter case it should have a ring at each end to prevent its splitting. It is used for driving posts, and there is a smaller or hand mallet for using with tlie pruning chisel, and as a substitute for a hammer in driving in short stakes. In using KgTM Woudm mallei and a mallet, as in usiog the beetles, the centre of the garden hammer. striking part of the head should always be brought down on the centre of the stake or other object to be struck ; otherwise the full power of the tool will not be obtained, and a jar on the hands of the operator will be produced. 407. The garden hammer, fig. 38, 6, is used for nailing wall -trees, and for a great variety of purposes, and it differs from the common carpenter's hammer in having a projecting knob, c, in the head, to serve as a fulcrum in drawing out nails from walls, without injuring the young shoots. Considered by itself, the common hammer may seem an insignificant tool ; but viewing it as in- cluding all the different kinds of hammers used in rendering metals malleable, and in joining constructions and machines of various kinds together, by means of nails and pins, it appears one of the most important of all implements. See Moseley's Illustrations of Mechanics, p. 238. «»==-sc,^ 408. The garden pincers, fig. 39, besides the pincing part, °" F^ «^^ have a clawed handle for wrenching out nails, and are useful Fig. 39. Garden jjj gardens for this and a variety of other purposes. Some *'"' ' have a knob, which enables them to be used also as a hammer. Sect. III. — Instruments used in Horticulture. Instruments are distinguished from tools by having sharp cuttmg enges, and being adapted for operating on plants rather than on the soil ; and they are also generally smaller than tools, and have for the most part handles adapted for grasping. Those used in horticulture are chiefly knives, bills, shears, and scythes. 409. Garden Knives. — Three kinds of knives are required in every garden, the cabbage-knife, a large rough handled instrument, with a hooked blade, for cutting and trimming Cabbages, Cauliflowers, Turnips, and other large succulent vegetables, when gathered for the kitchen ; the pruning-knife, fig. 40, a, for cutting the branches and twigs off trees and shrubs, forming cuttings, &c. ; the budding-knife, 6, and the grafting-knife, c, used in performing the operations * '"■' "^ of budding and grafting, and also in making smaller "^''"•^'"■'''" *"*"''■ cuttings. Where heaths and other small-leaved plants are propagated by cuttings of the points of the shoots, a common pen-knife is requisite, as well as a pair of small scissors for clipping off the leaves ; but tnese instruments are so familiar to every one that it is unnecessary to deserilie 138 INSTRnMENTS USED IN HOBTICFLTUKB. them. Formerly garden-knives were distinguished froin those in common vise ty having blades hooked at the points, for more conveniently hooking or tear- ing off shoots or leaves ; but this mode of separating shoots or branches being found to crush that part of the shoot which was left on the living plant, and by that means render it liable to be injured by drought or by the absorption of water, a clean draw-cut has been resorted to as not liable to these objec- tions ; and this requires a blade with a straight edge like those of the prun- ing-knives now in general use. All knives which are used by the practical gardener should be without moveable joints, and they should be carried in a sheath in the side-pocket, that no time may be lost in searching for them in other pockets, or in unfolding of the blade from its case. At the same time the master gardener and the amateur ought to carry a folding pruning -knife in his pocket for occasional use, in correcting the faults or supplying the omissions of his workmen. There are folding pruning-knives combining in the same handle a saw, a chisel, a file, a screw driver, &c., but these are for the most part more curious than useful. The , i "^TTH. , asparagus-knife, fig. 41, has a blade about ^s^""""*^ ^^^ eighteen inches long, hooked and serrated, and F'?- *l- Asparagus-knife. is used for cutting the yoang shoots of Asparagus when in a fit state for the table. It is thrust into the soil so as, when drawing it out, to cut the shoot from two to five inches under the surface, according to the looseness of the soil, and the taste of the consumer for asparagus more or less coloured at the pqints. Where green Asparagus is preferred to what is thoroughly blanched, such a knife is hardly requisite, as the buds may be cut off by the surface with a common cabbage-knife. 410. BiU-knives or Hedge-bills axe large blades fixed to ends of long handles for cutting off branches from young trees, and for cutting up the sides of hedges instead of shears. The advantages in using them in preference to shears is, that they have a clean smooth section instead of a rough one, which, as already observed, admits drought and moisture, and also stimulates the extremities of the branches to throw out numerous small shoots, and these, by thickening the surface of the hedge, exclude the air from the inte- rior, in which, ultimately, the smaller shoots die, and the hedge becomes thin and naked. The most complete set of instruments of the bill kind is that used in Northumberland, and described by Blaikie in his Essay on Hedge-row Timber. One of these instruments, fig. 42, ought to be in every P'lg. 42, Tfte scimitar biU-hnife. garden-tool house. The handle of this bill-knife, or scimitar, as it is called, is four feet in length, and the Ijlade eighteen inches in length, the former deviating from the direction of the latter to the extent of six inches, as shown by the dotted line in the figure ; L T. this deviation is made in order to admit the free action of the operator's arm, while Fig. 43. Briss Mu-!mi/e. he is Standing by the side of a hedge, and cutting it upwards. Fig. 43 is what is called a dress-bill for cutting the sides of very small hedges, or such as are quite young. ill. Pruning Saws are of different kinds, but they may be all reduced to draw saws, fig. 44, a, and thrust or common saws, such as those in common INSTRUMENTS USED IN HORTICULTURE. 139 use by carpenters, Braw-saws have the teeth formed so as to point to (he operator, fig. 44, 6, and only to cut when the blade is drawn towards him. Thrust- saws have the teeth or serratures formed at TMtm^ m Av/vWWW ^° ""* chiefly when pushed or thrust from b a c t^e operator, but partly also when drawn mg. 44. Garien-saws. towards him. The draw-saw is always used with a long handle, and is very convenient for sawing off branches which are at a distance from the operator. In both these saws the line of the teeth is inclined about half the thickness of the blade to each side, as shown at d; the advantage of which is, that the blade passes readily through the brancli without the friction which would otherwise be produced by the two sides of the section. Draw-saws being subjected to only a pulling stram, do not require so thick a blade as thrust-saws ; and, for that reason, they are also much less liable to have the blades broken or twisted, and are less expensive. 412. Pruning chisels are chisels differing little in some Cases, fig. 45 e f^ \ from those of the common carpenter, fixed to the end of a long I ^~\f^ handle, for the purpose of cutting off small branches from the stems of trees at a considerable height above the operator. The branch should not be larger than \\ in. in diameter at the part 1 to be amputated, otherwise it cannot be so readily struck off A at one blow. In performing the operation two persons are requisite : one places the chisel in the proper position and holds it there, while the other, with a hand-mallet, gives the end of the handle a smart blow, sufficient to produce the separation of the branch. If properly performed, the section does not Fig.4s.i>rM?j!np- require any dressing ; but sometimes there are lacerations of chisels. the bark, which require to be trimmed off with the hooked part, g, of the chisel, /. 413. Shears, in regard to their mode of cutting, are of two kinds : those which separate bj' a cmshing cut, as in the common hedge-shears, fig. 46, the grass-shears, and verge- shears ; and those which se- parate by a draw or saw cut, as in the pruning-shears, fig. 47. The common hedge- Pig. 46. Shears for dipping hedges and box edgings-. gj^gj^^g jg ^^^ ^ gardens for topiary work, cutting hedges of privet, and other small-leaved slender-twigged hedge-plants, which do not cut so readily with the hedge-bill ; and it is more especially used for clipping box edgings. The pruning- shears, fig. 47, have one blade, which, by means of a rivet, moves in a groove, by which means this blade is drawn across the branch in the manner of a saw, and produces a clean or draw-cut ; that is, a cut which leaves the section on the tree as smooth as if it had been cut off by a knife. There are in- struments of this kind of various sizes, from that of a pair of common scissors, for pruning roses or gooseberry bushes, to such as have blades as large as those of common hedge- shears, with handles four feet long, which will cut off branches from two to three inches in diameter. All of them may be pig. 47. pruning economically used in gardens, on account of their great power, shears. 140 INSTRUMENTS USED IN HORTICULTURE. and the rapidity and accuracy with which operations are performed by them. Fig. 47 shows two instruments commonly known as Wilkinsons shears, which are well adapted for pruning shrubs, and for the use of amateurs. Roses are better pruned by instruments of this kind than by knives, as unless the latter are kept very sharp, the softness of the wood, and the large quantity of pith it contains, yield to the knife, and occasion too oblique a section, in consequence of which the shoot dies back much farther than if the section were made directly across. 414. The Ajce, fig. 48, can scarcely be dispensed with in gardens, for the purpose of sharpening props or other sticks for peas, &c. ; and a larger axe, as well as a common carpenter's saw, may be required Fig. 48. Garden axe. where branches are to be broken up for fuel for the hot-house furnace, or other fires. 415. Verge-shears, fig. 49, o, are sheara of the crushing kind used for clipping the edges of grass- verges, which they do without cutting the soil, as is commonly the case when any of the different descriptions of verge-cutters already described (399) are used. Tlie blades of these shears operate in a vertical plane, or what is called held edgewise. 416. Grass-shears, fig. 49, b, aie used instead instead of the scythe for clipping the gi-ass round the roots of shrubs or other flowering plants on lawns ; but as they are very apt to go out of order, the common hedge- shears is generally used in prefer- ence; the stooping necessary iu using the hedge-shears being found by the operator less laborious than that of keeping the blades of the long- handled shears in a cutting position. The blades of these shears work iu a plane parallel to the surface of the ground, from which they are sup- ported behind by two castor wheels, or in other words, they work flat- Pic. 49. Verge and Grass-shears. ■^ Wise. 417. The Short- grass Scythe, fig. SO, c, is essential wherever there are giiiss- verges on lawns, because though in many cases the mowing machine may be used on broad surfaces, it is not so convenient for verges and small iiTeguIar places as the scythe. The blade of the scythe cuts ex- actly on the same principle as that of the saw, and it requires to be frequently sharpened by a hand-stone or whet-stone, as well as occasionally ground. The blade of the garden-scythe re- quires to be fixed to the handle iu such a manner as that when Fig. 60. Oarden-scj/thet. the handle is held by the operator standing upright, the plane of the blade shall be parallel to the plane of the ground. In the case of field- IKSTRUMENTS USED IN HOBTICDLTUUE. ]41 scythes, where the ground is rough, the plane of the blade may be very nearly in the same plane as that of the handle ; by which means the inequa- lities of the ground's surface will chiefly be struck by the back of the blade, and never by its edge. The daisy -knife or daisy-scythe, fig. 60, rf, is a two- edged blade, lancet-pointed, and is used for mowing off the heads of daisies, clover, and other exogenous plants in lawns, which renders less fre- quent the necessity of mowing with the scythe. In using this instrument, the handle, which ought to be angular, is held firmly with both hands, and the blade, which ought to be at least four feet fi-om the operator, is moved rapidly to the right and left parallel to the plane of the surface, the operator advancing as in mowing. 418. Other Instruments. — There are several other instruments which are occasionally used by amateurs ; such as the averruncator, which may be described as a cutting-shears fixed to the extremity of a long handle, and operated on by means of a cord and pulley. Its use is to enable a person btanding on the ground to thin out branches in standard fruit trees, which it readily does, though frequently with a considerable loss of time. An amateur however, who pnines his own orchard, will find this a useful instrument ; though, if he has an attendant, the hooked pruning-chisel, fig. 45, /, is prefer- able. The grape- gatherer, or flowor-gatherer, consists of a shears fixed at the extremity of a long handle, and which clips and holds fast at the same time. It is occasionally useful for gathering flowers from the upper parts of stages in green-houses, or from plants against walls, or on poles, that cannot be conveniently reached by hand ; it is also used for gathering grapes which cannot be otherwise conveniently reached. There is also an instrument of this kind without a long handle, called a flower-gatherer, which clips off a flower and holds it at the same time, and is used, by ladies in gathering roses. Scissars with long handles, for thinning gi-apes, are required where that fruit is cultivated to the highest degree of perfection. The fruit-gatherer ia an amateur's instrument, of which there are several varieties ; but they are very little used. Instruments for scraping the moss or bark off trees, gouges for hollowing out wounds in their trunk or branches, climbing-spurs, and some other instruments belonging to this section, and perhaps more fanciful than useful, will be found described in the Encyclopaedia of Gardening, edition 1831. 419. Chests of Tools and Instruments, for amateurs, are made up by the ironmongers ; and one sold by Messrs. Cottam and Hallen, AVinsley-street, Oxford-street, for three guineas, contains the following articles : — Tools, 1 draw-hoe (fig. 20), 1 triangular draw-hoe (fig. 20, o), 1 thrust-hoe (fig. 23, a), 1 rake (fig. 36), 1 trowel (fig. 20, J), 1 hammer, (fig. 38, b), 1 pruning- chisel (fig. 45), 1 pruning-shears, 20 inches long, 1 ditto, a foot long (fig. 47), 1 clipping-shears for hedges and box-edgings (fig. 46), 1 shears for clipping and holding flowers, 1 shears for thinning grapes, 1 pruning-knife (fig. 40, o), 1 budding-knife (fig. 40, c), 1 draw-saw (fig. 44, a), and 1 han- dle in two parts, which, when joined, form a length of four feet, for screwing into those tools and instruments which require a handle of that length. The box which contains these articles is 1 ft. 10 in. long, 10 in. wide, and 6 in. deep. Among the disadvantages attending the use of these implements are . the loss of time that is incun-ed in screwing on and unscrewing the han- dle, the liability of the screws to become rusty and unfit for use, and the lightness of the implements, with the exception of the shears, by which thuy I. 142 UTENSILS USED IN HORTICULTURE. are not so effective as they ought to be. To a working gardener oi> amateur, therefore, they are altogether out of the question ; but for ladies emigrating to other countries, they may serve as an inducement to gardening recreations. Sect. IV. — Utensils used in Horticulture. Garden utensils are vessels for containing growing plants ; for carrying different articles used in culture, such as soils, water, &c. ; for preparing soil or other matters, such as the sieve ; and for protecting plants. The principal are the plant pot or box, the watering-pot, the basket, the sieve, and the bell glass. 420. Earthenware pots for plants are made by the potter in what are called casts, each cast containing about the same quantity of clay, and costing about the same price, but differing in the sizes of the pots so much, that while in the first size there are only two pots to a cast, in the tenth size there are sixty, as in the following table : — Inches Inches diam. deep. let size has 2 to the cast, called twos, being 18 12 2A 4 fours 12 10 3d 6 sixes 9 8 4th 8 Bights 8 7 ath J2 twelves 7 6 6th 16 eixtoens 6 7 7th 21 twenty-fours, S 6 8th 32 thirty-twos 4 5 9th 48 forty-eighths 3 4 10th fiO sixties 2 2^ 11th 80 thumbs or eighties, H 2 These are the sizes of the London potters ; but at Liverpool the sizes and the proportions are somewhat different. The sizes are from No. 1, which is 20 in. in height and diameter, to No. 37, which is 2 in. in height and diameter, as shown in fig. 51. About London the sizes of pots in most Fig. 6]. &iz€S of garden pots in Liverpool, general use are, twenty-fours, which are 5 in. in diameter and 6 in. deep ; thirty-twos, which are 4 in. in diameter and 6 in. deep ; and forty-eights, which are 3 in. in diameter and 4 in. deep. When pots in which plants have been grown are to be laid aside for future use, they should be thoroughly cleaned within, because the smallest particles of earth adhering to the inner surface of the pot, when the pot is again fiUed with fresh soil, will, by the rough surface produced, cause that soU so to adhere to the sides of the pot, that the ball of earth, when the plant is to be shifted, cannot be turned out of the pet without being broken in pieces. The garden pots in common use UTENSILS USED IN HORTICULTURE. about London are generally made between a fifth or a sixth part narrower 63 C3 Fig. 52. Propagating-pot. Fig. 53. Put with raised bottom^ to prevent the entrance t^f worms. Fig. 54. Pot withraised bottom, to prevent the entrance of worms. Fig. 55. Pot with channelled bottom, to facilitate the escape of water. Fig. 56. Ornamental pot, with the base serving as a receptacle for drainage-water. at bottom than at top ; but for particular purposes, such as that of growing hyacinths, pots are made almost equally wide throughout, and deeper than usual in pro- portion to their width. For striking cuttings, or grow- ing seeds, there are pots made broad and shallow, some- times called pans or store pots. There are also pots for aquatics, made without holes in the bottom to permit the escape of water ; others for marsh plants, without holes in the bottoms, but with holes in the sides half way between the bottom and the top, so as to retain the lower half of the soil in a marshy state. There are pots made with a slit on one side (fig. 62), for the pur- pose of introducing the shoot of a plant to be ringed in order to cause it to produce roots — (a small wooden box is much better, as being less porous) ; others with a, large hole in the side for the same purpose ; some with concave bottoms, with the intention of putting the water hole out of the reach of worms (figs. 63 and 64) ; others (fig. 66) with grooves in the bottom to prevent the retention of water by the attraction of cohesion, when the pot stands on a flat surface ; and there are pots fixed within pots, so that the space within the outer and the inner pot shall be water-tight, in order to con- tain water or moist moss, so as to keep the soil in the Winner pot of comparatively uniform moisture and tem- perature. There are pots made in two parts (fig. 66), the lower serving as an ornamen- tal base — so as to give the pot a somewhat classical character — and Fig. 57. Pot wtm pierced ^^^^ y as a receptacle rim* and bands for in- '^ i i . i. u troducing airei^ork. for the water that drams through the pot. Pots are also made with rims pierced with holes, so as to construct on them a frame of wirework for training climbers, as in fig. 67. There is also what is called a blanching -pot (fig. 68), which is placed over plsntB of sea-cale, rhubarb, &c., for blanching them, l2 Fig. SB. £ianchinff-pot- 144 UTENSILS USED IN HORTICULTURE. having a moveable top, which can be taken off at pleasure, to admit light or to gather the produce. Boxes of boards, however, are found more econo- mical. There are also square-made pots, which, it is alleged, by filling upi the angles left by round pots, allow of a greater quantity of soil being obtained in a given space in beds or shelves under glass ; and pots with one sido flattened, and with a pierced ear or handle, to admit of hanging the pot against a wall or a trunk of a tree. Many other fanciful pots might have been figured and described ; but in the general practice of gardening all these peculiar pots (figs. 62 to 68) may be dispensed with ; and, in truth, with the exception of the last forms (figs. 67 and 68), they are only found in the gardens of some amateurs. It is useful, however, to know what has been done or attempted in this way, in order to prevent a waste of time in repeating similar contrivances. 421. From the porusity of the material of which common earthenware plant-pots are made, it is evident that when the soil within the pot is moist, and the pot placed in a warm dry atmosphere, the evaporation and transpi- ration through the sides must be considerable ; and as evaporation always takes place at the expense of heat, this must tend greatly to cool the mass of soil and fibrous roots within (262 and 267.) This may be prevented by glazing the exterior surface of the pot ; but as this would add to the ex- pense, and be chiefly useful in the case of plants in pots kept in rooms, it is seldom incurred. To prevent evaporation in rooms the double-pot is sometimes used, or single pots are surrounded by moss, or cased in woollen cloth or bark of trees : in plant-houses, the atmosphere is, or ought to be, so nearly saturated with moisture by other means, as to reduce the evaporation from the pots to a degree that cannot prove injurious. From the bad effects of this evaporation in warm countries may be traced the practice in these countries of growing plants in wooden boxes, which was probably instinctively hit upon, without any reference to principles. The advantage which earthenware pots have over boxes is, that they can be made round, by which means shifting is effected with much greater ease than it can be with any rectangular utensil. 422. Earthenware saucers for pots are made and sold on the same prin- ciple as pots, viz. : in casts ; a cast of saucers for sixties or thumbs costing as much as a east for thirty-two, or sixes. Saucers are chiefly used in living rooms, or in other situations where the water which escapes from the hole in the bottom of the pot would prove injurious; and to pre- vent this water from oozing through the porous material of the saucer, it is sometimes glazed on the inside. There are also saucers, or flats, as they are Fig. 59. Isolatinff- Saucer. Fig. 60. Annular water-saucer. called, made with raised platforms in the centre, for the pots containing the plants to stand in ; in some cases, in crdei that they may stand dry and not be liable to be entered by earth- worms • and in others, in order to surround them with water, and thus isolate them from the attacks of creeping insects, such as wood-lice, ants, &c. Utensils of this kind are also used for supporting boards in the open garden, UTENSILS USED IN HORTICULTURE. 145 80 as to isolate them, and of course the pots which stand on them, from wingless insects, snails, worms, &c. Fig. 69 shows one of these utensils which might easily be substituted for a common saucer and whelmed pot. An annular saucer, fig. 60, for containing water, is used either for protecting plants in pots or plants in the open ground ; and if lime-water or salt-water is used, they will prove a very effectual protection from snails, slugs, wood-lice, ants, and other creeping wingless insects. A very ir.genious substitute for this utensil has lately been invented by Mr. Walker of Hull. It is founded on the galvanic principle of alternate plates of zinc and copper producing a galvanic shock, and is therefore called the Galvanic Protector. Take slips of zinc four or five inches in breadth in order to inclose the plant or bed to be protected, as with a hoop ; but iu addition to the mere rim or frame of zinc, rivet to it, near the upper edge, a strip of sheet-copper one inch broad, turning down the zinc over this so as to form a rim, composed of zinc, copper, and zinc. The deterring effect ia produced by the galvanic action of the two metals ; and thus, when the snail or slug creeps up the rim of zinc, it receives a galvanic shock as soon as its horns or head touch the part where the copper is inclosed, causing it to recoil or turn back. A more beautiful application of science in the case of deter- ring insects is rarely to be met with, and it will not cost more than 6d. a lineal foot. (Gard. Chron. vol. i. p. 116, and 166; and Gard. Mag. 1841.) 423. Rectangular boxes for growing plants are commonly formed of wood, but sometimes slate is substituted. Wood, however, as a better non-con- ductor both of heat and moisture, deserves the preference. A neat and most convenient plant-box was invented by Mr. M'Intosh, fig. 61, and used by him for growing orange-trees. It differs from the orange-boxes used in the gardens about Paris in having the sides tapered a little, and also in having all the sides moveable. Two of the sides are attached to the bottom of the box by hinges, and are kept iu their places by iron bars hooked at each end, which slip into hasps fixed in the sides, as shown in the figure ; the other sides, which are not hinged, lift out at leisure, being kept in their places at T\s.u. Plant-box. bottom by two iron studs, which drop into holes in the bottom. These boxes afford greater facilities than the French orange-boxes for the gardener to take them to pieces, without disturbing tho trees, whenever he wishes to examine or prune their roots, to see whether they are in a proper state as regards moisture, or to remove the old, and put in fresh soil. The inside of these boxes can also be painted, or covered with pitch, as often as may be judged necessary ; which will of course make them much more durable, and the trees may be removed from one box to another with the greater facility. 424. Wooden tubs are very commonly made use of on the Continent to grow orange-trees, and they are made of different heights and diameters from one to two or three feet. When the roots of the trees are to be examined, or old soil to be removed and fresh soil added, the cooper is sent for, who sepa- rates the staves, and after the gardener has finished his operations, replaces ]1G UTKNSILS USED IN IIORTICULTUnE, them again and fixes the hoops. In the warm summers of France and Italy, as already observed, it is found much better to grow plants in wooden boxes or tubs, than in any description of earthenware vessel. 426. Watering-pots are made of tinned iron, zinc, and sometimes ot copper. There are a variety of sizes and shapes in use in British gar- dens : for plants under glass, which are placed at a distance ii'om the spectator, pots with long spouts are required; and for pots in shelves over the head of the operator and close under the glass, flat pots with spouts proceeding from the bottom, and in the same plane with it, are found necessary. Watering pots have been contrived with close covers, containing valves to regulate the escape of the water through the spout, by the admission or exclusion of the atmosphere at pleasure ; but these are oily required for particular situations and circumstances. The watering-pot very generally fails at the point where the spout joins the body of the pot, and the two parts ought therefore to be fii-mly attached together, either by separate tie-pieces, or by one continuous body, which may be so contrived as to hold the roses of the pot when not in use, as exemplified in Mcmey's pot, to be hereafter described. The rose is generally moveable ; but as, after much use, it becomes leaky, it is better, in many cases, to have it fixed, with a pierced grating in the inside of the pot over the orifice of the spout, as in metal tea-pots. This grating, Mr. Beaton suggests, should lie moveable, by being made to slide into a groove like a sluice, in order that it may be taken out and cleaned occasionally. Fig. 62, o, represents a watering-pot with a kneed spout, for watering plants, , without spilling any water between pot and pot ; because, by means of the knee or right angle made at the extre- mity of the spout, the running of the water is instantly stopped by quickly elevating it, which is by no means the case when the spout is straight throughout its whole length : ft shows the face, and c the Fig. 62. SucTier, kneed-spouted, and Ovcrliead, watering-pots. ed\bicli are utensils in use in tlie London fruit and vegetable markets for con- taining, the more valuable vegetables, such as mushrooms, early potatoes, forced kidney beans, and tlie more clioicc fruits. Tlie bushel basket is gene- rally made of peeled wands, but the others of split willow wood, or split 152 UTENSILS USED IN HOBTICULTCBE. Fig. 75- Punnet basket. deal. Fig. 75 represents a punnet manufactured in the lattei manner, the construction of which will be un- derstood by any person who under- stands the English mode of basket- making. 433. Baskets for growing plants weie a long time in use in the open garden, being plunged in spring, and taken up in the following autumn ; the object being to take up fruit-trees or other tender shrubs with a ball, and with most of the fibres. At present baskets for growing plants are chiefly used in orchidaceous houses, the basket being filled with moss ; but as they are found to be of very short duration, ■wire baskets are substituted, earthenware pots with perforated sides, or a sort of open box formed of short rods, laid over one another, at the angles, some- what in the manner of a log house. 434. Portable Glass Utensils for plants are chiefly of two kinds : the bell- glass, fig. 76, and the hand-glass, fig. 77. Bell-glasses vary in dimensions from the large green bell-glass, eighteen inches in diameter and twenty inches in height, used in the open garden for protecting cauliflowers in winter and cucumbers in summer, to the small crystal bell, three inches in diameter, and two inches high, for covering new- ly-planted cuttings. Whenever :i i-SB«g^MH- yfLujs . the propagation of tender plants by cuttings, or by the grefife 6touffe, is attempted, bell- Fig. 77 Cast-iron hand- S^"'^^^ *™ essential. The common hand-glass is formed gla4s in two paru, the either square, or of five or more sides on the plan, and roqf and sides. Mviih the sides commonly eight or twelve inches high. The framework is of lead, cast-iron, tinned wrought-iron, copper, or zinc ; the last is much the cheapest, and also the lightest, and when kept well painted, it will last as long as cast-iron, which with the moisture of the soil soon becomes rusty at the lower edge. Cast-iron hand-glasses being very heavy, are commonly formed in two pieces ; and when the form is square, as in fig. 77, air is very conveniently given by changing the position of the cover- ing part, as shown in the figure. 436. The following substitute for bell-glasses may be readily adopted by any gardener who can get pieces of broken window-glass from his frames or hothouses, and who has a glazier's patent diamond, which differs from th» Figf.78. Bell glasses. Fig. 78* Snbttitnter/or bell-glasses. MACHINES USED IN HORTICULTURE. i53 common diamond in this, that any person can cut with it. Having procured the diamond and several pieces of broken window-glass, cut the latter into figures appropriate in size and form for the sides of four or six-sided prisms, as shown in fig. 78. When the pieces of glass are properly cut out by a wooden or card pattern, join them together with strips of tape, about three - eighths of an inch wide, made to adhere to the glass with India-rubber varnish. After the glass is formed, varnish over the tape, and the whole will be found firm and durable. A loop may be formed at top either of the tape or of wire, so as to lift them by. Glasses of this sort may be made from six inches to a foot in diameter, and will at all events be found useful for striking cuttings or protecting rising seeds. An excellent substitute for hand-glasses will be described under the section on structures. 436. Powdering-boxes for plants are required for dusting them with powdered lime, sulphur, course snuif, powdered charcoal, fine sand, &o. One of the most convenient forms is that of the common dredge-box, but for the light powders an appendage to be hereafter described may be added to the common bellows. All powders intended to rest on the leaves of plants should be dusted over them when they are moist with dew, or by having been previously watered. 437. Other Utensils. — We have omitted to mention some used in very extensive gardens, botanic gardens, and nurseries; such as the glazed packing-box ; the earthenware shelter, which may be described as an inverted flower-pot, with the sides perforated with holes, or with a large opening on one side ; plant-shades of various kinds ; utensils for entrapping or destroying vermin ; bulb-glasses ; cast-iron pots for burning tobacco ; and a few other articles not in general use, or readily substituted by others of a more simple and economical kind. Sect. V. — Machines used in Horticulture. Machines differ from other horticultural implements in being less simple in their construction, and in their action, enabling the operator to abridge labour. The principal gardening machines are the wheelbarrow, roller, watering engines, garden-bellows, and transporting or transplanting machines. 438. Wheelbarrows for gardens are of two kinds : one of large dimensions for wheeling littery dung, tan, short gi-ass, leaves, haulm, or weeds ; and aootlier of moderate size (fig. 79), for wheeling soil and gravel. They are ^ ^^jr» generally constructed of wood, liiBl^yV- with th« ''heel ^^ °^ ^'°°^ ..es^fcilff;// -^ssasffi^ and shod with iron; but some wheelbarrows are formed en- tirely of cast and wrouyiit iron ; they are, however, too heavy for wheeling anything Fig. l^Qardm wheelbarrow. excepting littery dungor Other light matters, and they are far from being so i^urable as a wooden barrow, when the latter is kept well painted. Some dung and tan barrows have the body or box attached to the handles or levers, commonly called trams, by moveable iron bolts, so that it can be readily taken off and carried by two men into places where the entire barrow with its wheel could not be admitted; for example, in filling the bark pit of a stove with tan or leaves. There is a third kind of barrow used by engineers, in deep cuttings, which has shallow sides of an equal height on every side of the bottom of 154 MACHINES USED IN HOBTICULTUBE. the barrow; it is well suited for carrying heavy subsoil, or stony materials, but is not required in gardens. For general purposes, a middle-sized bar- row, between the dung barrow and the mould barrow, like that of which we have given a figure, is sufficient. 439. Rollers are essential in even the smallest garden, for compressing and smoothing gravel walks and lawns. They are formed of solid cylinders of stone, or hollow cylinders of cast iron, and a very convenient width is four feet. Cast iron rollers are always easiest to draw, from the greater diameter of the cylinder. The operation of rolling is most effective after the soil or Fig. 80. Read's garden syringe. gravel has been softened by recent rains, but is at the same time sufficiently dry on the surface not to adhere to the roller. 440. The watering engines used in gardens are the syringe, the hand-engine, and the barrow-engine. There are several kinds of syringe, but the best at present in use is decidedly that of Read [fig. 80). Its two points of superiority are, a ball-valve, d, which can never go out of repair, and an air-tube, e, which allows the air above the piston to escape during the operation of drawing in water, by which means the labour of syringing is greatly diminished. There is a cap, o, for washing away insects from wall-trees, and throwing lime- water on gooseberry bushes and other standards in the open garden, and for water-pines overhead ; a cap, b, for sprinkling plants in forcing-houses, which throws the fluid in a light and gentle moisture almost like dew, and which is also used for washing the leaves of trees and plants when frost-nipped in the cold nights that often prevail during the spring, and which operation should, of course, be performed before sun-rise. There is also a cap, c, d, which is used when great force is required, more particularly in washing trees against walls ; and this cap is also used in dwelling-houses for extinguishing fires. Trees against walls are frequently covered with netting, and when it becomes necessary to syringe these, the netting, when the cap, ft, is used, requires to be removed, but with the cap, c, d, it may be kept on. For all small gardens this syringe will serve as a substitute for every other description of watering engine. Read's pneumatic engine (figs. 81 and 82), the former to a scale of 1^ in. to 1 ft., difl^ers from Read's hand-syringe in effect, by forcing out the water in one continuous stream, and thus at once com- bining the character of a syringe and of an engine. By this engine, a volume of air is compressed to an indefinite extent, by the working of the piston for forcing out the water, and without any sensible increase of labour to the operator. The manner in which this is effected wDl be understood by the section, fig. 82. in which a is the piston and cylinder, as In Read's syringe ; 6, MACHINES USED IN HORTICULTURE. 155 Fig. 82. Section of Read'f pneumatic hand-enginf. 9 case in which this syringe, and also the discharge-tube (c), are in- closed ; d, a small hole In the side of the discharge tube ; and e, a valve at the bottom of the discharge tube r/is a ball- valve to the suction tube, by w hich the vrater is drawn up from a watering-pot, pail, or any other vessel. On the motion of drawing up the piston (a), the water enters by/; while, by pushing down the piston, the valve at fis closed, and the water is forced up the valve at e, into the discharge tube ; but as some more water is forced into this tube than can pass through it, it escapes by the small opening at d into the vessel of air in which the working barrel and the discharge tube are encased. As the air cannot escape from this vessel, it is necessarily compressed by the water which enters through the small opening at d ; and, conse- quently, when the piston, a, is drawn up, and no longer forces up the water in the discharge tube, c, the action on that tube is kept up by the expansion of the com- pressed air which shuts the valve at e, and, conse- quently, forces the water along c. The great beauty of this arrangement is, that no exertion of the operator is lost ; nor can he exert himself without producing a corresponding result ; for if, by rapid and powerful action, he drives much water into the air vesspl, the greater degree in which the air is compressed will force the water with the more rapidity thioagh the discharge tube, c. This engine is 3 ft. long, and 2j in. in diameter ; it weighs only between 61b. and 61b. ; works with remarkable ease, and is so little liable to go out of repair, that Mr. Read warrants it to last a lifetime. Read's barrow engine, fig. 83, is an oval copper vessel, containing twenty-six gallons, particularly adapted for large conser- « vatories and forcing houses. It will pats through a door-way two feet wide, and is so portable that it may be carried up or down stairs by two men. The great power of tliis g engine depends on the air vessel, indicated by a dotted circular line, in the body of the en- gine, in which aU superfluous force is em- ployed in condensing air, ap in Read's pneu- matic engine, so as to fqrm a reservoir of power; and in the proxijnity of the bent ful- crum, a, to the handle or lever, J, by which the weight C, being brought near to the ful- Fig. 83. Read't barrow engine. crum, the power applied at * is proportionably increased. In most engines of this kind there is no pneumatic reservoir, and the distance between the weight, e, and the fulcrup], a, is much greater. The construction of the pis^ ton, valves, &c., is similar to that of Read's hand-engine, so that this barrow- engine is not only a machine of great power, but not liable to go out of repair. Mr. Read, who has been attending to this subject the greater part of his life, considers this engine as his mpsterpiece. 441. Garden-bellou's. Bellows are used in gardening for dusting plants with powdery substances, such as quicklime, powdered tobacco leaves, sul- phur. Sic, and for fomigating them with tobacco-smoke. Read's fumigating- bellows (figs. 84 and 85) answers both purposes. It consists of a pair of' 15C MACHINES USED IN HORTICULTURE. bellows, fig. 84, a, to which is attached a canister, b, with a moTeahle nozzle, through which the smoke escapes, c. The details of the canister are Fig. 84. Read't /umigating beUowt. shown in the section, fig. 85, which is one third of the natural size. In this section d is the hottora socket or cap ; e, the plunger, which Iceeps down the tobacco ; /, the nozzle of the bellows ; and g, the tube by which the smoke escapes, unscrewed to show the ball- valve. In using this machine, unscrew the bottom socket of tlie canister, and turn up the canister, so that the perforated plunger may fall to what becomes, when in use, the upper end h; put in the to- bacco, or tobacco-paper, replace the socket, hold the apparatus in the position shown by fig. 84, hold the bottom of the canister over a piece of lighted paper, expand the bellows, and the flame will rush in and ignite the tobacco. Then by continuing to use the bellows in the ordinary way, the tobacco will be consumed in smoke, which may be directed by means of the issue pipe c at pleasure. Immediately after using the machine, immerse the canister, which will now be very hot, in water ; unscrew the top and bottom, and wash and wipe the valves and pipe, so as to leave the whole perfectly clean. If this is not attended to, the oil of the tobacco will soon form a thick tclutinous coating, which will prevent the valve I from acting properly. When a large house is to be filled with tobacco smoke, a fumigating pet, Fig. 85. Section of ike canister of Read's /umigaling bellowt. such as fig. 86, may be used It is made of sheet-iron, holds about three pounds of tobacco, and is placed on the outside of the house, with the smoke- tube entering it Fig. 80. Iron /umigaiing-pot- Mitsi ine smoKe-iuuB ciiwcii^g »» through a hole made on purpose in the front wall or front glass. In the figure a is the handle by which the pot is carried, b the pipe by which tliis MACHINES USED IN HORTICULTITKE. 167 smote is introduced to the house, and which is attached to a moveahle lid and, c, a tube to which the bellows is applied, and which enters the pot im- mediately under a perforated moveable bottom. A substitute for a pot of this kind is often formed by two flower-pots, a smaller one being placed upside down within a larger, and the tobacco placed in the former. In fumigating plants in houses, it will be found advantageous to fill the house at the same time with steam, by watering the pipes or flues, or by other means. The steam condenses the oil of the smoke, and leaves it on the leaves and points of the young shoots in the form of globules of oil, on the surface of the glo- bules of water. A pair of common bellows may be rendered fit either for I ) _:^iv 7S a-»^ powdering plants or fumigat- ^ ^=^=^rz l^ -' {^'h, ' ^ ' "^■— ^s a ing them, by substituting a \~ g r J piece of tinned iron, fig. 87, a, 1 \* ® "/ resembling in shape those tin Fig. 87. Po«,dsring.!,cliov,s. * ^^^^f "^'^'^ « t^^ retail of meal, in the flat end of which, ft, are two small valves IJ- of an inch in diameter, with a hole between them, to wliich a screw- cap is fitted for introducing the dust or the tobacco to be burnt. It is evident that the air which enters through the valves by the up. stroke of the bellows, raises the dust or smoke in the interior, which is ejected by the down-stroke ; and, by repetition, the whole powder introduced, or the whole smoke produced by the ignition of the tobacco-leaves, wUl be thrown out. (Gard. Mag. vol. iii. p. 30.) We consider this to be much the best description of garden-bellows for dusting plants with sulphur. 442. The mowing-machine is used for shearing lawns, where the surface is smooth and even, and kept free from worm-casts and all matters that would interfere with the cutting part of the machine, which is formed exactly on the model of the engine for shearing the surface of woollen-cloth described inVxe's Dictionary of Manufactures, p. 1324. The machine crops and collects at the same time in a box the grass cut by it, and is altogether very complete in its action where the lawn to be cropped is suitable ; but for ordinary garden purposes most gardeners seem to prefer the short grass- scythe, and leave the mowing-machine to the amateur, for whom it forms an excellent exercise. 443. Other machines. — In the Encyc. of Gard. will be found described various machines for transporting large boxes or tubs containing plants, such as Orange-trees ; machines for transporting and for transplanting large trees, for regulating temperature, for entrapping or detecting the enemies of gar- dens, and for some other purposes ; but few of these are adapted for the present work. It may be stated here, that the principle on which all the best machines for transporting plants in large boxes or tubs, or transplanting large trees with balls to their roots, is the same : viz. two windlass axles are supported on four props, which rise out of two horizontal beams, and the box or tree being raised by means of the windlasses, is retained in that posi- tion till it is conveyed to its destination, either by means of two horizontal beams, by manual labour, as if they were the levers of a hand-barrow ; or by placing wheels under them, in the manner of a cart or waggon. The best machine of this kind for removing Orange-trees in boxes, is that used at St. Margaret's, near London, and described in the Gardener^s Magazine, vol. x. p. 136. From the description of this machine it is obvious that it will answer either for transporting trees in boxes, or trees or shrubs with Iarg« ]58 MISCELLANEOUS ARTICLES USED IN HORTICULTURE. balls; though, to convey the latter to any distance over rough roads, ] wheels would be requisite than those which belong to the machine referred to. See our Appendix. Sect. VI. — Miscellaneous Articles used in Horticulture. In complete gardens, containing all the varieties of plant-structures, a number of articles are required for the purposes of cultivation and high keeping which can neither be classed as implements nor structures. Even in the smallest gardens, mats for protection, props for support, nails and ties for fastenings, and tallies for naming and numbering plants, are essential. 444. Articles for protection. — Bass mats, woven from ribands or strands of the inner bark of the lime-tree, and imported from the Baltic, are in general use, both to protect from the cold by counteracting radiation, and to shade from the sun. Canvas, bunting, and netting of different kinds, and oiled paper frames, are used for the same pui-poses. Netting of straw ropes, formed by first stretching ropes as weft at regular distances, and then crossing them by others as woof, are sometimes used to protect wall-trees. Another mode of protecting ti-ees by straw ropes, is by placing poles against the wall, ' -; in front of the trees, at from four feet to six feet asunder; i thrusting their lower ends into the earth about eighteen inches or two feet from the wall, and making them fast at top to the coping, or to the wall immediately under it ; straw or hay ropes are then passed from pole to pole, taking a turn round each, and leaving a distance of about eighteen inches between each horizontal line of ropes. Straw ropes may also be used to pro- tect early rows of peas or other plants, by first hooping over each row, and afterwards passing three or four ropes from hoop to hoop. Of course they act by checking radiation, and their influence will be greatest when they are placed between a foot and eighteen inches from the wall, the amount of heat reflected back diminishing in a geometrical ratio according to the distance Wiips of of the covering from the body to be protected. Wisps of straw iiraw for being tied to a String, fig. 88, and hung in lines one above another in used at proieci- fj.Qjjt ^f g, wall, are also used for the same purpose as straw ropes, and in sheltered places are perhaps better. 446. Mats of straw or reeds are used for protecting plants in the open garden, and also for covering glazed sashes, whether of pits, frames, or hothouses. Every gardener ought to know how to construct these, in order to be able to employ his men within-doors in severe weather. The following directions are given by P. Lindegaard, late gardener to the king of Denmark, who used them extensively, and who states, that they produce a considerable saving of fuel, afford a great security from accidents, such as breaking glass, and not only retain heat much better than bass mats, but, fi'om their greater porosity, allow the steam of moist hotbeds to pass oif more readily. When a heavy fall of snow takes place during the night, bass mats are not so easy to get cleaned and dried the next morning as straw mats, because they retain the moisture, and get frozen and stiff by the frost penetrating through them ; and hence the next evening they cannot be put on again without the risk of breaking the glass. Mr. Lindegaard found four hundred straw mats sufficient to cover four hucdred lights, for which if he had used bass mats, about twelve hundred would have been required. These mats are made of MISCELLANEOlrS ARTICLES USED IN HORTICULTURE. LW rye or wheat straw, or of reeds, and only jn the winter time, when the weather is unfit for working out of doors. They are made in frames in the following manner : — An oblong square (fig. 89) is formed of four laths, along Fig. 89. Mode of making straw mats. the two ends of which, a, a, are driven as many nails as you wish to have binding cords, b, h, of which the usual number is six to a width of four feet, as the strength of the mat depends chiefly on the number of these cords. The cords are of tarred rope-yam ; on these the straw, or reeds, is laid in handfuls, and bound to each longitudinal cord by other cords, which, for greater convenience, are made up in little balls, c, c. These cords are also of tarred rope-yam. When a mat is finished, the cords are tied together at the top or finishing end, the mat is then detached from the fi-ame, and its sides chopped straight with an axe. These mats are more conveniently made by two men than by one man ; and by placing the frame upon a raised plank or bench, than by placing it on the ground, and obliging the men to stoop. When straw is used, that of rye is the best, and will last, even in Denmark, three years : reeds last longer. In the most severe weather these mats are rolled on the glass lengthways of the mat ; that is, from top to bottom, by which the direction of the straw is at right angles to that of the sash bar, which prevents the glass from being broken; and over this covering, in very severe weather, reed mats may be laid with the reeds in the same direction as the sash bar, so that the water may run ofi^ them as it does off the thatch of a house, and keep the mats below quite dry. Where reeds cannot be got, mats of rye or wheat straw may be substituted; because it is evident, that having the straws or reeds laid in the direction of the slope of the glass, must be attended with great advantages by throwing off the rain instead of absorbing it. (^Gardener's Magazine, vol. V. p. 416.) The usual dimensions of these mats are six feet by four feet, because that size answers for covering frames and pits of the ordinary dimensions ; but when they are to be used for covering the sloping glass of hothouses, they should be made of sufficient length to reach from the coping to the ground, covering the front glass or front parapet. A ring of twisted wire should be placed exactly in the centre of the upper end of each mat, and to this ring a cord should be attached, for the purpose of being passed over a pulley to be fixed on the coping-board, or on the back wall M 2 160 MISCELLANEOTJS ARTICLES USED IN HOKTICULTURE. immediately under it, or on the top rail of the uppermost sash of the roof. This cord must be at least twice the length of the mat, in order that, when the mat is drawn down and rolled up, the end of the cord may be within reach of the operator on the groimd at the front of the house. Another ring ought to be fixed to the centre of the lower end of the mat, for the purpose of fastening it to the front sill when it is drawn over the roof. When the mats are removed from the roof, and rolled up during the day, the cord is loosened from the ring, and lies on the roof, ready to be refastened to it, to draw the mats up the next evening. A second layer of mats might bo drawn up over the former, in a direction across the sashes, so as to throw off the rain in the manner of thatch, by attaching a cord to one corner of each end of the mat, passing these cords over two pulleys, and laying on the mats like files on a roof. Drawing up two mats, however, the one immediately over the other, would be much less trouble, and would, excepting in the cases of heavy rains or thawing snows, keep out the cold sufficiently well. Where the roof is divided by wooden rafters, the mats should be exactly the width of the sash, so as to fit in between them : but where it is not so divided, the mats should overlap one another in the manner of slates — that is, one half the number of mats should first be drawn up, leaving half the width of a mat between each, and afterwards the remaining half should be drawn up so as to cover the intervening spaces, and overlap afoot over the mat at each side. It is much to be regretted that mats of this kind are so little used in England, especially in country places, where straw is abundant and cheap ; for being made at a time when little other work can be done, and of a mate- rial of very little value, and retaining heat much better than any other covering, they would prove a great saving of fuel and of the labour of attending on fires, as well as insure the safety of plants. Mr. Shenuan, a gardener of great experience, who used these mats extensively, observes, in the Gardener'' s Magazine for 1827, that he considers the revival of the old system of covering with straw or reeds, and the system of heating by water, as the greatest improvements that have been introduced into the forcing department in his time. 446. Wooden shutters form an excellent covering for the sashes of pits and frames ; and though they are more expensive at first, yet from their great durability when kept well painted, they are found by market-gardeners to be the cheapest of all coverings in the end. Boards do not retain heat so effectively as reeds or straw, but thej' exclude rain and wind better than that material ; and by being kept an inch or two above the glass by the cross-bars which bind the boards together, a space is left sufficient to check radiation, and to prevent the escape of heat by conduction. If boarded shut- ters could be kept about six inches from the glass, and air excluded from entering at top and bottom and at the sides, radiation would be effectually returned, and less risk of the escape of heat by conduction incurred than when the boards touch the sash-bar ; hut this would req^uire great care in excluding the air from the sides and ends. All the frames and pits in the gardens at Syon are covered by boarded shutters, and all those in the exten- sive forcing-ground of Mr. Wilmot of Isleworth. Narrow shutters of this. kind might be contrived for hothouse roofs, so as to produce a great saving of heat. Canvas would, in many instances, repel wet and check radiation as well as deal boards, and might be put on much quicker ; but the gi-eac objection to it is its liability to be disturbed by high winds, — unless, indeed, MISCELLANEOUS ARTICLES USED IN HOKTICULTDKB. 161 it is attached to wooden frames, which occupy as much time in taking ofi and putting on as wooden shutters, and are much less durable. 447. Asphalte covers have lately been used for protecting glass roofe, and promise to be a very suitable, and, at the same time, cheap and durable material. The following account of a trial of this article at Dalkeith, near Edinburgh, by Mr. M'Intosh, is abridged from the Gardeners' Chronicle of Feb. 13th, 1841. Pocock's patent asphalte roofing is sold in pieces 16 in. by 32 in., at 44d. each, or about if d. the square foot. Its weight is only sixty pounds to the hundred feet square. It has been exposed to severe frost and to a heat of 220° without injury : being a non-conductor of heat, it is alike useful for protecting from cold and for shading from the sun. In texture the material resembles the improved patent felt, and appears to be a combination of hair and long fibrous substances, intimately united by exces- sive pressure, which gives it strength, durability, and an even surface ; and being satui'ated with an asphaltio composition, it is completely waterproof. Mr. M'Intosh has used it to cover 300 feet in length of cold pits ; and he has also a number of shutters made of the same material for covering the lights of forcing pits. Frames are formed of a top and bottom rail, and two side- rails, 1 J inches thick by 2^ inches broad : to the top and bottom rails two pieces of wood, 1^ inches by 1^ inches, are fastened, and another of like size at the middle of the frame across it, attached to the side-rails. To these the asphalte covering is secured by copper tacks, but iron or tin tacks, made warm and cooled in oil, will answer as well ; thus forming shutters 6 feet by 4 feet, weighing 241bs., and costing 6s. each, that is, 2s. 3d. for asphalte covering, 2d. for tacks, and 3s. 7d. for timber and labour. These water- proof shutters Mr. M'Intosh finds vastly preferable to Russia mats, and has no doubt they will last for ten or twelve years, if not longer ; for while not in use, they can, after being well dried, be stored in a dry, airj' loft or shed. From the nature of the material they will not take oil paint with advantage ; but may, perhaps, be improved if thinly coated with tar and strewed over with white sand every three or four years. It is evident that temporary coverings to plants against walls, or in the open garden, might as readily be formed of these asphalte covers as of boarded shutters. 448. Oiled-paper frames were formerly much used, both as protection from cold, and as shades from the sun. They are made by gluing paper to a wooden frame, divided into panes in the manner of a window by narrow thin laths. The paper used is what is called fine cartridge, but unsized : printers' demy will do. A ream of this consists of 480 sheets, each 1 ft. 10 in. by 1 ft. 5 in. ; so that the panes of the frame should be made of the latter dimensions. They are oiled with common linseed oil boiled, and mixed with a little white lead, being previously pasted on with a paste made of starch boiled up with a little glue. Frames of this kind may be used with advantage as a substitute for glazed frames ia covering tiewly-sown seeds, or in striking cuttings ; for though oUed paper excludes light, it is a powerful conductor of heat. Oiled-paper sashes have been also extensively used for growing cucumbers and melons, and, above all, for protecting fruit-trees while in blossom. For the latter purpose the length of the frames may be made in lengths equal to nearly the height of the wall, and each fi'ame hinged on one side to a temporary rafter, and kept fast at the other by a tarn button of wood. When the frames are to be kept open, they can be tied to stakes in a simple and expeditious manner, such as will readily occur to every gardener. 162 MISCELLANEOUS ARTICLES USED IN HORTICULTURE. 449. Oiled-paper caps are also constructed for protecting or shading her- baceous plants in the open garden, and more especially for protecting the young shoots of Dahlias when newly planted out in spruig, and their flowers, from the frost of autumn. In low situations, near water, Dahlias are gene- rally blackened by frost five or six weeks before this takes place in high grounds; but by the use of such caps as we are about to describe, the plants may be protected from perpendicular frosts until the roots are ripe. A cap or head for this purpose is shown in figs. 90 to 93. Fig. 90 represents the Figs. 90 to 93. Oiled paper cap for protecting Dahliax and other Jlowers. stake which supports the cap, in which a, d, represents a hooked wire attached to the stake, and adapted to an eye in the stem of the cap, to make sure of holding the latter fast ; b, shows the four side branches to which the Dahlia-shoots are tied ; c, a wooden peg for fastening the tenon of the cap into the mortice of the stake ; and e, the surface of the ground. Fig. 91 is a geometrical elevation of one side of the frame of the cap, in which is shown, f, the summit where the two ribs that form the four angles of the cap cross each other, into which the stem, g, is inserted ; h, shows the edge of the mortise ; i, the lower wire ; k, the upper wire ; and I, one of the ribs. Fig. 92 is a perspective view of the skeleton of the cap, in which m repre- sents the point where the two ribs cross, and the hole in the tenon for the peg, c, in fig. 90 ; and o, the eye for the hook, d. Fig. 93 is a perspective view of the stake and cap represented inserted in the ground, in which p represents the side branches, to which ought to be attached the stems of the dahlias ; and c, the surface of the ground. The size of the caps is about eighteen inches on the side, and the leng-th of the stake is four feet ; but in constructing them the workman will, of course, adjust the length of the stake and the diameter of the cap to the height and breadth of the plant to be protected. These caps are the invention of Mr. John Turnbull {Gard. Mag. xiii. p. 212), who says they will endure for many years with but little repair. A cap of wickerwork, for the same purpose, is described in the Gardeners Chronicle, vol. i. p. 181. It consists of an inverted shallow basket, to which is attached a tube made of the same material, through which the Dahlia stick is passed ; and a peg being inserted between the stick and MISCELLANEOUS ARTICLES USED IN HORTICULTURE. 163 le tube, it is thus firmly fixed at any height required. It measures twelve ches in diameter in the widest part, and is three inches and a half in :pth. 460. Wicker-viork hurdles are useful in gardens for sheltering low plants om high winds, for placing horizontally over seedlings to protect them from jds, and, in various positions, for shading plants. They are constructed ' upright stakes fixed in the ground, or in holes in a board, at regular dis- mces of from four inches to eight inches, according to the size of the mate- als and the dimension of the hurdle, and these stakes are filled in or wattled ith small rods, wands, or spray. When kept dry, they will last three or ur years, if the stakes are made of willow, or of any of the soft woods ; and om four to six or seven years, if they are made of hazel, oak, ash, or any of le hard woods. 451. Props for plants vai-y in form, dimension, and material, from the nail wires used for supporting hyacinths ia water-glasses, and the sticks of X inches in length, used for supporting plants in pots, to cast-iron rods of X or eight feet in length, and pillars for roses and other climbers, formed ' the stems of young fir-trees, of from ten to twenty feet in length, as in J. 94. All the varieties of wooden props may be iduced to four kinds : — 1. Straight rods with the irk on, but with all the side branches cut ofi', irying in size from the shoot of one year to the em of a fir of twenty years' growth. These •e used for every purpose, from the tying up of [ants in pots to the support of lofty climbers, in- uding between these extremes tying up dahlias id standard roses. 2. Branches or stems, with 1 the side branches and branchlets retained, used r the support of climbing annual stems, such i peas, kidney-beans, tropaeolums, &c., but only litable when these plants will grow in the open round ; when grown in pots, wire frames, or a jgular framework of laths, are more in acoord- ice with the artificial state in which the plants \ re placed. 3. Wooden rods, formed out of laths . r deal by the gardener or carpenter, regularly ipered and pointed, and in some cases painted, hese are chiefly used for choice plants in pots, but partly also in the pen garden. 4. Iron rods, from short pieces of wire to rods of cast or rought iron, for supporting dahlias, standard roses, and other plants, and ith or without spreading heads for climbers. Fig. 95 shows a variety of lese rods, which may be had of the principal London ironmongers. All on work, before being used in the open air in gardens, would be rendered lore durable if thoroughly heated and painted over with oil, the effect of ■hich is, to prevent the action of the atmosphere on the surface of the iron, y carbonising it. After this operation painting may be dispensed with, scepting for ornament. It is in general, however, better to paint them, nd the colour should be black, blue-black, or some very dark shade of green. L light green, and white, are of all colours the most to be avoided in an rtistical point of view ; because the first is too like nature, and the second 1 too glaring and conspicuous. Fig, 94. Props for climbers. 104 MISCELLANEOUS ARTICLES USED IN HORTICULTUKB. # Y Fig. 95, Cast and wrovghi iron props for supporting climbers. 452. The durability of wooden props may, perhaps, be increased by soaking them in Burnett's anti-dry-rot composition ; or if they are made of deal, by first kiln-drying them, and afterwards soaking them in linseed oU. After the oU. is thoroughly dried, which wUl rec[uire two or three weeks, the sticks may be painted. Sticks of red deal, treated in this manner, will remain good for upwards of twenty-five years. (^Hort. Reg., i. p. 301.) Mr. Mas- ters is of opinion (Gard. Mag., xv. p. 321) that the duration of hop-poles may be doubled by kyanising ; but little benefit has been yet derived from it in the case of props for garden plants. Mr. W. H. Baxter (^Gard. Mag., XV. p. 542) found kyanising of little or no use. 453. Garden tallies and labels are articles by which names or numbers are attached to plants, and they are of many different kinds. The materials are wood, iron, zinc, lead, or earthenware, and the forms are still more various than the materials. The most durable are those of lead, with the name or number stamped with a steel punch or type, and rendered con- spicuous by having the letters filled in with white lead paint. The most common are made of wood, with the numbers, in imitation of the Roman numerals, cut with a knife. To form tallies to receive numbers of this description, take firm ash rods, about an inch or an inch and a half in dia- meter ; saw them into lengths of ten or twelve inches ; point the lower end rather abruptly, and either plane or cut with a knife a surface sufficient to receive the number required on the upper half. This kind of tally may be made during winter and wet weather, when little else can be done, and a slock kept on hand for use, if required. They are found to last eight or tsn years, according to the situation in which they are placed. Some- times the number is written or painted, and the writing is in ordinary MISCELLANEOUS ARTICLES USED IN HORTICULTURE. 165 cases done with a black-lead pencil on a smooth surface, on which a little white lead has been previously rubbed in with the finger, which, when written on in a moist stat^ is found greatly to increase tlie durability of the impression. Sometimes Indian ink is used on a white painted ground, which, being a body colour, pre- sents a more conspicuous and durable impression than common ink, which is only a stain. The most durable letters, next to impressions stamped in lead, are those in black oil-paint on a white ground. For plants in pots, a tally, formed of wood, cut with a common knife from thin laths, rubbed with white lead, and written on with a black-lead pencil, is one of the most convenient and economical forms and materials. Fig. 96, which consists of a shank of wire with the head of wood, is a form for pots, as the wire does not injure the roots : the plate is 2f inches long and 1^ inches broad, and about a quarter of an inch thick ; the piece of iron wire is about three-sixteenths of an inch thick, and is painted black, while the wooden plate is jij gg wooden painted white. These tallies are very conspicuous and very iabei,wUhashank durable. For herbaceous plants, or low shrubs, or trees in "-f"'"" "">■«• the open air, the tally, fig. 97, is very neat and durable, and much more economical than would at first sight appear. It is formed of cast-iron, with a head of the same metal, in which is a sunk panel, into which the label with the name is placed, and after- wards covered with a piece of glass neatly fitted in, and puttied like the pane of a window. The label should be a slip of wood, lead, pewter, or earthenware, as not being liable to rust, shrink, or wai-p, from drought or moisture. Previously to putting in the labels, the tally should be car- bonised by heating it nearly red-hot and immersing it in oil, as is practised with gun-barrels to render them im- pervious to the action of the atmo- sphere. This being done, a coat of paint may be dispensed with, or the iron- work may be painted black, and the part on which the name is written white; or the label may be simply rubbed over with a little white lead, and the name written with a black- lead pencil. In the Glasgow Botanic Garden these tallies have been used extensively for the last fifteen years. The label is there formed of wood, and the writing by a black-lead pen- Fig. 87. csit-inn tally, with the label of wood cil, after previously rubbing in a little 'filated in a etmk panel, and covered vnih a piece white lead. For plants in greenhoUSeS ^'eta.s,ecured by putty. ' or stovcs, Very neat porcclam taUies 1C6 MISCELLANEOUS ARTICLES USED IN HORTICULTURE. are made at the potteries, and they are perhaps the handsomest of all. They cost from 2d. to 3d. each, and readily receive black paint, China ink, )0r common ink, without any previous preparation : in the open air, however, they are very liable to be broken. For alpine or other herbaceous < plants in pots in the open air, no tally is better than strips of sheet lead, about an eighth of an inch thick, with the name at length stamped in with steel type, — an operation which the gardener may perform in incle- ment weather. For large tal- lies for trees, bricks, moulded with a sloping face and a sunk panel to contain a label of lead, .zinc, or wood, maybe used ; or tallies of heart-of- oak, previ- ously steamed to draw out the sap, and afterwards boiled in linseed oil, painted black, with the name in white ; or a tally formed of a cast-iron shank, rivetted to a plate of lead, on which the name is stamped, the shank and plate being painted black, and the letters _.„„„,. , , tilled in with white lead. This Fig. 98. Cast-iron shank and disk of a tally for tally was used by Mr. Glen- /,e« and shrubs »» dinning in the Bicton Arbore- pj^. jg. Tatty of .ast iron, with a Jirmgroun . tum ; the Cast-irOn shank is tabel of tead, for naming trees shown in fig. 98, and the tally o"^"" ground. complete, with the label of lead rivetted on, is shown in fig. 99. In the Goldsworth Arboretum, instead of a plate of lead, a plate of por- celain is used, on which the name is painted in black in oil. An improvement on this kind of tally consists in having a disk or circular plate cast on the shank, about a foot below the name-plate, as in figs. 98 and 99, which prevents the tally from sinking into the ground, and always keeps it upright. Perhaps the most economical and durable tally for plants in pots is a small strip of zinc, about three q^aarters of an inch broad and six inches long, on which the name may be written with a black-lead pencil, after rubbing on a little white-lead paint, or with Indian ink on dried white paint, or on the naked metal with prepared ink, which is sold on purpose. The neatest, least obtrusive, and most durable taUy for this description of plants is undoubtedly strips of sheet lead, with the names stamped in, and the letters distinguished by being fiUed with white lead. Temporary labels to plants are written on strips of parchment, or narrow slips of wood, and tied to them with twine, or Bometimes, when the plants are to be sent to a distance, with copper or MISCELLANEOUS ARTICLES USED IN HORTICULTURE. 167 metallic wire. In all cases of writing or painting names or numbers en permanent tallies, the words or figures may be rendered more con- spicuous and durable by painting them over when dry with mastic var- nish, or with boiled oil. Instead of painting tallies black, Mr. Nesfield prefers a very dark lead colour, composed of ivory black (not lamp black ) and flake white, mbced with boiled linseed oil. His reason for disapproving of a pure black ground is founded on the fact, that certain colours, having a greater affinity for water than for oil (such as blacks, umbers, and ochres), are liable to be affected by damp, unless they are held together by a power- fully oleaginous vehicle, with a small portion of white lead. The lettering Mr. Nesfield recommends to be done with Paris white, mixed with nearly equal parts of copal varnish and nut oU, avoiding turpentine, because it soon evaporates, and causes the colour to look dead and chalky. The white should be used as thick as it wiU flow from the pencil, because the letters in that case will be so much more opaque ; and the varnish should be mixed with only a small quantity at a time, on account of its setting very rapidly. Tur- pentine must be entirely avoided, except for cleansing pencils, as it soon evaporates, whUe the varnish remains and hardens as it becomes older. Colours of the best quality requisite for painting and lettering labels are to bo had of Messrs. Robertson & MiUer, SI, Long Acre, London, whose prices are, for flake white, per bladder, weighing lib., l*-. ; ivory black, per ;^lb., 1*. ; oil, per pint, 2s. ; copal varnish, per pint, Gs. Two Is. bottles of copal var- nish will be sufficient for an immense quantity of lettering. — (Gard. Mag. vol. xiii. p. £8.) 454. Nails, lists, and ties, are wanted in every garden. Cast-iron naUs, about an inch and a half in length, and the lists from the selvages of woollen cloth, are in general use for fastening the branches of trees to walls, and no materials have hitherto been devised which have been found better or cheaper. The nails, previously to being used, are heated nearly to redness, and thrown into oil, for the reason before mentioned (453) ; and old lists, before they are used a second time, are boiled in water, to destroy any eggs of insects that may be deposited on them. The most common material in use for ties are strands of bass matting, and these are rendered much more durable when previously steeped in soft soap and water. For large branches, ties of the smaller shoots of willows or of clematis are sometimes used ; and on the Continent, the smaller branches are tied with rushes or the twigs of broom collected in the winter season, and preserved in bundles so as to retain a certain degree of mois- ture to prevent them from becoming brittle, and at the same time not to rot them. In this country taiTed twine of different degrees of thickness, and bass matting procured by unravelling a mat, are almost the only ties in use. Metallic wire and small copper wire have been recommended, but they are only fit for tying labels to trees sent out of nurseries to a distance. A leathern wallet, fig. 100, is found of great use in pmning and nailing wall-trees, when Fig. 100. waikifor putting m, the Operator is standing on aladder. It is suspended when nailing wall-trees from fjom his shoulder by straps, and contains a large " '"'""'■ pocket for the shreds, nails, and hammer, and two small pockets over it for a knife and sharpening-stone. 108 MISCELLANEOUS ARTICLES TTSED IN HORTICULTURE. 455. The garden-line, fig.lOl, consisting of an iron reel, o, -31 knob for winding it up, 6, iron pin, e, and a hempen cord of any convenient length, is an essential article ; as is a measur- ^ ing-rod, marked with feet and inches, for laying off dimen- sions ; and aGunter's measuring chain, foruse on alarge scale. A pocket foot-rule and a measuring-tape are also useful. 456. Ladders of different kinds and lengths are required for use in the open garden and in hothouses. Figs. 102 and 103 represent a light folding ladder, the sides of which Fis. 101. ironreeU,id may be constructed of yellow deal, and the rounds or treads '"" '"' ° etrden-iim. ^^ ^^T^ jj jg ^gg^ j^ hothouses and also in the open garden, and may be of any length, from fifteen to thirty feet. When the ladder is open, for use, it has the appearance shown in fig. 103, d; when half shut, of e ; and Fig. 102. Portable laddiT alMt, Fig. 103. r'trtable ladder open. when entirely shut, of fig. 102. The section of each of the sides, or styles, is a semi-oval J their junction, when the ladder is shut up, forms an entire oval in the section, as shown in fig. 102. The rounds, or treads, are cylin- drical ; and, when the ladder is shut up, they fall into grooves, hollowed out, of the same form ; half of the groove of each round being in one style, and half in the other, as indicated by the dotted lines, a, b, in fig. 102. The ends of each of the rounds turn on iron pins ; one end rests on a shoulder, as at a, while the other end is suspended from below the shoulder, and turns on an iron or brass pin, as indicated by 6. The ends of the iron pins which pass tlirough the styles are slightly riveted. In every description of plant-houses, \ineries, verandas, conservatories, aviaries, &c., a folding-ladder of this kind MISCELLANEOUS ARTICLES USED IN HORTICULTTTRE. 169 is a most convenient article ; because, when shut up, it may be carried through a house much easier than a common ladder. For working among climbing plants under glass, it is found to be particularly useful, as it may be introduced in places where there is not room for a common ladder. For pruning standard trees out of doors, it is particularly convenient, because it can be thrust through the branches like a round pole, so as not to injure them ; and when once it has got to the desired place or position, it can be opened, when the styles will press the branches on one side without injuring them. Orchard ladders for pruning standard fruit- trees, or gathering their fruit, are of various kinds, some with two legs to give them stability, and others forming a triangle, with horizontal pegs in each leg for supporting planks, which cross from one leg to the other, and on ^. ,,,„,.. ^ , ,, t.- ,nr ^ ,. ^ , ,^ , . , \ TT ^^S* l*^"*- iiule-joini ladder. Fig. 105. Orchard ladder. which the operators stand. Fig. 104 is what is called a rule-joint ladder, for painting and repairing curvi- linear glass roofs. The ladder fig. 105 is in common use in the south of France and Switzerland, for gathering cherries. 457. A Levelling Instrument of some kind is occasionally required in gardens ; for example, when box edgings are to be taken up and replanted, it is necessary to have the ground of exactly the same level on both sides of the walk, and this can only be done by levelling across. The use of the level implies also the use of poles, homing pieces, and other articles belonging to surveying, which, as every one who can take levels must necessarily be familiar with, we do not stop to describe. Fig. 106 is a more convenient form for a garden level than that used by bricklayers ; because, by the curvature on the un- derside, the operator can more readily level across raised gravel walks. 458. Thermometers are requisite, more especially where there are plant structures of any description ; and it will be very desirable to have terrestrial thermometers for ascertaining the temperature of the soil in the open garden, as well as of the soil, and of tan or dung beds, under glass. It is true that a knowledge of the temperature of the soil in the open garden will not often enable us to increase that temperature, but it will assist us in accounting for particular effects; and sometimes, as in the case of coldness produced from the want of drainage, or from a non-conducting covering repeUing the rays of the sun, we have it in our power, by removing the cause, to remedy the evil. To ascertain the temperature of the soil with reference to plants growing in it, the bulb of the thermometer should be sunk to such a depth as may correspond with the great mass of the roots, or between eight inches and a foot. For plant-houses, a registering thei-mometer is a very desirable instrument, as a check upon the attendants in the absence of the master, and more especially in the night-time. That of Six is considered the best and requires no explanation. Fig. 106. Garden level- 170 MISCELLANEOUS ARTICLES USED IN HORTICULTURE. 459. An Hygrometer of some kind is almost as necessary as a thermometer, more especially now, when, as we have seen (261), the importance of keeping the atmosphere of plant structures saturated with moisture is beginning to be understood. 460. Other articles of various kinds are required in gardens, of which it will be sufficient to enumerate those which are most important. A grind- stone is essential in every garden ; because, unless tools and instruments are kept at all times sharp, it is impossible that operations can either be properly performed, or a sufficiency of work done. Whetstones are also necessary for scythes and knives. Portable shoe-scrapers of cast-iron, for using when coming off dug ground in wet weather on the gravel walks. One or more — — ■^^.^.^^ bridge- planks, fig. 107, for wheeling across box /l-,rTrTrTTTnffi«r>rr^.^ ^ ~~~^ edgings. Common planks for wheeling on IWWt|||| jHi iifij lir^ ^iljjfiijpliferr^ when the soil is soft, or when injury would be Fig. 107. Bridge plank far wheeling done by the sinking of the wheels ; and trestles across box Or other edgings. foj. raising them as scaffolding. Some hundreds of bricks and flat tiles for forming traps for birds or mice, and for a variety of purposes. A pair of leather bearing-sti-aps for relieving the arms in wheeling or in carrying hand-barrows, fig. 108. Old fisher- men's-netting, for protecting rising seeds from birds, and for covering currant or cherry trees for the same purpose, or for protecting wall trees, or for shelter. Live moss, com- monly sphagnum, for packing plants and for other purposes. Lime unbumed, but broken into small pieces, in order to be burnt in the hothouse fires, to supply quicklime as wanted for making lime-water : quicklime will answer, if kept compressed in a cask or box, so as to exclude the air. Potash, for using as a substitute for quicklime, in preparing a caustic fluid for destroying worms, snails, &c. Refuse tobacco, tobacco paper, or tobacco liquor, from the tobacco- nist's, or tobacco of home growth, for destroying insects. Sulphur in a state of powder, for destroying the mildew, and for sublimation to destroy the red spider. Soft soap, tar, gum, glue, &c., for suffocating the scale, and for coating over the eggs of insects to prevent their hatching. Gun- powder, for bruising and mixing with tar to deter insects by smell. Bird-Ume, for entrapping birds. Baskets, ham- pers, boxes, and cases of various kinds, for packing vege- tables and fruits, and sending them to a distance. A cabinet or case for the office, or for the seed-room, for containing seeds ; another for bulbs, if collections of tulips, &c. are grown. Canvas for bags, which may be used as a substitute for boxes for containing seeds. Paper of different kinds, . twine and cord, cotton, wool, hay, fern-leaves, the male catkins of the beech, or sweet chesnut, to aid in packing fruit. Straw, reeds, tan, common sand, pure white or silver sand, oyster-shells as coverings to the holes in bottoms of pots ; pieces of freestone, for mixing with peat soil used in growing heaths ; leaves and leaf-mould, grafting- wax, grafting-clay, com- mon paint, and probably various other articles which we cannot recall to mind — might be enumerated under this head. But it is scarcely necessary to observe, .that no gardener ought to confine himself to those implements of his art, which have hitherto been in use, whether as regards the con- Fig. 108. Leather bearing straps. POBTABLB, TEMPOEAET, AND MOTEABLE STEtTCTUEES. 17l struotioa of particular instrumenta or utenails, or their number and kinds, for particular operations. Let Lim at all times think for himself; and if he cam devise any tool, instrument, or utensil, for performing any operation better than those hitherto in use, let him not fail to do so. Such are the variety of operations required in extensive gardens, where a great many different kinds of culture are carried on, that this power of invention in the gardener becomes essentially requisite, and is, in fact, called forth by the circumstances in which he is placed. CHAPTER II. STRUCTURES AND EDIFICES OF HORTICULTURE. Structures and edifices are required in horticulture for the more perfect cultivation of hardy plants, or for bringing them earlier to perfection ; for the protection of exotics that will not endure our winters in the open air ; for preserving and keeping horticultural articles; for the enclosure and defence of gardens, and for gardeners' dwellings. Sect. I. — Portable, Temporary, and Moveable Structures. Portable structures are such as can be readily moved about by hand, such as the common hand-glass, or substitutes for it, wicker-work protectors, &c. ; temporary structures are such as are taken to pieces every time they are removed from place to place, such as temporary copings, canvas screens, &c. ; and moveable structures are those which can be removed entire, such as the common hotbed frame. 461. Wicker-work structures for protecting plants may be of any conve- nient form. Fig. 109 consists of a rim about two feet high and a semicir» cular cover for taking off during fine dajs : it has been used at Britton Hall to protect half- hardy Rhododendrons. Fig. 110 shows vari- ous forms which have been used for protecting tender plants during winter, at Abbotsbury, in Dorsetshire : a is a semicircular hurdle, to ■ protect plants trained against a wall, especially if newly planted and exposed to a sunny or Fig. 109. WicJce>-«.r^^^pro,ector for ^.^^y ^^^^^^ . j .^ ^ ^^^^j^ semicircular hurdle, or split cylinder, with loops on each side forming hinges or clasps. This is useful to put round the stems of young trees, whose branches are too spreading to allow of a circular hurdle being passed over them from above. It is used as a protection against hares and rabbits in a shrubbery ; c is a large cyHndrical basket to cover tall shrubs, with a vizor, or window, to be turned towards the sun or away from the wind, but to admit air. These three forms are chiefly adapted for permanent defences in the winter season ; the following are for use in spring ; d is the simple form of basket or circular hurdle, close on every side and at top, intended to protect low bushes, or growing herbaceous plants 172 POETABLE, TEMPOEAET, AND MOTEABLB STEUCTUEBS. coming into flower ; e ia a bell-shaped wicker case with a handle, for covering during the night plants thai shoot early in spring. All these forms are con- structed of stakes of hazel , oak, or other wood, strong and pointed so as to be firmly fixed in the ground, and the wattled work is of willow wands or young shoots of hazel, snowberry, or whatever can he most conveniently got from the woods. Those structures used for the more tender plants maybe filled with straw or hay, provided the plants are on a lawn where grass-seeds drop- ping from the haywdll not prove in- jurious ; or they may be covered with mats or canvas. Besides these foi-ms, which may be made of any size, accord- ing to that of the plants to be pro- tected, small semiglobular, close-wove chip baskets, not above a foot high, are used at Abbotsbury as shades for deli- cate Alpine plants in sunny or windy weather. Where baskets of this kind of various cannot be conveniently procured, very good substitutes may be found in bass mat";, canvas, or oil-cloth, supported by rods forming skeletons of suitable sizes and shapes. 462. Portable substitutes for hand-glasses. — Hand-glasses, from their great liability to breakage and the quantity of glass they contain compared with the ground they cover, become very expensive articles. A common square hand-glass, it has been shown by Mr. Forsyth, Gard. Mag. 1841, contains seven square feet of glass to light or shelter two and a quarter square feet of ground, being a little more than three times as much as is reaUy necessary for the plants usually cultivated under them : hence he proposes to substitute boards well painted, pitched or tarred, to increase their dura- bility, in place of upright glazed sides to the hand-glass ; and instead of a conical or pyramidal roof, to employ a square cast-iron sash, twenty-four inches on the side. Fig. Ill shows the sash glazed with small panes, say Wickeruork protectors kinds. Sash, as a subs/i/ufe for a hand-glass. Side view of knna-hor. Hand-box, as a substitute for a hand-glass. four inches and a half wide, on account of their cheapness, and greater PORTABLE, TEMPORARY, AND MOVEABLE STRUCTURES. 173 ph-ftngth than larger-sized panes. The frame, fig. 112, may be six to nine iiir;hes high in front, and from fifteen to eighteen inches high at bacli:. These small sashes, when not wanted for hand-glasses, or rather hand-frame coverings, Mt. Forsyth proposes to use as roofing to peach-houses, vineries, &c., and for various other purposes ; and he anticipates, and we think with reason, great economy from their adoption in gardens. Fig. 113 is an end view of the box, showing the uprights at the angles for supporting the sash, either close over the box, or raised to different heights to admit more or less air. By means of the notched uprights, the sash may either be raised six inches above the box at top and bottom, or it may be raised three or six inches at the back, and not raised, or raised only three inches in front, so as to admit more or less air at pleasure, and yet throw off the rain ; the sash being in any of these cases held firm in its place, so as not to be liable to be disturbed by wind. The pivots which fit into the notches are square, in order to admit of their being mounted on rafters of different kinds, so as to form coverings to frames, pits, or even forcing- houses. Supposing, says Mr. Forsyth, a bed of violets, running east and west, in the open air, twelve feet long and three feet six inches wide : drive seven notched pegs two feet apart down the centre of the bed to stand one foot above ground, and'seven down each side at the same distance apart, but only four inches out of the ground : then, to make the sides and gable ends, take a piece of turf four feet by four feet, shaped out with the edging-iron, and taken up with the turfing or floating spade, an inch and a half thick, of the proper shape, so that it may be set on edge and kept so by a peg on each side, and having the gi'een side out ; when the lights are put on with every alternate one higher than and embracing the iron edges of the two under it, you will have a very elegant little flower-house, which a labourer might erect in an hour with sixpennyworth of building materials, and the finished stmcture would have thus every other light hinged and ready to admit air or allow of watering and gathering flowers like a complete forcing-house. We regard this as promising to be one of the most useful and economical inventions that have been introduced in horticulture for some time. This box may be used in the open ground for forcing sea-kale, rhubarb, and for a variety of other purposes. See Gard. Mag. 1841. 463- Canvass coverings for glazed structures or detached plants require for the most part to be in framed panels, as well to keep them tight as to throw off the rain, and to prevent them from being blown and beat about by the wind. To render the canvass more durable, it may be oiled, tanned, or soaked in Kyaii's or in Burnett's anti-dryrot composition. When applied to cover tlie glass sashes of frames or pits, it should be in panels in wooden frames of the size of ilie sashes ; and this is also a convenient and safe mode of forming temporary structures for protecting standard plants or trees ; but by suitable arrangements, to be hereafter described, canvass or netting for protecting walls may bo hooked on and fastened without wooden frames. Tliis is done in a very efficient manner in the garden of the Horticultural Siiciety of London, to protect a peach- wall. The stone coping of this wall projects over it about an inch and a half, with a groove or throating under- neath. Coping-boards nine inches broad, fitted to join at their ends by means of plates of iron, are supported on iron brackets built into the wall. .Fit'. 1)4 shows one of these brackets, in which a is an iron which is built nito iiie wall, the thickness of a board below the stone coping; and 6, the 174 PORTABLE, TEJIPORARY, AND MOVEABLE STRUCTURES. hole for the h-on pin which secures the wooden coping. To these brackets the coping-boards are secured by broad-headed iron pins, passing through corresponding holes, 6, in the board and bracket, a slip of iron, or " spare-nail," being then introduced through an eye. in the lower end of the pin. The upper edge Fig. 114. rro« h^licketfor support- of the board is slightly bevelled, so as to fit as ing a temporary wooden coping, closely as possible to tlie Under side of the coping of the wall, in order effectually to obstruct the radiation of heat, and the ascent of warm air. From this coping, woollen netting of various kinds, common netting, such as fishei-men use, bunting, and thin can- vass, have been let down, and tried experimentally, in the course of the last fifteen years ; and we are informed by Mr. Thompson, that after repeated trials, the thin canvass was found the preferable article for utility, appearance, and duration. This description of fabric costs about 4d. per yard, procured from Dundee. It requires to be joined into convenient lengths, or into the whole length of the wall to be covered, and bound with tape at top and bottom, and to have loops or rings sewed to it at top, by which it is secured to small hooks screwed to the upper side of the coping- boards. These hooks serve also for attaching the ends of pieces of twine, which are stretched down to pegs driven in a line four feet from the bottom of the wall. These twine-rafters are stretched at intervals of twelve feet, and support the canvass at a uniform slope, the appearance being that of an elegant light roof, reaching to within three feet of the gi-ound. The coping- boards are put up before the blossom-buds of the peach-trees have swelled so much as to exhibit the tips of the petals ; and before the most forward buds open, the thin canvass (or netting, if that should be preferred) should be at- tached to the hooks. The covering is generally put up about the beginning of March, and it remains on without being opened or altered, till all danger from frost is over, which is generally, in the climate of London, about the middle of May. The coping is entirely removed at the same time as the canvass, because the trees are found to thrive much better when exposed to perpendicular rains and dews. The canvass is found to be of gi'eat utility in bright sunny weather, when the trees are in fuU blossom ; for the peach and other stone fruit, which in their native country blossom at an early period of the season, whilst the air is yet cool, do not succeed so well in setting when the blossoms are exposed to as much as 100°, which they frequently are, against a south wall. The thin canvass admits also plenty of air ; while woollen netting, which it might be thought would admit still more air, was found to render the leaves too tender, in which case they suffer from the in- tensity of the light when the netting is removed. Common thread netting is not liable to produce this effect, being much more airy ; and this netting has the advantage, when not placed farther than a foot from the wall, of ad- mitting of the trees being syringed through it. Very little syringing, how- ever, is required till the trees are out of blossom, and none while they are in blossom ; and when the space between the canvass and the wall is nine inches wide at top, and four feet wide at the bottom, as in the Horticultural Society's garden, the syringing can be very well performed in the space within. Perhaps it would be an improvement in the case of the Horticul- tural Society's wall to have the coping as much as eighteen inches wide, as no frost, unless very severe indeed, wo»ild injure the blossoms of fruit-trees PORT^VBLE, TEMPORARY, AND M0VI5ABI.E STRUCTURES. 175 trained against a wall with such a projection ; but the iron fastenings for such a coping would require to he much stronger than for nine-inch copings on account of the greater power which the wind would have over them. 464. Canvass Shades to Hothouses. — A very complete mode of rolling up and letting down canvass over the roofs of hothouses was put in practice in the kitchen-garden at Syon by Mr. Forrest ; and as it is equally well adapted for covering awnings for tulip-beds or other florist's flowers, and for a va- riety of other garden purposes, we shall here give such details as will enable any intelligent blacksmith or carpenter to construct the apparatus. The canvass is fixed to a roller of wood, fifty or sixty feet in length, the length depending on the diameter of the pole or rod, fig. 116, o, and the toughness Fig. 115. Apparatus for rolling up and letting down canvass shades. of the timher employed, as well as the dimensions and strength of all the other parts. On one end of this rod, and not on both, as is usual, a ratchet- wheel, b, is fixed, with a plate against it, c, so as to form a pulley-groove, d, between, to which a cord is fastened ; and about three inches further on the rod is fixed a third iron wheel, about six inches in diameter and half an inch thick, e. This last wheel runs in an iron groove, f, which extends along the end rafter or end wall of the roof to he covered. The canvass or netting being sewed together of a sufBcient size to cover the roof, one side of it is nailed to a slip of wood placed against the back wall — that is, along the upper ends of the sashes ; the other side is nailed to the rod, a. When the canvass is rolled up, it is held in its place under a coping, g, by a ratchet, h ; and when it is to be let down, the cord, t, of the roll is loosened with one hand, and the ratchet cord, k, pulled with the other, when the canvass unrolls with its own weight. The process of pulling it up again need not be described. The most valuable part of the plan is, that the roll of canvass, throughout its whole length, winds up and lets down without a single wrinkle, notwithstanding the pulley-wheel is only on one end. This is owing to the weight of the rod, and its equal diameter throughout. n2 176 WALLS, ESPALIER-RAILS, AND TRELLIS -WORE. 465. The common hotbed frame is a bottomless box, commonly six feet wide, and three, six, or eigliteen feet in length, formed of boards from one to two inches in tWckness. The height at the back may be two feet, and in front one foot. The bottom should be level, so tliat the sides and the sashes laid on the frame may slope from back to front. A three-light or three-sashed frame is divided by two cross bars or rafters, so as to leave a space between them from two feet nine inches to three feet for the width of the sash. It is placed either on the open ground, or on a mass of heating material, according to the purpose for which it is wanted, and, ex- cepting for particular purposes, facing the sun. As the great object of frames is to increase temperature witliout excluding light, the soil on wliich they are placed, or the dungbed or other means of heating which they cover, ought to be as dry as possible, either naturally or by artificial drainage ; and the glass ought to be clear, and so glazed as to permit as little air a." possible to escape between the laps. When common crown glass is used, small panes are found to be less liable to breakage than large ones of this kind of glass ; but when the sheet window-glass is used, from its greater thickness, the panes may be two or three feet in length, without mucli danger of breakage. The boards used for the frame should be of the best red deal ; and if, after being prepared for fitting together, they are thoroughly dried on a kiln, and afterwards soaked with train-oil in the manner which we have described (452) for preparing wooden props, the duration of the frame will be greatly in- creased. All frames and sashes, when not in use, should be kept in an open airy shed, and there raised from the ground a few inches by supports of bricks or other suitable materials. In gardens where cucumbers and melons are grown extensively, there are commonly one or more small frames with single lights for raising seedlings, and others of two or three lights for winter or early spring crops ; the smallness of the frame allowing a greater command of the heating material beneath it, by the application of outside casings of warm dung. The back, front, and ends of frames are generally permanently fixed together by tenons and mortices, and by being nailed to posts in the four inner angles ; but in some cases the back and sides are fastened together by keyed iron bolts, which readily admit of separating the frame into pieces, and laying these away under cover, and in little space, when not required for use. From the short duration of frames, and from the great quantity of dung required to heat them, as well as from the waste of heat incuned in preparing that dung, frames are now, in most British gardens, being re- placed by pits, which may be called fixed frames, with brickwork substi- tuted for wood. Sect. II. — Fixed Structures used in Huitlculliire. The fixed structures required in gardens are chiefly walls, espalier rails, trellis and lattice-work, and structures for containing growing plants. Subsect. 1. Walls, Espalier-rails, and Trellis-work. 466. Walls are used for the protection of gardens, and also as furnishing surfaces on which fruit-trees and ornamental plants may be ti'ained, with a view to producing increase of temperature and protection from high winds : they may be considered in regard to direction, material, height, foundation, coping, and general constiiiction. ■WALLS, ESPALIER-RAILS, AND TRELLIS- WORK. 177 467. Direction and material. — Boundary walls take the direction indi- cated by the form of the ground to be enclosed ; but walls built purposuly for training trees, in the interior of a garden, are varied in direction according to the aspects which are considered most desirable. A wall in the direction of east and west, gives one side of the wall fully exposed to the sun for the finer fraits, or for fixing against it glass structures : while the north side of the wall may be employed for inferior fruits, for retarding crops, as well of fruit against the wall, as, in some cases, of vegetables on the border. A wall in the direction of north and south furnishes two good aspects for the second- ary fmits, such as apricots, plums, and the finer pears. Walls have been built in a curvilinear direction, but no advantage has been found from them excepting a saving of material, in proportion to the length of the wall, the curves having the same effect in resisting lateral pressure as buttresses ; but walls in situations exposed to high winds, built with projections at right angles, of the height of the wall and the width of the border, but somewhat sloped down from back to front, have been found beneficial in checking the course of the wind when in a direction parallel to the wall. Screen walls of this kind are frequently built at the exterior angles of the walls of kitchen- gardens ; and sometimes they occur at distances of from 100 to 200 feet along walls having a south aspect ; and in the case of east and west winds they are found very beneficial. Walls with piers at regular distances, allowing room for one trained tree between every two piers, have also been found beneficial from the shelter afforded by the piers, which at the same time greatly strengthen the wall, and admit of its being built thinner. In general, however, a straight wall, without projections of any kind, is most conve- nient, most suitable for training, and for protecting by temporary copings, and most agreeable to the eye. 4G8. The materials of walls are brick, stone, mud, and wood ; but the first is by far the best. Brick retains warmth, in consequence of its mnch greater porosity than stone ; forms a very strong wall with comparatively little substance, from the rectangular shapes of the bricks, and the firmness with which mortar adheres to them ; and it is the best of all walls for training on, from the small size of the bricks and the numerous joints between them. Add also, that from the porosity of the bricks, nails may even be driven sufficiently far into them to hold branches, as securely as nails driven info the joints. Stone walls are good in proportion as they approach to brick walls. For this reason, if the stone is not naturally porous and a bad conductor of heat, the walls should be built of extra thickness, and the stones should not be large, nor so rough as to make coarse joints The warmest walls of this kind are such as are of sufficient thickness to allow of the interior of the wall being built without mortar, in consequence of which much air is re- tained, and heat is not readily conducted from the warm side of the wall to the cold side. A stone wall, with a facing of bricks on the warm side, forms the next best wall to one entirely of brick ; and next to this, a stone wall stuccoed, plastered over with a mixture of stone lime and sharp sand, or coated over with Roman cement of good quality. Walls formed of earth or mud are still better non-conductors than brick walls; but though they are warm, yet as surfaces for training trees on they are attended with several disadvantages. They cannot conveniently be built high, and whatever may be their height, they require the coping to project farther than is benijficial to the plants framed on them at any other season than in early spring ; and 178 WALLS, ESPALIER-EAILS, AND THELLIS-V/OBK. they require a trellis on which to fasten the plants. Nevertheless the vine and the peach have been successfully grown against such walls at various places in the neighbourhood of Paris, though they are now rapidly giving ■way to stone walls. These walls are commonly built without mortar, ex- cepting to close the outside joints, or to plaster over the surface of the waU as a substitute for a trellis, which is always used when this is not done. The grapes at Thomery, near Foutainebleau, are chiefly grown on trellised walls of this kind ; and the peaches at Montreuil, near Paris, are chiefly on stone walls stuccoed. Walls formed of boards are frequent in the north of Europe, where timber is abundant ; but, except when the boards are five or six inches in thickness, they are very cold. In Holland, and more particu- larly in Sweden, when such walls form the backs to hothouses, they are thatched from top to bottom. In Britain, were it not for the expense of the material, boarded walls might in many cases be adopted instead of brick ; more especially in the case of walls built in the direction of north and south, because in them the air is of nearly the same temperature on both sides : whereas in an east and west wall, the heat produced by the sun on the south side is being continually given out to the much colder north side. Boarded walls two or three centuries ago afforded the only means, in the neighbour- hood of London, of forring the cherry, the only fruit which at that time was attempted to be produced out of season. The boarded wall or fence was placed in the direction of east and west, the cherries planted against it on the south side, and casings of hot dung on the north, close to the boards. To derive the full advantage from the south side of an east and west wall, it ought to be of greater thickness than a south and north wall under the same circumstances ; because, from the much greater cold of the north side, the south side is continually liable to have the heat abstracted from it in that direction. A south and north wall, on the other hand, can never become so hot on either side as an east and west wall does on the south side ; and as it receives its heat equally on both sides, so it loses it equally. Where a east and west wall is thin, and consequently cold, it might become worth while, when it was desirable to retain as much heat on the south side as possible, to thatch it on the north side during the winter and spring months. The great advantage of covering with some protecting material the north sides of walls in spring, when trees are in blossom, may be infereed from the case of trees trained against dwelling-houses, which invariably set their blossoms better than trees against unprotected garden-walls. 469. The height of garden-walls may vary according to the object in view, but it is rarely necessary to be moi-e than twelve or fifteen feet, or less than six feet. In kitchen-gardens the highest wall is generally placed on the north side, as well to protect the garden from north winds as to admit of a greater surface for training on exposed to the full sun, and to form, if ne- cessary, a back sufficiently high for forcing-houses. The east and west boundary walls are commonly made two or three feet lower than the north wall, and the south wall somewhat lower stiU. The usual proportions in a garden of three acres are 17, 14, and 12 ; for gardens of one acre, 14, 12, and 10 ; that part of the north wall against which the forcing-houses are placed being in small gardens raised somewhat higher than the rest. Twelve feet is found to be a sufficient height for peach and apricot trees ; but tor pears and vines it may be one half more ; and indeed for vines there is scarcely any limit. WAILS, ESPALIER-KAILS, AND TRELLIS-WOBK. .179 470. The foundations of garden- walls should be at least as deep as the ground is originally dug or trenched. The wall is sometimes supported on arches ; but this is not in general desirable, more especially in walls built in the direction of east and west, because the roots of the trees planted on the one side of the wall are liable to extend themselves to the border on the opposite side, which not being exposed to the same temperature as that on the other side, the excitement which they receive from atmospheric tempera- ture must necessarily be different, and consequently unfavourable to growth and the ripening of fruit and wood. 471. TAe copin^r* o/'juaWs, for ordinary purposes, should not project more than two or three inches, because a greater projectio.i would deprive the leaves of the trees of perpendicular rains in the summer season ; and in spring the trees can be .protected from the frost by temporary wooden copings, as already mentioned (463). In order to admit of fixing these wooden copings securely, iron brackets should be built into the wall imme- diately under the coping : or, where temporary rafters are to be fixed to the wall for supporting sashes, stones, such as fig. 116, may be built in, to which the rafters may be fitted and fixed by a tenon and pin, as indicated in fig. 117, Along the front border, a row of stone or iron posts, not lising higher than the surface, may be permanently iixed, on which a temporary front wall or plate, for the lower ends of the rafters, may be placed. The garden-walls for ar- rangements of this kind should be flued. Tig. n6. sioiie/m- fixing temporary rafters. Stones for fixing rafters Can oiily be wanted on the south sides of east and west walls, because glass is seldom placed before walls with any but a south aspect. Iron brackets, to support temporary copings, may be placed on all aspects ex- cept that of the north. The per- manent coping is generally form- ed of flagstone, slate, artificial stone, tiles or bricks, and raised in the middle so as to throw the rain-water equally to each side ; and in the case of stone, a groove or throating is formed under- neath, an inch within the edge, to prevent the water from run- ning down and rotting the mor- tar. Where the coping is very broad, and formed of flagstone. Fig 117. Mode of fixing Umporary rafters. it is sometimes hollowed out along the middle, so as to collect the rain-water, from which it is conveyed to a drain along the foundation of the wall by pipes ; but this mode is only necessary in the case of conservatory walls. Where no trees are planted on the ni,rth side of an east and west wall, the coping is sometimes bevelled, so as to throw the rain-water to the north side as in fig. 117; but tliis can never be advisable where trees are trained there. 180 WALLS, ESPALIER-RAILS, AND TRELLIS-WORK. Fig. 118. Plan of a hollow brick wall 14 inches wide and 12 feet high. 472. In the construction of walls they are generally built solid ; l)Ut when the wall is formed entirely of brick, a saving of material is obtained, as well as a warmer wall produced, by building them hollow. There are various modes of effecting this, but one of the simplest is that shown by the plan fig. 118, in which a wall fourteen inches wide, with a vacuity of five inches and a half, may be built ten or twelve feet high with little more than the materials requisite for a solid wall nine inches wide. Such walls may be carried to the height of ten or twelve feet without any piers, and one advantage attending them is that they can be built with a smooth face on both sides, whereas a solid nine-inch wall can only be worked fair on one side. A still more economical wall may be formed by placing the bricks on edge, which wUl give a width of twelve inches that may be can-ied to the height of ten feet without piers. Walls of both kinds have been employed in the construction of cottage buildings, as well as in gardens. (See Encyc. of Cottage Architecture, p. 168 to 172, where several kinds of hollow walls are described.) A very strong wall, only seven and a half inches in thick- ness, may be formed of bricks of the common size, and of bricks of the same length and thickness, but of only half the width of the common bricks, by which means the wall can be worked fair on both sides. The bricks are laid side by side, as ia fig. 119, in which a represents the first course, and 6 the second course. The bond, or tying together of both sides of the wall, is not obtained by laying bricks across (technically, headers), Vy^.n^. Plan of a hrick wan n inches thich. but by the full breadth bricks covering half the breadth of the broad bricks when laid over the narrow ones, as shown in the dissected horizontal section, fig. 119, at 6, and in the vertical section, fig. 120. Besides the advantage of being built fair on both sides, there being no headers, or through and through bricks, in these walls, when they are used as out- side walls the rain is never conducted through the wall, and the inside of the wall is consequently drier than the inside of a w^all nine inches in thickness. These walls are adapted for a variety of pui'poses in house-building and gardening, in the latter art more especially. The only drawback that we know against them is, that the narrow or half-breadth bricks must be made on purpose. For the division walls of a large garden, or for the boundary wall of a small one, such walls with piera II I projecting eighteen inches or two feet, to enable the walls to be carried to the height of ten or twelve feet, might be econo-- 'view 0/ a 71- ™ioally adopted : the space between the piers ought not to be in. thick brick greater than can be covered by a single tree. It must be """"• acknowledged, however, that piers are not desirable in fruit- walls, because when the wall is newly built it cannot so soon be covered with trees, the piers standing in the places where temporary trees would be planted. Piers, however, on conservatory walls may be turned to good account, both as assisting in supporting the temporaiy copings or WALLS, ESPALIEB-KAILS, AND TKELLIS-WORK. 131 glass, and as heightening architectural effect. Walls are almost always built perpendicularly to the horizon, but they have been tried at different degi-ees of inclination to it, in order to receive the sun's rays at right angles when he is highest in the firmament during summer; but though some advantage may probably have been obtained from such walls at that season, yet the great loss of heat by radiation during spring and autumn would probably be found greatly to overbalance the gain during summer. Nicol informs us that he constructed many hundred feet of boarded walls which reclined considerably towards the north, in order to present a better angle to the sun, but he does not inform us of the result ; a German gardener, lioiv- ever, has found advantage from them. (Sec Nicol's Kal. p. 149, and Hort. Trans, vol. iv. p. 140.) 473. Trellised walls. — Where the surface of a garden wall is too rough, or is formed of too large stones to admit of conveniently attaching the branches of trees to it, by nails and shreds, it becomes necessary to fix to the wall trellis-work of wood or of wu'e. The laths or wires are generally placed perpendicularly six or eight inches apart, because the branches are generally trained horizontally, or at some angle between horizontal and pei-pendicular. Wires stretched horizontally, however, and screwed tight, form the most economical description of trellis; and if occasionally painted, they will last a number of years. Trellis-work of wood is more architectural, and the branches are more readily fixed to them by ties, which are apt to slide along the small wire unless the double operation is performed of first attaching the tie to the wire, and then tying it to the shoot of the tree. The colour both of the wire and the woodwork should not differ much from that of the stone of the wall, otherwise it will become too conspicuous. 474. Colouring the surface of walls blade, with a view to the absorption of heat, has been tried by a number of persons, and by some it has been con- sidered beneficial ; but as the radiation during night and in cloudy weather is necessarily in proportion to the absorption during sunshine, the one ope- ration neutralizes the other. If, indeed, we could insure a powerful absorp- tion from a bright sun during the day, and retain the radiation by a canvass or other screen during the night, a considerable increase of temperature might probably be the result ; but the number of cloudy days in our climate in proportion to those of bright sunshine is not favourable to such an ex- periment. 475. Flued walls are either built entirely of brick, or with one side of brick and the other of stone ; the latter being the north side of east and west walls. In the case of north and south walls which are to be flued, the thickness is equal on both sides, and the wall is built entirely of brick. The flues, which are generally from six to eight inches wide, commence about one foot above the surface of the border ; the first course is from two to three feet high, and each successive course is a few inches lower, till the last flue, within a foot of the coping, is about eighteen inches high. The thickness of that side of the flue next the south should, for the first course, be four inches, or the width of a brick laid flatways ; and for the other courses it is desirable to have the bricks somewhat narrower, on account of the heat being less powerful as the smoke ascends. All the bricks, however, whatever may be their width, must be of the same thickness, in order to preserve uniformity in the external appearance of the wall. As where garden walls are to be built a large supply of bricks is requisite, no difficulty need occur in getting 182 WALLS, ESPALIER-KAILS, AND TRELLIS- WORK, such a quantity as might be requisite for the iiued walls made of any con- venient width. To prevent the risk of overheating the trees by the flues, trellises are sometimes applied against them for training on ; but where the wall is properly constructed, and only moderate fires kept, they are unneces- sary. A great improvement in flued walls has been made by Mr. Shiells, gardener at Erskine House, Renfrewshire, who, though the garden is in one of the worst climates of Scotland, has been singularly successful in ripening grapes, figs, peaches, &c., on these walls without the aid of glass. Mr. Shiells places the furnace, as usual, at the back of the wall, about eighteen inches from it, and two feet below the surface of the gi-ound. To prevent the roots of the trees on the south side of the wall from being injured by the heat, a wall of four-inch brickwork is carried up opposite the furnace with a two-inch cavity between them. From the furnace the smoke and heated air enter the wall at c, in fig. 121, over which, at o, there is a damper, by O Fig. 121. Longitudinal section of a fined wall, means of which the heat throughout the whole wall is regulated. When this damper is drawn about four inches, a sufficient portion of the smoke and heated air pass through the two under flues to produce the necessary degree of heat in them ; while another portion of the smoke and heat rises directly to the third flue, by which it, and the fourth or upper flue, are heated a little more than the two lower ones. This Mr. Shiells considers a great advantage, because the upper part of the wall is more exposed to the cold air, and less benefited by the reflection of heat from the ground than the lower part ; besides, the shoots there are generally more luxuriant and spongy, and would be later in ripening than those on the lower part of the wall, if they did not acquire an extra degree of artificial heat. Sometimes, therefore, it is desirable to warm only the upper part of the wall, and this is readily done by withdrawing the damper, when the whole of the smoke and heated air will rise direct to the third flue ; and thus, more especially if only a small fire is made, the desired result will be obtained without warming the lower part of the wall at all. By reducing the communication between the fii'st and the second flue at a, to about thirty square inches, the damper may be dispensed with : because iu that case a sufficient portion of the heat would rise direct through this opening to the third flue, and so heat as efiectually the upper part of the wall as the lower part ; but by retaining the damper, the heat can be regulated more effectually. The depth of the first or lowest flue is two feet six inches; of the second, two feet; of the third, two feet three inches ; and of the fourth, one foot six inches : the width of all of them is seven inches and a half. The bottom of the lowest flue is about one foot above the surface of the ground, and the top of the upper flue within seven inches of the coping : the total thickness of the wall is about one foot nine inches ; viz., the width of a brick in front, the length of a brick behind, and the remainder for the width of the flue. About two yards of the front of the wall at the warm end of the flues is built rather thicker on WALLS, ESPALIER-KAILS, AKD TBELLIS-WOKK. 183 the front aide, to prevent any risk of tlie heat injuring tlie trees, whicii thickness is taken partly off the width of the flue and partly off the back part of the wall. The flues are not plastered, and in each there are four places for cleaning it out, 9 in. wide and 1 ft. deep ; each of these is filled with four bricks lengthways, not laid in mortar, but only pointed on the outside, so as to be readily taken out to free the flues from soot. There are twelve divisions of flued wall at Erskine House ; four planted with peach and nectarine trees, three with the finer pears, two with apricots, one with cherries, one with figs, and one with vines. Fires are applied both in spring and autumn, and the trees are covered by double or single netting at both seasons, according to circumstances. — See Mr. Shiells, in Gard. Mag., 1841. 476. Conservative Walls. — Flued walls for growing half-hardy or green- house shrubs require a somewhat different arrangement from those intended for fruit trees ; chiefly because in the former case it is necessary, in order to preserve the plants through the autumn and winter, to keep the border from perpendicular rains, at least to the width of three or four feet. For this purpose a temporary roofing is made to project over the border, immediately from under the fixed coping. This temporary roofing may be formed of hurdles thatched with straw, or reeds fixed by hooks close below the coping of the wall, and resting on a front rail, supported by posts at regular dis- tances. The posts may either be poles with the bark on let into the ground, or prepared from sawn timber and let into fixed stone hases. The straw on the hurdles should be disposed lengthways in the direction of the slope, in order to throw off the rain ; and the eaves ought to drop on a broad gutter of boards or tiles, or in a firm path from which the water may be carried off in drains, so as not to moisten that part of the border which is under the hurdles. The border should be thoroughly drained, and an under-ground four-inch wall may be built at the same distance from the wall as the bases to the posts, on which wall these bases may be placed. In order to enjoy the full advantage of flues to a conservatory wall, glass frames should be used during the autumn, instead of thatched hurdles, so as to admit the light at the same time that rain was excluded ; and afterwards the glass might be covered so as to retain heat, or thatched hurdles might be substituted. 477. A Protected Trellis, with Moveable Glass Sashes, for ripening early fruit, has been long in use at Hylands, Bulstrode, and Strathfieldsaye ; having been originally imported from Holland. — (5ee Gard. Mag., vol. ix., p. (!75.) Some of these protected trellises are double, with reeds in the centre, so as to form a kind of wall. One erected at Hylands, in Essex, the plan of which is shown in fig. 122, and the section in fig. 123, may bo a £_ 6 Fig. 122 Flan of a reed wall. described as ten feet high, and consisting of a double trellis, a, b, composed of horizontal laths about eight inches apart ; a coping-board, c, nine inches broad ; the reeds placed endwise within the trellis, d, and supported about a foot from the gi-ound to keep them from rotting ; this interval of a foot being filled up with slates, placed on edge, e. The trellis rods are nailed to posts, fig. 122,/, and by taking off a few of these rods on one side, the reed mats can be taken out and removed. Russian mats would no doubt answer very well, and last a long time, and they might be taken (Jut with 184 WALLS, ESPALIER- RjVILS, AKD TKELLIS-WORK. still less trouble. Straw mats (446) would also do, where reeds could not c be got ; and heath, as being of a dark colour and very durable, would make the best of all struc- tui-es of this kind. Peaches, grapes, and other fruits, ripen just as well on these structures as on brick walls, both in Holland and England. The trellis at Strathfieldsaye resembled low pits when we saw tliem in 1833, with the glass oji, and the peaclies, apricots, and figs, ripened on them about a month sooner than on the open walla. Similar structures (made, for economy, of coarse wood, rough from the saw, 1 have lately been erected by Mr. Rivers of Sawbridgeworth, and Mr. Bellenden Ker. 478. Espalier-rails are substitutes for walls, commonly placed in borders parallel to walks. The commonest form is nothing more than a row of perpendicular stakes driven into the soil, about eight inches apart, centre from centre, about five feet high, and connected by a rail at top. Wlien the stakes are of larch with the bark on, or when tliey are of oali with their lower ends charred, they last five or six years ; but in general they are of shorter duration, and continually requii-ing repair. Framework of prepared timber well painted, supported from the ground by sockets of stone, are much more durable, and still more so espalier-rails formed entirely of cast iron. In every case, however, when eitlier wooden or cast iron framework is used, the stones which support it ought to be raised two or three inches above the surface of the ground, not only because this is more architectural, but because it contributes to the presei-vation of tlie iron or the wood. Wlien the stone bases are to support timber, the posts should not be let into tlie stone, because in that case water is apt to lodge and rot them ; but tlie stone should be bevelled from the centre, and a Fig. 123. Section of a reed u,M. ^^^g] ^f ;,.„„ ^^ ^.^^j inserted in it, so as to p.iss into the lower end of the post. If the post is let into the stone, it should be set in lead, pitch, or asphalte. In our Villa Gardener, pp. iJ3 1 and 232, we hiivu shown two very economical espalier-i-ails formed of hoop iron and iron wire, which we have had in use upwards of fifteen years, without requiring any other repairs than that of being once coated over with gas liquor. A very light and elegant espalier-rail, and perhaps the most economical of any, consists of iron standards let into blocks of stone, strong wires being stretched through the standards ; and at the extremities of each straight length the standards are braced by stay bars, and a connecting bar holding the two together ; the upper end of the stay bar being screwed to the main post. The triangle thus formed at each end of a straight line of trellis admits of straining the wires perfectly tight. A structure of this kind was first used as an espalier for trees at Carclew, in Cornwall ; but it has been frequently put up in various WALLS, ESPALIER-RAILS, AND TRELLIS-TVORK. 185 parts of the country in pleasure-grounds, to separate the lawn from the park, by Mr. Porter, of Thames-street, London, and others, at a charge of from 2s. to 5s. a yard, accordmg to circumstances. The chief difficulty in erecting this fence is to strain the wires perfectly tight ; but this is eifected by screws and a peculiar apparatus which it is unnecessary here to describe. Those who wish to study the details will find them in the Gard. Mag. vol. xvi. p. 16. Fences or espalier rails of this description are most easily erected when in a straight line; but by means of under-ground braces, either of iron, wood, or stone, they may be erected on any curve whatever. Where effect is any consideration, the braces should in every case be concealed under ground. When trellis-work is placed against walls, or against any object which it is desired to conceal, it may be wholly covered by the plants trained on it ; but where it is placed in any position by which it will be seen on both sides (such as when it forms the supports to a verandah, or a summer-house, or a treUised arcade over a walk), the surface must not be entirely covered by the plants ; because it is desirable that leaves and blos- soms should be seen on both sides, and this can only be done effectively by the partial admission of direct light through the interstices or meshes of the trellis-work. A trellised walk closely covered with the most ornamental roses will show no more beauty to a person walking within, than if it were covered with the most ordinary plants ; but let partial openings be made in the covering of roses, and their leaves and blossoms will be seen hanging down over the head of the spectator, forming a perspective of flowei-s and foliage, instead of one presenting only the branches and the footstalks, and backs of the leaves. 479. Trellises and lattice-work are constructed either of wood or iron, or of both materials combined ; and though lattice-work, by which we mean trellis-work with the meshes or spaces between the intersections smaller than is usual for the purposes of training, is chiefly required in ornamental structures, yet it is occasionally used for supporting fruit-trees, and for culi- nary plants, such as Cucumbers. In order to render trellis-work durable and architectural, it ought never to rise directly out of the soil, but always be supported either by the wall or frame against which it is placed, or when it is independent, by bases of stone. This is almost always neglected both in kitchen and ornamental gardens, in consequence of which the construction is unsatisfactory to the artistical eye, and the posts, or other parts which rise out of the soil, decay long before the superstructure. Where espalier- rails of this, or of any other kind, are put up in flower-gardens for supporting shrubs which come early into flower, such as the Pyrus japonica. Wistaria sinensis, China roses, &c., they may be easily protected by a moveable coping of boards, like an inverted gutter, which can be dropped on or taken ofi^ in a very few minutes. Trellis- work in kitchen-gardens is commonly employed against walls, to which it is attached by iron bolts through the wall, or by holdfasts driven into it ; and the latlis are about an inch square, and placed vertically, and let into horizontal bars of larger dimensions, placed three or four feet apart, and fixed to the wall in the manner just mentioned. The distance of the laths fiora the wall need not be above half an inch, as that is sufficient to allow the ties to be passed behind them and the wall. In order to economise space in small gardens, ivlr. Alexander Forsyth proposes to cover the walks with trellis- work for the support of frait-trees. " Kvcry species of hardy fiiiit-bearing tree and 186 WALLS, ESPALIER-RAILS, AND TRELLIS-WORK. shvub," he says, " may be trained on curvilinear trellises, as in figs. 124 and 125, over the walks and thoroughfares of the garden ; which walks, wfien Fig. 124. Treltised arcade for Fruit-trees. Fig. 125. Trellis for Climbers, once properly drained, paved, and trellised with cast-iron arches and wire rods, will remain cost-free, painting excepted, for twenty years ; at the end of which term, independently of the increase of fruit, and of the grateful shade and pleasing promenade that they will afford, they will be found cheaper than the walks made of gravel, in the same way that a slated roof is far cheaper in the long-run than one thatched. Besides the difference in daily comfort and annual expenditure in vralks paved with slate, slabs, or flag- stone, at all seasons clean, and ready to be traversed by the foot or the wheel- barrow alike in frost and in thaw, there will be no more danger of dessert strawberries or garnishing parsley, when grown as edgings, being mingled with the coal-ashes in the walks ; no more cleaning and rolling of gravel ; and no planting and clipping of box." Fig. 126 shows the plan of the paving and pillars at the intersections of the walks, with the small foot-paths outside, for conducting the culture of the com- partments. In open, airy situations where hedges for shelter are desirable, ■■^ trellises of this sort might frequently be adopted as substitutes both in kitchen ..Z" and flower gardens. Single lines of trellis-work, or even of frames to be filled in with wire network, might also be adopted as sources of shelter in spring ; and in summer they might be covered , . ... . , with kidney-beans, peas, gourds, toma- PlaH showing the tntersectto?i (u „ mi treUiseii teaiiix. tas, uasturtiums, &c. 1 he Wire netting -p FIXED STRUCTURES FOR GROWING PLANTS, WITH GLASS ROOFS. 18? to fit into such framework can be made by common country workmen and their families, as is the case in various parts of Norfolk, both with hempen and wire netting, for hare and rabbit fences, and for folding sheep. — (See Gard. Mag- vol. xv. page 222.) Subsect. 2. Fixed Structures for growing plants with glass roofs. 480. Plant-houses axe required in gardens for forcing the productions of the open air into maturity earlier than would otherwise be the case ; for retard- ing these productions, as in ripening grapes late and preserving them through the winter hanging on the tree ; and for the growth of plants of warm climates. Hence it follows that all the requisites for growing plants in the open air in their natural climate must be imitated in plant-houses. As the grand difference between one climate and another lies in difference of temperature (135), hence one principal desideratum in hothouses is to supply heat, without which nothing can be done either in forcing hardy plants, or hi preserving those of warm climates. Next to heat, moisture is the most important agent in growth (140, 144), and that element is readily supplied both to the soil and the atmosphere ; but though heat and water are sufficient to induce growth, it cannot be continued or perfected without the hifluence of light, and unfortunately this is only in a very limited degree at the command of art. All that can be done in plant-houses with reference to light is, so to construct them as to admit the degi-ee of light which is pro- duced in the atmosphere of the particular climate and locality ; and this, as every one knows, is effected by roofing plant-houses with glass. For grow- ing certain fungi, and for forcing some roots, very little light is necessary ; and where ripened crops of fruit are to be retained on the trees and retarded, light, at least direct solar light, may be in a great measure dis- pensed with. The retention or production of heat therefore, and the admis- sion of light, are the great objects to be kept in view, in deciding on the situation, form, and construction of hothouses. 481. Situation. — In choosing a situation with reference to the surrounding country, the north side of a sheltered basin, on the south side of a hill and open to the south, with a dry warm soil, is to be preferred. The object of this choice is to have as little heat as possible carried off, either by the evaporation of surface water, or by N., N. E., or N. W. vrinds. If the surface of the soil is hard and smooth so as to carry off the winter rains and thawing snows, without allowing them to sink into and cool the soil, so much the better. It is seldom, however, that these conditions can be fulfilled to their utmost extent ; because not only such situations are not frequent in nature, but that even where they do exist, the situation for the hothouses is determined by the artificial circumstances connected with the house, offices, and grounds. For ornamental structures the situation chosen is generally some part of the pleasure-ground, or flower-garden, not far from the dwelling- house ; and forcing-houses are generally placed in the kitchen- garden, or in some place intermediate between it and the stable offices (^Sub. Arch, and Land- scape Gardener, p. 412). Wherever the situation may be, the soil and sub-soil ought to be rendered perfectly dry by drains so placed as to intercept all sub- terraneous water, from whatever direction it may come ; and by surface- gutters, or the surfaces of walks, &c., so arranged as to carry off the water of cold rains and thawing snows, without allowing it to sink into and cool the soil. The next point is to produce artificial shelter, by walls, or other buildings, so placed as to check the winds which blow from cold quarters 188 FIXED STRUCTURES FOR GROWING vrithout obstructing the south and south-east winds, and the morning and evening sun. The amount of heat canied off by winds which are at a lov/er temperature than the surface they pass over, is great in proportion to the velocity of the wind, and the moisture of the surface, and hence the much greater ease with which the temperature of a greenhouse may be kept up when it is placed in a sheltered, rather than in an exposed situation ; for example, in the concave side of a curvilinear wall, rather than against a straight wall. 482. The Form. — The most perfect form for the admission of solar light and heat is that of a semi-globe of glass, because to some part of this form the sun's rays will be perpendicular every moment while he shines, and at every time of the year ; and by it a maximum of light will be admitted at those periods when he does not shine (281) ; but this form excepting under parti- cular circumstances, that, for example, in which there was a double glass dome, or in which only a temperature of a few degrees above that of the open ail- was required to be kept up, would occasion too great a loss of heat, either for economy or the health of the plants ; for when heat is rapidly conducted away and "rapidly supplied by art, it is found extremely difficult to obtain a sufficient degree of atmospheric moisture for healthy vegetation (267 to 271 ), For these reasons a semi-dome is preferable to a semi-globe, because the glazed side being placed next the sun the other side may be opaque, so as to reflect back both heat and light, and it may be made so complete a non-con- ductor as not to allow the escape of any heat. There is an objection, however, to the general adoption of the semi-dome, because it is found (281) that the rays of light after passing through glass-roofs, lose their influence on the plants within in proportion to their distance from the glass. Hence for general purposes a long narrow house is the best ; and hence also herbaceous plants are grown best in pots in frames ; and were it not for the quantity of glass that would be required, all shrubby and climbing plants would be grown to the highest degree of perfection if trained on trellises parallel to the glass roofing, and at no great distance within it. In pits and frames, herba- ceous or low plants are nearer the glass than they can ever be m large houses, in which, unless they are placed on shelves close under the roof, they are either at a distance from the glass, as in the body of the house, or they pre- sent only one side to it, as when they are placed near the front glass. There is another reason in favour of narrow houses where perfection of growth and economj- is an object, which is, that a considerable portion of the heat by which the temperature of hothouses is maintained, is supplied by the sun. The power of the sun therefore wiU be great on the atmosphere within, inversely as is cubic contents, compared with the superficial con- tents of the glass enclosing it. Thus, suppose one house to be twenty feet high and twenty feet wide, and another to be twenty feet high and only ten feet wide, the contents of the foraier will be exactly double that of the latter ; at the same time, instead of containing double the surface of glass on its roof, it wUl contain scarcely one third more ; being nearly in the propor- tion of twenty-eight for the house of double volume, to not fourteen, or one half, but twenty-two, for the one of half the internal capacity. In tlie wide house every square foot of glass has to heat upwards of seven cubic feet of air; in the narrow house only about four and a half Icet {Gardener's Magazine, volume xiii. page 15). There are, however, plaiit-liouses erected not merely for growing plants, but for walking into in order to enjoy them ; and in these, other considerations interfere with PLANTS, WITH GLASS ROOFS. 1P9 riijiii economy both in heating and lighting. The form of plant-hoases therefore, must be determined by the object in view, and the means at com- mand. For early and for late forcing, nan-ow houses with upright glass, or glass at a very steep slope, are preferable, as giving but a small volume of air to be heated, and as admitting the sun's rays at a right angle, at those seasons when he is low in the horizon, and above it only for a short time. For summer forcing the angle of the roof may be larger, and of course its slope less steep ; for greenhouses and plant stoves, in which plants are to be grown all the year, there should be a portion of the roof with the glass very steep, or upright front ^lass, for admitting the sun's rays in winter. The roofs of such houses may be at a large angle, say from 35" to 45" with the horizon, which is more favourable for throwing oiF rain, and also for resisting hail, than a flatter surface. For growing herbaceous plants and young plants, and for the general pur- poses of propagation, whether by seeds, cuttings, or layers, a low flat house, in which the glass shall be near to sfU the plants, as in pits and frames, is the most convenient form ; though, when fruits are to be ripened in such houses in the winter season, the Hatness of the glass, and consequent obliquity of the sun's rays to it, is a great disadvantage. Hence, when such plants can be conveniently grown in pots, as in the case of strawberries, or bulbous or other flowers, it is desirable to have very steep glass, and to place the plants on shelves immediately within it, as practised by Mr. Wilmot, and other market-gar- (ioners, in such structures as fig. 127 ; or, when the plants are climbers, as the cucumber and melon, to train them up trellises parallel to the glass, and at a short distance within it, as in Ayres' cucumber-house. 483. Curmlineal roofs. — The ordinary form of the roofs of plant-houses is thatofaright-linedplane,liketheroof of any other building, but they have been also formed with curvilineal roofs, which, as compared with roofs having up- right glass with standards and wall-plates, more especially when the sash-bar is of iron, admit much more light. The ends of plant-houses are generally vertical planes, but in curvilineal houses they are sometimes of the same curvature as the front, which adds greatly to their beauty, as well as being favourable to the admission of the sun's rays, morning and evening, and to the transmission of difi^used light when the sun does not shine (282). Tlie only disadvantages attending curvilineal ends to plant-houses is, that the doors cannot be placed in these ends without some intricacy of construction ; but when such houses are placed against walls, as in fig. 128, they may be i_ Fig. 127. Steep-roofetX hoxt?^ for wiiitei^ forcing of plants in poUi. Fig. 128. Curvilineal glass rao/s. entered through a door made in the wall to a recess taken from the Lack shed, as shown by fig. 129, in which a, a, represent the plans of portions of J 90 FIXED STRUCTURES FOB GR0^VI^•O two cuTvilineal houses, 6, 6, back sheds to these houses ; and c, lofhy common to both. These houses may be ventilated by openings in the npycr Tig. 129, Ground plan of a cvrvilineal plant-house, with the etdrance through 3 i tpatt, part of the back wall, the orifice within being covered with pierced zinc, and wooden shutters moving in grooves sympathetically. Where a lobby cannot conveniently be made in the back shed, one door may be made in the centre of the front of each house, as at Messrs. Loddiges' ; and where the end is semicircular, a door might be made in it in a similar manner, or with a projection brought forward so as to form a porch : the mode represented in fig. 129 is, however, greatly preferable, as occasioning no obstruction to light. 484. Ridge and furrow roofs. — Roofs formed in the ridge and furrow manner, and even glass sashes so formed for pits, were tried by us many yeara ago {Encyc. of Gard. 1st edit.) : and the idea has been improved on, and applied in the happiest manner, by Mr. Paxton, at Chatsworth; and adopted by Mr. Marnock in the Sheffield Botanic Garden ; Jedediah Strutt, Esq., at Belper ; William Harrison, Esq., Cheshunt ; John Allcard, Esq., Stratford-Green ; and at various other places. The advantages of this descrip- tion of roof are : — 1. That the roof does not require to be raised so high behind, in proportion to its width, as in flat roofs; because the descent of the water does not depend on the general slope of the roof, but on the slope or the ridges towards the furrows ; and the water m these furrows, being con- fined to a narrow deep channel, and in a larger body than ever it can be on the glass, passes along with proportionate rapidity. — 2. That the morning and afternoon sun, by passing through the glass at right angles, produces more light and heat at these times of the day, when they are, of course, more wanted than at mid-day. — 3. The rays of the sun striking on the house at an oblique angle at mid-day, the heat produced in the house at that time is less intense than in houses of the ordinary kind, in which it is often injurious, by rendering it necessary to admit large quantities of the external air to lower the temperature. — i. More light is admitted at all seasons, on the principle that a bow window always admits more light to a room than a straight window of the same width (283). — 5. The panes of glass, if crown glass be employed, may be smaller than in houses the roofs of which are in one plane, and yet, from there being a greater number of them, admit an equal quantity of light ; from their smallness, also, they will cost less, and be less liable to be broken by the freezing of water between the laps. • — 6. By the employment of sheet window-glass, which is much thicker than crown-glass, panes of three or four feet in length may be used, so that only one pane need be required for each division, and consequently no lap being required, no breakage by frost can take place, and no heated air can escape. — And 7. That wind will have much less influence in cooling the roof, because the sides of the ridges will be sheltered by their summits. Mr, TLANTS, WITH GLASS ROOM. 191 I'axton, to whom the merit of this mode of roofing is entirely duo has also adopted an improvement in the construction of the sash-bar, vii!., hi\ra^ grooves for the panes instead of rebates (see figs. 130 and 131) ; the advantages of which grooves are, that less putty is required, and that what is used does not so readily separate from the wood, and thus admit the wet between the wood and the putty. The roofs of such houses are entirely fixed, and venti- lation is effected either by having the perpendicular ends of the ridges moveable Vig. 130. Section of an on hinges, Or by the front glass and ven- ■■"" ""''■''^'' f" tilators in the back wall. The expense grooves far the glass. .■,,,, , of this mode oi rooting is doubtless greater than by the common flat mode, but not so much so as might be expected, because the sash-bar can be formed lighter, and '''*'• "'• ^*°"'''" f "" ^ ' o 3 Kooden sash-bnr, where crown-glass is used the panes may be much smaller. „„va grooves for the For plant-houses the advantage of admitting the sun's s^'"'*- rays perpendicularly, early in the morning and late in the afternoon, wUl much more than compensate for any additional expense. In an archi- tectuml point of view, the merits of this mode of roofing are perhaps as great as they are with reference to culture : the roofs being lower, are less conspicuous, and the common shed-like appearance is taken away by the pediments which form the ends of the ridges, and appear in a range as a crowning parapet to the front glass. Indeed, if it were desirable, the tops of the ridges might be made perfectly horizontal, and all the slope that was necessary for carrying the water from back to front, or to both the side.', given in the gutters between the ridges, as is done in roofing common buildings of great width. Fig. 132 is a perspective view of a house Fig. 132. Perspective view of the originat ridge andfurrov) house at Cbatsworlh. erected by Mr. Paxton at Chatsworth, and fig. 133 a vertical profile of part of two ridges of the roof. It will he observed that the sash-bar is not in a o2 192 FIXED STRUCTURES FOR OROWIXG direction parallel to the pediments, but oblique to it. This is done to pw- vcnt the water from ninning down on one side of the glass, which it would do in consequence of the general slope of the ridge from the hack to tho Fig, 133. Vertical profile of pari of a ridge and furrow roof. frent if the bars were placed at right angles to the ridge. The angle at which the bars are fixed will vary with that formed by the slope of the ridge, and the mode of determining it is to place the bars so that the lap of the glas.?, which is in square panes, may form, when the panes are fitted in their places, lines truly horizontal. There are many persons, however, who attach no gi'eat importance to causing the water to run do\Tn the middle of the glass instead of one side ; and they will, of course, place the bars for holding the glass, parallel to the pediments, in order to avoid the sliort bars at the ends of the ridges, as seen in fig. 183. For more minute details respecting this mode of construction, we refer to Paoctons Magazine of Botany, vol. iL p. 80; and Gard. Mag. vol. xv. p. 452, and also tor 1841. 485. The materials used in the construction of plant-houses differ in nothing from those used in other buildings, except that where as much light as possible is required to be admitted, the framework for containing the glass is formed of iron or other metal, as supplying the requisite strength with less bulk than wood. The propoi'tion of opaque surface of an iron roof may be estimated at not more tlian 7 or 8 per cent, while in a wooden ro"f it is upwards of 20 per cent ; both roofs being in one plane and of the ordinary construction (279 and 281). Where sheet-glass is employed, and the panes made of more than ordinary length and width, as in the large conservatory recently erected in the Horticultural Society's garden, the pro- portion of light admitted in the case of iron roofs will be found stiU greater. Ridge and furrow roofs, if we take the area of the bases of the ridges as the total area of the roof, and then deduct from it the space occupied by the bars forming the sides of the ridges, and the ridge-pieces and gutters, will not appear to admit the same proportion of light as a roof in one plane ; but the practical result will be difiisrent, in consequence of the sun's rays being twice in the day perpendicular to one half of the roof, the advantage of which to the plants will far more than compensate for the obscuration produced by the greater proportion of sash-bars, which operating chieily at mid-day and in very hot weathei-, is rather an advantage than otherwise. To prove this, it is necessary first to know the law of the reflection of light from glass. 486. The law of the refection of light from glass was calculated by Bouguer, a French philosopher, in 1729, and is exhibited by the following figures; the first line representing the angles of incidence, and the second the number of rays reflected, exclusive of decimal parts. PLANTS, WITH GLASS ROOFS. 193 Angle of incidence 86<>, SO", TO", 600, 60», 40°, SO", 20", 10°, l". Per centage of rays reflected 60, 41, 22, 11, 6, 3, 2, 2, 2, 2. Now if we suppose a roof in one plane with the sun shining on it at six o'clock in the morning, and at six o'clock in the afternoon, at an angle of 85°, which would be the case in March and September, fully one half the rays which fell on the roof would be reflected ; while, in the case of a ridge and furrow roof, if he shone on half the roof, that is on one half of each of the ridges, at any angle with a perpendicular not exceeding 30", at the same periods, only 2 per cent of the rays would be reflected. Suppose, then, the area of the entire roof taken as one plane to be 100 square yards, and, to facilitate calculation, that only 100 rays fell on each yard, then the total number which would enter through the roof in one plane would be 60,000, wliile those which would enter through the ridge and furrow roof would be 99,000, or very nearly double the number. If we compare a roof in one plane with the framework of wood, with a similar one with the framework of iron, and take the space rendered opaque by the wood at 21 per cent, and by the iron at 7 per cent, then the greater number of rays admitted at all times by the iron roof over the wooden one will be as three to one. 487. Iron roofs have been objected to from their somewh it greater original expense, from their supposed liability to break glass by contraction and expansion, and from the iron being liable to conduct away heat in winter, and to become hot to such a degree as to be injurious to the plants in sum- mer. With respect to expense, that is, we believe, now considered the chief objection ; but though it may be heavier at first, yet it is amply compensated for by the greater durability of iron houses, when properly constmcted, and when the iron is never allowed to become rusty for want of paint. As a proof of the durability of iron hou*s, we may refer to the iron Camellia house at Messrs. Loddiges', erected in 1818, and the iron houses in the Horticultural Society's garden, which were erected, we believe, in 1823. The breakage of glass supposed to result from the contraction or expansion of the metal was at one time considered a very vy^eighty objection ; but the severe winter of 1837-8 did not occasion so much broken glass in iron as it did in wooden houses. A bar of malleable iron 819 inches in length, at a temperature of 32", only increases in length one inch, when heated to 212" ; but this differ- ence of 180° of temperature is more than plant-houses are liable to ; indeed 50° or 60° are as much as is necessary to be taken into account. If we sup- pose the iron-work is fitted at a period of the season when the temperature is 65°, then 50° lower would be within 5° of zero, and 50° higher would be 105° ; extremes which the u'on roof of a hothouse will seldom exceed. Now, according to the above data, a bar ten feet in length would extend or contract, by the addition or reduction of 60° of heat, l-25th of an inch as nearly as possible. An iron sash-bar, half-an inch thick between the two edges of the glass, would not expand in thickness, from 60° of heat, much more than one six-thousandth part of an inch. It may easily be conceived, there-- fore, that the lateral expansion of sash-bars, which are in general not quite half an inch in thickness, by any heat which they can receive on the roof of a hothouse, will never have any effect on the glass between them. To guard against all risk of breakage from this cause, however, it is only necessary not to At in the panes too tightly. Indeed, the objection may now be con- sidered as given up by all experienced hothouse-builders. The liability of 194 FIXED STRnCTCRES FOR GROWING iron to conduct away heat in winter, and to attract too much in summer, is also found to be an objection more imaginary than real. It is true that iron, from its being a powerful conductor, is liable to undergo sudden changes of temperature, which must doubtless render it less congenial to plants that come in contact with it than wood or brick ; though plants do not appear to suffer when the iron is in small quantities, such as the rods to which vines are attached under rafters, wire trellis-work, &c. ; but when the rafters are of iron, and when plants are trained round the iron pillars used in supporting hothouse roofs, it may readily be conceived that they wUl be injured by them. This will also be the case, more or less, when tender plants are grown close under the glass in hotbeds or pits covered with iron sashes. Indeed, when we consider the much greater weight of iron sashes than wooden ones, and the constant occasion that there is for moving the sashes of pits and hotbeds, we would recommend them in most cases to be made of wood. The injury done to plants in the open air by iron coming in contact with them, can only take place when the iron is of considerable thickness ; because we do not find it in the case of cast-iron espalier-rails, or of dalilias, roses, and other open-air plants tied to iron stakes. In plant-houses it probably takes place after the iron has been highly heated by the sun, and then watered, when the chill produced by evaporation will contract the vessels and chill the juices. The greatest objections that we know to iron roofs are, the expense, and the difficulty of forming them with sliding sashes which shall not rust in the grooves in which they slide : but this last objection can be obviated, either by forming the styles and raUs, or outer frame of the sash, of wood, and the rafters of iron, or the reverse. In the greater pro- portion of plant-houses, however, sliding sashes in the roof may be dispensed with, air being admitted during winter througll apertures in the upper angle of the house in the back wall, or by raising a hinged sash in the upper pait of the roof; and in the hottest weather in summer, by these and the sliding sashes or other openings in front. The materials used in the interior of plant-houses, such as shelves for supporting pots of plants, pathways for walking on, walls for enclosing tan or other fermenting matter in pits, are bricks, flagstones, slates, wood, and cast-iron. The paths are sometimes covered with open gratings of cast-iron, which admit of the soil under them being occupied with the roots of vines, climbers, or other plants. Mr. Paxton prefers a flooring formed of loose pieces of board laid across the path ; each piece as long as the path is wide, and about four inches broad, with a one-inch space between. One advantage of this plan is, that the dust and other matters lying on the paths when they are swept, descend immediately without raising a dust in the house to disfigure the leaves of the plants, and encourage the red spider, which dust deposited on the leaves is always found to do. 488. Heat. — The natural heat of the locality is retained in plant-structures by the roof and sides forming a covering which repels radiation from the ground ; and it is increased in them at pleasure, by fermenting substances applied within or externally, by the consumption of fuel, and the convey- ance of the heat so produced in smoke and hot-air flues, by steam, or by hot water in pipes or cisterns. In every mode of supplying heat artificially, the following desiderata ought to be kept constantly in view : — 1. To maintain a reservoir of heat which shall keep up a sufficient temperature for at least PLANTS, WITH GLASS EOOFS. 195 twenty- four hours, under ordinary circumstances, in the event of the supply of heat from the consumption of fuel, or the action of the sun, being discon- tinued through neglect or accident, or through cloudy weather. — 2. To provide means of speedily increasing the supply of heat, when the sudden lowering of the external temperature, or the action of high cold winds, or a cold humid atmosphere among the plants, requires it. — 3. To provide the means, by an adequate surface of ilue, or steam, or hot-water pipes, of supplying a suffi- ciency of heat in every house, according to the temperature required, not merely under the ordinary external temperature, but when that temperature shall fall as low as 10°, or in situations exposed to, very high cold winds to zero. — 4. To make arrangements for supplying atmospheric moisture in pro- portion to the supply of heat, and for withdrawing this moisture at pleasure. — 5. Where no means can be provided for supplying extra heat on extraordi- nary occasions, to provide the means of conveniently applying extra external coverings for the same purpose. It is proper to remart, that in every plant- structure there is a reservoir of heat and of moisture, to a certain extent, in the soil in which the plants are grown, whether that soil is in pots or in a bed ; and that all the paths, shelves, and other objects within the structure, being heated to the proper degree, part with their heat, whenever the air of the house falls below the temperature of these objects. This source of heat might be considerably increased in houses where thei-e is abundance of room : for example, below a greenhouse stage, by placing objects there of moderate dimensions and separated from each other ; such as parallel walls of four- inch brick-work, flag-stones set on edge two or three inches apart, or slabs of slate set on edge one inch apart. These, by presenting a great extent of surface, would absorb a powerful reserve of heat, and give it out whenever the other sources of heat were defective. 489. Fermenting substances, such as stable-dung, tanner's bark, leaves, &c., are either applied in masses or beds under the soil containing the plants, as m the common hotbed ; or in casings or linings exterior to the soil or structure to be heated, as in M'Phail's and other pits. A steady reservoir of heat is thus provided, and instead of an extra supply for unexpected cold nights, extra coverings of bast mats or mats of straw are provided, for re- taining heat that would escape through the ordinary covering. An additional supply of heat for extra cold weather may also be obtained by different means. Where exterior casings of dung are employed, if the heat of the dung is admitted through a pigeon-holed wall to an inside flue with thin covers ; or if the dung is brought into close contact with thin plates of stone or slate, instead of the pigeon-holed wall, which, like the flues, are made to enclose the soil containing the plants ; then by keeping a part of these warm surfaces generally covered with soil, or with boards, or with any other material which shall operate as a non-conductor, when extra heat is wanted unexpectedly, aU that is necessary is to take off tlie non-conducting covers. Even m the case of a common hotbed, heated only by the bed of dung beneath the plants, extra heat may be provided for by bedding a plate of stone, slate, zinc, or cast-iron, on the dung, in one or more places of the interior of the frame, according to its size, and covering these with boards, supported at the height of two inches or three inches above them, so as to enclose a stratum of air, to act as a non-conductor ; the sides being closed by a rim previously formed of cement, or brick-on-edge,on the stone or slate, or by a rim two or three inches deep, cast on the edges of the iron. By taking off the wooden covers, an extra Ji") FIXED STKUCTDRES FOR GROWING supply of dry heat will immediately be obtained, which may be rendered moist at pleasure by pouring on water. Another mode of obtaining an imme- diate extra supply of heat from a dung-bed is, by bedding in it, when first made, an iron pipe of three or four inches in diameter, with the two extremi- ties turned up, and covered by flower-pot saucers. The length of the tube may be nearly equal to that of the bed, and the one end must be sunk a few inches deeper than the other, as in ft?. 134. It is evident that by taking ofiF ;rj~-j::-.::c-~-Jj ^Ijg cOVerS of this pipe U there will be a draught created in it, in conse- quence of its sides being heated by the dung ; and an extra degree of heat win by this means be brought into the atmo- Flg. 134. Seclion of a dung-bed, wilh a tube for supplying hoi air. gpj^g^g ^f ^.Jjg ]jg^ 'Vhls plan might also be adopted for putting the air of a plant-bed in motion, without the admission of the external air. 490. Fermenting materials and fire-heat corrMned. — In pits and low-forcing houses heated chiefly by dung, provision is frequently made for the supply of extra heat, by the addition of smoke-flues or hot- water pipes. Fig. 135 is a Fig. 135. Pinery healed by dung lijtlngs. perspective elevation and section of a house, in which a bed of leaves within is heated by a dung lining placed on the outside of a pigeon-holed wall, and extra heat is provided for by three turns of a flue, one above the other, in the back path: a is the pit in which the dung lining is placed and covered with a hinged shutter ; 6, the surface of the bed of leaves, in which pine-apples, or cu- cumbere, or melons may be grown, or strawbeiTy plants or flowers forced; c, door; tf, flues; e, front pigeon-holed wall ; and /, end pigeon-holed wall. Fig. 136 shows a mode of applying dung under a bed of soil without coming in im- mediate contact with it, and by which no heat whatever produced by the dung is lost ; a is the bed of soil in whiuh 136 Seitt nofa iine y heated by dung PLANTS, WITH GLASS BOOFS. 197 the vines are planted, and which is supported by cast-iron joists and Welsh slates ; and 6 shows the openings furnished with shutters by which the dung is introduced. Beds on the same plan, but wider, have been used for growing pine-apples and melons, and for various similar purposes. An extra supply of heat from the dung may be obtained by having panels of slate in the inside wall, 0, to be kept covered by wooden shutters, except when extra heat is wanted ; or by tubes, as in iig. 1 34 ; or it may be rendered unnecessary by extra coverings. The first forcing which we read of in the history of British gardening was effected, as Switzer informs us, by placing casings of hot dung against the north side of waHs of boards, against the south side of which cherries were trained. 491. Heating from vaults, or from stacks of flues. — The oldest and simplest mode of applying fire-heat to hothouses was by means of a pit in the floor, or a vault under it. The vault was of the same length and breadth as the floor, with the chimney at one end ; or it occupied a smaller space in the centre of the floor, with a stack of flues rising over it, and forming a mass of heated material in the body of the house. The fire was of wood and made on the floor ; or of charcoal or coal, and made in an open portable iron cage, like that used by plumbers, when soldering joints in the open air, with a plate of iron over it to act as a reverberator, and prevent the heat from rising directly to the roof. The flue by which the smoke escaped had its lower orifice on a level with the floor of the vault, so that the air and smoke did not enter it until they had parted with most of their heat. These modes are capable of great improvement, and in various cases would perhaps be found more eligible and economical than any other, by a gardener who is aware of the importance of connecting with them an efiScient means of supplying atmospheric mois- ture : by placing cisterns of water over the hottest part of the floor, or by having dripping fountains formed on the siphon principle, by inserting the ends of strips of woollen cloth in open vessels of water, and placing these in different parts of the house. See on this mode of heating, Mr. Forsyth, in Gard. Mag. for 1841. 