282 



JOUENAL OF HOBTICULTTJBE AND COTTAGE GABDENER. 



[ April 18, 1867. 



cf a ditch, with a lew twigs waving above it to break the force 



"'',':;r;;;;"hrewa.prinWingof salt over the plantation 

 and turned the ridges of a piece of ground, previously weU 

 Uencb d and manured, intended for planting We And no 

 simpler plan where much is to be taken up and forced, than 

 Xntin- in rows from 2 to 2! feet apart, and ,f the ground is 

 s iff making the rows raised as flat ridges. The annual dress- 

 in-s'^^U mi up the hollows. A good old plan for regular beds, 



s to take out a deep trench, and of proper width, m winter; 

 collect in that trench all the weeds, prumngs, and refuse ve- 

 getables about the place-and drainage will thus be secured 

 follow with a bed of fermenting material in spring, cover with 

 SOU and use the bed for Cucumbers and Vegetable Marrows m 

 summe and then a little working will secure a first-rate bed 

 foi Zn ing Asparagus in the following spring. Where prac- 



kab e from having the young plants on the place, it is of 

 advantage to have them grown 2 or 3 inches above ground 

 hefore planting, and during that operation never to allow the 



"ctt,t,Mnapitand in frames we have been obliged to 

 smoke with tobacco paper, as green fly made its appearance 

 owing, we believe, to the plants being more covered tlian usual 

 L the dull cold weather. The hot water has beaten the frame 

 this vear by a few days. The first spring fruit from the pit wa. 

 fr m'a ;ia^t that wa's not wanted, and which f ood or a goo^ 

 while in a C-inch pot; as it showed a nice frmt the bottom 

 of the pot was broken, and pot and all placed ms.de a 12-inch 

 pot We have not used pots so much as we formerly did, 

 ch ky from not having pots large enough handy ; b"t many 

 yea's- practice with pots and boxes, with and without bottom 

 IZ, e'Lables us to' corroborato all that is said of the good 

 resu ts of that system in a recent number, as practised by Mr 

 t^amb of Tortworth. When the pots were large we used to 

 plant 6 or more inches from the rim, and earth up \y/^f^^^' 

 Ling only slight surfacings at a time, and not adding this 

 "mfacing until the previous surface was covered with healthy 

 roots. It the pots were too shallow for this we used to put 

 rings of =^inc or firm turf round them and thus earth np he 

 Plants gradually. Wherever any of the dread diseases that 

 ^ffict Cu'umbe^s appear-and as to the <=""°g «« f '^^l^^,^- 

 sides fresh soil and frequent planting, we can say nothing 

 satisfactory-we would heartily recommend the growing m 

 roUas'onLf the most likely -eans of surmounting the di&- 

 cultv Treated as above, we have had 16 and 18-iDch pots 

 s anding on the top of a rickety flue in a Pine-stove, separated 

 f om the flue by a couple of bricks, and a pan of water between 

 he bricks, or set on the flue close at hand, and the plan s in 

 these pots would frequently ff^uce freely for a couple o 

 seasons The late Mr. Ayres, father of Mr. W. F. Ayres, was 

 rmostBuctessful cultivator of Cucumbers in Pot?, and a= ^ar 

 as we recollect, he pointed out to us more than thirty years ago 

 p an s tha wei-e upwards of two years old. The J^ere age is a 

 matter of less importance-it is mentioned chiefly as a curi- 

 Tsitv but the necessary curbing of the roots, and the lessen- 

 ing the space of the feeding ground, seem to P>^7°.'« ^'"^"""f 

 he°alth as well as increased fertility. As several times stated 

 so convinced are we that Cucumbers do all the better with a 

 limUed amount of feeding ground, that the soil ^ o"r P't is 

 only about 2J feet wide, and in our six-feet frames the earth 

 only occupies a width of about 2 feet, strong s abs generally 

 separatinl this earth from the back and front of the bed 

 though all is earthed over for the sake of appearance ; but the 

 Bides! back, and front have only from half an inch to an meh 

 of soil, whilst the centre where the plants stand has a depth of 

 from 15 to 18 inches. 



We may here, also, mention, as bearing on the same prin- 

 ciple, that we know of no plan equal to growing in go°d;Bized 

 pots in order to obtain good and heavy Melons m proportion to 

 their size. We question if we could please ourselves in giving 

 any reasons why in such a mode of culture great jve-ght in 

 proportion to size should be such a frequent result, but scores 

 of tLes we have been struck with the fact. This, we may add 

 was chiefly the case when the Melon was suspended ; but the 

 additional solidity and weight were not solely owing to this 

 susnension of the fruit, as, in the same house, with fruit 

 equally suspended, those grown in a bed were as a general rii^e 

 less distinguished for weight than those grown in Pot9, be 

 pots being merely set on the bed and the plaiits °ot rooting 

 at all or but little into the soil. Were the juices better ela- 

 berated owing to the roots being nnablc to give the foliage bo 

 much to do ? 



