September 9, 1869. ] 



JOUKNAL OF HORTICULIUBE AND COTIAGE GARDENER. 



211 



of the 29th was piercingly cold, and on the 30th and the three 

 following mornings we bad hoar frost thick on the grass, and a 

 thermometer showing from 1° to 2' below freezing-point. 

 Some fine scarlet Pelargoniums were blanched a little in con- 

 sequence. A few Perillas on raised beds were touched, whilst 

 others on the level were not at all affected. Almost every kind 

 of Coleus was affected, except the brown Coleus Yorschaffelli, 

 and Dwarf Kidney Beans passed uninjured. The cold would 

 have had a greater effect but for the dryness. On the 29th 

 we heard of heavy rains farther north, yet we had none that 

 reached the ground here, but a singular phenomenon presented 

 itself during fully half the day. There seemed to be more than 

 a thick Scotch mist in the air, and as you looked at it between 

 the eye and some lofty trees, you could see the rain drops 

 thick and eddying in great waves, as if resolved to give every- 

 thing a refreshing shower, but so far as we saw not a drop 

 reached the ground, the roads being dust-dry all day. The 

 only exception took place beneath lofty trees, as from the 

 highest branches and loaves there were droppings of moisture. 

 No week could have been more suitable for harvest operations, 

 and the fields are being fast cleared. A good rain would greatly 

 help the Turnips. 



In the kitchen garden and fruit garden, besides sowing Cauli- 

 flower for the last time, and Lettuces, the work has been mostly 

 a continuation of that largely dwelt on in the notices of previous 

 weeks, chiefly surface-stirriog, watering, planting, &c. We shall 

 just allude to some matters shortly this week, as more pro- 

 minently coming under our attention. 



Wasps. — For a few days we were quite overrun with these, but 

 the cold nights seemed to have much lefseued their numbers, 

 so that as yet we have not put np hand-light traps or bottles to 

 catch them. We feared for our Morello Cherries, as even with 

 the best covering the wasps will find their way to them, and 

 therefore we gathered all the fruit, thinking it safest in bottles, 

 however preserved. Currants, &c., are not safe from their de- 

 predations, nnless under gauze or fine wire netting. Goose- 

 berries with U8 are ju&t over. We have often had the War- 

 rington in a shady border very fair in October. 



Cabbage Butterfly, and Moths. — We lately alluded to the 

 extraordinary numbers of the ladybird this season, and the 

 popular errors respecting it as destroying the Bean crops. We 

 never saw so few moths as we have done tuis season. Onr 

 Cabbages and Cauliflower have suffered a little from dryness, 

 but that is an evil not felt where there is abundance of water ; 

 but in such a summer we often have had in addition whole 

 clouds of white butterflies depositing their eggs, on all the Cab- 

 bage tribe especially, followed by myriads of larvae, which 

 threatened to clear all before them. Finding cleaning and 

 liming the foliage a troublesome operation, when we had young 

 boys we used to send them on the pleasant work, to them, of 

 hunting down the butterflies, and it was amazing how many 

 they would capture in a sunny forenoon. We do not think we 

 have seen half a dozen white butterflies during the season, and 

 yet the winter was so mild, so free from frost. It just confirms 

 what we lately referred to, the falsity of the common idea that a 

 continued severe frost is good for ridding us of grub and insect 

 enemies. The reverse is often the case. Their instinct tells 

 them how to guard against all such casualties, by securing 

 warm places, or going down greater depths in the soil. In 

 mild winters they are encouraged to make their appearance too 

 soon, and are killed by the succeeding cold. This theory seems 

 at least plausible, and is so far confirmed by results. We have 

 noticed the same thing frequently with self-sown annual seeds. 

 When a sharp frost had set in about the beginning of Novem- 

 ber, and the first part of the winter was cold, the seed, not 

 having vegetated, would withstand the cold and come up 

 strongly in spring; on the other hand, when the winter was 

 mild up to Christmas and afterwards, and then we had severe 

 frosts in January, February, and later, there were fewer plants 

 from self-sown seeds, or even sown by hand, because they had 

 vegetated in the first part of the winter, and were cut up by 

 the following frosts. We have noticed this chiefly in the case 

 of annuals not quite hardy under general circumstances, as 

 there are some of our annual weeds that no frost or changes 

 seem able to destroy. We have rarely known the smallest 

 plants of Thistles or Groundsel injured ; even seeds which 

 have just germinated, do not seem to suffer, but many young 

 seedlings do, and in this case there may be an analogy between 

 them and insects, as respects the effects of mild and severe 

 Trinters. 