492. Flues. — As the mode of heating by vaults could only be adopted when the plants were to be grown in pots or boxes, as soon as the practice of forcing fruit-trees trained against walls, and having their roots in the border or floor of the house, was introduced, flues in the wall against which the trees were trained, and afterwards detached flues along the front of the house, became necessary ; and when these last are properly constructed, and the dry heat which they produce is rendered moist by placing wafer over them, they form a convenient and economic il mode of heating. The flue is always most efficient when carried along the front and ends of the house, because the air imme- diately within these is mire liable to be cooled by the external air than that next the back of the hou ;e, the back being generally a wall of brick or stone. Where the house is glass on every side, as well as on the roof, the flues will be most efficient if carried round it, for obvious reasons ; while the air imme- diately under the roof, in every case, will be kept sufficiently warm by the natural ascent of the he ited air from the flue, in whatever part it may be placed ; though when tha flues are placed in the lower part of the house, there will be a greater ciiculation than when they are elevated ; and this arises from the greater number of particles which must be put in motion by the ascent of wai-m, and the descent of cold air. The quantity of flue requisite for heating a house to any required temperature has not been im FIXED STRUCTURES FOR GROWING determined. One fire with a flue in front, and a return in the back, is generally found sufficient for a greenhouse of thirty feet or forty teet in length, and from twelve fett to fifteen feet in width, and two fires, one entering at each end, for a stove or forcing-house of similar dimen- sions ; the flues in both cases being twenty inches high, and twelve inches wide, outside measure. Perhaps one square foot of flue for every two feet in length of iron hot-water pipes, fouud according to the rule given in Art. SOO, would be a near approximation to the quantity wanted, reckoning the top and sides of the flue, but not the bottom. The furnace or fireplace from which the flue proceeds should be ohe or two feet lower than the level of the bottom of the flue, in order to assist in creating a draught, as that depends on the length and height of the space allowed for the heated air to ascend before it is permitted to escape into the atmosphere ; and the flue gene- rally terminates on the top of the back wall, for the same reason. The fire- place is generally formed behind the back wall for the sake of concealment : but when this is not an object, the best situation is at one end of the house, in a sunken area, which can be covered with shutters ; because, the smoke and heat not receiving the check given by a turn in the flue made so near tlie fiirnaoe as it must necessarily be when it enters from behind the house, the heat is more equally diffused along the front. A very desirable arrange- ment for flues, where it is practicable, is to have two from the same furnace, with the power of throwing the whole or any part of the smoke and heated air into either flue at pleasure, which is easily effected by a damper at tho throat of the flue, close to the furnace, as shown in fig. 137, in which a is the upper or extra heat flue ; b, the under or reserve flue; c, the damper ; d, the fur- nace ; e, the cover to the feeding hopper; and f is the ash-pit. One of the flues should be conducted through a solid mass of brickwork or masonry, or through a box or bed of sand, in order to produce a reservoir of heat ; and the other flue should have thin covers and sides, and Fig. 137. Section of a furnace and double flue. |jg quite detached, in Order to furnish an extra supply of heat, when the external air suddenly became much colder than usual, or at particular times to dispel damp, &c. Both flues ought to be near the front of the house, and, in most cases, the one might be over the other. Wherever flues are sunk below the level of the floor, they will be found to giv« out their heat very slowly ; or, if given out, to lose it in the adjoining ground, from the want of a cuiTent of ah- to carry it off. But this may generally be supplied by underground cross drains, as in fig. 138, in which g is tho floor of the house ; A, the reservoir flue, three feet broad, which is sunk so that its top is on a level with the floor ; ?, an air- drain from the back of the house ; A:, an upper flue for additional heat ; /, PLANTS, WITH GLASS HOOFS. 1S9 Fig. 138. Section of a greenhouse, with reserve Jfue and common Jlue. front path ; m, front shelf; n, stage ; and o, path on the upper part of the -tage, for watering the plants. 493. The best materials for building flues are bricks and paving tiles, the latter for the bottom £ind top, and the former for the sides. The advantages of bricks over stone are, their greater adhesion to the mortar ; their narrowness, by which little space is occupied; and their being greater non-con- ductors than stone, by which means the heat is more equalised throughout the length of the flue than it would be by the use of that material. A slight disad- vantage attending the use of bricks and tiles arises from the earth of which they are made ; clay absorbing and entering into chemical combination with the moisture of the atmosphere, especially when the latter is at a high tem- perature. This evil, however, can always be counteracted by placing water over the flues, or in some other hot part of the house. For this purpose, the covers of flues, whether of tiles or stone, ought to be made with sunk panels to contain water; or, what is much better, a shallow cistern of h'on, lead, or zinc, as in fig. 139, may be placed over them for the same purpose. In Germany the flues are sometimes entirely covered with plates of cast-iron ; and if these were formed with tumed-up edges, they would serve at once as covers and cisterns. Flues are always detached from the ground, by being built on piers, either connected by low flat arches, or so close together as to be joined by the square tiles which form the floor of the flue. Neither the inside of the flue nor its outside ought to be plastered, when it is desired that they should give out a maximum of heat at a mini- mum of distance from the furnace ; but when the flue is to be of great length, plastering either in the inside or outside, or both, by rendering the walls of the flue greater non-conductors, tends to equalise the heat given out. Plastering is also useful to prevent the escape of smoke from the joints, which is liable to take place where the materials and workmanship are not of the best quality, and to prevent the absorption of moisture by the bricks. Narrow flues are preferable to broad ones, as occupying less hori- zontal space in the house, and also because as flues part with their heat chiefly from their upper surface, it is better equalised by a narrow flue than a broad one. Hence also narrow deep flues are found to " draw " better than broad shallow ones. The ordinary dimensions of narrow flues are eight inches in width, and fifteen inches in depth ; and they are formed by tiles one foot square for the bottom, and ten inches square for the covers, and three paving- bricks, which are only two inches thick, on edge, for each of the sides, as in fig. 139. The joints of the sides and covers are formed by lime putty, and the bottom tiles are set on bricks on edge. In fig. 139, o is the brick on edge, which supports the one-foot tile b, which forms the bottom of the flue ; 200 FIXED STRDCTURES FOR CUOWIXG A T Fig. 139. Section ttftt -oi nwn brick Jlaf,^ with 'Ir'tC cistern over it. c is the smoke chamber, and d the zinc cistern over the ten-inch tile cover. The inside plastering should be of the best mortar, mixed with lime, but without sand, as lieing less liable to crack. 494. The furnace, when built in the usual manner, \ sliould have double iron doors to prevent the escape of ~ heat; and the fuel- chamber should be about double the area of that portion of it which is occupied by the bars or grate, in order that tlie fuel not immediately over the grate may burn slowly. A damper iu some accessible part of the flue, and as close to the furnace as is practicable, affords a convenient means of regulating the draught ; and there ought always to be a register valve in the ash-pit door for the same purpose. Where cinders, coke, or anthracite coal only are burnt, no hori- zontal opening to the grate containing the fuel is neces- sary. It may be put in by an opening at the top, as in fig. 137, which wiU contain a supply for anj' length of time, according to the height and width of the opening, and the bars of the gi-ate can be freed from ashes with a hooked poker applied from the ash-pit. By this kind of construction less heat is lost than by any other. Indeed, this kind of fireplace, with a reserve flue, will be found by far the most economical mode of heating hothouses ; but it will not answer where the praciice is to depend on the sudden action of the flue, which is pro- duced by Stirling up the fuel : in lieu of this, the damper must be drawn so as to admit the lieated current into the extra heat flue. Wliatever may be the construction of the furnace, no air ought ever to be admitted to the fire, except through the grating below it ; because air admitted over the fuel can serve no purpose but that of cooling the flue; unless in very rare instances, where it might assist in consuming the smoke. Where tliis object is a desideratum, Witty's smoke-consuming furnace, described in Gard, Mag. vol. vii. p. 483, which roasts or cokes the coal, before it is put ou the fire, may be had recourse to. This and various other details, however, must be left to the bricklayer or mason employed. All flues ought to have flag-stones of the width and height of the interior of the flue, or iron doors built into them at the extremities of each straight -lined portion, which may readily be taken out or opened m order to free the flue from soot ; an opera- tion which will require to be performed at least once a year in all houses, and in stoves twice a year, or oftener, according to the kind of fuel used. 496. As substitutes for smoke-flues, earthenware pipes, or can- flues, as they are called, have long been in use in Holland and France ; and as the fuel used in these countries is almost always wood, wliich produces little soot in comparison with coal, they are found to answer as perfectly as brick flues. When they are only occasionally employed, the entire surface of the pipes is exposed ; but when they are used constantly, as in houses for tropical plants, they are embedded in a casing of dry sand, which forms a reservoir of lieat capable of being increased to any extent, even to that of the entire floor of the house, over which a flooring for plants may be placed. Pipes of tliis kind might also be conducted througli a bed of small stones, so as to fcrm a very effective mass of heated material as a reservoir, while a portion ot naked pijie might serve for raising the temperature on occasions of extra- PLANTS, WITH GLASS ROOFS. 201 ordinary cold. In country situations, where wood for burning is not very dear, or where coke from coal could be readily obtained, can -flues might be economically employed for drying up the cold damp of greenhouses, and for a variety of purposes. — We have said more on the subject of smoke-flues than may be thought necessary at the present time, when they are beuig so generally relinquished for hot -water pipes ; but our object is to prevent our readers from being so completely prejudiced against flues as not to have re- course to them in particular situations and circumstances. The principal reason why so much has been said against smoke-flues is, that gardeners till lately were not fully aware of the importance of supplying moisture to the atmosphere of plant-houses in proportion to the supply of heat, and of having resei-ve flues, in consequence of which excessive heat would not be- come so frequently requisite, and noxious gases would have less chance of being driven through the top and sides of the flue into the atmosphere of the house. 496. Steam was the first substitute for flues employed in this country ; and, under some circumstances, it may deserve a preference to either flues or hot water. For example, where the heating apparatus must necessarily be at a great distance from the structure to be heated, steam can be con- ducted to it in a tube not more than an inch or two in diameter, which may be so encased in non-conducting matter as to occasion far less loss of heat than if either smoke or hot water were employed. The disadvantages attending the use of steam in ordinary cases are, the necessity of heating the water to the boiling-point, by which more heat is driven up the chimney and lost than if the water were raised to only half that temperature, and the want of a reservoir of heat when the steam is not in action. The last disadvantage has been supplied by passing the steam-pipes through brick flues filled with stones, through pits, or through other large masses of stones, or through tubes, cisterns, or tanks of water. By arrangements of this kind, steam can be made both to supply heat permanently and expeditiously. The various details of these modes of heating by steam will be found in the Gard. Mag. vols. viii. and ix. ; and in the Encyc. of Gard. edit. 1832, p. 593. 497. Hot water is the medium of heating plant-structures now generally adopted, and it is without dispute far preferable to any of the preceding modes. Water is such an excellent carrier of heat, that a house warmed by hot- water pipes is not hotter at one end than at the other, which is almost always the case when smoke -flues are employed : none of the heat which the water derives from the fuel is lost, as in the case of flues, which when coated internally with soot convey a great part of the heat out at the chimney-top ; no sulphureous or other disagreeable effluvium is ever given out by hot-water pipes when they become leaky, as is the case with flues when they are not air-tight ; and the hot water in the pipes serves as a reservoir of heat when the fire goes out ; but smoke-flues, when the fire goes out, are rapidly cooled from within by the current of cold air which necessarily rushes through them till it has reduced the temperature of their tops and sides to that of the open air. Whether heating by hot wafer is more economical than heating by smoke-flues, will depend chiefly on the kind of apparatus employed ; but in general we should say that it was not attended with any advantages of this kind. Mr. Rogers is of opinion that with a well-constructed and well- managed apparatus, the saving of fuel may amount to 25 per cent over well- 202 FIXED STRUCTURES FOR GROWING constructed and well-managed flues ; but he allows that in a large pro- portion of the hot-water apparatus now in use the consumption of fuel greatly exceeds that of common furnaces. The cause of the circulation of water in pipes is the same as that which produces the ascent of the air in flues, viz. : difference of speciiic gravity produced by heat. In water, the particles at the bottom of the boiler being heated become lighter and rise to the surface, while their place is taken by cold particles from the water in the boiler itself, or in the pipes that communicate with it, which are heated in their turn, and ascend to the surface of the water in the boiler and the surface of that in the upper pipe. In like manner, the air heated by the consumption of the fuel in the furnace becomes lighter, and ascends along the flue, while its place among the fuel is supplied by cool air, which enters through the grating beneath it to supply combustion. Neither air nor water will move along readily in very small flues or pipes : for smoke- Hues seven inches by ten inches are the smallest dimensions, and hot water does not circulate so rapidly in pipes under two inches in diameter as to give out heat equally throughout their whole length. 498. The modes of heating by hot water are very numerous, and it would occupy too much room in. this work to enter into a detailed description of them, which however is the less necessary as the best modes are sufficiently known for all ordinary purposes by most ironmongers ; and those who wish to make themselves masters of the subject will have recourse to Hood's Practical Treatise on Warming Buildings by Hot Water, published in 1837. The simplest form of applying this mode of heating is by having one boiler to each house in a recess in the back wall, or in some other situation where it will be out of the way, and an upper or flow-pipe proceeding from it on a level, with an under or return-pipe also on a level. Fig. 140 will give an idea of this mode of circulation, a repre- senting the boiler, b a. Fig. 140. A tlol-waler apparatus Jbr circutaiion on a level. cistem at the extreme end of the house to serve as a reservoir, and e the flue and return-pipes. When the water is to be circulated in pipes or on different levels and abova the level of the boiler, or on different levels but never below the level ""/mmmmA'mjm'///^mm, Fig. 141. Boiler and fitrnace for hpvting by hot water in rising and Jailing- f^pes. Fig. 142. Apparatut Jbr circulating water below art above the kvel of tke bjtlur. PliANTS, WITH GLASS RUOFS. 203 of the bottom of the boiler, then a closed boiler is requisite ; or one open, but carried to a height equal to that of the highest point in the line of the pipes, as in fig. 141 ; and when water is to be circulated below the level of the boiler, a closed boiler with particular arrangements (see Hood's Treatise, figs. 10 and 11, pp. 44, 46) may be employed, or the form of open boiler shown in fig. 142 may be resorted to. In this figure, a repre- sents the boiler, 6 an open cistern at its top, in which the orifice of the heating-pipe terminates. Now it is obvious that when the water passes from the orifice of the boiler into the orifice of the pipe, the circulation must go on from the difference in the specific gravity between the water in the pipe at c, and that at d, provided that a small open pipe be placed at e, to admit of the escape of the air which wall accumulate in that part of the pipe. Hot water has also been circulated on the siphon principle with great success by Mr. Kewley j the advantage of which mode is, the rapid communication of heat along the whole length of the pipe, in consequence of which it is never necessary to raise the water in the boiler to so high a temperature as by any of the other modes ; and hence this mode of heating is the most economical of all in the consumption of fuel. Fig. 143 will give a correct idea of the " — * system: ace repre- If , , 4 ) sent the two legs of [ the siphon ; the up- per leg, commencing Fig. 143, siphon mode of circulating hot water. at c, being that thi'ough which the heated water ascends, and the lower leg being that by which it returns. The disadvantage of this system is, that after the pipes have been some time in use they become leaky, and the dightest leak, by admitting the air, instantly empties the siphon; nor is the leak easily discovered afterwards. The siphon mode of heating, were it not for this disadvantage, would deserve the preference over every other. Hot water has also been circulated in hermetically-sealed pipes by Perkins ; but this mode is attended with great danger, and the heat produced is much too high for the plants. All these, and other modes of heating, will be found impartially examined in Hood's Treatise. 499. A reservoir of heat is very readily formed in heating by hot water, whatever may be the kind of apparatus adopted, by placing a cistern or series of cisterns at difi^ereut parts of the house, either close to or at any convenient distance from the water-pipes, and connected with them by smaller pipes, having stop-cocks to interrupt the connexion at pleasure. When it is desired to heat the house with as little loss of time as possible, all connexion between the pipes and the reservoirs should be cut ofi^ by turning the stop-cocks ; and as the house becomes sufficiently heated, the connexion ought to be restored by opening the upper and under stop-cock of one cistern at a time. In some cases, the cistern might be a long trough about the bulk of a common flue, placed parallel with and close to the I pipe, as in fig. I 144, in whicli a is the pipe, b the cistern, -^ and c the con- " Fig. 144. Hot-ujater pipe, and reserve cistern 0/ hot water. nectinff oioeS with stop-cocks. Fig. 145 is a cross section of the pipes and reserve cistern. 204 FIXED STRUCTURES FOR GROWING which requires no explanation. Where the circulating pipes are below the level of the floor of the house, and where there is to be a raised pit for containing plants, a tank or cistern might be formed under it of the length and width of the pit, and of a depth equal to the distance between the upper and lower heating-pipes ; and with this tank the pipes might ,,, „ . , communicate by means of stop-cocks: so that whenever J ig. 145. Section of ■;.,,, reserve cistern and there was more heat m the pipes than was wanted lor heat- hot-water pipes. j^g the air of the house, it could be transferred to the reservoir tank. To save the expense of stop-cocks where tlie cisterns could be wholly or partially uncovered, the orifices of the connecting pipes might be stopped by plugs ; and when the reservoir tank is above the level of tlie heating-pipes, the connexion between them might be made by means of siphons with stop-cocks. 600. The pipes employed are generally of cast-iron, and roimd, as being more conveniently cast ; but any other metal and form will answer ; and when there is no great pressure on the pipes earthenware may be used, the joints being made good with cement ; and at the angles, where elbow-joints would be necessary, small cisterns could be employed, or elbows of earthen- ware might be made on pui'pose. For obtaining a large heating surface, flat oast-iron pipes have been used in some cases, placed vertically, and in others horizontally ; but round pipes of four inches in diameter are in most general use. When the object is to obtain a supply of heat in the shortest time, then the boiler and pipes should be of small capacity ; snd this is generally desirable in the case of greenhouses, where heat is occasionally wanted for a few hours in damp weather, not for the sake of raising the temperature, but for drying up cold damp : nevertheless, even in greenhouses it is desirable to have a reservoir of heat for supplies in very severe weather. In stoves in which fire-heat is employed the greater part of the year, both boiler and pipes may be of large capacity ; and this shouM also be the case in early forcing-houses. Whatever mode of heating or kind of pipes may be adopted, the pipes should always have a gradual ascent from the place where they enter the house, or are intended first to give out heat, towards tliefarther extremity; otherwise, the circulation will be less rapid, and conse- quently the heat less equally distributed. The quantity of pipe required to heat any house depends on various circumstances ; such as the form and con- sti-uction of the house, the temperature that is to be kept up in, it, and the temperature of the external air. Various calculations have been made on the subject by different engineers, and more especially by Mr. Hood, who says, " It may be taken as an invariable rule, that in no case should pipes of a greater diameter than four inches be used, because, when they are of a larger size than this, the quantity of water they contain is so considerable, that it makes a great difference in the cost of fuel, in consequence of the increased length of time it will require to heat them, which is four and a half hours for four-inch pipes, three and a quarter hours for three- inch pipes, and two and a quarter hours for two-inch pipes, supposing the water to be at 40° be- fore lighting the fire, and the temperature to which the water was raised 200°. Pipes of two or three ii ches diameter therefore are to be preferred for gi-een- Jiouses and conservatories which only require fire-heat to be applied occasion- ally." After calculating the loss of heat from exposed surfaces of glass under different circumstances and situations, Mr. Hood gives the following rules for I'LANTS, WITH GLASS ROOFS. 20j jletermiiring tho quantity of pipe as a sufficient approximation for ordinary purposes: — "In cliurches and very large public rooms, which haye only about an average number of doors and windows, and moderate ventilation by taking the cubic measurement of the room, and dividing the number thus obtained by 200, the quotient will be the number of feet in length of pipe four inches in diameter, which will be required to obtain a temperature of about 56" to 58". For smaller rooms, dwelling-houses, &c., the cubic mea- surement should be divided by 160, which will give the number of feet of four-inch pipe. For greenhouses, conservatories, and such-like buildings, where the temperature is required to be kept at about 60", dividing the cubic measurement of the building by 30 wUl give the required quantity of pipe : and for forcing-houses, where it is desired to keep the temperature at 70" to 75", we must divide the cubic measurement of the house by 20 ; but if the temperature be required as high as 76" to 80", then we must divide bv 18 to obtain the number of feet of four inch pipe. If the pipes are to be three inches diameter, then we must add one third to the quantity thus ob- tained ; and if two-inch pipes are to be used, we must take double the length of four-inch pipe, " The quantity of pipe estimated in this way will only suit for such places as are built quite on the usual plan." (^Treatise, &c., p. 125.) The above calculations for heating are made on the supposition that the lowest external temperature will be 10" ; but in situations " exposed to high winds, it will be prudent," Mr. Hood observes, " to calculate the external temperature from zero, or even below that, according to circumstances ; and in very warm and sheltered situations, a less range in the temperature will be sufficient." Local circumstances, therefore, may require from 6 to 10 per cent to be added to, or deducted from, the length of pipe found according to the fore- going rules. As a proof of the soundness of Mr. Hood's calculation, we may state that the great stove at Chatsworth is heated at the rate of one supci^ ficial foot of heated pipe to thirty cubic feet of air; and the temperature kept up during the severest weather of the winter of 1840-41 was 60", though there were frequently from 20° to 36° of frost during the night. This house is sixty feet high, with glass on all sides, exposing a surface of 60,000 feet, and enclosing 1,050,000 cubic feet of air. The quantity of coal consumcl wasabout two tons per night. {Gard. Chron. April 17, 1841, p. 243.) 501. The situation in which the pipes are placed is, in general, what we have stated to be that most suitable for smoke-flues (492), viz., along the front and ends of houses placed against a back wall, and entirely round detached or span-roofed houses. In the case of pits or frames with flat roofs, the pipes may be either placed in front or in the middle, always bearing in mind ' that heated air ascends, and that the quantity heated in a given time will, all other circumstances being alike, depend on a regular supply to the heating body, by a current distinct from that by which the heated air escapes. Such a current is formed by the cross drains adopted by Mr. Penn, and exhibited in various sections of plant-structures given in this work. For the same reason it is desirable, when practicable, and under certain circura - stances, to confine the pipes on each side, so that the air which passes up among them may not escape without being heated. To illustrate the effect of this arrangement, we m.iy take Perkins's double boiler, and compare it with the common boiler. It would not occur to any person who had not reflected ou tile subject, that water could be boiled any sooner in one boiler than another 206 FIXED STRUCTURES FOR GROWING both boQers being of the same diraensiona, made of the same material, set in the same manner, and with a fire beneath them of the same power. Yet such is the case ; and this exactly on the same principle that we recommend confining the sides of hot- water pipes, and supplying the air to be heated from a distinct channel. Suppose we have a common boiler, such as is used in common wash-houses, then place another boiler within it, of such a size as to leave only a few inches between the inner boUer and the outer boiler all round, and support it in this position by stays, as shown in fig. 146 ; let this inner boiler have a hole in its bottom about one- third of its diameter, and let its rim be two inches below the level of the water to be heated. These arrangements being made, and the heat applied below, a circulation instantly takes place and con- tinues, the water coming into contact with the T- ,>/, D ,■ .J ,., I > heated bottom and sides of the outer boiler, rising I ig. 146. Perkins t double botler. ii, rapidly to the surface, and descendmg through the inner boiler, which thus necessarily contains the coldest portion of the liquid. (Gardener's Magazine, vol. xvi. page 32S.) The heat commu- nicated by the fire to the bottom and sides of the outer boiler is rapidly carried off by the current that is created, exactly on the same principle that wind, which is a current of air, cools any body exposed to it more rapMly than air at the same temperature but quite still. The under-ground drains should either have vacuities at the sides and over the top to prevent them from absorbing much heat, or they may be carried through the bottom of the tan-pit, where there is one. In general, we would not cover the heating-pipes, nor would we adopt the upright tubes which Mr. Penn originally used, but has since dispensed with. There may be situations and circumstances where it would be more desirable to have the heat of the pipes or flues carried off by radiation with the usual degree of slowness rather than by conduction ; such, for example, as when the attendant on the hothouse was likely to be a long time absent, or when some danger from overheating was anticipated ; and this can always be attained by covering the orifices by which the air enters to the cross-drains. It is proper to state, that at the present time the opinions of a number of persons are against the use of air as a car- rier of heat in hothouses, on account, they say, of the difficulty of maintaining it in exactly the proper state of moisture. This, however, can be effected with- out difficulty, by keeping the bottoms of the cross-drains covered with water, or bj' having cisterns of water over the pipes, or both. A few years' experi- ence is probably required to set the matter at rest ; in the mean time, the reader who wishes to examine both sides of the question, may consult the Gard. Mag. for 1840-41, and the Gard. Chron., more especially an article by Mr. Ainger, April 3d, page 212. Our opinion is, that the power of producing motion in the air, even though it should be only wanted occasionally, and obtainable at an extra expense of heat, is of so much value for setting blos- soms, equalizing heat and moisture in some cases, drying up damp in others, or producing a feeling of coolness, that no plant-structure of large dimensions, and where fire heat is employed, ought to be without it. To explain the manner in which the motion of heated air in hothouses produces a sensation of coolness, without being altered in its temperature, we make the following quotation from Lardner's Cyclopedia : " The aii which surrounds us is generally at a lower temperature than that of the body. If the air be calm PLANTS, WITH GLASS ROOFS. 20? and still, the particles which are in immediate contact with the skin acquire the temperature of the skin itself, and having a sort of molecular attraction, they adhere to the skin in the same manner as particles of air are found to adhere to the surface of glass in philosophical experiments. Thus sticking to the skin, they form a sort of warm covering for it, and speedily acquire its temperature." Agitation of the air, however, " continually expels the particles thus in contact with the skin, and brings new particles into that situation. Each particle of air, as it strikes the skin, takes heat from it by contact, and being driven off, carries that heat with it, thus producing a constant sensation of refreshing coolness." 602. The boiler for heating by hot water need never be large, because no advantage is gained by having a large quantity of water in it, further than that of acting as a reservoir, which will be more conveniently and economi- cally placed within the house. A boiler of small capacity, and with a large superficies for the fire to act on, will be the most economical in first cost, and also in fuel. " The extent of surface which a boiler ought to expose to the fire should be proportional to the quantity of pipe that is required t, to35 percent, the greatest amount of common salt which water will hold m solution. With 4-3 per cent of salt, water freezes at 274° J ^'^^^ ^'^ V^^ '=^°* °^ ^^'*5 ^' ^^i" ' and with 11 -1 per cent, at 21^". The effect which would be produced on cast-iron pipes and boilers by any of these quantities of salt, Mr. Hood states, would not be of much importance. As salt does not evaporate, when 21-1 FIXED STRUCTURES FOR GROWINO a sufficient quantity is once added for the purpose required, the waste which takes place can be supplied by fresh water. {Hood's Treatise, p. 167.) 507. Open gutters have been employed, either partially or wholly, instead of closed pipes, for circulating hot water in hothouses, and by a number of gardeners this is considered a very superior mode where great atmospheric moisture is required. The earliest apparatus of this Isind is one which was put up in Knight's Exotic Nursery, Chelsea, in 1830, and described in the Gardener's Magazine for that year, pp. 374 to 376. It has since been erected by Mr. Weelies at several places, and a patent was taken out for some modifications of it by Mr. Corbett in 1838. Instead of the upper or flow-pipe, an open gutter of iron, wood, slate, or stone, is employed ; it is placed on a level, from the boiler to the furthest point where it is carried, and it commonly returns to the boiler in a closed pipe. It can be carried over doors or similar interruptions by siphons, and under them by inverted siphons ; and the open gutter has covers which can be taken off and put on at pleasure to diminish or increase the quantity of vapour admitted to the atmosphere of the house. (Gard. Mag. 1838.^ There is an apparatus of this kind in Pontey's Nursery, Plymouth ; the boiler is one of Shewin's (Ro- gers's, 504) largest-sized conical ones, which appears to answer admirably. From the boiler the water flows in an open gutter, formed of slabs cf slate (jointed very neatly together) , to the further end of the house, from which point it returns in a four-inch iron pipe back to the boiler. From having the gutter open a very humid heat is produced, but by the use of slate covera it can be regulated so as to have little or much vapour, as circumstances may require. (Gard. Chron. Jan. 2, p. 6.) At Cowley, near Exeter, Mr. Corbett's open system has been put up, and the gardener there finds it the most simple and efficacious means of heating that he has tried. For orchida- ceous houses he particularly recommends it, and he has found it far superior to close pipes in the pine stove. Mr. Glendinning also considers it the best of all systems. It combines, he says, the simplicity of the good old level system with the grand advantage of diffusing through the house, without trouble, any quantity of moisture required, or entirely withholding it. The circulation of the water in the gutters is quite as rapid as by any other system, if not more so, even when left entirely open. The invention is divested of all intricacy, as the water may be exposed to full view from its leaving the boiler until its return, and the apparatus is not liable to go out of repair. Its efl^ectual application to every description of forcing-house is at present without a parallel ; as, by the partial or entire removal of any number of covers, an unvarying degi-ee of moisture, always governed by the tempera- ture maintained, can, with the greatest ease and accuracy, be communicated. This alone, to practical men, will secure to it a decided preference. Red spiders, thrips, and all other insects, will be readily subdued ; and an atmo- sphere, at once invigorating and refreshing, at all times maintained. {Gard. Mag. 1841, p. 67.) The opinion of Mr. Rogers is thus expressed : — " For OrchidesB, melons, and cucumbers, I should think it excellent ; for stove- plants, at certain seasons, equally so ; but, for other garden purposes, its utility must depend upon the powerof completely covering the troughs, and regulating the escape of moisture. For greenhouses, as well as for forcing grapes and pines, it would require two or three years' experience to satisfy me of its advantages ; especially for the two latter purposes. Heat is often employed in gardens more to dry than to warm buildings ; as, in greenhouses PLANTS, WITH GLASS ROOFS. 215 and late vineries, during damp weather in autumn. It is also necessary to obtain dry heat to ripen the wood of all forced plants ; and, though I have no experience of pines, I do not imagine they will ripen, to be good for any thing, except at a high temperature and in a pretty dry atmosphere. In all these cases, then, it is absolutely necessary to prevent the escape of moisture from the troughs. If this can be done, the only remaining objections are the diffi- culty and inconvenience of obtaining a perfect level for the troughs." (Gard. Mag. 1841, p. 162.) Where the level system of heating can be adopted, open gutters would appear to be preferable to closed pipes, as rendering more certain the supply of moisture to the atmosphere of the house, and super- seding entirely the use of cisterns, except in botanic stoves for growing aquatic plants. 608. Retaining Heat by Coverings. — Whatever mode of h&ating plant- structures may be adopted, it should be constantly borne in mind that it is incomparably better for the health of the plants to prevent heat from escap- ing by non-conducting coverings during nights, than to allow it to be con- tinually given off into the atmosphere, and as continually supplied by fire- flues or hot- water pipes. Where coverings cannot be applied, and a high temperature must be kept up, reserve sources of heat, and abundant supplies of water to maintain atmospheric moisture, are the only means by which the plants can be kept healthy. " A weakly growth," Mr. Paxton observes, " is the sure consequence of a high temperature maintained by fire-heat, whatever plan of artificial heating be adopted." He therefore recommends, in all cases where practicable, the use of external coverings, by which, at Chatsworth, a difference of from 10° to 16" is gained, and two thirds of the fuel that would otherwise be necessary are saved. (Gard. Chron. Jan. 16, p. 40.) 509. Atmospheric Moisture. — The necessity of proportioning moisture to temperature, and the causes which render the climates of our plant-structures unnaturally dry, have already been pointed out (261 to 267). To give an idea of the quantity of moisture requisite for an atmosphere at a high tem- perature, Mr. Rogers has shown that a vinery twenty-five feet long by thirteen feet six inches wide in the roof, maintained at 66" when the outer air is 36°, will condense on the glass, in twenty- four hours, 351 gallons of water, (fiard. Mag. 1840, p. 282.) In devising the best method of procuring a constant supply of moisture for the air of a hothouse proportionable to the expendi- ture, Mr. Rogers finds the end may be most effectually attained by placing cisterns on the heating- pipes. As the temperature of the water in these cisterns would vary with that of the pipes, the evaporation from them would be greatest when the pipes were hottest ; when the greatest degree of arti- ficial temperature was being obtained, and consequently the greatestdrain upon it by condensation. The cisterns may be made of zinc, with their bottoms fitted to the curvature of the pipes, at least six inches deep to the top of the pipes, and of the same lengths as the space between the rings by which the pipes are joined. Where two pipes are placed side by side on the same level, the form shown in fig. 153 may be adopted, and a single pipe may have cisterns fitted to it in the same manner, or it may be made to embrace the sides of the pipe and cover it entirely with water, as in fig. 154. In some cases shallow cisterns are cast on the pipes, but their power is insuffi- cient, and in general zinc cisterns may be considered the best. Cisterns so placed on pipes heated to 200o will contain water at 140° to 146" ; but this 210 FIXED STRUCTURES FOR GROWING will not be the case unless they are properly fitted, and luted on the pipes with wet sand ; for the smallest interstice is found to make a great difference in the heat transmitted. Mr. Rogers finds that cisterns fixed in this manner, with water at a temperature of from 120" to 145°, evaporate about three quarters of a gallon per square foot of Fig. 1.53. Zitic cisUrn for double pipes. Fig. 1.54. Zinc ct^ferti Jm a single pipe. suiface in twenty-four hours. The proportion which he employs in an orchidaceous stove is about one square foot of evaporating surface to ten square feet of glass ; and, in stoves and forcing-houses, he is of opinion (^Proceedings of the Horticultural Society, 1840, p. 149) that there ought to be one square foot of water for every fifteen square feet of glass. If houses heated by flues had this proportion of cistern placed over these, we should no longer hear so much of the dry disagreeable atmosphere pro- duced by this mode of heating. It is almost unnecessary to observe that the cisterns will be most effective where the flues are most effective ; or that, as the covers of flues have not interruptions like the joints of pipes, the cis- terns may be made of any length. Slate cisterns placed above the pipes may be advantageously used for increasing the moisture, serving at the same time as a reservoir of heat, and of water for watering the plants, and also for growing aquatics ; but as the water in such cisterns will seldom exceed the temperature of 80° to 86°, a much larger surface is required than in the case of zinc cisterns accurately fitted to the curvature of the pipes. On smoke-flues the water in such cisterns will rise to a much higher temperature than on pipes, because the slate bottoms will come in close contact with the entire surface of the covers of the flue. 610. Steaming, that is, the discharging into the atmosphere of a house, in large quantities, the steam of water heated to the boiling-point, has been adopted as a means of producing atmospheric moisture ; but it is objection- able on account of the high temperature of the steam, except in large houses where the volume of air affords room for the steam to part with heat, so as to be converted into vapour before it reaches the plants. Steaming may also be useful in combination with fumigation, or the diffusion in the atmosphere of matters noxious to insects. Mr. Rogers proposes the fol- lowing method of using steam in such a manner as not to prove injurious to plants. " A shallow cistern, about six inches deep, and carrying at least four square feet of area, with a false bottom of wire or pierced zinc about one inch from the real bottom, being provided, the steam-pipe from the boiler should be introduced so as to discharge itself between the real and false bottoms ; the cistern should now be filled with water nearly to its brim, and the steam laid on. The water will soon be raised to a pretty considerable temperature, and yield an abundant supply of innocuous vapour." The use of the false bottom is to prevent the water from boiling up and flo^ving over before it is converted into steam. ' PLANTS, WITH GLASS ROOPS. 2] 7 511. Ventilation and Aeration. — Till lately, the subject of giving air to plant-houses has been very imperfectly understood ; and, indeed, as it was generally supposed that a very small supply of air was sufficient for the grovi^th of plants, ventilation was principally employed to lower the tem- perature of a hot-house when the heat was too great, or to let oflF sulphureous or other noxious gases which might be generated by the modes of heating employed. Now, however, that it begins to be well known that plants derive a great proportion of their carbon from the air, another and the most important use of ventilation has been discovered ; and gardeners are become aware that a constant supply of fresh air is almost as necessary to plants as water, and consequently that, without fresh air, no plants can be kept in a perfectly healthy and vigorous state. The admission of air for the purpose of nourishing plants has been very properly distinguished by, Dr. Lindley under the name of Aeration, from ordinary ventilation ; and it requires to be regulated in quite a different manner. It has been already observed (263), that if the sashes of a hothouse are opened in front and in the upper part of the roof at the same time, so as to create a thorough draught, when the atmosphere is colder than the temperature of the house, a great injury is done to vegetation, not only by the sudden chill, which the admission of a current of cool air produces, but by the quantity of moisture which it camcs off. Hence, aeration should be effected by the circulation of a constant supply of warm moist air (266, 267) ; and hence it is, that plants grovm in houses heated by the Polmaise system are generally in a state of vigorous health. Ventilation is, however, frequently necessary as well as aeration. In greenhouses, pits, and frames, where there is a large pro- portion of earthy and moist surface to a small volume of air, the latter may become too moist, and fresh air may be required to dry it; and in every descrip- tion of plant-structure it may be required to lower the temperature. Hence, for houses heated by smoke-flues, and for pits and frames heated by fermenting dung, a greater power of ventilation becomes requisite than for houses heated by hot water in which, noxious vapours can rarely be produced, or the tem- perature raised much above 80° or 90°. For lowering the temperature of a hothouse, air is best admitted by opening sashes or ventilators in the upper part of the roof. In roofs with sliding sashes, the upper sashes along the whole line of roof may be let down uniformly, if the house be at an equal tempe- rature throughout, and rather more at the hottest part, if it is of unequal tem- perature. The width opened need seldom exceed half an inch or an inch in the winter time ; but in summer it may be much greater, according to the temperature to be kept up in the house, and other circumstances. If the roof should be a fixed one, then a narrow opening might be made in the upper angle of the roof along the whole length of the house ; and the cover to this opening might be raised simultaneously and uniformly by lines and pulleys or other means, which need not be here detailed. A portion of the heated air of the house will escape by this opening, while a portion of the outer air will enter to take its place, mixed, as it descends, with the heated air, and becoming, by this means, heated to a certain extent before it reaches the plants. The great object in ventilating houses which are kept at a high temperature is to avoid thorough draughts, which are always produced when ventilators in the front and back are opened at the same time. Even in houses kept at a low temperature, such as greenhouses and conservatories, it is thought desirable in the winter season to admit the air from the roof only, and not from tlie sides. In summer, when the temperature of the outer air is as 218 FIXED STRUCTURES FOB GROTnNG high as that of the house ought to be, openings may be made in every direction at pleasure. In stoves the precaution of covering the openings of the upper part of the roof, by which air is given, with wire netting, might be taken, which, while it excludes wasps and flies in summer, would in ■winter act like Jeffrey's Respirator, in abstracting the heat from the heated air which escaped, and imparting it to the cold air which entered ; or the double tube, recommended by Dr. Amott in his Treatise on Warming and Ventilating, might be adopted. The external air may be heated in the winter season before it is allowed to enter the house, by enclosing a part of the pipes or smoke flues in a trunk or box, with a communication at the lower part of one end with the open air, and at the upper part of the other with the air of the house. So long as the pipes are kept at a temperature considerably above that of the house, fresh air will flow in, and a corre- sponding quantity will be displaced by the accidental crevices of the roof. In hotbeds it is customary to leave openings for the escape of moist vapour during the whole of the night ; this is generally done by raising the sashes behind, but, as by this mode the steam from the dung is sometimes driven in, some gardeners have a narrow opening in the upper part of the sash, with a lid to fit to it, hinged along the upper edge. 612. Light is one of the elements of culture as essential as heat (278). When the object is merely to grow plants without fruiting them, the pro- portion of glass may be small, provided it be pretty equally distributed over the roof ; but when the object is to produce flowers and fruit, the proportion of glass to the wood or metal of the roof ought to be greater. In nursery- men's houses for growing plants, the ordinary size of the panes used to be five inches by three inches, and they were made of the common crown glass, which was very thin, a heavy duty being payable by the manufacturer on glass which was estimated not by the weight but the measure. When, however, the duty on glass was taken off, manufacturers were enabled to make glass of any size and thickness that was required ; and gardeners wishing to give their plants as much light as possible, frequently used panes of the British sheet glass, two or even three feet long, and a foot or fourteen inches in width. Panes of this enormous size required to be of proportionate thickness, and accordingly the sheet glass generally weighed from 18 oz. to 26 oz. the foot. As this glass was beautifully clear, the most beneficial effects were expected from the free admission of liglit to the plants ; but the result was not equal to what was anticipated. The surface of the thick glass was found unequal when examined through a powerful microscope, and every inequality was found to act as a lens in collecting the sun's rays, and scorching the leaves of the plants. To obviate this inconvenience the idea was suggested of using coloured glass, and green glass was used in the large conservatory at Kew. It was not, however, found to answer, and a kind of rough glass was introduced, which was found not only to diffuse the light equally, witliout scorching the leaves, but to render shading unnecessary. When this glass is used, the most convenient size for tho panes is eighteen inches by six inches or nine inches, weighing sixteen ounces to a foot. As, however, the rough glass is very unsightly, some persons pre- fer crown glass in squares, from nine inches to a foot square, which in glaz- ing are made to lap over one another, from one-eighth to one-fourth of an inch. In general one-eighth of an inch is quite sufficient ; as the broader the laps, the greater is the quantity of water which they retain, and the more PLANTS, WITH GLASS ROOFS. 219 liable is the glass to breakage when the water so retained becomes frozen. This lap is sometimes entirely, and sometimes partially, rendered air and water tight by putty. In the former case it prevents the water which condenses on the inside of the glass from escaping to the outside ; and in the latter, while it allows the condensed water to escape, it also retains, by the attraction of cohesion, as much as fills the space between the lap ; and this water in severe weather is apt to freeze, and by its expansion when under- going that operation, the glass is broken. By having the laps uuputtied, not only is there great danger from breakage by frost, but much heated air escapes during cold weather, and rain is apt to be blown into the house during high winds in certain directions. It is better, therefore, in the opinion of most scientific gardeners, to putty the laps and render them water-proof ; to accomplish which in an efficient and economical manner, Mr. Forsyth proposes a lap three eighths of an inch broad (in our opinion a greater breadth than is necessary), with the space between filled in with soft putty in the usual manner, and then carefully to paint the joinings of the glass, both the under lap and the over lap, and also the putty between, in the fiil- lowing manner : — Let the upper edge of the paint on both sides of the lap run in the direction of d c, in fig. 165, thus directing all the water which Fig, 155. Lap of glass panes pttttied and paintetL condenses on the inside or falls on the outside down the centre of the squares. 'I'he only disadvantage attending close-puttying the lap is, that the con- densed water, when the roof is very flat, sometimes drops on the plants : l)ut if the house is kept at a proper temperature, the water that drops in this manner will do little injury, and will be speedily taken up by the dry air which has just parted from it. In particular cases, where the drip falls on a plant, it may be directed to a point where it will do no injury, by a simple process pointed out by Mr. Rogers, viz., to fix at places where the drip will do no injury, small pieces of cobblers' wax or putty, which, by interrupting the descending current, will cause it to drop down. The drip, however, is much more common from the bars between the glass than from the glass itself, and to these Mr. Rogers's plan is peculiarly applicable. One great argument for puttying the laps is, that the moisture of the atmosphere, though it may be condensed on the glass, is not, if proper means are taken to retain it at the bottom of the slopmg glass, allowed to escape from the house, but must be reabsorbed by the air which deposited it, somewhat in the same manner that takes place in growing plants in closed glass cases. These cases being air-tight, when the temperature within is greater than that without, moisture is deposited on the glass, and after some time runs down and settles along the inside of the rim ; whence, when the temperature within is raised to the same height as before, it is again taken up and held in sus- pension in the form of elastic vapour. In the case of air-tight stoves, nearly the same process must be constantly going on; but few have hitherto been built sufficiently air-tight for this purpose. One of the greatest improve- 220 FIXED STnUCTURKS FOR GROWING ments that have taken place in the glazing of plant-structures of every description, is the introduction of sheet window-glass, which, while it ]s nearly as thick and strong as plate-glass, is not much dearer than crown- glass. The thickness of this glass varies from one eighth of an inch to something more than one sixteenth, and either thickness may be used in lengths of from two feet to five feet. In the grand consei-vatory at Chats- worth, the panes are three feet nine inches in length, that being the length of the side of the ridge, and they are six inches in width, so that there is no occasion for a lap. Ridge and furrow houses, when this kind of glass is used, may be made nearly air-tight. In the grand conservatory in the Horticultural Society's garden, the same kind of glass is used, and the panes are sixteen inches by twelve inches. This house is remarkably well glazed, and the laps are all puttied. Indeed, if this were not the case, it would be almost impossible to heat such a lofty structure with glass on all sides ; but this glass being very even, as well as thick and strong, the laps are not more than three sixteenths of an inch, and do not retain any water, wliich, indeed, from the temperature within being seldom greater than that without, is not often deposited on it. 614. Water is commonly supplied to plants in hothouses by hand ; but pipes, pierced with small holes, have been arranged under the roof, whii-h, on turning on water from a cistern above the level, will throw down a shower at pleasure. For lofty houses, such as the palm stoves of Messrs. Lod- diges, the inventors of this system, this mode of watering is very eligible, and it might also frequently be adopted in conservatories attached to dwelling- houses, the cistern being in the upper part of the house. As a luxury, the noise of the artificial shower, and the drops of rain, in a wai-m summer's evening when all is arid without, will more than compensate for the expense. As water should never be applied to plants at a lower temperature than the mean of the atmosphere which they grow in, there should be a cistern in every house, of sufficient capacity to supply all the water which can be wanted at any one time, placed over the flues or hot-water pipes in such a manner as soon to be heated by them. In plant-houses these cisterns may be used to a certain extent for growing aquatics ; but in this case only a small portion of water should be taken from the cisterns at a time, so that the addition of cold water may not chill the plants. To prevent the rose of the watering-pot from being choked by the leaves or other matters in such water, watering-pots with the grating described by Mr. Beaton (426) should be used. 515. The different kinds of fixed structures far plants, are — the pit, the greenhouse, the orangery, the conservatory, the botanic stove, the pine stove, and the forcing-house; and we shall conclude this section by shortly noticing the characteristic features of each of these, and their varieties. 616. Pits are low buildings with glass roofs, but without glass in the sides or ends. The angle of the roof is between 16" and 25'' with the horizon, and the surrounding walls are generally built of brick, and hollow, or in some kinds of pits they are,pigeon-holed, or with thin panels to admit the heat of exterior casings. The provision for heating varies from the mere power of retaining natural heat by coverings of glass or other materials, to the obtaining of 70" or 80" or upwards of artificial heat, which may be supplied either by fermenting materials or fire-heat or by both com- bined. Tlie cold-pit is without any artilicial source of heating, and in some PLANTS, WITH GLASS ROOFS. 221 Us walls are of turf or earth ; and instead of glasa sashes, frames of reeds, or hoards, orthatched hurdles, or othercoverings, are substituted. The cold pit is used for protecting plants in pots not in a growing state, or for preserving culi- nary vegetables from the frost. In warm situations and dry soil, it has a thick mound of earth, or thick wall of turf, which in either case should be coped so as to be kept as dry as possible. Even in the case of brick pits, an outer casing of dry turf prevents to a very great extent the effects of frost, and sudden changes of temperature. The casing may also be made of boards, where great neatness is an object, leaving a cavity to be filled vcith coal- aslips, charcoal, dry sand, or other non-conducting materials. In pits of tliis kind, with glass sashes instead of opaque covers, many hard wooded greenhouse plants, such as camellias, myrtacas, heaths, &c. may be preserved through the winter without any artificial heat, care being taken to adapt the nightly coverings to the weather. The usual width of such pits is from six to eight feet ; height of the back wall, three to five feet ; and of the front wall, two to three feet. A pit to be heated by a bed of tan within, and exterior cases of dung, may be of the same or larger dimensions, with the back and front wall pigeon-holed or panelled, (490), and with boarded covers to protect the linings from rain and wind, hinged to the wall -plate. Instead of exterior linings for supplying extra heat, flues or hot- water pipes may be introduced along the front and ends, or entirely round the pit ; sometimes with a plat- form of boards over them for plants in pots, or even for a bed of soil, but more frequently separated from the bed of tan by a narrow wall, or by a partition of plates or flag-stones. The width of the bark-bed in such pits is seldom less than five or six feet, and eighteen inches of additional width is necessary for the front flue, or six-inch pipes ; and double these widths if the flues or pipes are carried round the house. For the more convenient management of pits, they are sometimes constructed sufficiently high behind to admit of walking upright there ; and a passage for that purpose is left at the back, of three or four feet in width, and a door made in one end. The roof over the passage is generally opaque and sloping to the north, as in fig. 157. To the possessor of a small garden, and an amateur, this is a very de- sirable description of pit, as in it he may grow almost every- thing, provided he does not attempt too many kinds of culture at once. The form is very economical, from there Fig. 156. Span-roofed pit, wif/t t/ie i ooj over Ikf. path opaque, being aS mUch Surfa<:e of pit aS there is covering of glass ; and the interior is very comfortable to work in, as the operator need not stoop. If the ends were made of glass, it would be an improvement, by adraittmg the morning and evening sun : it would then, however, be entitled to be called a small house, instead of a pit. The sashes of all pits are made to slide between rafters which are fixed to the plates of wood, which foiTO, partially or wholly, the copings to the walls. There should be a bolt to each sash for fixing it when shut, and also when let down for giving air, in order that there may be no risk of its being blown ofF by high wmds ; and all the sashes ought to admit of being readily taken off, for the purpose of taking out, and putting in dung, tan, or other materials. When the pit is ten or twelve feet in width the sashes may be in two length;, 222 FIXED STRUCTUKES FOR GROWING the one sliding over the other; the upper sash sliding on ledges formed in tho rafters, so as to render it independent of the lower sash. In general, shuii sashes for pits last much longer, and occasion much less breakage of the glass tlian long ones, from their leverage being so much less. The roofs of all pits ought to have coverings, and the best material, in our opinion, is boards, as, where glass is so flat as it generally is in pits and frames, it is apt to get dirtied by straw mats, unless these are put over a covering of bass mats. Fig. J 67 is an excellent plan of a pit or small house, with a span- roof all of glass. * -B^ a. Back path. b. Bark pit, 50 ft. long in the clear. , Exterior pit for diing casing, to revive the heat. d d. Gratings to drains. e. Stink-trap to drain. Fig. 157, Ground plau of a pii to be heated m Mr. CorbeWs manner. designed by Mr. Glendinning, for general purposes^ and heated by Corbett*3 hot-water apparatus. Mr. Corbett's system appears to be better adapted for pits than for larger and longer houses, where its heating power would probably not be sufficient, or be unequal from the slowness of the circulation in consequence of the wafer-troughs being necessarily on a dead level. Mr. Glendinning's pit, however, may be heated by any niodti, not even excepting a smoke flue. Fig. 153 is a section of this pit, showing : /, /, Glass roof. g. Bark pit. A, Back path. - l» Pit for dimg casing. A, Drain- -^ Hinged cover of ledged boards, to protect the dung from the rain and wind. m. Ground line. n. Suspended shelf for strawberry pots. r. Slate shelf for pots. p. Stink-trap communicating ^vith thecross-drain (gj.wliiulileutlsto the main or barrel-built drain (At. r, Corbett's hot-water apparatus. *, Hollow wall of bricks on edge. Fig. 158. Cross section of a pit to be heated on CorbatCi system^ or by smoke-Jluea. Pits or low houses have been formed with glass on all sides, and span roofs (see Gard. Mag. vol. vii. p. 290) ; but from the great quantity of glass in proportion to the surface of floor enclosed, they become too expensive for general purposes, and, unless furnished with a warm covering, the extensive surface of glass occasions an injurious degree of radiation, 516. The greenhouse is a light, airy structure, with a glass roof at an angle of SS"* or 40",wlth the horizon, and upright glass in front and at the ends ; and with the means of heating sufficient to keep out frost, and in humid weather to dry up damp. The plants are grown in pots placed on a stage, or range of shelves rising one above another from a path in front, to within six or seven feet of the upper angle of the back wall. Between the front path and the upright glass, there is a broad shelf on a level with the lowest shelf of the stage, for small plants that require to be near the light. All the front and roof sashes are made to move, because it 'is frequently necessary to admit a free circulation of the external atmosphere ; and coverings are seldom applied, because a very little fire-heat is found to exclude the frost. PLANTS WITH GLASS ROOFS. 223 This is the common or normal form of the greenliouse, when it is placed against a wall, or the side or end of a dwelling-house, and facing the south or some point hetween south-east and south-west ; but much more elegant forms, of the curvilineal or ridge and furrow kind (483 and 484), may be adopted, and where the expense of fire-heat is not an object, it may face the east or west, or be constructed of glass on all sides. For placing against a wall in a flower-garden we should prefer a curvilineal structure, with ends of the same kind, and an architectural entrance, either in the back wall, as in fig. 129, p. 190, or in front ; but against a dwelling-house, and on a small scale, we should recommend the ridge and furrow construction, as from the ease with which the roof may be partially or wholly concealed, it is the most easily rendered architectural. 617. The orangery is an architectural building, more like a living-room than a plant-structure, with large windows and narrow piers in front and at the ends, and with an opaque roof. It is used for preserving orange-trees and other large plants which are in a dormant state during winter ; and the power of heating is about the same as that for the greenhouse ; but, from the roof being opaque, less extent of flue or hot- water pipe is required. Plant- structures of this description are chiefly wanted in large establishments ; but as architectural appendages to a house they may sometimes be advantageously introduced iu small villas, the area of the orangery being used in the summer time, when the orange-trees and other plants usually kept in it are set in the open garden, as a place for prolonging the beauty of plants in bloom, and for other purposes. 518. TIte conservatory differs from the orangery and the greenhouse in being more lofty and architectural, and in having the plants growing in a bed of soil which forms the floor of the house. As the plants in a conserva- tory are generally kept growing through the winter, a power of heating is required greater than that of the orangery ; and when it is joined to a dwelling-house, and is to be frequently walked in by the inmates, greater than that of a greenhouse. The temperature during the night should not be under 45°, nor need it be raised higher during bright sunshine than 65" or 60°. The forms, and other particulars relative to the construction and adaptation of conservatories, have already been given in the Suburban Archi- tect and Landscape Gardener. 619. Botanic stoves are of various kinds ; but with respect to tempei-ature and moisture they may be reduced to the dry stove, the damp stove, and the intermediate or bark stove. The first requires abundance of light and a power of heating from zero to 60° in the winter season, and is chiefly used for growing succulents ; the second requires less intensity of light, but a power of heating equal to 80° in the winter season above the external air ; for although such will seldom be required, yet it is better to have too muck than too little heating power. In the damp stove there must also be a power of saturating the atmosphere with moisture at all seasons ; as it is chiefly used for growing Orchidaceous plants and ferns. The intermediate or common botanic stove requires the same power of heating as the last, but more light and much more space, as it is used for growing the trees and shrubs of tropical climates. These are commonly kept in pots, and very frequently plunged in a bark bed, whence this kind of house, before the use of damp- stoves, was called the bark- stove, to distinguish it from the dry -stove. 520. The pine stove is a low structure, always with a bark or other bed ound ^^ ^j^^^. ^ ^^^.^ surface is exposed to the air. When a crop ^fftrZ^Z'^oXZling. is to be sown or planted, this surface is broken more or less fine according to the kind of crop, and in very dry weather in summer, it is sometimes raked smooth as the diggmg proceeds, to lessen the evaporation of moisture. When the ground is not to be immediately cropped, it is commonly "rough dug," that is, laid up in unbroken spitfuls, so as to present as large a surface as possible to the action of the weather ; and afterwards, when a crop is to be intro- e /■ 230 HORTICULTURAL LABOURS ON THE SOIL. duced on ground which has been " rough du!»," it is "j)ointetl," or slightly dug and smoothed on the surface. "Double digging" is in hoi-ticulture what subsoil ploughing is in agriculture ; the surface soil is kept on the surface, but tlio bottom of the trench is dug over as the work proceeds, and the soil turned over, but still kept in the bottom of the trench. By many this is called " bastard trenching." " Baulk digging" is an operation for rapidly exposing a large surface to the atmosphere, and consists in taking out a line of spitfuls and laying them on a line of finn ground, so that only half the gi'ound is moved. It is only used where economy is a main object, and where the soil being tenacious, will be much benefited by exposing a large surface to the frost. When soil, compost, or manure is to be dug in, it is previously distri- buted over the ground in heaps, by the aid of the wheelbaiTow, and spread over the surface in moderate portions at a time, if loss will be sustained by evaporation ; but if soil, such as sand or burnt clay, or a compost of lime and earth, is to be dug in, the whole may be spread over the soil at once ; as the drier it becomes before being dug in, the better it will mix with the soil {see 172). In every description of digging the trench should be in a straight direction, from one side of the plot to the other, and equally wide throughout ; or if curved, the same curvature should be maintained throughout ; for if the trench is increased in length, it becomes lessened in capacity, and the soil can neither be moved to the proper depth, nor sufficiently mixed. It is unneces- sary to repeat what we have introduced as a general rule, viz., that digging ought never, if possible, to be performed when the soil is wet, or the surface frozen, or covered with snow or ice ; but it may be proper to add, that small stones or roots, or other rough porous bodies, ought seldom to be picked out of soils ; because the former retain moisture, and tend to consolidate light soils ; while the latter retain air, and have a tendency to lighten such as are too compact. Hence the practice occasionally resorted to, of mixing pieces of free- stone in peat soil, in which heaths ai-e grown; and of digging in sawdust, speut- tan, or decayed branches and spray chopped up, in strong clays. Stones also having a greater capacity for heat than soil, form a source of that element, when the soil has been cooled by rain or other means. When stones lie on the surface of the soil they absorb more heat during the day than the soil will do, and give out more during the night, till they become of a lower tempera- ture than the atmosphere, when dew is deposited on them, and hence they become a source of moisture as well as of heat. 634. Trenching. — The object of trenching is to increase the depth of soil fit for plants, by which means it becomes a larger reservoir of air, mois- ture, and of manure, and in the case of plants which do not permanently occupy the soil, it admits of entirely changing the surface, so as to bring up fresh soil every time the ground is trenched. The plot to be trenched is marked out by a line, exactly in the same manner as in digging ; but instead (if a narrow furrow which suffices for that operation, a. trench at least as broad as the depth to which the ground is to be moved, say from two to three feet, is marked off and opened, the soil being wheeled to the place of finishing, as in digging. The next point to determine is, whether the whole of the soil to be moved is to be equally mixed together ; whether the subsoil only is to be mixed, and the surface soil still kept on the surface; or whether the surface is to be laid in the bottom of the trench, and the subsoil laid on the top. 685. In trenching ground that is to be cropped with culinary vegetables for nORTICULTCRAL LABOURS ON THE SOIL. 231 the first time, the whole of the soil turned over should be equally mixed together, manure or compost being added and incorporated at the same time. When the ground of a kitchen garden has been originally trenched in this manner to the depth of three feet, a fresh surface may be exposed for cropping every year, by the following practice, recommended by Mr. Nicol :— " Take three crops off the first surface, then trench three spits deep, by which the bottom and top are reversed, and the middle remains in the middle ; take three crops off this surface, and then trench two spits, by which the top becomes the middle, and the middle the top ; and take also three crops off this surface, and then trench three spits, by which that which was last the middle, and now top, becomes the bottom, and that which is now the bottom, and was the surface at first, now becomes surface again, after having rested six years. Proceed in this manner alternately, the one time trenching two spits, and the other three ; by which means the surface will always be changed, and will rest six years and produce tliree." {NicoTs Scotch Gardener, 2d edit., p. 202.) 636. In the operation of trenching, when the object is to reverse the surface, the firm soil is loosened, lifted, and thrown into the trench in strata, which, when completed, will hold exactly the reverse positions which they did in the firm ground ; but when the object is to mix the soil throughout, or when the surface soil is to be kept uppermost, the face of the surface of the moved ground must be kept in a sloping position, in order that every spitful thrown on it may be deposited in the proper place, with a view to mixture. The simplest and best mode of trenching, with a view to this object, and provided only one man is to be employed for every other object of trenching, is to line out the ground into an even number of strips of three or four feet broad ; to open a trench at one end of one of the corners of the plot, and to proceed from one end to another of the strips till the whole plot has been gone over. This mode saves much wheeling of soil, and where the plot is already level, and care is taken to leave no firm ground 'between the strips, it is then unobjec- tionable. Where the spade only is used in trenching, the operator stands on the surface of the firm ground ; but where the pick is rendered necessary, he for the most part stands in the bottom of the trench. " Ridge trenching" is the term applied when the surface of the moved soil, instead of being smoothed and levelled, is laid up in the form of a ridge, in order to benefit by exposure to the atmosphere. Whatever mode of trenching may be adopted, it is of great importance that the bottom of the trenches should either be level, or form one or more regularly inclined planes, in order to carry off the superfuous water of the surface soil. In a very retentive subsoil, if the bottom is trenched irregularly, the places marked a, b, c, in fig. 160*, would retain Fig. 160* Section iltus/rafive ofgfjod and bad trenching, stagnant water injurious to the roots of trees, &c. ; but if the bottom were loosened so as to form a regular slope, as from d to e, the water would gradually follow that direction. 637. Forking soil is simply stirring the surface with the broad-pronged fork, (fig. 34, in p. 135,) which is gi'eatly preferable to the spade for working among the roots of growing crops. For working with litter or dung, the forkrf with round-pointed prongs are used ; the rotundity of the prongs diminishing fric- tion, both hi inserting the fork in the dung, and in discharging the forkful. 232 HORTICULTURAL LABOURS ON THE SOIL. Soil cannot be stirred with advantage by the fork when in a moist state, but littery dung may be turned during rain. 538. Hoeing is a mode of stirring the soil on the surface, and at the same time cutting up weeds or thinning out crops ; and it is effected either by the draw hoe or the thrust hoe. Soil is also drawn up to, or taken away from, plants; and drills, or narrow furrows, are drawn by the foraier tool, of which there are several kinds, more or less adapted for these different purposes. In no kind of draw hoe should the plane of the blade form a right angle with the handle, as at a, in fig. 161 ; but it should always be within a right angle, .^^^_^^__^^.^_^___________ more or less, as at 6 or c. If r" the ground be soft the angle should be more acute than when T 1 it is hard, or when its surface is \ much matted with weeds. This variable angle should be pro- vided for, partly in the forma- tion of the eye or socket of the Fig. 161. Dia flams showing the angle whUh Ihe bladei qf^Q^ ^^J partly by the applica- draw hoes ought to make with the handles. .. f -ii 3 j.i_ T_ i tion of a small wedge, the heel of which should be turned up, like those used for scythe-handles, in order that it may be driven out at pleasure. In short, the angle which the handle forms with the blade should be such, that when the latter is inserted in the soil to the required depth, the blade, in being drawn towards the operator, may retain that depth with the least possible exertion to his muscles in guiding it ; for whatever muscular exertion is requii-ed in this way, bevond what is necessary for overcoming the resistance of the soil, is a waste of power. When the blade is properly set, little more is necessary than simply drawing the tool ; but if badly set, it requires pressing down, or raising up, as well as drawing ; or, in order to keep the blade in a proper cutting direc- tion, one of the arms of the operator must be elevated or depressed out of its most effective position, which is, when the hands are never much below or above the centre of his body. The handle of the draw hoe should be held in such a position by the operator, as that the plane of the blade should coincide with the plane with which it cuts the soil to the proper depth, and with the least exertion of bodily labour ; and this plane wEl generally be found to be at some angle between 50° and 65° with the horizon. For this reason the handle of a hoe ouglit to be considerably shorter for a short person, or for a person stooping, than for one who is taller, or works in an upright posture ; or, in lieu of this, the short person should hold the handle nearer to the blade. For the purpose of cutting weeds, or thinning out crops in light sandy soU, a hoe with a broad blade may be used; and of these the best that we know is the Leicestershire or shift- ing-blade hoe, the blades of which are pieces of the blade of an old scythe. This hoe is shown in fig. 162, in which d is the head, consisting of a sockSt for the blade, Tfe I mee,iershirc or shifting. B^ni a tubular socket Or hose for the blade draw hoe. handle, wlthout the blade ; 6, one of the blades not inserted in the socket ; c, the socket with the kind of blade HORTICULTDRAL LABOURS ON THE SOIL. 233 inserted which is used for general purposes, and more especially for hoeing between rows of drilled crops ; and a, a socket with tlie blade 6 inserted which is used chiefly for thinning turnips. — (See farther details of this hoe in Oard. Mag. for 184:1, p. 311.) For working in strong soil, a hoe with a narrow stout blade is required; and for very stiff soU, the Spanish hoe (fig. 21, in p. 132) is the best tool. For hoeing, with a view to cut weeds, the different descriptions of thrust-hoes are the most effective tools, espe- cially among tall plants, but they are not calculated for stirring the soil to any depth. A thrust-hoe with a shifting blade, like the Leicestershire draw- hoe, would doubtless be a valuable implement. 539. Raking is an operation used for separating the surface of soil from stones, roots, and other extraneous matters ; for rendering even dug surfaces or gravel ; for covering seeds ; for collecting weeds, leaves, or mown grass ; and, in general, for smoothing, covering, and collecting. The teeth of the rake are placed at nearly a right angle to the bar to which they are riveted, and somewhat bent towards the handle, so that when the operator keeps the handle at an angle of 45°, the teeth will pass through the soil at nearly that angle, and consequently penetrate to nearly the whole length. The teeth of iron rakes should be made with a small shoulder, neatly formed, so as to rest flatly against the under side of the bar in which they are riveted. The holes made in this bar for their reception should be widened below to admit a thickening next the shoulder of the tooth, as shown in fig. 163, for there the stress lies, and there, in nine cases out of ten, the breakage occurs in the teeth. The rest of the perforation should be narrow, in order not to weaken the head-bar, a slight countersink only being required for the rivet or clench on the upper side. The neck of the tooth is exposed to a force, tending to bend or fracture it across ; but when once the neck is secured, the remaining part which passes through the head-bar has only a longitudinal tension. The two principal uses of raking are to prepare the soil for Tig. 163. Section of receiving seeds, and to render clean and even, surfaces among UeAeaio/ayar- plants which have been recently hoed to destroy weeds. den-rake, .homing Rakinff is the operation which gives the finish to most others kouttheteethshould ° .. i i -i ^ -,.i j. i_. i. j ^i. be inserted in it. that are performed on the sou, and without wnicti, and the besom, no garden could be kept in high order. One of the most common pur- poses to which raking is applied, is covering small seeds sown broad-cast ; and this operation requires more care and skill in the operator, than any other which is performed with the rake. If the ground has been raked previously to sowing the seeds, its surface will be ribbed or covered with very small furrows left by the teeth of the rake, at regular distances and of uniform depth: the seed being scattered evenly over the surface, will fall one-half in the furrows, and one-half on the small ridges between them : if in raking afterwards the teeth of the rake could be made to split the ridges between the furrows and do nothing more, the seed would be perfectly and equally covered; but owing to various causes, and principally to the unavoidable treading of the soil by the feet of the operator, it is next to impossible to efifect this ; and in consequence of more raking being required in the hard and depressed places than in the soft ones, as well to loosen the soil as to raise it to the proper level, the seed there becomes too deeply covered ; and a part being drawn from the places from 234 GARDEN LABOURS WITH PLANTS. which the extra covei'ing is taken, tlie seedling plants rise very irregularly. There are various modes of preventing this from taking place, the more common of which, when the surface of the soil is dry, is to "tread in" the seed by going over the plot with a kind of shufifling movement, holding the feet close together. Another mode is to roll the ground with a roller, more or less heavy according to the nature of the soil ; and a third is to form the ground into beds with narrow paths between, and to cover the seed with soil taken out of these paths. Perhaps the best of these modes for general pur- poses and on a large scale, is treading in, or rolling in, which is preferable to treading ; because raking in alone, if the soil is very dry and loose, even though the seeds should be covered equally, will admit the access of air and light to many of them in a greater degree than is favourable for germination (See Sowing, 552.") In raking off weeds, and in raking off short grass or leaves, the rake requires to be held in such a position as that the teeth shall form a much more acute angle with the horizon than in raking dug soil ; because the object in raking off grass or leaves is not to stir the soil, but merely to remove what is on its surface. All raking, excepting that of gravel, and newly mown grfiss, should be performed in dry weather. Wet weather isthe most favourable for raking gravel, because if stirred in a wet state, and rolled afterwards when dry on the surface, it binds better ; and wet weather is most suitable for i-aking grass, because the leaves when wet adhere better together than when dry. 540. Rolling is applied to walks to render their surface smooth, firm, and im- pervious to rain, and it is always most effective when the gravel is moist below and moderately dry above. When dry gravel is laid over the bottom of a walk that is in a very wet or puddled state, rolling should not be attempted till the whole is uniformly saturated, either by rain, which is preferable, or artificially ; otherwise it will long remain unconsolidated. Grass lawns are also rolled to render the surface of the soil smooth and even, for which purpose they are pre- viously raked or scraped to destroy such inequalities as are produced by worm casts, or other accumulations that would interfere with the scythe, the uniform pressure of the roller, or the uniform smoothness and colour of the lawn. The scraping and raking are best performed in dry weather, and the rolling as soon after rain as the surface has become somewhat dry. Rolling dug grounds in order to break and reduce a cloddy surface, or to press in and cover newly sown seeds, can only be performed to advantage when both soil and weather are dry. Beating, which in many cases effects the same object as rolling, is also most effective when the body of the soil is moist and the surface dry ; and the same may be said oi Ramming, and of every other mode of consolidating soils, turf, or gravel. 541. Screening or lifting soil or gravel is best performed when these mate- rials are dry ; but excepting for sowing seeds, or planting very small or tender plants or cuttings, sifted soil is seldom wanted, it being found that pieces of turf, roots, and stones in soil are useful to plants, as forming vacuities for air, or for accumulations of decaying vegetable matter; or, more especially in the case of freestone, sources of moisture. 542. Other labours on the soil are either not peculiar to horticulture, such as picking, shovelling, sweeping, inserting stakes by perforators (391 ); or they are peculiar to particular departments of gai-deniug, such as cuffing, which is a nursery labour, forming loam edgings, which is a local practice, &o. GARDEN LABOURS WITH PLANTS. 235 Sdbsect. 2, — Garden Labours with Plants. 643. Garden labours with plants may be reduced to sowing, cutting, clipping, mowing, and weeding ; all of which may be performed at most scauons, and during moist weather as well as dry. In the first three of these labours, it must be borne in mind that growing trees and large shrubs should not be deprived of their branches when the sap is rising in spring, on account of the loss of that fluid which would be sustained at that season ; that wounds can only be healed over when made close to a bud or shoot; and that the healing process proceeds from the alburnum and cambium, and not from the bark. For the operations of weeding and mowing with the scythe, wet weather is preferable to dry ; but the grass requires to be dry when the mowing machine is employed. Clipping may be performed in wet weather. 644. Sawing is the most convenient mode of separating large branches, because it effects the separation with less labour than cutting with the axe or the bill, and also with less waste of wood. In sawing off large branches, whether close to the trunk, or at a distance from it, it is advisable to cut a notch in the under side of the branch, or to enter tlie saw for a few inches in depth there, and in the same plane with the proposed saw cut, in order to prevent the bark from being torn down when the branch is sawn through and drops off. It is also advisable to smooth over the section with a chisel or knife, in order tliat it may not retain moisture ; and to cover the entire wound with a cataplasm of some sort, or with putty, or with paint, in order to exclude the air, and by that means to facilitate the process of healing. 645. Cutting and sawing are essentially the same operation j for the common saw is formed of a series of wedges cut in the edge of a thin plate of steel, and the knife only differs in having these wedges so small and so close together as not to be perceptible to the naked eye ; the asperities pro- duced in the edge of the knife by sharpening, acting in the same manner as the teeth of the saw. The blade of the knife thus becomes a sawing wedge. When a wedge is entered and equally resisted on both sides of the body separated, they are equally fractured ; but when it is so entered that the resistance is more on one side than on the other, the fracture will be greatest on that side which offers the least resistance. On these facts are founded the operation of cutting living plants, whether with the axe, the bill, the chisel, or the knife. As in cutting living plants a smooth unbruised section will less interfere with the vital energies of the plant, and conse- quently will be more easily healed over than a rough one ; hence, in all cutting or amputating, the rough or fractured section ought to be on the part amputated. In separating a branch, or cutting through a stem, wiiii an axe, bill, or chisel, this result is effected by the obliquity of the strokes of the instrument to the direction of the body to be cut through, and with a knife by drawing it more or less obliquely across the shoot ; but principally by the non-resistance offered by the part of the shoot to be cut off. Hence, all shoots cut from living plants ought to have the cut made in an outward direction from the stem or root of the plant ; because if the reverse of this practice were adopted, as is sometimes done in plashing hedges, the fractured section would be left on the plant. Every cut made in a living plant ought to be sufficiently near a bud or a shoot to be healed over by its influence, and the section made should never be more obliquo than is necessary to secure its soundness and smoothness. In general, 236 GARDEN LABOURS WITH PLANTS. therefore, the separation of all branches from living plants ought to bo made by cutting or sawing across at vei-y nearly a right angle to the direc- tion of the stem, or branch, in order that it may be the more rapidly healed over When due attention is not paid to this rule, and the cut is made very obliquely to the line of the shoot, a vredgelike stump is left protruding beyond the bud or branch as in fig. 164, a, which never can be healed over, and which, consequently, soon decays, and dis- figures and injures the tree, by retaining water and bring- ]) ing on the rot ; but when the cut is made not more than the thickness of the bi-anch above the bud or shoot, and nearly directly across as at b, the wound is healed overcom- , pletely and in the shortest possible time. It must be observed, however, that the distance of the cut above the bud must depend in a great measure on the porosity of the 7mpri,periy'cJ 'h a '^'>°<^ of the shoot, and the proportion of its diameter which branch cut properly, is occupied by the pith ; for if the raspberry and the vine were cut close above the bud, the shoot would dry up beyond the bud, and prevent it from developing itself. Hence, in all such cases, and even sometimes in common fruit-trees, it is customary to make the first cut an inch or more above the bud ; and when the shoot has grown and produced two or three perfect leaves, to cut off the remaining stump. This would be the best mode in every case, but as it occasions double labour, the risk of its not being attended to induces most persons to cut near to the bud at once. For the pruning of all branches, or the cutting over of all stems under two inches in diameter, the pruning shears which cut nearly directly across, and of which there are different sizes for branches of different degrees of thickness, are greatly to be preferred to the knife, bill, or axe. (See fig. 47, p. 139.) 640. Clipping in gardening is chiefly applied to hedges, and to the edgings of walks or beds, when composed of dwarf box or under shrubs. The com- mon hedge shears differ from the pruning shears in crushing the shoot wliich is clipped, on both sides of the section (see p. 13D), and hence cUpping is not a desirable mode of pruning plants in general ; nor from the want of mechanical power are the common hedge shears applicable to any shoots, except those of one, or at most two years' growth. In clipping box or other edgings which are in a straight direction, a line is generally stretched close alongside the box at the height to which it is to be clipped. The top of the edging is then clipped down to the proper height, after which the line is taken up, and stretched along the centre of the top of the edging ; and the width of the top being determined on, the sides are cut accordingly, leaving the edging somewhat wider at the bottom than at the top. The height and width of edgings vary according to the width of the walks, or beds, and the taste of the gardener ; two inches wide and three inches high are ordinary proportions ; but some gardeners prefer having their edgings smaller, as less likely to harbour vermin. The ordinary time for clipping edgings is the spring ; before the shoots of the season are made ; but many gardeners prefer waiting tUl the shoots have been completed, and clip in June, after which the plants put out one or two leaves at the points of most of the shoots, which thus obliterate the marks of the shears on the other loaves. With box this appears to be decidedly the best mode. Where lines of edgings are not straight, they are of course clipped by the eye GAllDEN LABOURS WITH PLANTS. 237 , without the application of tlve lino ; a matter of no difficulty to an expert operator. 647. Clipping hedges is generally performed by the eye without the aid of the line ; but in the case of architectural hedges in gardens laid out in the geometrical style, both the line and the plummet are occasionally resorted to, to prove the exactness of the work. In the case of lofty hedges, for example, the beech and hornbeam hedges at Bramham Park, Yorkshire, and the holly hedge at Moredun, near Edinburgh, scaffolding is requisite, and this is adjusted to different heights ; the operation of clipping commencing at the bottom of the hedge, and being continued upwards in successive breadths, much in the same way that mowing is performed by several men following one another at regular distances. Hedges are generally clipped in the summer season ; immediately after the growth of the year has been completed. In some parts of the country instead of the hedge shears, (fig. 46, in p. 139) the hedge-bill (fig. 42, in p. 138) is used. In this case, the ends of the shoots which form the surface of the hedge are not bruised as in clipping ; and hence they are not liable to rot, or to produce an exu- berance of small shoots, which, from the greater stimulus, are always more abundant from a fractured section, than from one cut smoothly over. That this result will take place is known to every cottager who has been in the habit of splitting the upper ends of the stumps or stems from which cabbages or other kale have been cut, in order to induce them to throw out sprouts. The width of a hedge at the base need seldom exceed two feet in gardens ; but where a strong fence is required, or where the height exceeds twelve or fifteen feet, three feet in width at least, will be required at the base j for the closest and best clothed hedges are found to be those whose sec- tion forms the sides and base of a pyiamid. If the sides are perpendicular the hedge sometimes gets naked at the bottom ; but if is wider at top than at bottom, no art will prevent it from getting every year more naked, till, at last, plashing, or otherwise securing the gaps, must be resorted to, and then its beauty as a live fence is gone. Another advantage is gained by sloping the sides of hedges, and that is, in respect of keeping them clean; for when so cut the twigs at bottom, sharing in the dews and light, thrive and grow so close to the ground that few weeds can rise below them. Again, in fields, the uniformity of surface which can be maintained with ease in hedges cut on the sloping principle, prevents animals from readily attempting to leap or make a breach in them. If they observe the appearance of a breach they make towards it, and, crowding together at the spot, the foremost is " put to the horn," if he attempts to turn away. Of two evils he finds it perhaps the best alternative to dash forward through' the hedge, leaving an easier passage for those behind him ; some of them being hurried'after him by force, and others by a sort of instinct. If a stone fence is built of a uniform height, a hare will not readily leap over it of her own accord; but if the wall be heightened excepting in some places, the hare will attempt these apparently more easy places without hesitation, and certainly without being aware that those places are not in reality lower than they were formerly. 548. Mowing, like cutting, may be described as a species of sawing ; and it is perhaps the most laborious work which the gardener is called on to pojform ; every muscle of the human frame being by this kind of labour K 238 GARDEN LABOURS WITH PLANTS. called into severe action. In mowing com or long grass, the blade of the scythe may be moved along in a direction in which the plane of the blade forms an acute angle with the surface of the ground ; but in mowing short grass, the blade requires to be kept parallel to the surface, and, when the grass is kept very short, even to be pressed against it. The motion requires to be rapid and uniform, and the edge of the scythe to be kept very sharp by the frequent use of the whetstone. In the case of mowing lawns which contain scattered trees and shrubs without any dug space round them, the use of the grass-shears is required to cut the grass which comes in contact with the stems and branches. (416 and 417.) Mowing is chiefly used in lawns and pleasure-grounds, to keep the surfaces of grass short, smooth, and green ; but it is also employed to destroy weeds on grassy surfaces, and at the bottom of pieces of water, by cutting them over, as soon as they have advanced an inch or two in height in the spring, and repeating the opera- tion, with every trifling increase of growth during the season, and every succeeding one, till the roots cease to have the power of throwing up leaves. The scythe for mowing at the bottom of water ought to have an iron handle, in order that it may pass more readily through the water from its small diameter, and sink readily from its weight ; and it must not be forgotten that the time at which weeds must be mown is not when they are an inch or two above the surface of the wafer, but every time that they are an inch or two above the bottom of the pond or river. In mowing lawns, the mow- ing machine (442.) is often used on a large scale; and the common hedge-shears on a small scale for shortening the grass at the roots of shrubs or trees, which the mowing machine or scythe cannot conveniently reach. 649. Weeding is simply the pulling up of weeds, or any plants that are out of place ; and it is generally efibcted by the hand, more or less aided by weeding implements of the difix;rent kinds before described (400) ; to which we may add, the Guernsey weeding prong (described in the Gardener's Chronicle, vol. i. p. 66), which appears well adapted for preventing stooping, and the touching the weeds and ^rubbing in the soil with the fingers. The head of this implement (fig. 165), is in the shape of a claw hammer; with the one end flattened into a chisel, an inch wide, and the forked or clawed end, consisting of two flat , l sharp prongs by which t^ the weeds are grubbed ' ■' " '~h j up and lifted at the same U time. The length of the head from the extremity of the chisel end to that of the prong end is nine inches, and it is attached to a handle five feet long; A gi-eat part of the labour of weeding may in most gardens be performed by women and children ; and it will not only be lightened, but their hands will be kept clean, by the adoption of the Guernsey prong. 660. Other labours with plants might be enumerated, but they are either such as are common to arboriculture, agi-iculture, and other arts, or belong more properly to garden operations. We may, however, here notice splitting the stocks or roots of trees ; as, though it belongs properly to the forester, it is yet a labour which a gardener may have occasionally to practise. It is effected by entering a wedge always more or less in the dii'cction of the fibrea of the wood. This wedge must be struck with a heavy iron hammer with a PROPAGATION. • 239 .sufficient force to overcome the inertia of tlie mass constituting the wedge. With a heavy wedge and a light hammer no effect will be produced; hecause the impulse of the latter lias not sufficient power to overcome the inertia of the former. Sect. II. — Operations of Culture. Operations of gai'den culture may be arranged under the heads of propa- gation, rearing, preservation, and amelioration. SuBSECT. I. — Propagation. 661. Plants are propagated either by seed, or by division : the latter mode including cuttings, joints, leaves, layers, suckers, slips, budding, grafting, and inarching. All the modes of propagation by division are founded on the principle — that a bud, whether visible or latent, is essentially the same as a seed, and will consequently produce a plant; and that, as there is a bud, either visible or in an embryo state, in the axil of every leaf, it follows that for every leaf a plant contains, a young plant may be originated by art. This, however, is not done with equal ease in every species, and perhaps with some it may be almost impracticable; but it holds good with the great majority of plants, and may therefore safely be laid down and acted on as a general principle (12, 114 to 116). There is an important difference between propagating by seed, and propagating by any of the other modes known to gardeners : viz., that in propagating by seed, the species in the abstract is propagated, while in propagating by any of the other modes, the species is continued witli the habits of the individual parent. Tims, a shoot taken from a weeping ash, and grafted on a common ash, will produce a tree like the parent ; wliile a seed taken fi-om a weeping ash will not in general produce a weeping plant, but an upright growing one like the species. Nevertheless this does not always hold good, even in such trees as the weeping ash, and the weeping oak ; and it does not hold good at all in the case of trees in a high state of culture, such as fruit trees ; or in the case of herbaceous plants in a highly artificial state, such as the culinary vegetables of our gardens, and the principal agricultural plants of our farms. The weeping ash was an accidental sport (16); but notwithstanding this, out of many hundred plants raised from seed collected from a weeping tree by a nurseryman at Berlin, one or two were found to exhibit the weeping characters of the parent ; and when we consider that all the common weeping ash trees in Europe have been propagated from one tree, that at Gamblingay, in Cam- bridgeshire, and that this tree is a female, so that the blossoms, when fertile seeds have been produced must have been fecundated by the male blossoms of some adjoining common ash, the small proportion of weeping plants raised is not surprising. The acorns produced by a celebrated weeping oak at Moccas Court, in Herefordshire, produce plants almost all of whicli- have the branches drooping, though this tree is not farther removed from nature than the weeping ash, both having been found accidentally in a wild state. The stones of a green-gage plum, and the seeds of a golden pippin apple, wiU unquestionably produce plants, many of which will bear varieties of the gi-een-gage and golden pippin ; and tliough these may vary from the fruit of their parents, yet they will not vary more than the produce of a wild- ing, such as a crab apple, or a wild plum, will sometimes do from its parent. B 2. 242 ON PROPAGATION BY SEED. trated with mobture. This method is vety well suited for sowing on a large scale ; but as the seed often perishes during the winter, and the earth becomes soddened, or thickly covered with moss, the preferable way for valuable seeds which are to be raised in the open ah", is to sow them in the spiing, after they have been soaked for some days previously in warm water {Kegel in Gard. Mag. for 1841, p. 485). Seeds that are to be raised under glass, with the aid of artificial heat, may be sown at any time. 554. The period necessary to complete the process of germination varies in different seeds, though all attendant circumstances may be alike. The grasses generally vegetate most rapidly, and they are quickly followed by some of the cruciferous and leguminous plants; umbelliferous plants are generally slower, and rosaceous plants still more so. Adanson gives the following table of the period of germination in several seeds tried by him- self in France. Days. Days. Wheat, millet 1 Purslane 9 Strawberry blite, beans, mustard, kidney Cabbage . . . . . .10 beans, tui-nips, radishes, and roci^et 3 Hyssop • .... 30 Lettuce, and aniseed . . . . 4 Parsley . . . . 40 or 50 Melon, cucumber, gourd, and cress . 5 Cow-wheat, almond, chestnut, peach, Horse radish, leek . . . .6 and peony . . . One Year Barley ..... 7 Rose, hawthorn, hazel, nut and Orache ...... 8 cornel , . ... Two Years {Fam. des Plantes, vol. I. p. 84.) — The same author found that the seeds which germinated in twelve hours in an ordinary degree of heat, might be made to germinate in three hours by exposing them to a greater degree of heat ; and that seeds transported from the climate of Paris to that of Senegal, have their periods of germination accelerated from one to three days. On the same principle seeds transported from a warmer to a colder climate have their period of germination protracted till the temperature of the latter is raised to that of the former. The seeds of annuals generally ger- minate quicker and with more certainty than those of perennial plants ; and they generally retain their power of germination much longer. 555. The quantity of moisture most favourable to germinationrxmst depend on various circumstances, such as the degree of heat with which it is accom- panied, the vital power of the seed, and the nature of the species. The seeds of aquatic plants vegetate when immersed in water, and the plants live, and attain maturity in that element j but those of land plants, though they wUl vegetate in water, yet if the plants be not removed immediately after germination, they will become putrid and die. In general, the most favom-able degree of mois- ture for newly sown seeds, is that which a free soil holds in its interstices. Clayey soil will retain too much moisture for delicate seeds, and sand too little ; but an open free loam will attract and retain the proper quantity for aU seeds, excepting those which are very small and very delicate ; and for these a mixture of peat, loam, and fine sand, wiU retain just moisture enough, and no more. With all delicate seeds it is better rather to have too little moisture than too much ; and with all seeds whatever, it is of great importance to preserve the degree of moisture uniform. For this purpose, in the open garden, newly sown delicate seeds are shaded or covered by different means, such as sowing them on the north sides of hedges or walls, interpos- icg hurdles placed upright or horizontally, between the sown seeds and the sun, covering with mats, or branches, or litter, or, in the case of very small ON PROPAGATION BY BEED. 243 seeds, with moss. The more tender kinds are also sown in frames, or under hand or bell glasses, by which evaporation is prevented or checked, and a steady degree of moisture etfectnally maintained. 666. The water requisitetocause old seeds to germinate should be more gradu- ally given to them, than that given to vigorous young seeds; because the power of absorbing water in old seeds is not diminished in the same proportion as their power of decomposing it. When old seeds are placed in moist soil, they are consequently very liable to rot ; more especially, if the temperature be not somewhat higher than new seeds of the same species usually require. Hence, old seeds should be sown in a much drier soil than new seeds, and should be supplied with water much more sparingly, or left to absorb it from the atmosphere. Very old seeds will, however, sometimes germinate quickly by being steeped for some days in warm water ; and M. Kegel men- tions an instance of this, with regard to some very old seeds of Umbelliferae. In the botanic garden at Bonn, in the spring of 1838, four pans were sown with seeds, full ten years old, of P^erula tingitana, L., in which the embryo seemed entirely dried up, and only those in two of the pans were previously soaked. The latter sprang up all together in from ten to twenty days, while of those in the other pans, which were left for trial, only a few plants came up in one pan in the spring of the following year, the rest of the seed having all rotted.— (Gard. Mag. for 1841, p. 485.) 667. The depth to which a seed is buried in the soil has, for its chief object, _ the maintenance of a due degree of moisture, but another purpose is to exclude the light, and to give the future plant a better hold of the ground ; though there is no seed whatever that will not vegetate on the surface, if that sur- face be kept uniformly moist and shaded. It may be assumed that every seed will vegetate and establish itself in the soil, if buried to its own thick- ness ; but the experience of gardeners proves, that some large seeds, such as leguminous seeds, nuts, &c., make better plants when buried mvich deeper. 658. The degree df heat most favourable for the germination of seeds may be considered as that best adapted for the growth of the parent plants ; and,- hence, if the native country of any plant is known, it may be assumed that the seeds will germinate best in the temperature of the spring, or growing season of that country. Some seeds of cold climates, such as those of the common annual grass, chickweed, groundsel, &o., wiU germinate in a tem- perature little above the freezing point j but, in general, few northern plants win germinate under 40°, and the most favourable temperature for germinating Dr. Lindley states to be — for the seeds of cold countries, from 60° to 66° ; for seeds of greenhouse plants, fi-om 60 to 66" ; and for seeds of the plants of the torrid zone, 70° to 80. (TAeoi^ o/ZTori., p. 166). It may be remarked that though the seeds of warm countries will not vegetate in the temperature of cold countries, yet that the reverse of this does not hold true, as may be observed in the germination of British weeds in our stoves ; but the plants thus produced, unless immediately removed to the open air, remain weak and sickly. 669. The degree of heat which the seeds of plants will endure has already been slightly noticed. Certain leguminous seeds, as those of some acacias, may be subjected to the boiling point for a few minutes without injury ; others may be allowed to steep and cool for twenty-four hours in water heated to 200°. The seeds of Acacia Lophantha were subjected to boiling water for five minutes, and the plants raised from them were exhibited befoia 244 ON PROPAGATION BY SEED. the Horticultural Society, some years ago, by Mr. Palmer of Bromley, Keut. Messrs. Edwards and Colin found that wheat, barley, and rye could germinate between 44° and 45° ; that they were killed by remaining three days in water at the temperature of 96° ; that in sand and earth, at 104°, they lived for a considerable time ; but that at 113° most of them perished ; and that at 122° all of them perished ; but it was found that a higher temperature could be borne by these and other seeds for a shorter time. At 143°, in vapour, wheat, barley, kidney-beans, and flax retained their vitality for a quarter of an hour ; in dry air these seeds sustained no injury at 167° ; but in vapour, at this temperature, they all perished. Dr. Lindley mentions the very remark- able case of the germination of the seeds of a raspberry, which had been picked from a jar of jam, and which, consequently, must have been subjected to the temperature of the boiling point of the syrup, which is 230°. 660. The degree of cold which seeds will endure differs according to the species, their native country, and their condition in respect to moisture. Dry seeds stand so high a degree of cold, that even the lowest temperature of the frigid zone does not injure them; but if they have imbibed any moisture they freeze according to the degree of growth which may have been excited, and the degree of cold to which they had been accustomed in their native zone. 661. Atmospheric air, as we have seen (102), is as necessary to the ger- mination of seeds as moisture and heat ; and this is the principal cause why seeds buried to a certain depth in the soil do not vegetate. It also affords ^ reason for having the surface of the soil, in which seeds are sown, porous, and exposed to the action of the atmosphere, and to rain-water, which con- * tains more air than the water of wells. Hence the rapidity with which seeds spring up in the open ground after the first warm spring showers. Hence, also, the propriety of giving fresh air to hot-beds, and to hand and bellglasses covering sovm seeds, even though they have not come up. Old seeds are found to germinate sooner in pure oxygen than in atmospheric air : doubtless, because less efforts are required by the vital powers of the seed to assimilate the oxygen with its carbon, so as to form carbonic acid. 662. The influence of light on the germination of seeds has been already alluded to (552). Bright light is found to be universally unfavourable ; because it has a tendency to decompose carbonic acid, and fix carbon; whereas, as we have seen (653), the first step in the progress of germination is to render carbon mucilaginous and soluble in water, so to change it into carbonic acid. Light, therefore, ought to be excluded from all seeds which it is wished should germinate freely. 663. Accelerating the germination of seeds. In ordinary practice this is chiefly effected by the application of a higher degree of heat, as by placing pots of sown seeds in hot-beds, or by immersing seeds in tepid water, or by cutting or paring nuts, or gently fermenting them in heaps of sawdust, as is done with chestnuts, walnuts, acorns, almonds, &c., by the Paris nursery- men. On a large scale, both in the field and the garden, the most common resource is steeping in warm water for a few hours, which is found to bring up the seeds of barley, turnips, beets, parsnips, onions, &o., when the soil in which they are sown is very dry, much sooner than would otherwise bo the case ; this is found to prevent them from becoming a prey to insects or birds. The sowing of some seeds before they are perfectly ripe has also been found to promote their early vegetation ; but the experience of gardeners in this mode of acceleration is at present very limited. ON PROPAGATION BY SEED. 245 664. Various experiments have been made to accelerate germination with different degrees of success. These all proceed on the principle that germi- nation cannot take place until the carbon of the seed is changed into carbonic acid ; and as this can only be done by extraordinary supplies of oxygen, the agents employed are such as have the power of supplying that substance in greater abundance than water or air, from which, under ordinary circum- stances, the plant obtains it by decomposition. Humboldt was the iirst to observe that watering with chlorine induced speedy germination ; and, as, according to the observations of Goppert, iodine and bromine, in conjunction with hydrogen, produce a similar effect, it appears that both these matters, as well as the oxalic and other acids frequently applied for that purpose, hasten the process of assimilation. It cannot be denied that all these substances accelerate germination ; but to the practical gardener they must be considered as experiments unfit for general practice, for the young plants thus called into existence most frequently become sickly through the excitement, and die off, which cannot surprise us, as the same effect is seen when plants of cold climates are reared too warmly, and are not placed in a cooler situation after germination. Dr. Lindley, after quoting the experiments of Mr. Otto of Berlin, who, by employing oxalic acid, made seeds germinate which were from twenty to forty j'ears old, and the statement of Dr. Hamilton, that he had found a like advantage from the use of this acid (see the details in Gard. Jfi2^.,viii., 196 and x,, 368, 453), makes the following remark, appli- cable also to the employment of a diluted solution of chlorine, as tried by . Humboldt : — Theoretically it would seem that the effects described ought to be produced, but general experience does not confirm them ; and it may be conceived that the rapid abstraction of carbon, by the presence of an unna- turally large quantity of oxygen, may produce effects as injurious to the health of the seed, as the too slow destruction of carbon in consequence of the languor of the vital principle. (^Theory, S^c., p. 174.) 666. Electricity and alkalies as stimulants to vegetation. " It has been ascertained," Mr. Lymbum observes, " that electricity is connected with all transformations or changes of organic substances, either as cause or effect ; when electricity is present, it accelerates or causes chemical decomposition ; and, according to Dr. Carpenter, when chemical decomposition takes place, electricity is always developed ; though, perhaps, in most instances, it is absorbed again by the new state of the compound. M. Maltuen, in experi- ments made some years ago with seeds, found that they germinated much sooner at the negative or alkaline pole of a galvanic battery, than at the positive or acid pole ; and, following up these discoveries by enclosing seeds in phials of alkalies and acids, he found they germinated quickly in the former, and with difficulty, or sometimes not at all, in the latter. Connected with the same subject are the recent experiments of Dr. Horner, on the differently coloured rays of the spectrum ; the violet or deoxidising end produces a chemical effect, similar to the negative or alkaline pole, and the red end pro- duces the opposite or acid effect, by the retention of the oxygen. Guided by these theoretical opinions, I was induced to try their effects on some very old spruce fir seed in 18136, which had been three years out of the cone ; the year before, 1835, some of the same seed did not produce one-sixth part of a crop, and I had good reason to suppose it would be worse the next. The year before, when the seed was damped to accelerate germination, it had a musty fungous smell ; and the seed leaves came up yellow, and, hanging by the ends in tho 246 ON PROPAGATION BV SEED. ground, had not strength to free themselves from the soil. In 1836, how- ever, after being damped, I added quicklime in the state of powder, which, besides furnishing an alkali, has a great aiBnity for carbonic acid, whidi is necessary to be extracted from the starch before it can be made soluble, and which produces heat by concentration of the oxygen and carbon when beingf extracted. After the seed was thoroughly damped, I sprinkled it with the powder of lime, and kept it damp by the use of a watering-pan, for ten or twelve days ; at the end of which time it had swelled off plump, and had all the sweet smell of the sugar formed in healthy seed when malted in this way : and, when deposited in the ground, it was not long in pushing up its seed leaves, as healthy, upright, and dark green in the colour, as the first year it was sown ; and the seedling plants were strong and hed.thy. The reasons why I preferred lime were, its cheapness, and the affinity of quicklime for carbonic acid : as to its alkaline properties, soda is much more powerful, but lime seemed to be that which had produced most effect in the experiments of M. Payen and others on the same subject. The seed must be carefully kept damp till sown, as the dry powder is apt to corrode ; and seeds do not suit well to have their dormant powers brought into action without being sustained, which, if far forward and severely checked, may destroy life alto- gether. Since I experimented as above on the spruce fir seed, I have not had any other seed so long kept to make trial of; I have, however, tried lime on magnolias and other weak-growing seeds difficult to start, and found them to germinate sooner, and make stronger plants than usual. Some others who have tried it have also found it of benefit. It is to seeds containing their albumen principally in the form of starch, that it will be of most benefit ; and to those which have been hurt by long keeping dry, or being exposed to great heat : those which have been spoiled by dampness have their food de- composed and spoiled. It is difficult, also, to say how far the drying can be endured without being prejudicial, and when the organised tissue, the seat of life, may have its powers of resuming vital activity so far trenched on as to be considered dead. After this has taken place, any stimulus that can be applied can only hasten consumption, as the vital force which should preside over and direct the chemical force has fled." — {Gard. Mag. for 1841, p. 620.) 666. The length of time during which seeds retain their vitality varies ex- c edingly in different species ; and the difference in this respect, even in the plants m common cultivation, as every seedsman knows, is very considerable. It is remarkable that the seeds of annual plants not only germinate in general qu cker and with more certainty than those of perennials, but, also, that they retain their power of germination much longer. The greater part of the seeds of perennial plants and trees, when well kept, preserve their germi- nating powers for a long time ; while certain oily seeds, like those of dictamus, magnolia, and myristica, &c., decay soon after ripening. Melon seeds have been known to retain their vitality for nearly half a century, Kidney-beans for a century, and the seeds of the sensitive-plant upwards of sixty years. 667. The length of time that seeds will lie in the ground without growing, is not less remarkable than the difference in their retention of vitality. Many seeds, which, when sown in spring, come up soon afterwards, will not come up the same year if sown m autumn. This is the case with many common annuals, which when sown immediately after ripening either do not come up at all that year, or come up sparingly and sickly. In May ON PROPAGATION BY SEED. 247 1838, M. Kegel, of Berlin, gathered seeds of Draba prae'cox, and sowed them in pots which were kept in a cold pit. Only two plants came up that year of very stunted growth, and they never attained suificient strength to flower; while next spring the remaining seeds came up very thick and Strong, and flowered in the space of four weeks. On the other hand, the seeds of the greater portion of biennial plants, if sown immediately after ripening, come up freely, become strong plants before winter, and flower the following year. This is also the case with a great number of annual plants, especially those of California, which in their native country spring up before winter, and are preserved through that season by a covering 5 addition split up for an inch or two, and the wound Icept open witli a wedge. Tliis has been found by long experience greatly to facilitate the rooting of such cuttings, probably by increasing the surface by which absorption of moisture takes place, and at the same time insuring only a moderate supply of moisture; and perhaps, creating a greater demand for the action of the leaves to cicatrize the wound with granulous matter. See fig. 168, in which a cutting of shaddock is not only slit up at the lower end at a, where it is cut off immediately below a joint, but tongued or cut at the first joint at b. 682. Treatment of cuttings from the time they are made till they are planted. — In general, cuttings are no sooner made than they are inserted in the soil where they are to remain till they strike root; but there are several exceptions, as appears by the following extract from M. Regel, already quoted from : — As the crude sap in the cutting is not raised by endosmose, but by the process of evaporation, care must be taken that the surface of the cut does not become dry before being put in the earth, and air get into the lower end of the vessels ; for, as soon as this takes place, only very strong shoots are capable of drawing up moisture, as has been proved by the ex- periments of various philosophers. The cuttings should therefore be stuck in wet sand, if they cannot immediately be put where they are intended to remain, although it were better to avoid this. If, however, they are such as ought to lie a day or two, in order to insure success, such as some banksias, acacias, &o., it ought to be in a damp place ; and the precaution must be taken, if possible, to cut them again before planting. If cuttings of Dryandra, some banksias (B. integrifolia, B. Baueri, B. media, B. Caleyi, &c.), most of the long-leaved acacias {A. longissima, A. pendula, A. brevifolia, A. glauc6scens, A. longifolia, A. micracantha, &c.), and some sorts of Di6sma (D. dioica, formosa, and umbellata), be stuck in the eartli immediately after being taken from the parent plant, the inner bark will become black in from fourteen days to four weeks, and the cutting will perish. — This phenomenon appears to be in close connexion with the form of the leaves of these plants, as those of the acacias have very small stomata, while those of the dryandras have none at all. In their stead, on the undii- side of the leaves of the latter plants are small dimples, lined with short hairs, which the diosmas also possess. Now, as the crude nourishing matter is drawn up through the open wood in its existing state, and received by the cutting, whUe the spongioles of the roots only imbibe it in a very thin solution, it appears that the above-named plants, on account of the peculiar formation of their leaves, cannot elaborate in any great quantity this gross nourishing matter; and hence arise stagnation of the juices, and the before-mentioned appearances. The good effect of leaving these cut- tings lymg, and thus interrupting the growing process, appears to be the prevention of the superabundant rise of the crude nourishing matter ; and this is the more probable, as it is usual, for the same purpose, to rub over the section with a piece of clay. 583. Cuttings of succulent, or fleshy, plants must also lie for a time before planting, and on no account in a moist atmosphere, that the surface of the cut may be sufficiently dried. They retain so many watery particles in their cellular tissue, that, when this is neglected, the face of the cut soon rots. The species of the families Melocactns, Echinocactus, Maramillaria, Opiintia, Cereus, &c., have an extremely thick bark, and a fine epidermis, with very few stomata ; on which account the process of evaporation is so 256 ON PHOFAGATION BY CUTTINGS, slow, that they remain alive for a long time without receiving external nourishment. The dried cuttings of these plants, therefore, are generally planted in dry earth, and set in a bed or house filled with warm air, and are not watered till they have formed roots from the nourishing matter accu- mulated in themselves. The roots can scarcely ever penetrate the thick bark, and are produced on the section between the wood and the bark. In some of the Opuntia and Cereus species, however, they come out of the bark at the side. The other succulent and fleshy plants, such as the ^'loe, Haworthia, .Sempervivum, Mesembryanthemum, Crassula, Plumieria, and its congeners, as well as all the Cacti, which form side roots, may be watered as soon as they are planted. Lastly, plants with milky juice requiie similar treatment, as they are equally liable to damp off. — -As soon as a part of one of these plants is cut off, the milky juice exudes in great quantities, covers the whole surface of the cut, and hardens like caoutchouc, by which the vessels are all stopped up, and the ascension of the moisture prevented. In the Munich garden, cuttings of .Ficus, and the dry roots of Euphorbia, are put in water, where they remain twenty-four hours before they are planted in the earth. The sauie end is also attained when they are put in dry sand immediately after being cut, and afterwai-ds the sand and the milky juice cleared away; but the succulent and very milky euphorbias must lie for some time." — Garten Zeitung, May 23rd, 1840. 584. The soil in which cuttings are planted depends on the greater or loss facility with which they emit roots. Cuttings of hardy trees and shrubs that root easily, are planted in common garden soil ; those that are somewhat difficult, in sand or sandy loam on a base of garden soil ; and those which are most difficult in sand covered with a hand-glass. Cuttings of house plants are almost always planted in pots or boxes well drained, and the drainage covered, first, with a layer of good soil, or leaf mould, or peat, ac- cording to the soU which the plants to be propagated naturally prefer j next with a stratum of sand, in which the cuttings are planted. The saud retams as much moisture as is ne- cessary for the existence of Fig. 167. A cutting 0/ a Capa^^^ Cutting, and no more, so Heatli, prepared and planted; the ihaX itS loWCr end IS UOt dolled line in this and the /Mow- Ij^gJ ^^ J.^^ ^^^ fjjg gtratum \ng ftgurea of cuUings,represent- „ ., , , ,, , Fi2. 168. A cullinr of an ing the .u,/uce of Ike soil in the of SOll beloW the Sand SUp- %^^^;^ prepare/ and pal- plies nourishment to the planted. roots as soon as they penetrate through the sand. The cuttings of Cape Heaths, and almost all plants whatever which are difficult to root, are planted in sand, which is quite free from soil, metallic oxides or salts, and of a pure white colour. 585. The depth to which cuttings are planted varies according to the length and thickness of the cutting, but in general it siiould not be more than six or eight inches. On taking up large cuttings, or truncheons of willow or poplar which have been inserted in the ground in order to grow, it will be found that all the roots they have made are within little more than a foot of tlie surface, and that none have been produced from their lower ends ; more especially if the soil in which they stand should be compact and moist. The same thing will be found to take place with gooseberry cuttings, and those of ON PROPAGATION BY CUTTINGS. 257 common trees and shrubs, which have been planted more than nine inches or ten inches in depth. This is quite analogous to what takes place with seeds ; when buried below a certain depth there is no sufficiency of either heat or au- to cause them to germinate ; and the same want of heat and air, and probably excess of moisture, prevents roots from being emitted from the lower ends of cuttings when inserted in the soil to a much greater depth than that at which seeds would vegetate. Hence all delicate cuttings, such as those of heaths, diosmas, acacias (fig.l 69), epacrises, &c., succeed best when not planted in sand more than from half an inch to an inch in depth. Some heaths root best when the cuttings are not above three quarters of an inch in length, with not more than a third of that length in the soil. .586. In planting cuttings it is of importance to make them quite firm at their lower ends, by pressing the sand or soil to them with the dibber used in planting them ; or in the case of large cuttings, such as those ©f common laurel, which are planted in trenches, by pressure with the foot. In the case of Cape Heaths and such like cuttings planted in sand, the dibber or pricker, which need not be larger than a knitting imgo/iheyimtig needle, is taken in the right hand, while the cutting is held in «"">i o/Acada the left, and the hole being made the cutting is inserted, "jf^litoSd."^ nearly as deep as the leaves have been clipped off, and the pricker is again applied to close the sand round it, as closely and compactly as possible, without bruisiug the cutting. Large cuttings are planted pre- cisely in the same manner, but with a larger dibber. Large cuttings of kinds which are somewhat difficult to strike, when not planted in pure sand, are made to touch and press against the bottom or sides of the pot, which is found to facilitate their rooting — probably on the principle already men- tioned (581). 687. The distance at wliich cuttings are planted varies according to the size of tlie cutting, its leaves (either on the cutting, or to be produced from its buds), the season of the year, the length of time they require to root, and other circumstances. The object is to root as many cuttings as practicable in a limited space, and consequently to plant them as close together as can be done without incurring the risk of rotting or damping them off. Keeping these objects in view, it is obvious that cuttings which strike in a short time during spring or summer may be planted closer than those which require a longer period, or are put in in autumn or winter; and that short cuttings, such as those of heaths, may always be placed closer together than long cuttings. AU cuttings whatever that are planted with the leaves on, require to be immediately well watered, in order to settle the soil about them ; and all those that are in a growing succulent state, and are at all difficult to strike, should be immediately covered with a hand-glass or bell-glass ; for, thougli the cutting receives as much moisture through the face of the cut as it loses in ordinary circumstances by evaporation, yet no sooner is it placed in very dry air or in a draught, or exposed to the sun's rays, than a dispro- portion takes place between the demand and supply. When tliis is the case, more watery particles are lost through evaporation, than are raised in the body of the wood, which is very easily perceived in large soft leaved cuttings. On this account plant sti-uctures are required, in which the outer 258 ON PROPAGATION BY CDTTINGS. air can be excluded, a moist temperature maintained, and in very waiTn sunshine a dense shade can be given. Even in these houses, bell-glasses should be placed over the more difficult cuttings, to protect them from all such external influences as might destroy them before they have made their roots. 588. After treatment of cuttings. — The hardiest sorts in the open garden, such as gooseberries, &c., require no particular treatment whatever, and need not even be placed in a shady situation ; but those which root less freely, such as box, holly, juniper, &c., succeed best when planted in a shady border, in a sandy soil. Cuttings planted in pots or boxes require to be placed not only in a shady situation, but for the most part under glass, in order to diminish evaporation from the soil as well as from the cuttings. All the more delicate sorts of cuttings, such as heaths and most house plants, require to be covered with a bell-glass, and shaded during bright sunshine. In close moist warm atmospheres, such as that maintained in the propagating pits of some nurserymen (see 674), most kinds of cuttings will strike with- out bell-glasses over them ; but in general, these glasses are requisite, in order to maintain a steady moist atmosphere. All cuttings with the leaves on require to be looked over frequently, supplied with water when it is wanting, and such leaves as decay taken off, as well as any dead or dying cuttings removed. 589. The most proper form of hell-glass for covering cuttings is (hat which gradually tapers from the base to the top ; as from glasses of this shape the moisture, which adheres to the inside in the form of drops, runs gradually off, without the droppmg so injurious to cuttings. This disadvantage is found in all other forms more or less ; such as those that are round at the top, or cylindrical with the top bluntly truncated. The enclosed air under the glasses will soon lose its oxygen through the respiring process of the plants within, and also be vitiated by other exhalations ; and, if it is not clianged, it generates mouldiness, and the cuttings lose their fresh appear- ance. For this reason the glasses, if possible, should be daily ventilated and wiped ; or, what is still better, as it will entu'ely renew the air, dipped in a vessel of cold water, and well shaken before being put on again, so that too many drops of water may not remain on the glass. In an extensive establishment this operation requires too much time, and therefore round holes, of about from ^ in. to | in. in diameter, should be made in the tops of the glasses ; and these will prove very serviceable, if the pans stand on hotbeds or other heated surfaces. In small gardens, where the cuttings are placed with other plants on the bed or shelf close under the front glass, bell-glasses, without holes, would be preferable. When the ground is warmed to about 65° Fall., it is better, with some few exceptions, such as the iaurus species, to place the glasses inside of the pots, so that the tem- perature within may not rise too high ; but when the warmth is not so great, they may, without injury, be placed on the outside of the edge of the pot. 590. Watering cuttings is an operation requiring great care and judgment. The object is, to maintain as uniform a degree of moisture in the soil as possible, without occasioning mouldiness on its surface or i-otting the leaves. Hence, the water is in some cases poured on the soil in such a manner as not to touch the leaves of the cuttings, and in others a reservoir of water is funned by placing a small pot in the centre of a larger one, the water being ON PROPAGATION BY CUTTINGS. 259 Forsyth's mode ofstrikivg cuttings. left to ooze slowly through the porous sides of the pot, as shown in fig. 170, in which o, d, is a No. 60 potj with the bottom closed up with clay, put into one of larger size ; 6, the drainage in the lai-ger pot ; c, the sand or soil in which thecuttings are inserted; and ,fo/rte yoa»^ «><.oci ,/ be kept cool till that season. In either case, " camelUa, prepared and planted. all the leaves must be kept on, except one, or at most two, on the lower end of the cutting, which need not be planted more than an inch in depth, and should in general be covered with a bell-glass. 599. Cuttings of heath -like plants, such as Erica, E'pacris, Diosma, Brunza, &c., are among the most difficult to root. They should be taken from the points of the side shoots early in spring, when the plants have nearly ceased growing ; not be more than from an inch to two inches in length, and cut clean across at a joint, and the leaves clipped or cut off for about half an inch upwards from the lower end of the cutting. Thus prepared, they should be planted in pure white sand, with a little peat soil as a substratum, and the whole well drained. The pot should then be covered vrith a bell- glass, and placed in a frame, or in the front of a greenhouse, and shaded during sunshine. See figs. 167 and 168. 600. Cuttings of succulent plants, such as Cactuses, Cereuses, Euphorbias, Mesembryanthemums, Crassulas, Stapelias, and the like, require to lie a few days before being planted, in order to dry the wounds; after which they may be inserted in pots containing a mixture of peat, sand, and brick rub- bish, well drained ; after which the pots may be set on the front shelf of a warm greenhouse, and occasionally watered, but shading will be unne- cessary. 601. Cuttings of the widerground stems and roots. A great many plants, both ligneous and herbaceous, may be propagated by cuttings of the under- ground stems, as in the liquorice ; and of the roots, as in the common thorn, ON PROPAGATION BY CUTTINGS. 263 and most of the Rosaceaa. The roots should be those of healthy plants rather young than old, and in general from half an inch to one or two inches in thickness. They may be cut into lengths of from three to six or nine inches, and planted in fi-ee soil, with the tops just above the surface. Care must be taken that the upper end of the cutting, or that whicli was next the stem before it was separated from the plant, be kept uppermost, for if that is not done, the cutting will not grow. This is the case even with cuttings of the horse-radish and sea-kale ; but if cuttings of the roots of these and similar plants are laid down horizontally, and but slightly covered with soil, they will protrude buds from what was the upper end before removal, and send out roots from the lower end. All roses may be propagated by cut- tings, and all fruit-trees which are seedlings, or have been raised by cuttings or layers. The Robinia, Acacia, Gledltschio, Coronilla, Gymnocladus, and many other leguminosse ; Ailantus, Catalpa, the balsam Ontario and Lombardy poplars, the English elm, the mulberry, the Madura, various other ligneous plants, and all plants whatever that throw up suckers, may be increased by cuttings of the roots ; as may a great number of herba- ceous perennials. The best time of taking them off is when the plants are in a dormant state, and all that is recjuired is a clean cut at both ends. 602. Striking cuttings in water or moist moss. — All marsh plants having leafy stems, whether ligneous or herbaceous, will strike root in water, and still better in vessels containing moss kept thoroughly moist. Besides marsh plants, a great many others will root in this way, which, indeed, seems the most ancient mode of artificial propagation. Cuttings of southern- wood have been rooted in phials of water in cottage windows in Scotland from time immemorial. Balsams also, and many other plants, may be so rooted, but not any plant that is difficult to strike in sand. The chief diffi- culty attending this mode of propagation is the transference of the rooted cuttings from the water to the soil, which can hardly be done without a severe check. The only mode is to saturate the soil thoroughly with water before inserting the plants in it, and to keep it well soaked afterwards till the plants have begun to grow. 603. Striking plants in powdered charcoal. — The use of sifted charcoal dust, or, in other words, of charcoal in a state of powder, with the particles not much larger than those of common sand, appears to have been first adopted for rooting cuttings in the Royal Botanic Gardens at Munich, by M. G. Lucas, in 1839. The details at great length will be found in the " Gardeners' Magazine" for 1841, translated from the Oarten Zeitung. It may be sufficient here to state that powdered charcoal is used as a substitute for sand, and that it answers best when it has for some months been ex- posed to the air and weather j also that it diifers from sand in not only facilitating the rootmg of cuttings, but in supplying them with nourish- ment after they are rooted, and conseq^uently no under stratum of soil becomes necessary, as is the case where sand is used. The rationale of this practice has been given in the Garten Zeitung, by Dr. Buchner (see Gurd. Mag., 1811, p. 252), and the following summary is from a work recently published in London : — " It is essential to the rapid gi-owth of a plant that carbonic acid should be taken up by its roots as well as by its leaves. The carbonic acid may be furnished in two ways; either the soil may absorb it from the atmosphere, or the decay in some of the matter contained in it may disengage this product. It is a remarkable property, possessed by several 264 ON PEOPAOATION BY C0TTINGS. porous substances, of absorbing gases, and especially carbonic acid gas, to the amount of many times their own bulk. Of aU these, charcoal is one of the most powerful in this respect, and it has been found that many plants may be grown in powdered charcoal, if sufficiently supplied with water, more luxuriantly than in any other soU. The charcoal itself undergoes no change, but it absorbs carbonic acid gas from the air; this is dissolved by the watei', which is taken up by the roots, and thus it is introduced into the system. In such cases the plant derives its solid matter as completely from the atmosphere alone as if its roots were entirely exposed to it, for not a particle of the charcoal is dissolved ; and it, therefore, affijrds no nutriment to the plants." ( Vegetabk Physiology, in a Popular Cyc. of Nat. Science, p. 117.) la ihe Gardeners' Magazine lists will be found of cuttings of a great many different species which had rooted in charcoal much sooner than they usually do in sand or soil ; and from the most recent accounts it appears tliat the practice is still carried on in Germany with success. We would therefore strongly recommend its introduction into British gardens. 604. Propagation by joints and nodules. This mode of propagation is founded on the principle, that every bud, whether visible or adventitious, is capable of being made to produce a plant ; and it only differs from pro- pagating by cuttings, in the buds or joints being taken off the plant with a smaller quantity of nutritive matter attached to them. Plants are also propagated by inserting the buds under the bark of other plants ; but this mode, which is called budding, wilLform the subject of a separate section. As bulbs are only buds, nature may be said to employ this mode of propa- gation in the case of some species of bulb-bearing plants, such as Allium and Xilium, in which the buds frequently drop from the stems on the soil, and root into it. All the offsets of bulbs are of course buds, and maj' be employed in propagation ; the nutriment to the young plant being supplied from the scales, which eventually elongate into leaves, and the roots pro- ceeding from the plate or base to which these scales are attached. The buds, with the exception of bulbs, which are taken from the stems, branches, or roots of plants, for the purpose of being rooted in the soU, always contain a portion of the stem or root, to supply them with nourishment till they are able, by the roots they form, to abstract it from the soil. In the case of the vine, a joint is commonly taken; but in that of the potato, a single bud, with a portion of the underground stem or tuber attached, is found sufficient. There are very few plants, besides the vine and the potato, which are at present propagated by rooting buds or joints in the soil, though there can be no doubt that this mode is applicable to a great number of plants with which it has not yet been tried. It is probable, also, that all or many of those plants which can be propagated by cuttings of the roots might be increased by small portions of these, so short as to be considered more in the nature of joints than cuttings. For example, I'oot-cuttings of the common thorn and sea-kale are commonly made of several inches in length ; and it is known that, if they are laid down lengthwise, and covered with an inch of soil, they will produce roots at one end of the cutting and shoots at the other. Now, by shortening the cutting to an inch, or half an inch, and treating it in the same manner, it is probable the same result would take place, though the plants produced might be weaker. It is true this would be nothing more than propagating by very short cuttings ; but rooting plants from joints may be so designated. The advantage of propagating by ON PROPAGATION liY CUTTINGS. 265 buds or joints is, that a plant is produced from every bud or joint ; whereas in propagating by cuttings, at least two buds, and commonly several, are required. The plants raised by buds, on the other hand, are commonly weaker than those raised by cuttings, from having a smaller supply of nutri- tive matter for their support during their infancy. 605. A nodule, as we have seen (116), is a concretion of embryo buds, such as may be frequently seen in the matter extravasated from the joints of pelargoniums and the stumps of old elms and poplars, olives and mul- berries, occasioned by the returning sap not flowing freely to the root. These nodules ai-e seldom used for the purpose of propagation, except in the case of the olive ; but there can be no doubt that they might be employed for this pui'pose, and would answer, were it not that the plants which pro- duce them are in general very readily propagated by cuttings. The only remarkable instance of propagation by this mode that is on record is prac- tised in Italy with the olive. The old trees are commonly found to con- tain swellings or nodules in the trunk, called uovole, and these being sepa- rated, are planted in the soil in the manner of bulbs, and produce plants. The operation of separating is performed with a sharp pen-knife, and the mother plant does not seem to suffer the slightest injury by the operation. {Gard. Mag. vol. vii. p. 663.) This no doubt might be practised with the nodules of all plants, and we laelieve it has occasionally been done with those of the white poplar, the mulberry, and the pelargonium. 606. In propagating by joints of the vine it is reasonable to suppose that the larger the portion of wood attached to the joint the stronger will be the plants produced. Mr. Knight found that the buds of the vine, wholly detached from the alburnum, were incapable of retaining life ; but that a very few grains of alburnum were sufficient to enable a bud to form minute leaves and roots, such as would have been produced by plants raised from seeds. By increasing the quantity of alburnum, the shoots produced from the buds increased in the same proportion ; and when the bud had a piece of two years' old wood, a foot long, attached to it, the growth was nearly as strong as it would have been if the bud had remained on the parent tiec. Joints of the vine are preferred to cuttings for propagation, because they form plants more easily managed in pots than are larger cuttings or layers ; and they are preferred to layers also, because they are always furnished with roots in due proportion to their shoots, whereas plants raised from layers have frequently, from not being separated from the parent plant at the proper time, very strong shoots and very few ill-ripened roots. In pre- paring joints of the vine, about half an inch of the wood is left above and below the bud, as in fig. 176 ; but this and all other plants that are so propagated are found to root better when the shoot is cut through, so aa to separate about one-third part of the pith, as shown in iig. 177. By this latter mode of treatment plants have been Fig. m. A joMoravine ^^^^^^ frombuds and half- prepared in the common ,,,. . , . manner, and planled. JOmtS of camellia, pomsettifl, euphorbia, brugmansja, and other species. Mr. Murray observes of the lych- nis.coronaria, the flower-stem of which has opposite ' leaves, that not only wiU individual joints strike,but ^l^ .^Zd:'^; Z":,::. if each joint be split into two vertically, two distinct and pith are removed previout plants may be obtained. {Gard. Cliron. for 1841, '"planting. 266 PROPAGATION BY LEAVES. p. 297.) There can be no doubt that a great number of plants, both ligneous and herbaceous, may be propagated by joints or half-joints, though cultivatore have hitherto made comparatively few trials. 607. Propagation by bulbs, and entire tubers and tubercles, is effected simply by separating them from the parent plant, and inserting them in the soil about the same depth at which they are found on the parent plant, or a little deeper in very light soil, and not quite so deep if in very heavy soil. A phe- nomenon, DccandoUe observes, common to all tubers is this : that while in the seed the radicle or descending part pushes first, in the tuber, on the contrary, the ascending part or plumule is first developed, and the roots appear a short time afterwards. The potato and the Jerusalem artichoke are often planted by entire tubers, as well as by separating them into eyes or sets. The same. may be said of the tubers of the anemone and the ranunculus. The tubercles or small tubers of saxifraga granulita, addxa moschatellina, and of many species of oxalis, are propagated by planting the tubers entire. The offsets of all bulbs are also planted entire, and, as already observed, they may be considered as buds ; though they differ from ordinary buds, in which the nutritive matter is laid up in the alburnum of the plant, by having it deposited at the base of the leaves or scales of which the bulb is composed. 608. Propagating by bulb-bearing leaves. The leaves of malaxis paludosa bear little bulbs at their extremities; several sorts of allium originate bulbs in the axils of the bracts ; and in some ferns, such as asplenium bulblferum, and Woodwardia radicans, bulbs are found at the extremities of the leaves, which when these touch the soil, grow, throw down roots, and produce young plants. Bulbs, or germs analogous to them, are found hi marchantia polymorpha, and on many arums and dioscoreas, by all of which the plants may be propagated ; taking care, in difficult cases, to preserve the soil, on which the bulbs are placed, uniformly moist, shaded, and at a somewhat higher temperature, and the atmosphere, by means of a bell-glass, in a greater degree of moisture, than is required for the parent plant. § 3. Propagation by Leaves. This mode of propagation is of considerable antiquity, though it has not till lately been much practised. It is said by Agricola, {L' Agriculteur Par- fait, iSfC, ed. 1732) to be the invention of Frederick, a celebrated gardener at Augsburg, and to have been first described by Mirandola, in his Manuale di Giardinieri, published in 1652. Subsequent experiments by C. Bonnet, of Geneva ; Noisette, Thouin, Neuman, and Pepin, of Paris ; Knight, Herbert, and others, in England; and quite recently by Lucas, in Germany, have proved that there is no class of plants which might not be propagated by leaves. It has been tried with success with cryptogamous plants, with endogens and exogens; with the popular divisions of ligneous and herbaceous plants, annuals, bien- nials, and perennials, and with the leaves of bulbous plants and palms. 609. The principle on which the propagation of plants by leaves is founded is considered by some as the organisability of the sap of the plant, and by others as founded on the universal diffusion through the plant of embryo buds. " Tliat the vital power residing in the latex or blood of the plant," Mr. Lymburn observes, " is sufficient to form buds, no one can doubt who has observed the matter extravasated at times from the stems of geraniums, diihlias, &c., and the stumps of old trees. At first it is only a mass of cellular matter, but gradually begins to thicken on the surface, and get of PROPAGATION BY LEAVES. 267 a red and green colour ; vessels are seen to be produced and buds organised, ■which, if placed in favourable circumstances, will evolve into shoots. I have seen the buds literally crowded together like bees in a hive. Dr. Carpenter says, that the blood of animals, even when altogether separated and spread out, has been seen to organise vessels, from the strength of the vital principle." This seems also to have been Mr. Knight's opinion. It is, however, of less consequence to adopt either theory than to follow a practice which has been found successful by cultivators, and which takes place in nature in the leaves accidentally broken and left on moist soil of cardamine hirsuta, the common water-grass, sedums, and other succulent-leaved plants, and probably various others, independently of those which root by the leaves in consequence of these producing bulbs, as in the case of Woodwardta radicans (608). 610. The conditions generally required for rooting leaves are, that the leaf be nearly full grown ; that it be taken off with the petiole entire ; that tlie petiole be inserted from an eighth to half an inch, according to its length, thickness, and texture, in sandy loam, or in pure sand on a stratum of rich soil ; and that both the soil and the atmosphere be kept uniformly moist, and at a higher temperature than is required for rooted plants of the same species. The leaves of such succulents as cacalia, crassula, cotyledon, kalankoe, por- tulaca, sedmn, sempervivum, cactus, and similar plants, root when laid on the surface of soil, with the upper side to the light, and the soil and atmo- sphere is kept sufficiently close, moist, and warm. The first change that takes place is the formation of a callosity at the base of the petiole ; after which, at the end of a period, which varies greatly in different plants, roots are produced, and eventually, at an equally varying period, a bud from which a leafy axis is developed. M. Pepin states that rooted leaves of Hoya camosa, and those of several kinds of Aloe, did not produce a bud till after the lapse of ten or twelve years. The leaves before they emit roots must be slightly shaded to prevent excessive perspiration during sunshine, but afterwards they may be fully exposed to the light. 611. Rooting portions of leaves. It appears that some leaves will throw down roots with only a part of the petiole attached, and that others will even root from the mid-rib when the leaf is cut through. In 1839, M. Neuman, of the Paris Garden, seeing the theophrasta latifolia (Clavija ornata, D. Don) growing so well from cuttings of leaves, conceived the idea of cutting several of them in two, and treating them in the same manner as entire leaves. Accordingly, he cut a leaf in two, and planted both parts in the same pot, treating them exactly alike. In about three months, the lower half of the leaf (iig. 178) had made roots, but the upper half had none ; though, some time afterwards, when it became necessary to separate the cuttings, M. Neuman found that the upper part of the leaf had also made roots (fig. 179), but that these roots were much shorter than those of the lower half. The rooting of the two halves of a leaf of the theophrasta, so hard and dry as every one knows these leaves to be, appearing to him an interesting circumstance, he continued to pay attention to them for six months. He wished to ascertain if they would produce buds as in other cases, for he was in hopes they would, as he remarked that the roots increased in the pot. At last in the seventh month, for the first time, he saw at the extremity of his tvro half leaves, buds appearing, as well formed as those pro- ceeding from tlie base of the petiole of an entire leaf. In June, 1840, these two 268 PHOPAGATION BY LEAVES. cuttings had become beautiful and healthy plants, which it was impossible to distinguish from others produced from entire leaves. ^Ve see from this experiment that it requires double the time to produce a bud from the upper part of a leaf, that it requires for the lower half to produce one ; and that, in propagations by leaves, it is not always necessary to take the heel or lower end of the petiole with the leaf, which sometimes injures and deforms the shoots. M. Neuman's experiment proves further, that wherever cambium can be formed, there are a( the same time a number of utricules or germs of buds foi-med, from which a new plant will be deve- loped when the parent is placed in favourable circum- stances. From this circum- stance, in short, we may conclude that all the veins may serve for the reproduc- tion of plants. The dots in fig 179 show the parts of the upper half-leaf which were cut off to allow of its being put into a small pot; and this proves that it is only the Fi . 178 Tke iou..r kav,^ „.e middle rib (or prolongation of fe(l/-../«eop'iia.rforoo/i;oa/i.i thepetiole),which is required Fig. 179. Tlie upper haV af sendmg up a slwol. foj. reproduction. Half leaves '*«»/''"■'"'« rooted and seld- of various plants have been rooted in charcoal in Germany ((503). 612. The plants usuatly raised by leaves in British gardens are comparatively few, and chiefly gesneras, gloxinias; bulb -bearing leaves, such as bryophyl- lum; some succulents, such as sempervivum, and a few others. Leaves of the orange, the hoya, the aucuba, the camellia, ficus elasticus, the clianthus, the common laurel, and a few more, are occasionally rooted, but more as matter of curiosity than for the purpose of increase. 613. Propagation by the leaves of bulbs has been successfully effected by the Hon. and Rev. W. Herbert, who first tried it, in 1809, by setting a cutting of a leaf of a Cape Omlthogalum. " The leaf was cut off just below the surface of the earth in an early stage of its growth, before the flower-stalk had begun to rise ; and it was set in the earth, near the edge of the pot in which the mother plant was growing, and so left to its fate. The leaf continued quite fresh, and on examination (while the bulb was flowering) a number of young bulbs and radical fibres were found adhering to it. They appeared to have been formed by the return of the sap which had nourished the leaf. Thereupon two or three more leaves were taken off and placed in like situations ; but they turned yellow, and died without producing any bulbs. It appeared to me then, and it was confirmed by subsequent experience, that in order to obtain a satisfactory result the leaf must be taken off while the plant is advancing in its growth. I found it easy thus to multiply some bulbs that did not willingly produce offsets. I afterwards tried, without cutting the leaf off, to make an oblique incision In it under ground, and in some cases just above ground, attempting, in fact, to raise bulbs by layering the leaf. This attempt was also successful, and some PROPAOATION UY LEAVES. 2(J9 young bulbs were formed on the edge of the cut above ground aa well as below. I tried cuttings of the stem of some species of Lilium, and obtained bulbs at the axil of the leaf, as well as from the scales of the bulb ; and that practice has been since much resorted to by gardeners, though I believe it originated with me. I raised a gi'eat number of bulbs of the little plant which has been successively called massonia, scilla, and hyacinthus corymbosus, by setting a pot fuU of its leaves, and placing a bell-glass over them for a short time. A bulb was obtained with equal facility from a leaf of a rare species of Eucomis ; and experiments with the leaves of Lachenalias were equally successful. I apprehend that all liliaceous bulbs may be thus propagated ; but the more fleshy the leaf, the more easily the object will be attained." I^Gard. Chron., for 1841, p. 381.) 014. Rooting leaves and parts of leaves in powdered charcoal. Leaves and parts of leaves of the following plants were rooted in charcoal, by M. Lucas, of Munich, in 1389. Half-leaves of Pier6skia, Polianthes mexicina Zuccar., and leaves of Eaphorhia fastuosa, in a short time filled their pots so full of roots that they were obliged to be repotted. In from eight to fourteen days leaves of Cecropja palmata, O'xalis mandi- occana, O. purptirea, Euphorbia fastuosa, Cyclamen indicum, Lophospermura scandens, Martyna craniolSria, Begonio monoptera, B. bulbifera, Ipomoe'a sup§rba, 1. spec, e Corcovado, Mesembryanthemum tigrinum, G&nera latif61ia, G. atrasanguinea, Sinningfa guttata, Piper piereskiffi/o/iwm, all sorts of Gloxinia, even calices and mere flower-slems, pieces of leaves of Convol- vulus Batatas, Peir^skia grandifolia, Polianthes mexicana, and warts of the large- wavted maramillaria. In three weeks the tops of the leaves of Agave americana fol. var., leaves of Jacardnda brasiliensis, bundles of leaves of Pinus exc61sa, leaves of Mimosa Houston*, and Cyp^ru* vaginatus. In five weeks, whole and half -cut folioles of Encephalartos cafFer and Zamia integrifolia produced a number of roots from the surface of the cuts. Many leaves have not yet made roots, but for a considerable time have formed callosities; such as iaurus nitida, Bigndm'a Telfairj«, Carollneo princeps, Ardisise, Gardenia, Adansonio digitata, Draese'na, &c. As expe- riments that did not succeed, we may mention portions of the leaves of Amai-yllis and Crinum, of ferns, of tropical Orchideae, of Dasyllrion and Hechtia, Tillandsia, Panddnus, Phormium tenax, of tropical tuberous- rooted ^roideae, old leaves of the Agave, and some others which, partly through rotting by wet, or other mischances, were prevented from growing. 615. Leaves with the buds in the axils root freely 'm. the case of many species. The buds and leaves are cut out with a small portion of the bark and alburnum to each, and planted in sandy loam, so deep as just to cover the bud ; the soil being pressed firmly against it, and the back of the leaf resting on the surface of the soil. Covered with a bell-glass and placed on heat, in a short time the buds break through the surfece of the soil, and elongate into shoots. The late Mr. Knight tried this mode with double camellias, magnolias, metrosideros, acacias, neriums, rhododendrons, and many others, some of which rooted and made shoots the same season, and others not till the following spring. 616. Immature fruits have even been made to produce plants. M. Thouin planted fruits of the Opiintia Tuna, which were about three fourths ripe, with their peduncles entire, in pots of sand almost dry, and covered them T PllOPAGATlON BY LEAVES. with a bell-glass, placing the pot on a hot-bed. In eighteen days, callosities appeared at the base of the peduncles, which soon became roots, and a lew days afterwards little protuberances appeared on the summits of the fruit, which, at the end of two months, became shoots. The same result took place in the case of the fruits of Opuntia polyanthos, and Mammillaria simplex. {Cours de Culture, Sjc, tome II., p. 651.) Some or the whole of the parts of the flower are frequently metamorphosed into leaves, and even shoots, in warm, moist seasons, and from these there can be no doubt plants could, in many cases, be raised by taking them oif and treating them as cuttings. 617. The essence of all the different modes of forming plants from cuttings may thus be stated. Wherever a joint of the ripened wood of a plant, or of the unripened wood, with a leaf or leaves, can be procured, it is probable that a rooted plant may be produced by proper treatment ; that in many cases, especially where the leaves are large, a bud with a leaf attached will produce a plant ; that in a number of cases plants may be produced from leaves alone, and that in some cases they may be even pro- duced from parts of leaves, from the calyxes, and other parts of flowers, and from imma- ture fruits. That to render more certain the rooting of a cutting or a bud, or even a leaf, it is advisable partially to separate it from the parent plant some days, weeks, or, in some cases, months, before it is entirely taken oiF, by cutting a shoot half through immediately Fig. 180. weig.. in.erui ah^e 'and be. "nder a joiut Or leaf, and keepmg the wound lom butts to check He flow of the tap, open, if neccssary, with a wedge, as in fig. 180, and excite them 10 produce ihooii. j^ pj by ringing Under each bud, as in fig. 181, c. That, m regard to soil, the safe mode is to plant in pure sand, w tli a layer of the soQ in which the plant delights below ; and, m regard to light, that the cuttings should in all cases, when they are under gleiss, be placed as close to it as possible. Finally, that in regard to woody plants, those with the leaves on, and the wood half-matured at the lower end of the shoot, will root more readily than shoots of ripened wood without the leaves. Camellia shoots of the season, put in in July or August, will be rooted by December, while those not put in till September, will not root till the following spring. That the rooting of cuttings with the leaves on de- pends veiy much on the action of light, by the following experiment, made by M. A pot of cuttings of Monsoo incisifolia was placed in a close pit, at two feet from the glass; another Fig. isi. a shoot ringed toacr.u. at two feet three inches: and a third at two feet """'"" ""• "' "" '"" °-^""' . . , mi i.. - jl (* ^ i ^ J buds,and prepare them for throw- six mches. The cuttmgs m the first pot were rooted, ,„g „„„„„„ „/,e„ ^^j, ,„ ,„i,c„ but very little advanced in growth; those in the off and planted. second were elongated in the tops, but had only callosities at the lower ends of the cuttings ; and those of the third pot were gi'own as high or liishsr than those of the second, but without either callosities or roots. {Gftrd. Chron. vol, i., p. 782.) saves on de- tU^ t, is proved ^-7-7^0 M. Caie :— /Zl/ ^ was placed Y PROPAGATION BY LEAVES. 