Decembor 4, 1S6G. ] 



JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



427 



( !.( >N STKUCTING ICE-HOUSES. 



It may bo interesting and useful at this season to discuss 

 the various modes of preserving ice. On this subject I fur. one 

 should like bo beat the experience of othors, so I will now state 

 tht! different in. thode which I nave tried. 



The first Wfl . Etet the old style, as I was instructed by the 

 old gardener, now, poor man, no more. I well remember his 

 orders — "Now, lads, you must pack the straw i toot thick 

 between the house and ice, and wedge it firm, or else the ice 

 will not keep till Novomber." " But," i say, " sir, by July or 

 August tho straw is always rotten ; so, wet dirty straw will be 

 against its beeping." "Oh, that's your idea, is it, young 

 Broccoli Sprout '.' I can tell you that I have had the charge of 

 filling this house for nearly forty years, and I should now 

 know better than you." "Well, sir," I said, "if you will 

 allow mo to pack one half of the house with straw and tho 

 other without, we_ shall then see which is best for keeping." 

 "Very well, ray bo I ill d i as yon wish ; but remember, 



I do not like the e new-fangled ways." So in June the house 

 was opened, and ! here wa I little or no difference to show which 

 mode had the adi n age,; but by August the ice which had been 

 packed with about 12 inches of straw had left the wall ; the ice 

 at the side without straw was about 6 inches from the wall, 

 and by November it had the advantage by 1-t inches : so straw 

 after this was not used except iu the passage. 



The best system I ever found was to pack the ice in sawdust, 

 placing about 1 foot round the ice, beating it solid as the filling 

 proceeded, and when this was finished to place about the same 

 thickness at the top. 



A very important point respecting which I ask for informa- 

 tion is this, : ice-house be ventilated? I am aware 

 that many advocate ventilation, but I could never perceive any 

 advautago from it, but, on the contrary, the reverse. Ice 

 always dissolves rapidly to the bottom of the door, and below 

 the ventilation it always keeps the best. If I were about to 

 build an ice-house I should have it so arranged as to have a 

 flat place at the top to break the ice on, also to have the door 

 at the same plac I ! • 1 all ,: ie ventilation. On the outside 

 of the walls I would have ashes packed between them and the 

 soil to keep the house as dry as possible. The ice-house when 

 finished I would cove,' with Ivy, not trees, and proper drainage 

 should not bo forgotten. — R. H. 



THE CULTIVATION AND PREPARATION OF 

 CASTOR OIL IN ITALY. 



Two species, or more probably varieties, of Rieinus, are 

 found growing spontaneously in the kingdom of Italy — R. com- 

 munis and B. africanns, the distinction being chiefly in the 

 stigmata, of which the former has three deeply-forked, and the 

 latter six. 



I iiave not been able to learn at what epoch these plants 

 were introduced, but it would seem probable, from the early 

 use of castor oil, that they have figured amongst Italian, or at 

 least Sicilian plants, from a remote period, choosing their 

 habitat in the moist thickets that abound near the southern 

 coasts. 



The cultivation of Castor-oil plants for the purpose of com- 

 merce, and especially for export trade, has a comparatively 

 recent date, and the introduction of one of the most esteemed 

 varieties i ite back but twelve years. 



Although the cultivation is carried on in nearly every pro- 

 vince in the kingdom of Italy, as well as the Papal States, it is 

 chiefly from the province of Verona that we draw our supplies 

 both of seed and oil. There are other large manufactories at 

 Leghorn, G inoa, ,V .. but both there as in tho Veronese terri- 

 tory, it is frequently found necessary to purchase foreign seed 

 to make up for the scarcity of the native supply, which is 

 regulated iu great measure by the value of Maize and Sagina — 

 plants preferring the same soil as that required by the Rieinus. 



The two principal varieties cultivated south of Verona are 

 the black-seeded or Egyptian, and the red-seeded, or American. 

 The latter yields a greater per-centage of oil than the former, 

 but the oil is not so pale in colour. The Egyptian variety 

 differs also in requiring a rich soil, whereas the American 

 plant prefers a dry soil with plenty of sun. 



