356 



JOUBNAL OF HORTICULTUKE AND COTTAGE GAEDENEB. 



[ Mar 28, 1367. 



really wants to make a comparison between the day tempera- 

 tures in a vinery he should give us the mean of all the maxima 

 in the shade, which means the mean of the day temperatures. 

 The mean of all the minima, which means the mean of all the 

 night temperatures, is as interesting but for reasons I am not 

 now considering ; but the "mean temperature," which is the 

 mean of these two, is of no value whatever. 



" H. S." asks Mr. Thomson the question that if he begins 

 ■with 100° in the sun for Vines, how he wiil go on if he is asked 

 to advise temperatures for semi-tropical and tropical plants ? 

 I find in the Journal of the French Meteorological Society, 

 some readings taken in Algeria, which I will give. I am sorry 

 that they do not go any further than June 21st. I have taken 

 the forty-eight hours included in the 18th and 10th of June. 



If my calculation is correct, 18°, the lowest here given, is 

 equal to C4.fiO° of Fahrenheit ; and 37.8°, the highest, is equal 

 to 100.5°. As, therefore, the Tate Palm will not grow north of 

 the Mediterranean, it requires a summer temperature of not 

 less than 65° at night, aud 100° in the shade during the day, 

 which, without wishing to anticipate Mr. Thomson's answer, is 

 quite enough for the first step. 



M. Ch. Martins, who is the author of this paper giving the 

 results of the experiments he made upon the Pic-du-Midi, says, 

 in his concluding remarks, M. llamond found on the Faulhourn, 

 which is 8803 feet high, and at its top has only a superficies of 

 3J acres, 131 flowering plants, whereas M. Maliugren could 

 only find nineiy-three in the whole of the Spitzbergen archi- 

 pelago. The following is his explanation: — "Independently 

 of their original geographical distribution, the temperature ex- 

 plains to us the number and variety of the species which grow 

 on the summits of the Alps and Pyrenees, because there they 

 are warmed by the soil into which they strike their roots, more 

 than by the air with which their leaves and branches are en- 

 veloped, and because the clear lively light prevailing in these 

 high situations is favourable to the functions of respiration ; 

 whilst at Spitzbergen, on the other hand, in spite of the con- 

 tinual presence of the sun above the horizon duiiug summer, 

 the heat of the sun's rays, being almost totally absorbed by the 

 great thickness of the atmosphere they traverse, is incapable 

 of raising the temperature of the soil above that of the air." 

 From this, which is the strongest argument I ever read in 

 favour of what we gardeners call bottom heat, to grow Alpine 

 plants and Orchids that have been collected from these high 

 elevations, we must depend more upon soil heat than atmo- 

 spheric heat for their successful cultivation. 



Now for my conclusion. Any one who will read with in- 

 telligence all the information I have here gathered, bearing 

 upon the necessity of taking advantage of all these great helps 

 the sun will give us if we let him, and who will then con- 

 sider how we turn them to advantage in building such lean-to 

 vineries as Mr. Wills has described, wliere the foliage is trained 

 so as to keep out as much of this valuable source of light and 

 heat will. I think, agree with me that he would not build a 

 leau-to 'or any purpose whatever. 



I noted a few weeks since that the author of " Cordon Train- 

 ing " agreed with what I wrote you last year, that the successful 

 orchard-house must be a lean-to — that is, in his meaning, it 

 must have the advantage of the radiation of the back wall, 

 which is right, so far as it goes ; but, why not have as much of 

 this advantage at the top of the wall as the bottom ? The 

 only answer is. That by so doing the wind would play upon it, 

 and you would lose heat ; but a sheet, such as a simple wall 

 is often supplied with, will stop all this, and if let down at 

 night will prevent the frightful loss of heat by radiation. How 

 many gardeners have seen their crop eaten up by red spider, 

 and the leaves burnt by what they say is the fault of their not 

 being able to keep up moisture enough in the day, notwith- 



standing all their damping down ; but they never think that 

 on clear nights as much damping down is required, though tho 

 house receives none. Semi-lean-to houses have an undoubted 

 popularity, and in the hands of most gardeners will, I believe, 

 prove the best, the reason is on account of their negative 

 qualities. I shall prefer the positive advantages, and when I 

 build make large square houses, and by growing the Vines or 

 Peach trees on trellises, enable the sun to pervade the whoi6 

 house and warm the border in addition. — G. H. 