271 618. To induce stems or shoots to produce leaves or growths from which cut- tings may be formed, various modes have been adopted, the object of all of which is to stimulate the normal or latent buds. The most common mode with plants in pots or under glass, is by an increase of temperature and atmo- spheric moisture ; but there are modes which are applicable to all plants whatever, the object of which is to interrupt the ascending or descending sap. When the ascending sap is accumulated by art at a joint, and can nc longer pass freely onwards, it stimulates the buds which exist there, either normal or adventitious, to develop themselves, and the sap thus escapes organised into the form of leaves or shoots ; while the interruption of the descending sap, more especially under a joint or bud, produces an accumu- lation or callosity there, which, sooner or later, is organised into roots. To accumulate the ascending sap at any point, the shoot may be bent to one side from that point ; and it may be bent back again from a second point, and if the shoot is long, the operation may be repeated, so as to leave it in a ser- pentine or zigzag form irom every exterior angle in which, as at a, a, in fig. 182, a bud will be developed. Where the shoot cannot conveniently be bent, a notch may be made in it immediately above a bud, so deep as to penetrate the alburnum ; or iu the case of more slender shoots, the knife may be merely inserted above the bud, or above several buds, so as to penetrate into the alburnum, and the wound kept open by insert- ing wedges in them, as in fig. 180, a. Some days or weeks afterwards, according to the nature of the plant, a notch or cut may be made under the bud, in order to interrupt the sap returned by the leaf, and thus form a callosity there for the production of roots. In _. ,.„ ., ,^ ,, this way all the buds or joints on a tree or shrub of Fit;. 182. A ithoot bent to came *"" ^ J <> j j -j? the biidi at the angles to Fro- sXraost any size maybe prepared; and it a tree so dtice ihoott. treated could be covered with moss kept moist, leaving only the buds, or the joints, or points from which buds were expected, exposed to the light ; or if it could be laid down on the surface of soil kept moist, and very slightly covered with soil, or laid down flat on the surface of water, so as just to touch it, a rooted plant, or at least a shoot, would be produced from every bud or joint. In preparing buds in this manner, however, it must always be borne in mind, either that the plants require to be kept in a close, moist atmosphere, or to have the wounds covered with moss or soil j for if they are exposed to dry air, they will frequently neither cicatrise, nor emit roots, in consequence of the excessive evaporation which will necessarily take place. Even the petioles of large leaves may be prepared before they are taken off, by being cut half through near the base, by which means they will form a callosity there, and root more rapidly when planted. The roots of plants which contain latent buds may be stimulated to develop them by the ex. posure of portions of them to the light, or by bending, or twisting, or cutting notches in them, in the same manner as in stems. Piercing the stems or roots by a longitudinal cut through a joint, and keepmg the wound open with a wedge or splinter, or driving pegs or nails through them, will facilitate both the formation of roots and the development of buds ; and various other modes of exciting buds, and causing the protrusion of roots, will Occur twthe T 2 272 PROPAGATION BY LAYERS. gardener who understands what has been already said on the subject. It is only necessary to bear in mind that when the ascending sap is to be inter- rapted by cutting, the knife must penetrate into the alburnum, and that when roots only are the object in yiew, it is only necessary to penetrate the bark. § IV. Propagation by Layers. 019. The The-ory of Layering is founded on the following facts : — The sap absorbed from the soil by the roots rises to the buds and leaves chiefly through the alburnum ; for though it has been proved, by the transmission of coloured fluids from the roots upwards, that a communication is main- tained throughout the whole stem, yet the greatest flow of sap, whether ascending or descending, takes place through the youngest layers, whether of wood in ascending, or inner bark in descending. A decortication may therefore be made with little or no interruption resulting to the ascent of the sap. The elaborated fluid, in returning from the leaves, descends by the inner bark, depositing in its progress an organised layer of alburnum, a portion of this extending to the extremities of the roots, where it pro- trudes in the form of spongioles. From those facts it will appear evident that although ringing does not interrupt the upward flow of sap, because the incision does not reach the vessels in which it proceeds, yet that the descent is prevented by the chasm formed by the operation ; on the brink of this chasm it accumulates, and under favourable circumstances a callosity is formed, or mass of cellular substance protruded, which by degiees assumes a granulated form, and these granulations ultimately elongate into spon- gioles ; or the teguments above the incision, being rendered soft by the earth or other suitable moist covering, are ruptured, and afibrd egress to the nascent roots. From this the principle of the operations of ringing, applying ligatures, twisting, tonguing, or splitting the parts about to be laid, will be easily understood. 620. The operation of layering, like that of forming cuttings, is chiefly applicable to plants having leaf-bearing stems ; and the advantage which a layer heis over a cutting is that it is nourished, while roots are being formed, by the parent plant ; whereas the cutting has no other resource than the nutritive matter laid up in it, or that produced by the functions of the leaves. Hence, layering is one of the most certain modes of propagation, by division, though it is in general slower than any other mode. In whichever way layering is performed it consists in the interruption of the descending sap at a joint of a stem, or shoot, and placing it under circumstances favourable for the production of roots. The interruption is most successful when it takes place immediately under a bud or joint, when the shoot is more or less matured, and when it penetrates into the alburnum; though, if the albur- num is penetrated too far, the ascent of the sap will be interrupted, and the supply to the buds or leaves will be insufficient to develop them, or keep them from flagging. The descending sap may be inteiTupted either wholly by cutting off a ring of bark, or partially by a cut or noteh, by driving a peg or nail through it, by a slit kept open, by twisting the stem at a joint, by strangling it there w^ith a wire, by bending it so as to form an angle, by pressure by laying a stone on it, or by attracting it by heat and moisture. The latter mode of causing a branch to protrude roots may often be observed in nature, in the case of the lowest PROPAGATION BY LAYERS. 273 branches of trees and shrubs that rest on the soil, and by then- shade keep it moist, which, after some time, root into it. Whatever mode of interrupting the sap he adopted, the wounded pai-t of the layer from which roots are expected to proceed must be covered with soil, moss, or some other suitable material kept moist, or it must be partially or wholly immersed in water. Layering, from the certainty which attends it, was formerly much more extensively employed as a mode of propagation than it is at present ; the art of rooting cuttings being now much better understood, and being chiefly adopted in house and in herbaceous plants ; and layering being confined in a great measure to hardy trees and shrubs, of which it is desired to produce plants that will speedily produce flowers, or that cannot otherwise be so readily propagated. 621. The state of the pUmt most favourable for layering is the same as that most suitable for propagation by cuttings (574 to 576). The wood and bark should be soft and not over ripe, and this is most likely to be the case with lateral shoots produced near the surface of the soil, or in a moist atmo- sphere. The woret shoots are such as are stunted and hide-bound, though tliere are no shoots whatever, unless such as are in a state of disease, that will not root by layere, if sufficient time be allowed them. Layers, like cuttings, may be made either of ripe wood in the autumn or spring, or of growing wood any time in the course of the summer ; the only condition, in the latter case, being that the part of the shoot where the sap is interrupted be somewhat mature, or firm in texture. 622. Hardy trees and shrvbs, witli reference to layering, may be divided into two kinds, those which, when cut down, throw up shoots fi-om the collar, that is, technically, which stole, such as most kinds of deciduous trees and shrubs ; and those which do not stole, such as all the coniferae. The former are planted and cut down, and layers made of the young shoots which proceed from the collar ; while the latter are either laid entirely down, and their branches extended along the surfece of the soil, and the extremities of all the shoots layered, or such side branches as can be bent down to the soil are made fast there by hooked pegs, and their shoots layered. When the shoots to be layered are small, they are frequently twisted or Fig. 183. Layering mith llie tongne made in sUt through at the point where the rOOtS iiie utideriide of the shooi. are to be produced ; but when they are strong the knife is entered beneath a joint, and the shoot cut half through, and the knife afterwards turned up half an inch or more, so as to form what is technically called a tongue (fig. 183, o), and the shoot being bent down and its point turned up, the wound is kept open as at fe ; the shoot being kept down by a hooked peg, or by a portion of a twig, first twisted to render it tough, and next doubled, as at c, one or more buds being left on the layer, d, the wound being kept open by the bent position of the shoot. When the shoots are small or brittle, in order to lessen the risk of breaking them by tonguing below, the incision is made above, and the tongue kept from uniting 274 PROPAGATION BY LAYERS. by giving the layer a twist when pegging it down, as shown in fig. 184, in which e is the tongue made in the siioot before being laid down, / the position taken by the tongue after the layer is fixed in its place, and g the peg which keeps the layer down. The dotted line in this and the preceding figure indicates the sur&ce of the soil. Layers are always buried in the soil, and secured there, and the soil pressed firmly against them. The plant famishing the shoots which are layered is called a stool, and as it generally famishes a number of shoots, these are laid down ra- diating all round it, as in fig. 185, and the soil formed into a circuit basin, the better to retain water about the rooted parts of the layers. Layers that are difficult to ''''■ ''\f:Z7"J:''J'.l'Z:.: "^ ■" 'oot are laid into pure sand with good soil beneath, as is done with cuttings difficult to strike ; and the shoots laid down and layered are commonly shortened to one eye above the soil, in order that there may be only one stem to the plant to be produced. See figs. 183 and 184. In foi-mer times when few trees were propagated in nurseries, excepting limes and elms, the shoots produced from the stools were not laid down, but after two ' years' growth the shoots were earthed up, ' and after remaining on two years longer, they were slipped off and found to have a sufBcient supply of roots to ensure their independent existence, after, however, be- ing cut in and headed down. Some shrubs, such as hibiscus, vitex, are still so propagated in French nurseries. Sometimes the circumference of the stool was split or fractured to excite the buds ; and in Genoa, at the present day, young orange trees are frequently cut down within a few inches of the soil, and the stock and root split into four parts, which, after a year, can be separated into as many distinct plants. 623. Shrubs with very long shoots, such as clematis, tecoma, vitis, wistaria, honeysuckle, &c., are stretched along the surface, and every joint, or every alternate joint, prepared for rooting; so that one shoot produces half as many plants as it contains joints, or even a plant for every joint. The joint in this case is not tongued but bruised, pierced, or slit, or simply pressed down to the moist soil by a hook, peg, or small stone — ^the latter having the advan- tage of retaining moisture, as well as checking the return of the sap. Shoots which continue growing all the summer, such as those of the wistaria, are laid as they extend in length ; and when the parent plant is placed on moist heat, under glass, and near it, it is incredible the number of rooted layers that may thus be obtained in one season. After such layeis are formed, a ring of bark may be taken off between each layer, which will prevent the sap returned from the leaf which is left growing at each joint, from being sent down to the parent root, and force it to go to the nourishment of the roofs tient down from the separate joints. Fig. 185. A tloot with several of the MhooU layered. PROPAGATION BY LAYERS. 275 624. Layering by insertion of the growing point. — Shoots of the bramble will emit roots by the usual mode of twisting and pegging down ; but if the growing point of the shoot is merely inserted in the soil to the depth of an inch, an astonishing quantity of roots will be produced in the same season, more, in fact, than in two years by the other mode. The gooseberry, the Aristolochia, and the common nightshade, treated in the same way, succeed equally well ; and doubtless many other species might in like manner be easily and quickly propagated. G26. Plum and Paradise stocks for fruit trees are raised in large quantities, by a somewhat simQar mode. The shoots of the stool are pegged down flat on the surface, and covered entirely over, to the depth of half an inch, with loamy soil. This is done early in spring, and in the course of the summer every bud sends up a shoot which roots at its base, and at the end of autumn is fit to be taken off as a separate plant. The tree peony is sometimes pro- pagated in this manner, but with this difference, that a ring of bark is taken off between each bud. A great many trees and shrubs might, doubtless, be rapidly propagated by this mode. 626. Roses, with theexceptionof the klndsof Indian origin, are generally pro- pagated by layers, which in the nurseries are made both in spring and autumn, and sometimes at both seasons, on the same stool. The shoots being brittle are generally twisted, or slit through, and the slit kept open with a fragment of stick or stone. When thi-y are tongued the tongue is generally made on the up- per side of the shoot, fig. 1 84, which greatly lessens the risk of breaking the shoot when bending it down. Fig. 186. A iKtunia layered. 627. Hardy herbocBOUs plants seldom require to be propagated by layers, but the practice is occa- sionally resorted to for the sake of getting stout plants in a shorter time than by cuttings. The Petunia is frequently layered, fig. 186, and also the Verbena, and even the Chrysanthemum ; and this is also the case with the carnation, fig. 187, and with some other hybrids, or varieties belonging to the same genus. The shoots are chosen when of sufficient length, which is generally when the plant is coming into flower, and the lower leaves 'being cut off, the knife is entered beneath a joint, passed half through the shoot, and continued half an inch or more upwards, kept open, if neces- sai-y, by a splinter of wood, and pegged down and covered with sandy loam, or sand and leaf mould. Some herbaceous plants which propagate readily by cuttings are layered, as a mode requiring less care after the operation is performed than cuttings, as well as being more certain of success. Some- times a shoot separated from a plant is layered, the lower end of the shoot being inserted in a vessel of water to supply it with moisture, while the rooting process is taking place, as in fig. 188. 27« PROPAfiATION BY LAYEBS. Fig- 187. A carnation layered, 628. Shrubby plants in pots kept under glass may either be layered by laying down the entire plant on its side (622), or by placing pots under it, or raising pots among its branches, and layering the shoots into these. The shooc may either be laid down into the pot, or brought up through a hole e.\ I -HV in its bottom, or in its side (fig. 52, in p. 143); a tin case filled with soil or moss may be suspended from the plants, Fie. 188. La ering a ^^^ *^® shoots ringed, as indicated in figs. 189 and 190. cuuing. or a ring of bark being taken off, the wounded part may Fig. 189. 'I branch ringed and prepared to be rooted in a tin case witiioHl separating it from ttte tree. Fig. 190. Different brauhes layered in tin cases. PBOl'AQATION BY LAYERS. 277 be enveloped in a mass of loam covered with mossj-a mode practised by tlie Chinese ; or with moss alone. The moss, in either case, may be kept moist by suspending near it, and somewhat higher, a vessel of water with some worsted threads, connecting the water with the moss, and acting as a syphon. The threads ought to have small weights tied to their ends, in order to keep them to the bottom of tlie vessel of water, in order that the supply may go on as long as it contains any ; one thread will be enough for every layer. This mode, however, in the present day is more a matter of curiosity than of utility. Most plants when ringed beneath a joint will root into moss alone, when placed in a warm moist atmosphere ; they will also root in water when so ringed, provided the plant be in a growing state. 629. The soil in which plants are layered should, in general, be that in which the parent plants naturally thrive best, but with a mixture of sand, or with the wounded part entirely enveloped in sand or powdered charcoal, to prevent it from retaining too much water, which would prevent the wound from protruding granulous matter, and cause it to rot. Plants which grow in heath soil, such as most of the Ericaceje, and all other hair-rooted plants, must be layered in sand or in heath soU, but almost all others will root freely in sandy loam. Where the soil and the season are not naturally moist, layers, even in the open garden, require artificial watering, or, at least, are much benefited by it. Mulching may also be advantageously employed in order to retain moisture. 630. Hooked pegs were formerly considered as essential articles for fixing dowu the layers, but the general practice at present is to take a piece of the shoot from the stool, or any waste piece of shoot about a foot in length, or longer if the soil be very loose, and twisting it in the middle so as to prevent it from breaking when bent, to double it like a lady's hair-pin over the shoot, as shown at c, in fig. 183. The layers of herbaceous plants are sometimes kept down by short loops of bass-mat put over them, and their ends made fast in the soil with a small dibber. 631. The time which layers require to produce roots varies in different plants, from one to two, and even, in some cases, three or four years. The process of rooting is facilitated by increased heat and moisture, and by ring- ing below the tongue, or wounded or bent part from which the roots are ex- pected to protrude ; but this operation can only be safely performed where the parent plant is in vigorous health, because, otherwise, it would weaken the root, and prevent it from sending up sap to nourish the layer. In taking off layers which are diificult to root, it is a safe mode not to cut through the layer at once, but by degrees, at intervals of several weeks. In the case of stools in the open air the butt ends of the shoots from which the layers have been taken are cut oif close to the stool, to make room for a second succession of layers, which are made annually from the upright shoots produced during the preceding season. In the case of layers taken from plants in pots, the stumps left after the layer is taken off should be cut to a leaf-bud, in order that a shoot may be produced to supply the vacancy made in the head of the plant by the removal of the layer. § V. Propagation by suckers, slips, q/Fsets, runners, and simple division. 632. A sucker is properly a shoot sent up from the under-ground part of the stem, from latent buds there existing, or from adventitious buds on that part of the stem, or on the horizontal roots. Those proceeding from 273 PROPAGATION BY SUCKERS, SLIPS, ETC. llie upright stems, may be called stem-suckera or slips. A cuttLig '^i- They-'-^ very readilyobserved a leader. in the hyacmth, tuhp, and crocus, m which they afford the only means of propagation,excepting by seed. All offsets have a natural tendency to separate from the parent bulb, excepting when they are very small and young j in which case they are left adhering to the parent bulb or tuber for another growing season. When offsets are to be separated, the bulb, when it is in a dormant state, is taken up, and the offsets are removed and planted by themselves, at various depths, according to the size and nature of the offset ; and bearing in mind that all bulbs are buds, and consequently that they would all grow if placed on the surface of moist soil, and pressed firmly against it, without any covering of soil. Offsets may be produced from bulbs, by searing or otherwise destroy- ing their central bud by mutilation, or by cutting them over a little above, the plate, from which proceed the scales, as in the hyacinth, and the con- centric coats, or rudiments of tubular leaves, as in the onion ; the buds in both cases being in the axils of the members. Sometimes the frost destroying the outer scales of a bulb will stimulate the buds in their _ axils to develop themselves (fig. 192) ; and some- Fig. 192. The budi in the axiu times, when the scales are very closely compressed of the >eaie, of o bulb deve- g^^ ^g„ ^^^^ {,„ jg j^ (.jjgir ^^ils will be developed, and toped tn consequence 0/ tryu- .,,'■', , , i ^« ..^ov a i n e \~t ' rie, suiiained by the «<■;«. Will protrude below (fig. 193). A bulb of Cnnum fromfront. canaliculatum, cut over a little above the plate, was found by M. Syringe to throw out no fewer than forty offsets. " " " "' this kind are rendered unnecessary with tubers, or underground stems, which containing numerous buds distributed over them, as in the potato, the anemone, &c., are propagated by division; but those roots which are commonly called tubers, as the ranunculus and the dahlia, are naturally in- creased by offsets, and the production of these can in general be forwarded by destroying the central bud, by which several latent ones are developed. 035. Runners or stohnes are long slender shoots, with joints at distant intervals, which are protruded from the collar of perennial herbaceous or sub-her- Fib io» Bud< developed below in baceousplant8,sucliasthestrawbei-ry,manygrasscs, 'ZdylZpnJd'ai I'o^" '""* Practices of £80 PROPAGATION BY GRAFTING, ETC. some saxifrages, potentillas, &c. The joints of these plants i-cst niitiirally on the ground, send down roots, and upwards leaves or shoots ; and being separated from the intemodi of the stolones, constitute rooted plants. Very little assistance from art is required in this mode of propagation ; but the soil may be loosened and enriched, and the joint pressed firmly against the soil, by pegging it down with a hooked peg, or by laying a small stone on each side of the joint. The principal plant propagated in this manner in gardens is the strawberry. 636. Simple division is an obvious mode of propagating all herbaceous perennials, not bulb-bearing, and all shrubs which produce numerous suckers. The most common mode is to take up the entire plant, and separate it into as many stems as have roots attached ; or if only a few plants are wanted, these may be taken off the sides of the plant without greatly disturbing the interior of the root stock. § VI. Propagation by grafting, inarching, and budding. 637. The term graft is in England generally confined to one mode of performing that operation, viz., grafting with detached scions; but it is our intention in this article to use it, in the continental sense, as a generic term, including, also, inarching, or grafting with attached scions, and budding or grafting by means of a bud attached to a plate of bark. The principle on which all these operations are founded is the phenomenon of the union of newly generated tissues when in the act of being generated. No union can take place between the parts of plants previously formed, but only when these parts are in the act of forming. Thus two shoots or branches may be selected, and by means of similar sections be most accurately joined, and placed under the most favourable circumstances for uniting, as in fig. 194, representing a stock and a scion ; yet when i rn^, the two are bound together, though a union ultimately does take place, not one particle of pj. the existing tissue at the time of grafting jl : becomes united with similar tissue brought in contact with it. Close contact is all that takes place with regard to these surfaces of the scion and stock, for a vital union only occurs when nascent tissues meet. The parts a, a, which are alburnum of the preceding year, never unite. T^e vital union is formed solely by the coalition of newly generated tissues, thrown out by such parts as have the power of gene- rating them. This power does not exist iu the heart-wood, nor in the outer bark, but only in the alburnum, or rather the substance imbedded between it and the inner bark, con- stituting the cambium, represented by the lines, b, b. If the sections are placed against each other, so as the inner barks coincide, the pi^. ,g,, Soionan.is,.cUoiu„„.a,eHe Ecion may perhaps derive an immediate supply principle on which they are united. of moisture ; but it does so only in a mechanical way, and a piece of dry sponge might as tnaly be said to have formed a coimexion from its absorbing moisture, in consequence of being placed on the top of a stock, as the scion PROPAGATION BY GHAFTINa, ETC. 281 that only takes up moisture as above-mentioned. When, however, new tissue is formed by the parts, 6, 6, of the respective sections, and when the portions so formed protrude so as to meet, they immediately coalesce, form- ing a connecting chain of vessels between the buds of the scion and the roots of the stock. If an old grafted tree is cut down, and all the wood cut away to the original portions which existed at the time of grafting, it will be found that the sections similar to o, a, made by the grafting-knife, are only mechanically pressed together; and may be easily taken asunder. Instances frequently occur of the inner bark of the scion being placed out of contact with that of the stock, and a union nevertheless ensues ; but this takes place in consequence of the cellular substance protruding from the respective alburnums over the surface of old wood, which it only covers, as soon as the new-formed tissue of stock and scion touch each other, a union is then formed. 638. The origin of grafting is of the most remote antiquity, but whether it was suggested by the adhesions of the parts of two plants, frequently seen in a state of nature, or by the appearance of one plant growing on another, as in the case of the mistletoe, it is impossible to divine. Theophrastus and other Greek authors mention the graft ; and upwards of twenty modifica- tions of it have been given by the Roman Varro. The principal modern author on the subject is M. Thouin, of Paris, who has described and figured more than a hundred kinds, and M. Tschudy, of Metz, who was the inven- tor of the art of grafting herbaceous plants, and ligneous plants in an herba- ceous state. The theory of grafting was first given in a lucid manner by the celebrated De Candolle in his " Physiologie Vigetale." From these works, and our own observations, we shall first treat of what is common to grafting inarching, and budding, and next treat of these modes separately. 639. The phenomena of grafting are thus explained by De Candolle : — The shoots spiinging from the buds of the scion are united to the stock by the young growing alburnum, and, once united, they determine the ascent of the sap rising from the stock ; and they elaborate a true or proper juice, which appears evidently to redescend in the inner bark. This sap appears to be sufficiently homogeneous in plants of the same family — to be, in the course of its passage, absorbed by the growing, cellules near which it passes, and each cellule elaborates it according to its nature. The cellules of the alburnum of the plum elaborate the coloured wood of the plum ; those of the alburnum of the almond the coloured wood of the almond. If the descending sap has only an incomplete analogy with the wants of the stock, the latter does not thrive, though the organic union between it and the scion may have taken place ; and if the analogy between the alburnum of the scion and that of the stock is wanting, the organic union does not operate, and as the scion cannot absorb the sap of the stock, the graft does not succeed. In the case of the mistletoe, which may be considered as a natural graft, there is an analogy between the two alburnums, but none between the barks ; whence it follows that, though the mistletoe can very well unite itself with the alburnum of the tree on which it grows, yet the descending sap formed bj' the bark of the mistletoe does not enter the bark of the tree which bears the parasite, and therefore cannot nourish it. This is the cause of the impoverishment of branches of trees on which the mistletoe has fixed itself, and perhaps the possibility of that parasite living on trees of every natural family, and wliich possibility M. De Candolle attributes to the idi'ntity of the ascending sap. (Phys. Veg., vol. ii., p. 814.) 282 PROPAGATION BY GRAFTING, ETC. C40. The conditions essential to the success of the graft are the exact coincidence of the alburnum and the inner bark of the scion with those of the stock. The graft is effected in two forms : that of a cutting or scion, which consists of wood and bark with buds (as in grafting and inarcliing), and that of a bud, whicli consists of a shield of bark, containing a bud or buds, but deprived of its wood, as in budding. In the case of the scion it is essential to success that its alburnum coincide exactly with that of the stock ; and in the case of the bud it is essential that the disk of bark to which it is attached should be intimately joined to the alburnum of the stock by being placed over it, and gently pressed against it by means of ligatures. The buds of the scion and of the shield are supplied with sap from the alburnum of the stock, and develop themselves in consequence. As a proof that it is the ascending sap which supplies the nourishment in both cases, the scion and the bud succeed best when the stock is cut over almost immediately above the graft ; and when the scion or the shield are placed immediately over a part of the stock which contained buds. The success of a scion or a bud placed in the intemodia of the stock where no normal buds can exist, will therefore be much less certain than if it were placed on the nodia ; because the vessels which conducted the descending sap to the original buds are ready to supply it to those which have taken their place. Hence in the case of the graft, fig. 194, the stock is cut sloping, and so as to have a bud on or near the upper extremity of it, in order to prevent the stock from dying down behind the graft ; and the section a, against which the scion is to be placed, is made at the lower part of the sloping section, in order to insure abundance of sap at its upper extremity as well as at its lower; for were there no bud to expend the sap, it would cease to be impelled through that part of the stock, which would consequently die. By the end of August the scion and stock will be united, and the section at the top of the latter healed over perhaps as far as c ; and if the heel, or part above c, is then cut off, the stock will probably be completely healed over by the end of the season. 641. Anatomical analogy. Plants can only he budded or grafted on one another within certain limits, and these depend on the anatomy or organic structure of the tissue, and the physiology or vital functions of the organs of the plant ; but the anatomy of the cellules and the structure of the vessels are so delicate and difficult to observe, that the differences between plants in these respects are not sufficient to enable us to amve at any practical con- clusion from examining their organisation, and hence our only guide in this matter hitherto has been experience. From this it is found that as plants of the same natural family have an analogous organisation, they alone can be grafted on one another with any prospect of success ; though the success of the operation even within this limit wiU not always be complete ; partly, perhaps, from some difference in organic structure, as in the case of the apple and pear, which can only be united for a few years, but chiefly on account of the physiological differences which may and do frequently exist. Hence it follows that the greater part of what is recorded by the ancients, respecting the grafting of plants of one family on those of another totally opposite, such us the jessamine on the orange, the vine on the walnut, &c., is without foundation in fact. The mistletoe is the only exception to the general laws of grafting, as it seems to grow equally well on plants of many dinerent families, and this is accounted for from the mistletoe only attracting PROPAGATION BY GRAFTING, ETC. 2fi3 watery or non-elaborated sap, which it does not return to the plant on which it grows by the bark, as in the case of other grafts ; and hence, says Ue < andolle, the necessity of plants in general having a natural analogy between the scion and the stock, is founded on the descent of the sap by the bark, while the mistletoe, which absorbs the watery sap and returns nothing, can live on all exogens of which the ascending sap is of a watery consistence. As a proof that plants of the same natural family may be grafted on one another, De Candolle succeeded in grafting the lilac and the fringe tree on the ash, the fringe tree on the lilac, the lilac on the phillyrea, and the olive on the ash and the privet ; and though these grafts did not live a long time, on account of the physiological differences of the species, yet their having succeeded at all sufficiently proves the anatomical analogy of plants within the same natui'al order. This analogy is greater between plants of the same genus ; more so still between individuals of the same species, and most so between branches of the same individual. 642. Physiological analogy. In a physiological point of view, the epochs of vegetation are the principal points to be attended to, and hence no plant can be grafted on another which does not thrive in the same temperature. Two plants in which the sap is not in motion cannot be successfully united, because it is only when cellular tissue is in a state in which it can form accretions that a vital union can be formed, and a reciprocal activity must exist both in the stock and scion. Hence evergreen trees seldom succeed fur any length of time when grafted on deciduous kinds. The analogy of magnitude is also of some importance, for if a large growing tree is grafted on one naturally of small stature, the graft, by exhausting the stock, wiU ultimately deprive it of life ; and when a small or weakly growing species is grafted on a large vigorous one, it receives too much sap, and ultimately perishes from superfluity, as the other did from insufficiency. The analogy of consistence also merits notice. Soft woods do not associate well with hard woods, nor ligneous plants with such as are herbaceous, nor annuals with perennials. An analogy in the nature of the sap is also requisite, experience having proved that plants with a milky sap will not unite for any length of time with plants the sap of which is watery. Thus the ^^cer platanoides — the only species ot A'cer which has milky sap — will not graft with the others ; and numerous as are the species of tree on which the mistletoe grows, it is never found on those which have a milky sap. 643. The modifications effected by the graft, is a subject of great practical interest to the cultivator. The graft neither alters the species, nor the varieties, but it has some influence on their magnitude and habits, and on their flowers and fruit. The apple grafted on the paradise stock becomes a dwarf, and on the crab stock, or a seedling apple, a middle-sized tree. The size of the stock here seems to influence the size of the graft ; but in the case of the mountain ash, which is said to grow more quickly when grafted on the common thorn, than when on its ovra roots, the stock is naturally a smaller plant than the tree grafted on it. The habit of the plant is some- times altered by grafting. Thus A'cer eriocarpum, when grafted on the common sycamore, attains in Europe double the height which it does when raised from seed. C&asus canadensis, which in a state of nature is a ram- bling shrub, assumes the habit of an upright shrub when grafted on the common plum. V^avious species of Cytisus become greatly invigorated when 284 PROPAGATION BY GRAFTrNG, ETC. grafted on the laburnum, as do the different varieties of Pynis /^rouia when grafted on the common thorn ; the common lUac attains a large size when grafted on the ash ; and Tecbma radicans, when grafted on the Catalpa, forms a round head with pendent branches, which are almost without ten- drils. The hardiness of some species is also increased by grafting them, as in the case of the Eriobotrya japdnica on the common thorn, and the Pis- tacia vera on the P. Terebinthus ; the Quercus virens is rendered hardier by being grafted on the evergreen oak ; but in other cases, the species are rendered more tender, as when the lilac is gi-afted on the phillyrea. Those species that are rendered hardier by grafting have probably tender roots, and by being placed on such as are hardier, they suffer only from the cold at top, instead of being injured by the effects of cold both at root and top ; or if they grow more stunted, they will also be less susceptible of cold. The period of flowering is well known to be accelerated by grafting ; and hence, both in the case of fruit-trees and ornamental trees and shrubs, the shoots of seedlings are frequently gi-afted on the extremities of the branches of old trees ; in consequence of which, they blossom several years sooner than if left on their own roots. Th-e mountain ash, and the different varieties of Pyrus .(f ria, produce double the number of fruits when grafted, to what they do on their own roots. The increase of the size of fruits, more espe- cially of kernel fruits, is said by Thouin to be often from a fifth to a fourtli part, but the number and size of seeds produced is diminished. The flavour as well as the size of fruit is said to be altered by the graft. Thus pears are said to become giitty on quince or thorn stocks ; and the greengage plum to vary in flavour, according to the kind of plum-stock on which it is grafted ; producing insipid fruit on some stocks, and fruit of the most delicious ilavour on others ; the cherry also when grafted on the Cerasus Mahdleb, on the wild cherry, on the bird cheny, or on the common laurel, will produce fniit very different in flavour on each. The duration of trees is greatly altered in certain cases by the graft ; the apple on the paradise stock is generally shorter lived than on the crab-stock ; while the Pavia, grafted on the horse- chesuut, has its longevity increased. The period of leafing and flowering is also occasionally changed by the graft, the general effect of which is to produce a somewhat earlier vegetation ; because the graft, by arresting the descent of the sap, produces in some measure the effect of ringing. Thus far as to the influence of the stock upon the scion. 644. The influence of the scion on the stock is very limited, and as far as experience has hitherto gone, it consists only in communicating disease. The only proof of this is the fact of the bud of a variegated common jasmine having been inserted in a species without variegated leaves, and having communicated its variegation to the entire plant, both above and below the graft. This, De Candolle observes, is in accordance with the theory of Moretti, that variegation, being a disease, can be propagated in a tree in every direction. We are not aware, however, that there is any example on record of a variegated holly having communicated its variegation to the stock ; or in fact, of any other variegated plant having done so but the jasmine, which, however, is a fact placed beyond doubt. 645. The uses of grafting, in addition to those of all the other modes of increasing plants by extension, are — 1. The propagation of varieties or species, which are not increased freely by any other mode ; such as pears and other fruit-trees, oaks and other forest-trccs, and several spccii'S of Daphne and other shrubs. PROl'AUATION BY GRAFTING, ETC. 285 2. The aeceleration of the fructification of plants, more especially of trees and shrubs, which are naturally a number of years before they come into flower. For examplCj a seedling apple, if grafted the second year on the extremities of the branches of a full-grown apple- tree, or even on a stock or young tree of five or six years' growth, will show flowers the third or fourth year ; whereas, had it remained on its own root, it would probably not have come into flower for ten or even twenty years. To obtain the same result with climbers that flower only at their extremities, the tips of the shoots of seedlings are taken ofi^ and giafted near the root ; and when these have extended an inconvenient length, the tips are again taken ofi^ and re- grafted ; and after the operation has been performed several times, the plant at last produces flowers in a much shorter time than it otherwise would have done, and in a comparatively limited space. 3. To increase the vigour or the hardiness of delicate species or varieties, by grafting them on robust stocks, such as the Mexican oaks on the com- mon oak, the china roses on the common dog-rose, the double yellow rose on the china or musk-rose, the Frontignan grape on the Syrian, &c. 4. To dwarf or diminish the bulk of robust species, such as grafting the pear on the quince or medlar, the apple on the doucin or paradise stock, the cherry on the perfumed cherry, &c. 5. To increase the fruitfulness and precocity of trees. The effects pro- duced upon the growth and produce of a tree by grafting. Knight observes, " are similar to those which occur when the descent of the sap is impeded by a ligature, or by the destruction of a circle of bark. The disposition in young trees to produce and nourish blossom-buds and fruit is increased by this apparent obstruction of the descending sap ; and the fruit of such young trees ripens, I think, somewhat earlier than upon other young trees of the same age, which grow upon stocks of their own species ; but the growth and vigour of the tree, atid its power to nourish a succession of heavy crops, are diminished, apparently by the stagnation in the branches and stock of a portion of that sap, which in a tree growing upon its own stem, or upon a stock of its own species, would descend to nourish and promote the exten- sion of the roots." 6. To preserve varieties from degenerating, which are found to ao so when propagated by cuttings or layers, such as certain kinds of roses and camellias. 7. By choosing a stock suitable to the soil, to produce trees m situations where they could not be grown if on their own roots ; for example, the white beam-tree will grow in almost pure chalk, where no pear-tree would live ; but grafted on the white beam-tree, the pear, on a chalky soil, will thrive and produce fruit. 8. To introduce several kinds on one kind. Thus one apple or pear tree may be made to produce many diffierent kinds of apple or pear ; one camellia a great many varieties ; one British oak, all the American oaks ; and even one Dahlia, several varieties of that flower. 9. To render dioecious trees monoecious ; that is, when the tree consists of only one sex, as in Negundo, some maples, the poplar, willow, Madura, Salisburia, &c., to graft on it the other sex, by which means fruit may be matured ; a knowledge given of both forms of the species, both forms intro- duced into small arboretums ; and in the case of fruit-trees, such as the pistacia, the necessity of planting males rendered no longer requisite. 286 PROPAGATION BY GRAFTING, ETC. 10. The last use which we shall mention is that of renewing the heads of trees. For example, if a forest or fi-uit tree is .cut down to the ground, or headed in to the height of ten or twelve feet, and left to itself, it will deye- lop a great numher of latent buds, each of which will he contending for the mastery ; and the strength of the tree, and the most favourable part of the season for growth, will be in some degree wasted, before a shoot is singled out to take the lead ; but if a graft is inserted either in the collar or stool, or in the amputated head, it will give an immediate direction to the sap, the latent buds will not be excited, and the whole concentrated vigour of the tree will be exerted in the production of one grand shoot. 646. The different kinds of grafting may be classed ; as, grafting by de- tached scions or cuttings, which is the most common mode ; grafting by attached scions, or, as it is commonly termed, by approach or inarching, in wliich the scion, when put on the stock, is not at all, or is only partially, separated from the parent plant ; and grafting by buds, in which the scion consists of a plate of bark, containing one or more buds. The stock on which the scion is placed, is, in every case, a rooted plant, generally standing in its place in the garden or nursery ; but sometimes, in the case of grafting by detached scions, taken up and kept under cover, while the operation is being performed. The two first modes of grafting are performed when the sap is rising in spring ; and budding chiefly when it is descending, in July and August. Under particular circumstances, however, and with care, grafting in every form may be performed at any period of the year. 647. The materials used in grafting are the common knife (fig. 40a in p. 137) for heading down stocks ; the grafting knife and budding knife (fig. 40o and c in p. 137 and fig. 195) ; ligatures of difiierent kinds for tying on the Fig. \9l'. Qrafiing^kni/e, mth theportion of the back of the blade from -{-to -^ ground to a cutting edge, so as to make it serve also for a budding knife. + scions, and gi-afting clay or grafting wax for covering them. The ligatures in common use are strands of bast matting, or of other flexible bai'k ; but some- times coarse worsted thread is used, or occasionally shreds of coarse paper, or cotton cloth, covered with gi'afting wax. When bast mat is used, it may be rendered water-proof, by passing it first through a solution of wliite soap, and next through one of alum ; by which a neutral compound is formed insoluble in water. These prepared shreds, before being put on, are soft- ened, by holding them over a small vessel of burning charcoal, which the grafter canies with him ; and when gi-afting wax is employed, instead of grafting clay, it is kept in an earthen pot, also placed over live charcoal, and the composition taken out and laid on with a brush. There are com- positions, however, which become soft by the heat of the hand, or by breath- ing on them. 648. Grafting clay is prepared by mixing clay of any kind, or clayey loam, fresh horse or cow-dung, free from litter, in the proportion of three parts in bulk of clay to one of dung ; and adding a small portion of hay, not, however, cut into too short lengths, its use being analogous to that of hair in plaster. The whole is thoroughly mixed together, and beaten up with water, BO as to be of a suitable consistency and ductility for putting on with the GRAFTING BY DKTACHED SCIONS. 287 hands, and for remaining on in wet weather, and dry weather, without cracking. The heating is performed with a beetle or rammer (fig. 37 in p. 136), on a smooth hard floor under cover, turning over the mass, and adding water, and then beating afresh, till it becomes sufficiently softened and duc- tile. The process of beating must be repeated two or three times a day for several days ; and it should be completed from three weeks to a month be- fore the clay is wanted ; care being taken to preserve it in a moist state, by covering it with mats or straw. The grafting-clay used by the French gardeners is composed of equal parts of cow-dung, free from litter, and fresh loam, thoroughly beaten up and incorporated. 649. Grafting-wax is very generally used on the Continent, instead of grafting-clay. There are various recipes for composing it, but they may all be reduced to two kinds : — 1. Those which being melted, are laid on the graft in a fluid and hot state with a brush ; and 2, those wliich are pre- viously spread on pieces of coarse cotton, or brown paper, and afterwards wrapped round the graft in the same manner as strands of matting. The common composition for the first kind is one pound of cow-dung, half a pound of pitch, and half a pound of yellow wax, boiled up together, and heated when wanted in a small earthen pot. For the second kind, equal parts of turpentine, bees-wax, and rosin are melted together. § VI 1. — Grafting by Detached Scions. 650. Grafting by detached scions is the most common mode, and it is that generally used for kernel-fruits, and the hardier forest-trees. It is performed in a great many different ways, as may easily be con- ceived, when we consider that the only essential condition is the close connexion of the alburnum of the scion with that of the stock. Upwards of forty modes of grafting by detached ligneous scions have been described by Thouin ; but we shall confine ourselves to a few which we consider best adapted for general use. The time for grafting hardy trees and shrubs by detached scions in England is generally in spring, when the sap is rising ; but the vine, if grafted before it is in leaf, suffers from bleeding. In Germany and North America, grafting is frequently performed in the winter time on roots or stocks which have been preserved in sheds or cellars ; and the scion being put on and tied and clayed over, the grafted stock is kept till the spring, and then taken out and planted. Where scions are gi'afted on roots, this practice is sometimes followed in British nurseries, as in the case of pears and roses. Plants under glass may be grafted at almost any period ; and herbaceous grafting, when and wherever performed, can, of course, only succeed when the shoots of the scion and stock are in a succulent or herbaceous state. In all the different modes of grafting by detached scions, success is rendered more certain, when the sap of the stock is in a more advanced and vigorous state than that of the scion ; for which purpose the scions are generally taken off in autumn, and their vegetation retarded, by keeping them in a shady place till spring ; and the stock is cut over a little above the part where the scion is to be put on, a week or two before grafting takes place. The manual precautions necessary to success are : to fit the scion to the stock in such a manner that the union of their inner barks, and consequently of their alburnums, may be as close as possible ; to cut the scion in such a manner, as that there shall be a bud or joint at its lower extremity, and the stock so that there shall be a bud u2 288 GRAFTING BY DETACHED SCIONS. or joint at its upper extremity ; to maintain the scion and the stock in the proper position for growth, and in close contact, by a bandage of narrow shreds of matting or cloth ; to exclude the air by a covering of elay or grafting-wax ; and, in addition, when the graft is close to the surface of the ground, hy earthing it up with soil ; and when the scion is making its shoot, to tie it to a prop if necessary ; to remove the clay or grafting-wax, when the scion has made several leaves ; to remove the bandage by degrees, when it appears to be no longer necessary ; and to cut off the heel on the upper part of the stock at the proper time, so as that it may, if possible, be healed over the same season. The modes of grafting detached scions adapted for general use, are : splice or whip-grafting, cleft-grafting, rind-grafting, saddle-grafting, side-grafting, root-gi-afting, and herbaceous grafting. 651. Splice-grafting, tongue-grafting, or whip-grafting, is the mode most commonly adopted in all gardens where the stocks are not much larger in diameter than the scion ; and it has the advantage of being more expedi- tiously performed than any of the other modes described in this section The stock is iirst cut over at the height at which the scion is to be put on (fig. 196 o), and a thin slice of the bark and wood is then cut off with a Fig. 196 Splice-gro/ling in Us different stages, veiy sharp knife, so as to leave a perfectly smooth, even surface (b) ; the scion, which should at least have three buds, and need never have more than five (the top one for a leading shoot, the next two for side shoots, in the case of fruit-trees, and tlie lower two to aid in uniting the scion to the stock), is next cut, so as to fit the prepared part of the stock as accurately as possible, at least on one side; then a slit or tongue, as it is technically termed, is made on the scion, and a corresponding one in the stock (c). AW being thus prepared, the scion is applied to the stock, inserting the tongue of the one into the slit of the other (c) ; tlien the scion is tied on with matting (d) ; and, lastly, it is clayed over (e) ; and some- times, in addition, it is earthed up, or covered with moss, to serve as a non-conductor of heat and moisture. In earthing up the graft, the loose surface soil should be used at the grafting season, as being drier and warmer than that which is less under the immediate influence of the sun. When the scion is placed on the stock with the right hand, the ribbon of bass by which it is tied, is brought round the graft from right to left; but when the scion is put on by the left hand, the bast is brought round from left to right ; the object in both cases being to make sure of the exact coin- cidence of the inner bark of one side of the scion, with the inner bark of GRAFTING BY DETACHED SCIONS. 289 one side of the stock. The ball of clay which envelopes the graft should be about an inch thick on every side, and should extend for nearly au inch below the bottom of the graft, to more than an inch over the top of the stock, compressing and finishing the whole into a kind of oval or egg-shape form, closing it in every part, so as completely to exclude air, light, wet, or cold. The ball of clay will not be so apt to drop off, if the matting over which it is placed is rendered a fitting nucleus for solid clay, by previously smearing it over in a comparatively liquid state. This envelope of clay, with the earthing up, preserves the graft in a uniform temperature, and prevents the rising of the sap from being checked by cold days or nights ; and, therefore, earthing up ought always to be adopted, in the case of grafts in the open garden, which are difficult to succeed. The next best resource is a ball of moss over the clay, or of some dry material, such as hay, tied on from within an inch of the top of the scion to the sur- face of the ground, so as to act as thatch in excluding rain and wind, and retaining heat and moisture. When the scion and the stock are both of the same thickness, or when they are of kinds that do not unite freely, the tongue is sometimes omitted; but in that case, more care is required in tying. In this, and also in other cases, the stock is not shortened down to the graft ; but an inch or two with a bud at its upper extremity is left to insure the rising of the sap to the scion, as in fig. 194 ; and after the lat- ter is firmly established, the part of the stock left is cut off close above the scion, as shown iu fig. 197. When the stock is not headed down till the scion is about to be put on, it is essentially neces- sary to leave it longer than usual, in order to give vent to the rising sap, which might otherwise ex- ude about the scion, and occasion its decay. In the case of shoots having much pith, such as those of the rose, the scion is often put on the stock , without being tongued into it, as in fig. 198, iu shoots on, and the heel «/ i*e which the scion in the one case, a, is without, stoc cu off. ^ jj^^ Pjj £jg lower extremity, and is therefore less likely to succeed than b, which has a bud in that position. Sometimes a notch is cut on the scion immediately under a bud, and this notch is made to rest on the top of the stock, as in fig. 199; and in such cases, when the scion and stock are about the same diameter, the summit of the latter is certain of being healed over the first season. 652. Splice-grafting the peach. In splice- grafting the shoots of peaches, nectarines, and apricots, and other tender shoots with large pith, it is found of advantage to have a quarter of an inch of two-years old wood '■^' at the lower extremity of the scion (fig. 200, r'i»-i99-SJ'"«- •' . .^ , grafting Willi- a,) and to have the stock cut with a dove- a shoulder. tail notch (6). In the case of the fruit-trees mentioned, the buds of the scion on the back and front are removed, leaving two on each side, and a, Fig. 197. The scion with its i/oung Fig. 198. Splice-grafting without a tongue. 290 GRAFTING BY DETACHED SCIONS. leader; and when these have grown six or eight inches, their extremilies are pinched off with the finger and thumb ; by which means each shoot will throw out two others, and thus produce in autumn a finely-shaped tree, with ten branches. Such trees will bear two or three fruits the second year from the graft. — Gard. Mag., vol. iii. p. 150. a 653. Cleft-grafting, fig. 201, requires less care than splice-grafting, and seems to have been the mode in most general use in former ages. It is now chiefly adopted when the scion is a good deal larger than the stock, and more especially when grafting stocks of con- siderable height, or heading down old trees. The head of the stock being cut over hori- zontally with a saw (fig. 202), a cleft is made in it, from two to three inches in length, with a stout knife graflingtnemach. ^^ ^^^-^^ ^^ ^j^j^ ^.j^^ spUtting-knife (fig. 203). The cleft being kept open by the knife or chisel, or the pick-end of the splitting-knife, one or two scions are inserted, according to the diameter of the stock ; the scions being cut into long wedge shapes, in a double sense, and inserted into the slit ¥is.2m. Bow mwfor cutting off branches of trees, prepared for them, when the knife or chisel being withdrawn, the stock closes firmly upon the scions, and holds them I Pig. 200. Splice- ^N_ (ast. The graft is then tied and clayed in the usual man- ner and the ^^^* ^^^' SpUtting-kni/e and opening pick for using in cl^-grafiingi whole is frequently covered with moss. When the stock is an inch or more in diameter, three or more scions are frequently put on at equal distances from each other round the cir- cumference, and this is called croicn-grafting. Cleft- grafting with one scion is in general not a good mode, because if the split has been made right" through the stock, it is in danger of being injured by the weather before it is covered with wood by the scion. If the cleft is made only on one side of the stock, the evil is mitigated ; but there still remains the tendency of the scion in its growth to protrude the wood all on one side. In crown-grafting headed-down old trees, the scion is generally chosen of two-years old wood, and it is some- Fig. 204. Rind-grafting, times inserted between the inner bark and the alburnum, as in what is called rind-grafting (fig. 204). In rind-gi-afting, great care must be taken to open the bark of the stock without braising it, which is done by the spatula end of the grafting-knife. The scion is prepared with- out a tongue, and inserted so that its wood may be in contact with the alhur- Fig. 205. Clisft- GRAFTING BY DETACHED SCIONS. 291 num of the stock. As in this case both edges of the alburnum of the scion come in close contact with the alburnum of the stock, the chances of success, other circumstances being alike, are increased. In cases of this kindalso, alongi- tudinal notch is sometimes cut out, instead of a slit, and the scion cut to corre- spond. Sometimes also the scion is prepared with a slioulder, more especially when it consists of two-yearsold wood, and thismode is called shoulder-grafting. 654. Cleft-grafting the vine is shown in fig. 205, in which o is a bud on the scion, and b one on the stock, both in the most favourable positions for success. The graft is tied and clayed in the usual manner, excepting that only a small hole is left in the clay opposite the eye of the scion, for its developement. In graft- ing the vine in this manner, when the bud b on the stock is developed, it is allowed to grow for ten or fourteen days, after which it is cut off; leaving only one bud and one leaf near its base to draw up sap to the scion till it be fairly united to the stock. The time of grafting is when the stock is about to break into leaf, or when they have made shoots with four or five leaves. By this time the sap has begun to flow freely, so that there is no danger of the stock suffering from bleeding ; grufting the vine, though if vines are in good health and their wood thoroughly ripened, all the bleeding that usually takes place does little injury. In Flanders the rose is frequently grafted in the cleft manner, the scion, if possible, being of the same diameter as the stock (fig. 206, a) ; or the cleft in the stock is made so near one side of the cross section as^ that the bark of the wedge part of the scion j may fit the bark of the stock on both sides- (6). Sometimes a shoulder is made to the scion (c), in order that it may rest with greater firmness on the stock ; and the wedge part of the scion, instead of being part of an internode, as at d, is, when practicable, selected with a bud on it, as at e. The camellia is sometimes cleft- grafted, with only a single bud on the scion (fig. 207, a), which is inserted in the stock b, just when the sap is beginning to rise, and being tied, it is found to take freely without claying. Kpiphyllum truncatum is fre- quently cleft-grafted on Periskia aculeata, as shovm in fig. 208. 666. Saddle-grafting (fig. 209) is only applicable to stocks of moderate < size, but it is well adapted for standard fruit-trees. The top of the stock is cut into a wedge shape, and the scion is split up the middle, and placed astride on it, the inner barks being made to join on one side of the stock as in cleft-graftmg. The tying, clay- ing, &c., are of course performed mEpiph^itum the usual manner. Fig. 210 represents 'I'^^^^f'^^ a mode of grafting practised in Here- penSskia fordshire after the usual season for amieUa. Fig 907. Cle/t-grud. containing a bud, and insert it in an orifice made in the same manner, secur- ing the edges with grafting-wax. ^^ 684. Budding with a shield stamped out by a \W punch (fig.242) is considered excellent for budding old trees, the thick and rugged bark of which is not f^^^ suitable for being taken off with the budding- I rn.'i knife. With a mallet the punch (fig. 243) is driven through the bark of the scion, and then through that of the stock, and the piece which comes out of the former is inserted in the cavity formed by the piece taken out of the latter. ,1^— — "' „ ,,. , . T » , ,. 1 rf eiA^\^'^S- ^42. Budding 685. Budding with the shield reversed (ng. 244) jj, the aid af a is almost the only manner of budding used in the P'-^nch. south of Europe, particularly at Genoa and Hieres, to propagate orange- trees. It is said also to be suitable for trees having abundant and gummy sap. C36. Budding with the eye turned downwardn. — By this method the buds V ©i Fig. 241. Bud ding with a cir- cular shield. 306 BUDDINO OK QRAFTINU BY DETACHED BEDS. Fig. 243. are forced to grow in a direction opposite to that which they would have taken naturally ; but they soon resume their usual position ; and the desired end, viz., that of increasing the size of the fruit by stagnating the returning sap, is thus by no means attaiiied. De Can- dolle says, that this mode of < budding is used advantageously in the case of the olive, and of trees which produce a great deal of gum ; but that he sees no reason for its superiority over the ordinary mode. — !.;„ „.. „ ... „, „,. „ , . , „, _ , „■' „. X *^'K- 2**- Buddtng Fig. 246. Budding [^fnys. Keg. vol. ll. p. 800.) with the shield with a pointed 687. Shield-budding for re- "versed. shield for resin- sinous trees (fig. 246) is said to °"' "■'"" '""""««"'*{" *"''''^®^ '^^^^ *^ ^bietineae, and with all trees that have a ZuidZr. S:"mmy and very abundant sap. 688. Budding with the shield covered (fig. 246). The sViield being inserted in the usual manner, another with an orifice in it, to admit tlie bud of the first, is laid over it, and, is bandaged in the usual man- ner, or covered with grafting-wax. The object of the double shield is to lessen the effect of drying winds. 689. Budding with a square shield (fig. 247) is an old practice which has lately been revived with some modifications (Gard. Jfoj. for 1839, %ing with" a V- 165), in which the bark, raised ^>8- 247. Budding with a square douhu shield, up on the stock to make room for * " ' the shield, is tied over it; the shield being previously shortened, so as to jeach only to the under side of the bud ; and between the two barks, the petiole of a leaf is inserted, the disk of which is intended to protect the bud from the sun. The strip of bark being peeled down from the stock, instead of being raised up from it by the spa- tula of the bud- ding-knife, is found to lessen the risk of injuring the soft wood ; and this appears to be the chief recommendation of this mode of budding. OOO. Shield-budding with a terminal bud (fig. 248) is supposed to produce a more vigorous shoot than when a lateral eye is used ; and it is, therefore, recommended for supplying a leader to a shoot that lias lost one. The stock is cut as at a, and the bud is prepared as at b, inserted as at c, and tied in the usual manner, as at rf. Fig. 24ft Budding with a terminal ege. BUDDING OB GRAFTINa BY DETACHED BEDS. 307 6J)l. Flute-budding, or tube-budding. — There are several modifications of tlus mode of budding, wliicli is a good deal used on the Continent for trees which are difficult to take, such as the walnut and the chestnut ; and for several oaks, as well as for the white mulberry. It is generally performed in spring ; but it will also succeed in autumn. The shoot from which the buds are to be taken, and that on which tbey are to be placed, must be of the same diameter, or nearly so ; and a ring being removed from each, that from the stock is thrown away, and the one from the scion put on in its stead. Sometimes this is done without shortening the stock or branch, when it is called annular, or ring-bud- ding ; and sometimes the stock is shortened, and the ring put on its upper extremity, when it is called flute-bud- ding, or terminal tube-budding. 692. Flute-budding in spring. — The scions are taken off in autumn, or early in winter, and preserved through the winter in a cool shady situation, in the same manner as is done in gi-afting by detached scions, and in spring shield-bodding. Fig. 249, which requires no description, shows the mode of spring terminal flute-budding the white mulberry, as it is practised in the Royal nurseries at Munich. When the ring of tlie scion is too large, a portion is cut out of it longitudinally, so as to admit of its being pressed closely and firmly to the stock ; and when it is too small, it is slit up so as to admit of its ~ being put round the stock. The tube is tied on with Fig. 249. Flute-budding matting, and the summit of the stock is covered with the mulberry in spring. n, . graftmg-wax. 693. Terminal flute-budding in the South of France (fig. 250). — The head of the stock being cut off, a ritig of bark, two inches or three inches long, is removed. A shoot is then , taken from the tree to be in- rl> if creased,ofexactlythe same thick- ness as the stock, and a ring or tube of bark is taken off the thick end (without being split longi- tudinally), not quite so long as the piece of bark taken off the stock, but provided with several Fig.250.re)-m{n much injured by the spade in the process of lifting, and by the atmosphere when removing. A pit of large dimensions was also required, which added much to the labour j a tree, the roots of which foi-med a ball only about four feet in diameter, requiring a pit eight feet in diameter to allow of the fibres being laid out at full length, besides a foot of moved soil beyond them all round to encourage their growth. A much more economical and equally .efficient mode is suggested by the following experiment: — Mr. Munro selected a handsome oak, about twenty-five years old, and having dug out a circular trench round it, leaving a ball of earth four feet in diameter, he cut off every root which projected into the trench with a saw, and smoothed it over with a pruning knife. The object was, in place of encouraging the growth of fibres at the extremities of the amputated roots, to have the fibres formed within the ball of earth all along the old root. To accomplish this end, he left the trench empty and roofed it in with boards, covering up any opening between them with withered grass, and then putting over the whole an inch of soil, so as completely to exclude light and change of air. In this situation the tree remained for one year, having no lateral communication with the surrounding soil. The operation was performed in the winter of 1824, and in that following the roofing was taken from the trench, and the ball of earth reduced to a proper dimension for removing the tree, when the 316 TRANSPLANTING AND PLANTING. old roots were found not only famished with fibres in the interior of the ball, but the fibres were matted sufficiently to retain enough of soil to pro- tect the roots at the time of removal ; and, what was of nearly equal import- ance, callosities were formed at the ends of the amputated roots ready to throw out spongioles as soon as they were surrounded by moist soil. This mode, we believe, has not been much practised, excepting by Mr. MunrOj but we consider it excellent in theory; and by using branches and litter, or branches and turf, as a covering, or leaving the trenches quite open, as has been done in subsequent trials, it will be found greatly more economical than Sir Henry Steuart's method. It is obvious that the growth of the tree must be greatly checked by this mode of preparation, which will consequently have the effect of rendering it capable of living on a limited quantity of food, and therefore much better adapted for removal. The only objection that occurs to us is, that in the case of previous preparation for two or three years, too many fibrous roots will be protruded into the ball, more, perhaps, than can be nourished in that, limited bulk of soil, even after the tree is transplanted. If, however, the tree is prepared only one year previous to removal, the objection will not apply to the same extent, if at all. 711. Transplanting by thinning and pruning the roots and branches is the most common mode, and in a moist soil and climate it is generally attended with success. The trees are taken up by cutting a trench round the roots about the same distance as in preparing trees by the fii-st mode (695) ; the ends of the roots are sawn olF and cut smooth, and the top is thinned of its branches, and pruned more or less, according to the size of the tree, and the soil, situation, and climate in which it is to be planted. When the tree is of considerable size, say nine inches or a foot in diameter, it must necessarily be deprived of the greater number of its effective roots ; and in this ease, unless in a very moist climate and soil, the safest mode is to cut off at least half of the branches of the head, covering the sections left by amputation with grafting-clay or grafting-wax. If trees are transplanted in this manner inrmediately after the fall of the leaf, the wounds of the roots very soon begin to heal over, and by the time spring arrives they are ready to throw out fibres and to support the leaves protraded by the branches left, which in their turn nourish the fibres of the roots by the returning sap. The second year the roots will be more vigorous, and the buds on the branches will probably elongate into shoots of an inch or two in length. In this way the tree will gradually recover a certain degree of vigour, and it will ultimately become either a stunted tree or a vigorous healthy one, according to the quantity of nourishment afforded by the soil (see Pruning). In some cases large trees can be removed without preparing the roots, and without cutting off any, or at least very few, of the branches : but in such cases it will be found that, from some cause or other, the roots are mostly near the surface and the soil moist, and that a great proportion of the roots can be taken up along with the tree. A great many trees, such as spruce, firs, alders, limes, elm, and beech, from fifteen to forty feet high, were transplanted at Chaifont House, in 1799, by Mr. Main. They grew on a thin stratum of rich bog earth, reposing on a bed of moist gravel. M'hen a tree had a trench dug round it at the distance of three or four feet, the whole mass of roots rose together, leaving the gravel clean and bare ; and the consequence was, that with very little lopping, the trees, bijing planted in a similar soil and subsoil all lived, and soon began to gi'ow vigorously (Gnrii. Mag. vcd. iv. p. 118) TRANSPLANTING AND PLANTING. 317 Wien this mode of transplanting large trees with the branches on is adopted in a dry soil, the success will be very different, even thougli the ground should be mulched round the transplanted trees, and the stem and main branches closely wrapped round with straw ropes to lessen evaporation. The most suitable trees for planting out with no other preparation than thinning or pruning the branches, are those whose roots and heads have been properly thinned and pruned by cultivation in a nursery. Such trees may be planted out at greater ages and sizes than trees taken from plantations of a few years' growth, and will both strike fresh roots more certainly and grow faster ; but these last may be taken up, when from ten to twenty or twenty- five feet high, and planted out with full success, provided the two following particulars are observed : first, to get up as mucli root as possible ; next, to reduce the branches down to due proportion with the root which has been got up. A great part of the root is unavoidably lost in the taking up of the tree, and it is the most efficient part, being the extreme fibres. The root has thus lost its natural proportion to the head, and is now insufficient to supply it with moisture. Trees planted out in this state often, after having put fortli their leaves, die suddenly, and others which continue to live will fall into a languid state and die off gradually, or recover their vigour very slowly. (Sir Chas. Monk in Hort. Trans, and Gard. Mag. vol. v. p. 148.) 712. The removal of large trees and shrubs without previous preparation has been carried to a greater extent at Arlington Court, in Devonshire, than it has been anywhere else that we have heard of; and a detailed account of the manner in which the operation is performed by Mr. Nash, the gardener, will be found in the Gardener's Magazine for 1838, p. 507. The trenches at Arlington are dug round the tree at ten or twelve feet from the stem, or farther if necessary, so as to take up as far as practicable the whole of the roots and fibres ; and none of these or of the branches are cut off, excepting such as have been injured by the operation of moving. Isolating the roots of a large tree in its ball of earth, and rendering this ball portable by soaking it with water during frost, and moving it when it is a frozen mass, is some- times resorted to with good effect; and encasing small balls with plaster of Paris, where that substance is abundant, has been occasionally practised by amateurs. 713. Transplanting by " \eading in" that is, cutting in the branches. — This is the general practice throughout the Continent ; for there, such is the heat and dryness of the air in early spring and summer, that the roots of newly-transplanted trees are far from being able to support the perspiration which takes place from the leaves. The practice is of the most remote antiquity, and Professors De Candolle and Thouin both allude to it, as in general use, and attended with success ; though they both allege that it is carried too far when the main stems of pyramidal trees, such as pines and firs, are shortened ; the consequence of which is a branching head instead of a conical one, as may be seen in those remarkable rows of spruce-firs which line some of the avenues at Meudon. The mode of treating headed-in trees practised in Belgium is described in an early volume of the Crcr- dener's Magazine, and again in that work for 1841. The trees, whether oak, ash, elm, poplar, or other leafy kinds, are taken from the nursery when they are fifteen feet or more in height, and about the thickness of a man's arm ; the lateral branches are all cut off close to the stem, to the height of six or seven feet from tlie oolinv ; the top is also cut off in a slaut- T 318 TBANSPLANTINO AND PLANTING. ing direction, at about ten feet from the roots ; and the remaininfi; trancheB are shortened to from three to six inches, the cut being made close ahove a bud. The trees are taken up in March and April, (in England, immediately after the fall of the leaf would be a better time,) without balls of earth, and not remarkably carefully, but precisely after the ordinary manner practised in our nurseries, and they are planted in holes about three or four feet square. The first year they grow but little ; the second year they may be said to commence their growth, when the uppermost shoot is trained for the leader. As the tree progresses, it is pruned every year, if necessary, in winter or early in spring, cutting out all the cross and unequal branches, and thinning those that are or may become crowded. It may be thought that trees treated in this manner would all become round-headed, and that they would only have about ten feet of straight timber ; but this does not necessarily follow, unless that form be really de- sired. On the contrary, the straightest and most beautifully attenuated timber is obtained by timely training the upper shoot to a stick tied to the stem ; or if the uppermost shoot is emitted a few inches below the summit, which is sometimes the case, it may be tied to the dying point, till it is fixed in an unchangeable erect position. By attending to this, and by thinning the branches, without shortening them, for a few years, they will become completely subordinate to the trunk {6ard. Gaz. for 1841, p. 791). This we consider to be the safest mode of transplanting trees in exposed, bleak situations in Britain ; more especially on the sea-coast, and in mountainous districts. 714. The staking or s^ipporting of newly-transplanted trees, and the pro- tection of their stems from cattle, require to be carefully attended to ; and we shall therefore shortly notice the different modes of doing both. Fig. 263 shows the common modes of protecting trees which are to have clear stems to the height of eight or ten feet, from deer, horses, or cattle ; the main posts being made of oak or of larch, or of any other wood chaned on the part which is buried in the soil, and for nine inches or a foot above the ground's surface. For trees which are intended to have their branches sweeping on 7 the ground, such as cedars, pines, silver firs, &c., circles of iron hurdles fastened together Pig.263. Tkemostgeneralmodeso/pro- ^^^ bolts and _ nuts should be employed, tecUng recently-planted single trees enlarging the circle as the branches extend from cattle and deer. themselves, by introducing additional hur- dles. These hurdles being always only a few feet from the branches, are scarcely perceptible at a very short distance, and therefore are no deformity in the landscape : as may be seen at Goodwood, Bicton, and many other places. Trees which have had all the branches cut oiF in the Belgian manner, require no staking, because the wind has no branches on which to act ; and their stems may be protected from cattle by tying thorns or other branches round them , or laths or straight rods, or even pieces of old bark ; using as a tie, wire or tarred thread. Small trees, with the branches on, may be tied to stakes with bands of hay, and their stems protected in the manner just mentioned. Trees of thirty or forty feet in height may be supported by g-uy ropes ; or if the roots are strong and of some length, they may to kept in their places by TRANSPLANTING AND PLANTING. 319 hcrizontal poles placed over them, and tied to tliem, concealed under, or u-vel with, or immediately above the surface of the ground ; the ends' of those polos being made fast to stakes, so as to cross over the roots and hold them tightly down. Fig. 264 shows a plan and elevation of a newly- removed tree, the roots of which are fastened down in this manner by means of the rods a, and stakes 6 y the latter being securely nailed to the former, and the whole covered with soil, as shown by the dotted line c. Trees of mode- rate size may also be secured against high winds, by inserting a stout stake in the soil in the bottom of the pit in which the tree is to be planted, of sufficient length to reach four or five feet above the surface; securing it firmly ther'e before planting the tree, and afterwards placing the stem of the tree close to it, and fastening it by some soft tie. Three larch poles fixed in this manner, so as to form a triangle, converging at top to the thickness of the stem of the tree, the tree being planted in the centre, would serve at once as a firm prop, and as a protection from cattle. Another Fig. 2i4. Plan and elevation cf a mode is to cover the surface of the ground for luuiiy-moved tree.semredfi-om High four or more feet round the tree with a mulch- u,.nds by underground fastening,. j„g ^j j^^.^^ ^^^^j^ ^j^^^^_ ^j^j^ ^^^^^ ^,^.^^ was first used by Sir Charles Monk, in Northumberland, and has been adopted in various parts of Scotland, is one of the best that can be adopted in a country where stone is abundant ; because it not only renders stakes and bandages unnecessary, but retains the moisture in the soil, and acts as a fence in keeping horses and cattle at a distance from the tree {Gard. Mag. vol, v. p. 148). The stones are in large lumps, not built up high, but packed close to each other, and set on edge, so as to make a tabular, but very rugged surface, round the foot of the tree. This mulching is extended in ordinai-y cases to the distance of four feet, which is sufficient for cattle and common horses ; but against high-bred horses, which are disposed to attack every- thing of wood, the stones are not a sufficient fence unless they are packed with a surface very rugged, and extended six feet round the tree. Horses and cattle are also kept at a distance from the trees by a series of horizontal rails, forming a tabular polygon round the tree fifteen or eighteen inches in height, and ten feet in diameter (see Gard. Mag. vol. vi. p. 47). Fig. 256 shows the general appearance of a tree fenced round in this manner. Fig. 266 is a vertical profile of the horizontal frame- work ; and fig. 257 is a cross section. In this section the posts are shown, inclined a little outwards, the better to resist pressure from cattle or sheep in that direction. These short posts, or stumps, as thej' m.ay be called, are formed of pieces of young larch- trees or oak branches, from which the bark has been taken, and they are driven in so as to be from fifteen to eighteen inches above the ground. The rails which are fastened to the posts are of the thinnings of young plantations, or of any other suitable material. The advantage of this fence is its economy, requiring only short pieces of not very stout timber, and its inconspicuous- ness when seen at a distance. Other modes of staking and protecting y 2 320 IRAN SPL AMINO AND PLANTING. trees will be found in the Suburban Architect and IjaniUeape Ga'doner, 1st ed. p. 555. 716. The machinery for moving Urge trees has been noticed ^443 and 709), towhichitmay be added that trucks or sledg- es, poles and ropes, require to be abundant- ly provided ; though for or- dinary purpos- es, a pair of high wheels and an axle for Fig. 256. Vertical profile df the tabular tree-guard. large trees without balls, and a sledge with F,6.265. nometruaj^^e^oftnetoiuiar an iron bottom, to be afterwards described, for shrubs v.-ith balls, is all that is essential. 716. Transplanting Evergreens.— There, is scarcely any residence in the country in which it is not frequently necessary to transplant evergreen shrubs, sometimes from changes or new arrangements, and sometimes on account of the plants crowding each other. Evergreen trees, such as those of the pine and fir tribe, are aJso occasionally transplanted, though much less requently than sh rubs. The most readily transplanted evergreen trees of arge size, are the spruce fir and the yew ; the former having numerous fibrous roots near the surface, and the latter having also numerous fibrous roots growing together, and consolidating the soil immediately round the tree into a compact mass. Spruce firs, yews, and hollies of large size have, for some years past, been transplanted at Elvaston Castle by Mr. Barron, with scarcely a single failure, though the spruce firs were from sixty to eighty feet in height, and many of the yews were above a hundred years old. Evergreen shrubs of all sizes have also, been transplanted Fig. 257. Crois section 0/ the tabular with the greatest success in the New Botanic tree-guard. Garden of Edinburgh, by Mr. McNab, of whom Mr. Barron is a pupil, and from whose excellent pamphlet on the subject we shall chiefly compile the remainder of this article. 717. The best season for transplanting evergreens is still a debated point among gardeners, though it is now generally agreed that autumn and winter are preferable to spring or summer. On the Continent, spring appears to be preferred, just before the rising of tlie sap, when the leaves of the past year are ready to drop off; but it must be recollected that there are comparatively very few evergreens cultivated on the Continent, which are sufficiently hardy to endure the open air, with the exception of pines and firs, the narrow leaves of which suffer much less from drying winds than those of broad- leaved evergreens, such as the holly, the laurel, the arbutus, &c. Miller (during whose time there were comparatively but few evergreens, to what there are at present) recommends planting the common and Portugal laurels TRANSPLANTING AND PLANTING. 321 in October, as the best season ; the arbutus in September ; the holly iu autumn, in dry land, but in wet land in spring ; and the laurustinus at Michaelmas — but also in spring, with balls of earth, or at the end of July, or beginning of August, if rain should happen at that season. In general Miller recommends autumn and spring, or summer, for transplanting ever- greens, but disapproves of winter. At Cheshunt, in Hertfordshire, a great many evergreens were moved every year for a number of years, in conse- quence of additions and alterations in the grounds ; and Mr. Pratt, the gar- dener, in an account of his practice given in the Gardener's Magazine, states that "the best period for the operation is the middle of summer; that is to say, in July and August, after the growth of the spring shoots. The plants may then require a little shading with mats, if the sun is powerful ; and they should have plenty of water ; but they will make roots during the remain- ing part of the year, and will gi'ow the next spring as if they had never been transplanted. Those removed in the winter often remain without making new shoots the whole of the following year." — {Gard. Mag. vol. xi. p. 136.) Mr. McNab, on the other hand, " in opposition to the opinion of a great proportion of the practical horticulturists in the country," asserts, " that the seasons usually recommended for planting evergreens, viz., spring or autumn, are far from being the best, and are, in fact, under most circumstances, the very worst seasons which can be selected." Mr. McNab recommends " late in autumn, winter, or very early in spring ; that is, any time from the mid- dle of October till the middle of February ; and, in general, the beginning of this period as the best ; that is, from the middle of October till the middle of December ; always providing that the weather and the ground are favour- able ; that is, supposing there is no frost, no drying wind, nor much sun- shine, and that the ground is not too much saturated with wet, either from continued rain, or from the nature of the soil. One of the principal things to be attended to in planting evergreens, is to fix on a dull day for winter- planting, and a moist day for spring and autumn-planting." The reason why dull or moist weather is so essential a condition is, that the process of perspiration continues to go on in evergreens throughout the winter, except- ing, perhaps, in the most severe weather ; and that when the atmosphere is saturated with moisture, the perspiration is reduced to its minimum. Evaporation also proceeds in an increasing ratio with the temperature, all other circumstances being the same. Thus, when the temperature is 80°, the quantity evaporated from a given surface will be three times greater than when the temperature is only 40°, the degree of dryness in the air being the same in both cases. So long as the leaves remain on a plant in a healthy state, their functions are performed in a greater or less degree, and they draw upon the roots accordingly ; so that ever- greens, as they never lose their leaves, may be said to be in a growing state all the year; and were the growth not much slower in autumn and winter than it is in summer, it would be as difficult to trans- plant evergreen trees, even at that season, as it is to transplant deciduous trees in summer with the leaves on. The first effect of separating a plant from the soil, is to cut off the supply of sap to the leaves ; and as, notwith- standing this, perspiration and evaporation will still continue, it follows that these leaves must fade, unless the perspiration is either checked by a moist atmosphere, or supplied by watering the roots. That the atmosphere m Britain is nearly saturated with moisture from October to February inolu- 322 TRANSPLANTING AND PLANTING. sive, is satisfactorily proved by the tables drawn up by Mr. Robert Thomp- son, of the Horticultural Society's Garden, and published in their Transac- tions; of one of which an abstract will be found in our Appendix. 718. The drying of the roots of evergreens Mr. McN^ab considers to be one of the greatest injuries which they can suffer. If they are allowed to dry when out of the ground in spring, he says, it is scarcely possible to prevent their suffering considerably, and showing this injury for a long period after they are planted. " Half a day's sun in spring or autumn will do more harm immediately after planting, than a whole week's sun, from morning to night, in the middle of winter. At that season we can always plant (ex- cept during severe frosts, or in a very drying wind) with perfect certainty of success ; whereas, in spring or autumn, there is a great risk of failure, ex- cept we can get a few dull days, or moist days after planting ; and tliis is quite uncertain." {Hints, S^c, p. 18.) It is commonly thought that ever- greens planted in winter can push out no roots till spring ; but Mr. McNab finds the contrary to be the case. " During the winter we often have inter- vals of a week or a fortnight, and even sometimes three weeks, of mild weather ; and in such weather the roots of many evergreens do grow. Let any person that has a few duplicates of different kinds of evergreens to spare, plant or lay them in by the heels, and soak them well with water, any time during the period I have recommended as the best for planting ; let him take these same plants up again in the end of March, April, or begin- ning of May following, and he will find they will have made a considerable number of fresh roots between the time he put them in, and the time he took them up. Every nurseryman knows, that of the cuttings of some sorts of evergreens put into the ground, as is usual, in September or Octo- ber, many will have made roots during the winter, as will easily be seen by taking some of them up in March, April, or May." — {^Hints, &;c., p. 19.) 719. In planting evergreens, "whether in a dull day, a wet day, or a dry day, it is very necessary to keep in view the expediency of keeping the plants for as short a time out of the ground as possible ; if only a few minutes, so much the better. In all seasons, situations, and soils, the plants should be well soaked with water, as soon as the earth is put about the roots. As soon as the plant has been put into its place, the earth should be filled in, leaving a sufiBcient hollow round the stem, and as far out as the roots extend, to hold water, which should then be poured in, in sufiicient quantity to soak the ground down to the lowest part of the roots ; in short, the whole should be made like a kind of puddle. By this practice, which is particulaily necessary in spring and autumn-planting, the earth is carried down by the water, and eveiy crevice among the roots is filed. Care must always be taken to have as much earth above the roots of the plants as will prevent them from being exposed when the water has subsided." Mr. McNab finds " the best plan is to take an old birch broom, or anything similar, and laying it down near to the root, to cause the water to be poured upon it ; this breaks the fall of the water, and prevents the roots from being washed bare of such earth as may adhere to them ; in this way time is saved, for the water may be poured out in a full stream from a paU, a water-pot, or even from a spout or pipe, in the water-cart, or barrel, where the situation is such that this can be brought up to the plant. After the first watering has dried up, theeaith should be levelled round the stem of the plant, and as tar out as the water has been put on, but not trodden ; TRANSPLANTING AND PLANTING. 323 if the plants are large, a second watering is sometimes necessary ; but in ordinary-sized plants, one watering is quite sufficient ; and after remaining twenty-four hours, more or less, according to the nature of the soil, the earth about the stem, and over the roots, should be trodden as firm as pos- sible ; and, after treading, should he dressed with a rake. Where this is practised, and the planting done in winter, in cloudy weather, there is scarcely a chance of any dry weather afterwards injuring them; but if this method, or something similar, is not practised, there will be a great risk of failure every year, in planting evergreens, particularly when they are planted at the usual times recommended ; that is, in spring or autumn." Mr. McNab recommends " always to water evergreens when planted, whe- ther the work be done in wet weather, dull weather, or dry ; or whether the situation in which they are planted is wet or dry, sheltered or exposed ; because the watering, in the manner recommended, fills up the holes that may be in the earth about the roots, and consolidates the whole mass much better than treading could do." In tenacious soils, treading is positively injurious ; and in no case should the soil be rendered more compact than it is found to be in ground that has been a few weeks trenched. 720. Transplanting Evergreens with balls. — In transplanting evergreens it is desirable to leave as much earth about the roots as possible ; but when treated in the way recommended, the greater part of the earth that may be about the roots is of importance, rather in preserving them from injury dur- ing the operation, than for any value it may have after the plant has been put into the ground. This is, however, speaking of ordinary-sized plants, that is, from one to two and a half, or three feet high ; if much larger than this, Mr. McNab " never could move them with success, vidthout keeping a large ball of earth about their roots, and keeping it as entire as possible." — {Hints, Ssc, p. 26. ) 721. The machines and implements for transplanting large shrubs with balls need not he on such a large scale as those for transplanting large trees. Those used by Mr. Pratt, already mentioned, are, a hand-barrow formed of sheet- iron, of which fig. 258, a, represents the upper side, b, the under side, and c. Pig. 258. Machine for transplanting large shruis with balls. a longitudinal section ; a pick, d, like that used by Sir Henry Steuart ; a tnick with low wheels ; and a common hand-barrow, with wooden levers and planks. There are three sizes of the sheet-iron hand-barrow, viz., four feet, by two feet six inches ; three feet, by one foot nine inches ; and two feet two inches, by one foot three inches ; they are all rounded at the comers, a little 324 TRANSPLANTING AND PLANTING. turned up at the ends, and are strengthened by flat-iron bars underneath, carried round near the edges. These iron bars are welded into handles at each end, and the handles are kept above the ground by the ends of the irons being turned up. The ground is opened at a distance from the stem, regu- lated by the size and nature of the plant intended to be removed, and the fibres are carefully tied up, as they are met with, to the stem of the plant. By the use of the pick, d, the plant is completely undermined on three sides, leaving the remaining side undisturbed till the iron, a, is put under the roots, when that side is cut down, and the plant falls upon the iron; and if not sufficiently in the middle, it b easily slipped into the centre. If the plant be large and heavy, an inclined plane is dug on the most convenient side of the hole, and a rope being put into the iron handles, the plant is hauled out. A short strong board is in some states of the ground used for this purpose, instead of the inclined plane. The plant may then, if not too heavy, be car- ried on a hand-barrow, which admits of the application of the strength of six men, two between the handles, and the other four on the outside. Heavier plants, which are to be carried any distance, are lifted on a truck with low wheels, made strong for the purpose ; and if too heavy for this mode, as many boards as are wanted are laid down in succession, and the plant is hauled by the iron upon these boards to the place where it is to be planted. The plant is invariably hauled into the new hole on the iron, which is not removed till its proper position is ascertained ; this prevents the disturb- ance of the ball of earth or roots. The plant is then lifted a little on one side and the iron drawn out, earth is then filled into the level of the fibres, which are untied and laid out straight, and the plant is earthed up. The heaviest plants, Portugal and other laurels, eight feet and nine feet liigh, and six feet or seven feet in diameter, which cannot be lifted by any strength that can be applied without injury to the ball of earth and roots, are thus moved with great ease and expedition, with large balls of earth, and without any disturbance of the roots; and, consequently, the plants invariably pro- ceed in their growth, often without experiencing the slightest check."— {Gard. Mag. vol. ii. p. 134.) 722. Packing Evergreens. — In removing evergreens, even of small size, and whether of the pine and fir tribe, or shrubs, the same care is requisite not to expose their roots to the air, and to plant them as soon as possible after they have been taken up. For this reason aU evergreens, except the com- moner kinds, such as the Scotch and one or two other pines, the commoner spruce and silver firs, the common and Portugal laurel, the box, the juniper, &c., should be kept by the nurseryman in pots ; and we would strongly re- commend purchasers of evergreens to bear this in mind. NVhen evergi'ccn shrubs are to be sent to a distance, they ought to be packed in such a way as to prevent the roots from becoming dry, by surrounding their balls or pots with moist sphagnum, and leaving their tops loose, and never tied together, as is done in packing deciduous shrubs. Mr. McNab recommends them to bo " packed in hampers, with strong rods or stakes forming a cone round the top, and this cone covered with a mat." The branches should never be tied close together, because in this state, if they are long in the journey, there is a great risk of the leaves dropping off soon after they are unpacked ; and when this is the case, with the best management, it will be long before the plants recover. But we refer the reader to Mr. McNab'R pamphlet, which ought to be in the hands of every gardener. TRANSPLANTING AND PLANTINO. 325 723. Methods of planting small plants. — We have seen that in transplant- ing all large plants, a pit is opened of dimensions proportionate to the size of their roots, and this is also the case in planting single plants of small size ; but when small plants are planted in numbers together, different modes are adopted for the sake of expedition, and to save labour. Such of these modes as are in general use, we shall shortly describe, premising that in almost every case when plants are planted in considerable numbers in gardens, they are placed in rows, but that in plantations and shrubberies they are generally planted irregularly or in groups. The rows should in almost eveiy case be placed in the direction of north and south, for reasons easily understood, when we consider the influence of the sun on the soil between the rows and on the sides of the plants in this case, as compared with rows in the direction of east and west. All small plants, as well as large ones, when transplanted, are not inserted deeper in the soil than they were before being taken up. 724. Planting with the dibber we have already (392) mentioned as suitable for seedlings and very small plants. The soil ought to have been previously dug, or stirred by some other means, so that the fibres of the young plant may strike readily into it. In performing the operation, a hole is made with the dibber with one hand, then the root of the plant is inserted to the proper depth, and held there by the leaves, or stem, with the other hand, whUe, by a second movement, the dibber is inserted by the side of the hole in such a manner as to press in one of its sides to the root of the plant, taking care that the pres- sure on the roots sliall be greatest at its lowest extremity, and that it should be such as to hold the plant so fast that when slightly pulled by one of its leaves it does not come up. Large seeds, bulbs, and cuttings of tubers, or of roots without leaves, as of the potato, Jerusalem artichoke, &c., are fre- quently planted with the dibber, which, in these cases, is furnished with a blunt point (fig. 18, in p. 131). Newly-rooted small cuttings, on the other hand, are planted with small pointed sticks (fig. 16, n, in p. 131). All common seedlings, such as those of the cabbage tribe, are planted with the large dibber, and most small seedlings with the small one. 725. Planting with the trowel. — The trowel is entered in the soil perpendi- cularly, so as to open a hole, against one side of which the plant is placed, and the soil returned and firmly pressed against it if the soil be diy, or gently if it be moist. Very succulent seedlings, or transplanted plants, such as balsams or geranium cuttings, when turned out into the open border, are planted by this mode. 720. Planting in drills. — The drill is drawn with a draw-hoe, fig. 20, in p. 131, and large seeds such as beans, or sets such as cuttings of the potato, are placed along the bottom at regular distances, pressing them against the soil, and drawing the soil over them with the hoe. Boot-stocks such as those of the asparagus, and root-cuttings such as those of the sea-kale and horse-radish, are sometimes planted in this manner. 727. Laying in by the heels is a temporary mode of planting, in v/hich a notch or trench is made in the soil, sufficiently deep to cover the roots of the plants which are to be laid in it, but not their tops. An opening or trench is made, as if the land wei-e to be dug, and the roots of the plants are laid in the furrow, with their tops standing out in a sloping direction ; after which the digging is continued till the roots are covered, and the soil is then pressed down with the foot, and anotlier trench pre- 326 TBANSPLAiNTING AND PLANTING. pared. This mode of planting is employed wherever more plants are taken out of the ground than can be immediately planted, and it is founded on the necessity of avoiding the great injury which the fibres and spoiigiolcs pf plants sustain by exposure to the air. 728. Trench-planting is the most common mode, next fo planting ■with the dibber. It is used in transplanting most kinds of trees in the nursery, and most kinds of edgings of single lines of plants. The spade is inserted perpendicularly along the line, and a trench is opened of the required depth, perpendicular on one side and sloping on the other ; and the plants are placed against the perpendicular side with one hand, while, ■with a, spade in the other hand, or by the foot, some soil is drawn over their roots ; after which the trench is filled up by the spade, the surface levelled, and the line lifted and placed at a suitable distance, for a second trench. In general, this mode of planting is carried on simultaneously with digging or trenching ; trenching being used for plants having very large roots, such as rhubarb, sea-kale, horse-radish, &c. In planting box and other edgings to walks, by shallow trenches, the ground along the line of the intended edging is first dug to a uniform depth and width, and the soil is ■«'eU broken, so as to be of an equal degree of fineness ; it is then com- pressed by treading or beating, so as to be rendered uniformly firm along the intended line of plants. The line being now stretched, a notch or trench is made along it, generally on the side next the walk, perpendi- cular to the surface, and of the depth of the roots of the box or other plants. The box is now laid in against the perpendicular side of the trench, using both hands, while the roots are covered with soil by drawing it up against them, with a spade or the foot, so as to keep the plants in their place. The remaining quantity of soil necessary to support the plants, and to earth them up as high on the walk side as on the border side, is then brought forward with the spade, and the work is completed by firmly treading the soil to the plants with the foot. 729. Slit-planting is effected by inserting the trowel or the spade perpen- dicularly, moving it backwards and forwards an inch or two, and then withdrawing it. In the open slit thus left a plant is inserted, and the sides brought together, when the slit is not deep, by treading with the foot ; but, when it is deep, by inserting the trowel or spade on one side, so as to press one side of the slit against the other throughout its whole depth. Young forest-trees are frequently planted in this manner on unprepared soil, and sometimes seedlings with long taproots in gardens. 730. Hole-planting. — Two men, or a man and a boy, are required for this operation. The ground being dug or trenched, and the width of the rows and the distance between the plants in the rows fixed on, a hole is opened by the man, and the soil thrown aside ; a plant is then placed in the hole by the boy, and held there tiU its roots are covered by a spadeful of soil, which is taken out, so as to form the second hole. The plant is held upright, while the soil is being thrown in over the roots, and it is afterwards fixed by pressure with the feet. A third hole is opened, and a second plant inserted in the same manner till the work is completed. 731. Planting in pits. — A pit is dug somewhat larger than the estimated size of the roots which are to be placed in it; and,if uj garden or trenched soil, it may be made immediately before plantmg ; but if in firm unculti- vated soil, as is frequently the case in forest-planting, it should be made TRANSPLANTING AND PLANTING. 327 some months, or even a year or more before, in order that the soil in the bottom or sides of the pit, and that which has been taken out, and is to be returned to it, may receive tlie benefit of the weather (709). When the pit is dry, the soil in the bottom is loosened ; and before planting, a portion of the surface soil taken out is thrown in and mixed with it, and raised up so as to form a slight long convex surface in the centre of the pit, the apex of which shall be nearly level with the surface of the ground. On this cone the plant is placed, with its roots spread out regularly on every side ; the soil is then thrown in over them, and in doing this the soil should be made to fall either perpendicularly, or spread so as not to reverse the direction of the fibres, as is too frec[ueutly done when the soil is thrown with a force from the circumference of the hole towards the stem. The plant being gently shaken, if necessary, to settle the soil among the fibres, the whole is finished in the form of a cone, rising a few inches above the adjoining surface ; having been previously conso- lidated by treading with the feet. This is the most general mode of planting transplanted trees of from five feet to ten feet in height, whe- ther in the garden, the orchard, the pleasure-ground, or a plantation of forest-trees. In aU these departments great care is requisite that the collar of the plant, when the operation is finished, should stand somewhat above the general surface of the ground ; because, otherwise, the sinking of the soil, which must inevitably take place, would bury it underneath the sur- face ; and the evils of tliis have already been shown (6). 732. Hole-planting and fixing with water. — Pits are prepared as in the last mode ; and while one man holds the tree in the proper position, the roots having been previously spread out, a second man throws in soil, and a thu'd pours in water from the spout of a watering-pot, held as high above his head as his arms will reach, in order to add to its force in falling on the soil, and settling in about the roots of the plant. This is an admirable mode of planting those trees that have numerous fibrous roots ; particularly if the trees be from ten feet to twenty feet, or twenty-five feet in height. 733. Planting in puddle. — The pit being dug in the usual manner, water is poured into it, and soil stirred in till the pit is half full of mud, or pud- dle. The roots of the tree are then inserted, and worked about, so as to distribute them as equally as possible through the watery mass. More puddle, previously prepared, is then thrown in, and the roots again shaken, and the whole is finished with dry soil. This mode is well adapted for trees of from ten feet to twenty feet in height, when planted in a dry sandy soil ; but it is not suitable for a soil with a retentive bottom, as that would retain the water, and rot the roots. 734. Planting out plants which have been grown in pots. — In preparing the pit, regard should be had to the probable length of the roots coiled round the inside of the pot ; and a sufficient surface of soil should be prepared on which to stretch them out. Unless this is carefully done, the plant, if it has numerous roots matted together, wiU make little more progress in the free soil than what it did in the pot ; because the check given to the de- scending sap by the numerous convolutions of the fibres, prevents them, so long as they remain in that state, from acquiring the strength of under- ground branches, which they would otherwise do. This attention to spread- ing out the roots of plants transplanted from pots is more especially neces- sary in all those kinds which do not make vigorous tap-roots, such as the 328 TRANSPLANTING AND PLANTING. pine and fir tribe ; but it should not be neglected in any class of plants whatever. It frequently happens, that the roots of pines and firs, which have been three or four years in pots, when stretched out, are six or eight feet in length; and these ought to be planted in a shallow pit, not leas than from twelve to sixteen feet in diameter. On the other hand, in places of limited extent, where it is desirable to keep trees and shrubs of diminu- tive size, they may be planted in the pots, or with the balls undisturbed, in order to lieep them stunted or dwarfed. 735. Watering, mulching, and staking newly-planted plants should, in general, never be neglected where the plants are of large size ; not so mud to supply moisture to the fibres, as to consolidate the soil about the roots ; and in the case of evergreens, wliich are all the year in a growing state, it should be copiously supplied (718) for both purposes. Where it is con- sidered requisite to continue the watering after the plant has been planted, a pan or basin should be formed round it, of somewhat larger diameter than the pit m which the plant was placed, into which the water may be poured so as to ensure its descent to the roots. To lessen evaporation from this basin, or from the soil round newly-planted plants, it may be mulched ; that is, covered with any loose open material, such as litter, leaves, or spent tanners' bark j or, in firm soil, with reversed turf, small stones, large gravel, or tiles. The last three materials have the advantage of speedily evaporating the water which falls on them in consequence of their smooth surfaces ; and hence, they are used in the case of mulching geraniums, and other tender succulent-stemmed plants, when planted out during summer, to prevent their stems from rotting off between vrind and water. All newly- planted plants that are in danger of having their roots disturbed by the wind, require to be tied to stakes, or otherwise securely fixed ; the difierent modes of doing which have been already mentioned. The best description of stake is that which, while it keeps the roots of the plant perfectly firm and secure, allows the top and the upper part of the stem, supposing the latter to be flexible, to be put in gentle motion by the wind. 736. Taking up previously to planting. — It must be constantly borne in mind that the food of plants is taken up by the delicate extremities or spon- gioles of their fibres, which the slightest tear or bruise will destroy ; that these mouths will only act when the soil in which they are placed is in a moist state, and that they are easily rendered useless to the plant by being kept for any length of time exposed to dry air. Hence, in taking up trees, and, particularly those of small size, such as are grown for sale in the nur- series, the roots should be separated from the soil with the greatest care, by previously loosening it at a distance from the stem, and never forcibly drawing the roots out of the soil till this has been done, as is too commonly practised in nurseries. It is true we cannot expect to remove all the fibres of a plant of any size uninjured, but by great care we may save the principal part of them. For this purpose a round-pronged blunt fork should generally be used for taking up trees instead of a spade, and the roots, as soon as they are out of the soil, should be covered with a mat, or some other protecting ma- terial, to prevent them from being dried by the air. When a tree has remained some years in the same situation, its main roots will have pene- trated so deep into the soil, and its lateral roots have extended so far in a horizontal direction, that both will require to be cut ; but this ought always to be done as far from the main stem of the plant as possible; and in proper- POTTING AND REPOTTING OR SHIFTING. 329 tion to the number of distant fibres cut off by this means, care should be taken of those which are within reacli, and which may be removed unin- jured. Whenever trees of numerous roots are removed, some of them can hardly fail to be broken or bruised, and they should be smoothly cut through above the injured part, in order that they may be speedily healed over. Care should be taken in spreading out the roots to allow none to cross one another j and if this cannot be avoided by any other means, recourse must be had to amputation. Cross roots do little harm when young, but, as in the case of branches, they gall one another as they get large. All young and rapidly- growing plants require a larger proportion of fibrous roots, compared with their bulk, than large plants, and these roots are also nearer to the main stem ; and, hence, a young tree can always be taken up with a greater mass of fibres than an old one. When the tops of plants are secured from evapo- ration, the roots may be kept comparatively dry ; but when the top is fully exposed to drying winds, the roots should be kept moist ; and in the case of newly-transplanted trees it is useful to sprinkle water on the tops to prevent the bark from absorbing the returning sap. ^V^lere it is not convenient to supply water, the stems and principal branches may be tied round with straw ropes, or covered with moss. 737. As a summary of general rules for planting, it may be stated that early in autumn, when the soil has not parted with its summer heat, is the best season for trees and shrubs, and open-air plants generally, with the exception of annuals ; that roots should bo placed by art as much as possible in the same position in which they would be by nature, that is, with the collar at the surface, and the points of the roots and fibres more or less under it, and in a descending, rather than in an ascending, direction ; that the hole or pit in which plants are placed should always be made larger than the roots which it is to contain ; and in the case of large plants convex at bottom and not concave, that the plant being placed on the centre of this convexity, and the roots spread out in every direction, the soil, finely pulverised, ought to be gently thrown over them, either by dropping it perpendicularly, or throwing it in a direction from the centre to the circumference ; that the plant should not be pulled from side to side or up and down, in order to settle the earth about the roots, as was formerly practised with that view, but the effect of which was to break, bruise, or double the fibres; and, finally, that the soil should be settled about the roots by one thorough watering at the time of planting, and that this watering, in the case of de- ciduous trees, at least, need not in general be repeated. § II. Potting and Repotting or Shifting. 738. To pot a plant is to sow or plant it in a pot, box, or tub ; and to re- pot or shift it, is to turn it out of one pot or box, and replace it in the same or in another, with the addition of fresh soil. The mass of soil and roots which is to be shifted is termed a ball. If the object is to add fresh soil, without using a larger pot, then a proportionate quantity must be removed from the ball or mass containing the roots of the plant to be repotted ; but if the object be to add fresh soil without disturbing the roots, the mass or ball of soil and roots is simply placed in a pot a size larger than that from which it was taken, and the vacant space between the ball and the pot filled 330 POTTING AND REPOTTING OB SHIFTING. up with soil. If the object should be to grow the plant in a smaller pot than that in which it was before, then the ball must be considerably reduced, so as to be somewhat smaller than the pot in which it is to be placed, in order to allow room for some fresh soil. The implements, utensils, &c., necessary for potting are : a bench or table, either fixed or portable, and which must be perfectly level ; pots, tubs, or boxes; broken pots, oyster- shells, or other materials for drainage ; proper soils, a trowel, a small dibber, a spade, and a watering-pot and water. 739. The main object of growing plants in pots is to render them portable, by which a greater command is obtained in the application to them of the agents of growth and culture, and by which they can be transported at pleasure from one place to another, whether for purposes of use or ornament. A plant in a pot may be kept dry or moist, placed in heat or in cold, in the shade or in the sun, in the open garden, the plant-house, or in the living room, at pleasure. By limiting the size of the pot or box, and the (quantity of soil in it, the plants can be grown of much smaller size than when they are planted in the free soil ; and hence the great number of exotic trees and shrubs which can be maintained within a very limited space in plant-struc- tures. In consequence of the roots of each plant being confined to its own pot, the weakest-growing sorts can be grown side by side by the strongest, without injury to either. Were there no means of growing hothouse and greenhouse plants but by planting them in beds or borders under glass, a very few plants would soon fill the largest house, and though they might be pmned both at top and at root to keep them within bounds, yet this could never be done so effectually as by placing each plant in a separate pot or box, by which its growth is on the one hand limited by the quantity of soil in the pot, and on the other not checked or suffocated by the interference of the roots of any other plants which may adjoin it. There are various other advantages which result from growing plants in pots, such as stunting the entire plant by the limited supply of nourishment, and thus causing it to produce flowers at an earlier age, and when of a smaller size, than it would do in the free soil ; enabling us to transfer plants in pots to the free soil at any season, and without interrupting their growth ; to pack and send them to a distance, without injury to their roots; to grow them in particular kinds of soil, to subject them to experiments, and in the case of seedlings grown in pots either singly or in quantities, to transplant them with the whole of their fibres and spoiigioles. 7J:0. The disadvantages of growing plants in pots are : the constant attend- ance which is requisite to preserve the soil in a uniform state of moisture and temperature, and to remove the plant from one pot to another when additional space for the roots becomes requisite, or when the soil contained in the pot becomes impoverished. We have seen (256 to 257, and agam in 421) in what mamier plants in pots, the sides of which are exposed to the air, are deprived of heat and moisture, and of the former to such a degree as to reduce the temperature of the soil of the pot considerably lower than that of the atmosphere in which it is placed ; and there can be no diificulty in conceiving how the soil in the pot is impoverished. The loss of heat and moisture are to be counteracted by plunging the pot in soil or other earthy matter, or by encasi)ig it in any non-conducting material, or placing one pot within another, and filling the interstices with moist moss or any other POTTING AND REPOTTING OR SHIFTING. 331 material which ■will retain moisture, fig. 259. The exhaustion of tlie soil is remedied hy re-potting, or in some cases by the application of manure ; either solid on the surface of the soil, in the pots, or in a liquid state poured on the soil, or contained in a saucer in which the pot is placed. Notwithstanding aU these resources, plants in pota, excepting those naturally of small size, never grow so luxuriantly as those in the free soil, and therefore this mode of growing plants is adopted for convenience, or to make up for defects in climate, or want of space in plant-tructures, and not in general to bring plants to a higher degree of per- Fig. 2.59. One pot placed within fggjjnjj another^ for the purpose of ^ retaining the toil in the inner 741. Potting. — Plants are either sown in pots, pot in a molti state. planted in them when newly originated from seeds, cuttings, or other modes of propagation ; or removed to them from the free soil when of considerable size. When a rooted plant placed in a pot has begun to grow, its fibres extending in eveiy direction, soon reach the sides of the pot, where, being checked, they are compelled to follow 'ts sides, till, after a short time, they form a net-work between the pot and the earth which it contains ; so firmly enveloping the latter, that when turned out, it remains entire as one solid body, or, as it is technically called, ball. As the roots in young' plants are commonly few, and proceed in direct lines from the stem of the plant to the sides of the pot, it happens when the ball is large, and the plant of rapid growth, that the interior of the ball contains few roots, and, consequently, that the soil there is, in a great measure, lost to the plants. To prevent this from being the case, plants when first potted are planted in pots of the smallest size, by which the full benefit of the whole of the soil in the first pot is certain of being obtained ; while there ia no danger of this being the case when the plant is shifted into larger pots, because each time that this is done there is only a thin stratum of soil introduced between the ball and the pot. An- other reason why plants are first potted in the smallest sized pots in which they can be planted, is, that the drainage is more perfect, and that the soil is more readily penetrated by heat, whether of the atr.» osphere, or of the material in which it may he plunged. When a large mass of rich, soft, finely-sifted soil is brought together and compressed, as it always is in a pot, it parts with water so slowly as to become sodden for want of air; and in that case it rots the spongioles of the fibres, and even the fibres them- selves. A small portion of soU, on the other hand, retains less moisture, is readily pierced by the roots, and kept comparatively open by them ; and hence the fibres and their spongioles are uninjured. If, instead of rich, soft, soil, readily compressed, a comparatively poor, sandy soil were used, the smallest plants might be planted in the largest pots, without any danger of rotting the roots ; though with great want of economy in regard to soil, space, and future management. By beginning vrith small-sized pots, and shifting into others, gradually increasing in size, the full benefit of all the soil put in the pot will have been obtained, and the plant stimulated by every fresh addition to its roots, to increase its leaves and shoots. 742. The same soil which is suitable for the open garden is not always suitable for using in pots. — Every gardener must have obsei-ved that soil that will remain sufficiently open for the roots of plants in the quarters of 332 POTTING AND REPOTTING OR SHIFTING. a kitchen -garden, or even when placed in a hotbed, becomes too compact when used in pots, even though it receives as mucli watering in the one case as in the other. The fact is thus explained by a correspondent : — When the nature of the soil is such as that the cohesion of its particles is greater than that which is formed between the soil and sides of the pot, it loses hold of the latter, and becomes concentrated by every withdrawal of moisture, leaving an almost clear cavity between it and the sides of the pot, and this cavity being readily filled with water, the soil is prevented from expanding in a degree proportionate to the force that would be necessary to displace the water. In addition to this, the fibres of the plant tend to bind it together, and it ultimately becomes so much solidified that it either refuses to take in sufficient moisture ; or, if it does, it retains it so as to prevent the ingress of a fresh supply ; whilst at the same time the water so retained becomes impure, and consequently injurious to the health of the plant. A similar quantity of soil in the quarter from which the above soil is supposed to be taken will be found in a very different state ; for there it is kept from contracting on any central portion by its cohesion with the soil in the circumference. Hence the necessity of using such soil for plants in pots as is not too cohesive ; or at all events weakening its cohesive power by mixture with sand, peat, turf, or other substances that may be found to answer the purpose, and at the same time afiford congenial nourishment to the plants. And as glazed pots afford less hold for the soil than those with a rougher surface, it is probable they are on that account objectionable 743. Bottom Drainage. — Whether plants are put in small or large pots, the first point which requires to be attended to is to cover the hole in the bottom of the pot with some description of material which will readily allow of the escape of water, and if possible prevent the entrance of earth-worms, (296). The article commonly used is fragments of broken pots, which being always, excepting in the case of pot-bottoms, portions of a curved surface, never can cover the hole so closely as to prevent the escape of water. One crock, somewhat larger than the hole, is placed over it, and over that is placed a layer of smaller pieces, in depth more or less according to the size of the pot and the degree of drainage wanted ; and to prevent the soil which is to be placed above from being washed down into this drainage, it is commonly covered with a layer of fibrous or turfy matter obtained from turfy soil, or with live moss. In the case of small plants requiring nothing more than ordinary care, a single crock, or in large pots a single oyster-shell, placed over the hole in the bottom of the pot is generally found sufficient ; but in very delicate plants, a fourth, a third, or even half the pot is filled with drainage. This, as we have seen (584), is more particularly the case in planting cuttings in pots. 744. The mode of sowing or planting in a potltaa nothing peculiar in it. A small dibber, fig. 16 n, in p. 131, is commonly used for planting seedlings ot the smallest size ; the pot being previously drained, and filled full of soil gently pressed down. In planting larger seedlings, or rooted cuttings, the pot is drained, filled one-third or one-half with soil, raised a little in the middle, said while the plant is placed on this soil and held upright with one hand, the fibres are spread over the somewhat conical surface of the soil with the other ; and afterwards the same hand is employed in taking up soil with a trowel and filling it in over the roots, shaking up the latter a little, till the pot is full. The pot is now taken up with both hands, and setdown with a jar once or twice ■POTTTNO AND REPOTTINO OK SHIFTING. 333 on the putting bench, so as to consolidate the soil in the pot. A little soil is rcxt added or taken off, so as to leave the pot filled to the rim ; and a little water is then given, unless the soil is considered already sufficiently moist for the state of the plants. The putted plants, if in leaf, are placed in a still atmosphere, vfith or without heat and shade, as may be deemed necessary. If they are without leaves very little extra care is necessary, farther than setting the pots on a level surface, that the plants may grow erect and that the pots may retain water ; the surface being composed of materials which will not admit of worms rising through it, and ascending the pots through the holes in their bottoms, which they are very apt to do. When pots are plunged in the free soil, they are not nearly so liable to be penetrated by worms as when they stand on its surface. 746. In transplanting from the free soil into a pot or box, the plant, if in leaf, is commonly taken up with a ball adjusted to the size of the pot ; and to fit such plants for removal, their main roots are frequently cut by the spade, a week or two before taking up, at a short distance from the stem, so as that the wounded parts may be within tlie limits of the ball. This lessens the check to vegetation which would otherwise be given by taking up the plant, and may be usefully applied in the case of many plants which are removed from the open border to the green -house late in autumn. 746. Care of newly potted or shifted plants. — As the absorption of moisture by the spongioles is necessarily checked by the disturbance of the roots, occasioned by taking up the plants and replanting them, so must also be the perspiration of the leaves by the diminished supply of moisture. To lessen this perspiration, therefore, where there is danger of it proving injurious, the plants must be placed in a still humid atmosphere, by watering the surface on which the pots are set, and then covering them with mats, or by placing them in a close frame, and if necessary, shading them from the sun, and sup- plying extra heat. The more delicate kinds may be placed for a short time on a hot-bed, but the hardier plants wUl succeed very well if merely sheltered by being hooped over and shaded by any slight covering for a day or two, taking care to remove it at night, and during still, cloudy weather ; while the hardiest merely require the shade of a hedge or a wall. The most difficult plants to manage, after being potted, are large herbaceous plants, or large-leaved free-growing greenhouse plants, which have been grown during summer in the open garden, such as stocks, dahlias, brugmansias, &c. These are very apt to lose their leaves after being taken up and potted, whether kept in the open air or in a frame or pit. The only mode of arerting this evil is to begin early in the autumn to check their gi-owth, by cutting off all their main roots at a short distance from the stem, and repeat ■ ing the operation once or twice before taking up ; by these means the growth will be checked, and they will produce no more leaves before being taken up than they are able to support after being potted 747. Shifting or Re-potting. — In re-potting in the same pot, the ball or mass of soil and roots being turned out of the pot, the soil is shaken away from the roots either wholly or in part ; the greater part of the roots more or less cut in, but leaving a few with their fibres and spongioles, to support the plant till it produces new fibres, and the pot being properly drained, the plant is potted much in the same way as it would be planted in the free soil ; care being taken that the soil is properly introduced and settled among S.'W POTTING AND REPOTTING OR SHIFTING. all the roots. In shifting from a small pot into a laiger one, the larger pot being drained and prepared, the ball is turaed out of the smaller pot by turning it upside down, and while holding it in that position, with the ball resting on the palm of the left hand, with the stem of the plant between two of the fingera, striking it gently against the edge of the potting bench, so as to cause the ball to separate from the pot. The ball being now in the left hand, and turned upside down, remove the drainage from it with the right, then reverse it, and place it in the larger pot, Ming in the vacant space all round with fresh soil, gently compressing it by working it in with the trowel or a wooden spatula. In shifting from a large pot to a smaller, the ball being taken out of the large pot must either be reduced equally on every side and on the bottom, by paring off a portion of the roots and soil, including of course almost all the spongioles, or the soil must be shaken off from the roots entirely, the roots cut in, and the plants inserted in the smaller pot among fresh soil. In shifting plants from one pot to another, care should in general be taken not to place the coUar of the stem deeper in the new pot than it was before in the old one, excepting in the case of plants which root readily from the stem, such as balsams and a few others ; but in general, in pots as in the open ground, the stem should rise from a gentle eminence, and the ramifica- tions of the upper roots, where they depart from the stem, be seen above the soil. By this means the descent of the sap to the roots is not checked by the pressure of the soil on the collar, and the ramifications of the roots become much stronger, and covered with a thicker bark. 748. Seasons and times for potting and shifting. — Small plants may be potted at any growing season; but the most favourable are spring and autumn, and the least so mid-winter, even under glass, owing to the absence of light. Shifting also may be performed in any season ; but the most suit' able for established plants is just before they commence their annual growth ; while young rapidly-growing plants may be shifted from time to time as long as they continue growing. Slow-growing woody plants are seldom shifted oftener than once a year, unless it is desired to accelerate their growth ; but rapid-growing plants, such as pelargoniums, and such annuals as the balsam, cockscomb, &c., are shifted many times in a single season, beginning, more especially in the case of the balsam, with a pot of the smallest size, such as No. 1], which is 1^ inches in diameter (420), and graduall}' increasing the size as the plant advances in growth, till from being 2 inches high in a pot of the same height in April, it is 3 feet or 4 feet high in a pot 1 foot in diameter in June or July. By heat and frequent shifting for upwards of a year, pelargoniums are grown so as to form bushes 3 feet or more in diameter in pots of not more than 8 inches or 10 inches across. Pine- apples are grown to a large size in comparatively small pots, but the soil employed is rich and frequently supplied with liquid manure. 749. The most difficult plants to manage in pots are the hair-rooted kinds,such as all the Ericaceae, and many Cape and Australian shrubs, requir- ing sandy peat soil, which must be well drained, and kept uniformly moderately moist, but never either soaked with water, or very dry. The drainage must be so perfect as to prevent the possibility of water stagnating in the soil ; and while the nature of this soil, sand and peat, readily permits the water to pass through it to the drainage below, the porous sides of the pot incessantly carry off moisture by evaporation, and the more so as heaths require to be kept in a rather dry atmosphere. The roots of heaths, and phunino, 335 indeed all hair-like roots, are as readily destroyed by over-dryness as by moisture, and hence the continual risk of danger to this description of plants when grown in pots. To guard against the extremes of dryness and mois- ture, the pots when small are sometimes plunged in sand or moss, or placed in double pots ; or when the plants are large, shifted into wooden boxes (423), which not being great conductors both of heat and moisture, are more congenial to the roots of all plants. To guard against excess of moisture on the one hand, and the want of it on the other, two very ingenious and use- ful practices have been introduced into the culture of heaths and heath-like plants in pots, by Mr. M'Nab. The first is, always to keep the collar of the stem of the plant a few lines above the general surface of the pots, in consequence of which it is always dry, and not liable to be chilled by evapo- ration, or rotted off by the stagnation of moisture ; and the second consists in mixing with the soil fragments of any coarse, porous stone, from one inch to four or five inches in diameter, such as freestone, which retaining more moisture than the soil, gives it out to the latter when it becomes too dry ; and thus a temporary neglect of watering is not attended with the sudden destruction of the plant, which without these reservoirs of moisture it often is. To counteract the efiiects of evaporation from the sides of pots, and of sudden changes of atmospheric temperature, the French gardeners very generally employ wooden boxes, even for small plants. Glazed pots have also been proposed to be employed in this country, as in China, by Mr. Forsyth (Gaj-d. Chron., 1841, p. 499) ; but they have not yet been sufii- ciently tried to admit of our generally recommending them. Mr. Knight is of opinion that, though some plants are injured by having the sides of their pots fully exposed to the air, yet that the taste and flavour of the peach and nectarine, and still more of the strawberry, are greatly improved by it, as well as the period of the maturity of their fruit accelerated. (^Hort. Trans, vii., p. 268.) 760. Growing hardy plants in pots, and especially the more rare kinds of trees and shrubs, for the purpose of transport, and to insure success when they are finally planted out, is one of the most useful purposes to which the potting of plants can be applied. We have already (722) recommended all the more valuable evergreens, and especially those of the pine and fir tribe, only to be purchased in pots ; and the same observations will apply to such deciduous trees and shrubs as make few fibrous roots, such as the Magnolia, and to most rare and valuable herbaceous plants. The care requisite to be taken in transplanting into the open ground plants which have been some years in pots, has also been enlarged on (734). Either the fibrous roots of plants which have for some time been grown in pots should be stretched out at full length, or, if they are too brittle for that purpose, a portion of them should be left as they are to absorb nourishment, and a portion shortened or pruned, in order to produce new fibres to become roots, branching out in every direction. When this is neglected, more especially with trees or shrubs which produce chiefly surface-roots, such as the pine and fir tribe, ^I which produce few roots, such as the Magnolia, they will often, after bfjng transplanted into the free soil, remain in a stunted state for many years. § III. Pruning. 751. Pruning consists in depriving a plant of a portion of its branches, buds leaves, hark, or roots, in order to produce particular effects on the z/2 336 PRDNINO. part of the plant which remains. The different kinds of pruning may be induded under Icnife-pruning, which is applied to small branches ; lopping, which is applied to large branches ; clipping, which is applied to small shoots in masses; and disbudding, disleafing, and disbarking, which are applied to buds, leaves, and bark. Girdling and felling may also be included in this section. The instruments necessary for these operations are chiefly the pruning-knife, the bill, the saw, the cnttmg-shears, and the clipping- shears ; but there are some other instruments, such as the pruning-chisel, the averruncator, the girdling machine, &c., which are occasionally used for peculiar purposes (see figs. 40 to 60, in pages 137 to 142). 752. The specific principles on which pruning is founded, and its general effects, are these : — The nutriment of plants is absorbed from the soil by their roots, and formed into leaves, branches, flowers, and fruit, by their buds ; by operating on the buds and roots, therefore, we can regulate what is produced by them. If the stem and branches of a plant contain a hundred buds, by removing half of these the shoots or fruits produced by the remainder will be supplied with double their former supply of nourishment ; and if all the buds bo removed but one, the whole of the sap sent up by the roots will be modi- fied by that single bud, provided care be taken to remove other buds as they appear. On the other hand, when the whole of the buds of a tree are so abundantly supplied with sap from the roots as to produce chiefly leaves or shoots without blossoms, then by cutting off a portion of the i-oots the supply of sap is lessened, a moderate degi'ce of vigour is produced, and instead of barren shoots, blossom-buds appear. By these means the growth of plants is controlled by pruning. Pruning has not the power to increase the vigour of an entire plant, because it cannot increase the quantity of food taken up by the roots ; but it can diminish the vigour of the entire tree by cutting off part of the roots, or it can increase the vigour of particular parts of the tree, by amputating the branches, or taking off the buds at other parts. Pruning can prevent trees from producing flowers, and hence increase their general vigour and longevity. It can modify the general form of trees as well as increase particular parts of them, and it can add to the vigour of stunted or diseased trees by concentrating their sap, or directing it to a few buds instead of a great many. One of the most useful effects of pnining is to cause the development of dormant or adventitious buds, which is effected by amputating the shoot, branch, or stem, close above any point where visible buds are usually situated, though they may now be wanting there. 753, In forest-trees pruning is of the greatest use in modifying the quantity of timber produced. Thus by commencing when the tree is quite young, and shortening the side branches and encouraging the leading shoot, the whole of the timber produced is thrown into a main stem ; whereas had no pruning been employed, great part of the wood might have been distributed in branches of little use, excepting as fuel. On the other hand, should crooked timber be desired, pruning by destroying the leading ■ shoot, and encouraging those that have a suitable direction, tends to attain the end in view ; and by the aid of training this end can be completely effected. Trees which are stunted in their growth from being hide-bound (a disease which is brought on by the sudden exposure of trees to the weather after they have been drawn up by shelter, and in the case of young trees by being planted of too large a size in proportion to their roots), jnay in general be made to shoot vigorously by being cut down or headed~in. PRUNING. 337 On tlie other hand, trees which are in particular situations, where it is feared they will grow too large, may be arrested in their growth, or stunted by amputating the larger roots. 754. Fw ornameTUal trees pi-uning is chiefly employed to remove diseased branches, because much of the effect of these trees depends on the development of their natural form and character, which pruning with a view to timber has in general a tendency to counteract ; but for all ornamental trees, grown chiefly for their flowers or fruit, pruning can be as usefully applied as in the ease of fruit-trees ; and wliere ornamental hedges and other verdant architectural structures are to be grown, pruning by the bill or the shears is essential. 755. For ornamental shrubs pruning cannot be dispensed with, since many of them are grown for their flowers, which are produced much stronger and of brighter colours when the shoots are thinned out, or shortened, or both ; and when the plants are prevented from exhausting themselves by the removal of decaying blossoms, so as to prevent them from maturing their seeds. Every one knows the value of pruning to the rose, and to all shrubs with double blossoms, and shrubs with large blossoms, such as the Magnolia or the passion-flower. 766. Fruit-trees and shrubs are above all other plants benefited by pruning, which is indeed by far tlie most important part of their culture. The most general object of pruning is to create an abundant supply of sap during summer by the production of leaf-shoots, by which the general strength of the tree is augmented, and to limit the distribution of this sap when it ascends from the roots in the following spring, by diminishing the number of buds. The eiFect of this is to increase the vigour of the shoots or fruits produced by these buds ; and if this be done in such a manner as to obtain also the greatest advantages from light and air, the pruning will have answered its purpose. If a fruit-tree were not deprived every year of a part of the wood or the buds which it produces, its shoots and fruits would gradually diminish in size, and though the fruit would be more numerous it would be deficient in succulence and flavoui-, as we find to be the case in old neglected orchard trees. The application of pruning to fruit-trees differs so much according to the species of tree that the subject can only be properly treated by taking each class separately. Thus kernel fruits whicli are produced on wood of two or more years' growth, require to be pruned in a different manner from such fruits as tlie peach, which is produced from the shoots of the preceding year ; or the grape, which is pro- duced from the shoots of the current year. Tlie production of blossoms, or the enlargement of fruits and the acceleration of their maturity by ringing, is a species of pruning peculiarly applicable to fruit-trees. 767. To herbaceous plants pruning is applicable, not only when tliey are being transplanted, when both roots and top are frequently cut in, but also to fruit-bearing kinds, such as the melon tribe, the tomato, &c. Pruning is even useful to the cabbage tribe when it is wished that, after the head is cut off, the stem should throw out sprouts, which is found to be accelerated by splitting it down an inch or two. The topping of beans, and the picking off of potato blossoms, are operations belonging to pruning ; as are the cutting off of withered flowers for the sake of neatness, or to prevent the production of seed, and even the mowing of grass lawns. Having noticed tlie uses of pruning in culture, we shall next shortly describe the different kinds in use in 338 ntiiNiNo. British gardens and plantations. These may be included under close-pmniug, shortening-in, fore-shortening, spurring-in, heading-in, lopping, snag- lopping, lopping-in, stopping, pinching out, disbarking, disbudding, disleaf- ing, slitting, bruising or tearing, root pruning, girdling, and felling. 768. Close prurdng consists in cutting off shoots close to the branch or stem from whence they spring, leaving .is small a section as possible in order that it maybe speedily healed over. In performing the operation care should be taken to make the wounded section no larger than the base of the shoot, in order that it may be healed over as quickly as possible ; and at the same time to make it no smaller, because this would leave latent buds which would be liable to be developed, and thus occasion the operation to be per- formed a second time. This mode of pruning is only adopted where the object is to produce stems or trunks clear of branches or of any kind of pro- tuberance, as in the case of standai'd trees in gardens, especially fruit-trees, and in the case of forest-trees, grown for their timber. If the branch cut off is under an inch in diameter, the wound will generally heal over in two seasons, and in this case the timber sustains no practical injury ; but if it is larger, it will probably begin to decay in the centre, and thus occasion a blemish in the timber. Mr. Cree's mode of pruning forest-trees grown with a view to the production of straight timber, which appears to us to be decidedly the best, is an application of this mode. Mr. Cree commences his operations before the tree has been taken from the nursery, and continues them till he has obtained a clear trunk, of such a height as he thinks the kind of tree will produce of a useful timber size, in the climate and soil where it is planted. He cuts off no branches whatever till the tree has attained the height of from sixteen to twenty feet, with a stem of from fifteen to eighteen inches in circumference at the surface of the ground ; but durhig the growth of the tree to that height he shortens in the side branches when- ever they extend farther than between three and four feet from the trunk. In consequence of being thus shortened, these shoots do not, so long as they are allowed to remain on the tree, attain a greater diameter at their depar- ture from the tinink than about an inch. The tree having attained its six- teenth, eighteenth, or twentieth year, its head forms a narrow cone, clothed Avith branches from the ground to the summit. Its pruning is now com- menced by taking off one tier of branches annually, commencing with the lowest, cutting close to the stem, generally just before midsummer, that the wound may be partially healed over the same season, and continuing to do this annually tUl the stem iias grown and been cleared to the required height. While the process of clearing the stem is going on below, that of shortening in the side branches is going on above, so as to preserve the narrow conical shape, and prevent any of the branches which are to be cut off from attaining a greater diameter than an inch. The trunk being at last cleared to the proper height, the head over the cleared part is left in the form of a cone, and no longer touched with the averruncator. The head now, by degrees, takes its natural form, and continues growing in that form till the tree is felled. The detail of this mode of pruning will be found given by Mr. Cree in the Gardener s Magazine for 1841 ; and a mode nearly similar is described by Mr. Main in the volume of the same work forl832. We have only to repeat that we consider this system as by far the most efficient for pruning forest trees, where the production of timber in a clean straight stem is the object. The quantity of timber produced will not be so great as in the case «£ PBIJKING. 330 a tree standing alone, and throwing out its branches uncontrolled on every side, because the quantity of foliage produced, and properly exposed to the light, win not be nearly so great ; but it must be recollected, that the timber produced will be in a more useful fonm, and besides, that Mr. Cree's tree is supposed to form one of a close plantation. When we consider this last circumstance, it must, we think, appear obvious, that by no other mode of pruning could an equal quantity of foliage be exposed to the light in so limited a space, and consequently so large a bulk of timber be produced in that space. 759. Shoriening-in is the term applied when side shoots are shortened at the distance of from two to four or five feet from the stem, the cut being always made to a bud (645). Exceeding that distance it is called fore-shortening, and is chiefly applicable to timber-trees in hedge rows ; and under that distance it is called sjiurrlng-in. We have seen the use of shortening-in, in connexion with close pruning, in the case of forest-trees, in the preceding paragraph. In the culture of fruit-trees, it is applied in connexion with spurring-in, to produce trees of conical forms with branches which, never being allowed to attain a timber size, are prolific in fruit-bearing spurs. Whenever the branches exceed two inclies in diameter, they are cut off vdthin an inch of the stem, and one of the young shoots which are produced there is trained to take its place. See § V. Training. 760. Fore-shortening. — When the lateral branches of a standard tree extend further than is desirable, a portion of their extremities is cut off ; the cut being always made close above a branch of sufficient thickness to form a leader of sufficient strength to keep the branch alive and healthy, but not so strong as to cause it to produce much timber, or in any way to come into competition with the trunk of the tree. The object is to prevent the lateral branches of the trees from injuriously shading the plants under them ; and hence it is chiefly used in the case of trees in hedge-rows. 761. Spurring-in. — The apple, the pear, the cherry, the plum, and other fruit trees, or fruit shrubs, produce what are called spurs, or very short shoots or knobs, covered with blossom-buds, naturally, and the object of spurring in pruning is to produce these knobs artificially. This can only be done with lateral shoots, to which the sap is not impelled with the same vigour as to the growing point, because the great object in producing spurs is to obtain blossom-buds, and these are never produced on the most vigorous shoots. A lateral shoot of the present year being produced may be shortened to two or three visible buds, either in the beginning of summer after that shoot has grown a few inches in length, or in the following winter ; but the former is in general the better season, because it is not desirable to encourage the production of wood and consequently of sap, but rather to lessen their production, so as to produce stunted branches, which are in fact the spurs. The second and third years the shoots produced are shortened in the same manner as they were the first, and it will generally be found that the leaf- buds left on the lower ends of the shoots when cut down, will the year after become blossom-buds. As by the process of continually shortening the shoots, the spurs in a few years become inconveniently large, they are from time to time cut out and new spurs formed by the same process as be- fore ; and finally, after a certain time, the entire branch bearing the spurs is cut out close to the main stem of the tree, and renewed, as spurs are, by a young shoot produced from its base. It must be confessed, however, that 340 PRUNING. pruning has but little to do witli the production of spurs that are prolific in blossoms : that depends far more on adjusting the nouiishment supplied hy the root to the demands of the fruit-bearing branches, to the mode of train- ing, the kind of tree, and other particulars, which, when attended to, spurs are produced naturally. This subject, therefore, can only be properly treated when giving the culture of particular trees. 762. Heading-in is cutting off all the branches which form the head of a tree close to the top of the stem, leaving however their base to produce buds. This is done with what are called polled or pollard trees periodically, for the sake of the branches produced as fagot or fence wood, and with fruit trees when they are to be re-grafted (663). It is also done with stunted forest trees, for the sake of concentrating the sap into a few main shoots, instead of distributing it over a great many ; and it is done in transplanting trees of considerable size intended to form avenues, or single trees in parks (713). The branches, if under two inches in diameter, are cut off clean with a biU (410) at one stroke ; or if they are larger, they are first sawn off, and afterwards the section is made smooth with the bill-axe or the knife, but generally with what is called the bill-knife. 763. Lopping. — This term is very generally applied to heading-in, but it is also as generally used to signify the cutting oiF large branches from the sides of stems, and in this sense we shall here treat of it. Lopping is per- formed by foresters in three manners, two of which are highly injurious to the timber of the trunk of the tree, and the other not so. The first injurious practice is that of 764. Close Lopping, by which a large wound is produced, the surface of which not only never can unite with the new wood which is formed over it, because, as we have seen (637), growing tissue can only unite to growing tissue, but the wood in the centre of the wound will, in all probability, begin to rot before it is covered over, and consequently the timber of the trunk will be more or less injured. Even if, by covering the wound with compo- sition to exclude the weather, the surface of the section should be prevented from rotting, still there would be a blemish in the timber, in the form of a distinct line of demarcation between the new wood and the old. The second injurious mode of lopping is, that of cutting off side branches at from six inches to a foot, or even two feet, from the trunk, which is called, 705. Snag Lopping. — By this mode there can be no efficient source of returning sap, the wounds can never heal over, and are certain, in connexion with the stumps on which they are made, to rot and disfigure and deteriorate the timber much more than in the case of close lopping. 766. Lopping-in. — The only mode of lopping large branches from the sides of the trunks of trees, without injuring the timber in these trunks, is to shorten them to a branch of sufficient size to heal the wound at its base, or at all events to maintain the growth of the whole of the part of the branch left, and prevent any decay from reaching the trunk. Clean timber, that is timber free fi-om knots, will not be produced by this mode, but sound timber will be the result, which is much more valuable than the apparently clean and sound timber that would have been produced by close lopping, and letting the tree stand tOl the woimds were covered with new wood and bark. If the branch had not been lopped, it would have continued to increase in diameter in as great a ratio as the stem ; but when lopped so as to produce only as much foliage as keeps the part left alive, such part will increase very PRCNING. 341 little ; and as the stem increases, the proportion which the diverging sound knot bears to the straight timber of the stem will be less and less. If trees, when planted together in masses, were pruned in Mr. Cree's manner, there never could be any occasion for lopping ; but as tMs practice will pro- bably alvpays be more or less required for neglected trees, or for trees in par- ticular circumstances, lopping-in should always be adopted where the value of the timber is an object ; close lopping when the object desh-ed is a clean stem, without reference to timber ; and snag lopping when the object is, as in snag lopping the English elm, to produce a thick growth of young shoots, to be periodically cut off as faggot or fence wood, or for sticking peas. 767. Cutting down the stem or trunk of a tree to the ground is an import- ant operation, because in some cases, such as that of resinous or needle- leaved trees, it kills the tree, while in others, or what are called trees that stole, which is a property of most broad-leaved trees, it affords the means of renew- ing the tree. Thus coppice woods, which consist of trees and shrubs cut down periodically, have their stems and branches repeatedly renewed from the same root or collar. Thorn hedges are also frequently renewed by cutting down to the ground; but perhaps the most valuable application of the practice is to young stunted forest trees when finally planted out. The slow growth of a tree which is stunted appears to depend on the thinness of the alburnum, and consequent smallness of its sap channels, the result of which is, that the sap rises slowly and in smaller quantities than it otherwise would do ; and, hence, that a proportionately smaller quantity is returned from the leaves through the bark. But by cutting over the stem just above the collar, the whole force of the sap accumulated in the roots will be em- ployed in the development of some latent buds in tlie collar, and one of the shoots produced by these buds being selected and the others slipped off, an erect stem will be produced of five or six feet the first season, and the sap vessels in this shoot being large, and abundantly supplied from the root, the plant will grow freely ever afterwards. The cut, which may be made with the pruning knife, or with the large pruning shears, should be made close to the surface of the ground and nearly horizontal, by which it will be more speedily healed over than if made oblique ; and in order to point out the stools or stocks of the plants so cut over in the beginning of summer, when the ground is probably covered with weeds, the stem of every tree may be stuck in within an inch or two of its root-stock. The oak, the ash, the elm, and the sycamore, among timber trees, and the hawthorn among hedge-plants, are greatly benefited by this mode of pruning after they have been three or four years planted out where they are finally to remain. Fruit-trees cannot generally be so treated, because the graft is for the most part only a few inches above the surface of the soil ; but even with fruit-trees, when they are stunted, there is no better mode of restoring them to vigour than by cutting them down to the graft. 768. Stopping and pinching out. — When the point of a shoot is cut off, or pinched out, while that shoot is in a growing state, it is said to be stopped ; that is, the shoot is prevented from extending in length, and the sap which was before impelled to its growing point is now expended in adding to the large- ness or succulence of the leaves or fruits which may be on the shoot, or in sw^elling or developing the buds, or in some cases changing them from leaf buds into flower buds. In the case of the young shoots of the fig, stopping occasions the development of fruit, and Mr. Knight in this way, his plant being kept in 342 PRDNINO. a stove, obtained three crops of figs from the same tree in the course of one year. Three crops of grapes from the same vine have also been obtained by the same means (Ann. Hort. Soc. Paris, tome ii. p. 3G1 ), a practice, it would ap- pear, known to Pliny. The principal uses of stopping, liowever, are to promote the setting and swelling of fruit, either on the shoot of the current year, as in the case of the vine and the melon, or at its base, as in the case of the peach. By stopping the stem of the tobacco-plant, and of the basil, above the third or fourth leaf, the leaves acquire an extraordinary degree of magnitude and suc- culence, and the same result is sometimes produced with common spinach and the curled parsley. By stopping flower-bearing shoots after they have shown their flower buds, and removing these, as in the case of annual flowers, the strawberry, the raspberry, the rose, &c., the blossoming and fruit-bearing seasons are retarded ; as they are accelerated by stopping all the shoots on a plant that are not blossom-bearing. The growing point of monocotyledonous plants, such as palms. Yucca, and even bulbs, is sometimes seared out with a hot ii-on, (which by charring it prevents its putrefaction,) to occasion the pro- duction of side suckers for propagation; and the same thing has been done with the side suckers and crown of the Pine-apple plant, to throw the nourishment which would have gone to the increase of these parts into the fruit. Much of the winter pruning of trees might be prevented by stopping the shoots early in summer, provided the state of the tree did not require that the shoots should be allowed to grow their full length in order to send down nutriment to the increase of the roots, in consequence of which greater vigour is in turn imparted to the stem and branches. In this case of pruning, as in every other, the state of the tree, and a variety of circumstances con- nected with it, require to he taken into consideration. 769. Disbarking includes two distinct operations : the removal of coarse loose outside bark to admit of the swelling of the inner bark and the alburnum by the returning sap, and the removal of a ring of both outer and inner bark, with a view to the interruption of the returning sap. The removal of old bark is an operation chiefly performed with old fmit trees in orchards, for the sake partly of getting rid of lichens and mosses, and partly to remove crevices which might harbour insects. It is also practised on the stems of old vines for the latter purpose ; one effect of removing the loose outer bark of any stem, being to increase its susceptibility of suffering from changes of temperature and moisture, it may therefore often be more injurious than useful. Disbarking for the tanner consists in removing the whole of the bark, and is best performed in spring, when in consequence of the abundance of ascending sap, the bark separates easily from the wood. 770. Ringing. — This operation consists in taking off a narrow ring of bark from a stem or branch, or even from a root, the object of which is to check the returning sap and force it to expand itself among the leaves, flowers, or fruit, which are situated above the incision. The ring of bark taken off varies in width from a sixteenth to half an inch or an inch, and its depth is always equal to that of both outer and iimer bark. In general the width of the ring taken off should not be greater than the tree has the power of recoveruig with bark, during the same or the following year. The operation may be performed at any season, but its effects will only be rendered obvious wlien tlie plant is in leaf; because at other seasons there is little or no sap elaborated to be returned. Compressing the bark by a ligature of wire or cord, or by a ma-ss of Roman cement put on like the clay of a graft, produces PBUNING. 343 the same effect as ringing. In tiie case of fruit trees it is frequently executed on the branches to produce blossom buds, and by the same means seedling plants are sooner thrown into blossom than they otherwise would be. On some trees and shrubs it has been found much more efficient than on others ; it has little effect on stone fruits ; and while it succeeds on the gooseberry, it is said not to do so on the currant. Knight, Ward (777), and PoUini (^Dec. Phys. I. p. 161) found that it increased the specific gravity of the wood above the incision, as compared with that below it, at the rate of one to nine in some cases, and more in others. We have seen (617) that ringing is favourable to the production of roots from cuttings, and it seldom fails to effect the setting of fruits when performed on branches just before they are coming into blossom. Judiciously applied, it may often serve as a substitute both for root pruning and top pruning. 