216 



JOURNAL OF HORTICULTUKE AND COTTAGE GAJ5DENEK. 



( Mmrch 20, 1866. 



load or no aroond the colUr of each tree, and the result is 

 favourable. Gooseberries and Cun-ants have sometimes been 

 treated in the same way, but tlie plan is all but abandoned, 

 and in the case of Apples only a few practise it. Cherries, 

 liowever, on stiff ground seem to be benefited by tlie practice, 

 but on dry stony soils of ujiland districts the benefit is less 

 apparent, and the plan has been abandoned by many growers ; 

 nevertheless, some old hands still adhere to it. There is an 

 inconvenience attending it where the ground is in tillage, but 

 when in grass this is not the case. 



I cannot conclude this article without thanking Mr. Pearson 

 for his excellent article on the CameUia, a phint which is 

 managed the reverse of well in many places, and though I 

 hardly agree with him altogether as to the soil he recommends, 

 I am far from being certain that he is wrong, ilost eicellent 

 Camellias are grown in different parts of Yorkshire, and, no 

 doubt, in the adjoining counties also, and advice from growers 

 there is valuable ; but .somehow I have always been of opinion 

 that the water a plant is fed with exercises as much influence 

 on its well-doing as the soil it is grown in. For instance, 

 water from a chalk well, continuously supplied to Heaths 

 planted in peat, in time is fatal to the plants. Itain water we 

 are perfectly assured is in all cases grateful, and for tender 

 plants ought always to be used. — J. Kobson. 



PE.VR SCIONS ROOTING. 

 I EAVE read with lively interest the discussion on Pear scions 

 emitting roots above the stock. The affirmative I can fuUy 

 endorse by practical proof. I have very recently been trans- 

 planting a number of Pear trees, and one of them is ready for 

 Mr. Scott with a beautiful bunch of roots " from above the 

 junction of the scion and stock." The spongelets are very 

 fat and active, whUo those of the stock are dormant. The tree 

 is a standard, about 5 feet high, stem 2 inches in diameter. If 

 Mr. Scott will send me a dozen Mrs. Pollock Geraniums I will 

 send hi m the tree for occular demonstration. Of course he 

 will pay the £1 to the Institution. — T. Middleion, Ganlemr 

 to Sir W. W. Wynne. 



WINTERING "STiRBENAS iUNDKR BELL 

 GLASSES. 



Having for the last four years adopted a particular method 

 of wintering Verbenas, Calceolarias, Lobelias, Ageratums, and 

 even Pelargoniums, which I have never seen described, I ven- 

 ture to give my experience and mode of proceeding, not for the 

 purpose of instructing professed gardeners, but in order to 

 bring this class of plants more within the reach of such ama- 

 teurs and cottagers as cannot or will not afford themselves the 

 luxury of a greenhouse or frame. Even by those who possess 

 these useful adjuncts to a garden, this mode of keeping them 

 through either a wet or frosty winter will be found easier and 

 more certain than the old systems. That it may not prove 

 a success with all on the first trial is probable, but it should 

 not, therefore, be hastily condemned, for many will set about 

 it the wrong way, or omit doing something essential to 

 success. 



The advantages of the method are, that the first outlay is 

 small, that the skill required to succeed is only such as is pos- 

 sessed by evei-y one who cultivates plants as a pastime, and 

 that very little labour is required. That I was not so successful 

 the first season as I now am is true ; but since I adopted this 

 method I have never been without a sufficient supply of these 

 nsnally fastidious pets, and most seasons I have plenty to 

 spare for my more unfortunate neighbours. 



The time for commencing operations is not the same for all 

 the above-mentioned plants. Verbenas should be put in from 

 the beginning to the end of October ; though I have done so and 

 succeeded as late as the 2.5th of November, I do not advise 

 waiting so late. For Ageratums and Calceolarias my advioe is. 

 Wait as late as you possibly can, but insert the cuttings before 

 the plants are affected by frost. 



This is my mode of proceeding : — A fortnight before propa- 

 gating I dig a border 2 feet wide and long in proportion to the 

 number of bell-glasses required. It should be immediately 

 nnder a south w.iU, and slope from the wall so that the water 

 may be thiowu off. Over this border spread sand an inch 

 thick, and fork it well in, so as to make a sandy open soil in 

 which to plant the cuttings. On this I place the bell-glasses 



for a few days before planting, that the soil may become heated. 

