Angnst 20, 1868. ] 



JOURNAL OF nORTIODLTURB AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



135 



will aoon become too large, and take some yeara before they 

 are fit to appear in a good conservatory. Another groat ad- 

 vantage is that as soon as theao plants are established in the 

 new pots they will require only to be kept in that condition 

 throughout the winter, and therefore will not require more 

 than 50° of heat for three or four months. 



riTS AND FRAIIES. 



There are many of the new Verbenas that will force admir- 

 ably through the winter with a little heat ; this is the time to 

 procure a supply for the purpose. The Veronicas force well 

 for early spring, and although nearly hardy will stand as much 

 heat as Ixoras. Pentas carnea and JIauettia bicolor will 

 answer likewise, and all lovers of the lovely Chinese Azaleas 

 who can afford it ought to have the new varieties of them. 

 The old Luculia is as much sought after as if it were a plant of 

 recent introduction. It flowers freely in loam, but for pot cul- 

 tivation and, by beginners, hardly any loam should bo used. 

 Equal quantities of good leaf mould, peat, and sand will keep 

 it in good condition for many years. — W. Ivkane. 



DOINGS OF THE LAST WEEK. 



We have since writing last ha several refreshing showers 

 not enough to wet our much-dried soil, but enough to refresh 

 the foliage and cool the atmosphere, doing gi-eat good to Dwarf 

 Kidney Beans and Scarlet Eunners, and enabUng us to sow 

 Turnips, and plant out young plants and Cauliflowers with 

 better prospects of success. But for the dread fly we might go 

 on better, but that has sadly riddled all our young plants, ex- 

 cept the last or rather the first sowing of Cabbages, which was 

 protected until the showers came with old sashes. The fly has 

 made such a wreck of some crops, that we dug down several 

 pieces of Tuniijis, as there was not enough of green foliage to 

 feed the roots, and planted with Lettuces and Endive. In 

 sowing the Turnips the ground was still so dry that we drew 

 drills and soaked the rows before sowing, and if untouched by 

 the fly and other enemies the crop will yet be useful. 



We find that, contrary to expectation, many fields sown with 

 Turnips, and which have looked like a desert for the last six 

 weeks or two months, are now showing plenty of young plants. 

 Some farmers are becoming convinced almost against their 

 will, that even the quickly-germinating Turnip seed may re- 

 main a long time safe in tho ground if not presented with a 

 sufficiency of moisture to swell it, and thus induce the first pro- 

 cesses of germination. Early-sown Turnips have less chance 

 of coming up now. as there was then almost enough of moisture 

 to cause them to germinate, though not enougli to give them 

 strength to show themselves much, and if they did appear the 

 fly pounced on them and had them at once. Even green tops 

 without large tubers will be a blessing. It is disheartening to 

 manure land well and obtain nothing in return. Could Wheat 

 be sown on the land intended for Turnips, the crops next season 

 might be expected to ba better than those of this season, for 

 the quantity and qudity of which in general we have reason 

 to be grateful. There is a vast amount of happiness within 

 the reach of the man who has learned to look on the bright 

 side of all things. 



The work in the kitchen garden has been so much a repeti- 

 tion of that performed in previous weeks, and doing what the 

 weather would allow us to do, that we shall advert to two 

 things as connected with the prime necessity of water in 

 gardening. 



One of our best kitchen gardeners, even though not destitute 

 of water supply, but having it in abundance, was forced to 

 come to tho conclusion that watering as generally practised 

 was next to useless. The fly having been more merciful to 

 him than some of his neighbours, he had better and stronger 

 plants of winter vegetables than were common in his neigh- 

 bourhood, and anxious to get them into the ground occupied 

 by Peas, &c., he did not wait to dig or trench, but marking out 

 the rows, made holes with a crowbar the day previously, and 

 filled them with water, which softened and mellowed the 

 ground a little round the holes. The plants were put in firmly 

 in the usual way and watered again, and then left to them- 

 selves. He insists there is no better plan of obtaining fine 

 Broccoli, &o., than planting them in this manner, as the roots 

 deUght to penetrate into soil that rather resists their progress. 

 We could bring to our recollection many facts as corroborative 

 of this. What say some of our more experienced practical 

 men ? We never thought of the matter much before, but it is 

 just possible that we may stir the soil too much for some kinds 



of autumn-planted crops. We are aware that for putting 

 leggy vegetables well into the ground in such a season as this, 

 tho crowbar will bo a great assistant. 



