Novamber 7, 1866. ] JOUBNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



387 



the wiiibliiig brook on an old rickotty pliuik, a poor substituto 

 fur a briils!0. 



ApoloniBiiif! for tliis JiKrcssioii fnim the lieiidin^! of my Fub- 

 joct, I pjiss oil to West House, the object of my traveln. The 

 iiuinBiou Hiul grounds are situiite at the western extremity of 

 C'oiiKletoii; iiiul though the grouuds are so closely adjaceut to a 

 thickly populiited portion of the town, yet the visitor, when 

 walking over tlie green velvety sward, or luiusing for a moment 

 beneath the shado of the tall trees to admire some object of 

 interest, has no idea but that ho is visiting some country seat 

 far away from the bustle and clamour of town life. 



As tlie grounds are entered the house lies to the right. It is 

 n siiuare-built mansion not of palatial pretensions, nor yet of 

 architectural beauty, yet presenting a very pleasing exterior, 

 and fitted up internally with considerable elegance. Its internal 

 arrangements are admirable, and offer a vast amount of domes- 

 tic comfort and convenience. The kitchen garden lies to the 

 left surrounded by turreted walls, but not discernible from the 

 house. The stables, carriage-houses, yard, Arc, are on the 

 west side of tlie mansion, and judiciously screened from view 

 by large lUdlies and other evergreen trees of extraordinary 

 size. In the kitchen garden tliere is a large vinery 100 feet 

 long and 2U wide, the roof being covered with good (irapes of 

 such varieties as Golden Hamburgh, Muscat of Alexandria, 

 White Nice, Black Hamburgh, Black Prince, &c., the black 

 varieties possessing that jet-black hue which is so desirable 

 in Grape culture, instead of that dingy red colour which is 

 too frequently met with in these wonderful days of Grape 

 cultivation. Beneath the Vines, I noticed large Orange^ trees 

 and Camellias, and in addition a miscellaneous collection of 

 flowering and fine-foliaged plants, including in the former 

 Achimenes, such as Mauve Queen, and Sil; Trehenie Thomas ; 

 Gloxinias, etc. ; while in the latter were Caladiums of every 

 tinge and hue. Begonias, Ferns, &c. Passing out of the vinery 

 we enter a Peach-house ; here is a trellis a short distance from 

 the wall to which the trees are trained, the path running in 

 front of the trees. Tliis system is in advance of what we 

 occasionally see, where the trees are trained to a trellis below 

 the glass, where only an occasional glimpse of the fruit can be 

 obtained through the foliage. The trees were in a vigorous 

 state of health, and the best mede of praise I can confer on the 

 fruit is, that it was such as Mr. Chaddock usually grows. On 

 the walls outside I noticed some very fine Plums — such as 

 Goliath, Nectarine, Green (iage, &c., which took a first posi- 

 tion at the Cheshire Agricultural and Horticultural Exhibition, 

 held at Cougleton about thi-ee weeks ago. 



Leaving the kitchen garden and wending my way towards 

 the front of the mansion, I noticed a magnificent specimen of 

 the Purple Beech (Fagus sylvatica purpurea), its branches ex- 

 tending 150 feet in circumference. In front of the house is a 

 neat and well-kept flower garden. The beds are all edged with 

 Box, and the walks covered with white gravel. The jdants in 

 the various beds were all in full bloom when I visited it, and 

 the colours were nicely balanced and produced a good effect. 

 The accompanying is a plan of the flower garden, one well adapted 

 for places of limited dimensions. At the farther end from the 

 house, opposite the central walk, was a Wellingtonia, and on 

 each side a Pinus excelsa. Kear the flower garden I no- 

 ticed a small piece of water, in whicli were luxuriating beau- 

 tiful Xympha>as. A bed of superb Gladiolus produced an im- 

 posing effect. The dressed grounds are separated from the 

 land below by a raised bank of Ehododendrons, and in front of 

 these was a winding ribbon-border, of which the first row was 

 a broad belt of Cerastium tomentosum ; Snd, Lobelia speciosa ; 

 old, Tropffiolum Lobbiauum elegans ; Hh, Calceolaria Anrea 

 floribunda : 5th. Stella Nosegay Geranium, the background 

 being the Ehododendrons. 



