240 



JOTXRNAIi OF HOETICULTTJEE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. [ September 22, 1863. 



place, watered but not deluged afterwards, and syringed in 

 sunny days to prevent excessive evaporation from the leaves, 

 until the roots aa-e working freely into the little new stuff 

 round the sides of the pots. When Chrysanthemums are 

 planted out in a similar way, it is best to defer the lifting 

 and repotting until the flower-buds are formed, and treated 

 as advised above they will hardly lose a leaf. This is, on 

 the whole, the easiest way for obtaining good specimens 

 with strong healthy foliage doivn to the sides of the pots. 



Eolled the lawns, as the dry weather now after the late 

 soakings has brought the worms and then' heaps in masses 

 to the surface, making, from the roughness, a lawn dis- 

 agreeable. We fancy the worms do not relish the rolling, as 

 it seems to make them descend instead of ascend. The 

 safest mode of keeping them at bay is deluging with lime 

 water two or thr-ee mornings after rolling, for then the fresh 

 holes wDl be aU open — a plan very suitable for small grass 

 plots, but hardly practicable on acres of grass. Though 

 they have not yet appeared, we may erpect heaps to be raised 

 by the worms at the sides of fin^; walks, thus disfiguring 

 the regularity of their outline, and for their preveution 

 we know nothing better than strewing the sides with fine- 

 pounded salt. KecoUect we say the sides — say for 6 inches 

 wide, for we v^ould never salt a walk at all smooth at this 

 season without expecting to find it damp and uncomfort- 

 able all the winter through. When a walk is very rough on 

 the surface the salting will be less injui-ious. Walks in 

 general — that is, moderately smooth ones, in our opinion 

 should never have salt after midstimmer ; and as to applying 

 it, we have found no plan preferable to strewing it on the 

 gravel in a hot sunny day, and when several of such days 

 may be expected. Of course, by this plan the wallcs do not 

 look so nice for several days as when the salt is applied with 

 hot or cold water at once. 



Went over the flower-beds once more, regulating, picking 

 decayed blooms, &c. ; and were it not for a few leaves flying 

 about from trees, and which begin to drop early from the great 

 drought, the flower garden as a whole shows no signs of 

 autumn. Some two or three masses of Aurea floribunda 

 Calceolaria that were excessively thick with bloom have 

 suffered most from the rains, as the roots were very di'y at 

 the time, and though plenty of blooms ai-e showing it would 

 require fine weather to render the masses equally fine again. 

 Such kinds as amplexicauhs and Aurantia multiflora have 

 suffered but Uttle and ai-e stUl gay with seemingly abund- 

 aoice of succession flowers. One light brown kind called 

 Robert Biu-ns, a good deal like the brown Prince of Orange, 

 and that was scarcely so good as the latter in the first part 

 of the summer, is now much better. Such small dai-k kinds 

 as Victory suffered greatly from drought, and we fear the 

 rains came too late to give us an equally dense amount of 

 flowering. Such kinds as Crimson King have suffered less. 

 On the whole the Calceolarias have suffered less than we 

 could have expected from such dry weather as we had, and no 

 water to help them with. No season could have been better 

 for Scarlet G eraniums of all kinds, and we do not think we 

 recollect ever seeing them better. With ground pretty woU 

 stirred at fii'st they scarcely require any water after being 

 once established. The only regulai- failure we had owing tS 

 the dry weather and scarcity of water, was with the Grandi- 

 flora wliite Feverfew, which was first-rate with us last year 

 up to the end of October. This, placed in a position of 

 honowr in a ribbon-border, between Trentham Kose Geranium 

 and PeriOa, became too shabby for its position, and a few 

 weeks ago we cut or covered it up by drawing the PeriUas 

 and Geraniums close together, and so completely filling the 

 space that no visitor woiUd think otherwise than that the 

 border was planted exactly as it looks now ; and some who 

 did know think that it is much better as it is, though we do 

 not think so ourselves, as the white seemed to us to relieve 

 both masses of colour better than when placed as now in 

 juxtaposition. 



