JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



[ Febi-uaiy 20, 1872, 



■well-di-ained soil. Yuur oue-yeai-old plauts will be good for planting?. If you 

 intend to force on the ground, put in three plants in the foi-m of a triangle, 

 8 inches fi-om point to point, and 2 feet between each triangle of plants. The 

 rows should be 15 inches from the sides of the bed, and this will admit of 

 your putting in two rows 18 inches apart along your 4-feet bed. We should 

 liave prefen-ed 2 feet as the distance between the rows. We presume the 

 alleys are 2 feet apart. In planting, if the ground is heavy and wet, surround 

 the root-stem up to the crown with sand. If the soil is dry water it, and in 

 moist weather in May sprinkle the bed with salt, at the rate of 1 lb. per 

 square yai-d. Water freely with liquid manure throughout the summer, 

 stirring the ground frequently, and being careful not to injure the leaves. It 

 "Will be fit to force next winter. If you intend taking up for forcing, plant in 

 rows 15 inches apart, and the plants a foot apai't in the rows. 



Abutilon vexillabium marmoratttm Grafting (A. B., Ireland). — We 

 have no doubt this plant will succeed better gi*afted on a hardier Mnd, but we 

 tnow of none hartlier than the species A. vexiUarium, and on that we should 

 graft now, placing the plant in gentle heat, andkeepingit close until the union 

 is complete. Whip-gi-afting will answer well. 



Plants for Window Boxes under Yeraxdah (Mary). — Being beneath 

 the <^]i;v1'' of tlir^ --rr.ni.lnli tvo fmr tli'"' plants in the boxes would not succeed 

 ven- ■ ! ^^ ' .: i t ,1 111- Alyssum variegatmn and Lobelia 



111 tte at the corners, and at the centre 

 rt'utre with a low-gi*owlng Geranium 



lal Dwarf Ageratum, and Lady CuUura 

 aking both sides of the bos alike. If 



gpeci"- ■■::■, ■ ]■' 

 of th.' -I.. I ~ ..i 1h. 



at eaeli t-uJ. u^ Jjii: 



kUiLiia. 



. iiup 

 the centre 



Tricolur Pelar;^ 



you wish for anything more sweet, then have an edging of Mignonette, and 

 fill the centre with Ten-week Stocks. The best time to plant Czar Violets 

 is from now up to May, but we prefer moist weather at the end of April. 

 "Select good i-unners or offsets. For the arches in a warm situation wo should 

 have the following Roses — viz., Climbing Devoniensis, Gloire de Dijon, Tea- 

 scented; Alfred Colomb, Glory of Waltham, Eugene Appert, Camille Eer- 

 u-din, Adolphe Brongniart, and La France, Hybrid Pex-petuals; Sir Joseph 



Paxto: 



Bourbon. 



Boiler (A Foreigner). — We have no doubt that a No. 5 boiler of the firm 

 you name would suit your purpose, hut for five such large houses, 17 to 22 feet 

 wide and 160 feet long, we should strongly advise two such boilers, set side by 

 side, to be used separately or together, chiefly in the case of accident. 

 The outlay would be a cheap insurance. We join you in having our doubts of 

 large cast-metal boilers. For saddle-hacks we would have the best welded 

 iron, and for such bouses we should like two boilers side by side, each 6 feet 

 long, and at least 3^ feet in height. 



Greenhouse Vinery Arrangements (J. N, Lawson).—'We presume tha ' 

 by the proposed direction of the flue, you mean to divide your house of 

 21 feet in length into two portions, so that the division nest the fiu-nace 

 should always be warmer than the other. This you, will secure by the pro- 

 posed mode of taking the flue along the side, front, and up the oth(»r side of 

 the fii'st division, then returning it close to the division wall along the front, 

 and round to the chimney in the second division. The only objection is, that 

 if the flue is above ground, you will have to sink the flue twice at that division 

 ior the doorway, and once more at the entrance door in the second compart- 

 ment, and these three sinkings will inferfere with the fi-ee di-aught of the flue, 

 imless your chimney is 20 feet in height. You would secme much the same 

 object, but with less command of heat, by omitting the cross flues at the 

 partition, and taking the flue right along the front of both houses ; then you 

 would have only one sinking beneath the pathway at the entrance doorway, and 

 even that might be avoided by tui-ning yom- flue oii t he south side of the doorway, 

 and taking it to the chimney neai- the pai-titimi. We allude to this bc-Lause, 

 in general, the more dips there are in a flue the hit;her y.m must make yi.ur 

 ■chimney ; merely for a gi-eenhouse vinery for kec-piuy trust out, and in a house 

