230 



THE FLORAL WORLD AND QARDEN aUIDE. 



remarkable for beautiful ioliaga ; these are 

 described and priced along with a selection 

 of useful old subjects. — "Sutton and Sous, 

 Eeadin?, Catalojue of Fresh Imported Bulbous 

 Flower Rjots, Geraniums, Carnations, Koses, 

 Fruit Tree.-:, Kitchen Garden Seeds, etc." 

 Though a tliin list made unsightly with headings 

 in large black type, it is skilfully arranged for 

 usefulness, and there is a list of annuals for 

 autumn sowing well selected. The bulbs in- 

 clude all the good old sorts, but none of the 

 new ones, so that for general pur|)0S?3 this is a 

 multtiyn, in parvo. — " Jaarr and Sugden, King 

 Street, Coveut Garden, Catal igue of Dutch and 

 Cape Flowering Bulbs, etc." Cultural notes 

 ai-e attached to each section of bulbs, and the 

 list is decorated with engravings of Tye's Hya- 

 cinth Glasses. — " Ambrois^ Versohafi'elt, Ghent, 

 Price li^t of stove, green-house, and miscel- 

 laneous pl.ints." It is rich in curiosities and 

 choice conservatory subjects, and there is an 

 enumeration of tiie camellias figured in the 

 "Nouvelle Iconographie," during the past 

 twelve years. — " Veitch and Sons, Exeter, 

 Catalogue of i!^ew and Rare Plants." A short 

 descriptive list of a few conifers and stove 

 foliage plants of more than ordinary interest, 

 invaluable to collectors. — "Charles Noble, Bag- 

 shot, List of Ornamental Plants," especially 

 rich in hardy shrubs, azdeas, rhododendrons, 

 roses, gladioli, and conifers. 

 Vines. — A.B. C. — If your vines have borne well 

 under the old treatment it would be foolishness 

 to out tliem away. If they have borne indif- 

 ferently, and you propose to replace them with 

 young shoots, it will be best to cut the old wood 

 clean out, and thus thiow all the vigour of the 

 l^lant into the young wood, and if the young 

 canes are already half-way up the house, you 

 would on this plan sesure a good crop next 

 summer, and good strong wood for spurring in 

 at the winter pruning. Let us repeat, if the 

 vines have borne well, don't cut them down ; 

 you can still make something of the young 

 shoots by denuding them of all their buds but 

 the two or three top ones when the loaves have 

 dropped, and laying them into largo pots filled 

 with rich soil, into which they will root and 

 foi-m fine plants next summer, wilh two or 

 throe fine bunches on each. 



EntJB.iEB IN December. — Poiuidhu. — Begin at 

 once, select a few good roots, according to the 

 supply you wish, dig them up, let them lie on 

 the surface of the ground exposed to all wea- 

 thers for a fortnight, then put them in pots or 

 boxes, as most convenient, and place them in a 

 warm cellar, or any other warm place, and you 

 will have a supply at once. Take up and treat 

 a few plants every three weeks in the same way 

 until Christmas, and j'ou wUl have a supxdy 

 until that growing in the open ground comes 

 in. A simpler plan would be to obtain a few 

 barrowfuls of t.m, and lay it upon the floor of a 

 warm cellar or brick pit, or, in fact, any spare 

 sheltered place, and plant your roots in it, the 

 warmth of the tan will induce immediate 

 growth. In this is obtained the rhubard sup- 

 plied to the London markets throughout the 

 winter. 



GuDiOLi AND Vali.ot.^.. — ;S'. It., Tippcravj/. — 

 Was there any mistake about the gladiolus ? 

 Did you grow the common sort, and at takiug- 

 up time mix your sorts together, and in 

 some way lose your good ones and retain 

 the common ones P Cannot account for the 

 disappointment in any other way, as we have 

 never heard before of gladiolus degenerating. 