Speaking generally, the land best adapted for the cultivation 

 of the Castor-oil plant should not be too argillaceous, but 

 friable, and well exposed to the sun. In November the ground 

 is ploughed up and allowed to remain all the winter exposed to 

 the frosts and north winds, which are frequently severe. By 



this means the soil is well broken up, and in the spring a series 

 of deep furrows aro made, about 5 feet apart for rich soils, or 

 ■1 feet for ground of a less fertilo nature. In these furrows are 

 dopositod beds of stable manure, which aro lightly covered up 

 by means of a plough. In May, or before, according to the 

 precocity of tho season, the soil in tho furrow is well mixed, 

 and the Couch Grass and other weeds b been uprooted, 



planting is commenced. The seed, which i carefully selected, 

 is held in tho aprons worn by the women, who take up three or 

 four grains between the thumband twofingi i -, and thrust them 

 into the middle of tho furrow, dexterously earthing-up the 

 hole in the withdrawal of the fingers. The distance between 

 the plants should be about '■'■' Eeet. After fifteen or twenty 

 days the young plants will liavo sprung up to a height of about 

 2 inches, and the women again visit the fields for the purpose 

 of selecting tho strongest plants in each bunch, destroying the 

 others and earthing-up the chosen one. After another fifteen 

 days, the plants having attaii ht of about 8 inches, a 



plough, usually drawn by two oxen, is passed between them, to 

 turn more soil into the furrows, and tho women following 

 earth-up the plants, leaving only the leaves uncovered. Later, 

 the " incalzation," as it is called, is repeated with the spade, and 

 the plants being now sufficiently strong, are left to themselves. 



The seeds begin to ripen early in September, when women 

 with baskets on their arms make a daily gathering of the ripe 

 grains, passing by each plant every two, three, or more days, 

 according to the intensity of the heat. As soon as gathered 

 the seeds are spread out on an open floor, to insure their being 

 dry, and, as they retain the outer covering, are called " Ricino 

 investito." To obtain the seeds as they aro met with in com- 

 merce, the following means are adopted: — A layer of about 

 2 inches of " Ricino investito " is spread over the wooden floor 

 of the barn, and a man without es an implement 



made of a flat piece of wood about 20 inches square, under- 

 neath which is attached a layer of cork about 2 inches in thick- 

 ness, fitted with a handle springing at right angles from the 

 wood so that it may be used by the man standing. This imple- 

 ment is pushed backwards and forwards, running gently over 

 the seeds, so as to break up tho integument, which is subse- 

 quently winnowed away. The seed with double covering yields 

 about 66 per cent, of the commercial article. 

 'As soon as the gathering of the Seed is over, the plan 

 cut down and tied in bundles, which are left out to dry, and 

 used in the winter for fuel. Trie winnowed integument is also 

 used for burning in stoves, or for mixing with stable manure 

 for Vine-dressing. Finally, when the land is ploughed up in 

 November, the roots are - dried, : for burning. 



A certain oleaginous prin ipeasrs to pervade the whole 



plant, rendering it usefal e s a he; rilliant com- 



bustible. 



The height of the -. from g to 10 feet according 



to the soil, so that the I men have to take into con- 



sideration its probable ifth, in order to al iiicient 



space for the develop?,;, branches. It is calculated 



that the Veronese terri, el produce of 



over five million kilogrammes of ' tons being less 



than the quantity requir, ho are thus 



obliged to use a portion of foreign seed. 



The preparation of the oil is a reat care, so 



that even the last ink ,ed is 



subjected to pressure. For this purpose the grains are passed 

 through a machine con two large revolving wooden 



rollers, beneath which is pise apo fal winnowing- machine 

 for the separation of the seed torn the covering, now become 

 broken by the paction of the cylinders. As a further guarantee, a 

 number of little girls are employed as sorters, and for this pur- 

 pose are usually seated, when, placing the seed before them by 

 small quantities, they reject tij-" from which the seed-coat has 

 been imperfectly removed, as well as the damaged and rancid 

 grains, throwing the good ones into baskets placed beneath. 



Every manufactory of any importance has at least rive or six 

 hydraulic presses, which are placed in a room heated in winter 

 to a temperature of ab g, coarse, hempen 



press-bags, about li inches wide, are always kept ready, and 

 in each is placed about three kiiogrammes of cleaned seed. 

 The bag, being longer than wide, folds over when in the press, 

 and between it and the superposed one is placed a sheet of 

 iron that has been heated to about 90° Fahr. The presses 

 usually contain from twenty to thirty bags, which have a thick- 

 ness of rather less than 2 inches each. All the oil which flows 

 from this pressure is of the first quality. The marc is now 

 ground in a mill, and again placed in the bags ; the sheet iron, 



