February 20, 18i'8. ] 



JOUKNAIi OP HOHTIUULTOBE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



157 



ViNF. Eyfs FAii.iNt.1 (An Auriou.t Inquirer).— To root suceossfiilly tlioy 

 mnnt lie pat in bcforp the time yr)u namo, niid have bottom heiit. We 

 Bboiild attril>ntc t!ic fnilure to their boiiiK put in hitc, nnd to a i\ct\cicncy 

 of beat. We would n.Jviso you to ti-y euttiuK-J witliout, loss of time. If 

 vou ran hnve n hotbed put in eyes now, nnd i)hingo the pots ia it, and 

 then wo think you will bo successful. 



Api'i,k Ti:f.k Tkainish (/dcml.— To form pyramids, you should in 

 ai.iiinin hoaddowu tlie tree ffriftcd in spriuR to within 12 inches of the 

 pl-ice where it ispniftt-d. Trom the shoot thus cut back eeveral shoots 

 will proceed ; triiiu the uppermost erect, and allow the others to grow ; 

 but if disposed to rvow ereet they siiould he tied down, and so as not to 

 have all the ^liootson one side of the tree, hot equally disposed all round. 

 In tyinn be t-ireful not to break the yount; shoots. When the lea<ler has 

 j^-own 12 inelies you may take out its point at that height, nud it will push 

 ajiaiu. In September tbo side .''hoots, if they are more than 1 foot in 

 len-th. may bo shortened to tlmt; but shoots of less lensth than 12 inches 

 should not in any way be interfered with beyond tyiufi them do« u so thnl 

 they will appear "to proceed from the stem nearly horizontally, but with 

 then* ends iiiclinint:; upwards at an anfjlc of about -15-. In nutuuin, after 

 the leaves have f.iUen, cat back the leader to 12 inches if it has made 

 more than thai lenslb of fresh growth since it was stopped in summer, 

 otherwiso it must not be cut back, but in the summer foUowiuf; the lender 

 must be stopped when it has grown 12 iuches above the last side shoot. 

 liy the above process you will Ohtain ample side shoots for a well-shaped 

 tree, caro being taken'to train them judiciously with nn eye to the pro- 

 ducing of a true well b.ilanccd as retjards its shnpe from whatever point 

 it be viewed. You must not rub off the blossom buds on the central shoot 

 or loader, but leave them, and let them fruit, taking care not to allow too 

 many fruit to remain upon a tree. Half a dozen will bo ample, hut not 

 too many. If your trees have no side shoots beyond one here nnd there, 

 your best plan' will be to head the central shoot back to a wood bud 

 12 inches above the place where there is a sufficiency of side shoots, and 

 proceed as stated above. 



MusA Sdckeu f.VHtn).— You may with safety to the parent plnnt remove 

 the sucker 3 feet high, and instead of its injuring the old plant it will 

 contribute to its vigour. In taking off the sucker be careful not to injure 

 the roots of the old plant, but take awny as much soil ns you c;tn. so as to 

 remove the suekcr with some roots, and without breaking it ; forcibly and 

 sharjily pulk-d, it will Knap off at the surface like a carrot. The sucker 

 should be potted, and if possible give it the benefit of a mild hotbed, 

 otherwise it will succeed in a house with a brisk heat and a moist atmo- 

 ephere. The sucker may fruit in two years, more or less according to 

 treatment; the old plant should fruit within twelvemonths, 



Asparagus Ccltcbe (C H. S.).— The culture of blanched Aspnrigus, 

 such as the French send to market, is treated of in page 45, and instruc- 

 tions are given for preparing and plantiug tbo beds in page 22 of our 

 present volume, and pages 440 and 441, No. 350, of our last volume. 



Frasie Lining (LiTtoramus).— Instead of an outer wood frame to keep 

 up the litter, we would advise a hole to be made 2 feet wider than the 

 frame all round, and 2 feet inches deep, and then to run a 4t-inch wall 

 all round up to the ground line. You can then make your byd for the 

 frame, leaving for a lining a cavity all round, which can be filled at will 

 or as required, and as it sinks it may be added to. Wood is too liable to 

 decay to be used where bricks can with greater advantage be employed. 



Pruning (S. D. R.).— You should not lase any time in pruning the 

 Gooseberry bu?be?. and all kinds of fruit trees should be pruned at once, 

 and completed as soon as possible. The Gooseberries, having been much 

 neglected, we presume are very full of wood, which we would advise your 

 thinning well out, cutting all the side shoots on the branches left to 

 within an inch of their base, and reducing the terminal shoot of each 

 brunch two-thirds its length "Fruit Gardening for the Many" would 

 suit you. Yuu may have it free by post from our office if you send five 

 postage stamps with your address. 



Peach Trees for South Wall (I<Z^m1.— Three good Peaches are Early 

 York, Grosse Mignonne.and Barrington. In ordering the trees we should 

 state that we required good, dwarf, fan-trained trees of the sorts named, 

 and to be two or three years trained, clean, and healthy. We would ad- 

 vise fab-trained. We recommend short priming— i.e., summer-pruning 

 lor the Peach. Y'ou may practise short pruning on all your old Peach 

 trees with advantage, thinning out the old branches, and leaving the best 

 of the yoang shoots for training in their place if necessary. 



