July 2, 1874. ] 



JOURNAL OF HOBTIOOLTURE AND COTTAGE GABDENEE. 



oated the floral decoration of churchyards, bat this plot, with- 

 out intending a pun, looks strange. It seem? to say tliat 

 those who rest in that plot are still superior to those who are 

 buried outside it, for the rest of the churohiard is a wilder 

 ness of long grass. Although I shrank from punning the family 

 referred to did not, for over one of them, who died in Ifiol, is 

 inscribed — 



" In heaven at homo, bleeeed change I 

 Who while I was on earth was Straugc." 



That worthy, jocular in death, lived more than threescore 

 years and ten, being one of the many evidences of the salubrity 

 of the district. In churches and churchyards are inscriptions 

 recording that those they commemorate had lived more than 

 eighty years ; and they were not unvigorous years, for one 

 epitaph in HoIme-on-the-Sea church tells that one Stone and 

 his wife each lived to be eighty-seven, and to see seventy-two 

 of their descendants. That the district is healthful is proved 

 by better testimony than that of these epitaphs, for official 

 returns show that the death-rate is the lowest in England, 

 being only 13.9 per 1000 annually. The healthfulness is ex- 

 plained by its thorough drainage by the chalk subsoil, the 

 bracing coolness and dryness of the air, and the purity of its 

 water. The same promoters of health prevail at Sandringliam, 

 and they aided in warding off death from the Prince of Wales 

 in 1871 — G. ■ 



BURNINa CLAY. 



We reprint the following from a back volume in answer to 

 " A SoBSCEiBER " and another querist, merely adding that it 

 was the practice adopted by Mr. D. Thomson, when at Archer- 

 field :— 



As soon as a quarter in the garden became vacant, a fire or 

 two was started, according to the size of the quarter. When 

 only one lire was required, it was, of course, started in the 

 middle of the quarter. The site for the fire was first trenched 

 to the depth of 2 feet 9 inches, turning the top spit (which had 

 through a long course of years been improved a little by liming, 

 the addition of ashes, road-scrapings, etc.), into the bottom of 

 the trench, taking out the two bottom spits for burning. So 

 thoroughly clayey was the greater part of the soil moved, that 

 the men had to dip their tools in a pail of water at every lift, to 

 make the next spadeful slip off the metal. On this site the fire 

 was commenced. Wood which was only fit for charring or 

 firewood, and which is generally plentiful enough about most 

 gentlemen's places, was used. In that locality coal was costly, 

 and not so effective in this case as wood ; the latter also afford- 

 ing in burning a desirable quantity of potash. The site for 

 the fire being ready, a little stack of wood was formed 5 feet in 

 diameter at the base, tapering cone-like to the height of 5 feet, 

 beginning with a few dried faggots in the middle, and finishing 

 with stronger junks of wood round the outside. AH round this 

 stack of wood a coating of the clay was laid to the depth of 

 about a foot. It was found best to pack it on in lumps as it 

 was turned out of the trench. When this was done the wood 

 was set fire to at the centre, and long ere the wood was all 

 consumed the clay caught fire and burned freely. As soon as 

 the first layer was nearly burned through another layer was 

 added all round, which in its turn soon burned through also. 

 The fire was then broken down with a strong iron-handled hoe, 

 for the double purpose of adding more wood to quicken the 

 fire, and enlarging the basis of operations. After the fire was 

 thus set agoing the wood was of necessity laid horizontally 

 over the burning heap, putting the strongest pieces of wood 

 next the burning mass, and fiuishing-off the layer with the 

 smallest, to prevent the clay from lying too closely to the wood 

 and obstructing the draught necessary to combustion. 



In the meantime trenches were opened at the extremities of 

 the quarter, and the clay taken out, as already described in 

 making the site for the fire, and forwarded to the fire, there 

 being the solid undisturbed surface to wheel it over, and the 

 distnnee lessened as the fire became larger and required more 

 feeding. 



But to return to the fire. When it was again found neces- 

 sary to break it down for the purpose of extending the base, 

 and increasing its capacity for consuming the clay, another 

 layer of wood wa5 added, and then a layer of clay over the 

 surface, and all roand the outside of the hfap. After this, as 

 the layer of clay was burned through, another was packed on 

 all over and round without any wood, and so ou with two or 

 three layers, tiU it became necessary to enlarge the base of the 

 fire, by drawing it down from the top, then more wood was 



added ; and from the great power which the fire attains it is 

 necessary to have plenty of clay and men at hand to cover over 

 the wood quickly, or it would be consumed without doing 

 much good ; and so this process was continued till the ne- 

 cessary quantity was burned. I have frequently had three 

 great fires going at a time, on to the tops of which I have 

 wheeled layers of clay to the thickness of 3 feet and more at a 

 time. When the fire became powerful it formed a solid pile of 

 fire, which very soon worked its way through thick and suc- 

 cessive layers of clay, transforming what was once an inso- 

 luble, wet, tenacious paste, into a heap of material greatly 

 altered in its mechanical properties, and with a great capacity 

 for the absorption of ammonia, besides being mixed with 

 charred wood and potash. 



