THE CULTURE OF VEGETABLES AND FLOWERS FROM SEEDS AND ROOTS TEXT

tiles or stones upon the runners near to the young plants to favour the process, but a neater way will be to peg them down. Or they may be fixed by short pegs in small pots, filled with light rich earth and plunged in the soil. To keep the crop clean many plans are adopted, and the plant probably takes its name from the old custom of covering the ground with straw for the purpose. The cultivator must be left to his own devices, because of the difficulty in many places of obtaining suitable material. But we must warn the beginner in Strawberry culture against grass mowings as more or less objectionable. They sometimes answer perfectly, and at other times they encourage slugs and snails to spoil the crop, and if partially rotted by wet weather communicate to the fruit a bad flavour. There is a very simple means of feeding the crop and making a clean bed for the fruit. It consists in putting on a good coat of long, strong manure in February, and in doing this it is no great harm if the plants are in some degree covered. They will soon push up and show themselves, and by the time the fruit appears the straw will be washed clean, and the crop being thus aided will be a great one, weather permitting. As regards cutting off the leaves, we advise the removal of old large leaves as soon as the crop is gathered. But this should be done with a knife; to use a scythe amongst Strawberries is to ruin the plantation. The object of removing old leaves is to admit light and air to the young leaves, for on the free growth of these the formation of good crowns for the next year’s use depends. By encouraging the young leaves to grow, root action is promoted, and the embryo buds are formed that will, in the next summer, develop into Strawberries. Some gardeners recommend the removal of the Strawberry plantation every three years. It is a better plan to make a small plantation annually, and at the same time destroy an old plantation that has served its turn. But we are bound to say that Strawberry plantations, well made and well kept, will often last and prove profitable for six or even more years. But this will never be the case where there is a stint of manure or water, or where the runners are allowed to run in their own way to make a Strawberry mat and a jam of the wrong sort. The Strawberry fancier does not wish to keep a plantation any great length of time, and he must plant annually to taste the new sorts. This to many people is one of the chief delights of the garden, and it certainly has its attractions. Forced Strawberries.—The high price realised on the market for the earliest supply of forced Strawberries is a sufficient proof that society is prepared to pay handsomely for this refreshing luxury. As the season advances and competition becomes keen the figure rapidly declines, but ‘Strawberries at a guinea an ounce’ has more than once appeared as a sensational head-line in the daily press. The fruiting of Strawberries in pots is part of the annual routine of nearly all large establishments, but even with the most perfect appliances it must be admitted that to produce berries which win appreciation for their size, colour, and flavour demands both skill and patience, especially patience. Strong well-rooted plants are essential to success, and no trouble should be spared to secure them from robust free-fruiting stocks. The earliest runners must either be layered on square pieces of mellow turf or over thumb pots filled with a good rich compost. When the runners are fairly rooted in the layers of turf or the thumb pots they should be transferred to pots of the fruiting size. No. 32 is generally used for the purpose. After the pots have been crocked some growers add a layer of half-inch bones, which aid the plants and insure free drainage. The most satisfactory soil is a rich fibrous loam, with the addition of one-fourth of well-rotted manure and a small proportion of sand, and the compost must be well firmed into the pots with the ramming stick. The best place to keep the plants is an open airy situation, easily accessible, where the pots can stand on a bed of ashes. On the approach of frost they can be transferred to a cold frame, keeping them close to the glass, or they may be plunged in ashes in some sheltered position. When the time arrives for forcing, it is usual to commence by plunging the pots in a bed of warm leaves or in a mild half-spent hot-bed. Immediately the plants show sign of blooming they must be shifted to warmer quarters. A shelf at the back of an early vinery or Peach-house, quite near the glass, is a suitable position. The temperature at starting should be 55° Fahr., rising gradually to 60° by the time the leafage is thoroughly developed. The appearance of the flower trusses is a critical period. Liquid manure should then be given freely, and at the same time the plants must have abundance of light and a warm dry atmosphere. The blossoms