4S 



JOUBNAIi OF HOBTICULTORE AND COTTAGE GARDENEB. 



( iaif 15, teat. 



Bhow itself at the drainsi^e ; on the other hand, the foliage 

 maat not be allowed to fl*g from want of wator. After the 

 plants begin to button, weak liquid manure may bo given at 

 every alternate watering, up to the time of the blooms ex- 

 paudicg. 



As regards training, the shoots when long enough should be 

 tied or pegged dowD, bringing them towards the rim of the pot 

 regularly, bo as to feather all round. If they grow evenly no 

 stopping will be needed, but if any eUoot is much stronger 

 and longer than the others, stop it ;" this, bv checking growth, 

 will invigorate the weaker. A bush may be" formed by pinch- 

 ing all the plioots in a similar niauiier, the stronpest always 

 firet, and the weakest last or not at all ; and a pyramidal form 

 may be given by pinching the side shoots and encouraging the 

 centre growths. Stopping may be practised almost to any 

 extent, but not after the middle of June, except for very late 

 blooming. Always confine the stopping to the vigorous grow- 

 ing parts, as the flowering pirts must not to be stopped ; but if 

 they appear before bloom is required, pinch off or cut it away, 

 for until the plant is as large as required, no flowering must be 

 allowed. By stopping some plants and not stoppitg others 

 selecting for the latter the plants of the best habit, a succession 

 ef flowers will be secured. The plants in pots will be found 

 decorative for the greenhouse, conservatory, or mansion. I do 

 not cousiiier the single varieties worth growing. I like the 

 flowers to resemble half a globe, and to be high in the centre. 

 — -G. AnBE,-. 



Bssnredly have noted the fact in hia periodical, if it bad bloomed 



Mooe. My first flower opened in the same week that th* 

 Editors of the Gardenem' Chrnnicle acknowleriged the receipt of 

 a specimen bloom from llr. Morse, and the flower I send ig the 

 first really perfect one I have had since. My plant is growing in 

 an ordinary stove, traided along the rafters, with a S'ephanotig. 

 Now that it is strong it is free-blooming enough, but the buds 

 take a long while to open, and the flowers last but a dav, which 

 will not add to its merits. The colour I shall leave you to de- 

 scribe [It is a brilliant scarlet], and, in conclu«ion, I can con- 

 fidently recommend the plant both for its bold foliage and 

 superbly brilliant blossoms, as a most valuable addition to onr 

 stove climbers. It has been stated to be the same as Passiflora 

 vitifolia. I shall be glad to know if others entertain that 

 opinion. — Gulielmcs. 



BEECH AND OTHER TREES INJURED BY COLD. 



As many of the Beech trees in the park here appear to be 

 injured on their east side, I have been led to think it has 

 resulted from the cold weather in May and June ; but not 

 having heard whether others are similarly served elsewhere I 

 hardly know whether to attribute it to that cause or some local 

 one. Elms adjoining them, and equally exposed, have not 

 auflered so much, and in general the Beech may be regarded 

 as oue of the hardiest trees. However, as already remarked 

 the eastern side of most of the Beeches, including many that 

 are protected by other trees, have this season a half-scorched 

 appearance similar to what I have witnessed when a violent 

 cold east wind his injured trees of nil kinds in May. That 

 i.Iay and June have been very cold months cannot be questioned, 

 and the effects are visible in the small growth, and, in many 

 cases, death of plants not proof against the influence of weither 

 such as is common in March and April ; but I hardly expected 

 the Beech would suffer, and yet it is eo. 



I need scarcely add, that trees winch are more tender have 

 soCered also, as the Walnut and Oriental Plane. The latter 

 has comparatively few full-sized leaves upon it, and the Wnlnnt 

 in exposed places has a melancholy appearance. Even in 

 sheltered positions the crop of fruit, which promised to be 

 most abundant in the beginning of May, has all disappeared, 

 having dropped off. 



Perhaps some of yoar readers will report how they have 

 fared, more especially what effect the cold has had on the 

 hardier kinds of vegetation. With us the growth of grass 

 from the 1st of May up to the middle of June, or later, was 

 very rapid, and some other crops prospered also ; but, generally. 