Plums and Pears (IJcm).— Three good Plums : Jefferson, Coe's Golden 

 Drop, and Green Gage. Two Pears: Marie I*ouise, and Glou Mori,-cau. 

 The old Plam trees we would not cut down, and you must not cut back 

 the old spurs to within a short distance of the branch whence they 

 proceed, uiilfss you leave some young wood below the point where cut. 

 We would thin the spurs and shorten them to some extent, leaving, how- 

 ever, a number close to the branch, and always a gi'owing point or shoot, 

 though short, bcluw the pruning. If the trees are worn out replace 

 them with others. You may cut back CuiTant bushes against a wall ; 

 but you must do it to where there is a young shoot, or young wood to 

 furnish a shoot or shoots to train in place of the one removed. 



Forming a Hotbed over a Flue {Subgc.riber).—YouT chance of strik- 

 ing outtings in pans placed over the flue would be small, but you might 

 have a box made to place upon it, say 2 feet wide, 15 inches di;cp, and of 

 any convenient leufith, and cover this with a glazed light, hinged .it the 

 back, so as to be easily raised. This box we have uo doubt would answer 

 well, indeed we have used such with good results. If the flue is hot at 

 the part where the box is to be fixed, a flagstone ahouhl be placed beneath 

 the latter; or if the box is too wide for the flue, you may place it upon 

 slates or flags. At the bottom of the bos, you may put from 4 to 6 inches of 

 stones on pieces of bricks or crocks, and cover them with a thin layer of 

 moss or cocoa-nut fibre, and then with 4 inches or so of sawdust or other 

 loose materials wherein the cutting pots or pans can be plunged. In a 

 day or two the box will be ready for the cuttings, and these being inserted 

 the Hght may be closed, and the atmosphere of the box kept close and 

 moist. With shade from bright sun you will have well-rooted cuttings of 

 Vcrb»2nas in a fortnight, and of bedding Pelargoniums in from three weeks 

 to a month. A little air should be given if necessary, to keep them from 

 dampiug-off, and to regulate the temperature, which maybe from 65 to 'iS\ 



Primulas fW'Tm).— Primulas should be kept moist, but they ought to 

 require water before any is given, and then affurd a good supply, and 

 before they flag. As a rule they should be kept rather dry in winter, but 



still the soil should be moi^t enough in ivj-ouu-te a healthy slow growth. 

 They succeed admirably in a eoul airy greenhouse, having a nigltt 

 temperature of from 40 to 45 iu winter, and should be kept near the 

 ghiss, and not bo watered ovetlicad. A compost of one-lmlf turfy light 

 loam, one-fourth sandy peat, nnd one-fourlh leaf mctuld, with one-sixth 

 silver sand will grow them well. Tbe leavi-s rotted from being frequently 

 wetted in watering, and ultimately the plant from tbo same cauKC. They 

 are liable to do so. Y'ou may prt-VLut it to a considerable extent, by 

 placing pieces of sandstone from the fi/.e of a hnzfl nut, up to that ol it 

 small walnut, upon tbe surface of the soil iu which tlie plant is growing, 

 and close to the collar, making thtni qnite level with the rim of the pot, 

 or slightly raising them above it. 



Ants in Greenhouse (.4. A. 3'.).— You may drive them away by sprink- 

 ling guano over their haunts, or poison them with arsenic nnd honey, 

 mixed in equal parts, and placed thinly iu saucers. Care should be takeu 

 to keep the paste out of the reach of animals. 



Treatment of Vines in Pots for Fruiting (OW Sh Writer, D»f'^trt)» 

 —You would see much ia recent numbers, and iu "Doings of the Last 

 Week *' as to the treatment necessary for fresh-potted trees when 

 thev are wanted to fruit the same season. In your case, and as you can 

 f^ive no .artificial heat, we would advise you to lot the Vines remain in 

 the same 11-inch pots, nnd to set the pots, after enlarging the hole at the 

 bottom, into larger pots, with rich compost at the bottom and between 

 the pots, or if you did not mind moving the plants when in fruit, to set 

 the pots in rich compost on the pronnd floor of the vinery. You will 

 thus gain all the advantage of repotting without tlie checlis and the risks 

 that aceompany it. Eve^'thing that fruits in pots docs so best when the 

 earth in tlie pot is full of roots. In the case of your Vines, make up your 

 mind that if you obtain a good crop from them it will be the only crop 

 they will bear. As these canes are strong and 6 feet long, we would not 

 shorten them at all, but would fasten three or four sticks in the pot and 

 twist the canes round them, which will cause the Vines to break more 

 regularly. As there is no heat in tbe place, you can do little more tb.iu 

 supply with rich watering.';, give air as needed, thin the Grapes when 

 set, and attend to air-giviiig, allowing them to have no suddeu 

 changes. 



