October 26, 1869. ] 



JOUENAIi OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



317 



protect the hand. Ofconvge, if snch water was at a tempera- 

 ture of 200°, it would not be above 160° or 170° by the time it 

 reached the tree?, aud few egga of insects will resist that heat. 

 Of all cleansers we prefer warm water. The soap is also a 

 help, and we prefer soft soap, say a common table-spoonful to 

 five gallons of water. After thns fyringing the woodwork of 

 the trellis, itc, the wood of the trees was washed with similar 

 water, employing large soft-hairbrushes for the purpose ; but as 

 the hand had to be used beneath the twigs, the water would not 

 be warmer than 125° or 130°. The displacing of insects' eggs 

 under such circumstances will generally settle them. Then 

 the woodwork of the trellis wos coated with quicklime paint, so 

 as to make that all secure. We would much approve of a wire 

 trellis, but, though we hiive waited for it for years, there the 

 wood is, and we must prevent its being a harbour for inteots' 

 eggs. As a farther security we painted the trees all over with 

 a soft brush, and a paint formed of a little soft soap and sul- 

 phur, with a good bulk of clay. Without saying a word against 

 Glshurst or the many other paints used, wo are almost of 

 opinion that good clay paint of itself ia very nearly as good aa 

 the best of them. A little soft soap in the water used causes it 

 to adhere all the better. The chief object of all such painting is 

 to smother up all insect eggs if there be any, and cause them 

 to perish from want of air, and nothing does this better than 

 clay. As the buds begin to expand the clay begins to cracfe, 

 and if it seems to hold fhem rather tightly a slight dewing from 

 the syringe makes it soft. There is no danger of an overdose, 

 as may soon be the case with some of the other compositions. 

 Sulphur is generally an ingredient in all such preparations, but 

 in its timple state we know of no case in which sulphur is 

 injurious to insects. The fumes of sulphur will drive off, if 

 not kill, the red spider, hut amongst sulphur itself we have seen 

 the spiders disporting themselves as so many sand boys. 



In this hous'e we had scarcely an insect last season, except a 

 few green fly on Strawberries ; but it is well to err on the safe 

 side, as though most of the aphides and other in=ect enemies 

 are viviparous during summer, the first invading army in the 

 spring generally comes from hosts of eggs that have remained 

 in a state of dormancy in winter. The surface soil was like- 

 wise scraped off, and some warm water applied over the new 

 surface with a rose. A little flowers of sulphur may be 

 dusted over the ground, if the trees show any sign of mildew 

 on their tops or roots. These processes may well be gone 

 through even as matters of precaution. We have only done 

 this as yet with the bulk of the house, so as to cover the floor 

 with boxes of plants ; the trees on the back wall will likely 

 remain unwashed, except for the syringing referred to, until 

 we have a wet day. Much of the general economy c f managing 

 a garden will ever consist in the right timing of labour. Pre- 

 vention in the case of insect attacks is even better than any 

 mode of getting rid of them. We have been perfectly astonLshod 

 at seeing tha bills for tobacco and other killing agents used in 

 some gardens. Better, if possible, prevent insects appearing. 



OBN'AMENTiL DEPASTITENT. 



The clearing of our Peach house, except the back wall, and 

 covering the floor i\iih boxes of bedding plants beneath the 

 trellis, and the front thelves, &0-, with the same, gave ns a cMd 

 pit at liberty for Calceolaria cuttings. This pit is too deep for 

 onr purpose, and sometimes we put fresh earth on the surface 

 of what is left, and plant the enttings in it. We prefer, how- 

 ever, doing all afresh, and so as to have a rather open instead 

 of a close, firm bottom. We therefore take out the soil and 

 the little rotten dung and leaf mould, place, fay one large or 

 two small barrowloads of dry litter in the bottom of each light, 

 tread it firm, follow with 2 or 3 inches of half-rotten dune, and 

 then with an inch of roughish sweet leaf mould, mixed with 

 riddlings of fibrous loam, and well tread again. Next follows 

 a layer of 2 inches cf fresh fibrous sandy loam, with just a 

 very little leaf mould and black dust from our charring heap ; 

 then we tread, level, and surface with a quarter of an iufh of 

 road Band collected in hollows after floods. In this the cuttings 

 are inserted in rows, from 2 to 2' inches apart, and from 1 to 

 Ij inch apart in the ro-.v. Sometimes there are 9 few failures. 

 Last season not one cutting in two thousand failed to strike. 

 The cuttings are firmed, and when a light ia done the soil is 

 well watered through a fine rose. Frequently before watering 

 a little fine eunJ is strewed by hand along the rows, which 

 tills up all the holes, and causes the cuttings to be very firm. 

