THE GARDENERS' CHRONICLE OF AMERICA. 



125 



as the temperature begins to rise, but this sliould not be 

 done, as the dampness thus kept in the greenhouse causes 

 the buds to fall oft. What should be done is to let the 

 lieat on for a while, but open the ventilator slightly so 

 that the dampness may escape. As soon as the ther- 

 mometer begins to rise one or two degrees, open the 

 ventilator more and more, so that the highest tempera- 

 ture of 70 to 72 degrees may not be reached before 11 

 a. m. This should also be done gradually during the 

 afternoon. From about 2 to 3 p. ni. begin gradually to 

 reduce the temperature by lowering the ventilator, never 

 leaving it open until the temperature is entirely down 

 to a, but ietling the ventilator go down by degrees. 



If it becomes necessary to water, select only very 

 bright days when you are sure that the ventilator mav 

 be kept open for several hours at a time. If, after water- 

 ing, there is any sudden change in the weather, start the 

 fires at once and leave the ventilators open as long as 

 possible. 



After the jjlants have reached the height of about si.x 

 inches, thev should be given something to climb on. The 

 best method and the cheapest is to run one wire on the 

 bottom and one from eight to ten feet above each row, 

 connecting these two wires with strings as is done in 

 the case of smilax. Strings should also be run length- 

 wise of the row, about every ten inches, as the plants 

 advance in growth. At the same time it is well, occa- 

 sionall\-, to help the vines to climb on the strings. The 

 upper wire must be one of the strongest, for when the 

 sweet-peas are in full bloom they are usually ten feet 

 high, and one row of one hundred feet will weigh a ton. 

 If, at any time, the wire should break, all the flowers 

 would Become bruised, crooked and of very little value. 

 In order to divide the weight, wooden or iron supports 

 should be placed by the upper wire everv eight feet. 



After the sweet-peas have been in bloom for some time 

 and have begun to shorten in stem, they should be fer- 

 tilized. The best thing is liquid cow or sheep manure, 

 or pulverized manure. Nitrate of soda should never be 

 used, for it will do more harm than good. Another 

 thing never to be used is hydrocyanic gas, for, although 

 this destroys all insects, at the same time it destroys all 

 the buds then in formation, so that there will be no flow- 

 ers for many months to come. — Extracts from Anton C. 

 Zvalouck's book on Szvcet-Pca Culture. 



Old Roxton: The limousine, Peters! And Peters, owing to the present 

 temper of the unemployed, leave out the cut-flowers! — Life. 



ROOTING CUTTINGS UNDER BELL-GLASSES. 



Comparatively sj)eaking, there are very few hardy 

 shrubs which cannot be multiplied by means of cuttings. 

 It is not surprising, however, considering the great 

 variety of shrubs cultivated in our gardens, that several 

 dift'erent methods are necessary. Quite soft cuttings 

 made of the young shoots of some shrubs will root during 

 July in a propagating-frame with plenty of artificial heat. 

 During August and early September cuttings made of 

 the half-ripened wood do admirably in a close frame, 

 preferably with a little bottom-heat. October is about 

 the best time to insert cuttings under bell-glasses, as at 

 this season the shoots made during the previous summer 

 are fairly hard or ripe, and will make best plants. 



Choose a sheltered position under a fence or hedge, 

 Ijrotected from the sun during the middle of the day, yet 

 one where the young plants as soon as rooted obtain 

 plent}- of light. The soil should be well drained, light 

 and sandy ; if at all heavy, a raised bed of soil, kept in 

 position with boards may be prepared. Place in the 

 bottom 3 inches or rather more of rubble or clinkers for 

 drainage : then fill up with 4 inches to 5 inches of light, ! 

 prepared soil consisting of two parts sandy loam, one part | 

 peat, one part leaf-mould and one part coarse sand. !\Iake ' 

 the whole firm and level the surface, spreading over it a , 

 thin layer of silver sand, which will trickle in the holes 

 round the cuttings as they are inserted. For convenience 

 of inspection and attention the prepared bed should not be 

 too wide : a sufficient width to take three rows of bell- 

 glasses is ample. The bell-glasses vary in size from a 

 diameter at the bottom of 4 inches to a foot. The size , 

 of the cuttings must of necessity vary in length and 

 thickness according to the nature of the shrub, whether 

 slender or stout in growth. \r\ average length will be 

 from 3 inches to 6 inches, inserting about one-third of 

 this length in the soil. Whenever possible, the cuttings 

 should be made with a fragment of the old wood at- 

 tached to the base ; this is familiarl)- termed a "heel." In 

 most cases it is desirable to cut off 1 inch or 2 inches at 

 the top of the shoot, the growth being tender or soft and 

 liable to damp ofif in winter. With evergreen shrubs 

 this is not so important, the leaves tending to keep the 

 shoots fresh. Before dibbling in the cuttings, the bell- 

 glass should be placed on the prepared bed and pressed 

 in the sand to mark the outside of the patch of cuttings. 

 The number of cuttings inserted under a bell-glass will 

 depend on the size of the cuttings and the amount of 

 ground covered by the bell-glass. Under a bell-glass 4 

 inches to 5 inches across it is possible to insert forty to 

 fifty Erica cuttings, as these are only 1 inch \o V/i inches 

 long. A bell-glass a foot across will cover fifty cuttings 

 of Tea Roses. It is not necessary to limit each bell-glass 

 to one kind of cutting. Choose those which are similar 

 in size and which take about the same time to root. Label 

 each one carefully, and put the date when inserted on 

 the label for reference. To prevent the cuttings flagging, 

 rool them in a wet cloth as soon as they are cut off the 

 parent bush ; this will be found more convenient than 

 placing them in water. The cloches used so much in 

 French gardening will answer the same purpose as the 

 bell-glasses ; hand-lights may also be u.sed. As it will be 

 desirable to afford a little protection to the cuttings dur- 

 ing severe frosts, the bell-glasses should be conveniently 

 placed so that they may be covered. The cuttings should 

 be well watered as soon as inserted with a fine-rosed 

 watering-pot to settle the sand round the cuttings. 

 Further" watering will ])robably not be necessary more 

 than once a month till the end of January. — The Garden. 



