372 
THE GARDENERS’ CHRONICLE. 
[JUNE 6, 
may run freely through either, the pond will be fed by 
that stream which is most direct ; if you throttle or in- 
terrupt the passage of this stream, then a portion of the 
water will run through the second, and thus by regulated 
obstructions or “ wire-drawing” you get an equal por- 
tion through each. If you go on from two up to 200, 
by proportionate regulation you will command an equal 
portion through the 200. The same effect takes place 
in air ; and unless there is a wire-drawing regulation in 
the ingress or egress ports or openings, the air will run 
at random, the shortest way, through any one that hap- 
pens to be sufficiently large ; but if the holes are pro- 
perly wire-drawn, then a portion will becompelled to pass 
through every one. Wire-drawing, in practice, should 
be out of the apartment, 
15. You objeetalsotothesystem of ventilating from the 
floors or sides of the room instead of from the upper 
portion of. the apartments?— Yes ; there is a practical 
objection to this direction which will be seen by looking 
at the subject carefully. A number of experiments 
have been made to explain a very paradoxical one ; that 
of being unable, under certain circumstances, to blow off 
a dise of paper from the end of a tube, or a metallic 
dise placed over the safety valve on the top of a steam- 
engine boiler; it cannot be blown away, in consequence 
of the first impetus producing counter currents, the 
sum of which counter currents were found always, in 
force, equal to the vis inertie or the momentum of the 
primary one. These pressed on the back of the dise to 
a certain point, where the balance is fixed when it moves 
no further. If a current of steam will produce these 
counter currents, it will easily be conceived that cur- 
rents of air will produce the same. These retrograde 
currents produced from air entering at a low heat into 
a room are p lly very objecti ; they produce 
an increased rate of evaporation upon the skin, which 
produces a sensation of cold. Although the temperature 
of the air in motion itself may be warm,—say 70° or 80°, 
—it will produce a. p ver, bly lower 
on evaporating surfaces. The skin of the human body 
is essentially an evaporating surface, and suffers much 
from this law. The feeling of cold in the parts of a 
room where retrograde or direct currents act is not due 
to the actual temperature of the currents, but to the 
increased rate of evaporation produced by them. Eva- 
poration produced by retrograde currents rapidly absorbs 
heat. A person cannot get out of the influence of the 
direct or retrograde currents if they enter near the floor 
or at a low level; but if the openings are made in the 
ceiling or at a high level then they are mixed with the 
atmosphere of the room above, and cease or become 
destroyed before they can possibly reach any one stand- 
ing on the floor. 
19. The warm air let in higher up in the room will not 
come down ; it will not reach the person sitting below * 
—It must be made to do so. You must have such a 
ower of ventilation as to compel it. If your command 
of ventilation is so slight as to be governed by those 
interferences, it will always be subject to derangement 
from slight disturbing forces,—a change of wind, or 
from a change in the weight of the atmosphere. 
98. By what machinery would you get the warm air into 
iti— The machinery is the draught; the draught is 
always moving air throvgh the room. Supposing the 
air to be warmed above, then the machinery below 
would draw it into the room below. 
107. Cold will not pass readily through glass, The air 
in contact with the glass within would certainly be in 
contact with a cold surface in winter, and be dimi- 
nished in temperature, but it would be to so small an 
extent that it would not of itself affect the temperature 
of the room. No contact with glass would affect it. 
e recommend these practical matters to both the 
advocates and opponents of the Polmaise way of heating 
AMATEUR GARDENER. 
Tur Ranuncutus.—lIf the directions of former papers 
have been followed in reference to this beautiful flower, 
the amateur will be on the tip-toe of expectation, in 
daily hope of discerning the first spots and edgings o: 
the petals, which, when fully expanded, are to reward 
him for all his labour. Most pleasant is it thus to 
watch a bed whose soft green is so soon to be variegated 
with so many beauteous forms and hues. The curious 
eye will find much to admire, even in this incipient | ® 
state, in a Ranunculus bed. The colour of the leaves 
present many different shades, and their shapes are 
equally various. Then come, one after the other, the 
expanding flower-buds, from a deep maroon to the 
purest white, imperceptibly gaining a more distinct cha- 
racter of beauty, like stars appearing on the azure 
ground of asummer's evening. The extreme loveliness 
of the flowers is set off by the humble character of the 
foliage, which thus confers on them 
s ————— a double charm. 
Like pearls upon an Ethiop’s arm.” 
While this excessively hot weather is highly favour- 
able to the development of all flowers, it has its incon- 
veniences and dangers with those classes which are im- 
patient of drought, and naturally shun the full orb of 
day. In aformer paper I stated that I had grown 
Ranunculuses well in various soils and situations, but 
that some degree of shade was necessary to success. 
I have, however, succeeded this year in bringing them 
to the eve of full bloom in a very hot and arid locality. 
This has been effected by constant attention to the state 
of the soil, which should, on the one hand, never be 
saturated, and yet, on the other, must always be moist. 