OKSAMENTAL DEPAKTITENT. 



Besides patting the flower gardens and pleasure grounds in 



first-rate order, making lots of cuttings, .fcc, we may mention 

 the following : — 



Lavender. — There is no better mode of making a plantation 

 than taking off slips in autumn or early in spring, and planting 

 them firmly at once. To have the Lavender healthy, and for it 

 to continue so, the ground should be well stirred, but not much 

 enriched. We have seen many instances in which greater 

 vigour was required, where it was better to enrich with surface- 

 dressings instead of digging manure into the soil. As the 

 stalks have opened about half their flowers they should be 

 gathered and sorted, and no plan is better for keeping than 

 tying in small bundles and enclosing in muslin bags. What 

 falls off, or even the stalks chopped, come in useful for mixing 

 with Eose leaves. On the manufacture of oil of Lavender, 

 Lavender water, &c., it is not our province to enter. 



Biennial plants, as Canterbury Bells, Sweet Williams, and 

 even Wallflowers, Daisies, Heartsease, and Violets, should now 

 be planted-out, or pricked-out to be planted when the ground is 

 cleared. All Violets will need watering when the weather is 

 dry. Our beds of Neapolitan Violets have been several times 

 cleared of runners, as we mean to lift and transplant with balls 

 under glass in a month or so. A little red spider and mOdew 

 made their appearance on them, owing to the dryness, and, 

 therefore, they were dredged a little with soot and sulphur, and 

 syringed with clear water a few days afterwards. It is ad- 

 visable always to have them clean before placing them under 

 glass. 



Hollyhocks, Dahlias, Phloxes, dc. — Hollyhocks have been 

 fine this season, without having a drop of water given to them. 

 When in masses, we often fix them in rows by running a stout 

 string from stake to stake, and fastening the stems individually 

 to the string, and thus a few stakes serve for a row or belt. We 

 should remember that it must be a fine stake that becomes any 

 ornament in itself. The aim should be to conceal all such 

 necessary propping as much as possible. We have seen 

 Dahlias so spread out and staked, as to be perfect deformities 

 to the eye — to be grown, in fact, as if for the purpose of having 

 a forest of sticks put in about them. The only way to render 

 Dahlias a pleasing feature to the eye, and thus have every plant 

 symmetrical and natural in outline, is to have only one stake 

 to a plant, and that not quite so high as the top shoots. We 

 are supposing that each plant, as il ought to be, is grown to 

 one stem. This is secured to the stake as it grows, and then 

 all side shoots are seciued in their natural position by passing 

 a looped string from the stake round the under side of the side 

 branch. A Dahlia may thus be rendered secure from the force 

 of the wind, and the weight of rains and heavy dews, and yet 

 show neither stake nor tying. 



Time of Watering. — With scarcely any watering the flower 

 beds, when not interfered with by intruders, are rather better 

 than on the average of seasons. If we must water some of them, 

 and most likely such free-growers as Salvias and Calceolarias 

 may want it, we shaU prefer giving the water in the forenoon, 

 instead of in the afternoon, that the surface soil may be dry 

 before evening. As we may expect the nights to become cooler, 

 all plants in pots out of doors we shall now, as a rule, water 

 early in the day, so that the pots and soil may not be so much 

 cooled at night. Many plants that would not suffer in the 

 least from a little cold at their tops, will be much injured by 

 the free exposure of a damp pot to the air, more especially if 

 the young roots are clustered near the sides of the pot. Plung- 

 ing, or something wrapped round the pot, would prevent many 

 a casualty. Where that cannot be conveniently done, all tender 

 plants should be placed under cover before long. The mere 

 standing exposed in a pot, even when the precaution of 

 watering in the first part of the day is taken, exposes plants 

 to more danger than if they were planted or plunged in the 

 ground. At one time, for a furnishing purpose, we used to grow 

 Dahlias, and they succeeded admirably in 12-ineh pots, but 

 year after year we found the plants in pots suffered from cold 

 some days and even weeks before their neighbours which were 

 planted out in the usual way, even though the latter were more 

 luxuriant, and on that account more liable to injury. This we 

 considered was owing to the free exposure of the pot, because 

 when the pots were plunged, the plants withstood the cold of 

 autumn better than those planted out. 



Pinks, Cloves, Carnations, and Picotees. — Booted slips if 

 planted out now will be well-established before winter ; never- 

 theless, where a spare frame or cold pit can be given them, we 

 prefer potting fine kinds, and sheltering them during the 

 winter, not so much to protect them from cold as from their 

 many enemies. We have had and lost several good collections 



