208 



JOURNAL OF HOKTICULTUBE AND COTIAGK GARDENKB. 



[ Ai.ril 29, 16€9. 



TO CORRESPONDENTS. 



•.♦ We reijiiest (hat no one will write piivately to the depart- 

 mentiil wiittrsof the "Jourfial of lluiliciiliiiri', OoUsge 

 GarJeuer, anJ Cuuutiy Gfeulieniau." By bo doing llity 

 are eul.jected to unjusiiUaljle trouble auu expense. All 

 commuQicatiuns i-liuuld therefore be addressed solely to 

 The Editors of the Journal of lIoiticullHre, ifc, 171, 1'lccl 

 Street, London, K.C. 



We also request that corresponJonls will not luii up on the 

 fame sheet qusBt:on» lel^iling to Gardening and those on 

 K'ultry and Bee subjects, it -.h^y exptct to get ihtm au- 

 twered promptly and cuuvcnieni)y, tut write them en 

 separate commuLiuaiions. Also never to send mure than 

 tsvo or three questions at on«e. 



H.C — Many questioca mast remain unanswered until next 

 week. 



Mildew on Hoses (W. J. V. 11:).—" It is fiiiucult to prescriiie -ftithout 

 eeciny tlie i>:ilieiit3 and kiiuwiny laoro circumstances i linn aro usually 

 comniuuicated. rjildow, or more propeily v.hito luugus, may proceed 

 from the roots througti (ho ciicnliitiou ; or it m^iy bo deposited on the 

 leaves from without. I tliiuk rotten v.ood and fre;-li horse mnnure placed 

 nejt tlie roots may bo conducive to mibleiv through the circulation. Still 

 weather is favourable to its development. The spores are s-.lways in 

 existence and ready to devo ope themselves on suitable leaves ia suitable 

 weather. I lost last year a noble wall-tree of Triomphe rte Kenrics, 12 feet 

 high, by mildew. From head to foot, as soon as a leal appeared, it was 

 white as snow. I determined to strip the tree of leaves, for an experi- 

 ment, as often as the mildew appeared, hut the noble tree died in the 

 middle of summer. I believe the mildew proceeded from the roots. It 

 mildew is from without, you had better try S oas ol blue vitriol dissolved 

 m hot water, and then added to three gBllons of cold water. Probably 

 this, if the tree bo w^ell syringed with it, msy stop it. I advise rosariaus 

 to kill at onco aphides, and also remove leaves that bavo Ijlutches of 

 orange fungus. By timely attention to this it is suiprisiog how much 

 annoyance is escaped.— W.F. lUDcr-VFi-E." 



Makj.chal Niel Kobe not Floweking (T.),— " Take up your Mariehal 

 JJ^el Rose from the open border and plant it against a soutU wall. It is a 

 Cloth of Gold. When you plant it against the wall sink under its roots 

 somo cobbles to insure free drainage. Then covertlio roots with one third 

 each of loam, ashes, and decayed in:;nuro. It wants littlo or no pruning. 

 I bought a number of plants ; four of them grew like Poplars and will 

 soon bloom finely, some I gave away, and the others, though treated in 

 the same way, made no growth at all.— W. V. K.idclyffe.'' 



CoKTRiBCTioNs (C. /fO'.iiiev).— Wc Shall readily receive any communi- 

 cations from you, and there will be no charge. 



Tacsonia Van-Volxemi (Comet).— 11 was introduced into Belgium in 

 1858, by M. Van-Volxem, who found it in a garden at Bogota. 



Ekadicatikg Daisies {A. It. i/.).— There is no other mode than em- 

 ploying women armed ivith knives, to scoop out each plant; tho knives 

 should be thrust down to the extremities ol the roots. A little earth to 

 hit up the cavities thus made in the turf, and a spiinUling of Sucklini; 

 seed on the surface of the earth, will bo a speedy ana efieclive proceeding. 



SlopprNG CaRYSAKTHEMDJiS (St. B,i(iUl'.—YoKr plants are already too 

 tall without being stopped. Wo should stop or take oil' their tops at 

 6 inches now, and you may continue to stop Ihein until July, removing 

 all suckers as they appear, and training the plants with a single stem. 



CoaposT FOR Mignonette (Mem).— Two-thirds light fibrous loam, and 

 one-third leaf mould or old cow dung, with a free admixture of silver 

 sand, will grow it in pots well. The compost should be torn in pieces 

 with the hand, and made rather fine bnt not sifted. Provide good drain- 

 age, and to keep tho soil open, one-sixth of charcoal in pieces from the 

 size of a pi a up to that of a hazel nut may be added. 



Flower G.irden Planting (A Parson's IFiYf). — Either aiTangement 

 would look well, but we decidedly prefer No. 1. (C. J. Anchy).—Vle 

 think your planting good. 