 This season the ca'tings are rather too large, and require 

 either to be topped or the leaves much reduced. We greatly 

 prefer short, stubby side shoots, taken off with a heel close to 

 the old stem, the cuttings averaging 2i inches in length. These 



were clean cut at the heel, two or three of the bottom leaves 

 removed, the top ones, if Urge, shortenf', but tho young 

 leaves in the centre of the growing point left untouched. After 

 the first watering the cuttings will need no more for a long 

 time, except a gentle dewing on a sunny day, a little shading 

 when the sun is powerful, and the sashes shut down then, 

 but a little air given at the back night, afternoon, and morning 

 in mild weather, shutting up closely only when frosty. These 

 Calceolarias will be early enough if they begin to stiiks root 

 abotit the New Tear, and then wo place them in earth pits in 

 the middle of March to give ibem rootn to grow strong and 

 bushy, so as to lift with balls in May. Last season, from in- 

 serting the cuttings until abottt finishing blooming, the Calceo- 

 larias were never visited by r.n insect. Coddling and fire-heated 

 places havo spoiled thousands o' Calceolarias. 



Centaurca candidissima an-t 'I'.Tbenas.-^'Tke Cucumber bed 

 referred to, and one of a Eitjii):ir kind, after being fresh turned 

 up for a foot or two, a little fresh ujaleiial aoded at the bottom, 

 and a layer of dry ashes at the top, was devoted to the pur- 

 pose of giving a littlo enoonrogement to cuttings of the above. 

 We stated last season how old plants of Centaurea can be 

 treated successfully, but cUl plants, e.xcept for a few centres, 

 are comparatively useless, as the smallest plants in spring will 

 soon be large enough iu summer when planted out of doors. 

 The smallest bits strike easily in heat in spring. It requires 

 larger pieces to strike well in cold pits in summer and autumn. 

 There is no difficulty in raising a fine stock from cuttings in- 

 serted at tho end of July and the beginning of August; but we 

 could not take cff ouis so soon, and we thought we would pre- 

 fer a lot of young plants to the old ones, as taking up less 

 room. What we put in by the beginning of September are 

 well struck. What were inserted from the middle to the end 

 of that month in pots in a cold pit, though all sound, are merely 

 callusing, only a few beginning to root. These, if we could 

 have spared the room, we would have inserted each at the 

 side of a small pot, as the roots are so brittle. We have 

 adopted the next best course — namely, placed two cuttings in 

 a 3 inch pot, with a piece of slate or tile down the centre ol 

 each pot, so that the roots will not much intermingle. These, 

 with the soil sufficiently moist, we have moved to the gentle 

 hotbed, surfaced with dry ashes, and in tbem plunged the pots. 

 In from a fortnight to three weeks we expect every pot to be 

 filled with roots, when the pots can bo set anywhere under 

 protection, as it takes a considerable degree of frost to injure 

 the plants. Damp is a greater enemy. To some Verbenas 

 which were rather late, we have given a similar help. Tender 

 kinds of Pelargoniums have been taken itp and repotted ; the 

 bulk are still uninjured. — E. F. 



TRADE CATALOGUES RECEIVED. 



Charles Turner, Royal Nurseries, Slough. — Select List of 

 New and Choice Pelargoniums, Aiiricuhu, Carnations, Picotees, 

 il-c— Catalogue of Roses, Fruit Trees, Coniferie, Hardij Trees, 

 Shrubs, Climbing Plants, die. 



G. Jackman & Son, Woking Nursery, Woking, Surrey.— 

 Catalogue of Plants. 



CO"\'^NT GARDEN MARKET.— October 27. 



A SLIGHT iaiprovemetit in business has enabled us to reduce onr stock?? 

 biit without any advanco in price, tho great bulk ol fruit being of only 

 second-rate qualitv, and having evidently bem much injured during the 

 late storms. Some consignments of Chaumontela from the Channel Islands 

 have como to hand this week, but they are not fine. Vegetables are 

 abimdant and excellent. 



VEC-ETABLES. 



Artichokes doz. 3 



Asnara^us ICO 



Beans, Kidney ?i sieve S 



Broad .... bushel 



Beet, Hod duz. 2 



Broccoli bundle 1 



BriiS. Sprouts ^s sieve 3 



Uabbayo doz. 1 



Capsicums 100 2 



Carrots bunch 



Cauliflower doz. 



Ce'.ery bundle 



Coleworts . .doz.bchs. 

 Cucumliers .... each 



pickling .... dcz. 



Endive doz. 2 



FcuHcl bunch S 



GarUo lb. 8 



Herbs bunch S 



Horseiadish ..bundle 3 





 

 

 

 

 

 



4 

 3 



1 6 



2 

 

 

 2 

 



d. B. 

 to G 

 



Leeks bunch 



Lettuce score 



Mushrooms pottle 



Mustd.& Cress,punnet 

 Onions bushel 



pickling .. quart 



Parsley sieve 



Parsnips doz. 



Peas quart 



Potatoes bushel 



Kidney ditto 



Radishes doz.bunches 



Rhubarb bundle 



Savoys doz. 



Sea-kalo basket 



ShaUots lb- 

 Spinach bushel 



Tomatoes doz. 



Turnips bunch 



Yeget. Marrows.. d02. 



d. 8. 

 4 to 



2 



2 



2 



4 











1 







e 4 



6 4 











1 



1 

 2 

 3 

 

 8 



a 







2 e 



3 6 



1 







1 6 

 

 



2 

 9 



4 



1 



6 

 2 



