aK 



JOURNAL OF HORTICULTUBE AND COTTA&E GAEDENEE. 



[ April 8, 1889. 



SMatate, even •with established plants, to gather the leaf stalks 

 t^ dosely. A Rhubarb plant may even be killed by taking 

 amay aS its leaves and thus starving the roots. Some of our 

 ■JOB* troublesome root weeds may be killed by cutting off every 

 latf as soon as it shows above ground. Horseradish, though so 

 natssary, will become a bad weed if let alone, but even that, 

 Ml of Titality as the root is, may be killed by cutting off every 

 gieezi Jeaf as it appears. Couch Grass, and the beautiful white 

 OoDTolvnlus with its white running roots, may be destroyed by 

 never allowing a green leaf to remain. The evil is, that in their 

 esse the growth is so rapid that if a few leaves appear, say 

 itcfm tiie Convolvulus, the roots, from reciprocal action, will 

 hare obteined the power to throw up some more shoots ; but 

 eren then the continual cutting will at last destroy the vitality 

 of the roots, the smallest piece of which if left to itself 

 woidd be sure to send up a twining shoot. Do what we may, 

 however, this Convolvulus gives us work to do in the kitchen 

 gstdrai, because we cannot always cut off the young shoots in 

 time, as they ccme through the ground. We cleaned a piece of 

 gnracd once that was completely overrun with this Bindweed, 

 hftHowing it to be fallow a few months in summer, and daring 

 that time covering weed and ground together (3 inches deep 

 wJUi short grass. On turning up this ground the large fleshy 

 Dlnte roots had either disappeared, or were found as decayed 

 hdlotr skeletons. Unfortunately some years afterwards a few 

 fseoes were carried to the same piece of ground from the 

 gBnerai rubbish heap. Nothing is more useful than this heap, 

 but from it all seed weeds and root weeds should be excluded, 

 unless the whole heap is subjected to a strong heat from fer- 

 iBieDtation. 



Bbnbarb, the undue gathering of the stalks of which has led 

 to this digression as to root weeds, for the principle involved 

 is the same, may be grown successfully in any out-of-the-way 

 earaer; ours is chiefly in a cold north border, but when wanted 

 xtaiy a better position should be given to it. Strong plants are 

 QKSt easily obtained by dividing old roots, but good gatherings 

 BCxt season may be obtained from seed sown in the middle of 

 the month, in a favourable aspect, and in rich, light soil. We 

 hare iorted from such sowing? the first winter, but the roots 

 win ko better in the second winter, and if let alone will pro- 

 Amc heavily in the second spring. Of course, if so left, the 

 placis must be well thinned to give room for the leaves to ex- 

 ptmd. There is frequently a prejudice in the case of Rhubarb 

 for old large plants, just as there is for old plants of 



Sea-tale, — Many are deterred from lifting a few roots, to put 

 IB a warm place, and thus have it on their tables much sooner 

 UsaE they can produce it out of doors, from the dread of the 

 great care and trouble involved in forming a new bed fit for 

 bearing. Merely as a matter of choice, for planting-out, we 

 wonlci prefer small last year's seedlings to older plants. These, 

 planted-ont now, or during this month, in good rich soil, will be 

 fine plants for forcing in the ground, or for taking up next 

 ■winter to be put in a dark, warm place. Several times when 

 ■we have gown thinly we have had fair forcing plants about nine 

 iBODths after sowing, but, of course, we prefer them to have 

 two seasons from the seed. When sown in beds, in patches to 

 becpvered for forcing, they should have two summers before 

 fcmng them. Even without sowing at all, most of those who 

 gnr» a few plants might take up and force some every year, 

 in any dark, warm place ; for f> or 9 inches of root will yield 

 as fine gatherings as if you had it much longer, and every 

 latof the side shoots and main root, though not so thick as 

 alitile finger, if from 4 to G inches long, will do for planting, 

 andTery often do as well as seedlings of the previous year. It 

 isjnst as well if the top end of these is dried a few weeks before 

 pSBntiDg, which is easily effected by packing the pieces in soil 

 unficra little protection, and leaving the top end exposed, 

 irfien it soon cicatrises or heals over, and ere long little bud- 

 dings of growth will begin to appear. In planting these pieces 

 the top end should be about level with the surface of the soil, 

 and if done early, as in March, or the beginning of April, a 

 handful of ashes laid over each will be a preservative. When 

 to be covered with pots out of doors, no plan is better than 

 the old one, of having three young plants in a circle, to be 

 thns covered. When to be raised for forcing, we prefer growing 

 the plants in two rows 2 feet apart, and from G to 9 inches 

 apart in the row. They would need more room if standing 



lOTg. 



