402 



JOURNAL OF HOBTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GABDENEB. 



[ Nvrambar IS, UN. 



is sooner worn ont than ronph hay. Could we only ktep the 

 latter dry it would last a long time, but it Boon lo^es most of 

 its valutj v.htn eeveral timee vetted. Though people are quite 

 veil anare of this, there seems to be a natural tendency to 

 leave all snch coveriuga in front of frames and pit;, where, if 

 heavy rains come, it nill not only have its own share of wet, 

 but also that which runs o& the glass. It is ea^y to place it 

 safely in little heaps, where it would be mostly free from both 

 contingencies. 



We had everything so well secured, that we were almost 

 Borry when the mild change came. We had so much in band, 

 that if the frost continued we bad resolved to let a good many 

 things where there was no artificial heat remain covered up, 

 but we could not do so when a mildness like that of April re- 

 turned, making a difference in two days of little less than 30' 

 Fahrenheit. The covering-up among vegetables had chiefly 

 reference to Cauliflower, forward Broccoli, Celery, and blanched 

 Endive and Lettuce. Sgms outside work has prevented ns 

 doing much in the kitchen garden, except wheeling some de- 

 cayed hotbed manure into heaps, whence we can take it easily 

 to places at hand as wanted. Radishes that received a little 

 protection hio still nice and cri?p. 



In the fii St pitce in the Mushroom house, spawned between 

 five and six weeks, there are some white points appearing, the 

 harbingers of what we hope will be a good gathering. We 

 mentioned that a fortnight or so after spawuing and earthing-up, 

 this bed seemed to be rather cold, and as it was on a broad 

 shelf some barrowloads of hot droppings were pl.iced in the 

 then open space beneath, which had the desired effect of bring- 

 ing heat into the bed, until we had reason to believe the spawn 

 was working, which always makes heat as it progresses. We 

 have just spawned and firmly beaten a third piece, and put in 

 gome dung for a small fourth piece, as we find it is best in 

 every way, and especially as suiting our resources, to do only a 

 little piece at a time, and to follow on continuously. We 

 covered more thickly the bed in the open shed, still producing 

 pretty freely, the last piece only a little in advance of the first 

 piece in the Mushroom house. In this boisterous and frosty 

 weather, however, we have drawn some Laurel branches through 

 some old hurdles, rough-wattliug them, and set them along the 

 front of the she.!, which keeps the air stiller inside than when 

 open, and yet allows the air to sift through. 



CeUry in Beds. — The covering over these, even in severe 

 frost, ought to bo light, or it will break down the leafstalks and 

 thus encourage them to rot. We notice what an observing 

 correspondent says at page 378. We think his beds were quite 

 deep enough and rich enough. We have some with four and 

 five plants across, but we pre.er three plant.'! in general, and 

 also dwarf kinds instead of very tall ones. We are using red 

 Celery now, referred to lately as an Irish kind. A length of 

 fully IS inches of it is fit for table, and the centre row is as 

 good as the outside cues. The beds of Incomparable are as 

 equal as possible plant for plant, and last season we did not 

 lose more than one or two plants from damping or otherwise. 

 Of course, according to the vigour of the plant they demand 

 room, generally from 12 to 15 inches from each other across 

 the bed. For late Celery some trouble is needed in the earth- 

 ing-up, such as using ashes round the plant, and a Uttle litter 

 at the last when it can be obtained. For late Celery, also, it is 

 as well not to have a deep trench. We are so sure that the 

 plan is a good one for all, aud especially for small gardens, that 

 we have no doubt our correspondent will be able to speak more 

 highly of the bedding system next season. 



Decaying, spotting, and bolting Celery is not confined to 

 that grown in beds. We know of a case where more than half 

 the plants fit for use have shown their flower stalks, and yet it 

 is said they were supplied plentifully with water after being 

 planted. We fear they hid been starved and dried previously. 

 We hear of another case where the plants, though looking 

 healthy outside, are all, or nearly all, spotting, rusting, or 

 rotting at the core. They were well supplied with manure 

 water, and we conM just be less sure than if we had seen the 

 water applied that the water, instead of being carefully poured 

 over the soil, was poured on the plants and soil rather indiscrimi- 

 nately. We can hardly venture on manure water being so 

 applied in our absence, nnless it be followed with clean water 

 over the foliage. 



