84 



JOURNAL OF HORTICULTCEE AND COTTAGE GABDENEB. 



[ August 1, 1867, 



FLOWER OiRDEN. 



~ Cloves, Carnations, and Picotees should be layered at once ; 

 road-scrapings, finely sifted, are the best material for strikiny 

 them in. Let the pegs for fastening them be made from com- 

 mon Fern, -which answers the purpose well. All plants growing 

 over Box or other edgings should be cut back, taking the under 

 branches, as by this means the plants do not eihibit the ap- 

 pearance of being clipped, liemove dead flowers from Koses, 

 Pinks, &e., as often as required. Uahlias, Hollyhocks, Sweet 

 Peas, and other tall-growing plants, ehould be regularly gone 

 over and tied up, taking particular care not to tie too tightly. 

 Hoe, rake, and clean borders and beds ; not a weed should 

 ever bo suffered to seed if there is a possibility of preventing it. 

 EoU, mow, and sweep daily if the weather continues showery, 

 and shorten back stroi'g-growiug shoots of Hoses, if they 

 require it. Let biennials be transplanted, and look sharply 

 after the propagating ground. The success of ne.xt year's 

 masses will depend in no small degree on the vigilance of the 

 next three weeks. The Mule Pink is an invaluable old flower ; 

 cuttings should be made, or, which is preferable, let the jdants 

 be layered. Continue to fill up blanks. 



GREENHOUSE AND CONSERVATORY. 



. Although flowers of all kinds are at this period most abun- 

 dant out of doors, yet some large and well-grown specimens of 

 choice plants will always afford interest in the conservatory. 

 To accomplish this, large shifts must be had recourse to, ac- 

 companied by improved modes of potting — viz., extra drainage, 

 together with a gieater relkance ou turfy soils in a lumpy state 

 than upon complex components. The climbers must at all 

 times receive much attention in this house. Stopping gross 

 wood is far too often neglected. Above all, secure a thorough 

 freedom from insects, together with a most cleanly system ; all 

 this presupposes plenty of labour directed with judgment. 

 Look well after stock intended to enliven the shelves of the 

 greenhouse in the dead of winter. To accomplish this object, 

 many plants deemed of little import at this season will then be 

 most acceptable. Common Anemones, potted three or tour in 

 a pot, and placed in a comfortable frame with the Neapolitan 

 or Russian Violet in September, may be introduced to blossom 

 on the shelves throughout November and December. The 

 common single Blood Wallflower also, if sown in March, the 

 leading shoots pinched out in .June, and potted then in a mode- 

 rate-sized pot, generally produces a good bloom in the depth 

 of winter. Many more plants of the kind might also be enu- 

 merated. AH greenhouse plants will be benefited by exposure 

 to the natural atmosphere : the dews of heaven are more re- 

 freshing and invigorating than artificial moisture, and will 

 always beat the syringe. It will be wise to finish at once the 

 potting of all specimen plants. They have yet time to make 

 roots, but if left till late in autumn they had better not be 

 potted at all. No jiosition can be worse for a plant at all im- 

 patient of wet than when it is surrounded with fresh soil for 

 months, when the roots should be in a comparatively dormant 

 state. 



STOVE. 



The business here is mere routine. Propagation having 

 been attended to, together with high cultivation, little remains 

 but to pay every attention to perfecting the wood already made. 

 This must be accomplished by a freer circulation of air, and 

 by a somewhat less amount of atmospheric moisture. If any 

 of the very-early-growing Orchids are disposed to sink into a 

 state of rest, remove them to a comfortable shelf in a mode- 

 rately warm house. ' 



PITS AND FRAMES. 



Sow Mignonette for blooming in the autumn. Cuttings of 

 choice Verbenas should be put in for store plants next season. 

 Sow Nemophila insignis for blooming in autumn, either in a 

 bed or in pots, for planting out. Pink pipings that were put 

 in early and that are rooted may be planted out. Cuttings of 

 China, Noisette, and other Hoses should be put in under hand- 

 glasses, or, if wanted in large quantities, into a shady border 

 without glasses. Cuttings of Pelargoniums, Salvias, Petunias, 

 &c., should be put in for next year's store. No heat is required 

 for striking at this season, except sun heat, which prevents 

 damp. — ^W. Eeane. 



DOINGS OP THE LAST WEEK. 



EITCHEN GARDEN. 



■Friday will be a day long remembered on 'account of its 

 heavy, almost continuous rain, doing great injury to hay that 



was still out, but proving very beneficial to all fresh-planted 

 crops, washing the fruit trees thoroughly, and doing much 

 where the crops were not laid to make the corn fill the bushel. 

