Majch 21, 1872. ] 



JOURNAL OF HORTICULTXJEE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



with fniano and salt, in tlic proportion of two parts of tho former to one of the 

 latter, and water well afterwards. Stir the ground a day or two after the 

 watering. Half a peck of guano and salt to 20 square yai'ds will be sufficient. 

 "We should also syi-inge them with soot water — one peck to thhty gallons of 

 rain water — and at this time of year in the morning. 



Rose Budding, &c. (K.).—'Fot dwai-f bnshea cut down the stock to within 

 6 inches of the ground. The colour of the Potatosprouts vai-ies in proportion 

 to the degree of hght. Brahma pullets and a coloured Dorking cock are most 

 profitable. 



Dinner Table Decorations (t. H. T.).— We never heard of the catalogue 

 you inquire lor. 



Cyclamen after Flowering (Q. D.). — If they are varieties of C. persictim, 

 continue them in the house where they oi-e gi-own, or in a temperature of 

 45= to GU^ Let them have a light airy position, and enough water to keep the 

 foliage from flagcnng. At the end of May plunge them in coal ashes in a 

 frame out of doors, and in Jimo the lights may be removed, and the plants 

 covered about half an inch with cocoa-nut fibre refuse. The situation should be 

 open, but shaded from the suu at midday. Here they may remain until they 

 begin to grow; they should then be potted without disturbing the roots, and be 

 placed in a cold fi-ame kept close. In September they should be set near the 

 glass in a house with a temperature between 50^ and 55^, and kept there until 

 they show for bloom. They will continue longer in flower in a house with a 

 temperature of 45^ to 50". 



Compost for the Gladiolus {E. H.). — You may improve your heap of 

 decayed hotbed manure, old cowdung, loam, and road scrapings by mix i n g with 

 it an equal quantity of sandy peat and cocoa-nut fibre refuse, together with an 

 abundance of sharp sand. 



Primula, Cineraria, and Calceolaria Seed— Berried Aucubas (St. 

 Horori). — The seeds will keep good until nest year, but their vegetative power 

 will be diminished. The newer the seed tlie stronger and healthier the plants^. 

 There iy no ilifiiculty in making Aucubas bear ben-ies. Keep the pollen of the 

 male flower until the female flower expands, and then apply it with a camel's- 

 hair brush. Some take up the female plants set with flower-buds, pot them, 

 and place them in a cool house in order to bring them into flower at the same 

 time as the male plants; otherwise, as the latter flower the earlier, the pollen 

 should be collected and kept in clean dry paper till required for use. 



Climbers for Stote (D.). — We presume you require them for shade. 

 Pftssiflora princeps, Passiflora quadrangularis, Stephonotis floribunda, 

 Allamanda Hendersoni, Ipomaea HorsfaUije. Hoya imperiahs is cultivated for 

 its flowers, and has a fiiie effect when well grown. 



Waterproof Cover for Frames (C. P.). — Bos-covering canvas will do- 

 Take 1 gill of tui*ps, one- fourth ounce camphor, a quart of linseed oil, and 1 oz. 

 soft soap ; mix all well together. Paint the canvas with that, with a brush ; it 

 will render it durably watei*proof and veiT" flexible. 



Preparing Flower-beds, &c.{F. J.). — Tour soil being veiy stony, we shoiUd 

 take out the beds to a depth of 2 feet, place the top soil and turf at the bottom 

 and sift the rest with a three-quarter-inch sieve. Mix with the sifted soil 

 one-third leaf soil, or one-fourth of well-decayed manure, also some turfy 

 loam. Baise the beds, to allow for settling and to add to the effect. Verbena 

 venosa may he sown now. The seedlings should be grown in heat, pricked off 

 an inch apart when they can be handled, haidened off by the end of May. 

 and planted out then or early in June. They will flower from August until 

 cut off by fi-ost. You may grow Cucumbers as you propose, but they i\ill not 

 succeed so well as if you were to put in some fermenting dung and cover the 

 bed wiih soil. 



Apples for Espaliers {F. ff.). — We apprehend you intend to have them 

 on Poiadise stocks, and in that case they shoifld be 12 feet apart if the espaliers 

 are 6 feet high, or 15 feet if they are 4 feet high. Kitchen Apples — Lord 

 Suflield, Cox's Pomona, Bedfordshire Foundling, Dumelow's Seedling, Blen- 

 heim Pippin, Winter Majeting, and Gooseberry Apple. Dessert — Irish Peach, 

 Kerry Pippin, Cellini, King of the Pippins, C-ox'a Orange Pippin, and Non- 

 pareil. 



Geranipm Leaves Spotted (Box). — Wethinithe cause of the spotting 

 of the leaves sent is the roots being in a rich soil and kept too wet and cold. 