771. Disbudding is the removal of buds early in spring, just when they are beginning to develop their leaves, and is commonly performed with the finger and thumb ; the object being to lessen the number of shoots or of blossom buds to be produced. By lessening the number of blossom buds, it will add to the strength and probability of setting of those which remain, and the same increase of strength will take place in respect to the shoots, whilst, at the same time, the number of these is reduced to an approximation of that which can ultimately be retained for training. By applying this mode of pruning judiciously on such trees as the peach, apricot, and plum, especially when trained against walls, the use of the knife may be in a great measure dispensed with, excepting for cutting out diseased or decaying shoots. Disbudding is one of the most important summer operations in the manage- ment of wall-trees. " It is necessary to bear in mind that on the quantity of foliage with which a tree is furnished, depends the increase in diameter of the stem and branches, the extension and increase of roots, and the produc- tion of fruit ; and, yet, that no more leaves should be retained than can be fully exposed to light. In the case of a healthy tree, not one-half of the shoots and foliage it naturally produces could be thus exposed when trained against a wall. If all the branches of a round-headed standard tree were disposed in a flattened or fan-like manner against a wall, they would be greatly over-crowded ; for, instead of a surface equal to that of a sphere, the foliage would be reduced within a diametrical section of the same, affording a surface of only one quarter of that which they formerly had. Hence, it is evident that a considerable reduction of shoots produced by wall-trees must be effected in some way or other. Thb is partly done by shortening and thinning at the winter pruning, and partly by the process of disbudding in summer. In removing the buds care should be taken not to injure the bark of the shoot. The buds ought not to be all disbudded at the same time ; the fore- right ones should be first removed, and the others successively, at intervals of several days, in order not to check the circulation of sap by a too great privation of foliage at once." — (Gard. Chron. for 1841, p. 380.) 772. Disleafing. — By taking the leaves off a gi-owing shoot as fast as they are unfolded, no buds are matured in their axils ; and thus while the super- fluous vigour of the tree is expended, no sap is returned to the root. Dis- leafing in this manner the summer's shoots of a tree as they proceed in growth, Mr. Beaton, by whom the system is detailed, (GoJ'upinus mutabilis, and tlie Baptisia, if they require support, sliould have a stake to each stem, thinning them out where they are so numerous as to produce a crowded appearance. Florists' flowers, such as the carnation, the dahlia, &c., require particular kinds of stakes, and the greatest care in tying. 788. Ilvrliuceous and shrubby plants in pots being in a highly arti- ficial state, wlicii they require training should have straight rods, or symmetrical frames of laths, or of wire- work. Pelargoniums when of large size arc trained by means of straight toiminal shoots of willow or hazel, so as to radiate their brandies from the pot, and form a regular licmisphei'C of foliage and flowers, close but not crowded, ^'aril.us training frames have bucn adopted for ornamental climbers in pots : one is sliown by fig. 67 in Fig. 264. Wire-fiame work for ctimbing- planh in pots. TRAINING. 355 p. 143. A common mode for the Fuchsia, the pelargonium, the Maurandia^the Petunio, &c., and also for the grape, is shown In figs. 264 and 266^ which are formed of rods and rings of stout wire, as shown in figures 266 & 267, the whole be- ingpainted green, or of the colours of bark, ac- Fig. 265. Frame-teorkjbr training t/ie grapes cording to vine when grown in pots. the taste of the gardener or his employer. In training slender climbers or twiners, such as Kennedia rubicimda, nails are driven into the wall near the ground (fig. 268, a), and three or four feet above it (6), close to which the plant is placed ; strings are drawn from the lower nails to those above, and the stems of the plant twined round them. 789. Training hardy-flowering shrubs in the open ground. — -Trailing and creeping shrubs seldom require any assistance from art, excepting when they are made to grow upright on posts, trellises, or , walls. In general all creepers that are trained ' upright, and all climbers, whether by twining, tendrils, hooks, rootlets as the ivy, or mere elongation as in the Lycium and the climbing roses, when they are to form detached objects, should be trained to stakes with expanded tops, Fig. 267. Wire-ringi such as those shown in fig. 95 in page 164, as by '''""'" '" ^^- 26<. this means ample heads are formed, which, in the case of the honeysuckle, the clematis, the rose, &c., exhibit splendid masse of blossom. Fig. 269 is a portrait of a climbing rose, trained down from a ring which forms the top to an iron rod, as shown in one of the figures in p. 164. This is called the T- „..,. ,.,■ balloon manner of training, and was Fig. 266. Wire. l ^ iiri, standard for first applied to apple-trccs. When supporting the rod is fixed in the ground, the ;'"*'■ '°""° ring at the top should stand an inch formthe frame- or work sitown in Or two higher than the graft at the ag.264. top of the stock, or than the head formed on the stem of the plant, if it should not have been grafted. Six or eight of the strongest shoots are then to be selected, and tied to the ring with tarred twine ; and if, from their length, „.„..„„_,, . . , ^, ^ ,.,,,,,, , ., . , ' Fig..2eS.IIIodeoftratningherbaceous they are liable to blow about, their ends are at- climbers on a brick wait. 356 TRAINING. tached to twine, continued from the wu-e to pegs stuck in the ground, an shown ID the figure. When it is desired to cover the stem of a spreading- Fig. 269. Portrait of a Bizarre de la Chine rose, trained in the balloon manner. headed climher ynth the foliage and flowers of a different plant, the taste of which is questionable, aa they never grow so freely in such a situation where they are shaded and the roots of the plants starved, then, fig. 270, which was used on the lawn of George I V.'s cottage at Windsor Park, may be used. Climb- , ing roses may also be advantageously displayed on such props as fig. 94, in p. 163, and more slender climbers, as well as standard roses, and other shrubs, trained to single stems, may be tied to stakes of larch, oak, ash, or sweet chea- nut, or to cast-iron stakes, such as those shown at a and 6 in fig. 9S, in p. 164. When climbers or other flowering plants are trained on arched trellises, covering walks, it must be borne in mind that if the display of the flowers is an object, the treUis-work must not be continuous, but rather of arches springing from piers of Fig. 270. Prop with umbrella top for trelHs-work, Or pilssters, at short distances spreading headed ciimberi, and for from each Other, SO as to admit the light be- trainingotherplanlsroundtheirstems. ^^^^^ ^^^^ ^j^j^ j^ UegleCtcd, the plants wEl only look well on theh' outer surface. The laburnum, when trained over an arched trellis of this kind, has a splendid effect when in flower ; but when the trellis is continuous, the blossoms have a pale, sickly appear- TRAINING. 357 ance, as we witnessed some years ago at a country seat, where the trellis of which fig. 271 is a section was covered with laburnum ; the low table trellis a, a, being clothed with ivy. The contrast be- tween the dark greeil ivy and the yellow blos- soms would have been effective, had the latter enjoyed the benefit of light. 790. Evergreen shrubs require very little training, excepting in the case of fastigiate- growing species in situations exposed to high winds, or shrubs that are to be shorn into arti- .XmT^^^^aimm^ ficial shapes. The evergreen cypress, and the Fig. 271. s««.B«raia6«m«m(r<,;.'^P"ght variety of arbor vitse, are apt to have lis ovi^r a aaik, vsith table ireiuses, the side-shoots displaced by high winds or heavy a, a, for ivy. SHOWS, foT which reason these branches are fre- quently tied loosely to, or rather connected by tarred twine with, the main stem. When evergreen shrubs are to be shorn into common shapes, such as cones, pyramids, piers, pilasters, &c,, little or no ti-ainingis required ; but when they are to be grown into more artificial shapes, such as those of men or animals, - the figure required is constructed of wire or trellis work, and being placed over the plant, the shoots are confined within it ; and if the plants are healthy, and in a good soU and situation, the figure is speedily formed. The best shrubs for this kind of ornament are those which have narrow leaves, such as the j'ew, the juniper, the arbor vitse, and the spruce fir. One of the figures, the most readily foi-med by any of these plants, is a hollow vase, which only requu-es a series of hoops tied to ribs, and the latter attached to a stake placed close by the main stem of the plant. In selecting plants for being trained into figures of men and women, it is usual to use variegated varieties to represent the female forms. 791- Training fruit-trees. — By far the most important application of training is to fruit-trees, whether for the purpose of rendering them move prolific, improving the quality of the fruit, growing fruit in the open air which could not otherwise be grown, except under glass, or confining the trees within a limited space. Fruit-trees are trained either as protuberant bushes or trees in the open: garden, or spread out on flat surfaces against walls or espaliers. In either case the operation is founded on the principle already mentioned — that of suppressing the direct channel of the sap, by which it is more equally distributed over the tree, the tendency to produce over-vigorous shoots from the highest part is diminished, and the produc- tion of flowers from every part increased. We find that trees in a state of nature always produce their first flowers from lateral branches, to which the sap flows less abundantly than to those which are vertical ; and the object of training may be said to be, to give all the parts of a tree the character of lateral branches. With a view to this, certain rules have been derived from the principle of the suppression of the sap, which it may be useful to notice as of general application to every mode of training : — 1. Branches left loose, and capable of being put in motion by the wind, grow more vigorously than those which are attached ; and hence the rule to nail or tie in the stronger shoots first, and to leave the weaker shoots to acquire more vigour. Hence also the advantage of training with fixed branches against walls, as compared with training with loose branches in the o| en garden, when greater fruitfulness is the object. S58 TUAINING. 2. Upright shoots grow more freely than inclined shoots. Therefore when two shoots of unequal vigour are to be reduced to an equality, the weaker must be elevated and the stronger depressed. 3. The shoots on the upper side of an inclined branch will always be more luxuriant than those on the lower side ; therefore preserve, at the period of pruning or disbudding, only the strongest shoots below, and only the weakest above. 4. The lower branches of every tree and shrub decay naturally before the upper branches ; therefore bestow the principal care on them, whether in dwarf bushes in the open garden, or with trees trained on espaliers or walls. When they are weak, cut them out, and bring down others to supply their place; or turnup their extreme points, which will attract a larger por- tion of sap to every part of the branch. 792. The different modes of training bushes and trees in the open garden are chiefly the conical form for tall trees or standards, and some modifi- cation of the globe or cylinder for dwarfs ; but it may be remarked that unless these and all other artificial forms are constantly watched to check the tendency to return to nature, they are much better dispensed with. By careful attention some of these artificial forms will bring trees sooner into a bearing state, and a greater quantity of fruit will also be produced in a limited space ; but if the continued care requisite for these objects is withdrawn for two or three years, the growth of the tree, while returning to its natural character, will produce a degree of confusion in the branches that will not be remedied till all the constrained branches have been cut away. Wherever, therefore, fruit is to be grown on a large scale, and in the most economical manner, in orchards or in the open garden, it is found best to let every tree take its natural shape, and confine the pruner and trainer to such operations as do not greatly interfere with it. These are chiefly keep- ing the tree erect with a straight stem, keeping the head well balanced, and thinning out the branches where they are crowded or cross each other, oi become weak or diseased. There are however many persons who have small gardens, and who have leisure or means to attend or to procure atten- tion to all the minutiae of culture, and to these some of the modes of training protuberant dwarfs and standards may be of considerable importance, by bringing the trees into a bearing state sooner than would be the case if tliey were left to nature, and by producing much fruit in little space. 793. The different modes of training fruit-trees against walls or espaliers, may all be reduced to three forms or systems ; — the fan or palmate form, which is the most natural mode, and that most generally applicable ; the horiisontal system, which is adapted to trees with strong stems, and of long duration ; and the perpendicular system, which is chiefly adapted to climb- ers, such as the vine. Trees trained by any of the above modes against a wail or espalier are much more under the control of art than can ever be the case with trees or bushes in the open garden; because in the latter case, the whole tree as well as its branches are at all times more or less liable to be put in motion by the wind, whereas against a wall they are fixed, and have not the aid of motion to increase their thickness. For these reasons, and also because flat training is applied to trees which as protuberant bushes in the open garden would scarcely produce fruit at all, flat training cannot be dispensed with. In making choice of a mode of flat treiining, the nature of the tree, the climate, soil, and the object in view, must be jointly taken TRAINING. 359 into consideration. Trees of temporary duration, which naturally produce numerous divergent branches, such as the peach and the apricot, are best adapted for fan training, where the climate is favourable ; but in a cold cli- mate an approach to the horizontal maimer may be preferable, by lessening the quantity of wood produced and thus facilitating its ripening. The hori- zontal system of training produces the greatest constraint on nature, and is therefore adapted for fruit-trees of the most vigorous growth, and of large size, such as the pear and apple, which are almost always trained in this manner, whether on walls or espaliers. For plants producing shoots having little or no tendency to ramify, and which are of short duration, such as the vine, climbing roses, &c., the perpendicular manner is the most natural and the easiest ; nevertheless, by disbudding and training, plants of thb kind can be made to assume the fan form, and thus be rendered more productive in blossoms and fruit, than if trained in a manner which is more natural to them ; and in the case of the vine, even the horizontal system may be adopted, because its shoots are of great duration. We shall first describe the methods of training dwarfs and standards in the open garden, and next the different modes of flat training on walls and espaliers. 794. Dwarfs in the open garden are trained in the form of hollow bushes, concave, or shaped like cups, urns, goblets, or barrels, the form being in every case produced by training the shoots to a frame-work of rods and hoops. Dwarfs are also trained in the form of globes, balloons, cylinders, low cones, pyramids, triangles, and sometimes with the branches in regular stages like a girandole. Most of these forms are also capable of being varied by training the shoots which compose their form vertically, horizontally, ob- liquely, or spirally ; and also by tying down the current year's shoots as soon as they have ceased elongating, in the manner of quenouiUe training, to be afterwards described. All dwarfs, whether to be left to nature or trained artificially, are grafted on stocks naturally of humble growth, such as the quince or the mountain-ash for the pear, the doucin or paradise for the apple, the Mahaleb for the cherry, the myrobolan or the sloe for the plum, &c. 795. Spiral cylinders. — Of all these diflisrent modes of training dwarfs, that which best deserves adoption in a small garden is the spiral cylinder, the training of which is thus described by Mr. Hay ward : — " Prune and manage the tree so that it shall form fi-om three to six branches of as nearly equal size as possible, within about six or eight inches of the ground, as in fig. 272 ; and as soon as the branches are grown from three to five feet long, fix six rods or stakes into the earth for supporting them, in a circle about the root, as in fig. 273, the centre dot marking the root, and the others the rods. Each branch is then to be brought down, and being fixed to the rod near its base, the branch is to be carried round in a spiral manner, on such an elevation as will form an inclination (,• I V * /' of about fifteen degrees, and each branch is to be fixed in tlie same .,. „„ , -^ ,. ., ,, Fig 273. Sptraiiram- manncr, one sitcr another; thus all ing,pian. I'ig 2/2. Spiral bain- will movc in the same direction, one above the other, like inp. M't »'"!"■ so many cork-screws following in the same course, as shown in fig. 274. As from this position of the branches the point bud of each 360 TRAINING. leader will present the most vertical channel for the sap, the strongest shoot will form there, and thus afford the means of continuing the leaders to a great height and for a great length of time, without crossing or obstructing each other, or throwing out useless collaterals ; at tne same time, by the depressed position of the leading branches, enough sap will be pushed out on their sides to form and maintain vigorous fruiting spurs. As trees trained in this manner need never exceed the bounds allotted them on a border or bed, a greater number of trees may be planted, and a greater quantity of fruit produced, in a given space, than can be the case when they are trained in any other manner. But as pear and apple trees on free stocks may be Fis.^i.Spiraitrain- found to grow too rude and large after a few years, those ing, e eva ton. ^^^^^ answer which are grafted on dwarf-growing stocks ; that is, pears on quince stocks, and apples on paradise stocks. H o we ver, to keep dwarf trees from growing too luxuriant and rude, it is a good practice to take them up and replant them every three or four years ; if this is done with due care as soon as the leaves are off the trees in the fall of the year, it will not injure them nor prevent them bearing a full crop of fruit the following year. — (^In- quiry into the Fruitfulness and Barrenness of Plants and Trees, Sjc. p. 238.) 796. Standards in the open garden are, in France, sometimes trained with heads in similar shapes to those we have mentioned as adopted for dwarfs ; but those in most general use, where the natural form is departed from, are the spurring-in system, the conical or pyramidal system, to either of which may be applied the quenouille system ; a term which is sometimes applied to the distaff or conical form of the tree, and sometimes to the mode of tying down the current year's shoots, like the fibres of flax on a distafiF, so as to stagnate in them the returning sap. Trees trained in any of these manners are generally grafted on dwarfing stocks so as to keep their growths within moderate bounds. 797. The spurring-in system. — Choose a tree that has a leading shoot in an upright direction, fig. 275, a ; having J planted it, shorten the side shoot, leaving only two or three I buds, and shorten also the leading shoot, according to its Y' strength, so that no more buds may be left on it than u will produce shoots, as at 6. The first summer the produce ,JL^ in shoots will be as at fig. 276, c ; and if before Midsummer Fig. 276. Spurring the leading shoot be shortened as at d, it will probably throw in, first and second Q^^ gj^g shoots the same season, as at e. At the winter pruning all the side shoots may be shortened to two or three buds, and the leading shoot to such a number as it is believed will be de- veloped. These are to be short- ened as at/; and the process of I ' ,( N^ /T >* . \i ■f shortening is to be repeated every year till the tree has the appear- ance of fio. 277 ; or until it has Fig. 276. Spurring.-in, progressive stages. TRAINING. SOI Fig. 277- Spurring- in completed. attained the height required, or wliich the kind of tree is calculated to attain. 798. Conical standards, or, as they are erroneously called, pyramidal standards, may be pro- duced from trees par- tially spurred-in ; but the most general mode is to cut in the side branches, as shown in fig. 278, which repre- sents several successive stages ; while fig. 279 shows the tree brought to its regular shape ; and fig. 280, the same tree with the brandies of the current year tied down in the quenouille manner. The best ex- ample of this mode of training which we have seen in England, was in the Horticultural So- "" — ciety's garden in 1830; and in France, Fig. 278. (iuenouiiie training, progressive in the Royal Kitchen Garden at Ver- ""*"■ sailles, in 1840. There were in the latter garden, in that year, two hundred trees trained in the conical manner, with the cunent j'ear's shoots tied down en quenouille. They had attained the height of from six to twelve feet before the branches were bent down ; but the effect of this was to cover the shoots with blossom, buds, and to produce most ex- traordinary crops. From the ex- perience of French gardeners, it would appear that trees trained in the conical manner and en quenouille do not last longer than ten or twelve years. Copper wire is used for tying down the branches, and the lower ends of the wires are attached to the stouter branches, to the main stem, to hooked pegs stuck in the ground, or to a wooden frame fixed a few inches above its sur- face. 799. Hayward's quenouille "conical training com- training. — Take a plant pleied. four or five strong shoots of three feet or four feet long, on a stem of four feet Quenouille or . Fig. 280. Conical trainivtj. With iiiiih the summer stioots with tied down. or more hiuh 362 TRAINING. Fig. 281. Hayv3ard*s (fig. 281) ; " let a small hoop be bent round the bottom of the trunfr, and all the branches brought regularly down and fixed to it, as in fig. 282 ; the consequences, if not guarded against, will be as explained in 792. As several of the uppermost buds on the base of each branch will probably throw out strong wood shoots, one of them, that is placed in the best situation to admit of being bent down to supply the place of the parent branch when worn out, should be selected, and all the rest rubbed ofif close ; and as the shoot that is left will grow large and __ strong, in order that it may be better pj^ 232! Hayward, adapted for bending, it should, as soon as quenomUe training it is five inches or six inches long, be "™i''«'«- brought gently down and afiixed to the old branch, as in j,^ fig. 283, a, o, marking the young shoot which has been quenouiiie train- tied down. Trained in this manner, whenever it may be inn, first 'tage. found necessary to cut out the old branches, these, by a half-twist, may be brought down without danger of breaking, and the bend will be less abrupt and unsightly. By the same rules, trees may be trained in the same manner, with two or more tiers, as in fig. 284. The success of this mode of training depends upon due attention being paid to the disbudding or rulibing off useless shoots m the spring, and taking due care of those which are intended either to carry on and extend the tree, or to succeed and occupy the place of the old bearera. It wUl," he con- cludes, "be found extremely well adapted to apple-trees on paradise-stocks, pear- trees on quince-stocks, cherry-trees, &c. ; and also to peach-trees in pots ; and it is FiT'm B^^d't ^ most economical mode, as it requires no qumouiiietraining, stakes." — [Gard. Mag. vol. vii. p. 441.) showing two succes. goQ. Fan-traininq is chiefly adapted sional shoots. .. , , . ■, - , n i for trees tramed against walls, and more especially for the peach and apricot. There are several modifications of the fan form, and five dificrent varieties may be pointed out. The first is the equal fan, in which there are a number of main branches all radiating from the Fig. 2S4. Hayaard's graft of the tree ; in the case of dwarfs, all the branches ''"".'''f q^enouiue radiate from the horizontal line upwards, but in the case of standards against walls, or what in Scotland are called riders, they radiate downwards as well as upwards; and this forms the second, or what is called the stellate-fan manner of training. The third mode is called the open fan, or the Montreuil training, in which there are two main branches laid into the right and left of the centre, at an angle of 46°, and the wall is covered by subordinate branches from these and their late- rals. The great advantage of this mode of training is, that whenever (he wall gets naked below, it can be covered by bringing dov^•n the two main TRAINING. 3C3 branches and their subordinates. An improvement on this mode of training as applied to the peach-tree was made by Dumoutier, and is described by Lelieur, in his " Pomone Fran9oise;" another, by Sienlle (a cultivator at Montreuil, to whom we were introduced, in 1819, by M. Thouin), is described in Neill's Hortiatltural Tour, and in the first edition of our Encyclopcedia of Gardening; and a third improvement has been recently made in the Montreuil training, by F. Malot, a cultivator at Montreuil, which consists in first covering the lower part of the wall, by preventing any shoots from being produced from the upper sides of the two main branches tiU the part of the wall below them is covered. This mode is described in the Annates d^ Horticulture de Paris for 1 841, and in the Bon Jardinier for 1842. A fourth mode of fan-training, is what is called Seymour's, which, on prin- ciple, appears to be the most perfect of all modes of training, and to which the nearest approach made by the French gardeners is that called the Palmette a la Dumoutier, alluded to above. A fifth mode is the curvilinear fan- training of Mr. Hay ward, which is good in principle ; but which has not yet been much adopted, notwithstanding some excellent points which it exhibits. If we describe the common English mode of fan-training, Seymour's mode, and Hayward's mode, the other variations will be readily understood. In fact, there can be no difficulty with any mode of training, provided the operator possesses beforehand a clear conception of the form to be produced, and bears in mind the power of buds, and the influence on that power of elevation and depression. 801. Fan-training in the common English manner. — The following direc- tions for this mode of training are by an excellent practical gardener : — The maiden plant is to be headed down to four eyes, placed in such a manner as to throw out two shoots on each side, as shown in fig. 286. The following sea- V V son the two up- permost shoots are to be headed down to three Fig. 28 . Fan-training, first eyes, placed in * ""*■ Buch a manner as to throw out one leading shoot, and one shoot on each side; the two lower- Fig. m. Fan-trair^ing, second itage. most shoots are to be headed down to two eyes, so as to throw out one leading shoot, and one shoot on the uppermost side as shown in fig. 286. We have now five leading shoots on each side, well placed, to form our future tree. Each of these shoots must be placed in the exact position in which it is to remain; and as it is these shoots which are to form the leading character of the future tree, none of them are to be shortened. The tree should by no means be suiTered to bear any fruit this year. Each shoot must now be suffered to produce, besides the leading shoot at the extremity, two other shoots on the uppermost side one near to the bottom, and one about midway up the stem ; there must also be one shoot on the undermost side, placed about midway between the other two. All the other shoots must be pinched off in their infant state. The tree will then assume, at the end of the third year, the appearance shown in fig. 287. From this time it may be allowed to bear what crop of fruit the gardener thinks it able to carry ; in determining which he ought never to overrate the vigour of the tree. All of these shoots, except the leading Fig. 287. Fan-training, third stage. 304 TRAINING. ones, must at the proper season be shortened, but to what length must la left entirely to the judgment of the gardener, it, of course, depending upon the vigour of the tree. In short- ening the shoot, care should be taken to cut back to a bud that will produce a shoot for the fol- lowing year. Cut close to the bud, so that the wound may heal the following season. The following season each shoot at the extremities of the leading branches should produce, be- sides the leading shoot, one on the upper and two on the under part, more or less, according to the vigour of the tree; whilst each of the secondary branches should pro- duce, besides the leading shoot, one other, placed near to the bottom; for the grand art of pruning, in all systems to which this class of trees are subjected, consists in preserving a sufficient quantity of young wood at the bottom of the tree ; and on no account must the gardener cut clean away any shoots so placed, without well considering if they will be wanted, not only for the present, but for the future good appear- ance of the tree. The quantity of young wood annually laid in must depend upon the vigour of the tree. It would be ridiculous to lay the same quantity of wood into a weakly tree as into a tree in fuU vigour. The gardener here must use his own judgment. But if any of the leading shoots manifest a disposition to outstrip the others, a larger portion of young wood must be laid in, and a greater quantity of fniit than usual snifered to ripen on the over-vigorous branch. At the same time a smaller quantity of fruit than usual must be left to ripen on the weaker branch. This will tend to restore the equilibrium better than any other method. Fig. 288 Fig. 288. Fan-training, complete. presents us vfith the figure of the tree in a more advanced state, well balanced, and well calculated for an equal distribution of sap all over its surface. Whenever any of the lower shoots have advanced so far as to incommode the others, they should be cut back to a yearling shoot : this will give them room, and keep the lower pai-t of the tree in order. In THAlMiVtl. 365 Tiailina;, nare must be taken not to bruise any part of the shoot ; the wounds wade by the knife heal quickly, but a bruise often proves incurable. Never let a nail gall any part of the trfee : it will endanger the life of the branch. In nailing in the young shoots, dispose them as straight and aa regular as possible : it will look workmanlike. Whatever system of train- ing is pursued, the leading branches should be laid in in the exact position they are to remain ; for wherever a large branch' is brought down to fill the lower part of the wall, the free ascent of the sap is obstructed by the exten- sion of the upper and contraction of the lower parts of the branch. It is thus robbed of part of its former vigour, whilst it seldom fails to throw out immediately behind the part most bent one or more vigorous shoots. To assist the young practitioner in laying in the leading branches of the tree, the following method may perhaps be acceptable. Drive a nail into the wall, exactly where the centre of the tree is to be, then with a string and chalk describe a semicircle of any diameter, divide the quadrant into 90" ; the lower branch will then take an elevation of about 12", the second of about 27^", the third about ASP, the fourth S8io, ^nd the fifth about 7^°. A nail should then be driven into each of these points, and the chalk rubbed off.— (©. ilf. U. p. 144.) 802. Fan-training according to Seymour's mode. — Head down the maiden plant to three eyes, as shown in fig. 289, a. Three shoots being produced, the Fig. 289. Seymour's fan-training ^ progressive stages. second year head down the centre one to three eyes, and leave the two side shoots at full length, as at 5. Rub off all the buds on the lower side of the two side-branches, and leave only on the upper side a series of buds from nine inches to twelve inches apart. When these buds have grown five inches Fig. 290. SeyTruyir'n fan-training , third stage, in ^uirmer. 01 iix inches, stop the shoots produced, but still allowing the leading shoot 366 TRAINING. to extend itself. At the end of the summer of the second year, there will he four side shoots, and six. or more laterals, as at c. In the following spring, the laterals d, which had heen nailed to the wall, are loosened and tied to their main shoot, as at e, and the upright shoot or main leader shortened to three huds, as at/, or if the tree be very vigorous, to five buds. At the end of the third summer, the number of laterals will be doubled on the two lower branches, as shown in fig. 290 : a new lateral having spi-ung from the base of the one tied in, as at g, and another from its extremity, as at h. In the pruning of the spring of the fourth year, the original laterals, now of two years' growth, which had borne fruit, are cut off close to the branch, and the young laterals which had sprung from their base are loosened from the wall, and tied down to succeed them, as at fig. 291, i. The other Fig. 291. Seymour's fan'training t third stage after the winter pruning. laterals produced are tied in, as at fc, and the upright shoots shortened, as at i, as before. This method of pruning and training the peach, its author. Mi. John Seymour, describes as truly systematical, as all the principal Fig. 292. S'iymtmr's fan-irainhig, fi/th year. leading shoots are trained bj' a line stretched from the setting on or oiijjin TRAINING. 365' of the shoot to beyond its extreme length, and the distance of the leading shoots from one another is regulated by a semicircular line, at about ten feet from the stem, as shown in fig. 292. On this line is marked off the distances between the shoots, which are ten inches each. The lateral shoots are laid in about a foot asunder, as at a, in this iigure. In the third or fourth year, and Fig. 293. Seymour's fan-training, sixtit year. sometimes in the second, instead of laying in all the side shoots at full length, some of them are shortened, so as to get two leading shoots from as many side shoots as may be necessary to fill the wall, as shown at i, 6. If the double side shoots thus produced are strong, they may be laid in their whole length ; but if weak, they must be cut short to give them strength. Occasionally a side shoot may be made to produce three others, as at c ; so that there never can be any difficulty in producing a sufficient number of leading shoots to furnish the wall. Fig. 293 is a por- Tig. 294. Seymour's /an-training, in progreM/or a tow wall. tiait of one-half of a Vanguard peach of six years' growth, taken in March, ?m .TRAINING. 1H20. This tree, we are infornidil, Mill exists in Carleton Hall Gardens, where it eovcis nearly eight hdmlied sriuav(; feet of wall, and is universally admired. It will bo evident, wo think, to every gardener, that this mode of training is not so well adapted for low walls as for such as are high. For high walls it is recomraonded to train the tree in form of the fig. 294, till it reaches the top of the wall, and afterwards to change the position of the shoots in the manner shown in fig. 296, encouraging the shoots produced Fig. 295. Seymour's fan-traluing, suiitd to a !inc u-all. from a, a, to throw out branches to fill the centre of the tree. i^Ibid vol. vi. p. 437.) There can be no doubt that this is a very systematic and beautiful mode of training, but being more difficult than the common fan mode, it has not been generally adopted by gardeners. Its perfect symmetry ought strongly to recommend it to the amateur of leisure. 803. Fan-training in the wavy or curvilinear manner. — This mode of training was first described and its advantages pointed out by Mr. Hayward, in his Science of Horticulture, published in 1822 ; but it had been in practice to a certain extent long before, which shows its foundation in nature. Mr. Callow, to whom the idea was suggested by the lower branches of some large elms, which, though they projected ever so far horizontally, still had their extremities inclined upwards, practised it with the peach and nectarine nearly half a century ago. {Gard. Mag., 1834, p. 38.) This mode of training, which we shall describe from Mi'. Hay ward's very scientific work, is founded on the fact, that the sap will always flow in the greatest quan- tity to the most vertical buds ; so that a branch bent like an invertid syphon, however low the centre may be, yet if the extreme point be turned upwards, the buds there will produce vigorous upright shoots, however distant they may be from the main stem. If a branch be fixed in a ver- tical position, the strong- est shoot will be pro- duced at the point bud a, in fig. 296, as it w ill also if the shoot sliould be bent, as shown at b and c in the same - ^li^ .._ A Fig. 297. Illustrative of wavy-training. Fig. £1)6. Illustrating the iprinciples of tDavii-training. TEAININff. 369 figure. Again, if a brancli be fixed in a horizontal position, as in fig. 297, the strongest shoot will be produced from the moat vertical bud near the baseof the shoot, as at d, and theshoot produced from e will be the weakest; but by turning up the point of this horizontal shoot, as at fig. 298,y; nearlyas strong a shoot will be produced as if lv\^ y- f^ the branch had been " "■<;»^^;:=='~~ fixed in a vertical po- -.jll<>«.^ Fig. 298. Illustrative 0/ sition, even though the ^. „^ "T" , . .""'"^ . , «,av,-train!n,. bud at g should be at ^'^ '''■ '^'"'S'-'™"""^-^"' "'"''■ a considerable distance from the main stem of the plant. The bud at/, in this example, will also make a strong shoot* It is easy to conceive hovir these facts may be taken advantage of in training trees on flat sui faces. All the main branches, which in the common mode of fan-training, and also in Seymour s mode, are laid in at an angle of 4S°, are by Hay ward's mode laid in much nearer the horizontal position, but always with their extreme points turned up. Trees may be trained in this manner either without a main stem, which constitutes the slightest deviation from common fan- training, and which has been found greatly preferable to it by Mr. Callow, Mr. Glendinning, and others ; with one main stem, or with two main stems, both of which modes have been tried and approved by Mr. Hayward. 804. Wavy fan-traivhig with two stems — Suppose that the object is " to cover a space of wall of sixteen feet in length and twelve feet high, and at the same time to provide a length of stem of eight feet from the root for the sap to pass through to prepare it for fructification (which is required by the peach tree), we must obtain a plant with two equal stems, growing from tlie same base, of four feet each ; for by each taking one-half of the sap supplied, and passing it over four feet, both surfaces together will be equal to o:'e stem of eight feet high ; and in order to bring the fruiting part of the Ircc aj near the earth as possible, and to fill the lower part of the wall or trellis, we must bend each of the stems down, as in fig. 299 ; and all the buds being removed, but three at each extremity. A, A, (and it must be remembered that unless this is particularly attended to, it be almost impossible to succeed in training a tree in this manner,) those will 1 the full quantity of sap supplied by : root, and form shoots of proportionate ength,and those shoots during the sum- mer may be trained upwards, as in fig. 300. Fig. 300. wavy-trainin!,.,eccnd stage, ^he following winter the side-branches must be brought down to their proper position to the right and left, as in fig. 301 . If the horizontal branches are four feet long, or of the full length required to fill the space of sixteen feet allowed, the points of those branches must be laid flat, as at i, on the righthand side of 301 ; but if they are required to grow ^xA 'f^ — longer, the points must be Fig. 301. Wavy.tralningjhird stage. turned up, as on the left-hand side, k. The next object must be to manage the centre shoots, or stems, which are to furnish horizontals, so as to cover •emoved, but three at each extremity. A, . unles: nJ Z;"'^ %J take 1 ''==*^f=='''^ the r( 370 TRAINING. the upper part of the wall. There are two modes of effecting this : tlie one to bend the leading branch in a serpentine form, as represented at k, in fig. 301, and form the bends so that they may present a wood bud on the upper side of each, at from four inches to nine inches apart, which will place the hori- zontals from nine inches to eighteen inches apart on each side ; all other buds but these being removed, they will be furnished with sufficient sap to form horizontals of due length the following yeai-, and also a centre shoot to form the stem, to be managed in the same manner to produce horizontals the following year ; and so on every year, until the tree has attained the height of the wall. The other mode of proceeding with the stem is to train it in an upright direction, and to cut it off, or shorten it, as at i, in the last figure, from nine inches to eighteen inches everyyear; rubbing off all the buds, except the three which are best placed at the end to furnish two horizontals and a leader for the following year. This is not only the most simple, but perhaps the most certain, mode of providing horizontals of due strength, and at the distances wanted. Indeed this mode of shortening the centre bi'anch must be adopted with all fruit trees, except the peach. The peach tree, with care and attention, may be trained on the serpentine plan, so as to place the horizontals with great regularity. When it is thus trained, there is this advantage, — the current of the sap being checked in the buds, a larger portion is sent into the horizontals, and the sap is more equally divided ; they are thus sustained in greater luxuriance at the lower part of the tree, and sometimes two tiers of horizontals may be obtained in one year. But as almost all other trees are prone to form their shoots at the ends of the last year's shoots, the bending will not always force out shoots where wanted. In order to secure this, therefore, the leading shoots must be shortened every year, down to the place where it is desired to foim the horizontals ; and even by this mode of forcing out branches (by shortening), the upright flow of the sap may be checked by bending the leader each year from one side to another, on an inclination of about 45", as in fig. 302, which as indicated by the numbers 1 to 5, is of five years' growth. Proceed- . 'i ing in this manner, a tree ■^ will advance in height [ only by a tier of horizon- tals each year, and hence it will appear to fill the upper part of the wall but Fig. 302. Wavy-training, ilflh year i i i , • . i slowly ; but it must be considered, that the time you lose in covering the upper part of the wall, you gain in width on the lower part. It may also appear on a superficial view, that by extending the branches so long, and rendering them so naked of shoots, for the first year or two, you lose so much time ; but it is not so in reality, for by this mode j'ou lose no time in cutting back the stem, as by the usual mode. By the common mode of training, two or more years are lost before it is attempted to produce bearing wood. Moreover, by laying down the first branches to such lengths, you obtain a space suf5cient, the second or third years, to dispose of every inch of wood the tree makes, without crowding it too closely together ; and indeed the means of appro- priating to a profitable purpose all the nutriment extracted from the soil by ^^^ 1 S TRAINING. 371 the tree. From a tree trained in this manner ahove seven hundred per- fectly ripened peaches Lave heen gathered the fifth year of trainmg, all growing -yritiiin six feet of the surface of the border. When a tree is full grown, it will have the appearance of fig. 303. Particular attention must be paid to the rubbing off all or most of the " shoots, as soon as they appear in the spring, from the front and under sides of the horizontals, as. well as from all other parts of the tree where young wood is not wanted." — {Hayviardon the Fruitfulnesa and Barrenness of Fig. 303. Wavy-training, completed. Plants and Trees, (Spc., 3834.) To Mr. Hay ward's directions, the observations which we have made on some trees trained in this manner enable us to suggest, that a sufficient number of shoots and leaves should be left on the main stems, for the purpose of strengthening them and the roots. For this pur- pose, it will be advisable to leave some shoots on the stems, even where they are not ultimately wanted, till such time as the ramification of the top affords a sufficient breadth of foliage for strengthening them. The stems, in their naked state, are also liable to be scorched by the rays of the sun, un- less they are protected, either by a covering or screen of some kind, or by training down some of the shoots, so as that the foliage may overhang them. A similar objection may be made to Hitt's mode of training with two stems, which may be considered the parent of Mr. Hay ward's mode. 806. Wavy fan-training with a single stem will readily be understood. On planting, if the stem is without branches, cut it back to three buds ; but if it has already three shoots, shorten the centre one to nine inches or a foot, according to the kind of tree, and leave only three buds at its upper ex- tremity, laying in the side shoots as in fig. 304, In like manner after next years growth shorten the centre V jj y shoot, and lay in the two side shoots as before, and proceed in this manner •ijr till the wall is filled, or till the tree j1 has the appearance of fig. 305. It is --»— ~ r^?>* necessary to observe, with reference I'ig. 304. Wany-traininf mth a single sUm,first to this figure, that the length of stem ^'' is for the purpose of admitting a single shoot of a vine, to be trained horizontally below it, a mode which Mr. Hay- ward finds to be productive of eaily and abundant crops. In wavy fan-training with a single stem which is short, Mr. Hayward observes, " It will be dif- ficult to prevent the horizontal branches near the centre of the tree from 372 THAINISG. becomiug naked of tearing wood, because the sap cannot pass through a sufficient space of bark to prepare it for fructification, until it is a great distance from the trunk. But this defect may in a great measure be remedied, if, instead of being cut back to make it throw out branches to form the tree from a short stem, a stem of four or five feet be bent down as in fig. 306 ; and if all the buds, as they push out, be rubbed off, except the three at the end, those may be trained up in the same manner as if the stem had been cut back or shortened, and afterwards the Pig. 306. A hal/rider trained in the waup manner. stem or centre may be treated in the same manner as the one that is cut back ; the difference will then be, that the centre of the tree will be formed four feet on one side of the root, instead of being immediately over it ; but as the sap will thus have a space of four feet of bark to pass, the tree will produce its bearing wood in greater abundance near the stem, and fill the wall more equally with fniit." — (^Inquiry, &;c. p. 228.) 806. Horizontal training is in a great measure confined to Britain, for it is not generally approved of on the Continent, more especially in France. It was fii-st systematically described by Hitt, and is practised either with one or two stems, and either with the upright stem straight, or in a zigzag direction to stimulate the lateral buds to develop themselves. From this upright stem the brandies proceed at right angles, generally at nine inches apart for apples, cherries, and plums, and from ten inches to a foot, or eighteen inches for pears. A maiden plant with three „._„„. , , , Fig.306. iiimtratwe tfwavy- gj^jotg having been procured, the ing, first stage, training wtth a long stem. ., ",.,.,. two Side ones are laid in horizon- tally, and the centre one upright, as in fig. 307 ; all the buds being rubbed off the latter but three, viz., one next the top for a vertical leader, and one on each side as near the top as possible, for horizontal branches. In the course of the first summer after planting, the shoots may be allowed to grow without being stopped. In the autumn of the first year the two laterals produced are nailed in, and also the shoots produced from the extremities of the lower laterals ; the centre shoot being headed down as beforej as shown in fig. 308. But in the second summer, when the main shoot has attained the length of ten inches, or twelve inches, it may be stopped ; which if the plant is in proper vigour wUl cause it to throw out two horizontal branches, in addition to those which were thrown out from the wood of the preceding year. The tree will Fig. 308. Horizontal training^ second stage. Fig. 309. Horizontal training, third stage. TRAINING. 373 now 1)6 in its second summer, and will have four horizontal branches on each side of the upright stem as in fip-. .'309 ; and by persevering in this system four horizontal branches will be produced iu each year, till the tree reaches the top of the wall, when the upright stem must terminate in two horizon- tal branches. In the fol- lowing autumn the tree will have the appearance of fig. 310; supposing an apple tree be the plant to be trained, and that it consists of a single shoot from a bud. Let it be planted early iu autumn, and next spring head it down to seven buds. " Every bud pushing two or tliree shoots, the third and fourth, counting up- wards, must be rubbed off when they are three inches in length ; the uppermost shoot must be trained straight up the wall for a leading stem, and ' the remaining four horizontally along the wall. The leading shoot Fig. 310. Horizontal training, fourth year. having attained about fifteen inches in length, cut it down to eleven inches. From the shoots that will thus be produced select three, one to be trained as a leader, and two as side branches. In the second autumn the tree will have the appearance of fig 311. Proceeding in this way for seven years, the tree will have reached the top of a wall twelve feet high. With weak trees, or trees in very cold, late situations, this practice will not be advisable, as the wood produced from the summer shoots would be too weak, or would not ripen ; but in all ordinary situa- tions the plan will succeed." — (^Har- rison on Fruit-trees, chap, xx.) 8O7. Fan-training and horizontal training combined. — In training trees horizontally, we have seen that a Fig. 311. Horizontal training, the apple. considerable period must elapse before the wall is filled. It is alleged also that heading-down does not always produce two lateral shoots, and also that it has a tendency to make the 374 TRAINING. shoots already produced grow move rank than is desirable : by the following method practised by Mr. Green of Stepney, this inconvenience is avoided, and the wall is much sooner filled in height with shoots : — Suppose the wall to be under twenty feet long, and that it is intended to train a pear-tree J Fig. 312. Horizontal training and fan-training combined. nsainst it ; plant the tree at one end of the wall, and then proceed as follows: Let the situation of the tree be at a, in fig. 31 2 ; stick a nail in the wall at 6, Fig. 313. Horizontal and fan-training combined. and another nail at c, and strike a line on the wall from b to c ; then train all the shoots to one side after the fan man- ner, and bend the whole of the shoots into a horizontal position, as soon as they reach the line that is drawn from 6 to c / after which continue to train them horizontally. If the wall is from thirty to forty feet in length, plant the tree in the middle of it as at d, in fig. 313. and proceed as follows : — Stick a nail in the wall in the centre, near the top, at ej stick another nail at /, and another at g; then strike a line from e to f, another line from eto g ; train the tree in the fan manner until the shoots reach the lines drawn upon the wall, and then bend them hori- zontally. If the wall is higher than it is wide, proceed as follows : — Plant the tree in the middle of the wall at A, in fig. 314 ; stick one nail at i, one at k, and one at I ; strike the lines as before ; but, in- ^ksm Raif- stead of spreading out the shoots /on (raimnfr, horizontally, train them perpendi- fi^''' ''"*«• Fig. 314. Horizontal and upright training combined. Fig. 316. Half-fan training. SECOitd stage. TBAININO. 375 ciilarly. This process answers well for pears, vines, or any other rank- growing tree.— (G. M., vol. viii. p. 53?.) A similar mode of training has been adopted by Mr. Smith of Hopeton House, for the finer ap- ples and best late pears, and is thus described by him: fig. 315 represents a tree one year from the graft, newly planted, and afterwards cut down to two buds on each shoot. Fig. 316 represents the same tree two ^* ^'^- ^''^^''" "■'"■"™^- ""'''* '"■^'■ years old, and fan-trained. Fig. 317, the same tree three years old, cut back and fan-trained. Fig. 318, the same tree, six years old, fan-trained ; the shoots brought down in a curvi- linear form to the horizontal direc- tion ; and the differ- ent years' growth marked one, two, three, four, five, six. The centre is still trained in the fan form, and the branches are brought down yearly; until the tree reaches to the top of the wall. Fig. 318. Half-fan training, sixth year. where the fan- training terminates, and the branches are trained forward horizontally. Nothing more is necessary than to keep the trees in good order, and to en- courage the leading shoots. — (G. M. x. p. 267.) 808. Perpendicular training is comparatively little used, excepting for climbing shrubs, such as roses, the vine, and the gooseberry and currant, when trained against a wall or espalier rail. The principle is to have two horizontal main stems on the lowest part of the wall or trellis, and to train from these upright shoots at regular distances. Sometimes four horizontal main stems are usdd — two at the bottom, and the other two half way up the wall or espalier ; but this mode is chiefly adopted with the vine. With the exception of the latter plant and the fig, when trained in this way, the main horizontal branches are very short, seldom in the case of the rose, gooseberry, _^_^^,^^ or currant, extending more than two feet or three feet from 11 each side of the stem. A young plant with two shoots may have these shortened to one foot each in length, and tied to the lower (Vmiar h-ain-^^^ °^ ^^^^ °f the trellis, as in fig. 319. This bjiug done in ing.jiritstage. autumn, next year two upright shoots will be produced, and an 37ti TEAININS. addition made to the liorizontal shoots, aa in fig. 320. The tljird year, two other upright shoots, or if the plant is in a vigorous state, four will be pro- I I duced, as in fig.321; and this will I I generally be found sufficient hori- - ■ » ^ zontal extension for a gooseberry, ¥ ^currant, or rose. See fig. 322. The •B- ™a „ ~~,- six upright shoots now established lar training, second Will advance at the rate 01 irom Fig, 321. Perpendicular train- staye. nine inches to a foot in a year, if ing, third stage. the plants are gooseberries or currants, but a great deal faster if they are climbers of any kind. This mode of training is frequently combined with the fan manner, when vines, roses, Wistarias, or other luxuriant climbers, are to be trained against the gable ends of houses, as shown in fig. 313. 809. Instruments and materials. — In addition to those mentioned (784) as required for training in general, we may add fir training against walls and trellises, — a pair of scissors for clipping the shreds ; a hammer, with a shaft of sufficient length, that when hung on one round of the ladder by the head, the other may rest on the round below so as not to fall through ; a leathern wallet, such as that figured and described in p. 167, or in default of it a baslcet, fig. 823, about twelve inches long, siif inches broad, and six inches deep, with loops to put a belt through on one side, that it may hang before the operator, having the side on which the loops are made bending to rest Fig. 323. Train the better against his body, and a di- *'''* '"'**«'• vision in the middle for two different sorts of shreds — the longer of these should be an inch or more in breadth, and the shorter, for the bearing shoots of peaches and nectarines, about a third of an inch (Hitt) ; a deal plank to tread upon, with a strap at each end to drag it along either way, or to lift it with one hand ; a small pair of pincers for drawing out nails in places where the hammer cannot be so conveniently employed, and a pair of pliers, if wire is used as ties ; a key or narrow saw (fig. 202, in p. 290) for taking off old branches ; a mallet, and a chisel about two inches broad at the mouth, for the same purpose ; to which we may add a couple of step-ladders, on which a plank may be placed at different heights parallel to the wall for the operator to stand on, by which he will do much more work, and with much greater ease to himself. In cutting branches of trees trained against walls, the cut or wounded section should always, if possible, be on the under side of the branches, or next the wall ; and in the case of espaliers, it ought to be on the under side. 810. Comparative view of the different modes of training. — It is well to understand the various methods of training detailed in the foregoing pages ; and knowing them, any modification may be adopted which circumstances may require, provided the general principles are kept in view. Ornamental shrubs are easUy managed, because they have not a tendency to rear them- selves by forming a strong stem ; but with regard to fruit-trees, the case is otherwise. These, it is well knovnij if left to nature, form one strong stem, Fig. 32£. F erpendicular training comptete. TRAINING. 377 supporting a top which reaches the height of twenty, thirty, or forty feet, or more. In order to attain this, tlie sap rushes, whilst the tree is young and vigorous, towards the leading shoot ; and if lateral branehes are occasionally produced, the flow of sap is not strongly directed towards them con'.pared to tliat which is impelled towards the more upright part. At length, however, a ramification does take place, in comparison with which the leading shoot becomes less and less predominant, till it becomes ultimately lost amongst its compeers. A tolerably equal distribution of sap then results, and a conical or sphei'ical top is formed bearing fruit, not generally in the concavity, where it would be greatly excluded from light, but at the external surface, where the fruit itself and the leaves immediately connected with the buds producing it can be fully exposed to light, air, and dews. It was remarked that lateral branches were occasionally produced on the stem in the progress of its ascent. When the top is formed, these are placed at groat disadvantage, owing to tlieir being ovcrshaded, and they are then apt to decay, the tree assuming the character of a large elevated top supported on a strong naked stem. This is the natural disposition of trees, and to this it is necessary to attend in order that it maj' be counteracted where the natural form of the tree cannot be admitted. It should be borne in mind that the disposition to form an elevated naked stem is still strongly evinced in dwarf trees; although sub- divided, 3'et each branch possesses its share of the original disposition, and its lower and horizontal shoots are left to become weak in comparison with the upper and those that are vertical. 811. A standard tree, fi'oui its being least restrained from attaining its natural habit, requires least management in regard to training, as has been already explained. When trained in any dwarf form, attention is in the first place required towards counteracting the disposition to form one large elevated stem by stopping the leading shoot. In this and other processes in pruning and training, it is necessary to be aware of the nature of the buds on different parts of the shoot, and the effect of cutting near or at a distance fiom the base. Where a shoot is shoi-tened, the remaining buds are stimu- lated, and those immediately below the section seldom fail to produce shoots, even although they would have otherwise remained dormant. The lowest buds on the base of a shoot do not generally become developed, unless the shoot is cut or broken above them. They remain endowed with all their innate vital power', although comparatively in a state of repose ; but should the shoot on the liase of which these buds are situated be destroj'ed or amputated, very soon they are called into vigorous action, producing supple- mentary shoots much stronger than could be obtained from any other buds more remote from the base. Were these buds as prone to development as others, a mass of shoots and foliage would be produced in the central parts, where the foliage could not have a due share of light, an arrangement that would prove bad. They must be looked upon as being placed in reserve for furnishing wood shoots, whenever the pruner chooses to stimulate their development by amputating the portion of shoot above them. 812. From this view of the properties belonging to the lowest situated buds, it is evident they are the most unlikely to become fruit -buds. These are formed towards the extremities. In some cases they are terminal ; but generally about two-thirds from the base is the situation where fruit-buda are first formed, and in some kinds of fruit-trees are developed into blossom the following season, and in otliers the basis of a spur is established. This 378 ■WEEDING. spur sometimes continues slowly to elongate for years before it produces fruit. As tlie strongest shoots are obtained from buds near the bases of shoots, and as all horizontally trained branches grow weak compared with those that have a more vertical position, it follows that all horizontal branches and those approac'iing that direction should be obtained, as far as circum- stances will permit, from buds situated near the base. Hence in horizontal training, say a foot apart between the tiers of branches, it is not well to encourage two tiers in the same season ; for in that case the tier that pro- ceeds from buds two feet from the base of the current year's shoot, has a much less substantial origin than those tliat are produced from buds only a foot from the base. The foruiation of two tiers should therefore nevir be attempted whilst the lower part of the wall is being furnished ; for the lower horizontals have a tendency to become ultimately weak, and on this account it is requisite that their origin should be well established. Towards the top of the tree, where the sap flows with greater force, two tiers are less objectionable. According to the principles of Seymour's training, the ori- ginating of the side branches from buds near the base of the vertical central shoot is well provided for, and this ought to be kept in view in every mode of training adopted. In order to furnish well the lower part of a tree, it is necessary to procure strong branches, and these can be best obtained from the lower part of a strong central shoot ; and in order that this shoot may have sufficient strength, it must have a vertical position. If no central shoot is retained, one of three evils must result : either the central part must remain open as the tree increases, with half fans on each side ; or a shoot to produce others to fill the centre must be encouraged from one side, thus upsetting the balance of the tree ; or, to avoid this, two or more vertical or nearly vertical shoots must be allowed, the divarications from which cannot bo kept clear of each other, whilst likewise a great proportion of shoots must inevitably be placed nearly or quite perpendicular, relatively with which the horizontal branches below are situated at an infinite disad- vantage as regards the distribution of sap. Trees commenced to be trained in nurseries have often the objectionable form imposed upon them of an open centre, being deprived of an upright shoot and set off like a V ; and similarly objectionable are the MontreuU and other modes on the same principle. With skilful management, these modes do succeed in France ; but in the rich soil and humid climate of Britain, the flow of sap cannot be equalised by any mode that admits of a competition between vertical and horizontal bi'anches. One upright is necessary for furnishing side branches ; but being annually cut back for this purpose, it does not gain any increasing ascend- ency, and forms but a slight exception to the whole flow of sap being directed to the growth of the side branches ; and in consequence of this, these branches wUl become so well established, that they will be capable of receiving a due share of sap to enable them to continue healthy, instead of dying off, as is their tendency when the vigour of the tree is wasted in exuberant wood induced by permitting shoots, either intentionally or through neglect, to follow their natural disposition to grow up into stems, wherever they can avail themselves of a favourable, that is, an upright position, for appropriating an abundant supply of sap. {Gard. Mag. 1842.) § XI — Weeding. 813. A weed is any plant which comes up in a situation where it is not WEEDING. 379 ■wanted. It may be either an absolute weed, such as aie all plants of no known use ; or a relative one, such as a useful plant where it comes up and is not wanted among other useful plants, or on walks, walls, &c. Weeds are injurious by depriving the soil of the nutriment destined for other plants ; by depriving other plants of the space they occupy, as in the case of weeds in beds of seedlings, and of broad-leaved plants on lawns ; by their shade, when they are allowed to grow large ; and by their mere existence, as wlien tliey appear on gravel-walks. In those parts of gardens where the soil ia kept constantly pulverised on the surface, the most numerous weeds consist of annual plants ; but among the grass of lawns, and sometimes among crops which remain in one place for more than a year, perennial weeds also make their appearance. The seeds of weeds are brought into gardens by stable dung, by birds, by the wind, by fresh soil brought in for the renewal of borders, for compost, &c., and by some other sources ; and they are perpe- tuated there by being allowed to come to maturity and shed their seeds. The obvious mode of preventing the existence of all absolute weeds, whether annual or perennial, would be to prevent all weeds, whether in gardens or fields, from ripening seeds, by cutting them down before they come into flower ; and this, we think, ought to be made an object of national concern for the sake of the agriculture of the country, even more than for its gar- dening. .Prices per peck or per bushel might be offered for the unopened flower-buds of different weeds, according to their bulk or frequency, to be paid by parish-officers to such children and infirm persons as might find it worth while to collect them, nothing being paid for those buds which have been suffered to expand. This practice, we are informed, exists in some parts of France and in Bavaria ; but to be effective in any country it ought to be general. In the mean time, all that can be done is to destroy weeds as fast as they appear. 814. Annual weeds among growing crops are readily destroyed in dry weather by hoeing, and leaving them, if very young, to die where they have grown ; but if large, they may be raked off and wheeled to the compost ground, where mixed with soil or with other putrescent matters, they will be speedily decomposed and rendered fit for manure. Wherever casings of dnng or other fermenting materials to hotbeds are in use, weeds, if laid on them or mixed with them, will assist in aiding fermentation ; or when dig- ging and trenching are going forward, they may be buried in the soil at once. In hoemg up annual weeds, it is sufficient, as far as regards their destruction, to cut them over beneath the seed-leaves, which commonly rest on the surface of the ground ; but as the object of hoeing is commonly not only to destroy weeds but to stir the soO, the hoe ought to be thrust in much deeper in order to attain both objects. In moist soils and in moist weather, care must be taken not to hoe so deep as partially to bury the weeds, which in that case, instead of being destroyed, may be said to undergo a kind of transplantation. Weeds among broadcast crops which stand thick on the ground, such as onions, spinach, &c., require to be pulled up by hand ; and for this purpose a moist state of the soil is preferable, but not so much as to occasion poaching by the feet of the weeder, unless indeed the plants should be in beds, where they may be weeded immediately after the heaviest ranis. 815. Perennial weeds, except when they are quite young and not far advanced beyond the sead-leaf, when they may be treated as annuals, require more care to eradicate than annual weeds. Their roots generally must be 380 WEEDING. raiseJ up by a fork, weeding-hogk, spade, trowel, or some other implement, which penetrates deeper than the hoe ; and great care must be taken with underground stems, such as those of the couch-grass, the small field convol- vulus, the hedge nettle, and others, to take up every joint, otherwise the result will merely be the propagation of these weeds by division. Among growing crops, the two-pronged fork (fig. 34, in p. 135) is the only safe instrument for eradicating root-weeds, for reasons which we omit, because like many other reasons which we do not giVe, we consider them sufficiently obvious to the reader who has perused the preceding chapters of this work with due attention. 816. Weeds in gravel-walks should always be taken out by weeding, and never, in our opinion, by hoeing and raking ; and for amateurs, who do not wish to stoop, there is the implement, fig. 80, in p. 135, as well as the Guernsey weeding-prong. fig. Ifl5, in p. 238. Salt has been used to destroy vegetation on walks, but its effects do not last above a year, as the first winter's rain washes it into the subsoil ; besides, the attraction of salt for moisture has been found (Gard. Chron, for 1841, p. 846) to encourage the growth of mosses and other cryptogamic plants to such an extent, as to give the walks a slimy, slippery surface after rain, and during winter and spring. Sulphate of copper (the blue vitriol of druggists) effectually destroys moss and other plants, is more durable in its effects than salt, and is not attended with the same humidity and attraction for the seeds of crjptogamic plants. It must not be forgotten, in using salt and other compositions for destroying weeds on walks in kitchen-gardens and shrubberies, that the roots of wall and espalier trees generally find their way under gravel, and consequently that if such mixtures are used for two or three years in succession, they may desti-oy the trees as well as the weeds. In some gardens, in order to destroy weeds in walks at the least expense, the walks are hoed and raked, and frequently left in this state without being rolled. In wet climates and retentive soils, where walks are covered with loose rough gravel in order that they may be walked on immediately after rain, as is the case in some country residences in Scotland, this is proper ; but where walks are made of binding gravel or sand, we consider this practice in bad taste, because it confounds the character of the surface of the walk, which to walk comfort- ably on ought to be firm, even, and smooth, with that of the dug border, which ought to be always more or less rough to facilitate the admission of air and moisture to the roots of the plants. In a shady shrubbery walk, or a gravel-walk through a wood, the appearance of moss is to our eyes much less offensive than would a suiface hoed and raked, however free the latter might be of vegetation. 817. Weeds in lawns or on grass-walks include all the broad-leaved plants which spring up among the proper glasses, not even excepting the clovers, commonly sown witli them to give the grass a better hold of the scytlie in mowing. All these broad-leaved plants, and even all broad-leaved grasses, such as the cocksfoot, ought to be weeded out if it is intended to have a per- fect lawn, which to be so ought to resemble a piece of cloth in uniformity of texture and appearance. The worst weeds in lawns are those which have very broad and flat reclining leaves, which the scythe is apt to pass over, leaving them to feed the roots, such as certain species of plantago, dandelion, &c. ; and these are tlie more difficult to eradicate, because they have tap-roots, fur- nished with adventitious buds which seldom fail to be developed, unless tiip WEEDINQ. 381 l-dois are cut over two or three inches beneath the surface. The common daisy is very troublesome in lawns by the breadth of the tuft formed by its leaves ; but being a fibrous-rooted plant it is easily eradicated, and provided none are allowed to ripen seed, a lawn may soon be cleared of them. In lawns not frequently mown, the daisy rake (fig. 35, in p. 136) or daisy knife (fig. 50 d, in p. 140) ought to be employed to cut ofi^ the flowers before they expand. 818. Weeds in shrubberies and plantations. — So long as shrubberies are annually dug, the weeds are kept under by hoeing and raking ; but when these operations have ceased, and the shrubs do not cover the whole of the surface, the interstices generally exhibit coarse grasses and rampant weeds ; and it is not a little remarkable that this is often found to be the case in grown-up shrubberies, where the walks are kept clear of weeds, and their edgings carefully trimmed, as if the eye of the spectator were not directed to the scenery on each side. If the object were a fac-simile imitation of a natural wood, then every weed that came up might be allowed to grow and flourish ; but as we are referring to shrubberies, which are always artificial plantations, and chiefly of foreign plants, — in these, we say, no herbaceous plant ought to be allowed to grow up and flourish, that is, not as artificial as the trees and shrubs among which it appears. If therefore the shrubbery in its young state contained flowers as well as shrubs, and is to maintain a pictur- esque character, the flowers may be allowed to exist till the encroachment of the shrubs destroys them; but if the character to be maintained is the gardenesque (in which every plant should stand free, with sufficient room to display its natural shape), then no more herbaceous plants ought to be allowed to exist than can attain a proper size and degree of perfection. All the others interfere with the character to be maintained, and ought therefore to be treated as weeds. The manner in which these are removed in shrub- beries and plantations which have ceased to be dug is chiefly by mowing, which ought to be done three or four times in the course of summer. Where shrubberies are properly managed, digging, or at least hoeing, among the plants will not cease till the shrubs have nearly or altogether covered the ground, in which case very few weeds will appear. In many cases, the ground may be covered with low evergreens, such as ivy, tutsan, periwinkle, spurge, laurel, &c., when the larger shrubs and trees may stand at a consi- derable distance apart, and yet little or no weeding become necessary. When large weeds only are to be pulled out of shrubberies, this may sonietianes be dene with weeding pincers (fig. 324) after the weeds have thrown up their flower-stems ; but the evil, both in regard to exhausting the soil and appearance, is in that case in a great measure already eflfected, therefore the best mode is to cut them over a few inches beneath the surface with the weeding spud (fig. 28, in p. 134), as soon as they make theu- appearance in spring. 819. Weeds in woods and park scenery are chiefly de- stroyed by mowing ; and it has been found, as already mentioned (774), that bruising and tearing off the stems often destroy the root more effectually than cutting with the scythe. In thick woods consisting of trees and un- der growths, the ground is generally so effectually covered Fig. 324, Weeding ^j^jj ^\^Q bushes that no weeds can make their appear- '^ 382 WATERING. aiico ; but in groves of trees, and ia plantations formed in Mr. Croe's manner, there will always be spaces more or less liable to throw up rampant weeds, which in merely useful plantations ought to be mowed and left to decay on the spot, for the sake of the manure which they will affox-d to the trees. In cultivated or smooth park scenery, all coarse weeds should he got rid of, so as to present a smooth turf ; but in rough forest park scenery, all the plants which it produces should be allowed to grow as being appropriate : of these, the large fern or brake {pteris aquilina) is peculiarly characteristic. 820. Weeding ponds, rivers, and artificial waters, in garden and park scenery, is often very expensive by its being necessary to empty and clean out the bottom and sides of the excavation. Much of this trouble and expense might be rendered unnecessary in many cases by mowing over the weeds in the bottom of the water, when they first make their appearance there in early spring, and repeating the operation at short intervals till the roots are destroyed from the want of elaborated sap sent down by the leaves. (See more on this subject in par. 548.} It should be constantly borne in mind, that all weeds and all plants whatever may be effectually destroyed by depriving them of their leaves as fast as they are produced (113). ^ XII. Watering. 821. Water, whether as a source of nutriment or a medium of affecting various other objects, is one of the most important agents of culture. A certain degree of moisture in the soil is essential to the existence of plants ; because no food can be absorbed by the roots that is not held in solution by water, and because the decomposition of water, and its perspiration from the leaves and bark are continually going forward. Plants require a certain degree of moisture at their roots not only when ia active growth, but when in a state of comparative rest, because even then perspiration is going on with those parts which are above the ground, and with the roots themselves when plants are taken up for transj^anting. In the season of growth the demand for water is greatly increased, and it diminishes as the period of gi'owth advances, and the power of decomposition and evaporation ceases. If water in excess is given at this period of the growth of a plant, its parts hecome distended in consequence of the absorption by the spongioles still going on, while the power of decomposition and perspiration by the leaves is diminished ; it becomes sickly, its leaves assume a yellow colour, and if the excess of water is not soon withdrawn from the soil, death ensues. By pulverizing soils and increasing their depth, their capacity for holding water is increased, while by underground draining it cannot be retained in excess. By these means, and by the addition of manures acting mechanically and keeping the soil open, a great facility is afforded to the extension of the roots, and the vigour of the plants is increased in proportion, but at the same time the power of the roots to exhaust the soil of water becomes greatly increased. If under such circumstances a proportionate supply of water is not afforded at the proper time, either by nature or art, the growth of the plant will fall much short of what it might be ; of which examples may be seen both in garden and field crops, by comparing the croos of a moderately wet summer with those of a very dry one. It may be con- cluded, therefore, that the full benefits of stirring the soil, draining and manuring, cannot be obtained without a command of water. wATr-uiNO. 383 822. Tlie specific purposes for which water is used in Horticulture ave numer- ous. In general it may be applied wherever a stimulus is wanted to growth, unless indeed the soil be already sufficiently moist. It is given to newly sown seeds, or newly planted plants ; for the purpose of setting blossoms, swelling fruits, increasing the number and succulency of leaves ; conveying manure held in suspension ; conveying matter for destroying insects, or parasitic fungi, such as the mildew ; or poisoning plants on walls or gravel walks ; for causing substances in powder to adhere to plants, as in applying sulphur and other articles ; for clearing the leaves and stems of plants from dust or other foreign matters ; for accelerating vegetation when the water is wanner than the soil ; for retarding it when it is cooler ; for thawing frozen plants ; for forming steam or dew in plant structures ; for rooting cuttings of some kinds of plants (602) ; for growing aquatics, for heating plant struc- tures, and for producing fountains and other aquatic ornaments. Water in the form of snow, forms a valuable protection to low plants when they can be covered by it, acting as a non-conductor of the heat of the soil, and pie- venting it from escaping into the atmosphere ; and water as ice is an object of the gardener's care, the filling of the ice-house being generally committed to him. On the quantity of rain or snow which falls in any country, and on the proportions which fall in different seasons of the year, depends, as we have already seen, (140 to 144,) the natural vegetation of that country, its agriculture, and all that part of its horticulture which is carried on in the open garden. 823. The ordinary sources from which water is obtained in gardens are chieily wells, and the collection of rain water in cisterns ; but it occasionally happens that a natural stream passes through or near the garden, or that water is conveyed to it by pipes or drains from some abundant source. In whichever way water is supplied it ought always to be exposed in a pond or basin, so as to be warmed by the sun to the same temperature as the suiiace of the soil before being used ; unless indeed the object be to retard vegetation by its coldness, which can very seldom be the case. Some very interesting experiments were made by Mr. Gregor Drummond, in 1826, on the com- parative effects of spring water and pond water, in lowering or raising the temperature of the soil of a peach border, which it may be useful to quote. 1. " The first experiment was made on the 10th of May. At the depth of 18 inches the temperature of the border was 64°, and that of the spring- water used 46°. In twenty-four hours after, the temperature of the border was reduced to 52°, or had lost 12°. At the same time the temperature ot the soil being 64° as above, and heat of the pond water 67°, the soil at the close of twenty-four hours was 66°, or instead of losing 12", had gained 2°. 2. " June 20th the second watering was given. The temperature of the border at the depth of 18 inches was now 74°, and that of the spring water 62". In twenty-four hours the border was reduced to 68°, or had lost 16". " At the station where the pond water was used the temperature of the border at the above-mentioned depth was 77°, and that of the water 82°. In twenty-four hours the temperature of the border was 80°, or had gained 3°. 3. " The third and last watering was performed on the 28th of July. The temperature of the border at 18 inches below the surface was 72°, and that of the spring water S7°. In twenty ^four hours the border was reduced to 61°, or had lost 11° of temperature. At the pond water station the border at the depth of 18 inches was 78°, and the water itself 74". In twenty-four c c 2 384 WATEUINO. hours the temperature of the border was still 78°, or had suffered no clianga of temperature from the watering it had undergone. " It is very clear from these facts, that whilst spring water greatly cooled the soil, that from the pond exerted no such operation, but on the contraiy often raised its temperature." — {Hort. Trans., vol. ii. 2nd series, p. 67.) Hence in our opinion every complete kitchen garden, and every flower garden whatever, ought to have a basin, or basins of water in a centrical situation fully exposed to the sun. In every plant structure there ought to be a cistern to receive the rain water which falls on the roof; and if con- venient, another for pond or well water, which should only be used when there is a deficiency of rain water. In plant structures where little air is given, and the atmosphere kept constantly moist, as in the propagating houses of Mr. Cunningham of Edinburgh (574), the water which falls on the roof is found abundantly sufficient for every purpose for which it is required within throughout the year. 824. The distribution of water in gardens is in some cases effected by open surface guttera of hewn stone, as was the case in the gardens at Douglas Castle, in Kirkcudbrightshire, in 1804 and for many years afterwards, and in others by leaden pipes under the surface, the gutters or pipes communicating with small basins, or sometimes with sunken casks, conveniently distributed over the garden. When these basins do not exceed eighty feet or one hundred feet apart every way, the entire surface of the garden may be watered from them by means of a portable engine, (fig. 83 in p. 156). In some cases a cistern or reservoir is placed on an eminence exterior to the garden, or in a tower connected with its walls or its plant structures; and the water is conveyed by pipes to different places throughout the garden and hot-houses, from whence it may be drawn into watering pots or engines by means of cocks ; or leathern hose may be screwed on to the cocks, and the water, in consequence of the elevation of the cistern or basin, distributed at once among the plants. In some instances where the basin is considerably higher than the top of the walls, the water is delivered with such force from the orifice of the hose, as to wash the trees as effectually as is done by a syringe or an engine. Gardens situated on declivities are favourable for this kind of aiTangement, which is not unfrequent in the north of England and in Scotland. Where there is an abundant supply of water from a source 40 or 50 feet above the level of the garden, a series of pierced pipes might be distributed over it, about the height of the walls, and thus a shower over any part of the garden commanded at pleasure, on the same principle as in the hot-houses of Messrs. Loddiges. (613.) 826. The ordinary mode of giving water to plants is by watering pots (425 and 426) and by watering engines (440). On a large scale it is sometimes con- veyed in barrels on carts, [ ...a... ■■...■.,-...,. ^ ^\ and distributed over lawns, ^^ and plantations of straw- ^'S- 326- irai«r-(iij(ni.«toi-/or , . ,11 1 , the Katering barrows, berries or other low plants Fig. 32S. Watering-iarrow/or i^ rows, by the same means as in watering roads ; ctrawtcrries. or by such barrels as fig. 325. To this barrel is joined the perforated cylinder fig. 326, which projects about two feet from one side ; a plug 6 prevents the escape of the water till the barrel is wheeled to the WATERiwa. 385 proper spot ; this plug has a cord o, attached to which a slip of wood c, is suspend- ed; and the moment the operator entersbetween the rows of plants to be watered, he pulls the string, and as he wheels along the barrel, the water rapidly escapes, watering two rows at a time. In this manner the strawberries in the market gardens in the neighbourhood of London are watered, when they are in blossom. When the leaves of plants are to be cleaned from dust or other matters that water alone will bring off; or when liquid compositions, such as lime water, tobacco water, sopy water, &c., are to be thrown on them, the syringe or engine is used, and when water is applied to small plants, or very small seeds newly sown, recourse is had to a small w^atering pot with a very fine rose. 826. When it is proper to water, and how much water to give, must be determined by the circumstances in which the plant is placed. In nature the atmosphere is very rarely otherwise than saturated with moisture, when it rains ; but as artificial watering is a substitute for rain, it must not be withheld when the plant requires it, on account of atmospheric dryness. As the nearest approach to the state of the atmosphere in which nature supplies water, the afternoon or evening may be chosen when the air is both cooler, and somewhat moister than during sunshine. As in soils that are stirred on the surface, the greater part of the roots are always at some depth, the quantity of water given should be such as will thoroughly moisten the interior of the soil, and reach all the roots. A slight watering on the surface, unless the soil is already moist below, will not reach the fibres, and will soon be lost by evaporation. When a less quantity of water is supplied than will saturate the soil to the depth of from nine inches to twelve inches, " it often," Mr. Hayward observes, " does more injury than good to plants ; for when in want of water the roots penetrate deep, and under such circum - stances a small quantity of water on the surface checks the capillary attrac- tion of moisture from below ; and thus the roots that are grown deep, which are those on which the plant is made to depend in times of great drought, are deprived of their supply of water, and the plant exerts its efforts to throw out horizontal fibres ; by the time these fibres are formed and the young shoots extended, the supply of water on the surface again fails, and they are again checked, and perhaps destroyed t thus the efforts of the plant being uselessly exhausted between the two extremes of a supply and a deficiency of water, it naturally declines in its growth, and hence arises the general opinion that watering in dry weather injures, more than it benefits plants." (^An Inquiry, iSfc, p. 63.) Most water is required by plants that are in a vigorous state cf growth and have a large breadth of foliage ; least by those which have nearly completed their growth ; and in general none by plants in a dormant state, excepting in such eases as that of watering grass lawns in summer to stimulate vegetation, or irrigating meadows after they have been mown for the same purpose. In the case, however, of excessive dryness, some degree of moisture must be afforded to such plants as are liable to become desiccated even though dormant. Succulent plants, for example, will bear a great degree of dryness, through a protracted period ; whei eas others that perspire more through the bark would be completely dried up if equally exposed to drought. The application of water to plants in pots in a dormant state is one of the commonest and most injurious errors committed by persons unacquainted with the principles of culture. It does compara- tively little harm to plants in the free soil in the open garden, but to plants 386 WATEEINO. in pots, and especially to those having safiruticose stems, such as the pekr- gonium, or to hair-rooted plants, such as heaths, and to all bulbs, it is ex- tremely injurious, and often destructive of life. In the first case more water is absorbed by the roots than can be decomposed by the leaves ; in the second case the roots are suffocated and rotted from their delicacy ; and in the third, rotting takes place from mere organic absorption ; for when the leaves of bulbs decay, their roots decay also, and consequently they cannot absorb water by their spongioles ; while absorption by the tissue still going on, the vessels become surcharged and burst, and the bulb rots. Hence in the case of bulbs, and such like plants in pots, the soil in which they are kept should contain no more moisture than what is necessary to keep the bulb, tuber, or corm, in a succulent state; but in proportion to the dryness in which bulbs are kept at this season, should be the abundance of the supply of water when they begiu to grow. All bulbs will be found to flower in their natural habitats, either during, or immediately after a rainy or moist period of the year, as is the case with ovir wood hyacinths in spring, and with the colchicum in autumn ; and much more strikingly so with the bulbs and conns of Africa, which grow and flower only in the rainy season. When plants are ripening their fruit, a diminished supply of water increases the flavour, because at that period of growth the power of decomposing it is diminished j and if it is absorbed without being decomposed, the effect will be to render the fruit watery without flavour ; to crack it in some cases, to burst it in others, and in the case of all keeping fruits to shorten the period for which they may be kept. The same effects are produced by excess of water on bulbs, such as those of the onion ; on roots and tubers, (underground stems,) such as the tumip and the potato ; and even on leaves, such as those of the lettuce and the cabbage, which in wet cloudy seasons are never so highly flavoured as in seasons moderately moist, when succulency and flavour are combined. Water should sooner be withdrawn fi^m tender plants than from hardy ones in vigorous growth, and when practicable, it should be withdrawn from all plants in a growing state in time to admit of their ripening their wood. 827. Whether plants should he watered over the leaves or only over the soil in which they grow depends on the state of the plant, the temperature in which it is placed, the time of the day, the season of the year, and other circum- stances. Plants in a state of vigorous growth, in a suitable temperature in spring or summer, and in the afternoon or during cloudy weather, are better watered over the top, in order to make certain of dealing their foliage ; but late in autumn or during winter, when growth even in hothouses is or ought to be slow, owing to the deficiency of light, plants should be watered chiefly at their roots ; and while the most abundant supplies might be given in the fonner case, in the latter they ought to be moderate, because the vital powers of the plant are comparatively weak, and because a cold damp atmo- sphere, which watering over the top at that season might produce, would, by obstructing the perspiration of the leaves, occasion their decay. In general, all plants, whether in the open au- or in plant structures, ought to be watered over head during spring, summer, and the early part of autumn, unless they are in a dormant state, or there is some specific reason why what water they do receive should be given at the root. On the other hand, all plants in houses not undergoing forcing, and all plants whatever in the open ah" during the latter part of autumn, during winter, and in the early part of spring. WATERING. 387 should be watered only at the root. Watering over the top should in general never be performed during bright sunshine ; yet there are various plants with which this may be done with impunity, such as all the grasses ; and in the royal kitchen-garden at Versailles the Alpine strawberry is watered over head during bright sunshine throughout the whole summer, without any inconvenience being found to result to the plants. (C?. M., vol. xvii., p. 387.) Watering during summer should in general be performed in the afternoon or evening, because at these periods less will be carried off by evaporation than during the day ; while during winter and spring, watering ought to take place during the morning, tliat during the day the surface of the ground may be warmed and dried by evaporation and infiltration. In general, watering over the top is only necessary with plants in leaf; but plants, and especially trees, which have been newly transplanted, may be advantageously watered over the top to diminish evaporation from the bark, which without being so moistened might (736) lessen the amount of sap returned by it to the root. 828. Watering plants in pots requires much more consideration on the part of the waterer than watering in free soil. When the plant is in a dormant state, though it must not receive so much water as to excite it into growth, or distend its parts more than is necessary to prepare it for active vegetation, yet still it must receive as much as to prevent the soil from being so diy as to extract moisture from the roots. As a test for this being the cose, the soil in the pot, when opened or stiiTed up on the surface, ought to have a fresh appearance, neither moist nor dry ; nearly dry in the case of bulbs and tubers, and nearly moist in the case of dormant deciduous plants. Another difficulty in watering plants in pots is to ascertain that the vrater given has penetrated the whole of the soil in the pot. The ball or mass of soil is frequently so filled with roots, or from its nature and treatment so compact (742), as not to be readily permeable by water, which in that case, after merely moistening the surface, escapes between the ball and the pot ; while the operator, seeing the water escaping from the bottom of the pot, concludes that the mass of soil has been thoroughly penetrated and saturated by it. Many greenhouse plants, particularly oranges, camellias, and heaths, are killed by this mode of deceptive watering, which may be traced to this cause, viz., that when once soil is thoroughly dried so as to become like dust, it loses the power of capillary attraction, and resists the entrance of Water unless accompanied by extraordinary pressure. Soil containing peat- earth is peculiarly liable to this kind of dryness when watering in proper time has been neglected ; and hence the value of Mr. McNab's mode (749) of mixing with such soil pieces of broken freestone. To ascertain when the water has penetrated the mass of soil in a pot, it is common to thi-ust into it, not far from the stem of the plant, a round pointed stick, and to make sure of moistening the interior, to pour in water in the hole so formed. In loamy soils, or soils containing a large proportion of sand, this mode will suffice for saturating the ball ; but in the case of heath-soil, it becomes necessary to immerse the pot and the plant in a vessel of water, so that ihe soil shall be six inches or a foot under its surface, and thus receive a pressure sufficient to cause the escape of the contained air. Another class of evils in watering plants in pots arises from their not being sufficiently drained, which may arise either from the operation having been impropeily per- fonncd in potting or shifting, or from the crevices among the chainan-e 388 STIRRING THE SOIL, AND MANURING. having become choked up by the washing down of the soil. In this case, tlie water, not efcaping freely from the pot, produces all the evils of stagna- tion already mentioned (821); the spongioles burst and the fibres rot, the leaves become yellow and drop off, and the bark, being distended by moisture, separates from the wood, the plant in the meantime being killed. Nothing is more common than cases of this kind in the greenhouses and window- gardens of amateurs ; and it is very frequent also in collections of plants in pots, such as alpines, under the care of regular gardeners, whose workmen or apprentices water them indiscriminately, with little or no regard to the state of the plant or the soil in the pot. The obvious manner of preventing this evil is, whenever there is the slightest suspicion of overwatering, to turn the plant out of the pot, examine the drainage, which will come out with the ball, and take it off and replace it with fresh materials. It would be well also, in the case of all plants that are likely to be overwatered, to use a larger proportion of sand in the soil, and to put extra drainage in the bottom of the pot, and also to introduce among the soil a considerable proportion of fiagments of freestone. 829. Aquatic and marsh plants, being grown in water, or in soil saturated with it, form exceptions to the treatment required for plants in general ; nevertheless it has been observed of these that they always grow with most vigour when the atmosphere is moist, whether produced in hot-houses by watering over the top, or iu the open air by rain. The cause, De Candolle thinks, may be iu part traced to the state of the electricity of the atmosphere during rain ; and perhaps something also may be due to the temporary cessation of excessive evaporation. 830. Watering with liquid manure is necessarily confined to the soil, and is most advantageous when given to plants in a growing state ; because, though at other seasons a portion of it would still be absorbed by the roots, yet the greater part would be washed into the subsoil. See § xiii. 831. To economise the water given to plants, more especially in the open air, the surface is sometimes mulched with fibrous or littery matter, or even ■with small stones or pebbles. Both materials retain moisture and heat ; while stones or pebbles, by becoming soon dry, prevent surface-damp, and reflect much heat during sunshine. The strawberry is sometimes mulched with straw, and sometimes with tiles or slates, or pebbles, for the double purpose of retaining moisture and keeping the ripening fruit clean ; and the surface of the ground in the rose nurseries about Paris is sometimes mulched with straw, to save watering, and prevent the rose-beetle from depositing her eggs in the soil. § XIII. Stirring the Soil, and Manuring. So much has already been said on these subjects that it is only necessary Jiere to advert to the chapters in pages 45 and 66, and to page 227. 832. Stirring the soil is advantageous by the admission of air, rain, and heat to the roots of plants, by promoting evaporation in moist soils, and by retaining moisture in such as are dry. In the latter case the dry loose soil on the surface acts as a mulching or non-conductor to the soil below ; and ill the former it acts by exposing a greater number of moistened particles to ihe air than could bo the case if these particles were consolidated. The (vlfcbrated agriculturist Curwcn found that an acre of pulverised soil eva- PROTECTION FROM ATMOSPHERICAL INJDIilES. 389 porated 050 lbs. of water in an hour, while the same soil and the same extent of surface not pulverised, scarcely evaporated anything. 833. Manuring. — Permanent manures, such as stable dung and other solid substances, are for the most part incorporated with the soil when it is dug or trenched before being cropped, and it is generally thought that most advantage may be obtained from them when they are deposited near the surface. Temporary manures, such as soot, bone-dust, and other powders, waste yeast (one of the richest of manures), and liquid manures, such as decoc- tions of dung, and solutions of salts of different kinds, are most advantageously applied on the surface of the ground, and to growing crops. § XIV. Blanching. 834. The operation of blanching, or depriving the leaves and stems of plants of their green colour, is effected by excluding light from the growing plant, in consequence of which it is produced without colour, and without that portion of its flavour which depends on colour. The tubers of potatoes are blanched naturally, because in general they are produced under the surface of the soil, or they are shaded by the foliage of the plant. The points of the shoots of asparagus are blanched, in Britain, by covering the crowns of the plants with a stratum of light loose soil, and on the Continent by the same means, or by placing covers of different kinds over them, as is done in this country with the sea-kale and tart rhubarb, by the use of the blancbing-pot (fig. 68, in p. 143). Celery is blanched as it grows, by drawing up earth so as to cover the petioles of the leaves ; and this operation is performed from time to time as long as the plants continue to advance in height. The leaves of the chardoon are blanched in a similar manner, and sometimes by tying them round with ropes of hay or straw. The interior leaves of the common cabbage, and of the cabbage-lettuce and endive, are blanched naturally, but the process is sometimes heightened by tying up the leaves, and sometimes by coverings. In general, perennial plants in which the nutriment for the leaves of the coming year have been deposited in the roots during the year preceding, such as the asparagus, sea-kale, chicory, &c., may be blanched by covering them entirely either with soil or some kind of utensil ; while annual plants, the leaves and every part of which is the produce of the current year, require to have the ope- ration performed by degrees as the leaves advance in size, whether by tying up, earthing up, or by both modes. By the operation of tying up, two effects are produced : the inner leaves as they grow, being excluded from the light, are blanched ; and being compressed, in proportion to their number and the degree of growth which takes place after tying up, the head of leaves becomes at once tender and compact. Perennial and biennial plants yyith ramose roots may be blanched on a large scale, by placing the roots in soil, in a cellar or dark room ; but this cannot be done with annual plants, which must be grown in light, and blanched as they grow. Gourds, cucumbers, and apples, are sometimes blanched by growing them in opaque boxes or cases ; or they are grown with pale stripes, by partially covering them with strips of paper or cloth, made to adhere by gum or paste. § XV. Protection frorn Atmospherical Injuries, The great number of plants cultivated in this country, even in the open air, many of them from climates very different from oura, have given rise 31-0 PROTECTION FROM ATMOSPHERICAL INJURIES. to a variety of contrivances to protect them from atmospherical injuiics. The most effective of these is without doubt that of forming for sucii plants artificial climates, such as the different kinds of hot-beds and hot- houses ; but there are also various contrivances for protecting plants growing in the open air or against walls, and it is to these that we at present intend to confine our attention. They may be included under shading from the sun, sheltering from wind, and protecting from rain or from cold. Most of these operations are founded on the doctrine of radiation, which has been treated in so much detail in chap, iv., p. 67, that very little more requires to be said on the subject. 835. The object of shading is to lessen evaporation from the soil or from plants, or to exclude light or heat. It is effected by interposing some opaque niedium, or even glass in some cases, the purest of which as we have seen (486) excludes a certain portion of light, between the objects to be shaded and the direct rays of the sun, and this medium differs in its texture and other properties according as it is intended to be temporary or permanent. Mats and canvas are the common articles for temporary shading in the case of plants under glass ; but for plants in the open garden, hurdles of wicker-work, or frames filled in with beech or birch branches, screens of reeds ai-e used, or the plants are placed in the north, east, or west sides of walls or hedges. Sometimes also they are planted under trees ; but as this kind of shade excludes rain and dew, it is only adopted in particular cases. A slight degree of shade is produced by forming the surface of ground into narrow ridges in the direction of east and west, and sowing or planting the crop on the north side of the ridge. On the same principle, crops in rows in an advanced state are made to shade seedling crops sown between them, when shading them is desirable. Oil paper-caps, and other ai-ticles for shading individual plants have been figured and described (449), and also canvas shades for hot-house roofs (464). Some of the most severe injuries which plants trained against walls sustain in this country is by the powerful action of the sun in early spring, succeeded by extreme cold ; but by judi- cious shading such evils may be greatly mitigated or altogether avoided. 836. Sheltering from wind, the principles of which have been pointed out (26.5), is effected on a large scale by plantations, and in gardens by walls, hurdles, wicker-work covers (461), hand-glasses, and other articles described and figured in sect, vi., p. 158. 837. The principles of protecting from cold have been described at length in our chapter on the atmosphere (p. 67), and the different materials and contrivances for this purpose have been enumerated in the section (p. 168) just referred to. Coverings for the surface of the ground include dead leaves, litter, straw, sawdust, spent tan, rotten dung, coal ashes, coarse sand, spraj', and branches of trees or shrubs, &c. Coverings for standard plants in tlie open garden include temporary roofs of thatch, boards, canvas, wicker- work, bark, or manufactured materials, such as pitched paper, asphalte siiecting, &c. Coverings for walls include branches with the leaves on, such as those of the silver or spruce-fir, of the beech, birch, or hornbeam, cut before the wood is ripened, in consequence of wliich the leaves will adhere to the shoots, and being dead and without moisture, they are better non-conductors than green leaves, straw or hay ropes, rope-netting, canvas, bunting, woollen-netting, oiled paper-frames, wicker-work, hurdles, &c. By refen-ing to p. 173, it will be seen that thin canvas has been found the ACCELERATING VEGETATION. 391 preferable article for protecting wall fruit-trees in the Horticultural Society's garden, after fifteen years' experience. 838. Protecting from rain requires the application of some description of temporary roofing, impervious to water. For beds or borders in the open garden, frames or hurdles, thatched with drawn wheat straw or reeds, may be employed, and these will also protect standard plants ; or projected from the tops of walls, and supported by props in front, they will protect from rain both the tree and the border in which they are planted, (see 476). § XVI. Accelerating Vegetation. 839. The acceleration of the growth of plants may be effected by the position in which they are placed relatively to the rays of the sun, by with- drawing moisture, by sheltering from cold winds and rains, by the choice of early varieties, by pruning, and by the application of artificial heat. For crops of herbaceous vegetables in the open garden, the most general modes of acceleration are to cover with hand-glasses, or other portable frames with glass roofs (462) ; and to sow or plant in borders on the south side of east and west walls, and as near to the wall as circumstances will admit. Next to walls, the south sides of hedges or espalier rails are selected ; or, in default of either of these, ridges in the open garden, in the direction of east and west, are thrown up, their sides forming an angle of 46°, and on the south s^de of these the crop is sown or planted. The growth of early peas and early potatoes is frequently accelerated in this manner, and also the ripening of strawberries, and the growth of spinach, lettuce, and other culinary plants ; and Mr. Errington, a scientific gardener of great experience, says that all early crops whatever may be thus produced within one week of those on a south wall border. The dififerent modes of protection from cold and rain, mentioned in the preceding section (834 to 836), are sub- servient to acceleration ; and dry warm soil, culture in pots by which the plants are rendered portable, and the selection of early varieties, are obvious adjuncts. The ripening of fruit, more especially on ligneous plants, may be hastened by ringing, after the blossoms are fully expanded, or even after the fruit is set. Mr. Williams, of Pitmaston, found that ringing vines, not only ripened the fruit earlier, but rendered the berries larger, and of higher flavour. Of two vines growing together against a wall, the one ringed shortly after the blossoming season ripened its fruit perfectly in the beginning of October, while the fruit on the other vine which was not ringed was destroyed by frost. The rings of bark taken off were rather less than a quarter of an inch in width (^Hort. Trans., iv., p. 65). It is probable also, that the fruit of herbaceous plants, such as the tomato or the capsicum, or the seeds of tender annuals, such as the Zinnia and the Thunbergia, may be accelerated by ringing or constricting the stems by tying, to check the return of the sap. 840. Artificial heat for the purpose of acceleration is applied by means of fermenting substances, as in hot-beds (465 and 489), the combustion of fuel, as in hot walls (475) and hot-houses of various kinds, whether heated by flues, hot-water, or steam (480). The different kinds of hot-houses and pits, and their general management, have been already given (480 to 622) ; nnd we shall here confine ourselves to what concerns hot-beds and pits heated by fermenting materials. 841. Hotbeds are chiefly made of stable-dung; but tanners' bark, leaves 392 ACCELERATINO VEGETATION. of trees, and especially oak -leaves, mown grass, weeds, clij)ping3 of hedges, and almost every other article capable of putrescent fermentation, may be used either alone or with stable-dung. Tanners' bark, or oak-leaves, are found the preferable fermenting materials for hot-beds iu hot-houses, because they undergo less change in bulk, and retain their heat longer than dung or any other fermentable substance that can be readily obtained in equal quantities. Leaves do not produce such a powerful heat as bark, but they have this advantage, that when perfectly decayed, they form a rich mould, which is useful both as soil and as manure ; while rotten tanners' bark is found rather injurious than useful to vegetation, unless it be well mixed with lime or with earth, or left till it is thoroughly decayed into mould. AVhen it ceases, therefore, to be used in the hot-house or hot-bed, it is employed in the open garden as a surface-mulching, to keep in heat or moisture. 842. Preparation of materials for hotbeds. — The object being to get rid of the violent heat which is produced when the fermentation is most powerful, it is obvious that preparation, whether of leaves, tan, and stable dung,must consist in facilitating the process. For this purpose, a certain degree of moisture and air iu the fermenting bodies are requisite ; and hence the business of the gardener is to turn them over frequently, and apply water when the process appears impeded for want of it, and exclude rain when it seems chilled and retarded by too much water. Recent stable-dung generally requires to lie a month in ridges or beds, and be turned over in that time thrice before it is fit for cucumber beds of the common construction ; but for M'Phail's hot- beds, or for linings or casings, or any description of hot-bed or pit, no time at all need in general be given, but the dung formed at once into linings I'an and leaves require iu general a month to bring them to a proper degree of heat ; but much depends on the state of the weather and the season of the year. Fermentation is always most rapid in summer ; and if the materials are spread abroad during frost, it is totally impeded. In winter, the process of preparation generally goes on, under cover from the weather, in tho back sheds ; which situation is also the best in summer, as full exposure to the sun and wind dries too much the exterior surface ; but where sheds cannot be had, it will go on very well in the open air. A great deal of heat is un- doubtedly lost in the process of fermentation ; and some cultivators have recently devised plans to turn it to some account, by fermenting dung in vineries which are just beginning to be forced, or in vaults under pine-pits or plant stoves. The latter mode seems one of the best in point of economy, and is capable of being turned to considerable advantage, where common dung-beds arc extensively used ; but the most economical plan of any is un- doubtedly that of employing M'Phail's pits, or such as are constructed on similar principles. 8i3. M'Phaifs hotbed or pit consists of two parts, the frame and lights of which are of wood, and not different from those used for growing cucumbei's, or other ordinary purposes, and the basement on which the frame is placed, which is flues of brickwork, with the outer wall uniformly perforated, or as it is commonly called pigeon-holed, as shown in fig. 135, in p. 196. Against these perforated flues linings of dung are formed, the steam of which enters the flue, and heats the earth inclosed. The chief objections to this plan are the first cost and the greater consumption of dung, which some allege ie required to keep up the proper heat. Its advantages are, that hot dung may ACCP.LEUATING VEGETATION. 393 he. usod without any preparation, by which much heat is gained ; and tliat in the winter months, wheii a powerful artificial heat is required, which (in the case of common hot-beds) ia apt to burn the plants, they are here in the coldest part of the soil, and cannot possibly be injured by any degree of heat, which can be communicated by dung. Fig. 327 is a section of a pit on c d. d. Pig. 327. Cross section of a pit on M'Phait's pri/iciple, with variations. this principle, with some improvements : a o is the surface of the ground ; b b, excavations for the dung-casings, 2^ feet deep, 18 inches wide at bottom, and 2 feet wide at the ground's surface ; the greater width at top being to prevent the dung from shi'inking from the side of the excavation as it sinks ; c is the outer perforated wall, a brick in width ; d, the inner wall of brick set on edge, and tied to the outer wall with occasional cross bricks ; e, is a layer of billet wood 1 foot in thickness to admit of the heat penetrating from each side, or the same object may be effected by a layer of loose stones ; J", a covering of fagot wood, over which a layer of turf or litter is placed to pre- vent the soil from sinking into and choking up the interstices in the layer of billet wood ; g, the bed of soil ; h, a trellis for vines, melons, or other plants, at one foot from the glass ; i, a gutter for receiving the water from the glass, and which should conduct it through a small pipe, either at one end, or in the middle to a small barrel, or to a cistern of slate or other material sunk in the soil of the pit in front. The preferable situation is mid way between either end, in order that the vapour of the water may be equally diffused in the atmosphere of the pit. By keeping the upper surface of the dung of the form shown in the figure, it will throw off the rain, which may be conducted away in small surface gutters. 844. The formation of common hotbeds is effectei by first making out the dimensions of the bed, which should be six inches wider on all sides than that of the frame to be placed over it, and then, by successive layers of dung laid on by the fork, raising it to the desired height, pressing it gently and equally throughout. In general, such beds are built on a level surface ; but Mr. Knight's forms a surface of earth as a basis, which shall incline to the horizon to the extent of 16° ; on this he forms the dung- bed to the same in- clination ; and, finally, the frame, when placed on such a bed, if, as is usual, it be deepest behind, will present its glass at an angle of 20°, instead of six or eight, which is undoubtedly of gi-eat advantage in the winter season. This seems a veiy desirable improvement where light is an object, which it must 394 ACCELEIIATING VEGETATION. be, in a high degi-ee, in the case of the culture of the cucumber and melons, as well as in forcing flowers. Sometimes a stratum of faggots or billet wood is placed on the ground as a foundation for the dung, which keeps it from being chilled ; and if here and there the stratum is carried up vertically for a foot in width and 18 inches in height, it will facilitate the entrance of heat when casings are applied, or of cold air, if the heat of the bed should be found too great. The ends of these vertical strata, when not to be used, should be covered with litter to prevent the escape of heat by them. 845. Ashes, tan, and leaves. — Ashes are often mixed with the dung of hotbeds, and are supposed to promote the steadiness and duration of their heat, and to revive it if somewhat decayed. Tan and leaves have also been used for the same purpose ; and it is generally found that about one-third of tan and two-thirds of dung will form a more durable and less violent heat than a bed wholly of dung. The heat of dung-beds is revived by linings, or collateral and surrounding walls, or banks of fresh dung, the old dung of the bed being previously cut down clo&e to the frames. These linings, as before observed, require less preparation than the dung for the beds. The dung- bed being formed, and having stood two or three days with the frame and lights placed over it to protect it from rain, is next to be covered with earth, of quality and in quantity according to the purpose to which it is to be applied. In severe weather, the sides of the bed are often protected by hurdles of straw or faggots, which tend to prevent the escape of heat. 846. The nightly coverivg to hotbeds and pits may be of boards, or of bast-mats, or reed or straw mats ; and the following mode of retaining the covering will be found neat as well as economical : — Three pieces of iron of the form of fig. 328, a, are screwed on to the end of the frame, one piece at the top, another at the bottom, and the other in the middle, so that the top of the iron is about two inches above the light; on the opposite end three pieces of the Tlg.^8. Detailgo/wtre/asteniiigmaUonJram€s,onesixtho/the/ullsixe, fj^^y^ „£ _ «j.g screwed on at the same distances as a / 6 is a side view of a, and d is a side view of c. A wire, three-eighths of an inch in diameter, and rather longer than the frame it is intended for, must be made with a loop at one end (/), to place over the iron d ; the other end must be fitted with a thumb-screw (e), to screw up the wire when it is placed in the notch g, which should be counter-sunk in the centre. Small hooks should be driven in the frames, either front or back, to lay the wires in when not in use. ( G. M., 1 842, p.l09) . 847. Management of hotbeds and pits heated by dung. — As the body of air inclosed is small, its temperature is easily raised too high by the sun, and depressed too much by high winds or very cold nights. The artificial supply of heat from the fermenting material not being under control is another cause of overheating, and hence the constant attention required to give or take away air during the day, and to regulate the coverings put on at night. Much mischief, as has been already observed, is produced by r5. y i 1 u (? '^ RETARDINO VEGETATION. 395 over-covering, and yet, for the reasons which we have just mentioned, it would be very unsafe to leave a hotbed uncovered during any of the nights of winter or early spring ; though later in the season, or where plate-glass is used, covering at night might be dispensed with. The covering should not be drawn over the linings so as to confine the steam ; which in that case would find its way into the frame to the injury of the plants. The temperature and moisture to be kept up in hotbeds vary with the kinds of plants, and the object in view. § XVII. Retarding Vegetation. 848. The different modes of retarding vegetation being in many cases the opposite of those for its acceleration, the subject may be similarly arranged. As on the south side of ridges of ground, in the direction of east and west, plants are accelerated by meeting the rays of the sun at a larger angle, so on the north side of such ridges, as well as on the north side of walls and hedges, they will be retarded by the exclusion of the sun's direct influence. Opaque coverings, put on in winter or in early spring, are also effective, more especially when of some thickness, by excluding the stimulus of light, and presenting a thicker mass to be penetrated by atmospheric heat. Thus herbaceous perennials, such as asparagus, rhubarb, sea-kale, and other plants which do not retain their leaves during winter, may, by a thick covering of leaves or litter put on in January, when the soil is at the coldest, be prevented from vegetating for a week or a month later than the same plants on a surface sloping to the south, without any covering, and with the soil dry and loosened about the collars of the plants. The production of blossoms and fruit may in many ca-jes be retarded by taking off the flower- buds at their first appearance in spring or early summer, as is often done with roses, strawberries, and raspberries, which when so treated flower and fruit a second time in the autumn. Even the common hardy fruit-trees, — the apple, pear, cherry, &c., — when so treated wUl blossom and set their fruit a second time in the same year, but it will not ripen from the length of time required. Currants and gooseberries, and even pears and apples on dwarfs, are preserved on the trees till Christmas, by matting them over ; and the season of wall-fruits and of grapes in hothouses is prolonged by excluding the sun and preserving the air dry. In general, all exogenous perennial herbaceous plants, when cut over as soon as their flower-buds are formed in spring, will spring up again and produce flower's a second time in autumn ; but this does not happen with endogens, excepting in the case of grasses and a few other plants. Retarding no less than accelerating may be effected by changing the habits of plants ; and thus, as plants which have vegetated early one season are likely also to vegetate early the season fol- lowing, so plants which have continued to grow late in autumn one year will be later in vegetating in the following spring, and continue to grow later in the autumn. There is a considerable difference in the natural earliness and lateness of vegetation in aU plants of the same species or variety raised from seed, and hence, early and late varieties may always be procured by selection from the bed of seedlings. By this means have been obtained all the earliest and latest varieties in cultivation both in fields and gardens. Seeds or plants procured from cold and late soils and situations, and brought to earlier ones, continue for a time to be late from habit, and the contrary ; and hence the practice of farmers in cold, late districts procuring their seed- 396 RESTING VEGETATION. com and potato-sets from low, warm districts, and the contrary. When plants are grown in pots, they can generally be more effectually either accelerated or retarded than by any other means ; because they may be at pleasure transferred to a cold-cellar, to an ice-house, or to a forcing-house. Thus fruit-trees and flowering shrubs in pots, put into an ice-house in January, will have their vegetation retarded for any length of time, as no growth can take place where the temperature is under the freezing-point. Plants so treated, if not retained too long, may be made to vegetate at any season that is desired, but the transition from the temperature of the ice- house to summer-heat must he very gradual, in order that the buds may be fully distended with sap before they are developed. Fruit or vegetables which would spoil or advance too far if left on the plants, such as peas, cauliflowers, cucumbei-s, peaches, &c., may be retained several daj'S in the state required in the ice-house, or in a room adjoining it, and even for a certain period in a cool cellar or shed. The earliest potatoes are obtained by some gai-deners by keeping them in a place so cool as to prevent vege- tation for two seasons : that is, the produce of the summer of one year is to be planted in the December of the year following. The German gardeners, by retarding the roots of the ranunculus in this manner, are enabled to pro- duce it in flower all the year, and the same thing might be efi'ectcd with various bulbs. The flowermg of annual plants is easily retarded by sowing them late in the year ; and on. this principle the gaiety of the flower-garden is preserved in autumn, and culinary productions, such as spinach, lettuce, &c., obtained throughout winter. § XVni. Resting Fegetation. 849. In the natural state of vegetation all plants experience a more or less low degree of temperature during the night than during the day. In the tropics the difierence is but little, particularly as regards plants that grow in the shade. It, however, increases from the torrid to the frigid zone ; and therefore artificial" temperature should be regulated accordingly. Tropical plants are injured by a greater discrepancy of temperature than occurs in their native regions. There the temperature independent of diiect sun heat is next to uniform. But in the case of such plants as the vine, the fig, and the peach, the natural habit of which extends to a latitude as high as 46°, a considerable range of temperature is necessary. They enjoy, in summer, a long day of high temperature — indeed a tropical heat ; but at night a tro- pical temperature is not maintained. These plants, and others having cor- responding habitats, require not only a temperature lower by night than by day, but also lower in winter than in summer. Tropical plants, on the con- trary, are injured by having a wintering imposed upon them, a condition they are never naturally placed in. In particular situations, even in extra- tropical countries, plants may be found growing where the temperature varies little, owing to shade and shelter, the vicinity of springs, &c., but these are only the exceptions. 860. Nightly temperature requires to be considered chiefly with reference to plants under glass. The fear of too low a temperature within being produced by the cold without, has naturally led gardeners to bestow particular care on covering up hotbeds, and raising the temperature of the air in hothouses in the evenings. In consequence of this, it often happens that when the tem- perature of the external air has not fallen so low during the night as was RESTING VEGETATION. 397 expected, the temperature under glass becomes greater than was intended. The effect of this on plants is to produce elongation without sufScient sub- stance ; great in proportion to the length of the night, the absence of light, and the want of atmospheric moisture. Mr. Knight, who has the merit of first having called the attention of gardeners to the night temperature of hothouses, observes that " a gardener, in forcing, generally treats his plants as he would wish to be treated himself; and consequently though the aggre- gate temperature of his house be nearly what it ought to be, its temperature during the night relatively to that of the day is almost always too high." The consequences of this excess of heat during the night are, I have reason to believe, in all cases highly injurious to the fruit-trees of temperate cli- mates, and not at all beneficial to those of tropical climates ; for the tem- perature of these is, in many instances, low during the night. In Jamaica, and other mountainous islands of the West Indies, the air upon the moun- tains becomes, soon after sunset, chilled and condensed, and, in consequence of its superior gravity, descends and displaces the warm air of the valleys ; yet the sugar-canes are so far from being injured by this sudden decrease of temperature, that the sugars of Jamaica take a higher price in the market than those of the less elevated islands, of which the temperature of the day and night is subject to much less variation. In one of Mr. Knight's forcing- houses, in which grapes are grovra, he always wishes to see its temperature, in the middle of every bright day in summer, as high as 90°; " and," he adds, '* after the leaves of the plants have become dry, I do not object to ten or fifteen degrees higher. In the following night, the temperature some- times falls as low as 50° ; and so far am I from thinking such change of temperature injurious, I am well satisfied that it is generally beneficial. Plants, it is true, thrive well, and many species of fruit acquire their greatest state of perfection, in some situations within the tropics where the tempera- ture in the shade does not vary in the day and night more than seven or eight degrees ; but in these climates, the plant is exposed during the day to a fuU blaze of a tropical sun, and earlj' in the night it is i-egularly drenched with heavy wetting dews ; and consequently it is very differently circum- stanced in the day and in the night, though the temperature of the air in the shade at both periods may be very nearly the same. I suspect," he continues, " that a large portion of the blossoms of the cherry and other fruit-trees in the forcing-house often proves abortive, because they are forced, by too high and uniform a temperature, to expand before the sap of the tree is properly prepared to nourish them. I have therefore been led during the last three years to try the effects of keeping up a much higher temperature in the day than in the night. As early in the spring as I wished the blossoms of my peach-trees to unfold, my house was made warm during the middle of the / day ; but towards night it was suffered to cool, and the trees were then sprinkled, by means of a large syringe, with clean water, as nearly at the temperature at which that usually rises from the ground as I could obtain it ; and little or no artificial heat was given during the night, unless there appeared a prospect of frost. Under this mode of treatment, the blossoms advanced with very gi'eat vigour, and as rapidly as I wished them, and pre- sented, when expanded, a larger size than I had ever before seen of the same varieties. Another ill effect of high temperature during the night is, that it exhausts the excitability of the tree much more rapidly than it promotes the growth or accelerates the maturity of the fruit • which is, in conse- J) D 398 RESTING VEGETATION. quence, ill supplied with nutriment, at the pei-iod of its ripening, when most nutriment is probably wanted. The muscat of Alexandria, and other late grapes, are, owing to this cause, often seen to wither upon the branch in a very imperfect state of maturity ; and the want of richness and flavour in other forced fruits is, I am very confident, often attributable to the same cause. There are few peach -houses, or indeed forcing- houses, of any kind in this country, in which the temperature does not exceed, dming the night, in the months of April and May, very greatly that of the wai-mest valley in Jamaica in the hottest period of the year : and there are probably as few forcing- houses in which the trees are not more strongly stimulated by the close and damp air of the night, than by the temperature of the dry air of the noon of the following day. The practice which occasions this cannot be right; it isin direct opposition to nature." — Physiological and Horticultural Papers, p. 217. 851. What the night temperature of a hotbed or hothouse ought to be as compared with that of the day, can only be determined by experience; because plants under glass are so far removed fi'om plants in the free air, that the same difference which takes place in the latter case may not in the former case be advisable. Nevertheless it is clear from the experience of gardeners that a very great fall during the night is seldom or never attended with bad effects, provided there has been sufficient heat and light during the day. Much of the evil of a high temperature during night, especially where opaque coverings are used, must be owing to the absence of light. A scien- tific gardener of great experience observes, " Without extreme caution in the application of coverings to prevent the escape of heat, the worst effects will soon become apparent. I find that, upon the shutters being put on, the internal temperature is raised about five degrees or thereabouts in ordinary circum- stances in cases of cold rain or high winds, more ; therefore the injury they cause may probably proceed from this : the plants are inclosed in total dark- ness, with an almost instantaneous and most unnatural increase of tempera- ture, which is in some measure maintained through the night, and the same amount of depression takes place when the covering's are removed and light admitted in the morning. In houses heated by combustion this can in some measure be guarded against, but in those heated by fermenting substances, such as hotbeds, the evil becomes aggravated ; and therefore to structures heated by such materials I cannot see the utility of this application, as economy here cannot be the motive ; materials capable of maintaining a sufficient temperature during a sunless winter's day will in all cases be suffi- cient during night, when a fall of temperature is so beneficial ; yet these structures are covered more than all others, the evils not becoming so appa- rent, possibly because the plants there contained are generally but of annual growth. The debilitating effect of covering houses heated by fire is particularly perceptible in vineries, probably from the position that the plants occupy in the house. Thus, were economy not a material object, and were heating power at command, I certainly should add no covering to the glass roof."— G. M. 1812, p. 106. 852. Double glass roofs would evidently form the least objectionable nightly covering to plant-structures of every kind ; and next to this the use of damaged plate-glass, instead of common crown glass, as from the much greater thickness of the former far less heat would be allowed to escape by conduction. The use of plate glass in cucumber and melon frames, and also iu greenhouses and forcinghouses, has of late years been adopted I13' several nuSTINO VEGETATION. 399 persons, and the glass being much less liable to be broken, and requiring no covering during nights, it is found to be on the v/hole more economical than common glass, and much better for the plants. 853. The annual restivg of plants is effected, as we have seen, either by cold or by dryness, and both these causes can be imitated in a state of culture, either separately or combined. Plants in the open garden may be safely left to the influence of the seasons ; but half-hardy plants against walls, or in borders by themselves, may be brought to a state of rest by thatching the ground so as to prevent what rain may fall on it from sinking in ; the lateral supplies being cut off by surface gutters or underground drains. The supply of sap by the roots being thus reduced, growth will gradually cease, and the parts will be matured, and at once enabled to resist the winter and vegetate with redoubled vigour the following spring. It may be observed here that the shoots of a tree which is to be protected from frost during winter, do not require to be ripened to the same degree with shoots which are to be exposed to the action of frost in the free atmosphere ; because buds, like seeds, will vegetate provided the embryo be formed, even though they should not be matured. Plants which have been forced have their period of rest brought on naturally by the maturation of the plant, and artificially by removing the glass with which they are covered, and exposing them to the free action of the atmosphere, which at that season being dry, is much more favourable for evaporating the watery part of the sap than it is later in the autumn ; and hence peach-trees which have been forced, have almost always better-ripened wood, containing more blossom-buds, than peach-trees on the open walls. In the case of peach-houses, vineries, &c., the glass roof is removed and the plants left in their places ; but where vines are grown in a hothouse or greenhouse along with other plants that require artificial heat throughout the year, the shoots are withdrawn and exposed to the common atmospheric temperature for three or four months. Greenhouse plants, such as natives of the Cape of Good Hope and Australia, are brought to a state of rest, partly by lowering the temperature of the greenhouse and partly by with- holding water. The last mode is that which is most to be depended on, because in most greenhouses there are some plants in flower at every period of the year, and for these a greater degree of heat must be kept up than would suffice alone, for throwing greenhouse plants into a state of rest. All tropical plants are brought to a state of repose by dryness, and this is readily imitated in hothouses, in consequence of the plants being in pots. There are some tropical plants, however, which though in certain localities they have what almost amounts to a short cessation of growth, yet in a state of culture they succeed better without it. Of these plants the pine-apple is one which when kept in a state of active growth till it has produced its fruit, brings it to a far larger size than when allowed a period of repose ; and this would appear to be practicable with all ligneous plants that are without buds : such as most endogens, in which class of plants buds are chiefly found among herbaceous species in the form of bulbs. 854. The natural period of rest in hardy plants may be varied or changed by withholding moisture, even without reference to temperature. We see this taking place both with trees and herbs in dry seasons : when wood is ripened, leaves drop off; and grass fields become brown, in July and August, which in moist seasons would have continued growing till October or Novem- ber. By imitating these effects in gardens, the opcralions of accelerating D B 2 400 RESTING VEGKTATION. and retarding may bo greatly facilitated ; and the Iniitatiou is easy when plants are kept in pots. Ligneous plants may bo thrown into a state of vest by stripping them of their leaves, when the wood of the year is nearly ripp, and at the same time shortening back the shoots to matured buds. Vinos against walls in the open air, when treated in this manner, come into leaf the year afterwards somewhat earlier than vines in the same circumstances, but not so treated ,: but when the practice of early pruning is continued every year, the habit becomes fixed, and in a few years they will be found to break earlier by ten days or a fortnight. Even pruning after the leaves di-op in autumn, as we have seen, has a tendency to produce an earlier development of the buds than when that operation is deferred till spring ; because the num- ber of buds to be nourished during winter being smaller, they are swelled to a larger size (779), and the more ready to be developed. In general, whatever tends to ripen the wood in ligneous plants, and mature the leaves in herbs, tends to biing the plant into a state of repose ; and hence the value of walls, diy borders, dry soils, and warm exposures. It may even be affirmed, that with plants under glass the period of repose may be changed from what it is in their native countries to what is most suitable for ours. Thus the natural period of rest for plants which are natives of the Canaries is from April to October, and of growth and maturation during our winter and early spring, when we are most deficient in solar light j but there can be little doubt that, by the application for a series of years of a system of acceleration and retard- ation, plants, natives of the Canaries, might be induced to flower during our summers, and undergo their period of rest during our winters. We do not say that the object would be worth attempting, but merely that we think it is practicable. 855. The advantages of putting trees that are to be forced into a state of rest, and thus rendering them as excitable as possible previously to the appli- cation of artificial heat, have been forcibly pointed out by Mr. Knight. The period which any species or variety of fruit will reqube to attain maturity, under any given degrees of temperature, and exposure to the influence of light in the forcinghouse, will be regulated to a much greater extent than is generally imagined, by the previous management and consequent state of the tree, when that is first subjected to the operation of artificial heat. Every gardener knows that when the previous season has been cold and cloudy and wet, the wood of his fruit-trees remains immature, and weak abortive blossoms only are produced. The advantages of having the wood well ripened are perfectly well understood ; but those which may be ob- tained, whenever a very early crop of fruit is required, by ripening the wood very early in the preceding summer, and putting the tree into a state of repose as soon as possible after its wood has become perfectly mature, do not, as far as my observation has extended, appear to be at all known to gar- deners ; though every one, who has had in any degree the management of vines in a hothouse, must have observed the different effects of the same degrees of temperature upon the same plant in October and February. In the autumn, the plants have just sunk into their winter sleep ; in February, they are refreshed and ready to awake again : and wherever it is intended prematurely to excite their powers of life into action, the expediency of putting these powers into a state of rest early in the preceding autumn appears obvious. {Hort. Trans, vol. ii. p. 368 ) Mr. Knight placed some vinos in pots in a forcinghouse, in the end of January, wiiich ripened their OPERATIONS OP GATHERING, ETC. 401 fi-uit in the middle of July ; soon after whicli the pots were put under the shade of a north wall in the open air. Being pruned, and removed in Sep- tember to a south wall, they soon vegetated witli much vigour, till the frost destroyed their shoots. Others, which were not removed fi'om the north wall till the following spring, when they were pruned and placed against a south wall, ripened their fruit well in the following season in a climate not nearly warm enough to have ripened it at all, if the plants had previously gi-own in the open air. Peach-trees somewhat similarly treated unfolded their blossoms nine days earlier, " and their fruit ripened three weeks earlier than in other trees of the same varieties." (Hort. Trans. vol. ii. p. 372.) Pots of grapes which had produced a crop previously to Midsummer were placed under a north wall till autumn ; on the 12th of January, they were put into a stove and ripened their fruit by the middle of April. (^Hort. Trans, vol. iv. p. 440.) § XIX. Operations of Gathering, Preserving, Keeping, and Packing. 856. Gathering. — The productions of horticulture are in part enjoyed as scenery, and in part as articles of cookery, and other parts of domestic economy ; and the gathering of articles for the latter purposes forms a part of the duty of the gardener. All crops are taken from the plant when mature, as in the case of ripe fruits or roots ; or they are cut from it when the plant is in a growing state, as in gathering herbs or cabbages ; or the entire plant is taken up, as in the case of turnips, carrots, &c. In all these cases the part of the plant to be gathered should not have been moistened by rain, and the weather at the time should be dry. Wherever the knife req^uires to be used in gathering, the operation may be considered as coming under pruning, and should be performed %vith the same care in respect to buds and wounded sections. In gathering fruit, care should be taken not to rub off the bloom, particularly from cucumbers, plums, and grapes. When ripe seeds are gathered, the capsules or pods should be perfectly dry, and they should be spread out afterwards in a shaded, airy shed or loft, or ou a seed-sheet in the open air, till they are ready to be rubbed out, cleaned, and put up into paper bags till wanted. 8.57. Preserving. — Culinary vegetables may be preserved in a growing state by placing moveable covers, such as thatched hurdles, over them in the open garden, as indicated in fig. 329 ; or they may be preserved in a living state by planting them in soil, in pits or frames, to be covered during severe weather ; or they may be planted in soil, in light cellars, the windows being opened in the day- time, — a practice common in the colder countries of the Continent. Aromatic herbs, such asmint, thyme, &c., may be preserved by first dry- ing them in the shade, and next com- Fig. 3m. Low-roof ihatched hurd!es/or praiectiHt/ pressingeachkindintosmall packets, jjianie in the oven garden. a„|j covering these with paper. Aro- matic herbs, and also pot-herbs, such as parsley, celery leaves, chervil, &c., may be preserved by drying in an oven, and afterwards tying up in paper. Flowers and leaves, and also ripe fruit, may be preserved in dried sand by 402 OPKBATIONS OF GATHERING, ETC. the following process : — The articles are suspended in a cask or jar, by threads attached to cross-sticks, fixed immediately within the position of the lid. This being done, pure white dry sand is poured slowly In till it surrounds all the articles suspended, which become as it were immersed in it. When the flowers or fruits are to be taken out, the plug is removed from a hole in the bottom of the vessel, and as much of the sand allowed to run out as uncovers as many of the fruit or flowers as it is desired to take out at one time. This mode of preserving is given in some French and Italian authors; but we believe it is very seldom put in practice. Roots, tubei'S, and bulbs are preserved in soil or in sand, moderately dry, and excluded from frost ; and some kinds, which have coverings which protect them from evaporation, such as the tulip and the crocus, are kept in cool dry shelves or lofts, or in papers till the planting season. Potatoes, turnips, carrots, &c., are preserved with most flavour by leaving them where they have grown, covering the ground with litter, so as to exclude frost, and admit of their being taken up daily as wanted. Towards the growing season they should have a thicker covering to exclude atmospheric heat ; or a portion should have been taken up in autumn, and buried in sand or soil, in a cool cellar, in order to retard vegetation as long as possible. Tho roots mentioned, and also onions, will keep upwards of a year without rotting or vegetating, if mixed with sand and buried in a pit in dry soil, the upper part of which shall be at least five feet under the surface of the ground, so as effectually to exclude air and change of temperature. Hon- dei'son, an eminent gardener at Brechin, makes use of the ice-house for preserving " roots of all kinds tUl the return of the natural crop." " By the month of April," he says, " the ice in our ice-house is found to have subsided four or five feet ; and in this empty room I deposit the vegetables to be preserved. After stuffing the vacuities with straw, and covering the surface of the ice with the same material, I place on it case-boxes, dry-ware casks, baskets, &c., and fill them with turnips, carrots, beet-root, celery, and in particular potatoes. By the cold of the place, vegetation is so much suspended that aU these articles may be thus kept fresh and uninjured, till they give place to another crop in its natural season." 858. Keeping-fruits, such as the apple and pear, are preserved in the fruit-room, in shelves, placed singly so as not to touch each other ; the finer keeping-pears may be packed in jars or boxes, with dried fern, or with kiln-dried barley-straw ; and baking apples and pears may be kept in heaps or thick layers on a cellar-floor,. and covered with straw, to retain moisture and exclude tho frost. But the subject of keeping fruits will be recurred to in treating of the fruit-garden. 869. Packing and transporting plants and seeds. — Rooted plants and cuttings, and other parts of plants intended to grow, may be preserved for weeks, and, under certain circumstances, even for months, in moist live moss, the direct action of the air and the sun being excluded ; and in this medium also they may be packed and sent to any distance within the tem- perate hemispheres, but not in tropical regions, on account of the extreme heat. Plants that ai'e to pass through these regions are planted in soil, in boxes with glass covers, and being occasionally watered, they are transferred from India to England with a very moderate proportion of loss. Seeds are in general most safely conveyed from one country to another in loose paper packages, kept in a dry airy situation, so as neither to >>e parched with dry SELECTING AND IMPROVING PLANTS IN CULTURE. 403 heat nor made to vegetate by moisture ; but some seeds which are apt soon to lose their vitality, such as the acorns of American oaks, may be packed in moist moss, in which they will germinate during the voyage ; but if planted in soil as soon as they arrive, they will suifer little injury. Nuts and other large seeds may probably preserve their vitality by being allowed to germinate in masses of moderately dry soil, as Mr. Knight suggested might be done with the seeds of the mango. The roots or root-ends of plants or cuttings are enveloped in a ball of clayey loam, wrapped up in moist moss, or in the case of cuttings or scions of ligneous plants, stuck into a potato, turnip, or apple, and sent to any distance ; or, as already observed ( 676), they may be inclosed in moistened brown paper, or wi'apped up in oiled paper, and sent by post. Mr. Knight found that shoots containing buds of fruit-trees might be preserved in a vegetating state, and sent to a consider- able distance, by reducing the leaf-stalks to a short length, and inclosing the shoot in a double-fold of cabbage-leaf, bound close together at each end, and then inclosing the package in a letter. " It was found advantageous to place the under-surface of the cabbage-leaf inwards, by which the inclosed branch was supplied with humidity, that being the perspiring surface of the leaf, the other surface being nearly or wholly impervious to moisture."— {Hort. Trans., vol. iv., p. 403.) 860. Packing fruits and flowers. — Firm fruits, such as the apple and pear, and flowers either in a growing state in pots, or cut for nosegays, are easily packed ; but grapes, peaches, strawberries, &c., are with more diffi- culty sent to a distance without being injured. To pack such fruit, and also the more delicate flowers, a box is suspended within a box, in such a manner that the inner case can never touch the outer one. This mode is " found better than any other for insuring the safe transport of delicate philosophical instruments, and is equally adapted to ripe fruit. Having packed the fniit in an inner case with soft cotton, or whatever may be deemed best for the purpose, let that inner case be suspended within an outer one by lines or cords. Suppose, for instance, that the outer case is two or three inches clear all round the inner case, and the eight cords proceeded from the eight outer corners of the one, and were fastened to the eight internal corners of the other case. In this way, whatever side was uppermost, the inner case would be suspended from the four upper cords, the four lower ones serving only to steady it and to prevent its swinging against the outer case. If the whole be turned upside down, the functions of the cords become reversed, so that they must all be strong enough to perform either office, about which, liowever, there is no difficulty. A still better plan, for those who have frequently very choice specimens of fruit to transmit, would be to insulate the inner case by spiral springs, with the additions of small por- tions of felt or woollen cloth, to limit the vibrations ; the springs would be very cheaply made, and would avoid the repeated trouble of packmg or tying ; but the cords will do extremely well." — {Qard. Chron., vol. i., p. 485.) § XX. Selecting and improving Plants in Culture. 861. All the plants in cultivation that are remarkable for their value as culinary vegetables, fruits, or flowers, are more or less removed from their natural state ; and the three principal modes by which this has been effected, are, increasing the supply of nourishment, selection from seedlings, or acci- 404 SELECTING AND IMPROVING PLANTS IN CULTURE. dental variations, and cross-trceding. " Nature," Mr. Knight observes, " has given to man the means of acquiring those things which constitute the comforts and luxuries of civilised life, though not the things themselves ; it has placed the raw material within his reach, but has left the preparation aiid improvement of it to his own skill and industry. Every plant and animal adapted to his service is made susceptible of endless changes, and as far as relates to his use, of almost endless improvement. Variation is the constant attendant on cultivation, both in the animal and vegetable world ; and in each tlie offspring are constantly seen, in a greater or less degi-ce, to inherit the character of the parents from which they spring." — {Knight's Physiological Papers, S;c. p. 172.) 8G2. Cultivation, then, is the first step in the progress of improving vege- tables. It is almost needless to state that this consists in furnishing a plant with a more favourable soil and climate than it had in a wild state ; supply- ing food by manure to as great an extent as is consistent with health and vigour ; allowing an ample space for its branches and leaves to expand and expose themselves to the action of the sun and the air ; guarding the plant from external injuries, by the peculiar kind of shelter and protection which it may require, according as the object may be the improvement of the entire plant, of its foliage only, of its flowers, or of its fruit. All cultivation is founded on the principle that the constitution and qualities of plants are susceptible of bemg influenced by the quantity and quality of the food with which they are furnished, and that the constitution and qualities so formed can be communicated to their offspring. The seeds of plants abundantly supplied with food, and growing in a favourable climate, will produce plants of luxuriant foliage, and larger than usual in all their parts ; while the con- trary wUl be the case with seeds produced by plants grown in a meagre soil, and in an unfavourable climate. Seeds produced in a hot climate will pro- duce plants better adapted for that climate than seeds from a climate that is cold, and the contrary ; and hence also the seeds of plants grown in a poor soil and ungenial climate will succeed better in that soil and climate than plants raised fiom seeds produced under more favourable circumstances. Hence, in improving plants by cultivation, the experiments ought to be made in the soil and climate for which they are intended. "No experienced gardener," Mr. Knight observes, " can be ignorant that every species of fruit acquu'es its greatest state of perfection in some peculiar soils and situations, and under some peculiar mode of culture. The selection of a proper soil and situation must therefore be the first object of the improver's pursuit ; and nothing should be neglected which can add to the ."iize, or improve the fla- vour, of the fruit from which it is intended to propagate. Due attention to these points will in almost all cases be found to comprehend all that is neces- sary to insure the introduction of new varieties of fruit, of equal merit with those from which they spring ; but the improver, who has to adapt his pro- ductions to the cold and unsteady climate of Britain, has still many difficulties to contend with : he has to combine hai-diness, energy of character, and early maturity, with the improvements of high cultivation. Nature has, hovv- ever, in some measure pointed out the path he is to pursue ; and if it be followed with patience and industry, no obstacles will be found which may not be either removed or passed over. If two plants of the vine, or other tree of similar habits, or even if obtained from cuttings of the same ti'ee, were placed to vegetate during several successive seasons in very different SliLECTINO AND IMPROVING PLANTS IN CULTUBE. 405 climates ; if the one were planted on the banks of the Rhine, and the other ou those of the Nile, each would adapt its habits to the climate in which it was placed ; and if both were subsequently brought in early spring into a climate similar to that of Italy,, the plant which had adapted its habits to a cold climate would instantly vegetate, whilst the other would remain per- fectly torpid. Precisely the same thing occurs in the hothouses of this country, where a plant accustomed to the temperature of the open air will vegetate strongly in December, whilst another plant of the same species, and sprung from a cutting of the same original stock, but habituated to the tempei'ature of a stove, remains apparently lifeless. It appears, therefore, that the powers of vegetable life in plants habituated to cold climates are more easily brought into action than in those of hot climates ; or, in other words, that the plants of cold climates are most excitable : and as every quality in plants becomes hereditary, when the cause which first gave exist- ence to those qualities continues to operate, it follows that their seedling offspi-ing have a constant tendency to adapt their habits to any climate in which art or accident places them." — (^Knight's Horticultural Papers, p. 172.) 803. /Selection. — An individual wild plant being thus improved, the next step is to sow its seeds under the most favourable circumstances of soil and situation, and from the plants go produced to select such, or perhaps only one, or even a part of one, which possesses in the highest degree the qualities we are in search of. This plant being carefully cultivated, its seeds are to be sown, and a selection made from the plants produced as before. In this manner one generation after another may be sown and selections made till the desired properties are obtained. In the case of annual plants the object may be attained in a few years, but in the case of trees, and especially fruit-trees, a number of years are requisite. Mr. Knight, who has had more experience in raising new fruits by selection from seedlings than perhaps any person ever had before his time, has the following instructive observations: — " When young trees have sprung from the seed, a certain period must elapse before they become capable of bearing fruit, and this period, I believe, can- not be shortened by any means. Pruning and transplanting are both injurious ; and no change in the character or merits of the future fruit can be effected, during this period, either by manure or culture. The young plants should be suffered to extend their branches in every direction in which they do not injuriously interfere with each other ; and the soil should just be sufficiently rich to promote a moderate degree of growth, without stimulating the plant to preternatural exertion, which always induces disease. The periods which different kinds of fruit-trees require to attain the age of puberty are very varied. The pear requires from twelve to eighteen years ; the apple, from five to twelve or thirteen ; the plum and cherry, four or five years ; the vine, three or four ; and the raspberry, two years. The strawberry, if its seeds be sown early, affords an abundant crop in the succeeding year." — (^Physiological Papers, ^c. p. 178.) 864. Selecting from accidental variations, or as they are technically termed, sports. Among a great number of seedlings raised in gardens, or of plants in a wild state, some entire plants, or parts of plants, will exhibit differences in form or colour from the normal form and colour of the species. Among these peculiarities may be noticed double flowers, flowers of a colour different from those of the species, variegated leaves, leaves deeply cut w ere the normal form is entire, as in the fern-leaved beech ; and even the entire plant 40fl SELECTING AND IMPROVING PLANTS IN CULTURE. may be of more diminutive size, or its shoots may take a different direction- as in fastigiate and pendulous-branched trees. All these, and many other accidental variations, which, as we have seen (551), cannot generally be reproduced from seed, may be perpetuated by cuttings, or some other mode of propagating by division. 865. Cross-breeding. — This process is effected by fecundating the stigma of a ilower of one plant with the pollen from the flower of another of the same species, but of a different variety. Sometimes fecundation may be effected with the pollen of a different species, and in that case the produce is said to be a hybrid, while in the other the result is merely a cross or a cross- bred variety. The mode of performing this operation has been very well described by Mi-. Haywai-d. " Supposing," he says, "for instance, yon have two geraniums producing differently-shaped leaves and differently-coloured blossoms — or two apple-trees, bearing apples of different sizes, colours, and qualities, and it be desired to produce geraniums of differently-shaped leaves and differently-coloured flowers, and apples of different sizes, colours, and qualities, that is, different from either of tlie two plants or trees which you possess : the mode of effecting this is to select a blossom of the plant from which you wish to obtain the seed ; when it is just on the point of opening and exposing the anthers, take a pair of scissors, and, gently forcing open the petals of the blossom intended to bear the seed, cut off the stamens, and remove the anthers, and then leave the blossom thus operated upon for a day or two, or until the petals are quite expanded, and the pistil arrived at a state of maturity ; when it is in this state, select a blossom of the plant with which it is desired to impregnate the prepared female blossom, and when this is in a state of maturity, and in a state to part with its pollen or farina freely, take a small camel's-haiv pencil, collect the farina on the point, and place it on the stigma or crown of the pistil of the prepared blossom. This opera- tion may be performed, with an equal chance of success, on plants of all descriptions." {An Inquiry, S^c. p. 120.) " New varieties of every species of fruit," Mr. Knight observes, " wUl generally be better obtained by intro- ducing the farina of one variety of fruit into the blossom of another, than by propagating from any single kind. When an experiment of this kind is made between varieties of different size and character, the farina of the smaller kind should be introduced into the blossoms of the larger, for, under these circumstances, I have generally (but with some exceptions) observed in the new fruit a prevalence of the character of the female parent ; probably owing to the following causes. The seed-coats are generated wholly by the female parent, and these regulate the bulk of the lobes and plantule : and I have observed, in raising new varieties of the peach, that when one stone contained two seeds, the plants these afforded were inferior to others. The largest seeds, obtained from the finest fruit and from that which ripens most perfectly and most early, should always be selected. It is scarcely necessary to inform the experienced gardener thatit will be necessaiy to extract the sta- mina of the blossoms ft-om which he proposes to propagate, some days before the farina begins to shed, when he proposes to generate new varieties in the manner I have recommended." — {Knight's Physiological Papers, p. 177.) 866. Precautions against promiscuous fecundation require to be taken both in the case of flowers the seeds of which are to be sown for the purpose of selection, and in those which have been cross-fecundated. In the foimer case, the plants sliould as mucli as possible be isolated from all others of the SELECTING AND IMPROVING PLANTS IN CULTURE. 407 same, or of allied kinds ; and in the latter something more should be done. 1 he reasons are, that in both cases the farina of adjoining flowers of the same kind is in all probability floating in the atmosphere, and will adhere to whatever stigmas of its own species it may light on ; and secondly, that bees and other insects which frequent flowers carry off the pollen from one to another, and thus produce accidental cross-fecundation, which would render nugatory that which was attempted by art. The only mode to guard against pollen floating in the atmosphere is by placing the plants from all others of the same kind, though what distance is required is uncertain. For the crucifersB generally most space is required j varieties of cabbages and txirnips having been adulterated when at the distance of upwards of a mile, in an open country and in the direction of the prevailing winds. To guard against the effects of bees and other insects, the blossoms when selected and fecun- dated by art may be surrounded by coarse gauze, or inclosed in a case of glass, till the blossom begins to fade. To strengthen the embrj'o seeds, the plant may be pruned in such a manner as to throw an extra share of sap into the branch, stem, or pedicel on which the flower is situated. Thus, if the fecundated flower form part of a spike, the upper part of the spike may be cut oS; a corymb or an umbel may be thinned out ; the suckers may be taken from a sucker-bearing plant, such as the raspberry ; the runners from the strawberry ; the offsets from a bulb, the tubers from a potato, and so forth. 867. Fixing and rendering permanent the variety produced is effected, in general, by one or other of the modes of propagation by division (561). Improved varieties of fruit-trees are generally perpetuated by grafting ; fmit- shrubs, such as the gooseberry, by cuttings ; perennials, by division, offsets, or suckers, &c. ; improved annuals and biennials, and some perennials, are perpetuated by seeds, which forms an exception to the general rule. What we have already advanced on this subject in the paragraph last quoted ren- ders it unnecessary to dwell on it here, farther than to notice a practice, the result of the experience of cultivators, the rationale of which it is difficult to explain. This is the transplantation of culinary biennials, such as the turnip, carrot, parsnep, beet, cabbage, cauliflower, onion, and many such plants, after they are full grown, previously to their being allowed to send up their flower- stems. By this practice the variety is said to be prevented from degene- rating ; and if so, it may probably be on account of the greater part of the nourishment to the seeds being furnished by the store laid up in the plant, and but only a small portion taken from the soil. It is certain that trans- planted plants do not produce nearly so much seed as they would have done if not transplanted ; and it is equally certain that in the case of the turnip, when the bulb is of a moderate size, and even small rather than large, much stronger flower-stems are sent up, and more seed produced, than when it is large. The reason probably is that the roots below the unsvvelled bulb are stronger, not having yet fulfilled their functions, and hence are enabled to draw a lai-ger proportion of nourishment from the soil. 868. 