472 



JOURNAL OF HOETICULTUKB AND COTTAGE GARDENEB. 



[ December 11, 1873. 



nes9 of tbe atmoBphere. A regularly moist atmosphere ""^ as 'ew ohaDRes 

 of temperature as possible, are neceBsary for tbe fall aeyelopmont of tlie fronds 

 of this, the bamlsomest of tbe Maiden-hair Ferns. 



Briar Stocks for Roses (J. 0.).-Tbe club-liie roots "s large as tbe 

 fist are not nearly so g..oJ as those which have »'f'^-l''^f' ™'=- ,^„^f JZ'" 

 grow, however, and form fibres. We find most o our l""*^'',?^ '^'"f " 

 Boses arise from the bad rooting of tbe Briars and the '"?. °'1 »"* '"'ge 

 club roots. They seldom have fibres to begm witb, these bemg formed by 

 the first year's growth. 



STRAWBERRIES FoRciNO IN Smail Pots (T. Do<id) -The StmwbO'-r.es 

 in 3-inch pots, potted last spring and not since, wil not *°™,^''''^'"'-'°"'5'; 

 They should have been shifted into 6-inch pots in July or early '"/:''«"»'• ^"* 

 they would then have form ,d fine crowns. You may give them a trial, potting 

 them firmly in 6-inch pots, and plunging m ashes or f^wdust »'« »; V'"* of 

 leaves, which, bv affording a slight warmth, will facUitate the formation of 

 roots. The plants should not be covered with lights, except m very wet or 

 ftosty weather, and then there ought to be a '^^"^''"S^'^'^^'li^^ ^.^'T^J^^ 

 plants, tbe lights being supported by bricks p'aced on the bed. The tempera- 

 ture of the bed ought not to eiceed 65°. They may be forced about Febjuary. 

 rowler's Insecticide has been in use many years, but we do not exactly know 

 how long. , . », . 



Christmas Rose Sluo-eaten (ChrUtmas). -In tbe evening, orcarly m the 

 morning, sprinkle quicklime all round and over the plants before the flowers 

 omand, repeating the application once or twice a-week in moist mUd weather 

 When the plants come in flower sprinkle the lime on the crowns and under 

 <ihe leaves 



Heating a Greenhouse (HillnSro').— The best mode m your case would 

 be with a boiler heated by gas, or a stove boiler if you have no gas supply. 

 Ton would require four rows of 2-inch pipes along the front and one end, or 

 two 3-inch pipes, which will be sufficient to keep out frost. The cheapest 

 plan would be to have a flue along one end and front, with a stokehole out- 

 side. You would, however, be beat served by a boiler inside the house, so as 

 to utiUse all the heat. For prices consult the makers advertising in our 



Neriom SPLENDEN3 TO Flower IN Septemeek (Ofcanicr).— As this 

 flowers naturaUy in a greeuh.juse in August you should have no difficulty m 

 flowering it iu Sepiemher, but you must not ci'-'i'^e plant now and force it 

 into growth. Keep it in a cool greenhouse, and rather dry at the roots 

 during the winter. In spring you may repot, loosenmg the sides of the ba 1, 

 and early in June set the plant out of doors in a sheltered and slightly 

 shaded position, watering so as to keep the soil moist. About the middh, o 

 August you will know, bv the forwardness of the buds, if it is hkely to bloom 

 at the time you wish. If too forward, place the plant under a north waU; or 

 ilit be, as we expect, swelhng its buds, set it in a greenhouse or, it not 

 in a house witb brisk heat. You may, however, bloom it without this last by 

 removing it to the greenhouse in time. 



Clcb Root oh Lioht Soil (G. C.).— The heavy manuring you mention 

 having given your farden is very Ukely tbe cause of the club you complain of ; 

 and al ^om- soil is Ugbt, approaching what is called hungry, hlieralmauuriugs 

 wUl be necessary to maintain vigorous growth. But it is advisauie, ii 

 nraoticable, to change the character of tbe manure, and if possible get some 

 •pond mud or road or ditch scrapings in addition to the dung, aud what is more 

 important, give all tbe portions of your garden intended to grow anything 

 tin the Cabbage way a good dres.-ing of either soot, or Ume, or both. Lime at 

 the rate of 12 tons per acre will not be too much, but it had better be put on 

 at twice, a Blight covering with soil bemg all that is wanted tbe second time 

 if the land is in crop. It is more difficult to specify the quantity of soot 

 mecessary, but if it is put on tbe naked ground, about as niuch as will partly 

 cover it very thinly may be used, repeating the dose when the crop has 

 made some progress, but of course long before it arrives at maturity. We 

 telieve nitrate of soda is also a good antidote to the club, but we have not had 

 much experience of it, and some speak weU of common salt. As your land is 

 light you might try all these remedies on different portions, and the issue 

 will point out which is tbe best. 