 Give the plants a temperature of 45'^ to 50= at night, admit air freely, and do 

 not watt;r until the soil becomes dry ; then give sufficient to show itself at 

 the drainage. If the plants have not been repotted shift them now, using 

 three parts fibrous loam Ught rather than heavy, and one part old hotbed 

 manure or leaf soil, with a free admixture of sharp sand. Remove most of 

 the old soil, and use pots no larger than will hold the roots without cramping. 

 The position should be airy and well exposed to the light. 



Anemones with Bedding Plants {M. L.). — The Anemones may safely be 

 left in the ground, and the bedding Geraniums, &c., planted between the 

 rows, so as not to interfere with the Anemone roots. The border ought to be 

 top-dressed in autumn with partially decayed leaves and fight soil to the depth 

 of about half an inch. Stir the border Ughtly with a fork before applying the 

 top-dressing. 



Lauhels under Beeches, &c.( W, Noek). — They will grow under Beeches and 

 80 will Ferns, also many other evergreens besides Laurels. We know of no 

 other mode of banishing rooks, than by destroying their nests as fast as they 

 are constructed, and by shooting them. Tastes differ even about rooks, for 

 we know many owners of plantations who have tried in vain to induce rooks to 

 frequent them. 



Ventilation forFernert {IF. ff. E.). — An opening at each end near the 

 apex of the lean-to roof would be ample for such a short house. We woifld 

 advise, however, that the roof should be covered with No. 1 tiffany in summer, 

 or the glass shaded with milk, holding a Uttle whiting in it. This if put on out- 

 side in sunshine, and when the glass is dry, wiU keep on until autumn. It is 

 better to err on the safe side, if not having too much whiting at first. A 

 piece as large as a good-sized walnut, and finely powdered, would do for two 

 quarts. 



Heating from Bath-room Fire [R. F. IF.)— We fear that you will not 

 succeed satisfactorily in working your fernery from the same boiler as heats 

 the bath room in the way proposed, not because both could not be well heated 

 by foUowing similar arrangements as respects the supply-cistern, Ac, but 

 simply because the pipes in the fernery would be below the level of the boiler. 

 As you cannot sink the boiler in the kitchen, you could so elevate the floor, 

 or even the pipes, in the fernery as to be above the level of the top of the 

 boiler. In this there would be no difliculty. We saw some time ago a Httle 

 house effectually heated, though the boiler was fully 2 feet above the floor. 

 Three one- inch pipes were fastened by brackets against the back and ends of the 

 honse, fully 15 inches above the top of the boiler at the lowest point, and 



20 inches at the highest point at eayh cud. By bringing the watei- down as 

 you do for the bath room there would be Uttlo ditliculty. When without such 

 contrivance, you heat on difleront levels, it is well to have valves to give thfl 

 flow to the lowest levels first, and then they wiUkeep it. 



Capsicum Culture (.4 Two-years Sti&scrt6<:j-;.— Directions on the subject 

 are in another column of this number. 



Chinese Arbor-Vit.es Dying off (.4rfior).— We should attribute the 

 plants' dying to the dimness of the border, and it would be increased by the 

 plants being placed close to the waU. Probably the shrubs were planted 

 shortly after the soil was thrown up loosely against the waU, and the roots 

 may therefore be growing over hollow ground, and water may not thoroughly 

 moisten it. We advise you to see that the soil has not cracked or parted from 

 the wall, to put it close there, to give a top-dressing of rich compost, and to 

 thoroughly soak with water. The plants ought not to have been nearer tho 

 wall than 2 feet. We think the cause is tlryness, accompanied or aggravated 

 by cutting winds. Ai'bor-Vitxs oie only suitable for an outer screen in 

 sheltered positions. 



Golden Pyrethrum the Second Season (A Siibscriher). — The plant 

 will answer the second season, but flowers so freely that we advise your plant- 

 ing offsets, which would be more suitable as an edging to a circular bed. Take 

 off the rooted parts, and water in dry weather until estabhshed. It is early to 

 plant out Agapanthus umbellatus, even in a sheltered situation, but you may 

 safely do so if you protect in frosty weather. If the plants have been wintered 

 in a greenhouse protect them for a time in a cold pit, give abundance of air, 

 and defer plantlng-out until May. Glue would answer to mix with whit:ng 

 to brush on glass for shading, but even that would not be proof against heavy 



Hyacinths after Flowering {Moote). — The best plan is to harden them 

 off, and plant out in the open borders of the garden, covering the bulbs about 

 an inch deep. They are of Httle value the second season, but are pretty for 

 borders, and will improve. The border should be Bhelteced, sunny, and well 

 drained. They may remain permanently. 



