196 



JOUENA'L of HOETICULTUEE and cottage GAEDENEE. [ September 8, 1863. 



days, and every fair moment out they will come and perambu- 

 late backwards and forwards as if a task were assigned to them 

 to make as many marks as they coxild with hob-nailed shooting- 

 boots. Perhaps it gives them a pleasure to notice the trouble 

 there is in taking out all such marks before the walk can be at all 

 presentable. It matters not that there are stone walks and 

 walks with rougher surfaces ; they must choose the smooth walk, 

 just because there they can leave tlieir marks behind them. Just 

 on this account alone we would almost as soon see a drove of 

 pigs in a pleasiu-e ground as some good people in a wet rainy 

 day. If there is a smooth soft place in the walks be sure they 

 will find it out, and leave as many marks as if they had been 

 dancing a hornpipe on it. Went on as fast as we could with pro- 

 pagating Geraniums, and with picking and freshening the beds ; 

 and as in the ribbon-borders the fine double Grandittora Fever- 

 few was much injured by the dry weather, have cut the most of 

 it out, and drawn the I'erillas and the Trentham Kose closer 

 together ; and as they are both strong the loss of the Feverfew is 

 not noticed, farther than the white told well between the rose 

 and the purple. — R. F. 



COVENT GAEDEIY MARKET. -Sept 5. 



All kinds of fruit and vepetablcs continue very ^ihundant, and wall-fruit 

 is espfcially so. Grapes and Pine Apples are sufficient Jor the demand; of 

 the loimer the prices for come of inferior quality rule rather lower than 

 last week; but the beet qualities fully maintain their price.n. Of Melons 

 there is a good stock, both ol British and foreign. Pears consist rhiefly of 

 Williams' Bon Chnnien, and Beurie d'Amanlis; of the former there is a 

 lar-e supply. Filberts are still rather short, and prices are rising. Some 

 j^ood Cobs have made their appearance at from 45,v, to cOs. per 101) lbs. The 

 Potato market is still b&ivy. Flowers consist of Orchids, Pelargoniums, 

 Verbenas, Dahlias, Asters in abundance, Stocks, Puchsia?, Calceolanus, 

 Mignonette, and Koses. 



FRUIT. 



Apples ^ Steve 1 



Apricots doz. 



Pigs doa. 2 



Filberts A Nuts 100 lbs. 50 

 Grapes, Haraburghs. lb. 1 



Muscats lb. 3 



Lemons 100 12 



Melons each 1 



Mulberries quart 



d. 9. 



6 to 3 

 



p. d. fl. d 



Nectarines doz. 1 to 5 



OranKta 100 10 14 



Peaches do?,. 16 8 



Pears bush. 



dessert n sieve 3 5 



Pine Apples ."!... .lb. 3 6 



Plums -\ sieve 3 .5 



Quinces ~ bu.-'h. 



Walnuts bush. U 6 20 U 



VEGETABLES. 



Beanji, Broad bush. 



Kidney .j sieve 



Beet, red ~.doz. 



Broccoli bundle 



Cabbage doz. 



Capsicums 100 



Carrots bunch 



Cauliflower doz. 



Celery bundle 



Cucumbers do/.. 



pickling doz. 



Endive score 



Fennel bunch 



Garlic and Shallots, lb. 

 Gourds & Pumpk., each 



Herbs... bunch 



Horseradish ... bundle 



d. 8, 

 too 



d| 



] Leeks.. bunch 



I Lettuce score 



(» j Mushrooms pottle 



I Muatd. & Cress, punnet 



3 Onions bunch 



I pickling quart 



8 ; Parsley bunch 



I Parsnips do*. 



' Peas bush. 



I Potatoes sack 



I Kadishes doz. bunches 



6 ' Rhubarb bundle 



Savoys per doz. 



I Sea-kale basket 



! Spinach sieve 



i Tomatoes t^ sieve 



I Turnips bunch 



Br d. 



toO 











2 



4 



(i 

 3 

 

 

 

 6 

 



9. d 

 



TEADE CATALOGUE EECEIVED. 

