JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



[ April 21, 1870. 



for the amateur to induJgo in many of the luxuries of larger 

 establishments. Repot and propagate Eegonias. This is one 

 of the most useful families of plants that can be grown. Any 

 attention which will serve to prolong the beauty of the Azaleas, 

 New Holland, and other plants, with which the show house 

 should now be gay, will be well bestowed, as when these are 

 over it will in most cases be impossible to furnish the house 

 with equally handsome specimens and the same variety of 

 colours, which these afford. Also, carefully examine the plants 

 in the forenoons of bright days, and see" that none of them 

 are suffering from want of water; for with bright sunshine, 

 accompanied with drying winds, it will be no easy matter to 

 properly supply plants with water, particularly specimens which 

 may be pot-hound. In ventilating, endeavour while parching 

 winds prevail to avoid allowing currents to blow through the 

 house, especially near recently-petted plants, or plants recently 

 brought from the stove. Orange trees in middling health 

 which, owing to the neglect with which they are generally 

 treated, is too commonly the case, will require attention to 

 prevent the young leaves being eaten up by red spider. The 

 readiest and most effectual method of clearing them of this 

 pest is to lay the plants on their sides and well wash the under 

 sides of the leaves with the engine, but unless the trees be kept 

 in health this will be but a partial cure. 



STOVE. 



Many of the Orchids, being now in active growth, will require 

 careful shading to protect the tender foliage from the direct 

 rays of the sun, and to keep down the temperature without ad- 

 mitting currents of air which, during the present state of the 

 weather, would render the atmosphere altogether unsuitable 

 for them. Keep the atmosphere as moist as possible, by fre- 

 quently sprinkling every available surface, and shut up the 

 house early in the afternoon after syringing, giving the plants 

 a good steaming. 



COLD PITS AND FRAMES. 



These will be occupied now with some of the early-struck or 

 potted-off cuttings hardening for the flower garden. "Any spare 

 room may be occupied with the thinnings'of the other plant 

 houses. — W. Keane. 



DOINGS OF THE LAST WEEK. 



KITCHEN GARDEN. 



_ Parsley.— Sowed the main piece of this, as we like to have 

 it in by the middle of April. We generally sow on a tree border 

 so shaded that scarcely anything else would grow, and in such 

 positions it generally stands better in winter than where more 

 fully exposed. A month or six weeks later we generally sow 

 in a more exposed place, and where a little protection can be 

 given, and about the middle or end of June we sow :■. line in 

 the orchard house to render us independent of frost and snow 

 in winter. 



Sowed also successions of Radishes, Turnips, and Lettuces, 

 drawing shallow drills for the seed with a pointed stick, and 

 covering with the back of a rake. The ground for the Parsley 

 was rather rough, and, therefore, the drills were filled up, or 

 nearly so, with light sandy Boil. 



FRUIT GARDEN. 



Finished pruning, though not nailing; so there were will be 

 better weather for the latter. 



Forced Strawberries.— Pnt out some rows, planting the halls 

 whole, with a little rotten dung round them. When good crops 

 are to be had in the autumn, the plants should be turned out 

 in this month and the first fortnight of May. For several 

 years we scarcely had ours out in time enough, owing to a press 

 of work waiting to be attended to. We were among the first 

 to turn forced plants to this purpose, and to state that even if 

 they bore in the autumn, no other system of planting would be 

 likely to yield such crops the following summer. We can 

 recollect a very able writer on agricultural chemistry and other 

 sciences being quite unable to account for forced plants bearing 

 in the autumn, and yet bearing so profusely the following sea- 

 son. We can only state the facts, but we' fear we Bhould fail 

 us endeavouring to give satisfactory reasons. We never saw 

 better autumn crops than Mr. Cadger, of Luton Hoo, had last 

 season. Two facts more may here be stated. First, forced 

 plants, when turned out late, will do no good as respects 

 autumn fruiting, but they will fruit the following season as 

 young plants will very rarely do. The second fact is, that the 

 nrst crop from such plants is generally the only extra one. The 

 second season the crop will generally be tolerably good, but in 

 the third season it will be inferior. Such plants should be 



used, therefore, chiefly for the first summer's crop after plant- 

 ing them out. 



