General Notices. 321 



the centre of each pot, and have a basket of small stones at hand, so that 

 one may be laid on each runner, just behind the plant, in order to keep it 

 steady, until it has taken root." When large numbers are required, Mr. C. 

 advises to prepare the pots as above, and then to plunge them to tlae rim in 

 a piece of vacant ground ; " then, on the first dull day, I cut off the runners, 

 merely removing tlie strings, and by no means cutting the roots or the tops, 

 for both tliose operations are injurious to the young plants." Mr. C, on 

 commencing forcing, begins with a very low temperature, increasing it at 

 the rate of about 3° weekly. " When plenty of air is given at all times," 

 he says, " strawberries will set in a heat of 70°, while, if kept witliout or 

 under such a temperature, many flowers will be more or less blind, and 

 what fruit does ripen will be badly formed." Mr. Cuthill's mode of forcing, 

 without using pots, is by taking tlio runners off as soon as they are well 

 rooted, planting them in a bed of well prepared soil, supplying them liber- 

 ally with water during autumn. In February, " they are taken up with 

 good bulbs, and planted 8 or 10 inches apart, each way, in a frame or pit. 

 They are tlien brought on gradually, and, strange to say, afler they have 

 set, tliey thrive well with a bottom heat, fit for the cucumber. " After the crop 

 is gathered, the plants are either planted out at once, or kept in the pots " un- 

 til the ground becomes vacant for the next year's crop, and for the runners for 

 the present year's potting." One plant only is put in a pot, and runners from 

 pot plants bear a week earlier than those of plants that have never been in pots. 

 The British Queen is treated as follows : — " Plant tlie runners out in beds, 

 4 inches apart each way, and in tlie spring cut off all the blossoms. Take 

 tiiem up in August, and remove a few of the upper leaves in order to induce 

 the plants to form top roots. The winter treatment is of great consequence. 

 Never give a drop of water from November, and from being kept quite dry, 

 nearly all the large leaves die off. During this time, the plants may be kept 

 under glass in pits, or stacked up on their sides against a wall out of doors." 

 For strawberries out of doors, Mr. C. recommends trenching the ground 

 well, and planting the runners a foot apart each way. By tliis means a 

 good crop -^rill be secured the first year, and after this has been gatliered, 

 every second row should be cut away with the spade, leavmg the others for 

 the second year ; after this, they should be destroyed as soon as tliey have 

 produced enough of runners for a new plantation. — [Id., 1850, p. 284.) 



Culture of the Camellia. — In compliance with your request, I now 

 send you a few remarks on the culture of my camellias and rhododendrons, 

 which you considered somewhat remarkable for their size and healthy ap- 

 pearance. In preparing the mould for the camellias, I direct the one-half to 

 be a rich yellow loam, a third of sandy peat earth, with a mixture of river 

 sand, about a tenth part, and the rest of vegetable eartli, consisting of rotten 

 leaves. These are all well mixed together. Next tlie drainage of the pots 

 or tubs is particularly attended to. If a pot is well drainod, the earth will 

 never stagnate, nor the roots of the plants perish whatever quantity of water 

 may be given. The utmost attention should be paid to the watering. Most 

 gardeners are accustomed to a certain routine of watering, and at certain 

 hours ; and this they deem sufficient, without ever considering the tempera- 



VOL. XVI. NO. VII. 41 



