152 



THE DICTIONARY OF GARDENING, 



Horehonnd continued. 



The product obtained by soaking the leaves and tops in 

 boiling water, has long been a popular medicine for sub- 

 duing irritating coughs, frequently proving effective when 

 other and more valued remedies have failed. Horehound 

 may be readily propagated by seeds, sown in March ; by 

 division of the roots, in spring; or by cuttings, inserted 

 in a shady position outside. Plant about 15in. apart. 

 Keep the ground clean between, and the roots will last 

 several years. The annual growths may be cut when 

 the flowers open, and dried in a cool shed, for use in 

 winter. 



HORKELIA. This genus is now included under 

 Fotentilla (which see). 



HORMINUM (from horminon, the old Greek name 

 given to a kind of Sage, by Dioscorides). OED. Labiatce. 

 A monotypic genus. The species is an elegant hardy 

 herbaceous perennial, thriving in an open border, in a 

 well-drained situation. It is readily increased by dividing 

 at the root, or by seed. 

 H. pyrenaicum (Pjrenean). fl. bluish-purple, nearly lin. lone, 



on short pedicels, nodding ; whorls distant, six-flowered, secund. 



Summer. I. almost all radical, petiolate, ovate, obtuse, deeply 



crenated. h. 6in. to 12in. Pyrenees to Tyrol, 1820. (S. B. F. G. 252.) 



HORNBEAM. See Carpinus Betulus. 



HORNED POPPY. See Glancinm. 



HORNEMANNIA. A synonym of Mazus (which see). 



HORN MANURE. See Manures. 



HORN OP PLENTY. The common name of Fedia 

 Cornucopias (which see). 



HORNY. Hard ; of the consistence of horn. 



HORSE BEAN. See Faba vulgaris equina. 



HORSE CHESTNUT. See JEsculus. 



HORSE-DUNG. The special use of Horse-dung by 

 itself is for Mushroom culture. For this purpose, it is 

 best suited if collected from stables where the horses have 

 been fed chiefly on corn, hay, and other dry food. Horse- 

 dung is of little use when medicine has lately been given 

 to the horses, or when green grass has formed a large 

 portion of their food. Stable litter is much to be pre- 

 ferred for hotbeds, when the whole of the droppings are 

 left in it, as heat is thereby engendered, and the ferment- 

 ing material much improved. Horse-dung is not so much 

 used for making manure water as sheep, deer, or cow- 

 dung ; but that obtained from a large manure heap in wet 

 weather is usually of good quality, and not very liable to 

 burn or otherwise cause injury to plants. Horse-dung may 

 be beneficially applied to cold, heavy soils. It may be 

 used nearly fresh, and dug in with a portion of the litter 

 as well. When not specially applied for rendering heavy 

 soil lighter, but as a manure, it should be previously well 

 turned, and moistened if any part is dry. When a heap 

 is allowed to become very hot, it gets quite dry and white 

 in the middle, the ammonia escapes, and the manure is 

 comparatively worthless. Horse-dung may be used with 

 good results as a top-dressing for producing an immediate 

 action on growing crops. 



HORSE-RADISH (Cocldearia Armoracea). A well- 

 known hardy perennial, naturalised in Britain and many 

 other countries, and widely cultivated in the temperate 

 regions of the Old World, from the earliest historic periods, 

 for the use of its roots, when scraped into fine shreds, 

 for culinary purposes. Large quantities of roots are im- 

 ported, but the best home-grown crops are much superior. 

 It grows in almost any position, and is frequently neg- 

 lected on that account. The best and tenderest roots 

 are those grown on rich soil, which must be of good 

 depth, and, preferably, in a rather moist situation. In 

 private gardens, a large quantity is not usually required, 

 as the roots that have been partly used keep fresh and 

 good, in damp sand, for a long time. Any pieces of 

 root form a crown, and this is the usual method of pro- 



Horse-Radish continued. 



pagation. The aim should be to obtain roots as large 

 as possible (see Fig. 241) before they are old enough to 

 become hard. There are several methods of cultivation 

 adopted by different growers for attaining this end, the 

 following being considered amongst the most success- 

 ful: Dig trenches from 2ft. to 3ft. deep, and, when 

 filling them in, throw 15in. of the original top soil into 

 the bottom ; then place a layer of good manure over 

 this, and dig it in, afterwards filling up the trench with 

 the soil that was before in the bottom. When several 

 trenches are being prepared, the first may be dug the 

 full depth, and the soil from the one adjoining used 

 as far as the trenches proceed. The object is to get the 

 best soil down low, where the secondary or side roots are, 

 and to have a poorer soil round the portion intended to 



FIG. 241. HORSE-RADISH. 



be used. Some growers trench ground deeply, and make 

 holes with a crowbar, about 1ft. apart, in rows, after- 

 wards dropping a crown, with a portion of root attached, 

 into the bottom. A large proportion succeed when 

 treated in this way, and form straight roots in growing 

 to the surface. Another successful method, which may, 

 perhaps, be considered the best, is that adopted by some 

 cultivators for market : Eaised narrow beds are formed, 

 somewhat like those for Asparagus, and any quantity of 

 rich manure dug or trenched into them. In planting, 

 straight roots, from 6in. to 9in. in length, are laid in a 

 horizontal direction, about 1ft. apart, with the head, or 

 crown part, to the outside edge, and covered with about 

 6in. of soil. The leaves from the crown turn and grow 

 upright, and secondary roots grow from the main one 

 downwards, and supply nourishment for enlarging it. 



