> d l’
f I f
iiy.
Î J ; ; : ,
t iiii'- i I
s a p , when 9 in. in circumfcranco at thoir bottoms, equal .any snckcrs. (Treatise on the
1 me-apple, 2d edit. p. 22.) Abercrombie says, “ suckers wliich rise from the extremities
ot the roots, at a distance from the stem, though they have radical fibres, are apt to liavo
ill-formed hearts. With Speechly, he prefers stalk-suckcrs and strong crowns.” (Pract.
Gard., p. 621.) Barnes prefers “ good strong suckers to begin with, not caring much
about crowns.” Hamilton raises fresh plants irom hoth crowns and suckers, preicrring
the la tte r; and, when he can, h e ‘suffers the suckers to fruit without destroying the old
plant. Dale, at Brancepeth Castle, in the county of Durham, fruits pines in the samo
manner, and has had fruit four successive years from the same root. In France, suckers
ajipcar almost universally prefeiTed to crowns, which arc very seldom used.
3059. Planting crowns and suckers. Nicol plants his suckers in summer and autumn as the fruit is
gathered, ¿ick in g them into th e front part of the bark-hed, “ where they will strike root as freely as any
where. Il a liu-ge proporpon of the crop come off early, the crowns and suckers may be potted a t once
and plunged into th e n u rsm g -p it; or they may be twiste'd from off the stocks, and may be laid by, in a dry
shed or loft, for a tew days tfll th e other operations in th e pinery be performed, ancl the nurs&y-pit be
ready to receive them and the crowns (collected as the fruit have been g ath e red ); which, if rootLl may
be potted, and may be placed for the above time, either in a frame, or in a forcin^-house of any S n d as
though out of th e bark-bcd, for so short a time. Sitch crowns as^haie no?
struck root may be laid aside with the suckers.” Baldwin says, “ towards th e end of September take
off the suckers from the fruitmg plants, and lay them in any warm place for about three clays; then strip
off a few of th eir bottom leaves, ancl they will bo ready for planting. P la n t them in the old tan, on th?
f h i tiL L iiirtL i« ’ 4 m . qr 5 in. apart, according to the size of the plants ; observing
that the tallest bq placed a t the back of the frame, and the shortest in th e front. In this state let them
i^emaiii till the fol owing April. (Cult._ a f Anan., p. 13.) Andrews pots his suckers in September and
plunges them in a bark-bed during th e wmter. Barnes observes th a t “ a succession of fruit throughout the
ih eL in «L n l i ®/®kers oil m August, or any other month most convenient, and repot
i r the same time. My own rule is to put suckers in 32s or 24s according to their
n L n / i H • i f ° f them at any time when requiring it into 12s or 8s and
thence to their final shift in 4s or 2s.” (Barnes, in Gard. Mag., vol.xix. p.f,98.) Mr. Barnes adds that he
S f n f f i ’ i successive shift, to thoroughly drain, and add charcoal, leaving th e soil rough i and he
^ t s and repots a t any time when the plants require it. Hamilton takes his suckers off in October or
w/erTth/^
S u b s ec t . 5. Rearing arid Fruitmg the Pine-apple according to the old System.
3060 The rearing o f the pine-appk, aQ.Q,oriimg to tho old system, requiring different
modes ot treatment at different stages of its progress to maturity, gardeners generallv
^foptcd tlirce houses or pits, through each of which the plants passed in succession,
in e se were named the nursmg, succession, and fru itm g houses, or iffts. A great
improvement has, however, been made lately in the culture of the pine-apple - and
instead of requiring toree years to make the plants produce fruit, iiftccn months is now
generally deemed ¿ifficient by the ordinary culture, and much less by the Hamiltonian
system, h o r the benefit of thoso who prefer the old system, a detailed accouut will be
first given of it.
greater, when tree leaves are substituted, on account of th e i/w e a k e ? influence i r e ith e r c a s k foe nft
d?i?Lfs ’ because the requisite altitude in Sid the different pits bL k m i / l rlirth f Perpendicular dimensions of the pots, and on the thickness to which a layer of
mav d I i iL 1 reach from tho surface, to keep the pots from contact with the new bark th at th e roots
» i t s »
th e potting, temperature, air,
'"ir T h k Will /h / r J The artificial heat in the nursing-pit is 55° for the miinmum
300(). V ov e ring at nights. One great advantage of growing pines m pits is, th a t they may easily be covered
with mats, or by other means, in winter. Abercrombie considers covering not positively indispens-
able to flued pits, in which the minimum degree of fire-hcat is regularly r maintained ; but it .