ROSES AND FRUITS at OKEFORD FITZPAINE. 



I HAVE read " D.'s" account of things here. It is tolerably 

 correct, but not quite so. "Everything" in the shape of 

 Roses is not cut down to the ground. There are some hun- 

 dreds of fine plants, from 3 to 4 feet high, in fine health, 

 foliage, and buds. I never had them better. There are some 

 hundreds cut down by the frost, and some hundreds I was 

 obliged to cut down ; for, though their skins were perfectly 

 green, their pith was the colour of areca nut. Hence, they 

 liroke at their base instead of their summits, which was so 

 unnatural that I was led to examine into the cause, and I 

 found that the frost had injured the pith and wood without 

 defacing the skins. As good wood cannot come out of bad 

 wood, I cut them down ; and they, as well as the preceding, 

 are breaking grandly. I have Roses showing colour, and expect 

 a bloom of Maurice Eernardin next week, and to commence 

 generally in about three weeks, or a month, with the unmuti- 

 lated division. I usually obtain from my Manetti plants three 

 series of flowers — namely, in May and June, in July and 

 August, and in September and October. Briar Roses will 

 rarely give more than two series. 



As regards hardiness and endurance, much depends on the 

 nature of the Rose, and also on its health and position in the 

 garden, and still more so on the dryness or wetness of the 

 place. My experience does not agree with that of others as t» 

 Roses said to be tender, half hardy, and hardy. In such a 

 winter as the last all required prelection, and Teas and Tea- 

 scented Noisettes extra protection. I have lost up to this time 

 twenty-five out of 1200 (one hundred being nothing better than 

 pot plants), aud, perhaps, a dozen more may yet go wrong; 

 but all the others are iu beautiful condition. It is people's 

 own faults losing so many Roses. They are possessors of 

 Roses rather than rosarians. I do not know six men in this 

 kingdom worthy of the name. I mean hard-working, pains- 

 taking rosaiians, who try to keep their Roses out of mischief, 

 aud know how to extricate them when they get into it. What 

 a jjity I for what other class of plants will begin on south walla 

 in May and continue in the open ground iu never-ceasing 

 blooming till frost stops them ? A rosarian has no business 

 with other flowers. From one to two thousand Roses demand 

 exclusive attention. I have no other flowers here except a few 

 Violets, aud a dozen of Stella Pelargoniums. I do not wish to 

 see other flowers superseded, but I wish professed rosarians 

 would work harder to deserve the name, intteud of abusing the 

 Roses and the nurserymen who supply them. 



I am happy to tell "D.," that my splendid array of Tea- 

 scented Roses are breaking grandly. I think they will be 

 themselves again. I am surprised that anything survived. 

 There are a few bud worms here, but very few aphides, and 

 these are mainly on wall fruit trees, which are syringed every 

 day to preserve their beautiful foliage, which in most gardens 

 is blistered or devoured. Without water we cannot suecess- 

 (ully " garden," and without a " will " to use it, the water is 

 of no use. 



The Strawberries are in superb bloom. The maiden cordons 

 have set some of their fruit. Bellegarde, Noblesse, Prince of 

 Wales Peaches, aud Prince of Wales Nectarine, which are 

 growing nicely. Twenty-eight out of 107 maiden cordons 

 bloomed well, but owing to the violent west wind pushing one 

 of my walls (9 inches thick) out of the perpendicular, I had t» 

 take up this spriug forty-one of tho maiden cordons, and put 

 them in the centre of my garden till the wall was rebuilt. This, 

 of course, stopped them from perfecting their blossoms. Mr. 

 liivers and Mr. Biehaut gave me no hope from maiden cordons, 

 liut I fancy I shall have some fruit fiom some of them. The 

 cordons weie deprived of their branches, and the fruit is on 

 the main stem. I am trying experiments with them, and if I 

 sti ike out. a spark, I will make it public. None but the rash 

 ever do strike out a new spark. 



I am sorry to say that my Plum trees are suffering from 



