48 THE GARDENER. [Jan. 1873. 



, D. S. — Please send your name and address. 



A Young Hand. — The Iloyal Fern thrives best in deep peaty soil kept 

 constantly moist. In shallow dry situations it remains in a dwarf stunted con- 

 dition. 



A GAr.DENER. — We observe the pruner recommended by Mr W. Thomson, in 

 his treatise on the Vine, is advertised by Messrs Stewart & Mein, Kelso; and, 

 doubtless, they can be had of others in the tratle, probably from JSIr Thomson 

 himself. 



F. F. S. — Sphagnum can be got on moorland boggy ground, but if you can- 

 not get access to it in such places, nurserymen generally supply it to order. 



R. D. — Cucumbers to bear from August till the end of November will do 

 best on trellises. Melons to the end of September can be grown A^ery well on 

 the surface of the bed, though we prefer them on trellises also. If you have a 

 good tight flue, you can make use of it for top-heat. If the walls of your pit 

 are thin brick-work, a lining all round it — as you seem to have plenty of stable- 

 litter and leaves — might be applied with advantage, even if there is no proper 

 enclosm-e for it. Grow Volunteer and Telegraph Cucumbers, and Colston 

 Basset and Golden Queen Melons. You had better keep the litter quite clear 

 of the flue. 



T. R. — "We are quite aware of what you bring under our notice, but we do 

 not intend to put the matter before the public, for we do not think even that 

 woidd prevent some people from living on the brains of others. 



Clematis Jackmanii. — I was always assured that Jackman's Clematis would 

 not flower in Scotland in pegged-down beds, as I had seen them in perfection at 

 Mr Jackman's nursery-grounds; but this year, being anxious to give them a 

 trial, we bad a bed of C. Jackmanii, C. rubella, &c., edged with Euonymus 

 radicans variegata, which has been a complete success, and the Clematises have 

 been in bloom since July, are still flowering, and very effective. I am curious 

 to know if they do well in other districts of Scotland. All the hybrid varieties 

 flowered extra well on the wall this season here. F. J. Hope. 



Wardie Lodge, Edinburgh. 



[Will our correspondents reply? — Ed.J 



A. H., Upper Norwood. — Are your plants become pot-bound and stunted ? 

 If so, give them a shift, and grow them freely, well ripening their young wood, 

 and they will bloom. 



Phylloxera Vastatrix. — We have some very interesting particulars from 

 Mr Dunn, Dalkeith Gardens, regarding his experience and complete success in 

 stamping out Phylloxera at Powerscourt without destroying the Vines, which 

 we would have inserted this month, only our own remarks extended to more than 

 was at first intended. JMr Dunn's observations we reserve till February. 



Correspondents will much oblige by letting us have their contributions by the 

 16th of the month. 



