20 



JOUENAL OF HOBTICULTUEE AND COTTAGE GABDENER. 



I July 8, 1859. 



pleasaotness to the flavonr of tlie fruit tbey will only tend to 

 mar the enjoyment of those for whoso pleasure they were 

 provided. — Edwabd Lcckhuust, Egerton Home Gardens, Kent. 



JUSTICIA SPKCIOSA CULTURE. 



When well-grown, this is a fine showy plant for decorative 

 purposes. By pinching at regular intervals, it assumes a 

 sturdy and compact habit of growth, and when placed in the 

 most favourable position during growth, and in suitable soil, 

 its foliage becomes largo, and of a rather dark green, which sets 

 off to advantage the numerous purplish flowers. 



Being a native of the East Indies, the plant requires heat to 

 grow it to perfection ; but in this respect it is very accommo- 

 dating, for it will thrive in a much milder temperature than 

 many cultivators give it — indeed, the strong heat in which it is 

 generally kept is, in my opinion, one of the errors which are 

 committed in its culture, for when so treated the plant is 

 slender-stemmed, long-jointed, and produces few flowers, which 

 last only a short time ; indeed, under such treatment it is any- 

 thing but the beautiful and continuous-flowering plant it is 

 when grown under the system which I shall describe. 



The principal time for the plant's flowering is stated in the 

 '• Cottage Gardeners' Dictionary " to be the month of August ; 

 but I am in the habit of growing it for conservatory decoration, 

 and of having it in bloom in the winter months. For this 

 purpose I insert the cuttings iq sandy soil in heat during the 

 first week in May ; when struck, I select the best and pot them 

 off in large fiO-sized pots, using at this early stage a soil of 

 moderate richness, such as turfy loam (not light), and leaf 

 mould, with a little sand. After a few days take the top out 

 of every shoot, and when they break again they will require a 

 farther shift into (Jinch pots. From the time the cuttings are 

 put in, up to this stage, they should have a regular heat of 60°, 

 plenty of moisture at the roots and in the atmosphere, and 

 plenty of light ; shading, however, from very bright sun. 



After the young plants have become established they may 

 with advantage be transferred to more airy quarters, where 

 they will have plenty of light as before ; but instead of using 

 fire heat, unless the weather is unseasonable, they will do 

 much better if the house or pit be shut up early to secure sun 

 heat. Syringe copiously, stop the shoots as required — every 

 one, large or small. This insures more perfect blooming. 

 Shift the plants this time into pots of the next larger size, 

 using stronger and richer soil ; and as the Justicia is a vigorous- 

 rooting plant, it must have plenty of moisture, consequently 

 plenty of drainage. Shift the plants again when necessary 

 into 9-inch pots, stop them once afterwards ; then they may be 

 allowed to grow at will, complete thtir growth, and form their 

 flower buds. While these are becoming developed, gradually 

 give more air, which will so far harden the plants as to enable 

 them to flower in perfection in the more intermediate tempe- 

 rature of the conservatory. 



Under the above treatment the plants will generally be about 

 2J feet high, and IS inches in diameter ; but it taller plants 

 are wanted they may be grown in stronger heat and pinched 

 less frequently ; stUI, as before stated, such treatment shortens 

 the period of flowering, and deteriorates the value of the 

 flowers for cutting purposes. 



After the flowering is over I make it a rule to reduce my 

 stock to two or three plants, whicli are kept in a rather dry 

 state in the greenhouse through the winter, until wanted to 

 sujiply cuttings in the spring, when they are cut back and 

 plftced in heat. Many cultivators keep their whole stock 

 through the winter, shake the plants out in the spring, cut 

 them back, start them into growth, and shift into larger pots 

 a.s necessary ; but as the Justicias are vigorous-growing, where 

 room is at aU valuable, the treatment I first described is pre- 

 ferable. — Thomas Eecoed. 



CHRYSOBACTRON HOOKERI. 



Tms ffljember of the Asphodeleacffi was introduced into this 

 country in 1818. It was discovered by Mr. Bidwell in rich 

 marshy districts about Wairu, Middle Island, New Zealand. 