The view of the adjacent portion of the town is entirely ex- 

 cluded by a large mound of earth and rockwork, which it took 

 the proprietor years to raise at a great cost. It extends the 

 whole length of the pleasure ground, and is diversified by ever- 

 green shrubs. From the northern side of the mansion views 

 of a charming landscape are obtained ; in the distance may be 

 seen the village church of Hulmewallfield, and in the valley 

 the river Dane flow s in a winding stream. 



Before taking leave of the subject before me, allow me to 

 suggest to my brother gardeners, that they might profitably 

 employ the few hours at their command by visiting occasion- 

 ally some of our deUghtful suburban villas. There is fre- 

 quently something to be picked up even where no pretensions 

 to display are attempted. Things that appear trifling in them- 

 selves sometimes may be of great importance in their results, 



and for that reason not to be despised, even when found in 

 places where we least expect to meet with them. — Quintim 

 ItKio, Jlidilulph. 



NOTES FROM OUR VILLAGE. 



PEnnAi'S you will be kind enough to allow me space in your 

 Journal — perhaim I should be going too far to say in " Our 

 Journal," but really it sounds so familiar that I cannot lielp so 

 speaking of it, for it is a great favourite of mine. I am always 

 glail when my master hands it over to me, which is generally 

 not later than Wednesday evening, and it is my pocket friend 

 until I have .well read and digested every article, and then 

 1 anxiously wait for the next. 



Now, I should like to jot down a few notes from " our village," 

 beginning by saying a little about the Celery fly and maggot, as 

 it has been very troublesome here this season. The first thing 

 I should like to know is. What lly it really is, I hear so many 

 different opinions about the fly ! I have always seen a small 

 light green-coloured fly about one-quarter of an inch long on 

 the Celery on summer evenings, and as we have walked between 

 the rows" it has taken wing from the Celery in front of ns, and 

 our head-gardener used to say that that was the fly that did 

 the mischief, and he is a man' of thirty-years experience in his 

 present situation. Now, as a preventive, I find nothing is better 

 than to sjirinkle the foliage over with water, and then to dust it 

 with a mixture of lime and soot, and if you add a little sulphur 

 all the better. Always pick off an affected leaf and bum it. 



Now, I always thought that the maggot as soon as hatched in 

 the leaf kept continually feeding until it had finished that leaf, 

 then fell to the ground, iiud there was an end to it for the season ; 

 but from watching carefully this season I find several in the 

 morning outside, on the upper surface of the leaf, and I think 

 that they enter again in a fresh place, if so, the sooner they are 

 picked off the better. 



Another fact I must mention ; I have often seen the robin 

 picking them off the upper side of the leaf early in the morning. 



Potatoes have been very much diseased in this district ; I 

 have had some of the finest I ever saw, and a good crop as regards 

 quantity, but the diseased were three to one that was good. 



Carrots and Parsnips are very good ; in fact, this is a Carrot 

 year with us about Bickley. We'are making Bickley quite a large 

 horticultural locality, and, above all, we are about to establish a 

 working man's reading institution for lectures and readings. It 

 is supported by very influential gentlemen. We have Sir John 

 Lubbock, Bart., as President, other gentlemen are patrons, and 

 one gentleman. Coles Child, Esq., has given the ground, which 

 is freehold.— J. R. P. 



[In our very earliest volume we published a drawing and 

 description of the Celery Fly, which we will now repeat for 

 information to the present generation : — 



" In the autumn it is very common to observe part of the 

 leaves of Celery plants blistered and turned yellow ; and this 



occurs occasionally to such an extent that their growth is 

 checked and their size proportionally diminished. If the withered 

 l^arts are examined, and the cuticle, or skin, of the blisters, is 

 raised, there will be found beneath it some small green grubs, 

 which have eaten away all the green )iulp (parenchyma) of the 

 parts so withered. Tliese grubs are the larva of the Celery Fly 

 (Tephritis;Onopordinis). The grubs may be found in the leaves 

 of the Celei-y in June,'July, September, October, and November ;: 

 for there are two or more broods of them in the course of the 

 year. The grubs, though less frequently, are found doing 

 similar damage to the leaves of Alexanders and Parsnips. When 

 full-gi-own, the grubs descend into the earth and remain in the 

 chrysalis state until the spring following, when they give bu'th 

 to the fly. This, the Celery Fly, may usually be found upon 



