132 



JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



[ February 17, 1870. 



In making the beds, however made, and whatever the mate- 

 rials, it will generally be found that for a time the beds will be 

 too hot for spawning. They must be watched and tried every 

 day. The firmer the surface in general the more quickly will 

 they cool down, and the less likely will they be to heat violently, 

 as air, the great decomposer, will not so easily gain an en- 

 trance. If the temperature is on the decline it will be safe to 

 spawn when the heat is from 80° to 85°, or about the same as 

 that of new milk. On spawning, the moving and beating of 

 the surface will tend to increase the heat a little, and a few 

 degrees of rise will do no harm, and the bed may be left un- 

 touched until it is on the fall again, when the earth Bhould be 

 put on. Sometimes, after spawning, the heat of the bed will 

 fall instead of rise a little, and in such a case we generally 

 add from 1 to 2 inches of hot droppings or dung, and beat 

 well down, and this is generally sufficient to set the spawn 

 gently working. When we place on the lj inch or so of soil, 

 we beat it firmly, water the surface, and draw a clean spade 

 firmly over it, so as to leave a smooth surface. The addition 

 of the cold soil to a shallow bed helps to cool it. We examine 

 the trial sticks frequently to see how the heat is below the soil, 

 and if we find that is giving way, we put a covering of hay or 

 litter over the bed, so that the heat shall not escape, and no 

 check shall be given to the spawn. This helps to keep the 

 bed equable in respect to temperature and moisture ; but now 

 the bed must not be neglected, or the covering may cause it to 

 become too hot, for whenever the spawn begins to work in 

 earnest it raises the temperature of the materials about it, and 

 whenever this rise begins the covering must be gradually 

 lessened, according to the place in which the bed is ; so that 

 in a place which can be heated the bed may be uncovered alto- 

 gether, or have a very thin covering, as the Mushrooms appear. 

 When the heat begins to decline, a little covering, and espe- 

 cially after watering, will tend to renew it, and set the spawn 

 working afresh. In stable3 and mere unheated sheds, much of 

 the success will depend on judicious covering, and on regulating 

 the covering according to the heat of the bed, bearing in mind 

 that when the spawn is working freely among material not quite 

 decomposed it will always raise the temperature. We have 

 known beds very much injured because in covering no allow- 

 ance was made for the heat produced by the running or work- 

 ing of the spawD. In using covering, we like the surface of 

 the bed to be firm and clean, and the covering material dry, so 

 that the spawn may have no inducement to enter into and 

 waste itself in the covering. In some cases we have secured 

 a space of a couple of incheB between the bed and the covering, 

 but in general we just lay the covering on the bed. Nothing 

 answers better than rough hay, but we have used litter, straw, 

 &e. There will be no danger if the bed do not get too hot 

 when the spawn runs. Then in mild, warm weather the cover- 

 ing should be lightened, though in an exposed place it would 

 not be prudent to remove it altogether. 



Cold Pits, Frames, and Houses. — We have frequently alluded 

 to the management of these of late. In the generally drench- 

 ing days up to the 9th of the month, these places were either 

 kept shut, or had air given at the back and front by tilting the 

 sashes according to the weather. Besides washing the glass, 

 so dull were the days, that when it was dry for a few hours, 

 and the sun gladdened us with Li3 presence, we pulled off the 

 sashes altogether, and Potatoes, Radishes, Carrots, Pinks, 

 Carnations, Calceolarias, Sea., were much benefited by the 

 exposure. On the afternoon of the 8lh the damp drizzle be- 

 came searchingly cold, followed during the night by snow and 

 fr03t, and the remainder of the week has given us severe frost, 

 ranging from 12° to 18° below the freezing-point at night. The 

 little snow has been a great protection in this emergency, and 

 the frost was less felt, as it Wis unaccompanied by wind until 

 the 12th, when the wind was piercing. A little more snow would 

 be a great relief. With such a piercing wind we must be satis- 

 fied with a lower temperature in all places where the glass is 

 not protected, so long as the inmates are safe. In a large 

 metal conservatory we have removed the plants from near the 

 front, as they would be easily injured there, whilst further 

 back they would not suffer. Additional cave was taken not to 

 spill water so as to cause extra evaporation and extra condensa- 

 tion of moisture, and a lower, though safe, temperature lessened 

 both evils. Plants near a heating medium required, however, 

 to.be well watched as respects watering, as Camellias, Cytisuses, 

 Epacrises, and other plants would soon suffer from dryness, 

 and so would Hyacinths and various bulbs in bloom. In pits 

 and frames where there was any artificial heat, watering was 

 chiefly needed for plants near the heating medium. In all 



such cases, even where a little heat was given by fermenting 

 material, the glass was exposed for about half the day when 

 there was sun, or rather, clear light ; but very little air even at 

 the top was given, and that for short periods. 