Chiefly as a saving of labour in out-door watering, and much 

 in-door watering likewise, we use the spout of the pot, and that 

 does admirably, if the workman will stoop sufficiently to allow 

 the spout nearly to reach the ground ; but it is a very different 

 aSaii when, standing neatly upright, as, if not noticed, he will 



be almost sure to do, and holding the waterean well up, ha 

 pours out a jet, as it he felt a pleasure in contemplating the 

 miniature cascade. Tbe roots and collars of plants, nut to 

 speak of tht< tender centres of such plants as Celery, are oft«n 

 thus greatly icjitrei, because a man, when he knows the right 

 way, will take the wrong. In onr course through Ule, the 

 errors we commit are in general less chargeable to ignorance 

 than to the simple fact that thongh we knew what was right, 

 we did not do it. 



FEtrrr gabdex. 

 We have not finished washing and tying the trees on the 

 back of our Peach house, as tbe only wet day we had we ap- 

 propriated to potting and mending metal hand-lights. Cut- 

 ting glass for so many comer pieces at the top is a tedions 

 affair. Were we purchasing for ourselves we would never 

 trouble with such glasses, as they are expensive at first, and 

 seem to offer a temptstion to every iron-pointed boot to try con- 

 clusions with them. Sm.»ll, ron^;h, wooden boxes, 2 feet sqnare, 

 with <k glazed top, would be far preferable if made like a Uttle 

 frame with the top moveable, and so that either side would do 

 uppermost. 



The Peach house would have been finished but for the fact 

 that when done we could not store more than a row of boxes 

 in it next the back wall, every other part being filled with 

 bedding plants, and there they will remain until the Peach 

 trees are started, and the most of the Graf es in the late house 

 are cut. 



Strawberry Planlt in Pots. — We mentioned lately onr having 

 turned these on their sides to keep the soil from being 

 saturated. This would have rendered them more liable still 

 to injury from the frosts of the middle of the week, but a 

 sprinkling of litter all over kept them quite safe. Very Httle 

 protection thus suflices for plants placed on the ground. We 

 have found Pelargoniums pulled out of tbe beds, and laid on the 

 ground in an open place, when thus protected, perfectly fresh 

 and sound a month after their neighbours were a mass of decay. 

 We turned out some of these Strawberry plants on the IStb 

 inst., the covering being removed on the previous day, and wo 

 never saw pots better filled with fine, large, light-coloured 

 roots. An earth pit that had late Kidney Beans, being now 

 at liberty, and having some dry tree leaves, we spread a 



I little diy ashes over the surface of the earth pit, and filled it 

 with Strawberry pots, resting their bases on the ashes as a 

 security against worms, and packed them in the tree leaves as 

 closely to each other as they would go, allowing a few leaves to 

 rest on the surface of the pot, and leaving all the rather green 

 leaves belonging to the plants themselves ; for though the pots 

 have long been crammed with roots, and no watering has been 

 given for a long time, the leaves are greener than we Uke 

 to see them now. These we shall cover with old sashes con- 

 demned twenty years ago, but, with a Utile patching on a wet 

 day, still very useful for such rough work, the sashes merely 

 resting on the back and front of tbe earth pit. Sjme of the 



, sides of these sashes that for more than twenty years have not 



', had a touch of paint, are as sound and firm as the day they 

 were cut from a deal log or batten. 0' course, after such rou^ji 



I treatment, covered over often with damp Utter, no rafters to 



j stay them, io., some are going and rotting. 



We could not wish for a safer elysium of rest for our Straw- 

 berry plants in pots, until we wished to excite them into fresh 

 growth, and a covering of strained caUco would be second 

 best, both good as throwing off heavy rains, the few leaves on 

 the surface of the soil, and the foliage of the plants, affording 

 good protection from frost, if the vermin would only let them 

 alone. We shaU be obliged to look at them every day, for 

 mice and rats, not to .'peak of larger four-footed enemies, would 

 soon make wrecks of the crowns. To keep all these destroyers 

 at bay, we have placed a band of tar round the pit, and set 

 traps and baits at no great distance. 



We shall most likely have to store the rest in a similar 

 place, or in the orchard house. We greatly prefer the latter, 

 as the mice, &e., seldom trouble them there, and the first 

 attack is entily seen, but the room there is nearly filled up 

 already. Some years ago, in a very severe frost, we had a 

 similar e.irlh pit to that referred to, protected with a Uttle 

 Utter for tho best part of a week, and on uncovering we found 

 nearly one-third of cur plants, and the best of them, too, use- 

 less, from the hearts being eaten out of them. 



We hope to be excused di\elliDg on these simple matters, M 

 we believe more than half the failures as respects Sirawberries 

 in pots are owing to carelessness as to the condition of the 

 plants in winter. If pltmged and waterlogged out of doors, the 



