NoTcmber 27, 1873. ] 



JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



425 



sliKhtly covered with soil. This mode of proceeding will be 

 iufiuitely better for the shnibs than digging amougst them. 

 Contiuue plantiug during mild weather. 



STOVE. 



Keep the Enrface of the soil in the pots free from weeds, also 

 moss and Ik-hen, but in doing this do not loosen the soil so 

 as to iojurei the roots near the surface. Keep every plant free 

 from dead Cleaves, and all climbing plants that are making 

 growth shottld be neatly tied-up. Sprinkle the flues and paths 

 frequently fchen strong fires are kept-up, so as to counteract the 

 constant drkin of moisture which takes place. 



CONSERVATOKY AND GREENHOnSE. 



As the Chrysanthemums are removed after flowering, their 

 places should be supplied with flowering plants from the forcing 

 pit, or in the absence of these, the plants should be set at a greater 

 distance ajjart, so that no vacancy may appear. 



PITS AND FB.IMES. 



A free admission of air must be given to Auriculas, Carna- 

 tions, ttc, but they must be preserved from excessive moisture. 

 Immediately worms are observed in any of the pots turn out 

 the plants and remove them without breaking the ball of earth, 

 or they may be watered with lime water. Continue to take 

 plants into the pits for forcing if none have been previously 

 prepared. Such plants as Rhododendrons, Azaleas, Roses, 

 Pinks, Ltcj may now be taken np with good balls of earth about 

 their roots, and potted and forced immediately. — W. Keane. 



DOINGS OF THE LAST WEEK. 



. FBUIT AND KITCHEN GARDEN. 



In this department pruning, making alterations, digging and 

 trenching, will occupy our time while the present fine weather 

 lasts. In previous communications it was stated that the 

 greater portion of the pruning was done during the summer 

 months. ] The trees that were not pruned are Morello Cherries 

 on wails, on espaliers, and trained as pyramids on the Mahaleb 

 stock. The pruning they require now is merely to thin-out the 

 wood where it is too much crowded, and to shorten the young 

 wood where it has grown-out too much. Apple and Pear trees 

 which have grown sufficiently large and bear freely are some- 

 times omitted. Some of the larger branches of these require to 

 be cut out if they are too thickly placed, and all the young wood 

 should be cut-back to the small eyes at the base of the shoot. 

 The treatment of the roots is equally important with that 

 required 'for the branches. Large trees planted between the 

 kitchen-garden quarters have no special treatment. When the 

 qoarters are dug or trenched over, the space occupied by the 

 trees or Gooseberry bushes is lightly forked-over at the same 

 time, so as to make the whole assume a tidy appearance. On 

 the borders wholly devoted to fruit trees, they can have that 

 treatment which is deemed most suitable to tkem, without in- 

 terfering with the requirements of any other crop. The surface 

 of the borders should now be dressed over with decayed frame 

 manure to be dug-in early in spring. 



We have also been relaying Box edgings to the kitchen gar- 

 den paths ; in many places the Box had died-out, leaving blanks 

 which made the edgings unsightly. We might have filled the 

 blanks with Box, but it would still have caused the row to look 

 nnsigttly. The manner in which the work is done is this : The 

 whole row of Box is dug-up after the gravel to the distance 

 of li foot from the edging has been shovelled or drawn-oft with 

 a rake, the ground is then dug-up, mixing some fresh soil from 

 the border during the process. Along the line where the Box is 

 to be planted the ground must be made quite firm by repeated 

 treading ; it is then raked over and made perfectly level by 

 beating with the back of a spade after the line has been stretched 

 tinhtly in its place. When the line is quite tight it will show 

 any inequalities in the edging. 



FORCING HOUSES. 



We are very careful not to excite Pines: i ato growth at this 

 period of the year ; even in the fmitiag-honse where fruit in 

 various stages are swelling and ripeni:ig-off, or jnst thro wing-up, 

 the house is seldom above 60° at night. We have usually at 

 this season turned over the sj^^nt tan when the heat had 

 declined to 75° or 80', and mixed .t with fresh ; but great caution 

 is necessary where this is done, as the bottom heat ri.ees quickly 

 after the operation. Should it rise over 90°, it is best to lift the 

 pota out and stand them rn the surface of the bed. Extreme 

 care is also requisite as regards watering the pots. The plants 

 not throwing-up fruit w'ol not require any water; those bearing 

 fruit should not be al'.^^wed to get dust-dry, otherwise the fruit 

 will shrivel and become worthless. 



Lat« vineria iiave to be looked-to twice a-week. All decaying 

 leaves which part readily from the stalks are picked-ofi from 

 the Vines ard removed from the house ; they would otherwise 

 impprcer"' jiy throw-off moisture and cause the fruit to mildew. 

