J anuary 28, 1875. ] 



JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



81 



PaiCE OF Pears {A Constant Subscriber). — Hu^o specimens were in a 

 fruitist's window in Covent Garden Market marked one guinea eauh. but 

 whether they wore sold at that price ia not known to us. They were Uve- 

 d&le's St. Germain. 



Wild Ginokk ( ),~Sir 8. Baker's plant cannot be the Asarum cana- 



dense. The characteristics are different. 



Orcharding (Beta),— We are sorry we cannot give you the names of either 

 of the Apples of which you have sent us only portions and rind. In all pro- 

 bability they are local varieties, of which you have abiindauce in Worcester- 

 Bhire. The *' Fruit Manual " is far advanced towards completion, the printers 

 havinfj j,'ot as far as " Plums ;" but the additions to the work have been so 

 numerous, the time taken to produce it has been longer than was aoticipated. 

 The best ^mde we can offer you in your present need is Canon Lea's " Small 

 Farmfl," published at this office, and sent free by post for 6hi. in stamps. 

 It is by theVirar of St. Peter's, Droitwich, and beini? in your own district 

 will be applicable to your case- It is a very practical book, and will show you 

 how and what fruit to grow profitably. 



Sarracenia PURPUREA iA Subucribcr^ Cambridff>).-~7he price is about 

 28. Qd. Write to Messrs. Cutbush, Nurseries, Highgate, London, for infor- 

 mation. 



Tree-boring Caterpillar (J. Grcoi). — It is the coterpillar of the Goat 

 Moth, CoRBUS ligniperda. We published a full account of it with engravings 

 on page 354 of our twenty-sLxth volume. 



Hyacinths Planting {Hyacinths).— In "planting Hyacinths" in pots 

 the bulb should not be more than about half covered with soil, not pressing 

 them into the soil, but placing them upon it, and tilling with soil around the 

 bulbs to the required height, pressing it fii-mly around the bulbs. The soil 

 being in a moist state when the Hyacinths are potted, they should not be 

 watered after pottiug prior to plunging in and covering with ashes. The soil 

 must he made moist before plunging the pots if it be dry, but it is better to 

 pot in moist soil. The bulbs usually require to he covered about sis weeks, or 

 until they have made good roots, and have grown at the top about an inch. 

 When this extent of top-growth is made, and before it is 2 inches long, the 

 pots bboujd be removed from the ashes. 



Heading-down Briak Offshoots (Jane).— We presume the offshoots 

 have no roots, in which case the earlier they are cut back the better, and if 

 they were rooted when planted they should be cut as soon as possible, and in 

 either case it would have been better done prior to planting. 



Late-cooking Apples (Idem). — Bedfordshire Foundling, November to 

 March ; Dumelow's Seedling, November to March ; Brabant Bellefleur, No- 

 vember to April ; Lord Ilaglan. January to June ; Norfolk Bearer, November 

 to January; Norfolk Beehug, December to June; Rymer, October to March; 

 Northern Greening, November to April ; Striped Beeting, November to May ; 

 Winter Majeting, November to March ; and Aunie Elizabeth will keep often 

 until July. 



SaNTOLINA and ALTERNANTHKRiS CULTURE (Old S(i?>.>Cri&('r). —Sauto 



Una is a hardy plant in welt-drained soil, but in a wet one requires the pro- 

 tection of a frame or pit. It is propagated by cuttings, which root freely 

 in summer in sandy soil in a close-shaded frame, or in spring in a frame in 

 gentle heat. The young plants may be wintered in a warm situation out of 

 doors, planting them about 2 inches apart, or if the soil be a heavy and wcL 

 one winter in a frame in the cutting pans, hardening well off" in spring, and 

 putting out in light rich soil in April in a warm position, shading for a few 

 days and keeping moist, removing to the bads at planting time. It is a 

 remarkably neat edging plant for beds, and for lines in carpet bedding. The 

 fohage is white or silver. Alternantheras are propagated by cuttings, wliich 

 root freely in sandy loam in gentle heat, kept moist and shaded, and when 

 well rooted potted off singly and grown-on in heat; or they may be planted 

 out in a pit about 2 inches apart, and gro«u-on so as to have them strong by 

 planting-out time, and well hardened off. In winter they require a tempera- 

 ture of 55-, and to be kept moist. To strike freely they require a bottom heat 

 of 70", and top heat corresponding. We do not think you will be able to 

 obtain seed of either. 