In order to give somewhat stunted Cauliflowers a better 

 chance, we will prick them out before transplanting into rich 

 soil, leaf mould, &c., and then plant with tho trowel. 



The other matter we would refer to is the means of securing 

 a icaler stipply for garden and farm purposes. We have fre- 

 quently alluded to saving all water that comes from clean 

 roofs, and adverted last week to the best means for conveying 

 that to reservoirs. We also instanced cases where water was 

 very scarce, and had been made plentiful by taking the drain- 

 ago of parks aud fields into large reservoirs. We have just been 

 told of a simple yet most eilective mode of securing a good 

 supply of water. A mercantile firm had a brickmaking yard 

 as part of their business, and this being situated on rather high 

 ground, the procuring and carrying of water in summer cost 

 them between £100 and Ju'iOd. They no doubt calculated how 

 many inches of rain fell in a season on a given spot in ordinary 

 years, and on these data they proceeded to secure water in an 

 economical manner. They set apart half an acre of ground, 

 had it levelled and firmed, with a regular descent to one end, 

 and at this end they dug out a pond or reservoir. The ground 

 was roughly asphalted with coal tar and gravel, and left with a 

 smooth surface through which tho water would not percolate. 

 The sides of the reservoir, sloping obliquely so as to stand 

 well, were first puddled with its own clay, and then covered 

 with a home-made asphalt of tar and gravel ; and during the 

 whole of this hot summer the water collected on that half-acre 

 of ground has kept the firm well supplied. Our informant stated 

 the rough asphalting did not cost much, and therefore we 

 cannot say how much the outlay would be for tar, gravel, and 

 labour ; but these once secured, the annual outlay for a good 

 supply of water would only be 15s., the usual rental of land being 

 oOii. per acre. 



It would be some time before water thus collected would be 

 fit for gardening purposes in-doors, or even for the supply o£ 

 cattle, but the effects of the tar might be much modified by a, 

 rough concreting on the surface, or even by a slight surfacing 

 of fine gravel firmly rolled. Even from that amount of ground 

 well levelled, sloped, aud gravelled, with a little powdered limo 

 or fine clay mixed with it, and firmly rolled when wet, a great 

 quantity of water could be obtained without any unpleasant 

 taint whatever, as we know from one of our reservoirs, which 

 is chiefly supplied from what falls on a piece of hard road, 

 which we had levelled to suit our purpose. The simple fact of 

 this brickfield may serve in many ways as a hint to gardeners 

 and farmers. We would havo passed an easier summer had 

 we had such a reservoir to fall back upon, as even a little tar 

 scent would do little or no harm to plants out of doors, whilst 

 it would keep grubs and other enemies at a distance. A farmer 

 who keeps a large head of stock has his chief reservoirs o£ 

 water supplied from what falls on a neighbouring road, and he 

 could easily have much more if the water did not overflow into 

 the adjacent ditches. What would be the expense to him of 

 the loss of half an acre, or even an acre of ground, and the 

 rough-forming of a larger reservoir, compared with the pound 

 a-day which it has cost him for months in driving water three 

 miles or so from his homestead ? 



FKUIT GAEDEN. 



The work has been much the same as in previous weeks. 

 Apples are swelling better than we expected, though some con- 

 tinue to fall before they are ripe. Wasps and flies have not 

 troubled us much as yet, and all nests known have been taken. 

 The gauze netting has kept them out of our orchard houses, 

 and until we can exclude them thoroughly we give little front 

 air to our vineries. 



Most of our dwarf fruit trees have been deprived of super- 

 fluous shoots, as now the chief things are to let the sun to the 

 fruit, and sun and air to the wood and buds for next season. 

 There is more danger of having too much than too little. In 

 thinning it is a mistake to leave Apples and Pears too much 

 exposed. It is apt in such a season as this to render them hard 

 and dry, and if sweet, rather sweet than juicy. Even as respects 

 Peaches and Nectarines, a little shade from leaves is rather in 

 their favour until they are swelling freely and beginning to 

 colour, when the removing of laterals, placing leaves aside, 

 aud even cutting them in two so as to admit more light, does 

 much to give high colour and flavour. We have not rm- 

 frequently found, however, that a Noblesse comparatively 

 colourless from being slightly shaded was more rich in flavour 

 than one well coloured from full exposure to a bright sun. 