Plants for Eoom Window (Idem). — Fuchsias would be suitable, alsa 

 zonal and variegated Pelargoniums. We should prefer fine-foliaged plants, 

 as they endure better the ih-y air of rooms. Richai'dia (Calla) (Bthiopica, 

 Ficus elastica, Latania borbonica, Seaforthia elegaus, Myrtle, and Acacia- 

 lophantha. if small well-f oi-nished plants, are good and very enduring. If you. 

 want colour Veronica Andersoni variegata, Caprosma Baueriana variegata, and 

 Dracjena auetralis, terminalis, and stricta. 



Arbor- ViT.E Hedge Treatment (Inquirer).— Yon say nothing regarding, 

 the height you wish, but in the first or second year it will only need watering 

 in dry weather, and cai'e in preventing weeds fi-om choking the bottom. Lf 

 it is the height you wish, cut it off at that in April, and prune the upper part, 

 of itnan-owerthan the bottom, so as to cause the latter to grow more vigorously* 

 The hedge should be about 18 inches wide at bottom, and a foot wide at top. 



Depth of Drains {Idem). — The depth of drains should be sufficient to 

 free the subsoil of water. They should he deeper in clay soils than in those- 

 which are light and porous— in no case less than 3 feet, and better 4 feet. 

 We think you intended the distance between the drains when you wrote 

 "depth." The distance in a very stiff clay subsoil should be 15 feet; in 

 clayey sofls, but with some stones or sandy loam intermingled, from 18 feet 

 to 21 feet ; in a strong loam, 21 feet ; if with sand or stones, 21 to 24 feet, 

 and with a gravelly or sandy bottom, 21 to 27 feet^ ; depth 4 feet. 



Arabis lucida variegata not Thriving (A Subscriber). — This plant in 

 some soils frequently does not thrive, especially where the gi-ound is heavy. 

 Plant in well-drained soil, and give liberal dressings of well-decayed manure 

 and leaf soil, addim^ plenty of sand if the ground is heavy. Pick off the flowers, 

 as they only weaken the plant. The leaves sent were quite healthy. It is 

 rather slow of increase. 



Cinerarias Dying off Suddenly (r«i€ml.— The plants are suffering from 

 what is known as tho Cineraria disease, which also affects tho Calceolaria, 

 We know of no remedy. The plants die off at the collar. The ilisoase may 

 be caused by placing the stem of the plant in contact with decomptising vege- 

 table matter, and by frequent wateruigs keeping the coUar constantly wet. 

 Tho plants that die off are in most cases the most vigorous. We find keeping 

 the collar of the plant above the surrounding soil, and watering only when 

 needed, to be the best preventive, hut the disease manifests itself imder the 

 most careful treatment. 



Lime for Destroying Moss (C. Jlf.). — The application of fresh-slaked 

 lime to a lawn will destroy moss, but it will only be for a time. To fi-ee lawns 

 of raoBs the cause must be removed, and that in most cases is poorness of 

 soil ; therefore, besides the lime, top-dress with rich compost , and the grasses 

 and clover will outgrow the moss. 



Plants for an ITnheated House (Stafford).— We tldDk you will not h© 

 able to keep out frost, and that you can oniy have hardy plants, or those that 

 require but sUght protection. The roof and side fights we presume are o£ 

 glass. There will not be sufficient heat from the kitchen window and tha 

 door of the office to keep the temperature from falling below 32'-, and there 

 are no plants which you could raise from seeds sown now that would flower 

 at the time you name without having a temperature of 40" to 45'^. The best 

 use to which you could put such a house would be growing Vines, if you could 

 provide a border partly inside and partly outside. You might dispose of that 

 part of the house not occupied by the border for Vines as a rockery for Ferns. 

 The Vines chosen should he those that succeed in an unheated house. If only 

 the roof is of glass we should make the house a fernery, but xmtil you decide' 

 what you wish for (for flowering plants you cannot have under present arrange- 

 ments), we cannot advice. We shaU be glad to assist you when you give U3 

 definite information of your intentions. 



Cactus speciosus not Flowering (Old Subscriber).— We suppose the 

 plants are in a temperature of 40*^ to 45= in winter, and not in need of potting. 

 If they require a shift let them have it at once. Use a compost of two parts 

 sandy fibrous loam, one port old cow dung, one part old lime rubbish or sand- 

 stone, one part chai'coal in lumps, from the size of a pea to that of a hazel 

 nut, and one part sharp Band. Drain weU and pot firmly. Place the plants 

 in a vinery with a temperature of 50^ to 55- at night, water sparingly at tho 

 roots until they are gi-owing freely, then water abundantly and maintam a, 

 moist atmosphere. When the growths are complete, as they will be by the 

 time the Grapes in a house started eariy in March are changmg colour, or 

 about the middle of July, set tho pots on slates in front of a south waU, and 

 give no more water than is necessary .to keep the stems plump. About the 

 second or third week of September remove the plants to a light airy house 

 from which frost is excluded, and only give enough water to keep them from 

 shrivelling. When the buds begin to eweU in spring water more freely, and 



