A dictionary of modern gardening - University Library

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P I N 457 PI N
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should be placed in the same kind of
us, may ere long induce its culture un- earth, not damp, or they will be liable
der glass, in common with the grape, to be affected at the base with rot or
peach, &c., though the same necessity mildew.
as in England does not exist—our; "Soil.—The pine will grow well in
proximity to the tropics enabling us, at any kind of turfy, rooty, well-sweetened
least on the seaboard, to obtain the pine pulverized soil, from heath soil to a
in tolerable perfection, and at a tithe of heavy clayey loam. I make choice of
the cost of producing it ourselves; we, a heathy turf when obtainable, with the
however, insert the article on this fruit roots and its natural vegetation all with
as it stood in the original edition of this it; never breaking it until at the pot-
work.
I believe the most successful cultivating
bench, as the process of potting is
soini; on. Then we break the sods,
tor of this fruit is Mr. Barnes, gardener which are mostly chosen about two or
to Lady Rolle, at Bicton, near Sidmouth, three inches in thickness, in such kind
and to that excellent horticulturist I am of pieces as we can thrust into the pots,
indebted for the following detail of his putting in, as we proceed, some pieces
latest system of culture :
I
Varieties:—We cultivate the Queen
of charcoal, always taking care to drain
the pots carefully, which is one of the
principally for fruiting at all seasons. chief essentials. Our drainage is prin-
We also grow a few of the large black cipally coarse charcoal, averaging onekinds,
which are all of easy culture, fourth of Lroken rubbly potsherds,
and may be grown to a very large size which are placed first round about the
increase of wealth and luxury among ;
indeed. We have of late grown the i
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; then, if it is a seven-inch pot,
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Queen Pine from six to nearly eight
bottom
for a sucker, the drainage averages two
pounds in weight, and those have been inches at least ; and if fifteen or eightproduced
from plants of only a few een-inch pots, which are the largest
months' growth. The other varieties
we cultivate are—the Russian Globe,
fruiting pots I make use of, the druin-
age is employed in a coarser state, and
English Globe, Enville, Green Olive or about two inches more of it, and the
St. Vincent, Montserrat, Black Ja- soil too is thrust into the pots rougher
maica, Otaheite, Brown-leaved Sugar brambles, furze, bushes, heath, and
Loaf, and Black Antigua, only two or grass altogether— with no other kind of
three plants of each, and those we are manure, besides an occasional lump or
about reducing. All these varieties are handful of rubbly charcoal, merely to
of easy culture, and free swellers, ca- fill up some of the crevices. It is not
pable of being grown to a great weight. rammed, that is to say, not pounded, or
To equal a Queen of six pounds weight jammed together in the same way potthey
ought to be from ten to fourteen ting is too often done, but pushed down
pounds weight each fruit, but we only as we proceed, quietly. Thus the soil
average them from six to ten pounds is really a whole body of drainageweight.
" Propagation.—I have practised in
my time various methods, but my present
mode is only by suckers. These
are pulled off immediately the fruit is
there is no obstruction either to the
atmosphere or the water. I have no
particular time or season for shifting,
potting, or repotting—we do all these
at any season of the year, whenever we
cut, and at once potted, no matter what fancy the plants seem to require it.
season of the year it may be. Thus, as Never shift a plant, or repot, but twice
soon as a fruit is ripened, the plant is
lifted out, and another at once planted
at the most. If it
sucker, it gets with
is a strong spring
me but one potting
in its place. One sucker, or, perhaps, from the sucker pot to the fruiting pot.
two, are occasionally left, but not often. I have left otf altogether making use of
Those taken off are at once potted. By any kind of manure with the earth bethis
practice a constant succession of
plants is kept up, and fruit of various
ages. I never care •or the cromis,
sides charcoal ; excepting to free-grow-
ing plants occasionally we apply weak
liquid manure—as clear as wine—although,
if taken off in due time, and ways applying it in a tepid state, and in
potted at once, in well sweetened dry the growing, warm part of the season,
pulverized earth, they will make equal- To the succession plants we apply it
with the syringe or engine over the
iy good plants. Of course the suckers |