A few days at the end of the week were so bright and hot 

 that we sprinkled the roofs of orchard houses with water just 

 coloured with a little whiting — say the size of a walnut dis- 

 solved in seven gallons of water, or partly dissolved, so as to 

 give a whitish covering. We have no doubt the treeB would 

 have done without it, but the evaporation would have greatly 

 increased, and we began to think of our limited water supply, 

 as much water has been used during the week. 



ORNAMENTAL DEPARTMENT. 



We fear the dry weather will put a stop to some chaDges, 

 turfing, &c. All gardens are constantly requiring changes to 

 be made. At first planting everything cannot be seen, and 

 provided shelter is obtained, it is very easy to make vistas and 

 open spaces afterwards. Many beds and groups, u-eful at first 

 as backgrounds, become eyesores when there are backgrounds 

 beyond them. The dry burning weather rendered attention to 

 all large traasplanted trees and shrubs necessary. A Blight 

 covering and the use of the engine over the tops will be more 

 useful than drenching the soil at the roots, as the more water 

 given the more the cold produced by evaporation. Shading 

 and covering fresh-planted shrubs present anything but an 

 ornamental aspect, but then the end so far justifies the means, 

 and, the object seen, the ugliness i3 so far modified. A lot of 

 temporary screens and protections for plants too tender for the 

 position are quite a different affair. Acclimatising should 

 chiefly be left to large places. In places where space is limited, 

 hardy trees and shrubs should chiefly be depended on. How 

 different the feelings with which we contemplate a healthy 

 Cedar, Pinaster Pine, or Weymouth Pine, and a sickly fine- 

 foliaged Mexican Pine, or even an Araucaria that has lost so 

 many of its lower branches as to become broom-headed instead 

 of having healthy branches sweeping the ground. 



A good opportunity is now given for sowing hard;/ annuaU, 

 not forgetting the useful Sweet Pea. In all such sowings, two 

 things are essentiil. First, sow thinly enough, or thin early 

 enough— the first is the better mode — so as to give the plants 

 space to grow ; secondly, cover the seeds in proportion to their 

 size. All small seeds like dust should have only a dust-like 

 covering, and if out of doors they will vegetate all the better 

 if shaded with a pot. For small Eeeds sown in pots and pans, 

 as those of the Calceolaria, Lobelia, A-c, we find no plan 

 better than making the surface smooth, well watering, allowing 

 the pot to stand until the surface becomes moderately dry; 

 then level, and with a dry finger and thumb, or the point of a 

 knife and a little stick, scatter the seeds equally, press slightly, 

 cover lightly with silver sand, press again, and cover the pot 

 with a square of glass, and the glass with moss or paper, until 

 the seedlings appear, when light and sir must be gradually 

 given. If the pots are set in a damp place, or so that the base 

 can be kept moist, they will seldom want watering before the 

 seedlings appear, and then the water should sail the pot, and 

 not be poured over the young plants. 



Amongst other matters we have been busy repairing and 

 altering our turf or eartl: pits, to receive lots of bedding plants. 

 This we should have done a week or two earlier if we could. 

 These pit3 were made of earth, with a turf along the top, the 

 back being considerably higher than the front. In the course 

 of years, from adding fresh material, the pits were becoming 

 too shallow, and the walls were getting rather uneven from the 

 visits of rabbits and mice. The surface turf at the back was 

 UDrolled, soil taken from the front inside, so as to raise the 

 back from 4 to 6 inches, and, the wall being made straight, the 

 turf was replaced. The bed inside being dug over, we have the 

 bed considerably lower than it was, in proportion to the earth 

 walls, which will give more room to Calceolarias and other 

 plants. These pits are generally used for something all the 

 season, and therefore in tnrning cut the bedding plants, as 

 Calceolarias and Pelargoniums, we find they thrive better and 

 lift better, if each row as planted has a little compost added 

 before watering and firming them ; this compost being made 

 of rough riddled leaf mould, a little exhausted Mushroom dung, 

 and some fresh rather sandy loam. We are late enough with 

 the Calceolarias, which are strong plants, requiring more room, 

 for they are standing where they were put in as cuttings in the 

 end of October. We may mention as an element of success, 

 and for saving labour, that in planting the rows of such plants, 

 when firmed with a little fresh material round them, and 

 before the little trench is firmed, the plants are well watered, 

 and then the dry earth is put on the surface, and the next row 

 , made ready and treated in the same way. — R. F. 