Where there was no heat we uncovered merely in bright sun- 

 shine, and in dull days uncovered not at all, but as the cover- 

 ing was not thick we shook it afresh night and morning. 

 Cauliflowers under hand-lights, thinly covered with litter, 

 have not been uncovered since the frost set in. 'Xhe stimulus 

 of the sun would have done more harm than good. They will 

 just have a comfortable sleep if no intruders in the shape of 

 mice attack them. Houses for fruit and flowers we prefer 

 keeping during the day at a low temperature as respects arti- 

 ficial heat, instead of giving them much of such keen frosty air. 

 A little opening at the top was quite sufficient, shutting up 

 early, and setting the fire going to raise the temperature as 

 the sun declined. Young Cucumbers were in a pit, heated by 

 hot water, with a very narrow pathway behind, and these we 

 could attend to without opening a sash, as we would have been 

 obliged to have done in a common dung frame. In this respect 

 a place you can get into has an advantage of its own. It is 

 well, too, to have even low pits and frames in a properly se- 

 cured place.— R. F. 



METEOROLOGICAL OBSERVATIONS 

 In tlie Suburbs of London for the week ending February 15th. 



9.— Fine and frosty ; very fine ; clear and frosty. 

 10.— Fine : sharp frost : sharp frost. 

 11. — Snow ; fine, cold wind; cloudy, severe frost. 

 12. — Snow, exceedingly frosty ; cloudy; brisk wind, snow. 

 13.— Stormy, snow ; densely overcast; boisterous. 

 14.— Boisterous ; densely overcast ; cold wind, frosty. 

 15.— Foggy, very fine; densely overcast at night. 



TO CORRESPONDENTS. 



*#* We request that no one will write privately to any of the 

 correspondents of the "Journal of Horticulture, Cottage 

 Gardener, and Country Gentleman." By so doing they 

 are subjected to unjustifiable trouble and expense. All 

 communications should therefore be addressed solely to 

 The Editors of the Journal of Horticulture, d'-c, 171, Fleet 

 Street, London, B.C. 

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

 week. 

 Books (J. Pink). — " The Garden Manual" contains directions for kit- 

 chen and flower gardening suitable to your purpose. You can have it post 

 free from our office if you enclose twenty postage stamps with your ad- 

 dress. It also includes the culture of the Carnation and Pink. (H. E.). 

 —We do not know the books you mention. Any country bookseller will 

 tell you the price. 



Back N-sibers (One in suspense).— If you repeat in your letter the 

 dates of the five numbers you need, and enclose twenty postage stamps 

 with your address, you can have thein post free from our office. (Lis' 

 heard, Cornwall).— -You can have the three numbers if you enclose 

 twelve postage stamps with your address. Specify the numbers you 

 want when you write. 



Grafts of Pitmaston Duchess Pear.— "If ' C. Z.' purchase a tree 

 from the Messrs. Yeitch, of Chelsea, and if it be as large as the one they 

 sent me, he may get twenty grafts from it. — John Greenshields." 



Imitating Frosted Glass {Ignorant).— Frosted or ground glass may 

 be imitated by pasting white tissue paper on the inside. 



Budding Roses on the Manetti Stock (T. \v. TF.) — "Do not bud 

 the crown wood of the Manetti stocks, by which I mean the wood of last 

 year. Bud as near as you can to the part from which the roots emanate. 

 If the main stock is rooted up to the crown wood, remove the roots to allow 

 of your budding on" the main stock, either underground, by removal of the 

 earth, or as close to" the ground as you can. Why do you remove them at 

 all ? Bud them where they are. Bud the stocks, that have failed, again. 

 Till severe weather is over do not cut the budded stocks down. If the buds 

 are dormant, and look fresh, let them alone. If the eyes look doubtful, 

 or badly developed, I Bhould at once cut them down to an inch or so 

 above the bud, so as to stop the spring sap upon the bud. I bought in 

 dormant bud last autumn Duke of Edinburgh, Charles Lee, Monsieur 

 Noman, Vicomtesse de Yezins, and Madame Rivers, and I cut them down 

 on the 10th inst. to within 4 or 5 inches of the buds. You may cut your 



