September 26, 1865. ] 



JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



261 



wore Dahlias, tall and dwarf, which flowered ahuut half their 

 usual size, and bet,'an to decay prcniatincly from want of water 

 at the root, which wo could not find time to give them. 

 Borders of a superior kind of Purple Spinacli, whicli looked 

 very nice before the drought, are now becoming weedy and 

 seedy-looking. Borders of old favourites of ours. Love-lies- 

 bleeding and Prince's Feather, began also to show the effects of 

 the heat tliough very strong healthy ])Iants, and we hope the 

 rains of Thursday will revive them again sufficiently for a 

 month longer. As yet, and with little or no watering, the 

 Verbenas have stood well. With us the best double-flowered 

 Feverfew seldom does much after such dry and scorching 

 weather, and yet wo are told it stands all the sun round 

 Loudon uninjured. It should bo known, however, what 

 amount of water it receives in such circimistances, as a 

 gardener in the country, with little water excoiit wliat the 

 clouds give him, can hardly expect to grow it so well as they 

 do in places where a hose can be fitted to a tap and the ground 

 be flooded all round the plants. 



KITCHEN G.^RDEN. 



Very much a repetition of former weeks. Now that rain has 

 come will turn out some more greens, jilanting them thicldy ; 

 they may come in useful in spring, wlien the forward crops 

 are getting exhausted. The extreme heat will cause Peas to 

 give over bearing soouer than usual. The weather just suited 

 Dwarf Kiduey Beans, which bore immensely, and the rains will 

 gi'eatly liel]) Scarlet Runners, the heat beiug rather too much 

 for the free setting of the blossom. Gathered Tomatoes, and 

 thiuued the leaves of the remainder, so as to give the fruit all 

 the air and light ]iossible. Sowed Kidney Beans in pots out of 

 doors, to be moveil under protection as the nights become cold. 

 Cleaned Mushroom-beds by sweeping with a hair broom, so as 

 to leave the surface smooth and firm, which prevents the spawn 

 running into anything loose, instead of throwing up Mushrooms. 

 A slight s]irinkling of litter or rough hay on the surface keeps 

 beds out of doors, or under open sheds, more uniform in heat 

 and moisture. Examined fresh-planted Cabbages for grubs. 

 Gave manure water before the rain to CaxUiflowers coming on, 

 and picked over a lot of stable htter, shaking all the dung out 

 of it, and as it was very dry, built it in a stack, which will be 

 useful for protecting in winter. Had the shortest mixed up 

 with short grass, leaves, weeds, sweepings, etc., which will be a 

 nice heap to go to when we wish to have a httle heat thrown 

 into a bed for various purposes. Scattered ashes and lime over 

 young Lettuces, Radishes, &c. The dryness of the ground, and 

 little soft fruit left exposed, have saved us from so many birds, 

 as have invaded some other gardens. Some accouuts s))eak of 

 scarcely an Apple or a Pear being left unpecked, and when 

 once pecked, of course they are only fit for present use. Even 

 hard Pears may do for roasting. Perhaps even in such cases 

 there may be a spice of exaggeration against the poor birds. 

 We recollect of an old man, and a truthful man in other respects, 

 who never spoke of marauders and vermin, except as millions 

 of them, and tens of millions. He evideutlj' had picked up the 

 big word without ha\-ing the slightest idea as to the numbers 

 involved. For oiu'selves, though not untouched, the birds have 

 been very considerate on the whole ; but whether from gi-ati- 

 tude for keeping the gun quiet, time alone will tell. 



FKTJIT G.IKDEX. 



Much the same as last. Gave a little fire to Fig-house after 

 the rain, to help the latest fruit. It was hot enough for any- 

 thing before without any tire heat, and we always think sun- 

 heat is the cheapest and the best. Gathered the most of the 

 earher fruit before the rains came. Removed all weeds and 

 nmners from Strawberry plants in pots, and gave them a little 

 more room, so that the sun may play on them more fully. The 

 rain that comes will not be likely to injure them this month, 

 but if much come dusting over the surface of the pot witli soot 

 or superphosphate of lime will do the plants good, and the 

 strength will be gradually washed among the roots. As much 

 as can be held between the thumb and two fingers wiU be 

 enough of soot for a six-inch pot. and as much as can be held i 

 between the thumb and finger will be enough of superphosjdiate 

 at one time for a similar-sized pot. 



as it was at first, as some lines and rows will be found to have 

 tilled double the space they were intended to do — a very fortu- 

 nate thing v.licu a more tender row has so far given way that 

 we arc ratlui- glad when its neighbour fills up its place. We 

 are always learning by reverses as well as successes. We 

 tliink we mentioned how very fine a row of Golden Chain wag 

 with us in a ribbon border. It was the third line from the 

 grass verge. The border is planted thus : — Cerastium, Lobelia 

 Conspicua, Golden Chain, Purple King Verbena, Centaurea 

 caudidissima. Brilliant Geranium, Aurantia multiflora Cal- 

 ceolaria, StcUa Geranium, and tall Agoratum for the centre. 

