March 12, 186P. ] 



JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



107 



WEEKLY CALENDAR. 



M.4ECH 12—18, 1868. 



Meet, of Royal and Zoolopicnl Societies. 

 Meetincr of Koyal Institution. 

 Royal Horticultural Society, First Spring 

 8 Sunday in Lent. [Show. 



Meeting of Entomoloffical Society. 

 R. Hort. Soc , Fruit, Floral, i den. Meet. 

 Meeting of Royal Agricultural and Me- 

 teorological Socs , and Society ol Arts. 



AveraKe Tempcratui'e 

 near liondou. 



Day. 

 50.6 

 60.7 

 51.1 



.10.8 

 51.4 

 49.9 

 50.3 



NiKht. 

 S-2.0 

 S3.K 

 84.7 

 S;!.9 

 S4.3 

 82.6 

 83.3 



Moan. 



41.3 



42.2 



42.9 



42.3 



42.9 



41.2 



41.8 



Rain in 



last 

 41 years. 



Days. 

 19 

 14 

 19 

 20 

 14 

 IS 

 12 



Snn 

 Rises. 



m. h. 



22af 6 



Son 



Sets. 



m. h. 



59 af 5 



6 



2 6 



4 6 



G « 



7 fi 



9 6 



Moon I Moon 

 Rises. Seta. 



ra. b. ' m. h 



38al0 I 15 af8 



43 11 

 morn. 

 47 

 45 1 

 86 2 

 20 8 



.37 10 

 25 U 

 after. 



Moon's 

 Age. 



Days. 

 18 

 19 

 20 

 21 

 < 

 23 

 24 



Clock 



before 



San, 



8 42 

 8 24 



Day 



of 

 Year 



72 

 73 

 74 

 75 

 70 

 77 

 78 



From observations taken near London during the last forty-one years, the average day temperatnre of the week is 50.7°; and its night 

 temperature 33.5: The greatest heat was 67°, on the 12th, 1841, and 15th, 1828; and the lowest cold 17^ on the 17th, 1846. The greatest 

 fall of rain was 0.70 inch. 



PROPAGATION OF CENTAUREA CANDEDISSIMA. 



N answer to your correspondent " J. A." (page 

 1(14), I am able to state that we have had 

 good success here in the propagation of the 

 above-named plant during September last. 

 I consider September a desii'able month for 

 performing the operation. At that time tlie 

 plants are well ripened, and the cuttings 

 lirm, without which there is but little chance 

 of success. 



Our mode of treatment is to make a com- 

 mon hotbed of dung and leaves, with 1) inches of sawdust 

 on the top. 



We are much in favour of the sawdust as a plunging 

 material for many purposes. It is a very slow conductor 

 of heat, and prevents root-burning, if the bed become too 

 hot. 



We select the firmest side shoots, cut them with a small 

 portion of old wood, or heel, pot singly in ^.' -inch pots, but 

 if smaller pots are used so much the better. Potting the 

 plants singly is of the greatest importance, as Centaureas 

 will scarcely endure being divided ; in fact, their roots are 

 more tender than those of any other plant I have ever 

 handled. 



We prefer a bottom heat of from 00° to ino" ; the frame 

 is never shut up closely, exceptmg during strong winds and 

 bright sunshine. AVe then close up and shade. 



Careful ventilating and watering are as essential for 

 success in strildng these as for all other kinds of cuttings. 

 If well watered" when put in they need but little more 

 watering until they are rooted, especially if grown in dung- 

 heated frames. 



We have just repotted three hundred strong plants of 

 Centaurea candidissima which were struck in September 

 last, and they are a hue stock of plants that many mu'sery- 

 men would bo proud of — W. CL.inK, Rdhij Gardens. 



In reply to ".J. A.," I always operate upon my plants 

 in September, and I will state the method which I have 

 successfully practised for the last two seasons. 