 It has bsen the reverse with everything. As to bedding plants] 

 I feel unwilling to speak furtlier than to say that when we 

 consider the almost total absence of sunshine, the low tempe- 

 rature, cold withering east winds, and other circumstances, the 

 wonder is that they have done so well as they have. Dwavf 

 Kidney Beans and Scarlet Banners are very late, and other 

 crops of a tender kind are also backward. If it should appear 

 Uiat one of the very hardiest of onr native trees, the Beech, 

 has suCered by the uncongenial season, the wonder is not that 

 Scarlet Banners and the like have done badly, but that they 

 should have been able to live. I shall be glad to know if the 

 injury to the Beech is general. — J. Bouson. 



TACSOXIA BUCHANANI. 



I SEND a leaf and flower of the new stove climber, Tacsonia 

 Buchanani. I had it as soon as it was introduced, and have 

 kept it potted on and plunged in the bark bed of my stove, so 

 that now it is a plant of considerable size. It was recommended 

 by the introducer as flowering freely on small plants, but this 

 mnst be incorrect, as I believe it has not yet flowered, even 

 with M. Varsobaffelt, who sent it out ; at least, it had not done 

 so when I was in his nnrsery last September, and he would 



AZALEA CULTURE. 



{Rcail at the Cnilrd /forticiilturnl Society's tfr'lin;), June lith.) 

 Foil the compost it is absolutely necessary to have good peat, 

 full of strong fibre. I am careful not to select peat of too great 

 a thickness, my opinion being that a thickness of from 1 to 

 3 inches is the best. From sods deeper than that I cut off the 

 bottom, and throw it away. The peat is pulled carefully into 

 pieces suitable for the size of the plants to be shifted ; the greater 

 the shift, the larger the lumps of peat. The next essential 

 material is sharp sand, and it is almost impossible to obtain 

 sand sharp enough. I also select some soft bricks, and break 

 them np to the size of nnts. As a rule I use about one-third 

 sand and brick rubbish to two-thirds of peat. 



The compost being ready, I eximine the size of the pot my 

 plants are in, and select pots a size Urgcr — that is, 1} inch; 

 for strong-growing sorts, a 2 or 2!-inch shift is not too muofa. 

 The pots must be clean and dry, and there should be from 

 1 to 2 inches of crocks at the bottom of the pot. 



The best time for potting the Azalea is about ten daya after 

 the plant has flowered and the pods are picked off — a work 

 absolutely necessary to insure free growth, and without which 

 diminutive flowers are produced. In potting all fine-rooted 

 plants, I find it very necessary to have the ball of the plant 

 thoroughly moist, and on turning it out, if I find it too dry, I 

 soak it in a pail or tab till the water has thoroughly penetrated 

 the mass of soil. 



After the pot his been crocked and the plant is ready, I cover 

 the crooks with .i little rough peat, place over that a few small 

 cr>oks and sand, then the ball is dropped 1 inch below the rim 

 of the pot, and a little of the mixture is worked carefully round 

 the bail, rammed firmly, and so on till the soil is filled level 

 with the old ball. The plant is then taken back to the quarters 

 assigned to it — a close damp house — until the growth is made, 

 and the buds begin to harden. Moisture is then gradually 

 withheld. 



When the buds attain the size ol a pea, the plants are set 

 out of doors for a fortnight or so. E irly-forced plants are 

 placed out of doors as soon as the growth is made, and left 

 until the end of September, when all others are housed. Any 

 plants which have not pushed their buds snflioiintly I give a 

 littlo more heat, which will greatly a<!siBt them. For flowering 

 in December the plants should be started by the end of Sep- 

 tember, and a succession may be had in flower up to Jnly. 



Another method which I adopt when plants have become 

 potbound, and it is, nevertheless, not desirable to give them 

 larger pots, is to allow them to become dry, tnrn them ont of 

 their pots, and with a sharp chopper cut away 1{ or 2 inches 

 of the ball as the case requires. I prick the ball round to 

 loosen it, dip it in water until it is thoroughly soaked, give 

 it half an hour to drain, and then pot it in the usual way, 

 keeping it shaded for a few days. Plants may be grown in 

 the same-sized pots for years, (ireat care is required in water- 

 ing ; in fact, every plant grower knows it is ol no use writing 

 on watering, as that must be learned by strict attention to the 

 requirements of different plants, but when a plant requires 

 water I give it a good soaking. When growing they require 

 frequent syringing. — G. Baker. 



PEWITS AS VERMIN KILLERS. 



Your correspondent " H. E. W." wishes to know the manage- 

 ment of the plovers in my garden. The management was last 

 winter simply nil. As I stated, owing to the mild winter they 

 did not require feeding, but in a hard winter they want more 