2'he production of double flowers is a subject not yet thoroughly understood by physiologists. As double flowers are seldom found in a wild state, they appear to be the result of culture, and yet there is scarcely any well-authenticated instance of culture having produced them. It is certain, however, that double flowers degenerate into single ones when culture is 408 SELECTIXO AND IMPROVINa PLANTS IN CULTURE. willidrawn, and that extraordinary supplies of nourisliment and moisture, as in moist and warm seasons, produce flowers more double than in dry seasons. Mr. Munro, a scientific practical gardener, endeavours to account for the production of double flowers, by supposing that there is one fluid or sap of plants destined for growth, and another for reproduction ; and that double flowers are produced when the latter sap is in excess. He concludes, therefore, that by reducing the number of seed-pods in a plant, those left would be so amply nourished by the excess of the reproductive sap, as to produce double flowers. To prove this he selected a number of single scarlet ten-week stocks, and as soon as he observed five or six seed-pods fairly formed on the flower-spike, every succeeding flower was pinched off. From the seeds saved in this manner he had more than 400 double flow^ers from one small bed of plants (G. M. for 1838, p. 122). De Candolle states that Mr. Salisbury assured him that by putting plants with single flowers in a very rich soil, and fixing ligatures round the stem near the neck, he obtained seeds which produced double flowers {Phys. Veg., p. 734) ; but this as a general principle he considers very doublful. One thing is certain, that seeds saved from semi-double flowers frequently produce flowers which are double ; and it would also appear that from the authority of gardeners, seeds from single flowers which have been growing among double ones, more frequently produce double flowers, than seeds from plants which have not been so circumstanced. 8G9. Duration of varieties. — All the plants of a variety which have been procured by division, for example all the plants of any particular variety of grape, apple, or potato, being in fact only parts of one individual, it has been argued by Mr. Knight, that when the parent plant dies all the others must die also ; or to put the doctrine in a more general form, that all varieties are but of limited duration. This opinion, though it has been adopted by many persons, has not met with the approbation of Professor De Candolle, •who says that the permanence of the duration of varieties, so long as man wishes to take care of them, is evident from the continued existence of varieties the most ancient of those which have been described in books. By negligence, or by a series of bad seasons, they may become diseased, like some of our varieties of apple or potato ; but by careful culture they may be restored and retained to all appearance foi ever. We are not sure that De CandoUe's theory will hold good with the finest fruits aud florists' flowers. The species might be recovered, but we question whether in many instances that wUl be the case with the variety. Perhaps a hypothesis might be devised which would coincide with both authorities. It would coincide with that of De Candolle, if Mr. Knight had spoken with reference to actually wild varieties only j but with regard to improved varieties, as they are understood in a horticultural point of view, they are doubtless prone to decay in proportion to their degree of departure from that physiological perfectijn which enables the wild variety to maintain itself continually on the surface of the globe, independent of the care of man. A wild variety will produce seed under favourable circumstances, but many highly improved varieties, in a horticultural sense, do not perfectly mature their seeds under any circumstances whatever ; and therefore must be physiologically imperfect, and being so, a priori, if it be admitted that imperfection is a principle of decay, it will not be denied, that no plant OPERATIONS OF ORDER AND KEEPING. 409 imperfectly constituted can carry on its functions but for a more or less limited time, even under the most favourable circumstances. 870. Wc have dwelt longer on this subject than may appear necessary, because we consider the civilisation of Vi'ild plants by cultivation, the originat- ing of new varieties of those already in our gardens from seed, or of wild plants from accidental variations, among the most interesting and rational amuse- ments which can engage the amateur. There is a great deal of enjoyment in displaying our power over plants in propagating them, by cuttings, leaves, and the different modes of grafting and budding ; but greater still is that of creating new kinds of fruits or flowers by cross-fecundation, or improving a wild plant so as entirely to change its character. As examples of what may bo done, we may, among culinary vegetables, refer to the common carvot, which in five generations from seed, in as many years, has been brought from a wild state to be fit for the table, by M. Vilmorin ; and among flowers to the heartsease, which in the course of the last twenty years has by cross- breeding and selection, been raised from a flower with thin crumpled petals and irregular shape, to one of our most symmetrical and flat firm-petalled florists' flowers. We conclude by reminding the amateur that the blossoms or fi'uits produced by newly-originated plants the first or second year, are often inferior to what the same plant will produce when it has acquired a greater degree of vigour ; and that to do justice to new varieties of herbaceous plants, they should be allowed to flower at least two years, and ligneous plants to flower and fruit, three or even four years, before they are rejected. § XXI. Operations of Order and Keeping. 871. By order is to be understood that relation of objects to one another, which shows that the one follows the other as an obvious or natural conse- quence. Tlius, suppose that on entering a kitclien-garden we observe a border along the walk separated from the larger compartment bya continuous espalier rail ; this rail we naturally expect will be continued all round the garden, or if interrupted it will be by some obvious and satisfactorj' cause. Suppose the line of railing discontinued without any obvious reason ; in that case we should say there was a want of order. Still more so should we be struck with a want of oi'der, if the walk were bordered by dwarf fruit-trees, not in a straight line or in a line parallel to that of the walk, but sometimes nearer and some- times farther from it, and with the trees also at irregular distances in the line. There is a secondary meaning in which the word order is used among gar- deners, which has reference to keeping ; and thus a border of flowers or other plants confused with weeds would be said to be disorderly, or not in order. In the former case, the term refers to design, and in the latter to management ; and it may be easily conceived that the unfavourable impres- sion on a stranger ls much graver in the case in which it is of a permanent nature, than in the other where it is only temporary. Neatness, as applied to horticultural scenes and objects, may be considered as synonymous with cleanliness. 872. i he term keeping in horticulture relates to the degree of order and neatness which are maintained in management ; and hence the expressions, badly kept, highly kept. A garden that is in high order and keeping must have been con'ectly laid out and planted at first, and cultivated and managed with great care afterwards. This care must not be devoted merely to some particular department, or to some object under the gardener's charge, but 410 OPERATIONS OP ORDER AND KEEPING. must extend to everything aeoordkig to its importance. In a kitchen-gar- den, the system of managing the wall and espalier fruit-trees, and of crop- ping the compartments, demands the first attention, because the result will not only influence the most conspicuous features in the garden, but also increase or diminish the quantity and quality of the produce. 873. The following rules may perhaps be of some use, if impressed on the mind of the young gardener, and if insisted on being kept by workmen by the master or the amateur : — 1. Perform every ope'^ation in the proper season and in the best manner, on the principle that " whatever is worth doing at all is worth doing well." Nothing can be more annoying to a person who is desirous of having his garden kept in the highest order, than to see the slovenly manner in which some gardeners thrust plants into the soil, tie them up when they require support, and hack and cut at them when they require pruning. " Cut to the bud " is a precept too often disregarded by such persons ; among whom we have known excellent growers of crops, both in the open air and under glass. 2. Complete every operation consecutively. — The neglect of this is a very common fault. For example, the wall-trees are receiving their summer pruning, and as this occupies a day or two, or is necessarily performed at intervals, so as not to deprive the trees of two much foliage at once, the shoots cut off are left on the ground till all the trees have been gone over. The same mode of proceeding is followed in every other operation. We allow that, on the principle of the division of labour, this is the most econo- mical mode, but on the principle of high keeping it is objectionable ; and in the event of changes of weathei-, such as a fall of rain, it may, in the case of neglecting to rake off weeds the same day in which they are hoed up, defeat the intention of the operation. 3. Never, if possible, perfwm one operation in such a manner as to render another necessary. — It is a common practice with many gardeners, when weeding borders or trimming plants, to throw the weeds or trimmings on the gravel-walks, thereby occasioning the labour of sweeping them up, as well as soiling the gravel of the walk. There is scarcely a practice more to be condemned than this, both with reference to economy of time and to high keeping. The walk is disfigured bj' the weeds and trimmings perhaps for a whole day, and when they are swept off it is found that the gravel has been disturbed and is discoloured. In all cases of weeding borders and praning shrubs, or hedges, close to walks, the weeds and prunings should be put at once into a wheelbarrow or basket. 4. When called off from any operation, leave your work and your tools in an orderly manner. — Do not leave a plant half planted, or a pot half watered, and do not throw down your tools as if you never intended to take them up again. Never leave a hoe or a rake with the blade or the teeth turned up, as if you intended them as man-traps. Never stick in a spade where it will cut the roots of a plant ; but if you must stick it in among plants, let its blade be in the direction of the roots, not across them. 5. In leaving off work, make a temporary finish, and clean your tools and carry them to the tool-house. — Never leave off in the midst of a row. Never leave the garden-line stretched. Never show an eagerness to be released from work. Never prune off more shoots, pull up more weeds, or make more litter of any kind than you can clear away the same day, if not the same hour. OPERATIONS OF HORTICULTUBAL DESIGN AND TASXE. 411 G. Never do that in the open garden or in the hothouses, which can be ec[ually well done iu the reserve ground or in the back sheds : potting and shifting, for example. 7. Neva- pass a weed or an insect without pulling it up or taking it off, unless time forbid. Much might be done in this way towards keeping down weeds, were it not for the formality of some gardeners, who seem to delight in leaving weeds to accumulate till a regular weeding is required. 8. In gathering a crop, take away the useless as well as the useful parts. — Never leave the haulm of potatoes on the ground where they have grown. Take up all the cabbage tribe by the roots, unless sprouts or second crops are wanted ; and carry every kind of waste to the reserve or the frame ground, to rot as manure or mix with dung linings. 9. Let no plant ripen seeds, unless these are wanted for some purpose useful or ornamental, and remove all the parts of plants which are in a state of decay. ' — The seed-pods of plants should not be allowed even to swell, unless the seeds are wanted for some purpose, because being the essential result of every plant, they exhaust it more than any other part of its growth, and necessarily always more or less weaken it for the following year. 874. To these rules many others might be added, but it is not our wish to render gardeners mere machines. One great object of the young gardener ought to be to cultivate his faculty of seeing, so that in every garden he may be able to detect what is worth imitating, and what ought to be avoided. There is nothing tends more to this kind of cultivation than seeing the gar- dens of our neighbours, iu which we may often detect those faults which exist ui our own, but which, from having become familiar to us, we had not been able to see in a similar light. Without u. watchful and vigilant eye, and habits of attention, observation, reflection, and decision, a gardener will never be able to be a complete master of his pi'ofession. CHAPTER IV. OPERATIONS OF HORTICULTURAL DESIGN AND TASTE. We have introduced the title of this chapter, chiefly for the sake of show- ing that we have not forgotten any part of our subject, and that the whole of what would have been treated of here has already been given in the Suburban Architect and Landscape Gardener. In order, therefore, to keep this work within certain limits, we shall only here give an outline of what would otherwise have been treated of in detail. 876. Taking plans of gardens, garden-buildings, or of any part of them, or of garden implements, or of modes of performing operations, ought to be understood by every gardener who aspires to eminence in his profession, and by every amateur who wishes to improve his own garden by what he sees in those of others. H76. Carrying plans into ejceeution by transferring them from paper to ground, or in whatever manner they require to be realised, is equally neces- 412 OPERATIONS OF GENERAL MANAGEMENT. sary to be understood by both the gardener and the amateur ; and for this purpose, and that of the precedhig paragraph, some knowledge of geometry, land-surveying, and drawing is requisite. We would recommend Pasley's Practical Geometry and Plan-drawing, 8vo. 18s., and Crocker's Land-sur- veying, 8vo. 12«. 877. Reducing a surface to a level, or to a uniform slope, is one of the most common operations required of a gardener in forming a garden or laying out grounds. For this purpose he must have learnt the use of the spirit-level or of the common mason's level, so as to be able to stake out level or regularly sloping lines on irregular surfaces. We recommend, as the best Vfork on this subject for the practical gardener, Jones's Principles and Prac- tice of Levelling, 1840, Bvo. 4^. 878. Tlie laying out of walks, roads, lawns, and the formation of pieces of artificial v/ater, fountains, rockwork, and various other works that fall more or less under the superintendence of the gardener, are given at length ia the volume referred to. CHAPTER V. OPERATIONS OF GENERAL MANAGEMENT. 8/9. The general management of a garden, whether it includes the pleasure-ground, and all the scenes which come under the gardener's depart- ment in an extensive country residence, or merely a few rods of ground for growing culinary crops and flowers, requires such constant attention throughout the year, that gardeners have wisely invented calendars to remind them of their duty, monthly and even weekly. An abbreviated calendar of this kind will be found at the end of our volume, and we shall here confine ourselves to giving some hints on general management. 880. On undertaking the charge of a garden, the first point to determine is, the number of hands required for its cultivation, and how many of these men are to be professional gardeners, as journeymen or apprentices, and how many common country labourers or women. It is scarcely possible to keep a garden in the highest order, however small it may be, without a profes- sional gardener in constant attendance ; or witliout a garden-labourer, directed by the amateur ; who in this case may be supposed to perform all the more delicate operations of propagating, pruning, training, &c., himself. Habere only one professional gardener is kept, he will frequently require a labourer to assist in operations that cannot well be done by a single person, or that require to be done quickly ; or of one or more women, to assist in weeding, gathering crops, or keeping down insects. Though as a general and permanent practice we do not advocate the employment of women in out-door work, yet in the present state of things in this country there are generally to be found women glad to accept the remuneration for working in a garden, and the healthiness of the employment in good weather is a recommendation to it. 881. The 'oooks to be kept by a gardener iu a small place need not bo mor" as far as the business of the garden is concerned, than an invonior\- -book ol the OPERATIONS OP GENERAL MANAGEMENT. 413 tools, &c. ; a cash-book, in which to enter what he pays and receives ; an J a memorandum-book, to enter the dates and other particulars of orders given to tradesmen, &c., of sowing main crops, of fruit-ripening, and such other particulars as his master may require, or aa he may think useful. Such books should be furnished by the master, and consequently be delivered to him when they are filled up. In some gardens a cropping-book is kept, in which on one page is registered the date, and other particulars of putting in the crops ; the page opposite being kept blank, to enter the dates when they begin to be gathered, and how long they last. In all large gardens a produce-book is kept, in which every article sent to the kitchen every day in the year is recorded. There are various modes of keeping books of this kind, but one of the simplest and best appeai-s to us to be the following : — A list, or kitchen-bill, is printed of all the culinary articles which the garden is supposed to produce in the course of the year ; and a similar list, or dessert- bill, of aU the dessert articles. On these lists,every morning, the gardener marks such articles as are in season, or as he can supply, and sends the kitchen-bill to the cook or steward, and the dessert-bill to the housekeeper, who put their marks to every article which is wanted for that day. The bills are carried back to the gardener, who puts them into the hands of his foreman j who sends the articles to the kitchen in the course of the forenoon with the bills, which are signed by persons receiving the articles, and returned to the gardener; who preserves them, and has them bound up in a volume at the end of the year. This book forms an excellent record of garden-produce for future reference. See a form of kitchen-bill and also of dessert-bUl, in G. M., for 1841, p. 9. 882. The ordering of seeds and plants is one of the most important duties of the head-gardener ; the difficulty being to determine the exact quantity of seed required, which is of some importance when the garden is at a considerable distance from the seedsman. Abercrombie's Seed Estimate is a useful memorial for this purpose, and a year's experience in any garden will enable the gardener to give his future orders with sufficient exactness. Some seeds in most gardens are saved by the gardener, particularly flower- seeds ; and many kinds of plants are now propagated by him which, were they to be procured from nurserymen, would increase the expenses of even a small garden to such an amount as to put such gardens out of the reach of thousands who now enjoy them. Gardeners also exchange many articles with one another, by which means their gardens are much enriched at little or no expense to their master ; and thus the richer any garden is in plants or seeds, the more likely are these riches to be increased, from there being a greater number of articles to exchange. Hence also the great advantage of employing a good professional gardener, who in many situations saves far more than the amount of his wages, by propagation and exchanges. 883. The management of men and the distribution of work are the great points to which a head-gardener ought to direct his daily attention. The work of every day ought to be foreseen the day before, subject, how- ever, to changes in the weather, against which other work should be pro- vided. A general idea of the labours and operations of the coming week should be formed the week before, and communicated to the foreman, who ought to receive his directions every evening for what is to be done the ft/llowing day. For this, and all other matters of general management, gaideners' calendai'S are of the greatest use as remembrancers ; but the gar- E E 414 OPERATIONS OF GENEKAL MANAGEMENT. doner's principal dependence must be on his own knowledge and experience. Unless he thmk and act for himself, as if no calendar had been in existence, he will never succeed ; and if this may be said of a professional gardener, it applies still more forcibly to the amateur. SSI. TSe wages of a gardener. — Something may here be expected to be said on this subject, and we shall observe : — 1 . That there cannot be a greater mistake than to suppose that the products and enjoyments of a garden, however small, can be obtained without the services of a really good professional gardener; and 2. that all the diiference between a garden- labourer, who perhaps can barely read and write, and who can neither spell nor pronounce botanic names, is not above £20 or £30 a-year. No man would think of giving a garden-labourer, to whom he committed the management of his garden, less than a guinea a-week with his lodging, and some other perquisites, such as spare vegetables, fuel, &c. Now, for £70 or £80 a-year, a scientiSc professional gardener may be engaged ; one who can understand and reason upon all that is written in this volume, as well ng carry all the practices described into operation, and who in consequence will elicit more enjoyment from a quarter of an aere than a man who has no scientific knowledge will do from any extent of ground, and means with- out limits. We by no means set down £70 or £80 as adequate wages for such a person ; we know many gardeners who receive £lOO, and some £l60 and £200 a-year, with a house, coals, candles, and various other perquisites. We merely state that such is the salary at which a scientific gardener may be engaged at the present time. It is a common notion that it requires a much less skilful gardener to manage a small place than a large one ; but this only holds true where the variety of products required are small in proportion to the extent of the ground on which they are to be grown. If all the kinds of produce are required frotn a small garden that are required from a large one : if, for example, forcing in all its departments is to be carried on in both; if there are to be small crops in the cottage garden of all those crops which are grown in the mansion garden on a large scale ; then we afBrm that a more skilful, experienced, and attentive gardener is required for the latter than for the former. More skill is necessary, because more is required with less means ; more experience is requisite, because it is only by experience, joined to skill and knowledge, that success can be rendered tolerably certain ; and more attention is required to watch the progress of favourable or un- favourable circumstances, because, on a small scale, these circumstances are more immediate in their operations, and their results, if unfavourable, are more severely felt. But let us not be supposed to undervalue the garden-labourer. Wherever an amateur is his own head-gardener, there the garden-labourer is his fittest assistant, and far better adapted for his purpose than a professional gardener, whose superior knowledge and skill might discourage him in his operations. The wages of a professional gardener, it must be allowed, are but small, compared with the amount of knowledge and the steady attention which the exercise of his profession requires ; but wages in this, as in every other case, depends on demand and supply, and it would serve little purpose here to discuss the subject of increasing the one or dirainishmg the other. This much it may be useful to observe, that gardening, when studied scientifically, is a profession wh'ch tends to elevate the mind, and confer intellectual enjoyments of a mich more exalted chai-acter than mere mouey -making can ever do. Tills, we OPERATIONS OF OENERAL MANAGEMENT. 415 think, is proved by the excellent moral character of almost all professional gardeners, and by the high degree of intelligence and scientific knowledge which many of them acquire. There are few persons, we believe, who have a more extensive personal knowledge of British master-gardeners than we have, and we also know a good many on the Continent ; and we must say that, as a body, we have the very highest respect for tliem. They arc almost all great readers ; and in consequence of this, the intellectual and moral powers of many of them have been developed in a manner that com- mands our utmost veneration. There is scarcely a science or an art which some master-gardener of our acquaintance has not of his own accord taken up and studied from books, so as to obtain a respectable degree of knowledge of it. We know a number who have taught themselves several languages, and one of the best Hebrew scholars in Scotland, as we are informed by a clergyman (a good judge), is a gardener, who taught himself that language without the assistance of a master. We know gardeners that excel in almost every department of mathematics and geometry. Some are scientific mete- orologists, naturalists in all the departments, and a number are good drafts- men. Many Scotch gardeners dip into metaphysics, and we have long known one whose library contains all the best English works on the subject, including those of Reid, Kames, Stuart, Monboddo, Drummond, and many others, besides translations. The development of so much talent among gardeners is no doubt owing to the nature of the profession, which excites thought ; to the isolation of their dwellings and the necessity of their staying at home in the evenings to look after hothouse fires, and very much also to the kind indulgence of their masters, who, with very few excep- tions, allow them the use of whatever books they want from their own libraries. Most employers also make presents of books to their gardeners ; and some, of which Lord is the most magnificent example that we know, have established in their gardens, libraries, with mathematical instru- ments, globes, and maps. Another more recent yet grand cause of the development of the minds of gardeners is the practice, which has become general among them within the last twenty years, of writing for the press. . The Transactions of the Horticultural Society of London, and the Memoirs of the Caledonian Society, first called forth tliis talent, which, as the gar- dening books in existence previously to the first edition of our JEncyckpcedia of Gardening will show, had been confined to very few persons. The grand stimulus to writing, however, was given by the Gardener's Magazine, a work most liberally supported by the contributions of gardeners ; and how generally this has called forth the talent of writing among both masters and journeymen wiU appear by the abundance of communications which continue not only to be supplied to that periodica], and several others which appear monthly, but to two weekly gardening newspapers. Amateurs also have very generally become writers on horticultural subjects; and from the different views which many of them take fi'om tliose held by practical men, the discussions they often elicit prove highly instructive to all parties. What we greatly admire in all this intellectual progress is, that gardeners still maintain their modesty of deportment and that high moral character, which command the respect of their enipioyeis and of ail who know them. E G 2 410 PART III. THE CULTURE OF THE KITCHEN AND FRUIT GARDEN. CHAPTER I. LAYIVQ OUT AND pr,ANTINO THE KITCHEN AND FRUIT-OARDEN. Sect. I. Laying out the Kitchen-Garden. 885. TTie situation and general arrangement of the kitchen-garden have already been treated of in the Suburban Architect and Landscape Gardener, but previously to entering on its culture and management, we shall here recapitulate the main features. The situation relative to the other parts of a residence, should be as near the house as is consistent with other details. In general the kitchen, stable-offices and kitchen-garden should be on one side of the mansion or dwelling, and so placed as to admit of intercommuni- cation without bringing the operations or operators into the view of the family or their visitors. As the stable-offices are generally near the kitchen- offices, so the kitchen-garden rnay be near the stables ; and in such a situa- tion it will generally be found that the kitchen- garden is less seen from the windows of the mansion, than if it were placed at a much greater distance. A very little reflection will convince any one that this must necessarily be tlie case. Relatively to surface, one which is level, open, and airy, is the best ; because it is least liable to be affected by high winds. The next best surface is one gently sloping to the south, or south-east ; and the woret is one sloping to the north-east. The surface of a hill is to be avoided on account of its exposure to high winds ; and equally so one in a valley on account of the cold air which descends from the adjoining heights and settles there. The eurtent is regulated by the wants of the family, and may vary from a quarter of an acre to several acres ; every thing depending on the quantity and quality of the produce required. The best soil is a loam, lathcr sandy than clayey, on a subsoU modej'ately retentive. The form of the garden should be rectangular, as better adapted than any other for the opera- tions to be carried on within. The area is enclosed by walls, in general forming a parallelogram with its longest side in the direction of east and west, in consequence of which the greater length of walling has a surface exposed to the south. AVhen the situation is such as to require artificial shelter, plantations are formed exterior to the garden for this purpose, but they should never, if practicable, be nearer the walls than 100 feet or 150 feet ; for though science has not yet satisfactorily assigned the reason, yet it is certain that nothing is more injurious to culinary veget- ables and fruits, than the exclusion of a free current of air in every direction. The sole object of shelter ought to bo to break the force of high winds. Water should never he wanting in a garden, and a?, we liave already observed (82,3) it should always be exposed in a basin for some time before being used. The garden walls should if possible be of brick; or if they are formed of stone, or of mud or eomprested earth, which in some parts of the country LAYING OUT THE KITCHEN GARDEN. 417 make excellent walls, retaining much heat and lasting a long time, they ought to be covered with a wooden trellis on which to train the trees. It has been recommended by Hitt and otheis to build the walls on piers, for the sake of allowing the roots of the trees to extend themselves on both sides of the wall. As however the branches of the trees are constrained so ought to be the roots, in order that the one may be proportionate to the other. Besides, as there are generally trees on both sides of every garden wall, it does not appear that, under ordinary circumstances at least, anything would be gained by this mode of building walls, excepting the saving of a small proportion of materials. Where walls are not built of brick, stone or earth, they may be formed of boards, which when properly seasoned and after- wards saturated with boiling tar, will endure many years, and produce as much heat in the summer season as brick or stone. They are indeed colder in winter and spring, but that circu instance is often an advantage by retard- ing the blossoming of the trees, and lessening the risk of their being injured by spring frosts. If a cavity were formed by the boarding, and filled with pounded clinkers, or charcoal, or coke, much heat would be absorbed from the sun heat, and thus form a source for giving out heat at niglit. Where the walls aie formed of brick they may always be built hollow, (472) to save material ; and as very little additional expense will be required to form the hollows into flues (476) or channels for hot-water pipes, such an arrangement should not be neglected in the colder parts of the island. The walks in the interior of the garden are laid out in a direction parallel to the walls, and espalier rails are commonly formed parallel to the walks. Exterior to the walls, a narrow portion of ground is inclosed which is technically called the slip, the object of which is to admit of getting the fuU benefit of the wall on the outside as well as witliin. 886. In trenching and levelling the surface of the kitchen-garden, care must be taken to form a complete system of underground drainage ; not only by having di-ains formed of tiles to carry off subterraneous water, but by having the surface of the subsoil parallel to the exposed surface, both being inclined towards the situation of tlie drains ; so that the water in sinking down from the surface may not rest in hollows (526). The best situation for these drains will generally be under the walks. The depth of the soil of a garden should seldom be less than two feet, this depth being penetrated by the roots of even the smallest kinds of culinary vegetables when growing vigorously. The depth of the soil, however, ought to bear some relation to its quality, and to the climate. A loamy or clayey soil in a humid climate need not be trenched to the same depth as if it were in a warm and dry climate ; because the use of the soil to plants being to retain moisture, a small body not liable to lose by evaporation, may be as ctFcctive as a larger one so constituted as to lose a great deal. The borders for fruit-trees form an important part of the kitchen- garden, and should always be prepared with a due regard to the soil, the climate, and the kinds of trees to be planted. The bottom should generally be prepared so as to prevent the roots from penetrating into the subsoil : though as this naturally limits the supply of water to the roots in dry seasons, and consequently gives occasion for artificial waterings, a better mode than making the borders very shallow, is never to dig them, and to spread the manure always on the surface. By this means the roots will not be forced downwards, as they necessarily must be when the surface is loosened and exposed to the diying iuiiuence of the 418 LAYINa OUT THE KITCHEN GARDEN. Bun and winds, ov the exhaustion of crops of vegetables. The subsoil of the borders, however, ought in every case to be drained. In planting fruit-tref^ in the kitchen garden, we would on no account whatever introduce standards, or any description of fruit-tree, in those partsof the open garden which are to be cropped with herbaceous vegetablesj because such trees injure the surrounding crops by their shade, and never produce much fruit, or fruit of good quality, in consequence of their roots being forced down into the subsoil by the neces- sary stin-ing of the soil among the herbaceous crops. We have enlarged on this subject elsewhere, {Sub. Gard. 1st ed. p. 202,) and we therefore only add that we recommend no fruit-trees to be planted in the kitchen-garden ex- cepting against the walls, against espalier rails, in rows along the walks, or in compartments by themselves. It may be objected to what we recommend, that it is contrary to the practice of market-gardeners, who in general grow fruit- trees among their culinary crops ; but to this we reply, that the fhiit of such trees, and the flavour of the crops which grow under them, must necessarily be far inferior to that of fruit grown on trees which draw their nourishment from the surface of the soU, and of vegetables which enjoy the full benefit of the sun and au'. Market-gardeners know this, though their customers may not. A forcing department, a frame ground and a reserve ground, are accompaniments to every complete kitchen-garden, and even the smallest has at least a reserve and frame ground. The two latter accompaniments are generally placed exterior to the walls of the garden, in that part of the slip which is nearest the stables, and the forcing department is sometimes placed there also ; though more generally it consists of glass structures placed against the north wall of the garden. The best outer fence for a garden is a sunk wall, the ditch in which it is built serving as a main drain, into which all the drains in the interior may discharge themselves. The wall of this fence may be carried up three feet orfourfeet above the surface of the ground, to render it more formidable as a fence, without at the same time producing too much shelter and shade in the slip. In many places it is customary to surround the slip with a shrubbery bounded by a hedge, which has a very good effect for a few years whUe the trees are young, but when they grow large they produce an injurious degree of shelter and shade. The main entrance to a kitchen-garden should always be so placed as to look towards the main feature witliin, this feature necessarily being the south side of the north wall, not only because that wall supports the hot-houses when there are any within the garden, but because on it are grown the finest fruits. As an example of a kitchen-garden arranged agreeably to the foregoing obser- vations, but combining also a flower-garden, as being frequently required in a suburban vUla, we refer to fig. 330. It contains one acre within the walls, and half an acre in the slips ; and the following references wiU explain the details. 1. Flower-garden. 8. Espalier-borders. 2. Conservatory. 9. Pond, surrounded with a stone 3. Green-house. margin. 4. Forcing-house for flowers. 10. Forcing department. !>. Back-shed. 11. Water- basin. (!. Area for setting out green-house 12. Ranges of pits for melons, cu- plants in summer. cumbers, &.C. 7. Culiiiarydepartments with espaliers. 13. Pine-stove. LAYING Oni THE KITCHEN aABDEN. 419 10 30 »0 in" l_ I ■ ' ' I 1 ! ! ! ! F' Fig. 330. Pian 6j a kitchen garden containing one acre within the walU^ and half an acre in the surrounding slifs. 420 DISTBIBDTION OF FRUIT-TREES IN A KITCHEN GARDEN. 14. Peach-house. 15. Vinery. 16. Pits. 17. Back-shed. 18. Department for compost, mixing dung, &c. 19. Mushroom-sheds, tool-house, wintering vegetables, &c. 20i Slips, bounded by a sunk wall Supposing the flower-gardens and references may stand as under : — 1. Fruit-garden. 2, 3, 4, 5. To bo omitted, if not desirable. 6, 7, 8. Culinary departments with espaliers. 9. Pond. 10. Forcing department. 11. Water-basin. 12. Ranges of pits, for melons, cu- cumbers, &c. 13. Pine-stove. 14. Peach-house. 15. Vinery. fence, surmounted by an open iron railing. 21. Gardener's house. 22. Fruit and onion room, with lodging-room for under-gar- dener, and seed-room over- 23. yard to gardener's house. 24. For pot-herbs. hothouses are to be omitted, then the IG. Pits. 17. Back-shed. 18. Department for compost, mixing dung, &c. 19. Mushroom-sheds, tool-house, wintering vegetables, &c. 20. Slips, as before. 21. Gardener's house. 22. Fruit and onion room, with lodging-room for under-gar- dener, and seed-room over. 23. Yard to gardener's house. 24. For pot-herbs. The following plan, fig. 331, contains an acre within the walls, and is without a gardener's house, or slips at the sides, the situation being sup- posed to render it necessary to conceal the walls by a plantation of evergreen shrubs made close to them. To prevent, the roots of these shmbs from penetrating to the borders inside of the' walls, their foundations must be at least three feet deep in the most impei-vious subsoil, and deeper stiQ on soil that they wiU readily penetrate. The following are references : — /, Pine-stove, jr, Peach-house. h. Vinery, i, i. Pits. a, a. Fruit-garden, the border next the outer fence for pot-herbs. A, i, Culinary departments with espa- liers. c, c, Forcing department. d, d. Department for compost, mixing dung, &c. e, e. Ranges of pits for melons and cucumbers. k. Back-shed. I, I, Sheds for mushrooms, or for other purposes. m, m. Water-basins. Sect. II. The distribution of Fruit-trees in a kitchen-garden. 887. The more delicate fruit-trees are always placed against walls, and tliose which are less so are planted in the open garden as standards, dwarfs, or espaliers. South of London the trees planted against walls are cliiefly the grape, fig, peach, nectarine, and apricot. Sometimes there are planted against walls of a south aspect, one or two choice plums, a few cherries to come into early bearing ; and on the north side of an east and west wall, some MorcUo cherries and sometimes Currants, to come in late ; the fruit being DISTBIBHTION OF FKUIT-TREES IN A -KITCHEN-GABDEN. 421 covered with netting, to preserve it from birds and so retain it on the trees till Christmas. North of London, pears, and apples of the finer kinds, are trained against walls; and north of York, even the mulberry, which in Scot- land never ripens fruit as a standard. Nuts, such as the walnut, sweet ches- nut, and filbert, are almost always grovra as stan- dards; but the crops of the two former are very precarious north of York, and but larely ripened in Scotland. The only sug- gestions that can be giveU for selecting the trees which require a wall in any given situation are, to observe what has been done in gardens in the same locality or in similar localities. The lists given consist of varieties which have all been proved to be of first-rate excellence, and are, with few exceptions, the same as those, for the selection of which, we had the assistance of Mr. Thompson, by permission of the Horticultural So- ciety. In choosing from these lists for a garden in the north of Scotland, the grapes and the figs will be rejected altogether for the open walls, because they would not ripen there; while for a garden in the south of England the ap- ples and pears would be rejected, because there the fruits would ripen suffi- ciently well in the open garden, asespaliers,dwarfs, or standards. We shall here give only the names Ip _ JO^ So- ^ - - 10 of the kinds selected ; other Fig. S31,Plomo/akitchen-garden, containing one acre within particulars Will be lOUlld the walls, and three quarters of an acre in the slips, at the in OUr fruit catalogue. two ends. 422 WALL FKUIT-TREES. SuBSECT. I. Wall Fruit-trees, 888. Select List of Fruit-trees adapted for walls of different aspects, those marked * deserving the preference : — Drap d'Or, E. or W. *Green Gage, S., E., W. Apples. *Golden Pippin, S., S.E., or S.W. *Ribston Pippin, E. or W, *Nonparea, S., S.E., or S.W. •Herefordshire Pearmain, E. or W., or S.E. Court of Wick, E. or W. Reinette du Canada, E.orW.,orS.E., or S.W. Newtown Pippin, S.E. or S.W. *Cornish Gillyflower, S.E. or S.W. *Court-pendu Plat, S.E. or S.W., or E. or W. *Golden Harvey, S.E. or S.W. or E. or W. Scarlet Nonpareil, E. or W. Hughes's Golden Pippin, E. or W. *Pearson's Plate, E. or W. Pears. •Jargonelle, S.E. or W. *Marie Louise, E., W. Gansel's Bergaraot, E., W. Duchesse d'Angouleme, E., W. *Beurre Diel, E., W. •Hacon's Incomparable, E. or W. *Glout Morceau, S.E. or W. *Passe Colmar, S.E. or S.W. Nelis d'Hiver, S.E. or W. Beurre d'Aremberg, S.E. or W. Colmar, S.E. or W. *Easter Beurre, S.E. or W. •BeurrMe RanZjS.E. orW. Cherries. *May Duke, S., E., W. •Royal Duke, S., E., W. *Knight's Early Black, S., E., W. *Elton, S. E. W. •Florence, E. or W. •Early Purple Guigne, S., E., W. Black Tartarian, S., E., W. Late Duke, E., W., N. •MoreUo, E., W., N. Plums. •Royale Hative, S.E.W. «Coe's Golden Drop, S., E., W. •Washington, S., E., W. •Purple Gage, S., E., W. Ickworth Imp^ratrice, E. or \V. Kirke's Plum, E. or W. Drap d'Or, S., E., W. Apricots. •Large Early, S., E., AV. •Moorpark, S., E., W. •Royal, S., E., W. •Turkey, S., E., W. Breda, E. or W. Peaches. Early Anne, S. •Grosse Mignomie, S. Royal George, S. •Noblesse, S. •Malta, S. •BeUegarde, S. •Barrington, S. •Late Admirable, S. Nectarines. •Elruge, S. •Violet Hative, S. White, S. Pitmaston Orange, S. Due de Tello, S. Figs. •Blue or black Ischia, S.E., S., or S.W. •White or brown Ischia, S., S.E., or S.W. Black Genoa, S.E., S., or S.W. White Genoa, S.E., S., or S.W. •Brown Turkey, S.E., S., or S.W. •Brunswick, S.E., S., or S.W. *Pregussata, S.E., S. or S.W. Grapes. •The Early Black, S. •White Muscadine, S. Grove End Sweet Water, S. Pitmaston White Cluster, S. WALL FRUIT-TREES. 423 Esperione, S. j ably well on the open wall in the Black Hamburgh, S. climate of London in fine seasons. Grizzly Frontignan-, S. j ! The Mulberry is sometimes planted The last two grapes ripen remark- | against a west wall. 889. Of aU these different kinds of fruits, with the exception of the fig and the grape, both short-stemmed and long-stemmed trees are to be procured in the nurseries. The former, that is, the dwarfs, are for filling up the lower parts of the wall, and ultimately also the upper part ; and the latter, the standards or riders, are for filling up the upper part till the dwarfs are so far advanced as to take their place, when the riders are taken up and thrown away. Riders therefore should always be of early -bearing sorts. The plants may be procured either one year grafted, or one, two, or three years trained, the latter trees being double or treble the price of the former, but filling the wall much sooner. As riders are but of temporary duration, it is customary to procure them three or more years trained, that they may bear fiuit imme- diately. When the walls are under twelve feet high it is scarcely necessary to plant riders ; for if three years trained trees are planted, the wall will be covered to the top in seven years. 890. The distance from each other at which the trees should be planted de- pends on the species of tree, the climate, the height of the wall, and to a certain extent also on the width of the border. The following distances are calcu- lated for the dwarfs on a wall twelve feet high, with a border twelve feet wide, in the climate of London : — Peaches, nectarines, and figs, fifteen feet to twenty feet ; apricots, fifteen feet for the early sorts, and eighteen feet to twenty-four feet for the late strong-growing sorts, as apricots and plums do not bear pruning so well as other wall-trees ; cherries and plums, fifteen feet to twenty feet, or the stronger-gi-owing plums, such as the Washington, twenty- four feet ; apples on dw arfing stocks, fifteen feet — ^if on free stocks, from • twenty-five feet to thirty feet ; mulberries, from fifteen feet to twenty feet. Vines may be planted among the other trees at thirty feet or forty feet dis- tance, and a single stem fiom each plant trained up to the coping of the wall, and then horizontally close under it, where if pruned in the spurring~in manner (797) it will bear abundantly, and produce more saccharine fruit than if it had been treated like a fruit-tree. If however the situation is favourable for vines, they may be planted from ten feet to fifteen feet apart, and trained either in the perpendicular manner (808), or horizontally with upright laterals, or in the fan manner ; or several plants may be introduced together, and trained in Mr. Hoare's manner, or in the Thomery system, to be afterwards described. One rider, peach, cheny, or plum, maj'be intro- duced between every dwarf, if the latter should be maiden plants ; but if they are dwarfs three or four years trained, riders are unnecessary excepting on walls above twelve feet high. 891. For low walls the distances above given may be increased one-fourth, when the height of the wall is only nine feet, and one-half when it is six feet. The mode of training for walls under nine feet should generally be the half-fan manner, shown in fig. 318 in p. 375. The intervals between the trees may be fiUed up for three or four years wifh gooseberries or cur- rants ; each plant trained to a single upright stem, and spurred in. By thus having only one shoot from a plant, the top of the wall will be reached by 424 FRUIT-TREES POK ESPALIERS AND DWARFS. that shoot in three or, at most, four years ; and as the permanent trees encroach on the temporary ones on each side, the latter can be taken out one at a time, so as never to leave an unseemly blank on the wall. 892. Training, in the case of walls twelve feet high and upwards, should he the fan manner for the peach, nectarine, early apricots, and figs ; the half-fan for the stronger apricots, plums, cherries, the more delicate pears, and the mulberry ; and the horizontal manner for the apple and the greater number of pears. 893. Planting.— The plants should be placed on hillocks higher or lower according to the depth which the ground has been moved in preparing the border, in order that in two or three years, when the ground shall have finally settled, the collar or part of the stem whence the first roots proceed shall be between two inches and four inches above the general surface of the ground. The distance of the collar from the waU, when newly planted, should be for the more delicate-growing trees, such as the peach, from six inches to nine inches ; and for the more vigorous-growing kinds, such as the apple, pear, and cherry, from nine inches to a foot. We say nothing as to the season of planting, or the mode of performing the operation, these and every part of culture generally applicable to ligneous plants, having been treated of in detail in those parts of the work with which the reader is supposed to be already familiar. SoBSECT. II. — Fruit-trees for espaliers and dwarfs, 894. Espaliers are commonly planted in lines parallel to the main walks in kitchen-gardens ; and next to the boundary-wall, and the correctly-edged and higlily-kept gravel- walks, there is nothing which so much characterises the garden of a private gentleman, and distinguishes it from that of the market-gardener. No person, we think, who has a cultivated feeling for regularity and harmony of forms and lines, can think a walled kitchen- garden complete without espalier-raUings bordering the walks. Lines of dwarf fruit-trees, or of fruit-shrubs, such as the gooseberry and currant, are . so far good ; but they are far from havmg the effect of espalier-railings. Their forms bear no relation to that of the walls, whereas the espaliers are counterparts of them, and keep up the harmony of form. There is com- monly an espalier-rail on both sides of all the walks, excepting the sur- lounding one next the wall-border. On that border espalier-trees are not generally planted, though there are some exceptions. The espalier-raU is generally placed at tliree feet or four feet distant from the walk, and on the inner side of the rail there is commonly a foot-path, two feet wide, at two or three feet distance ; so that these trees have a space eight feet wide, which may be considered as exclusively devoted to their roots. If the main walks are of flag-stone, supported on piers, or if they are formed of a thin layer of gravel on good soil, then we may add half the width of the walk, in addition to that already mentioned. If the six feet of border is not dug and cropped, but only slightly manured on the surface, and once a year gently stirred with the three-pronged fork, the trees will bear abundantly ; but if the gi-ound is dug and cropped, or if flowers are grown on it, the crop, fiom the roots being forced to descend to the subsoil, and to produce more wood than they can properly ripen, and the trees being thus forced to take a habit of luxuriance rather than of fruitfulness, the fruit produced will be few and without flavour. rnUIT-TREES FOR ESPALIERS AND DWARFS. 425 895. If dwarfs or standards trained in the conical manner are substituted for espaliers, the stems of the trees should be five feet or six feet from the walk, and the path in the Inside should be at an equal distance from them. This will give a border of ten feet or twelve feet in width, besides the width of the path ; and if the ground is not dug and the trees carefully trained, an immense quantity of fruit will be produced. If the trees are standards, trained in the spurring-in manner, the line of trees need not be farther than three feet from the walk, and the footpath in the inner side may also be at thi'ee feet distance, which will give a border six feet in width. As the spurred-in trees will grow twelve feet high, and if on dwarfing-stocks, and the border not dug, will bear abundantly, we know no mode in which so much fruit can be produced on so limited a surface of ground, excepting always the espalier mode, by which the trees do not ocoupy above a foot iu width. In order to prevent the roots of espaliers, dwarfs, cones, and all other border-trees from extending among the culinary vegetables, they may be cut off every three or four years about a foot from the inner path, and the soil being there enriched, abundant nutriment will be supplied to keep the trees in a bearing state. too. Espalier-rails are variously constructed. The simplest mode is to drive in stakes, which may be of young larch trees, or of any other young wood disbarked and steeped in Burnett's composition, at two feet apart, witli temporary stakes of a slight description between ; the latter being for the puipose of training forward the grow- ing shoot of each horizontal branch from one permanent stake to another, during tlie growing season. Tlius in fig. 332, Nos. 1, 2, 3, and 4, represent permanent stakes, and a, h, teni- Fig. 332. Progressive Espaiier-raa. porary qnes. These latter may be removed from between Nos. 1 and 2 when they are no longer of any use there, and placed between Nos. 2 and 3 till the growing shoots obtain a bearing on the stake No. 3, when they may be removed to the space between Nos. 3 and 4, and so on. Another mode is to drive in stakes of the proper height, and eight inches or nine inches apart, beginning at the centre of each tree, and extending them on each side as the tree advances in growth. In the first stage of training, the stakes require to stand as close together as twelve inches or fourteen inches, and to be arranged in regular order to the full height of five feet, with a rail slightly fastened on the top of them for neatness' sake, as well as to steady them. If stakes of small ash, Spanish chesnut, or the like, from coppices or thin- nings of young plantations, be used, they will last for three or four years, provided they are from one and a half to two inches in diameter at a foot from the bottom. They need not be extended further, in the first instance, than the distance to be considered probable the trees may reach in three years' growth : at that period, or the following season, they will all rec^uive to bo removed, and the new ones may be placed on each side, to the extent that the trees may be thought to require while these stakes last, finishing the top, as before, with a rail. As the trees extend their horizontal branches and acquire substance, the two stakes on each side of the one that supports the centre leader of the tree can be spared, and removed to any of the extremities where wanted. And as the tree extends further and acquires more substance, every other stake will be found sufficient ; and the centre 426 FltlJIT-TREES FOR ESPALIERS AND DWARFS. Stake can be spared also, after the leader has reached its destined height and is of a sufficient substance to support itself erect. When such a form of training is completed, and the branches of sufiBcient magnitude, about six, eight, or twelve stakes wUl be sufficient for the support of the horizontal branches, even when they have the burden of a full crop of fruit. At any- other time, about six stakes to each tree will be all that are necessary. 897. A wooden espalier-rail, of great neatness and durability, is formed of stakes of young larch-trees, or spruce firs, charred at the lower ends, driven two feet into the ground so as to stand five feet high, and connected by a rail at top, forming a cap to the uprights. The larch- trees should be girdled (777) a year before being cut, and it has been found that they will last longer if not deprived of their bark. There are many handsome espalier-rails cf this kind in Scotland ; for example, at Yester, in East- Lothian. When the Scotch pine is used for stakes the bark should be removed, as it does not adhere like that of the larch and the spruce fir. 898. Espalier-raHs of cast-iron consist of a top and bottom horizontal rail, into which upright rails are fixed at from six inches to nine inches apart, with standards at every ten feet or twelve feet, which are let into blocks of stone, firmly fixed in the soil, as shown in fig. 333. Wrought wooden espalier-rails are also formed in the same manner as cast-iron rails, and the standards let into iron sockets, which are fixed iu stone posts. LLLIU -iJL_L Fig. 3.33. Cast-iron Espalier-rail. 899. Espalier-rails of wrought-iron may be formed of hoop and wire iron, cither single or double, as shown in figs. (57 to 69 in p. 231 and 232, of the Sub. Arch, and Landscape Gardener ; or of strained iron-wire, as shown in fig. 334. This forms by far the handsomest, cheapest, and if occasionally painted, will doubtless also form one of the most durable of espalier rails. It was first erected in the kitchen garden at Carclew, and a full account of the manner of putting it up will be found in the Gardener's Magazine for 1839. The total cost at Carclew was from Is, Od. to 2s. per linear yard. Strained wire may be put up in this manner, either for espaliers or pleasure-ground fences, not only in straight lines, but in curves of every description. This is effected by means of underground biaces, or undergiound perpendicular FRUIT-TREES FOR ESPALIERS AND DWARFS. 427 posts, and these posts may be either of stone or of cast-iron, and they may be built into masses of masonry where the soil is soft, or has been moved, several feet in depth. No brace need ever ap- pear above gi-ound, as at 6, 6, in fig. 334 ; nor should the posts ever appear to rise out of the «= naked soil, as do a,a, a, in the figure, but always out of a block of stone. Where the boU is on turf, this block, which may be six inches square, need not rise more than an inch above the surface ; but where the ground is to be dug as in a kitchen garden, the upper surface of the block may be nine inches, or a foot square, and may rise two inches, or three inches above the surface of the soil. The reasons for a stone base are as follow : — All materials which have been prepared for the purposes of construction are considered as thus rendered subject to the laws of architec- ture ; and the first law is, that every superstruc- ture must have an architectural base, on which it is placed. Thus, speaking with reference to design, every perpendicular line must rest upon a horizontal one ; and speaking with reference to materials, this horizontal line must be of the same, or of a Kind analogous to that of the per- pendicular; of a kind which must at all events ■* be equally, if not more fii-m and durable than it is. Live wood, that is, growing trees, may rise out of soil, but never architectural wood, that is, squared posts, which ought always to rise out of stone. If this be true of wood, of course it must be much more so of iron, which, though harder than either wood or stone, yet is not nearly so durable as the latter mate- rial, wllich consequently forms a proper base for it to rest on. Espalier-rails and pleasure-ground fences of this kind are put up in the best and most economical manner by Poi-ter and Co., of Thames-street, London ; and by Cottam and Hallen, of Winsley-street, Oxford-street. 900. Dwarfs may be allowed to take their natural shape, but they harmonise much better with the regularity and symmetry of a walled garden when they are trained in regular shapes, which may be formed of wooden rods, stakes with the bark on, or iron-wire. Trees spurred "^"^ in, or trained in the conical manner, require f > no framework as guides. It is scarcely neces- sary to add that all dwarfs, and all standards to be trained in the conical manner or spurred in, should be grafted on dwarfing stocks. v 428 FRUIT-TREES FOB ESPALIERS AND DWARFS. or standards trained, conically or preferable, as the whole are nearly Louise Bonne (of Jersey). Napol6on. Glout Morceau. Nelis d'Hiver. Hacon's Incomparable. Chaumontel. Passe Colmar Knight's Monavcli. Ne plus Meuris. Beurr6 Diel. Easter Beurre. Bem-re Rauce. Cherries. *May Duke. *Morello. * Kentish. Boyal Duke. *Elton. Knight's early Black. Bigarreau. Late Duke. Florence. Plums. Royalc Hative. * Green Orleans. *Fotheringham. * White Magnum Bonum. *Blue Perdrigon. Purple Gage. Washington. Ickworth Imperatrice. Coe's Golden Drop. Kirke's. Other fruit-trees, the mulberry, quince, medlar, service, and filbert, are sometimes introduced as espalier trees or dwarf standards, especially where there is no orchard, and perhaps some varieties of walnut and sweet chestnut might be so introduced. 902. The plants may be procured either one year grafted or some years trained. All those to be planted on espaliers should be trained in the horizontal manner ; and in planting, the greatest care must be taken to place the plants on hills, so that when the ground has finally settled, their collars may be an inch or two above the surface. The distance at which they are placed from the espalier- rail may be from six inches to nine inches, and the distance from plant to plant may be- as follows : — 901. Select list for espaliers, dwai'fs, spnii'ed in; none are marked * as being of equal merit : — Dessert Apples. Oslin. King of the Pippins. Wormsley Pippin. Golden Reinette. Hughes' Golden Pippin. Court of Wick. Bibston Pippin. Adams's Pearmain. Pearson's Plate. Golden Harvey. Court Pendu Plat. Reinette du Canada. Braddick's Nonpareil. Old Nonpareil. Scarlet Nonpareil. Boston Russet. Downton Nonpareil. Kitchen Apples. Dumelow's Seedling. Royal Russet. Alfriston. Brabant Bellefleur. Kentish Codlin. Pears. Jargonelle. Citron des Carmes. Dunmore. Hessel. Beurre de Capiaumont. Flemish Beauty. Duchesse d'Angouleme. Marie Louise. Beurre Bosc. FBDJ'r-SHHtnBS. 429 To be trained as espaliers, — apples on crab stocks, twenty to thirty feet ; cherries, fifteen to twenty feet ; pears on free stocks, twenty-five to thirty feet — on dwai-fing stocks, twenty to twenty-five feet ; plums, twenty to twenty-five feet ; mulberries, twenty to thirty feet, with gooseberries or currants as temporary plants between ; quinces, medlars, and services, fifteen to twenty feet ; and walnuts and sweet chestnuts, where they are tried on espaliers, thirty to forty feet. To be trained as dwarfs, — apples and pears, ten to fifteen feet ; cherries and plums, ten to twelve feet. 903. Standard fruit-trees we would on no account admit in the open garden, for reasons already given. If we made any exception, it would be in favour of a mulberry ; but in that case we would surround it with a circle of tuif, which, while it would save the dropping fruit from being injured, would prevent the ground from being dry. If in any case it were absolutely required to have standard fruit-trees in a walled garden, we would place them in a compartment by themselves, and never dig or crop the ground under them. This would be to plant an orchard within a walled garden, to which we see little objection except that it would require a greater extent of walling than if the orchard were exterior to the walls. SuBSECT. III. — Fruit-Shrubs. 904. Gooseberries and currants are frequently planted as espaliers or dwarfs along the margins of walks; but to train these fruits on espaliers is to pro- duce them at an unnecessary expense, unless the saving of room is a material object ; and as dwarfs they are in general too low to make an effective sepa- ration of the walk and its border from the interior of the compartment. They are therefore, in our opinion, much better cultivated in plantations by them- selves. The distance may be ten feet between the rows, and six feet between the plants in the row. Gooseberries and currants require an open aiiy situation, and a cool moist loamy soil. Raspberries prefer a situation somewhat shaded, as in a west or east border ; or for a late crop in a north border. The Cranberry, where it is grown as a fruit-shrub, requires a peat soil kept somewhat moist, and with the bilberry and some other wild fruits may be conveniently placed in the slip. 905. Select list of fnut-shrubs, those marked * being preferable, especially for small gardens : — Gooseberries, Red and Small Sorts. *Iled Champagne. *H.aspberiy. *Kough Ked. Red Turkey. Small dark rough Red. *Scotch best jam. Miss Bold's. Large Sorts. *Boai'dmans British Crown, Melling's Crown Bob. *lCeens'a Seedling. Hartshorn's Lancashire Lad. Red Rose. *Leigh's Rifleman. *Farrow's Roaring Lion. *Red Warrington. Gooseberries, While, Small Sorta. * White Crystal. * White Champagne. *Early White. White Damson. ^White Honey, •Woodward's VThito smitli. 430 SELECTION OP FRUIT-TBEES Large Sorts *Dixon'3 Golden Yellow. Prophet's Regulator. Prophet's Rock wood. ♦Wellington's Glory. 'Taylor's Blight Venus. *Cleworth's White Lion. * Saunders's Cheshii-e Lass. Stringer's Maid of the Mill. Cook's White Eagle. Gooseberries, Green, Small Sorts. * Early Green Hairy. *Hepbum Green Prolific. *Glenton Green, or York Seedling. *Pitmaston Green Gage. Green Walnut. Large Sorts. Lovart's Elisha. Hopley's Lord Crewe. Parkinson's Laurel. *Collier's Jolly Angler. Briggs's Independent. *Massey's Heart of Oak. 'Edwards's Jolly Tar. Large Smooth Green. 900. Plants of gooseherries and currants may he procured from the nurseries, of one, two, or three years' growth ; care should be taken not to plant them too deep ; if against espaliera, they are trained in the perpen- dicular manner (808) ; but if in compartments, or along walks, as dwarfs, they are best left to take their natural shapes ; thinning out the branches so as to give free access of light and air to the interior of the bush. Raspberries being suffruticose plants, the wood formed in one year dying down the next, can only be procured of one year's gi'owth, and they require little pruning except that of shortening the shoots. Their management, and that of the gooseberry and currant, will be found in our Fruit Catalogue. SuBSECT. IV. — Selection of Fruit-trees adapted for an Orchard. 907. Few kitchen-gardens can produce a sufficient supply of apples, pears, and nuts within the walls, and therefore it commonly happens that a planta- tion or orchard is formed either in the slip, or in some spot adjoining the kitchen-garden. This plantation should always be separated from the culinary departments by some appropriate line of demarcation. This may frequently be a dwarf wall, on which, if the aspect is suitable, young fruit- trees may be trained for the purpose of removal, to fill up occasional blanks in the principal walls. In the plan, fig. 330, in p. 419, the semicircular plot at the south end of the garden might be separated from the walled garden by a dwarf wall, at the same distance from the main wall as the side fences are distant from the main side walls, and the space so walled-oflr would form a very convenient area for the orchard ; pi-ovided it were suitable in aU Oooseberries, Yellow, Small Sorts. Sulphur. *Yellow Champagne. *Early Sulphur. 'Rumbullion. •Hepburn Yellow Astor. Currants, Rid. Red Dutch. 'Knight's Large Rpd. 'Knight's Early Red. 'Knight's Sweet Red. Currants, White. 'White Dutch. 'Champagne, which is pale red or flesh-coloured. Cm-rants, BlacX: 'Naples. Grape. Raspberries. Early Prolific. 'Red Antwerp. 'Yellow Antwerp. *Twice-bcanng. 'Bainet. Cornish. ADAPTED FOR AN OncnARD. 431 other respects. Sometimes the trees are distributed in groups over a lawn or paddock, so as to constitute the main part of the woody scenery of a small villa. They are also occasionally mixed in with ornamental trees and shrubs ; a most incongruous assemblage in our opinion, and one which can never form an efficient substitute for an orchard. In whatever situation standard fruit-trees are planted, the subsoil should be rendered dry, and the surface soil put into good heart by manure. A loamy soil on a dry firm clayey or loamy, or rocky, subsoil, is preferable to a sandy soil on gravel, more especially for apples j but pears and cherries will grow on a drier and lighter soil, provided it be of some depth. Wherever the common hawthorn grows luxuriantly with a clear healthy bark, there orchard fruit-trees will thi'ive. 908. The plants may be dwarfs, if the plantation is to be exclusively devoted to fruit-trees, and the gi-ound neither cropped nor laid down in grass ; but standards are preferable, as admitting more light and air. A very convenient and economical mode is to plant rows of standards and dwarfs alternately : the dwarfs, being on dwarfing-stocks, come first into bearing, and may be removed as the branches of the standards extend themselves. Gooseberries, cuiTants, and raspberries may be planted in the intervale, and retained there for two or three years ; but they ought to bs removed as soon as they are in the slightest degree shaded by the trees. As this is very generally neglected, we should prefer having no fruit-shrabs at aU, biit leaving the surface naked to be occupied entirely by the roots of the dwarfs and standards. All the plants ought to be set on little hills, more especially if the subsoil is such as to be readily penetrated by the roots, or If the ground has been previously trenched ; the great object being to preserve the roots near the surface. The distances at which the trees may be planted are : — For standards, apples, and pears, from thirty feet to forty feet in a medium soil ; or in a thin soil and exposed situation, from twenty-five feet to thirty feet ; and In a rich soil, from forty feet to fifty feet. Cherries and plums, from twenty-five feet to thirty-five feet, according to soil and situ- ation. For dwarfs on free stocks, one -half the above distances will suffice ; and where dwarfs on dwarfing-stocks are to be planted among standards, three dwarfs may be planted for every standard : that Is, there may be a row of dwarfs between every two rows of standards, and a dwarf alternating with every standard in the row. The standards, if they have been two or three years grafted, will probably require to be supported by stakes, to which the stems a short distance below the head ought to be carefully tied with hay- bands. Sheathing the stems of standard trees, especially when they have been late planted or have not abundance of roots, should not be neglected, for reasons already given. The sheathing, which may be of moss, fern, or straw, tied on with matting, or simply of straw or hay ropes wound round, maybe left on till It drops ofi^ of Itself. Mulching (831) is also of great use In late planting. 90&. Select list of standard fruit-trees, adapted for an orchard or plantation subsidiary to a kitchen-garden ; those marked with t being prcfei-able ; — +0slln. +Early red Margaret. Duchess of Oldenburgl. + !rlsh Peach, White Astrachan. tSummer Golden Pij)pin. j tKerry Pippin. F f 2 432 SELECTION OF FRUIT-TREES Dutch Codlin. Kilkenny Codlin. tManks Codlin. +Keswick Codlin. Alexander. + Hawthornden. HoUandbuiy. tWormsley Pippins. +King of the Pippins. 1 Blenheim Pippin. tGolden Reiuette. 1"Fearn's Pippin. + Hughes' Golden Pippin. tClaygate Pearmain. Hicks's fancy Gravenstein. tCourt of Wick. +Pearson's Plate. +Beaohamwell. +Duteh Mignonne. Scarlet Pearmain. tRibston Pippin. Golden Pippin. +Margil. tSyke House Russet. Sam Young. Barcelona Pearmain. f Maclean's Favourite, f Pennington's Seedling. +Adams's Pearmain. tHubbard's Pearmain. tHerefordsliire Pearmain. + Gold en Harvey. Coe's Golden Drop. tCourt Pendu Plat, f Boston Russet. Lamb Abbey Pearmain. f Reinette du Canada, f London Pippin. Newtown Pippin. +Braddick's Nonpareil, tDownton Nonpareil. +01d Nonpareil. +Scarlet Nonpareil. tCornish Gilliflower. +D\imelow's Seedling. +Kcyal Russet. tAlfreston. +Bedfordshive Foundling. tBiabant Bellefleur. Sturmer Pippin. +Rhode Island Grcenmg. Hambledon Deux Ans. Gloria Mundi. Pears. +Citron dcs Carmes. tAmbrosia. +Dunmore. t Althorp Crassane. tSummer St. Germain. tFlemish Beauty. tMarie Louise. tDuchesse d'Angouleme. Doyenne Blanc. Doyenne Gris. tBeurre de Capiaumont. Fondante d'Automne. f Autumn Colmar. tBeurre Diel, fBon Chretien Fondante. Louise Bonne (of Jersey). tBeun-e Bosc. f Hacon's Incomparable, fThompson's. tNapoleon. f Winter Nelis. tGlout Morceau. tPasse Colmar. tKnight's Monarch. Ne Plus Meuris. tEaster Beurre. tBeurre de Ranz. Oba. — A greater quantity of the lasi six varieties should be planted than of any of the other sorts. In fact, be- ing the latest keeping sorts, the sup- ply will chiefly depend on them for the half of the season ; and conse- quently a proportionate number of trees of these varieties should be planted. Formerly many gardens had not a single winter or spring pear, though they possessed a superabun- dance of autumn ones. In future tills will certainly be provided against ; more especially if the proper means be resorted to for presei-ving the fruit during winter and spring : that is, packing them in earthenware vessels, or lai'ge new gai-den pots, and placing them in a cool, dry cellar. ADAPTED FOR AN OHCHARD. a33 Cherriei: +May Duke. f Royal Duke. tKnight's early Black. tEIton. +Downton. fBigarreau. tBlack Eagle. Early Purple Guigne. +Late Duke. fKentish. tMorello. Biittner's October Morello. Plums. tRoyal Hative. +Green Gage. Dessert Plums. IPurple Gage t Washington. tCoe's Colden Drop. t Ickwovth Imperatrice. White Jmperatrioe. fKirke's. f Coe's fine late Red. +Drap d'Or. ■|-Diaprle Rouge. •fNcctaiine. Virgin. Kitchen Plums, Shropshire Damson. Orleans, t Early Orleans. Mirabelle. 910. Training. — All the trees may be allowed to take their natural shapes, taking care, by pruning them for some years after they are planted, to give their main branches an upright directionj diverging from the main stem at an angle not greater than 46°, that they may be the better able to support a load of fruit. With many kinds, however, such is the divergent or pen- dulous character of the branches that this direction cannot be given to them, in which case the object should be, to increase the number of main branches BO as to lessen the load to each. This is particularly necessary in the case of apples and pears. 911. Culture of the soil. — Where fruit is the main object, the soil ought never either to be cropped with vegetables or laid down in grass, because in both cases the trees are deprived of nourishment. In the case of grass, air is excluded j and in orchards where culinary vegetables are grown, the roots are prevented from coming up to the surface, and being forced into the sub- soil, feed there on a more watery nutriment, which produces shoots of spongy wood without blossom-buds, and in many cases infested with canker. Where the surface is kept in grass, there is less danger from canker and spongy shoots, provided the trees have been planted on hills ; but in this case, from want of nourishment, the fruit will be smaller and less succulent. If, however, the soil is naturally good, and occasionally manured on the surface, more and better flavoured fruit will be produced in such an orchard than in one cropped with culinary vegetables. As no orchard can be pas- tured unless each separate tree is inclosed, which, where the ground is properly covered with trees, would probably cost more than the pasture was worth, it will in general be found better, where grass must be intro- duced, to mow it and supply manure, till the stems of the trees are so large as to be able to protect themselves. It is almost unnecessary to observe, that as soon as the branches of the trees approach within two feet or three feet of each other, the branches of the temporary trees should be shortened in (769), and soon after removed by dogi'ees, so as at all times to leave a clear space of live feet or six feet round the head of every tree. 4ri4 CROPPING. CHAPTER II. CROPPING AND GENERAL MANAGEMENT OF A KITCHEN-GAEDEN. 912. The fruit-trees and fruit-shrubs being planted, the former against the walls and espalier-rails, and the latter in plantations by themselves in the compartments, the remaining part of the garden is devoted to herbaceous vegetables. The number of these required to be grown in every kitchen- garden is considerable, and, as we have seen (177 and 535), the soil ought to be managed and the crops sown or planted according to some preconceived system. With respect to the soil, this consists in changing the surface in the manner explained (536), in stirring and manuring it, weeding, watering, &c., on the principles detailed in 832, 813, and 821 ; and we shall now explain the system of cropping and rotations. Sect. I. Cropping. 913. The herbaceous vegetables grown in kitchen-gardens are of two kinds : perennials which remain several years in the ground, such as aspa- ragus, seakale, rhubarb, horse-radish, artichokes, and perennial sweet herbs, and strawberries. The first of these crops remains on the same piece of ground seldom less than ten or twelve years, and the others are renewed generally about half that period or oftener. The other and by far the more numerous crops are annuals or biennials, and many of them only remain on the ground during a part of the year. The proportion of the perennials being fixed on, little more trouble is required with them ; but the annuals being numerous and of short duration, the proportionate quantities that require to be sown or planted to supply the demands of the kitchen, and yet to be in due proportion to the extent of the ground to be cropped, and the kinds of crops which ought to succeed each other, require the constant exercise of the gardener's judgment. The fii-st point is to determine the proportion of different crops, and the next is their succession : though the proportions will depend to a certain extent on the peculiar taste or wants of the family, and whether they reside on the spot or at a distance — whether they have a farm for growing \ he winter supply of potatoes, &c., yet some rules or hints may be devised ■« hich are generally applicable. 914. General proportions of crops. — The greatest breadth of surface in almost every garden requires to be sown with peas ; but as this crop only lasts at an average about six months, a second crop may be planted on the sam^ ground in the same year. The cabbage tribe, including cauliflower, broccoli, savoys, Brussels sprouts and borecoles, occupy the next greatest space in most gardens, and they very generally succeed the crops of peas. Turnips are perhaps the next most extensive crop, unless indeed the main summer crops of potatoes are grown in the kitchen-garden, which is not desirable where they can be grown on the farm ; the potato being a crop that, for some reason or other which we do not pretend to explain, is seldom found so mealy and high-flavoured when grown in a garden as when grown in a field. There are next several crops, each of which have nearly an equal claim for space, viz. — cavrots, onions, beans, kidney-beans, celery, and winter spinach. Jerusalem artichokes and red-bc-et crops may come next in flic Older of space required ; and then leeks, gallic and shallots, salsafy ROTATION OF CROPS. 435 and scovzonera. . Lettuce, endive, radish, cress, mustard, chervil, parsley, and other summer salading, gamishings or herbs, may in general be grown among other crops, or in the front margin of wall- borders. 916. In determining the extent of each crop, the nature of the produce must be taken as a guide. It would be of little use to have a less quantity of any crop than would not at a single gathering produce a dish sufficient for a family of several persons. This for such articles as asparagus and peas requires considerable breadth of ground ; but this breadth once planted and in bearing, will afford several or perhaps many gatherings during the time it is in season. On the other hand, where a succession of crops of turnips or carrots is wanted, if only two or three square yards were sown each time, that space would afford one or two dishes. For such articles as salsafy and scorzonera, which in most English families may perhaps not be asked for above two or three times in a season, a very small surfadfe will be sufficient. When a gardener enters on a new place, before he determines on the extent of particular crops, he ought to consult the cook or housekeeper as to the style of cookery, the ordinary amount of company, and the seasons when extraordinary supplies are wanted, with the periods when vegetables and fruits require to be sent to a distance, with other particulars bearing upon the kind of crops to be grown. Having formed general ideas on the extent of each crop, he will next be able to determine on a system of succession, or, as it is called, rotation. 916. The quantity of seed for crops, proportioned as above described for a garden of an acre and a quarter, may be as follows : — Peas, thirty quarts ; white cabbage of different kinds, six oz.; savoys, one and a half oz. ; Brassels sprouts, two oz. ; cauliflowers, three oz. ; broccoli, seven oz. ; borecoles, two oz. ; red cabbage, one oz. ; kohl rabi, one oz. ; turnips, white, eight oz. ; yellow, two oz ; early potatoes, one bushel; carrots, seven oz. ; onions, eight oz. ; beans, broad, six qts., narrow, three qts. ; kidney beans, three qts. ; scarlet runners, two qts. ; celery, three oz. ; Flanders spinach, one qt. ; summer spinach, two qts. ; Jerusalem ai-tichoke, one peck ; red beet, four oz. ; parsneps, four oz. ; leeks, two oz. ; garlic, half lb. ; shallots, three lbs. ; salsify, half oz. ; scorzonera, half oz. ; lettuce, Cos, five oz., cabbage, three oz. j endive, two oz. ; radish, three pts. ; cress, one pt. ; mustard, one qt. ; parsley, two oz. Sect. II. Rotation of Crops. 917. Crops in horticulture are made to follow each other according to two distinct plans or systems, which may be termed successional croppmg and simultaneous cropping ; the former is generally followed in private gardens, and the latter in market gardens. 918. Successional cropping is that in which the ground is wholly occupied with one crop at one time, to be succeeded by another crop, also wholly of one kind. For example, onions to be followed by winter turnips, or potatoes to be followed by borecole. Simultaneous cropping is that in which several crops are all coming forward on the ground at the same time. For example, onions, lettuce, and radishes, sown broadcast ■ or peas, potatoes, broccoli, and spinach, sown or planted in rows. 919. The object to he attained by a system of cropping is that of procuring the greatest quantity and the best quality of the desu-ed kind of produce, at the least possible expense of labour, time, and manure ; and in order that 436 ROTATION OP CROPS. this object may, be efFectually obtained, there arc certain principles whi ;h ought to be adopted as guides. The cliief of these is to be derived from n, knowledge of what specific benefit or injury every culinary plant does to the soil, with reference to any other culinary plant. It ought to be known whether particular plants injure the soil by exhausting it of particular principles ; or whether, as has been lately conjectured by De Candolle, and as some think proved, the soil is rendered unfit for the growth of the same or any allied species, by excretions from the roots of plants ; while the same excretions acting in the way of manure, add to the fitness of the soil for the production of other species. The prevailing opinion, as every one knows, has long been, that plants exhaust the soil, generally, of vegetable food ; particularly of that kind of food which is peculiar to the species growing on it for the time being. For example, both potatoes and onions exhaust the soil generally ; while the potato deprives it of something that is necessary to insure the reproduction of good crops of potatoes ; and the onion of some- thing which is necessary for the reproduction of large crops of onions. According to the theory of De Candolle, both crops exhaust the soil generally, and both render it unfit for the particular kind of crop : but this injury, according to his hypothesis, is not efiFected by depriving the soil of the particular kind of nutriment necessary for the particular kird of species ; but by excreting into it substances peculiar to the species with which it has been cropped, which substances render it unfit for having these crops repeated. Both these theories, or rather perhaps hypotheses, are attended with some difficulty in the case of plants which remain a great many years on the same soU; as, for example, perennial-rooted herbaceous plants and trees. The difficulty, however, is got over in botli systems : by the first, or old, theory, the annual dropping and decay of the foliage are said to supply at once general nourishment and particular nourish- ment ; and by the second, or new, theory, the same dropping of the leaves, by the general nourishment which it supplies, is said to neuti-alize the parti- cular excretions. A wood of the pine or fir tribe standing so thick that their roots will form a net-work under the surface, will not poison each other ; but remove these trees, and place a new plantation on the same soil, and they will not thrive ; owing, as we think, to the principles most condu- cive to the growth of coniferous trees being exhausted, as is explained chemically by Liebig. The practical inference from either theory is much the same — that is, a change of crops; which is also in conformity with the experiene* and observation of those who believe in the old theory. The rules adopted by the best gardeners are as follow : — 1. Crops of plants belonging to the same natural order or tribe, or to the natural order and tribe most nearly allied to them, should not follow each other. Thus, turnips should not follow any of the cabbage tribe, sea-kale, or horseradish ; nor peas, beans. 2. Plants which draw their nourishment chiefly from the surface of the soil should not follow each other, but should alternate with those which draw their nourishment in gi-eat part from the subsoil. Hence, carrots and beets should not follow each other ; nor onions and potatoes. 3. Plants which draw a great deal of nourishment from the soil should succeed, or be succeeded by, plants wliich draw less nourishment. Hence a crop gi-own for its fruit, such as the pea ; or for its roots or bulbs, such as ROTATION OF CROPS. 437 the potato or the onion ; should be followed by such as are grown solely for then* leaves, such as the common borecole, the celery, the lettuce, &c. 4. Plants which remain for several years on the soil, such as strawbeniea, rhubarb, asparagus, &o., should not be succeeded by other plants which remain a long time on the soil, but by crops of short duration ; and the soil should be continued under such crops for as long a period as it remained under a permanent crop. Hence, in judiciously cropped gardens, the straw- berry compartment is changed every three or four years, till it has gone the circuit of all the compartments; and asparagus beds, sea-kale, &c. are renewed on the same principles. 6. Plants, the produce of which is collected during summer, should be succeeded by those of which the produce is chieily gathered in winter or spring. The object of this rule is, to prevent two exhausting crops from fol- lowing each other in succession. 6. Plants in gardens are sometimes allowed to ripen their seeds ; in which case two seed-bearing crops should not follow each other in succession. These rules, and others of a like kind, apply generally to both systems of the successional crops ; and they are independent altogether of other rules or principles which may be drawn from the nature of the plants themselves ; such as some requiring an extraordinary proportion of air, light^ shade, moisture, &c. : or from the nature of the changes intended to be made on them by cultivation, such as blanching, succulency, magnitude, &c. We shall now notice the two systems separately. 920. Successional cropping. — The plants calculated for this mode of crop- ping are such as requu-e, during almost every period of their growth, the fullest exposure to the light and air, and remain a considerable time in the soil : these are, the turnip, the onion, the potato, the carrot, &c. If any of these crops are raised and brought forward under the shade of others, they will be materially injured both in quality and quantity; though at the same time, while they are merely germinating, shade will not injure them. Hence successional cropping may be carried on in breadths of 20 or 30 feet, between rows of tall-growing articles, without injury ; which approximates this manner of cropping to the simultaneous mode, which, wherever the soil is rich, is by far the most profitable. 921. The simultaneous mode of cropping is founded on the principles that most plants, when germinating, and for some time afterwards, thrive best in the shade ; and that tall-growing plants, which require to receive the light on each side, should be sown or planted at some distance from each other. Hence, tall-growing peas are sown in rows ] or 12 feet apart ; and between them are planted rows of the cabbage tribe ; and again, between these are sown rows of spinach, lettuce, or radishes, &c. Hence, also, beans are planted in the same rows with cabbages (an old practice in the cottage gardens of Scotland), and so on. The great object, in this kind of cropping, is to have crops on the ground in different stages of growth ; so that, the moment the soil and the surface are released from one crop, another may be in an advanced state, and ready, as it were, to supply its place. For this purpose, when- ever one crop is removed, its place ought to be instantly supplied by plants adapted for producing another crop of the proper nature to succeed it. For example, where rows of tall marrow-fat peas have rows of broccoli between them, then the moment the peas aie removed, a trench for celery may be formed where each row of peas stood ; and between the rows of broccoli 438 ROTATION OP CROPS. in the places where lettuces were produced early in the season, may be sown drills of winter spinach. 922. Of these two modes of cropping, the first is the one best calculated for poor soils, or for gardens where the supply of manure is limited ; the secon 1 cannot he prosecuted with success, except in soils which are light and extremely rich. It may be proper to observe here, that a system of cropping can be carried to a much higher degree of perfection in a commercial garden, on a large scale, than in a private one ; because in the fonner whenever one crop is in perfection, it is removed and sent to market at once j whereas, in a private garden, it is removed by dribblets. Hence in small gardens, where labour and manure are of less consequence than economising the extent of surface, it will often be found desirable to have a small reserve garden, with several frames, pots, and other requisites. As soon as one plant, or a few plants of any crop in a condition for gathering, are removed, the soil should be stirred, and a plant or plants (which should have been some days before potted in preparation) should be turned out of the pot, its fibres being care- fully spread out, and water supplied, so as to make it commence gi-owing immediately. Tlie use of potting is to prevent the plant from experiencing the slightest check in its removal; and in autumn, as is well known, the loss of a single day, by the flagging of a plant, is of the utmost consequence. — {G. M., vol. xii. p. 481.) 023. Successional and simultaneous cropping combined. — The following is from an excellent article on cropping, published in the Gardeners' Chronicle. The writer divides kitchen-garden crops into — 1. Perennial or stationary crops — 2. Rotation crops, which include all the principal annual crops, and — 3. Secondary crops, such as salads, spinach, &c., which are usually sown in vacancies between rotation crops. 924. Order of rotation. — 1st year, peas and beans, succeeded by broccoli, savoys, winter greens, collards, spring cabbage ; 2nd year, carrots, parsneps, beet, scorzonera, and salsafy ; 3rd year, onions, cauliflowers, turnips, suc- ceeded by spinach, spring onions, and other secondary crops; 4th year, savoys, broccoli, winter greens, red cabbage, leeks; 6th year, potatoes; 6th year, turnips, cabbage, broccoli ; 7th year, celery ; 8th, French beans, &c. — (^Gard. Chron., 1841, p. 180, with additions.) 925. Secondary crops are those of the shortest duration, such as lettuce, radishes, small salads, annual herbs, and veiy early peas and beans (sown in November), very early cauliflowers, very early turnips, and early pota- toes, all of which will i-equire a warm south border. — (JJid.) 926. Times of sowing and planting. — Peas and beans should be sown from February to June ; the first crop of peas will be clear for early broccoli in the end of June, and for the other seasons until September for later broccoli, savoys, borecole, Brussels sprouts,_ collards or coleworts, and spring cabbage ; this crop should have a slight coat of manure. Broccoli ground will be cleared of early sorts by winter, and should be ridged up all winter for a crop of carrots, which should be sown as early as possible ; the later broccoli, colewort, sprouts, &c., will make way by AprU or the begin- ning of May for beet, parsneps, scorzonera, and salsafy. 1st year, carrots, beet, and parsneps, will be clear in the beginning of November, when the ground must be again ridged up for winter, and have a good coat of dung, ready for cauliflowers, onions, garlic, and shallots; 2nd year, the two latter bi'ing planted ir; Novcmbci-, and also the principal crops of turnips sown PLANTING, SOWING, AND CULTIVATING. 439 in the end of March and April. Cauliflowers, onions, and turnips, will be clear from July to September ; the cauliflowers and shallots, &o., in July ; — for autumn, spinach and endive ; the onions for winter spinach, and the turnips for spring onions, winter lettuce, and other secondary crops. Spinach, endive, and spring onions will be clear by the end of May for savoys, winter greens, red cabbage, cauliflowers, and leeks, all of which require a moderate coat of manure. Savoys, winter greens, red cabbage, &c., will be ready for early potatoes in April and May. Potatoes will make way in July and August for turnips, spring cabbage, late broccoli, and such crops, if wanted. Turnips, cabbage, broccoli, may be cleared in May for celery, and cardoon trenches — ^if all the ground is wanted ; but if not, the cabbage may be allowed to remain for sprouts during all the summer. The intermediate spaces between the trenches may be planted with lettuce, or any other secondary crops ; dung must be given for celery, of course. Celery and similar crops will in part make way in autumn, when the ground should be ridged up for winter', and the remainder as soon as the entire crop is clear ; the ground will then be ready for French beans, scarlet runners, cauliflowers, cucumbers, and tomatoes, in the end of April or beginning of May. French beans will be clear by November, when the ground should be again ridged up all winter to be ready for peas and beans, as at first begun. This will make eight or ten years between the return of the prin- cipal crops to the same place ; and by judicious management of the secondary crops (925) among the rotation crops, every space of ground between one crop and the other may be occupied to advantage during the intervals of cropping. — {Gard. Chron. for 1841, p. 180.) Sect. III. Planting, Sowing, Cultivating, and Managing, 927. In general all crops should be planted or sown in rows from south to north, in order, as already observed (723 ), that the sun may shine on eveiy part of the soil between the rows, and equally on every side of the plants in the row. Beds, also, such as those of asparagus, should be made in the same direction and for the same reasons. When asparagus, sea-kale, and rhubarb are to be forced in the open garden by hot dung, the alleys or paths between the beds should be of double the usual width, and all the beds intended to be subjected to a course of forcing should be placed toge- ther. The secondary perennial crops, such as mint, thyme, sage, savory, perennial marjoram, rue, &c., should always be planted together, and in an open airy situation, and not, as is frequently the case, in the shade. 928. Management of the fruit-tree borders. — The wall-borders, the borders in which the espaliers are planted, and the ground among planta- tions of fi'uit-shrubs or fruit-trees, should on no account be cropped or even deeply dug, for reasons which we need not repeat. The soil may be loosened on the surface in spring with a three-pronged' fork, and in autumn a top- dressing of putrescent manure may be given and slightly turned in with the spade, or left on the surface till the spring-stirring. If the borders are narrow, and the trees, after having filled it with their roots, appear to require additional nourishment, a trench may be cut along the ifront of the wall- border next the walk, three feet or four feet in width, and of sucli a depth as to cut through all the roots, not, however, deeper than eighteen inches. A part of the soil taken out of the trench may be removed alto- gether, and a rich compost of rotten dung and leaf-mould mixed with the 440 PLANTING, SOWING, AND CULTIVATING. remainder and filled in; or if mixed with good maiden loam, so much tlie better. This is in imitation of a plan, long followed with success, by the Lancashire growers of prize gooseberries; all the difference being that they use an excessively rich compost (see Gooseberry, in our Fruit Catalogue), which we do not think would be so suitable for peaches, apricots, &c., as for that fruit and the vine. Where the tree trained on espaliers appeared to require a similar treatment, we would take up a narrow trench between the espalier and the walk, or on the other side of the espalier just beyond the footpath; and where dwarfs or standards seemed to require additional nourishment, we would dig a circular trench round them, at three feet or four feet from the stem ; and in all these cases fill it up with rich compost. It might be advisable to do this work by degrees rather than all at once, by taking out every third yard, in the case of wall and espalier borders, and the third part of a circle in the case of dwarfs and standards. The second yard might be taken out in two years, the third in two years more, and at the end of the sixth year the operation might be recommenced, because the rich soil would very soon be filled with fibrous roots. In this operation, as in every otlier of the kind, the gardener or the amateur must exercise his own judgment, bearing in mind that the object is not to produce luxuriant branches, but blossom-buds. 929. Management of the culinary crops. — All culture must necessarily consist in the application of general practices, or in the pei'formance of such operations as are required by particular species or for particular objects. The former are given in the different subsections on the operations of culture (p. 239 to p. 411), and the latter will be found when treating of the culture of each particular culinary plant in our catalogue of Culinarv \'^EGETABLES. 930. Gathering, storing, and keeping of fruit. — " The principles on which a fruit-room ought to be constructed are, darkness, a low and steady tempera- ture, dryness to a certain point; for apples are found to keep best, as regards appearance, in a rather damp atmosphere, but for flavour a moderately dry air is preferable, and exclusion of the external air. If the light of the sun strikes upon a plant, the latter immediately parts with its moisture by per- spiration, in proportion to the force exercised on it by the sun, and inde- pendently of temperature. The greatest amount of perspiration takes place beneath the direct rays of the sun, and the smallest in those places to which daylight reaches with most difficulty. Now, the surface of a fruit perspires like that of a leaf, although not to the same amount. "When a leaf perspires while growing on a tree, it is immediately supplied with more water from the stem, and thus is enabled to bear the loss produced by light striking on its surface ; but when a leaf is plucked it withers, because there is no longer a source of supply for it. So it is with a fruit : while growing on the tree, it is perpetually supplied by the stem with water enough to replace that which is all day long flying off from its surface ; but as soon as it is gathered, that source of supply is removed, and then, if the light strikes it ever so feebly, it loses weight, without being able to replace its loss. It is thus that fruit becomes shrivelled and withered prematurely. Light should therefore have no access to a good fruit-room." " Temperature should be uniform. If it is high, the juices of the fruit will have a tendency to decompose, and thus decay will be accelerated ; if, on the coiUrary, it is below 32", decomposition of another kind is produced, in con- PLANTING, SOWING, AND CULTIVATING. 441 sequence of the chemical action of freezing. In any case, fluctuations of temperature are productive of decay. A steady temperatui-e of from 40° to 45", with a dry atmosphere, will be found the best for most kinds of fruit. Some pears of the late kinds are better for being kept in a temperature as high as 60°, for this ripens them, renders them melting, and improves their quality very essentially. We do not, however, conceive that the general construction of the fruit-room ought to be altered on theii- account ; we would rather make some special arrangement for such cases." {Gard. Chron. vol. i. p. 611.) The air should be kept moderately dry, but ventilation should not be used except for the purpose of removing ofl%nsive smells, arising from the putrefaction of the fruit. Ventilation by continual currents of air can-ies off from fruit the moisture which it contains, and thus acts in the same way as light, in producing shrivelling, and destroying that plump appearance which gives its beauty to fruit. Another reason against ventilation is, that an equable temperature is scarcely to be maintained when the air is constantly changed. The sweating of fruit throws so much moisture into the air that ventilation is necessary to remove it ; but the sweating ought always to be carried on in a place provided on purpose. Great care should be taken in gathering, handling, and storing the fruit, placing each kind by itself, and keeping wall fruit apart from standard fruit. Gather in baskets, and place them on the shelves side by side with their eyes downwards. When gathering and stowing are completed, shut the room as close at possible, and only open it when the fruit is wanted. (Ibid. p. 61.) The best mode of packing fruit which is to be sent to a distance, has been already given, (860,) and the ordinary modes, as they have nothing peculiar in them, need not be described. 931. Management of the fruit-room. — The general principles of gather- ing and keeping fruit have been already laid down (856). No fruit ought to be allowed to drop from the tree, nor should it be beaten down or shaken ofl'. Except in wet or late seasons, it ought not to be gathered till it is quite ripe, which in stone fmits and berries is known by its softness and fragrance, in kernel fruit by the brown colour of the seeds, and in nuts by the opening of the husks. It ought in every case to be gathered by hand ; and in addition to ladders of different kinds there is the orchardist's crook, fig. 335, the use of which is to take hold of one branch with the hook, and draw it x;:=5;j^ ^^^^^^^ /-^ towards the (Q^ r 'jj ^operator; and • oLi **^*'°' ^y P"'" . . ^^ ting the sliding Fig. 335. OrcTiardiats crook. a . ° ° piece, a, over another branch, that branch is held in thatposition by the obliqueness of the line of pressure, which prevents the sliding piece from moving: thus leaving the operator free to use both hands in gathering the fruit. The fruit ought to be put into baskets, placing each kind in a basket by itself, and laying it in so gently as to run no risk of bruising it ; and not only keeping each kind of fruit by itself, but keeping wall fruit apart from standard fruit, because the former will be soonest fit for the table. The fruit laid on shelves should be placed with their ej-es downwards, and so as not to touch each other ; but baking apples and pears may either be spread on a cool floor, or laid in heaps and covered with a blanket to produce a gentle fermentation, by 442 THE FORCING DEPAKTMENT. which the fruit is deprived of a portion of its moisture, and is thought by many gardeners to keep better, while others disapprove of it as giving the fruit a bad taste. In whatever manner fruit is placed in the fruit-room or fruit-cellar, the doors and windows of the apartments should be kept closely shut, so as to keep the atmosphere of as uniform a temperature and moisture as possible. It should, as we have already observed (930), never be lower than 40°, nor higher than 46°, if possible in close mild weather to keep it so low, with the dew point indicating a very slight degree of dryness occasion- ally. There are, however, exceptions, such as in the case of ripening off, or keeping such kinds in that temperature which experience proves to be most conducive for producing fine consistence and flavour. This requires one or more separate compartments having a command of heat, wherein the tem- perature may be graduated as circumstances may require. Tlie external air ought only to be admitted when that within is rendered offensive by the decomposition of the fruit. If at any time the temperature should fall below 32°, still no artificial heat ought to be applied, but tiiawing allowed to take place in the dark, when the weather changes as gradually as freezing had done. Table apples and pears wliich are expected to keep for some months, are kept on shelves singly, or in sliallow drawers, or packed in boxes, jars, or pots, with dried fern or kiln-dried straw. New garden pots are found to answer remarkably well for keeping fruit, any damp being readily absorbed by the dry, porous, unglazed materials of which they are usually composed. Fruits wliich are thus packed do not require to be examined till the time wlien they are expected to be fit for the table, which should always be marked, along with the name, on the label attached to the jar or box ; but fruits exposed to tlie air on the open shelves require to be examined almost every day, in order to remove those which exhibit symptoms of decay. Walnuts, sweet chesnuts, and filbei-ts, may be kept in boxes or casks, placed in the fruit-cellar on account of its low but uniform temperature. Summer fruit, such as peaches, nectarines, plums, are seldom kept more than a day or two in the fruit-room, but they are sometimes kept in the ice-house for a week or more, but with some loss of flavour. CHAPTER III. THE FORCING DEPARTMENT. The principles of constructing plant- houses, together with those of culture in artificial climates, having been alieady given (480 to 522), we proceed to show their application to the pinery, vinery, peach-house, fig-house, cherry- house, cucumber and melon pits and frames, and the forcing in frames and pits of such culinary vegetables as it is desired to have produced out of season. We have already seen (488 to 608) that artificial heat may be apphed in plant structures by dung or other fermenting substances, by hot water, by steam, or by smoke-flues ; or by two or more of these modes of heating combined. Fermenting substances are almost always the safest, and hot water generally the best ; but, as we have observed (492), the same result may be obtained by smoke-flues, and is still obtained in many parts of the oonntry, tliough not without extra care on the part of the gardener. CULTUBE OF THE PINE-APPLE, 443 M'itli respect to the form of house where low plants, such as pines melons, cucumbers, strawberries, or kidney-beans, are to be grown or foiced, low structures, such as pits or frames, are generally found most eligible ; but where trees, such as the pine, peach, fig, &c. are to be grown, houses of the ordinary height of garden-walls are preferred, at least for general crops. The reasons are obvious in both cases. Sect. I. Culture of the Pine-apple, and Management of the Pinery. We shall firet give the natural data on which the culture of this plant is founded, and next the routine practice of one of the most successful growers of the present day. The botanical and horticultural histoiy of the pine- apple, and an account of the principal varieties cultivated in Britain, will be found in our Fruit Catalogue. SuBSECT. I. Natural data on which the culture of the Pine-apple is founded. The pino-apple is an evergreen monocotyledonous plant, a native of countries tropical or bordering on the tropics, and found in low situations on or near the sea-shore, or on wide rivers. It grows almost always on sandy soil, dry on the surface, but moist at the depth of a foot or two beneath. It is indigenous, or cultivated, in various similar situations, as in South America, at Rio Janeiro ; in the West Indies, at Grenada ; and in Africa, at Sierra- Leone. As an evergreen monocotyledonous plant, it is without buds, and consequently not intended by nature to be long, if at all, in a state of repose ; as a native of the sea-shore, it is not calculated for enduring a great difference of temperature between summer and winter ; and as a native of the sea-shore witliin the tropics, it is calculated for gi'owing in a high tem- perature throughout tlie year. The temperature of various places at or near the equator, as given by Humboldt, exhibits an average of about 83° for the warmest month, and 72° for the coldest ; thus giving a difference between the summer and winter heat adapted for the pine-apple of only 11". But in the small island of Grenada, in the West Indies, where the pine-apple luxuriates, tlie temperature in the shade never exceeds 85° and never falls below 80°; thus giving a difference of only 5°. It is clear, therefore, that there ought to be very little difference between tlie summer and winter temperature of tlie pine-apple. With respect to soil, in the neighbourhood of Rio Janeiro, it consists chiefly of a calcareous sand, always dry on the surface, but always moist beneath, in consequence, we suppose, of the vicinity of the sea or the river, and the attraction of cohesion between the particles of sand ; but this water can never be altogether stagnated, owing to the rise and fall of the tides. The temperature of the soil in Grenada during summer, and at one foot beneath the surface, we are assured on good authority {Gard. Mag.,\o\. vi., p. 438, ) is 85°. With respect to the water of the atmosphere in the countries where the pine-apple thrives, there is generally a dry season and a rainy season — the latter much shorter than the former. In the dry season there are heavy nightly dews ; and the rainy season, which is like the spring of temperate climates, produces such an exuberance of growth as to throw the plants into fruit. In the neighbourhood of Rio, there are heavy rains at intervals from October to April ; the suckers from the roots are taken off in April or May, which is about the end of their summer, and planted in the fields from one foot and a half to two feet from each other. The strongest of them produces fruit in the following year, which weighs between 3 lbs. and 4 lbs. each; and those which do not fruit 444 CULTURE OF THE PINE-APPLE. the second year, produce fruit the third year, often weighing from 10 Ibg. to 12 lbs. each.— (G. M., iii. 443.) 932. The conclusions to be drawn from these data, and which are at the same time confirmed by the experience of the successful and unsuccessful growers in England, are, — that the temperature of the pine-stove ought never to be more than a few degrees lower than 80° in summer, or a few degrees lower than 70° in winter. As our days are much shorter in winter thkn they are between the tropics, a lower temperature ought to be allowed for that season, because growth in the absence of light would be of no service to the plant from its immaturity. In winter, therefore, 70° may be adopted as the standard heat of the atmosphere, and iu summer the temperature may vary between 80° and 90°, or in the fruiting-house from 90° to 95°. With respect to the temperature of the soil, as the soil in all countries, at a short distance under the surface, is found to average 2" or 3° higher than the atmosphere, owing to earth having a greater capacity for heat than air, and parting with it more slowly, if we allow a bottom-heat of between 75° and 80° in winter, and between 85° and 90° in summer, we shall probably be in accordance with what takes place in nature. 9.33. With respect to soil, it is almost unnecessary to say that plants in a wild state are not always found in a soil that is best adapted for bringing them to a high degree of perfection, but rather in one that is best adapted for their propagation, in consequence of the surface of the soil being fre- quently moved, or renewed, or rendered moist. Experience has proved that the pine-apple will thrive in any free loamy soil, well enriched with mild manure, or in sandy soil so enriched, or in peat-soil ; the latter being that in which it is generally grown, and that to a high degree of perfection, in the neighbourhood of Paris. 934. VVith respect to water, it is clear that, if a proper heat is kept up, that element of growth may be liberally supplied both at the root and by watering over the head in the evenings. The great art is to keep the plants continually in a state of vigorous growth till the fruit is cut, when nature intended that the parent stock should die ; and therefore if it die leaving a crown or a sucker, these should be treated as new plants, and urged on to the production of fmit, till they die in their turn ; and so on for ever. The plants may be planted in beds of soil or in pots. The latter is the most convenient mode, and that best adapted for artificial culture, because more completely under the control of the cultivator. From what has been stated, the grand cause of the want of success in the culture of the pine-apple with many persons will be sufficiently obvious. The temperature during winter is kept too low, by which means the vital energies of the plants are so far injured that they are never fully recovered. There are various other causes of failure, but this, we are convinced, is the principal one, because many gardeners apply the doctrine of rest to the pine-apple in the same way as they do to other plants. SuBSECT. II. — Culture of the Pine-Apple in British Gardens. The most abundant crops of pines raised in the shortest time, and in the most economical manner, that we have seen in the neighbourhood of London, have been at Oakhill, near East Barnct ; and the following account of the practice there was furnished to us on purpose for this work by Mr. Forsyth, CCLTUBIS OP THE PINE- APPLE. 4 15 now of Alton Towers, but at the time this account was drawn up. journey- man gardener under Mr. Dowding at Oakhill. 935. Construction of the pit. — Our nursing and growing departments are pits, 7 feet deep at back, 6 feet wide, and sloping at an inclination of 1 foot in three, heated by fermentation, having no fire-heat apparatus. Our prin- cipal fraiting pits (fig 336) are each 40 feet long, heated by one fire, and J_ 4>. Fig. 336. Section of the pipe pit at Oakhill, a, a, Flues 6, Bark-bed. c, Rubble brickwork raised of a suf- ficient height to support the flue. d, Steam pipe for occasional use. e, Arches, supporting the pathway. occasionally filled with fer- menting matter. /, /, Coping stones to the walls. g. Gutter to receive the water from the sashes. h, h, Ground line. supplied with steam, conducted along the front wall, a little above the flue, through an iron pipe of one inch bore from a portable boiler. The sashes, composed of a wooden frame with copper sash bars, and glazed with crown glass, are supported on cast-iron rafters. Shutters, composed of reeds fixed in a wooden frame to fit on each light, which are used in cold nights, give our pits the appearance of thatched cottages. As fermenting ingredients we use for linings, tan, dung, and leaves ; and for beds in the pits, tan only. As fuel, we use coke from the gas works with a little coal and brushwood in kindling, and wet coal ashes in moderating the fires. This is far preferable to coals, being a cheaper and cleanlier fuel, and making more efficient and easier-managed fires. 936. Kinds grown. — Our stock consists of nearly equal numbers of green and black pines ; we generally have about 1200 plants, and we fruit about 600 annually. The sorts we cultivate are. Queens, Providences, Jamaicas for the principal stock, and Antiguas, Envilles, Brown and Striped Sugar- loaves, Globes, and Antigua Queens ; bat of these latter sorts, we have only a fevy specimens. 937. In watering and spririkling we use pure water, pumped into a leaden cisteruj and exposed at least one day to the sun in summer ; and from tanks, &c., in a tepid state, from the forcing-houses, in winter. 446 CULTURE OP THE PINE-APPLE. 938. Worms. — We destroy worms in the pots by wateriog with limfl- water, in the propDrtions of one bucketfal of lime to twenty of water; and in the tan around the edges of the bed, by stirring powdered lime into the iniested tan. Insects have been eradicated from young pine plants here by immersing them thirty-six hours in water medicated with soft soap, in the proportion of four ounces to a gallon. — See 296. in p. 96. 939. Heat, air, and moisture. — We are extremely careful at all times to supply any want of heat, air, or moisture, and control their extremes ; as also to remove all obstacles that might hinder the full action of light, espe- cially in winter : to effect which we are obliged, sometimes more than once during winter, to take oflF the lights, and clear away a green glutinous sub- stance that collects inside about the laps of the glass ; using a scrubbing- brush and a piece of coarse flannel, with plenty of water, for the purpose. 940. We never tie up the leaves of pines ia moving the plants, being per- suaded that the leaves of any well-grown pine plant cannot be tied up with- out injuring them : neither can the height of a plant be so well determined, nor the side that has been incl inin g towards the sun so well reversed in plunging, when the leaves are tied up, as when they stand in their natural position. 941. Jamaica Pines are esteemed. here as being the best for maturing perfect fruits in the winter months. The plants of this species are of lazy growth, impatient of disrooting and shifting, and not easily started into fmit before they attain a good size. Their fi-uits, also, are heavy in proportion to their bulk ; and unlike many others, they wiU swell their pips flat at all Reasons. During the time that our pine plants are vrithout roots, whether crowns, suckers, gills, or stools fresh potted, or plants disrooted, we prefer keeping them in a close, moist, atmosphere, at a temperature not under 65° by night, nor over 90° by day, shading them fi'om the scorching rays of the sun, with a bottom-heat (at least tUl the roots have reached the sides of the pots) of 100°. Late suckers have been successfully wintered here, struck in a layer of half-spent bark, on a bed of good tan, in a pit near the glass. The greatest defect in this system is, that the plants are apt to get down too far from the glass, unless the frame or pit be moveable, and made to sink and foUow them. Good Jamaica suckers generally mature their fruit here in two years, Providences about two months less, and Queens in from sixteen to eighteen calendar months. 942. In starting pine plants into fruit vfe simply increase the tempei-ature, keeping up a moderate supply of moisture ; the starving, parching, and scorching system of starting pines, formerly practised, being now, by all good cultivators, generally discarded ; for examples are not wanting of large pine plants which had been thus starved, &c., whilst the fruits were ready to emerge from their sockets, showing crowns, on straw-like foot-stalks, without a pip at all. 943. Air. — In winter we often admit fresh air into our pine-stoves for other purposes than counteracting heat : as to prevent drawing and blanch- ing, by allo^ving the condensed steam to escape, and to dry the plants. 944. Propagation. — The fruits having been cut (say off Providence plants), and no suckers appearing, we shake them out of the pots, pick off a few of their lower leaves, and shorten the rest ; then cut off two inches or three inches of the stump to which the old roots are attached, and pot the stools in 32-sized pots, and treat them as suckers, when they will pro- CULTURE OF THE PINE- APPLE. 447 duce two or three races of suckers; and by this method we generally increase our stock of the shy-breeding black sorts. By cockscomb-like crowns (that is, several crowns grown together), also, we increase the Providence tribe rapidly. From gills (suckers on the foot-stalk of the fruit), potted in thumbs or 60-sized pots, after a length of time, we obtain good plants. Suckers, crowns, or gills, being got, are laid in some convenient space in the stove to dry, for a few days ; after which we pare ofif the rs^ged part of the stumps of suckers, and pick off as many of the lower leaves of both crowns and suckers as seem necessary, in order to fasten the plant in the pot, and then pot them in pots proportioned to their sizes ; if above a foot long, in 32-sized, and so of the rest to a gill of an inch long in a thumb-pot. The soil used for this purpose is generally pure loam, with about one -eighth of sUver-sand. Being potted, they are wintered as detailed of our practice for Queens (949), and in the month of March every rooted succession pine-plant not in a fruiting-pot is turned out of its pot, and has its roots examined and shortened according to its age and sort, and the end it is expected to serve. Young plants of green pines we disroot freely; older ones now about to be shifted into fruiting-pots, expected to mature fruit late in autumn if the roots are lively, are potted now, pre- serving their balls entke ; Providences, Envilles, &c., we disroot moderately, carefully cutting off any dead or sickly roots, and, by means of a pointed stick, removing aU sodden and vrasted soil. In shifting Jamaicas, we are careful to preserve every living fibre of root, yet we displace from their balls all drainage and worthless soil before repotting them. 945. Bottom-heat. — Being potted, they are plunged about two-thirds in a bottom-heat of not less than 95°, and the temperature of their atmosphere gi-adually increased (say March 22, 65° at suniise; and April 11, 70° at sunrise ; the maximum, June, 90°). As to the time of shifting again, that the state of the plants must determine : say June 1, and again, the middle of August ; a uniform bottom-heat of not less than 90° being kept up throughout — maximum of atmospheric temperature 100°, minimum 70°. In the evenings of bright sunny days, we sprinkle the internal surface lightly with a fine rose to resemble a heavy dew. 946. As the season declines the temperature is lowered, and the standard for winter is fixed at C0°, say November 1 ; the frniting-pits are filled with the best of the plants in fruiting-pots that were potted in August, the bark- bed having been previously filled with tan (if not all new, new being far preferable, at least all good), warm and well trodden, and the pots plunged about two inches, with tan laid up between them, to be levelled around the pots as the heat declines without disturbing the plants. When they are wanted to start into fruit, expected to be matured by June 1, we begin by increasing the minimum temperature, say on Dec. 10, to 65° ; on 17th, to 70° ; and on 31st, to 76°, which temperature is maintained till the fruits appear emerging fi:om their sockets, with a rise of 4° by day with artificial heat, or with sun-heat 10°. The fruits being in sight (say Jan. 10), we reduce the night-heat to 72° till they have done flowering (say March 5), keeping the atmosphere moist, and supplying them with plenty of water at their roots, and reducing the temperature (fire-heat being injurious to fruit swelling) to 70° minimum, maximum 110°, by close and moist heat. We raise the bottom-heat if possible to 110°, moistening the dry surtijce of the bed, and filling in more fresh fan between the pots, to fecilitate which the pots a a 2 448 CDI/rURE OF THE PINE-APPLE. are plunged in rows across the bed. During the time that the fraits are- swelling, sprinkling is particularly attended to; as the fruits begin to change colour, plenty of air la admitted, and all sprmkling is dispensed with. Under this mode of culture are obtained splendid specimens of fruit at all seasons, which, though inferior in size to the twelve or fifteen pound specimens grown elsewhere, may rank as a generally fine crop with that of the firat culti- vators of the day, taking the age of the plants into consideration. The fruits of 100 plants contained in a pit here, weighed, when cut, each from 6 lbs. to 7 lbs.— (G. M., toI. xi. p. 258.) 947. Culture of the Queen pine so as to have the fruit ripe in February- and March. — At this season Queen pines are worth two-thirds more in the market than they are in July and August. Pit. — Fig. 337 is a section of the pit, and figs. 338 to 342 are sections of the pots in which the culture about to be described was carried on. Fig. 337. Section cfa pit/or fruiting Queen Pines at Oakhill, . 24po(. mcnsions of the complete set of pots used at Oak Hill, as they are often referred to both in this and in the preceding 449 bottom. % I el j- rig.34L ANo.JBi 949. Culture of queen pines for early fruit. — The suckers being from twelve inches to twenty inches in length, and proportionately strong, were "] 7\ taken off the stools in the beginning of I //" August J and having'lain exposed, in the pine- stove, in that state about a week, were dressed and potted in No. 32-sized pots, in poor light soil, and plunged two-thirds the depth of their pots in a bark bed, in which a thermometer inserted that depth stood at 80°. Till the roots had reached the sides of the pots we did not water the soil, but syringed the plants overhead at shutting up in the Fig. 3i2. A No. 12 pot. evenings of warm days, about twice a week. As the plants increased, they were watered at their roots, as they appeared to be in want of that element. The temperature of the house by day was not allowed to exceed 80°, and till about the middle of September would generally be found about 65° a little before sun- rise ; using no artificial heat (besides the bark-bed) as long as the natural temperature of the atmosphere exceeded 56°, at which temperature (viz. 65°) we kept the house by night during the winter months, till the third week in March, when we shook the plants out, and shortened their roots about one-half, and repotted them in the same-sized pots prepared as follows : — The pots, if not new ( new ones being preferable), being well cleaned, an oyster- shell about the size of a penny is placed over the hole, around which broken bones (such materials being best), or potsherds broken to about the size of kidney-beans, and sifted to exclude the dusty particles, are laid about half an inch deep ; over which is placed a layer, about a quarter of an inch deep, of the thready part of half-decayed loamy turf; and the remaining space is filled up with the following compost : turfy loam chopped to the size of walnuts, bruising it as little as possible, six parts ; night soil, one part ; leaf mould, one part; and silver sand, one part. The plants being pottedin this com- post, were plunged in a bark bed, in a dung-heated pit, two-thirds of the depth of their pots (at which depth a thermometer inserted stood at 90°), shading them from the more powerful rays of the sun, and keeping them as close as possible, yet not allowing the temperature to exceed 90°, the minimum by night being generally from 65° to 70°. In the course of about fourteen days, we exposed the plants to the full sun ; from which time they required to be plentifully supplied with water, and the greatest attention to be paid to the watch-sticks (sticks stuck in the bark, to be occasionally taken out 450 CULTURE OF THE PINE- APPLE. and felt, to ascertain the heat), lest the roots, on reaching the sides of the pots, should he burned. At this stage wc gave air at 80°, and allowed the temperature to rise to 95°. As the season advanced, vre sprinkled the plants overhead more frequently : in April, about once a week ; in May, about once in four days ; and in the hottest weather, every other evening. In June, we turned them out of the pots, leaving their baUa entire. We then potted the largest of them in No. 12-sized pots, leaving the surface of the soil 1^ inch below the top of the pot ; the balls of the rest we partially reduced, and potted in No. 24-sized pots. The bark bed was then forked over, and made good by sifting out the rotten bark from the top and sides, and iidding fresh at the bottom. After the bed had been well trodden and levelled, we replunged the plants in it about two-thirds the depth of their potSj keepmg them close and sliading them, &c., as before. The tempera- ture at sunrise was now about 76» ; the maximum by day was 100°, giving air, as before, at 80°. The second week in August, we shifted the plants in No. 24-sized pots into No. ]2's, top-soiling at the same time those already in 12's. The pots of the latter size at this time were full of roots ; and their lower leaves conijning young roots in their sockets, we displaced them, and replunged the pot about three inches deep in a heat which at that depth was 100°, plunging and treating the plants newly potted as we did those potted in June. The plants being now finally stationed in the finishing pit above described (fig. 337), on a bark bed 4|- feet deep, with dung and fire-heat at command, showed fruit generally on the 1st of September. The maximum by day, with plenty of air, was now 110°, and at sunrise about 80°. About Sept. 20th, several of the plants were in ilower. As the season declined, we lowered the temperature, our standard for the winter being 60° at sun- iTse, and the maximum by day 90°. In cloudy damp weather, we fired by day to 63° or 70°, for the purpose of giving air to carry off the damp. When a dry sunny day occurred, we generally seized the opportunity to sprinkle the plants overhead with clean water, in a tepid state, in the early part of the day, for the purpose of dislodging the mouldiness that settled on the fruit from the closeness and humidity of the atmosphere. As the fruit began to colour, towards February, more fire-heat and more air were given. The maximum by day, with sun-heat and a flue seldom cold, was now 100°, and at sunrise 60°. Under this mode of treatment three specimens were grown, which were exhibited at the gardens of the London Horticultural Society on May 10, 1834, along with three dishes of grapes, for which their gold medal was awarded to Mr. Dowding. {Idem, p. 24.) 960. Growing the pine-apple in beds of soil. — This has not been much done in Britain ; but in Munich, in 1828, it had been practised for five years in the i-oyal kitchen-gardens there. It is attended with far less trouble than any other mode of pine culture, and has this immense advantage, — that as there are suckers on the stems in all stages of growth, fruit is produced at aU seasons of the year. At Munich, the court-gardener, Mr. Lang, informs us (G. M. v. 430) that he had practised the mode of growing pine- apples in beds of soil in low pits for five years, and had cut ripe fruit from the plants eveiy month in the year during the whole of that period. The only objection that can be brought against this mode is, that the fruit is not lery large ; but we can affiiin, from having seen the fruit thus produced at Munich, and also in the royal forcing-ground at Versailles, that it is of a very fitting size for a small family. By the aid of hot water, peat soil, CULTUnE OP THE PINE-APPLE. 451 abundant surface-manuring, and earthing up, a greater weight of fruit might perhaps be grown in a limited space and time by this mode than by any other. The source of bottom heat might be a tank of water or of liquid manure, of the same length and breadth as the interior of the pit, and over this the soil might be supported on a flooring of pierced tiles, so as to admit of the roots passing through them into the liquid manure. Or, it might be a bed of stones or coarse gravel, heated by steam, a mode which has been successfully employed in various parts of the country. (See G. M. vi. p. 50.) Whichever mode of heating be adopted, all the minor details will readily occur to those who have perused the preceding chapters of this work. C51. Fruiting suckers on the stools, and retaining the suckers on the stools for some months or weeks after the fruit has been cut, are practices occasion- ally resorted to for the sake of gaining time, and of employing the vigour remaining in the old stock. Sometimes the suckers are earthed up, and retained on the stock till they produce their fruit ; and sometimes they are taken off and potted, and being supplied with abundant heat and moisture, soon show fruit afterwards. Mr. Marsland, of Stockport, has been very successful in his treatment of the pine in this manner, and the following extract will give a good idea of his practice : — " In November, 1819, as sOon as the fruit had been cut from the pine-plants, which were then two years old, all the leaves were stripped off the old stocks, nothing being left but a single sucker on each, and that the strongest on the plant. They were then placed in a house where the heat was about 60", and they remained fill March, 1820. At this period the suckers were broken off from the old stocks, and planted in pots from eight to twelve inches in diameter, varying according to the size of the sucker. It may be proper, however, to observe that the length of time which the young sucker is allowed to remain attached to the mother plant depends, in some degree, upon the kind of pine : the tardy fruiters, such as the black Antigua and others, require to be left longer than the queen and those which fruit readily. After the suckers had been planted, they were removed from the house, where they had remained while on the old stock, to one in which the temperature was raised to 75°. Immediately upon their striking root, the largest of the suckers showed fruit, which swelled well, and ripened between August and November, being on the average ten months from the time the fruit was cut from the old plant, and seven months from the time the sucker was planted. The fruit so produced, though, as may be expected, not of the largest description, I have invariably found to be richer and higher flavoured than that grown on older plants. The suckers of inferior strength will not show fruit in the same season, but in the following they will yield good fruit, and strong suckers for a succeed- ing year's supply. Those suckers are to be preferred which are produced on plants that have ripened their fruit in November; for those taken from plants whose fruit is cut in August, or earlier, are apt to show fruit in Janu- ary or February, while yet remaining on the mother-plant. But whenever this happens, the sucker should be broken off immediately upon being per- ceived, and planted in a pit so as to form a root of its own to maintain its fruit." (Hort. Trans, vol. iv. p. 392.) 962. To grow the pine-apple to an extraordinary sine. — Begin with a healthy vigorous sucker or crown, and supply it with abundant nutriment, heat, and light, in so far as the two latter elements are under control, shifting it frequently from the smallest-sized pot to the largest, and gradually 452 CULTURE OF THE GRAPE-VINE. increasing the temperature from 70° to 90° or 95°, with atmospheric moisture in proportion. In this way queen pines have been grown to the weight of five or six pounds, and New Providence pines from twelve pounds to fifteen pounds. 953. Insects. — Where a proper temperature and atmospheric moisture are kept up, the pine will be little troubled with insects j but in consequence of careless treatment they are sometimes infested with a species of coccus, which is got rid of by immersing the plants, when being shifted, in a mix- ture of soft soap, sulphur, and tobacco water. The proportions do not seem of much consequence, for they are very different with different gardeners. Mr. Dall takes 4 lbs. of soft soap, 2 lbs. flower of sulphur, Jl lb. of leaf tobacco, and 2 oz. of nux vomica, and boUs them in eight gallons of rain water. After shaking the plants out of the pots and trimming their roots, he washes them well with this mixture, and also the sides and ends of the interior of the pit, and all the inner part of the house, excepting the roof. Mr. Glendinning takes^- sulphur, 2 lbs. ; soft soap^ 2 lbs. ; tobacco, 1|- lbs. ; nux vomica, 2 oz. ; camphor, 1 oz., dissolved in a wine-glassful of spirit of tur- pentine ; and boils thq whole in eight gallons of water for an hour. When the mixture has fallen to 120°, he immerses each plant in it separately, keeping the liquid as near as possible to that degree of heat. {Practical hints on the culture of the pint-apple, ^. 61). Plants subjected to the mixture either of Mr. Dall or Mr. Glendimiing have an unsightly appearance for some months afterwards ; but when they commence growing, the new part of their foliage assumes the usual healthy, vigorous hue. Where there is room in the pine pit for laying down a quantity of fermenting horse-dung, the steam produced is perhaps the best destroyer of every description of insect and it does no injury to pines. Tliis was Baldwin's remedy. 11. — Culture of the grape-vine under glass and on walls. SuBSECT. l.—Natural data on which the culture of the grape-vine is founded. 954. The grape-vine is a deciduous ligneous climber, indigenous or culti- vated in a considerable portion of the temperate parts of the northern hemi- sphere. It is found wild in Greece, Turkey in Asia, and Persia, the Morea, and near the Black and Caspian Seas, and in many other places ; but the countries in which it is found in the highest degree of perfection are Armenia and Syria. In Armenia and Syria, judging from thtir latitudes, the mean temperature of the coldest winter month in the region of vine culture is probably between 45° and 50°, and the mean temperature of the warmest summer month between 75° and 80°. It is certain, however, that the vine will bear a much lower winter temperature than 45° ; for on the hills in Germany, where several kinds are cultivated with success, and the vines are every winter buried under the snow, the temperature for two or three months canuot be much above 32°. It is also found in our forcing-houses that the vine will bear a summer temperature of between 70° and 80°. It ijiay, we think, be assumed that the vine is not calculated to sustain unin- jured a winter temperature much below 40°; and this is confirmatoiy of the excellence of the practice of British gardeners, in wintering the shoots of vines grown under glass under some kind of protecting cover : such as between outer and inner front sashes, or tied loosely up in mats or in thatch, BO as to keep them quite dry without excluding the air. t'o6. Illth reaped to atmospheric viohtnre, it can only, as far as we know, CULTURE OF THE GRAPE-VINE. 453 be stated on general principles, that when the vine is in a growing state tiie air must be keep moist, more particularly in the evenings and during night. This may always be etfected by syringing the plants before shutting up tlie house in the afternoons, and when the sun goes off a south wall, and by watering the soil. When the fruit is ripening, the air should be drier ; not only because growth being completed, less moisture is wanted, but because excess of moisture, either in the soil or in the atmosphere, is known to be injurious to the flavour of all fruits. 956. The soil in all countries where the vine is cultivated successfully is dry, and experience has proved that it admits of being enriched to an almost unlimited extent. The ternperature of the soil may be determined from general principles to be a degree or two higher than that of the atmo- sphere ; " therefore the most favourable climate for the vine lat. 36°, which passes through Syria, will have a mean terrestrial temperature of 67°. In spring, when vegetation begins in the vine, it may be estimated at not lower than 60°. By the time the blossom expands it will have reached 70°, or nearly so ; and 80° will certainly be within the limits of its summer tem- perature." — {Penny Cyc, art. Grape-Vine.) "The mean temperature of the earth in the climate of London is about 51°, from which that of spring'- water differs little throughout the year. In winter, when b I'KOPAGATINO, PRUNING, AND TRAINING THE VINE. the wall or trellis is low, the system need not te carried farther ; the long shoot win produce the fruit-hearing shoots of next year, after which it will /L be cut out, and its place taken by the shoot pro- vL duced from the short shoot ; which, having pro- ^^J^f^ duced its fruit, will be cut away in its turn, to Fig. 343. Renewal make room for the young shoot that will have 7>rumn«-,j!ii( year, been produced on the other side; and thus the operation might be carried on for a number of years. Fig.344. Senew- The fourth year. Supposing the wall or the trellis to be of "'P^^-g. «e- •the usual height, then the fourth year bunches will be shown " """' at every joint of the long shoot, but it will weaiken the vine too much to allow more than two or three to come to maturity. Two shoots will be pro- duced from those cut down, and probably a third from the base of the stock. These, in autumn, when the leaves have dropped, should be cut down, as in fig. 346. The house or the wall we may now suppose filled from top to bottom ; the fruit in the lower part of the wall or house being produced by the young wood a, J, and that in the upper part from the young wood c, d, in fig. 346. The fifth year, the crop being produced on o, 6, and c, d, a shoot will have been produced from 6, which will reach the top of the wall and take the place at the winter pruning of the long shoot, J, c, d, while the shoot from e will take the place of o, 6, as shown in fig. 347. Next year ( the shoot from e becomes the main shoot, and the shoot from/, the secondary shoot — the middle one being cut out ; and thus the alternation •of shoots may go on for a great number of years. 963. The spurring-in method of pruning consiais in re- •taining only one shoot the entire height of the wall or trellis, and shortening the laterals at every winter's pruning to two -or three eyes ; or when the vines are very strong, cutting the laterals entirely off, leaving the young fi-uit-bearing shoots to be produced from the adventitious buds at their tase. In general every alternate bud is cut out, so as to have only half the number of laterals as the shoot has produced buds ; and sometimes two buds are cut out for one that. is left, when the vine is of a sort that has a large leaf or a large bunch ; the object being to prevent the shoot from being too much crowded by laterals. 9(54. The fan-system of vine-training is effected by short- ' ening the shoots as they advance in growth during summer, so as to cause them to divaricate and produce the appearance of a common fan-trained fruit-tree. It is sometimes used in vineries where one plant fiUs the whole house, and requires no farther description. 96.5. Tlie Thomery system of traming is chieflj' calculated for the open Tig. 34.5. Beneunl -pruning, third year. \ Fig. 346. Renewal pruning, fourth year. CUMUftE OP THE OHAPE-VINE UNDER. GLASS. 457 *'all. Tlie vines are planted at a short distance from the wall, and only two branches are allowed to proceed from each main stem. The length of these branches is greater or less, according to the strength of the soil. At Thomery, where the soil is poor, the ordinary length of a main branch is about four feet ; but on the royal grape-wall at Fontainebleau, the branches are from five feet to six feet in length, the soil being richer and more liberally supplied with manure. Fig. 348 represents a portion of a mud- wall, eight feet high, covered with a trellis, on which vines are trained, according to the Thomery system. The fruit is produced on the short lateral shoots, which are shortened in at the winter pruning to two or three buds J and each shoot produced by a bud is allowed to mature two bunches of fruit. Nothing can be more perfect than this system of pruning and training, as it appears at Thomery ; since it makes certain of cover- ing every part of the wall with wood equally strong, and equally supplied with nutriment from the roots, because every plant has an equal extent of branches, eight feet, supplied from one stock or root. An im- perfect imitation of this mode of training may be seen on the cottages of some villages in Hampshire, particu- larly in Broughton and Stockbridge. — (See Scott, in Gard. Mag. for 1842.) — On asking the opinion of an eminently scientific English gardener of the Thomery mode of pmning and training the vine, his answer was: " It will not do in this climate and soil. When fol- lowed strictly, the two arms, each four feet in length, do not give sufficient extent ; for the eyes may all break prematurely. In my opinion, the best mode of train- ing vines on a wall, is to lay in all the shoots at an angle of 45°, or even with a greater slope, if the _ soil is very rich, or the variety of grape which is grown Fig. 347. BenmaiprKni„g, 'S of Very vigorous growth," Ji/th year. Sdbsect. III. — Culture of the Grape- Vine under Glass, The grapes grown at OakhUl having been long equally celebrated with the pine-apples grown there, we shall adopt Mr. Forsyth's account of the mode of proceeding, first giving a general treatise, and next a diary of a course of culture. 966. Vine-border, — Loamy turf that has been pared quite thin, and stacked in narrow tiers, for one year at least, three parts, and one part of the following mixture : — any dry, well aerated animal manure, that can most conveniently be got, such as horse-droppings, or those of cattle, deer, or sheep, without litter, laid in alternate layers with old plaster or old building lime mortar (the older the better) ; no matter if there be a few brickbats in it. Let the whole be well pounded and mixed with the dung, which ought to be in a proper state, as to moisture, to ferment a little ; after which let it 458 CULTURE OF THE GRAPE-VINE UNDER GLASS. be frequently turned, always keeping it rather dry ; it may then be wheeled into the bed or border. The loam when put into the bed or border should be in pieces about the size of bricks and half-bricks, brought from the stacks •7" -*•- ■m~ Fig. 348, V'utes trained according to the Thomery system. or tiers where they were originally piled, mixed with the manure, and laid once for all in the place where they are finally to remain, without any turn- ing, chopping, or pounding whatever, which only injures the loam, and ren- dei-s it too compact, and too much akin to puddle, for vine-roots to prosper in. About 16 feet wide, and from 2 feet 6 inches to 4 feet deep, may be considered a moderate width and depth for a vine-border, on a substratum of draining, at least one foot deep. 967. Planting.— Oa the top of this the vines reared m the manner here- after stated may be planted. If out of doors, plant the vines 3 feet from the front of the house, just covering the root-ball of each about 2 inches, over which place a hand-glass. This will keep oiF rain and concentrate heat. Then lay the cane about 2 inches under ground, tUl it enters the aperture or arch into the house, and over this place another hand-glass ; or, instead of hand-glasses, a layer of hot dung or leaves, 1 foot thick and 6 feet wide, may be laid along it. It is presumed that the border has been made in autumn, in which case this planting is to be done in February, especial care being taken that the border does not get either too wet or too dry. In the foi-mer case thatch it, and in the latter mulch it with fermented dung from old linings or the like, and water it with clean water. 968. To raise the plants, get some eyes fi-om plants which you have seen and proved, cut them at half-an-inch above and below the eye, (606), and insert them singly in pots (of the size 60) about half-an-inch under the soil, about Christmas. Keep them growing in a moist heat, (say 60° Fahr.,) and shift CULTURE OF THE ORAPE-VINE UNDtK GLASS. 459 • them regularly as they require it, traiuing their stems against the wall or trellis in the hothouse. AVith good culture, in twelve montlis, they will have stems as thick as the little finger, with 4 feet of well-ripened cane, and plenty of vigorous roots. 9G9. When planted in the vinery, let them he grown in a like heat till autumn, when the house may he uncovered to ripen the wood ; but care must be taken to prevent their freezing. In winter cut back till you find the wood of a firm texture and good size. Under good culture from 6 feet to 9 feet of firm short-jointed wood may be got. It is always better to leave the canes rather short than otherwise. The leader may be stopped 5 feet or 6 feet beyond where it is expected to be cut to in the winter pruning. When you commence growing in the spring, which should not be too early (say Feb. 15th,) let the temperature be low, (say 60° Fahr.,) and the atmosphere moist, that the vines may break at all the eyes. The canes, for this purpose, ought to be laid quite level ; and, as soon as the shoots have been protruded from the eyes, the canes may be fixed to the trellis, and the temperature in- creased ; but by no means allow them to bear fruit yet (unless, perhaps, a cluster on each vine to prove the sorts). If it is intended to force for early fruit the third year, to save repetition, reference may be had to the " Diary of Forcing," hereafter given (971.) To have grapes in their proper season, begin to excite the vines in the middle of March, by keeping the temperature about 50° or 55° Fahr. ; if it wUl keep at this without fire heat, so much the better. When the vines are coming into flower, 60° Fahr. would do them good ; and after that is over, and the fruit thinned, they will do very well at 65° Fahr. as a minimum, and at 85° Fahr. as a maximum, of sun heat. The fruit should be borne on lateral shoots or spurs, which should be stopped at one joint beyond the fruit ; and spurs in the winter pruning should be cut back to one eye. The following may be considered as a summary of culture for three years : — Jan. 1, 1836. Vine eyes potted. Nov. 1, 1836. Vine border finished. Feb. 14, 1837. Vines planted. Jan. 1, 1838. Canes winter- pruned, or cut back. Feb. 14, 1838. Vines excited. Sept. 1, 1838. Vines uncovered. Jan. 1, 1839. Canes pruned. March 16,1839. Vines excited. July, 1839. The fruit ripe. 970. The sorts preferred at OakhUl, are — Muscat of Alexandria, Dutch Sweetwater, White Frontignan, White Muscadine, Black Hamburgh, Black Prince, Black Frontignan for vineries, and Black Esperione and White Mus- cadine for walls, 971 . A diary of the course of culture applied to the grape vines at Odkhill. ■ — The vinery is 34 feet long, 16 feet wide, with 2 feet of mason-work, and 2 feet of upright glass in front, and the roof is at an inclination of 27°. The whole interior is heated by a surface of hot-water piping, equal to 312 square feet. A tan pit, erected on piers of brickwork, occupies the centre floor of the house, except only a space of 3 feet 4 inches all round, which is taken up by the pathway and hot-water apparatus. At the back wall of the house the soil is prepai-ed to the depth of 6 feet ; and at the further extremity of the border (16 feet wide) there are 3J feet of soil, comprised of equal parts of the following earths : — Turfy loam, (the top spit of a very old undisturbed piece of pasture occupied as a rickyard,) two parts; rotten dung, one part ; lime rubbish, one part ; gritty mud, (the same as road-drift,) one part. The 460 CULIURB OF TUB GRAPE-VINE UNDER GLASS. vines are planted inside, there are twelve plants, and they are kept single- stemmed to the top of the house. When pruned the spurs are cut back to one bud. The sorts cultivated are, Black Hamburgh and Dutch Sweet- water. 1833 Nov. 8 9 12 IG 19 22 25 26 27 30 Dec. 1 8 15 22 29 1834. Jan.6 12 Maxim, by day. 60 60 60 05 67 69 70 72 74 76 Min im , at ni^b 1 45 45 60 65 66 67 58 69 61 03 The vinery open, the wood ripe, not pruned. We have had two slight frosts. The vines pruned; the vinery shut up; no artificial heat applied. Vines pared; the loose and rough bark only taken off. Tan-pit filled with new tan, (twelve loads). Soil, pathway, &c., kept wet. Vines washed with soap-suds by means of a painter's sash-brush, the suds being in a tepid state. Vines anointed with a mixtui-e of soft-soap, and black and white sulphur dissolved in warm soap-suds ; the mixture applied to the vines at about 100° of heat. Vines laid down on the tan, and moistened with a fine syringe twice a day. The tan forked every other day. Forked the border about 3 inches deep ; laid on turfy loam and old lime mortar about 2 mches deep ; then old hotbed dung, well rotted, 2 inches ; the roots being near the surface, hav- ing been planted as shallow as possible. Walls whitewashed with lime and sulphur. Laid leaves on vine border, 1 foot thick ; and fresh hot dung, 1 foot ; protected the above from rains, &c., by reed covers used at other times for pine pits. The floor dressed with a coat of road-diift for the sake of sprinkling. Fu-e heat applied, and all the steam that can be raised produced. Sprinkling of pipes and pathways performed at all times, for the sake of steam and moisture ; the heat of dung on border, 70°. Weather favourable ; the nights often 50° or 52°, seldom under 40° ; we have had only four frosts, the most intense as low as 26°. Buds perceived to be swelling ; heat of dung on border 90°. Ceased to syringe vines ; the sprinkling of soil, pipes, and path, continued. Buds breaking generally ; heat of dung on bor- der, 96°. Weather wet and windy ; nights, 45° to 50°. CULTURE OF THE GRAPE-TINE UNDER GLASS. 461 12 14 29 April 12 18 Shoots 2 inches long- Heat of dung on border, 65°. Largest spurs 1 foot long ; flower-buds as large as mustard-seeds (white) ; bunches, 1 inch. Shoots topped at one joint above fruit ; if a lateral is produced it is topped beyond one leaf; if it break again, top it again beyond one leaf. In dull days when the weather is cold, and there is not sunshine, give a little air, keeping the temperature at 74°. Dung on the border nearly cold. The flowers of one bunch (near the hot-pipos) ex- panded ; the first that have been. The vines in flower generally. Began to thin a bunch or two. Was thinning all day (at the top of the house ) The berries of all set now; those of the Hamburgh as large as hazel-nuts; those of the old St- Peter s, the size of peas of the early frame kind ; for the sake of the Dutch Sweetwater, maintained 76° instead of 74°, the proper tem- perature for the Hamburgh. After shutting up at night the tan-pit is forked sometimes, and sprinkled every night. The pipes are sprinkled at least eight times in twenty-four hours. Began to give air always when the temperature is 4° above that of the night heat. Dung, leaves, &c., cleared ofi' the border, to admit sun-heat, &c. ; the border forked over. Finished shouldering the Hamburgh, and thinning the Sweetwater and St. Peter s (neither of the two latter wants shouldering much). All spurs tied to wires ; laterals cut clean oit ; bunches supported. Sweetwaters disco vei'ed to be changing colour for ripening. First berry of the Hamburgh beginning to cliango colour ; moisture withdrawn ; plenty of air admitted; border watered with dung water (dry weather). About half of the berries of the Hamburgh red- 1834. MaxLiu. Minim. by day. at iiight. Jan. DJfGS. DECS. 15 78 64 17 78 76 19 79 66 20 79 67 21 80 68 23 81 C9 25 82 70 29 83 71 Feb. 1 83 72 8 84 7-3 12 74 1.5 85 75 19 — 76 22 86 76 War. 8 85 74 85 85 86 83 73 72 72 72 462 CULTDRB OF THE OBAPE-VINE UNDER GLASS. 1834. April 22 24 May 1 Maxim. Minim. b> day. at night. 16 30 June 7 20 70 80 dened ; alout one-third of those of the Sweet- water perfectly ripe; the berries generally, each 3^ inches round. All watering of the soil for the vine roots, and sprinkling of the house to prevent dust, &c., performed when plenty of air is given, that shanking (shrivelling) may not be induced in the berries ; the border watered with drain- water ; fruit swelling rapidly. Cut fruit of Sweetwater. Three days past have been cloudy and rainy. To colour the fruit of the Hamburgh we used firing to 77° by day, (with front air, if rainy,) and 72° by night, allowing ingress to a little air all night, the laps of glass being puttied. The fruit of the Hamburgh in high perfection, many of the berries each 3^ inches, and in some few, 4 inches round. The fruit of the St. Peter's changing colour; and berries in a bunch a little brown. Grapes exhibited at the gardens of the London Horticultural Society, for which the large gold medal was awarded. A little air left all night when thermometer stands above 60° out of doors ; otherwise shut from ten till four. The soil well watered to prevent the leaves decay- ing, and, consequently, unnatural hardening of the wood, which ought to be ripened in a de- liberate manner, aided by the shade and sur- face of the leaves, according to the order of nature. The leaves are now of Rinazing size, green and vi- gorous, measuring, independently of the foot- stalks, 18^ inches by 1 5 inches ; and this not in a solitary instance. Soil inside the house, and border outside, wa- tered. Grapes again exhibited at the gardens of the Lon- don Horticultural Society, along witli six pines. Both were accounted the best productions ex- hibited, and prizes were awarded as such. Ceased to make fii-es. With a supply of air left as above, the temperature stands usually above 65'. The fi-uit of the Hamburgh fin.-; that of the CULTUHB OP THE QRAPE-VINE UNDER GLASS. 463 Maxim. Minim. i.^ai. by day. at night. DIARY. June P£OS. DUOS. St. Peter's ripe; the leaves still green and vigo- rous. All possible air admitted by day, when fine. Protected from rain for the sake of the fruit only. Shut up close from dusk till July dawn. 1 Fruit all cut. Left open with lights on. 10 Lights off. The lights being off, no culture of any kind is given, except occasional waterings in very dry weather, to prevent a sudden and unnatural termination of the processes which actuate growth. 972. Orowing two or three crops of grapes in one house. — The grape is so de- sirable a fruit, and one so well adapted for the dessert at every season of the year, that wherever there is only one vinery, various plans have been adopted, and that with perfect success, to produce two, or even three, crops of grapes in it in one year; and there can be no doubt that four crops might be grown. It is not uncommon in pine stoves to have two vines for each rafter planted outside the house, and when one, after having produced its fruit, is withdrawn, to introduce the other. If two crops can be so grown there is no reason why three should not, provided the border be extensive enough to admit of keeping the roots of each vine apart ; wliioh may be done by vertical underground partitions. The front sashes must of course be made to take out entirely at pleasure ; or if there are no front sashes, then the lower sashes of the roof must be made to take out or lift up, so as to admit of withdi-awing, and reintroducing the vines without injuring them. We shall state the practice at Hungerton Hall, in Lincolnshire, and at another place in Essex. 973. Growing three crops of grapes in one house together with pines. — The pine pit is built on arches, so that there is a free current of air under it from back to front, which, however, can be stopped at pleasure. A movable partition of boards, or in part of sashes not in use, is placed on the back wdl of the pit, so as in effect to shut it in completely up to the roof. In the space between the back wall of the pit and the back wall of the house, that is, in the back path, the vines for the first crop are planted, and trained imme- diately under the glass. The back wall is fined ; the lower flue being con- tiguous to the roots of the vines, which places the period of commencing their growth completely in the power of the cultivator. Here the more delicate and perfumed grapes, such as the Purple and White Constantia, and the Grizzly Frontignan, ripen their fruit in April ; and when it is all cut in May, the vertical partition is put up, and rem,ains so till December, when it is taken down, and forcing in this back part commences. The second or interr mediate crop is obtained from plants planted in the front path and trained up the rafters. They produce their fruit, which is chiefly the Hamburgh, Sweetwater, and Muscat, in June and July ; and when it is all gathered in August the vines are taken out, and others planted in the front border intro- duced in their place. This crop ripens in September and October, and th» H h2 464 GROWING THE GUAPE ON OPEN WALLS, vines are taken out in December, when those growing in the back path ai'e begun to be forced by taking down the temporary partition. It is necessary to observe that the front iiue is not, as is usual, between the path and the front wall of the house, but between the path and the front wall of the pit, and that there is a double partition of glass in front, between which the vines are wintered. Various minor details it is unnecessary to enter into. 974. Another mode of growing three crops of grapes in one house. — This was practised for ten years at a place in Essex, a part of which time it was under the care of a journeyman, who sent us the following account of it. The house was 45 feet long and 18 feet wide, a pit occupied the centre in which pines were fruited. The flue entered the back of the house at one end, and was carried round the front of the pit, and under the back pathway into the chimney at the same end the flue entered. Vines were planted in the front pathway next the pit, one under each rafter. These produced the first crop of grapes. They were begun to be forced in the beginning of Febiniary, and they were ripe by the middle or latter end of June. Those for the second crop were planted outside the house in the front. They were intro- duced into the house in the latter end of March, or the beginning of April, and trained under the roof over the front flue and pathway, as well as up some of the rafters : these ripened their fruit in August. The vine pro- ducing the last crop was planted at the front corner of one end outside. It was carried with a single stem up the end rafter to the back wall, where it was trained just under the coping to the full length of the house. Laterals from the main stem were left so as to come in under each rafter to which they were trained. This vine was taken in about the beginning of September, by entirely removing the end of the house for the purpose, the end being replaced as soon as the vine was properly fixed. About this time the vines which had produced the first crop of grapes were taken across the flue and wintered outside the house till the February following. Grapes have been cut from the vine against the back wall, up to the 8th of February, and they were then in excellent condition. Our correspondent has known it ripen off upwards of 300 bunches, with the berries well swelled and coloured and never shrivelled. The kind was the Black Hamburgh Valentines. — (G. 3f. 1841, p. 74. ) 976. Keeping Grapes. — Ripe Grapes may be retained on the branches for several months, provided the air of the house be kept dry and cool. To absorb moisture from the air without heating it, the floor of the house is sometimes covered with dry sand, coal ashes, decayed granite or trap stone. Grapes may also be preserved for an indefinite period by cutting off the bunches with a joint or two of wood below the bunch, and applying hot sealing-wax so as completely to shut out air from the wound. The bunches are then suspended in a cool, airy room, and will keep from October till May. Care must be taken that they are neither exposed to heat nor damp, nor to a current of very dry air. — (G. M. 1841, p. 646.) SuBSECT. IV. Growing the Grape on openWalls,and onCoitages. South of London this might be practised to a great extent, and the gi-apes brought to a high degree of perfection, as has been proved by Mr. Clement Hoare, whose excellent Practical Treatise on the Cultivation of the Grape Vine on open Walls, we most strongly recommend to all who intend to culti- vate this fruit in the open air. In the southern counties of England, where vines are grown on cottages, 5fr. Hoare is of opinion that five times the AND ON COTTAGES. 465 quantity of gvapea of superior flavour might be annually produced on the same extent of surface ; and that for every square foot of cottage wall on vphich vines are now trained, there are now twenty that are either entirely vacant, or occupied in a useless manner. As a general result of his calcula- tions, he says, that for every pound of grapes now grown, one hundred pounds might be annually produced on the existing surface of walling. " Every moderate-sized dwelling-house having a garden and a little walling attached to it, may, with ease, be made to produce yearly, a quarter of a ton weight of grapes, leaving a sufficient portion of its surface for the pro- duction of other fruit." (p. 19.) The grand error which prevails in the culture of the vine on walls and cottages consists in the mode of pruning, which is far from being sufficiently severe. Nine parts out of ten of the current year's shoots, and all those of the preceding year, should if possible be cut off; and this is so different to what is required for other fruit-trees, that few persons have the courage to attempt it. 976. Fruit-hearing powers of the vine. — This Mr. Hoare has ascertained by experiment from the quantity of fruit which any vine can produce without checking its growth or injuring its vital powers. After a great many expe- riments, performed between 1825 and 1830, Mr. Hoare ascertained that if two and a half inches be deducted from the circumference of the stem of any vine measured just above the ground, the capability of the plant will be equal to the maturation of 10 lbs. of grapes for every remaining inch of girth. No vine is considered fit to bear until its stem measures three inches in girth. For every pound weight of grapes extracted from a vine before it has grown to that size, 10 lbs. will be lost during the next five years. Having calculated the weight of grapes which a stem may be allowed to produce, the next point is to determine what weight will be produced by the shoot developed by a single bud. This Mr. Hoare has ascertained to be, for those sorts of grapes usually cultivated on the open wall, half a pound weight for everj' good bud ; the two bottom buds on every shoot being rejected, as seldom producing blossom-bearing shoots. Thus, " if the stem of a vine measure five inches in girth, its capability is equal to the matura- tion of twenty-five pounds weight of grapes, and therefore the number of buds to remain after pruning will be fifty," (p. 38.) Nothing can be more definite, satisfactoiy, or easily understood than this system, which has now stood the test of nearly twenty years. It is, however, to be understood that, where the climate is sufficiently congenial to mature a more luxu- riant production of wood, the fruit-bearing power of the vine is infinitely greater. 