DECEMBER 135 



in spring, keeping the wet out of sunk pits, shading 

 summer cuttings effectually, and so on. It also makes 

 an excellent though ugly paling instead of a wall. Even 

 Peach-trees will grow well against it if the plants are tied 

 to pieces of batten or sticks some stuck into the ground 

 and the branches tied horizontally from stick to stick, and 

 some put across the zinc as then the plant, be it Peach 

 or Vine, enjoys the heat radiated from the zinc, which yet 

 cannot burn or injuriously dry the bark, in summer. In 

 winter it is still more important that air should be between 

 the plant and the zinc, which gets extremely cold in frosty 

 weather. This, of course, applies equally to covering zinc 

 houses or sheds with creepers. 



This is a long digression from the Mushroom bed. 

 We have already had several excellent and useful dishes 

 off it from this the first experiment. Our outer cellar is 

 too cold here to grow Mushrooms in winter, though 

 it does well to grow the common Chicory for the Barbe- 

 de-Capucin salad, and also protects from early autumn 

 frosts the Broad-leaved Batavian Endive, which does so 

 infinitely better here than the Curled Endive. We grow 

 this in large quantities. It makes by far the best late 

 autumn salad, and is also quite excellent stewed. (See 

 * Dainty Dishes.') 



We have not yet succeeded here with the vegetable 

 now so much sold in London in the early spring, viz. 

 Witloof or Large Brussels Chicory, but I mean to try this 

 next year. 



I went to lunch to-day with a neighbour whose house 

 is full of things recalling memories which belong to other 

 days. As we sat at luncheon I began to gaze, as I in- 

 variably do, at whatever hangs on the walls, and I am 

 always thankful when I have not to look at photographs. 

 I have plenty of these myself, but they are the least 

 decorative of furnishing pictures. On the wall opposite 