PlANT Stand (J. Atkinson).— We should have along the front the entire 

 Jencth of vonr house, a shelf 3 feet wide, and 2 feet 3 inches from the floor, 

 which wili give you about 2 feet 3 inches to the glass of the roof in iront. 

 This shelf may be of laths U inch wide by IJ inch thick, on cross pieces or 

 iiearers S inches bv 2 inches, narrow edge upwards, the bearers d feet apart. 

 Against the back wall we should have a stage, aud with lattice shelves rising 

 from the walk next the shell in front, the first shelf level with that on the 

 front, and 1 foot wide; the next shelf 1 foot 6 inches wide, and i) inches 

 above the first ; the third shelf 2 feet wide, and 1 foot higher than the second 

 shelf; and the fourth shelf 3 feet wide, and 1 foot above the third sbelf, the 

 ahelvea formed of laths suuilar to the front shelf. Your house will by this 

 arrani'ement have a3-feet shelf in front, a2-feot-6-inoh rathway, and staaing 

 7 feet"6 inches wide at back, affording height for plants of varied sizes. 



Peaches for Back Wall of Vinerv (I.icm).— If your Vines arc planted 

 less than 4 feet apart they will so shade the back waU as to render it useless 

 •lor Peaches. We do not advise them, especially as you give 40 to 5U as the 

 minimum temperature in winter. If the Viues, however, are over rather 

 than under 4 feet apart you may grow Peaches fairly on the back wall, and 

 the kinds we advise are Royal George, Noblesse, and Grosse Mignonne. They 

 should be dwarfs f»n-trained. Our correspondent wishes to know where he 

 can get a Rose named Jean d'Esprit. 



Camellia not Growing iA. B. Y. Z.).— The plant must be in very bad 

 iealth. We should turn it out of the pot in February, remoyo aU the old 

 noil carefully from the roots, wash them, then dust or sprinkle them with 

 silver sand, and repot in a size of pot that will hold the roots nicely, using 

 turf from a pasture where the soil is a light sandy loam, pared-off not more 

 than an inch thick, torn in pieces about au inch square. Of this use three 

 narts, one part sandv fibrous peat, and a sixth part of sUver sand. Drain the 

 pot well, and in porting work the soil carefully amongst the r,x.ts, pot firm, 

 and finish-off with the finer parts of the soil, keeping the neck of the plant 

 high in the centre of the pots. Water moderately until the plant begins to 

 grow, then abimdantly until the growth is made and the buds set, afterwards 

 water less freely. , .,. , _,.,. 



Pern Pottiijo (Hem).— The frond of Fern is that of Lastrea Filix-mas in 

 a young state. It is quite hardy. Place singly in small pots now, or better 

 in March. . , , « ii 



EnciLyPTns GLonon-a (O. B.).— You can procure plants from any of the 

 chief nurserymen who advertise in our columns. 



Names of Fruits iIg>wmmM).—l, Forge Apple; 2. Autumn Poaimam; 

 8, Dutch Mignonne. 



Names of Plants (H. G.).— e, Stellaria Holostea ; F, Capsella bursa-pas- 

 foris- G, Sonchus oleracaus; H, Ballota nigra; l, Centaurea nigra. Car- 

 mvcle" is a misprint for "Carmvle" or "Carmylia," a northnin name for 

 Orobus tubeiosus. in'. B.).-l, Pteris tremula; 2 Nepbrolepis tuberosa; 

 :l Centaurea candidissima? ( W. B., No.2l.— l.DavaU.a canarieusis; 2, Pteris 

 cre'ica var. albo-lineata; 3, Adiantum tethiopicum ; 0, A. bispidulum ; 4, A3- 

 Blenium flaccidum ; 6, Pteris serrulata, var. cristata. {Fibx..—!. Asplemum 

 bulhiferum; 2, Pelljea rotundifolia ; S, Nephiolepis eiallata; 4, Aspulium 

 caijonse (IF T., Biinieti.— 1, Gratiola officinalis? 2, Dabcecia polifdia. 

