September 4, 1866. ] 



JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



189 



Grapes Small (A Cambrian).— The couso of the bi'rrios being no larger 

 than Currants is their not having 8ct. They will, consequently, bo stone- 

 less. To make sure ol the Mill Hill Hamburgh ami Sweetwater setting 

 well in a cool house, it is necessary to ran the hand lightly over the 

 bunches whilst in flower. You ore doing right to give air at night ; but 

 it would be well to discontinue flro at night, and employ it by day only. 



Savino Miunonkttk Seed (Pretbyter).— You must pick the pods as 

 they become ripe, going over the plants frequently on dry days for the 

 purpose, and placo them thinly on paper in a dry placo, rubbing out tho 

 seeds when the pods oro thoroughly dry. 



Laurels Dyinc* ojf Under Trees (H. D.).— Wo have some in tho 

 same state, tho old branches dying off and fresh ones coming from tho 

 bottom. It is from the dryness and poorness of the ground. You conld 

 not improve them by destroying the trees which overshadow them, and 

 we would advise you to replace them with Aucubas. We have done so, 

 and And those grow well where Laurels will not succeed. 



Stephanotis Fruiting ( rV. II. B.).— It is rather unusual for the Ste- 

 phauotis floribunda to fruit, but some placos where it has lone so you 

 will find referred to in Vol. V. New Series, pages 872, 410, 448, and 469. 

 Wo have seeu plants from seed saved in this country ; they had the 

 midribs of the leaves red, and flowered when six yoars old, but were not 

 different from the parent, with one exception, in which the plont was of 

 less vigorous habit, and had flowers of a blush colour. You would by 

 sowing the seed have a chance of obtaining something deviating from 

 tho species either iu habit or bloom. You will bloom the seedlings much 

 sooner by grafting them on stocks of the old plant, otherwiso you moy 

 wait years for their flowers. 



Destroying Weeds on Walks (J. TI*.). — Chooso a dry period, and 

 water tho walks with the following solution— 2 lbs. powdered arsenic dis- 

 solved in six gallons of cold water, boil, and keep stirring until well 

 mixed ; thon add twelve more gallons of water, and 4 lbs. crushed soda, 

 stirring well until it boils. Apply to tho walks by a watering-pot with a 

 rathor flno rose. Care should be taken to keep the hot liquid from the 

 grass or Box edging, by placing an inclined board to throw the water off 

 on to the walk. The quantity above named is sufficient for 50 square 

 yards of walk. If applied during dry weather from March to May it will 

 keep the weeds under the greater part of the season. 



Trop.eolum Seedling (O. 0.).— Your Tropieolum is bright in colour, 

 but very deficient in form. We have seen much better seedlings this 

 Season — very superior to those enclosed. 



Renovating a Mulberry Tree (A. K.).— We apprehend the fruit would 

 neither fall nor be small if you were to give in autumn a top-dressing 

 under the tree of S inches thick of half-decayed manure, extending from 

 the stem to the outside of the branches. Let it remain until March, and 

 thon point it in. During dry weather in summer give a thorough soaking 

 rf liquid manure. 



Protecting a Vink-uoruer (Willing to Learn).— The cheapest plan U 

 to procure some spars 3 inches by 2j, and throe-quarter-inch deal 

 boards. Tho spars should be a foot or more longer than the width of the 

 border, and tho boards 11 inches wide. These should be well coated 

 with boiling coal or gas tar, which will greatly add to their durability. 

 The border should bo covered with litter or dry leaves, and to a greater 

 dopth next the house thuu iu front, so that the surface may slope towards 

 the front of tho border. The spars should bo put with one end on tho 

 wall, and the lower side level with tho frout wall plate, and nailed to 

 maintain them in their places, the lowor end resting on a brick. They 

 should be placed 8 feet apart, narrow side upwards, und on them the 

 hoards should be laid. Commonce at tho bottom, and let each overlap 

 that below it to the extent of three-quarters of an inch. A nail ot both 

 ends of the boards will maintain them in their places. If they are sound 

 und have a sufficient incline they will render tho border waterproof. All 

 you need besides is a spout in front to carry off tho water. The boards 

 will last a dozen years and still be sound, if coated every third year with 

 gas tar. 



Plums, Pears, and Cherries for a North-west Aspect (S.).— You 

 may have of Plum*— Pond's Seedling, Victoria, tiroen Gage, Yellow Im- 

 peratrice, July Green Gage, Orleans, Wiuosour, Drop d'Or, Coo's Late 

 Ked, and Blue Imperatrice. Of Pears— Alexandre Lambre, Beurre de 

 Cipiuumont, Colmar d'Ktr, Flemish Beauty, Knight's Monarch, Prince 

 Albert, Thompson's, and Vicar of Winkfield. Of Cherries, besides Mo- 

 rello, Belle Magnitique, Belle de Choisy, Empress Eugtnie, Coe's Late 

 Carnation, Kentish, Hoyal Duko, May Duke, and Ohio Beauty. 



Peaches and Nectarines on a South-east Aspect (Idem).— Your 

 situation being dry, warm, and sheltered, wo think Peaches and Necta- 

 rines would grow and do fairly on a south-east aspect. 



Sulphur and Lime Wash (C. P.).— It should be applied in the evening, 

 the water being heated to a temperature of 120 , or it may be applied 

 cold, but it is more efficacious hot. 



Cubrant Shoots Black Inside (J. H.).— The shoots having the centre 

 black are all right if the leaves are healthy. 



