394 



JOURNAL OF HORTICULTORE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



[ May 18, 1876. 



shall not. One day I entered the garden with large branches 

 of Furze in my hands; Grimalkin saw me and knew at onoe 

 " something was up," therefore hid himself behind a Currant 

 bueh and watched my proceedings. When I had carefully 

 covered the very young plants with the Fnrze and was survey- 

 ing my woik with exultation, he rushed forward and removed 

 the largest branch with his nose. 1 flatter myself he received 

 a good pricking, as he did not return to the charge. 



I then sowed some seed in those capital seed-frames manu- 

 factured at Crowhurst. Yesterday the soil was very moist, and 

 the sun I suppose drew out the scent irresistibly. Pussy placed 

 himself on the cracked glass of one frame, put his nose close to 

 the crack and sniffed in a most exaggerated manner, looking 

 at me between each sniff. I put a Pea-wire over some seed- 

 lings, this he evidently considers a sensible arrangement and 

 leaves unmolested. I fancy only the roughish white-spotted 

 Beed-leaves are the attraction. Am I right ? I shall be ex- 

 tremely glad to hear such is the case, as, although I think up 

 to the present time I have come off with flying colours, still it 

 will be a great relief to be able to cry peace, knowing that I 

 can (after the said seed-leaves are witlaered), leave Nemophila 

 to its own devices safe from attack by the insurgents. 



[There are some plants of the scent of which oats are eo ex- 

 cessively fond that they demonstrate their delight by many 

 whimsical gesticulations. The root of Valerian and Catmint 

 (Nepeta cataria), are said to be thus favoured by them, and 

 this is not the first instance made known to us of their liking 

 for the Nemophila, and unfortunately they have a singular 

 liking to basking among even strong plants. Rue is the 

 aversion of most cats, and we have known some convulsed 

 when made to smell it.] 



SPUR SYSTEM OF PRUNING VINES. 



A TAEAGRAPn cut from the " Doings of the Last and Work 

 for the Present Week " has been inserted in the pages of one 

 of your contemporaries, and has given rise to some discussion. 

 I had been consulted about some out-of-door Vines, the varie- 

 ties being Royal Muscadine or Sweetwater. The rods were 

 trained upright to a high wall and had been close spnrred-in 

 for many years. The result of this treatment has been that 

 they have never showed a bunch for several years, and under 

 the same system this variety of Vine never would ; but if young 

 rods are trained up from the base of the Vines I can venture 

 to predict that they will bear next season on that young wood. 



The readers of your contemporary have taken it for granted 

 that all sorts of Vines were intended, and seem to think that 

 I have led your readers to believe that if a Black Hamburgh 

 Vino was spur-pruned for a few years it would cease to bear 

 fruit. There are rods of Black Hamburgh at Loxford ten years 

 old spur-pruned, and they bear fruit freely. The fruit is as 

 good, but the bunches are not nearly so large as those produced 

 from young wood. 



To grow good fruit of Royal Muscadine or White Sweetwater 

 out of doors I again repeat, as the result of some experience, 

 that it is best to train up young wood'frequently and to cut 

 cut the old rods after from three to five years according to the 

 height of the wall. None of your readers seem to have mis- 

 apprehended me, but Btill this explanation may be useful. — 

 J. Douglas. 



NOTES AND GLEANINGS. 



We are glad to hear that it is intended to raise a memorial 

 in Belgium to the late M. L. Van Houtte of Ghent. It has 

 been proposed that British horticulturists unite in the good 

 work. By all means. We hope soon to announce the forma- 

 tion of a committee to carry out this laudable project, for no 

 man has done more for the advancement of horticulture than 

 the late M. Van Houtte. 



• M. VoGEL of Munich finds that seeds germinate more 



quickly if moistened with camphorated water than with water 

 eimple. 