 Let Vallota purpurea be taken out the latter 

 end of March, and potted in five parts peat 

 earth, and one part well-rotted manure or leaf- 

 mouM, and a very little sand, say onetwellth, 

 in well-drained pots, and set in pans of water, 



and placed in the greenhouse or cool pit, and 

 they will erow and flower amazingly. We had 

 a pot of v. purpurea major, with six bulbs in 

 it, three of which produced two spikes each, 

 and three weeks from this date (September 23) 

 the whole nin? spikes were in bloom at one 

 time, forming one of the most magniticent 

 spect.acles we ever beheld. 



Gakden Flowers. — T. E. P. — Verbenas are not 

 at all particular as to the kind of soil they grow 

 in, providing it is well trenched up and manured 

 previous to planting, so that tliey may begin to 

 root freely the moment they are planted ; that 

 is the great secret of obtaining a great quantity 

 of vigorous bloom. The stems of gladiolus 

 should not be cut down when done flowering, 

 unless the seed is wanted. Just the flower- 

 spike may lie cut oil', but as in the case of every 

 other bulbous plant, tlie foliage should be left 

 until it dies of itself, because while there is a 

 particle of life in it, it supplies nourishment to 

 the bulb, enabling it to perfect itself, in order 

 to its satisfactory development next ye.ir. 

 When taken up tie five or six of them together 

 by the' stems, and hang them up in an airy 

 shed, or dry room, for ten days or a fortnight, 

 where ttie frost will not reach them ; then cleiin 

 them olf, cutting off the stems an inch and a 

 half or so from the bulb, and put them into 

 paper-bags, keeping them in a dry closet, or 

 similar situation, free from damp and frost, 

 until the first or second week in April, when 

 they may be again planted. Whatever your 

 neighbours do, don't trust your better sorts 

 of gladiolus in the soil all the winter. 



TEor.EOLUM Jaeeattii. — J. B. — This is now 

 starting into growth, and should be shaken out 

 of the soil in which it bloomed la'^t summer, 

 and potted in fresh rich soil, equal parts good 

 turfy loam, and very old rotten dung or leaf- 

 mould, and just s.ind enough to open it, and 

 thoroughly well (!raine:i, and, placed in an airy 

 greenhouse, it will continue to grow throughout 

 the winter, and by the beginumg of February 

 will have acquired great vigour. Attention 

 must be given to training as growth proceeds. 

 We have been potting this plant to-day (Sep- 

 tember 23rd). 



Tbito.ma trvAltiA. — Kemberton. — This and its va- 

 rieties require the simplest culture ; they like 

 a deep rich soil, are perfectly hardy, and are 

 propagated both by seeds and division of the 

 plant, which generally produces abundance of 

 offsets. These offsets, taken off after the plant 

 has done blooming, potting them in well-en- 

 riehed loam, and placing them in a cold pit, or 

 cool greenhouse, and shifting on as they re- 

 quire, till the end of April, will make fine bloom- 

 ing plants next year. The writer of this planted 

 a small circular bed with seven of these plants 

 last April. The bed was prep ired by throwing 

 out the soil to the depth of two feet, then six 

 inches of very rotten manure was thrown in, 

 then a layer of mould of the same thickness, 

 and the mould and dung mixed, and well incor- 

 porated with a fork, then more dung and more 

 mould, till the bed was filled up to sis inches 

 above the level, to allow of its .settling down to 

 its proper level. Here the plants have grown 

 amazingly, and each one has sent up two or 

 more magnificent spikes of bloom. The some- 

 what untidy habit of the plant must be borne 

 with, for the sake of the beauty of its flowers. 



Mildewed Roses.— .4. -B. C, 2»((i/i».— The spe- 

 cimen sent is seriously mildewed. This affection 

 can only be dealt with successfully in its earliest 

 stages ;" */ieM frequent dustings with sulphur, 

 and liberal watering the root will do much, but 

 when once it has got ahead, the next best thing 

 is to cut the mildewed tops off and burn them. 

 We are quite certain that horse-dung used 

 largely to manure roses is promotive of mildew. 