Names of Plants (J. T. B., Sligo).—lt is impossible to name a Gera- 

 nium — there are hundreds nearly alike — from such a scrap. The other 

 morsel you sent seems to be a tip of the Club Moss, Lycopodium clava- 

 tum. (J. J. T.).— The tree of which yon enclosed leaves is the Salisburia 

 adiantifolia, or Maiden-hsir-leaved. It is not very uncommon. There is 

 a good specimen in the Chelsea Botanic Garden. (A. B.). — Celsia arctnrus. 

 (O. S.).— Your plant is one of the Asclepiadow, Oxypetalum Banksii ('/) 

 If yon can spare the room, wc would advise you to keep it, and when it 

 flowers send it to us again. (Beginner). — 1, Pelliea adiantifolia ; 2, Pteris 

 cretica albo-lineata ; 8, Pteris tricolor ; 4, Scolopcudrium officinarum ; 

 6, Adiantum cuncatum ; 7, Isolepis gracilis ; 8, Selaginella hortensls ; 

 9, Begonia spathulata ; 10, Begonin, insufficient for determination. 



METEOROLOGICAL OBSERVATIONS in the Suburbs of London for the Week ending September 1st. 



Sun... 26 

 Mon... 27 

 Tues. . 28 

 Wed. . 29 

 Thars. 80 

 Fri. .. 81 

 Sat. .. 1 



Mean 



barometer. 



Max. 



29.994 

 29.838 

 29.597 

 29.310 

 29.775 

 29.859 

 29.855 



Mid. 



29.883 

 29.748 

 29.410 

 29.284 

 29.582 

 29.719 

 29.763 



thekmomf.tf.k. 



79 

 76 

 70 

 58 

 B9 

 77 

 70 



29.747 29.627 71.28 47.85 62.07 



56 

 49 

 47 

 SO 

 40 

 44 

 19 



1 ft, dp. 



64 

 65 

 65 

 61 



60 

 60 

 59J 



2 ft. dp. 



604 



61 



6U 



61" 



60 



60 



59J 



60.50 



Wind. 



S. 

 W. 



s. 

 w. 



W. 



s.w. 

 s.w. 



Rain in 



inches. 



.01 



.00 

 .06 

 .90 

 .02 

 .00 

 .03 



General Remabks. 



Slight rain ; clearing ; very fine throughout. 



Cloudy and fine ; very fine with dry air ; rather cold. 



Dusky clouds ; slight rain ; overcast and cold. 



Rain : cold and constant rain ; heavy rain in the evening. 



Cloudy, cold, and rather boisterous ; overcast, boisterous and cold 



Very fine thronghout, but cold at night. 



Fine ; low scattered clouds ; very fine ; rain at night. 



POULTRY, BEE, and HOUSEHOLD CHRONICLE. 



VULTURE HOCKS. 



Surely " F. C." must have seen many cockerels weak at 

 the hock joint, that never had any tendency to vulture hocks. 

 Weakness in this joint could never produce vulture-hock 

 feathers, eo that I would say to the question, whether, " vulture 

 hockB, like a cat-hocked horse, were not a sign of, or resulting 

 from, weakness in the leg-joints ? " — Most decidedly not. 



On the day of hatching I could tell " F. C." whether a 

 Brahma or Cochin chick would be vulture-hocked or the 

 reverse. Weak joints, at any rate at the hock, depend very 

 much on a want of strength adapted to the increasing weight. 

 If the legs once begin to give at the knees, and the bird should 

 at the same time lay on flesh rapidly, nothing can save the 

 knees becoming weak ; but when this has occurred in a naked- 

 hocked bird, no person has ever seen vulture hock " result " 

 from it. 



The most marked ca3e of vulture hock I ever saw, I picked 

 up accidentally just twelve years ago last month — viz., July, 

 1854. Now, as Cochins were unknown in this country in 1845, 

 at least we may presume so, as at the show in May, 1845, none 

 appeared in the class for Asiatic breeds, we have, if I may so 

 term it, a Cochin life of twenty-one years, or at the furthest 

 twenty-two years in this country. Yet twelve years ago — more 



than half the age— is to be considered "recent introduction. ' 

 So, also, the attempt at the second London show, I presume, 

 must be considered " recent." However, if we are to have a 

 poll, as Mr. B. P. Brent suggests, the " judge " has obtained a 

 vote in "F. C." 



I may here correct an error in my former letter, either my 

 own or the printer's. I am made to say the " Gwynne Cochin* 

 and Sturgeon Cochins," instead the " Gwynne Ilrahmas," &c. 

 I possessed birds of each of these gentlemen, and this I cau 

 aver, that they were not naked-hocked.— Y. B. A. Z. 



WOODBRIDGE POULTRY SHOW, AND A 

 POULTRY PROTECTION SOCIETY. 

 It is all very well for " One of the Committee " of this 

 Show to say that the Secretary has been applied to many times 

 to call a meeting to have all matters " settled up." It is the 

 duty of the Committee themselves, as you say, to satisfy those 

 whose birds were either prizetakers or sold. Pray who is the 

 person dignified in the schedule with the title of Chairman of 

 the Committee? Surely this fixed office implies some au- 

 thority. Let the Chairman of the Committee, or the Committee 

 themselves, publish some satisfactory account of their pro- 

 ceedings, and pav their just debts. Until this is done, they 

 will all stand in the same disrepute. I can tell them that some, 

 and probably aU, of the Patrons of the Show are as mucu 