977. Aspect. — Warmth and shelter are the grand requisites. The per- spiration of the foliage of the vine is so great that it is carried to an injurious extent by the slightest wind. Mr. Hoare has found that, during the space of twenty-four hours, when the wind has blown briskly, the shoots exposed to its influence have not perceptibly grown at all, whUe, shortly afterwards, the wind- having entirely sunk away, the same shoots have grown upwards of three inches in the same space of time, the temperature of the air in a sheltered situation being alike during each period," p. 41. The best aspects for vines on the open wall in the south of England are those which range from the E. to the S.E. both inclusive ; and the next best from S.E. to S. Those which range from S. to W. are good, provided they are sheltered ; but N. or W., though they may sometimes produce tolerable grapes, yet are very 4C6 GROWING THE GRAPE ON OPEN WALLS, uncertain both for the ripening of the grapes and of the wood. E. by N. Mr. Hoare finds a very good aspect. On a wall facing this point the sun sliines till about eleven o'clock in the morning, and Mr. Hoare has for many years past brought several sorts of grapes, including the Black Hamburgh, to great perfection in this aspect. It would thus appear that if a cottage, the general outline of the ground-plan of which is a square or a parallelo- gram, is placed so that a south and north line shall form a diagonal to it, vines may be planted against every part of the waUs and trained over the whole of the roof. We have shown in the Supplement to the Encyclopsedia of Cottage Architecture (J 2237) the immense importance of placing every cottage so as to have the diagonal a south and north line, without reference to the front or any of the sides being parallel to the adjoining road or street. " We wish it to be distinctly understood, that it forms no part of our plan to have either the front or the back of the cottage next to, and parallel with, the road ; on the contrary, we prefer, in almost every case of single cottages, to have next the road an angle of the building, by which the views across the road will be oblique, instead of being direct ; as the former, in every case, exhibits a longer perspective, which must consequently contain a greater number of objects." — (^Supp. Cott. Arch., p. 1138). The walls and roofs of cottages so placed, north of London, may be covered with the apple, pear, cherry, plum, and, in some cases, the apricot ; and those south of London may be covered with the grape vine. 978. Soil. — Light, rich, sandy loam, not more than eighteen inches in depth, on a dry bottom of giavel, stone, or rock, forms the most desu-able soil and subsoil for the vine. Mr. Hoare tixily observes, that " one of the principal causes of grapes not ripening well on the open wall in this country is the great depth of mould in which the roots of vines are suiFered to run, which, enticing them to penetrate in search of food below the influence of the sun's rays, supplies them with too great a quantity of moisture ; vegeta- tion is thereby carried on until late in summer, in consequence of which the ripening process does not commence till the declination of the sun becomes too rapid to afford a sufficiency of solar heat to perfect the fruit," (p. 47.) It is hardly possible, Mr. Hoare observes, to form the vine border of materials too dry or porous. Stones, brickbats broken moderately small, lumps of old mortar, broken pottery, oyster-shells, and other materials which retain air and heat, and permit heavy rains to pass quickly through, should be mixed up with two-thirds of light rich soil, such as the sweepings of roads, or the top spit of a field of good arable land. The border should never be cropped or digged, and only stiiTed occasionally with a fork to the depth of two inches, to admit the sun and air. Where borders cannot be prepared for vines, they may be planted in pits eighteen inches square, and eighteen inches deep, filled up with suitable soil ; and if the situation is dry, the roots will soon push themselves into some suitable place ; for, as Mr. Hoare observes, the roots of the vine possess an extraordinary power of adapting themselves to any situation in which they may be planted, pro- vided it be a dry one. 979. Manure. — As the vine border once properly made ought never to be disturbed, it follows that the manure incorporated with the soil at making should be of a permanent nature, decomposing from time to time to supply the nutriment extracted by the plants. Top-dressings and liquid manure may also be added when the border is made, or at any subsequent period. AND OK COTTAGES. 4C7 Some of the best permanent manures are bones, horns and hoofs of cattle, bone-dust, the entire carcases of animals, cuttings of leather, woollen rags, feathers, and hair. Bones Mr. Hoare considers by far the most valuable manure that can be deposited in a vine border, and he recommends their being buried in the soil whole, and as fresh as possible, and of every size from the smallest bone of a fowl to the largest bone of an ox, (p. 68.) Excess of manure deteriorates the flavour of grapes, and produces an exces- sive and unnatural gi-owth of long -jointed wood, with nothing but leaf-buds. We may here notice a manure for the vine recommended by Mr. Hayward. This gentleman has tried a great variety of compounds as food for plants, and has found that one quart of cider, or cider-grounds, added to two gallons of water, biings a grape vine to a more perfect prolific state than anything else. This mixture must be supplied in such quantity as will saturate the earth, like water, to the depth of the roots, and all over the surface occu- pied by the roots. It must only be given once in the year in June ; and if repeated the second year, its good efliects will be sustained for several years afterwards without further supplies. The apple and pear, and the fig, are alike benefited by this compound. — (Gard. Chron., vol. i. p. 413.) 980. Walls. — In an unsheltered situation, exposed to W. and S.W. winds, Mr. Hoare has never seen prime grapes produced much higher than eight feet from the ground ; but in sheltered situations, and in S. and S.K. aspects, grapes may be matured at any height from the ground. The lower part of the wall, however, will always enjoy an increased degree of warmth from the reflexion of the ground. Hence grapes growing within two or three feet of the bottom of a wall facing the south will, in general, lipen from ten days to a fortnight earlier than those growing on the upper part of it. It may be observed, that the higher the wall the warmer will its southern aspect be, and the colder its northern aspect. There is a disadvantage, however, in training grapes near the ground, as it respects their remaining on the vine after being ripe. If grapes can be kept perfectly dry, they will hang on the vine and improve in flavour for a long time after they are ripe ; but if dampness or moisture of any description reach them, the consequences are quickly seen in the decay of the berries. After the middle of October, therefore, it will be found a difficult matter to preserve grapes that hang within two feet of the ground, on account of the damp exhalations that continually arise from the soil at that period of the year," (p. 68.) Blackening the surface of a wall, Mr. Hoare finds productive of a considerable increase of heat as long as the sun shines upon it; but while that surface is in the shade, it parts with the heat so rapidly as soon to become colder than if it had not been blackened. Hence he would only blacken walls with an aspect due south, because the absence of the sun from such walls is so much less that the wall has not time to cool, and the heat produced by blackening on a clear day, when the sun is in the meridian, is frequently from 10° to 20° more than that on a wall which has not been blackened, (p. 7l.) Projecting copings to vine walls preserve the shoots from late frosts in spring, and the blossoms from cold dews and heavy rains ; they also keep the grapes in good condition for some time after they have become ripe ; ihey prevent the escape of heat, and are convenient for fastening netting, bunting, &c. to, when it is necessary to protect the fruit from birds and insects. The disadvantages of copings are, that they exclude light, au', dew, and rain, which are very beneficial from the time the fruit 468 GROWING THE GRAPE ON OPEN WALLS, has set till it begins to ripen. The width of the projecting pai-t of the coping Mr. Hoare regulates by the height of the wall and its aspect. " If the height be less than four feet, and the aspect south, the coping ought not to project at all, as the light and solar heat excluded by it will be a serious drawback on the healthy vegetation of the vines. But if the wall be four feet high, then the coping may project as many inches ; and if this width be increased an inch for every foot that the wall increases in height up to twelve feet, the principal advantages arising from the protection which a coping affords will be secured, in conjunction with the smallest portion of its disadvantages," (p. 73.) If the aspect be east or west, the coping must be as narrow as possible, as every inch of projection in these aspects causes a considerable diminution in the duration of sunshine on the face of the wall. At the same time a coping that projects less than four inches is calculated to do more harm than good, as the drip wiU fall on the blossoms and the fruit. Movable wooden copings (i63 and 471) produce, Mr. Hoare observes, all the benefit of fixed copings, without any of their disadvantages. All garden walls whatever should have iron brackets built in immediately under the stone coping, in order to admit of temporaiy wooden copings being applied at pleasure. Temporary copings should be applied, from the 21st of March to the middle of May, to protect the young shoots, from the first expanding of the buds until the berries are wcU set; and again from the berries showing symptoms of ripening tUl the fruit be all cut from the vines. 981. Propagation. — Mr. Hoare prefers cuttings containing two buds taken off in autumn, and planted in spring in the open garden, and sometimes where they are finally to remain. The uppermost bud of the cutting must have an inch of the blank wood remaining beyond it, and the lower end must be cut transversely, just below the bud. Bury the upper bud about a quarter of an inch, and press the soil quite firm to the lower one. Keep the soil moist by soap-suds or liquid manure. 982. Pruning. — Mr. Hoare, as we have already seen (9C2), gives a decided preference to the long system of pruning ; his objections to the other modes being founded on the quantity of proper juice required annually to clothe the naked old wood with a new concentric layer of alburnum, thereby lessening the quantity of juice sent down to the roots. Naked vine branches are consumers, but not producers ; therefore the grand object of pruning should be to leave a sufficient supply of bearing-shoots on the least possible proportionate quantity of old wood. Tried by this test, the long method will be found preferable to all others. Prune as soon after the 1 st of October as the gathering of the fruit will admit ; and never prune in March, April, or May. 983. Training. — From a main stem, one horizontal shoot to the right and another to the left, are maintained of a sufficient length to produce all the bearing wood required for the age of the vine, the height of the wall, &c. These shoots are laid in about a foot above the surface of the soil, and the vertical shoots which proceed from them are trained in a serpentine form, to check the too rapid ascent of the sap. " If a summer shoot, every time it is nailed throughout the season, be bent or pointed in a dififerent direction to that in which it grew at the preceding nailing, the vigour of its growth will be checked, and the sap will immediately accumulate and expend itself in forming round, short-jointed wood, and in the development AND ON COTTAGES. 469 of the finest description of fruit-buds. This is the key to the production of large bunches of fruit, which are not the necessary consequence of very large-sized bearing shoots, but rather of sap that has been accumulated and highly elaborated by slowness of growth in combination with full exposure to the sun's rays," (p. 106.) In nailing, linen or cotton shreds are by some preferred to woollen ones, as being less retentive of moisture ; but, on the other hand, they produce a greater chill, in consequence of the more rapid evaporation which they afford ; and they should in general be from three- fourths of an inch to one inch and a half in breadth, according to the size of the shoot. 984. Mr. Hoares mode of training. — Figs. 349 to 353 will give an idea of Mr. Hoare's mode of training, with some variations. Fig. 349 shows a Jil vine of two years' growth, cut down to two eyes ; but of the jj shoots produced from these eyes, one is rubbed oif when the F^^m.'^r. Other is firmly established, so that only one is matured. In Hoare's mode November this shoot is cut down to two eyes, as in fig. 360. 0/ training, ipjjg gjioots produced next summer are treated as before, one from the cut- ovly being left to come to maturity, and that one is cut down in '''n^- the November of the fourth year to three eyes, as in fig. 351. Next year three shoots will be produced, but as soon as two are firmly established in June or July, the other is cut off, and two only are allowed jj to come to maturity. Tendrils, or any appearance „ ]| of bunches, are pinched off as soon as they appear, |J> ^ — TUs^ and the shoots, in the last week of August or flh Pig. 350. Mr. g,.gj y^eek of September, are stopped. Tlie vine __jl. HocLV& s mods " . —-■ ^i^^ 0/ training, will now be four years of age, and have stood three pig, 351. ^r, tiiird year, years on the spot where it is finally to remain. The Hoare's mode girth of the stem at the surface of the ground will be three inches, 'f^J^l'^"^' and the plant may be permitted to bear fruit for the first time ; say not more than 61bs. weight. For this purpose, Mr. Hoare cuts down the two shoots to the seven lowermost buds on each ; and having trimmed the shoots, they are to be nailed to the wall in a horizontal position, as in fig. 352. This being done in Novem- ber, then, in the February following, cut out of each shoot the first, second, fourth, fifth, and sixth buds, leaving the third and seventh buds on each shoot, to produce shoots, as at a, b, c, d, in fig. 352. In the course of the summer these four buds will produce four shoots, which may either be trained upright, as at o, or, as Mr. Hoare prefers, in a serpentine manner, as at 6; or, as a correspondent sug- gests (965), they may be trained in Fig. 352. a sloping direction, as at d. The object of the curvilinear training, and also of the sloping direction, is to equalise the breaking of the buds — the sap in vines, as every one knows, being otherwise apt to expend itself chiefly at the extremities of the shoots. If more bunches are shown than, at the rate of Jib. each, will produce Mr. Hoare's mode of training, with variations, f/ili year. 470 . GROWING THE GRAPE ON OPEN WALLS, Slbs., pinch them off as soon as they appear, or as soon as the benies are set. Supply the plant with liquid manure during the summer; stop the shoots in the first week of September, and after the fruit is gathered cut back the shoots at /and g in fig. 363, to within a foot or J 8 inches of the main stem, and cut the others to the lowermost bud, as at e and h in fig. 363. The vine is now prepared for being treated ac- cording to a regular system, which consists in " alternately fruiting two shoots, and training two at full length for bearing wood in the following year." Mr. Hoare considers it ad- visable not to let the vine extend itself farther on the wall, but, instead Fig. 353. Mr. ffooreV system of training of this, to plant a sufiBcient number estabushed. gf plants to cover the wall or house, with plants having two arms, as in the figures 351 and 355, and seen more in detail in fig. 348; the only difference being, that in the latter figure the bear- ing wood is kept quite short. Vines treated in the manner recommended by Mr. Hoare, with arms each 2-^ feet in length, may have the bearing shoots of any length under 8 feet or 10 feet ; and as the annual increase in the girth of its stem wUl be about ^ an inch, it may be allowed to mature an additional 5 lbs. of fruit annually, till the produce amounts to 60 lbs., which is the greatest quantity which will be produced annually from 60 square feet of walling. 986. In training the vine on the walls of cottages, exactly the same system ought to be pursued as in training it against walls, with these differences, that a greater length of stem will generally be required, and that the length of the arms will vary exceedingly. In order, however, to equalise the pro- duction of fruit, and maintain a sufficient degree of vigour in the vines, the length of the beaiing wood ought to be shortened in proportion as the length of the arms is increased beyond 2^ feet each from the main stem. It is of no great consequence, as Mr. Hoare observes, what the length of the stem of a vine may be before it reaches the point where the arms originate, and which Mr. Hoare terms the fruiting point ; and this length of stem, even if it should be 20 feet, or 30 feet, can easily be attained in three years by not cuttmg off more from the extremity of every year's shoot than what may not be thoroughly ripened. 986. The appearance of a portion of the front of a house covered with vines in Mr. Hoare s manner is shown in fig. 354, in which there are seven dif- ferent plants, marked a to j in the figure. The plant a has a long stem, and arms rather shorter than usual for covering a portion of the wall equal to the height of the bed-room windows ; J covers a space equal to the height of the parlour windows ; c covers the space between the parlour and the bed-room windows ; it has arms exceeding the usual length, every arm bearing shoots in the Thomery manner ; d has a very short stem, and long arras, with short bearing shoots, for covering the space between the sill of the parlour windows and the plinth ; e has a stem which reaches above the bed-room windows, with very long arras and short shoots, in the Thomery manner AND ON COTTAGES. 471 for covering the space between the bed-room windows and the roof. The other half of the front is shown covered with fruit trees ; h may represent an apple, a cl ] 1 m ; i and ft, pears ; and / may be the same as h. a b c d e f g A i k t Fig. 364. The frojtl of a plain house, covered with grape vines on the left side, and other fruit trees on the rig/U side. Vines may be planted against houses in streets, as we see in many vil- lages and country towns, the roots running under the foot pavement, and even under the street, for no fruit tree is less particular in regard to soil, provided that it be on a perfectly dry bottom. Of course the bearing arms of vines grown in streets should be at such a height from the ground as to be out of the reach of mischievous persons. For a variety of other details we must refer to Mr. Hoare's work; what we have selected from it, taken in connexion with the contents of preceding sections, will enable any gardener or amateur to grow grapes on open walls or on cottages to a high degree of perfection, wherever the climate is suitable. The only objection which we have ever heard made to Mr. Hoare's system is, the very limited extent of branches which he allows; for it is alleged that, in moister situations and richer soils than that in which his practice lay, so much shortening would break the eyes prematurely. 987. The walls and roof of a cottage of the most irregular architecture may be covered with vines or fruit trees on the same principle as we have just exhibited on the front of a plain house. In the perspective view, fig. 355, thirty-five plants are shown, with stems and arms so adjusted as to cover two sides of the building. To avoid confusion, only the stems and arms are shown, and the position of the spurs whence the bearing wood is produced. It will be observed that the stems a, a, are long for the purpose of covering 472 GROWING THE GKAPE ON OPEN WALLS, ETC. the upper part of the roof; and J, 6, for covering the upper part of the gahle : c, o, are for covering the lower part of the roof ; d, d, the upper part of the wall ; and e, e, the lower part. The other stems speak for themselves. Fig;. 35f. bade Two sides of a collage, covered toi/h vines^ trained in Mr. Hoare^s manner. 988. Kinds of grapes p:o,H suitalle for the open wall or for cottages. — Mr. Hoare recommends Black Hamburgh Black Prince, Esperione, Black Muscadine, Miller's Burgundy, Claret Grape, Black Frontignan, Grizzly Fron- tignan, White Frontignan, White or Royal Muscadine [1 Syn.], Malmsley Muscadine, White Sweetwater, Early Black July. For handsome, large, and well-set bunches, no white grape equals the Royal Muscadine for walls or cottages ; and the Black Prince ripens better than the Black Hamburgh. SuBSECT. "V. Insects, Diseases, ^-c. When the vine is properly cultivated, it is little subject to insects; but under glass it is occasionally infested with the red spider, and with one or two species of coccus. The former may be destroyed by washing the flues or hot-water pipes with a mixture of quick -lime and sulphur, and shutting up the house ; and the latter, by washing the wood, after the leaves have dropped, and the whole of the interior of the hoxise, with soft-soap, which may also be mixed with sulphur. There is little danger, however, from either of these insects, if the air of the house is kept sufficiently warm and moist. The fruit, when ripe, is liable to be attacked by birds, wasps, flies, &c., which may be excluded by netting or wire-gauze ; but on the subject of insects we refer to what has already been stated in subsect. VII., p. 108. Bleeding, the result of pruning at an improper season, may in general be left to cure itself by the expansion of the foliage. Sect. III. — Culture of the Peach and NectariiM under glass. Subsect. I. — Natural data on which the culture of the Peach is founded. 989. The peach (Amygdalus persica i.) is indigenous in Persia, where it attains a high degree of perfection, and where Dr. Royle informs us, both the free and cling stone varieties are known. It is also found in various parts of Turkey in Asia, in India in different parts of the Himalayas ; and it is CULTURE OP THE PEACH AND NECTARINE UNDER GLASS. 473 cultivated in China, Japan, North America, and in most parts of Europe, Its range in Persia and Asiatic Turkey appears to be between 30" and 40° of north latitude ; but very little is known of the temperature or moisture of the climate in these and other regions where the peach is indigenous. Judging from general laws, it would appear that the winters are severe, the springs cold or temperate, and the summers warm rather than hot ; but the average temperature, or the extremes of heat and cold of these seasons, in the countries mentioned, have not yet been ascertained. Our data for the culture of the peach, therefore, must chiefly be taken from the practice in countries where it is successfully cultivated, and in no country is it more so in the open air than in the neighbourliood of Paris, or under glass than in England. The writer of the article peach in the Penny Cyclopaedia, from facts which we presume have been obtained in the Horticultural Society's Garden, gives the following data, on which the practice of forcing the peach may be safely founded. 990. Natural and experimental data. — If the mean temperature of Febru- ary amount to 40° and that of March to 44° or 46°, the peach-tree will be in full flower against a wall with a south aspect about the last week in March ; and the general crop will be ripe in the last week of August, or first week of September, pi-ovided the mean temperature of April be 49°, May 85°, June 61°, July 64°, and that of August 63°. The period required for the matura- tion of the fruit from the time of flowering is, on the open wall, five months; but it may be reduced to four by means of fire-heat and the protection of glass. It cannot, however, be advantageously diminished any further. This fact being borne in mind, it is easy for the gardener to know at what time to commence forcing his peaches in order to obtain a crop in a given month. From the natural climate and habit of the peach-tree, it is obvious that when forced it must be flowered under a comparatively low degree of tem- perature. It cannot therefore be well forced simultaneously with the vine ; for the temperature of March, which in this climate serves to bring the peach into flower, does not unfold the buds of the vine, this being only effected a month or six weeks farther in the season by a mean temperature of 66°. The peach may be subjected at first to a temperature of 45°, but not exceeding 66° till the flowering is over, after which it may be gradually raised to 60°, and not exceeding 66°, till the substance of the stone is indurated ; and after this crisis from 66° to 70° may be allowed. This is to be understood as referring to the application of fire-heat. Even in the total absence of the latter, sun-heat will frequently raise the temperature much higher ; but in this case a large portion of air should be supplied, not, however, all at once after the tempe- rature of the house is found too high, but gradually as the temperature increases. Air should be always freely admitted through the day when the weather is at all favourable. Light is so essential, that unless peaches be trained near the glass, the fruit will neither acquire due colour nor flavour. Vicissitudes of dryness and moisture must be avoided. The roots should be well supplied with water before the fruit begins fo ripen off, because at a later period none can be applied without deteriorating the flavour. The management of the peach-tree can only be correctly understood by those who are aware of the disposition of its buds and its mode of bearing. The leaves on the shoots of the current season are produced either singly, in pairs, or in threes from the same node. In the course of the summer, or 474 CULTURE OF THE PEACH UNDER GLASS early part of autumn, a bud is formed in the axU of eveiy individual leaf, and these are termed single, double, or triple eyes, or buds, according as one or more are produced at each node. In the following season, these buds develop themselves, either as flower-buds or young shoots ; and, previously to pruning, it is necessary to distinguish the one description from the other. The flower-buds are plump and roundbh ; the wood-buds are more oblong and pointed, and one of these is generally situated between two flower-buds in the case of triple buds occurring at the same node. It is therefore expedient in pruning to shorten a shoot to these triple eyes, or in their absence to a leaf-bad, but never to a fruit-bud only ; for no shoot could be prolonged from it, nor would the fruit attain perfection, owing to the want of leaves in immediate connexion with its footstalk. The mode of bearing is solely on shoots of the preceding summer's growth. — Penny Cychpcedia,yo\. xvii., p. 346. SuBSEOT. II Culture of the Peach under Glass in British Gardens. 991. Construction of the peach-house. — The form of the peach-house need not differ much from that of the grape-house, but in general it is made narrower and not so high at the back wall. Mr. Torbron, an experienced forcing gardener, recommends, length 30 feet, width 12 feet, height at back 9 feet, at front 2 feet. The front and end walls, and flues, to be on arches. The flue to be within 3 feet of the front and end walls, and to be returned interiorly, leaving between the flues a vacuity of 6 inches or a foot. A trellis to be fixed to the rafters IS inches from the glass, and the trees to be planted between the front wall and the flue. The sashes, in two lengths, to lap in the middle. The top-lights to be 1 inch wider than the lower ones ; and the lower ones to run up and down in a groove formed in the rafter under the top light, so that the top and bottom lights may nin free of each other. The doors at each end, or one at the furnace end. The rise from the furnace to the floor of the flue should be 18 inches. The situation of the chimney-top should be in the back wall over the furnace ; or if the nials produce a great deal of dense smoke, the chimney may be carried up in the front wall of the back shed. If the heating is to be efiFected by hot water, the pipes may be at exactly the same distance from the front and end walls as that above-mentioned for flues, in case of their being used. (957.^ 992. Peaches and nectarines best adapted for forcing. — The nectarine is a variety of the peach, and of both there are what are called cling-stonea, in which the flesh adheres to the nut or stone, and free-stones, in which the flesh parts from the stone readily. The sorts of peaches best adapted for forcing are — * Grosse Mignonne, * Royal George, lied Magdalen, Royal Charlotte, * Bellegarde, Barrington, and Late Admirable. These sorts ripen in the order in which they are placed ; the two latter kinds being late peaches, are only proper to be planted where a prolonged succession is required. The Bellegarde is not so subject to the attack of mildew as many others are that have serrated glandless leaves. The best sorts of nectarines for forcing are the Elruge and the * Violet Hative. All the above are free-stone fruits, cling-stones not being favourites in this country ; though in Italy and North America, where the summers are much warmer, they are preferred. 993. Plants and mode of training. — Time is gained by procuring from tho nurseries, or from the open walls of the same garden, trees which have been IN BRITISH GARDENS. 475 three or four years trained, which may be removed in November. The fan mode of training, already described in sufficient detail (801), is unqnestioa- ably the best for forced peaches. In lofty or wide houses it may be neces- sary to introduce riders in order more speedily to cover the upper part of the trellis, and these also should be three or four years trained ; but where the peach has been properly treated on a garden-wall, and its roots encouraged to run near the surface of the border, trained trees of almost any size may be transferred from the open wall to the forcing-house at once, so as even to bear a tolerable crop of fruit the first year. Mr. Errington removed a tree from a wall to a trellis in a forcing-house, where it covered 480 square feet, and ripened eight dozen of peaches the same year in which it was planted.— (G.M. 1842, p. 123.) 994, Pruning. — The winter pruning of the peach under glass should take place immediately after the fall of the leaf. The young shoots on the lower branches should be cut back to two or three buds, that the trellis may be furnished from the bottom with young wood. The shoots on the upper or farther extended branches may be shortened back to half or one- third of their lengths, according to their strength, provided they have been well ripened, and are free from canker ; but if the tree be anywise diseased, they should be cut so far back as to get rid of the cankered or mildewed part. The riders need not be pruned so much as the dwarfs ; the object being rather to throw them into a bearing state, than to cause them to push very strong shoots, which would not be fruitful. If they make moderately strong shoots, and if these be well ripened in autumn, a good crop may be expected on them next year. " Unless peach-trees be very strong," Mr. Thompson observes, " the shoots should be more or less shortened, according to the vigour of the tree. If this be not attended to, it will be impossible to prevent the bearing wood from becoming naked at the base. The setting and stoning of fruit situated at or near the extremity of a three-year-old branch, having, perhaps, only leaves on the part produced during the last season, is, indeed, very precarious." 996. The summer pruning consists in pinching off all foreright shoots as they appear, and all such as are ill placed, weakly, watery, or deformed, leaving a leader to every shoot of last year, and retaining a plentiful supply of good lateral shoots in all parts of the tree. If any blank is to be filled up, some conveniently placed strong shoot is shortened in a very early stage of its growth to a few eyes, in order that it may throw out laterals. All lux- uriant shoots should be stopped as soon as their tendency to over-luxuriance is observed, in order that the sap, which would otherwise be wasted, may be forced into the adjoining shoots and branches. 996. The fruit is thinned before and after the stoning season. — There should be a preparatory thinning soon after the fruit is set, leaving, of course, a sufficient number in case of imperfection that may only become apparent at the period of stoning ; because most plants, especially such as have overborne themselves, drop many fruit at that crisis. When this is over, the thinning should be effected with great regularity, leaving the fruit retained at proper distances ; three, four, or five, on strong shoots ; two or three on middling, and one or two on the weaker shoots ; and never leaving more than one peach at the same eye. The fruit on weakly trees should be thinned more in proportion. 097. The peach border will be partly within the house, but chiefly on 476 CULTURE OP THE PEACH UNDER GLASS the jutside, where it may extend ten feet or twelve feet from the front wall. The usual depth in medium soils and situations is from two feet to three and a half feet ; but eighteen inches, or two feet, is much safer, for reasons before given (880). The bottom should be previously thoroughly drained, and covered with a stratum of gravel, broken bricks, or other similar materials, to conduct away superfluous water. The best soil is a fresh loam from an old pasture, mixed with numerous fragments of free- stone (828). No stable-dung need be added, unless the soil should be considered poor. " The peach," Mr. Errington remarks, " as well as most other tender fruit-trees, is planted in borders far too deep as well as too rich." The borders should be pointed and forked up after pruning, and a little well-rotted dung or compost added where deemed necessary. The part of the borders on the outside may, in addition, be covered with dung ; and, after forcing is commenced, those in the inside may be occasionally watered with liquid manure ; but no manure whatever is required till such time as the trees are in a bearing state. 998. General treatment. — From the rise of the sap, it occupies, in some sorts, about four months to make mature fruit ; in the later varieties, five months ; and, when much of winter is included in the course of forcing, the time is proportionally lengthened. To ripen moderately early kinds by the end of May, begin to force on the 21st of December. Little is gained by commencing sooner. Abercrombie directs to begin with a temperature of 42° minimum, 45^^ maximum, from sun- heat ; and rise in a fortnight to 45° minimum, 50° maximum, from sun-heat, giving plenty of air ; in the pro- gress of the second fortnight, augment the temperature from three to eight degrees, so as to have it at the close up to 53° minimum, 56° maximum, from sun-heat, admitting air in some degree daily. When the trees are in blos- som, let the heat be 65° minimum, 60° maximum. Continue to aim at this till the fruit is set and swelling. When the fruit is set, raise the minimum to 60°, the artificial maximum to 65°, in order to give firesh air; when the sun shines, do not let the maximum, from collected heat, pass 70", rather employing the opportunity to admit a free circulation of air. A constant stream of fresh air is to be admitted before beginning to force, and plenty of air during sunshine throughout the whole progress of forcing. While the fruit is in blossom, steaming the flues or hot-waterpipes must be substituted for watering overhead ; at the same time, the roots may be watered now and then gently, avoiding such a copious supply as might risk the dropping of the fruit to be set An important point to be attended to in watering is, as we have seen (823), to let the water be warmed to the same temperature as the air of the house. When the fruit is ripening, its flavour is improved by direct exposure to the sun and air, by the removal of the glass, at least during the day. When it is quite ripe, the border should be covered with moss, or some soft substance, or nets suspended under the trees, to prevent those which drop ofi^ from being bruised ; but the best flavour is obtained by gathering the fruit a day before it is dead ripe, and ripening it for twenty or thirty hours in the fruit- room. 999. Insects and diseases. — The red spider is the grand enemy to the peach-tree ; but it is also attacked by mildew, the 'aphis, thrips, chermes, and sometimes even by the coccus. Their ravages become apparent by the leaves curling up, and often by the ends of the shoots becoming bunched and clammy which retards their shooting. In this case it is advisable to IN BRITISH GARDENS. 4'/7 pick off the infected leaves, and cut away the distempered part of tne shoots. Further to check the mischief, if the weather be hot and dry, jjivo the trees a smart watering all over the branches. Garden-engines, such as Head's (440), will perform the watering much more effectually than a common watering-pot. It should he applied two or three times a week, or even once a day. The best time of the day is the afternoon, when the power of the sun is declining. These waterings will clear the leaves, branches, and fruit from any contracted foulness ; refresh and revive the whole considerably ; and conduce greatly to exterminate the insects. The green fly is the principal enemy ; and if it appears before the leaves are curled up, or the ends of the shoots have become clammy, the remedy should be applied, viz. : a slight syringing to damp the leaves, and then a good sprinkling with tobacco-dust. 1000. Peaches may he forced in pots in a peach-house, vinery, or even in a pine-stove ; but the plants must be well established in the pots by three years' culture previous to forcing (/6id. 1841, p. 321). It may be well to observe that the peach to be grown in pots, or to be transplanted when of two or more years' growth, must be worked on plum-stocks, on account of the much greater number of fibrous roots which these stocks produce than almonds ; the latter are generally employed as stocks to the peach in France and Italy, being found to answer well in these countries, where the peach is seldom transplanted, and where the soil and climate are much dryer and warmer than in Britain. Sdbseci. III. — The details of a routine course of forcing the Peach for two years. The following article, by Mr. P. Flanagan, F.H.S., gardener to Sir Thomas Hare, Bart., at Stow-hall, Norfolk, is one of the best that has yet been published on the subject of which it treats. It appeared in the fifth volume of the Horticultural Transactions. Mr. Flanagan first describes the plan he follows in planting the trees, and then details his system of management during the first season ; after which he gives the mode of treatment in the second season, which last is equally applicable to all future years : — 1001. " The soil which I generally use for peaches and nectarines, whether in houses or on open walls, is the top spit of a pasture of rich yellow loam, if it can be procured, without adding to it any manure whatever ; but if the soil be poor or sandy, it should have a little rotten dung mixed with it. If convenient, this mould should be laid up in ridges five or six months before it is wanted, and turned over twice or thrice during that time. 1002. Border. — " When the house is ready, the borders, both inside and outside, should be cleared to the depth of three feet, and be well drained, as well as paved at bottom with slate or flat tiles, to prevent the roots of the trees entering the bad soil which may be at bottom. This being done, the new earth must be wheeled into the cavity of the border, and every layer of it that is put on should be well trodden down, until the whole is filled up, allowing a few inches above the level for settling, which will be, however, very trifling. 1003. Planting. — " The best season for planting is the latter part of autumn or beginning of spring. And the most expeditious way of furnishing a house is, to plant clean well-worked maiden plants, previously grown in good stiff loam, and trained against a wall three years before they are taken 1 1 478 FORCING THE PEACH. for such purpose. At that age they will have gained such strength, and got so well estahlished in the soil, that they can be removed with large bails, and with the greatest safety, into the places where they are to remain ; they will scarcely feel their removal. I generally place a compost of three parts loam, and one part rotten dung, immediately round the roots, in order to encourage the plants to strike more freely into the border. 1004. Forcing in the first season. — " In the first season, the commenc-e- ment of the forcing is in the second week in February, when the lights are put on the house. I begin to add a little fire-heat in the last week in tlie month, and gradually increase this as the spring advances. I obtain a temperature of from 63° to 65° from fire ; and I do not allow the sun-heat to exceed 75". The heat at night is kept suflSciently uniform by means of a moderate fire, and in tlie day by the admission of air. 1005. Watering and fumigating. — " The trees during the first summer should have frequent bottom waterings, and be well syringed with clear water two or three times a week ; this will greatly promote their growth and keep them clear of insects. Should the green fly, or red spider, maice their appearance, two or three strong fumigations with tobacco, and frequent syringing, will keep the trees clean. 1006. Summer pr.uning. — "If the trees appear to make luxuriant shoots in any part, when bearing wood is wanted, the shoots should be stopped at the third or fourth leaf; and if they are still inclined to grow strong, they must be stopped a second time : this will obtain kindly wood. Two or three times in the spring the whole should be looked over, and the shoots moderately thinned out, leaving those which are most kind and well placed at regular distances for the next year's bearing. The first thinning of the young shoots should be just after the fruit is set, and when they are eight or ten inches long : when at that length, they must be laid in at such dis- tances as to admit the sun and au- to ripen the wood destined to bear in the ensuing season. 1007. Routine treatment during the first season. — " The principal business of the first season is to keep the young wood regularly laid in, to attend to the top and bottom waterings, and to the free admission of air at all oppor- tunities. If all this has been done, and the plants have been kept clean, they will in this season have made plenty of good bearing wood for the next year, and they will have nearly covered half the extent of trellis within the house. 1008. Winter treatment. — " I generally take off the whole of the sloping lights for the winter months, and cover tlie borders and flues with five or six inches of light litter, to prevent severe frosts doing injury to either. 1009. Forcing in the second season. — '' The glass should be put on in the last week in January, the house be well cleaned all over ; and the flues, as far as possible, should be white-washed ; and then the trees should be pruned. I have not laid down any rules for the winter pruning, as almost every gardener eeems to have a method peculiar to himself of performing this work. — QSce the article '• Peach," in our Fruit Catalogue.'] 1010. Applying a p-eventim composition. — "Previous, however, to tying the trees to the trellis, I have the whole of their stems, but not the bearing v/ood, washed with a composition, formed of one pound of soft-soap, one ounce of tobacco, and a little flowers of sulphur, to which is added as much boiling-water as will make the whole of the consistence of paint. This FORCING THE PEACH. 470 composition is carefully applied with a painter's soft brush whilst it is milk- warm. The process of cleaning should never be omitted at the pruning season, as it prevents the trees ever contracting the bro\»Ti scale. When the trees are tied to the trellis, the borders must be dug ; this gives the house a clean and neat appearance. 1011. Forcing in February. — " In the first week in February the house is shut up every night, and plenty of air given in the day ; in the beginning of the second week, moderate fires are made, just to keep the heat by fire from 46° to 60°, not exceeding 70° of sun heat ; in the third week, the fire heat is gradually increased from 50° to 66°, and not exceeding 76° sun heat. By this time the trees will be getting into blossom. Whilst they are in bloom I neither sprinkle nor steam the house, for I consider that sufficient moisture arises from the earth in the house at this stage of forcing. I admit plenty of air every day, when the wind is mild, and in a favourable quarter. " Wlien the petals have all dropped, and the fruit is fairly set, I give the trees a gentle syringing on a fine morning, with clean water, and if any green flies appear, they have two or three smokiugs with tobacco, as directed before ; this will totally destroy the insects. 1012. March. — " At this period (March) particular attention must be paid to the regularity of heat, which may be progressively increased a degree or two as the season advances, but I do not allow it to exceed the last-named temperature until the fruit is perfectly stoned, when I increase it from 55° to 60° at night, and from 77° to 80° of sun heat. At the medium of these the temperature should continue dui-ing the remaining part of the season. 1013. Thinning the shoots and fruit. — " Attention must be paid to the thin- ning of the young shoots, as directed in the first year's management, and when the young fruit are about the size of damsons, they should then be moderately thinned for the first time, leaving a sufficiency for selecting a full crop by subsequent thinnings, which should be performed at two or more different periods. 1014. Stoning. — " It is to be observed that a few days before, and a few days after, the crops begin to stone, is the most critical period in forcing, and if strict attention is not paid at that time to the due regulation of heat, and to the free admission of air at all opportunities, a great portion of the fruit will fall off. I have often seen three parts of the crops of peaches and nectarines thus lost. 1015. Watering. — " The borders within the house must be occasionally watered, after the stoning, until the fruit has arrived at full size, and begins to change colour, then all watering should be left off, both with the syringe and on the borders. 1016. Ripening. — " When this crop of fruit begins to ripen, which will be about the second week in July, I gradually expose the house to the open air on fine and dry days, by drawing down the lights as much as convenient in the day, and shutting them again in the evening. It is this which gives the fi-uit both flavour and colour. 1017. Duration of the Crop. — " This crop thus produced furnishes the table from the second week in July until the middle of August, then a second house should become ripe, and continue to yield a supply until the fruit comes in on the open wall. The above practice is the result of many years experience." — {Sort. Trans., vol. v., p. 62.) I I 2 480 CHERRY FORCING IN BRITISH GARDENS. Sect. IV. — Culture of the Cherry under Glass. Sdbsect. I. — Natural Data for the Culture of the Cherry. 1018. The Cherry in its wild state being indigenous to Britain, and as a cultivated fruit brought to as high a degree of perfection in our climate as in any other, very little requires to be said on the subject of natural data for culture. The cherry is cultivated in Italy and the fruit attains a large size, but in point of flavour it is inferior to the fruit of the same varieties grown in England, or in central Germany. The cherry is forced in all the northern countries of Europe, and as it produces fruit in the open air in three months from the time of blossoming, it is ripened earlier in forcing-houses than the fcuit of any other tree. The temperature and moisture to be imitated are those of April, May, and June. The general practice in British Gardens is to begin at 40°, and throughout the first week to let the minimum be 40°, and the maximum 42°, giving plenty of air. By gradual advances in the second, third, and fourth week, raise the course to 42° min. 45° max. In strong sunshine, admit air freely, rather than have the temperature above 52", by collecting the warm air. In the fifth and sixth week, the artificial minimum may be gi'adually elevated to 46°, but the maximum should be restrained to 482 from fire-heat, and to 66° from sun-heat, until the plants are in flower. After the blossoms are shown, and until the fruit is set, aim to have the heat, from the flues or water-pipes, at 48° min. 62" max. At this stage, maintain as free an interchange of air as the weather will permit ; and wh,:n the sun-heat is strong, do not let the temperature within exceed 60°. As the fruit is to be swelled and ripened, the requisite heat is 60° min. 66° max. The art of forcing cherries has been carried to a high degree of perfection in the Royal Gardens at Kew and at Hampton Court; and we shall, there- fore, give a transcript of the practice at these places, as furnished to the Gardener s Magazine by Mr. VV. Lawrence, who was several years journey- man in the gardens at Hampton Court. SuBSECT. II. — The practice of Cherry Forcing in British Gardens. When cherries are required at the earliest period at which they can be produced in a forcing-house, which is about the middle of March, it is desir- able to have a stock of plants in pots ; because the entire plant being under the command of the forcer, can be excited much more effectually than if its roots were in the cold soil, and only its head exposed to the action of the warmth of the house. I0J9. The cherry house may be thirty feet long, fourteen feet wide, twelve feet high at the back, and seven feet high in front. The ends should be of glass, and both ends and front should be placed on brick walls two feet high supported by arches. The front sashes may either be hung on hinges at the tops, or at the sides, to open outwards ; or they may be made to slide in grooves. The roof sashes should be in two lengths ; the lower ones to pull up, and the upper ones to let down. As cherries require a great deal of air, and this often during wet weather, above the upper sashes there should be a projecting flashing of lead, to exclude the rain when the sashes are let down an inch or two. The heating may either be by flues or by hot water ; and in either case one furnace or one boiler, with the flue or pipes going round the house immediately within the front and ends, will be sufficient. CHERRY FORCING IN BRITISH GARDENS. 481 1020. Kinds of cherries for forcing, potting plants, S;c. — The May Duke is decidedly the best cheiTy for forcing. Tlie Morello forces well, but requires more time to bring it to maturity ; and, though it looks well in the dessert, it is not so agreeable to eat. The plants- for potting should have been three or four years worked, and should be such as are well furnished with blossom-buds. The soil used in potting may be loam, such as that in which melons are grown ; to which, if necessary, one-fifth part of thoroughly rotten dung may be added ; bearing in mind that too rich a soil makes the shoots too luxuriant, and causes them to gum. The season for potting is September and October, or any time before forcing ; but the trees will do quite well for late forcing, if they are not taken up and potted till they are just about to be put into the house. After potting, before setting the trees in the house, it is necessary to watch the operations of the sparrows, which are very apt to pick off the buds of cherries in the winter season, probably in search of the eggs or larvae of insects. If the trees potted are standai-ds, they may be set on the ground, or on a low stage ; and if they are dwarfs, u pon a higher stage, so as, in either case, to bring their heads within eighteen inches of the glass. They may be set so close together as that their heads may be within a few inches of touching each other. 1021. Time of commencing to force. — For the first crop shut up the house and begin lighting fires about the middle of December. The thermoaieter, for the first fortnight, should be kept at about 60" during the day, and 50° during the night ; syringing the trees morning and evening with water that has stood some days in the house, and keeping constantly one or two of the saslies open a few inches at the end of the house next the fire, in order to moderate the temperature there. The second fortnight the heat is allowed to rise to 60° during the night, and to 70° during sunshine. The trees in pots should be watered, when they require it, at the root ; but for any that may be planted in the ground, the watering over-head will be sufScient. When the trees come into bloom, the temperature must be lowered to 50°, or even lower, both by night and day, except during sunsliine, when the heat may be allowed to rise a few degrees higher. During all this time air must be admitted more or less, both during mild nights and by day ; but especially in the day-time, and during sunshine. When fine weather prevails at the tiine the trees are coming into bloom, a comparatively greater heat is required at night than during the day ; because if they are kept cool at night, the heat of the day is apt to expand the flowers before the stalks have grown to their natural length ; and, if so, although all the flowers might set, (which is not the case when they are short- stalked,) it would be impossible for a full crop to swell ofl^, as there would not be space enough for the cherries to expand. Watering must be withheld from the tops of the trees during the time they are in blossom, but given as required for their roots, and the floor kept moist by sprinkling it morning and evening. No water should be poured on the flues, because a powerful steaming at this season would destroy the blossom. 1022. Progress. — Trees begun to be forced in the middle of December will come into blossom in the middle of January, set their fruit about the end of the month, and stone it about the middle of February. 1023. Insects. — After the leaves expand, it very often happens that a ca.terpillar, or some black fly, makes its appearance ; these are sometimes scarcely to be met with in the day-time, but on going into the house at night 482 CHEIIRY FOECINfi IN BRITISH GARDENS. the caterpillar will be found crawling on the leaves and eating them. Fumi- gation with tobacco, and hand-picking, are the only remedies for these insects. Ants sometimes make their appearance when the trees are in blossom ; and though they are not so injurious to the cherry as they are to the peach, yet still they ought to be destroyed, by pouring tobacco water into their nests. Till the ants' nests are destroyed, the insects may be prevented from getting at the blossoms, by tying pieces of paper round the stems of the trees, and coating them over with a mixture of tar and grease : the paper should be of a coarse spongy kind, so as to absorb the tar, and prevent it from rurming down the bark of the stem when the temperature of the house is high — or yam may be used instead of paper. In either case, as soon as the tar becomes hard, the ants will walk over it, and, in that case, it must be renewed. When the trees are in blossom, it will facilitate the setting of the fruit if bees can be introduced, which may easily be done, by setting in a hive, or, what is preferable, by fixing a hive immediately in front of the lower part of one of the fi'ont sashes, and so as to touch it, and having an entrance for the bees at the back of the hive, as well as the usual one in front of it. Corresponding with this back entrance, a small hole may be cut in the bottom rail of the sash, and a stopper or slide fitted to it, through which the bees may be ad- mitted to the cherry-house at pleasure. 1024. Thinning and stoning, ^-c. — When the fruit is fairly set, it should be thinned out with the grape scissors, removing from one-fourth to one- third of the cherries, according to the vigour of the tree, and the number of fruit it has set. When once the fruit is set it is not liable to be injured by cold, as in the case of peaches and grapes. On the contrary, cherry trees, in pots, have been turned out into the open garden, by way of experiment, after the fruit was set ; and the frosts, which damaged the leaves, had no effect at all upon the fruit, except to retard its growth. After the fruit has begun to stone, (which is generally about a fortnight after it is set,) the trees should be watered freely at the roots, but in eight or ten days, when the kernel begins to harden, the quantity of water may be diminished. The tempera- ture of the house, except in sunshine, should never exceed 60°, either by night or by day, from blossoming up to the time of stoning ; but in three weeks after setting, when the stoning will generally be found completed, and the pulp of the fruit beginning to assume a pale red, the temperature may be raised to 70° at night, and even to 70° or 80° in the day, during sunshine, and when abundance of air is given. After the fruit is ripe, water should be withheld till it is gathered. In every stage of the progress of the cherry in a forcing-house, the plants may be watered with liquid manure, which is found to strengthen their leaves and buds without injuring the flavour of the fruit. 1025. Treatment of the plants in pots after they are taken out of the house-— r Immediately after the crop is gathered the trees should be taken to a cool, rather shady situation, set on the ground, and the pots surrounded up to the rim with rotten tan, saw-dust, or any similar materials, to keep them cool, and in an equable degree of moisture. If, on the other hand, a second crop of cherries should be wanted late in autumn, the soil in the pots should be allov/ed to be quite dry for a month ; and, by afterwards watering it freely, and placing the trees in the house about the end of August, and treatijig them in the same manner as was done in early spring, they will ripen their fruit in October or November. Such trees, however, will not be again fit to CHERRY FORCING IN BRITISH GARDENS. 483 force for two or three years to come ; and they should, therefore, he turned out of the pots into the free soil, and allowed at least two years to recover themselves, when they may be again re-potted and forced. While in the ojien ground, all the blossoms produced should be picked off as soon as they appear, to prevent them from weakening the trees. In the cherry, as in most trees that produce their blossom on the wood of the preceding year, or on spurs, the blossom-buds expand first, and next the barren or wood-buds. The latter continue growing till the petals of the flowers drop off, when they receive a check, and scarcely grow at all, till the fruit is set and begins to swell ; after which they grow rapidly, and complete the shoots of the year, fey the time the fruit is stoned. 1026. To have a constant succession of cherries from the middle of March till July, as soon as the trees of one house have come into blossom, those of the next should have artificial heat applied, and the temperature and manage- ment will be in every case the same as that which has been above described. It may be observed here, that cherry-houses, with the trees planted in the ground, are much less suitable, not only for early foi-cing, but for main and late crops, than cherry-trees planted in pots. The cherry cannot, like the peach and the nectarine, be forced for a number of years together; and hence, as a house in which the trees are planted in the ground must, every tliree or four years, have a season of rest, the house during that season, having the sashes taken off, is in a great measure of no use. — {Gard. Mag. vol. xiv. p. 41.) 1027. Forcing cherries by a temporary structure. — Where a portion of wall (especially with a southern aspect), already well furnished with May- dukes, perfectly established, and in a bearing state, can be spared for forcing, a temporary glass case may be put up against it ; the flue may be built on the surface of the border, without digging or sinking for a foundation ; neither will any upright glass or front wall be requisite ; the wooden plate on which the lower ends of the rafters are to rest may bo supported by piles^ sunk or driven into the soil of the border, one pile under every, or every alternate, rafter. The space between the plate and the surface of the soil should be filled by boards nailed against the piles, to exclude the external air, for the plate must be elevated above the level of the surface from eighteen to thirty inches, or whatever height may be sufficient to let the sashes slip down, in order to admit fresh air. This structure will suit well for cherries, for such structures have been erected for forcing peaches with good success, as well as for maturing and preserving a late crop of grapes. — (^Torbron in Hort. Trans, vol. iv. p. 117-) 1028. German practice. — In the Royal Gardens at Potsdam, cherries are frequently forced so as to be ripe by the end of February ; the gardener there, Mr. Fintlemann, being remarkably successful in this department of forcing. The plants are potted a year before they are forced. They are potted in autumn, and the roots protected from frost through the winter by being covered with litter. In the following spring the blossom buds are broken off as soon as they appear ; and, by the end of June, all the shoots which have pushed freely have their points pinched off, s6 as to leave not more than six buds, which buds by that operation become blossom buds. Before the plants are taken in they must at least have sustained 14" Fahi. 484 CHERRY FORCING IN BRITISH GaBUESS. of cold, otherwise they are found to break very irregularly. The blossoms aie thinacd out ; so rauth so, that where fifteen have appeared, not more than three have been allowed to expand. The construction of the house in which the forcing is commenced varies according to the season. When the trees are taken in, in December and January, the glass of the roof must be much steeper than when they are not taken in till Febmary and March. Heat is communicated by flues, commencing with 46° Fahr. The frees are frequently sprinkled with lukewarm water ; and the roots, which ought to have been kept quite dry for some time before the plants are taken in, are well soaked with warm water. Mr. Fintlemann boils one-half of the water, and mixes it with the other half; and he uses water of this tempera- ture till within fourteen days of the trees coming into blossom. When the buds break out into bloom, watering overhead with lukewarm water is left off, but the stems are kept moist by rubbing them two or three times a day with a wet brush. During the blooming season the temperature is raised from 46° to 67°, every third day, 2^° more heat being added. Aliun- dance of air is given, and shade during bright sunshine. In boisterous weather gauze is placed over the openings through which the air is admitted, the advantage of which in moderating the violence of the wind, Mr. Fintle- mann is well assured of, after eight years' experience. To cause the blossoms to set, the branches and spray are frequently put in motion, but care taken not to move the main stem, by which the fibrous roots might be injured. When the fruit is setting and swelling, the temperature must be kept between 64^° and 65|°. When the fruit is stoning, the temperature is lowered to 59° for two or three weeks, during which period the house must be shaded in bright suu- sliine, and the plants watered overhead once or twice a day. When the stoning is completed and the fruit begins to swell, the tem- perature is again raised to 66°, and no more shade given, in order that the fruit may acquire a high flavour through the operation of the sun's rays; to facilitate the action of which on the fruit, the superfluous leaves are removed. By this practice, plants begun to be forced in December commonly produce ripe cherries in February ; but Mr. Fintlemann has sometimes had them even in January, though without a good flavour. Recent experience has taught Mr. Fintlemann that cherries will force remarkably well in sawdust, or chopped moss, mixed with some powdered unbumt lime. Plants grown one year in two years old sawdust, and a little powder of lime, put into the forcing-house on the 16th of January, gave a ripe fruit by the end of February. The kind of cherry forced by Mr. Fintlemann is the same as our May Duke ; and some of the points of his practice, such as shortening the shoots to produce blossom-buds, thinning blossoms, the previous exposure to cold, and the use of warm water, seem worthy of the imitation of the British gardener. — Gard. Mag., vol. iii, p. 65. At the same time it must be borne in mind, that the atmosphere in Prussia, and on the Continent generally, is much clearer than iu Britain, and that there are few days in which the sun during the short time which he is above the horizon does not shine brightly. Hence as far as light is concerned in forcing, the British gardener can never contend with the German one. FORCING THE PIG IN BRITISH GARDENS. 485 Sect. V. — Culture of the Fig under Glass. ScBSECT. I. — Natural Data on which the Culture of the Fig is founded. 1029. The Fig (Fkus Cdrica, L.) is a native of Asia and the sea-coast of Africa, and it is cultivated on the shores and islands of the Mediterranean, in Italy, and in the South of France ; but, like the olive, never far from the sea-side, or at great elevations. The soil is generally light, but superin- cumbent on a subsoil, which is supplied witli water within the reach of the roots. It would thus appear that the fig is not intended by nature to endure a severe winter, a great degree of drought, or a very hot summer; and this conclusion is in accordance with the succulence of its wood, the retention of young fruit on its shoots throughout tlie winter, and its broad succulent leaves. The spring and summer temperature suitable for the grape vine has been found to answer for the fig, but the latter requires a moister atmosphere, and more water at the root when in a growing state, and the temperature should not be below 40° during winter. It is the nature of the fig to produce two crops in the year, both when it is cultivated in tlie open air, and when it is under glass. The first crop, which is produced on the points of tlie shoots of the last year, ripens in Italy in May and June; and on walls in the climate of London in September and October. Tlie second crop is produced on the shoots of the current year, and ripens in Italy in October ; but in the open air in this country it never ripens at all, except- ing a few of small size, which remain on througli the winter, and constitute the first crop, just mentioned, of the following summer. Under glass, the fir'st crop ripens at various periods between March and June, according to tlie time of commencing to force ; and the second crop, which in the open air never attains maturity, is under glass that which is most to be depended on. The first crop under glass ripens in four or five months from the time of commencing to force, and the second crop in six or eight months. The fruit of the fig is what is called a common receptacle for the flowers, but turned up in a tur- binate or top shape, so as to inclose the florets and completely exclude them from view. The fig, both in fig countries and in British gardens, is apt to drop its fruit prematurely ; and in Italy and Greece the process of caprifica- tion is employed to counteract this tendency. It consists in placing among the branches of cultivated fig trees, branches of the wild fig, or even fruit that has dropped ofl^ wild trees, in which a kind of gnat abounds, and which enters the fruit on the cultivated tree, and passing over the anthers distributes the pollen over the stigma. The utility of this practice is doubted by many ■ at all events, it is neither practised in France nor Britain, but as a substitute for it, ringing the branch immediately behind the fruit has been found suc- cessful in some British gardens. SuBSECT. II. — The forcing of the Fig as practised in British Gardens. 1030. The Fig is not a favourite fruit in Britain, though since the peace of 1814 the taste for it has considerably increased. It is most generally forced in pots, either placed in pits, or in peach-houses, vineries, or even pine-stoves ; and as the plants bear two crops in a year, it is not difficult to have a supply of fruit at most seasons ; the chief dependence, however, is on the second crop, or that produced on the wood of the current year. 1031. The construction of the Fig-house may be the same as that of the peach-house (991) ; but the leaves being large, the trellis may be placed 486 FORCING THE FIG IN BRITISH GARDENS. from six inches to a foot farther from the glass. The soil of the border should be light, sandy, and thoroughly drained. 1032. The varieties best adapted for forcing are Pregussata, Figue blanche, or White Marseilles, and Brown Turkey, or Ashridge forcing, to which may be added the Nerii, which, it is said, requires less heat than the other varieties. The plants may be trained in the fan manner, and the mode of pruning should be such as to favour the production of young wood over every part of the tree. For this purpose a poi-tion of the old wood requires to be cut out every year, from those parts of the tree where young wood has ceased to be produced freely ; and as this is seldom the case at any great distance from the root, most old fig-trees consist of a number of main branches proceeding direct from the root in the manner of suckers. Very little pi-uning is required for the fig ; but by pinching out the points of the shoots after tlie fruit appears, its progress is hastened, and the chance of its setting increased. The fruit is very apt to become yellow, and drop off before it is fully swelled ; but this, it has been found by Sir Charles Monck (Hart. Trans., vol. i., second series, p. 39.5), may be prevented by taking oif a ring of bark immediately behind the fruit. By attending to this practice when it becomes necessary, the fig. Sir Cliarles Monck observes, may be forced to produce abundant crops of fruit, and bring them to perfect maturity. 1033. The time of beginning to force the fig is commonly the same as that for forcing the grape or the peach, and tlie temperature is also much the same as tliat for the vine, or somewhat intermediate betvreen it and the peach. The apricot, peach, plum, and cherry vegetate in March or the beginning of April ; but the vine and the fig require the temperature of May to bring them into vegetation even when growing against a south wall. Hence, when forced, they require a proportionately higher temperature to bring them into leaf. The first crop of figs, which is that produced on the points of the shoots of the last year, will ripen in May or June; but tlie second crop will not ripen before September, though, as it does not ripen all at once, it will last till December. The only difficult point in forcing the fig is to preserve the embryo fruit formed on the points of the shoots of the cun'ent year, so as that they may ripen as a first crop in the next year. The fig will thrive at a greater distance from the glass than either the vine or the peacli, and also, according to Miller, with less air than any other fruit- tree. It is very subject to the red spider, which should be kept under by watering copiously over the leaves ; or, if that is not sufficient, by wasliing the flues or hot- water pipes with a mixture of flowers of sulpliur and lime. 1034. Tlie forcing of fig trees in jdo^s is perhaps the best mode, at least for smaU establisliments, because, by having an abundant stock of plants, fruit may be obtained nine months in the year, as indeed it is at Preston- hall, in East-Lothian, where forty varieties are cultivated under glass. M'Phail says, figs may be ripened at an early season, by planting them in pots, and setting them into a hot-liouse or forcing-house. " The plants should be low and bushy, so that thej' may stand on the kerb of the tan-bed, or they may be plunged in a gentle tan-heat, or in a bed of leaves of trees. Tlie best way to propagate plants for tliis purpose is to take layers or slips which have good roots : plant them in pots in good earth, one plant in each CULTURE OV TUB MELON. 487 pot, and plunge thern in a bed of tan or of leaves of trees, in which is a very gentle heat : a brick bed will answer the purpose very well ; or they will do in the forcing-house, if there be room for them. Let them be put into the house in the latter end of February or beginning of March, and keep them sufficiently watered. When they are two years old, they will be able to bear fruit; the pots in that time having become full of i-oots. In the month of November or December, turn the plants out of the pots, and with a sharp knife pare olf the outside of the ball, by which the plant will be divested of its roots matted against the inside of the pot : then place them into larger pots, filling up the vacancy round the balls with strong loamy earth. During the winter, let them be kept in the green-house, or in a glazed pit of a like temperature, till the month of February ; which wiU be a means of preventing the fruit from falling off before it comes to maturity. In this manner let them be treated every year, till the plants become too large for the pots ; then set them into the forcing-house, where it is intended they shall ripen their fruit." — {^Gard. Rem.) 1035. Winter treatment. — The glass of the fig-house should not be taken off during winter, because it is an important object to preserve the erabyro fruit that are to produce the firat crop in the following year. Hence, wherever it can be accomplished, the sea-side temperature of Genoa or Naples, which is rarely under 38° or 40°, ought to be maintained in the fig-house throughout the winter months. This is most conveniently and economically done when the plants are kept in pots or tubs, as they can then be removed to a shed or cellar, as is the practice in Germany. Sect. VI. — On forcing the Plum, Apricot, Gooseberry, and other Fruit-trees and Fruit-shrubs. In Germany, and more especially Russia, it is customary to force all our hardy fruit-trees and fruit-shrubs, including even the currant and raspberry. The plants are invariably kept in pots ; and, when the fruit is ripe, the pot and the entire plant is placed on the dessert-table. The forcing is generally carried on in the same house with various culinary vegetables, and being ripened without the natural quantity of light and air, it is, as far as we have tasted it, when in these countries in 1813 and 1814, without much flavour. Plums and apricots are occasionally forced in Britain ; they are planted in pots, and placed in pits, or in any forcing -house where there is room. The temperature and treatment of the peach-house, it will readily be conceived, is most suitable for them. Sect. VII. — Culture of the Melon. SuBSECT. I. — Natural and experimental data on which the Culture of the Melon is founded, 1036. The melon (Cucumis Melo, L.) is an herbaceous trailing or climbing annual, indigenous or cultivated in great part of the warmer districts of Asia or Africa from time immemorial. In the warmer parts of Europe, it has been cultivated at least from the time of the Romans. The melon is extensively cultivated in Armenia, Ispahan, and Bokhara, and very generally in Greece, Italy, and the shores of the Mediterranean. It succeeds in the open air as far as 43° N. ; and its culture extends within the tropics, but only when it is abundantly supplied with moisture. Its extremes of tem- 488 Cnl.TTJEE OF TUE MELON. pcrature may be 70° and 80° for atmospheric heat, and some intermediate degree, perhaps 75°, may be suitable for the soil. The atmosphere in the countries where the melon is most successfully cultivated is so diy that the plants depend almost entirely on surface irrigation and on dews. The soil in which the melon is found to thrive best is a fresh loam, rather strong than light, such as may be obtained from an alluvial meadow which is flooded during the winter season. In Persia, pigeon's dung is used ; and in Britain stable dung, which has been thoroughly rotted, Ls commonly more or less mixed with the soil ; but it is not desirable to introduce manure to such an extent as to produce the same degree of luxuriance in the shoots which might be desirable under a tropical sun. The melon in this country requires all the light which it can receive, and therefore the plants must have their shoots trained close under the glass, for which purpose a trellis is found superior to the surface of the soil ; for unless this is the case, and abund- ance of air is admitted, the fruit produced will be of very inferior flavour. Early crops of the melon are with difficulty obtained in Britain, on account of our cloudy atmosphere, by which evaporation from the foliage is checked, and mildew and other diseases are produced. Late crops, it may easily bo supposed, are less liable to be affected in this way, from the greater degree of light and heat adraittmg of more abundant ventilation. The varieties of the melon belong to two races: the Pereians and the Cantaloups. The former are cultivated in this country with great difficulty, requiring a very high temperature, a dry atmosphere, and an extremely humid soil. The Cantaloups, which are so named from a place of tliat name in the neigh- bourhood of Rome, are cultivated throughout Europe with great success, and nowhere more so than in England. 1037. Sumtnary of culture for the Cantaloup melons. — The following summary is evidently by the author of the article " Peacli,'' in the Penny Cyclopcedia ; at all events it is unquestionably the most scientific abridge- ment of melon- culture which has hitlievto appeared : — "About four montlis may be allowed, on an average, for the period between the sowing of melons and the ripening of the fruit. The middle of January is found to be early enough to sow ; and the young plants are so exceedingly tender that acci- dents are then very likely to occur to them. It is on this account neces- sary to make successive sowings, in ordir to be prepared for replacement, if requisite, and also for continuing the supply throughout the summer. A sowing for the latest crops will require to be made in April. Melons may be grown by means of frames on hotbeds (48D and 8-il), or in pits (515), heated according to some of the various modes of hot-water applica- tion, now so generally adopted ; but whatever be the form of the pits or the mode of heating adopted, one point of essential importance is to liave the sashes glazed with the British sheet glass, as being much clearer than the best crown glass, and as admitting of being used in panes of any length under five feet, and consequently requiring very few or no laps. The seeds are sown in pans, or in small pots, and transplanted into other small pots when their seed-leaves are about half an inch broad. It is best to put only a single transplanted melon into each pot. While this is done in a separate frame, that which is intended for their future giowth and fruiting is prepared for their reception by placing small hills, rather more than a foot high, of light rich mould below each sash, and nearer to the back of tlie frame than the front. Care must be- CULTURE OP THE MELON. 489 taken that this mould he of the proper temperature before the young plants are introduced, which is to take place when they have made a few rough leaves. As the roots extend, more soil should be added, of a gradually stronger nature ; and ultimately the roots should have a depth of about fifteen inches of such soil. The soil should never be introduced in a cold state ; and if there be no means for previously bringing it to the tempera- ture of at least 70", it should be put into the frame in small quantities. When water is required, it should never be much below the above-men- tioned temperature, nor should it exceed 78°. It should not be applied when the air of the frame is at a high temperature from sun-heat. Shading is necessary immediately after watering, when the sun's rays have any great degree of power : unless this precaution is attended to, scoi-ching will be induced, and the red spider will be likely to attack the foliage. With regard to pruning and training the runners or vines of melon plants, it is necessary that a sufficient number of these for filling the frame should be made to ramify as close to the base of the main stem as can be conveniently effected, by pinching off the top of the latter when it has made a few joints, or four leaves above the cotyledons ; and the laterals, which in consequence become developed, may be again subdivided by a similar process. Blossoms of a monoecious character wUl soon after make their appearance. The male - blossoms, or at least a portion of them, must be retained for the purpose of fertilisation, till the requisite quantity of fruit is fairly set, after which those shoots which have only male blossoms may be dispensed with, in order to afFoi'd more space for the foliage connected with the fruit. The extremities of the fruit-bearing vines are stopped by pinching at the second or third joint above the fruit. The vines must afterwards be kept regulated so as not to over-crowd the frame with more foliage than can be duly exposed to the light. The regulation should be early and frequently attended to, so as not to have occasion to remove many vines from the plant, or divest it of much foliage at any one time. A piece of slate or tile is placed under each fruit, for the purpose of keeping it from the damp soil. The heat must be fully maintained, or even considerably increased, as the fruit approaches maturity, in order to allow the admission of a more free circulation of air ; but if, at the same time, the bottom-heat be allowed to decline, the plants will become diseased, and fall a prey to the mildew or to the red spider." — Penny Cyc, vol. xv. p. 85. To these excellent observations we have only to add, that the trellis referred to in the preceding paragraph (1030) is raided from a foot to eighteen inches above the soil, and within from ten inches to fourteen inches of the glass. The trellis is formed in panels of the same size as the lights, and rests on projections from the front or back of the frame, or pit, or is sus- pended by hooks. The trellis may either be formed of wire fixed to a wooden frame, and forming meshes five inches square to admit passing the hand through to the soil beneath ; or it may be formed of laths three quarters of an inch broad, and half-an-inch thick, also formed into squares, and nailed at the intersections. In general laths are preferable to wires, on account of their forming a flat surface for the fruit to rest on. The trellis is not introduced to the frame or pit till the plants are gi'own sufficiently high to admit of their tops being brought through it. The shoot having been brought through the middle of the trellis, and grown three joints above it, remove two joints with the finger and thumb, which will cause the plant to 490 CULTURE OP THE MELON IN BRITISH GARDENS. throw out fresh shoots. Of these the top ones must be preserved, and stopped at every other joint ; and such as present themselves lower dovm the stem must be taken off. When those retained get sufficiently long, they must be tied down to the trellis with care, and after making two clear joints each they must be stopped back to one. In general four shoots, trained towards the four corners of the trellis till they reach within a foot of the outer edge of the bed, will be sufficient. There they must be stopped. They will now produce laterals, which should be thinned, three or four only being left on each of the four main shoots, and the others should be taken off close to the main stem out of which they grew. — (^Mills's Treatise, Sjc, p. 60 and p. 7 ; and Duncan on the Melon, p. 4i.) SuBSECT. II. — Culture of the Melon as practisedin British gardens. The following article was written for this work by Mr. Forsyth, though it has appeared in the 16th volume of the Gardener's Magazine: — 1038. The sorts I should cultivate are, a few Rocks, for their look at table at expensive entertainments ; Green-fleshed, as being economical and fashion- able (a middle-sized fruit about two lb. weight being considered the best) ; and Persians, such as the Sweet Ispahan and Hoosainees, for their rich aqueous pulp, and as by far the most delicate and delicious of the melon tribe. 1039. Very early melons may be grown in pots, one plant in each, to mature one fruit, in the pine- stove, or in a house or pit on purpose, where a wholesome high temperature is maintained of 76° or 80° j the fruit may be supported by being laid on a small earthenware saucer, inverted into a larger one suspended from the roof. 1040. Seedlings. — Melons planted out on a ridge, on abed of tan, dung, or leaves, under glass, may be advantageously cultivated in the following manner. In any house, pit, or frame, where an atmosphere as above described is maintained, sow some seeds in thumb-pots, one seed in each pot, which must be kept near the glass after the plants are above-ground, and be allowed a free circulation of air, in order to rear the plants as robust and short-stemmed as possible ; but, though I detail the process of rearing seedlings, I must not be understood to mean that they are equal to those raised from cuttings, which process I shall here detail : — 1 041 . Cuttings. — In an atmosphere as above described, let the cutting-pots, prepared in the following manner, be placed half a day previous to their being used, in order that the mould may be warm, to prevent a check by cold soil to the bottom of an exotic cutting. If provided with a small crystal bell-glass, or a small hand-light closely glazed, either of these may be used ; but if pi'ovided with neither, which is nothing uncommon, you can doubtless command as much glass in square or fragment, as will cover the mouth of a 48 sized pot. The cuttings should be taken from the extremities of the healthiest vines, cut close below the third joint from the tip, and inserted in thumb- pots filled with leaf-soil and loam mixed, about half an inch below the sur- face of the soil ; and these placed in the bottom of a 48-sized pot, and the cavity between the two pots stuffed with moist moss, and the glass laid over the top of the outer pot, which ought to be plunged in a hotbed up to the brim : this is an improvement in striking cuttings which I have never made known before, nor have 1 ever seen it practised by any one else. It is a CULTURE OP THE MELON IN BRITISH GARDENS. 491 common way to fill a pot throe-fourths full of soil, and in that to insert the cuttings under a pane of glass ; and I have no doubt, when those that have practised that mode come to see this simple improvement, so much more workmanlike, and applicable not only to melon cuttings, but to all sorts of cuttings, exotic, greenhouse, and hardy, they will feel nowise reluctant to relinquish the old way. The advantages of this mode are, when the cuttings get up to the glass, which they generally do before they have struck root, the outer pot can be changed for one a little deeper, and the moist moss serves the twofold purpose of conducting heat and moisture ; and, as the heat of the tan or dung bed will be 30° or 40° above that of the atmosphere of the house or pit (a good tan bed will range about 110° at six inches deep), it will be communicated through the outer pot to the atmosphere around the cutthigs, thereby accelerating their striking root: this high atmospheric heat is an advantage possessed in common with the old system over the bell-glass propagating pot. 1042. Planting out. — Plants being reared, either from seeds or cuttings, healthy and robust, are, let us presume, in 32-sized pots, about nine inches high, with leaves as large as the palm of the hand. The hotbed being made up to within eighteen inches of the glass, and a ridge of loamy turf, mixed with one- fourth its quantity of dang, pulverised to a mould, being laid along the centre of the bed, about twelve or fourteen inches deep, a day or two previous to the planting of the melons, and all fears of offensive steam from the bed or linings being guarded against, the plants may be turned out of the pots along tlie centre of the ridge, about one foot apart for a bed nine feet wide, or for a six-feet bed about fifteen inches apart, with a fine sweet moist heat, such as could bo breathed comfortably, about 76° to 86°. Excess in quantity of heat is not so much to be feared as inferior quality of heat. A strong heat willrarify the air and cause ventilation; to facilitate wliich, a small aperture should be left open, say a quarter of an inch, at the top of every light, and this eighteen or twenty hours out of the twenty-four. The time that I should sliut up close, would be at uncovering in the morning (whicli should be done as soon as it is light) ; and after syringing or steaming them in the evening, when no more air is wanted for the day heat. 1043. General treatment. — Plants raised from cuttings show fruit with less vine than those reared from seeds ; and this is the best remedy, in con- junction with keeping them rather dry at the roots, for the ever-crying evil, that the " vines have run all over the bed without showing fruit." I should prefer leaving a plant reared from a cutting entire, witliout stopping, until it shows fruit ; those raised from seed must be topped, as they gener- ally draw up weak and long-jointed, if left entire. I should top them for the first time as soon as they show the rough leaf, and again as they advance, say when they have made two feet of vine, in order to produce fruitful laterals. When fruit appears, they must be carefully managed to prevent sudden atmospheric changes ; and, during the time that they are in flower, water overhead must be dispensed with, and gentle vapour only occasionally raised, to nourish the leaves, for it would be injurious to keep the flowers too moist at this time. Every female blossom must now be carefully impreg- nated ; and, as soon as the fruits are set and beginning to swell, plenty of moisture and a closer atmosphere will be of the greatest service till they are swelled full size, when moisture at the root, and also vapour on the leaves, must be finally dispensed with. As soon as a reasonable number of fruits arc 492 CULTURE OP TIIE MELON IN BTIITISH GASDENS. swelling favourably, say three to six on a plant, the rest, with every leaf and lateral, for which some good reason is not pledged, must unsparingly be dis- carded, leaving always one leaf, or perhaps two, beyond every fruit ; and let every fruit be elevated on an inverted earthen saucer. To grow very early melons dry heat is indispensable, as every leaf, in moist weatlier, ought to be carefully dried once every day ; and, in hot weather, every leaf ought to be as carefully moistened, by means of vapour or syringing. Before the fruit appears, and also when it is ripening off, a well ventilated atmosphere is best ; but, whilst the fruits are swelling, closeness and humidity will be found to answer the purpose best. An occasional dusting of powdered charcoal and lime, mixed with sulphur and Scotch snuff, will go far to prevent the ravages of insect enemies. The bed must be soiled over to the same depth as the ridge was origi- nally made, at different times, as the progress of the roots shall dictate ; and the roots must be supplied with soft well aerated water, as the firmness or flaccidity of the leaves must determine. As little shading as possible should be given, as the plants should be inured to the full sun as soon as possible ; the minimum heat may be 70°, and the maximum 90°, though 100° would do no harm, even with the lights close, provided the laps and crannies about them were closed, or with the lights not closed, provided the transition were not rapid. — A.F. These directions are equally applicable to melons trained on a trellis, or on the surface of the ground. 1044. Persian Melons are very subject to burst ; but Mr. Knight found that by raising the points of the fruit higher than the stems, so as to give it an elevation of 30°, not one fruit failed to ripen in a whole and perfect state. — {Hort. Trans, vol. i. 2nd series, p. 90.) 1045. Culture of the melon in the open air. — In the climate of London a late crop of melons may be raised on beds of dung in the open air, the plants when newly turned out being protected by hand-glasses. The customary mode is to have the beds fiat, about four feet wide and two feet and a-half high ; and when the heat declines, casings of hot dung are applied, first on one side, and, when that ca-sing has ceased to be effective, on the other. The better mode, however, is to form the bed in the direction of east and west, with the north side supported by boards, so as to be perpendiculai-, and three feet six inches or four feet high, and tlie south side sloping at an angle about 40° east and west, and open to the south. The situation must be well sheltered from the north. Whichever description of bed is used, the plants may be raised from seeds or cuttings in April or May, and turned out in the first week of June. The plants should not be raised on bottom heat, because the transition to the open air is found to give them such a check as to turn the leaves yellow, and the entire plant sickly. There are two decided advantages in growing the melon in ridges sloping to the south : the first is, that the sun's rays are received at a, much larger angle, in conse- quence of which the temperature is raised from 10° to IS" higher than it is in the shade ; and the next is, that a larger, and consequently a more effective, casing can be applied behind. The only disadvantage is the diffi- culty of maintaining a uniform degree of moisture in the soil, which must, therefore, be frequently watered, and always with water at a temperature of 65° or 70'. To retain the moisture, as well as to reflect the heat, the sloping face of the bed may be covered with flat tiles or slates, but not over- lapping, because that would conduct off the water. When the plants are CULTURE OF THE MELON IN BRITISH GARDENS. 493 fii-st inserted in the bed they are closely covered with hand-glasses, but aa soon as they have begun to grow the glasses are raised on bricks, so as to allow the shoots to advance from beneath them ; and these shoots are care- fully pegged down to preserve them from being deranged by the wind. The first fruit from such beds is generally cut in August, and they will continue productive till the plants are destroyed by frost in October. A thin covering of canvas during nights would no doubt contribute to tho vigour of the plants by checking radiation. — (^Williams in Hort. Trans., vol. v., p. 364, and Mills's Treatise, p. 67.^ 1046. Insects and Diseases. — The aphis, the red spider, and the thrip, are the greatest enemies to the melon, and if once the plants are overrun with any of them, it is scarcely possible to restore them to health. Tlio aphis may be destroyed by fumigating with tobacco, or the paper in which it is packed, and the rope with which it is bound, on its importation to tliis country. Any of these wiU do, and each must be a little moistened when it is used. The best method of doing it is with the fumigating bellows, the muzzle being introduced through a perforation in the front of the frame or pit, nearly on a level with the surface of the mould ; the sashes should be covered with mats at the same time, to prevent the escape of the fumes. The operation should always be performed in tlie evening, and renewed the following one ; not a drop of water, from any source, should be allowed to touch the plants the next day. The frames are to be kept closed and shaded, so far as can be done without injury, and not opened until the latest desirable period. — (^Duncan on the Melon, p. 69.) The increase of the red spider, and thrip, may be prevented, in a great degree, by a well- ventilated atmosphere, and a due degree of care in syringing occasionally iu the afternoons ; but if these insects should become numerous, they may be destroyed by syringing with water, to which one-fourth part of tobacco water has been added. The wood-louse is a constant enemy to the melon, and is most effectually kept under by keeping a toad or two in the frames. If they should become exceedingly numerous, a flower-pot, laid on its side, with some dry hay in it, renewing it when it becomes damp, is an excellent trap. The canker is a frequent disease in the melon, generally occurring at the point where the plants emerge from the soil. Mr. Duncan applies a little air-slaked lime, as fresh as can be obtained, to the wounded part : it does not cure the disease, for it is incurable, but it retards its pi-ogress. The rotting of the stems from damp, want of light, or too free a use of the knife, is nearly as fatal as the canker, and like it is incurable ; but where it takes place at a distance from the root, an increase of heat, by adding linings, and the free admission of air and light, will cause new shoots to be produced. Mildew, our readers are awai-e, may always be checked by powdering with flowers of sulphur. — {Duncan, p. 73.) W'^yThe red spider and the damp, the one as bad as the other, in melon frames, may be kept under by covering the surface with clean gravel, about three-fonrths of an inch deep. The roots find their way to the surface of tlie mould, and form a matted texture under the gravel, where, being more accessible to the warm air of the frame, by means of which a corresponding temperature, as regards the roots and tops, is maintained, whilst the roots are, at the same time, kept moist, the plants grow so vigorously as to overcome every enemy. The practice is common in the neighbourhood of boncaster. — (Gard. Mag., vol. iii,, p. 218.) K K 494 CULTURE OP THE CtJCUSIBER. Section VIII. — Culture of the Cucumber. StTBSECT. I. — Data on which the Culture of the Cucumber is founded. 1048. The cucumber (Cucumis sativa, i.), is an annual, clinabing by tendrils, or trailing on the surface of the ground, a native of the East Indies, and probably of many parts of Asia and Africa. It has been cul- tivated in the old world from time immemorial for its fi-uit, which is used in an unripe state, alone, or in salads, and for salting and pickling. The cucumber will bear a tropical heat, for it grows abundantly in many tropical countries. In tho lower regions of India, the mean annual temperature may be reckoned as high as 80" ; the thermometer indicating rarely so low ; as 70" in the hottest period of the season. The cucumber thrives well where the heat of the nights is more oppressively felt by Europeans than that of the days. As a wide difference does not occur in the diur- nal and nocturnal temperatures of tropical countries, where the cucumber grows spontaneously, it is not necessary that a great variation should, in this respect, be imposed upon it when under artificial treatment. In order to be tender when cut for use, it requires to be grown rapidly, and, therefore, re- quires as much heat and moisture as can be safely applied. If the native plants of colder climates are forced night and day in a uniformly high temperature, a drawing, or weakness, soon becomes evident ; but no such signs are exhibited by the rigid leaves of the pine-apple, although grown in a uniform temperature of 80°, provided they have not less than eleven or twelve hours' light out of the twenty-four. The cucumber will grow side by side with the pine-apple ; and also naturally in a much higher latitude ; but in that case its growth is limited to the summer season, when nearly a tropical heat is maintained. If the nights are cold, although the days may be warm, cucumbers growing on ridges in the open air, in this climate, in- variably become diseased and attacked by mildew. A temperature ranging between 70° and 80° of artificial heat is suitable for the growth of the cucum- ber; if sun-heat is likely to raise the temperature much higher, air should be copiously, yet gradually, afforded ; and, presuming that the plants are in good health, and their roots well established, enough of moisture being present, they will bear 90° or more of sun-heat without injury. 1049. In cultivating the cucumber in first-rate British gardens, the object is to have a supply of fruit throughout the year. This may be effected in dung-beds (841), but more conveniently by some description of pit heated by flues or hot water, or by a house coiistructed on purpose, with a steep glass roof. The plants may be raised either from seeds or cuttings. The best varieties for early culture are the Syon House, Hort's Early Frame, Weedon's Cucumber ; and for large fruit to be exhibited at horticultural shows, Allen's Victory of Suffolk, the Roman Emperor, and some others which it is unnecessary to enumerate, as new sorts are continually coming into fashion, and old ones losing their reputation. The soil cucumbers prefer is light and rich, but they will grow in poor soil watered with liquid manm-e. Sandy-peat has been found suitable for dung-heds in the winter si'ason, because water passes rapidly through this soil, without so much being retained by it, especially on the surface, as to cause the plants to damp off. The shoots of the cucumber are commonly allowed to trail on the ground ; but they are much less likely to damp off when trained on trellises within 8 inches or 10 inches of the glass, as practised since 1790 in a cucumber house CULTURE 01' THE CUCUMBEn. 4fl5 at Knowlesley, and recently adopted in common frames and pits by Mr. Weedon. To concentrate the vigour of tlie plant, the shoots are stopped repeatedly as they advance in growth, by pinching out the growing point with the finger and thumb. Shoots bearing fruit are generally stopped at the second joint beyond the fruit, as soon as its blossom has begun to fade, in order to throw more of the sap into the fruit. Cucumbers require a great deal of ventilation, and the best growers make it a point to have the foliage thoroughly moist during every night, and thoroughly dry during a portion of every day, during the whole of the plant's existence. The cucumber will live either in the open air or under glass, at a temperature of 60°, and it will grow and produce fruit at 60°, but not vigorously .and abund- antly at a lower temperature than between 75° and 80° — and with this the bottom-heat should correspond. With abundance of light, air, and fre- quent watering, it will grow vigorously in an atmosphere of from 85° to 90°, saturated with moisture for at least a portion of every 24 hours. The foliage of the plants ought always to be kept within a few inches of the glass ; and in the winter season all the light ought to be admitted that the state of the atmosphere admits of, and especially the morning sun. For this reason the glass over cucumbers, (and melons also,) should never be covered till it is nearly dark, and always be uncovered at daybreak. The cucumber requires an ample supply of water, which should be pond or rain water, and always of the same temperature as the soil in which the plants grow ; or a degree or two under it, as falling rain is generally a degree or two lower than the temperature of the atmosphere through which it falls. Liquid manure may be advantageously used when the soil is poor, or when it is limited in quantity, as in the case of cucumbers grown in pots. As the cucumber, like the melon, has the stamens and pistils in different flowers, artificial fecundation is by most gardeners considered necessary, or at least conducive to the swelling of the fruit ; but by others, and among these some of the best cultivators, it is considered of no use, excepting when seed is required. Many persons prefer cucumbers which have not been fecundated, on account of the much smaller size of the seed integuments, which never contain ker- nels; though, on the other hand, some prefer fecundated cucumbers, alleging that the kernels of the seeds communicate a superior flavour. It is found that seed is produced most freely from plants giown in rather poor soil, and in the open air against a wall, rather than under glass. Hence the greater quantity of seeds found in cucumbers grown on dung-ridges in the open air, and the much greater quantity found in cucumbers grown in the sandy soil of Sandy in Bedfordshire, and sent to the London market for pickling and stewing, than in cucumbers grown in houses. Without abun- dance of seeds, cucumbers for pickling or stewing would be good for nothing. Cucumbers grown for seed are of course always allowed to attain maturity, in which state they are of a yellow colour. The seed is taken out, washed and dried, and preserved for use, and it is generally considered that, for early crops, seeds which are several years old produce plants less likely to run to foliage, and consequently more prolific in blossoms. Some of the best modern cultivators, however, think the age of the seed of no consequence ; and some preserve it in the fruit till it is wanted for sowing. The cucumber is liable to the same insects and diseases as the melon, which ai-e to be subdued by tlie same means. Want of sufficient bottom heat, and watering with cold hard water, are the general causes which produce the mildew, canker, and K k2 4!)G CULTURE OF THE CUCUMBEB IN A DUNG- BED. spot ; and want of atmospheric moisture encourages the red spider and the thrip, and to a certain extent also, the aphides. 1050. These are the general principles of cucumber culture. Within the last two years, treatises have been published on the cultivation of the cucumber by Mills, Duncan and Ayres ; and a few j'ears before by Allen, Smith, and Weedon. These works treat of the culture of the cucumber in dung-beds, in pits of different kinds, in stoves, and vineries, in the cucum- ber-house, and in the open air ; and the following subsections derived from them will, we trust, supply all that ia wanted by the Suburban Horticul- turist for routine practice. Sdbsect. Il.~-Cullure of the Cucumber in a Dung-bed. 1051. The formation of a dung-bed for general purposes has been already given (841 to 847). For the purpose of growing cucumbers in mid-winter, great care is necessary to prepare the dung properly, so that by reducing its heat there may be no danger of an excess, or what is termed a " burning heat," after the bed is made up. When this burning heat takes place, the bed becomes dry and mouldy to within a few inches of its surface, from which a noxious vapour arises, which, together with the excessive heat, speedily destroys the plants. Mr. Mills, whose treatise is very full on this mode of cucumber culture, directs to turn over the dung which is in preparation for a cucumber bed, once a week for six or eight weeks. ( Treatise on the Cucumber, SjC, p. 12.) 1062. The seed bed requires to be first formed. It should be 3 feet high at the back, and 2 feet 6 inches in front ; and when the lights are put on, eight or ten days should elapse before sowing the seeds. During this time the surface of the bed should be forked over every other day, about a foot deep, watering it if it should appear too dry, and admitting snfBcient air to allow the steam to pass off freely, " In order to prove whether or not the bed be sweet, shut the lights down close for three or four hours ; then take a lighted candle in a lantern, push down one of the lights, and put the candle and lantern into the frame, and if the candle be not put out by the excess of moisture, but should continue to bum, the bed will be in a fit state to receive the plants or seeds." (Ibid. p. 14.) 1063. Soil. — Cucumbers will grow in any light rich soil. M'Phail used leaf mould alone ; Alton uses light loam and rotten dung, of each one- third, and the remaining third composed of leaf mould and heath soil ; Mr. Mills began in 1811 to use sandy peat, the turfs being chopped moderately small with the spade but not sifted. Peat soil is not so rich as leaf mould ; but Mr. Mills finds that when placed on sweet fermenting dung, the roots will penetrate through it, and help themselves to food when the plants reqtiire it. " I have tried numerous experiments with soils," he says, "variously mixed, from the year 1811 to the present time ; and I am per- fectly satisfied that peat alone is best, and I am now (January 1841) using it on dung-beds." {Ibid. p. 16.) 1054. Seeds and treatment of the young plants. — Seeds must be proved before sowing, by putting them into a basin of water for about two hours, when those that are good will sink to the bottom, and the rest may be thrown away. Nine seeds may be sown in a pot, 9 inches in diameter, filled with sifted peat well drained, on Michaelmas-day, if for early fruit. The seeds should beplaced round the pot near the outside, covered half an inch, CULTURE OF THE CUCUMBER IN A DUNG-BED. 497 and the whole pressed down moderately firm. The pot may then be plunged half its depth mto the dung-bed, or into a layer of old half-spent tan spread on its surface. The temperature should he from 60° to 70° with- out sun, and from 75° to 80° during sunshine. Plenty of air should be given during the day, and a little all night. The plants will appear in four or five days, and when they are clearly above the soil, the pot may be lifted up and set on the surface of the bed. A lining will now require to be put round the bed, so as to increase the temperature of the interior, which it will do even if formed of half-decayed litter or damaged hay, or in short anything that will ferment a little but not much. When the plants show the third leaf, reckoning the cotyledons two, they may be potted off singly into pots, 3 inches in diameter, either new or well cleaned in the inside, in order that the balls may turn out entire and freely wlicn the plants are to be transplanted. The soil used should be moderately fine but not sifted, and a piece of turf should be placed over the crook at the bottom of the pot for drainage. The plants should be inserted so deep in the pot as that the seed-leaves should just be a little above the level of the rim, and the soil should be within an inch of the rim, in order to allow of adding a little more when the roots show themselves above the surface. The after- noon is generally preferred for potting, because too much light is apt to cause the leaves to flag. The tops of the plants, when set in the bed, should be within C or 8 inches of the glass, and as they increase in height the pot should be lowered, so as always to keep the pltmts about the same distance. Water may be applied whenever it appears wanting, there being much less danger in watei'ing peat soil than in watering leaf mould, because the former only retains a very moderate quantity. When the heat of the bed falls below 70° some fresh lining may be added, more especially if the weather be dull and wet, the object being to dry the plants once a-day : a fine moisture appearing on them in the morning is a sign of health. " When the third leaf gets perfectly developed, a leading shoot will rise from the base of its petiole, which, as soon as it is clearly formed, should be pinched off; its removal will give strength to the plant, and will cause it to throw out fresh shoots from the base of the seed-leaves. These shoots are allowed to grow until they are two joints in length, when they must be stopped by being pinched off with the finger and thumb to one joint." (/6id. p. 20.) The plants should be shifted into pots 6 inches in diameter, as soon the balls are filled with roots, using the same soil and drainage as before. Each plant should have three good shoots, which should be stopped at every joint, one joint at a time, and not all at the same time, which would check the progress of the plant. On that account a second leader should never be stopped till a shoot is seen coming forward on the one stopped previously. 1065. Raising plants from cuttings.— Inateai of raising cucumber plants from seed, they may be raised from cuttings, and thus kept on from year to year. The method of striking them is as follows : — Take a shoot which is just ready for stopping, cut it off just below the joint behind the joint before which the shoot should have been stopped, then cut smooth the lower end of the shoot or cutting, and stick it into fine leaf or other rich mould about an inch deep, and give it plenty of heat, and shade it from the rays of the . sun till it be fahly struck. By this method, as well as by that of laying, cucumber plants may readily be propagated. Meams, when gardener at Sliobden Court, near Leominster, propagated his cucumber plants for a 498 CULTURE OF THE CUCUMBEB IN A DUNG-BED. winter crop in this way, and found, " tliat tlie plants raised from cuttings are less succulent, and therefore do not so readily damp off, or suffer from the low temperature to which they are liable to be exposed in severe weather ; that they come into hearing immediately as they have formed roots of suf- ficient strength to support their fruit, and do not run so much to baiTen vine as seedlings are apt to do." He advises the cuttings to be taken from the tops of the bearing shoots, and planted in pots nine inches deep, half filled with mould. They should then be watered, and, the tops of the pots being covered with flat pieces of glass, they should be plunged into a gentle bottom-heat. " The sides of the pot act as a sufficient shade for the cuttings during the time they are striking, and the flat glass, in this and in similar operations, answers all the purposes of bell-glasses. The cuttings form roots, and are ready to pot off in less than a fortnight." — (^Hort. Trans., vol. iv., p. 411.) Mr. Duncan considers plants raised from seed as best, through every period of winter, from November to March ; and cuttings during the interval between these months. Cuttings, he says, form the most prolific plants, and are not so luxuriant as seedlings. — (^Cucumber Culture, iSfC, p. 26.) 105G. Fruiting bed. — The dung should be prepared as for the seed bed. The size of the frame may be 12 feet long, and 4 feet wide, the height at the back 2 feet, and in front I foot 6 inches ; the lights should be glazed with sheet glass, one pane to each division. If the bed is made in an exca- vation, it should he sufficiently large to allow of the dung being 3 inches wider than the frame all round ; with an additional space of 18 inches in width for linings, which will req^uire a apace 15 feet 6 inches long by 8 feet wide. Where there is a proper melon ground, however, such an excavation will be unnecessary. " Commence the erection of the bed by laying on the ground, nine inches or a foot thick, brushwood, or the loppings of trees, 1 feet 6 inches wide, and 12 feet 6 inches long ; on the wood lay a little long litter to keep the dung from falling into it, as this would stop the drainage, and prevent the bottom heat from working under the bed. Upon the litter place your manure, carefully shaking it as you proceed, and keeping the surface regular, by beating it down with a fork as you advance, but do not tread it. The manure should be 4 feet or 6 feet high at the back, inde- pendently of the wood, and 6 inches lower in front. When the bed is finished, put on the frame, and keep the lights carefully closed till the heat rises, then give air, in order that the rank steam may pass off; fork over the surface every other day, as directed for the seed-bed, and as the heat decreases give less air. If the dung with which the bed has been made has undergone the preparation directed, it will be fit to receive the plants in about fourteen days. Before transplanting, however, prove the sweetness of the manure with a candle and lantern, as pointed out for the seed-bed ; and, if satisfied on this important point, from 12 inches to 18 inches thick of peat-earth may be put on, to form the hillocks for the reception of the plants, taking care that as little as possible of the surface of the bed be covered therewith, for the less heat there is coniined under the mould, the less liable will the roots he to receive injury." 1067. Ridging out the plants. — After the mould has been in the frame twenty-four hours, it will be sufiiciently warm for the plants to be ridged out. To do this, make a hole in the top of each hillock, and place the pot containing the plant in it ; you will then be able to judge as to the proper CULTURE OF THE CUCUMBEK IN A DUNG-BED. 409 distance it should be from the glass, which may vary from C inches to i) inches. Having determined this point, turn out of the po*, by reversing it, the plant with its ball of earth entire, and, holding the surface of the mould • in one hand, and the pot with the other, gently tap the rim against the edge of the frame, when the plant will drop out without losing any portion of the earth, or injuring the roots, if the pot was properly cleaned previous to its being planted. Then drop the plant into the hole in the hillock, and press the mould firmly round the ball of roots; the earth of which should be in the same state of moisture as that into which it is to be planted, otherwise it will not properly receive the watering, when poured upon it, as it will ■require to be once or twice, from a pot without the rose, untU the roots extend themselves into the fresh soil ; after which the whole of the hillocks should be watered, from a watering-pot with the rose on, whenever requisite, choosing a fine sunny morning for the watering, that the surface may become moderately dry by the afternoon. The seeds for these plants should be sown on the 29th of September, and the plants should be ridged out on the 1st of November. — (^Mills's Treatise, ^c, p. 26.) 1058. A temporary lining, as directed for the seed-bed, should now be applied for the purpose of increasing the heat so as to carry off excessive moisture during the finest portion of every day, by evaporation, but at the same time not to raise a burning heat. 1059. Air. — A little air must be given during twenty hours out of the twenty-four, regulated as follows; — A\''henyou uncover the bed in the morning, the night air must be taken away, as the external air coming in contact with the glass will cause a depression of the internal heat, but the closing down the lights will sufficiently counteract its bad effects. Should the heat of the bed be low, and an increased warmth be requisite, let the unoccupied surface of the bed be forked over, about 6 inches or 8 inches deep, either back or front, and from this a fine steam will arise, which will be greatly beneficial to the plants; and, when air is afterwards given, it will materially assist in drying them, which, as before remarked (1058), is necessary to be done, if possible, during the day. In an hour or two after uncovering in the morning, let a little air be given, reference being had to the state of the weather ; and again let it be gradually increased, after the lapse of a similar period, up to twelve o'clock in the day. About one, lower in part ; and at three or fi)ur o'clock shut down till six, when you should again give air, the heat then should be about 70", and the plants dry. At eight or nine regulate for the night, according to the heat, and so let it remain until the next morning, unless there should be a sudden change in llie weather, when the lights may be shut down. — (^Ibid. p. 29.) 1000. Earthing up. — The hills of earth being small, every part of them will be filled by the roots in the course of a week or ten days, and the roots will show themselves on the surface. They should therefore be covered with about two inches of fresh soU, previously warmed to the temperature of the bed, by being spread out on the parts not occupied by the hills. The linings must be occasionally turned to keep up the heat; and when the inside of the frame becomes dry it should be sprinkled with water when the air is taken away in the evening, by which a healthy steam will be gene- rated for the plants duriug the night. When a Ary bottom heat prevails, and the dung looks white and mouldy on the surface of the bed, it should be forked over, and watered with water about the same temperature as the 500 CULTURE OF THE CUCUMBER IN A DUNG-BED. Tjottom heat ought to be, and cold should fae carefully guarded against immediately afterwards, by giving air sparingly, so as not to promote too rapid an evaporation. If the temperature of the bed, with the dung in a diy mouldy state, does not exceed 75°, the plants will not be destroyed, more especially if air is given night and day to allow the impurities which rise from dung in such a state to pass off into the atmosphere. " Too much bottom-heat," Mr. Mills observes, " there cannot be, if it is moist and sweet." It will not destroy the roots of the plants, provided no more of the surface of the bed is covered vyith soil than the space occupied by the hillocks. The heat of the dung will then escape freely, and as the roots in the hillocks are above the dung they will not easily be injured by pure heat. Some persons form the hills on a flat basket, so as to be able to remove them if the bed should be overheated, or should become in other respects unsuit- able : others, as Mr. Smith, place the plants over an air-chamber or vault, the sides of which are formed with dung; while Mr. Duncan places his plants over a well formed in his dung-bed, two feet in diameter, under the centre of each light, communicating with exterior linings or casings, by transverse trenches. 1061. Linings of cucumber ieds and their management. — The following directions by Mr. Mills are the most complete that we know of on the subject of dung-linings ; and they may be studied with advantage with respect to the use and management of exterior casings or linings of fer- mented matters generally : — " Linings should be turned over once in 8 or 10 days, to keep the7n in a regular state of fermentation, especially from November to February, inclusive. They should not, however, be all turned at once ; and if the back lining is turned, I will suppose, on the first or second, the frontage should be done on the fifth or sixth ; so that one half is turned in five days. The ends will not require turning so often, provided the heat keeps up to what is necessary, according to the season. To dry the inside of the frame in December, January, and February, let the linings be 4 inches or 5 inches above the level of the surface of the bed, which wiU be sufficient ; in March and April they may be lowered in proportion to the increased power of the sun's heat. It may appear unnecessary to some persons to have the linings turned so often ; but I beg to remark, that on the lively heat emanating from them the well-doing of the plants depends, especially when the heat of the bed begins to decline ; and in proportion as attention is bestowed on them, will be the success of the cultivator. If they are allowed to lie undisturbed untU they heat themselves dry, they become useless ; and the same effect is produced if they get overcharged with mois- ture. In both cases, if not rendered entirely useless, they will take so long a time to recover their heat, as to render them next to valueless ; for where a warmth is requisite, in addition to that of the bed, the plants may be lost in the interval between the turning and re-rising of the heat. During the operation of turning, should there appear any part too much decayed, let it be removed, and its place filled with fresh linings, which should be put on the top of the old, in order to draw up the heat from it, and to keep up a good warmth round the frame ; besides, when the new linings are above the bed, there will be no danger of their rank steam getting to the plants. When the linings are again turned, the fresh manure applied must continue at the top ; and, if necessary, some more must be added to it, in order that the right height may be preserved. It must, however, be observed that tha CULTURE OF THE CUCUMBER IN A DUNG-BED. 5Q1 new linings should never be allowed to mix with the old ones until they have become quite sweet ; for you must, on no account, allow rancid heat to be confined at the bottom of your linings. Attention to these directions must be continued until June, if it is desired to keep the plants in a healthy state ; and although after the month of March the turnings need not be quite so frequent, a good warmth must be kept up, or the plants will not swell o£f their fruit kindly. Indeed, at an advanced period of the season, the roots will have got down into the dung, and so soon as that ceases to heat, they will perish from excess of moisture." — (Milk's Treatise, p. 36.) 1062. Water. — " Watering frequently, and in small quantities, as before observed, is the proper way to keep the plants in a sound state ; but in tlio winter months, from the moisture of the fermenting material, and of the outer air, and the absence of solar heat, they will require but little from the water- pot. The surface of the bed, near the frame, will occasionally become diy from the heat of the linings passing upwards through it ; and when that occurs, let it be sprinkled with water through a fiue-rosed pot, just before coverilig up ; and on fine mornings, about ten o'clock, give to the soil in which the plants are growing a little water in a tepid state. In November, December, and January, little water will be wanted, but m February, March, and April, more may be given ; always, however, in the morning, and only when there is a prospect of the plants becoming dry by covering-up time. It is a bad practice to water late in the afternoon, even in April, May, and June. In dull weather never water the plants, but the mould only." — (Ibid. p. 37.) 1063. Stopping. — " Keeping the cucumber plants regularly stopped is of the utmost importance ; and it should always be done with the finger and thumb, because, when a knife is used, the wound does not heal, and the lateral generally dies back to the next joint. The shoots should never be suffered to get into a crowded state, otherwise they will become weak and unfruitful ; and their fruit, such as they will bear, will be of a small and inferior kind. Four good breaks or runners, stopped alternately, will be ample ; and two fruit are as many as a strong plant ought to swell at one time." — {Ibid. p. 38.) In order to keep the fruit from curving as it proceeds in growth, oblong cases lined with glass are employed ; or glasses made on purpose might be advantageously used. 1064. Moulding up, is another point which demands special attention, and which must be done, if the grower means to excel in his undertaking. As the roots show themselves through the hillocks of earth, let them be covered with an inch or two of the soil recommended, placing more between the hillocks than elsewhere. This is done in order that the hillocks may meet and form a ridge along the middle of the bed by the end of December ; but care should be taken to keep the sides clear of mould, to admit of the heat of the linings rising through them, to give that lively heat within the frame, which is usually called top-heat, and which is necessary for the plants, as it causes them to dry in the day, during the most unfavourable weather', and yet gives them steam moisture by night. The whole of the bed should not be covered with earth until the end of March ; more particularly the front of it, for a breadth of at least 3 inches or 4 inches, because this being the lowest part of the bed the heat ascends to the highest part. {Ibid. p. 39.) J 065. " The covering at night is the next point to be dealt with. As sooi» S02 CULTURE OP THE CUCUMBER IN A DUNG-BED. as the heat of the bed declines to about 66", and when all danger of over- heating is passed, use a single mat, and then a little hay, spreading it on the glass about one inch thick ; and commencing about the 20th of November. This covering should be thickened as the cold increases ; and when the wea- ther is very severe, double mats should be used. When the season turns, the days lengthen ; and as the sun's heat, during the day, aids in warming the bed within the frame, discontinue the covering by degrees down to a single mat, as at the commencement. Air must be given, more or less, every night from October to the first or second week in March" — (^Ibid. p. 40) ; because, from the large heating surface in proportion to the small voluine of air to be heated, an excess of temperature, when the sashes were closed during a whole night, could hardly fail to be the result. 1066. " Setting or impregnating the fruit has been practised by me early in the season ; and I believe it to be necessary, notwithstanding all that has been said against it, till about the 1st of March. Some have attributed the irregular swelling of the fruit to this operation ; but this is a mistake, it being want of strength in the plants, or their carrying too many fruit at one time, which occasions the irregularity." — (^Ibid. p. 40.) 1067. To procure seed, Mr. Mills invariably raises plants specially for that purpose ; which, he says, should be grown as strong as possible, and not allowed to mature fruit till the roots extend to the outside of the frame ; after which they will be able to swell off, and bring to perfection two fruit each ; taking care that the handsomest be preserved, and that they be im- pregnated four or five times each, previous to the closing of the blossom. They should not be cut under six or eight weeks, then put into a cool room for a month, when they may be opened, the seed taken out, washed and dried ; those only which sink being retained. — (^Ibid. p. 41.) 1068. Inlaying, or earthing in, the vines of the cucumber, though still practised by some, " is now seldom resorted to by experienced growers, and is worse than useless ; for as soon as the buried portions take root the original roots perish ; and, in the place of one good plant, there will be a dozen weak ones." — (^Ibid. p. 41.) 1069. When extraordinary fine fruit is desired, allow the plant to mature one only ; but a succession should be permitted, so that the after-fruit do not follow too closely on the first. By this plan the giowth will be rapid, provided the plants are in health ; and the fruit be much better flavoured than if grown slowly. When long in swelling off, the fruit frequently be- comes hard and bitter, and is therefore worthless. From 75° to 80° are as high as the plant will bear to advantage ; and in that temperature fruit will grow faster than in a higher one ; the pruning and stopping being attended to as previously laid down." — (iM. p. 42.) The foregoing directions by Mr. Mills are, we believe, among the best extant for growing the cucumber on dung beds, and we have given them at greater length than we otherwise should have done, because they contain instructions on various points equally applicable to the other modes of cucumber culture treated of in the following Subsections. Mr. Mills's directions respecting preparing the dimg, making the beds, and applying and working the linings, show the mode of culture on dung beds to be exceedingly expensive and troublesomej so much bo, that we do not wonder at the mode by linings to brick-built pits (843), or by pits or houses heated by hot water or flues (490, 515, &c.), being gone- rally preferred by modern gardeners. CULTURE OF THE CUCUMBER IN PITS. 503 SuBSECT. III. — Culture of the Cucumber in pits heated by dung linings, fines or hoi water, 1070. Of pits heated wholly or in part by dung linings, there are a great variety of forms, chiefly differing in the construction of the exterior wall through whichjthe heat is communicated to the bed of soil or fermenting ma- terial within. One of the most common, and most generally useful, is that known as M'Phail's pit, already figured and described (843). The prin- cipal advantage of these pits is, that dung casings may he applied with little or no previous preparation, and thus much heat, that in the preparation of dung for common hotbeds is lost, is here turned to account. The treatment of the plants within the bed is exactly the same as that described in the pre- ceding subsection, and no better directions can be given for managing the linings than those of Mr. Mills (1061). 1071. Pits to be heated by flues or hot-water, are as various in their con- struction as those to be heated by dung linings ; some forms have already been given (515, 035, and 947), and we shall in this subsection describe three other foims. 1072. A pit to be heated by a flue buUt by the late eminent horticulturist, Mr. Knight, is thus described. The back wall is nearly 9 feet high, and the front wall nearly 6 feet high, inclosing a horizontal space of 9 feet wide ; and the house is 30 feet long. — The fireplace is at the east end, very near the front wall, and the flue passes to the other end of the house within 4 inches of the front wall, and returns back again, leaving a space of 8 inches only between the advancing and returning course of it ; and the smoke escapes at the north-east corner of the building. The front flue is composed of bricks laid flat, as I wished to have a temperate permanent heat, and the returning flue of bricks standing on their edges, as is usual ; the space between the flues is filled with fragments of burned bricks, which absorb much water, and gradually give out moisture to the air of the house. Air is admitted through apertures in the front wall, which are 4 inches wide, and nearly 3 inches in height ; and which are situated level with the top of the flues, and are 18 inches distant from each other. The air escapes through similar apertures near the top of the back wall. These apertures are left open, or partially or wholly closed, as cu-cumstances require. Thirty-two pots are placed upon the ilues described above, each being 16 inches wide at least, and 14 inches deep ; but they are raised by an inter- vening piece of stone and brick out of actual contact with the flues. Into each of these pots one melon plant is put, which in its subsequent gi-owth is trained upon a trellis, placed about 14 inches distant from the glass, and each plant is permitted to bear one melon only. Each might be made to bear more, but if they should be as large as Ispahan melons when perfect are, they would certainly be of inferior quality. The height from the ground, at which the trellis is placed, is such that I can with convenience walk under it, and of course discovei', without difficulty, the first appear- ance of red spiders, or other noxious insects. — (^Hort. Trans, vol. i. Second Series, p. 86.) This pit was used by Mr. Knight for the culture of Persian melons, but it is evidently well adapted for the culture of cucumbers, under- neath which sea-kale, rhubai-b, or various other articles, might be forced. 1 073. A pit to be heated by hot water and by a flue from the fire which heats the boiler, is thus described by Mr. Torbion. It is almost unnecessary to add thj»t it will miswer as well for melons as for cuciiinbeis, and indeed if 504 CULTUHE OP TnE CUCUMBER IN PITS. the pit was filled with proper soil and vines planted in it, there could not he a better house for an early crop of grapes. Length, 30 feet ; width, 8 feet ; height at back, 7 feet, at front, 4 feet. A flue to run first to the front, and return under the back wall, with cavities of 2^ inches. The space between the flues to have gutters for the pipes from a boiler, with a power of filling and emptying the gutters at pleasure ; so as to have a command of either dry or moist air, as either may be wanted. The floor of the pit may be supported on arches, or it may be made of planks, or of slates or tiles, restiog on joists. The pit to be filled with mould, sand, or sawdust, accord- ing as it may be desired to grow the plants in pots or in the free soil. A ti ellis may be made to hook on the rafters, on wliich to train the plants. The upper surface of the pit to be two feet from the glass, and the trellis to be one foot from the glass. (Gard. Mag. 1841, p. 311.) 107i. Corbett's cucuniber-pil. Fig. 356, is heated with hot water circu- liited in open troughs, which, however, have covers for being put on when a dry heat is wanted. The mode of heating by water in open gutters, as we Pig. 356. Cucumber or Melon Pit. heated J Tlie tcale ^ of an inch a, Outer walls. ^, b, Walla of the pit. h, c, Gutters, or troughs for heatiug the s, atmosphere. d, Troughs uuder the soil in the open k, chamber (m), which is air-tight, resting on the openings (e), which /, convey the cooled air from the front Walk to the trough at the back, to be m, heated ; these openings being intro- duced at regular distances of 4ft. or n, 5ft. /, M'alks round the bed. have seen (fil6), is strongly recommended by Mr. Glendlnning, as it is by Mr. Lymbum on account of the great radiating powers of water, which are equal to those of lainp-black, which is to polished iron as 100 is to 15. Mr. Duncan, from wliose Treatise on Cucumber CuJtixre the section, fig. '}y hot water in open troughs. to a foot. Shelf for plants. Trellis for training the plants. Descending return-pipe, which is a common G-inch pipe. The trough at entering, which is closed from the boiler till it reaches c. Shewin's conical boiler, or the modifi- cations of it by Stephenson or Weeks. Air-charaber; the air of which is always at the point of saturation. The soil, or other material, in which the plants are planted. CULTURE OF THE CUCUMBER IN PITS. 505 J?56, is taken, also says Corbett's mode is " the most economical plan of heating yet diacoveved, and deserving the support of every one interested in horticulture, especially the cucumber grower." " The troughs," Mr. Duncan observes, " are arranged so as to produce both bottom and top heat, accompanied with proper moisture, or a dry air at pleasure, by putting on the covers to the troughs. The' air in the confined chamber under the bed is always at the point of saturation, and a circulatory movement of the air of the pit, exterior to the chamber, is always main- tained by drains, passing from the front path, under the troughs in the chamber, to the troughs in the back path, at the bottom of the back wall, as shown in the section." (^Cucumber Culture, p. 22.) The soil Mr. Duncan recommends is vegetable mould during winter, with a mixture of maiden loam during summer. 1075. Green's cucumber pit, and also one in use at Mawley Hall, described in the Gardener's Magazine for 1841, p. 262, are both heated by hot-water, with some of the pipes laid in troughs of water, and may be safely recom- mended as fer superior to any modification of hot-water pits, unless we except Mr. Corbett's. Mr. Green's pit is thus described by himself: — " The walls are built of 9 inch brickwork, 6 feet high in the back, and 2^ feet in front, and the space enclosed is 6 feet wide in the clear, and 3G feet long, covered with nine lights, and divided into three compartments. A trough of brickwork is carried along the middle of the bottom from end to end. This trough is constructed by first laying a bottom of two bricks thick, one foot wide, and then forming the two sides of the trough with bricks on edge ; the whole being so cemented as to hold water. The pit is heated with hot water by means of a branch of 2^ inch pipes proceeding from the boiler which heats a stove at a short distance. The liot water flows along the back and front of the pit, above the level of the bed of soil, but the return pipes are placed beneath the bed in the trough just described, which is filled with water, or partly so, as circumstances may require, by means of a small pipe that leads to the outside. Another small pipe is laid in the bottom of the trough for letting off the stagnant water, and for emptying the trough occasionally ; for in very dark damp weather, a drier heat is required. The soil that I grow my plants in is collected at least six months before it is wanted for use, and consists of turf not more than 3 inches thick, of strong maiden loam, built up in narrow ridges, with a layer alternately of an equal quantity of fresh horse-dung, and a good portion of straw. When wanted for use it is chopped up with a spade, is not sifted, and one-third of well decayed leaf-mould is added. In order to have a succession of fruit, it is requisite to sow the seed at three different times, the 1st and 20th of September, and the .3th of November. The first and second sowing I fruit in No. 2 pots, and the third I plant out. Before placing the plants in the fi-uiting pots, I first put a quantity of large potsherds at the bottom, with some large pieces of turf and dung, in order to insure a good drainage. The plants are placed sufficiently deep to leave three orfour inches at the top of the pot, so that the plants may be earthed up as they advance in growth. When the pots are filled with roots, a good supply of water is given of the same tem- perature as that of the air they are grown in. I place one plant in the centre of each light, taking care that the bottom of each pot is about four inches above the water in the trough and the return pipe. The branches are trained on a temporary trellis, and the fruit is allowed to hang down. 50j CULTUEE OP THE CUCUMBER IN POTS. From the plants sown on the 1st of September I cut the first-fruit on the 4th of November ; from that date to the 4th of December I hare cut from three lights, or three plants, forty beautiful fruit of the Syon House kind, varying from twelve to iifteen inches in length. The same plants will con- tinue bearing till about Christmas. I have just (Jan. 10th) begun to cut from the second sowing, which will continue bearing through March. The plants of the first sowing are thrown away at Christmas, and plants of the third sowing are planted out in their place. When I plant in a bed, I form the bottom of the bed by laying some strong stakes across the trough, ajnd covering them with any rough boards. The stakes so laid will leave a cavity round the back and front of the trough, so as to allow the heat and moisture to rise from the bottom. The plants are put out in a nan-ow ridge, and earthed up in the usual way as they advance in growth, and the branches are trained upon a trellis, in the same way as for the plants in pots. These plants will bear well through the spring and summer months. As soon as the first three lights can be spared, I introduce shelves fifteen inches from the glass, and fill them with stra« birry plants ; and the pit answers equally well as for cucumbers, only for strawberries the bottom- heat is not wanted." 1076. The advantages gained by this pit over any pit that I have ever seen or heard of, are, firstly, a great saving of labour and dung, which last at all times makes a very litteiy and unsightly appearance ; secondly, the having a sufficient command of top-heat in severe and changeable weather ; thirdly, the return pipe being buried, or partly buried, in water, gives a sufficient bottom-heat, moist or dry, at pleasure ; and fourthly, the vapour which can be produced from the trough admits of keeping the air at any degree of moisture required. By tliese means, the plants become so healthy and strong that a good crop of fine fruit is certain. — (Gard. Chron. for 1841, p. 36.) 1077. Messrs. J. Weeks and Co., who erected Mr. Green's pit, have obligingly furnished us with a section of it, fig. 357, to a scale of J of an inch to a foot. a a. Outer walls. b. Hot-water pipes, laid in a trough of briclcwork (c), which can be filled with water, and emptied at pleasure. c, Trough of brick-work. d d, Ground level. e, Joists of wood or iron, fonning the floor of the pit. Bed for planting or plunging, in which there may be upright tubes, chimney pipes, or flower-pots with the bottoms out, at regular distances, so to admit at pleasure the moist- air from the chamber below. The trellis. ' Fi^. 357. Mi: Green t Cucumber Pit. Scah \ of an inch to a foot. h A, Hot-water pipes for top-heat. SuBSECT. IV,- -Cullure of the Cucumber in Pols, in a Pinery., Vinery, or in, a Cucnmber -house. 1078, The culture of the cucumber in pots has been reduced to a regular system by Mr. W, P. Ayres, whose Treatise on the Cultivation of the Cucumber in Pots (I84i, 3s. Crf.), is not only the cheapest of six treatises CULTURE OP THE CUCUMBER IN POTS. 507 ■which have been published on the same subject, but in our opinion the best. Mr. Ayres s great object is the production of " quantity " of fruit rather than fruit of large size ; " a dozen fruit of moderate length," he says, " may be grown in the same time that it takes to prepare the plant and produce one or a brace of fruit of unusual dimensions." "In every garden where either pines are grown or vines forced early, frame-forcing of cucumbers may be entirely dispensed with, and fi-uit of superior quality, in greater quantity, and at a fiftieth part of the expense, produced." (^PrefJ) The principal features in ■which Mr. Ayrea's book differs from those which have gone before it, is in advocating a lower temperature at night and in . dull weather ; in taking greater advantage of light ; in not stopping the leading shoot till the plants are fully established ; and his using water of the same temperature as the soil the plants grow in. The principle of maintaining a lower temperature at night is not to be disputed ; but a proper distinction should be made between tropical plants — inhabiting regions where the usual difiference between the temperatures of day and night is but little — and plants of higher latitudes, ■vv'here a difference of 20° or .30° is not unusual. In the case of plants kept generally in a temperature of 80°, or say in a mean of 75°, a reduction of 6° will affect them as much as a reduc- tion of 10° or 15° would others habituated to a mean temperature of 60°. A rustic in this country would scarcely feel a difference of 16° lower tempera- ture, whereas a negro would feel miserably cold if he were placed in a tem- perature as much as 15°, or even ]0°, below 76°, or any other higher degree at which he might have previously found himself comfortable. If a range of 20° is necessary to effect the requisite firmness of tissue in plants of this climate, the same effect would be produced by a range of less than 10" as regards the highly-excited plants of the tropical regions. " Cucumber pits and frames have the sashes generally placed at an angle of 1.5°, which is 13° too low to obtain the full solar power in June, when the sun is at his greatest altitude, 60" too low for December, and 36° too low for March and September." To cut cucumbers through the winter, from November to February, in pits or frames heated by fermenting materials only, is almost an impossibility, let them be attended ever so closely. The reason of this is the atmosphere of the pit being too moist, the plants absorb more aqueous matter than they can decompose and assimilate, and consequently, their digestive energies being impeded, the leaves become covered with mildew and other fungi, which consume their juices, choke their respiratory organs, and general debility, if not death, ensues. This is the cause of so many young plants damping off in dull weather, hut keep them in an atmosphere ■which can be kept moist or dry, in accordance with the absence or presence of light, and no such effect will be produced ; thus proving the superiority of a heating apparatus, that will place the hygrometric state of the atmo- sphere under the control of the attendant, and explaining the reason of cucumbers growing so much better in houses heated by fire, than in dung pits, in the winter season. — (p. 8.) 1079. Construction of the cucumber house. — The grand point to deter- mine is the slope of the glass, so as to obtain a maximum of solar influence in midwinter. " To obtain the perpendicular rays of the sun in December, it would be necessary in latitude 63° to place the glass at an angle of 76° 28'; in January, 71" 52'; in February, 62° 29'; and in March, 61° 41'." As the sun has but little influence from the autumnal to the vernal equinox, Mr. 50S CULTCBE OP TfiE CCCUMUKR IN POTS. Ayres prefers securing the perpendicular rays in March and SepteinV.T, and therefore places his glass at an angle of 51°. At this angle he losf-s much of the sun's power in the summer, but that is of no consequence in a cucumber house. Fig. 358, to a scale of i of an inch to a foot, is a copy of the section given by Mr. Ayres ; in which a, " is the tan-bed in wliich the pots containing the plants are 'plunged ; h, is the treUis to which the plants are trained; c, is the pathway under which is a flue, with the pipe of an Arnott's stove passing through it, and d, is the gi-ound line. Arnott's stove must stand in a vault accessible from without about a foot below the level of the bottom of the flue, to secure a good draught to the fire. The flue should be divided into four equal compartments, the first and third of which, by keeping the pipes wholly, or partially immersed in water, might be made to produce moist heat, while the others will produce dry heat ; so that by tilting or removing the covering tiles of any of the compartments, the humidity of the atmosphere will be placed quite under the command of the attendant. The cost of the stove and piping to heat a house of the above dimensions, and 20 feet long, would not be more than il. 10*., and in the most severe wea- ther, with the assistance of the bark bed, it would maintain a temperature of 05° or 70° for about sixpence per day ; and in ordi- nary weather, it would not cost more than from eighteenpence to two shillings per week. A stove of this kind, with Welsh coal, would not require attending more than four times in twenty-four hours. Hot water would be pre- ferable to a stove, but it would be more expensive, both in the erec- tion and subsequent management." (P. 4). A hot- water apparatus, as Mr. Ayres observes, would be more expensive in the first in- stance, but once well put up it is not liable to get out of order for a scries of years. Explosive gases are often formed in Arnott's stove ; and altogether its management is precarious. Such a house as fig. 358 might be heated by hot water by Corbett's open gutters at very little expense, for the gutters might be of wood, or of the cast-iron eaves gutteiiug used for projecting roofs. The pit might be filled with tan or leaves for plunging the pots in in winter and sprmg, and in summer with soil in which the plants might be grown without pots. The glass in IMr. Ayres' house is fixed, the sash bai-s being inserted into the wall plates at top and bottom ; and air being admitted through holes a foot square along the top of the back wall, protected by coarse canvas. The expense of erecting a house of this kind would be little more than that of erecting a brick pit of the same length. The glass, which ought to be of the new Fig. 358. Mr. Ayres' Ciicumher-Jiouse. Scale i Of an inch toa/ooU CULTURE OF THE CUCUMBER IN POTS. 509 sheet kind, in panes from three feet to four feet in length, may be covered with wooden shutters, reed or straw mats, or Pocock's asphalte roofing, placed two inches distant from the glass. The great advantage of this house is, that let the weather be what it will the plants can always be properly attended and treated. 1080. Treatment of the plants. — The cucumber, Mr. Ayres observes, will grow in any soU, even old tan or brick rubbish, provided liquid manure is supplied. He uses turfy loam two parts, thoroughly decom- posed dung two parts, leaf mould two parts, and very sandy turfy peat two parts. The whole thoroughly incorporated immediately before using, but not sifted. Manure water is prepared by steeping two pecks of sheep or deer dung, one peck of pigeon's dung, and half a peck of soot, in a hogshead of boiling rain water ; in two days it will be fit for use. When applied, it is diluted with rain water, and used alternately with clear water from March to October. The great secret of keeping the cucumber in vigorous growth in pots, Mr. Ayres continues, is the use of manure water. The plants should be raised from seed sown on the first of August, so as to be fit for planting in fruiting pots in the first week of September. These pots should not be less than sixteen inches wide, and eighteen inches deep. Two plants should be placed in each pot, but the leading shoot must not be stopped, hut be allowed to grow until it reaches the top of the house. " On this, success in pot culture mainly depends, for if the plants are stopped, they are thrown into a bearing state before they are suificiently established, and the consequence is early fruit, but a short-lived plant ; but if the plants are allowed to grow to the length of ten or fifteen feet before the leading shoot is stopped, a great quantity of true sap wiU be generated, and the plant will consequently be better able to support a crop than if it had been allowed to bear fruit before it was properly established" (p. 12). The temperature which Mr. Ayres approves of is 60° through the night, 66° in dull, and 70° in clear weather, by fire heat; and 80°, 90°, or even 100° with plenty of atmospheric moisture and air in sunny weather. The two shoots from the two plants in each pot are to be trained to the trellis at one foot nine inches apart ; and when they begin to send out laterals these must be stopped at one joint above the fruit. Impregnation or setting the fruit Mr. Ayres believes does neither good nor harm, for he has cut scores of fruit, the flowers of ■n hich never expanded. If the fruit grows crooked, he places it in glass tubes or narrow troughs, which mould it into the proper form ; or he sus- pends a small weight by a piece of bast to the end of each fruit, a practice which appears to have been first adopted by Mr. Robert Fish. For various other details we must refer to the work itself, which indeed ought to be in the hands of every cucumber grower, whether on dung beds, in pits in the open garden, or in a cucumber house. We may observe here that cucumbers were, we believe, first grown in a cucumber hou^e on a trellis under the sloping glass about the end of the last century by Mr. Butler, the Earl of Derby's gardener. The roots of the plants were in a bed of soil, and as they ceased to bear they were renewed one or two at a time, so that there was a perpetual crop throughout the year. In 1806 we first saw this cucumber House with an abundant crop, and in 1819, when we again saw it, the same gardener informed us that the house had never been without fruit since the period of our formei' visit. L L 510 CULTIVATION OF THE CUCUMBER. SuBSECT. IV Culture and Treatment of the Cucumber for Prize Exldbitiois. 1081. The largest growing varieties are chosen, of which Allen's Victory of Suffolk, the Roman Emperor, Snow's Horticultural Prize, and Duncan's Victoria, appear to be among the best. The plants must not be allowed to set fruit till they have attained considerable strength. The fruit is put into cylinders of glass or tin to protect the prickles and bloom. Every means is employed to encourage vigorous growth, and rather a higher temperature is maintained than in ordinary culture. " In the event of fruit being ready to cut before the time wanted, they should be divided three parts across their foot-stalk, and secured to the trellis to prevent falling. By this means tliey win keep fresh and stationary several days, much better than by cutting or enth'ely separating them from the plant. If necessary to carry or send them to a distance, they should be packed nicely in a box made for the purpose, in the largest nettle leaves that can be got, or in cucumber leaves, but by no means in smooth leaves, which are certain to rub off the bloom. They may then be folded in tissue-paper, and wrapped in wadding, and placed in narrow boxes of well-thrashed moss (see 860). By these means the spines, powdeiy bloom, and partially withered blossom at the end of the fruit are preserved, without which no cucumber can be considered handsome, or well grown. In being exhibited they should be put in dishes in pairs or leashes, on a little clean moss, or on vine leaves, and the brace or leash should always be of the same sort, and if possible of the same length, and of a kind having a pure black spine." — (JDuncan's Cucumber Culture, p. 81.) When cucumbers have lost their bloom, the blossom at the end of the fruit, or even some of their prickles, or when they have not grown quite straight, all these defects used formerly to be supplied by art. A bloom was put on the fi-uit by laying it on a wire frame in a close box, and with a powder-puff charging the air of the box with a powdet formed of perfectly dry magnesia, minutely calcined. Half-decayed blos- soms were stuck on the point of the fruit with a little gum ; and prickles were inserted into small holes made with the point of a pin. Crooked cu- cumbers were rendered straight by placing them in a damp cellar, and there, by two strips of wood, one applied to each side, gradually effecting the object in view. All these processes will be found described in detail in the Gardeners Magazine for 1828, p. 36 ; since which exposure they have been, we believe, almost entirely given up ; but it is well to know that such tricks have existed, in order to be on our guard against their revival. SuBSKcT. T. — Cultivation of the Cucumier in the open air. 1082. Cucumbers grown in the open air are commonly protected by hand or bell glasses. — The seeds are sown some time about the middle of April in a cucumber or melon bed, and when they come up, they are potted out into small pots, two or three plants in each pot, and are kept properly watered, and stopped at the first or second joint. About the middle of May, a warm situation, where the mould is very rich, is pitched on, and a trench is dug out about two feet deep and three feet broad, and the length is proportioned according to the number of glasses it is intended for. The bottom of this trench is covered with prunings of bushes, or coarse vegetable rubbish of any kind, and it is then filled with good warm dung, and when the dung is come to its full heat, it is covered over with eight, ten, or twelve inches deep of CULTIVATION OP THE CUCUMBER IN THE OPEN AIR. 511 rich mould. The glasses are then set upon it about three feet distant from each other, and when the mould gets warm under them, the plants are turned out of the pots with their balls whole, and plunged in the mould under the glasses, and a little water given them to settle the mould about their roots, the glasses set over them, and after they have made roots, and begin to grow, in fine days they are raised a little on one side to let the plants have the free air ; and as the weather gets warmer and warmer, air is given more plentifully, to harden the plants, so that they may be able to bear the open air, and run from under the glasses. When the plants begin to fill the glasses, they are trained out horizontally, and the glasses are set upon bricks or such like props, to bear them from the plants. After this the plants requhe nothing more but to be supplied with water when the summer sliowers are not sufficient, and to stop them when they become deficient of branches, and thin them of leaves or branches when they are likely to be overcrowded. In warm summers and in warm situa- tions, by this mode of management, the plants will bear plentifully for about two months, provided they be not attacked by insects or weakened by dis- eases. If the situation should require shelter, a row of runner beans four feet from the bed at the north side and ends, and a row of some crop that will not grow more than three feet high, on the south side of the bed, and about the same distance from it, will attain this object. The surface of the ridge, for sonite time after it is made, should be covered with straw to shoot off the wet, and the leading branches must be pegged to the soil, but not stopped. — (Ayres.) 1083. Increasing the atmospheric heat of the soil. — When cucumbers are grown on the natural ground, as they are extensively at Sandy in Bedford- shire, a considerable portion of heat may be worked into it (see 956) by arti- ficial means. Thus, when the bed has been marked out, let the soil be dug over in the evening of every sunny day, and then either raked perfectly smooth, or covered with mats or litter ; in this way the radiation of accu- mulated heat being nightly intercepted, a sufficient quantity of heat wiU in a week or ten days be collected, to rjiise the temperature 8 or 10 degrees above that of the adjoining soil. — {Ayres's Treatise, p. 40.) 108i. Cucumbers against a south wall. — " Cucumbers will succeed beau- tifully, trained against a south wall, if planted in a little good soil to start them ; afterwards they will flourish in the soil of the border, without fur- ther trouble, especially if the summer should be warm." — {Duncan's Cu- cumber Culture, p. 83.) Warm coverings at night, so as to prevent the ra- diation of heat acquired through the day, would, in this case, and also in that of cucumbers grown in ridges, prove very beneficial. 1085. Growing cucumbers on balconies, or in court-yards. — " Those who have no garden ground, but have yards or balconies on a south, east, or west exposure, may plant them in very rich compost, in large pots, or boxes eighteen inches or two feet square, and train the plants to the wall. They will require precisely the same treatment in watering, stopping, &c., as directed for pots in the cucumber house. In this way those who have no garden may have the pleasure of growing their own cucumbers." — (Ayres's Treatise, p. 41.) 10iJ6. Watering cucumbers in the open garden. — During the time the plants are under the glasses, they may be watered in the same way as if they were under frames ; but after the glasses are raised, and the plants I, L 2 512 CULTURE OP THE BANANA. permitted to extend themselves over the bed, a very different proeess most be followed. Nothing is more common than to take a water-pot to a pump and fill it with water, the temperature of which does not in all probability exceed that of the mean temperature of the earth, viz. 48°, and directly proceed to sprinkle the encumbers. Now the soil in the open garden, from May to September, will, if open and porous, seldom be below 60° in heat, and therefore to apply water at 48° will reduce it to 54°, or, according to Mr. Gregor Diiimmond (823-1) several degrees lower, and consequently check the plants ; but if water is applied, the temperature of which is 70°, the heat of the soil will be raised to 65°, or, according to Mr. Gregor Drum- mond (ibid.), some degrees higher, and the plant will, as the cucumber requires bottom heat, be much accelerated in growth. M^ater, therefore, on a warm dull day, and as seldom as possible, but when it is done do it effectually ; that is, saturate the ground to the depth of a foot at least, and with water which, either by admixture with wai-m water, or by exposure to the solar influence, has attained the same temperature as the soil in which the plants are growing (lAi'rf. p. 40). 1087. Cucumber and melon culture compared. — Much of what has been advanced on the culture of the cucumber may be applied to the culture of the melon, but their treatment differs in the following particulars. The melon cannot be ripened in this country in the winter-time, and therefore the seeds need never be sown before February. The soil for the melon should he of a firm texture, loamy, and should lie solid in the bed rather than loose like that of the cucumber. It is often covered with gravel, pebbles, tiles, or slates (1047)- When the fruit of the melon is advancing to maturity, water must be gradually withheld so as not to deteriorate the flavour ; whereas in cucumber culture the supply of water must be unin- terrupted. The melon, in hot, dry seasons, can be brought to a higher degree of perfection than the cucumber, because the atmosphere cannot in general be kept sufficiently moist for the latter fruit. In the highest state of cultivation, the cucumber requires as much heat as the melon ; but it may be grown in a much lower temperature, more especially as compared with that required by the Persian varieties of the melon, for these require a greater heat than the Cantaloups. Section IX. — Culture of the Banana. 1088. The banana (Musa sapientum, L.) is a scitaraineous (50) herba- ceous evergreen, a native of Asia, in forests, in soil formed of rich masses of vegetable matter, kept moist by the shade of trees. There are many varieties cultivated in India and other warm regions of the East, varying in height from three feet to twenty feet ; but those which are in most esteem in British gardens are the Musa s. Cavendishii, from the Isle of France, and the M. s. dacca, from the East Indies, neither of which exceed the height of three feet or four feet. The culture of these plants for their fruit in British stoves is of very recent date, but as the fi'uit is excellent, and is produced great part of the year, it may probably become as general as that of the pine-apple. The culture of the banana for the dessert was first com- menced by Mr. Paxton in 1836, who, after two years' trial at Chatsworth, said that we " might recommend it advantageously for a suburban garden ■" and this, as will be afterwards seen, is confirmed by five years' experience. CULTURE OP THE BANANA. 513 (G. M. 1838, p. 104.) The Musa s. d^coa, and some other varieties, have been fruited by Mr. M'Nab, in the stove of the Edinburgh Botanic Garden, who, in December 1836, sent a large box of it to the Lord Mayor of Loudon, for the banquet given to the Queen at Guildhall. — (G. M. 1838, p. 106.) Some excellent varieties of banana have also been fruited in the gardens at Syon ; and the Duke of Devonshire's variety, M. s. Caveudishii, is grown in abundance for the table of the King of the French, at Versailles and Meudon. — (See G. M. 1841, p. 387.) All the varieties of banana are propagated by suckers ; they are grown in large pots or tubs, eighteen inches or two feet in diameter, in a mixture of leaf-mould, sand, and thoroughly rotten dung, and watered with liquid manure. The same temperature that suits the pine-apple will suit the banana. Suckers will fruit within the year, and they may be retarded or accelerated so as to ripen their fruit at almost every season. The following paragraph on this fruit was supplied to the Gardeners Magazine, in 1841, p. 430, by Mr. Paxton. 1089. A Banana house, 30 feet long, IS feet wide, 12 feet high at the back and six feet high at the front, heated by flues or by hot water, will hold about ten fiill-grown or fruiting plants, with room between for different-sized successional ones, to be tubbed successively as the large plants ripen off their fruit, these being shaken out of their tubs as soon as the fruit is gathered, and potted, to produce suckers; by judicious management in tubbing and in administering water, a supply of fruit may be had the greater part of the year. I have had at one time ten fruiting plants nearly of the same size and age, being suckers produced the same spring, and receiving similar treat- ment; yet no two of them produced their spadix at the same time ; and even if they were disposed to do so, it may be prevented, different treatment being given them. As their approach to fruiting is easily ascertained by theu' leaves decreasing in size, soon after which the embryo fruit-stalk may be detected by the sudden swelling of the lower part of the stem, if more than one should show these indications at one time, the one it is desired to fruit first must have abundance of water and the warmest situation, and the others be retarded by opposite treatment. The period between them may be still further lengthened a considerable time, if the whole spadix of fruit of one approaching too close upon another in ripening be cut off with a portion of the stem attached, when the uppertierof fruit is just ripening, and suspended in a dry and airy room, in the way that late grapes are often kept. I have cut excellent fruit from a spadix, two months after it had been separated from the plant ; and they may be made to ripen fast or slow in this manner, according to the temperature to which they are exposed. The quicker the ilower-stem is made to develop itself, the longer the spadix will be, and the greater quantity of fertile flowers it will produce ; consequently the greater weight of fruit, which will vary from fifteen to thirty pounds, according to the plant's strength, the season, and other circumstances. 1 need hardly add that the soil can scarcely be too rich, and that it should be rather light than retentive, in order that abundance of water may be given, and readily pass off. In Faacton's Magazine of Botany for 1836, it is observed that " a pit 40 feet long, 15 feet broad, and 5 feet high, will produce several hun- dredweight of fruit in a year, with no other care or attention than that of giving plenty of manure to grow in, and a good supply of heat and water. The Banana will fruit at all seasons, and no doubt with easier culture thar) any kind of fruit grown under glass." — (^Ibid. 1836, p. 316.) 514 I'OBCIN'G THE STRAWDEERY. Sect. X.— Forcing the Strawberry. 1090. Data on which the forcing of the strawberry is founded. — The straw- berry (Fragaria, i.) is a genus of herbaceous perennials or biennials, of which some species are natives of Europe, and others of North and South America. They all grow in woods, and in soil more or less loamy and moist ; but the kinds have been so changed by culture in British gardens, and tliis culture has been so successful both in the open garden and under glass, that we shall adopt it as a guide. Almost aU the kinds of strawberry in cultivation wUl bear forcing ; but the kinds preferred are chiefly the Old Scarlet or Virginian, for its high flavour and colour in confectionary. Keen's Seedling, and the Roseberry or Aberdeen Seedling, for their large size and abundant crops, and occasionally the Alpine, because it can be kept in a bearing state throughout great part of the winter. As the flavour of the Scarlet and Keen's seedling strawberries is seldom good when they are ripened before the middle or end of March, forcing is seldom commenced tUl the middle of January, and those excited about that time, and properly treated, will ripen fruit in about nine weeks. The plants should be previously well established in pots; though in default of this they may be taken up with balls, and potted, and at once placed in the forcing-house ; or the balls may be set close together on the surface of a bed of fermenting material, or heated by a flue or hot-water pipes underneath. Tlie crown of the plants, whether in pots or on a bed, should not be more than a foot from the glass. The temperature at first should not exceed 45° or 60°, with fire heat, and abundance of air should be given, even when the temperature is as low as 40°. After the fruit is set, the tem- perature may be raised from 56° to 60°, with fire heat, and 65 or 70° with Bun heat, provided abundance of air is given. Strawberries may be forced with great advantage in the peach-house, or in the cherry-house, in pits, or in such houses as that shown in fig. 127, in p. 189. They may be also forced in the open garden by having pipes of hot water laid a foot under the surface of the soil, between the rows of the plants, and covering them with glass or with canvas during nights, and in stormy weather. In short nothing can be more easy than forcing this most delicious fruit. 