 J. C. Patbnan, Providence Nui'series, Boston Spa, Tad- 

 Select List of Bulbs, Hardy Ferns, and Roses. 1863. 



caster. 



TO CORRESPONDENTS, 



*** "^^e request that no one will wi-ite privately to the de- 

 partmental wi-iters of the '• Jom-nal of Horticulture, 

 Cottage Gai-dener, and Country Gentleman." By so 

 doing they arc subjected to unjustifiable trouble and 

 expense. All communications should therefore be ad- 

 dressed solely to The Editors of the Jouriml of HorUcul- 

 ture, Sfc, 16:^, Fleet Street, London, E.C. 



We also request that correspondents wiU not mix up on the 

 same sheet questions relating to Gardening and those 

 on Poultry and Bee subjects, if they expect to get them 

 answered promptly and conveniently, but write them 

 on sepai'ate communications. Also never to send more 

 than two or three questions at once. 

 N.B. — Many questions must remain unanswered until next 

 ■week, 



Rekdling Potato f TV. J. Epps). -Your seedling Potato boils to a perfect 

 rail of flour, and is of excellent flavour. 



Vine Leavks Blotchkd (S, Q.). — Your Vine-leaf appears to us to have 

 been blotched through allowing water to stand on the leaves when the sua 

 was shining powerfully upon them. We rather suppose that your border 

 is a very rich one, and that growth is consequently induced at a time when 

 the wood should be ripening. Keep the atmosphere drier by giving abun- 

 cUnce of air; and if any syringing be »lone, do it early m the afternoon, 

 leaving a little air on all night, which will aid in keeping the atmosphere 

 of the house pure, and in preventing water lodging on the tips of the leaves. 

 If the .-^un strikes any leaf on which water has stood some time it cannot do 

 otherwise than discolour it by carrying oft' it.'* juices as well as the water 

 on the leaf ; and with the loss of the juices the leaves contract or curl ia 

 proportion to the quantity lost, 



Kekpino Grapes {Mest Housf).— If you do not care about wintering any 

 plants in the house Grapes keep longer without shrivelling on the Vine 

 than when cut; but in houses where plants are wintered it is better to cut 

 them offwith a few inches of wood attached about the time the leaves fall off, 

 searing the end with a red hot iron, and then sealing it up with sealing- 

 w;ix. Hang in a dry room, and cut out all decayed berries, examining 

 ♦requently for tiiat purpose. If you prefer keeping the Grapes on the 

 Vine, not even a plant requiting water should remam in the hoase ; but by 

 admitting air and using firing in the daytime keep the atmosphere pure 

 and dry. When pruning time arrives prune those branches on which the 

 fruit is hanging by taking out all the eyes ercept those which should be 

 left for growth in the following season if the Vines were pruned in the 

 ordinary way; then leave the branches alone until the eyes have fairly 

 broken, when they may be removed, as there is then no danger of bleeding. 

 They are sure to bleed if cut otf at the time the Grapes are cut, U these be 

 allowed to hang much after the turn of the days. 



Stove Climber {A Subscriber in the North). — Instead of one there are 

 half a dozen to choose from. Thunbergia Harrisi, purple ; and T. lauri- 

 folia, of the saine colour; Schubertia graveolens, pink blush, and sweet- 

 scented ; Allamanda violacea, violet ; Henfreya scandens, cream and 

 spotted ; and Mandevilla suaveolens, white, very fragrant. 



KiRTLAND's Beurre Pkar— Propagating Ckntaukka argentea f J. F.). 

 — 7"hi^ is an American Pear raised by Dr. Kirtland, of Ohio. You will not 

 find it tirst-rate in this country. It ripens in September. Centaurea 

 argentea may be propagated at this season by small ^ide shoots slipped off 

 when about 3 inches long, and inserted round the sides of a small pot, and 

 all the leaves removed except two or three of the smallest at the point. If 

 the plants are in pots it will be best to keep them as they are till the end of 

 February. Then place tbeni in a heat of 60", and strike the young shoots 

 when 2 or 3 inches long in a mild bottom heat. 



