82 



JOUBNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGR GARDENER. 



{ July 23. 1874. 



Gooseberry and Cdrrant Cuttings (^. P.).— The b9st time to take and 

 plaot cuttings of these is in November, or when the leaves Lave falleu. Both 

 the Gooseberry aud Currant will succeed trained espalier fashion, but the 

 hei;^ht ought not to exceed 3 to 4 feet for Gooseborries, and G leet for 

 Currants. 



ExDDATioN ON ViNE Leavf.9 (J. M., M. D.).— Tf yoQ abundantly water 

 the roots in the inside border, and keep the air of the house moist, thoexnda- 

 tion will not continue. Some Mues are exempt from the affection because 

 they can endure drought. 



Rose-cutter Bee [Uliss Allen). — We fear we cannot suggest any roval 

 method for preventing the rose-cuttor bee attacking your Geraniums. The 

 only plan, and that will perhaps be a tedious one, is to watch the cutter bees 

 to their nests, and pour gas tor Into their holes. They merely cut leaves, or 

 as in this instance flowers, to line the side of their nest; but oddly enough, 

 if unce they begin on a particular leaf or flower, they generally continue to 

 use the some kind of leaves or flowers for the rest ol their nests. 



Rose-leaves Blotched (Mrs. C). — It is very rarely that Roses give 

 good flowers with bad foliage. From your description your Rosea seem to 

 suffer from black mildew. Syringe with warm water with 1 oz. of soft soap to 

 the gallon, and dust with flowers of sulphur while moist. Syringe again with 

 clean water two days afterwards. Many of the leaves will fall, bat you will 

 ia e to secure a healthy second growth. Repeat if necessary. 



CHERniES ON A DouBLE-BLOssoMED TREE {G. A. M.).— It isvery unusual, 

 but will occur in any double-blossomed tree, in a flower (or flowers) that has 

 areturneii to the normal single form. 



Select Gooseberrifs and Currants (J/ifyitiiTr). —Gooseberries— 2i(.'J: 

 Ironmonger, Red "Warrington. Rough Red. Yellow : Early Sulphur. Rum- 

 bullion. Green: Green Overall, Pitmaston Green Gage. White: Crystal, 

 SnowbEill, and Whlcesmith. Currants— Knight's Large Red, White Dutch, 

 Black Naples. 



Vines Attacked by Mildew (Fi>7p).— Yours seems to be a bad case, and 

 fts you have no heating apparatus, it is not easy to destroy the parasite. 

 However, there is no specific so sure as sulphur. You have done all that you 

 can do now, except to ventilate freely both front and back. Insuflicient 

 ventilation is oft-times the causeof mildew spreading. Dress the wood of the 

 "Vines in winter, after they are pruned, with the following mixture: — 6ozs. 

 flowers of sulphur, 2 ozs. of soft soap, and half a pint of tobacco water to half 

 a gallon of rain water, and add a little clay to thicken it ; with this paint your 

 Vines. See that your border is well drained, and also that the Vines do not 

 suffer owing to want of water. It would do no good to plant young Vines. 



Golden Champion Grape Cracking ( ). — This Grape should be 



treated in every respect as the Black Hamburgh until after the borries are 

 Btoued aud have taken the second swelling, when the border should be kept 

 ■drier, and a dry atmosphere maintained in the house. This is a grand Grape 

 ■when well managed, but it has many faults. 



Vines for Small Vinery {F. W. P.).— Three Black Hamburgh, one 

 Dr. Hogg, and one Buokland Sweetwater. 



Various (E. ]\I. P., Bampstead], — You may remove all the *' nnXmitfnl 

 runners" from your Melons, and pinch off the tops of the others above the 

 joint beyond where the fruit is setting. Leave the pruning of your Goose- 

 berry and Currant trees till autumn. Your Strawberry plants will fruit next 

 year. If you have need of the runners you may save them to make a new 

 plantation, and if not, let them be removed. 