Caladium Cclture (/. H.). — Pot them about three tubers in a pot, or five 

 if small, allowing the same distance between the tubers as they are in 

 diameter, and the same from them all around to the sides of the pots, potting 

 Ko that the tubers will be covered about three-quarters of an inch deep. Give 

 free drainage, and a compost of three parts turfy loam, one part leaf soil, half 

 a part sandy peat, and half a part old cow dung or well-rotted manure, and 

 one-sixth of silver sand, the whole well mixed, chopped up rather fine, but not 

 sifted. Place in a house with a temperature of U5- at night, and 7U' to 75- by 

 day, keeping moist, and only so until they are growing freely, then water also 

 freely, increasiug the supply with the grijwth. The pots being full of roots 

 shift into pots 2 inches larger in diameter, and when they are established in 

 these, water twice a-week with weak liquid manure. They, revelling in 

 moisture during growth, should be very copiously watered and have a moist 

 atmosphere. Slight shade fr jm bright sun is necessary. 



Conifer Seed Sowing— Adiantdms Potting, &c. ( W. L.).— The best time 

 to sow seeds of Conifers is in March or early April, choice kiuds in pans in a 

 cold frame to have air abundantly when the seedlings are up; the commoner 

 varieties in open but sheltered positions out of doors. The best time to till- 

 up bare places on lawn by sowing grass seeds is early in Api-il in showery 

 weather. Adiantums in greenhouse will require to be potted in Maich, be 

 moderately supplied with water until they are growing freely, and then water 

 requires to bo Kiven copiously, never allowing them to want for water without 

 giving it, and at the same time the soil must not be made sodden by needless 

 applications. The plants are benefited by a light syringing morning and 

 evening, and should have shade from bright sun. 



Dracxna Propagation (A Subscriber). — The plants may be cut off at a 

 few inches above the soil, the upper part or crown formed into a cutting and 

 struck in gentle bottom heat, and the stem may be cut into lengths of about 

 2 inches, and laid fiat on sandy soil in a pan filled to within an inch of the 

 rim with soil, gently pressing them in the soil, and covering three-quarters to 

 an inch deep with soil. Place the pan in a hotbed of about 75^ to 80', and 

 keep moist. Instead of cutting the stems into lengths we lay thom in the 

 plunging material of the bed in the stove, aud covered an inch or two deep ; 

 and when young plants appear about 3 inches high the stem is bared and the 

 plants detached close to it with a knife, potting singly in small pots, and 

 placing in a house with a brisk moist heat, where they soon become established, 

 until which they require shade from bright sun, after which they should be 

 kept near the glass, and have light to secure good colour. 



Sea-kale Culture, &c. (W. P.}.— We presume you intend to blanch it 

 upon the ground with pots placed over the stools, and covered with leaves or 



Utter, or both. Thp plants should be planted in patches 2 feet apart, and 

 2 feet 6 inches distance between the rows. The plants should be three in a 

 patch in the form of a triangle, and 6 inches from crown to crown. The 

 best time to plant is in March or beginning of April. Pyramid froit trees we 

 should plant 9 feet apart in the borders along the walk of the kitchen garden. 

 The middle of February will not be too early to commence with Cucumbers 

 with a bed 4 feet high at back and 3 feet in front, and Melons the middle of 

 JIarch. 



Constructing Propagating Pit (H. K. Q.I.— For a propagating pit there 

 is no need of light in front nor at the ends, in which case you will only re- 

 quire a glass roof, with a 3-feet light in the centre at the highest piii-t; you 

 will have sufficient ventilation for propagating: but as you will desire to use 

 the house for other purposes — Melons or Cucumbers in summer and plants in 

 winter — we should have the whole of the upper part of the roof and 3 feet 

 down the roof to open — sliding lights, or they may be hinged and raised by a 

 lever. The middle wall ought to be inches thick, also the back or shed 

 wall, and the front wall until clear of the ground should bo 9 inches, and may 

 then be taken up 4J inehes, the height required. The pathway will need to bo 

 sunk about a foot to give head-room. For heating so small a house have 

 a stove boiler in the shed, for which you will need a hole sunk to give the 

 necessary level to the pipes. Two pipes will be require! for bottom heat to 

 the front border, and tliose we should surround with rubble, covering them 

 about 3 inches deep with the same, and then have about 6 inches of plunging 

 material for the pots. For top heat, you will require four pipes, the pipes 

 2 Inches diameter Six pipes the length of the house and across the ends. 



Pteris tricolor Culture (W. T. F. J/. J.).— It requires a good heat— 

 55*^ to 65^' in winter, and 65' to 75' in summer, with a rise from sun heat aud 

 a uniform moist atmosphere, careful watering, aud always racist at the roots, 

 but not syringed or watered over the foliage. Young plants are best ; after 

 three years they do not thrive well. 



Potting Geraniums (F. J.). — The plants having filled the pots with roots, 

 pot them before placing in the bottom heat ; but if the plants have not good 

 roots place them in the bottom heat before potting, and when well rooted 

 shift into a larger size and return to bottom heat. 