 (Wiime raisiairf).— Bupleumm fruticosum and Eupatorium Weismannianum . 



POULTET, BEE, AND PIQEON OERONIOLE. 



BIRMINGHAM POULTRY SHOW. 



There is a history m a condensed form on the cover of this 

 year's catalogue— " the twenty-fifth annual Exhibition. A 

 quarter of a century. Its infancy was not without its troubles 

 aud its struggles. Its manhood had its storms, and now in a 

 trrfen and prosperous old age, so far as we can judge, it has 

 fallen on halcyon times and is in smooth water. It has become 

 a need to the poultry world, and fills a space that would other- 

 wise be a sad blank. The success is deserved. It is the result 

 of much labour, much thought, and, above all, perseverance. If 

 the merit of a show could be judged by the numbers of entries, 

 and no pains had been taken to check them, the whole of Bingley 

 Hall would be required now. The Council have shown them- 

 selves equal to their work. Years since the amateur who wanted 

 a Dorking cock was compeUed to buy a pencontaimng fcjur birds 

 in order to secure one. The Committee when appealed to at 

 once met the difficulty by adding classes for single cocks. That 

 was a popular change, and was then followed by classes for two 

 hens or two pullets. This year even more has been done-four 

 prizes have been given in each of two classes one for single 

 cocks the other for two hens or pullets ; in the former case the 

 price not to exceed thirty shillings, in the .l'^"";.'^" S^'f/JJ";, ;. 

 ^ But amateurship is not the only light in which to view this 

 auestion The scarcity of food and the great increase of the 

 nrice of it have caused more interest to be taken m everything 

 ?hat tends to add to the supply. It is not to be disposed of by 

 savins noultrv is a luxury. It is meat for the human being, and 

 mus? be viewed as such?^ Much has been done in the last two 

 vears and more is being done. Lectures on cookery open a new 

 field and when a mo?e advanced knowledge of this science 

 shall show that there is no part or description °f P°"1'7' °°' 

 even the worn-out old cock or hen. Goose, Duck °': Tu^''^/, '1^*' 

 will not supply a succulent, nourishing, and del cious d sh, it 

 w give ne'^ vigour to the pursuit. It wiU then be seen that a 

 ™bsfanti,al good^was being done while amateurs were competing 

 for the di£ferent breeds in which weight is one of the chief de- 

 siderata From 4 to 6 lbs. have been added to every Goose, the 

 amet'TurLeys ; a large addition to every fow and this by no 

 sacrifice of quality. On the contrary, a knowledge of the ht- 

 ne„s of som\ breeds for certain climates and locahties has 

 enabled those who keep them to ensure at once a 1 the elements 

 o"success The question has been how to get the largest amount 

 of food in return for that consumed. „,^„ii„,,f Bntriea 



The DorUnqs furnished very numerous and excellent entries, 

 fimng ^urt^en classes with birds of high mer. . Oi-dinary birds 

 were so much the exception that we are hardly c^aHed "Pon for 

 any particular mention. We may, however, say tl^^t ^"^g^ 

 there was no great increase, yet the heavy average ^eights of 

 Lstvelr were well supported, while bumble-feet and crooked 

 breastTweTe rarlexcepUons. We may also remark that m these 

 as in most other breeds, there were many new names among the 

 Tivi^ptakers showing increased interest in the pursuit. 

 '^ The Coc/,';! classes were excellent with the exception of the 

 Bro^ and Partridge feathered, which were not so good as uuaL 



The White were very good. It we indulged in the habit oi 

 findiu" faiat7wbich comes so readUy on these oceasions we 

 should say we looked in vain for the bright lemon-coloured 



recen introduction, but it treads on the heels of its darker 

 bret^iren, in proof of which we may mention upwards of foity 



PTtfaf^a'br^edXf was^'inhigh favour many years ago has 

 made a stride towards regaining its old position. We allude to 

 ^Tualay,. They brought thirty-four pens, many of them 



'"T'lelum^lerstd -quality of the Crc..-C.«« showed it wise 

 tn "ive them a class, while the improvement consequent on 

 accfimatisatron was manifest in their size and their startling 



