August 13, 1868. ] 



JOURNAL OP HORTICULTUKE AND COTTAGE GABUENEB. 



117 



the bricks and joints into the earth. For securing as much as 

 possible of the water when necessary, it would be economi- 

 cal in the end to use hard bricks and cement joints, or larne, 

 hard-burned, glazed earthenware pipes with cement joints. For 

 clean water we would recommend largo metal, and, better still, 

 glass pipes ; but unless the pipes were large we would not re- 

 commend iron pipes for sewage, as when of small size they 

 soon become furred and closed up where^'er dish-washings and 

 soap water form a chief part of the sewage. 



In taking rain water from sheds and glass houses to a con- 

 siderable distance to tanks. Sec, nothing is better for carrying 

 the water underground than iron pipes cemented at the joints, 

 provided the pipes are deep enough to be beyond the reach of 

 frost. Next, we prefer hard-burned, strong, glazed earthen- 

 ware pipes, with Portland or Roman cement joints. Contrary 

 to our wish, we had a portion of such connecting piping below 

 the ground done with common earthenware drain pipes and 

 cement joints, but we know we lose a good deal of water by 

 them, as they become softer and more porous when laid in the 

 ground. These little matters become of considerable import- 

 ance when every gallon of water has its vaUie. From a similar 

 amount of hard surface, as slate or glass, there is a great dif- 

 ference in a heavy shower in the quantity of water that at 

 once reaches the tank when conveyed by such earthenware 

 pipes, as contrasted with iron or those that are hard and glazed. 



Tiles in proportion to their thickness, if not glazed, are bad 

 roofing when the rainfall is to be depended on. We have 

 known cottages roofed with tiler, the water falling on which 

 was conducted to tanks in order to serve for v/ater supply, and 

 unless in a very fast or continued rain hardly any water would 

 reach the tank, whilst from a similar roof slated the tank would 

 be nearly fiill. In drizzling rains soft tiles will absorb the rain 

 nearly as fast as it falls. 



Our turned-up ground in the kitchen garden has not been 

 wetted enough for general piirposes, but we have sown a piece 

 of Turnips, well soaking with the rain water the opened drills 

 before sowing. We also sowed a piece of Spinach in the same 

 way. We hope these sowings will do, as the weather promises 

 to be much cooler. We cannot say much for our success, 

 though adopting the same mode previously, and covering care- 

 fully, leaving dry soil on the surface, and even sprinkling with 

 a little litter to break the force of the sun's rays. The air 

 was so arid that in spite of everything it would suck up the 

 moisture, and what green leaves appeared were pounced upon 

 by myriads of tbe fly. We will follow with main crops of 

 Spinach, watering the rows before sowing, and will sow more 

 than usual, in ease Winter Greens should not be so large and 

 plentiful as in the generality of seasons. We will also make 

 our first sowing of Onions, and will sow more in a tort- 

 night, as these Onions when establisbed are nearly as inde- 

 pendent of a hot summer as a crop of Wheat sown in autumn. 

 Spring-sown Onions will not be of the usual size tbis season 

 in our district. We will water Coleworts with manure water 

 as soon as we can, and give a good position to more young 

 plants for winter and early spring supply. A fine lot of these 

 may be obtained by planting in rows a foot apart, and about 

 9 inches from each other in the row. 



We can only say what we should like to do with our main 

 plantations of Cabbages planted last autumn, and which, in 

 spite of tbe drought and heat, have furnished repeated cuttinga, 

 and that all the more from the larger lower leaves falling off, 

 and almost covering the ground, and thus so far arresting 

 radiation and evaporation. We would fork over the ground, 

 give a good soaking of sewage, and then cover tbe ground with 

 a mulching of half-rotten dung. Thus treated, we would have 

 good gatherings until the spring Cabbages came in ; and in 

 this district green vegetables will have their value during the 

 coming winter. Thus treated, old Cabbage stumps will yield a 

 supply as juicy and succulent as the best young Coleworts. As 

 previously stated, we have sown Lettuces, Endive, and tbe 

 Cabbage tribe under old sashes, as we very nearly lost them 

 all in the open air. Since the rain on Friday the dreaded 

 jumping fly has become more scarce. 



FKUIT DEPAETMENT. 