 " It grows," said Mr. Colenso, who also discovered it, " in great 

 clumps in boggy places, and is said to cover the plain with a 

 sheet of yellow when in bloom. Some of the masses are 3 feet 

 in diameter." It is figured in the " Botanical Magazine," 

 t. •t<J02, and is there stated to have been kept at Kew in a cool 

 frame. Probably from being treated too tenderly it was de- 



stroyed, for we believe it is no longer in the gardens. It is 

 now called by some botanists Anthericum Hookeri. We are 

 glad to find that it has been re-introdnced, for we have received 

 A specimen in flower from Mr. A. Storrie, Wbiteinch Nursery, 

 Partick, Glasgow. 



He describes it as a hardy herbaceous plant, adding, "I have 

 several plants at present in bloom, and it is tbonght by some 

 a great acquisition. One plant planted-ont two years ago has 

 twenty-six spikes of flowers. The leaves attain 18 inches in 

 length, and the flower-scape li to 2j feet, or even 3 feet, in 

 height." 



ZINC EDGE FOR FI-OWER BEDS ON GRASS. 



Grackful curvilinear beds on lawns are after a time often 

 much distorted in consequence of the encroachment of the 

 grass round their edges, and without much care in cutting it 

 is almost impossible to keep the original detign. I have, 

 therefore, much pleasure in laying before your readers a simple 

 plan to remedy this, and to effect a saving of labour. The 

 thought struck me that some kind of metallic lining would 

 answer the purpose, and about twelve months ago I tried the 

 experiment in my home garden, the result of which is very 

 .satisfactory. 



The following are the instructions -.—Edge round your flower 

 beds with a perfectly even upright cut in the grass, '2 inches 

 deep, and let into this cut a strip of stout zinc of the same 

 depth, bending and fitting it exactly to the shape of the bed 

 on a level with the surrounding grass. To keep the zinc firmly 

 in its place, drive down some small, square, red deal pegs, 

 about a foot apart, making them low enough for the tops to be 

 covered by the soil of the bed. With a little brown paint 

 brush the zinc edge, which should be left 1 inch deep after the 

 soil is replaced. The shape is thus accurately and permanently 

 preserved. 



These strips might be painted and sanded on one side before 

 they are put down. They cost about three farthings per foot 

 run, and are cut from 8-feet sheets of zinc of No. 12 thick- 

 ness. The mowing machine will cut over this edge, and the 

 stray blades of grass that escape can be easily clipped off, so 

 that even a lady gardener with a pair of scissors may keep the 

 edges of her beautiful scrollwork parterres in perfect order. — 

 Henby Curtis, Devon Hosenj, Torquay. 



VICOMTESSE HERICART DE THURY 

 STRAWBERRY. 



If I were to be asked which is the best Strawberry for general 

 use, I would unhesitatingly name the above. Out of a col- 

 lection of upwards of five hundred varieties which I have 

 grown and fruited during the last ten years, there is none, 

 not one, to equal this, by far the most useful Strawberry in 

 cultivation. It is surpassed by some in point of size — it is 

 not a monster — by others in point of flavour — it is not a 

 Queen ; it is, however, extremely pleasant, and like the Black 

 Hamburgh among Grapes, the most refreshing of all. A few 

 Muscats cloy our palates, a few British Queens satiate us ; 

 we come back as to a well of pure water after a feast |of wine, 

 to the Hamburgh in the one case, and to the Vioomtesse 

 Iluricart de Thury in the other. 



The Vicomtesse Hiiricart de Thury Strawberry is a most ex- 

 traordinary bearer, the crop produced from a certain number 

 of plants being something enormous. Although few of the 

 fruits exceed the medium size, they are nearly all of good size, 

 and gathering after gathering may be taken, the last almost 

 equal to the first. There is no other Strawberry from which 

 so many dishes of good uniform fruit can be taken as this. It 

 is very unlike Keens' Seedling and many others in that respect, 

 as from these, as is well known, after the first picking the rest 

 are all " chats." Yet even the small fruits of this variety are 

 prized and welcome. To use a Covent Garden expression, 

 " the colour sells it." It is of the brightest and clearest scarlet, 

 and very pleasing in appearance. Through its brightness and 

 fre.sh appearance it is selected and preferred to others greatly 

 exceeding it in size. This I liave often observed in my ex- 

 perience of selling a mixed collection of Strawberries. The 

 surface of the fruit is firm, so that it does not bruise readily; 

 it is an excellent sort for packing and sending to a distance, 

 being as fresh at the end of a day's journey as il newly gathered. 

 This is a great quahty in Strawberries, too often overlooked by 

 the introducers of new varieties. Besides its high qualities as 