Drops Round Vine Leaves (H. A. J3.).— Tfc heavy dewdrops hanging 

 on the points of the leaves of the Black Alicante Vino aro a good 

 sign rather than otherwise, proving, first, that the Vine is robust and 

 healthy ; and secondly, that yon have a moist atmosphere in the honse, 

 and thus tho small points of the leaf becoming-cold, condense the mois- 

 ture in tho atmosphere. It will not remain on tho leaf until midday 

 generally, if you give air early in the morning. 



Vine Laterals Irregular (iJt-orfcr) — If you are very particular in 

 having the spurs on your Vine short, regular, and alternate— first on one 

 ™j "■"* tben on the other— a bud or graft could be placed on the faulty 

 side before the sap rises. Provided there are plenty of buds or spurs, 

 we consider it of little importance, as tho young shoot can easily, if carc- 

 Jully done, be trained on eithL-r side of the main stew. F'or regularity, 

 you may leave shoots that do not show fruit ; ihey will most likely do so 

 when cut back in the following year, but let them grow four or live joints 

 before stopping them, instiad of one or two. 'We generally nip out the 

 points of btaring side shoots at a couple of joints beyond tho bunch ; 

 tins causes less stoppage to growth than taking more away at a future 

 time. We merely nip out tho terminal bud. 



Insects on Peach Trees (F. lUl.- The little insects of which you 

 lound a considerable number on your Peach ireesaro a minute species 

 of false scorpions (Obisium sp.), they feed upon still more minute insects 

 and are consequently beneficial to the trees rather than otherwise.- W. 



Destroying Plantain (I. N. C. /■.).— There is no other mode of de- 

 stroying the Plantain in your field than by uprooting each with a spud • 

 and the spud should bo thrnst in deep. Two or thiee women would soon 

 eiear an acre. 



Renovating Sea-kale Beds (If. H.).— We should think the bed worn 

 out, and advise a new bed being made. You may divide the crowns if 

 too thick and too high above ground, planting them afresh, but they 

 would not sncceed so well as young plants, which we would plant next 

 February or March, leaving the old stools as they are, to give you a 



supply next yeir. and when the crop in cut destroy them. The gronnd 

 for tho new plautatsim should ^o dug or trenched 'J fee*, deep, and woU 

 pulverised, mixicg witli it a large proportion of well-rottcil manure, 

 leaf mo!ild, and sand, adding the last very libtrallv if the soil ia at aii 

 heavy. If hot dnnij or litter his not been used for bbiuching, the 

 gniuud of the old plnntatioa shoaM bo manured in spiing alter the crop 

 has been cut and tho Manching material removed, poiuting it neatly in 

 with a fork ; but if dung is used for fovciog it will only bo necessatv to 

 remove the strawy p»rt, pointing the rest neatly in with a fork. A sprinli- 

 1°^ V; f"'' """^ '" Si''"'n when the ground is pointed over. The plants 

 shou d be allowed to gi-owaa freolvas thev will during summer, eucour.!B- 

 ing then- with plentiful sniiniies o: lionid manure ; bat the flower stalks 

 s'lould be removed as .«oou as they api)e::r, cutliua them i.tf to tbe lowest 

 lea-ves. 



MEr.oNS ( ). — Tlie middle or end of May is ns soon as we expect to., 



cut Melons from dung (i-ames. The cold weather of M-'.rcb would retard 

 the growth of the plants for a fortnight or three weeks ; hut so much 

 depends on circumstances. Unit it is difficult to state correctly when 

 Melons may be expected from dung licds. Full instructions for Melou 

 culture were given in vols. G, 7, and «, New Scries. 



Remctikg A6PARACU.5 AT JIinsuj!:;ir.H (A Co::,t<inl j;.-n,,Vri.— .isparafins 

 may bo safely removed st midsaninier, if taken up cavefullv with as much 

 soil as possible about tho roots. These should not he exposed to sun and 

 air more than is unsvoidub'e. Afler planting give a good watering, and 

 continue to water in dry weather til! tbe end of August. 



BcDDixo THE Apple, Plum, Cheery, .\pricot, ani. Pear (J. n. D.). 

 —They sho-jld bo budded at the end of Jtiuc or beginning of July, when 

 the buds are well formed in tbe axils of the loaves, and tho sop runs 

 freely. Tho operation is performed in the same war os tho budding ot 

 Roses, bnt on the main stem at tho height required. 'Tho stocks planted 

 in January may bo budded this year, and if tbe buds Jail, graited next 

 spring. 