Fancy Geraniums Drawn— Chrvsanthemuji Culture (A. G). — You may 

 cut the plants back and keep cooler, but they will not bloom until late. Do it 

 to the least extent consistent with the forming of compact plants. The 

 stems of the Chrysanthemums ought to be cut off at the bottom. From the 

 base of the stems cut away will be new shoots or suckers coming up ; these 

 are what you must depend upon for flowering this ye^r. They should be 

 taken off when about 3 inches long, and potteJ singly, or three in a small pH, 

 and struck cither in a cold frame or a gentle hotbed. Grown-on they will 

 make splendid plants for autumn and early winter flowering. The tempe- 

 rature, 50'' to Gl--, is not suflicient to have these in good condition during the 

 winter, bat if kept rather dry they will grow none the worse in spring. A 

 temperature of 60- to 65^ is most suitable. For bulbs the temperature you 

 name could not be better, but they would bloom finer iu & temperature of 

 45 ■ to 50", but come on more slowly and ha later. The Sparaxis will flower iu 

 due course, hut not for some time yet. Do not bring them on too rapidly. 



Wasps (C. R.).—We know nothing of the " Asphyxiator." If it suffocates 

 wasps we should think it would similarly destroy rabbits in their burrows. 



Twelve Superior Gladioluses (T. ira/^oHl.— Belle Gabrielle, Charles 

 Dickens, Eurydice, Fulton, Horace, La Titien, Lord Byron, Madame Fartado, 

 Madame Vilm^rin, Norma, Sir J. Paxton, and Milton. 



Canon Hall Muscat Grape as a Stock (Oxo)t).—We would not think 

 of working any sort of Grape Vine on this stock, unless by way of experiment. 

 Black Hamburgh would be most likely to succeed on it. 



Apples Sweating (B. Q.). — It is not usual to go over the Apples and rub 

 them with cloth after they are stored on the fruit-room shelves. It is neces- 

 sary to look over them occasionally and to remove all decaying fruit to prevent 

 it from tainting the sound ones. 



Plants in Greenhouse not Thriving (J. H.F. C. G.).— The plants, we 

 think, are suffering from some noxious vapour. It may be that of the newly 

 painted house, which a little air left on for a time day and night would soon 

 rectify : but a more likely cause is an esuape of gas. The gas boiler has, wo 

 presume, a funnel communicating with the external air to carrj' off the con- 

 sumed gas fum'js. Or thuro may be an escape at lightin:;; or there may bo 

 a draught down the cousumel-ga'i funnel, bringing down tho fumes into the 

 house. It is certain the atmosphere is very impure, aul that you will not 

 have any improvement until that is rcitifiel. The floor would be a source of 

 damp, but not of injury to the plants where due regard is had to giving air, 

 and having a gentle heat in dull weather to cause a circulation of air. You 

 miy have the floor cemented without iujui-y to the plants. 



Zinc Sashbars (A. A. M.). — There would not be any emanation from zinc 

 sashbars injurious to plants; at least we have not observed any, and we have 

 to do with both copper aud zinc, but they were painted. 



Stove for Heating Greenhouse (Id-stiil — You are going from good to 

 bad in seeking to have a stove iu place of heating by hot-water pipes. We 

 should keep to the pip^s at any rate, and have a stove boiler, which you may 

 have within the house, and with a funnel or smoke-pipe to convey to the 

 external air the noxious products of combustion. Any of those advertising 

 in our columns would supply you with what you require. 



Grass for Poultry Bun (A. H. U.). — As you want a speedy rather than 

 a permanent result, we recommend Piieys Pereunial Rye-Grass alone, which 

 sown early in April will ba ready for the fowls in about six weeks. It might 

 be sown earlier, but the growth is not generally good; though, if the spring 

 were mild, you might by sowing early in M :ich. use the run in April. 



Growing Fruit for Sale (--i Comtanf Reader). — It would not do to bo 

 over-particular as to locality, though you will need to have regard to a good 

 soil, a pure atmosphere, good supply of water, ready means of obtaining fuel, 

 manure, aud direct communication by rail with the places the produce is to 

 be delivered at. Fruit always commands a ready sale in moat large towns. 

 For a supply to the northern markets you will need to be south ; though you 

 may, if the produce is not t j ba sent far, need not to be in a warmer part than 

 the market ; and if you grow under glass it does not mucti signify either way, 

 only early and late fniit, especially of Graphs, pay the bast. It is probably 

 best for a beginner to take to a i)lace for s'jme tim^ iu hand by a fruit-grower, 

 but success depends more upou individual effort, enterprise, and skill than 

 upon any advice and instruction. 



Holly Leaves Falling (E. ilZ.).— The leaves are probably falling from 

 the trees being injured by the late severe frosts, or they may have sustained 

 injury from being near a smoky town, as we presume you are. 