As one proof bearing on the fact that older plants are not 

 aspeiior to younger ones for planting, we may mention that one 

 jear. having taken up more than we liked, and had gatherings 

 frwB almost every plant left out of doors, also from the rats 



having pnrloiried every seed that was left to ripen, we sent 

 for some seedlings to help us in the emergency, but instead of 

 small young plants we received such large roots, that if we had 

 obtained them in winter we would have forced them. We 

 planted them carefully, though we would have much preferred 

 smaller plants, and what in the circumstances rather surprised 

 us was, that the bits of roots treated as above, and planted at 

 the same time, were by far the best plants in the autumn — so 

 good that some of them were forced the first winter, and were 

 very fine in the second. When we can manage to obtain seed, 

 we sow rather thickly, let the plants take care of themselves 

 the first season, and transplant in the following spring. But 

 for space we would sow at once where the plants were to stand. 

 In the latter case more care is needed in keepiiig the fly from 

 the young seedlings. Sometimes it is very troublesome, and, 

 therefore, young one-year seedhngs, or pieces of roots, are 

 better for those having small gardens. 



Asparaijui. — This is a good time for sowing either for lasting 

 beds, or merely in seed rows, the plants to be afterwards trans- 

 planted. The ground intended for fresh plantations cannot be 

 too well turned, nor the manure given too well incorporated with 

 the soil. Surface-manuring every season, however, is of more 

 importance than very rich manuring at first. The old bed 

 plan has its advantages, one of which is, that a new bed may 

 be drained beneath by having a foot or 18 inches of prunings 

 and wood rubbish placed under the soil of the bed. When 

 fine green shoots, however, are chiefly prized, Asparagus may 

 be grown most successfully in rows from 2.i to 3 feet apart, 

 and if the soil is strong and heavy, each row should be raised 

 a little in the centre. Established beds or rows should now be 

 slightly forked and cleaned before the shoots appear ; and a 

 slight sprinkling of salt over the ground to give it a whitish 

 appearance, if at this season it do not much good to the 

 Asparagus, will at least keep slugs and snails away. The old 

 general plan of piling manure on Asparagus beds in winter 

 was only a good makeshift, as salt and other manures are most 

 beneficially applied when the Asparagus is growing. Rough 

 manure, however, can with difficulty be applied in the summer 

 months, unless there is room between beds or rows. 



When Asparagus plants have to be obtained from a distance, 

 it is not so easy to have them growing ; but the best time lor 

 planting, when the plants can be had near at hand, is just 

 when the growth above ground is about 3 inches in length. 

 When thus planted the roots should be kept moist, covered np 

 with a mat, then nicely spread out on the ground, slightly 

 covered and firmed, then watered slightly, and the soil finally 

 put over them. Thus treated they will scarcely suffer from 

 the brightest sun, and begin growing at once. For this plant- 

 ing we prefer plants one or two years old from the time sown 

 to older and larger plants, which always suffer more from re- 

 moval. When sown at once where the plants are to remain 

 the plants should be thinned out in the rows to from 9 to 

 12 inches apart. 



FRUIT GAKDEN. 



Took away much of the protection from fruit trees in the 

 middle of the week, and in most other respects our work was 

 merely a continuation of that previously recorded. 



OKNAIIENTAI, DEP.\ET3IENT. 



Both out of doors and in-doors we have been very busy; 

 moving plants and placing Azaleas and other plants in a cool 

 corridor fronted with glass, as we expect but little frost now. 

 We have not moved Calceolarias as yet, but exposed them 

 during the day. Single Violets are now scarce, but the Nea- 

 politan are taking their place well. Moved Pelargoniums in 

 bloom to the conservatory to take the place of Azaleas, &a. 

 Proceeded with potting and propagating, and commenced clip- 

 ping Box edgings. We have done this with a scythe, but this 

 mode requires a man with a fine eye and a firm wrist, whilst 

 almost any good workman can do the work well with a pair of 

 shears and garden line stretched along the centre of the Box, 

 and clipping the two sides first. There is something charming 

 in Box well kept. But for the pressure of work next month, 

 we would have deferred the clipping for a month, as the Bos 

 will look brown if we have much frost. Slate and the black 

 metallic tiles are, however, better than Box for edgings in 

 many cases, as after being put down they need no attention. 

 — K." F. 



TRADE CATALOGUE RECER'ED. 



Charles Turner, Royal Nurseries, Slough. — General Spring 

 Catalogue for 1869. 