need to be artificially fertilised with a camel’s-hair pencil, choosing midday as the best time for this operation. When the crop has set it must be thinned to about nine berries on each plant, and in due time the fruits should have the support of forked sticks. Care will be necessary to prevent injury to the stalks, or the flow of sap to the berries may be arrested. Syringe twice a day in dry weather; and on the first show of colour discontinue the manure-water and use pure soft water only. At this stage a night temperature of 65° must be maintained, giving all the air and light possible. More failures in the pot culture of Strawberries are attributable to neglect in watering than to any other cause. The soil must never be allowed to become dry. Should the leaves once droop they seldom recover. At least twice a day the plants will need attention, and it is important that the water should be of the same temperature as the atmosphere. Always leave the cans full in readiness for the next visit. Alpine Strawberries are very largely grown in France, probably more so than the large-fruited varieties which are popular in this country. The best method is to sow the seeds in January, in pans filled with a light rich compost and placed in a gentle heat. Prick out the plants on to a bed of light soil in a frame, or on a nearly exhausted hot-bed, whence they should be taken to the open ground. From these sowings fine fruits may usually be gathered in the following September. Seeds may also be sown outdoors in spring or in September in shallow drills, six inches apart, on a bed of light soil. Transplant in due course for fruiting in the succeeding Strawberry season. When a full crop has been gathered the plants should be destroyed, a succession being kept up by sowing annually. By slowly growing the plants from spring-sown seeds and potting in autumn, it is not a difficult matter to have Alpines in fruit under glass at Christmas. SUNFLOWER Helianthus annuus Although the Sunflower is not utilised as food for man, the plant is frequently grown in the Kitchen Garden, partly as an ornament, and also for the production of seeds which are given to poultry. As regards cultivation, sow in pans in April, and put on a gentle hot-bed, or shut up close in a sunny frame. The plants will soon appear. Give them light and air, and plant out when they are two or three inches high. But Sunflowers can be grown without any kind of artificial aid. A simple and effectual method is to make the spot intended for them very rich, and dibble the seed an inch deep on the first day of May. TOMATO Lycopersicum esculentum The taste for Tomatoes often begins with a little antipathy, but it is soon acquired, and not infrequently develops into decided fondness for the fruit both cooked and in its natural condition. As a necessary article of food the call for it in this country is no longer limited to a select circle of epicures, for the value of its refreshing, appetising, and corrective properties is now widely recognised, and its advance in public favour has been accelerated by the improved quality, enhanced beauty, and increased variety effected by expert raisers. The Tomato is a tender, but not a tropical plant, and it requires a moderately high temperature, free access of air, and above all a full flood of solar light to bring it to perfection. The necessary heat is easily managed in any garden equipped with ordinary forcing appliances; so also is a current of air in properly constructed buildings; but the deficiency of light during the darker months renders the task of producing fruit in midwinter less easy than at other seasons. By the introduction of varieties possessing increased powers of crop-setting, however, the difficulty of winter fruiting has been largely overcome, so that, with efficient management, it is now possible to send Tomatoes to table throughout the year. Almost every imaginable glass structure can be employed for growing Tomatoes, from the small suburban greenhouse to the vast span-roof, hundreds of feet in length, devoted to their culture in the Channel Islands. And it is not essential that the crop should be grown alone. Potatoes, French Beans, Strawberries, and Vines may be forced in the same building, provided there be no obstruction to light and air, nor any interference with the conditions which experience has proved to be imperative for sustaining the plants in vigorous health. For winter and spring gathering there must be a service of hot-water pipes, but as the season advances it is easy to ripen fruit in cool houses, and later on plants outdoors will in favourable seasons yield an abundant return without artificial protection of any kind. INDOOR CULTURE—Sowing and Transplanting.