 21 feet by 12, we would avoid all such trouble by having a sunk flue— the top 

 of the flue foi-ming part of the floor or pathway. Wo presume, however, you 

 mean a flue above gi-ound. With regard to fonning the flue, for such a place 

 a small flue will he ample. Make a firna base, say with a layer of bricks, 

 14 inches wide, and plaster the suiface with lime putty. Place two bricks on 

 ■edge on eafeh side, set so that the outsides will measure 12 inches across, leav- 

 ing about 7i inches inside for the flue. This will be ample for such a place for 

 general pxuposes. These bricks should be well bui-ned, be soaked previous to 

 use, be set as straight as possible on the inside, and be united at the joints 

 with fine lime putty, making the joints as small as possible. If you want a 

 forcing heat, three bricks should be used on each side instead of two; for 

 coveiing, l-foot tiles about an inch thick will do. It is safer, however, to 

 have some thin flat house tiles to lay across first, then plaster them all over, 

 and on that place the top tiles. We would rather not do anything at all in 

 the way of plastering the inside of the flue. You may use a little plaster for 

 the sides outside, or a thickish limewash, which you can darken with a Uttle 

 lampblack. The holes you alludfe to for cleaning the flue should be at the 

 different turns. You can easily have plates set in a frame from 6 to 9 inches 

 square; buildihese in the flue, so that the inside of the plate shall run with 

 the inside of the flue. You can fiU-up outside with a tile and plaster, and 

 Temove these and open the plate when you wish to clean. This is a gi-eat im- 

 provement upon being forced to unsettle the flue. For such a house, a fxu-nace 



2 feet in length, 18 inches wide, and 18 inches deep, would be ample for coal 

 fuel. If you depend on breeze or cinders, the width and length should be 

 respectively 4 inches more, and 6 or 8 inches more, and the flue should be 



3 or 4 mches deeper if you depend chiefly ou wood. In either case as respects 

 fuel, your furnace bars should be from 24 to 30 inches beneath the bottom of 

 your flue ; the greater the rise the greater the di-aught, and that is easily 

 regulated by a close-fitting ash-pit door. 



Vines for Greenhouse Vinery {Idem).—Foi- such a house five VineS 

 ■would be ample, and we would recommend for a rather cool house three Black 

 Hambm-ghs, one Eoyal Muscadine, and one Buckland Sweetwater. We would 

 place one Hamburgh and one Muscadine in the wannest compartment. For 

 Musca'liue you might substitute White Frontignan, and Black Muscat of 

 Alexandria (Muscat Hamburgh) for one Black Hamburgh if you are fond of 

 the Muscat flavour. This is a good time to plant. The border outside should 

 not be less than 2 feet deep over some 6 or 8 inches of open rubble. Nothing 

 as better than sweet fibrous loam, with about a tenth part of hme rubbish and 

 some sis bushels of crushed boUed bones, reserving other manure chiefly 

 for surface-di-essings. For these and other matters consult the "Vine 

 Manual," which you can have from our office by post for 2*. 8rf. 



Insects (J. R. G.). — The insects sent are the Lepisma saccharina, com- 

 monly called Silver Ladies, found in old cupboards, where they eat crumbs, 

 scraps of groceries, paste of wall paper, &c. The silvery scales are used by 

 microscopists as test objects.— I. 0. W. 



NA3IES OF Plants iB. Godbohl).—To name "the bos full of Ferns, &c.," 

 would occupy the major part of a day. We cannot spai-e the time, and we 

 have a notice printed that we request no one to send more than six specimens 

 at a time. {Hildcnborough). — The Coi"neUan Cherry, Comns mas. (C. G,, 

 Carlton). — 1, Adiantum hispidulum; 2, Pelliea adiantifoUa ; 3, Doodia cau- 

 data; 4, Platyloma rotimdifolia ; 5, Adiantum diaphanum; 6,Pteris longi- 

 folia. (R. Johnson). — Senecio Petasites. (M. A. M..). — 1, Convolvulus Cneomm ; 

 2, CoiTea; 3, Saxifraga crassifoUa; 4, Leptospex-mum vu-gatum; 5, Erica 

 cerinthoides coronata ; 6, Tasmania aromatica ; only female flowers were 

 borae on the shoot sent. (TV. K. M.). — Apparently Ehododeudi-on Windsori, 

 as figm-ed in Bot. Mag., t. 5008. [M. D,, Braintree).—Ajx Epaciis ; name nest 

 week. 



