10 



THE FLOEAL WOELD AND GARDEN aUIDl!. 



lurfy loam aud peat, with one-sixth saiul, and 

 t)Ut in bottom. heat at once ^rith abundance of 

 Water. Pentas rosea and carnea, beautiful plants, 

 much neglected ; treat in precisely the same way. 

 EosES AT HoMERTON.— JF. X». P.— Your letter 

 gives particulars of soil, situation, aspect, and 

 isurroundinp circumstances in such a way that it 

 is a more than ordinary pleasure to give it at- 

 tention and reply. At llomerton, with an open 

 Rgpect, you may grow rosfes well, and In the 

 Beptembei- number of the Floral Would you 

 Vrill find some hints that will enable you to steer 

 clear of difficulties, and know in which direction 

 you may proceed more safely. AVe are not 

 prepared to say whether the Kaihvay Company 

 violate the law in smothering your garden with 

 smoke as the trains pass, not having the Smoke 

 Act at hand to refer to. But this evil is not of 

 a nature to prove serious, being altogether dif- 

 ferent from the constant outpouring of smoke 

 from neighbouring factories, with all the poi- 

 Bonous gases incidental to manufacturing works. 

 There can be no rule given to enable an ama- 

 teur to distinguish Manettis from briai s when 

 worked close to the collar, though a person 

 accustomed to the growth of stocks would de- 

 termine presently, the spines and bark of the 

 Manetti being very distinct from those of the 

 briar. We should suppose your plants worked 

 six inches high to be briars', certainly Manettis 

 ought not to be worked so high, because of the 

 subsequent planting. Nevertlieless, plant them 

 below the work, aad the roses will get roots of 

 their own in time, and meanwhile you must 

 keep a look-out for suckers ; if they are on 

 briars these will be sure to push vigorously, and 

 JQUSt be i-cmoved by unearthing them to the 

 base, to pass the knife through at their junction 

 with the root-stock. The roses you name are all 

 good. H. P. Mad. Campbell, a show rose, colour 

 pale red, sometimes striped, not generally good 

 near towns, but if kept rather cramped in pots 

 till June, then cut back aud turned out into well- 

 manured soil, gives beautiful autumn blooms. 

 H. P. Eavel, brilliant crimson, dwarf growth, 

 one of the best at Stoke Newingtou on its own 

 roots, but by some oversight escaped being 

 entered in the list of good ones, in the article 

 just referred to. Mr. Cranston would do well 

 to insert it in his list of roses for townsmen. H. 

 P. Ernest Berrguu.a has been kicked out of all 

 choice collections, and we can say nothing of it 

 as a town rose. B. Keveil, dark purple, mag- 

 nificent in its proportions, requires a good air, 

 and is, therefore, not among the best for your 

 purpose. B. AppoUine, light pink, makes a 

 good pillar or weeping standard, and will endure 

 almost any amount of smoke. Mareschal du 

 Palais (?), not acquainted withit. D. P. Blanche 

 Vibert, ditto. T. Gloire de "Dijon, certainly the 

 best of all choice roses for town. 

 Inundated. — licv. E. G. — We suppose you to be 

 near the outcrop of a stratum impervious to 

 water, seeing that the springs rise after the 

 rains have ceased. The fruit-trees and straw- 

 berries will certainly suffer materially, many 

 may perish altogether if under water long, espe- 

 cially with such weather as we have now. Ton 

 must adopt some temporary expedient to draw 

 the water to a lower level, or open the way to an 

 outfall at once, and, as soon as weather permits, 

 secure efficient drainage. You must set the 

 whole value of your stock against the cost of 

 remedy, and judge for yourself whether to take 

 measures at once, or wait and risk it. We 

 foresaw that such a state of things would arise, 

 and sounded the alarm in August last. 

 Tree Onion. — We are informed that Messrs. 