1091. Routine practice in forcing Keens Seedling and the OldScarlet or Vir- ginian strawberries. — As soon as the runners are fit for the purpose, lay a quan- tity, say two and three in a 32-pot, others one in a 60, in a good strong loam, with a portion of well-decayed manure. Place a stone on each runner, for the double purpose of keeping the plant in a fixed position and preserving moisture to the roots. The first runners are preferable, the sort Keen's seedling. As soon as the plants are well rooted, re-pot the sixties into thirty-twos, and the thirty-twos into twenty-fours — stUl using the same strong soil ; then place them in the hottest part of the garden, fully exposed to the direct rays oi the suii, but not under a wall. The best situation is the centre of a vine-border, first placing there a quantity of half-decayed manure, generally some old dung linings, to put round the pots, to prevent the sun acting too powerfully on the roots. Here they should be left exposed to the elements most conducive to bring them rapidly to a state of maturity : a free circulation of air, abundance of moisture, which they should be liberally supplied with, and a full share of solar heat. In this situation the plants grow freely, forming well-matured crowns, to send up fine stems of bloom in the forcing- FORCING THE STRAWBERRY. 515 house, with strong and vigorous roots to support tliem. Tliose in twenty - fours remain ; after a time examine tlie others, and tliose that have the strongest roots re-pot into twenty-fours, pursuing the same method as before ; so that, out of 700 or 800 pots, half the number will he twenty- fours, with one, two, or three plants in a pot, and the remainder iu thirty-twos, with one plant in a pot. One plant to either sized pot is preferable to a greater number; and if the above method is pursued, it will, from the rapidity of their growth, be found quite sufficient. If the autumnal rains are heavy, lay the pots on their sides, and about the middle of December place them in some frames, to keep the frost from injuring the roots, till they are placed in the forcing-house. 1002. Tlius grown and protected, the strawberries may, any time between December and March, be brought into the forcing-pit, previously filled with tan, dung, or leaves, to about eighteen inches of the glass. On this bed the plants are set, and a gentle temperature of from 60° to 56° is maintaiaed in the pit : if without fire-heat, so much the better. From this time, till the plants have perfected their fruits, a leaf should never be allowed to droop for want of water : yet the reverse is equally destructive, more especially before the flower-stems appear ; as soon, however, as these are up, a liberal s.upply of water is necessary till the fruits get to their proper size ; when it must again be supplied sparingly, only just enough to keep the leaves from flagging, till the strawberries are gathered. Whilst in flower, a temperature of from 60° to 65°, with a free circulation of air, is best. The fruit once set, the plants will do well in a stove where the minimum temperature is as high as 75°, provided abundance of air can be admitted. Plants treated in this manner, introduced into the forcing-house in the middle of December, wUl generally perfect their fruit about the middle of March. The fruit ought to be thinned out : all the deformed ones should be cut clean away, and the more promising ones should be pegged to the sunny side of the pot, and if there are too many leaves the footstalks of a number of them may be broken or twisted, so as to check the flow of sap and throw it into the fruit. Dry heat and free air are indispensable to their being well flavoured. 1093. After forcing, turn the plants out of the pots, and plunge them in rows, at moderate distances, in a piece of spare ground in the garden, well exposed to the sun and free circulation of air. From these a slight gather- ing will be obtained after the natural crops are over ; and well-established plants for forcing may be obtained from their runners, the latter being so much earlier produced than they are from plants in the open ground. In the autumn take the plants up with good balls of earth, and plant them in rows in a melon-pit or cold frame, placing them rather thick, to economise the rows and press the mould firmly to their roots. The pit need have neither bottom-heat nor pipes, but be simply covered with mats. As soon as the frosts set in, place the lights on, but do not begin to cover up with mats before March. If warm showers come in April, take the lights off', and let the plants have the benefit of the showers (which is better than watering from a pot), to forward them. When the sun is shining hot in the afternoon, shut up close, and cover up directly with double mats. You will find the next morning a sensible difference in their appearance. These plants will bear abundantly, coming in at a very seasonable time, just before the out- door strawberries, which are very often retarded by late frosts ; when the 516 FORCING THE ASPARAGUS, SEA-KALE, RHUBARB, diiys being generally very hot, strawberries are in great demand, and, it being too liot for tliem in the houses, they are sometimes very scarce. After the fruit is gathered, the plants are dug up and thrown away, and the pit planted with melons. By following this simple routine, year after year, you wiU be able to supply a family, however large, with abundant crops of this beautiful fruit, and in the highest state of perfection, at a very trifling expense. — (Gard. Mag. xvii. p. 265.) 1094. The Alpine strawberry continues bearing in the open air till it is checked by frost, and if a month previously to this a number of plants have been planted in a bed of soU. on heat, or potted and placed in a frame, pit, or strawberry-house, quite near the glass, and a temperature kept up of from 46° to 56° during night, and from 65° to 60" during day, the plants will continue bearing during winter; and they may be succeeded by other plants kept through the winter in cold frames, and put into heat about the middle of February. This mode is very successfully practised in the neighbourhood of Paris. — (See Gordon, in Gard. Mag. for 1841, p. 269.) Sect. XI. — Forcing the Asparagus, Sea-hale, Rhubarb, Chiccory, and other fleshy roots. 1095. These different vegetables may be forced where they stand in the open garden, by placing hot dung over them ; or when they are planted in rows or beds, by digging out trenches between eighteen inches or two feet wide, and two feet deep, and filling up these trenches with hot dung. Or the plants may be taken up before the forcing season, with as many of the roots as possible, and planted close together in a house, frame, pit, or even cellar, on a bed of fermenting matter, or of soil heated artificially, at first to 40° or 50°, and gradually raised to 60", 65°, or 70°. Nothing can be more simple or easy than this kind of forcing, since it is merely the excitement by heat and moisture, without or with but very little light and change of air, of the mass of vegetable nutriment laid up in the root-stalk. 1096. Asparagus. — In the beginning of winter, begin six weeks before it is proposed to have a crop ; when the days are longer, five weeks, or but a calendar month before. Those who wish to have asparagus on the table at Christmas should prepare for forcing it in Novemtber. The temperature at night should never be under 60°. In the day-time, keep the maximum down to 62°. If by the heat of the bark or dung, and the use of mats or canvas covers at night, the thermometer stand as high as 50°, fire-heat wiU be unnecessary ; but otherwise recourse must be had to the flues or hot- water pipes. A very moderate degree of fire-heat, however, will be sufiicient ; and a small fire made in the evening will generally answer the purpose. Sometimes in dull, hazy weather a fire may be necessary in the morning, in order to enable you to admit air more freely, and to dry off' damp. Air must be freely admitted every day in some cases, to allow any steam to pass off, and for the sake of the colour and flavour of the plants. As the buds begin to appear, as large a portion of air must be daily admitted as the weather will permit. When the asparagus bed has, after planting, stood two or three days, and when the heat has begun to warm the roots, give the plants a sufficient watering. Pour it out of a pot, with the rose on it, to imitate a shower of rain ; let the bed have enough to moisten the mould well, and to wash it in among the roots. Repeat such waterings now and then. By the time the buds have come tip three inches above the surface, CHICCORY, AND OTHER PLEEHY ROOTS. 517 they are fit to gather tor use, as they will then be six or seven inches in length. In gathering them, draw aside a little of the mould, slip down tlio finger and thumb, and twist them off from the crown. This is a better method than to cut them ; at least it is less dangerous to the rising buds, which come up in thick succession, and might be wounded by the knife, if cutting were practised. The roots, after they have furnished a crop, are considered useless for future culture, because no leaves having been allowed to develop themselves, of course no buds could be formed, for the succeed- ing year. If the pit in which asparagus is forced be twenty-five feet to thirty feet long, it will be enough for the supply of an ordinary family to fill one-half at a time. If the second half be planted when the shoots in the first half are fit for use, and so on, a constant succession may be kept up in the same pit for any length of time required. In some gardens asparagus is grown in beds cased with pigeon-holed brickwork, with alleys between two feet wide and two feet deep, which are filled with hot dung, and frames are put over the beds. This, however, is an expensive mode, and we are not aware of any advantage which it has over Mr. Lindegaard's practice of merely deepening the alleys to about three and a half feet, and filling them up with hot dung, covering the beds with litter, over which hoops for sup- porting mats should be placed ; or any other means of protection should be adopted that may best prevent the effects of cold at night, or of rain and sleet, or snow, either of which would rob the ground of much of its acquired warmth from the linings. Beds treated in this manner in December will produce a crop in four or five weeks, which will last for five or six weeks. After the crop is gathered, the dung is removed from the alleys, which are then filled to the brim with rich soil, for the roots to strike into. Asparagus plants forced in this manner are injured, but in three seasons they will be restored and may be forced again successfully. When asparagus is forced in this manner later in the season, much less dung is required, and the plants are proportionately less injured. — (Hort. Trans, vol. v. p. 509.) 1097. Sea-kale may be forced exactly in the manner above described for asparagus ; but a less degree of heat is required, for the sea-kale naturally shoots up early in spring, while the buds of the asparagus are much later in appearing. The asparagus requires to be grown four years from the seed be- fore it is fit to force, and hence Mr. Lindegaard's mode, by which the plants are not destroyed, is the best where practicable ; but as the sea-kale can be forced at two years' growth, and the plants are consequently less valuable, there is less objection to taking them up, forcing them, and throwing them away. Mr. En-ington plants a certain number of rows of sea-kale every spring, three feet apart, and the plants fifteen inches distant in the rows ; the plants having been raised from seed th« previous year in a drill. The roots are taken up for forcing as soon as the leaves are decaying, with much care ; and as much as possible removed entire, as the root is of course a magazine of nourishment for the incipient bud. The main stock is then ' laid in by the heels,' and covered with litter until wanted. In the mushroom-house there is a pit or trench sunk below the level of the floor-line about four feet : this furnishes room in the length of the house for about four successive ages ; and the second lot of roots is introduced the moment the first begins to bud, and so on with the rest. Fermenting matter, viz., dung and leaves mixed, is placed about two feet six inches deep, under the roots, taking care to have bottom-heat enough ; as, if that becomes too hot, the heat can easily be reduced with 618 FORCING THE ASPARAGUS, SEA-KALE, &b. water; and the more water the sea- kale receives in this way, the more tender it becomes. The roots are placed in this fermenting matter as thick as they will stand, merely flooding in some fine old tan or old rich soil with water, to fill the crevices between the roots completely. The surface of the crowns, when so placed, is a foot, or nearly so, below the floor line ; and, when planted, a row of trusses of straw is laid side by side over the whole, to shut in the steam, and keep it completely dark, which is one of the main points ; and, with the straw and the shutters, this is completely effected. In the same house Mr. En-ington produces a continual supply of chiccory, rhubarb, and other articles, by the same system. — (G. M. 1841, p. 270.) No vegetable is more easily or cheaply forced than sea-kale, whether in the open air in beds or drills, or by covering the plants with pots (fig. 58, in p. 143) or boxes to be surrounded by hot dung ; or by taking up the plants and potting them, and placing them in cellars, frames, or pits, or on a bed of heated ma- terials. A temperature of from 40 to 46 degrees will excite vegetation, after which it may be raised to 60 or 65 degrees. Great care must be taken never to exceed 55 degrees. Plants of sea-kale in the open ground may be forced every year ; but much the cheapest mode is to take up the roots and force on beds heated artificially. 1098. Rhubarb and Chiccory. — What has been said of sea-kale, in the preceding paragraph, will apply equally to rhubarb and chiccory. They may both be forced in the open ground by trenches filled with hot dung, or by pots or boxes placed over them, and surrounded by that material ; or, what is by far the most economical mode, the plants may be taken up and potted, and placed in a cellar ; or, like the sea-kale, they may be planted close together on a bed of material heated artificially, or laid side by side in the floor of a vinery, or between the flue and wall, and covered with tan, peat, or leaf -mould. The rhubarb should be grown at least two years from the seed, in the same manner as the sea-kale, before being taken up for forcing ; but the chiccory may be sown the same year. The leaves of the chiccory require to be blanched, and therefore it ought always to be forced in the dark ; but as most people prefer the rhubarb only partially blanched, a certain degree of light may be admitted. In Belgium the i-oots of chiccory are taken up on the approach of winter, and stacked in cellars in alternate layers of sand, so as to form ridges with the crowns of the plants on the surface of the ridge. Here, if the temperature is a few degrees above the freezing point, the crowns soon send out leaves in such abundance as to afford an ample supply of salad during the whole winter. — (See Lippold, in G. M. for 1836, p. 250.) 1099. Forcing other roots. — The common dandelion (Leontodon Taraxa- cum, L.) affords a salad in all respects equal to that of the chiccory, and may be similarly treated. Hamburg parsley, the common parsley, hurnet, fennel, wild spinach (Chenopodium Bonus Henricus, i.), wild beet, for the leaves as spinach, and the common turnip for the leaves as greens, and various other plants having fleshy roots, and of which the foliage or leaf-stalks are used in salads or cookery, may be forced on the same principle as asparagus, eea-kale, &c. ; the practice being founded on (he physiological fact first explained to gardeners by Mr. Knight, viz., that " the root of every perennial herbaceous plant contains within itself, during winter, all the oi'ganisable matter which it expends in the spring in the formation of its first foUflge and flower-stems ; and that it requires neither food nor light to .FORCING THE COMMON POTATO, &C. 519 enaUe it to protrude these, but simply heat and water ; and if the root be removed entire, as soon as its leaves become lifeless, it will be found to vege- tate, after being replanted, as strongly as it would have done if it had retained its first position." SjscT. XII. — Forcing the common Potato, the sweet Potato, and other tubers. 1100. The common potato (Solamim tuberosum, L.) is forced in a great variety of ways. The best varieties for this purpose are the ash-leaved kidney, the Rufford kidney. Fox's seedling, and Shaw's Early. (See our Catalogue of Culinahy Vegetables). They may be forced in pots on shelves in a peach-house or vinery, or in frames or pita mode- rately heated, the plants in every case being kept quite near the glass, as few plants suffer more when placed at a distance from the glass than the potato. Abercrombie says, " for a fair crop of tubers, which shall be somewhat dry and floury, and of the size of a hen's egg, plant sets of the ash-leaved variety in single pots filled one-third part with light earth in January. Place them in a hothouse or hotbed, earth them up as tliey appear, and about the middle or end of February transplant them, with tlieir balls entire, into a pit prepared as for asparagus. Distance, from plant to plant, one foot each way. Give water occasionally, and admit as much air as possible at all times. Potatoes so managed will produce a crop at the end of March or beginning of April." The general mode is to plant in frames or pits, on a bed of fermenting material, sufficient to produce a gentle heat, for the potato will not bear rapid forcing, a high temperature, or a dry atmo- sphere. They however, cannot have too much light, being natives of a high table-land, with a clear sky. Some gardeners plant them on old hotbeds and supply the heat by linings ; and many plant them on beds unprotected by glass, but covered with hoops and mats during nights and very severe weather. 1101. A substitute for new potatoes is obtained by placing layers of pota- toes alternately with sawdust in a box, and placing it in a moderate tem- perature in a room or cellar. The potatoes vegetate and produce tubers in December and January, about the size of walnuts, and sometimes larger, without any leaves having been protruded. This plan is most successful when potatoes of the growth of the season-before-last are used. By this treatment, no leaves will emerge above the soil, and, consequently, as no nutritive matter can be deposited by them, the new potatoes, which may be produced at any required period by burying the old potatoes three weeks before, are nothing more than a recomposition of the old tuber, in conse- quence of the application of heat and moisture. Few persons, however, will be satisfied with this kind of substitute for a new potato formed by the aid of light and foliage. Another mode of producing a substitute for new potatoes is, by retarding the tubers of early varieties, by keeping them in a cool dry cellar till June or July, and then planting them. Being early sorts, they produce, even when planted thus late, a crop of young potatoes which possess in a great degree the flavour peculiar to potatoes taken fresh from the stem. By covering the ground with litter, so as to exclude the frost, young potatoes may thus be obtained throughout the winter. (See G. M., vol. viii., p. 66, and our Catalogue of Culinary Vegetables). In the mild climate of Cornwall, where the winters frequently pass with little or no frost, the planting of sets can be deferred till autumn ; and with 520 FORCING KIDNEY-BEANS AND PEAS. a little pi-otection, the plants, although pushed above ground, are pveserved through the winter, and, in consequence, afford an early supply of genuine young potatoes.— (G. M., ii., p. 464, and v., p. 107.) 1102. The sweet potato (Convolvulus Batatas, Z-.), though hut little cultivated in British gardens, is imported from Spain and sold in the fruit- shops. It is cultivated in the open air in the neighbourhood of New York {G. M. vol. V. p. 276) during their hot summers, and on dung-beds in the neighbourhood of Paris, where it is sold in the market and the fruit-shops, and much esteemed. The best crops that we saw in 1828 were in Admiral Tchitchigoff's garden at Sceaux. The tubers are planted in February, or earlier or later at pleasure, and in the pine-stove or in a small hotbed : and the shoots they produce are taken off and planted a foot apart every way, on dung-beds, covered with 15 inches of earth and protected by hoops and mats in the manner of ridged cucumbers. This may be done any time fi-om April to June, and the shoots are not dibbled in, but laid down in drills about 3 inches deep, keeping 2 inches of the point of the shoot above the earth. In about two months after transplanting, some of the tubers will be fit to take off for use, and the plants will continue producing till they are destroyed by frost. To preserve the tubers through the winter the greatest care is required. In the King's forcing-gardens at Versailles, they are kept in a growing state all the winter in the pine-stoves. With the exception of this difficulty of pre- serving the tubers through the winter, the sweet potato is just as easily cultivated as the common potato. Though the shoots are naturally ascend- ing and twining, like those of Tdmus communis, the plants are not slicked, and therefore the shoots cover the ground, and form over it a thick matting of dark green smooth foliage. In the early part of the season, the tubers are taken off as they attain the size of early kidney potatoes ; later the whole crop is dug up. If the sweet potato were once fairly introduced into British gardens, we have no doubt it would form an article of regular culture there. {G. M. v. 276.) 1103. The Oxalis Deppei, which, it will be found from our Culinary Catalogue, produces tubers, stems, and foliage, that are much esteemed ; and the Tropfeolum tuberosum, which also produces eatable tubers, with the flavour of sea-kale or the richest asparagus, may be forced in the same manner as the potato. Sect. XIII. — Forcing Kidney-beans and Peas. 1104. The kidney-bean (Phaseolus vulgaris, L.), being a native of India, may be forced in the same heat as that required for the pine-apple ; but although it will bear this extreme, it will succeed in a temperature verj' much lower. The varieties generally preferred are — the early speckled, early negro, and dun-coloured dwarf, the latter being thought the best. They are planted in equal parts of rotten dung reduced to a soil, and loam, in shallov; 24-sizcd pots : place in the bottom of the pot one inch of crocks, and above them 1 inch of soil ; then plant six beans, covering them with 1 inch more of soil. These pots may be stowed away in any corner of the stove till the plants appear above ground, when they must be brought near the glass, and thinned out to two or three of the best plants. As they advance, they must be earthed up ; and the leader may be pinched off, to render them short and bushy. When they come into flower, air must be admitted, to set the fruit ; and every po,d must be gathered as soon as it is fit for the table, not to rob FORCING SALADS, POT-HERBS, &C. 521 the others that are forming. The plants may be grown in a house at any temperature above freezing, and below blood-heat ; the medium, 00° to 65°, is preferable. They succeed well when planted out in a pit or frame, with or without bottom-heat, in rows 18 inches apart, and 3 inches in the row ; and, as they advance, they are to be topped as above, and sticked. Planted at Christmas, they require about eight weeks to bring fruit fit for the table, in a temperature of 00° or 06°. To have kiduey-beans all the year, the first sowing for forcing should be made in August, and sowings should be made every four or five weeks till April, after which the crop in the open air from plants which have been raised in heat will come into use. The aphis and thi'ips often attack the French bean when grown under glass, but these insects may be readily destroyed by fumigation, by tobacco-water, or by quassia-water. 1105. The common garden pea (Pisum sativum, i.), may be forced, but being a native of a colder climate (the South of Europe), not so successfully as the kidney-bean. The best early varieties are the early May, early Warwick, and early frame. It is necessary to begia at a low tem- perature, and not to exceed 50° or 60° with sun heat, and from 40° to 60° during the night, till the fruit is set. Afterwards the temperature may be increased, so as to vary during the day from 55° to 70". The peas may be sown in pots or boxes, and either fruited in them, or transplanted into other pots or boxes, or a pit. In general the best mode is to grow them in pots or boxes, because these admit of being kept well ventilated and close to the glass. Without abundance of light and air it is in vain to attempt forcing the pea. For the eailiest crop the seeds may be sown in October, and these will produce pods in February or March, from which time by successive sowing, peas may be obtained till they are produced in the open ground from plants which have been raised in heat, and transplanted into a warm sheltered situation. Whatever description of forciog is adopted, trans- planting is found to check luxuriance, concentrate growth, and produce a greater amount of blossom in a limited space. Sect. XIV. — Forcing Salads, pot-herbs, sweet-herbs, and other culinary plants. 1106. Lettuce, chiccory, radish, cress, mustard, rape, parsley, chervil, carrot, turnip, onion, and similar plants, may be raised in pots or in beds, in a gentle heat, and quite near the glass. In general it will be of little use beginning to sow sooner than January ; and indeed, with the exception of the carrot, parsley, and onion, Febniary will be soon enough, on account of the light required. Young carrots being much used in soups, some families require a supply all the year, which is to be obtained by successive sowings in the open air and on heat. The first sowing on heat may be made in January, to succeed the autumnal sowing in the open garden ; and the second may be made in February or March, to serve till the first crop in the open air comes into use. 1107. Small salading, such as cresses, mustard, rape, radish, chiccory, lettuce, &c., to be cropped when in the seed leaf, or in the third or fourth leaf, may be sown in boxes or in beds, and kept in a warm, moist atmo- sphere, near the light. As the plants forming small salading are always cut beneath the seed-leaf, as soon as one portion of salading is gathered, the 622 FonciNO salads, pot-herbs, &c. Boil maj' be stirred and a second crop sown. Where there is a constant demand for small salading, a sowing requires to be made every week. 1108. Radish. — To obtain the earliest spring radishes, Abercrombie directs to " sow on a hot-bed, of dung or leaves, some of the early dwarf short-top varieties in December, January, or the beginning of February. Having made a hot-bed two feet or two and a-half feet high of dung, place on the frame. Earth the bed at top six inches deep ; sow on the surface, covering the seed with fine mould about half an inch thick ; and put on the glasses. When the plants have come up, admit air every day in mild or tole- rably good weather, by tilting the upper end of the lights, or sometimes the front, one, two, or three inches, that the radishes may not draw up weak and long-shanked. If they have risen very thick, thin them in young growth, moderately at first, to about one or two inches apart. Be careful to cover the glasses at night. Give gentle waterings about noon, on snnny days. If the heat of the bed declines much, apply a moderate lining of warm dung or stable litter to the sides, which, by gently renewing the heat, will forward the radishes for drawing in February and March. Remember, as they advance in growth, to give more copious admissions of air daily, either by tilting the lights in front several inches, or, in fine mild days, by drawing the glasses mostly oiF; but be careful to draw them on again in proper time. Small turnip-radishes of the white and red kinds may be forced in the same manner. For raising early radishes on ground not accommodated with frames, a hot-bed made in February may be arched over with hoop- bends or pliant rods, which should be covered with mats constantly at night, and during the day in very cold weather. In moderate days turn up the mats at the warmest side, and on a fine mild day take them wholly off." 1109. To produce full-grown cabbage- lettuces throughout the winter is a desideratum in Holland, where the higher classes have cabbage-lettuces on their tables every day in the year. The seed is sown on the first of September, and when the plants have produced their fourth leaf they are transplanted into a melon-bed which has done bearing ; and as soon as they have taken root, abundance of air is given night and day. In October, when the air grows cold, and the heads of the cabbage-lettuce begin to get close or hai'd, air is no longer given, and the lights are entirely closed ; but the leaves must be prevented from touching the glass, as, if they do, the least unexpected frost will hurt their edges, and the consequence will be that the plants will rot. In this case the frame will have to be lifted every now and then. When the nightly frosts commence, generally in October, great attention must be paid to covering the beds with a single layer of bast mats, and adding slight linings ; yet too much covering is to be avoided before the plants are grown to perfect heads. Watering is quite out of the question, and even very hurtful ; care, indeed, should be taken to prevent moisture as much as possible. Cover more or less, according to the severity of the weather, and keep the lights uncovered in the day, whenever and as much as the weather will permit. In this way the Dutch gardeners produce cabbage-lettuce during the whole winter till April, when they are succeeded by the plants which have been early forced. In the Royal gardens in Denmark, this method was practised by M. Lindegaard for nearly half a century ; by Mr. Rutger, at Longleat, for thirty years : for an equal period at Bulstrode, when that place was the residence of the Duke of Portland ; and for a number of years at Hy lands, when that property FORCING THE MUSHROOM. 523 belonged to P. C. Labouchere, Esq. — (See G. M. vi., p. 691 ; viii., p. 174, and iii. p. 388.) 1110. Perennial pot and sweet herbs, such as mint, sage, tan-agon, savory, thyme, tansy, scurvy-grass, and such like plants, may be taken up from the open ground, potted, and transferred to the forcing-house, where they will soon produce abundance of foliage ; care being taken to let the heat with which forcing is commenced be low, in proportion to the coldness of the country of which the plant is a native, and that of the season at which it naturally expands its leaves. Thus, in forcing scurvy-grass, which is a native of Denmark, a much lower temperature ought to be commenced with than in forcing sage, which is a native of Greece ; and again, a plant which naturally springs up in April will bear commencing with a higher tempera- ture than one which makes considerable progress in the previous colder months. Sect. XV. — Forcing the Mushroom. SuBSECT. I. — Data on which the Culture and Forcing of the JMushroom is founded. 1111. The mushroom (Agaricus campestris i.) is indigenous to Britain, appearing " in the fields chiefly after Midsummer, in the months of July, August, and most abundantly in September. On a ten years' average, the temperature of these months respectively in the neighbourhood of London has been found to be 61", 62°, and 67°; and in the same periods the tempe- ratui-e of the earth one foot below the surface is a few degrees higher ; but at the depth of two or three inches, where the vegetating spawn is situated, the temperature in hot sunny weather is frequently as high as 80°. WliUst such hot weather continues, mushrooms are rarely met with ; but when the atmosphere changes to a humid state, and when the earth becomes suffi- ciently moistened and lowered in temperature, in consequence of rain and absence of sun-heat, to be between 60° and 66°, mushrooms become plenti- ful. Hence it may be concluded that spawn will not be injured by a heat of 80° during what may be termed its underground state of progression. This is corroborated by the fact that spawn introduced into melon-frames when the beds are moulded, increases whilst the melons are grown in a heat of about 80° ; and when the melon crop is over, the frame cleared, and the heat of the bed naturally abated, a gentle watering, with shade, is all that is necessary to bring up an excellent crop of mushrooms from the spawn so deposited. It is evident, from what has been stated, that the spawn requires a high temperature for its diffusion ; but, when this has taken place, a declining temperature is requisite, till gi-adually the bottom-heat is lowered to 60° or 65°, and the temperature of the air limited between 55° and 65°, when the production first appears above the soil. " With regard to moisture, it may be observed that a dry atmosphere is injurious, not only to artificial crops, but also to those in the fields ; for the latter, warm foggy mornings are most favourable, and these should be imi- tated as closely in cultivation as circumstances will permit. A gentle steam is more easily maintained in mushroom-houses than in structures adapted for other subjects of cultivation where light is an object of importance ; but mushrooms do not require its agency, and consequently a glass roof is unne- cessary : on the contrary, the roof and walls where they are intended to be .grown should be composed of such substances as will cause the least possible 524 PORCINO THE MUSHROOM IN BRITISH GARDENS. condensation of the internal vapour, and which are in other respecta eligible for the purpose. " A thatched roof of a good thickness is very proper ; a slated or tiled one is, on the contrary, objectionable, unless a ceiling be formed under it. If the cavity between the ceiling and the external covering were filled with diy moss, a more complete protection would be formed against any sudden vicis- situdes of cold and heat, an object of importance towards success either in the cold winter months or during the greatest heat of summer." — {Penny Cyc. vol. xvi. p. 19.) SuBSECT. II. — Forcing the Mushroom in British gardens. 1112. The ordinary form of a mushroom-house is a lean-to shed, at the back of a south wall, or of a range of hothouses, about nine feet wide, eight feet or nine feet high at front, and twelve feet or fifteen feet at the back. Along the middle there is a path three feet wide over a flue, or hot water- pipes, or in some cases a trench of two feet wide, and the same depth for a bed of fermenting manure. Planks, in this latter case, are placed over the dung for the purpose of walking on. The space between the walls and the path is occupied by shelves of slate or flag-stone, three feet br'oad, eighteen inches or two feet apart in the height ; each shelf having a slate or stone curb nine inches deep. The manner in which mushrooms are grown in such a house is as follows : — 1113. TAe spawn may be either made or purchased. Cake or brick spawn is the sort best worth making, and the best sort of materials to make it of are, equal portions of horse-droppings, cow- droppings, and loam, well mixed, and pounded or beaten, adding only as much water as will bring the materials to the consistency of brickmakers' moulding clay. Then let a circular mould without a bottom, nine inches in diameter and three inches deep, be placed on a table, with the wide end uppermost, and filled with this mortar and straked level ; before it is turned out of the mould, let three holes be made in each cake, with an iron-shod dibber, one inch and a half deep : the mould must be shaped like the frustum of a cone, that the cakes may easily part with it. When the cakes are all but hand dry, let them be spawned, by putting a piece of spawn about the size of a pigeon s egg in each hole, inclosing it with a little of the original mortar. Then pile the cakes in pairs, with their spawned ends together, resembling a cask ; and in this state let them be cased up in brick -shaped batches, and sweated and kept up to about 85°, by placing a layer of sweet dung all round and over the batch, varying it in quantity, to obtain the desired heat. The spawn must be examined as it runs iu the cakes, and when one is broken and appears mouldy all through, and smells of mushroom, it is mushroom spawn in the highest state of per- fection. It must not be allowed to run so far as to form a thread-like sub- stance. To preserve it, it must be thoroughly dried in an airy loft, and kept dry for use. It will retain its properties for several years. 1114. To grow the mushrooms. — Collect a quantity of horse-droppings, dry them a little in an open shed, then lay a sti-atum of loamy turf, two inches or three inches deep, in the bottom of the bed, and over this three layers of droppings, each about two inches deep, rendered as compact as pos- sible, by giving each layer a good pummeling with a hand-mallet. AVhen the last layer is made up, thrust a few " watch sticks" into the bed, in order to ascertain when it begins to heat. When the heat is getting pretty strong, FORCING THE MUSHROOM IN BRITISH GARRENS. 525 let the bed be first beaten all over, then make holes with an iron-shod dibber, nine inches apart, and deep enough to reach tlie stratum of loam : these will soon cool the bed ; and when the heat is declined to about 80°, the holes may be bored by a conical block of wood, to about two inches in diameter, at two inches deep, in order to receive the spawn. These holes must be filled up, to about three inclies from the surface, with loam and horse-droppings mixed ; then insert a bit of spawn, about the size of a hen's egg in each, and fill the holes up level with the surface, with the loam and droppings. The holes being closed, the heat will increase, and must be attended to : if violent, a few deep naiTOw holes may be made to let it escape ; and, if too slight, it may be aided by a covering of dry hay, or a layer of warm dung ; and when all danger of violent heat is gone by, and the spawn beginning to run, put on the upper stratum of loam, mixed with a little cut hay or dry horse- droppings to make a tough firm crust, about one inch deep. A tempe- rature of from S5° to 60° is found best for the atmosphere in the house, and about 90° of bottom heat will set the spawn actively to work. The beds must not be allowed to get too di-y — a layer of moist hay will pre- vent this ; and, if too wet, a dry atmosphere can be got by gentle fires and open ventilators, which will aid them a little. But a bed once allowed to get thoroughly wet after spawning is hopeless, and should certainly bo removed without loss of time. — (G. M. for 1839, p. 336.) 1115. Growing the mushroom in a cellar may be readily accomplished where the temperature does not fall below 45°, or rise above 70°. Take a quantity of fresh manure, with short litter intermixed, from a stable where the horses are fed on hay and corn, but not on green food. Spread the manure on the floor of the cellar about four inches deep, and beat it firmly down with a mallet. After a few days repeat this operation, and again do so at intervals, till the bed becomes about fourteen inches deep, and of such a breadth as may be most convenient. To ascertain the degree of heat, put two or three sharp pointed sticks into the bed, and when, upon being drawn out the next day, they feel about milk-warm, or between 8G° or 90°, it is time to put in the mushroom spawn. Observe, however, that when this operation is performed, the heat should be rather on the decline than on the increase. Having purchased, or otherwise procured the spawn, break it into pieces about the size of a hen's egg. Place the pieces all over the bed, about a foot apart, and two inches below the surface. Beat the whole down hard. Be careful not to let the heat increase above the degree mentioned above, other- wise the spawn will be destroyed, and the bed must be stocked again with fresh spawn. Indeed, for security's sake, it is always best to repeat the spawning when the heat is on the decline. After all danger of increased htat is passed, cover the bed with light soil ^bout two inches deep, then beat it down hard. Mushrooms always do best in a firm hard soil : however hard, they wiU find their way through it. They have even been known to raise the pavement of a cellar floor. 1116. Management of the bed. — Examine the sticks which were originallv placed in the bed, if they are lukewarm all is right. A few days afterwards cover the bed with hay or straw ; but if it increases the heat, remove it for a. time. If the place is warm and dark this covering may be dispensed with. In five or six weeks the mushrooms ought to appear. A gentle watering now and then will hasten their growth ; but too much will cause the spawn MM b'Zb CATALOGUE or FRUITS. to rot, and then, of course, the bed will he unproductive, whereas it ought to produce for five or six weeks. The covering keeps the soil moist, espe- cially when much exposed to the air. — (J. Wighton, in G. M. for 1842.) 1117. Mushroom spawn, planted in loam and dung, or in either, and screened from sun and rain in summer, will produce this vegetable in abundance ; and the same materials will produce the same effect, under favourable circumstances, in winter; such as being placed in boxes or baskets in a stable or warm cellar. Mushrooms may be grown remarkably well on dung-beds, covered with frames, having thatched hurdles or boards instead of glass ; the surface of the bed being covered with hay, litter, or dried shorn grass. Half-dried droppings of highly fed horses, good spawn, and a gentle moist atmosphere, are the principal things to he attended to in cultivating the mushroom. 1118. /» ^aiAmn(/ mM«^9'ooms for present use, they may be cut; but, if they are to be kept a few days, they must be got with the stem entire, which is easily done by slipping it off with a gentle twist. 1119. — The duration of a crop of mushrooms varies from three to six months, so that it is always safe to make up a bed or a couple of shelves every three or four months. Very successful and economical modes of growing the mushroom will be found in Callow's Improved Mode of Culture, 1831 post 8vo., 7«. 6rf. y and in Smith, on Cucumbers and Melons, 1839, 12jno., 44. CHAPTER IV. CATALOGUE OF FRUITS. lliO. The fruits usually cultivated in British Gardens are, for the greater part, borne on trees and shrubs, but some ai-e on herbaceous plants. They are mostly natives of temperate climates, and cultivated in the open garden, but a few are natives of warm or tropical countries, and require the protection of glass and artificial heat. The whole may be arranged, either systema- tically, or according to their natures ; or geographically, or according to the climates in which they are indigenous ; and this last arrangement will also indicate the classification which may be made with reference to their treat- ment in a state of culture. 1121. Botanically, the fruits usually cultivated in British gardens, are classed by the natural system, or according to their natures, as follows : — BerheracecB. Berberis, the barbeny. Aurantiacece. Citrus, the orange, lemon,, citron, lime, and shaddock. Vitdcece. Vitis, the grape. Anigdalmece. Amygdalus, the almond, peach, and nectarine; Armeniaca, the apricot ; Prunus, the plum, and Cerasus, the cherry. Pomdccai. Pyrus. the apple, the pear, and the service ; Cydonia, the rpiince ; Mespilus, the medlar ; and Eriobotrya, the Japan quince. Rosdcece. Rubus, the raspberry, and Fragaria, the strawberry. Granatdcece. Punioa, the pomegranate. OATALOatTE OP PRiriTS. 527 MyrticetB. Psidium, the guava. CucurbitacecB. Cncutnis, the cucumber and melon ; Cucsirbita, the gourd, and pumpkin, and Carica, the pawpaw. PassiflordcecB. Passiflora, the granadilla. CactacecB. Opuntia, the Indian fig. Grossuldceai. Ribes, the gooseberry and currant. Caprifolidcece. Cdrnus, the cornel, and Sambiicus, the elder. VaccindcecB. Vacclnium, the bilberry, and Oxycoccus, the cranberry. Solandceee. Physalis, the winter cherry, and the Peruvian cherry ; Cap- sicum, the Cayenne pepper ; Lycopersicum, the love-apple, and Solanum, the egg-plant. MkagndcecB. Sheph^rdia, the buffalo berry. Urticdceis. Ficus, the fig, and Morus, the mulberry. JuglanddceeB. Juglans, the walnut, and Carya, the hickory. Corylacecd. Castanea, the chestnut, and Cdrylns, the filbert. Musdcea. Musa, the banana. Bromelidcecd. Ananassa, the pine apple. 1122. Geographically and Horticulturally, these fruits may be arranged as belonging to : 1123. Climates analogous to that of Britain, and which can be grown in the open air in British gardens, including the barberry, plum, cherry, apple, pear, quince, medlar, raspberry, strawberry, gooseberry, currant, cornel, elder, bUberry, cranberry, winter cherry, buffalo-berry, mulberry, chestnut, filbert, walnut and hickory. 1124. Climates analogous to that of the South of France, and which can be grown against walls exposed to the South, or heated by flues in British gardens, including the vine, almond, peach, nectarine, apricot, pomegranate, and fig. 1126. Climates sub-tropical, or tropical, including the orange, lemon, lime, and shaddock, Japan quince, guava, cucumber, melon, gourd, pumpkin, pawpaw, granadilla, Peruvian cherry, Indian fig, Cayenne pepper, love- apple, egg-plant, banana, and pine-apple. This last arrangement we shall adopt as the most suitable for horticul- tural purposes, and we shall therefore treat first of hardy, or orchard fruits, next of wall fruits, and lastly of house fruits. The cornel, buffalo berry, pomegranate, winter cherry, Peruvian cherry, guava, pawpaw, granadilla, and Indian fig, are but little cultivated in British gardens, yet as the possessor of a suburban garden may reasonably wish to taste all the fruits that can be grown in any British garden whatever, whether small. or large ; and as a single plant of each kind of fruit will afford this gratification, and occupy very little room in the garden, we thought it right to include them, though of each we shall treat but very slightly. See the notice of the fruits cultivated in our very limited garden at Bayswater, given in the Suburban Gardener, p. 341. Those who wish for more extensive lists than we shall here give of the fruits in common cultivation, will consult the Horticultural Society's Fruit Catalogue, third edition ; those who wish to see engravings, and peruse bota- nical descriptions, of the species of trees and shrubs from which the differ- ent varieties of cultivated kinds have been originated, may consult the Fncyclopesdia of Trees and Shrubs ; and those who wish to know the ir M 2 528 THE APPLE. natiiial, horticultural, and domestic history of every species, ia greater detail than they have ever elsewhere been given, will have recourse to the Arboretum et Fruticetum Britannicum. Sect. I. — Hardy or Orchard Fruits. 112(i. The hardy fruits include all those which arrive at maturity in the open garden, without the aid of glass or artificial heat. These are the apple, peai-, quince, medlar, the true service, cherry, plum, gooseberry, currant, raspberry, strawberry, cranberry, bilberry, cornel, elder, barberry, winter cherry, buffalo berry, chestnut, filbert, walnut, hickory, and mulberry. SuBSECT. I. — The Apple. 1127. The Apple, Pyrus Malus L. MSlus communis Bee., (Pom- mier, Fr., Apfelbaum Ger., Apfel, Dutch, Pero Melo, and Melo Pomo, Hal., and Manzana, Span. Eng. Bot., t. 179; Art>. Brit., Vol. VI. ; and Encyc. of Trees and Shrubs, p. 46,) is a deciduous tree, under the mid- dle size, with spreading branches, which form in general an irregular head. In its wild or crab state, it is indigenous in most parts of Europe, and as a fruit-tree, it is cultivated in all civilised countries, more especially in those of temperate climates. It flowers in May, and ripens its fruit at various periods fi'om July to November, and some sorts of apple may be kept throughout the year, or longer. The tree is naturally of considerable hardiness and durability, but the cultivated varieties are comparatively delicate and short-lived. Trees of the more hardy varieties, however, have been known to endure for two or three centuries ;. but it is presumed that individual trees of such varieties as the Hawtliornden, and the Ribston pippin, would scarcely live a century. The apple, like every other plant, accommodates itself more or less to the climate and soil in which it is placed, but still it attains a higher degree of perfection in one particular climate and soil, than in any other. The climate of England, and the north of France, and the loamy soils on lime-stone rottk that are found in these countries, appear to bring the apple to the highest degree of pcifcction. Italy and Spain are much too warm, and the north of Germany and Sweden, too cold and sunless. Several kinds of apples were introduced into Britain by the Romans, who possessed, according to Pliny, twenty -two varieties ; but, in all probability, these were lost in the interval between the Roman civil power in Britain, and the power of the Church, though many wildings might doubtless spring up, when the trees established by the Romans began to be neglected. Some of the varieties in existence, it may be reasonably supposed, were introduced by the Roman clergy, but the greater number of sorts which have not been raised in Britain have doubtless been introduced from Normandy, either when that countiy was subjected to England, or pre- viously at the Norman conquest. The apple is not indigenous in North America, but nevertheless it floui-ishes in all the temperate parts of the United States, and the flavour of some varieties grown in America, for example the Newtown pippin, is thought by many to be superior to that of any kinds grown in the north of France, or England. The number of varieties now in cultivation has been greatly increased within the present century, partly from importations, but chiefly from seedlings raised in this country. In consequence, we have varieties suitable for different soils and USES AND PROPERTIES OP THE APPLE. 529 situations, from the warm moist climate of Devonshire and Cornwall, to the cloudy and stormy atmosphere of Orkney. There are varieties which ripen as early as July, and others which are not fit to eat till the following spring ; and which, with proper care, will keep till apples come again, and even longer. No fruit tree is more prolific than the apple when in a suit- able soil and situation, and no fruit is applied to a greater variety of useful purposes. 1128. Ths uses of the apple in pies, tarts, sauces, the dessert, or boiled or roasted, is familiar to every one. The expressed juice fermented forms cider, — that of the crab verjuice ; and when both these liquids are mixed, and properly managed, a very good wine, it is said, may be produced, One-third of boUed apple pulp, baked with two-thirds of flour, and fer- mented for twelve hours, is said to make an excellent bread, very palatable and light. In confectionery the apple is used for comfits, compotes, marma- lades, jellies, pastes, tarts, fritters, and various other purposes. To form a jelly, the apples are " pared, quartered, and the core removed, and put in a closely-covered pot, without water, in an oven, or over a fire. When well stewed, the juice is squeezed through a cloth, a little white of an egg is added, and then sugar ; and lastly it is skimmed, and by boiling reduced to a proper consistence." — Kenrick. Medicinally, boiled or roasted apples are considered laxative and at the same time strengthening. In perfumery, the pulp of the apple beat up with lard forms pomatum ; and by mixing apples with elder-flowers, in a close vessel, an odour of musk is said to be communicated to them. The juice of the apple concentrated by boiling will keep for several years, and may be used to form a liquor similar to cider, by adding a little to water as it is wanted for use. The apple-tree when in flower is very ornamental, particularly some varieties which have their petals tinged with pink, such as the Hawthomden ; and the tree is stiil more beautiful when covered with fruit, especially with such as are highly- coloured, such as the red Astrachan, the tulip-apple, &c. The bark of the tree may be used for dyeing yellow; and the wood being fine grained and very compact, is well adapted for turning and for staining, so as to be used as a substitute for ebony. We have dwelt long on the uses of the apple, because, with Speechly, we regard it as a fruit of more use and benefit to the mass of society than all the other fruits cultivated in Britain united. 1129. Properties of a good apple. — Apples for table are characterised by a firm juicy pulp, elevated, poignant flavour, regular form, and beautiful colouring ; those for kitchen use by the property of falling, as it is techni- cally termed, or forming in general a pulpy mass of equal consistency when baked or boiled, and by a large size. Some sorts of apples have the pro- perty of falling when green, as the Keswick, Carlisle, Hawthomden, and other codlins ; and some only after being ripe, as the russet tribes. Those which have this property when green are particularly valuable for affording sauces to geese early in the season, and for succeeding the gooseberry in tarts. For cider an apple must possess a considerable degree of astringency, with or without firmness of pulp or sugariness of juice. The best kinds. Knight observes, are often tough, dry, and fibrous ; and the Siberian Har- vey, which he recommends as one of the very best cider apples, is unfit either for culinary purposes or the table. The same eminent poinologist has found that the specific gravity of the juice of any apple recently 530 THE APPLE. expressed, indicatis, with very considerable accuracy, the strength of the future cider. 1130. Varieties. — The varieties of apple in cultivation previous to the time of Henry VIII. do not appear to have been numerous; but Evelyn informs us, that Han-is, the fruiterer to that monarch, introduced many sorts of apples and other iruits from Flanders, and distributed them in the neighbourhood of thirty towns in Kent only, to the great and universal im- provement of the country. In the time of Charles I., Lord Scudamore in- troduced a number of cider apples from Normandy into Herefordshire. Hartlib, during the Commonwealth, in 1650, " believes there are nearly 600 sorts in this island." Some were introduced from Holland in the time of William III., and the number would doubtless gradually increase tUl the commencement of the present century, when it has been greatly accel- erated by the growing taste for gardening, and the great stimulus given by Mr. Knight to raising new fruits from seed. The Horticultural Society of London have collected varieties of fruit from every part of the world, and the number of sorts of apples, that have been proved in then- gardens to be distinct, is believed to be nearly 1600 ; the number of names exceeding twice that amount, many vai-ieties having more than one name. The great diffi- culty, where the choice is so ample, is to make a selection, and this, with the assistance of Mr. Thompson, we have been enabled to do, so as to present lists of unquestionable excellence. 1131. Early dessert Apples. Early Red Margaret, syn. Red juneating, middle size, conical, greenish yellow striped with red, tender and rich ; ripe in August ; a good bearer, and the fruit most abundant at the extremities of tlie branches. Early Harvest, syn. Large Early, or Prince's Harvest. Above the middle size, roundish, yellow, with crisp, juicy flesh, and brisk rich flavour ; ripe in the beginning of August. Oslin, syn. Arbroath pippin. Middle size, oblate, pale yellow, firm, rich, spicy, aromatic ; ripe in August and lasting tiU September ; a good bearer, and altogether one of the best summer apples. A Scotch variety. Kerry Pippin. Middle size, oval, yellow and red, firm, sugary, and rich ; September to October; a good bearer, a healthy tree, and altogether an excellent fruit. As the name implies, it is an Irish variety. Summer Golden Pippin. Below the middle size, ovate, flattened at the eye, yellow, crisp, and rich; September; tree of medium siie, and a tolerably good bearer. 1132. Dessert Apples to succeed early kinds. Wormsley Pippin. Middle size, roundish, pale green, crisp, juicy, and rich ; September to October ; excellent for the dessert, and pecuharly rich when cooked ; the tree a great bearer, healthy and vigorous. King of the Pippins, syn. Hampshire yellow. Above the medium size, rather oblong, yellow and red, firm, juicy, and rich ; October to January ; a great bearer, and a vigorous, healthy tree. Golden Reinette, syn. Wyker pippin. Middle size, flattish, yellow and red, sugary, rich, yellow flesh ; October to January ; a good bearer, the tree of the middle size, and the fruit very handsome. SELECTION OP DESSERT APPLES. 531 Macleans Favourite. Middle size, roundish, yellow, crisp, rich, with the flavour of the Newtown Pippin ; November till February ; tree moderately vigorous, a good bearer. Claygate Pearmain. Middle size, pearmain shaped, greenish yellow and brownish red, rich, with a Ribston pippin flavour ; November till March j tree hardy. Mibston Pippin, syn. Glory of York. Above the middle size, roundish, greenish yellow and red, crisp, juicy, peculiarly rich and high flavoui-ed ; November to March ; a good bearer, a spreadmg tree, deserving a wall, where it will not otherwise succeed. Court of Wick, syn. Wood's Huntingdon. Below the medium size, ovate, yellow and some red, firm, juicy, and rich ; a very excellent fruit ; October to April ; tree hardy, a good bearer. Pearsons Plate. Under the middle size, oblate, yeUow, green, and red, of first-rate quality ; December to March ; a good bearer, and remarkably handsome apple. Golden Harvey, syn. Brandy apple. Small, roundish, yellowish russet, firm, exceedingly rich, and high flavoured ; in this respect a fruit of the very highest excellence ; December to May ; the tree is slender, upright, and a moderate bearer. Hughes's Golden Pippin. Small size, roundish, yellow, firm, juicy, rich ; December to P'ebi'uary ; a good bearer, and a moderately vigorous tree. Pitmaston Nonpareil. Middle size, roundish, pale green with slight rus- set, rich nonpareil flavour ; December till February ; a good bearer. Braddick's Nonpareil. Nearly middle size, roundish, green, and bright brownish red, partakes of nonpareil flavour ; January till April ; tree a most abundant bearer. Herefordshire Pearmain, syn. Old Pearmain. Above the middle size. Fig. 359. Pearmrcm-'haj'et exemptiRed in the Hsrefiyrdfhire Pearmain Apple, The Pearmain shape is understood to be a truncated cone, with the base rouaded, and projecting more towards the stalk on one side than the other. 532 THE APPLE. pearniain-sliaped (fig. 359), yellowish, green and red, rich, yellowish flesh ; November to March ; a good bearer, and a spreading, healtliy tree. Sturtner Pippin. Middle size, short, conical, yellowish green and brownish red, firm, brisk, rich ; February to June ; a good bearer and a healthy tree. The fruit retains its briskness tUl Midsummer. Court Pendu-Plat, syn. Gamon's apple. Middle size, oblate, green and red, firm, rich, and sugary; December to April; a great bearer, a small tree, blossoming late, by which it escapes the spring frosts. A Dutch variety. Reinette du Canada. Large, flattened, greenish yeUow and brown, juicy, brisk, very rich, subacid ; November to April; tree spreading, and a good bearer. Very common in France. Old Nonpareil, syn. Reinette Nonpareil. Middle size, roundish, flattened, and broadest at the base, greenish yellow, firm, crisp, peculiarlj' rich, aro- matic ; January to M4y ; a good bearer, a tree with slender shoots, rather upright than spreading, and the fruit excellent. Scarlet Nonpareil. Middle size, roundish, greenish yellow and red, firm, crisp, sugary ; January to April ; a good bearer and a healthy tree. iownton Nonpareil. Middle size or rather large, round, greenish russet, juicy, with sharp, brisk flavour; December till April; tree hardy, and an excellent bearer. 1133. Early Kitchen Apples. Dutch Codlin. Very large, roundish, greenish yellow; August to Septem- ber ; a good bearer, and a vigorous tree. Keswick Codlin. Above the middle size, conital, greenish yellow, juicy, subacid ; August to September ; a great bearer and a healthy tree. Hawthornden. Large, roundish, oblate, pale green, firm, juicy, subacid ; October to December ; a great bearer, the tree coming soon into bearing. Nonesuch. Middle size, round, green streaked with red, crisp, subacid ; September to October ; a good bearer, and the tree of medium size. The fruit of this variety is noted for its transparency when made into apple-jelly, for which pui'pose it is the best sort in cultivation. 1134. Kitchen Apples for Winter and Spring use. Blenheim Pippin, syn. Blenheim orange. Very large, roundish, yellow and streaked with red, tender and rich; November to February; a mo- derate bearer, and a strong growing tree. This is also a very good dessert apple. Tower of Glammis, syn. Late Carse of Gowrie. Large, conical, greenish yellow, brownish red next the sun, firm, juicy ; November till Februaiy ; tree vigorous, a good bearer ; a heavy, excellent kitchen apple. Waltham Abbey Seedling. Large, roundish, yellow, firm, requires but little sugar in cooking; September till February ; the tree an abundant bearer. Dumelow's Seedling, syn. Wellington. Above the middle size, roundish, yellow and red, finn, crisp, juicy; November to March; a good bearer, and a hardy spreading tree. The.frait in long keeping retains well its briskness. Bedfordshire Foundling, syn. Cambridge pippin. Large, roundish, gi-eenish yellow, firm and rich ; November to March ; a good, bearer, and a vigorous healthy tree. SELECTION OP KITCHEN AND CIDER APPLES. 533 Alfriston. Very large, roundish, greenish yellow, firm, juicy, subacid; November to April ; a good bearer, and a healthy tree. Gloria Mundi, syn. Monstrous pippin. Very large, roundish, yellow, tender, juicy ; October to January ; a moderate bearer ; the fruit, from its size, is apt to be blown from the tree, unless it be grown on dwarfs. An American variety. Royal Russet, syn. Leathercoat. Large, obtuse, conical, russet, somewhat rough and subacid in flavour, but excellent cooked ; November to May ; a good bearer, and a spreading tree. Brabant Bellefleur. Large, i-oundish, yellow and red, firm, crisp, juicy ; November to April ; a good bearer, a spreading tree, and an excellent fruit. Northern Greening. Middle size, oval, green, firm, crisp, juicy, subacid ; November to April ; a good bearer, and the fruit not liable to shrivel. Norfolk Beaufin, syn. N. Beefin. Middle size, roundish, green and dark red, hard consistence ; December to June ; a good bearer, and the fruit excellent when dried as a sweetmeat. Easter Pippin, syn. French Crab. Middle size, roundish, green and dull brown, and will keep above a year, firm, crisp, and subacid ; December ; a good bearer, and a hardy tree. Gooseberry Pippin, Large, somewhat oblong, yellow, firm, subacid ; February till August ; named from its sauce being a substitute for, and re- sembling that of green gooseberries. 1135. Cider Apples. Siberian Bitter Sweet. Small, roundish ovate, yellow, more sweet than bitter ; September ; a great bearer, and the tree free from insects and canker. Foioley. Small, roundish ovate, orange yellow, specific gravity 1080; Ottober and November ; a great bearer, and a healthy vigorous tree. Red Streak, syn. Old Red Streak, or Scudamore's Crab. Roundish, streaked, spec. grav. 1079 ; December to April ; a good bearer' and the fruit produces cider of the first quality. Fox Whelp. Middle size, ovate, dark red, spec. grav. 1078 j December to January ; a good bearer, and a healthy tree. Golden Harvey. A dessert apple, already described, which produces excellent cider, spec. grav. 1085. Hagloe Crab. Small, ovate, yellowish, spec. grav. 1081 ; October to February ; a great bearer, and a healthy, hardy tree. Coopers Red Streak. Middle size, roundish, streaked; November to December ; a great bearer, and a vigorous, healthy tree. 1136. Dessert apples which may be used as kitchen apples. — Sugarloaf Pippin, Wormsley Pippin, Autumn Pearmain, King of the Pippins, Fearn's Pippin, Ribston Pippin, Old Pomeroy, Herefordshire Pearmain, Reinette du Canada, Dutch Mignonne, Downton Nonpareil, Newtown Pippin, Boston Russet. 1137. Kitchen apples which may be used as dessert apples. — Gravenstein, Blenheim Pippin, Bedfordshire Foundlmg, London Pippin, Northern Green- ing, Rhode Island Greening. 1138. Apples for cottage gardens, where the soil and situation are favour- able; and which may be used either for the table or the kitchen. — Where the space will admit of only one tree, the best is the Ribston Pippin; where two, the Ribston Pippin and the Blenheim Pippin ; where three, or more. 534 THE APPLE. add successively to those previously named, the Sturmer Pippin, King of the Pippins, HerefordsIiL-e Pearmain, Wormsley Pippin, Reinette du Canada, Bedfordsliire Foundling, Downton Nonpareil, Waltham Abbey Seedling. 1139. Apples for training against the walls or on the roofs of cottages, or on the walls of cottage gardens. (See p. 471) — Ribston Pippin, Old Non- pareil; and if a large kitchen apple be required, the Bedfordshire Foundling, 1 140. Apples for cottage gardens in situations liable to spring frosts. — The Court Pendu-plat, as expanding its blossoms later in the season than any other apple; and the Northern Greening. 1141. Apples for a cottage garden in an unfariourdble climate. — The Clay- gate Pearmain and Sturmer Pippin are considerably hardier than the Ribston Pippin. The Northern Greening is a hardy and late kitchen apple ; and the Keswick Codling is a hardy autumn kitchen apple. The Hawthornden comes earlier into bearing than any other variety generally cultivated ; and it is to be preferred to the Keswick Codling, were it not that it is liable tQ canker in some soils. 1142. Apples adapted for walls of different aspects are enumerated ia p. 422. 1143. Apples adapted for espaliers, dwarfs, or conical standards, are enu- merated in p. 428. 1144. Apples suitable for an orchard are enumerated in p. 431. 1145. Apples remarkable for the form of the tree, or the beauty of the blossoms or fruit. — The red Astrachan has the fruit of a bright red, with a fine bloom like that of a plum. The white Astrachan, or transparent crab of Moscow, has the fruit of a wax colour, with a fine bloom, and it is almost transparent. The black crab has small fruit which is of no use, but it is so dark as almost to be black. The Lincolnshire Holland pippin is remark- able for the large size of its blossoms, and the fruit keeps tEl February. The tulip apple has fruit of a very bright red, and is a great bearer. The violet apple has fruit of a violet colour, covered with a bloom like that of the plum. The cherry crab is a spreading tree with drooping branches, and numerous fruit about the size and colour of a large cherry. The supreme crab is a more erect tree than the cherry crab, with larger fruit. Bigg's everlasting crab is a vigorous-growing, round-headed tree, the fruit and leaves of which remain on long after Christmas, in sheltered situations. 1146. General principles of selecting varieties of the apple. — The first requisite in forming a selection is to determine how far the climate, soU, and uituation, differ from those of the central counties of England, which may be taken as those for which most of the selections above given are adapted. A number of varieties which may be grown as B^indards in the centre or the south of England, require a wall in various parts of the north of England and of Scotland. The winter and spring table apples may require a south wall in one district, while in another they may attain equal maturity as standards or espaliers. Where there is ample room, a selection of large sorts, as the Alexander and Blenheim pippin, or of such as are the most beautifully coloured, as the violet, HoUandbury, &c., may be made to gratify the eye ; wliere room is wanting, useful sorts and great bean^rs are to be preferred, — such, indeed, as are enumerated in PROPAGATION OP THE APPLE. 535 ihe aliove selection, which has been made with a view to both quality and abundance of produce. In general, small-sized fruit are to be pre- ferred for standards, as less likely to break down the branches of the trees, or be shaken down by winds; middling- sized and high flavoured sorts for walls; and the largest of all for espaliers. In respect to a soil liable to produce canker, sorts raised from cuttings may be desirable, as the Burknott and codling tribe; and where an occupier of a garden has only a short interest therein, such as come into imme- diate bearing, as the Burknotts and others from cuttings, and the Haw- thomden and other short-lived dwarf sorts on Paradise or creeping stocks, may deserve the preference. On the contrary, where a plantation is made on freehold property, or with a view to posterity, new varieties on crab or free stocks should always be chosen, as, if for cider, the Grange, Ingestrie, Harvey, &c. Some excellent sorts will grow and produce crops everywhere, as the Hawthornden, codling, and Ribston pippin ; the latter of which Nicol says, will grow at John o'Groat's House, and may be planted in Cornwall; others are shy bearers in cold situations, as the Newtown pippin of America, most of the newly-imported French sorts ; and the Ita- lian apple Malo di Carlo, which though exceedingly beautiful and delicious in the north of Italy, proves pale and insipid in England in our finest summers. Indeed, the apples of the south of Europe generally, when transplanted to England, prove worthless. See 887. 1147. Propagation. — The apple may be propagated by seeds, cuttings of the branches or roots, by layers, suckers, inarching, grafting, or budding, but the two last modes are most generally adopted for continuing varieties, and seeds are seldom resorted to, except when new varieties are the object. Only a few sorts, such as the Burknott, some of the codlings, and the creep- ing apple, can be increased readily by cuttings ; but this mode is resorted to occasionally, when these kinds are wanted as stocks for grafting on. Suckers from a grafted tree can only be used as stocks; but from kinds of apple which are used chiefly as stocks, such as the paradise apple, suckers are not an uncommon mode of propagation. It thus appears that the first step in the propagation of the apple by grafting or budding, is the propagation of the stock. Crab stocks are raised from seeds of the wild crab, and are used when the object is strong and durable trees ; wildings or seedling apple stocks, are used for strong trees in good soils, and are raised from seeds of apple trees, most commonly of free-growing seedlings, which have grown in hedges in cider counties, or from cider apples; dwarfing stocks, such as the paradise, doncin, creeping apple, and some codlings, are commonly raised from layers (625) and suckers. Seedlings, after one year's growth in the seed-bed, are transplanted in rows, three feet apart and eighteen inches dis- tance in the row ; and they are commonly grafted the third or fourth spring from the seed, when they are from half an inch to one inch in thickness. Both dwarfs and standards are commonly grafted within a few inches of the ground, and the standards are formed by encouraging the leading shoot, which is commonly cut over at the end of the second year at the height of five or six feet from the ground, and after it has grown another season in the nursery, the side-shoots being cut off about midsummer, it is fit for being transplanted to where it is finally to remain. If the tree should not bp, sold or transplanted the first year after the head is formed, the shoots are 536 TOE APPLE. shortenerl, technically " headed in," to one or two buds, and this operation is rupeated every spring till the plant is sold or transplanted to where it is finally to remain. The same heading-in takes place with dwarfs, the reason in both cases being that it is desirable to have no more wood left on the tree than the root, after undergoing the mutilation consequent on transplanting, can readily support. Occasionally, both standards and dwarfs are trained in the nursery, either as standards or as dwarfs or espaliers, in which case, at the time they are to be removed, great care is requisite to take them up with as large a proportion of their roots as possible. The more frequently- dwarf trees are transplanted in the nursery before being finally removed, the greater will be the number of their fibrous roots ; and as these must neces- sarily be within a limited space, the quantity of nourishment they take up will be limited also. Hence by their number of fibrous roots, they will suffer little from removal, while by the concentration of these roots they will only absorb the nourishment obtained within a very limited space, and thus keep the tree dwarf, and throw it early into a fruit-bearing state ; or at least pre- vent it from growing so vigorously as if it were furnished with a number of ramose roots, which by extending their fibres to a distance have a proportion- ately greater command of nourishment. Hence maiden plants one year grafted on free stocks that have not been transplanted, are to be preferred in every case where the object is large and vigorous trees ; and when the object is dwarf trees, plants on dwarfing stocks that have been several times transplanted should be chosen. 1148. Soil and Situation. — The apple tree acquires the largest dimensions in a deep strong loam, or marly clay, on a rooky bottom, or on a subsoil that is not retentive of moisture, and in a situation which is neither very high nor very low. " It will grow tolerably well in any common soil, neither extremely sandy, gravelly, nor clayey, on a dry subsoil, and with a free exposure. On wet, hilly subsoil, it will do no good ; but, after being planted a few years, will become cankered, and get coveied with moss. Where fruit trees must be planted on such soils, they should first be rendered as dry as possible by under-draining ; next, provision made for carrying oiF the rain-water by surface-gutters ; and, lastly, the ground should not be trenched above a foot deep, and the trees planted rathe? in hillocks of earth, above the surface, than in pits dug into it. There is no point of more im- portance than shallow trenching and shallow planting in cold wet soils, in which deep pits and deep pulverisation only serve to aggravate their natural evils of moisture and cold." — Sang. 1 1 49. Mode of bearing, pruning, and training. — The apple bears invariably on the old wood, often on that of the preceding year, and the blossoms con- tinue being produced from terminal and lateral spurs, or short robust shoots, for a great number of years. These spurs require to be thinned out, when they become crowded, to be shortened when they become too long, and to be cut in when they become so old as to produce smaller fruit than is desirable. The treatment of spurs is that part of the pruning of the apple when trained against walls or espaliers, on which the production of fruit chiefly depends, and it requires greater skill and care than any other part of pmning. For this reason, and as the spur pruning of the apple corresponds exactly with the spur pruning of the pear against walls or espaliers, and iu a PRUNING AND TRAINING THE APPLE. S37 great measure also with that of all other fruit trees that bear on spurs, we shall enter into it here at some length, as this will save repetition in treating of the pear, cherry, plum, apricot, mulberry, and even the gooseberry and currant. We shall commence with an apple tree one year grafted, just taken from a nursery and planted at the base of a wall or espalier rail. We shall give the winter and summer praning for ten years, commencing every year with the beginning of the winter pruning, which should always be performed as early in the winter as possible. We have supposed the tree to be trained in the horizontal manner, but the mode of treating tlie spurs is equally applicable to every other kind of training, and to standard trees or bushes as well as to those against walls or espaliers. We quote this article verbatim from the Gardener's Magazine, Vol. III. 1160. Spurring-in pruning. First year. Winter pruning. — The tree is headed down before it begins to push ; in doing which, the foot is placed upon the soil, and close to the bole, in order to prevent it from being drawn up by the force which is used in the operation. The cut is made in a sloping direction towards the wall, and about half an inch above the bud which is selected for the leading shoot. The tree is cut down so that seven buds remain. Sumnner pruning. If all the buds push (which will generally be the case), they are all permitted to grow until they have attained three inches in length, when two of them are rubbed off ; those rubbed off are the third and fourth buds, counting upwards from the origin of the tree, The upper- most shoot is trained straight up the wall for a leading stem, and the remaining four horizontally along the wall, two on each side the stem of the tree. These shoots are trained nine inches apart, for when they are much nearer than this they exclude the sun and air from operating upon the buds and wood, in such a manner as is required to keep the tree productive. When the leading upright shoot has attained about fifteen inches in length, the end is pinched off so as to leave it about eleven inches long. This causes shoots to be produced from the upper part of the leader thus stopped, three of which are trained in, the uppermost straight up the wall, and the others one on each side the stem of the leader. This stopping of the leading shoot is not performed later than the end of June or early in July ; for, when it is done much later, those shoots which push afterwards in that season do not arrive at a sufficient degree of maturity to withstand the winter, and are frequently destroyed by frost. When it happens that a tree has not done well in the early part of the season, and the upright shoot is not of a suitable length or vigour at the proper period for stopping it, it is not meddled with afterwards until the winter pruning of the tree. When the tree grows either too weak or too vigorous, lower the branches or raise them as may be required. See 791, rule 2. Second year. — Winter pruning. At the middle or end of November the tree is pruned. The upright leading shoot is now shortened down to ten inches from the place where it was last stopped. The tree will now be represented by the accompanying sketch (fig. 360). The side shoots (but which will hereafter be termed branches), are not shortened, but left their full length. If, during summer, the end of a branch should have been accidentally broken or damaged, the general consequence resulting from it is the production of several shoots or fruit buds. If shoots (which is very 5S8 THE APPLE. generally the case) were produced, and were shortened during summer agreeably to directions for similar shoots in the treatment of the tret for the second year (see Summer pruning), they are now cut down to about half an inch in length (iig. 361). If, instead of shoots, natural fruit-buds should have been produced (these are short and stiff, from half an inch to an inch in length, and reddish at the ends), such are allowed to remain untouched, as it is on those that fruit are produced. The advantage of shortening back the upright shoot as much as is directed to be done is, that by it branches are certain to be produced at those places desired, so that no vacancy occurs. The leadhig upright shoot thus attended to will reach the top of a wall twelve feet high in seven years, which is as soon as the tree will be able to do, so as to support every part sufficiently. The tree is always loosened from the wall every winter pruning ; the wall is swept and washed, recoloured with paint or coal-tar, if required ; and the tree is anointed with soft soap, or some anti-insect composition, and pjg. 350. «■„,>„„,„, Training, nm year. fresh mulch laid to its roots. Summer pruning. — When the buds upon that part of the leading stem which was produced last have pushed, they are all rubbed off to the three uppermost. The topmost is trained straight up the wall, for a lead to the main stem ; and the two others, one on each side. The instructions given for stopping the leading shoot in summer, also shortening it back in winter pruning, &c., are attended to until the tree arrives at a few inches from the top of the wall. The side branches are allowed to grow without being shortened back at any time, until they have extended as far as can be per- mitted, when they are pnined in every winter, by cutting back each leading shoot to two buds from where it pushed the previous spring. Any shoots arising from the fore part of the main stem are taken clean away. The buds upon the wood made last year wUl this summer generally make fruit- ful ones. If, on the contrary (as is sometimes the case), shoots are produced instead of fruitful buds, they are allowed to grow ten or twelve inclies long, until the wood atiains a little hardness towards the bottom of it, when they are cut down to about two inches in length ; and at the bottom part of what remains, one or two fruit-buds are formed, so as to be productive in most cases the next year, but in others not until the second year. Although such a shoot was shortened as directed, yet it will generally push a shoot or more the same season from the top part of it. After such have grown a suitable length (as before described), they are cut back to about two inches from where they pushed. If more than one shoot were produced after the first shortening, and a bud or two is well swelled at the origin of the shoot (as before described), all the shoots are left, and shortened as directed ; but, if no such bud is produced, all the shoots are cut clean away, excepting one, which is treated in shortening as before directed. The latter practice will generally be found necessary, and also be more advantageous, as a greater SPrR-PKTJNING THE APPLE, 539 portion of sun and air is admitted to tlie buds, wliicli will be considerably strengthened and forwarded to a mature state. If after such treatment fruit-buds are not produced from the origin of the shoot, naU the shoot to the wall, parallel with the branch, which isimiformly successful in producing them. Third year. — Winter pruning. Such of the buds as produced wood shoots the last year, and were shortened during summer as described, are now sliortened more. It frequently happens that a fniitful bud, or in some instances two, will have been formed at the lower part of tlie shoot, (iig. 361, a a) ; such shoots are now cut off about a quarter of an inch above the uppei'most of the fruitful buds (6) : but (as it is sometimes the case), if there have not been fruitful buds produced, there will be growing buds, and then the shoots are cut down so as to leave one bud (fig. 361, c). On some occasions the growing buds and fruitful buds will appear but very in- distinctly, and in an embryo state ; when this is the case the shoots are cut down so as to leave two of those em- bryo buds (d d). There are generally some natural fruit buds which did not push to shoots, all such are left entire (e). They are of a reddish colour, and are easily distinguished from grow- ing buds, which are considerably less and all of a dark colour. Summer pruning. This summer the fruitful buds are productive. When the fruit has swelled a little, a shoot generally proceeds from the stem of the spur (which it may now be called), just underneath the fruit : such are allowed to grow eight or ten inches long, and are then shortened back to two inches, or so as to leave three eyes upon each (fig. 362, A a). K ^ Fig. 361. Spur Pruning, third year. rig. 362. Spi^r Pntning, fourth year. By shortening the shoot, strength is thrown into the frait, and, during summer, two or more fruit-buds are generally produced at the bottom of the shoot thus out down (fig. 362, J J), or, otherwise, from the lower part of the spur (fig. 3C2, c). It sometimes occurs that when the tree is very vigorous, some of the buds (fig. 362, ft 6) will push into shoots, or occasionally into bloom, during the latter end of summer. If shoots, they are allowed to grow, and are then shortened, as described for similar shoots ; but, when bloom is produced, it is immediately cut off close under the blossom. The shoots (fig. 363, c) produced after the third year's winter pruning are 540 THE APPLE. allowed to grow, and are then shortened, as already directed for similar shoots (see Second year's summer pruning) . The shoots which were pruned as directed last winter, and had embryo buds (fig. 361, dcf) durins^ this summer generally have a fruit-bud, and in some cases two, formed at theu' bases. The treatment of all shoots produced upon any of the spurs in future, is agreeably to the previous instructions given. Always thin the fruit, and where two are situated together, take one away ; this is done when they begin to swell. Fourth Year. — Winter Pruning. The spurs (fig. 362, a b) which were productive last summer, and upon which a shoot was made and shortened (fig. 362, a, spur a), are now regulated in the following manner ; — If there be two good fruit-buds formed upon the stem of the spur (fig. 362, d d, spur b), all that part of it above such buds is cut away, about a quarter of an inch above the uppermost (as at c) ; but, if there is only one good frait- bud upon the stem, and one upon the shoot which was cut in during sum- mer (as at a, spur a), then it is pruned off (as at spur c, ee), so that two buds only remain (as at ff). When there is only one fruit-bud upon the stem of the spur (as spur », o), and no fruitful buds at the shoot (6), then all the spur is pruned away (as at e). Sometimes those spurs that bear fruit will not have a shoot produced, but, instead of it, a fruitful bud (as spur E, a) J it is then pruned off just above such bud (as at b). Summer Pruning. All shoots are pruned, as ah'eady directed, in the second and third years. Pifth Year. — Winter Pruning. All the spurs are allowed to retain three fruitful buds each ; but as there are generally more than is required to keep, some of them are thinned away, retaining the best buds. The ripest buds are most plump and red at the ends. If such buds are situated near to the origin of the spur (as fig. 363, spur &, aa a), they are retained in preference to similar fruitful C\\y^ buds that are nigher the end of the spur (asb b) ; the spur is then cut off (as at c c). When there are no fruitful buds near to the origin of the spur, those are left that are further off ; but always take care to preserve the bud situated nearest to the branch which supports the spur, whether it be a growing or a fruitful one (as spur b, in which o is a fruitful bud, and b a grow- ing one). If there be a suitable supply of buds upon the old part of the spur (as c, c c c), they are retained in preference to those buds formed at the bases of shoots which have been pruned during summer (as e b) ; for when there is a proper supply on the old part of the spur, all such shoots arc cut clean away, with the exception of one that is situated near to the origiu of the spur (as e), when that bud and the two next are only left. Summer Pruning is performed as before directed. Sixth Year. — Winter Pruning. In order to convey a correct method of Fig. 363. Spur Pruning, fiflh year. SPUR PHUNINa THE APPLE. 541 tlie treatment of the spurs in future, it will be necessary to point them out hy numbeiB) as 1, 2, and 3. The enumeration will proceed from the bole of the tree, along the branch. After three spurs are thus numbered, begin again, and proceed with No. 1, &c. (agreeably to fig. 864). £very spur, No. 1, is now cut down to the lowest bud there is upon it, whether it I'S a fruitful bud (as a), or growing bud (as 6). Every spur, No. 2, to have three fruit buds (as cee), and every spur, No. 3, to have four fruit buds (as d4dd). When a spur, No. 1, is destitute of either a fruitful or a grovdng bud towards ei. 3 , the lower part of it, '"* ^' such a spur is cut down BO low as only to leave about one half inch re- maining (as fig. 364, a). There is generally an eye or embryo of a bud situated near to the origin of the spur (as a, spur a) ; from this a shoot or a fruitful bud is produced the ensuing Fig. 364. Spur Pruning^ sixth year. summer, and thus a supply is obtained for that cut away. Summer Pruning. All shoots are shortened during summer, as before directed. Particular care is paid to the spurs No. 1, as a shoot or a fruitful bud is generally produced nearer to the base of the spur than to the bud that was left at winter pruning, and most commonly at the opposite side of the spur to it. Either a shoot or a^ fruitful bud generally pushes from those spurs that were cut entirely down (as spur a, fig. 364) ; the shoots are cut down, as directed for others. Seventh Year. — Winter Pruning. Tlie spurs No. 1 now generally have two fruit- buds each ; they are allowed to retain them (as fig. 365, a a). If, instead of a fruitful bud, a shoot pushed (as 6), and a fruitful bud was formed at the lower part of it; the shoot is then cut off just above it (as at c) ; but if there is not a fruitfulbud formed, itiscutdovi'n,soasto leave it half an inch long (as at d). The spurs No. 2 have four fruit-buds left upon each (aseeee); the spurs, No. 3, are now cut down, so that only one fruitful bud remains (as/). If a fruit-bud has been produced from the spur cut entirely away (aa spur A, fig. 364), it is left entire (as fig. 365, ijr) ; but if a shoot, instead of a fruitful bud, it is cut off just above the lowest bud, whether a fruitful or a iTowing bud (as at h, spur b). This treatment to such spurs cut entirely down, is always pursued to similar ones in future. N M Fig. 365. Spur Pruning, seventh year. THE APPLE. Fig. 366. Spar Pruning, eighth year. Fig. 367. Spur Pruning, ninth year. 542 Summer Pruning. — This is attended to agreeably to the foregoing directions. Eighth Year. — Winter Pruniru). The spurs, No. 1, are allowed to retain three fi-uit buds each (as fig. 366, a a o), and the spurs, No. 2, are now cut down (as 6) ; the spurs. No. 3, are regulated as was done to spurs Nos. 1 and 2. See Sixth and Seventh Year's Summer Pruning. Summer Pruning. This is performed as before directed. Ninth Year.— Winter Pruning. The spurs, No. 1, are allowed to have four fruit-buds each (as fig. 367, aaaa); the spurs. No. 2, to have two fruit- ful buds (as 6 6), and the spurs. No. 3, to have three (as c c c). Summer Pruning. Performed as before. Tenth year. — Winter Pruning. The spurs, No. 1, are now cut down again (as fig. 368, a, a fruitful bud, and 6, a growing bud). The spurs, No. 2, are pruned to three fhiit-buds (as e e c), and the spurs. No. 3, to four fruit-buds (asddd d). It will be observed that the spurs, No. ), have now been cut down twice ; the first time in the sixth year, and the second in the tenth. Thus, those spurs cut down to a fruitful bud n ..^ (as fig. 364, a) have borne fruit il..,^jr ft"i^ years j and those spurs cut entirely down, or to a growing bud (as A, b, fig. 364), would have only borne fruit three years. In these two cases, always leave the spurs with three fruit-buds each this winter, and cut them down the following winter, un- less they have grown very vigor- ous and straggling. The system already detailed, of cutting down and renewing the spurs, is practised with all others as here directed. Thus, the next year, the spurs No. 3 are cut down (as in fig. 365,/;, and the second year from this time, the spurs No. 2. (as fig. 366, 6), and in the fourth year from the present time, the spurs No. 1 out down (as fig. 364, a, and fig. 368, a) requh-e to be cut down again. ConduHon — To some the above directions may appear tedious and intricate ; but it became necessary to enter into minute details, in order to illustrate the principle of this system of spur pruning, the object of which is to obtain spurs always at a proper distance from each other, so that a suitable portion of sun and air may be admitted to them, and so that the spurs may always be itept supplied with young healthy wood and Flff. 868. Spur Pruning^ tenth year. PRONING TUB APPLE. 543 fruitful buds. This renewal of spurs may be practised for a great many times, and thus those long injurious straggling spurs which are so generally seen on wall trees and espaliers may be avoided. (G. M. iii. p. 2 — 9.) 1151. Pruning^ with reference to the entire tree, should have for its object to admit the light and air among the branches, to preserve the symmetry of the head by causing it to spread equally, and in the same form and manner on every side, and to eradicate branches which are diseased or decaying. In the case of espalier and wall trees it may frequently be- come necessary to shorten a portion of the roots in order to lessen the vigour of the branches, and throw them into a fruit-bearing state ; and the same treatment may occasionally be required for dwarfs, and conical trees (794 and 798) on dwarfing stocks ; but it can seldom or never be either necessary or desirable for standards, which require the aid of long ramose roots to enable them to resist high winds ; and their roots as well as their heads having abundant space for extension, a due equilibrium is preserved between them. {G.M.for 1842,^.309.) Most trees and shrubs, whether fruit-bearing, ornamental, or merely useful, require a certain degree of pruning in sum- mer, as well as in autumn or spring. The object of summer-pruning, in all standards and bushes, ought to be to stop or to thin out shoots of the current year, in order the better to admit the sun and air to mature, by means of the leaves, the shoots which remain. The shoots, so stopped or removed, may either be cut or stopped to one or two buds with a view to forming spurs, or cut close off, according as there may or may not be room for the spurs to be developed. In the case of trees on walls, espaliers, or trained as dwarfs, or cones, it is not desirable to add much strength to the root, and therefore most of the summer shoots should be shortened early in the season by pinching out their points with the finger and thumb, when they are only a few inches in length, repeating this operation when the shoot, thus shortened, has again developed its last or farthest bud, as in the case of summer pruning the vine (961). At the same time, wherever shoots are wanted to complete the form o r dimensions of the tree, or when it is desirable to add strength to the stem or the root, there the branches should be left at their full length to be laid in, shortened, or cut out, at the au- tumnal or winter's pruning, as may be found most desirable. The apple against a wall or espalier is almost always trained in the horizontal manner, already described in detail (806) : it is better adapted for dwarfs than any other fruit-tree, and the mode of training these, as well as of forming cones, has been given (792 to 799). Espalier-training has been exemplified (896), and also apple -training against walls (806). Apple-trees, when grown old and unfruitful, may frequently be headed in (762) with advantage, more especially if the surface of the soil is stirred and enriched with fresh soil and manure. They may also be riegrafted (653). 1162. Gathering and keeping. — All apples, intended to be kept for some weeks or months, should be gathered by hand and carried to the fruit-room in baskets ; but as it is difficult to prevent a number of fruit from dropping, or in exposed situations from being blown down by the wind, aU that are bruised should be kept by themselves, in order to be used first. Table apples should be spread out singly on shelves, or packed in sand, fern, or kiln-dried straw, or in jars with any of these materials (858) ; but kitchen sorts may be laid in layers on shelves, or on a cool floor. The common mode of keeping, by those who grow apples in large quantities for the market, is to N N 2 544 THE APPLE. lay them in heaps in cool dry cellars, and cover them with abundance of straw. In some parts of England they are preserved in ridges, the apples being laid on, and covered with, green tuvf or straw, and the lidge finished with a foot or more of soil to keep out the frost, in the same manner as is done in keeping potatoes in ridges or hods. By this mode they keep per- fectly ; but it is evidently better adapted for a market gardener who sells his prod uce in large quantities, than for a gentleman's gardener who has to furnish small portions of fruit daily. For him, shelves or the cellar-floor are to be preferred during the winter, and jars during the spring and summer months. The French crab, the noi-thern greening, and various other long keeping sorts, may be preserved in dry sand, on a large scale in cellars, or in ridges (or hods or pies, as they are called in some places), or on a small scale in jars kept in cellars, for two years or upwards. The French crab maj' also be kept on shelves in a garret for two years ; but by this mode it is always more or less shrivelled. What is termed the sweating of apples, consists in covering them with short grass, aftermath hay, mats, or blankets, or any similar covering, so as to excite a degree of fermentation, the heat produced by which expands the water in the apple, and causes it to exude through the pores of the skin. This takes place sooner or later, according to the tempe- rature of the atmosphere, but generally, in a fmit-cellar at 40°, in the course of a week or ten days, after which the apples are wiped, and being thus deprived of a portion of their moisture, it is thought they will keep better. This may be true where they are kept on shelves, exposed to a change of air J but the natural moisture of the apple is no impediment to its keeping in any situation where the air and the temperature are not, or but very slightly, changed. — (See 8«8 and 930.) 1153. Diseases, Insects, Casualties, \yiea in the Royal good bearer when the tree has attamed a certain age, DuJa Cherry. (j^t not when it is young. 1184. Cherries for preserving. Kentish, syn. Montmorency i longue queue. Middle size, oblate, bright red, flesh whitish, juicy, acid ; middle to the end of July ; a great bearer, the tree with drooping shoots. The fruit of this variety is much used for pies. It has also the peculiar property of the stalk adhering so firmly to the stone that the latter may be drawn out without breaking the skin, ex- cepting at the base. In this state the fruit is dried in hair sieves in the sun, or placed in a gently heated oven, and the cherries so treated will keep a year, and when brought to table have the appearemce of raisins. Morello, syn. Amarena, Ital. Large, obtuse, heart-shaped, dark red, flesh purplish red, juicy, acid ; August and September ; an abundant bearer, and chiefly on the one year old wood ; the fruit is excellent for preserving and for putting into brandy. 1185. Cherries adapted for being trained against walls of different aspects. See p. 422. 118G. Cherries adapted for espaliers or dwarfs. See p. 428. 1187. Cherries adapted for being grown as standards. See p. 433. 1188. Cherries for a cottage garden. — May Duke, Late Duke, Kentish, and Morello. 1189. Cherries for the north of Scotland. — May Duke, Elton, Downton, Tilger's Redheart, Winter's Blackheart, Lundy Gean, Kentish, Morello. 1190. Propagation, nursery culture, and choice of plants. — Budding is more frequently resorted to than grafting, because the wounds made by the latter operation are apt to gum. Stocks raised from stones of the wild cherry. CULTtTRE 0? THE CHERRY. 665 Of the cultivated cherry, are used when free growing plants are required ; the Morello, when the object is plants of moderate size; and the perfumed clieiTy {Cerasus Mahdleb), when very dwarf trees are wanted. Standard cherry trees are generally budded standard high, on free stocks of three years' growth from the seed, which have been one year transplanted. Cherry stones for stocks are sown in sandy soil in autumn, immediately after they have been taken from the fruit ; or they are preserved in sand through the winter, the heap being two or three times turned over, and sown in spring. The plants come up the same season, and may be transplanted in autumn, in rows three feet apart, one foot distant in the row if for dwarfs, and eighteen inches if for standards. If for dwarfs, they may be budded the following summer; but if for standards, a third season's growth will be required. The dwarfs require no pruning the first year ; but the second spring, if not sold, or transplanted to where they are finally to remain, they requh-e to be cut down, and, if intended for a wall, the shoots should be flat trained by means of a row of three or four stakes to each tree. Whatever pruning is required for the cherry should be done a little before midsummer, which, while it is found to prevent gumming, is also favourable for the healing over of the wounds the same season. The best plants for removal are those which have been one or two years worked ; but as the chcny produces abundance of fibrous roots, it may be transplanted after it has been three or four years trained, more especially if growing in a loamy soil. 1191. Soil, situation, and final planting. — The cherry grows naturally in dry sandy soils, and in situations rather elevated than low ; but the culti- vated tree requires a soil rather more loamy, which, however, must be on a dry bottom. Almost all the varieties may be grown as standards, and there is no great diflFerence between them in regard to hardiness ; but the earliest and largest fruit is produced against walls, by which the fmit is also improved in flavour, while the apple and pear grown against walls are apt to become mealy. The distances at which cheiTy-trees may be planted against walls, espaliers, as dwarfs, and in the orchard, are given 890, 902, and 908. 1192. Mode of bearing, pruning, and training. — The fruit is generally produced on small spurs or studs, from half an inch to two niches in length, which proceed from the sides and ends of the two-j'ear, three-year, and occasionally from the older branches ; and as the new spurs continue being produced from recently formed wood, bearing branches are never shortened back where there is room for their extension. The cherry is not very pro- lific in wood, and the shoots do not often cross one another, therefore very little pruning is required for standards. Against walls, or espaliers, the horizontal mode of training is generally adopted, excepting for the Morello, the Kentish, and other slender-wooded kinds, for which some of the modi- fications of the fan method (801 to 805) may be chosen. The Morello, as it bears on the wood of the last year, may be trained in Mr. Seymour's manner, figs. 291 to 295, or in the half-fan manner, figs. 313 and 318. In summer-pruning strong growing cherries, most of the laterals should be stopped when a few inches in length ; but in the case of the Morello, a regular supply of young wood should be left all along the branches, as exhi- bited in Mr. Seymour's figures, p. 367, to succeed the shoots which are charged with fruit. The Morello produces a few fruit on spurs formed on two-year old wood, but scarcely ever on wood of the third year ; therefore 556 THE CHERRY. the only mode of managing this tree, to ensure a crop of fruit, is to have a regular succession of laterals, the growth of the last year, all along the shoots. In many gardens these laterals are not laid in ; and though the tree by this mode does not assume such a neat appearance, yet the crop of fruit ■we believe is greater. Disbudding early in spring is of as much use in setting the fruit of the cherry in the open garden as we have seen it to be in the forcing-house (1028). As in all young trees the blossoms are for a number of years comparatively weak, the number of blossom-buds removed from them in thinning should be great in proportion. Old or diseased cherry-trees may sometimes be renovated by cutting in or heading down, but in general the wounds necessarily made exude so much gum as to pre- vent their ever being entirely covered with bark, iu consequence of which the stems and roots rot in the interior. To prevent this evil as much as possible the soil should alwaj'S be renewed at the time of amputating. 1193. Gathering and keeping. — The fruit can only be gathered by hand, and care should be taken not to pull out with the foot-stalks of the fruit any of the buds which are to produce the blossoms of the succeeding year ; unless, indeed, these buds should be so abundant that the lessening their number will be advantageous rather than otherwise. Where no buds can be spared, the stalks may be cut with scissors. For the dessert the cherry is never kept longer than a day or two. In gathering the fruit from standard trees, the orchardist's crook, fig. 335, wUl be found useful in bringing the branches within reach of the gatherer. 1194. Diseases, insects, casualties, SjC. — The gum is almost the only disease to which clierry-trees are liable ; the exudation when it has once commenced is not easily checked, but if the tree is healthy in other respects, and in a suitable soil and situation, the gum will not do much injury ; in an unfavourable soil it commonly brings on canker. Against a wall th3 cherry is liable to the attacks of. the red spider, aphides, and some other insects, which may be destroyed or kept under by the usual means. Syringing the trees with tobacco-water and soft-soap, before the blossoms have expanded, will destroy every insect to which the cheriy is liable, and they may be washed with clear lime-water from the time the fi-uit is set till it has begun to colour. The greatest enemies to ripe cherries are birds, fi-ora which they are to be protected by netting, in the case of walls and espaliers, and by the use of the gun in the case of standards. Cats (370) may also be employed for this purpose, or some of the other modes described in pp. 119 and 120. 1195. A Dutch cherry garden. — In Holland, and other parts of the con- tiiient, it is a favourite practice with the possessors of gardens to eat the fruit direct from the trees or plants, and this was formerly more generally the case in Britain than it is at present. In the villas of the wealthy, a small garden, in some retired part of the grounds near the house, was set apart for this purpose, and planted with summer fruits, especially chen-ies, gooseberries, and strawberries j and in some cases this garden was entirely covered with a roof of netting. One of the most complete gardens of this kind, in the neighbourhood of London, existed, in 1828, at Hylands, near Chelmsford. It was in the form of a parallelogram, twice as long as broad, and contained a quarter of an acre. It was surrounded by a wire fence, ten feet high, the texture being such as to exclude small birds ; that is, each mesh was two inches high by one inch broad. The principal standard THE CHERRT. 5r)7 trees are cherries of the hest early and late kinds, one or two early apples, one or two early pears, and one or two early plums. The trees are planted in quincunx, and their branches are trained in a horizontal position so as to be within reach of the hand, by being tied down to stakes. All round tho margin are, first a bed of strawberries, and next a row of plants of goose- berry, currant, and raspberry. A gravel walk surrounds the whole, between the strawberry-bed and the row of fruit shrubs, and the space among the standard trees is simply left unstirred, so that when dry every part of it may be walked on. The manner in which the roof of netting is fixed over this garden is thus : — At regular distances, all through the area, wooden boxes, as sockets for posts, as at fig. 371, 6, are fixed in the ground, and when the cherries begin to ripen, a net of the kind used in pil- chard fishing, and made at Brid- port, in Dorsetshire, the meshes of which are two inches wide, is drawn over the whole paralle- logram, fastened to the top of the wire fence by hooks which are fixed there, and supported above the trees by the props placed in the sockets. These props are fourteen feet high at tlie sides, and gradually rise to the middle of the garden, and Fig. 371. NelUng for comring a cherry Chtrdm. they have blunt heads, in order not to injure the netting. The netting necessary for covering this space, which is eighty feet by two hundred and twenty feet, is in two pieces, each one hundred feet by one hundred and fifty feet ; it is put on in the following manner : — One piece is spread out immediately within the wire fence, and a number of men with poles carry it over the tops of the trees and posts, after it is fastened to one side ; then they fasten it on the other, and so on till the whole is com- pleted. The separate divisions are then joined together, which thus form one entire netted roof, giving tlie garden a very singular and yet new and agreeable appearance. During rain, or dewy evenings, tho net is tightenid or stretched to its utmost extent (fig. 371, a), and forms a grand Section through a Cherry Garden, showing the netting tightened by rain, (a) and slackened l)y drought (i). vault over the whole cherry garden (fig. 371 a, and 372 a) ; during sunshinfr, or when the T(-eather is dry, it is slackened (fig. 371, b), and forms a festooned vault, supported by posts (fig. 372, b). It is advisable to tan the net every year with oak bark, which adds greatly to its durability. Were the object of this cherry garden merely to protect the fruit from birds, training the trees on espaliers and applying nets, as is done against walls, would be an easier and cheaper mode; but the cherry garden at Ilylands is intended as a place of enjoyment where ladies and gentlemen o 658 THK PLUM. may wander about and help themselves from the trees and bushes. {G. M. iii. p. 397.) Forcing the cherry. See p. 480 Sdbsect. VII The Plum. 1196. The plum (Prunus insltitia, L. ; and P. dom€stica, L. ; PiTinier, Fr. ; Pflaumeubaum, Ger. ; Pruinboom, Dutch. ; Pi-ugno, Ital. ; and Ciruelo, Span. : E. B. 1783, Arb. Brit. vol. li. p. 687, and Encyc. of Treet and Shrubs, p. 272 and 273) is a low irregular deciduous tree, a native of most parts of Europe, and also of part of Asia and Afiica, and it is either indigenous or naturalised in North America. Its culture in gardens is as universal as that of the cherry, and dales from the time of the Romans. 1197. Use. — The plum is a delicious dessert fruit, and it is also excel- lent in pies, tarts, conserves, sweetmeats, and in a dried state. A wine is made from the pulp, and a powerful spirit from the pulp and kernel fer- mented. Raid is made in Hungary by fermenting apples ground or crushed with bruised plums, and distilling the liquor. The spirit produced is said to be very agreeable to the taste, and, though not quite so strong, much more wholesome than brandy. In the south of France, an excellent spirit is obtained from the bruised pulp and kernels of plums, fermented with honey and flour, by distillation in the usual manner. Medicinally, plums are cooling and laxative, especially the dried fruit called brignoles, or French plums. The mode of preparing these plums is detailed at length in the Arboretum Britannicum, vol. ii. p. 689. The wood of the plum is used in turnery, cabinet-work, and in making musical instmments, and the tree is valued in ornamental landscape from its being one of the earliest which come into blossom. 119B. Varieties. — The Romans had a multiplicity of sorts of plums, and the varieties have long been very numerous in France and Italy. The following selections are, as usual, by Mr. Thompson. ] 191). Dessert plums arranged in the order of their ripening. Royale Hdtive. Middle size, roundish, purple, flesh parting from the stone, amber-coloured, very rich, August ; shoots very downy. Drap d'Or, syn. Mirabelle grosse. Small, round, yellowish, flesh separating from the stone, rich and excellent, middle of August ; a good bearer, young shoots downy. A very excellent sort, which precedes the green gage in ripening, and resembles it in richness of flavour. Gi'een gage, syn. Heine Claude. Middle size, round, yellowish green, flesh separating from the stone, richest of plums ; middle to the end of August ; a good bearer, extensively known and cultivated, and most deser- vedly so. Young wood smooth. Kirke's. Large, roundish, purple, flesh separating from the stone, very rich, beginning to the middle of September; a good bearer, the young shoots smooth. The fruit bears some resemblance to that of the Reine Claude violette. Washington, syn. Bolmer's Washington. Large, roundish, yellow, flesh separating, excellent, September ; downy shoots and tree very vigorous ; a good bearer, succeeds well as a standard. Iteine Claude violette, syn. Purple gage. Middle size, roundish, purple, flesh separating, rich and sugary ; September ; a good beaver, the shoots smooth. The richest purple plum in cultivation. THE PLUM. 559 Coe's golden drop, syn. Coe's imperial. Large, oval, yellow, flesh adher- ing, very rich, Septemher and October ; a good bearer, with smooth shoots. A most valuable late dessert fruit, as well as for preserving. Ickworth Imperatrice, Middle size, obovate, purple, flesh adhering, rich, October; a good bearer, smooth shoots, the fruit hangs long on the tree, and remains longer fresh after being gathered than any other sort. 1200. Kitchen Plums arranged in the order of their ripening. Orleans, syn. Red damask. Middle size, round, purple, flesh separating, middle to the end of August ; a good and constant beaver, the tree hardy, with downy shoots. Shropshire Damson, syn. Prune damson. Small, obovate, purple, flesh adhering, smart, juicy, middle of September ; tree a great bearer, with downy shoots ; the best of the damsons for preserving. White Magnum, Bonum, syn. White Mogul. Large oval, yellow, flesh adhering, September; a good bearer, with smooth shoots. The fruit excellent for sweetmeats. St. Catherine. Middle-size, oval, yellow, flesh adhering, rich, middle to the end of September ; a good bearer, with smooth shoots; excellentfor pre- serving, and one of the kinds used for that purpose in Provence. Quetsche, syn. German prune. Middle-size, oval, purple, flesh sepa- rating, September ; a good bearer, and well adapted for drying, being the kind of which the German prunes of the shops are prepared, by slow and repeated drying in an oven. Coe's Golden Drop, and the Green Gage, given as dessert plums, are also equally good for culinary purposes, and preserving. 1201. A selection of plums for walls of different aspects, is given in p. 422 ; for espaliers and dwarfs, in p. 428 ; and for an orchard, in p. 433. 1202. Dessert and kitchen plums for a garden of limited extent — Royale Hative, Drap d'Or, green Gage, Kirke's, Washington, Reine Claude violette, Coe's golden drop, Ickworth Imperatrice, Coe's fine late red, early Orleans, Shropshire damson, and white Magnum Bonum. 1203. A selection of dessert plums for a very small garden. — Royale Hative, green Gage, purple Gage, Coe's golden drop, and Orleans. 1204. Dessert and kitchen plums for a cottage garden. — Royale Hative, green Gage, Coe's golden drop, and Reine Claude violette ; and for the kitchen, the Shropshire damson, winesour, and white Magnum Bonum. 1206. Propagation, nursery culture, and choice of plants. — The plum, like other stone-fruit, is mostly propagated by budding, and the stocks, when the object is large and permanent trees, are the muscle, St. Julian, Magnum Bonum, or any free-growing plum, either raised from seed, or, as is more commonly done, from layers, (625) or suckers. The dwarfing stock for the plum is the Myrobolan, or Mirabelle, of the French, The common baking-plums, such as the damson, bullace, &c., are generally propagated by suckers, without being either budded or grafted. The muscle and St. Julian plums are extensively propagated in the nurseries, as stocks for the peach, nectarine, apricot, and almond. The nursery culture of the plum, and the choice of grafted or trained plants, are the same as for the cherry. 1206. Soil, sit-liation, and final planting. — The plum naturally does not grow in so light a soil as the cherry, nor in so clayey a soil as the apple ; and in a state of culture, a medium soil, on a dry subsoil, is found to be the 00 2 5'j'O THE GOOSEBEREV. best. Only the finer varieties are planted against walls, and none of them require a south aspect excepting in very cold exposed situations in the north, or when the object is to have an early crop. The distances adopted in final planting, are given in pp. 423, 429, and 431. 1207. Mode of bearing, pruning, and training. — All the varieties produce their blossoms on small spurs, which are protruded along the sides of the shoots of one, two, or three years' growth, generallj' in the course of the second and third year. These spurs, if duly thinned, and when necessary cut in, will continue bearing for five or six years, or longer, in the case of wall-trees and espaliers ; and when the fruit becomes too small, it is easy to renew the branches, one at a time, by encouraging young shoots from the main stem. Standard trees require very little pruning, beyond that of occasionally thinning out the branches, and this should always be done before midsummer, to prevent the gum from appearing on the wounds. Plum trees against walls or espaliers are generally trained in the horizontal man- ner. Old trees maj' be renovated by heading in or cutting down. 1208. Gathering, keeping, packing, THE MULBERRY. ii'J'J genus of low trailing shrubs ; one, O. palustris, the English cmnbeny, a native of Britain and the north of Europe in moist bogs ; and the other, O. macrocarpus, the American cranberry, a native of swamps in the United States.. The fruit of both has long been gathered from the native habitats of the plants, and used for tarts and other purposes ; and it forms an article of exportation both from Sweden and North America. Both sorts may be cultivated in gardens in peat-soil, kept moist ; and if it is enriched with thoroughly rotted dung, the vigour of the plants will be greatly increased, and the flavour of the fruit improved. The English cranberry requires a more constant supply of moisture than the American ; but the fruit of both is better flavoured when grown with much less moisture than they experi- ence in their native habitats. The American cranberry has even been grown in beds of diy peat-soil, and produced a plentiful crop of excellent fruit. The plants are readily propagated by layering the shoots, or by taking off their points and striking them in sand under a hand-glass. Both species may be grown on the margin of a pond, among moist rockwork. J 256. The Scotch cranberry, Vaccinium Vitis idsea L.; the whortle- berry, V. Myrtlllus L. ; the great bilberry, V. uliginosum L. ; and various other species of Vaccinium, bearing edible and very agreeable cooling acid fiuit, may all be grown in dry peat. They are all described in our Arboretum, pp. 1078 to 1167, and in the Ency. of Trees and Shrubs, pp. G04 to 616. When a garden is situated in a part of the country where peat soil abounds, and perhaps forms part of the garden or adjoins it, it may be worth while to attempt growing these ii-uits ; but not otherwise, as the only useful one, the cranberry, can be obtained from the grocers' shops in all large towns from December till March. SuBSECT. XIV. — The Mulberry. 1256. Tlie black or garden Mulberry, Morus nigra, L. (Murier, Fr. ; Maulbeerbaum, Ger. ; Moerbesseboom, Dutch ; Moro, Ital. ; and Morel, Span. Arb. 5Ht. vol. iii. p. 1342, and Encyc. of Trees and Shrubs, p. 705;, is a middle-sized deciduous tree, a native of Persia, and supposed to have been introduced into Europe by the Romans. It has been cultivated in England since the middle of the 16th century, for its highly ai-omatic fniit, which ripens in August, and, like that of the strawberry, does not undergo the acetous fermentation in the stomach. An agreeable wine is made from the juice, and a syrup from the unripe berries. It is readily propagated by cuttings or truncheons, and will thrive as a standard in any good garden soil in the central districts of England ; but north of York, and in Scotland, it requires a south wall. As the fruit drops as soon as it is ripe, the tree is generally planted on a lawn or grass plot ; but the fruit attains a larger size when the soil round the tree is kept slightly dug and well manured ; and previously to its ripening the space under the branches may be sown thick with cress seed, which will form a close, soft carpet for the fruit to drop on. In a small garden the tree may be very conveniently grown as an espalier. The fruit is produced chiefly on short shoots of the same year, which are protruded from last year's wood, and on spurs from the two-year old wood ; both laterals and spurs being produced mostly at the ends of the branches. The tree being of slow growth, very little pruning is required for either espaliers or standards ; though no doubt thinning out the branches would strengthen those that remain. The fruit should be gathered just when 678 THE WALNUT AND SWEET CHESTNUT. it is about to fall, and used the same day. The tree forces well in pots, aiid the plants for this pui-pose may be procured by planting entire branches, so as to form at once bushes two or three feet high (G. M., 1842). The branches should be taken from the parent trees in autumn, after the leaves hare dropped, and after being potted they may be plunged under a north wall till February, when they may be transferred to a pit or forcing-house, where they will produce fruit the same year early in June. The tree is remark- able for the great age which it attains, and its vitality; instances being com- mon of trees growing after remaining out of the ground for a year, or being transplanted in full leaf, and after remaining a year dormant. One, or at most two, mulberry-trees are sufficient for a suburban garden, whether large or small. SnBSECi. XV.— The Walnut. 1257. The Walnut, Juglans regia, L. (Noyer, J^r.; Walnussbaum, Ger.; Walnootboom, Dutch; Nocil, Ital. ; and Nogal, Span.; Arb. Brit., vol. iii., p. 1420 ; and Encyc. of Trees and Shrubs, 732), is a deciduous tree, of large size, a native of Persia and Caucasus, which has been cul- tivated in England as a fruit and timber tree from the middle of the 16th century, or before. The ripe kernel is used in the dessert, and the fruit whole, in a green state, before the nut and its involucre, or husk, harden, forms an excellent pickle. The timber, being very light in propor- tion to its strength and elasticity, is much used for gun-stocks. The variety most esteemed for its fruit is the Thetford, but the large French and tender- shelled are also good sorts. They are propagated chiefly by budding on the common walnut, or by inarching ; but as there is little demand for these trees, most of those which are sold in the nurseries are seedlings. The tree thrives best in a deep sandy loam, and it is generally planted in the north margm of the orchard, or on a lawn, or in a paddock. Seedlings will bear in from five to seven years from the seed, or sooner by ringing the branches. The fruit is produced, as in most amentacious trees, from short shoots of the current year protruded from the extremities of the preceding year's shoots. It is gathered by hand for piclding, and too frequently beaten down with rods when ripe ; but as it drops of itself just before the leaves, no beating down, or gathering from the branches, is requisite. The fruit is best kept in dry sand, or slightly covered with straw. Little or no pruning is ever given to this tree, though there can be no doubt that thinning out the branches would throw more strength into the fruit of those which remain. 1268. The Pacane-nut Hickory, Carya olivaaformis, A.B. iii. p. 1441, and E. of Tr. and Sh. p. 736, some varieties of which, Michaux says, produce fruit which is far superior to that of the European walnut, (and of which Washington is said to have been so fond that during the war of independence he had always his pockets fuU of them); and the shell-bark hickory, C. alba, A. B. iii. p. 1446, and E. of Tr. and Sh. p. 739, may be grafted on the walnut, and treated in all respects like that tree. SuBSEOT. XVI. — The Sweet Chestnut. 1239. The Sweet Chestnut, Castanea vdsca, W. (Chataignier, Fr. ; Cas- tainenbaum, Ger. ; Karstengeboom, Dutch ; Castagno, Ital. ; and Castano, Span. ; E. B., 886 ; Arb. Brit., vol. iii. p. 1716, and Encyc. of Trees and Shrubs, p. 911), Ls a largo deciduous tree, a native of Spain and Italy, and THE FILBERT. 579 cultivated in the South of England, more especially in Devonshire, for its fruit, as well as its timber. The nut is brought to table roasted, and eaten with salt, or with salt fish, or stewed in cream. In Spain and Italy, it is used as an article of food, boiled, roasted, in puddings, cakes, and bread. In France and Italy there are a great many varieties in cultivation, and upwards of twenty have been grown in the Garden of the Horticultural Society, of which the Downton and Prolific are among the best. For a small garden, the Chataigne exalade of the South of Prance deserves the preference, not only as producing the best fruit of all the varieties for the table, but on account of the tree being an abundant bearer, and of so small a size that it might be very well grown as an espalier. The varieties are pro- pagated by grafting on the species. The fruit is produced in the same manner as that of the walnut, and every other particular respecting its cul- ture is much the same as for that tree. ScBSECT. XVII. — The Filbert. 1260. The Filbert, Corylus Avellana, L. (Noisette, Fr. ; Nussbaum, Ger. ; Hazelnoot, Dutch ; Avellano, Ital. S; Span. ; E. B. 723, Arb. Brit., iii. p. 2017, and Encyc. of Trees and Shrubs, p. 921), in a wild state is the hazel-nut, common in woods in many parts of Europe, on loamy soils. Its use in the dessert is familiar to every one. By cultivation several varieties have been obtained, of which the best are the red and white filbert, and Cosford, which ought to be in every collection ; the cob- nut, because its branches grow more upright than the other varieties; and the great cob-nut, the Downton large square nut, and the Spanish nut, on account of their large fruit. AH these varieties are usually propa- gated by grafting on the common hazel-nut, or on the Spanish nut, which grows very fast, and differs from all the others in not sending up suckers. " The plants should be trained to a single stem, from a foot to two feet in height, and then be permitted to branch into a symmetrical head, nather open in the middle, and not of greater height than a man can conveniently reach from the ground to perform the necessary operations of pruning and gathering." {Gard. Chron., 18il, p. 51.) The fruit is produced from the preceding year's wood, and in unpruned trees is always most abundant at the extremities of the branches, where the leaves of the preceding year have had abundance of light and air. Hence the importance of pruning so as to keep the bush open in the centre. The spring, at the time the male blos- soms are shedding their pollen, is the best time for pruning, as by the shaking of the trees the pollen is diiFused. The young shoots should be shortened to half their length, cutting to a female blossom, and removing all side suckers. If a plantation is to consist of a single row, the plants may be placed from eight feet to ten feet apart ; but if there are to be several rows together, the intervals between them may be ten feet or twelve feet. The whole may be treated like a plantation of currants on a large scale. The usual situation for a plantation of filberts is the orchard, where single rows may be introduced, for a few years, between rows of standard fruit-trees. If a separate plantation of filberts is formed, currants or gooseberries may be in- troduced in the intervals between the plants for four or five years — care being taken to destroy them whenever their branches are within a foot or two of the filberts. A plantation of filberts will last twenty years, and if occasionally manured, it wUl produce from 20 cwt. to 30 cwt. of nuts per acre 580 THE BERBEKRY, ELDERBERRY, CORNELIAN CHERRY, annually. The nut weevil lays its eggs in the fruit in June, where it is hatched, and escapes in August. There is no practical preventive of this insect, and all that the gardener can do is to remove all the nuts that have been perforated by it. The fruit is gathered when the calyx turns brown, and at a time when it is quite dry, and it may be preserved through the winter with the husks, or in dry sand, or in air-tight vessels. Some put them into large garden-pots, sprinkling a little salt amongst them, which is said to preserve the husks from getting mouldy and rotting ; the pots are turned bottom upwards on boards, and covered with earth or sand to exclude the air. The dealeis subject tliem to the fumes of sulphur in close vessels, when newly gathered and dried, in order to improve the colour of the calyx. SuBSECT. XVIII. — The Berberry, Elderberry^ Cornelian Cherry, Buffalo-berry, and Winter Cherry. 1261. The Berberry, Berberis vulgaris, L. (Epine vinette, Fr.; Berbe- ritzcn, Gei:; Berberisse, Dutch; Berbero, /ta/., and Berberis, Span.; E. B. 49, Arb. Brit. i. p. 298, and Eneyc. of Trees and Shrubs, p. 42), is a deciduous shrub, a native of Britain in woods and hedges on dry soil, and sometimes planted in gardens for its frait ; which is not eaten raw, but is excellent when preserved in sugar, in syrup, or candied. The berries are also made into jelly and rob, both of which ai'e not only delicious to the taste but extremely wholesome, and they are pickled in vinegar when green as a substitute for capers. They are also used instead of lemon for flavouring punch, for garnishing dishes, and for various other purposes, independently of their medicinal properties. When the fniit is to be eaten, there is a variety in which it is largerand less acid, B. vulgaris, var. dulcis,(£. ofTr. and SA., p. 43), of which there are plants in the Hort. Soc. Gardens, from which scions may be procured for budding or grafting on the common berberry. For all the other purposes the species may be taken, though for the curious there are varieties with yellow, white, purple, and black-coloured fruit ; and there is one also without seeds, B. v. asperma, of which the delicious confitures d'ipine vinette, for which Rouen is so celebrated, are made. 1262. The Magellan sweet Berberry, B&beris dulcis, D. Von, syn. B. buxifolia, B. rotundifolia, has round black berries about the size of those of the black currant, which are produced in great abundance, and used in its native country, both green and ripe, as we use gooseberries, for pies, tarts, and preserves, for which it ja said to be most excellent. (See Arh. Brit. i. p. 301, and E. of Tr. S; Sh. p. 47.) The plant is evergreen, quite hardy, and very ornamental, flowering from March to June, and ripening its fruit in June and July. It has ripened fruit in the nursery of Mr. Cunning- ham, at Edinburgh, who says, it is as large as the Hamburgh grape, and equally good to eat. 1263. The Nepal Berberry, B. aristata, Dec, syn. B. Chitria, a native of Nepal, and B. asiatica, iJojuft, also from Nepal (^r6. 5«7. i. pp. 306, 307, and Eneyc. of Trees and Shrubs, p. 49), produce purple fruit covered with a fine bloom, wliich in Nepal and other parts of India are dried in the sun like raisins, and, like them, brought to table. The plants are quite hardy and fruit abundantly in English gardens, and the amateur of leisure might add them and the Magellan berberry to his collection of hardy fruits. BUFFALO BERRY, AND WINTER CHERRY. 581 All the species of berberry throw up numerous suckers, and become crowded with shoots and branches, and hence when fruit is the object they should be trained to single stems, for one foot or two feet in height, and all suckers removed ; and the branches should be kept moderately thin. All the species will succeed perfectly in any good soil, and in an open situation in the orchard. 1264. The Elder-tree, Sarabiicus nigra, L. (Sureau, Fr.; HoUunderbaum, Ger.; Vlierboom, Dutch; Sambuco, Ital., and Sanco, Span.; E. B. 476, Arb.Brit. ii. p. 3027, and Encyc. of Trees and Shrubs, p. 513), is a low deciduous tree, a native of most parts of Europe, and chiefly found near human habitations. It is highly ornamental both when in flower and in fruit. An infusion of the flowers is used to flavour some articles of confec- tionery, and a wine is made from the fruit by boiling it with spices and sugar. Immense quantities of fruit are grown in Kent, and other places in the neighbourhood of London, and sent to market for making this wine, which is always taken hot, and commonly after supper. The tree requires a good soil and an open airy situation, and should be kept free from suckers. 1265. The Cornelian Cherry, Cornus Mas. L.; C. mascula, L'H^rit. (Cor- nouiller, Fr.; Kornel Kirsche, Ger.; Komoelje, Dutch; Corgnolo, Ital.; Comejo, Span.; Arb. Brit. vol. ii. p. 1014, and Encyc. of Trees and Shrubs, p. 501), is a low deciduous tree, a native of the middle and south of Europe, in the margins of woods, and in soils more or less calcareous ; and it has been cultivated in gardens, from the time of the Romans, for its fruit, which, however, was not much esteemed by that people. It was very general in ancient gardens ; its fmit being very ornamental on the tree, and also found excellent in tarts, robs, and preserved in various ways. As seedling plants of this species of Cornus bear only male blossoms for twelve or fifteen years, and some continue to do so always, it is desirable to procure plants which have been grafted, or raised by layers from fruit-bearing trees, the flowers of which are always hermaphrodite. Dm Hamel says that there are varieties of cornel in France and Germany with wax-coloured fruit, white fruit, and fleshy round fruit. The tree should be planted in a situation open to the south, but sheltered from high winds. 1266. Tfte Buffalo berry, Shepberdia argentea, JVutt. ; Hippdphse argentea, Pursh. (Rabbit berry, Amer., and Graisse de Buffle, Fr. ; Arb. Brit. vol. iii., p. 1327, and Encyc. of Trees and Shrubs, p. 700), is a low tree, a native of the banks of the Missouri, where it flowers in AprU and May, and ripens its scarlet diaphanous benies in September. These are said to be about the size of the red currant, much richer to the taste, and they are produced in such abundance as to form one continued cluster on eveiy branch and twig. The tree being dioecious, care should be taken to pro- cure both sexes. There are plants in England, but, as far as we know, they have not yet ripened fruit. In an account of this fruit in the Gardener's Magazine for 1831, the writer considers it " one of the greatest acquisitions of the fruit-bearing kind that has recently been brought into notice in the United States." 1267. The Winter Cherry, Physalis Alkekengi, L. (Coqueret, Fr., and Judenkirsche, Ger.), is a herbaceous creeping rooted perennial, a native of the south of Europe, quite hardy, and growing freely, and producing fruit abundantly in common garden soil. The fruit is yellow, and about 582 THE GRAPE. the size of a cherry, with an agreeable sweetness ; it ripens in September, and will hang on the plant, protected by its inflated calyx, through great part of the w^inter. It was well known to the ancients, and was cultivated in most gardens till late in the last century, since which it has been neg- lected. In the neighbourhood of New York the tomato is grown in large quantities, and dried, and used as a sweetmeat, in which state it is most excellent (G. M. 1842, p. S31). Several other hardy species, including P. pubescens, also produce edible fruit. Sect. II. — Half-hardy or Wall Fruits. 1268. The wall-fruits of Britain include all those which in the central districts of England require the aid of a wall to bring them to perfection. These are the grape, peach, nectarine, almond, apricot, fig, pomegranate, love-apple, egg-plant, and Peruvian cherry. SuBSECT. I. — The Grape. 1269. The Grape Vine, Vitis vinifera, L. (Vigne, Fr.; Weintrauben, Ger. ; Bruif, Dutch ; Vigna, Ital.^ and Vina, Span. ; Arb. Brit. vol. i. p. 477, and Encyc. of Trees and Shrubs, p. 136), is a trailing or climbing deciduous shrub, a native of Syria and other parts of Asia, and though enduring our winters in the open garden, yet only ripening its fruit under glass or against a wall. It has been in cultivation since the time of the Romans, both as a wine and a table fruit. The grape abounds in tartaric acid, which in general agi'ees with delicate persons better than any other ; and hence it is universally considei-ed one of the most wholesome of fruits. Many varieties have been produced by different soils and situations on the Continent, in countries where the vine is grown for many years on the same spot for wine; and by seeds in Britain, where the fruit is grown solely for the dessert. All the best kinds of grapes have either been fruited in the Horticultural Society's Garden, or exhibited at their shows ; and from these and other sources of knowledge, Mr. Thompson has prepared for us the following selections : — I. Grapes with round, darle, red, purple, or black berries. Early black July, syn. Maurillon hatif, &c. — Bunches and berries small, flavour sugary ; ripe against a wall in the end of August or beginning of September ; the blossom easily injured by cold. This is the first grape wliich ripens on the open walls in the neighbourhood of Paris. In 1840 we found it in the shops ia the last week in July. Black Frontignan, syn. Muscat noir de Frontignan ; black Frontignac ; black Constantia, &c. Bunches and berries of medium size; flavour musky, rich ; ripe in October. A very excellent grape. 2. &i-apes with oval, dark, red, purple, or black berries. Black Prince, syn. Sir Abraham Pytche's black. — Large long bunches, large berries, flavour sweet and pleasant ; ripe in October ; deserving a place in a vinery, and will also ripen on a wall. Black Hamburgh, syn. Frankendale, &c. — Large bunches, very large berries, flavour sugary and rich ; ripe in October ; a good bearer, and deserv- edly one of the most generally cultivated of grapes, whether under glass or against a wall. Black Morocco, syn. Ilaisin d'Espagno, &o. — Bunches large, berries vei-y THE GKAPE. 583 large, flavour sweet and tolerably rich, ripening late. The blossoms require to be set with black Hamburgh, or some Other hardy grape. West's St. Peter's, syn. Raisin des Carmes. — Bunches middle size, berries large, flesh Arm, flavour sugary and rich ; late in ripening. A great bearer, and one of the very best winter grapes. 3, Grapes with round white berries. Royal Muscadine, syn. Chasselas dore, &c. — Bunches large, berries above the middle size, flavour rich and sweet ; ripe in September. A good bearer, and altogether an excellent grape. Chasselas musque, syn. Le Cour. — Bunches middle size, long, berries middle size, flavour rich, musky ; ripe in September. An excellent grape, combining much of the flavour of the Muscat of Alexandria. White Frontignan, syn. Muscat blanc Bunches and berries middle size ; juice rich, with a highly musky flavour. A much-esteemed grape, which will ripen either against a hothouse or against a wall. 4. Grapes with oval white berries. White Muscat of Alexandria, syn. Passe musque blanc, &c. — Bunches and berries laige, flesh firm, musky-flavoured and delicious ; only ripens under glass. Generally esteemed the finest and richest grape in cultiva- tion, and particularly adapted for the hothouse and pine-stove. Cannon-hall Muscat. — Closely resembling the Muscat of Alexandria; but the flesh is firmer, and the skin yellower. The blossoms do not set well, unless fecundated artificially; which may be done with their own pollen, by means of a camel-hair pencil, or by the pollen of any other grape that may be in flower at the same time. 5. Grapes with red, rose-coloured, greyish, or striped berries. Red Frontignan, syn. Muscat rouge. — Bunches and berries middle size, flavour rich, musky, and excellent. A grape of first-rate excellence. Grizzly Frontignan, syn. Muscat gris. — 'The same qualities, and equally excellent as the preceding variety. 1270. A selection of grapes for early forcing. — Esperione, Black Prince, Cambridge Botanic Garden grape. White Muscadine, Royal Muscadine, White Sweetwater, White Frontignan, Grove End Sweetwater, Red Fron- tignan. 1271. The selection of grapes grown at Hungerton-hall (973), so as to pro- duce three crops in a year in the same house. — Black Frontignan, syn. Purple Constantia, White Frontignan, syn. White Constantia, Grizzly Frontignan, Muscat of Alexandria, Stillwell's Sweetwater, West's St. Peter's, Black Da- mascus, Black Tripoli, Black Hamburgh, White Portugal, Syrian. 1272. A selection of grapes of various flavours and colours, placed in the order of their ripening. — White and Red Muscadine, White and Red Muscats of Alexandria, White and Red Frontignan, Black Muscadel, White Raisin, White and Black Hamburgh, Black Prince, White Sweetwater, White Nice, and West's St. Peter's. These sorts are of fourteen difierent flavours; there are an equal number of whites and reds ; some with large bunches and berries, as the Nice, and others with high-flavoured berries, as the Frontignan. The foliage in autumn will be alternately tinged with red and yellow ; and, supposing the Muscadines to be placed next the end at which 584 THE GRAPE. the flue enters, they will ripen nearly a month earlier than any of the other kinds. 1273. Cfrapesfor a late cr ACETARIACEOUS ESCULENTS. ought not to be done till the plant is almost fully grown, for blanched leavea can no longer add any strength to the root. This operation ought only to be performed in dry days, and when the leaves are quite dry ; and in winter, when the weather is dry without frost. The mode of performance is as follows : — When the plants are well 611ed up in the heart, and apparently nearly fully grown, put your fingers under the leaves which rest upon the ground, and gather the whole plant up in your hands into a conical form ; then tie it round with strands of matting, loose during summer, but tighter late in autumn and in winter, when the plant grows slower ; arranging the leaves so as to terminate in a point at the top, in order to prevent rain from falling into the heart of the plant. The curled endive, if carefully earthed up, will blanch tolerably well without being tied ; but the broad- leaved variety, from its looser growth, hearts and blanches much better when bandaged. The blanching, when the weather is hot and dry, vrfll sometimes be completed in a week ; but late in autumn and during winter it will require a fortnight or a month. As soon as it is properly blanched, it should be taken up for use, as it will rot afterwards in a week or less, more especially if much rain fall. Sometimes blanching is effected by laying a flat tile on the plants ; setting tiles or boards on each side of them, and bringing them together at top in the form of a ridge, so as to confine their growth and exclude the light ; or covering them with garden-pots or blanching-pots, in the manner of sea-kale. In the north of Spain the blanching of endive is generally effected by covering the heart of the plant with a fragment of tile ; " over this a light covering of earth is sifted. The fringed edges of the exterior leaves are careiiilly freed from earth, and exposed to light ; having small bits of tile laid over that portion of the soil from which they protrude, to render the blanching perfect, and produce what the gardeners particularly pride themselves on,viz. : a plant of endive white all over, excepting the edges of the outer leaves, which should show about two inches of green." — {Churchill in Gard. Chron., 1842, p. 452.) 1610. A crop may be preserved through the winter, either by covering it where it stands by thatched hurdles raised on props (fig. 329 in p. 401) ; by hoops and mats ; by removing it with balls to an open airy shed ; by covering it with dry litter, taking it off every fine day; or, what is best of all, covering it where it stands with frames and sashes, taking the latter off every fine day. During the period that the endive is covered, tying up for blanching must go regularly on with every plant about ten days or a fortnight before it is to be gathered. The endive is little troubled with insects ; but snails and slugs attack it, as they do the lettuce, in every stage, and require to be kept under by frequent waterings with lime-water. Seed may be saved as in the lettuce, and it will keep good four or five years. SuflSECT. Til. — The Succory. 1611. Ute succory, chiccory, or wild endive, Cichbrium Intybus L. f Chicoree sauvage, Fr.), is a cichoraceous fusiform-rooted perennial, a native of England, in chalky soils, in open situations. It is much cultivated on the Continent for its roots, which are cut in slices, kiln-dried, and ground as a substitute for coffee ; and for its leaves, which are blanched and used like those of the endive. It is also sown thick, and when quite young cut as small salad CI 606). In Flanders the roots are scraped and boiled, and eaten THE CELERY. 677 along with meat, or with a sauce of butter and vinegar. In British gardens it is only cultivated as a winter salad. It is sown in the end of June or beginnmgof July, and treated like the endive, except that it is not blanched. Instead of this process, the leaves are cut off the plants, but so as not to de- stroy their hearts, about the beginning of October ; the roots are then dug up, shortened, and planted in pots, or portable boxes, with the dibber, very close together in rich soil, watered, and afterwards protected from the frost by a light covering of litter, taken off in the daytime, or by any other convenient means. In a week or two the plants will be established, and the pots or boxes arc then removed, as the produce is wanted, into the mushroom-liouse, or into a cellar, or any other dark warm place where the light will be com- pletely excluded ; or into any light warm place, and covered over so as to force the production of leaves and tlie blanching of them at the same time. In a few days the roots will push forth leaves which will be completely blanched, and each leaf, when fully expanded, may be gathered separately till the plants cease to produce any. These leaves in Belgium, and in the North of Germany and Russia, are considered as forming the most agreeable of all winter salads j and by a sufficient number of roots, it may be had in perfection from November till May. It is not even necessary to plant the roots in pots or boxes : they may be left in the soil covered with litter, and taken up to be forced as the salad is wanted ; or they may be taken up and preserved in sand ; or they may be pitted in the manner of potatoes ; portions being regularly taken up, potted, and forced as wanted. The roots being established in the pots before forcing is a matter of very little consequence, as the leaves are supplied, not from the soil by means of the spongiolcs of the fibres, but from the nutriment laid up in the roots. The temperature of the mushroom-house, or other place in which the chiccory is forced, should be between 56° and 60° ; but the roots will send up leaves if the temperature is a few degrees above the freezing point. (See 1098.) No blanched produc- tion is more beautiful than succory, as the leaves become of a pure white with most delicate pencillings of crimson, when grown as above recommended in a mushroom house. Aboard ship the roots of the succory are packed into casks of sand, with their heads protruding through numerous holes pierced in the sides of the cask, by which means a maximum of produce is procured from a minimum of space. 1512. An excellent substitute for the succory, both as a salad and a coffee plant, may be found in the common dandelion, Leontodon Taraxacum i., which is by many persons, and by us among the number, considered not infe- rior to it for boih purposes. SuBSECT. IV. — The Celery. 1613. The celery, Apium graveolens L. (Celcri, jpV.), is an umbelliferous biennial, a native of Britain, by the sides of wet ditches, and in marshy places, especially near the sea ; and though poisonous in a wild state (when it is called smallage), yet by long cultivation it has become one of our most agreeable salads. The part used is the blanched leafstalks, and in the case of one variety the roots. Both stalks and roots are used raw in salads from August till March, and also in soups and stewed. In Italy, the points of the unblanched leaves are used to flavour soups ; and in Britain, when neither stalks, leaves, nor roots can be had;* the bruised seeds form a good substitute. 678 ACETARIACEOUS ESCULEKTS. 1514. Farieties. — Those at present considered the best are, the Italian, a dwarf-growing variety, the best for an early crop ; the red solid, syn. Man- chester-hardy, which grows to a large size, single plants haying measured four feet six inches in height, and weighed nine pounds ; Seymour's solid, very solid, and fine-flavoured ; Seymour's superb white, very solid, large size, good flavour, and well adapted for early crops ; the turnip-rooted, syn. celeriao (Celeri-rave, Fr., and KnoU-sellerie, Ger.), has rough irregular shaped roots, about the size of the fist; it is generally cultivated in Germany, but in England is considered coarser than the kinds of which the blanched stalks are used. Upright or stalked celery, when well grown, has the stalks solid, and not hollow or piped, as is frequently the case — thoroughly blanched, crisp, tender, and of a delicate flavour. The roots of the celeriac should be solid, tender, and delicate. To attain these qualities both sorts require to be grown with rapidity, in very rich soil, kept very moist at the root, but dry about the leaves. 1615. Propagation and culture. — The celery, like other culinary biennials, is only propagated by seed, and half an ounce is sufficient for a seed-bed four and a half feet by ten feet, of the stalked or upright sorts ; but for celeriac, as it is a spreading plant, half the quantity of seed will suflSce for the same space. The seed is long in coming up, often a month; and this is one reason why the first sowing is generally made on heat. As the celery grows naturally in marshy soil, and as such soils are always rich in vegetable matter, and when near the sea must be slightly saline, these circumstances afford a guide for its culture in the garden ; in which it can never be brought to a large size, without constant and abundant supplies of water during the whole period of its growth. The flavour, however, is better when it is grown of smaller size, and with less water. In general, three crops are enough even for a large family : the first should be sown in the end of February, to transplant in June, and to come into use in August ; the second is sown in the end of March, to be transplanted in July, and to come into use in September ; and the third is sown about the middle of April, to be trans- planted in the first week of August, and to come into use in October or November, and last till March. The plants raised by every sowing, when about two inches high, should be pricked out into rich soil two inches or three inches apart every way, and again transplanted into a nursery planta- tion, also in rich soil, about six inches apart every way. Those for the earliest crop may be pricked out in a small hotbed, and transplanted into a warm border ; but those for the others do not necessarily require artificial heat. As the earlier crops of celery are veiy apt to run to flower, and as this tendency in herbaceous plants, and especially annuals and biennials, is known to be checked and retarded by destroying the tap-root, and encouraging the production of fibrous roots (699 and ISOS) ; some excellent growers of celeiy adopt the following process with their plants : — The seed-bed, whe- ther for an early or a late crop, is formed of fresh, dark, loamy soil, mixed with old rotten dung, half and half, and placed on a hotbed. The nursery or transplanting bed is formed with old hotbed dung, very well broken, laid six inches or seven inches thick, on a piece of ground which has lain some time undisturbed, or which has been made hard by compression. The situation should be sunny. The plants are set six inches apart in the dung, without soil, and covered with hand-glasses. They are watered well when planted, and frequently afterwards. By hardening the soil under the dung CULTURE OF THE CELKRY. 679 in which the plants are set, the root is formed into a brush of fibres ; and by thus preventing the pushing of a tap-root, the plant never runs to seed before the foUovping spring. — (Caled. Hort. Mem. vol. ii.) 1516. Transplanting into trenches. — Where the object is to have very large celery, only one row ought to be planted in a trench ; but where a moderate size is preferred, there may be two rows ; or the trenches may be made four feet or six feet wide, and the celery planted in rows across the trench, at the distance of a foot from one another, and six inches apart in the row. Single trenches, when the object is to grow celery alone, may be made in the direction of north and south, three fuet or four feet apart, centre from centre, and eight inches or ten inches deep ; the soil dug out being- formed into a ridge between the trenches. As every trench is opened, dig into the bottom a coating of five or six inches in thickness of thoroughly-rotted dung, and along the centre of the trench insert the plants with a trowel, at six inches apart. When the plants are being removed, previously to plant- ing, all side slips should be carefully taken off. Where celery is to be grown with other crops, as in simultaneous rotations (921), the trenches may be made six feet or eight feet apart centre from centre, and a row of peas for sticking, or some other crop of short duration, should be grown between every two rows of celery. Where celery is to be planted in rows across broad trenches, whatever may be the width of the trench, a similar width must be allowed between them for containing the soil dug out ; and these trenches should be made in the direction of east and west, for the same reason that trenches for single or double rows are made in the direction of north and south. To save ground, the plants before they are planted in the trenches should be kept in the nursery till they are ten inches or twelve inches high, taken up with balls, any descending roots shortened, any suckers that may have appeared removed, and the points of the leaves cut ofi^, so as to throw the whole sti-ength of the plant into the central bud, or growing point. 1517. Blanching. — It has been already observed (1509), with respect to blanching generally, that it weakens the plant by lessening the power of the leaves to elaborate nourishment, and return it to the root ; and hence, celery which is intended to grow of large size should be nearly full-grown before it is earthed up at all. Mr. Stewart grew celery which averaged from 9 lbs. to 12 lbs. weight, which had not been finally earthed up more th;m three weeks before it was gathered, and which had only one slight earthiiig- up previously to the final one, which was in September. On the other hand, when celery is wished to be of small size, and tender, it ought to be earthed up in an early stage of its growth, and the process continued as it advances in height. If the plants have been liberally supplied with water when first put into the trenches, and daily afterwards, excepting during rains, they will be ready to receive the first earthing-up in three or four weeks. This is done by paring down a little soil on each side of the trench with the spade, draw- ing it against the plants, and taking care that none of it gets into their hearts. To prevent this, each plant may be first slightly wrapped round with a strand of matting ; and to do this on a large scale, a strand is procured of great length, or is added to as it is applied ; and one end being tied round and fastened to the first plant in the row, it is passed on to the next plant, giving it one twist round the leaves, and so on till the other end of the row is reached, when it is there fastened to the last plant. The moulding-up may now proceed with rapidity, and when finished the strand should be removed, C80 ACETARIACEOUS ESCULENT8. and applied to the row in the next treucli. It is scarcely necessary to observe, that where there are two rows in a trench, both must be tied up at the same time ; or that when the rows are made across a broad trench, three ought to be tied, to prevent all risk of soil getting into the heart of the third row, while the first is being earthed up. The height of the soil applied may be three, four, or five inches, according to the height of the plants ; and the earthings up may take place at intervals of ten days or a fortnight, till, by degrees, the stalks are covered to the height of twelve inches for the earliest crop, and eighteen inches, or two feet, or more, for the later crops ; always taking care to perform the operation when the plants are quite dry, and to Jceep the heart open and free ; except in the last eai'thiug before winter, when the summits of the plants may be neai'ly closed to exclude rain. The longer celery is allowed to grow before applying the soU, the longer time does it require to blanch ; but, in general, three weeks or a month will effect this, more especially in the early part of the season. Red celery re- quires a longer time to blanch than white celery, and never entirely loses its red colour. The latest crop of celery which is to be in use through the winter will require to be protected by dry litter, or thatched hurdles, during severe frosts ; or it may be taken up and preserved in sand or soil, in a shed or cellar. When celery is frozen, it begins to rot immediately after the first thaw ; and therefore to prolong a crop in the open garden, protection of some Bort is essential on the approach of severe frosts. 1618. Late spring celery. — As celery is in gi-eat demand for soups in most families, especially during winter and spring, when other delicate vegetables are scarce, a crop may be procured till the beginning of June by the following means : Sow on a seed-bed about the middle of May ; prick out, when the plants are six weeks old, into rows sis inches apart, and allow the plants to remain in this nursery till September or October ; then trans- plant them into trenches ; earth them up slightly, and protect them by litter or thatched hurdles during winter ; and in February or March earth them up finally. The .stalks thus produced will not always be fit to use in salads, but they will be valuable for soups and stews. No celery crop that has been blanched in autumn will keep sound longer than the end of March ; but green celery which has been only slightly earthed up will stand through an ordinary winter with little or no protection. 1519. Taking the crop. — The plants should be dug up without being bruised, beginning at one end of a row ; and afterwards, the roots and green points of the leaves being cut off, and the loose outer leaves removed, the heart of the plant in a compact state is fit for being sent to the kitchen ; but if intended for market, or to be sent to a distance, the outer leaves should be kept on, and also all the root excepting the fibrous part. 1520. Celeriac is cultivated with greater ease, and at less expense of ground and manure, than the common celery ; and it may be used in the kitchen for seven or eight months in succession. The times of sowing are the same as for the other sorts, and the plants should be pricked out in a similar man- ner. They should be divested of all side-slips, not only before transplant- ing, but also during their after growth. Early in June they may be finally transplanted in rows fifteen inchss apart every way, into flat beds of very rich light or sandy soil, with two-feet alleys between, to admit of watering the plants. The routine culture here consists chiefly in liberal waterings, and in slightly eartliing up the roots after they have swelled to their full size THE lamb's lettuce, ETC. 681 in order to blanch them. The celeriac has a continual tendency to revei-D from th( knob-roofed form to that which is natural to it ; and hence, like the turnip and similar plants of culture, it will not attain any large size if much earthed up. Still, the celeriac, to be eatable, requires to be blanched, and therefore must be earthed up to a certain extent, but the less the better. — ( O. M. vols. ii. p. 416, and v. p. 364.) The roots of the celeriac may be taken up on the approach of frost, and preserved in sand or soil out of the reach of surface-heat, like potatoes (1416), for an indefinite period. The London market used formerly to be supplied with this root from Hamburgh. 1521. Diseases, insects, S^c. — The celery is liable to the canker in some soils, and also to be eaten by the maggot of the celery-fly, Tephrltis Ono- pordlnis Fab., which is hatched in the leaves, and may be destroyed as soon as these have a blistered appearance, by cutting them off, and bruising or burning them ; or foetid substances may be frequently sprinkled near tho plants, as a preventive. 1522. To save seed. — Select the finest specimens of the variety to be pro- pagated, in February or March ; and either remove a part of the soil with ■which they have been earthed up, and allow them to flower where they stand, or transplant them to a more convenient situation. The seed will ripen in September, and will keep ten years. 1623. The alisanders, or alexanders, Smymium Olusatrum L., and S. perfoliatum L. (Maceron, i^r.),two umbelliferous biennials, the firsta native of Britain, and the other of Spain, were formerly cultivated, and the leaf- stalks blanched like'tliose of the celery ; and their leaves were also used as pot-herbs and in salads. The flavour of the leaves being very much like that of celery, they may be useful in spring for putting into soups. 1524. The Naples parsley, syn. celery parsley (Persil-celeri, i*"?-.), appears to be a hybrid between the common broad-leaved parsley and the celery. Wfi have never seen it in England ; but about Paris and in Italy it appears to be cultivated and used in the same manner as celery. SuBSECT. V. — The Lamb's Lettuce, Burnet, the Garden Cress, Winter Cress, American Cress, and Water V.Ve.ss. 1525. The Lamb's lettuce, or corn-salad, Valerianella olitoria Sec. (Mache, jFV.), is a valerianaceous indigenous annual, very hardy, and which requires no other culture than sowing in August, September, and February, and thinning the plants to three inches apart. The leaves should lie gathered singly, like those of spinach, when of full size ; except when the plant is grown as small salading, when the leaves and stems may be cut over, as in gathering the common cress or mustard. They are considered as forming, when used raw, a delicate salad ; and when boiled, a good spinach. 1526. The burnet, Poterium Sanguisrjrba L., and Sanguisorba ofiicinalis L., are rosaceous perennials, the leaves of which, especially those of the second species, are put into salads, and sometimes into soups ; and so much are they esteemed in Italy, that the Italians have a proverb, quoted by Evelyn, signifying that a salad without burnet is good for nothing. 1627. The garden cress, Lepidium sativum L. (Cressim Alenois, Fr."), is 11 cruciferous annual, long in cultivation for its young leaves, which have a peculiarly warm and grateful relish, either alone, or with other salading. There are several varieties ; the best of which are the common Curled-leaved,, tlie Normandy curled, and the Broad-leaved. The Normandy curled is the C82 ACETARIACEOUS ESCULENTS. liardiest and most useful variety, supplying a beautiful garnish to dishes throughout the winter. The seed, which comes up in three days, may be sown in September and October for winter and spring supply ; and in March, AprU, and May, for summer use. These five sowings wUl afford a constant supply throughout the year of leaves to be gathered singly, whether for gamishings or salads ; but as the cress is also used as a small salad (1107), and for that purpose gathered in the seed-leaf, where it is in demand in that state, it should be sown three or four times every month— during winter and spring under glass, and in summer and autumn in a shaded situation, the soil being kept moist by watering, or by covering with hand glasses or mats. The soil should always be rich, the great object being rapid growth, so as to ensure succulence and delicacy. A few plants allowed to run to flower will produce abundance of seed, which will keep two years. Half a pound of seed at least will be required where the cress is in constant demand as small salading. 1528. The winter cress, Barbarea vulgaris H. K., and the American cress, B. praecox Dec, are cruciferous perennials, natives of Britain in watery places, and by careful culture in gardens they can be made to produce their leaves throughout the year. Sow in August, or the beginning of September, in rows a foot apart, for a ci-op to stand through the winter, and thin the plants out to six inches in the row. If the leaves are gathered singly, and the plants protected from frost by glass, or nightly coverings, they will afford a regular supply till next June. The plants will then run to flower, and produce seed in abundance. 1629. The water cress, Nastdrtium officinale H. K. (Cresson de Fontaine, Fr."), is a cruciferous amphibious creeping perennial, held in general estima- tion in this and in other countries as an antiscorbutic plant, and brought to market in immense quantities from its natural habitation in running water, or artificial plantations made there. The most favourable description of water is a clear stream, not more than an inch and a half deep, running over sand or gravel ; the least favourable, deep still water on a muddy bottom. It is evident, therefore, that there are few private gardens in which the water cress can be cultivated in running water ; but fortunately it will grow luxu- riantly in rich sandy soil, if watered overhead every evening and morning during the growing season ; and the cresses thus produced are undoubtedly of a richer taste than those grown in clear running water. The plants may be raised from seed, or obtained by division of old plants ; and they may be planted early in spring, a foot apart every way. In gathering, only the points of the shoots should be taken, as the lower leaves are not only coarser, but apt to be infested by the larva of insects if growing in water, and by snails and slugs if on land. For a small garden, the Normandy cress and the water cress are the only plants of the cress kind worth cultivating. SuBSECX. VI Small Salads. 1530. Small salads are understood to be very young plants of the salad kind, sown thick, and gathered, some, as the cress, mustard, rape, radish, and some other cruciferous plants, in the seed-leaf; and others, as the lettuce, endive, succory. Lamb's lettuce, and various others, when in the third or fourth leaf. In general, all rapid-growing salad plants are fit for being used as small salads, and are so used on the continent ; but the principal small salads in England are the cress, mustard, rape, and radish, which are sown SUBSTITUTES FOR ACETARIACEOUS ESCULENTS. 683 weekly all the year round on fine rich soil kept warm, moist, and shaded, and cut in the seed-leaf, generally in about a week after they are sown. Of the small salads which are allowed to advance beyond the seed-leaf before they are out, by far the best is the common cos lettuce. There are two kinds of mustard which may be grown as small salading, Sinapis alba L., and S. nigra L. ; but the former alone is grown as salading, the latter being the kind grown in fields for its seeds to be ground into the flour-of-mustard of the shops. It is, therefore, seldom seen in gardens. The rape, Brassica Napus, var. oleifera Dec, is only grown in gardens as a small salad, and as in the case of other small salads, when much in demand, one pound of seed of each kind at least will be required. 1531. Substitutes for mustard are to be found in the wild radish, Rd- phanus Raphanistrum L. ; the sea -radish, R. maritimus 5m./ in the wild mustard, Sinapis arvensis L. ; the fine- leaved mustard, S. tenuifblia L.; in all the species of Brassica, &c. ; and, in short, in all the annual and biennial species of Cruciferse, not excepting the wall-flower and stock gillyflower, though these and various others are not worth growing as salad-plants. SuBSECT. VII. — Substitutes for Acetariaceous Esculents. 1532. — Substitutes for acetariaceous esculents are found in the following plants. — The Brooklime, Veronica Beccabungai/., a scrophularinous perennial common in rivulets and wet ditches, and used like the water-cress. The Garden Rocket, Eruca sativa Dec, a cruciferous annual, used like the common cress and mustard. Scurvy Grass, Cochlearia officinalis L., a cruciferous bien- nial found on our sea-shores, the leaves of which are used like the water cress. Wood Sorrel, Oxalis Acetosella L., an oxalidaceous perennial, the leaves of which form a very grateful addition to salading, and communicate an agreeable relish to dishes of mashed greens : this maj' also be said of the leaves of all the other species of Oxalis. To these may be added the young leaves of all the cruciferous plants mentioned in p. 616 ; the leaves and flowers of Tropseolum majus i.; the flowers of Ce'rcis siliquastrum i. ; the petals of the Dahlia ; the points of the shoots of CEnothera biennis L.; the leaves of Sedum album L. ; of Crithmum maritimum L. ; of Salicdmia herbacea L. ; of Hypocheeris maculata L. ; of Picridium vulgare L. ; of Spilanthes oleracea L., and of S. fiisca Hort. Par. (see Bon Jard. \Si2, p. 317) ; of Balsamita vulgaris Desf. the costmary, a leaf or two of which is sometimes used to add to the flavour of mixed salads ; of Achillea Mil- lefolium L. ; of Inula crithmifblia L. ; of Cochlearia Coronopus h.; of Plantago Coronopus L., and various others. Sect. VIII. — Adornaceous Esculents. 