 I make my cuttings in the usaal way, and dibble them in as 

 thickly as possible — say about half an inch apart. I have now 

 of Purjile King Verbena a bell-glass 10 inches in diameter, in 

 which were put a hundred cuttings ; eighty-eight are looking 

 well, and have already furnished one set of cuttings, the others 

 were devoured by a slu^ which found its way in, and grew fat on 

 Verbenas for a few days, but rrr/uiocQf I'li ;«id-. I then give 

 a good drenching with water at iH)% put on the bell-glass whilst 

 the soil is still muddy, press the glass down Jirmly, shade from 

 strong sun, and water over and around the bell-glass every third 

 morning until the cuttings begin to shoot. As soon as they 

 start I give air by remoWng the glass on every fine day, and 

 occasionally wipe the inside, and I fork the soU among the 

 plants. If kept well aired and tolerably dry a little frost will 

 not hurt the cuttings, though if the frost become severe pro- 

 tection must be given by means of a sheaf of straw, tied to- 

 gether at one end, and of a convenient length, so that when 

 pushed over the top of the bell-glass it may cover it all round. 

 Treat the Ageratums, Lobelias, and Calceolarias in the same 

 way, and in March each Verbena will furnish two cuttings, 

 which may be struck as before, and each Ageratum and Cal- 

 ceolaria will afford one cutting. I have wintered Pelargoniums 

 and Fuchsias in precisely the same manner. Though I do not 

 recommend this method for them, it is better than fagotting 

 them in a cellar. 



The objections which may be raised against this system are : — 

 Firstly, That the roots are necessarily more or less injured at 

 bedding-out time. Secondly, That the plan may do for a mild 

 climate, but will not answer in a cold one. Thirdly, That i£ 

 the climate is very wet, damp will be the destroying agent. 



To the first objection I will answer, that though the roots 

 may be a little broken, and the plants reciuire water and a little 

 attention for a few days after planting out, they do not sustain 

 material iujiuy, and will prove hardier and less liable to mildew 

 than if they were pot-bound, or allowed to become too dry in 

 winter. 



To the second objection my answer is, that where my bell- 

 glasses stood last winter the thermometer registered 25° for 

 three consecutive nights, yet not a plant suffered. 



With regard to the third objection, 1 may remark that this 

 winter has been a severe test, for we have scarcely been two 

 days without rain, yet not a single plant has damped off, or 

 shown an inclination to do so. The Lobelias and Calceolarias 

 are, perhaps, a trifle too tender, but exposure to March winds 

 will put that all right. — Pcrpljj King. 



[We know that most of what " Pirple King " relates can be 

 done, but only by care and watchfulness. In such positions 

 hand-lights have been used pretty successfully. In fine weather 

 they are better, in bad weather they are not so good as large 

 bell-glasses. As our correspondent speaks of the little expense, 

 we presume he uses those of coarse coloured glass. Good bell- 

 glasses of clear glass, 16 inches in diameter, cost about 'is. Gd., 

 and they are expensive and liable to break in carriage. We 

 once had a narrow pit close to a wall under our care, and there 

 Neapolitan Violets and bedding stuff flourished amazingly, the 

 glass being protected by straw covers and straw mats, and the 

 ground in front rough-asphalted with tar and gravel to throw 

 off the damp and wet. With rough glass in large squares at 

 lid. per foot much may thus be done with narrow pits — say 

 2 or 3 feet wide, in front of a thick wall. The bell-glass system 

 might suit some people much better, as they are made all ready 

 for use, and our correspondent would confer a further favour 

 by telling us the size and price of his glasses, and the quality 

 and colour of the glass. We duly appreciate the skill and the 

 unwearied watchfulness he has exercised over his pets.] 



CULTURE OF ^^2RBENAS FOR BEDDING-OUT. 



Some of your readers seem to find a difficulty in the cultiva- 

 tion of Verbenas ; my mode of growing them always success- 

 fully is as follows. 



In the latter part of July I take cuttings, and insert them in 

 a mixture of light loam and leaf mould, with a spriukling of 

 silver sand, in -IS-sized pots well drained, and plunge these up 

 to their rims in some old tan in a two-light frame on a gentle 

 hotbed. When the cuttings are rooted I pot them off into 

 00-pots, and place them in their previous quarters till they 

 have roothold. They are then placed on a shelf in a cool 

 vinery, and remain there till spring, to be then removed to a 

 cold frame to await their being transplanted into the flower 