POULTEY, BEE, AND PIGEON CHEONICLE. 



FOWLS FOR PEOFIT, AND AS A MEAKS OF 

 SUBSISTENCE.— No. 2. 



Selection of Breed when Confined. — This plan is in itself 

 a disadvantage. First, the fowls will require more food, and 

 although as a set-off we obtain a greater quantity of manure, 

 still this does not pay for the extra outlay in food. Secondly, 

 the Hamburgh breed, which, as I have before stated, has no 

 equal in its capabilities of laying, will not tolerate confine- 

 ment. In this contingency I would advise the substitution of 

 the Houdan fowl for the Black Hamburgh, as being the next 

 best egg-producer. This breed, like the Black Hamburgh, 

 never shows a disposition to sit. I maj' remark, in passing, 

 that as it is imperative to have a constant and undiminished 

 supply of eggs, those who intend to derive a subsistence from 

 their poultry must be careful to place in their egg-producing 

 department hens which are non-sitters. 



The Brahma Pootra must still retain their place for supply- 

 ing us with chickens ; they will thrive in confinement almost 

 as well as if at liberty. It must be borne in mind that poultry 

 kept in confinement will require double the amount of atten- 

 tion of those which have a run. 



Incubation. — Hens will show a disposition to incubate at 

 almost any time if attention is paid to warmth and to their 

 food, which should be slightly stimulating in the winter 

 mouths. The Brahma chickens can be reared without diffi- 

 culty in midwinter, and without exception each hen as she 

 becomes broody should be allowed to sit. In cold weather she 

 should not have more than nine eggs given to her, and in the 

 spriug and summer she may have from twelve to fifteen. The 

 nest must be made of straw, never hay, and if the floor of the 

 sitting-house is made of earth and small stones beaten well 

 together, the nest may be made on the floor ; but if it is flagged 

 or bricked, a fresh-cut grass sod, the size of the sitting-box, 

 must be placed on the floor to give a dampness to the eggs. 



The henwife must attend to the sitting fowls at regular 

 periods each day to give them food and water. They may all 

 feed together, and may be allowed about a quarter of an hom-'s 

 absence from the eggs ; this time may be exceeded in the summer 

 by a few minutes, but on no account in the winter months. If 

 tiie weather is dry it is an excellent plan, and sometimes almost 

 a necessary precaution, to take each hen, holding her gently by 

 the wings, and with the other hand wet her breast feathers with 

 cold water immediately before she returns to the eggs. This 

 is better than wetting the eggs themselves with a smaU brush 

 as some writers have recommended ; in the latter case the 

 eggs receive a cold moisture, whereas if the feathers of the hen 

 are wet, the heat of her body imparts a gentle and most 

 beneficial moisture to the egg, which is of the greatest benefit 

 to the imprisoned chick. The heiiwife must remain in the 

 sitting-house untU the hen is safely on her own eggs again, as 

 sometimes a quarrel will arise, and we have known two hens 

 determined to share the same nest, to the great danger of the 



eggs- 



The time of incubation is twenty-one days, and if .at the end 

 of ten-days sitting the eggs are examined by holding them 

 before a lamp or candle in a room from whicli the light is 

 excluded, those which are unfertile will be found to be quite 

 transparent, whUst the fertile ones will be opaque, and the air- 

 bag distinctly marked at the round end of the egg. This is an 

 economical proceeding when two or more hens are set on the 

 same day, as, should there be any unfertile eggs, it is some- 

 times possible to divide the fertile eggs between the two bens, 

 and set the third hen again on a fresh sitting. We never 

 disturb our hens when hatching-out, but food must be placed 

 before them when this process is accomplished. Care must be 

 taken to keep the chickens w.arm and dry for a few days, but 

 after that the Brahma chicks will thrive with ordinary attention. 