will add to the
rity 0 ............................................ ................. ...............
of th
security of the plants, and admit of some retrenchments in fuel, if some warmer screen, in addition to
that the glass, is applied a t night, during all the season when frost prevails, or maybe expected. For
this purpose, provide either double mats, or a strong canvas cover. T h e latte r is commodious, because
it can be mounted on rollers, and let down a t will, or drawn up under a weather-board. Remove the
covering a t sunrise, that the essential benefit may not be obstructed.
30C7. Air. When the weather is warm, Speechly admits “ a great deal of a ir ” to nurse plants. Having
potted unstruck offsets, Abercrombie admits little or no air until the plants begin to grow ; but as soon
as the leaves show th a t the root has struck, he gives plenty of air, in order to make th e leaves expand,
and th e entire qlant robust. (P r . G., p. G28.) Speaking of foe winter treatment of pines, M'Phail says,
“ admit air in fine days into every place where pine plants are.” In warm summer weather, he admits
some all night. (G. Iiem .,\i.\A 2 .)
30G8. Watering the nursing-pit. Speechly waters offsets over the leaves after they have begun to strike,
but gives to all pines much less water in a moist than a dry season, depending on the humidity of the air.
( T r. on the Pine, p. 37.) He waters once a week or fortnight in September and October, and then leaves
off till th e middle or end of January, depending on the moisture of the tan, and the state of inaction of
the plants. In frosty weather, he sometimes plunges the pots so deep in the tan that their rims may be
covered 2 in. or 3 in., in order to give heat, and prevent the surface of the mould from becoming too
dry. In March, he waters once in a week or ten days, and advances to twice a week in summer. ( 2V. on
the Pine, p. 47.)
30G9. Tke. cuiiure o f succession pine plants necessarily coincides in many particulars with th at of n u rslings
; but less heat is generally aUowed the former, in order not to draw them ; and they are allowed
plenty of room in the bod, frequently shifted, and abundance of air admitted, in order to make them
broad-bottomed and b u sh y : thus strengthening the heart or root part, in order th a t it may throw up
a strong fruit the second or third year.
307». Growing succession plants withovifire-heat. M'Phail says, “ succession pine plants grow exceedingly
well in pits covered with glazed frames, linings of warm dung being applied to them in cold frosty
weather. T h e north wall of a pit for this purpose had best be only about 4 ft. above the ground ; and
if about 2 ft. high of it, the whole length of the wall, beginning just a t the surface of the ground 4 ft.
below th e height of the wall, bo built in the form of th e outside walls of my cucumber bed, th e linings
will wann tho air in the pit more easily than if the wall were built solid. The linings of dung should
not bo lower in their foundation than the surface of the tan in th e pit which the plants . „grow (.
for It
is not the tan th a t requires to be warmed, but the air ?mong the p la n ts ): and as during foe winter the
■ ■■ ■’ ’ ■ ’ ■ " in-heat, i ' •
heat of the air in the p it among the plants, exclusive of sun-is not required to be greater than from
G0° to 65°, strong linings are not wanted: one against the north side, kept up in cold weather nearly as
high as the wall, will be sufficient, unless the weather get very cold indeed, in which case a lining on the
south side may be applied. In cold, frosty weather, a covering of hay or straw, or of fern, can be laid
on the glass above mats in th e night-time.’’
3071. Shifting and potting. T h e middle of March Speechly considers the most eligible time for shifting
and potting such nurse plants as are to be removed to the succcssion-liouse. “ If the work is done sooner,”
he says, “ it will prevent the plants from striking freely; and if deferred longer, it will check them in
their summer growth.”—Iu this shifting, he “ always shakes off the whole of the ball of earth, and cuts
off all th e roots th a t are of a black colour, carefully preserving such only as are white and strong. He
then puts the plants into pots 8^ in. in diameter a t th e top, and 7 in. deep, in entirely fresh mould. The
bark-bed is renewed, the pots plunged to the rims, the house is kept pre tty warm, till the heat of the
tan arises ; th e plants are then sprinkled over th e leaves with water, and watered lirst once a week and
afterwards twice a week, till the n ex t shifting in the beginning of August, when they are shifted into
fruiting-pots with their balls entire. The size of these pots is 11^ in. a t top by 10 in. deep.”
