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JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



( AprU 8, 1875. 



Potatoes at this time in kilc-dust; eg other mannre is so 

 good for them. As a background of green I plant Jerusalem 

 Artichokes, and have a useful vegetable in winter. 



Under my handlight I now sow a pinch of Celery seed, 

 digging the ground out (5 inches deep and filling with old 

 mouldy manure. In this I sow the seed very thinly, and I know of 

 no better way of raising a few sturdy plants. Preferring dwarf 

 sorts I grow Tamer's Incomparable White, and Hood's Dwarf 

 Red as the best suited to my small garden. 



I should say I cover my palings with Nasturtiums and 

 Sweet Peas by sowing the seed now. I also have Gourds, 

 Marrows, Canary plants, Convolvuluses, and Scarlet Runners 

 for the same purpose, but seldom sow them until the 1st of 

 May, or late frosts ruin my plants. 



This is in some measure how I proceed in April. If my 

 simple plan can be of use to others like myself who have home 

 plots which they cherish and try to make pleasant I shall not 

 have written in vain, but shall feel to have made a slight re- 

 turn — as I have often wished — for the many hints and advan- 

 tages I have derived from your long-familiar pages, and their 

 ever-growing attractions. — J. \f. C, J'ine Cottage, N.W. 



NOVELTIES IN THE ROYAL GARDENS, KEW. 



Amongst the Orchids the new Cypripedium Argus of Messrs. 

 Veitch is in flower, it is a beautiful kind and finely spotted. 

 C. Hookerfe is extremely pretty; the flowers vary in colour, 

 ana it is observed that with the finest-marked foliage come the 

 worst flowers, and vice versa. The rare C. biflorum is also in 

 bloom. Ccclogyne flaccida is very attractive ; the flowers are 

 numerous, and creamy whiteor pale yellow, except the labellum, 

 which is tinged with orange and marked with brown lines. 

 Here is a very dark and fine form of Lycaste Skinneri, the 

 darkest ever seen by several Orchid cultivators. Dendrobium 

 euperbum, sometimes known as D. macrophyllum, is very hand- 

 some in baskets. It is a splendid plant for exhibition, producing 

 rose-coloured flowers 1 inches across in two rows, along stems 

 2 feet long. Angrieeum pertusum is extremely curious and 

 pretty ; the white flowers are densely set on the stalk, look- 

 ing down which, the several parts are seen in exact lines. A 

 plant of Phalajnopsis Schilleriana has a fine panicle, and 

 another bears one of less size. 



Saxifraga Stracheyi is flowering on the rockwork. It has 

 been cultivated in the Koyal Gardens for the last four and 

 twenty years, but is not, however, widely known in commerce. 

 It comes near S. ligulata, and is, perhaps, a form of that 

 plant, though quite distinct and desirable from a horticultural 

 point of view. It is a native of the Himalaya Mountains. 



I have not seen it ; perhaps some of the readers of our Journal 

 could give us information respecting it. — Veritas. 



OUR BORDER FLOWERS— FRANCOAS. 



Though introduced many years ago this family of plants 

 has not been brought into that general cultivation which its 

 merits as a border flower deserve. We have no representative 

 of our own, but are indebted to Chili for what we possess. 



The varieties vary little in appearance, but their sowthistle- 

 like leaves have a rather pleasing effect. They are easily culti- 

 vated, but sometimes die off unexpectedly, whether it is from 

 some enemy at the base of the leaves or not I am unable to 

 say. To keep up the supply they should be frequently renewed 

 by division after flowering or from seed. Thoy are a beautiful 

 race of plants and ought to be in all collections. They are 

 not particular as to soil, but to see them at their best they 

 should have liberal treatment. 



- I find them do well in a mixture of good sandy loam, a little_ 

 peat, and well decomposed dung and coarse sand well incorpo- 

 rated with the soil of the border, which is broken up to the 

 depth of 18 or 20 inches. They require thorough drainage, as 

 stagnation from' water is fatal to them. Being of slender 

 habit they require staking to prevent them from being broken 

 by the wind. They continue in bloom for a long time. We 

 only have some four or five kinds enumerated, and variation 

 in colour appears to be the only distinguishing feature, yet few 

 as they are I am inclined to think that some of them only exist 

 on paper. 



