April 2, ISeS. 1 



JOURNAL OF nORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



261 



we shftll plant separately in theso preparatory beda, raisinf; 

 them out of the beds in which they wore inserted as cuttings 

 last October. Verbenas we often plant separately, and at 

 other times we turn out Email cuttinp pots. .\ considorable 

 amount of moving is thus incurred, but it cannot bo helped 

 so long as every glass structure has to servo so many purposes. 

 Besides saving pots (as the same small pets will be liUed and 

 emptied a number of times the same sprinp) we believe that 

 on the whole the temporary planting-out saves labour, and 

 that the plants do better than when left standing under some 

 kind of protection. Thus, in the case of Calceolarias, after 

 planting-out now, they rarely are ever watered again before 

 they are taken to the beds. 



As we know that numbers of our readers are now at a loss 

 for room, we shall shortly tell how we manage, and not to be 

 intricate will take Scarlet Pelar;iiiniums. These in general 

 are struck and kept in small wooden boxes, merely nailed 

 together, and about 3i inches deep. Some of these we manage 

 to put into CO-sized pots, and, when established, we turn them 

 back into the boxes, so that each will come out again witU 

 a ball, and these are protected with mats, branches, &c. Lots 

 more, the pots getting full of roots, we have turned out into 

 earth pits. The plants are well watered before they are 

 turned out of the pots. They are then set with their balls 

 along a little trench, the balls but a short distance apart, and 

 a little rather rough rich soil, shaken among them from the 

 spade, this soil consisting chiefly of leaf mould, old mush- 

 room dung, and riddlings from beneath the potting bench. 

 This is firmed round the balls with the hand, and then the 

 natural soil placed, and another trench cut out, just giving the 

 plants room enough to grow slowly for six weeks or so to come. 

 We gain by not watering the soil, as that is already moist 

 enough, and if the tops of the plants can be kept dry, they 

 will root very quickly in the new material, and at lifting time 

 the roots will be protruding into it, and the only care is not 

 to let any of the roots drop off when lifting. Between this 

 mode and turning out from bard balls in pots there is no 

 comparison as to the plants doing well. Of course it can 

 only be largely practised when the flower beds are at no great 

 distance. These plants will rarely show their moving, when 

 transplanted. The last potted must in general go into the 

 beds from the pots. A great proportion of our plants, how- 

 ever, are never placed in a pot. Great numbers were taken 

 from these cutting boxes and planted-out separately the same 

 as the above, only the roots of each are kept pretty close at 

 home, and the fresh rough soil placed along the trench. 

 These will ultimately do quite as well as those th.at were 

 potted, but in hot weather, after final planting, they will be 

 a little distressed with bright sun for a few days, so that they 

 are better suited for places that do not come prominently 

 into view immediately after planting. Except for showing this 

 little distress at iiist, this simple plan answers so well as 

 to leave nothing to be desired. We may also mention that 

 when we have three or four neat little plants in a HO-sized 

 pot, and there is scarcely time to let them become established 

 separately, we often turn out the ball as above with fresh 

 material round it, and at planting time, from the lot of fresh 

 fibres, we can easily break it into three or four good pieces, and 

 each will be much better than if it stood with its neighbours 

 in the pot. 



Now, nato protcctinn^vre use everything — evergreen branches, 

 straw hurdles, hurdles with green branches drawn through 

 them, mats stretched tight, &c., but of all things we prefer 

 old sashes if they can be had, as they can be dulled if neces- 

 sary, and next to these unbleached calico. We, on the whole, 

 prefer the latter when we can obtain it, as it gives so little 

 trouble, keeps the plants rather dry when it is strained tight, 

 lets enough of light through for good sturdy growth, and keeps 

 enough of the fierce rays of the sun out to make anything like 

 shading unnecessary. In very severe weather we have placed 

 a little straw or evergreen boughs over it at night. It is best 

 when 2 yards wide, and in proportion to tlie length of the 

 earth pit, handy lengths may be from G to 10 or more yards, 

 each end being fastened to a pole for rolling it on, and for 

 drawing it tight. Cross pieces of wood, as stout flower stakes, 

 are laid across the pit some 4 feet apart, to prevent the cloth 

 bagging, and besides the poles at the ends, a string is fastened 

 on each side at every 4 feet or so, which when fastened to a pin 

 keeps the cloth tight, and thus heavy rains are mostly thrown 

 off. We have had plants thriving beautifully under such pro- 

 tection, and scarcely moved for a month or six weeks, except 

 holding it up two or three times in very bright days to syringe 



the plants. Often the plants were never watered from the time 

 they were turned into the bed until they were taken to the 

 flower garden. Nothing can bo more suitable for the enthu- 

 siastic amateur. If confined solely to this spring work, and put 

 away dry, the same cloth will last many years. We prefer it 

 unbleached, not too strong, and without glazing or water- 

 prooting. — R. F. 



COVENT GARDEN MARKET.— Arnii. 1. 



A SLIGHT improvomeiit is nliSL-rvablo liero, and, notwithstanding lllO 

 iieavy supply o( Bouio articloH, prices bavu been maintained. Among 

 foreign produce we have ai<ain iiad some fine specimens of Cayenne 

 Pines from St. Michael's. Good Potatoes also meet with a ready sale at 

 a slight advance upou former quotations. 



