D«c«mber 9, 1873. ] 



JODBNAL OF IIOETICULTDEE AND COTTAGE GAEDEKEB. 



505 



Band, with good drainage will grow them finely. Moderate 

 pot room only is required. 



Though the flowers of Begonias are not very durable, and 

 are of the worst for travelling, they are very effective whilst 

 they last in a cut state ; and those with bright green leaves, as 

 weltoniensis and Dregei, superb when used as sprays, which 

 are desirable even without the flowers. — G. Abbey. 



APPLYING CAP.RION TO VINE B0RDEP.3. 



With reference to what has appeared in your pages lately 

 regarding carrion, &:., as applied lo Vine borders. All who 

 have given an opinion on the subject are agreed that carrion 

 or blood in a fresh state acts injuriously on the constitution 

 of the Tine to which it is applied. There is not the slightest 

 doubt, however, that the Tine is a very gross feeder, and when 

 furnished with plenty of sound fibry roots it would be difficult 

 to err in the matter of strong feeding, as an evidence of which 

 I will record the case of two vineries in one of the northern 

 counties of England. One of these vineries (when I knew 

 them) was a Muscat, the other a Black Hamburgh house. 

 The Muscat house was the admiration of all who saw it, the 

 bunches being of immense size, well finished, and carried oft 

 first honours invariably wherever they were exhibited. The 

 Hamburgh house gave good fruit of fair average size and 

 quality, but certainly not to be compared to the other, which 

 was a little remarkable seeing that both houses received the 

 same treatment, the borders were made up of the same mate- 

 rial, and so far as the casual observer could discern both 

 houses were on an equal footing. Such, however, was not the 

 case, as was afterwards discovered. 



The main sewer from the mansion was carried down by 

 where the vineries stood. It went straight along the front of 

 the Muscat house border, but diverged off before touching on 

 the Black Hamburgh border. After the lapse of years the 

 sewage from the mansion would not pass away, when it was 

 determined to start at the hall, open up the sewer (which was 

 built of brick and stone cover), and follow on until they found 

 out where the stoppage was. They reached the Muscat vinery. 

 Here was found out the secret of the stoppage. The Tine 

 roots had found their way through the brickwork, and the 

 sewer was fairly choke full of clean, healthy Tine roots wal- 

 lowing in the sewage accumulation of years. Herein, then, 

 lay the secret of the almost unexampled success that had 

 attended the cultivation of what is considered the most diffi- 

 cult class of Grapes to grow and finish properly ; and I am 

 pretty confident before this oeenrrenee that the cause of their 

 very superior well-being was unknown even to those in charge. 



From such circumstances as these it is apparent that to 

 grow Grapes of the very highest excellence the Tines must be 

 UberaUy supplied with strong food. Other Tines also I have 

 in my mind's eye, that have been a good deal heard about, are 

 annually treated to a top-dressing of something akin to the 

 sewer in question — namely, carcases of dead animals decom- 

 posed and mixed with other ingredients in the form of soil, 

 charcoal, &c., and there is not a doubt that such stimulants 

 in one form or other play a very important part in the pro- 

 duction of the enormous bunches that have been produced of 

 late ; but before attempting to use such strong stimulants it 

 is necessary to have a well-drained and prepared border. Tines 

 in vigorous health, which of course means good root-action, 

 will be greatly benefited by such applications, but certainly not 

 by burying carrion in huik in a raw state. — J. B. S. 



OUR BOEDER FLOWEP.S— HYDRANGEAS. 

 If we cannot class Hydrangeas among our herbaceous plants 

 we can afford them space in our beds and borders. They can 

 be turned to good account both for in and out-door decora- 

 tion. There was a time when many experiments were tried 

 to produce blue Hydrangeas, but I can only entertain the 

 idea that it is one of those nnaccountable freaks that Dame 

 Nature treats ns to sometimes. I am not aware that there is 

 any fixed law as to the sport remaining permanent ; but, be 

 that as it may, blue Hydrangeas are very desirable when they 

 can be had. Hydrangeas will live through the winter in 

 favoured localities. More than thirty years ago I remember 

 seeing in Dr. Herbert's garden at Spofiorth a plant of Hy- 

 drangea hortcnsis 3 feet high and as much through, that had 

 been planted out many years ; this plant had a framework of 

 wood placed round it, the branches drawn together, the frame- 

 work being filled with dry leaves, and all thatched over with 



clean straw ; and the plant was worthy of that protective care, 

 for to see it loaded with its huge bundles of beautiful pink 

 flowers during the autumn was worth going a day's journey 

 to see. 



