42 



THE GARDENER'S MONTHLY 



[February, 



out, and received equally careful attention. From 

 the time Humboldtii commenced flowering, we 

 were able to cut generous clusters of flowers 

 until frost, and such plants as were carefully 

 lifted with earth adhering to them, and potted, 

 continued to blossom several weeks in the green- 

 house. For winter blooming, I think it very val- 

 uable, but the plants for this purpose should be 

 grown in six-inch pots, plunged in the border, 

 and not allowed to bloom during summer. This 

 treatment I find the best for all varieties of 

 Bouvardias when required for winter use, as they 

 do not generally transplant into pots very well 

 from the open ground. All the Bouvardias are 

 desirable, — we could hardly dispense with any, — 

 but the Humboldtii opens certainly a new era 

 with this fiimily. Having succeeded in crossing 

 it with the leiantha, a scarlet sort, I may have 

 something interesting to report at some future 

 date. 



TAR IN GREENHOUSES. 



BY PETER HENDERSON, NEW YORK. 



You will be doing many a poor fellow a great 

 kindness if you will again warn, and keep warn- 

 ing, agairfst the common and fatal mistake of 

 painting hot-water pipes in greenhouses with 

 gas tar. 



I have done so several times in the Monthly, but 

 as you know that we are getting scores of new and 

 inexperienced men every year into the business 

 who keep falling into this error, it is well to 

 keep on. Already two of my customers re- 

 port this season that they have so blundered, 

 and the eff'ect has been ruinous in each case. 

 As you are aware, if the mischief has been 

 done, there is no other remedy but taking 

 the pipes out and burning them thoroughly 

 until the gas is entirely expelled from the iron. 



NOTES ON A SUMMER'S TOUR. 



BY WILLIAM SUTHERLAND, PHILADELPHIA. 



The country seat of Matthew Baird, Esq., situ- 

 ated at Darby, Delaware County, Pa., under the 

 skilful management of Mr. James McAdams, the 

 gardener, is one of the neatest kept places in the 

 vicinity of Philadelphia. 



The flower garden is tastefully laid out in diff"er- 

 ent shaped beds, which were planted with a variety 

 of tropical and bedding plants calculated to pro- 

 duce the best effect, while in the background were 

 some fine specimens of choice evergreens. 



Adjoining the mansion house was a small 

 conservatory, well arranged with a choice col- 

 lection of begonias, ferns and ornamental plants, 

 the ends of the conservatory being glazed with 

 looking-glass, giving the interior the appearance 

 of being three or four times as large as it really 

 is. In the middle of the house was a very fine 

 aquarium, filled with a variety of plants and fish, 

 while in two smaller ones I noticed some of the 

 largest specimens of Cyperus alternifolius that I 

 ever saw. Adjoining the conservatory is a small 

 vinery, from which the fruit had just been cut. 

 Mr. McAdams remarked that the vines had borne 

 well, and, judging from their appearance, I saw 

 no reason to doubt the statement. Descending a 

 flight of steps, and crossing the carriage road, I 

 entered another range, consisting of stove and 

 orchid house, palm house, and two large pits for 

 forcing tomatoes, cucumbers, beans, and other 

 vegetables. At the time of my visit (in Septem- 

 ber), one of the pits had just been started with 

 cucumbers, and the gardener complained bitterly 

 of the depredations committed by the ants, and 

 would like to know how to eflectually get rid of 

 them. For want of a better remedy, he lays 

 down raw meat bones, attached to short wires, 

 which as they become covered with the pests are 

 dipped in scalding water. By this means thou- 

 sands are destroyed, but their number does not 

 seem to be diminished. 



In the palm house I noticed some fine speci- 

 mens of Dracaenas, Crotons and Allamandas ; and 

 one of the finest grown plants of Dracaena um- 

 braculifera it has been my good fortune to see. 

 It must be fully six feet in height. Tliere were 

 also some fine specimens, well marked, of Hy- 

 drangea speciosa, Croton aucuboefolium, and 

 Duranta Baumgartnerii. The old Aspidistra lu- 

 rida variegata seemed better marked than in 

 common. Among the palms I noticed some 

 magnificent specimens of Areca rubrum, Lata- 

 nia borbonica, Seaforthia elegans, Cocos plumosa, 

 and Caryota excelsa, many of them so high that, 

 although the tubs were sunk in the floor, the 

 tops barely escaped the glass. Mr. Baird will 

 have to raise the roof of the house or donate his 

 large palms to the Centennial conservatory, for 

 certainly their present quarters will not accom- 

 modate them another year. 



The benches around the house were bright 

 with specimen Coleus, which gave a very cheer- 

 ful appearance. In the stove, adjoining the 

 palm house, there was a fine collection of Or- 

 chids, principally on blocks, all looking very 