In the first place, I do not use bottom heat, but strike 

 the cuttings in a cold frame, which I place on the bare 

 ground \vii\\ the back turned towards the midday sun. I 

 then cover the space inside the frame with coal ashes to 

 the depth of i or '> inches, and in this material I plunge 

 my cutting pots up to the rim. 



Having completed this part of the work, I next take ofl' 

 the cuttings, wliich I prepare in the following manner : — 

 Unlike "J. A.," I am not particular in having a piece of 

 " heel " attached to the base of the cutting, for I invariably 

 find that roots are emitted much sooner and better without 

 it. I cut the shoot clean across with a .sharp knife, and 

 remove two or three of the lowest leaves with the knife. 

 Each cutting is inserted singly in a small liO-sized pot, 

 made tight and firm, and tied neatly to a small stick. To 

 the latter precaution I partly attribute my success, for it 

 prevents the cutting from flagging so much as it would 

 otherwise do. 



No. S63.-V0I.. XIV., New Seeies. 



Tlie cuttings are then thoroughly watered, plunged in 

 the frame, and kept close until they have rooted, and are 

 fit for potting, which mil be in about three weeks. 



After potting, the young plants are again placed in the 

 frame, and kept close and dry until their roots have pene- 

 trated the new soil, when they are gradually inured to the 

 air, so that in a short time the lights may be entirely re- 

 moved in fine days. These plants, if kept in a dry airy 

 place during the winter, will be fine for bedding-out in 

 April or JNIay. 



The compost I make use of is formed of two parts mellow 

 loam, one part silver sand, and one part leaf mould or 

 cocoa-nut fibre refuse. 



The cliief error which I believe most people fall into in 

 propagating the Centaurea is aflbrding a too copious sup- 

 ply of water, for I do not know of any plant so impatient 

 of moisture as the Centaui-ea. I never sprinkle my cut- 

 tings after they are plunged ; in fact, they are rarely 

 watered more than once from the time they are put in 

 until they have made many new roots in the fresh soil 

 in which they are potted : for I find that the moisture 

 from the ashes keeps them sufficiently moist. 



I have no doubt the method practised by " J. A." answers 

 perfectly well, but tlie great advantage which autumn 

 propagation possesses is tlie abundance of cuttings that 

 may be obtained at that season, and it likewise obviates 

 the necessity of keeping a number of plants in pots for 

 the purpose of affording cuttings. 



I am not sui'e if it is generally known that this plant is 

 thoroughly hardy, but with me it withstood the winter of 

 iHCif, quite uninjured. I, however, prefer planting every 

 year, as the young plants have a much finer eft'ect than 

 the old ones. — II. C. 



I THINK Centaurea candidissima far superior to Cineraria 

 maritima, useful as it is. I have in damp weather seen the 

 Cineraria become nearly gi-een, not so with the Centaurea. 

 I have often wondered tliat we have not seen it more fre- 

 quently employed for bedding purposes. My experience 

 with it is as follows : — 



On the intli of last October I lifted my plants of Cen- 

 taurea candidissima, took oft' every side shoot that I could, 

 cut off with a sharp knife the lower leaves, and inserted 

 the cuttings singly in well-drained pots filled with a mix- 

 ture of sound loam, with tlu'ce parts shai^p river sand. I 

 potted the old plants in the same compost, placed them 

 and the cuttings in a pit, gave a good watering to settle 

 the soil about them, and kept them di-y afterwards, with just 

 sufficient warmth to prevent injury from ft'ost. I have 

 examined them from time to time to see how they wera 

 progressing. I find to-day (March 4th), that they have all 

 filled the pots with roots, and are ready for being placed in 

 larger pots. By the time for planting-out I expect to have 

 as fine a lot of Centaurea candidissima in 5 or 0-inch pots 

 as one could wish. I have no doubt that a spare shelf at 

 the back of a greenliouso would be a suitable place for 

 them, where they could be kept diy and fi-ee from drip, 

 wliich latter is very injurious. I see to-day in a sheltered 

 border some plants of Ituby Bicolor Calceolaiia that have 

 No. 1015.— Vol. XXSIS., Old Sekies. 