1S33. Adornaceous esculents, under which term we include chiefly the plants used as garnishes, such as the parsley, chervil, fennel, horse-radish, &c., includeagreat varietyof plants belonging to different natural orders, and some of which, such as the Indian cress, might even have been included under acetariaceous esculents. The culture of all the plants of this section is very simple, and with the exception of the horse-radish, a dry calcareous soil, poor rather than rich, is to be preferred ; because such a soil is found to be most favourable for the preservation of their aromatic properties, With the exception of the horse-radish, they are generally grown in a com- partment, commonly a border, in the outer garden or slip, by themselves. 6Si ADOnNACEOUS ESCULENTS. SuBsECT. I The Parsley. 1534. The parsley, A.pium Petroselinum L. (Pei-sU, Fr.), is an umbelli- ferous biennial, a native of Sardinia, long in cultivation as a seasoning, and also as a garnish. ' Eaten along with any dish strongly seasoned with onions, it takes off their smell, and prevents their after-taste ; no herb is more valuable as communicating flavour to soups and stews. There are two varieties, the plain-leaved, and the curled-leaved, but the latter alone should be cul- tivated, because the former is apt to be confounded with a poisonous plant, the fool's parsley, iBthusa Cynapium L., an indigenous annual, common as a weed in most gardens, but which can never for a moment be mistaken for the curled-leaved parsley. Parsley-seed, of which an ounce will sow a drill 150 feet in length, requires to be sown every year in February, either broadcast or in rows, but not as an edging to walks as is commonly done ; because in that situation the leaves get soiled or injured. The seed wiil remain in the ground from forty to fifty days before it vegetates, being a longer period than is required for any other garden-seed ; and, contrary to what is general, parsley-seed that has been kept several yeai-s comes up sooner than new seed ; unless, indeed, the new seed has been taken from the plant before it was fully ripe, and sown immediately. The plants should be thinned out to six inches' distance in the row ; and also all those plants that have not the leaves beautifully curled should be pulled up, an operation technically called roguing (864) ; because one of the principal uses of parsley is as a garnish, and the curled leaves are incomparably more ornamental than the plain ones. They should be gathered leaf by leaf; and when there is a want of young tender leaves, the plant should be cut over by the surface of the ground, when a new set of leaves will be sent up. In order that there may be a supply in the winter season, a sowing should be made about May, to be covered in October with a frame and sashes, or with hoop sand mats, or propped hurdles. The parsley leaf may be preserved in a state fit for being used in soups and stews, by drying it in a Dutch oven, or in a tin roasting- screen (or hastener), and when it becomes brittle, rubbing it into a fine powder, and putting it into glass bottles till wanted for use. Seed may be saved by selecting a few plants with the most beautifully- curled leaves, and allowing them to run to flowers. The seed will ripen in July, iind will keep sbc or eight years. 16')5. The Hamburgh parsley, the roots of which are eaten like those of the parsnep.has been noticed under esculent roots (1441) ; and the Naples parsley, the footstalks of the leaves of which are used like celery, was noticed when treating of that vegetable (1524). SuBSECT. II. — The Chereil. the Coriander, Dili, Fennel, Tarragon, and Purslane. 1536. The chervil, Chajrophyilum sativum Pers. (Cerfeuil Fr.'), is an umbelliferous annual, a native of the South of Europe, and cultivated for the same purposes as the parsley ; but as it runs rapidly to seed, several sowings require to be made in the course of the growing season. Sow in shallow drills six inches apart, and thin out the plants ; and when gathering, take the leaves singly. They may be dried and preserved in the same manner as those of parsley. A few plants allowed to run will boar abundance of seed, which will keep six or eight years. THE CHERVIL, ETC- 685 1637. The coriander, Coriandrum sativum L., an umbelliferous aniiual, a native of the south of Europe, is sometimes cultivated in gardens for the same purposes as the chervil ; but more frequently, especially on the Continent, for its seeds, which are sold by the confectioners encrusted in sugar. 1538. The anise, Tragium sativum Spr., is an annual, a native of Egypt, sometimes cultivated in gardens for the same purposes as the coriander. 1639. The dill, Anethum graveolens L. (L'Anet Fr.'), is an umbelli- ferous biennial, a native of Spain, the leaves of which are occasionally used in soups and sauces, and to put along with pickles, especially cucumbers. Two or three plants will be enough for any family. It is easily propagated by division, or by seeds. 1640. The fennel, Anethum Foeniculum L., (L'Anet Fr.'), is an umbelliferous perennial, resembling the dill, but considerably larger, a native of the south of Europe, and veiy generally cultivated in gardens for the stalks and leaves. The leaves, boiled, enter into many fish-sauces, and, raw, form a beautiful garnish ; the tender stalks are used raw in salads ; and the blanched stalks of the variety called finochio are eaten with oil, vinegar, and pepper, as a coid salad ; and they are likewise put into soups. Three or four plants of the common fennel are sufficient for any garden. The finochio may be grown in rows in light, rich soil,, and earthed up to the height of five inches or six inches, to blanch the stalks. This blanching will be eflFected in ten days or a fortnight ; and by cutting down a few plants at a time during summer, a succession of young shoots will be produced, which, being blanched, will afford a supply from June till December. The soil ought to be calcareous, dry, and rich, and watered in very dry weather. 1541. The tarragon, Artemisia Dracunculus L, (L'Estragon Fr,'), is an anthemideous perennial, a native of Siberia, cultivated for its leaves and the points of its shoots as an ingredient in salads, soups, stews, pickles, and other compositions. By infusion, the stalks and leaves make tarragon vinegar, which is considered one of the best condiments for fish. Tan-agon is propagated by division or by seed, and grown in rows eighteen inches apart and six inches distant in the row. The soil in which it is grovni should be dry and calcareous ; otherwise the plants will be comparatively without flavour, and be apt to perish in a severe winter. It is easily forced by transferring a few plants to the hotbed or hothouse (1110); and the stems may be gathered just before they are coming into flower, dried, com- pressed into small packets, and put up in paper as already described (867). 1642. Substitutes for the tarragon are to be found in the Achillea serrata £. B., and the Tagetes lucida Cav. ; in the latter plant more especially. The former is much used in Nottinghamshire, under the name of sweet mace. Achillea nana L., and several dwarf species of Artemisia, are used for the same purpose in the Alps. 1643. The purslane, Portulaca oleiacea L., and P. sativa Haw. (Pour- pier Fr."), is a portulaceous annual, with succulent leaves and procumbent stems, a native of South America, and cultivated for its young shoots and succulent leaves as ingredients in spring and summer salads, and as pot- herbs and pickles. There are two sorts, considered as distinct species, the green and the golden ; the latter is more showy as a garnish, but the former is more succulent as a salad. Where a constant supply is required, the first sowing should be made on heat in February, and the others monthly, on a warm border till August. The shoots are gathered for use \yhen they are r Y 686 ADOENACEOirS ESCtriES'TS. from two inches to five inclies ia hciglit, and -well furnished with leaves ; and if they are cut off close to the collar of the plant, it will sprout out again, and afford a second supply. A few plants will produce abundance of seed, which will keep good two years. SuBSECT. III. — The Indian Cress, Borage, and Marigold. These plants are annuals, and only a very few of each are required for any garden. 1544. The Indian cress, or nasturtium, Tropseolum majus L. (Capucine, Fr.'), is a tvopEeolaceous trailing or climbing annual, a native of Peru, but growing vigorously in the open air in the climate of Britain. The flowers make a beautiful garnish alone, or along with those of the borage, the mari- gold, oxalis, dahlia, &c. ; and both the flowers and the young leaves and tender shoots are eaten in salads, having a warm taste like the common cress, whence the name Indian cress. The fruit is gathered green, and pickled like capers, for which they form so excellent a substitute that they are preferred to the true caper by many persons. The two sorts best worth cultivating are the common large, with an orange flower, and the blood-red flowered. The seed may either be sown on heat in March, and transplanted in May, or sown in May where it is finally to remain ; and in order to keep the flowers and fruit quite clean, it is advisable to stick the plants in the manner of peas. The leaves, points of the shoots, and flowers, should be gathered only a few hours before using ; and the fruit for pickling, while green, plump, and tender. One or two plants will ripen abundance of seed, which will keep two years. 1645. The borage, Borago officinalis L. (^Bourrache Fr.'), is a boragina- ceoQS annual, indigenous or naturalised in Britain, and generally cultivated among other plants used in garnishing for its beautiful blue flowers. Tlie tender leaves and points of the shoots are used in salads and as pot-herbs, more especially on the Continent. The flowers and upper leaves are some- tines put in a cool tankard, which is a beverage composed of wine, water, lemon juice, and sugar. The seed keeps four years. 1546. The marigold, or pot-marigold, Cal6ndula officinalis L. (Souci des Jardins, Fr.), is a helianthemideous annual, the double-flowered varieties of which have been long cultivated in gardens as ornamental plants, for their flowers as garnishes, and for their petals, which are occasionally used in broths and soups. A few plants are enough for any garden, and they may be raised from seed sown in P^ebruary or March. The petals may be gathered, dried in the sun, and put up in paper for winter use. SuBsEcr. IV. — The Horse-radish. ]fi47. The horse-radish, Cochlearia Armoracea L. (Cranson, orLe Grand Raifort, Fr.), is a cruciferous perennial, a native of England in marshy places, long cultivated for its roots or underground stems. These are scraped into shieds, as a garnish and a condiment to roast-beef, and also as an ingredient in winter salads and sauces ; and by some persons it is eaten raw with bread and butter. It is propagated by cuttings of the root, either of the crown, with one or two inches of the root attached, or of the root, withcut any visible buds, about the same length, and planted with the upf«r end uppermost, as in sea-kale (1488). These cuttings may either be dippped into holes, made by a dibber, fifteen or eighteen inches in THE RHUBARB. 687 depth, and about the same distance apart every way, the upper part of the hole being filled in with light soil or wood ashes ; or they may be planted while the ground is being trenched, covering it to the depth of eighteen inches. March is the season for planting, and the soil should be rich, free, moist, and at least two feet deep. The roots, that is the part produced between the top of the cutting and the surface of the ground, and which may be called a blanched stem, will be fit for use at the end of the first autumn, when the leaves have decayed ; but they will be much stronger at the end of the second autumn. They ought never to be allowed to remain longer than three years, nor to ripen seed, otherwise the roots become tough and disagreeable to use. A portion ought to be planted every year, to come in in succession. In taking the crop, begin at one end of a row, and dig down as far as the roots have penetrated, so as to take up every particle of root, for the least fragment left will send up leaves the following year. For this reason many gardeners grow their horse-radish always on the same spot of ground ; trenching up one-half every winter ; and selecting the larger roots, and laying them up in sand, or earthing them up in a shady border, for use, and leaving the smaller roots in the bottom of the trench for next year's crop. In whichever way horse-radish is grown, the soil ought to be deep, rich, and moist, in order that the growth may be rapid and the root succulent ; the flower-stems should be cut off as soon as they appear, because they deprive the root of nourishment which would otherwise be sent down to it ; and the crop should not be allowed to stand more than two years, or at most three, otherwise the roots will become filled with woody fibre, sticky, and unfit for use. 1548. Lepidhim latifdliwm L., a cruciferous annual, a native of Britain on the sea-coast, has roots resembling those of the horse-radish, which may vrey well be used as a substitute ; the leaves are excellent as greens, and not bad in salads. Sect. IX. — Condimentaceous Ksculents. 1649. Condimentaceous esculents are such as in cookery are always used with pastry in the form of tarts, pies, puddings, &c. ; or preserved in sugar, or pickled in vinegar. Though fruits are chiefly employed in these prepa- rations, yet we have as substitutes the rhubarb and the Oxalis crenata for tarts, pies and puddings, and the angelica for preserving in sugar, and the samphire for pickling. The principal plant belonging to this section, how- ever, is the rhubarb, which, though scarcely known as a tart plant in the com - mencement of the present century, is now become generally cultivated fr r that purpose, even in the garden of the cottager. The other plants of this section occupy but a very small space in the herb-ground. SuBSECT. I. — Tlie Rhubarb. 16.50. The Rhubarb, Rheum L. (Rhubarbe Fr.), is a polygonaceous perennial, a native of Tartary, and other countries of the East, of w hich there are several species, hybrids and varieties, in culture for the petioles of the radical leaves. These are peeled, cut into small pieces, and pat into tarts and pies, in the manner of gooseberries and apples, or, like them, baked whole in a dish. A wine is also made from them, and they are also pickled and preserved. There are a great many different kinds in cultivation, and every year produces some newt-sort; but those considered the best at the I '^ V Y 2 688 CONDIMENTACEOUS ESCULENTS. present time are : the El/ord, with scarlet stalks, for an early crop ; Myatt't Victoria, for a main crop, and it is also the best for forcing ; and Rheum australe D. Don., syn. R. Embdi Wal., for a late crop. The latter has an excellent flavour, somewhat resembling that of apples. To ensure the flavour in pies and puddings, a portion of the stalks should always be put in without being peeled. 1551. Propagation and culture. — By seed is the best mode when the soil is rich and deep, because the tap-root penetrates at once to a great depth, and the plant is less likely afterwards to sufier from drought ; but it will grow quite well by division, wliich is the most certain mode of continuing particular varieties. The soil being deeply trenched and richly manured, a few seeds may be deposited in drills two feet apart for the Elford, and three feet for the other sorts ; and nearly the same distance may be allowed in the rows. When the plants come up, reduce the patches to single plants, and, with the usual routine culture, one or two leaves from each plant may be gathered the second year, three or more the third, and several every year for a number of years afterwards ; though as the number of buds on the crowns of the roots increase, the leaves will be smaller. The flower-stems should be cut down as soon as they appear, unless seed is wanted. Some persons prefer the leaves partially blanched, and for this purpose place a sea-kale pot over each plant, but without the cover ; others have grown it in chimney-pots for the same purpose, and find also an increased produce from the greater length of stalk. The progress of the Elford, or any other early variety, may be greatly accelerated in spring by covering each plant with a common hand-glass, or with the substitute (figs. 111—113, in p. 172) invented by Mr. Forsyth. In gathering the leaves, remove a little soil, bend them down, and slip them ofl', without injuring the buds at their base, and without bruising the stalks or knife. Tlie stalk is fit to use when the disk of the leaf is half expanded ; but a larger produce and a fuller flavour are obtained by waiting till the leaf is fully grown. One plant allowed to run will produce abundance of seed, which ripens in August, and will keep a year. Forcing the rhubarb. See 1098. 1552. Substitutes for the tart rhubarb may be found in every other species of the genus, not even excepting the supposed medicinal species, R. palraa- tum; in the stalks of the oxalis crenata (1446), of the sorrel (1468), and of the different species of dock, which, according to Cobbett, are sent to market for that purpose in America. Shbsect. II. — The Angelica, Elecampane, Samphire, and Caper. 1553. The Angelica, Angelica Archangelica L., is an umbelliferous bien- nial, a native of England, in moist situations in good soil, but rare, and cul- tivated in gardens for their leaves, and the tender flower-stalks, which were formerly blanched like celery. They are now chiefly candied with suf;ar by the confectioners ; and in Sweden and Norway, the leaves and stalks ai e eaten raw, or boiled with meat and fish ; and the seeds are used to flavour ardent spirits. The time for gathering the stalks is May, and if the plant be then cut down a second crop will be produced ; and if the flower-stems be cut off as fast as they appear, the plant, though a biennial, will last several years. Seed is produced in abundance, and will keep three or four years. 1654. Substitutes for the angelica are to be found in the alisanders (1523), THE ANCELICA, ETC. 689 and the lovage, Ligusticum scoticum L., an umbelliferous perennial, eaten raw in the Higlilands of Scotland. 1555. The elecampane. Inula Helenium £,., is a carduaceous perennial, a native of the South of England in moist pastures. The root is fusiform, thick, and aromatic, and is candied like the stalks of the angelica, and much admired in France and Germany. The plant ought to be taken up yearly, and divided and replanted, in order that the roots may be obtained succulent and tender, and for the same reason the plant ought never to be allowed to come into flower. 1556. The samphire, Crithmum maritimum i., is an umbelliferous perennial, a native of England, on rocky cliffs by the sea, and cultivated in gardens for its seed-pods, which make a warm aromatic pickle, and its leaves, which ai-e used in salads. It is propagated by division, or by sowing the seed in April ; but in either way it is rather difficult of cultivation. It suc- ceeds best in a gravelly soil, kept moist, and sprinkled in spring with a little powdered barilla, or common sea-salt. During winter it requires to be protected by a little dry litter. By this treatment it has produced an ample supply of shoots, which may be cut twice in a season. Seed may be saved, or plants procured from their native habitats on the sea-coast, as for example at Dover, Salcouibe, and on the coast of Galloway and Haddington shires. 1557. Substitutes for the samphire are to be found in some other plants ■which grow within salt-water mark; for example, the golden samphire, Inula crithmifblia i., a perennial, not uncommon in salt mai'sliea; and Salicornia herbacea L., a chenopodiaceous annual, found on muddy sea- shores throughout Europe; in Echiuophora spinosa L, an umbelliferous plant, a native of sandy shores in Lancashire and Kent ; the young leaves of which make a w holesome and excellent pickle. 1558. The caper, Capparis spinosa L., is a capparidaoeous trailing shrub, a native of the South of Europe, on rocks aud dry stony or gravelly places, and cultivated about Marseilles, and other parts of France, forits flower- buds, when about half the size which they attain before expanding. It might be culti- vated in the South of England in the open garden, and in other parts against a conservative wall ; or if it were thought necessary a few plants under glass would supply all that would suffice for an ordinary family. It would thrive on the rocky shores of the south of Devon, more especially about Salcombe, where the Agave stands through the winter without protection ; and it will also succeed in Somersetshire, as Sir John Trevelyan has proved, by plant- ing it on the sides of an old stone quarry. 1559. Excellent substitutes for the caper are found in the unripe fruit of the Indian cress, and of the Euphorbia Lathyris L. 1560. The ginger. Zingiber officinale £., a scilaraineous perennial from the East Indies, is sometimes cultivated in our stoves for the roots, or ci-eep- ing underground stems, to be taken when succulent, and pickled and pre- served. The plants are divided when in a dormant state, and planted in rich light soil, and in a year afterwards the roots are fit to gather. (G. M., vol. vii., p. 678.) 1561. The flowers o/* ilfa(jf«6i!a prandt/^ora L,, are pickled in some parts of Devonshire, and considered exquisite in flavour ; and we have no doubt that the flower-buds of the other species, and the leaf-buds when bursting, of all the species, and also of the tulip tree, might be used for the same purpose. 690 AROMACEOUS ESCULKNTS. Sect. X. — Aromaceous Esculents. Ifi62. The esculent aromatic plants, or sweet herbs, in common use, are about a dozen in number, but they all grow in a very limited space in the herb garden. The soil for all of them may be dry and calcareous, with the single exception of the mint family. They are used to give flavour to soups, scews, and other dishes; and in sauces and various stuffings. The leaves and stalks of all these plants may be gathered when they are coming into flower, dried, and compressed in a shallow box by a screw press, so as to form packets about the size of a small octavo volume, which, being put up in paper, will retain their fragrance for two or three years. Nothing can be worse than the former mode of keeping herbs, by hanging them up loose, in the back sheds, or in the seed-room, where they soon became covered with dust, and deprived of their aroma. 1663. The common thyme. Thymus vulgaris L., is a labiaceous evergreen undershrub, a native of Spain and Italy. The young leaves and tops are used either green or dried in soups, stuffings, stews, and sauces. It is readily increased by seeds, cuttings, or by division, and the plants should be renewed by one or other of these modes every j'ear in spring. 1564. The lemon thyme is the T. citriodorus Pers., a trailing evergreen, used for the same purposes as the preceding species ; but being less pungent it is more grateful, and therefore used as a seasoning for veal, instead of lemon peel. 1565. The sage. Salvia officinalis L., is a labiaceous evergreen undershrub, a native of the South of Europe. The leaves and tender tops are used in stuffings and sauces, for many kinds of luscious and strong meats ; as well as to improve the flavour of various articles of cookery. There are several ' varieties : the common, red, or purple leaved j the narrow-leaved green ; and the broad-leaved green, all of equal merit. They are propagated by seeds or cuttings, and like the thyme, the plantation ought to be renewed every two or three years, otherwise it is very apt to be destroyed by the winter. 1606. The clary, S. Sclarea L., is a biennial, a native of Italy, sometimes used as a substitute for the sage. 1567. The common mint, or spear mint, is the Mentha viridis L., a labiaceous creeping stemmed perennial, a native of England, in marshy places ; the young leaves and tops of which are used in spring salads, and form an ingredient in soups ; they are also employed to give flavour to cer- tain dishes, as peas, &c. ; being boiled for a time, and then withdrawn. Mint is much in demand about London as an ingredient in a sauce for lamb. It is propagated by division of the roots before they begin to grow in spring, which arc buried in shallow drills ; or by the young shoots slipped off when they are three inches or four inches in length, and planted in beds a few inches apart. To produce tender stalks and leaves the plants require to be liberally supplied with water. When mint is to be dried the stalks should be cut when they are just coming into flower, dried in a shady place, compressed in packets, and papered ; to be laid up in a drawer or herb case till wanted for use. One packet may be sent to the kitchen at a time. No plant is easier to force, and this ought always to be done in time for new lamb. (See 1110.) 1568. The pennyroyal mint, M. Pulegium L., is alow creeping perennial, a native of England, in wet commons, and on the margins of brooks. It is uied in cookery like the common mint, and for distilling pennyroyal water. PtJNOACEOUS ESCntENTS. 691 - 1569. The pot marjoram. Origanum Onites L., is a labiaceous undei- shrub, a native of Sicily, but hardy enougli to stand through our winters. Tlie leaves and tender tops, green or dried, are used in soups as a substitute for those of the sweet or knotted maijoram. It is readily propagated by division of the roots, or by seeds. 1670. The sweet marjoram, or knotted marjoram, O. Majorana L., is a biennial, a native of the South of Europe, and long cultivated in British gardens as a seasoning for soups, and for other culinary purposes. This species being somewhat tender, is commonly sown on a slight hot-bed towards the end of March, or on a warm border about the middle of April ; in the former case transplantmg it into rows one foot apart, and the plants six inches distant in the row ; and in the latter case thinning them out without transplanting. The green tops may be gathered as wanted ; but those to be preserved in packets vrill have most flavour, if gathered when just coming into blossom. The seed, of which a quarter of an ounce is suflicieut for any garden, is commonly imported, and will keep four years. 1671. The winter marjoram, O. her3cle6ticum i., is a perennial, a native of the South of Europe, with leaves resembling those of the knotted marjoram, but with the flowers in spikes instead of whorls. It is used like the other marjorams, and propagated by division. 1572. The winter savory, Satureja montaua L., is a labiaceous under- shrub, a native of the South of Europe, and cultivated for its tender tops as a seasoning for soups and made dishes, and for boiling with peas, beans, &c. It is propagated by seed, cuttings, or division, like thyme, but most frequently by the latter mode. 1673. The summer savory, S. hortensis L., is an annual, a native of Italy, with larger leaves and a more agreeable fragrance than the winter savory, to which it is generally preferred. It is sown in drills, one foot apax't, in the open garden, in March or April. 1674. The sweet basil, or larger basil, Ocymum BasiUcum L., is a labia- ceous annual, a native of the East Indies, cultivated for its highly aromatic properties. The leaves and bractese, or leafy tops, are the parts gathered ; and, on account of their strong flavour of cloves, they are often used in highly-seasoned dishes, as well as in soups, stews, and sauces; and a leaf or two leaves are sometimes introduced into salads. Sow on a hot-bed in the end of March, and plant out in a warm border when all danger from frost is over, allowing the plants at least a square foot of space for each. Seed is generally imported from Italy, and it keeps two years. 1576. The bush basil, or least basil, O. minimum L., an annual, also from the East Indies, is a much smaller plant than the former, but being equally aromatic, and rather more hardy, is frequently substituted for it. 1676. The tansy, Tanacetum vulgare L., is an anthemideous perennial, a native of Britain on the sandy banks of rivers, and cultivated in gardens for the young leaves, which are shredded down, and employed to flavour puddings, omelets, and cakes. There is a variety with the leaves doubly curled, which is generally preferred. No plant is more easily propagated or cultivated, and it also forces freely. Sect. XI. — Fungaceous Esculents. The only fungaceous vegetable cultivated in Biitain is the common mush- room, though attempts have been made to bring under subjection the truffle and the morel. oy;j FUNGACEous esculents. 1677. The garden mushroom, Agaiicus campestris L., is a hymenomyce- taceous fungus, a native of Britain and most parts of Europe, appearing in pastures in August and September, and readily distinguished from other fungi by its fine pink or flesh-coloured gills, and pleasant smell. As the natural history of the mushroom was given when treating of the mode of forcing it (1111), and as there are no varieties to be described, we have only to notice a practice sometimes adopted of growing the mushroom, in imi- tation of nature, in grass-lawns and pastures. The attempt vnll not succeed in every soil and situation, but it has done so in a great many instances. Talce mushroom spawn — the mode of procuring which has been already given (1113) — and in the beginning of July inoculate a lawn or pasture with it by simply raising one piece of turf, three inches thick, with the spade, in every square yard, inserting a small fragment of spavm beneath it, and pressing it firmly down again with the back of the spade or the foot. This will not interfere with the mowing of the lawn, and in all probability a crop wiU be produced during the latter end of August and the heginning of September; and mushrooms will appear of themselves in the same ground for a number of years afterwards. Mushroom spawn has also been planted among potatoes and other crops in the open garden, and has produced mush- rooms, but no mode yet discovered is so certain as those in w^hich artificial heat and a bed of stable-dung is employed (G. M., vol. ix., p. 223). The mushroom, when cultivated in houses, is liable to the attacks of various insects, slugs, and worms, all of which may be collected by baits, or devouied by a toad or two kept on purpose. 1678. The truffle. Tuber cibarium Sibth., is a gasteromycetaceous fungus, a native of Britain, and growitig naturally some inches below the surface. It is very common in the downs of Wiltshire, Hampshire, and Kent, where dogs are trained to scent it out, and where also it is sought out and devoured by pigs ; — which on the Continent are used to discover the localities of this fungus, as dogs are in England. It is sent to the London mai'ket from different parts of England in a green state, and imported from the Continent sliced and dried ; the most celebrated truffles are those from the oak forests of Perigord. Various attempts liave been made, both in Britain and on the Continent, to cultivate the truffle, but hitherto without success {G.M. I., VIII., and XIII.); but it would appear that Dr. Klotzsch, of Berlin, has ascertained that the best course is to take truffles which are no longer good for the table, being over-ripe, and nearly in a state of decompo- sition, diffusing a disagreeable odour ; to break them into pieces, and place them two inches or three inches deep in the earth, in rather raised flat places, under copse or underwood, protected from the north and east winds. Truffles in the state in which they are eaten are never ripe, and therefore unfit for propagation. — (^Gard. Chron. 1842, p. 287.) 1579. The morel, Morchella esculenta Pers., belongs to the same division of fungi as the truffle. It is a native of Britain in wet banks, in woods, and in moist pastures, and is in perfection in May and June. When gathered dry it will keep several months. It is used for the same purpose as the truffle, but like it has not as yet been subjected to cultivation. 1680. Substitutes for these fungi may be found in a number of species of the same genera, more especially of Agaricus, hut as a great number of fungi are considered poisonous, it would be dangerous for any one to collect them for edible purposes from mere description without figures. We refer therefore to Sowerby's English Fungi, in which coloured plates are given of MEDICACEOns UERBS. 693 all the indigenous species, and those which are edihle, and those which are poisonous, particularly pointed out. See also Descrizione dei Funghi Man- gerecci piu comuni dell' Italia e de velenosi che possono c omedesimi confon- dersif del Dottor Carlo Vittadini. Milano, 1835. Sect. XII. — Odoraceous Herbs. 1681. The odoraceous herbs, or peifumery herbs, cultivated in British gardens in the present day, are, with the exception of lavender and pepper- mint, applied to very little use. 1582. The lavender, Lavandula spica L., is a labiaceous under-shrub, a native of the South of Europe, a few plants of which are cultivated in every gaiden for their powerfully aromatic flowers. These are gathered with a portion of the stalk attached, and tied up in little bundles, dried, and placed among linen to perfume them and to deter the moth. They are also used for scenting rooms, wardrobes, and for a variety of similar purposes, and for affording by distillation lavender-water. It is propagated by seeds or cuttings, and thrives best on dry calcareous soils, in which it will last five or six years. L. latifblia Ehrh., and L. viridis Herit., are cultivated in some gardens instead of the common sort, or along with it. 1583. The rosemary, Rosmarinus officinalis L., is a labiaceous evergreen under-shrub, a native of the south of Europe, and like the lavender highly aromatic. The flowers are used like those of the lavender, and for distUling Hungary- water; and the sprigs are sometimes used as a garnish. It is readily propagated by seeds or cuttings in dry calcareous soil, and a plant will last six or seven yeai-s. 1584. The peppermint. — Mentha piperita L., is a labiaceous creeping- stemmed perennial, a native of England in watery places. Its only use is for distilling peppermint- water, for which purpose it may be propagated like the mint (1567), and planted in a soft, rich soil, moist either naturally or by art. The stalks are gathered when they are in full flower, and taken at once to distil. The plantation, from its travelUng-roots, requii-es to be renewed every four or five years. Sect. XIII. — Medicaceous Herbs. 1686. The medicinal herbs enumerated in this section, are still found in a number of gardens, though very little use is made of them. 1586. The medicinal rhubarb. Rheum palmatum L., may be cultivated like the tart rhubarb, and after standing three or four years, the plants may be taken up and their larger roots dried for use. After taking up and cleaning the roots and cutting off the lateral fibres, cut them into sec- tions an inch or more in thickness, make holes in them, and string them, and hang them up to dry in an airy loft, laundry, or kitclien, gradually, till thej' are fit for being bruised into a powder, or cut into pieces about the size of peas, to be taken as pills. Till about the commencement of the present century, it was customary for almost every gardener in Scotland to grow enough of rhubarb, and of chamomile, for his own family ; and also, if ho had children, a certain quantity of wormwood and rue as anthelmintics. 1587. The chamomile, Anthemis nobilis L., is an anthemideous creeping perennial, a native of England in gravelly pastures, and cultivated for its flowers, which are hitter and stomachic, and much used as chamomile tea. 1588. 3%e wormwood, Artemisia Absinthium L., is an anthemideous 694 TOXICACEOUS HERBS. perennial, a native of Britain in calcareous pastures, and formerly cultivated as a vermifuge, and for otlier purposes in domestic medicine. It is found beneficial to poultry, and should be planted in poultry grounds ; and it is also used as a substitute for hops in beer. It is easily propagated by cuttings or division. 1689. The rue, Ruta graveolens L., is a rutaceous evergreen under-shrub, a native of the south of Europe, the leaves of which are sometimes eaten with bread and butter, and frequently given to poultry for the croup. They also make a beautiful garnish. 1590. The horehound, Marrubium vulgare L., is a labiaceous perennial, a native of Britain on dry chalky or gravelly soil, and was formerly in demand as a cure for coughs and asthmas, for which candied horehound is still a popular remedj'. 1591. The hyssop, Hyssbpus officinalis L., is a labiaceous evergreen under-shrub, a native of the South of Europe, the leafy tops and flowers of which are gathered and dried for making hyssop tea and other purposes. 1592. The balm, Melissa officinalis L., is a labiaceous perennial, a native of Switzerland, of which balm tea and balm wine used to be made. 1593. The blessed thistle, Centaurea benedicta L., is a carduaceous annual, a native of the South of Europe, an infusion of the leaves of which is con- sidered as stomachic. 1594. The liquorice, Gl_ycyiThiza glabra i., is a leguminous deep-rooting perennial, cultivated in fields more fi-equently than in gardens for its saccha- rine juice, which is used as an emollient in colds, fevers, &c. 1695. The blue melilot, Melilbtus cajrulea L. (Baume du Perou, Fr.), is a leguminous annual, a native of Switzerland, Bohemia, &c., remarkable for its powerful fragrance, which is used in Switzerland to aromatise the Schabziguer cheese, and there and in other countries to perfume clothes, and afford, by distillation, a fragrant water. In a dried state, the perfume is more powerful, and it is retained for upwards of half a century. — (£o» Jard. 1842.) Sect. XIV. — Toxicaceous Herbs. 1596. The poisonous plants cultivated in gardens for the purpose of destroying insects or vermin are few, and indeed the tobacco is almost the only one. 1597. The tobacco, Nicotiana Tabacum L., is a solanaceous annual, a native of South America, and cultivated to a limited extent in gardens for horticultural purposes. " It is used to fumigate hot-houses ; large infusions of it are put into most washes that are prepared for extirpating insects ; and by drying and grinding it into the fonn of snuff, it is found very efficacious in destroying the green-fly on peach and rose trees out of doors." The best variety is the large-leaved Virginian. 1598. Propagation and culture. — The practice in the Hort. Soc. gardens is as follows : — " The seeds were sown about the middle of March, covered very lightly with fine loam, and placed upon a moderate hot-bed. When the plants were come up, and had acquired sufficient strength, they were pricked into shal- low pans, about two inches apart ; they were then gradually inured to the open air on good days, and finally planted out in the middle of May, at three feet apart, in rich ground. They were shaded with flower-pots, and occasionally watered, till they had taken root and begun to grow. No more attention TOXICACEOCS HERBS. 695 was bestowed, except keeping the ground clean, untU their lateral shoots began to show themselves, which were constantly kept pinched off as they appeared : these, if suflFered to remain, would have had the effect of very much reducing the supply of sap from the useful leaves of the plants. They were topped at sixteen or eighteen leaves, according to their strength. The tobacco was ripe in the beginning of September, as was indicated by the leaves becoming mottled with yellow spots, those at the bottom more so than at the top of the plant ; they were also more glossy and shining than before." 1599. After management. — " In most gardens the leaves are stripped off the plants in a green state, and thrown together in a heap to ferment ; while, little or no attention being paid to the degree of temperature which such fermentation should reach, the usual consequence is burning or rotting the leaves. Tobacco so treated has neither the taste, the smell, nor the efficacy of tobacco, and when burnt in hothouses is by no means effective in killing insects, without a great proportion of regularly cured and manufactured tobacco being burnt along with it. Hothouses also smell very disagi'eeably for eight or ten days after being fumigated with it." 1600. Curing. — " The mushroom-house being at this time disengaged, was thought an eligible place for the curing process. The plants were taken up quite dry, with a few of their roots ; but no particular attention was paid to saving many of the latter, as the object was only to avoid breaking the bottom leaves (wliich might have been the case by cutting the stems). The plants were carried immediately to the house, and hung on nails in the walls, and on ropes in the middle of it. When all had been brought into the house, it was shut up quite close, the fire lighted, and the temperature kept to 70°, until the leaves got completely yellow, which they did in four or five days. The heat was then raised to 75° ; and in about a week the leaves, with the exception of the midribs, were cured, and of a fine brown colour. The heat was then increased to between 80° and 90° ; and in five daj's the midribs were so completely killed, that the thick ends of them would have broken immediately on attempting to bend them. The leaves were now very much curled, and dry as fire could make them, and if subjected to any pressure would have crumbled to snuff. Fire was discontinued, and the floor of the house well watered. This was repeated as it evaporated, and in twenty- four hours the leaves were as soft and pliable as could be desired : they could now be handled without breaking or wasting them. When stripped off the stalks, they were stretched out singly, and laid above one another, smoothing them gently with the hands. When all were laid out neatly, they were well pressed, to give them form and keep them smooth ; they were then tied in hands, of about half a dozen leaves in each, and packed into a tub, being well pressed as tliey were put in. In this way they remained a fortnight, when they began to mould slightly at the midribs, in conse- quence of the weather being moist and warm. They were then rehung in the house, and very gradually dried by fire-heat ; were afterwards brought to a moist state in the manner above described, and finally were repacked in the tub, where they now remain, well pressed, and in a good keeping state. I he tobacco continues to improve in smell and appearance with its age. " The important points in the above mode of curing are, to carry the plants to the house whenever they are taken up ; for if the sun be bright, the leaves would sunburn in a short time. The leaves require to be yellow 696 TOXICAOEOUS HEUBS. before the heat is increased, otherwise the tobacco would cure too light- coloured ; and the midribs must be completely killed before the leaves are taken off the stalks ; for if not once made very dry, they would never keep. " The power which the leaves possess of absorbing moisture in a damp atmosphere is immense, and very curious : a person unacquainted with it would not believe, on seeing a leaf in its driest state, that it could ever be brought back so as to be again pliable. " The number of leaves that each plant ought to be allowed to produce should be determined by the quality of the ground, the earliness or lateness of the season, &c. : when these combine to the advantage of the plants, they are able to perfect proportionally more leaves. By a timely and careful attention to such circumstances, and by pinching off the lateral shoots, the climate of England, or that of Ireland, is in every respect sufficient to the full perfection of tobacco. Four months are not fully required to bring it to maturity. " In the case of large plantations being made, shading with flower pots would be attended with considerable expense : it is not, however, of absolute necessity ; for, when tobacco plants are pricked out some time previous to planting, they make good roots, which are of greater benefit to them, after they are planted, than shading is. Shading with pots, however, is certainly useful ; but it is by no means an essentially necessary part of the manage- ment of tobacco. The leaves flag under a hot sun ; but, if the ground is moist, quickly recover." — {Gard. Mag. vol. x. p. 603.) IfiOl. The white hellebore, Veratrum album L., is a melanthaceous tuber- culous-rooted perennial, a native of Denmark, and formerly in much repute as a powerful medicine. The part employed is the root dried and powdered; and as it has lately been found more efficacious than tobacco powder (1223) in destroying the caterpillar on the gooseberry, it might be worth while to cultivate it in gardens for that purpose. The plant is not rare, and is easily propagated by seeds or by division. At two years from the seed the roots may be fit for use, and may be taken up, dried on a hothouse flue, and beat into powder, first on a stone with the cast-iron rammer (fig. 37 c, in p. 136), and afterwards, if thought necessary, to a finer powder, in a mortar. A decoction of the leaves and stems might probably also be effective ; or they might be treated like those of the tobacco, and afterwards used in fumigation or as snuff. 1(302. The foxglove. Digitalis purpurea L., is a scrophularinaceous biennial, a native of Britain, and common in copse- woods and hedge-wastes. The whole plant is poisonous, and may be used for the same purpose, and in the same manner, as the tobacco. 1603. The henbane, Hyoscyamus niger £,., and the thorn-apple, Datiira Stramonium L., are well known indigenous annuals, of highly narcotic properties, which, if treated like the tobacco, would probably be equally efficacious in the destruction of insects. 1604. Walnut leaves, in strong decoction, are found to destroy worms ; and the leaves of the sweet bay, Laurus nobilis i.,; which are used in very small quantities to flavour tarts, have been also put into frames and pine-stoves to destroy the red spider, by the evapoiisation of the prussio acid with which they abound. APPENDIX. fl, in p. 4. — In comparing plants with animals, the leaves can only be compared to lungs ; and, similarly to lungs, it is true, they aerate the sap, and imbibe oxygen, as the lungs do to the blood : but, when we carry the comparison further, we find that not only do the leaves imbibe oxygen, but they also, by imbibing the chemical power of the light, decompose carbonic acid, absorbing the carbon, and setting the oxygen free. This is a power which has never been ascribed to lungs ; and, as the chemical power absorbed probably acts in other ways on the sap presented (see 124), though it is difficult to discriminate between organic secretion of particular organs and the chemical power of light, it has been by many eminent physiologists called digestion. Comparative physiology is valuable as assisting us to understand more readily what we are ignorant of, by comparing it with what we are already acquainted with. It is necessary to know the functions which the different organs perform before we can estimate their value, or know the necessity of supplying them with proper food ; and the more we can simplify the subject, by classifying one organ in one organised being with one destined to a similar purpose in another, we the more readily arrive at a general knowledge of the whole. There are many difficulties, however, in comparative physiology ; and the proper class of organs to which leaves may belong seems one of the principal stumbling-blocks. 103, in p. 26. — It may be questioned whether the roots of Roailcese, &c., abound in adventitious buds. It is more likely these buds are called into existence by an effort of the vitality of the plant. In such as the Rhlis, Papiiver, &c., which abound in a thick viscid sap, the very smallest pieces, in which it is scarcely possible buds could be formed, are found to produce them, if they have only fibres to collect nourLshment. The buds are generally formed at the edges of the cut, where the leaf is extravasated, showing they are formed from the extra vasated sap, and did not previously exist in the state of buds. The edge of the cut is sometimes so crowded ■with buds, that they cannot be supposed to have had pre-existence in such large quantities. The buds noticed at 121 maybe more properly called axillary than adventitious, 12S,in p. 34. — It has been customary to call the cause of fruiting an accumula- tion of nutritive matter. Were this the case, we would add to the fruitfulness of a tree by augmenting the quantity of its food or nutritive matter. The reverse of this, however, more often takes place, as in ringing and taking away roots, impo- verishing the soil, &c., all which diminish the quantity of nutritive matter, and yet generally add to fruitfulness. It is not that impoverishing is itself the cause : were we able to increase the light and heat as we can increase food, there would be less cause for impoverishing. The supply of food, however, is most at our command; the others, especially the light (the most needful), we have but little power over, and must, therefore, curtail the food to suit lur limited means. A certain highly 698 APPKNDIX. elaborated state of the food is necessary before fruit-buds can be formed : experi- ence teaches us this, as we see that fruit-buds are always most plentifully formed in seasons when the accumulation of the chemical power of the light from an un- clouded sky has added most to the power of the leaves. Chemistry has not yet been able to unravel the changes requii-ed to bring the sap into a proper condition for producing fruit-buds ; but that it is the quality, more than the quantity, experi- ence abundantly points out. 128, in p. 34. — It has been pointed out that a Uirge quantity of crude sap is not conducive to fruitfulness, but the contrary ; and that, therefore, a, smaller quantity duly elaborated is to be preferred. It may, however, be observed, that in order that the fruit may be large and abundant, an abundant supply of nourish^ ment is absolutely necessary ; and therefore efforts should be made, by the employ- ment of every means in our power, towards the elaboration of the largest possible quantity of sap, rather than adopt the prompt system of partial starvation, by means of which the fruit, if produced in abundance, must necessarily be small. A full crop of fruit cannot be obtained, unless from buds and branches previously well nourished. If a vigorous branch is ringed so as to throw it into a bearing state, the fruit will be larger than from a weak branch either so treated or left untouched. iV". 157, in p. 48. — Magnesia, in its caustic state, is much longer in returning to the mild state, by regaining its carbonic acid from the air, than lime, especially if lime is present, as it generally is with magnesia. In this caustic state, it may be dan- gerous in excess ; but, being more sparingly soluble than caustic lime, excess is not so apt to occur. 158, in p. 48. — The sulphate of iron being the most soluble of any of the salts of iron, is most hurtful. Turning up the soil, and exposure to the air, change the sulphate into an insoluble peroxide ; and quicklime decomposes the sulphate, so will also mild lime or chalk, but not so powerfully, the sulphuric acid of the iron replacing the carbonic of the lime. 188, in p. 59.— There is a good deal of loss in mixing quicklime with substances putrefying rapidly. The lime seizes on the carbonic acid of the substances, form- ing an insoluble carbonate of lime ; and the extraction of the carbonic acid hastens decomposition. Ammonia, being expelled in greater quantity, is always the result of the application of quicklime, as may be detected by the smell. It may be useful, in a commercial way, to sustain a great loss for the purpose of making the article negotiable ; but, where convenience will admit, rapidly putrefying substances are most economically prepared by mixing with earth or compost, and keeping cool by turning. Where they have to bo carried far, sulphuric acid (vitriol), where cheap, will disinfect most economically ; or, if cheaper, sulphate of lime (gypsum) ; or sulphate of iron (copperas), if very cheap. Quicklime is most useful with substances that decay slowly ; its avidity for carbonic acid causes it to be extracted from the slowly decomposing substances it is mixed with, as couch-grass, roots, weeds, &c,, and hastens their decomposition. (See 195). 18s, inp. 59. — Earth is undoubtedly the best substance for mixing with nauseous manures. In many cases the extra expense of carriage, occasioned by greater bulk in consequence of admixture witii soil, will be fully compensated by the benefit arising from the addition of soil of a different nature to that on winch the compost is laid ; thus a quantity of maiden loam would improve permanently a piece of worn-out ground to an extent that would more than j>ay for can-iago ivnni a con- APPENDIX. 699 siderable distance ; and therefore the intrmsic value of the soil, as a dressing, ought to be allowed for as a deduction from expense of carriage in the case of using it in the way of compost. It is very doubtful whether night sol, disinfected by sulphuric acid, or sulphate of iron, &c., would fonn a manure half as good as if it had been mixed with a sufficient quantity of earth in compost. JV. 189, in p. 59. — When there are not sufficient of the phosphates in the soil for bones, their application will have a more powerful effect at first, than after long continuance has caused the soil to abound in these. 193, in p. 60. — Inorganic substances, though not found in great quantity in vege- tables (from 1 to 1 per cent, only), are yet essential. Though great part of their action is as solvents, to introduce other substances, yet the plant will not thrive without them. It is found, for instance, in peaty soils, that there is a great defi- ciency of silicates and phosphates ; and that wheat and oats thrive much better on these soils, when bones, containing phosphates, and when wood ashes, decomposed straw, &c., containing silica, are added. The structure of the plant cannot be built up without all the requisites ; and, though not needed in such quantities as the organic substances, and more generally found mixed in the soil, they (the inorganic) are yet essential, as the straw will not stand wi;thout its proportion of flint or silica ; and the lime, phosphorus, soda, and potash found in all parts of the plant are indis- pensable. (See 208). Soda is a constituent to a small extent in beans, clover, &c., and even in wheat. 214, in p. 66. — A great many mineral manures may be most cheaply sown with the hand, dry, in the state of powder ; but are more safely distributed well diluted in water ; and, being more divided, will do more good, but may be more expensive. 215, in p. 66. — Wherever manures can be applied in the bulk, they will always be more beneficial than extracts, which are useful only as a saving of expense. Farm- yard manure, as it decomposes in the soil, improves its mechanical texture, a matter of great importance. To such as peat soils, silicate of potash and phos- phates are valuable ; but where earth can be added cheaply, it may give these also (especially if it has been well manured before, as both of these are found in manure), and the spongy peat solidified, and permanently improved in its texture. Farm- yard manure supplies most of the inorganic substances needed, improves the texture, especially of clayey soils, and is most permanently beneficial ; but where this cannot be got sufficiently cheap, or where peculiar deficiencies or excesses occur in the soil, recourse may be had, with a great degree of profit, to inorganic manures in small compass. 568, in p. 85. — The motion of air or wind is caused by colder air replacing warmer; this may cause the cooling efl'ect of breezes in summer. Why the eflfects of still cold air are not so great as those of air in motion is, because, when in motion, the cold air is constantly replacing that partially heated by the human body. Why motion of heated air should, when uniformly heated, give relief, is not so plain. Why. moisture gives relief is connected with electricity. In dry air the electricity of the body accumulates, because dry air is a bad conductor. Moist air, being a good conductor, draws off the excess of electricity, which, when present, was causing a pricking, uneasy sensation ; and, when removed, the body gets more elastic and exhilarated. Motion is undoubtedly of benefit to leaves and stems of plants. 281, in p. 90. Plants suffer most at a distance from light, when the light is only from the top, or one-sided. This has been called the attraction of light, but is no explanation. In the one-sided light it may be the greater solidifying of the 700 APPENDIX. side next the light which draws. In the top-light of frames, the want of direct light at the sides may cause partly the greater elongation of the top ; hut plants elongate below glass, eren though surrounded by light. The want of motion is a great cause of this : plants uniformly elongate more in a sheltered than an exposed field. If there is any such thing as attraction between light and plants, as roots follow their food (which is partly hygroscopieal in the latter case ), it will be, like the attraction of gravitation, more easily perceivable in its effects than capable of explanation. Refraction will disperse the light : it is difficult to understand how it should weaken what does pass through. The chemical power of hght, how- ever, is so much connected with electricity, that it may be weakened in a way we cannot account for. The chemical power of light is greatest in the least luminous part of the rays ; and yet, as the quantity of light is equal, that of the equator must have most power. There is a connexion between heat, light, and electricity, not yet explained ; the optical qualities of light have been much more attended to than the chemical. The red rays have more momentum than the blue ; thus causing the red of the rising and setting sun, and the azure blue of the sky. Per- haps more of the blue or chemical portion of the sun's rays may thus be lost in refraction. 454, in p. 167. — I have found the leather wallet much improved by having the two sides nailed to two pieces of wood about an inch and a half wide ; and also one piece down the middlfi, so as to form n parting ; one of which does for nails and the other for shreds. — H. C. O. 463, in p. 173. — I should think any protection from frost would he much more effectual if drawn up or removed during a mild day ; the plant would be hardier also and healthier, and the extremes between heat and cold not so great. In Scotland, woollen nets are most used ; from the coldness of the climate they are most beneficial ; and those who keep them constantly standing find they do harm; the foliage is not so healthy, and insects collect. There is seldom so much heat there as to require shading for the blossom. Dry, cold east winds do most harm. 474, in p. 181. — White walls will heat the air around the leaves most througa the day from reflection, as these are seldom close to the wall ; and the extreme of cold will not be so great at night, which is most dangerous. Black-coloured walls, though they absorb heat during the day, will not retain it to give off at night, as it will be conducted through the wall in great part during the day, and any little retained be speedily radiated off in the early part of the night. 501, in p. 205. — The temperature of the blood is 94° to 980, and the heated air is not likely to be much below the temperature of the skin ; to that extent, how- ever, it will undoubtedly increase the effect ; and, in motion, will give motion to the leaves and stems of plants, and will not stagnate and corrupt. 504, in p. 208. — Subsequent improvements have been made on Rogers's conical boiler by Mr. Shewen, and modifications of it have been adopted by Mr. Stephen- son and various persons. Messrs. Garton and Jarvis, of Exeter, have invented and put up at various places a boiler on the same general principle as that of Mr. Rogers's, viz.. having the fire in the centre of the water — but totally different in mechanical construction. This boiler will be figm-ed in the Gardeners' Magazine. The boiler most generally in use for heating horticultural structures at present, is unquestionably that of Mr. Rogers as improved by Mr. Shewen. Two of these are now (Oct. 1842) putting up in the Hort. Soc. Garden. ,i24, in p. 225.— A smalt building on the norlh side of a larger one is in a lower APPENDIX. 701 temperature throughout the year than if it stood iu the open sun ; consequently it will always act as a condenser of moisture in the atmosphere that is in contact with it. Thus, if a portion of wall is of the same temperature as the air, snpposint; the latter to he within say 1" of saturation, the wall, with regard to the moisture it may contain, will remain in nearly the same state ; increase the heat of the wall, and it will give out moisture, and will ultimately become dry ; but render the wall several degrees colder than the surrounding atmosphere, or lower than its dew point, and, like the dew on the cooled bulb of Daniell's hygrometer, previously explained, a deposition of moisture will immediately take place. This fact ought to be borne in mind where dwelling-houses are to be erected in the proximity of thick and lofty trees, or where trees of such description of growth are planted near houses ; for if a row of trees are growing on the north sides of houses, the latter are not in consequence affected by damp ; but if the houses are at the north side of the trees, nothing but strong fires, equal to the discrepancy of temperature occa- sioned by a northern exposure, will render the houses equally dry ; and even in this case, as the fire-heat cannot be made to pervade every part of the building, it is probable a habitation in a northern exposure will not prove so healthy under any circumstances as one otherwise situated. — N. 564, in p. 245. — Substances yielding oxygen should be of most use in germination to oily seeds, which have a deficiency of oxygen in themselves. 571, in p. 248. — According to Liebig, ammonia hastens and strengthens germi- nation ; and,' according to the same authority, charcoal and snow absorb ammonia from the atmosphere ; this may be great part of the benefit. 575, in p. 2S1. — The plexus of vessels at the heel of the shoot or insertion of the branch in the stem, causes a peculiar activity of life there ; and both buds and roots are much more easily formed and in greater quantity there than in any other place of the shoot. The insertion of the branch resembles in this respect the collar of the stem (577). If the heel of the gooseberry or currant-cutting is taken out completely by breaking off, not cutting, it is better than taking off a piece of tho old wood. 578, in p. 252. — Cuttings of growing succulent wood have vitality most active, and strike root most quickly ; but, from the unripened state of the wood, are most apt to die, and require to be kept more close and moist. There is danger in both extremes, and both must be guarded against in such as are difficult to strike. 580, in p. 253.— When the season is hot and warm, and little time to attend to keeping moist, Succulent cuttings, such as pinks, are most certain to strike, by paring close below the uppermost joint, and cutting off above close to the joint, leaving none of the leaves uncut, except those beginning to develop. Such a cut- ting is a mere joint in a vital, active, not ripened state, and will stand a great deal of heat ; if covered with a hand-glass in sunny weather, or in a hotbed frame in cold weather, they seldom or never fail. Excitement of heat, not preservation, is all that is wanted. 5'31, in p. 254. — When cuttings are tardy to strike, and have callosities formed, heat has a powerful effect in causing them to root. Those that have stood months, without appearance of rooting, will strike in a few days in a strong heat. 601 in p. 262. — The best mark for such as strike most readily by pieces of the root is an abundance of thick viscid juice, as in the genera Tifhus, /'apAver, Ailtn- tikS, Gymudcladus, &o., which strike more freely than Cydonia, roses, thorns. &o. wliich have less. 709 APPENDIX. 614, in p. 269. — Mr. Barnes, gardener to Lady Rolle, at Bicton, mixes char- coal with the soil in which he grows every Itind of plant, from the cabbage and the onion to heaths, pineapples, and orchideee, and with extraordinary success. The charcoal is generally broken into small pieces, say an inch or more in length, and seldom thicker than a quill ; but he also uses it of a larger size, along with drainage materials, and, when sown along with seeds, in a state of powder. See the history and details of this practice in Gard. Mag. for 1842. We were not aware of Mr. Barnes's discovery till after the last sheet of this work was printed, otherwise we should have introduced a notice of it in its proper place. See p. 706. 650 in p. 287. — It is of great consequence that the graft and stock should be pressed closely together, in order that the first emission of cambium from the stock should come in contact immediately with the inner bark and albumen of the graft. When grafts are taken ofi", and tied on in a growing state, the wood of the graft clings and dries ; having no roots to feed it, it shrinks from the stock, leaving an empty space, and before it is filled up, unless the stock is very Vigorous, the graft dies. This might be obviated by grafting before the sap rises, but grafts will not succeed till the flow of sap has begun to rise briskly ; late grafting always suc- ceeds best ; and, hence, the grafts when taken off before growth commences, and kept moist till the stock begins to grow, always succeed best, as they experience no checks. Much of the success of grafting, however, depends on the state of the weather ; if the heat prevails so as to keep the sap flowing, every healthy graft, well fitted, will succeed j if not, they may perish before the sap rises. 669 in p. 297. — A species of grafting I think you have not noticed may be deno- minated bud-grafting, and is the best for most evergreens, as daphnes, &e. When the stock has begun to grow vigorously cut the head off, and, making an incision in the bark a few inches down, open it on both sides, the same as for budding ; prepare the graft without a tongue, and insert the lower part as you would a bud, leaving the herbaceous growing top green above. Soft succulent evergreens in which the bark opens freely will do better in this way than any other. 696 in p. 308. — Much of the success of budding depends on the stock and bud gi'owing vigorously, to supply the juices or cambium causing the union to take place ; and allowing the bark to separate easily from the wood, so as to prevent laceration and bruising of the vessels in separating them. If the bark does not fly up freely from the stock, when the handle of the knife is inserted, it is not likely the bud will succeed ; and the same if the shield of the bud does not part freely from its wood ; if either of them has commenced ripening, or if the sap has not begun to run or flow, the labour will be in vain. In order to insure the cut being smooth, and no laceration of the bark of the shield taking place, the best of all methods (especially for such barks as the cherry and plum, which will not bear handling, and are very apt to spoil) is to mark the size of the shield intended, all round the bud with the point of the knife, cutting into the wood, and then intro- ducing the thumb at the side of the bud, and raising it off with a gentle squeeze. If the shoot is growing vigorously, it will spring out, without any difficulty, so clean and smooth on the edges, as greatly to facilitate the success of the operation. By the common method, if the bark is much handled, the shield of the bud is apt to be spoiled at the edges before insertion. 7'n in p. 311.- In transplanting deciduous trees before the leaves are fallen, it is touad in practice that the shoots are not ripened, and die back often to a consi- derable distance, in the same manner as if the leaves had been destroyed by early frost. The young fibres, also, will protrude spongioles more quickly in the spring APPENDIX. 703 from the fibre that has been well ripened, than from that lifted before ripened. It can only be when the distance of removal is very short, and the plants very small, and lifted with the earth adhering to the roots, that the tx'ansplanting of deciduous plants in autumn, before ripe, can be attended with any advantage. In the nurseries, we have great experience of lifting and shonghing immense quantities of deciduous plants, and experience must say on this head, that any process of growth which may be going on in the interior of the plant during winter has very little if any outward appearance. Unless the winter is more than ordinarily mild, the spongioles are never seen to protrude, nor the buds to swell, till the spring begins to advance. Such as gooseberries, cherries, thorns, birch, larch, &c., may begin in February or March ; beech, oaks, apples, &c., are later, and seldom begin to show much before April or May. Even the mezereon, which often flowers in February, is seldom found to protrude new roots before that period. Of course the period will vary as to localities ; some soils and situations are more than a month earlier than others, within very short distances. Autumn planting is preferable where the soil is dry, as it washes the soil closer to the root ; where the soil is clayey, and the weather soft at planting time, it gets into a state of puddle and rots the roots in winter ; and, unless the weather is dry at planting time in autumn, such soils had better be deferred till spring. Quarters of young trees planted in autumn will stand all winter without the appearance of failure ; and yet, when the spring drought sets in, will fail nearly as much as spring-planted ones, showing that very little has been done by the plant towards establishing itself in the ground during winter. (Autumn is considered decidedly best in the climate of London.) 717, in p- 321. — According to a table made out by Mr. Robert Thompson, and published in Lindley^s Theory of Horticulture, the atmospheric moisture for the different months of the year 1831, is as under : — January u 31-6 WIND. si ^1 s •a 882 N. East. East. S. East. 3 C W S. West. 983 N.Wesl. 893 989 1000 982 1000 1000 966 February . 39-0 81S 657 992 1000 963 874 804 loop 888 March . (90 815 688 752 1000 913 846 846 1000 857 \pril . . 53-2 747 778 870 775 711 846 752 902 797 May . . . COO 718 687 574 767 798 1000 752 651 743 June . . S?-.') 721 572 574 767 798 664 707 673 684 July. . . 57-5 721 703 662 767 798 760 684 599 710 August . . 64-8 773 836 690 767 776 724 666 826 757 September . 56 6 907 1000 723 767 813 853 761 905 841 October . 56 6 907 1000 1000 904 885 862 939 905 925 November . 56-6 907 1000 1000 1000 980 938 940 938 962 December . 39-ii 971 920 1000 1000 980 939 986 1000 974 iV. 724 in p. 325. — In order to make sure that the lowest extremity, or root, of the plant should be most pressed, as you very judiciously request, (technically, it ia called in the nurseries fastened,) it is necessary that the point of the dibber should be so introduced into the ground, as that it will be nearer the plant at the root than at the surface, the line of its direction inclining at a slight angle towards the plant. When the line of direction of the dibber points from the plant, they are fastened only at the surface, and the roots are not at all fixed in the soil. This is a very material matter to attend to, where much dibbing is practised. It is easier for tho operators to push the dibber from the plant, and they require to be watched. The zz2 704 APPENDIX. plants dibbed in the wrong way may be easily detected by giving them a slight pull, when they will be found to draw up easily, while those properly fastened at the roots retain their hold. If dry weather succeed the operation, almost all of thoso fastened at the surface only will die. Trees planted with the dibber are best for planting out again, as the roots are found spread out equally on both sides, while those trench-planted with the spade are found to have the roots all on one side, from the manner they are laid in, and the ground being beat back with the spade in the act of cutting the trench ; they are generally also bent in the root, when the trench is sloped to make the plants lie, which facilitates the work but hurts the plant. 730, in p. 326 — Shaking a tree up at the time of being planted, to settle the soil about the roots, is a very bad practice ; it di'aws the roots from their proper position, and, when the tree is again let down in its proper place, they are bent in an unnatural manner, and the throwing up of suckei-s is the consequence. — H. C. O. 735, in p. 328. — In watering box edgings, &c., newly planted in di-y weather, it is of great moment when the earth is trod firmly to the roots, and before levelling on the remainder of the earth, to saturate the soil completely, all round the roots, with watei-, with an unsparing hand, and then finish by spreading the dry soil above. When water is poured on the surface of the soil in dry weather, the deluge of water runs the surface of the soil into a paste, which again hardens by the sun into a cake, obstructing thus the free entrance of the atmosphere into the soil, without which no plant will thrive. When straw or moss, or any of the other articles you mention, is spread on the surface, it obviates this fault. Where this cannot be done, it is better to open holes in the soil, or pare up a portion of the surface, saturating the soil below, and then adding the dry soil when the moisture begins to subside. One such watering will be better than ten surface waterings, which often do more hai-m than good. Where none of these plans can be adopted, the direct beams of the sun should be kept from the surface, by a covering open at the ends for shade. 740, in p. 330. — Such bare-rooted plants as white-broom, double-flowering whins, some pines and oaks, &c., which are very difficult to transplant and remove, are found to succeed better by being nursed in pots ; but the roots have acquired such a tendency of matting together, and twining round one another, that it is a long time after planting before they shoot away freely again into the soil ; and till this is done the growth will not be vigorous. The fibres may be parted again, but the roots have got a tendency to matting they do not recover for some time ; and part- ing the ball destroys in some measure the capability of being easily transplanted. It should only be resorted to with scarce and valuable plants or shrubs, not ti'ees. 752 in p. 336. — One of the specific principles of pruning is also the stimulus given to vitality. When the leading branch of a small tree, which, perhaps, has not been growing well, but has got the roots fully established, is cut back to one bud, not only is the rush of sap which should have supplied tJie whole buds diverted into the one, and the shoot made thus more vigorous, but the vitality of the tree has acquired an impetus that it did not formerly possess. From a lazy slow- growing plant it has been converted into one of a quick, healthy, vigorous growth, a stimulus is given to the roots also to increase, and the tree is entirely reno- vated. The benefit is lastmg, not temporary, and will continue, if circumstances are favourable, and no check of bad soil or bad weather ensues to counteract its vigour. It is thus that the forester cuts back his oak plants in the forest, after APPENDIX. /Oi) being a few years planted, and trains a single shoot from the hottom, knowing well that the vigour of this one shoot will be lasting ; that the impetus given to the growth of the tree will continue ; and that, in a few years, the cut over tree will be many times larger than those allowed to stand uncut. It is thus that nursery- men increase the vigour of their young pl?.nts by pruning; and that gardeners, when pruning for wood, cut farther back than when pruning for fruit. 758 in p. 338 & 768 in p. 341. — If the tops of the shoots of forest trees are pinched off in time, and proper attention paid to the plantation from its commence- ment, the contending large arms being converted into small side shoots, there will be little need for pruning at all, and skill will be of more consequence than labour. It is shortening- in, or fore-shortening, done in a much better and much easier way! 761, in p. 339. — The laying-in of small shoots, in place of cutting back to naked branches and spurs, should be more encouraged. More distance than usual should be left between the leading branches, and plenty of young wood nailed in after the manner of peach trees. It diminishes the quantity of breast-wood, which is an evident practical anomaly, and serves no good purpose, being annually renewed and annually cut out. The growth should be much better spent in producing young wood and fruit, which will not require so much slashing of wood. 767, inp. 341. — The thin layer of alburnum is the consequence of stunting rather than the cause. A tree may be renovated though not cut back to the collar, and part of the old stem with its thin alburnum left. The vigour of the new growth will give a thicker coating of alburnum ; though old hardened bark will not swell up so quickly as the new bark on a young shoot. 769, in p. 342. — I have seen very fruitful trees covered every year with blossoms BO thickly that the greater part had to be brushed off, and the trees very vigorous, where the outer bark had been renewed a few years before. The situations, how- ever were sheltered ; the practice has not been much adopted yet, and it is doubtful if it would suit exposed situations ; but for sheltered places it appears to be very effectual in renovating the vigour of old trees. It should be more often tried than it is. 770, in p. 342. — It has been generally said that ringing of trees contributes to fruitfulness by acvimulaling sap ; but it is not explained how this is done. The wood being of more specific gravity above the ring is no proof of this, because It is denser from not having swelled out so much in bulk, rather than from accumula- tion of sap. The ring prevents, to a certain extent, the ascent as well as descent of the sap ; and it more probably acts by famishing a smaller quantity of sap, which is more easily brought into a highly elaborated or organised condition than the ordinary larger quantity would have been. The ring does not in the first instance prevent the ascent of the sap, the alburnum, its principal channel, not being interfered with. 771, in p. 343.— Extent should be given to the wall-tree to exhaust itself by growth, and so bring on maturity. If the border is not too rich, this should be better than tearing off a great mass of breast-wood. More young shoots should be laid in, and they should be left longer at pruning-tirae in the strongest-growing sorts. In weak-growing sorts, apt to fruit, they should be encouraged with manure, or we may have dry mealy, in place of large succulent fruit. 772, in p. 343. — It is not clear how disleafing will assist a tree to throw off superr abundant sap. Disleafing should rather prevent elaboration of the sap, and keep the tree fuller of crude juices. It will, however, by lessening evaporation, stop the 706 APPENDIX. rapidity of ascent, and cause less food to be absorbed by the roots, not more to be thrown off by the tree. In luxuriant trees it may be apt to occasion disease, from too much crude sap. The safest plan, I should think, to overcome super- abundant growth, would be to give little food, by making the border poor and dry, giving plenty of room to extend, and leaving the young wood long. If all these will not do, the next best thing would be to curtail the roots. 774, in p. 344. — The summer pruning of pear-trees has lately been the subject of discussion in Gard. Chron. between Mr. Ayres and others. I do not approve of the breaking-down system if it could be avoided. I have seen it practised more than twenty years ago ; but it is unsightly, and greatly tends to obstruct the light from benefiting the buds at the base of the shoot, and on spurs, &c. At the same time, I admit there is something in it which renders it not entirely objectionable ; for below the breakage, fruit-buds form more readily than if the shoots were at once cut off. Instead, therefore, of breaking down the summer shoots of pear-trees, and leaving them hanging in front during a great part of summer, it would certainly be better to nail them between the branches — at least, all that could be bent to that position J one nail would be sufficient for each shoot. After being thus secured, where they will occasion least shade in regard to the more permanent portions, the shoots could be cut half-way through with a knife about two or three inches from their bases. Those shoots that cannot be so trained from their being right ill front may be treated agreeably to the principles (1363 in p. 613) and the ample directions for the management of the apple-tree in 1150, p. 537 to p. 543. N. 776, in p. 345. — Root-pruning, by curtailing a few of the largest roots, lessens the quantity of spongioles for a few years, and so curtails the quantity of absorbed and ascending sap. This being more easily elaborated and brought into the highly organised condition required for fruitfulness, causes the production of blossoms and fruit. It is the tendency, however, of cutting roots to increase roots ; and in a few years the greater number of small roots and the increased quantity of spon . gioles should, especially if heavy dressings of rotted manure are added, as recom- mended by some, and which should make up for the want of extension of the roots in quest of food, aggravate in place of remedying the luxuriance of growth. Pruning back all the roots of a fruit-tree may brmg the plant to something of the nature of a paradise stock, which abounds in roots, yet these being matted close round the stem, and not extending in quest of food, die off, and stint the growth from the spongioles not falling in with nutriment. If the root-pruning is renewed at short periods, it may render this state more permanent ; but if great doses of manure are given, it will lessen the effect ; and if the trees are neglected to be cut back periodically, they will ultimately get much more luxuriant than under the ordinal^ process of management. To keep the borders poor but healthy, sweet, and well pulverised, and dry, by draining and elevating the plants on hillocks where necessary, is best. A moderate degree of extension will suffice for the plants com- ing to a fruitful condition, and there will be less need to resort to root-pruning. 794, in p. 334 ,- and 1363 in p. 613 to p. 616.— "All fmit-bearing plants (and indeed all others) grown in pots, ought to be potted in soil which has not been sifted, and which, if not sufficiently coarse to keep it so open as to receive water freely, should be mixed with fragments of wood, bones, and stones, for that pur- pose, for supplying manure, and for retaining moisture." (P. 616.) Since the above was printed and published, we have been in Devonshire, and seen at Bicton the seat of Lady RoUe, coarae, rooty, unsifted soil, mixed with fragments of stone, pebbles, and also with fragments of charcoal, used in every dcscriijtion of pnt ciil- APPENDIX. 707 turc, by Mr. James Barnes, and with a degree of success which, if equalled, has never been surpassed. Mr. Barnes has been in the habit of using rough, rooty, unsifted soil for upwards of twenty years, and of introducing a portion of charcoal among such soil for more than twelve years. He was led to use charcoal from observing, in a wood where charcoal had been burned, the great luxuriance of the weeds around the margins of the places where the charcoal heaps had been, and where a thin sprinkling of charcoal dust had got amongst the weeds. He got a basketful of this dust, and tried it first among cucumber soil. He found it improved the plants in strength and colour, and then began trying it with other soft-growing plants ; and he has continued trying it ever since with thousands of plants under pot culture, and with most kitchen-garden crops. Mr. Barnes finds the following a good plan to make a rough sort of charcoal for use in the kitchen- garden : — When made, it must be kept dry ; and when seed is sown in the open garden, the charcoal must be put into the drills along with it, at the rate of three or four pints of powdered charcoal to a drill of 100 feet in length. Collect a quantity of rubbish together, such as trimmings of bushes, cabbage and broccoli stalks, old pine-apple stems, and such other parts of plants as will not readily rot ; put these together, laying some straw beneath them, and set the straw on fire. The straw must be so laid, as that the fire can run into the middle of the heap. When the heap is completed, cover it over with short, close, moist rubbish, such as short grass, weeds, and earth, from the rubbish-heap, in order to keep the flame from flaring through at any one place for any length of time. As soon as the fire breaks through in a blaze, throw on more short rubbish, so as to check the flames. It is necessary to thrust a stake or broom-handle into the heap in different places, in order to encourage the fire to burn regularly through it j but as soon as the flames burst through these holes, stop them up, and make others where you think the heap is not burning. When it is all burned, collect the whole of the charred rubbish, ashes, &c., sift it through different-sized sieves, and put the sizes separately into old casks or boxes, keeping these boxes constantly in a dry place. In Mr. Barnes's potting-shed, we observed four different sizes of charcoal (considering charcoal dust as one size) sods of heath-soil ; different kinds of loam ; leaf-mould ; pots filled with four different sizes of pebbles, from the size of a grain of wheat to that of the palm of the hand ; four different sizes of broken freestone ; four differ- ent sorts of sand ; two sizes of bone — one of half-inch pieces, and the other of bone- dust ; four different sizes of broken pots for draining ; different sizes of shards for puttmg over the holes of pots, previously to laying on the drainage ; a basket of live moss, a box of soot, and one of rotten cow-dung. — See Mr. Barnes in Gard. Mag. for November, 1842. 832, in p. 388 Much of the benefit of stirrmg ground depends on its being stirred in proper weather. Dry weather, when the soil is between the wet and dry, and this weather likely to continue a day or two, is the best time ; and the mechanical texture of the soil should be such as to allow it to break pretty freely into small pieces, and retain that form when dried, so as not to fall down too easily into a powdery mass. 833, m p. 389. — Liquid manures and top-dressings should be applied in showery weather. It is a loss to have them on the surface, but they do most good, espe- cially the volatile kinds, to gi-owing crops ; when they are applied before the crop is put in, they should be pointed in with the spade or rake, or harrowed in to the soil in the fields. 859, in p. 402. — The eggs of insects which are deposited on seeds may be 708 APPENDIX. destroyed by exposing the seeds in thin layers in the open air during severe frosts ; a practice common among seedsmen with all seeds which are above a year old. 863, in p. 405. — When it is wished to see the fruit of young seedlings, without waiting till the plant comes to maturity, it may be effected by inserting a bud near the extremity^ of one of the branches of a wall-tree of the same species, in full bearing, and clearing away most of the other blossoms around to give it a fair trial. 868 iu p. 407. — The common single daisy, when brought from the fields, and planted in a rich soil in the garden, becomes doable. I have seen even the dimi- nutive Sagina procumbens become double by cultivation. The improvement on single dahlias from cultivation in rich soil is of recent date. When any of these is neglected, as when the double-daisy edging is allowed to stand long and exhaust the soil, it gets single ; and the want of cultivation causing double dahlias and other flowers to assume the single state may be seen every season. An old root of a dahlia allowed to stand on the same piece of ground, without manuring, and to accumulate a, number of stems, seldom produces full flowers. Mr. Muoro's is an instance in point ; but it is not two kinds of sap, but a more highly organised state, and a crude unelaborated state, of the same sap. When the quantity of sap is great, as in young and vigorous plants, flowers are seldom at all produced, till the process of growing, by extending the system of leaves and branches, has pro- duced the proper balance. The plant, which formerly had more sap than its chemical and vital powers could elaborate into the highly organised state required for producing fruit, having now acquired more strength, becomes fruitful ; and, exhausted by its fruit-bearing, generally continues fertile, unless deluged again with too much food, in the shape of manure. Such plants as fruit-trees in which the fruiting state, or state of maturity, is brought about with difficulty, at a lengthened period of years, are seldom found to produce double flowers. In those plants, however, in which the flowering state is produced annually, double flowers are taore frequent. The different parts of the flower also difier as to the state of organisation in the food required to feed them. Calyx, corolla, stamens, and pistils, are only more highly organised states of leaves, or what would have been leaves ; and each, in the order they are mentioned, continues to be more highly organised than the preceding. In the ordinary mature state of the plant, with a sufficiency of properly organised food, the germs of these parts of the flower will be produced in the normal manner ; but if an over-supply of food, or of water to carry the food to the absorbent vessels of the root, should ensue, the condition of the food may be altered ; from a highly organised condition it may be lowered nearer to the compa- ratively crude state required for leaves. In this state it is obvious that the germs which would have started in the form of pistils and stamens may be lowered, for want of proper food, to the inferior condition of petals, or even of leaves. When the branch is highly gorged with unelaborated sap, the pistil may even again assume the state of a terminal bud, and lead away a young shoot from the centre of the flower, as is often seen to he the case in roses and other flowers. The above appears to be the theory of double flowers most consonant to experience, it matters not whose it may be ; and it agrees with all observation, that a luxuriant supply of food is the cause of this monstrosity. It is also apparent, that, the farther we reduce the supply of food, it will be the more easy again to gorge the plant which has been starved, and produce monstrosity. If the seed has an extra vigour of itself, it may produce so large an absorbent system of roots as may enable it, in a rich state of the soil, to gorge the flower and produce monstrosity, from an ordi- APPENDIX. 709 nary state of the plant. It will be found, however, more easy in practice to gorge a stinted plant than to luxuriate the ordinary state of one ; and hence the most successful cultivators of double stocks are those who grow them first in a starved condition, and then luxuriate them in a very rich soil ; or stint the plant by keep- ing the seed for some years, provided it is only strong enough to grow. I have seen seed kept till it was thought to be too old for growing, produce almost every plant with doable flowers ; while the very same seed, a few years before, had rarely a double flower among the lot. This will be found a more easy method than to produce the same effect by extra-vigorous seeds, and is that most adopted in practice. 869, in p. 408. — In beds of ranunculus flowers, it is easy to pick out the varie- ties recently raised from seed, from the older varieties, by the greater vigour of the plant. The older varieties of the dahlia, whether from neglect or decay, are not so vigorous as they were at coming out. It is the case with newly raised seedling carnations, and flowers in general. The Lancashire gooseberries are never found to maintain the weights they had originally, when a few years from seed and the plant at maturity. Seedling potatoes have the leaves much more pulpy and vigorous than the old varieties. It is evident that circumstances will affect these, and that sometimes, from better soil, shelter, manure, &c., the case may be changed, and the older varieties may sometimes be most vigorous ; but in general it will be found the rule holds good, that the newest raised seedlings possess most vigour. 911, in p. 433. — Whatever mode of stirring the surface be adopted, every facility should be given to the admission of atmospheric air, heat, and moisture, and the bottom made as dry as possible by draining. The great quantities of manure given to border crops of vegetables furnish perhaps the most fruitful source of sponginess in the wood. 914, in p. 434. — The land in gardens is generally too rich for potatoes to be well ripened and dry ; more tubers are produced of a large size, than the leaves and light are able to ripen and fill with starch. 954, in p. 452. — I believe the assumption is correct that the vine when forced is not calculated to sustain uninjured a temperature much below 40". I have had vines under my care greatly injured by being exposed to the rigours of winter, and I have known several instances of its happening to others. — H, C O. 958, in p. 454. — It is most vexatious to find a fruit tree has beenplanted untrue to name, but in the case of the vine it is easily remedied, by grafting the sort re- quired upon it ; this will save several years, as a vine, if grafted on a good strong stock, should be in full bearing the third year IT. C. O. 959, in p. 454, and 1283, in p. 585.— I cannot subscribe to the practice of de- priving a vine of a portion of its leaves when the fruit is ripening ; if the roots are not at fault a deficiency of colour in the grape more frequently arises from a deficiency of air, or by the plant being too heavily cropped, than by being shaded. I have seen grapes attain the darkest colour densely shaded by leaves ; and, on the contrary, I have seen them attain only a grisly red colour when light and tlie &un*s rays were admitted to the utmost extent possible. — H. C, O. 990, in p. 473.— It is there said—" The roots should be well supplied with water before the fruit begins to ripen ofl'." I think both the peach and cherry tree oftentimes lose their fruit by injudicious watering ; both at the time of the setting and stoning of the fruit, water should be administered very sparingly ; this I con- sider a very material point to be attended to. — H, C. O. 710 APPENDIX. 1032, in p. 486. — The principal point to be attended to, in order to keep the old branches furnished with young shoots, is, occasionally ringing or notching them ; and keeping the whole of the young shoots which tho shoots so treated throw but stopped at every third or fourth joint throughout the summer. — H. C. O. 1115, in p. 525. — In Russia and the North of Germany mushrooms are fre- quently grown in shelves in a cowhouse or stable, in which also other articles are forced.— (G. M. vol. vii. p. 653). 1153, in p. 544. — Canker in fruit trees, like the cancer in the human body, appears to be owing to a diseased state of the sap or blood, producing morbid concretions, of an inferior degree of organisation to the tissue by which they are surrounded, which they live on, and destroy, like parasites, till vitality is an-ested. Plants being a congei-ies of separate distinct beings, which have each an independent exist- ence of themselves, may be more easily renovated by amputation and removal of the exciting causes ; but in these, al^o, the sap is affected, as it breaks out in ulcerous morbid soi-es often, when to all appearance removed. Willdenow characterises it as produced by an acrid corroding gum, caused by the acid fer- mentation of excess of sap from low-lying damp gardens. Others have thought it to be of a fungoid nature, propagating itself as above stated, and living on the healthy tissue, which it disorders and destroys. It is evidently aggravated, if not produced, by a bad climate, and removed by a good one ; as trees that are very apt to canker in the open ground are generally free of it on good walls. It is also produced by a too rich damp state of the soil, as it is often removed by remedying this, and laying the ground dry and sweet about the roots. It is also constitutional ; as some sorts are liable to be hurt, while others, in the same circumstances, appear not susceptible. Climate, and food, and constitution will, therefore, all require to be attended to in guarding against this pernicious evil. Amputation, and cutting away all the diseased portion, should be resorted to on its first appearance ; a neg- lected wound may even bring on this morbid condition of the tissue. Vitality requires to be kept continually in action, especially during the active period of growth ; if a stagnation is brought about by cold weather, it may form a favom-able state for the development and growth of the parasitical morbid cancerous state of the tissue. If food is in excess, or any particular portion of the food, it may thus become deleterious (most minerals found in the soil are needed in smaller or larger quantities, it is only excess that renders them deleterious), and the vitality of the tree may not be able to correct it, till, by accumulation, it forms a diseased can. cerous state of the tissue : the more weak and languid the constitution, the more apt it will be to succumb, and the more necessary will be the stimulus of heat to enable it to overcome. The exudation of gum in stone fruit is unattended, to the same extent, with the cancerous morbid state of parts exhibited by the apple and pear ; but the disease appears to exist also in the sap, and to be ramiiied through the branches, in the same way as canker, as may be often seen on cutting in to arrive at its source. The small unripened shoots appear most liable, as being most tender. The bark and alburnum appear first to be infected in these young shoots, especially in the peach ; the young wood of which, being delicate from want of ripening, appeal's unable to stand the severity of spring, gets discoloured in blotches, and gum begins to exude. It would appear here that the disease arises from im- perfectly-ripened tissue getting injured by severity of the weather, and affording ,•» nidus for it. In other cases, however, the gum begins to exude from pai-ts to all appearance sound and perfect, as if caused by a plethoric diseased state of tho sap. It is probable that, as in the cancer in the human body, which may be brought on APPENDIX. 71 1 from a wound neglected or a diseased state of the blood or constitution, so likewise, in plants, the same disease may be brought about by different causes ; as in the analogous fungoid disease of mildew on the leaves, which, it appears, may be brought on by excess of moisture or excess of drought, producing a diseased state of the stomata of the leaf, and a nidus for the fungus. 1168, in p. 549. — If the system of training noticed in this section, or something like it, were more generally practised, there would be less need to complain of breast-wood. On standard trees there is no occasion to go through forms of pruning to produce spurs ; and, if the side branches were more encouraged in wall- trees, we should have shorter shoots and natural spurs, and the tree would be kept full of young wood to the centre, from the abundance of young shoots to renew any that were getting naked. There should be greater distance between the leading shoots, and abundance of side shoots laid in to fill the wall ; though they might not all be got mathematically arranged, the system of leaves and roots would be better balanced, the continual excitement to produce which causes the great abundance of breast-wood. If the greater part of this were nailed in, the tendency to produce fresh breast-wood next year would be checked, and the tree become fruitful on the small branches ; better fruit would be produced ; and the tree being fnll of young wood, any part of it could be renovated at pleasure. 1214, in p. 561. — The Glenton Green, Manchester Bed, Hedgehog, and Honey varieties, are worth adding to this section. 1217, in p. 562. — Lancashire Lad is the best bearer and best flavoured here — better with us than the most of them you name, and deserves a star. Shakspeare, Sir Francis Burdett, Triumphant, Foxhunter, Grand Turk, and Tarragon, among the reds ; Rattlesnake, Sally Gunner, Scorpion, Prince of Orange, China Orange, and Yellow Lion, among the yellows ; Favourite, Bang Europe, Lord Crewe, and Troubler, among the greens ; Lily of the Valley, Bonny Lass, White Lion, Sheba Queen, and Sally Miller, among the whites, and not in your lists, have been all proven here of great value both for bearing and eating. Some with higher pretensions, which have come out later, are not proven yet. 1223, in p. 565. — Having been much troubled with caterpillars on our goose- berry stools in the nursery, we have tried lime, soda, potash, salt, soap-suds, and tobacco. The tobacco infusion will kill them, but is very apt to injure the foliage ; the salt has the same fault, but we could not perceive that it or any of the others had much effect ; when the lime was put on, however, they crowded away, twisted together like a cable-rope, down the stem, as fast as they could, and took the direction for the nearest bush, at an angle, as they were planted in the quin- cunx form, and as straight as if they had been guided by a line. The hellebore powder we found the most deadly of any, and it does no injury to the leaves. When it is long kept, or has got damp, it is apt to lose its pungency, and will do no good ; but if in the pungent, acrid state of fresh-ground powder, which may be known by its effect on the nostrils, it will not fail to kill all the caterpillars it reaches. They are on the under side of the leaf, and the applications tell best when thrown upwards. We prefer to throw it upwards in the state of dry powder, by the finger and thumb : a small quantity, like a pinch of snuff, if dry, flies off like vapour from the fingers, and may thus be directed where any are seen, the shoots being neld up to expose the back of the leaf ; there is least waste of powder in this way when the caterpillars are not very plenty. Others throw it up with a puff-bellows, the mouth round, like a dredge-box ; and others dust it on from above with a 71^ APPENDIX. dredge-box. This takes lesB trouble, though it requires more of the powder ; and the leaves should be damped, to retain what does not fall on the insects till they reach it. If some are in the state of eggs and others of larvae, the application •may require to be repeated ; but will not fail if the hellebore is fresh ground and pungent, and reaches the insects. The powder insinuates itself between the hairs of the insect, and reaches the tender skin more readily than water ; it should be well toasted, if damp weather, to allow of its dividing well. 1234, m p. 569 The raspberry is well adapted for forcing, and is worthy of more general cultivation in forcing-houses ; a few old stools taken up and planted against the back wall of a peach-house, at the time of commencing to force, will, Mth moderate care, furnish many dishes of fruit. — H. C. O. 1267, in p. 581, and 1342 in p. 606 In the neighbourhood of New York the cherry tomato is cultivated and preserved aa a sweetmeat. At first this sweet- meat was supposed to be made of the winter cherry, as stated in 1267 ; but It has since been found to be a small round tomato. 1379, in p. 624. — Mr. Barnes informs us that there is a late variety of cauliflower in cultivation by some market-gardeners quite distinct from the early variety, though it is seldom to be met with in the seed-shops. Mr. Barnes was formerly in practice in some of the principal market-gardens about London ; an immense advantage with reference to the management of the kitchen-garden of a private gentleman. 1462, in p. 659. — Some here are in the habit of planting Strasburgh and other common onions, early in spring, in the same way as they do potato onions. When any flower-stem appears, they pinch out the centre, and find the roots of the common onion, treated in this way, to offset and produce an aggregation of bulbs nearly, if not equally, aa well as the potato variety, which resembles the globe, but appears to have acquired the habit of not running to seed. 1463, in p. 660. — In deep alluvial loam, the onion plants grow most luxuriantly, but are more apt, especially in wet seasons, to produce what are called scullions ; the foliage being strong and thick at the neck, but the root made soft and ill- ripened, and will not keep. It has been found advantageous sometimes to roll or tread well such land ; but in the general run of seasons here, when the climate is moist, soil of a rather clayey nature is found to suit best, and to produce the foliage small at the neck, and the bulb round, protuberated, and well ripened. A thin crop also is more apt to produce most scullions, and it is safer to have the crop rather to the thick side, as they are found to increase less in foliage and more in root, and though the onions are not so large, the weight of the crop is more, and keeps better. Much of the tendency to produce thick necks flows, as in turnips, from not picking the roots well in saving the seed. The plants that have small foliage, and handsome well swelled-out roots, are most likely to produce their like again from seed, and much depends on the carefulness of the person who saves the seed. Here, where great breadths of onions are annually sown, the seed imported from Holland from careful agents there is allowed to give the best crops. Soil that can be broken small to a fine surface requires less seed. Clayey ground in- tended for onions should be thrown up rough in January or February to get the frost, which allows of its forming a fine covering for the seed, and thus ensures a better braird. On light dry soils, near the coast, the practice of sowing in autumn is found to succeed best, as the onions fail in the drought of summer when spring- sown. The autumn-sown ones did but live also last season, being too dry for small APPENDIX. "13 ci'opg. The broadcast is the most prevalent practice here, though some who liiive drilled them in light land approve most of that way. Nitrate of soda has been very beneficial to the onions here this dry season, partly, perhaps, from its deliquescent nature. We have often seen soot produce a powerful effect on onion crops. 1463, in p. 660. — Mr. Barnes (see note to par. 749) thins and hoes all his seed ling crops with short-handed goose-necked hoes, with square-edged blades of different sizes, but chiefly of two inches in width. He uses two hoes at a time, one in each hand. He never has weeds pulled up among seedling crops, but always attacks them in the seed-leaf state with these hoes. 1470, in p. 662. — The maggot has been more than usually destructive among onions this season. Perhaps the drought, producing a sickly state of the roots, attracts the fly to lay its eggs, as other maggots do on substances commencing to putrify. Their instinct is strong, and may lead them to detect this state of the root before perceptible above ground. Some carrots we observed this yeai', at the time they commenced to droop, we found that iu those much hurt in the roots the maggots abounded ; iu those less hurt, fewer maggots ; some of them sticking to the outside, and commencing to enter ; while in the roots, on which a few brown spots here and there were all the symptoms of disease, we find many destitute of maggots altogether, and in whole sound roots found none. The thinning of carrots very often induces maggots, if done in dry weather. We observed this season beds dressed with nitrate of soda, and growing healthy, alongside of others not dressed and unhealthy; and the fly, if not guided by instinct, might have spoiled the healthy as well as unhealthy roots, which it did not. That the fibres first fail in the onion, and that the maggot enters from the bottom of the onion at the fibres, and eats upwards, is the opinion of all here ; no trace of entering from the neck of the stem can be perceived, and its course upwards appears visible in the caten-away decayed appearance of the root there. The maggots are perhaps more the effect than the cause of bad growth. ] 481, in p. 665. — As corroborative of your ideas on asparagus, 1 have often seen it produced strongest where pieces of the garden were imperfectly drained, and rather marshy. Mr. Culhill says, " I believe it has been proved that asparagus likes as much moisture as can well be given it. The best asparagus I have ever seen was at Mr. Bird's, a market-gardener at Ipswich, where the beds were under water nearly all the winter, and he always cut asparagus sooner than his neigh- bours." (G. JVf. vol. xii. p. 597.) 1363, in p. 613. — If the theory that ten buds give rise to a hundred, and these last to one thousand, and so on as long as sap towards new formations is undiminished^ be taken in connexion with the sentence before, that the more a young tree grows the more it is capable of growing, it would seem to give the idea that the growth of trees, if properly fed, is unlimited, which, I think, is not intended. If a tree is Qisieafed and disbudded when young, it will undoubtedly disable and retard growth, and precocity may thus be induced, and perhaps disease also. If the young shoots are allowed to ripen, and are cut back, the tree will push again more strongly next season, the vital force being stimulated by the effort of the tree to re-place ; an activity is communicated to growth, which continues for some time, which if annually renewed and properly fed at the roots is apt to produce immense quantities of young wood without fruit. The pruning of the young roots has a tendency to increase them also, The production of one hundred buds from ten, and of one hundred from one thousand, will only continue, however, so long as the force of sap to new forma- 714 APPENDIX. (ions is undiminished. There is a period in all trees wlien this force is so diminished, that small short shoots only are produced, and this is the period of maturity or fruitfulness. This period may no doubt be hastened by disbudding and disleafing, but is apt to engender disease ; it is like taking away a part of the stomach and lungs, to hinder the development of absorbent lacteab, and is dangerous. A safer way is to cramp the development of the whole, by limiting the food, by making the soil poor. The allowing the border to lie unstirred has partly the same effect. The action between the heat, moisture, and gases of the atmosphere on the roots is diminished, and in vigorous growing varieties, and rich borders, is beneficial by impoverishing. The best way of all, however, is to allow the tree to come to maturity, by laying in as much young wood, and giving as much extent as requisite ; and the period will arrive sooner or later, according to the inherent vigour of the variety, the richness of the soil, and warmth and light of the climate, when short shoots only will be produced, and these fruitful. That giving extent will moderate vigour cannot certainly be doubted, otherwise there would be no limit to the size of trees. Though, perhaps, not a mere evolution of parts already formed, which is an obscure subject, and one which will perhaps never be in our power to resolve, yet there is certainly a limit to expansive power. It may be, and undoubtedly is, greater in favourable than unfavourable situations, but has always yet been limited, as a certain extent can be named which trees have not yet been found to exceed ; whether from an inherent limit in the power itself, or the circumstances in which it IS placed, is likely to be for ever incapable of determination. 1384, in p. 630. — In dry sandy poor soils, the cabbage-plants are found to club at the roots, fully as readily as in good loamy soils. Where there is not a suifi- ciency of plants without club at the roots, it has been found beneficial to cut out the protuberance, and destroy the insect. A sifting of soot and coal ashes on the surface has been generally found to aid in preventing the attacks of these insects, and also of the turnip beetle. 1406, in p. 639 — In this quarter of the country great failures in the crop of potatoes have occurred, to guard against which the best method is to plant the groxind as moist as possible, and use well-rotted manure and vigorous unripe sets ; drought in planting-time long continued in spring having been found most prejudi- cial. See R. Symburn, "On the Culture and Preservation of Potatoes," in Gard. Mag. vol. xvi. p. 20. 1411, in p. 642. — The old everlasting potato (a small round sort) introduced by the Messrs. Falla, of Newcastle, and the later introduced small white kidney, called Fairy, have both the same properties as the above, of Messrs. Chapmans, producing great swarms of small thin-skinned waxy potatoes which, being covered with haulm, afibrd a dish of young potatoes through the whole winter. 1415, in p. 644. — Potatoes that are greened possess more inherent vigour in the sets ; the potato is a bud, or collection of buds, on an under-ground stem ; and a greened one has as much more vigour as the stem of an unblanched plant would possess over that of a blanched one. The young shoot will rise stronger, and the greened skin will not be so easily affected by weather. A MONTHLY CALENDAR OF OPERATIONS. The para^rapJis are referred to ; not the pages. The nature of this work precludes the necessity of giving a very copious caleu- dar of operations ; still it would be incomplete without one : we shall therefore briefly state what should be done in each month, and in most cases refer to the paragraphs in the body of the work for the practical details. JANUARY. VEGETABLE BEPARTMEMT. Artichokes: secure from frost, if not yet done (1495). Asparagus: plant on a hotbed twice in the month, to keep up a succession (1096). Carrot: sow on a slight hotbed (1106). Cauliflower: sow in a box^ and place in a forcing-house, if the autumn-sowing failed (1379). Celery: protect during severe weather (1518). Cucumbers : prepare a seed-bed for sowing next month ; renew the linings of the fruiting-beds ; keep them made up above the surface of the soil in the frame (1061). French Beans : sow in pots for forcing (1104). Mini and other herbs : take up and plant in pots or boxes, and place in a forcing-house (1110). Potatoes: plant on a slight hotbed (1100). Radishes: sow on a slight hotbed, or in the same frame with potatoes (1108). Rhubarb: take up old roots, and plant in boxes or pots ; place them in a forcing or mushroom house (1098). FRUIT DEPARTMENT. Pinery : maintain a temperature in the fruiting-house of from 75° to 85° by day, and from 68° to 72° by night (946) ; succession-house, from 5° to 8° lower; nursing pits about b'Oo. Vinery: commence forcing for fruit in June; begin with a temperature of 50" (969) ; gradually increase it the first month to 60° min. (971). Peach-house : commence forcing for fruit in May ; begin with a temperature of 50° (998). Cherry-house: commence forcing with a temperature of 45° min. by night (1021). Figs : plants in pots may now be placed in a vinery (1034). Straw- berries : take plants in pots into a forcing-house or pit twice in the month (lOflO). Prune the Apple (1149), Pear (1168), Plum (1207), Cherry (1192), Gooseberry (1220), Currant (1228), and Raspberry (1232), if the weather is not severe. Nail and tie wall and espalier trees (786). FEBRUARY. VEGETABLE DEPARTMENT. Beans : plant in boxes for turning out next month, also sow in the open ground (1392). Cabbage : sow on a warm border (1372). Carrots : sow on a warm border (1429). Cauliflowers : prick out those sown in boxes last month on a slight hotbed (1379) ; sow on a sheltered border (1379). Celery : sow in boxes, and place in a forcing-house for first crop (1515). Cucumbers : plant from the seed-bed, and afterwards keep the heat by night 70° to 75°, and by day 75° to 85°. French Beans; earth up former sowings, and sow again (1104). Lettuce: sow- on a warm border (1505). Mushrooms: make beds and spawn -at 80° (1114). Onions : sow in boxes, and place in a forcing-house, for planting out in April Peas : sow in boxes, and in the open ground (1388). Potatoes ; plant on a slight 716 A MONTHLY CALENDAR OF OPERATIONS. hotbed and on a warm border (1408). Radishes : sow on a warm border (. Ui). Sea-kale: cover up (1097). Spinach: sow 1450. Turnips: sow (1420). FBUIT DEPARTMENT. Pinery (946) : give air in mild weather, slightly sprinkle the plants on fine moramgs. Vinery (971): increase the heat as there stated for the preceding month. Peach-house: cease syringing when the trees are in flower (998). Cherry- house (1021): give air at every favourable opportunity. Fig-house: commence forcing where the trees are planted in the borders (10.33). Melons : sow seed for early crop (1037). Strawberries: take into the forcing-house for succession (1092). Fruit-trees of all sorts maybe planted if the weather is open (1363). Prune and nail fruit-trees (786). Dig fruit quarters (928). MARCH. VEGETABLE DEPARTMENT. Artichokes : make new plantations (1495). Asparagus : make new beds (1481) ; top-dress the latter end of the month (1482). Basil: sow (1674.) Beans: plant twice in the month (1392.) Beet: sow (1435). Cabbage: fill up vacancies in the autumn plantations. Capsicums: sow seed (1345). Carrots: sow the main crop (1429). Herbs: make new beds. Horse Radish: make new plantations (1547). Jerusalem Artichokes: plant early in the month (1418). Sow Leek (1473), Lettuce : prick out on a slight hotbed those sown last month in boxes. Mush- rooms : make beds for summer use (1114). Onions: sow the main crops (1463). Parsley: sow, if neglected last month (1534). Parsneps : sow the main crop (1434). Peas ; sow twice ; earth up early crops. Potatoes : plant main crop (1408). Radishes: sow twice (1444). Sow iSa&i/j; (1438). Savoys: sow begin- ning and end (1376). Seorzonera: sow (1437). Shallots and Garlic : plant the beginning of the month (1474, 1475). Sow Spinach (1450). Turnips: sow on a sheltered border (1420). FRUIT DEPARTMENT. Pinery : pot succession plants (944) ; top-dress fruiting plants. Vinery : see Diary (971). Peach-house: remove all foreright shoots from the trees (995); when the fruit is set, syringe them (1011). Cherry-house : increase the heat after the bloom is set and stoned (10i4). Fig-house : water freely, both at the root and over-head (1033). Melons: plant out from last month's sowing (1042). Straw- berries: give air freely while in flower (1092). Prune and nail Peaches and Nectarines, and afterwards protect them with nets or other covering (1307). Finish planting fruit-trees. Graft fruit-trees (650). APRIL VEGETAnLK DEPARTMENT. Benns : plant twice, and earth up the early crop (1392). Sow Borecole (1378 (. Broccoli: sow the winter varieties (1380). Brussels Spiouts: sow, beginning (if the month (1377). Cabbage: prick out the February sowing (1372). Cardoons: sow for early crop ( 1 499). Cauliflowers : plant out those wintered in frames (1379). Celery: prick out the early-sown on a slight hotbed (1515). Cucumbers: sow to plant out on ridges (1082). French Beans : sow, the beginning of the month (1397). Lettuce: fill up the autumn plantations (1505). Onions: trans, plant the autumn sowing (1465); and also those sown in boxes in February. Peas : sow twice in the month ; earth up and stick early crops (1390). Radishes ; sow twice in the month. Sow Spinach first and third week. Turnips: thin, and BOW the Litter end (1421). Vegetable Marrow: sow, the middle of the month (1341). FRUIT DEPARTMENT. Pinery : add fresh tan between the pots of fruiting plants, and sprinkle them A MONTHLY CALENDAR OP" OPEnATIONS. 7^7 over-head frequently (946) ; pot suckers that have been wintered in dung heds (933). Vinery : when the grapes are set, keep a very moiet atmosphere (971), and com- mence thinning them immediately (1283). Peach-house: partially thin the fruit before stoning, afterwards thin to the quantity required to ripen off (996) ; syringe the trees daily in fine weather, and smoke them occasionally, to keep down insects (999). Cherry-house: after the fruit is stoned, give the trees a good root-watering (1024), which will probably be sufficient till the fruit is gathered ; watch narrowly for insects (1023). Fig-house : when the shoots have made three or four joints, stop them to cause them to produce fruit in the autumn (1032). Melons : allow several of the main shoots to reach the sides of the frame before being stopped (1037). Prune and nail figs (1232). Disbud peaches and necta- rines (1301). MAY. VEGETABLE DEPARTMENT. Basil; plant on a rich sheltered border (1574). Beans: top the early crops (1391) ; plant twice in the month. Beet : thin to 15 inches apart. Borecole : prick out of the seed-bed. Broccoli : prick out those sown last month, and make another sowing of the winter kinds ; also Cape and Granges the last week (1380). Cahhage : plant out the February sowing (1372). Cauliflower : earth up and water with liquid manure ; take off the hand-glasses (1379). Cucumbers : prepare ridges for out-door crops (1082). French Beans : make sowings the first and last weeks (1397)- Transplant £eefo (1473). Lettuce: transplant early sowings ; sow twice in the month (1505). Onions : thin them to nine inches apart (1463), Pens: make two sowings. Potatoes: earth up the early crops (1412). Radishes: make two sowuigs. Spinach : sow, the middle of the month (1450) ; thin former sowings. Scarlet Runner : sow, beginning and middle of the month (1398). Tur- nips : make a sowing, if not done the end of last month (1421). FRUIT DEPARTMENT. Pinery : Give the plants manure-water occasionally, if fruit of a large size is required (952) ; keep up a high temperature during the day (945). Finery .- keep the laterals stopped to one joint (961) ; take away all useless shoots. Peach- house : When the fruit begins to ripen, withhold water both at the roots and over-head (1015) ; at the same time admit air freely (1011). Cherry-house : raise the temperature to 70° when the fruit is swelling off (1024). Fig-house : as the first crop approaches maturity, only sufficient water should be given to prevent the second crop of fruit falling off. Melons : regulate the Vines at an early stage of their growth ; after the fruit is set,, put pieces of slate beneath it (1037). Continue to disbud wall-trees (1301) ; remove their coverings when danger from frost is over (1307) ; and wash the trees with soap-suds when the fruit is set (1311). Thin the fruit of the Apricot. JUNE. VEGETABLE DEPARTMENT. Asparagus: discontinue cutting (1483). Beans, put in the last crop (1392) ; top and earth up former crops (1394). Broccoli: sow Cape and Granges (1380). Cabbage: sow seed for Coleworts (1374). Capsicums: plant out on a wai-m border (1345 ). Carrots: thin to two inches apai-t (1429). Celery: transplant into trenches for an early crop (1516). Cucumbers: plant under hand-glasses (1082). Endive: sow for an early crop (1508). French Beans : make a sowing the middle of the month (1397). Transplant ieefo (1473). Transplant ie««ce. /"eos : complete the sowing of the marrow varieties (1390). Potatoes : earth up (1412). Radishes : sow as in last month. Savoys : transplant for an early crop (1376). Scarlet Run- 8 A 718 A MONTHLY CALENDAB OF OPERATIONS. tiers: make the last sowing (1398). Spinach: sow twice. Tomatos : turn out against walls (1342). Vegetable Marrow : plant under hand-glasses (1341). FRUIT DEPARTMENT. Pinery : pot the succession plants and suckers (949) ; plunge in a brisk bottom heat, and shade (941). Vinery: as the fruit approaches maturity keep a dry atmosphere (971) ; a few leaves may be taken off or tied on one side where they shade the fruit (959). Peach-house : suspend nets or mats beneath the trees, and place in them some soft material to catch the falling fruit (998). Cherry-house : when the fruit is gathered, give the trees several good washings to destroy insects ; the house should also be smoked (1023). Figs : in pots must be duly supplied with water (1034). Melons : ridge out late crops, give air freply to ripening fruit (1037). Summer prune Tines against walls (984). Tmaihf thin Apricots. Set traps for Wasps (357). Net Cherry-trees (1195). JULY. VEGETABLE DEPARTMENT. Borecole: transplant (1378). Transplant ^roccoS (1380). Transplant jBriMjg?^ Sprouts (1377). Cauliflower : transplant from the April sowing (] 378). Cabbage : sow in the last week for a crop to come in in May (1372). Celery .- transplant into trenches (1516). £7!dj»e : make a second sowing (1508). French Beans: earth np, and make the last sowing the latter end of the month (1397) Lettuce : make a sowing the first and last week (1505). Peas : make two last sowings of early sorts (1390). Radishes: sow on a cool border (1444). FRUIT DEPARTMENT. Pinery: discontinue watering those plants which are ripening their fruit (946) ; keep a moist atmosphere in the succession house. Vinery : carefully avoid raising a dust when the fruit is ripe (971) ; give air freely. Peach-house : when the fruit is all gathered, give the trees sffireral good washings over-head ; give abun. dance of air till the leaves begin to decay, when the lights may be removed (1008). Cherry-trees in pots should now be placed in a shady situation (1025). Fig- house : when the first crop is gathered, water the trees liberally to bring forward the second crop. Melons : pay proper attention to the plants in the open air (1045). Finally thin wall-fruit (1303). Prune and tie espalier trees (1150). i?«d fruit trees (676). Pot Strawberry mrmeia for forcing (1091). Mat Currants and Gooseberries to preserve them (1222). Stop the shoots of Vines against walls two joints above the fruit. AUGUST. VEGETABI.E DEPARTMENT. American Cress : sow to stand the winter (1528). Transplant the main crops of Borecole (1378); and Srocco/i (1380). Cabbage: sow formain spring crop (1372); transplant for Coleworts (1374). Carrots: sow to stand the winter (1429). Cauli- flowers : transplant to come in during the autumn (1379); sow for the main spring crop (1379). Celery : transplant into trenches (1516) ; and earth up for blanching (1617). Endive: make the last sowmg (1508); and transplant from former sow- ings. Lettuce : sow for standing through the winter (1505) ; transplant from former sowings. Onions : sow for standing through the winter (1464). Radishes : sow the winter varieties (1444). Savoys : transplant the main crop (1376). Scarlet Runners : earth up and stick (1398). Spinach : sow the main winter crop (1450). Turnip j bow the winter crop (1421). FRUIT DEPARTMENT. Pinery; pot the succession plants into their fruiting-pota (945) ; plunpeintoa good heat, and shade till they begin to grow again (941). Vznery : syrmgo the A MONTHLY CALENDAR OF OPERATIOKS. 719 Vines, and give them a root- watering after the fruit is cut, to prevent the leaves decay- ing prematurely (971). Peach-house: the light may be taken off the early house, and used for the purpose of forwarding Grapes against walls. Fig-house : syringe the ti-ees frequently to keep down insects (1033). Make new plantations of Straw- berries (1244). Cut down the old canes of Raspberries when the fruit is gathered (1232). Keep the shoots of wall-trees nailed in ; displace all laterals. Stop the laterals of Vines to one joint. Continue to iind fruit-trees as in last month. SEPTEMBER. VEGETABLE DEPARTMENT. Cabbage : prick out from last month's sowing (1372). Celery : earth up for blanching (ISl?). Chervil: sow for winter use (1536). Curled Cress: sow for winter use (1527). Endive: transplant (1508) ; and tie up for blanching (1509). Mushrooms: Make beds for winter use (1114). Onions: pull up and house them whendry(1471). Parsley; cut down a portion of the spring sowing (1534). Potatoes: take up the early sorts (1416). Purslane: sow for winter use (1543). Shallots (1474) and Garlic (1475) should now be taken up. Dig up vacant ground (531). mUIT DEPARTMENT. Pinery : pot suckers that have been taken off fruiting-plants ; disroot and repot the old stumps (944) ; prepare the fruiting-house for the fruiting-plants. Vinery : the lights of the early forced-house should now be left open night and day (971) ; or they may be taken off if repairs are required. Peach -house: if any vacancies are to be filled up, take out the old soil and replace it with fresh (1001) ready for planting next mouth. Protect out-door Grapes from wasps by bagging the bunches. Gather fruit as it ripens (930). Expose wall-fruit to the sun and air to give it flavour and colour. Continue to make new Strawberry plantations as in last month. OCTOBER. VEGETABLE DEPARTMENT. Artichokes : tie up the leaves for producing the chard (1496). Asparagus : cut do^vn and winter-dress (1482). Beet : dig up and lay in sand (1435). Cabbage : plant out for the main crop (1372). Cardoons: tie up the leaves for blanching (1499). Carrots: take up the main crop (1430). Cauliflower : prick out under hand-glasses, and into frames (1379). Cucumbers : make beds, and sow seed for early crops (1054). Lettuce : plant out for the main spring crop (1505). Pars- neps : take up and preserve in sand (1434). Potatoes : take up the main crops (1416). Tomatoes : gather the unripe fruit and lay in a forcing-house. Dig and trench ground during dry weather, 533^ 534. FaUIT DEPARTMENT. Pinery : the plants intended for fruiting next season should now be got into the frulting-honse, if they were not put in when potted ; only partially plug the pots at first (946) ; plant all the remaining suckers in spent tan or a dung-bed (941). Vinery : As soon as the leaves have fallen from the Vines, prune them (962, 963) ; take off the loose rough bark, and wash them (971). Peach-house : fill vacancies with trees from the walls in the open garden (1003) ; take up and plant carefully r737). Pot cherry-trees for forcing (1020). Withhold water from fig-trees when the fruit is gathered. Melons : keep up the heat of the beds, to forward the ripening of the late fruit. Gather any remaining fruit (931). Plant fruit-trees of all sorts (737, 893). Prune Currants (1228) and Gooseberries (1220). NOVEMBER. VEGETABLE DEPARTMENT. Artichokes: cover the roots with litter (1495). Beans: sow first crop (1392). Caulifiouiers : protect those which have formed heads from frost (1379). Celery : 3 A 2 720 A MONTHL'Y CALENDAR OF OPERATIONS. take every favourable opportunity to earth it up (1517). Cucumbers : ridge out the plants in the fruiting-beds (1057). Endive : preserve from frost (1510). Horse Radish : dig up for winter use (1547). Jerusalem Artichokes : take up for winter use (1418). Peas : sow for an early crop (1388). Salsify : dig up for winter use (1438). Scorzonera : dig up for winter use (1437). Sea^kale : clear away the decayed stems and leaves (1490). Preserve culinary vegetables from frost (857). FRUIT DEPARTMENT. Pinerp : water the plant cautiously at this season ; those planted on a dung-bed will require none : admit air at every favourable opportunity (943). Vinery ; protect the border wliere the Vines of the early forcing-house are growing out- side (956). Peach-house : prune (994) and dress the trees (1010) as soon as the leaves have fallen. Cherry-house : if the lights have been taken oif, they should now be replaced, but left open night and day, unless the weather is severe. The trees should now be pruned. Pol Fig-trees for forcing (1034). Continue to plant all sorts of fruit-trees, as in last month. Protect Fig-trees (1323). Prune the Apple (1149), Pear (1168), Plum (1207), Cherry (1192), Filbert (1260), and Gooseberry and Currant, as in last month ; also nail and tie those against walls and espaliers. Look over the fruit in the fruit-room (931). Mulch newly-planted fruit-trees, to protect them from frost. DECEMBER. VEGETABLE DEPARTMENT. Asparagus: take up roots for forcmg (1096). Celery: protect during severe frosts (1517). Cucumbers : attend to the linings of the beds (1061). French Beans: plant in pots for forcing (1104). Mushrooms: keep a moist and steady temperature in the house (Ull). Radishes : sow on a hotbedfor early use (1108). Rhubarb: take up roots, and pot for forcing (1098). Sea-kale: take uproots carefully, for forcing (1097). Small Salad : keep a succession, by sowing once a week (1107). Prepare materials for hotbeds (842). FRUTT DEPARTMENT. Pinery : Slightly increase the temperature of the fruiting-house (946) ; if there is a great declination of bottom-heat, add a little fresh tan between the pots. Vinery : Put on the lights, if they have been removed, so as to protect the Vines from severe frost (969). Peach-house : after the trees are tied to the trellis, take away a little of the loose, dry top-soil ; slightly dig the border (1010), so as not to injure the roots, and add some fresh soil (997). Cherry-house : Fix the trees to the trellis, and make preparations for forcing next month. Fig-house : the frost should be kept out (1035) ; and if the trees need any pruning, it should now be done. Continue to prune and nail in mild weather. Partially unnail the shoots of Peach and Nectarine trees. Protect Strawberries in pots (1091), and all fruit- trees intended for forcing. Dig fruit quarters where pruning is completed (928). NOVEMBER, DECEMBER, AND JANUARY. The young gardener will have leisure during the long evenings of these three months to improve himself by reading, to which he should add writing and drawing, including of course arithmetic and mensuration, in these days, when the em- ployers of gardeners are readers of gardening books, and often possess a consider- able knowledge of vegetable physiology, the young man who does not occupy every moment of his spare time in improving himself, has no chance whatever of getting a good situation as head gardener. GENERAL INDEX. AcETARiACEOus esculeDts, Substitutes for, 683 Acrogens, orders belonging to, 16. Air and ventilation necessary to plants in a growing state, 88 ; mode of beating and ventilating on Mr. Penn's principle, 85 AUsanders, cnlture of, 680 AJliaceous plants, substitutes for, 665 Almond, its use, &c., 595 Amphibious animals, their uses in gardens, 114 Angelica, its use and culture, 688 Annular budding, how performed, 308 Apple, history of, 528 ; uses of and properties of a good one, 529 ; number of varieties of, and a selection of early and late dessert sorts, 530 ; a selection of early and late kitchen sorts, 532 ; list of dessert and kitchen, for espaliers, dwarfs, or trained standards, 428 ; a select list for an orchard, 431 ; selection of sorts for making cider, and valuable sort for cottage gardens, 533 ; principles to be observed in selecting varieties, 534 ; modes of propagation, 535 ; soil and situation best adapted for, and mode of bearing, pruning, and training, 536 ; summer and winter pruning of dwarfs, espaliers, and those against walls for the first ten years of their growth exemplified, 537 ; gathering and keeping, 543 ; diseases, insects, &c. to which the trees are liable, with modes of eradication, 544 Apricot, a selection of the best sorts, and the propagation of the trees, 596 ; planting, pruning, and general management of, 597 ; a few remarks on forcing the, 487 Artichoke, culture of, 670 ; culture of, for producing the chard, 671 A^rum maculatum, a native plant, the roots of which are sometimes used as a sub- stitute for arrow-root, 655 Asparagus, soil suitable for, and mode of sowing or planting, 665 ; general culture of, 666 ; particulars of the mode of forcing, 516 ; thrives best in wet-bottomed soil, 713 Asparagaceous esculents, substitutes for, 672 Asphalte roofing, its use in affording protection to glass roofs, 161 Atmosphere considered with reference to the culture of plants, 67 ; its constituent parts, 67 ; agitation of, promotes the vigour of plants, 83 Atmospheric moisture, much not necessary in greenhouses, 87 ; moisture always present, 76 ; to measure the degree of, 76 ; necessary to plants, 77 ; at perfect command in hothouses, 79 ; condensation of, on the glass of hothouses, 80 ; moisture necessary in plant structures, 215 ; method of procuring, 216. See Table in p. 703. Balm, its use, &c., 694 Banana, history of, 512 ; construction of a house for, and mode of cultivation, £13 ; list of varieties of, 601 Basil, culture of, 691 Baskets, method of making, 148 ; uses of, 151 Bean, a selection of varieties and their culture, 634 Beet, the Red, selection of varieties and their culture, 651 ; culture of the Spinach and Chard, 658 ■» Bell glasses, 152 Bellows, fumigating, 156 ; powdering, 157 Bt.'rbe*iy, use of, and mode of cultivation, 580 722 GENEKAL INDEX. Birds, their nature, and the orders to which they belong, 115 ; modes of deterring, 119; to destroy, 120 Blanching, vegetables which require it, and means by which it is effected, 339 Blight, by what produced, 126 Boiler, size of, for heating by hot water, 207 Borage, its use and culture, 686 Borecole, culture of, 624 Botanic stoves described, and their uses, 223 Boxes for plants, 145 Broccoli, varieties of, and their culture, 626 Brussels Sprouts, culture of, 624 Budding, uses and principles of, 300 ; mode of performing, 302 ; shield, 303 ; flute, 307 ; annular, 308 ; bud-grafting, 702 Buds, the developement of, explained, 22 Bulbs, described, 30 Burnet, use of, 681 Cabbage, varieties of, and mode of culture, 622 J culture of the Chinese, 027 ; tribe, general culture and management of, 627, and 714 ; substitutes for the, 630 Calyoiflorse, orders belonging to, 12 Canker, 123 ; its preventive and cure, 124. See note in p. 710. Cap to prevent worms from entering pots, 96 Caper, culture of the, 689 Caps, mode of making oiled paper, for protecting flowers, 162 Capsicum, use and culture of, 607 Cardoon, use, culture, and cookery of, 671 Carnations, mode of layering, 276 Carrot, selection of varieties, and their culture, 649 Caterpillars on gooseberry bushes, to destroy, 711 Cauliflower, culture of, 624 ; a late variety quite distiuct form the early variety, 713 Celeriac, culture of, 680 Celery, selection of varieties, and culture of, 677 Chamomile, its native locality, &c., 693 Chapman's new spring potatoes, 642 Charcoal, its use in striking cuttings, 263 ; in the culture of plants generally, more especially in pot-culture as practised by Mr. Barnes, 702, 706 Cherry, history and general treatment of, in a forcing-house, 480 j construction of a house for forcing, 480 ; kinds best adapted for forcing, and time of commencing to force, 481 ; insects to which the trees are subject, with the means of eradicating or destroying them, 481 ; treatment of plants in pots, 482 ; forcing by a tempo- rary structure, and the German practice of forcing, 483 ; use of, and a selection of the best sort for dessert, arranged in the order of their ripening, 653 ; sorts for preserving j a selection of sorts for a small garden, and for the north of Scotland, 554 ; mode of propagating, and general management of, 554 ; a Dutch Cherry garden described and figured, 558 Cherries, for espaliers, dwarfs, or standards, 428 ; for an orchard, 433 Chervil, culture of, 684 Chesnut, use of, and management of the trees, 578 Chiccory, mode of forcing, 518 Chive, culture of, 664 Citron, see Orange Cleft-grafting, how performed, 291 Climbing plants, wire frame-work for, 355 Clipping, its object, and mode of performance, 236 Cold, in buildings with a northern exposure, 701 Coniferse, propagation by cuttings of the order, 261 Conservatory described , and its use, 223 Coriander, culture of, 685 Corn salad, culture of, 681 Corolliflorze, orders belonging to, 14 ^ Cranberry, culture of, 576 Cress, selection of varieties, and culture of, b'Sl Cucumber, history of, mode of culture in British gardens and a list of the best GENERAL INDEX. 7^3 early varieties, 494 ; particulars of their culture on a dung-bed, 496 ; management of the linings of dnng-beds, 500 ; particulars of their culture in pits heated by linings, flues, or hot water, with the mode of constructing a pit to be heated by flues, 503; construction of Corbett's pit, to be heated by hot water, 505 ; culture in pots in forcing-houses, 506; construction of Ayres's cucumber-house, 507; treatment of the plant in Ayres's house, 509 ; treatment necessary for the pro- duction of fine fruit for prize exhibitions, 510; particulars of their culture in the open air, 510 ; a selection of the best varieties of, 603 Currant, a selection of sorts of red and white, and their culture, 566 ; uses of and culture of the black, 567 ; select list of, 430 Cutting plants, mode of performance, 235 Cuttings, principles of propagation by, 249 ; the plant and shoot to be selected for, 250 ; time of taking off, 252 ; preparation of, 253 ; the number of leaves to be left on, 253 ; manner of taking off, 254 ; treatment of till they are planted ; 255 ; the best soil for, and depth to plant, 256 ; distance to plant, 257 ; after- treatment of, 258 ; glasses for covering, 258 ; watering, 258 ; temperature most suitable for, 259 ; striking in water, 263 ; striking in powdered charcoal, 263 ; different modes of forming plants from, 270 ; to induce plants to produce shoota for, 271. See the Notes in p. 701. Digging, how to be performed, 229 Dill, use and culture, 685 Disbudding and disleafing. See Pruning, and the note in p. 713, Division, propagation by, 280 Draining, alters the condition of soils, 51 Earthworm, natural history of the, 94; natural uses of, 95; injury done by the, 96; to destroy, 96 ; cap to prevent their entrance into pots, 96 • Egg-plant, use and culture of, 606 Elderberry, its use, &c., 581 Elecampane, culture of, 6S9 Endive, culture of, 675 Endogens, orders belonging to, 16 ; described, 21 Engines, Read's patent, 154 Esculents, substitutes for leguminaceous, 638 Espalier rails described, 1 84 ; rail of cast iron, 426 ; strained wire, 427 Evergreens, best season for transplanting, 320 ; mode of transplanting, and con- ditions to be observed, 322 ; machines and implements necessary for transplanting large ones, 323 ; mode of packing, 324 Ezogens, grand divisions of, 10 ; described, 21 Fennel, itsnse and culture, 685 Fermenting materials for supplying heat to pits and frames, 196 Fig, history, and general particulars of culture under glass, 485 ; varieties best adapted for forcing, and practice of forcing in pots, 486 ; winter treatment under glass, 487 ; a selection of sorts, 598 ; propagation and culture, 599 Filberts, selection of sorts, and management of the trees, 579 Flowers, parts of described, 34 ; to cause plants to produce them, 34 ; fertilization of, 35 ; the supposed cause of double, 408. See Note in p. 708. Fined walls, mode of constructing, 182 Flues, various modes of beating plant structures by, 197 Flute-budding, different modes of, and how performed, 307 Forcing-houses, their uses, 224 Fox-glove, a substitute for tobacco, 696 Frame, a description of the common hot-bed, 176 Frames, mode of making oiled-paper, 161; mode of fastening mats or other covering on, 394 Frozen plants are recovered by early watering, 75 Fruit, its excellence depends chiefly on the developement of the leaves, and their exposure to light, 35 ; gathering and preserving, 401, 440 ; packing, 403 ; exotics which may be cultivated for their fruit, 612 ; trees, &c., which may be cultivated for their fruit, 581 Fruit-trees, distribution of, in a kitchen-garden, 420 ; select list of, for walls, 422 ; the distance from each other at which they should be planted against walls, 423 ; '/24 OUNEn.VL INDEX. moi)e of planting, 424 ; seiection of, for espaliers und dwarfs, 424; construction of a common espalier-rail for, 425 ; cast and wrought iron espaher-rails for, 426 ; the object of training, 357 ; different modes of training in the open garden and agaiust walls, 358—375 ; beneficial effect of pruning, S37 ) method of causing them to produce blossom-buds, 345 ; distance from plant to plant at which espa- liers and dwarfs are to be planted, 329 ; select list of, for an orchard, 431 Fruit tree borders, management of, 439 I'ruit-trees, and fruit-bearing plants, general remarks on their culture, 613 Fruit-room, its construction, 225 ; management of, 441 Fruits cultivated in British gardens, and their classification according to the natural system of Botany, 52fi; arranged according to the climate they inhabit, 527 Furnace, best mode of constructing, for heating by hot water, 207 Gardeners, house described, 224 ; wages of different grades of, 414 Garden pots, sizes of, 142 ; ornamental, 143 Gardens, order and keeping of, in what it consists, 409 ; rules to be observed in, 410; general management of, 412 Garlic, culture of, 664 Guava, culture of, 611 Ginger, culture of, 689 Glass, law of the reflexion of light from, 192 Glazing, best modes of, 219 Gooseberries, select list of, and distance they are to be planted from each other, 429; uses of, and a selection of the best sorts, 561 ; propagation and general manage- ment, 562; insects and diseases to which the trees are liable, with modes of eradication, 565 and 711 ; additional sorts enumerated, 711. Gourd, use and culture of, 004 Granadilla, culture of, 612 drafting, various modes of, 287. See Notes in p. 702. Grapes, a selection of sorts, arranged according to the form and colour of the berries, 582 ; selection of sorts of various flavours, 583 ; a selection of sorts for various purposes 584 ; general management of the Vines, 584 ; on growing them in pots, 585 ; on growing them for making wine, 586 ; to produce two or three crops in one house in a season, 463 Grape-vine, history of, and general particulars relating to the culture of, under glass, '452 ; form of house for the culture of, 454 ; propagation of, 454 ; mode of pruning and training against walls, 455, 468 ; mode of culture under glass at Oak- hill Gardens, 457 ; a diary of the course of culture at Oakhill Gardens, 439 ; mode of culture on walls and against cottages, 464; pruning and training of, on Mr. Hoare's system, 468 ; kinds most suitable for open walls, or for cottages, 472 ; insects and diseases of, with modes of prevention and cure, 472. Greenhouse described, and its use, 222; plants, propagation by cuttings of, 261 Gum in fruit-trees, its causes, 125 Hand-glasses, 152 ; description of a substitute for, 172 Heat, conduction of, 67 ; radiation of, 68 ; soil a bad radiator and conductor of, 70 ; means of counteracting the radiation of, 71 ; on retaining it by coverings, 215 Hellebore, white, its use and culture, 696 Henbane, its probable use in the destruction of insects, 696 Herbaceous grafting, how performed, 293, 296 Herbaceous plants, distinguishing character of, 18; propagation by cuttings of hardy and half-hardy, 261 Herbs, mode of forcing, 523 Hoeing, its object, and mode of performance, 232 ; with a hoe in each hand, 713 Honey-dew, its supposed causes, 126 Horehound, its use, &c., 694 Horse Radish, culture of, 686 Hotbeds, materials used for, 391; preparation of materials for, 392; M'Phail's principle for, and formation of common, 393 ; management of, 394 Hothouses, their use and situation, 187; most perfect form of, 188; form of for winter forcing, 189; advantages and disadvantages of curvilinear roofs to, 189; advantages of ridge and furrow roofs to, 190 ; materials used for, 1S2 ; contrac- tion and expansion of iron roofs, 193 ; modes of supplying heat to, 195 ; mode of heating them on Mr. Penn's principle, 85 ; uniform degree of moisture pro. duced by it, 86 ; difference of the heat of the glass internally and externally, 82 i GT!NERAL INDEX. 725 advantages of maintaining a high temperature in hot houses daring the day, and a low one during the night, 397 ; mode of fixing canvas shades to, 175 ; on sup- plying water to plants in, 220. Hot water, various modesof beating plant structures by, 20 1 ; on the size and best form of pipes, 204 ; the situation the pipes should be placed in, 205 ; size of boileri 207 ; rain-water should be used for heating by, 213 ; open gutters for circulating, 214 Hybrid plants, the number of useful and beautiful ones in cultivation, 7 Hyssop, its use, &c., 694 Implements of horticulture, 127; the principles on which they are constructed, 128 Inarching, uses and principles of, 297 ; mode of performing side and terminal, 293 Indian Fig, culture of, 612 Insects, their nature and classification, 99; transformation of, 101; food of, 102; distribution and habits of, 104 ; uses of, 105; means contrived by nature to limit the multiplication of, 105 ; enemies of, 106 ; means of destroying them, 108 ; articles required for destroying, 170 Instruments used in horticulture — knives, 137 ; asparagus knife, hedge bills, 138; saws, pruning chisels, shears, 139 ; axe, verge and grass shears, scythes, 140 ; various others, 141 Iron, in the form of an hydrate, injurious to vegetation, 48 ; roofs, contraction and expansion of, 193 Jerusalem Artichoke, culture of, 646 Kidney-bean, selection of varieties of the dwarf species, and their culture, 636 ; culture of the twining sorts, 636; particulars of the mode of forcing, 520 Kitchen-garden, its situation, arrangement, extent, and soil, 416 ; should be well drained, trenched, and levelled, 417 ; accompaniments to a, 418 ; plans of two, 419, 421 ; systems of cropping the, 435 ; general proportion of crops for one, 434 ; general management of, 434 ; seed required for a garden of 1^ acres, 435 Ladder, description of a folding one fur hothouses, 168 Lamb's Lettuce, see Corn Salad Lavender, culture of, 693 Layering, operation of, 272 ; soil necessary for, 277 Layers, the principles of propagation by, 272 ; the time they require to prodnce roots, 277 Leaves, the developement of explained, 22 ; of endogenous plants should be preserved uninjured during their period of growth, 10 ; necessary to the existence of the plant, 32 ; principles of propagation by, 266 ; conditions required for the rooting of, 267 ; plants usually raised by, 268 ; propagation of bulbs by, 268 ; of plants rooted in charcoal, 269 Leek, culture of, 663 Lemon, see Orange Lettuce, mode of obtaining full-grown Cabbage Lettuce throughout the vrinter, 522 ; selection of varieties, and culture of, 674 Level, its use, 169 Light, influence of, on the distribution of plants, 41 ; the effect of its absence on plants, 89 ; follows the same laws as heat, 90 ; radiation and transmission of, 90 ; refraction of, 91 ; the importance to plants of perpendicular, 91 ; means of in- creasing the efficiency of, 92 ; heat should be in proportion to, 92 ; absence of, occasionally necessary to some plants, 93 ; light and motion, 699, 700 Lime, its constituent parts and uses, 48 ; action of on vegetable substances, 62 ; uses of, 63 ; compost, 63 Lime, see the Orange family, 608 Liquorice, its use, &c., 694 Loam, varieties of, 49 Lodge for under-gardeners described, 225 Loquat, culture of, 612 Love-apple, see Tomato Machines used in horticulture : — wheelbarrow, 153 ; garden syringe, pneumatic hand-engine, 154 ; barrow-engine, 155 ; fumigating bellows, iron fumigating pot, 156 ; powdering bellows, mowing-machine, and various others used in gardens, 157 726 GENERAL INDEX. Manures : — organic, or animal and vegetable, 56 ; leaf-mould, 56 ; green crops, sea- weed, malt-dust, rape-cake, haulm, rotten tan, peat soil, 57 ; urine, 58 ; hair, wool, feathers, leather, horn, rags, dead animals, night-soil, sugar-bakers' scum, bones, dung of animals, 59 j saving and collecting of, 60 ; liquid, 389 and 707 — inorganic, or mineral, 60 ; quicklime, mild lime, chalk, 61 ; marl, gypsum, sea- shells, 62 ; saltpetre, salt, 63 Manures, mixed : — coal-ashes, vegetable ashes, 64 ; soot, street-sweepings, liquid, 65 ; application of, 66 Marjoram, culture of the, 691 Marigold, culture of the, 086 Mats, mode of making straw, and their usefulness, 159 Medlar, general particulars of its culture and management, S52 Melon, history of, 487 ; summary of culture for the Cantaloup Melon, 488 ; practice of Melon culture in British gardens, 490 ; culture in the open air, 492 ; insects and diseases which the plants are subject to, with the mode of treatment to be adopted for their eradication, 493 ; a selection of the best varieties of, 602 Mice, mode of catching them, 121 Mildew, its causes and cure, 125 Mint, culture of, 690 Moisture, its influence on the distribution of plants, 41 ; the capacity of air for, SO Monochlamydese, orders belonging to, 14 Morel, its locality, 692 Mowing, its object and mode of performance, 238 Mulberry, use of, and management of the trees, 577 Mushroom, general particulars of its culture, 523 ; form of house for, and mode of culture, 524 ; mode of culture in a cellar, 525 ; mode of growing it in lawns and pastures, 692 ; in cow-houses and stables, 710 Nasturtium, culture of, 686 Nectarine, see Peach Offsets, propagation by, 279 Onion, selection of varieties, 659 ; culture of, 660 ; culture of the Potato, and bnlb- faearing sorts, 661. See Notes in p. 712 and 713 Operations : — digging, 229 ; trenching, 230 ; hoeing, 232 ; raking, 233 ; rolling, 234 ; sawing, 235 ; clipping, 236 ; sowing, 243 ; layering, 272 ; grafting, 280 ; inarching, 298 ; budding, 302 ; transplanting and planting, 309 ; potting, 329 ; pruning, 335 ; thinning, 349 ; training, 351 j weeding, 378 ; watering, 382 ; blanching, 389 Orache, culture of, 657 Orange, the use and varieties of, 608 ; propagation and culture of the Orange family, 610 Orangery described, and its use, 223 Organic matter in soils, necessary to fertility, 49 Orchard, its formation and its situation, 430 ; select list of fruit-trees for, and the distance apart at which they are to be planted, 431 i culture of the soil in the, 433. Oxalis Deppei, culture of, 654 crenikta, culture of, 655 Parsley, culture of, 684 ; use and culture of the Hamburgh, 653 Parsnep, culture of, 651 Peach and Nectarine, history of, and general particulars relating to the management of, under glass, 472; construction of the house for, and kinds best adapted for forcing, 474 ; mode of training and pruning, 475 ; general treatment of from the commencing of forcing, 476 ; insects and diseases to which the trees are liable, with modes of prevention and cure, 476 ; on their culture in pots, 477 ; course of culture for two years at Stow Hall Gardens, 477 ; use of, and select list of Peaches arranged in the order of their ripening, 587 ; select list of Nectarines arranged in the order of their ripening, 588 ; propagation of, and culture of the young trees, 588 ; soil and situation best adapted for the trees, 589 ; mode of pruning and training, 590 ; management of the borders in which the trees are growing, 592 ; modes of protecting the trees during winter and spring, 593 ; diseases and insects to which the trees are liable, with modes of eradication, 594 ; essential points of Peach culture, 595 GENERAL INDEX. 727 Peach-trees, mode of protecting bycauTas coverings, 173 Pears, uses of, and properties of a good one, 645 ; number of varieties of, and a selection of dessert sorts, arranged in the order of their ripening and keeping, 546 ; a selection of kitchen sorts arranged in the order of their ripening and keeping, 547 ; a selection of sorts for perry, and a selection of the best sorts for smadl gardens, 548 ; mode of propagation, soil and situation best adapted for, and method of pruning and training the trees, 549 ; select list of, for espaliers, dwarfs, or thinned standards, 428 ; select list of for an orchard, 432 ; beneficial effects of thinning the blossom-buds, 550 ; gathering and keeping the fruit, 551 Peas, a selection of varieties, and their culture, 631 ; mode of protecting early crops, 633 ; means of destroying verminby which they areattacked, 634 ;modeof forcing, 521 Pennyroyal, culture of, 690 Peppermint, its use and culture, 693 Peruvian Cherry, culture of, 600 Pine-apple, history of, and general particulars of its culture, 443 ; mode of cul- ture at Oakhill Gardens, 444 ; construction of pits for the culture of, 445 — 448 J sizes of pots used at Oakhill Gardens, 448 ; their growth in beds of soil, 450 ; to cause them to grow to a large size, 4S1 ; insects which sometimes infest the plants, and modes of destroying them, 452 j selection of best sorts, 600 ; sum- mary of culture, 601 Pine-stove described, 223 Pine and Fir tribe, mode of grafting the, 294 Piping, in what manner performed, 26 1 Pits, their construction and use, 220 ; their usefulness for plant structures, 224 Plant structures, modes of ventilating, and the necessity of it, 217 Plantations, object of thinning ornamental, 350 Planting with the trowel, and in drills, 325 ; temporary mode of, 325 ; different modes of, 326, 327 ; general rules for, 329. See Notes in p. 703 and 704 Plants, food of, must be reduced into a pulpy mass before being absorbed by them, 3 ; injured by being cut close to the ground in a young state, 3 ; leaves necessary to the growth of, 4 ; require rest, 5 ; means by which they are multiplied, 6 ; light necessary to the growth of, 6 ; classification of, 8 ; the grand classes of the Natural System explained, 9 ; number of genera, species, and varieties of, 10 ; distinguished as evergreen, sub-evergreen, persistent-leaved, deciduous-leaved, ligneous, suffruti- cose,17 ; nomenclature of, 19 ; structure of, 20 ; sexes of, 23 ; fruit of, 24 ; functions of, 24 ; growthof described, 26 ; motion of sap in, 31 ; absorb and liberate gases, 33 ; the vigour of seedlings depends on the age of the seed, 37 ; geographical distri- bution of, 37; the important influence of temperature on the distribution of, 38 ; the influence of light on the distribution of, 41 ; the influence of moisture on the distribution of, 41 ; influence of soil on the distribution of, 43 ; stations of, 43 j habitations of, 45 ; exhalation from the leaves of, 81 ; diseases of, 123 ; props for climbing, 163 ; wicker-work protector for, 171 ; garden labours with, 235 ; leaves of, rooted in powdered charcoal, 269 ; watering, mulching, and staking newly- planted, 328 ; object of growing them in pots, 330 ; drainage necessary to those in pots, 332 ; care of newly-shifted, 333 ; management of hair-rooted kinds, 334; modes resorted to for the annual resting of , 399 ; the advantages of resting of, 400 ; packing and transporting, 402 ; the process of cross-breeding for raising new varieties from seed, 406 ; precautions to be observed to prevent the promiscuous fecundation of, 406 ; modes of perpetuating, 407 ; duration of, 408 Plants and animals, analogy between, 2 Plum, its use, and a selection of dessert sorts arranged in the order of their ripen- ing, 558 ; selection of sorts for a small garden, and the general management of the trees, 559 ; gathering, keeping, and packing the fruit, 560 ; select list of for espaliers, dwarfs, or trained standards, 428 ; select list of for an orchard, 433 ; a few remarks on forcing the, 487 Pomegranate, culture of, 599 Potato, selection of varieties, and their culture, 639 ; Lancashire practice of plant- ing, 642 ; modes of obtaining young ones during the winter, 643 ; taking up and preserving the crop, 645 ; particulars of the mode of forcing,5 1 9. See Notes in p. 714 Potting, its object and mode of performance, 330, 331 ; time and season for, 334 ; importance of using rough turfy soil mixed with stones, &c. 616 and 706 Propagation, principles of, 239 ; by seed, 240 ; by cuttings, 249 ; by joints and 72d GENERAL INDEX. nodules, 264 ; by bulbs, tubers, and tubercles, 266 ; by bulb-bearing leaves, 266 by leaves, 266 ; by cuttings, 270 ; by layers, 272 ; by suckers, 277 ; by slips, 278 by runners, 279 ; by oflfsets, 279 ; by division of the root, 280 ; by grafting, 280 by inarching, 297 ; by budding, 300 Props for climbing-plants, 163 ; to increase the durability of wooden, 164 Protection, articles for, 158 ; materials used for, 390 Pruning, principles and use of, 336 ; close pruning explained, 338 ; shortening-in, fore-shortening, spurring-in, 339 ; heading-in, close-lopping, lopping, snag- lopping, lopping-in, 340 ; cutting down, stopping the shoots, 341 ; disbarking, ringing, 342 ; disbudding, disleafin?, 343 ; clipping, root-pruning, 345 ; seasons for, 348. See Notes in p. 704—706. Pumpkin, or Pompion. use and varieties of, 604; culture of, 605 Purslane, culture of, 685 Quadrupeds, a notice of the smaller, injurious to gardens, 120 ; means of destroying and deterring them, 121 Quince, general particulars of its culture and management, 551 Kadish, selection of varieties and their culture, 653 ; mode of forcing, 522 Rakingj its object and mode of performance, 2J3 Rampion, culture of, 672 Raspberries, select list of, 430 Raspberry, uses of, and a select list of sorts, 567 ; propagation and culture of, 568 Reed walls, mode of constructing, 183 Rhubarb, propagation and culture of, and a selection of the best varieties, 688 ; particulars of the mode of forcing, 518 ; mediciual, mode of preparing, 693 Ringing, its effects on fruit-trees, 342 Rocambole, culture of, 664 Rogers's conical boiler and hot- water apparatus described, 208 ; best fuel for, 211 ; subsequent improvements in, 700 Rolling, its object, 234 Roots, propagation by cuttings of, 262 ; root-grafting, how performed, 293 — 295 ; pruning, its beneficial eflFects in checking luxuriant growth, 345 Roots, substitutes for esculent, 655 Rosemary, culture of, 693 Rubus, various species which may be cultivated for their fruit, 5G9 Rue, its use, &c., 694 Runners, propagation by, 279 Sage, culture of, 690 Salads, mode of forcing, 521 Salnfy, culture of, 652 Samphire, its use and culture, 689 Sap, motion of in plants, 31 Savory, culture of, 691 Savoy, culture of, 623 Sawing, mode of performance of, 235 Scorzonera, culture of, 652 Sea-kale, particulars of the mode of forcing, 517 ; its propagation and culture, 668 Seedling plants, time and method of transplanting, 310 Seed, what is necessary to the germination of, 25 ; process nf germination in, 240 ; to cause them to germinate quickly, 241 ; the period necessary for the germina- tion of various sorts of, 242 ; the quantity of moisture most favourable to the germination of, 242 ; depth to which it should be buried to cause it to germi- nate, 243 ; degree of heat most favourable to the germination of, 243 ; atmo- spheric air necessary to the germination of. 244 ; to accelerate the germination of, 244 ; vitality of, 246 j season for sowing, 247 ; process of sowing, 248 ; quan- tity required for a kitchen-garden of one and a quarter acre, 435 Seeds, what they consist of, and their vitality, 36 ; packing and transporting, 402 Seed-room, its construction, 225 5ervice, its culture and management, 552 Shaddock, see Orange Shading, the object of, and materials used for, 39*' GENERAL INDEX. 729 Shallot, culture of, 664 Sheds, their use for various purposes, 226 Shelter, the means to produce, 84 Shield-cudding, different modes of, and how performed, 303 Shrubs, distinguishing character of, 18 Side-grafting, how performed, 292 Skirret, use and culture of, 652 Slips, propagation by, 278 Slugs and snails, natural history of, 96 ; to destroy them, 98 Small salads, plants used for, 682 .Soil, the influence of, on the distribution of plants, 42 ; peat, 49, 57 ; object of labours on the, 227 ; necessity of pulverizing, during dry weather, 228 ; the advantage of frequently stirring it, 388. See Notes in p. 707 and 709. Soils, considered with reference to horticulture, 45 ; origin and kinds of, 46 ; sandy, 46 ; gravelly, clay, 47 ; on the inclination of the surface of, 50 ; varieties of, indicated by the plants which grow on them, 50; improvement of, 51; altering the texture and composition of, 51 ; burning of, as a means of improving, 53 ; pulverizing of, necessary to their improvement, 54 Sorrel, culture of, 658 Spinach, culture of the common, 656 ; culture of the New Zealand and perennial, 657 ; culture of the Patience, 658 Splice or whip-grafting, how performed, 288 Strawberry, history of, and the practice of forcing it, with a list of the sorts best adapted for the purpose, 514 ; time of beginning to force, and treatment of the plants after forcing, 515 ; culture of the Alpine, 516; use of, and a selection of the best sorts, 570 ; a selection of sorts in the order of their ripening, and one for a small garden, with their propagation and culture, 572 ; culture of parti- cular kinds, 575 ; methods of accelerating a crop of fruit in the open garden, 576 Structures, portable, 171 Subsoils, importance of good, 50 Succory, culture of, 676 Suckers, propagation by, 277 Syringe, Read's garden, 1 54 Scythes and sharp-edged implements, to keep from rusting, 129 Tallies and labels, different forms of, 164 ; best method of painting and lettering, 167 Tansy, culture of, 691 Tarragon, its use and culture, 685 Temperature, its important influence on the distribution of plants, 38 Thalaraiflbrse, orders belonging to, 1 1 Thermometers, their uses explained, 169 Thyme, culture of, 690 Timber-trees, girdling and felling, 347 ; machine for girdling, 347 Toads, their usefulness in destroying insects injurious to gardens, 94 Tobacco, its propagation and culture, 694 ; mode of curing for garden purposes, 695 Tomato, use and culture of, 606 Tools used in horticulture, 129 ; common lever, crowbar, perforators, 130 ; dibberg, picks, draw-hoes, 131; Spanish hoes, lawn-scraper, thrust-hoes, spades, 132; turf-spades, verge-cutters, trowels, and spud, 134; daisy-weeder, transplanters, dung and tan forks, digging-forks, 135 ; rakes, besoms, beetles, and rammers, 136; mallet, hammer, garden pincers, 137;' and instruments, chests of, where procured, 141 Tool-house described, 226 Training, the principles and operation of, 352 ; instruments required for, 376 ; comparative view of the different modes of, 376. See note in p. 711 Transplanting, uses and theory of, 309 ; mode of preparing trees for, 312. See p. 702, Trees, injured by being planted deeply, 4 ; distinguishing character of, 17 ^— — and shrubs, propagation by cuttings of deciduous, 260 ; propagation by cuttings of evergreen, 260 ; mode of layering, 273. ; the time to transplant deci- duous, 311 ; different modes of transplanting, 312 ; on transporting and replant- ing, 314 ; on the treatment of, after transplanting, 317 ; on supporting and protecting newly-planted, 3 1 8 Trellises and latice-work for fruit-trees and climbers, 186 Trenching, its object and mode of performance, 230 730 GENERAL INDEX. Tropse'olum tuberosum, culture of, 655 Truffle, where to be found, and by what means, 692 Turnip, selection of varieties, and their culture, 647 Cabbage, culture of, 627 Utensils used in horticulture: garden-pots, 142; blanching-pot, 143; water- saucers, 144; plant-boxes, 145) watering-pot, 146; sieves, 147; pot-carriers, baskets, 148 ; bell-glasses, hand-glasses, 152 ; powdering-boxes, 153 ; various others, 153. Varieties, duration of, 408 ; new varieties of herbaceous plants, 409. See Notes in p. 709 Vegetable culture, what necessary in, 5 Vegetables, improvement of by cultivation, 404 culinary : — systematically arranged according to their natural orders, 616 ; number of genera of, which may be cultivated in British gardens, 619 ; horticulturally arranged, 619 ; propagation, and seed, saving of, 620 ; general re- marks on their culture, and soils best adapted for, 621 ; times of sowing and planting culinary, 438 ; gathering and preserving, 401 Vegetable marrow, see Gourd Vegetation, stimulants to, 245 ; modes of accelerating, 391 ; modes of re- tarding, 395 Vermin, necessity of destroying those injurious to gardens, 93 Vines, propagation of by joints, 265 ; objections to depriving a vine of a portion of its leaves when the fruit is ripening, 709 ; causes of a deficiency of colour in the fruit, 709 ; the vine when forced not calculated to sustain uninjured a temperature below 40°, 709 Walls, their use in gardens, 176 ; direction and best materials for, 177 ; height of, 1 78 ; copings of, mode of fixing temporary rafters to, 179 ; construction of, 180 ; trellised, colouring the surface of, flaed, 181 ; conservatory, 183 ; reed as a sub- stitute for brick, 183 Wall-trees, to protect, 74 ; articles required for training, 167 Walnut, use of, and management of the trees, 578 ; leaves, useful for destroying worms, 696 Wasp and fly traps. 111 Water, the presence of, increases the tendency to spring and autumn frosts, 75 ; its importance in cultivation, 382 ; comparative effects of spring and pond, 383 ; applicatiou of to plants, 385. See Notes in p. 703, 704 Watering-barrow for strawberries, 384 — pots, 146 Water-cress, culture of, 682 Wedge-grafting, how performed, 292 Weeding, and implements for, 238, 381 Wicker-work hurdles for sheltering plants, 163 Wormwood, its use, &c., 694 Young gardeners, advice with reference to their improvement by reading, writing, drawing, &c., during the long winter evenings, 720. THE END. EILLIN'G, rUTNTRTl j\NT> STEUEOTTPrn, OUIT.DFOKD, SURREY. ADDENDA. The following; Notes ought to have appeared in pp. 699 and 707. 268 In p. 85. *• 'Woy molion of heated air should, when uniformly heated with the body, give relief, is not so plain." p. 85. Evaporation goes on more rapidly when the air is in brisk motion than is the case when it is still ; and evaporation produces cold : hence, although a still, and a brisk air may be of the same temperature, yet they produce a very different effect, as indicated by the sensations ; a brisk motion causing rapid evaporation, and occasioning a proportionably greater degree of cold on the surface, than is the case when evaporation goes on slowly in a still atmo- sphere. — N. 859 in p. 402. The eggs of insects, and seeds of weeds, in soil which is to be used for potting plants, are effectually destroyed by kiln-drying; which is more especially necessary when the sur- face of pasture or meadow land is used. Turf from a loamy soil, kiln-dried, chopped up and mixed ■with thoroughly rotted dung, with the addition of a few stones, smaller or larger according to the size of the pots to be used, will grow well almost every kind of plant, except some of the more delicate of the hair-rooted kinds.— R. CONSERVATION REVIEW 'l/^^.NLACTloisj