—Seed may be sown at almost any time of the year, but the most important months are January to March, August and September. In gardens favourably situated in the South of England and furnished with the most perfect appliances, seed is sown in all these months, and in others also; but in smaller gardens sowings are generally restricted to February and March. Whenever a start is made sow thinly and about half an inch deep, in pans or boxes, and do not allow the seedlings to remain in them for an unnecessary day. Immediately two or at most four leaves are formed either prick off into other pans or boxes, or transfer singly to thumb pots, and as a rule the pots will be found preferable. The soil for these pans or pots should be stored in the greenhouse a few days in advance of the transfer, so that the compost may acquire the proper temperature and save the plants from an untimely check. In small houses place the plants near the glass that they may remain short in the joint, but on cold nights they must be taken down to avoid injury from fluctuations of temperature. In large houses, where the light is well diffused, there is no need to incur this trouble, for the seedlings will do equally well on the ground level. In due time shift into six-inch pots, from which they can go straight to borders, or into a larger size if they are to be fruited in pots. About fourteen weeks will be required to prepare the plants for borders in the winter season, but a shorter period will suffice in spring and summer. Plants from an August or September sowing will not mature fruit in much less than six months, while a March sowing will yield a return in four months or less. A great deal depends on the character of the season, and more on skill and attention. Those who sow in January or February should sow again a fortnight later, and onwards until the end of April, according to requirements. For winter supplies a first sowing may be made in June, in a cold frame, and prepared for transfer to fruiting pots in September. Treatment of Soil.—In the first instance there need be no anxiety about soil. Any fairly good sandy loam will answer for the seed-pans, and if too stiff it may be freely mixed with sharp sand or the sifted sweepings from roads and gravel walks. A fibrous loam, cut from a rich pasture, and laid up in a heap for twelve months, will, with an addition of wood ashes and grit, make an ideal soil for pots or borders. As the plants advance, leaf-mould or thoroughly decayed manure in moderate quantity should be supplied; but, instead of incorporating it with the loam in the usual way, it will be found advantageous to place the manure immediately above the crocks, and the roots will find it at the right time. But the quantity of manure must not be overdone, especially in the earlier stages of growth, because excessive luxuriance neither promotes fruitfulness nor conduces to early ripening. After the fruit has set, a mulch of decayed manure will aid the plants in finishing a heavy crop. Manure which is only partially fermented will not do at all. The ammonia it liberates exerts so deadly a power that the plants are quickly scorched. In its demand for potash the Tomato closely resembles the Potato, and of the two the former is the more exacting. So quickly does this crop exhaust the soil, that in small houses it is usual to take out the earth to a depth of fifteen or eighteen inches every second or third year, and replace it with virgin loam. Others grow the Tomatoes alternately in the bed and in pots, but this is only a partial remedy. Constant dressings of farmyard or stable manure result in the formation of humus, which, as it becomes sour, has to be sweetened by the solvent influence of lime. The chief objection to the use of stable manure, however, even when well rotted, is that it induces a free growth of foliage instead of promoting an early development of fruit. The most enduring method is that which is based on chemical knowledge of the constituents of the soil, and the relation which the plant bears to it. One of the most successful growers for the London market almost entirely avoids the use of stable manure, and he is able, by applications of nitrate of potash, dissolved bones, and the occasional use of lime, to grow splendid crops in the same houses year after year. All the conditions which answer for border work are applicable to pots, and a limited number of plants brought forward in succession will supply the requirements of a small household from early spring until near Christmas. The pot system is conducive to free setting and to early ripening, and for these reasons it is worth attention. The plants should be kept short in the joint by frequent shifts until the twelve-inch pot is reached, and this size will accommodate two cordons or one plant having two branches, each of which will require a separate stake for its support. Plunging the pots can be adopted to save labour in watering. Temperatures.