Fruiting Young Vines (Adam). — We would not advise you to take any 

 except a small bunch fi'om Vines raised from eyes and planted out la-t 

 autumn. If you were to plant out those you have now bought, we would 

 advise the same caution to be exercised, or if you obtained more and 

 planted them we would advise the same. You may fruit the strong Vines 

 in 11-inch pots, and take what you can from them ; but if they bear a 

 crop we would not advise you to think of planting them out then for 

 future service. Y"ou cauuot take a crop from such a young cane, and yet 

 make it of much service afterwards without u loss of time that would 

 make a young Vine better in every way. 



Plants for a Window with a Northern Aspect (H. B. Leed?).— 

 Plants require much care to make them succeed in a northern aspect. 

 Such bulbs as Snowdrops. Crocuses, and SciUas do well in \rinter and 

 spring, and so do Chinese Primulas. ^All floweriug plants will keep 

 longer in bloom there, but it is not so ea'sy to induce plants to come iu 

 bloom in a north window. We would recommend instead such sweet- 

 scented plants as Aloysia citriodora, and the sweet Oak-leaved Pelav- 

 gouiums, and variegated-leaved plants, as the variegated Cobiea, or the 

 tiner variegated Ivies, which are very beautiful. 



.Twelve Greenhouse Plants to Flower in June (yl Constant Sub- 

 scriber . — The following hardwooded plants will bloom in June; their 

 being in perfection on tbe 24th of that month will depend on the manage- 

 ment:— Boronia deuticulata, B. serrulata, Crowea saligna, Pimelea Hen- 

 dersoni or rosea, Hovea longifolia or Celsii. Polygala latifolia, Acacia 

 Drummondi, Daviesia latifolia, CoiTca speeiosa and others, Eossisea 

 tenuifolia, Lescheuaultia formosa, and Platylobiiim ovatum. 



Six Greenhouse Bulbs to Flower in June (L/^m.)— For flowering 

 in the end of June, not to speak of Gladioli, not properly bulbs, of the 

 Colvilli and blandus group, we may mention the following :—Vallota 

 purpurea, Brunsvigia Josephin;e, Ciinum riparium, Nerine versicolor. 

 Pancratium canariense, and Cyrtanthus btriatus. 



Twelve Greenhouse Ferns (W/'ttO. — Adiantum capillus-Veuerih-, 

 A. pedatum, Aspleuium marinum, Blechnum hastatum, Cystopteris 

 tenuis, Davallia canariensis, Gleiehenia dicarpa, Hymenophyllum dila- 

 tatum, Lomaria Fraseri, Onychium lucidum. Pteris sen'ulata, and Tri- 

 chomanes radicans. These are mostly ^mall but beautiful. 



Arnott's Stove {II. C. T.).— We do not quite understand your inquiry. 

 An Arnott's stove of brick 2 feet 10 inches square, >i feet 10 inches high, 

 with a firebox of 10 inches square, and as much in depth, made with fire- 

 bricks, would heat your house 45 feet by 12 sufficiently to keep out frost j 

 but you speak of an Arnott's boiler. If the circumstances suited, you 

 might have in the house a small Arnott's stove 2 feet 4 inches in height, 

 and fed from the outside, and have fixed on the top one of Mr. Hughes's 

 boilers 10 inches square, which is 4 inches deep at the sides, and 2 inches 

 where concave in the middle, and with socket joints for S-inch pipes. 

 This or any small saddle boiler with a common furnace will heat your 

 house ; and to keep out frost you would need at least 40 feet of 3-inch 

 pipes, and 50 more if you intended to force. By the Arnott's stove in the 

 bouse, !lnd the small flat boiler used by Mr. Rivers, you may heat the 

 house without making stokeholes, &c , outside. Tbe chief point is, that 

 you must avoid above 18 inches iu length of a horizontal smoke pipe. 



Planting a Flower Bed {C. W. 31.).— Vou do not say what tbe size 

 of your oval bed is. but the ftdlowing will look well in double or single 

 bLiiids, beginning at the eircumffcrtnce :— Cerastium, blue Lobelia. Aurea 

 liHribuuda Calceolaria, dwarf Scarlet Pelargonium, such as Little David, 

 ('jneraria maritima. or Centaurea caiididissima ; and the centre Coleus, 

 Amaranthus, or Perilla. The Coleus will be best if it thrives in the plflce. 

 A -qilcndid bed at Wobm-n was filled with Coleus and edged with Cine- 

 raria maritima. 



Grafting Manetti Hose STorns [Idem). — If we were to graft Manetti 

 stocks now, we would take them up out of the ground, cut the stems so 

 low down that they would be under the soil in the pot, and graft before 

 potting. The union would be sooner eft'ectcd if the pot were set in a 

 close place, or plunged in a very gentle hotbed. This will answer the 

 tbird inquiry as to how much of the stock shonlil he left above the pot — 

 namely, as little as possible ; and also the toiu'tli inquiiy, as to starting 

 the stock, in heat first, as what would be gained by doing so would he 