Leaves Falling Unseasonably (C. D.).— The fall of the leaves of yoiu- 

 Eobinias and Silver Beeches is caused by the excessive drovight. The fall of 

 the leaves of other trpcs, especially of Limes, is similarly occurring. They have 

 «oropleted their year's growth, and consequently shed the leaver, whose 

 "occupation's gone." If abundance of rain soon occur, it is probable that 

 these trees will put forth fresh leaves, and be induced to attempt a second 

 rgrowth. 



Heating Cucumber and Melon House and Stove (Hot WatcT).~Yo\i 

 will need for bottom heat two pipes for each bed or border ; but if you have 

 thera covered with drainage, and not in a chamber, one pipe to ea jh bed will 

 bo snflicient, the bed not being more than 3 feet wide, of which width the 

 aide walJs will take up at least 4^ inches. You ought to have a depth of from 

 fi inches to 9 inches of drainage over the pipes, and a foot to 14 inches for 

 Boil; and the distance from this to the trelHs ought not to be less than a foot, 

 and it need not exceed that, the trellis being 15 inches from the class. To 

 maintain a suitable temperature for Cucumbers in winter, early Melons, and 

 stove plants, you must have four rows of pipes for top heat, and we should 

 ■have thcra about 6 inches above the level of the border on both sides of the 

 path; i.ryou may have one pipe all round the sides of the houses close to the 

 walls, and the return-pipes in the paths, and raised so as to be on a level with 

 those affording bottom heat to the borders. Fom-inch pipes will be the most 

 suitable. We should have the walk sunk, but that is quite immaterial if you 

 have headroom without their being so. You do not say what is the width of 

 your vineries, but if not over 12 feet, you will for the Muscat house require 

 four rows of 4-inch pipes the length of the house, anl for the other house of 

 Black Hamburghs two rows will be sufficient. 



Strawberries for Clay Soil (F. TT.).— Sir Joseph Paxton, President, 

 Br. Hogg, Lucas, Cockscomb, and Frogmore Late Pine. The giound should 

 "be well and deeply dug and manured, but not at the surface: and the plants- 

 well rooted runners of this year from fruitfulplauts— should be put in without 

 ■delay. 



Hydrangeas not Flowering {H. P.).— The plants, if not already showing 

 'for flower, will not do so this summer or autumn. The reason of their not 

 lowering we are not able to explain from the insufficient data you give. It 

 ■probably arises from the non-ripening of the wood. Give them less en- 

 couragement to growth, and expose fully to light and air, so as to insure the 

 thorough ripening of the wood, and this effected it is likely the plants will 

 produce next season some fine heads of flowers. 



Retarding pEiS for Exhibition (J. G.).— The present and late hot 

 weather has brought on crops amazingly. Your Peas at present in flower 

 •will be much too forward for exhibition if the hot weathor continue until 

 September 1st. Your only mode of keeping them back is to have them 

 always well watered, and shade them from sun during the day, removing the 

 shading at night, or in the day when cloudy. It is likely by this process you 

 may so retard the ripening aa to have some pods fit to gather al the time 

 jou name. 



Names op Plants (D.). — 1, Senecio sylvaticns; 2, Hypericam montanuro; 

 3, Sedum rupestre; 4. ErythwBa Ceotaurium ; 5, Teucriiim Soorodonia; 6, 

 ELycium enropEBum. (T. >r.).— The Saxifrages are mure or less hairy forms of 



S. hirta; the Sedums seem both S. annuum. (J. Luck). — Lilium excelsum. 

 No, there are many simUar aad better. {Bloom). — Hxmanthas punicaus. 



POULTRY, BEE, AUD PIGEOU OHEONIOLE. 



UNION OF PHEASANTS WITH DOMESTIC 



FOWLS. 



By the republication from the American " Fanciers' Journal," 

 of Dr. James S. Bailey's very intelligent and interesting re- 

 marks relative to hybrid or mule birds, it appears that gentle- 

 man has fallen into an error, so far as regards Mr. Hewitt's 

 opinion in reference to the cross of the Golden Pheasant cock 

 with different varieties of fowls. It is not often the common wild 

 Pheasant of our coverts will voluntarily associate on friendly 

 terms with barndoor fowls, but occasionally they do, and I have 

 myself known of such cases. In a wood adjoining the stables 

 aud poultry-yard at Thurnham Hall were plenty of Pheasants, 

 aud these birds were often on the meadow or paddock with the 

 barndoor fowls, and the cocks of this breed were always driven 

 off the ground immediately on the appearance of the other gang. 