—No advantage is to be gained by attempting to force Tomatoes in a higher temperature than is consistent with healthy progress, although in winter there is great temptation in the direction of overheating. Full time for development in moderate heat will bring stout joints, and impart a vigorous constitution that materially aids the plants in resisting the insidious attacks of disease. The waning autumn and dull winter days are the most troublesome periods of management, and it is remarkable that of two days equal in duration and apparently in other conditions, the autumnal appears to be less favourable than the spring day. But if, on the one hand, a high temperature is injurious, a low temperature must be avoided; although for a time it may not appear to be harmful. A temperature of 60° or 65° suits the seed-pans, and after transfer to pots and the roots have become established, the thermometer should not register less than 55° during the night. It may rise 10° by means of fire heat in the daytime, and during bursts of sunshine another 10° or 15° will be quite safe, always assuming that the roots are not dry, and that the plants have free ventilation. Watering.—The judicious administration of water forms an important feature in the culture of the Tomato. The plant is too succulent to endure drought with impunity, and it is mere folly to toy with the water-can. Saturate down to the roots, and then leave the plants alone until more water is wanted. No hard and fast rule can be stated as to frequency. It depends on the condition of the soil, the period of the year, and the age of the plants. Borders and soil for pots should be made sufficiently moist in advance, so that watering will not be necessary immediately after the plants are transferred. The prevalent opinion that excessive watering generates disease is not confirmed by our experience. Of course the watering should not be excessive for many reasons, but the diseases which are often attributed to over-watering are the result of atmospheric mismanagement. General Treatment.—Authorities are not agreed as to whether branched plants or simple cordons yield the better results. In our judgment the single stem deserves preference, and it is now more extensively grown than any other form, although plants having two branches are almost equally popular. Certainly the cordon can be managed with extreme ease; it is admittedly the earliest producer, and there is a general consensus of opinion that the fruit it produces is unsurpassed in size and quality. The doubtful point is quantity, but even here the difference, if any, is too trifling to be worth the consideration of private growers. Cordons are formed by removing the laterals as fast as they appear, and when the fruit has set, or the requisite height is attained, the top is also pinched out. The space allowed for each plant varies greatly, especially among growers for market. Under glass every branched Tomato should be allowed at least three feet each way. For cordons we advocate a distance between the rows of three feet, and a space of two feet in the row is not too much. The stems require support of some kind, and stakes are preferable to string; but of course the stems may be secured to wires whenever it is convenient to run the plants immediately under the glass. Another point upon which authorities differ is the extent to which Tomatoes should be denuded of their foliage. Some growers condemn the procedure entirely; others reduce their plants to skeletons. Both extremes are objectionable, for when all the leaves are permitted to remain there is delay or partial failure in colouring the fruit, and the almost entire removal of foliage checks the root action injuriously. In practice it answers well to wait until the fruit has set, then by pinching out the leading point of each leaf, commencing at the bottom, ripening and colouring are promoted, and the health of the plant remains unimpaired. In dull weather, and especially in short days, a difficulty is sometimes experienced in setting the fruit, particularly the first bunch. After fruit has begun to swell on one bunch, the remainder set with comparative ease. A rather higher temperature than usual combined with free movement of the atmosphere is generally sufficient to insure fertilisation. If assistance is necessary, however, water the plants early in the afternoon, and close the house rather before the usual time. The warm atmosphere will develop plenty of pollen, and a gentle shaking of the flower bunches with a slight touch from a hazel twig will liberate visible clouds, which will effectually set the fruit. Another method is to lift a flat label or paper knife against the flowers. The label becomes covered with pollen, and by gently touching each flower with a slight upward pressure a great number can be fertilised in a few minutes. A soft brush passed over the flowers daily has the same effect. Plants in the open ground need no such attention if they are in good health and the season is at all genial. When a bunch of flowers contains one that is fasciated or confused, the flower should be pinched out to prevent the formation of large and ugly fruit. The remainder of the bunch will be the finer for its absence.