Guano Vf at ■e.v.i A Subscriber ).~l\a.\l an ounce to a gallon of water is 

 strong enough lor potted plants, and 1 oz. to the gallon tor plants in beds. 

 Eucharis amazosica [Novice).— Ihe treatment is more simple than that 

 of a Hyacinth or Tulip, and it is very difficult to prevent its blooming. It 

 is a stove bulb with very thick leaves ; and all siuve bulbs with stout, fleshy 

 leiives like a start fur the yearly growth in moist bottom heat from sLx 

 weeks to two months, and the bottom heat to be ju-^t 10* hotter than the 

 heat ot the air for the leaves. From 70" to 75" is the right bottom heat for 

 this charming plant, and for ninety-nine out of every hundred of such, 

 stove bulbs, :ind, of course, 10° lower fur the air of the pit or hotbed after 

 the middle of March. Between January and March, if any such bulbs are 

 put to forcing, the top heat must be 1.5" lower than the bottum heat ; but 

 Kucharis will do and bloom without this stsirt. The grand secret with, 

 all of this kind of stove bulbs is to huve them cooler in the winter and 

 in the height of summer thin common stove plants. Filty-five is the 

 very highest degree any one of them should ever get from October to 

 March; from JLirch to June, bottom and top heat as above; and from 

 .luiie to the end of August, a well-aired greenhouse is the right place for 

 them, and all the evergreen ones, like this Eucharis, to be in the stove, 

 with abundance of air. and not much moisture, in September. 



Poke {B. A. S.).—lt U the Virginian Poke, Phytolacca decandra, of 

 which, in North America and the West Indies, the young shoots are cooked 

 and eaten as Asparagus and the young leaves as Spinach. When the plant 

 becomes matured it is purgative and emetic, two spoonfuls of the juice 

 purging actively. The berries stain an intense purple colour, and are used 

 in colouring wine. They are said to be narcotic; the root is also so, and 

 powerfully emetic. We would not recommend you to use it as Spinach. 



Seedling Hollyhocks [E. Miles]. — Yout young plants pricked out 

 4 inches apart '.n a bed are sure to flower well next year. They will be 

 strong bushy plants by March, when they may be removed to their final 

 position. If the winter be unusually severe, a little Pea-haulra or some- 

 thing of that kind might be thrown over them at the time, but it is not 

 likely that they will require it. The only danger is when they are in a fast- 

 growinff condition at the time severe frost sets in. If growing in an exposed 

 place this is not likely to be the case. 



Winteicng Seedling Pelargoniums and Carnations in a Cold 

 Frame 'E. Miles)— "We fear the damp will be fatal to your Pelargoniums; 

 but if vou could contrive to keep them in some airy room, even if not very- 

 light, for a few weeks in the dullest part of the winter— say from the middle 

 (if December to the end of January— lUey would do afterwards in the cold 

 frame, if protected at night as you mentioiL The Carnaticne will take no 

 harm ; but you mu*t gradually hnrden them off so as to plant them out in 

 March, otherwise they will become drawn. 



Plants by Post (North Britnincr),—So authority is needed. We have 

 sent small plants and cuttings by parcel post. Of course you would not 

 send balls of earth, much less flower-pois, for you pay according to weight. 

 Coloured Plates of Flowers (.V).— We do not know any but those in 

 Mr.-. Loudon's quarto volumes. As you object to periodicals it is needless 

 tor us to name any. 



Mildew on Roses (A. S. j4.1.— Mildew on Roses may be prevented by 

 syringing them with a riecoctiun of laurel or elder leaves, and it may be 

 removed by ducting the infested parts with flowers of sulphur. Mildew ia 

 caused by a peculiarly diseased stat<^ of the plant infested, but what that 

 peculiarity is remains an unsuived problem. See to the roots of your Roses, 

 and ascertain if there be no stagnant water near them. Perhaps they are 

 detp in the soil and produce long grosj growths ; if so, lift them in the 

 beginning of November, and if the ground is wet drain at once. Manure 

 them if weak, pruning more closely than when vigorous. Mildew on 

 Vegetable Marrows ia successfully rem'oved by dusting the leaves and stems 

 with sulphur. 