 Hooper and Co., of Covent Garden, have a few 

 bulbs of Tree Onion, which they can supply at 

 2s. 6(f. per dozen, or 3d. each. Several cor- 

 respondents who appear not to have noticed the 



I remark at page 280 of the December number, 

 have ^vritten requesting us to supply them. As 

 we frequently receive orders for plants recom- 

 mended in these pages, we must repeat that w© 

 are not dealers nor commission-agents. We 

 describe and recommend things that we think 

 will suit our readers, and there our task is af an 

 end. AYe have never anything except our book 

 to sell, neither can we recommend traders, ex- 

 cept in such a peculiar case as the one now be- 

 fore us. 

 Speegula pilifeba. — !r. S. M., Hammersmith.. — 

 Jt will take about five shillings' worth of seed to 

 make the verge you want. Tour conveniencea 

 for raising it are not such as to warrant us in 

 recommending you to sow now. As you are 

 circumstanced you had better wait till April, 

 and then sow a smaU patch of it in the open 

 ground, on fine soil. As soon as large enough 

 to handle, transplant it in rows three inches 

 apart every waj', and allow it to spread and 

 thicken, and by August it will be tufty enough 

 to plant where it is to remain. The fullest 

 accounts of the uses and management of this 

 interesting plant have appeared in the Floral 

 AVouLD. See vol. ii., pp. 64, 96, 119, 149, 183; 

 vol. iii., pp. 154, 271. 

 Lawn poul with Daisies. — A Sub. — You have 

 hit the nail on the head yourself. As the lawn 

 is small, sjuid the daisies out any leisure time 

 during the winter, and in February or early in 

 March sow it over ■with a mixture of finest lawn- 

 grasses obtained from some house that you can 

 depend upon. The turf will be close and firm 

 by Midsummer. Choose dry weather to sow, 

 cover the seed with a sprinkling of fine earth, 

 or sand, and roll. 

 PrEAMiD Chrtsanthemujis. — J. H., S. S. T., 

 and others. — Numerous correspondents have 

 asked for instructions how to grow these. We 

 have been favoured by Mr. Monk with an account 

 of his method, which cannot appear till next 

 month, owing to our loss of space by the pub- 

 lication of the index. 

 EosEs — G.W., F. JI. — Fresh horse droppings 

 may be used at once as a surface dressing, to be 

 pointed in with a small fork in April. Get the 

 ground manured, and plant your standards at 

 the end of February. 

 Various.— J?. G. Gretton. — Y'our plant is Poten- 

 tilla Nepalensis, a pretty hardy perennial, 

 blooming from Midsummer to the end of the 

 autumn. — Jtoae. — AVe have a drawing of a pro- 

 pagating case similar to the one you describe in 

 the hands of the engraver. The AValtonian 

 was not praised for any novelty in the idea, but 

 because of its practical value. There are people 

 who fail iti the simplest things, even in groys'ing 

 cabbages, gooseberries, and scarlet geraniums ; 

 it is no wonder, therefore, that some should find 

 the AA'^altoniau a hard nut to crack. 8o it is, and 

 it can't be helped. — It. [B. R. — Bees are in an 

 awful state this season, and many stocks will be 

 lost. But we dare not advise feeding while the 

 glass is 12" below freezing, as it is while wo 

 write this. No, leave them alone for the pre- 

 sent, and feed as soon as they begin to move in 

 spring, choosing mild weather. If you think 

 there is a chance of their getting through with- 

 out feeding, then leave them alone, for the less 

 they are disturbed the better. — Soppe, Dun- 

 more. — "Brambles and Bay Leaves" is out of 

 print. See an article on Pitcher Plants in this 

 month's number of "Eecreative jScience." — 

 Duhlhi Subscriher.— Write to D. Stead, Hud- 

 dersfield. His bouquet-holder is a good thing 

 for pyramids of single flowers, but clumsily 

 made and dear. AA^e described it as " pimping" 

 in design, as you will see by reference to p. 182 

 " Eustio Adornments." — J. G., Brixton. — Be 

 assured the intention was to do justice to all. 

 How fallible we are even in the simplestmatters. 