 Wc- hi..*' much difficulty in preserving the fruit from decay while 

 the I „»ve3 are falling; the heating apparatus is warmed nearly 

 every day, but is allowed to cool-down before the house is shut- 

 np in the afternoon. On very damp days, and especially when 



we are enveloped in fogs, the heat is not put on, nor are the 

 ventilators opened. It may be as well to state that Gros 

 Guillaume, better known under the name of Barbarossa, is the 

 best keeper we have, not excepting Lady Downe's ; large com- 

 pact bunches have not yet had a single decayed berry removed 

 from them. Started the earliest vinery this week. The borders 

 outside and inside had a thorough soaking with tepid watery 

 that on the outside is covered with fermenting material. The 

 night temperature of the house is about 00^, as the weather is 

 mild ; during frosts the house would fall to 40^. The Vines are 

 syringed twice daily, and the paths, walls of the house, &c., are 

 also sprinkled over, any plants in the house being freely wetted 

 with the syringe. 



Removed a few pots of Sea-kale to the forcing house ; the 

 roots had been previously potted and plunged out of doors, and 

 successive batches are taken in as they are required. The pots 

 are also plunged in cocoa-nut fibre refuse in the house, the 

 material being placed over the crowns to the depth of 9 inches. 

 It is necessary to cover the pots as deep as this, otherwise the 

 Sea-kale will not be nicely blanched. 



GREENHOUSE AND CONSERVATORY. 



Being exhibitors of Chrysanthemums, much of our time was 

 employed in getting ready the plants and blooms for the exhi- 

 bition which was held on Saturday last. Visitors to the Chrys- 

 anthemum shows marvel at the size of the blooms which they 

 see in the stands, and wonder how it is that their plants at 

 home do not produce such flowers. The reason is that the 

 plants receive special treatment ; one plant is grown in a 9-inch 

 pot, two in an 11 inch, or three in a 13-inch pot, and each plant 

 is allowed to carry only from three to six flowers, and the buds 

 are thinned-out in September as soon as they are formed. IJ 

 the plants are potted in suitable material, which should be good 

 turfy loam three parts, and one part of rotted manure, liberal 

 supplies of manure water from the time the flower-buds are set 

 until the flowers are nearly expanded, will produce the results 

 which may be seen at our exhibitions. Another matter which 

 may be noticed, as it will be useful to purchasers, might have 

 been observed at the exhibitions this year : In one catalogue 

 there is a flower named Pink Perfection, in another it is Miss 

 Mary Morgan ; they are identical, and were both sent out the 

 same year at a long price. Again, Lady St. Clair, Empress of 

 India, White Queen of England, and Mrs. Cunningham, all 

 seem to be white sports of Queen of England. If Empress oS 

 India is purchased, all the others may be left out. In our col- 

 lection of blooms this year a large proportion had been destroyed 

 by mildew before the flowers were fully open. This has been 

 attributed to two causes : First, the plants were exposed to a 

 severe frost before they were taken into the house ; and second, 

 the bed on which the pots stand is composed of cocoa-nut fibre 

 refuse. This material is very good for the purpose in summer, 

 but it retains a large quantity of moisture, which is slowly given 

 off when the house is shut-up. The way in which the frost 

 might cause the mischief was, that wherever the flowers had 

 shown colour the florets were damaged, and, as a consequence^ 

 decay speedily sets in. 



FLOWER GABDEN. 



Cut off the decayed stems of Lilies in the Rhododendron beds, 

 and as the surface of the beds was comparatively dry, hoed-up 

 the weeds and raked the ground over ; this has made all right 

 for the winter. The beds not planted with spring-flowering 

 plants have been manured and dug over; the surface will thus 

 be exposed to the weather all through the winter, and after 

 being lightly " pointed" over before the plants are put out, will 

 be in good order for them. — J. Douglas. 



TEADE CATALOGUES RECEIVED. 



Edwin Cooling, Mile-Ash Nurseries, Derby. — Descriptive 

 Catalogue of Roses, Fruit Trees, Ornamental Trees, Shruhs, tjbc. 



W. Chater, Saffron Walden. — Catalogue of Hollyhocks and 

 Hoses. 



Ewing& Co., Royal Norfolk Nurseries, Eaton, and Cringle- 

 ford, Norwich. — Catalogue of Fruit and Ornamental Trees and 

 Shrubs, dc. 



Kelway & Son, Royal Nurseries, Langport, Somerset. — Cata- 

 logue of Gladioli. 



F. & A. Dickson & Sons, Upton Nurseries, Chester. — Cata- 

 logue of Forest and Ornatnental Trees, Evergreens, (6c. 



TO CORRESPONDENTS. 



*,* We request that no ono will write privately to any of tho 

 correspondents of tho " Journal of Horticulture, Cottage 

 Gardener, and Country Gentleman." By so doing they 

 are subjected to unjustifiable trouble and expense. All 

 communications should therefore be addressed solely to 

 The Editors of the .Journal of Horticulture, <£c., 171, Fleet 

 Street, London, E.G. 



CoLouEED Platbs OF Fbuits (J. Htc.L). — Wo know of uono except in 

 high-prio«d books. 