 We had made up our mind to water many things, when the 

 twenty-four-hours rain saved us all the labour, and enabled us 

 to do much in-door work, as cleaning pots, preparing soils, 

 clearing sheds, grinding tools, going over houses, regulating 

 trees in orchard-houses, and much other work, which would 

 have had to remain longer undone but for the rainy day. One 

 advantage of such a day is, that there is no uncertainty about 

 it. Sometimes we have rain heavy aud fast for an hour or two, 

 and then it comes and stops, and comes again, aud there are 

 doubts as to whether it would be best to remain iu-doors or to 

 tutu out, and in all this moving out and in there is loss of 

 time; but on Friday there was needed no second thought about 

 the matter. When the men were in-doors, true policy said, 

 Keep them there ; and the only regret about the matter was as 

 to how tlie labourers were to get home and dry their clothes. 



A gentleman lately told us he was thoroughly convinced of 

 the importance, not only in a benevolent but also in a truly 

 self-interested point of view, of preventing his working men 

 being thoroughly drenched at their work. He found that the 

 natural lassitude afterwards did much to counteract the value 

 of the work thus obtained, aud he entered feelingly into 

 the difference between the man who had been drenched, 

 and went home and put on dry clothing, and the man who had 

 to keep on his wet clothes, and put them ou wet the next 

 morning. The opposite difiiculty with him, however, was how 

 to keep his men employed in these wet days, as mere idleness 

 had about as bad a future effect as getting wet, and keeping 

 wet. We never knew a garden where this serious and some- 

 what solid objection did or need apply. Our wet days are 

 generally our very busiest. Of course all such matters require 

 a little forethought, and sometimes woik may be delayed rather 

 long just because it can be done as well in a wet day as in a 

 dry one. Most jobs about houses — wasliing, cleaning, scrub- 

 bing, tying, pruning, top-dressing, &c. — can be done much 

 better in a wet day than a sunny one — that is, with more ease 

 to the workman ; and a little consideration will thus insure 

 that a wet day in a garden shall be tho farthest removed from 

 idleness and its natural consequences. The very change of 

 work and scene promotes activity. 



PuttUocj. — Tho previous rains hardly watered our Potatoes 

 that were planted moderately deep. We hope we shall now 

 have breezes and sunshine instead of a close damp atmosphere, 

 which, with the wet at the roots, would tend so much to pro- 

 mote the progress of the disease. With the exception of that 

 peculiar aud hmited instance of the stem rotting, to which we 

 lately alluded, we have met with little the matter with Pota- 

 toes this season, aud the early crops have been very prolific, 

 yielding an abundance of fine even-sized tubers. One of the 

 finest-looking Potatoes at Bury Show was the Birmingham 

 Prizetaker, something in shape like Mona's Pride — a flat, broad 

 Kidney, showing no depth of eye. Would some of our readers 

 well versed iu Potatoes tell us the good jnoperties of this Bir- 

 mingham Prizetaker, and if it has short or long haulm-tops? 

 This latter is of less importance where ground is plentiful, but 

 it is of great consequence to many where ground is scarce. All 

 who send out I'otatoes should be as careful as possible that the 

 sample should be true to the variety. We were recommended 

 to try an Ashleaf Kidney, which was said to have little more 

 top than Veitch's Prolific, and on searching through the piece 

 a few subjects might be found of such a character, but 

 the bulk of them have gone beyond all bounds, there being 

 many tops fully a yard iu length, and vastly more luxuriant 

 than the tops of the Early May, which comes in well as a 

 second Kidney, whilst with us this season the Prolific scarcely 

 ranged above a foot in height, rarely reaching 15 inches, and 

 yet it yielded a very good return, much better than these 

 long sprawling tops. 



Those who have a few old tubers of Kidneys left, and would 

 plant them now, will obt.iin some waxy Potatoes from November, 

 and onwards. In the first dry weather, we will raise the most 

 forward Potatoes, so as to plant out more winter vegetables. 



Cucitm!)cr,s-.— Our first beds iu frames are still bearing, but 

 showing a little weakness, and would be the better of a little 

 bottom heat, which we will give as soon as we can, by turning 

 over tho outside bank or lining. Pruned out the more ex- 

 hausted shoots, to give more room to the young growth, aud a 

 little top-dres.sing and manure- watering will cause the plants 

 to do more work yet. Went over those on ridges, thinning, 

 stopping, regulating, and gathering a fine lot for Gherkins for 