FRUIT GARDEN. 



We have been unable as yet to finish naihng some of oiir 

 protectod trees ; but that is of less importance, as most of the 

 pruning had been done. Untied the Currant and Gooseberry 

 bushes that had been tied up in the faggot style, and then 

 limed. There will be plenty of fruit this season if all goes on 

 well The sound of the gun has, no doubt, helped. No re- 

 port of a gun was heard last year. There was no tying up of the 

 bushes, and by the middle of March the budless bushes were 

 enough to make one melancholy. We would say, then, that 

 where birds are troublesome, the tying up of the bushes after 

 they are leafless in autumn, and dredgmg them over with lime, 

 is worth a trial by way of preventive. Of our dwarf Pear 

 tree, the two that have suffered most from birds this season, 

 were' the two fullest of buds and earliest, and in the severe 

 frosts of March we placed some tall evergreen branches round 

 them • but we had to remove the branches, or a single fruit- 

 bud wo.Ud not have been left, the branches being more en- 

 ticing to the birds than even a net, and that if not thoroughly 

 secure does as much harm as good, as the winged tribes wiU 

 not be satisfied until they know all about what is beneath it. 



Orc;mn;-/ioH.'.'s.— Weare keeping the latest as open as it wiU 

 be safe and the bloom is still beautiful ; the earliest house we 

 shut up early, and if cold put a little fire in our stove which 

 we allu'^led to lately, and which since our little alteration has 

 aiven no trouble. If there is a fire you feel the gemal atmo- 

 sphere as soon as you open the '1°°'^' .^it^""'*'^^?^'^^''",'' 

 sensation of dry heat. A few minutes after l'Rlit>°|. tbe tove 

 has an effect upon the atmosphere of the house, i or aU large 

 houses we would employ hot water; but where economy m 

 heat is to be a consideration, nothing wi 1 equal a stove msde 

 of a house, if properly set and properly managed. In this 

 house we have gone over the trees twice, nipping and removmg 

 foreright shoots, but not taking away many shoots at a time 



Strawbrrries.-The weather has been rather favourable, the 

 fruit which ripens is of tolerable flavour, and the setting now 

 is all that could be wished. We mentioned a few weeks ago 

 ha for years we had seen little of the fly on forced S raw- 

 berries but though not an insect of any kind has as yet ap- 

 peared on the Pfach trees, we have had to smoke the house 

 ?wice or thrice, on account of green fly on the Strawberries. As 

 the smoking do it as you wiU, is rather an expensive process, we 

 tHed"rfirs!'what the finger and thumb would do, but the insects 

 came here and there so thickly on the central young leaves that 

 smoking had to be resorted to. Now, as before bousing the e 

 plants a good portion of the old leaves were twisted off, the 

 surface soil removed-say, for the sixteenth of an ^nch and 

 fresh-aired compost added, there seemed no way for tbe green 

 fly to come, unless from eggs that had been inserted in the 

 central buds some time last autumn. 



ORNAMEKTiL DEl'AKTirENT. 



Finished turfing, and glad it was done, as it is late enough 

 if ri^^troubleafterwkrdsis to be avoided, though we hav-e turfed 

 successfully in the dog-days ; besides, at this season there is 

 much routine work demanding attention. All evergreens may 

 r pruned still, but the sooner the better before they push 

 afresh. We must take the first opportunity of preparing beds, 

 rei-ulating herbaceous plants, &c. „i„„»„ 



We referred to Neapolitan Violets some time ago, old plants 

 that rather disappointed us before the new year and hence wo 

 ecommended planting afresh every year ; but these old plants 

 Lthat is, those which have been two winters in tbe same bed 

 have done remarkably well aU the spring-time since the middle 

 of January, and produced larger flowers than are generaUy to 



'%Yanted"/t"rd:7protcUrsome Calceolarias. and.wiU go 

 on as opportunity offers. Potted and placed singly m pieces of 

 tur'lotfof beddfng plants, moved Pelargoniums to cool vineir 

 crenaratory to moving to conservatory. Potted young plants 

 [or autumn blooming, fresh regulated conservatory, and will 

 brng Inmost forwafd blooming CameUias and Epacnses m to 

 the vinery to cause them to make their wood. Epacnses 

 and Ipring Heaths stand pruning back freely, bu only so far 

 as last year's wood is concerned, and not that which is older. 

 ?Mcked^ out numerous seedlings, and made a good many cut- 

 tings as they will yet be time enough for planting out. In 

 wet'days, as SaTirdly, had plenty to do in cleaning and mend- 

 ing glass, potting, and other work.— B. F. 



COVENT GARDEN MARKET.— Apkh, 17. 



A GENEilAi. depre..s!™ rervnaos onr martet in th,> ''f""'"* '"'o"" J'^' 

 tht mort wmuion ^Ucl.l, and pries recede .ccordmglr ; P.ne9, Grapes. 