If the surface of the bed is smooth and hard, turning 
water off it like the back of a duck, you may be sure | al 
something is wrong ; for although the prosperity of the 
roots demands that the soil should closely embrace 
them, it should yet have the porosity to air and water 
on which the welfare of all vegetation depends. Stir 
the surface therefore with a blunt stick, and prevent it 
from caking together, so that the water may quickly 
run through. A little weak liquid manure will be ad- 
vantageous, just as the flowers are coming into bloom ; 
but it must be carefully applied, so as not to touch the 
foliage; or, if it does, fresh water must be directly 
sprinkled over the leaves. 
As the flowers show their colours, they had better be 
shaded from hot suns, but cautiously at first, as it is 
from solar light and heat that their beauty is derived. 
The object of giving shade is to prevent the colours 
fading, and therefore a little thought will regulate the 
process. When the flowers are expanded, then the 
covering may be kept on until the beauty is past. 
bed exposed to the sun and rain, while in bloom, will 
very soon lose its beauty, but attention to shading will 
preserve the flowers for a long time. The best covering 
is an awning of calico, placed sufficiently high to allow 
a good inspection of the bed ; the calico may be strained 
on a wooden frame, and the frame supported on four 
stakes ; but taste will dictate the best mode. All cover- 
ings should be made to harmonise with the general 
arrangements and appearance of the garden, for the 
prettiest place may be disfigured by awkward contriv- 
ances to protect or preserve a few favourite plants. I 
remember seeing a fine collection of Dahlias so oddly 
travestied by various contrivances to entrap earwigs 
and preserve the bloom, that I felt I had rather be des- 
titute of the flower altogether than submit to such a 
motley display. 
Some Ranunculuses willrequire to be supported with 
stakes, especially the older kinds. The new seedlings 
are of a more robust habit, and have the desirable pro- 
perty of supporting themselves. Use little sticks, and 
do not allow them to be seen above the flowers. An 
attention to these regulations will give the bed every 
advantage, and for a month to come you will have an 
exhibition worthy the contemplation of your friends, 
While the plants are in bloom observe the various 
kinds, that you may discover whether they answer to 
their names, and fix on the sorts you think most worthy 
your attention another year. But take care you do not 
become a flower-worshipper, which there is some danger 
of. Ne quid nimis is a very proper motto for the gar- 
dener, and the observance of it will keep him from the 
temptation of neglecting other duties in the pursuit of 
what may easily become, and often has become, a 
passion. 
The foliage quickly fades when the flowers decay, 
hen comes the critical time with the Ranunculus 
grower, The wet season of July has often ruined the 
hopes of the amateur for another year. The tubers 
very soon sprout again if left in the ground, and when 
they do so, they seldom bloom well the next season. 
would advise, as the result of some experience, never to 
allow the rain to come on the bed after the flowering 
time, which may be prevented by the continued use of 
the awning in wet weather. ‘Take up the roots as soon 
as the leaves are yellow, and let them be gradually 
dried. But the subject of preserving this root must 
not be summarily dismissed, and I close my notice of 
the Ranunculus for the present by wishing all my 
readers as much pleasure from their beds as I have 
often found in mine.—H. B. 
= 
Home Correspondence. 
Fruit Crops in Devonshire.—The fruit trees in my 
locality have suffered in many cases very seriously, and 
the crops of fruit are but parti: This I attribute to 
various causes, but chiefly to the lack of solar heat and 
light last autumn, the young wood being insufficient] 
ripened. The mild winter also caused many trees and 
plantst tinueinastate of exci and the blossom 
buds in general were weak and immature ; a quantity 
of them expanded six weeks earlier than usual, anda 
{| large portion never did or ever will expand. At the 
same time the wood-buds were generally weak, and the 
changeable cold winds and rains, with hail storms and 
morning frosts, which we experienced throughout April 
and the 21st of May, caused much blistering, curling, 
and eankering of both foliage and young shoots. All 
this has also been taken advantage of by swarms of 
insects, chiefly of the aphis family ; many of the Apple 
orchards are much cut up, scorched, or seared, as if 
burnt, both with caterpillar and green fly. I never saw 
this troublesome pest so numerous ; trees, hedgerows, 
Grass, and all kinds of vegetation, are attacked with it. 
The Apple blossoms never expanded freely, but continued 
to bloom these six or seven weeks; and in many trees 
observe within these last few days, since the favour- 
able ehangein the weather has taken place, it has ex- 
panded stronger and in greater abundance than at any 
previous period ; Pears are the best crop in general, 
though they have been in bloom ever since the second 
week in January, and in some cases several settings of 
fruit have occurred on the same trees, but the most re- 
markable thing is that many of the Pears against the 
walls are in full bloom now on their newly made shoots 
and buds, while the same trees are producing Pears as 
large as Walnuts, Peaches and Neotarines bave been 
greatly punished, but within these last ten days very 
much recovered by constant washings and picking, 
which have been an every-day business with us ; the 
trees are astonishingly improving, with a pretty good 
crop of fruit. The young shoots of evergreens, indeed 
most every tree and shrub, were greatly seared and 
crippled in this locality by the sudden change of at- 
mosphere and cold cutting winds during the seeond 
week in this month ; they had the appearance of having 
been burnt, but they are now fast recovering ; thou- 
sands of the young. shoots died quite back as soon as 
they were a few inches in length, but they are now 
making a new growth.—James Barnes, Bicton Gardens, 
near Sidmouth, Devon. 
