190 



FOREIGN NOTICES. 



ment it is not less important ; — from the illustration 

 which I have drawn from America, it is equally 

 useful in commerce ; but as a measure almost of 

 social intercourse in the discharire of public busi- 

 ness, it is not without its uses also. The da\' be- 

 fore yesterday I had an opportunity of examining 

 the telegraph in the lobby of the House of Com- 

 mons, by which communications are made to and 



from some distant committee-room. As a speci- 

 men of the information conveyed from the House is 

 the following : — " Committee has permission to sit 

 until five o'clock ;" and among the questions sent 

 down from the committee are the following : — 

 " What is before the House?'' "Who is speak- 



ing' 



How long before the House divides ?" 



FOREIGN NOTICES. 



Propagation of Plants for next Season. — 

 The summer garden is now in its glory, and amply 

 repays its possessor for all his expense, labor, and 

 care. Verbenas, Petunias, and other creeping 

 plants, nearly cover the beds ; Pelargoniums. Sal- 

 vias, and Fuchsias have assumed their deep and 

 rich tints, and Dahlias rule over the whole in pro- 

 fuse magnificence. The amateur begins to take 

 breath for awhile, and basks in the paradise himself 

 has created. Weeds are now less luxuriant, and 

 lawns appear to repose in their rich green, some- 

 times, indeed, too much embrowned by the summer 

 suns. From the present time to the middle of 

 September, this beauty will rather increase than 

 diminish, and the labor demanded will be less than 

 at earlier seasons of the year. 



But we must intrude upon this state of repose by 

 the note of warning, and remind the amateur, that 

 if he wishes a repetition of the scene before him 

 next year, he must propagate at once. Many 

 plants should now be well rooted — .such as Wall- 

 flowers, Pinks, and Carnations ; biennials should be 

 sown, and Roses budded. But it is to the propa- 

 gation of exotic plants, requiring the management 

 of a frame, that I now call attention, and would 

 advise the following mode of treatment : — First, let 

 a gentle hot-bed be made. If you have a spent 

 Melon or Cucumber bed, that will do, if the old 

 dung is mixed, to the depth of a foot, with leaves 

 and"mowings of Grass. You may either insert 

 your cuttings in the mould, in the frame, or in pots. 

 The latter plan is preferable on many accounts ; 

 the cuttings strike easily against the sides of the 

 pots, and they can be moved more readily. Indeed 

 many things will be best left together in the strik- 

 ing pots until the spring, and consequently they 

 should be grown in a vehicle which can easily be 

 removed. The soil should be fine, yet porous, hav- 

 ing a good portion of sand mixed with it. 



'As a general rule, the cuttings should be wood of 

 this year's growth, having consistency and strength 

 at the part to be inserted in the ground. Pelargo- 

 niums strike without any difficulty, and will scarce- 

 ly fail under the most ordinary management ; other 

 plants are more difficult, yielding more easily to 

 damp, wind, &c. Let every cutting be taken oflT 

 at a joint, and inserted firmly into the soil. If the 

 soil is moist, water need not be applied, except in 

 small portions. It often happens that an excess of 

 water causes a cutting to perish. Skill is shown in 

 keeping the leaves from drooping ; for if they do so 

 to any extent they seldom recover their crispness ; 

 and every gardener knows that a cutting with half- 



withered leaves has little chance. Place the pots 

 in the frame as soon as they are filled, and keep 

 them close for a few hours. Attentively watch 

 them ; pick ofi' dead leaves, and maintain a gentle 

 heat. By treatment of this kind, and by remem- 

 bering the different habits of the woody and the suc- 

 culent varieties, you will accomplish your purpose, 

 and be independent of nurserymen and friends 

 another year. Do not be afraid of having too many; 

 but cut wherever you can withoui injuring the 

 beauty of your beds. Some are sure to die, and by 

 misfortune many may. Provide an abundance, and 

 then you will be able to do to others as you are 

 often glad they should do to you — give some away. 

 In looking over the propagating department of 

 the garden at Putteridge, belonging to Col. Sow- 

 erby, I was surprised to find that under the hot suns 

 of May, thousands of cuttings just put in did not 

 flag in the least, although they had no shade but 

 the glass. Mr. Fish informed me that this was ac- 

 complished by keeping the plants a sufficient dis- 

 tance from the glass. By this simple arrangement 

 the light becomes diff'used before it reaches the 

 plants ; whereas, if the glass were too near, they 

 would require shading, or be parched up. With 

 these hints, added to his own experience and obser- 

 vation, it is hoped the reader will secure for him- 

 self another season of as great beauty and abund- 

 ance as I presume he is enjoying at the present 

 time. — H. B. Gardener's Chronicle. 



Mildew in the Peach Tree. — Without saying 

 anything for or against the curative effects of Cha- 

 momile, I may state a circumstance or two which 

 have come under my notice. When in Ireland, some 

 years back,on calling on Mr. Christie, then garden- 

 er to the Duke of Leinster, at Carton, he pointed 

 out two peach trees, on an east aspect, which he 

 said for years had been infested with mildew ; but, 

 at the suggestion of a friend, he had planted cha- 

 momile at the base of the wall on which they were 

 trained. At the time I saw them, the trees were 

 as clean as they could be. While at Soham, the 

 Rev. J. Calthrop, of Isleham, an enthusiastic ama- 

 teur gardener, related an instance to me of a friend 

 who had cleared his peach trees of mildew in the 

 same manner. It is but justice to say, Mr. Cal- 

 throp had but little faith in the chamomile, though 

 he could vouch for the disappearance of the disease 

 from his friend's garden. For my own part, to use 

 a familiar phrase, I have always regarded it as an 

 old woman's story, — but I " tell the tale as 'twas 

 told to me." W. P. Ayres, Ibid. 