3072. The practice o f shaking o ff the balls of earth, and cutting o ff the loiver roots of pines in the second year’s
spring shifting, has at lirst sight an unnatural appearance ; and various theorists, and some gardeners,
recommend shifting the plants from first to last with their balls entire. On attentively examining the
pine plant, however, it will be found, that, in its mode of rooting, it may be classed with the strawberry,
vine, and crowfoot, which throw out fresh roots every year, in part among, but chiefly above, the old
ones. This done, the old ones become torpid and decay; and to cut them clear away, if it could be done
in all plants of this habit, would no doubt be assisting nature, and contribute to the growth of the new
roots. At foe same time, it is to b e observed, th a t encouraging, in an extraordinary degree, the production
of roots, though it will ultimately increase the vigour of the herb and fruit, will retard their
progress.
3073. On shifting coincide
with those we have submitted :Fir; .' ‘ ' .................. .
with the balls aitire, Speechly has the following judicious observations, which coincide
3 above submitted: — First, it is observable, that the pine plant begins to make its
roots at the very bottom o of fth the e stem, and, as the plant plai
increases in size, fresh roots are produced from
the stem, still higher and higher ; and the bottom roots die in proportion : so that, if a plant in the
greatest vigour be turned out of its pot as soon as th e fruit is cut, there will be found a t th e bottom a
part o fth e stem, several inches in length, naked, destitute of roots, and smooth. Now, according to tho
above method, the whole o fth e roots which the plant produces being permitted to remain on the stem
to the last, the old roots decay and turn mouldy, to the great detriment of those afterwards produced.
Secondly, th e first ball, which remains with the plant full two years, by length of time will become
hard, cloffily, ancl exhaustecl of its nourishment, and must, therefore, prevent the roots afterwards produced
from growing with th at freedom and vigour which they woulcl do in fresher and better mould.
Tliirdly, the old ball continually remaining after the frequent shiftings, it will be too^ arge when put
into the fruiting-pot, to admit of a sufficient quantity of fre:’
becomes ripe, which is generally a whole year from
from the ti
3074. Temperature.Temperature. Most Most authors authors and and practical practical gardeners ga
approve of ra the r a low top and bottom heat
for pines in the winter season. “ There is nothing so
•sh mould to support the plant till its fruit
last time of shifting
^ ___ _____ ____________ prejudicial to th e pine-apple plant (i
overheat of the tan excepted), as forcing them to grow by making large fires, and keeping ’ ■ ■ ------ -•...... h( " r, ■ -
insects and an
^ . J the hothouse
warm a t an improper season, which is injudiciously done in many hothouses. It is inconsistent with
reason, and against nature, to force a tropical plant in this climate in a cold, dark season, such as generally
happens here in the months of November and December ; and plants so treated will in time show
th e injury done them : if large plants for fruiting, they generally show very small fruit buds with weak
sStLeUmiiiss ;; aainKdi if small plants, they seldom make much progress in the beginning of the n ex t summer.”
(Speechly.)
3075. Air.. Speechly considers a . due e propoi
proportion of air as essential to the goodness of pine plants. The
want of it will cause them to grow with long leaves and weak stems ; and too great a quantit
quantity, or a'
given ^ _____ at _ improper seasons, will .star
starve th e plants, and cause them to grow yellow and sickly. Little a
will be wanted in winter ; but letting down the glasses, even for a few minutes in the middle of the day.
„....OT.OT ..A-.v.. OT weather, to let out the foul air. This will cause the plants to grow
with broad leaves, and stiff and strong stems, provided they have room in the bed. Air may be admitted
all night in the hot season, care being taken th at the glasses are left in such a manner as to prevent the
rain, in case any falls, from coming on the plants. ( Tr. on the Pine, p. 75.)
307G. Water. Speechly disapproves of ever giving a great quantity of water at one time to the pine-apple
plant, in any state, or a t any season. Too much causes the mould in the pot to run together and become
hard and cloddy ; and, independently of this, glutting a plant with water will rob it of its vigour, and
If, III
r II