Starch a Remedy for Scale Insects.—T. G. sends a. 
bit of bark cut from the branch of a Brown Beurré 
Pear, to show how efficacious a remedy for the muscle 
scale is a little thin starch applied to the tree by the 
garden engine ; but it will also be observed from the ac- 
companying twig that all the scale insects do not come 
out at the same time, and therefore it is desirable to re- 
peat the operation every day or two for a week at least. 
[Nothing can be more satisfactory. 
New Dye.—lt is not generally known that the bodies 
of those pests of the Rose-tree, the green fly, will yield 
a fine yellow dye, and as they are very numerous this 
spring they might be turned to a profitable account, — 
J.G. 4. 
Disease in Cucumbers.—Perceiving (p. 357) that 
another of your correspondents had been pestered with 
a disease similar to that of which I complained in a 
ate Number, has led me again to make further 
enquiries, for I have been particularly careful in this 
department, being informed when I first came to this. 
place that no Cucumbers of good quality had been grown 
here for many years. As I had generally been very 
successful in other places where I have lived, I laughed. 
at the idea of not growing Cucumbers on a spot where 
every convenience is at hand, but to my disappointment 
the first plants I raised, and also all down to the present. 
time, have been diseased; it is true that I have cut 
some good fruit, but they soon became like the speci- 
men I forwarded. Now I can say for my own part that. 
the disease is not caused by over-watering or by the 
want of heat ; every possible attention has been paid to. 
them in every respect. I have grown ridge Cucumbers: 
in the same way as French Beans are grown, and have 
gathered pecks of Cucumbers in my last situation, but 
here the ridge Cucumbers look like some poor ragged’ 
beggar in a cold frosty morning. Grow them in what 
part of the garden you may, and give them what soil you 
please, your kindness is bestowed in vain; but if 
diseased plants are taken about 300 yards from the 
garden they will do well: this I have seen in a farm. 
garden this year. My Melons were attacked with the 
same disease last year, although not so badly as the 
ucumbers. If any of your correspondents can give 
me information how to eradicate this disease, I shall be 
greatly obliged.—J. B. [Can any Cucumber-grower 
throw light on this case ?] 
Green Fly.—Yo destroy this pest, pour a quart of 
boiling water on an ounce of Tobacco, let it stand till 
cold, then strain ; dip the heads of your standard Roses. 
branch by branch into:a large bason filled with this in- 
fusion, shaking them gently in it; the greater part of 
the insects will fall into the basin, and the rest will 
surely die. Another plan, and even a more effectuah 
one, is to dip the plants, as before, into a bason of 
strong soap-suds. Whichever solution be used, the 
dipping must be performed where possible : but it will 
not be possible if the Roses be trained on a wall; in 
that ease syringing with one or other of these infusions 
must be had recourse to; it will succeed only in those 
parts of the plant where the liquid falls; of course 
mauy leaves will remain untouched. I may add that 
the syringing with soapsuds is excellent for Geraniums. 
and Cinerarias when infested with insects.—M. Clark, 
Cambridge. Common Scotch snuff shaken from a 
muslin bag, or common tin pepper box, on the leaves 
and buds of the Roses, causes the insects to drop off 
very quickly, and as the sharp particles adhere to their 
legs and wings, they are incapable of moving again ; I 
have also found sulphur in powder, with some black. 
pepper ground and mixed with it, and applied in the 
same way as the Scotch snuff, will destroy a great 
many.— Georgiana. Polypodi also d 
the use of Scoteh snuff, which he has found to be effi- 
cacious. 
Seedling Pelargoniums.—Again we are on the eve of 
the June Show at Chiswick, and again I recommend all 
those dealers who have advertised new varieties at 
guineas a-piece to let purehasers see them either in the 
collection of new and first-rate sorts, or in sufficient- 
sized specimens. Let the raisers also exhibit as two 
years old those for which they were awarded certifi- 
cates of merit last year. I, for one, will not purchase 
unless I can see them, or (if I am unable to attend the 
Horticultural Society’s féte) see a satisfactory report of 
them. For the sake of reference, I add below the 
names of the seedlings of 1845, which obtained the cer- 
tificate of merit, with a notice of such as have re-ap- 
peared this season, and the judges’ award upon them. 
But I hope, as June is the month when this favourite 
lower is at its greatest perfection, those which have 
obtained two-year-old prizes will be exhibited again for 
m 
Salamé. How few of the thousands annually raised 
are really novelties let the above b um 
say how many would have been sold as such, had no 