 This border pleased us very much until the rains of August, 

 which encouraged the Verbena to grow very strong, so as 

 slightly to overhang the Golden Chain. We think ourselves 

 that the water thrown by the winds from the flowers of the 

 Lobelia poisoned the Geraniums, as afterwards the fine large 

 beautiful leaves begun to drop off, so that now they scarcely form 

 a feature in the border. In other places, where Golden Chain 

 and Cloth of Gold are freely exposed, but still slightly protected 

 by shade, the leaves ai'e all that could be wished. On the oppo- 

 site border Cloth of Gold was substituted for Golden Chain, and 

 Paxtonie.ua Lobelia for Conspicua. Part of this border is shaded 

 by a line tree, and where this shade extends the Lobelia and 

 the Cloth of Gold are all that can be desired ; but where fuUy 

 exposed to the sun, both are showing signs of giving way. 

 Seedlings of Lobelia speciosa have stood the dry weather well 

 without watering, whilst cuttings have suffered considerably. 

 The little dwarf single Marigold alluded to the other week, 

 seems to care little either for moisture or dryness. It has 

 been and is a dense mass of mottled orange, and besides plant- 

 ing, it has received no other attention and no water fnmi the pail 

 in the hottest weather. Has any one noticed the result above 

 alluded to with regard to the Golden Chain and the Purple 

 Verbena ? One condition unfavourable to the Golden Chain 

 was its being planted along the north side of a ridged border, 

 that faced the south and the north. Had we suspected the re- 

 sult we certainly would have docked in the Verbena, so that 

 it should not in the least have overhmig the Geraniums. We 

 have long noticed, that when the faded petals of some Scarlet 

 Geraniums are deluged by rains, the liquid falling from them 

 will decay not only other petals, but the leaves on which it 

 rests. We have frequently noticed leaves all green to-day all 

 mottled on the second day after driftiug rains. 



The picking off decayed blooms is, therefore, desirable, inde- 

 pendently of the neatness and good keeping it secures. Men 

 not accustomed to this sort of work, however wiUing, make but 

 small progress. Much of the work is done with the knife, and 

 in some cases it is necessary, and then it passes from one hand 

 to the other before it reaches the basket or pan. Boys brought 

 up to it when young, will do double or triple the work, dispens- 

 ing mostly with the knife, nippiug all out and over between 

 the nails of the thumb and finger, and in many cases using 

 both hands at once. It is quite a treat to see how quickly some 

 boys and yomig men can thus clear every faded leaf and bloom 

 from a bed. 



The dry weather has again enabled us to overtake our short 

 gi'ass, and we mention it chiefly for chronicling a useful fact, as 

 respects the mowing macliines. Wliat we chiefly use are small 

 ones for one man, of Messrs. Green's make ; but the principle of 

 all the makers is veiy much alike. The grass after the wet, and 

 then the gr-eat heat, became rather silky, and the knives re- 

 fused to clear all up as they used to do. The knives were in 

 fault as well as the grass, the cutting side from long use having 

 become very smooth. The axil on which the knives are fixed 

 was taken out, and the one end changed to the other end, so as 

 to bring the other edge of the knives in contact with the plate, 

 and everything is again cut up, be the grass stiff, or as fine and 

 silky as the finest wool. This may be generally known, but it 

 is the first time we thought of it, and we forget whether such 

 a matter is alluded to at all by the different makers. 



Went on wholesale with cuttings, placing them in frames 

 and pits ; exposed struck Verbenas to the open air, and pre- 

 pared for housing the more tender jilants. — K. F. 



ORN.VHEXT.\L DEPARTMENT. 



Our work here has chiefly been devoted to the following 

 matters : Picking, cleaning, and regulating flower-beds. The 

 rains and the subsequent heat have changed some of our first 

 arrangements, and it is now too late to make everything square 



R. 



TR.yjE CATxyL,OGUES KECEI\T3D. 



P. Ker, 4, Basnett Street, Church Street, Liverpool 



Hyacinth, its Histimf, Culture, and Propayation 

 scriptive Catalogue of Dutch and other Bulbs. 



Louis Van Houtte, Ghent. Belgium. — Ognotis a Jieurs 



The 



with a De- 