Hydrangeas grow well in good sandy loam, peat, a httle wcll- 

 rotted dung, a sprinkling of chopped bones and lime rubbish 

 mixed well together. It is a long time since Hydrangea Hor- 

 tensia found its home among us, and plants of it are still 

 highly prized among many of our rural famiUes, and in some 

 instances are looked upon as heirlooms. They are easily 

 increased by cuttings from half-ripened shoots cut at a joint 

 and inserted in sandy eoU in heat, and also by division when 

 they are beginning to make young growth. The variegated 

 kind I find to be a useful plant for edging large beds with, and 

 equally useful for indoor work. It is a pity that we have not 

 a golden sport to vie with the one we have. The plants can 

 be lifted from the ground in the autumn, and stored in boxes 

 with BufBcient soil to keep them alive through the winter. In 

 the spring they may be divided and potted if required. I am 

 inclined to think that there might be prizes given at cottagers' 

 shows for encouraging the growth of these effective window 

 and border plants, for they are not cultivated nearly to the 

 extent they ought to be. — Vzettas. 



GERANIUMS FOE WINTER FLOVTEEING. 



j I EEG leave to call the attention of those of your gardening 

 readers who may not be aware of the great usefulness of 

 Geraniums for autumn and early winter flowering to the above 



1 fact. The conservatory here has 'oeen moderately bright and 



' cheerful-looking up to the present time, and we hope will 

 be so for some time to come, with a small collection of these. 

 We have used them for two or three seasons past, and have 

 been fortunate in having Geranium trusses more or less to 

 cut at any time during the winter season. The dark-coloured 

 varieties we have found the most useful in all respects, the 

 colours being deeper at this season, the flowers standing better 

 and being more appreciated by the ladies than the light varie- 

 ties. 11 we were restricted to one particular sort our choice 

 would fall on Diana, a dark crimson free-flowering variety, 

 which ought to be pretty weU known by this time. I have 



' seen and had to do with most of Dr. Denny's seedlings, and 

 like this one best of all ; nor have we ever come across anyone 

 who did not take to it directly. It should be grown in quantity 

 wherever there are flowering plants grown. Jessica, another 

 of Dr. Denny's raising, is also very fine just now, and is 

 decidedlv an improvement on 'Wellington for flowering at this 

 Eea=on. ' As a rule the above strain of Geraniums are to be 

 depended on for winter blooming. Fred George, a splendid 



' sort when it does do well, is in fine order just now, only it is 

 not to be depended on as a rule ; but for summer flowering it 

 deserves to be more cultivated. Don Giovanni seems hkely to 

 excel as a winter-flowering sort. There U a dash of purple in 

 it that deepens in shade considerably at this season, making 

 it aU the more effective. Princess of Wales, a rosy scarlet 

 flower, is also promising welL H. M. Stanley, an exceedingly 

 floriferous variety considering the size of the trusses, and 

 crimson in colour, is first-rate. Henry King, Jean Sisley, 

 Tesuvius, are also to be depended on in the scarlet-flowered 

 section. I had almost forgot to mention Excellent, which is 

 well worth growing for the above purpose. Of pinks there are 

 none to beat Master Christine : as a rule I have always found 

 it a perpetual bloomer, and it is in all respects one of the 



; most useful sorU in cultivation for pot culture. We find 



' Metcalf do very weU at this season, and it deserves growing in 

 quantity. Blue BeU U finer-flowered at this season than at 

 anv other, the blue being more distinct— a trait of aU sorts in 

 which a shade of blue is apparent. The newer varieties with 

 large flower-trusses are not so useful for late work as fte 

 smaller-truEsed sorts ; but by having the flowers developed by 

 the beginning to the middle of September, these can be k^t 

 in presentable order for ten weeks or more. PoUy King is the 

 best of the sorts with a shade of salmon in the flower that we 

 have tried • it is fairlv floriferous, and well worth growing. 

 For summer flowering 'it stands as one of the best. President 

 Thiers, an attractive self-salmon flower, was fine up to the end 

 of October, but does not seem adapted for a winter flowerer. 

 Amongst whites we like the old 'Wnite Perfection as well as 

 anv Vhite CUpper is, if not identical with the last, very 

 much like it. Florence Fraser is a very pure free-flowering 

 varietv, the purest white we have, but does not do so well at 

 this season as the first-named. 'VTe have a number of other 



