September is, i860. ] 



JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



215 



WEEKLY CALENDAR. 



SEPTEMBER 18-24, 1866. 



Bouvardia versicolor. 

 BrowalUa elata. 

 Browallia Bpeoiosa. 



Sun's declination 42' X. 



Bragmanaias. 



17 Sl'NDAY AFTER TRINITY. 



Bruusvigia toxiearia. 



Average Temperature 

 near London. 



Pay. 



66.8 



67.0 



iit;.<) 

 68. 1 

 66.7 

 60.4 

 65.9 



Night. 



46.6 

 45.1 

 44.1 

 45.1 



4.1.4 

 46.1 

 44.5 



Moan. 

 56.7 

 56.1 

 65.6 

 55.7 

 56.0 

 56.2 

 55.7 



Rain in 



last 

 39 yearn. 



DavH. 

 18 

 19 

 17 

 21 

 19 



30 



18 



Sun 



Rises. 



Sun 

 Seta. 



Moon 

 Rises. 



Moon 

 SetB. 



JSafll 

 mom. 



Moon'a 

 Ago. 



Days 

 9 

 II) 

 11 

 12 

 18 

 14 



o 



Ciook 

 after 

 Sun. 



m. s. 



5 53 



6 15 

 6 86 



6 57 



7 18 



7 89 



8 



Da- V 

 of 



Year. 



261 



262 

 268 



264 

 265 

 266 

 267 



From observations taken near London during the last thirty-nine years, the average day temperature of the week is 66.6° ; and its night 

 temperature 45.:r. The greatest heat was 81", on the 20th, 1843 ; and 24th, 1862 ; and tho lowest cold 29", on the 20th, 1850. The greatest 

 !all of rain was 1.21 inch. N.B. — The Calendar contains the names of plants flowering in the greenhouse. 



USES OF COCOA-NUT FII'.RE REFUSE. 



appear 

 t:— 

 sur- 

 face of all borders in which 

 seeds are freshly sown. It 

 keeps the soil moist, and 

 •offers no resistance to the seed leaves. 



2. To cover the surface half an inch deep in spring of 

 beds in which Verbenas and other delicate bedding plants 

 are planted. It looks neat, and keeps down evaporation, so 

 that but little watering is required even in hot dry weather. 



3. In soils not favourable to Rhododendrons and other 

 peat-eartli shrubs it does much good. A circle of it 1^- foot 

 or so — according to the size of the plant — in diameter, and 

 from 1 to 2 inches in depth, should be formed around each. 

 It keeps the surface cool, promotes growth, and seems as 

 it decays to form a soil into which they root freely ; the 

 latter not yet quite proved, the former a certainty. 



4. In planting Roses in autumn, winter, or spring, a 

 circular covering of the depth and width above mentioned 

 is most valuable— if in the autumn and winter, it keeps 

 severe frost from the roots of the newly-planted trees, and 

 if in spring it prevents injury from drought. Applied in 

 this way to evergreen trees and shrubs of all lands planted 

 in spring it is most valuable. • 



5. In a tenacious soil a dressing .". or 4 inches thick, 

 well mixed when stirring it witli the digging-fork, is very 

 advantageous. 



fi. It may be used with good effect among rows of Straw- 

 berries, or strewed under the fruit when in beds. It keeps 

 the fruit clean, the soil moist, is neat iu its appearance, 

 and prevents slugs from crawling on the surface and eating 

 the fruit ; the latter not thoroughly proved, but quite pro- 

 bable, as they did not put in an appearance last summer 

 as usual when it was employed : it is just possible that it 

 makes travelling uncomfortable. Above all it saves water- 

 ing : a dressing 1 or U inch thick prevents evaporation to 

 a remarkable extent. 



7. For plunging pots in pits or frames it is neater and 

 more cleanly than old tan, and equally efficacious in keep- 

 ing the roots of plants from injury from frost. It is a 

 perfect nonconductor ; this must be borne in mind in 

 summer, as it keeps out heat, and is not good for the roots 

 •of plants requiring heat. 



is. When perfectly dry it is most useful in paclrin" 

 fruit to send to a distance ; it is so elastic as to prevent the 

 bruising of Peaches, even when overripe. 



9. It will be found a very valuable material in which 

 to preserve late-keeping Pears, far better than bran. 

 which is apt to become musty. The fibre has literally no 

 smell, and even when laid in large heaps does not ferment. 



Ko. 296. -Vol. XI., 1>7f.w Series. 



10. It forms one of the most efficient protectors for 

 dwarf Roses in winter. For this purpose it should be 

 piled up round their stems, so as to envelope them closely, 

 to a depth of 1) inches. 



I should not feel surprised if some of your readers add 

 to this list of uses. I have no interest in anything apper- 

 taining to the making of cocoa-nut fibre. In these times 

 it is quite necessary to disarm suspicion. — T. R. 



THE NEW ROSES OF 1805 and 1866. 



In the name of the many Rose amateurs, I would thank 

 "D., Deal," Mr. Kent, Mr. Pryor, and others, for their 

 occasional letters, in which they kindly give us the benefit 

 of their judgment and experience in the selection of the 

 more modern Roses, and I wish that more amateur florists 

 and nurserymen would impart unselfishly what informa- 

 tion they can for the pleasure and guidance of others. 

 As regards myself, and I dare say others of my class, I 

 could wish such letters came earlier, before the budding 

 season was so far advanced, to corroborate other wortln 

 information ; for although if a new Rose is at all promising, 

 from the recommendation of a reliable raiser or grower. 

 I am uneasy till I obtain it, still I like to know as soon 

 as I can, from more sources than one, which Roses I had 

 better propagate the most freely. I have also, however, an 

 opinion of my own, which hi all deference I now venture 

 to advance, and chiefly by way of supplementary comment 

 on the recent letters of " D., Deal," and Mr. A. Kent, 

 giving their selections of the Roses of 1865. 



As a severe critic, resolved not to commit himself, " D., 

 Deal," culls out la crime de la crime ; but still I rather 

 sympathise with the leniency of Mr. Kent, thinking that 

 the mere crime contains many worthy of a more extended 

 trial, during different seasons, amongst which we may 

 often find first-class blooms ; and that if we discard all 

 but the very best, our stock may be too limited to furnish 

 our stands of forty-eight on given days. It was some time 

 before the excellencies of even Charles Lefebvre were de- 

 tected and established. 



" D., Deal" will excuse my saying that his present 

 repetition of his selection of the 1865 Roses, given hi 

 December, 1H0.">, is slightly erroneous. I think his first 

 list included King's Acre, and did not include Due de 

 Wellington. Every Rose now selected by " D., Deal," is 

 good ; if I ventured to alter the places he assigns to those 

 after Marechal Niel, I should be disposed to give them the 

 following order of precedence : — ■ 



Marguerite de St. A man J, on whose merits I pronounced 

 very decidedly, and very soon after her introduction to 

 England. Her novelty and distinctness, added to her other 

 good qualities, entitle her, I think, to the first place. 



Duchesse de Caylus. — I could wish she wore more crino- 

 line, like " Prudence Besson " of this year ; and, oil ! that 

 she may have a numerous progeny of similar forms in 

 different coloured dresses. 



Madame Moreau is distinct, and though rough is large 

 enough to be placed in an exhibition stand before becoming 

 so large as to show much roughness. 



No. 9S8.— Vol. XXXVI., Old Series. 