Francoa sonchifolia is the most commonly met with, and 

 that is but seldom seen. A good plant in bloom is a very 

 pleasing object. F. ramosnm is also very scarce; F. appen- 

 dicnlata is a very desirable border flower and ought to be more 

 generally cultivated. It is well worth careful tending and con- 

 tinues long in bloom. There is said to be a white variety of 

 the above which must be an acquisition to this small group, but 



COCKSCOMBS. 



My object in writing is to direct attention to what I consider 

 a very fine strain of the dwarf crimson Cockscomb which I 

 had last year in McLachlan's Glasgow Prize. I thought I had 

 one of the finest strains of the dwarf crimson extant, but this 

 excels it. It is said to be a cross between an American variety 

 and the old Scotch kind, and is the finest dwarf crimson 

 Cockscomb I have grown or seen. The plant is very sturdy, 

 the foliage ample, the leaves having great substance. The 

 combs are fine, symmetrical, half-globe heads, the lobes grace- 

 fully curving to the stem. There is no disposition to flatness 

 or straight tops, and the stem of the plant is as round as a 

 Bamboo, which is a great point gained, many plants of some 

 strains of the Cockscombs having stems as flat as a malformed 

 Asparagus head. The outline is smooth, and the colour bright 

 velvety crimson. The flowers proper are not numerous. If 

 seed be wanted the flowers must of course be left ; and yet for 

 fine heads and to continue long in beauty the less flowers 

 retained the better. 



The advent of this variety will give us, it is anticipated, 

 equally fine forms of other colours ; and who will be the first 

 to raise a "striata," a crimson one with a central stripe of 

 yellow across the comb, or a yellow one with a crimson stripe ? 

 Collections offered in six colours are generally a delusion, and 

 as ugly as anything for a Cockscomb well can be. They are 

 not worthy any attention, a majority having crooked split 

 combs and flat stems. 



A word as to culture. The seed may be sown early in April. 

 To grow a good comb about twelve weeks is necessary. Full- 

 sized combs will keep in good condition six to eight weeks. 

 I have had them three months in good order in a cool house. 

 Damp is injurious, and they keep best in a dry and cool atmo- 

 sphere, but not below 50' at night. In a room I have had 

 them for weeks, but moss placed on the surface of the pots 

 and watered heavily will rot the stem, and the saturated soil 

 will kill the roots and the heads will fall over. 



Sow thinly in light rich loam, and place in a gentle hotbed, 

 and keep near the glass and moist, but avoid heavy waterings. 

 The " gentle hotbed " may mean anything ; therefore to be 

 explicit bottom heat 75° to 80", top heat 65" at night, 70° to 75* 

 by day without sun, and 85° or 90° with sun and air. Pot-off 

 singly when the plants have two or three leaves in addition to 

 the seed leaves and return to the hotbed, shading from bright 

 sun for a few days. If bright and hot, sprinkle overhead 

 every afternoon at closing time, and have the leaves dry when 

 the sun shines powerfully upon them ; or if not, shade slightly 

 until dry, or they may become scorched and spotted. Shift 

 into larger pots, small shifts at a time ; and as there is no 

 need to wait until the combs are formed with Glasgow Prize, 

 they may be shifted onward into larger-sized pots as the pots 

 fill with roots, 8-inch or Sl-inch pots being the largest size that 

 need be employed, whilst for general purposes or 7-inch are 

 most desirable. At each potting the plants may be sunk a 

 little lower in the soil. This, however, is not desirable it the 

 plants are not leggy ; and if they are, throw them away, for a 

 leggy plant is not worthy of room. To look well the height 

 of the plant should be about that of oue-half the measurement 

 over the comb from tip to tip, or the same height as the comb 

 is in breadth. The last potting should be givea whan the 

 combs are clear of the leaves. 



Water carefully after each potting, and yet on no account 

 allow the plants to become dry so as to cause flagging : first 

 make sure that they reaUy require water, and then apply it 

 thoroughly. After the last potting water with weak liquid 

 manure, and turn the plants round if they are growing crook- 

 edly, placing opposite sides to the light. After May they 

 succeed admirably in a cold frame, which, by closing early and 

 admitting air moderately, may be converted into a moist stove 

 — one admirably suited to this class of plants. 



A suitable compost for these plants is tiirfy loam about six 

 months laid up, with a fourth of old cowdnng or well-rotted 

 manure added. It should be chopped up fine, not sifted, be 

 well incorporated, and have moderate drainage provided. — 

 G. Abbey. 



Cologne International Horticultural ExniBiTioN. — Wo 

 are requested to state that the ground allotted for planting 

 shrubs for this Exhibition is now at the disposal of intending 