Select Dahlias (Idem).— Show : Eoval Robo, Paradise Williams, 

 Fanny Pui ck.i.so, Beauty of Hilpertou, Madgo Wildfire, George Wheeler, 

 Lord Lyon. Vice-President, Waxwork, Starlight, Vanguard, Princess of 

 Wales. Lord Dundreary, Criterion, Herbert, l-'lossv Gill, Clara Simons, 

 Harriet Tetterell, James Backhouse, Ladv Jano' Eliis, Stella Colas, 

 Beacon, and John Sladden. Fancy: Butterfly, Mrs. Charles Koan, 

 Startler, Peeress, Nora Crcina, John Salter, Flambeau, Bessie Wyott, 

 airs. Godwin, Magpie, Gem, and Pluto. 



Select Verbena9 (Kem>.— Lady Broughton, Velvet Mantle, SliaUee- 

 peare, Constance, Interesting, llisi Turner, Iteine des Roses, La Grand 

 Boule de Neige, Mrs. Dcau, Attraction, Champion, and Harry Law. 



M.wagemekt of Vines in Pots (If. , r.).— The shoots .should bo stopped 

 at tho leaf above the fruit, and the laterals oupht to be pinched at tho 

 first leaf, or if tho Vines have not enough of foliage stop them at the se- 

 cond leaf, and then to one leaf or joint attcrwMds. Tho best top-dress- 

 ing for Vines in pots or borders is equal quantities of loam from a pasture 

 pared off an inch thick, and sheep droppings, or horse droppings free of 

 straw, laid up for three months, and chopped up. adding one-fourth half- 

 inch bones, one-sixLh calcined oyster shells, and one-sixth charcoal, tho 

 whole well mixe 1. You may use instead, loam, cow duug, and hotbed 

 manure in equal parts, and top-dress therewith onco a month after the 

 Vines are in leaf, until the berries attain thcirfuU sizopicvious to chang- 

 ing colour A good manure for placing in tho evaporation troughs is 

 formed of gnano, 4 lbs to 20 gallons nf water, and if used for sprinkUngthe 

 paths, 4 lbs. to 30 gallons will be sufficiently strong. 



Mandevilla suaveolens (Hf m). — We do not think vour teeuling 

 SOinches high will flower this year. Encourage its gcowtli so as to form 

 a good plant, and it will no doubt reward you well next year. It is one 

 of the best greenhouse climbers. 



LiLiuM LONoirLonuji Culture (D. JT.).- The only plan that we know 

 to obtain more bloom is to remove tho offsets in October, and pot none 

 bnt the largest bulbs, disturbing them as little as possible. Pot the off- 

 sets singly or two or three ia a put, and select tho stronjtest every autumn. 

 The treatment does not difl'er materially f.-omtbat of other Liliums, only 

 in pottiug, the bulbs should nut be disturbed more than can be helped, 

 and the soil ought, not to be aUowed to become dry at anv time. Keep tbe 

 bulbs cool in winter. 



Peach Trees in House Unfrhitfol (Edge Hill).— One thing seems 

 to militate against your theory of impure and smoky air preventing your 

 Peach trees fruiting, and that is the healthy appearance of the trees, and 

 their freedom from all insects last season. V/here, as you sny, the Rose 

 will not live in smoke, we have found Peach trees insect-infested. Wo 

 were thinking thtit the trees might be too robust to have their wood well 

 ripened, but that idea is dispelled by the fact that they bad been re- 

 planted only two ye-i.rs ago. Is it possible that the trees might have 

 been over-dressed with the composition in autnmn V If not, then under 

 the circumstances, and especially as the trees have not been fruitful for 

 years, we must attribute it to the gas, smoke, &c., of the locality. If so, 

 the only remedy we can think of, is to have good large ventilators, and 

 cover these ventilators with close-wove woollen netting, or rather open 

 muslin, washing them as they become dirty, so as to let air in and keep 

 soot out. We know that such soot will clog up the anthers. When we 

 were in London, we could have plenty of Pear blossom, but scarcely any 

 fruit, but we obtained good crops of Apples, and the reason seemed to UB 

 to bo, that the Apples bloomed later when the air was less smoky. We 

 could grow stove plants better than greenhouse plants, because less air 

 was admitted. Try sitting the air. 



Saving Caeeaoe Seed (Hob Hoy).— It is usual to sow the seed now. 

 plant out the young plants when large enough, and allow them to seed in 

 the following year, which is to all intents the treatment of biennials 

 —sown this year they flower and seed the next. Some cut off the heart 

 or Cabbage and transplant, and some sow in August, plant out in spring, 

 cut the heart or Cabbage in the ordinary way, and transplant in antumn, 

 allowing the plants to run to seed. Our opinion ia that the former is as 

 good a plan as the latter, but we defer to the opinion of seed-growers, who 

 have very obvious reasons for keeping up a supply of tho true stock. We 

 should be obliged by tho opinions of others on tho subject. Couve 

 Tronchuda should be treated in the tame way, but requires a warm situa- 

 tion.— G. A, 



Scotch Kale (Corre4pondent).~'Vle do not know any Highlander wlio 

 would supply seed. 