As soon as the heap was sufficiently cool to be moved, it was 

 wheeled back over the surface of the qu.arter and regularly 

 spread, and the large lumps broken-up. On the surface of all 

 was wheeled a garden rubbish heap, rotten leaves, road scrap- 

 ings, dung, and other decayed vegetable matter that could be 

 obtained. A trench was then opened at the end of the quarter, 

 and the whole was turned over and mixed the same as is done 

 with a compost heap, to the depth of the original clay, whicU 

 was forked-up as well as it would allow at the bottom of each 

 trench. This formed a staple, on which almost any crop that 

 could be put on it in the way of vegetables grew with such a 

 luxuriance as I have never seen equalled either before or since. 

 I have seen Brussels Sprouts over 4 "feet in height, studded 

 with hard sprouts more like a rope of Onions than anything 

 else. Peas, Cauliflowers, iSrc, were amazingly fine crops, t'ne 

 quarter which I burned in 1854 had the finest crop of Carrots 

 that could be desired, and to have attempted such a crop on it 

 previous to its being passed through the fiery ordeal would 

 have been in vain. 



OBCHIDS IN BLOOM 



AT THE VICTORIA NUESEEY, UPPER HOLLOWAY— JtJNE 27th. 



At-rides crispum 



Liudleyanmn 



odoratum 



purpurascens 

 majiis 



virens EUieii 



affiue siiperbum 



Larpentfe 



Lobbii 



Schrcnderi 

 Dendrobinm Devoniauum 



infundibtilum 



chr^'santhum 



transparens 



McCarthife 



Pierardi latifolia 

 Angoloa Clowesii 



Ruikeii 



eburnea 

 Dendr. chilum filiforme 

 Trichopilia crispa 

 Oucidium tiesuoaum 



cucullatum 



bifolium majus 



Batemannii 

 Barkeria spectabilis 

 Odontoglossum Pescatorei 



Alexandr.13 



rnbescens 



Uro-Skinneri 

 MasdevalUa Liudenii 



— ExpEETO Ckede. 



Masdevallia coriacea 



Harryaua 



ochracea 

 Cjpiipeiiiatu Hookerire 



barbatum uifjrum 

 graadiliorum 



Buperbiena 



Pariahii 



Stonei 



Koezlii 



spectabilis 

 Cyrtouhiliim stellatura 

 Vanda tricolor (many varieties) 



insignia (many varieties) 



suavis 



litnbata (new species) 

 Saccolabium retusum 



Biumei 

 Pbal^enoppis graudiflora 

 Cattleja llosaia? (many varieties, 

 and in great quantities^ 



Mendelii 



\Varneri 

 Lit'Iia purpurata 

 Epideudrum vitellinum majus 



cionabarinum 

 Maxillaria venusta 

 Lycaite Skiunerii 



Deppei 

 Mesospinidiura sanguineum 

 Disa graudillora 



ODONTOGLOSSUM VEXILLARIUM. 



I have seen this beautiful Odontoglot exhibited on two or 

 three occasions, but all previous examples come far short of 

 the extreme beauty of two handsome small specimens at pre- 

 sent in flower in the hothouses of S. Rucker, Esq., of Wands- 

 worth, under the care of Mr. Ptlcher. There are two varieties, 

 the one lighter in colour and more delicate in its markings 

 than the otber. The lighter-coloured of the two has produced 

 four spikes from one bulb, and fifteen flowers. Ttie other 

 variety has thirteen flowers on four spikes. Mr. Pilcher grows 

 this species in his cool house, and treats it in the same way 

 as O. crispum (Alexandra). Although Mr. Pilcher is not the 

 first to flower O. vexillarium, I fancy nothing has yet been seen 

 in England to approach his plants in beauty. — J. DotjoLAS. 



ARAncAEiA iMBRicATA FKniTiNG. — Mr. Barham, gardener to 

 Lord Ormathwaite at Warfield Park, Bracknell, informs us that 