B. i. 



Apples i sieve 8 OtoC 



Apricots doz. 



Cherries lb. 



Chestnuts bush. 10 18 



Currants ^ sieve 



Elacli do. 



FiR3 doz. 



FUberts lb. 10 



Cobs lb. 1 



Gooseberries . . quart 



Grapes, Hothouse.. lb. 1-2 20 



Lemons 100 a li 



FROIT. 

 B. d 



d. «. a 



Melons each OtoO 





 

 

 

 

 



Quinces doz. 





 



Walnuts bush. 10 



do per 100 1 



Nectarines doz. 



Oranges 100 S 



Peaches doz. 



I Pears (dessert) .. doz. 4 



I Pino Apples lb. 8 



Plums i sieve 



RaspborriPB lb. 



I Strawberries . . per oz. 

 ■ " 







7 3 

 



8 

 12 















2 



IS 



2 8 



VEGETABLES. 



Artichokes doz. 3 



Asparagus 1(10 10 



Beans, Kidney ....100 1 



Beet, Ked doz. 2 



Broccoli bundle 



Brns. Sprouts ^ sieve 



Cabbage doz. 1 



Capsicums 100 



Carrots bunch 



Cauliflower doz. 8 



Celery bundle 1 



Cucumbers each 



Endive doz. 1 



Fennel bunch 



Garlic lb. 



Herbs bunch 



Horseradish .. bundle 2 



d. B. 



Oto4 

 25 



Leoks buncll 



Lettuce per score 



Mushrooms pottle 



Mustd.& Cress, punnet 

 Onions.... per bushel 



Parsley per sieve 



Parsnips doz. 



Potatoes bushel 



Kidney do. 



Radishes doz. bunches 



Rhul)arb bundle 



Savoys doz. 



Sea-kale basket 



Shallots lb. 



Spinach bushel 



Tomatoes per doz. 



Turnips bunch 



B. d. 9. d 

 3 too 



1 







a 





 

 9 

 6 

 

 9 

 4 

 

 

 8 

 2 



6 



TEADE CATALOGUES EECEIVED. 



Chivas & Weaver, Chester. — Piicr List of Agricultural Seeds' 

 Ambroise VerschaiJelt, Rue du Chaume, .50, Ghent, Belgium- 

 -Prix-Courant pour Printemps et Etc, 18G8. 



TO CORRESPONDENTS. 



••• We request that no one will write privately to the depart- 

 mental writers of the "Journal of Horticulture, Cottage 

 Gardener, and Country Gentleman." By so doing they 

 are subjected to unjustifiable trouble and expense. All 

 communications should therefore be addressed solely to 

 The Editors of the Journal of Horticulture, d'C, 171, Fleet 

 Street, London, E.G. 



Books {K. J.).— Hooker and Amotl',s "British Flora," or Bentham'a 

 " Handbook of the British Flora." Each is arranged on the natural 

 system. {Man of Kent). — The book you allude to is not the one we promised 

 in the sjjring. It will be duly announced when ready in the Journal. 

 (C. P. O.). — The price is 3s. 6rf. You can have the book by sending 

 your address and enclosing 3». 6»i in postatie stamps to the author — Mr* 

 Grieve, Rev. E. R. Benyon's, Culford Hall, Bury St. Edmunds. 



Fowler's Gardenebs' Insecticide {A. A, S.). — Fowler's Gardeners* 

 Insecticide may be had through any seedsman, or from Messrs, Fowler, 

 North Street, Brighton. 



Planting Chbistmas Rose [Idem). — The best time to plant it is from 

 July to October. It likes a moderately light soil enriched with leal 

 mould, and does best in woll-Jrained ground, though it will thrive almost 

 everywhere. It may be had of any florist or nurseryman, and through 

 most seedsmen. 



Camellias (.ElrVedl. — We do not wonder at yonr perplexity. The 

 following selection is extracted from " The Gardener's Almanack" of this 

 year. You can have it free by post from our office for tliirteen postage 

 stamps, and you will find in it similar selections of the principal flowers. 

 Alba plena (Casoretti), Alba plena, both white; Archduchess .\ugusta, 

 crimson; Aulica, blu'-h, striped; Bealii, dark red ; Belle Jeannette, red, 

 white stripes ; Caryophylloides, striped ; Countess of Derby, whitp, rosy 

 stripe; Countess of Orkney, white, red stripes ; Duchess of Buccleucb, 

 pink ; Eximia, bright red ; Henri Favre, lit,'lit pink ; Jnrdin d'Hiver, rose j 

 La Reine, flesh colour ; Lavinia Maggi, striped ; Mathotiana, crimson ; 

 Monarch, rosy scarlet ; Mrs. Abby Wilder, creamy white ; Princess Bac- 

 chiochi, dark crimson; Saccoiana nova, rose; Storyil, striped; Valte- 

 varedo, deep pink. 



Curriers' Refuse {Idem).—\l merely scraps of leather, it might be 

 applied to your Vine border on the same principle that woollen rags arc 