Went on putting in a fresh batch of Verbenas in 48-Bized 

 pots, only a few being put in at fii-st into 60-sized pots ; 

 these are now rooting freely. They stood on the ground 

 with a frame over them, and during the heavy rains were 

 deluged by the rain passing through the frame. A bed of 

 litter was made, and ashes put on the top for the pots to' 

 stand on, and di'ain-tiles were placed between the litter, so 

 that in future downpourings the rain will pass thi'ough 



beneath the bed, instead of soaking into it. Had they re- 

 mained long in their first position, and the rains had con- 

 tinued, no amount of air would have prevented damping. 

 Our attention is still given to cuttiags of Geraniums : even 

 taken with the greatest care, the beds are apt to be dis- 

 figured more or less, showing the necessity of reserve- 

 grounds for this purpose. We wiU prepare a cold pit for 

 Calceolaria cuttings as soon as possible, but the middle of 

 October, if there is no frost, is quite time enough for the 

 general crop. A few rai-e kinds may be propagated sooner, 

 and topped to make plants, but much of the success in sum- 

 mer, we think, depends in not striking the cuttings too 

 early, and never allowing them the least artificial heat. 

 Other departments much as previous weeks. — R. F. 



Death of Me. Hugh Low. — We regret liaving to record 

 the decease of this distinguished florist and nurseryman. 

 He died on the 15th inst., at the Clapton Nursery, in his 70th 

 year. ^ 



COVENT GAEDEIT MAKKET.— .Sept 19. 



Of Tegetables and fruit of all kinds the supply continues abundant, both 

 from home and abroad. Pears and i'lums are very plentiful, the Jormep 

 consistinij prijicipally of Williams' Bon ChrOtien, and Louise Bonne o( Jersey, 

 and some Marie Louise. Filberts are in good condition ; and Cobs are bring- 

 ing from 555. to 70s. per 100 lbs. Oranges and Lemons are scarce, and 

 prices have risen. Potatoes are very abundant, and als^o very good, prices 

 having a downward tendency. Cut flowers consist of Orchids, Roses. 

 Asters, Pelargoniums, Marigolds, Mignonette, and .■Igeratum. 



TO CORRESPONDENTS. 



*^* We request that no one will write privately to the de- 

 partmental writers of the " Jonmal of Horticulture, 

 Cottage Gardener, and Country Gentleman." By so 

 doing they ai*e subjected to unjustifiable trouble and 

 expense. -AH communications should therefore be ad- 

 dressed solely to The Editors of the Journal of HorticuX- 

 ture, c5"c., 162, Fleet Street, London, EX'. 

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

 week. 

 Fern Leaves Fading (R. 5.).— The change of colour is a consequence 

 of growth-completed. It is natural change, not from disease. 



Hare's-foot or DsEn's-Foor Fern {A Constant Reader, Dublin).— Iti^ 

 not iiidigenoua in England, nor is it found anywhere in a wild state that we 

 know, except in the South of Europe, North Africa, and the Canary 

 Islands. 



Cottage Gaiiben Exbibitions {S. D. S,).~Jf you will send ns an 

 envelope directed to yourself, and witli a 2d. postage. stamp, we will lertfi 

 you a pamphlet on the subject. 



T^VELVE Harbv Heaths ( W. C).— You will find the following very good 

 for a border: — Erica australis, herbacea, herbacea carnea, cinerea alba, 

 cinerea rubra, mediterranea, mediterram,'iihibernic;i, stricta, tetralis rubra, 

 vagana carnea, vulgaris alba, vulgaris coccinea. To the above you luight 

 add Menziesia globularis. There are other varieties also, all good in their 

 way, but enough has been given to foroi the nucleus of acoUcttion. Perhaps 

 the most uselul of all are E. herbacea cornea and E. mediterranea, but all 

 are beiiutiful. 