 The Pheasants and domestic hens became friendly indeed. Many 

 of these hens' eggs were set, and from them hatched great num- 

 bers of half-bred Pheasants. They were exactly as those Mr. 

 Bailey describes, " exceedingly wild, with heads devoid of 

 combs, wattles, or deaf-ear, with tails approaching the con- 

 formation of the Pheasant, but not so lengthy." At one of the 

 lodges on the Manor of Tawstook Court, in Devonshire, a few 

 hens were kept by the occupier, one of which was often seen in 

 company of a cock Pheasant. After a time this hen could be but 

 rarely seen at the lodge, merely coming ouce a-day for a meal, 

 but at last turned-up early one morning with sixteen chickens 

 unmistakeably the offspring of her aud the Pheasant cock. — 

 A Devoni.in, Gateacre. 



PRESERVING EGGS. 



Fob several years we have preserved eggs in dry salt, in jars 

 or boxes, placing the eggs in layers, always allowing the salt to 

 completely cover the top layer. They must be kept in a dry 

 place. We found they kept best in a kitchen cupboard, a c-Uar 

 being too damp. The eggs with very few exceptions were fresh 

 and good when boiled or poached. I have heard that bran or 

 sand will answer the same purpose, but have not tried these. — 

 A. C, Jersey. 



LINCOLN POULTRY SHOW. 



If a fixed determination to make a show a success ever ruled 

 the actions of a committee, most surely it did so at Lincoln, 

 where every personal exertion was made to make the arrans^e- 

 ments as complete as possible. The tent was a very commodious 

 one, and also a most substantial structure of its kind, whilst the 

 feeding and watering of the whole of the birds exhibited were 

 constantly under the immediate supervision of one or other of 

 the acting Committee. It is remarkable at this season of the 

 year that so large an entry of poultry could be got together — the 

 number, exclusive of Pigeons, reached to upwards of 550 pens. 

 Nor was this large entry composed of anything but superior 

 specimens ; in fact, the two Judges stated it as their opinion 

 that they had never seen so many first-class fowls together so 

 soon after midsummer. Of course many of even the most notable 

 of these fowls were getting into deep moult, which the excessive 

 heat of the sun upon the canvas of the tent would no doubt very 

 considerably expedite. We must mention that the Committee, 

 with a forethought rarely equalled, supplied all the pens with 

 fresh-gathered lettuces, which were indeed a luxury to the 

 poultry generally, whilst some of the more vigorous breeds 

 seemed to sanction the old axiom, " Done first, help the other." 



It was indeed a treat to walk down the Cochin classes, a con- 

 stant succession of the best of birds arresting the eyes of both 

 Judges and visitors. It would be difficult to name a better 

 competition, many of these varieties being shown in as faultless 

 a condition as at a Christmas meeting. Dorkings of every 

 variety were well supported, some of the Silver-Greys being far 

 better than generally met with. lu Spanisli, the Show was 

 excellent, the hens more especially, the first-prize hen of this 

 breed being also the general cup-wmner. Polish fowls of both 

 the Spangled varieties have rarely if ever been excelled. Un- 

 doubtedly the best of the classes for French fowls were the 

 Creves, though some excellent Houdans were exhibited. The 

 Lincoln Show proved also notable for its Brahmas, both Light 

 aud Dark-feathered; some of the best of Dark chickens being 

 shown in the chicken class, aud such as cannot do otherwise 

 than raise still higher the fame of the party breeding them. In 

 the chicken class, so ample was the entry, and so thoroughly 

 first-rate the competition, that the Committee at once resolved, 

 without any solicitation, to increase the number of prizes 

 from three, as advertised, to five, and even a dozen more prizes 