M. Bertot of the Paris Academy has just made known 



a simple method of taking impressions of plants, requiring 

 only a large sheet of paper, some olive or other oil, blacklead, 

 ashes, and resin or colophony. The paper is first lightly 

 oiled on one side, then folded in four so that the oil may filter 

 through the pores, and the plant may not come in direct con- 

 tact with the liquid. The plant is placed between the leaves 

 of the second folding, and in this position pressed (through 

 other paper) all over with the hand, bo as to make a small 



quantity of oil adhere to its surface. Then it is taken out and 

 placed carefully on white paper; another sheet is placed above, 

 since two impressions can be taken, and the plant is pressed 

 as before. On now removing it an invisible image remains on 

 the paper. You sprinkle over this a quantity of blacklead or 

 ashes, Ac, and distribute it in all directions, as in applying 

 sand to writing; the image then appears in all its parts. With 

 an assortment of colours the natural colours of plants may be 

 reproduced. To obtain fixity resin is added to the blacklead 

 previously in equal quantity ; the impression is fixed when 

 it is exposed to a heat suflioient to melt the resin. — (English 

 Mechanic.) 



We sincerely regret that on account of ill health Mb. 



RoBSON is about to retire from the management of the gardens 

 at Linton Park. His wages will be continued as usual — namely, 

 £100 a-year. He is to be succeeded by Mr. MacLaren, fore- 

 man in the gardens of the Earl of Wemyss at Gosford in East 

 Lothian. 



The late Mr. Richard Headlv's florists' flowers will 



be sold on the 23rd day of this month. Mr. Headly was well 

 known as a most successful exhibitor, and amongst the Tulips 

 will be found the celebrated John Linton, Sarah Headly, John 

 Thorniley, &c. Besides the named varieties there will be sold 

 a large collection of valuable breeders. Stapleford is within 

 five minutes' walk of the Shelford station on the Great Eastern 

 Railway. 



Under the modest title of " The Old Days of Price's 



Patent Candle Compani," Mr. George Wilson has given an 

 interesting and most instructive account of one of the most 

 important of our modern national industries. The title 

 rather conveys the idea of the history of a commercial com- 

 pany, but it is in reality the account of a series of chemical 

 discoveries applied to the development of a great manufacture. 

 Those who remember what we had to depend upon for do- 

 mestic illumination forty years ago — the disgusting smells 

 caused by the combustion of animal fats, the old snuffers 

 and snuffer-trays, and above all the feeble glimmering light, 

 must mark the contrast and feel that in the present day we 

 enjoy light under more advantageous circumstances. For 

 these advantages we are largely indebted to Mr. Wilson per- 

 sonally, who was the active managing director of that great 

 undertaking, and to whose indomitable energy under great 

 difficulties and much opposition it became the greateat factory 

 of its kind in the world. It is not the mere manufacture of 

 caudles and other products of fats that is treated of in this 

 book, but we have described " the new process of obtaining 

 glycerine," which was a discovery of Mr. Wilson's, and by 

 which so many benefits have arisen to the human race. We 

 commend this little work to the attention of all our readers 

 as a book which ia at once amusing aud instructive. It con- 

 tains a story which is full of interest and incident. 



DOINGS OF THE LAST AND WORK FOR 

 THE PRESENT WEEK. 



HARDY FRUIT GARDEN. 



The weather is dry with very keen east winds, and in con- 

 sequence of this the usual garden pests, principally aphis, have 

 made their appearance. Prompt remedies are necessary on the 

 first appearance of insects, as if they are allowed to remain the 

 leaves speedily curl up, which very much protects the insects 

 from any injury that would bo caused by syringing with the 

 usual aphis washes. 



This is just the weather for destroying weeds, and we have 

 constantly kept the hoe at work amongst the small trees in the 

 borders aud also the Strawberry beds. The flower trusses of 

 the Strawberry plants are pushing up strongly, aud if the 

 weather should be fine the flowers will soon open. We are 

 always anxious to have the beds perfectly free from weeds at 

 this season, as rendering it unnecessary to go amongst the plants 

 when they are more advanced in gTOwth. If no rain falls soon 

 we shall mulch aud water the Strawberry beds; bat while it 

 continues so cold at nights water will be better withheld unless 

 it is absolutely necessary. The thermometer fell early in May 

 to 28° Fahr — that is, 4" of frost, at Loxford ; but in the same 

 week it was 7° at Ripon, and at Chatsworth it was as low as 22° 

 — that is, 10" of frost. 



Pear trees on the walls are making very strong growths, and 

 in the course of a few days wo shall go over them and pinch off 

 all forcright shoots, leaving two or three leaves at the base of 

 the young wood. Peach, Apricot, and Plum trees on walls will 

 also claim attention. 



The early Peas have suffered much by the frost-winds ; but 

 ours is an earthly paradise compared to the northern districts. 