Wasps, as usual, have appeared in strength in August. Until 

 the beginning of tbe month we scarcely saw a single specimen 

 all the season. They were very small and thin at first. On 

 close investigation we never found so many nests, especially in 

 the pleasure ground, and the cracking of the turf gave thrm 

 great facilities fur burrowing, and this, combined with tbe hard- 

 nsBB of the ground, made it more difficult to dig them out and 



destroy the nesta. In most cases, when we did so, ws buried 

 a bottle with enticing liquid in it, leaving only the rim of the 

 mouth above ground. From some snch bottles we have since 

 plunging them taken a pint of wasps, and in others that had 

 become dry they had actually commenced forming cells for a 

 fresh habitation. 



One of our young men tried a simple mode, that would be 

 very useful where it would not bo convenient to dig out the 

 nests, which, however, well done, always leaves some wasps at 

 liberty, and these when deprived of a home are apt to be 

 more predatory than ever. The top of a haud-light was firmly 

 placed on the ground over the nest after dark, a plate with 

 burning sulphur was quickly shoved inside the glass next day, 

 and very shortly the myriads that filled the glass had finished 

 their existence. This repeated several times would destroy th'o 

 moat prolific community of wasps. 



As yet wasps have done little harm in the garden, but have 

 just begun to taste the ripest Peaches aud Nectarines in the 

 orchard house, but even there to a trifling extent. We were 

 forced to let them and armies of large flies have more than 

 their share last year, and we resolved to keep them under this 

 season. Oar front ventilators are of wood, aud we covered all 

 the openings with netted gauze, through which a fly of any size 

 could not pass. We had a little more trouble with the top 

 ventilators of glass, that are meiely hung by a screw on each 

 side, as a pivot, and which for such a purpose answers well 

 enough. To leave the ventilators when open we should have 

 to make a sort of bag of netted muslin for each ventilator, 

 which would take up a great deal more material, and occupy 

 time to do it. We therefore unscrewed aud took out all the 

 ventilators, and then covered the spaces with the gauze, using 

 a piece of common twine drawn tightly over the gauze, and 

 keeping it tight with a few tin tacks. The gauze lets plenty of 

 air through, and therefore all air-giving is now avoided. 



There will be plenty of lieat to ripen Peaches, Nectarines, 

 Plums, &c., as soon as we want them. Our only drawback is 

 as respects the Viues in one house. Leas air would have 

 enabled us to have ripened them earlier in the autumn ; but 

 when the Peaches, &o., are all gathered we can replace at least 

 a portion of the ventilators. This is tho penalty we must 

 pay at times for having so many things in one house. But for 

 keeping the Peaches back instead of forwarding them, the same 

 treatment would have suited both crops. Now tbe Grapes will 

 receive a little check to do what is desirable with the Peaches. 

 The second crop of Figs would have come on all the sooner in 

 a closer, warmer atmosphere at night. Before the rain of 

 Friday, which put a good many gallons in our tanks, we began 

 seriously to think that we should have to place a foot of litter 

 over all the pot plants in these houses, and cover the ground 

 in the later house to keep moisture in. This would not have 

 contrasted well with the heavily-loaded trees, and we are glad 

 that for the present we shall not be under any such necessity. 



All trees in pots from which the mulching had disappeared 

 were fresh mulched, and those who have never tried it would 

 be surprised to find how much this mulching saves watering, 

 whilst the water that reaches the roots is more fertilising. 

 Some people pretend to laugh at all surface-mulching and ma- 

 nuring. " Put the manure in the ground," say they, "if you 

 wish to see fine luxuriant results." One man told us not long 

 ago, " Why, you are as stupid as some of your farmers, who 

 cart out their manure on their land and allow the air to take 

 away its best properties for weeks, plough it in when as dry 

 as fresh-made hay, and then expect a tine crop of succulent 

 large-sized Turnips." Well, let them laugh who win. If 

 we wanted fine Turnips and huge Cabbages we would turn in 

 the well-made moist manure as soon ns possible, and grudge 

 every ounce the air took away ; but if we wanted masses of 

 bloom and plenty of fruit rather than over-luxuriant shoots 

 and foliage, then we would have our manurings near the sur- 

 face, even if the atmosphere should rob as of a little of its 

 fertilising influences. 



In tbe open air took a few hours to free our dwarf trees of 

 laterals and superfluous shoots, being rather behind in this 

 work. All spurs and shoots to bear next season should have 

 all the sun possible now. X gentleman complains that his 

 Peach trees grow vigorously, but he obtains little fruit, and no 

 wonder; his trees now are like a thicket, the summer shoots 

 luxuriant and weak, all standing out in bold relief from the 

 wall ; and he drags in our authority for his practice by tolling 

 us he read something to the effect that Fig trees did better 

 when allowed to grow somewhat naturally than when close- 

 trained to the wall ; and if this was the case with Fig trees. 



