443 



THE GARDENERS' CHRONICLE. 



water newly transplanted trees, seedlings, and seedbeds of 

 delicate things. There has been little rain here yet.— HM?. 



VII.— COTTAGERS' CALENDAR. 

 Where the walls of the cottage are covered with creepers it 

 is necessary to have them trimmed up occasionally during the 

 growing season, in order to keep them neat and within proper 

 limit?. Fruit trees, such as Apples, Pears, Plums, and Cherries, 

 the kinds generally grown by cottagers against wall?*, should 

 now be gone over, and have their leading shoots fastened in, 

 to prevent them from being broken. As these kinds of trees 

 produce their fruit chiefly on spurs formed along the principal 

 branches, it is necessary to shorten the fore tight shoots to 

 within a few inches of the branch or spur from which they 

 spring. Summer pruning, however, in every case ought to be 

 performed with care and discretion, and it is better to err on the 

 safe side than to prune too closely, as the shorter the spur there 

 is the greater chance of the buds breaking into shoots in the 

 present season, instead of becoming fruit buds in the follow- 

 ing season. Some say prune not at all; but this is not the 

 best advice, for the fruit to be good must itself have light and 

 air, and the fruit spurs become weak when too much shaded by 

 a thicket of shoots. Attend to Potatoes, and see that they 

 are properly earthed up. The cottager should now be on the 

 outlook for plants of the following Broccolies, to be planted 

 about the end of the month, viz., Purple Sprouting, Knight's 

 Protecting, Portsmouth, and Danish ; the first is an exceedingly 

 useful Broccoli, as in favourable winters it is in use from the 

 time the autumn sorts are done until the spring varieties come 

 in; the other two kinds are good for spring use ; the last may 

 be planted about 15 inches apart, or even perhaps as close as 

 12— it is small but very hardy, and producing a large quantity of 

 heads for the ground it occupies ; it is well suited for the cottager. 

 A small quantity of Cauliflower might now be planted for use 

 in August ; where that will not succeed, Grange's Early Cauli- 

 flower Broccoli is an excellent substitute, a little of which 

 planted occasionally towards the middle of July will be found 

 useful. Sow a patch of Lettuce seed every fortnight, so that a 

 succession may always be had in the best oider. It ought to 

 be sown where it is to stand, and should never be transplanted 

 during hot weather. A small bed of Onions sown now will be 

 useful in autumn.— J.Mrll. 



Slate of the Weather near London for the week ending July 4, 1844, ai 

 observed at the Horticultural Garden, Chiswick. 



June 



TiiMmV 

 Aire. 



Baromktxa. 



I 1 



.Max. 

 74 

 83 

 79 



79 

 ■ 



n 



68 



74-8 



1 Min. 



47 

 64 



50 



54 

 68 

 67 

 55 



tT*K. 



Wind. 



Rain. 



^r *^ •■ ^p 



.Max- 

 80.018 

 80 065 

 29.988 



29.853 

 29.841 



29.87* 

 29.638 



I in. 

 W.949 



29*926 

 29.850 



89.829 

 29.832 

 29.809 

 29 



M ean. 

 60.5 

 68.5 

 01.5 



66.5 

 61.0 

 64.5 

 61 5 



M »*» * ** » 



Vrid._ 28 

 Sat- S» 

 Sun. 30 



July 

 Mon. 1 

 Tue«. 8 

 Yfrd. 3 

 Thnrs. 4 



is 



13 



o 



15 



17 

 18 



\V 

 S.W. 

 N-E. 



s. 



N. 



6. K. 



S.W. 



.34 

 .22 

 .14 

 .01 



Avemee 





*9«B9 



*9 8?7 



59.8 



638 | 



^■MlWW^iM 



.71 



June 28 Very fine ; dusky haze ; clear, with a few white clouds. 

 |29 Exceedingly fine throughout. 

 30 Dry haze; overcast and fine; slightly clouded at night. ^ 



1 Slight diy haze; cloudy; thunder with rain in the evening. 



2 Constant and rather heavy rain ; cloudy ; uniformly overcast. 

 8 Thickly overcast; cloudy and mild throughout. 

 4 Slight rain; cloudy and mild* 



Mean temperature of the week 1 deg. above the average. 



July 



State of the Weather at Chiswick during the last 18 years, for the ensuing 



Week ending July 13, 1844. 



July 



Aver. Aver. ! m f ^ 



Highest Lowest £ ,ean 

 Temp.; Temp. Tein P 



I No. of 



Sun. 7 



72.9 



64.1 



Mon. 8 



73.6 



51.3 



Tuea. 9 



78.6 



606 



Wed. 10 



74.1 



51.0 



Thur.ll 



74.6 



62.8 



Frl. 12 



73.4 



52.0 



Sat. 13 



73.2 



60.8 



68.8 

 62.5 

 62.1 

 69.6 

 63.7 



62.7 

 62.0 



i Greatest 



Whichi! I entity 

 Rained. of Rain " 



Prevailing Winds- 





10 

 9 



4 

 4 

 6 

 8 



7 



0.23 in 



046 



0.57 



0.36 



0.18 



1.10 



0.72 



2 

 I i 



W 



1 

 3 



1 



a 



i 



i 





X 



I 



1 



I 



3 

 4 

 1 



8 

 6 

 3 



7 



4 



6 



12 



3 

 6 



7 

 3 

 8 

 4 

 3 





3 

 3 

 3 

 3 

 1 



The highest temperature during the above period occurred on the 11th, 

 1886— therm, 88°; and the lowest on the 13th, 1840— therm. 41°. 



Notices to Correspondents. 

 The Reprint of Mr. PAXTON'S COTTAGERS' CALENDAR 

 » will be ready on Wkdnksday, price 3d. each Copy. An Index 

 has been added to this present Edition. Parties wishing to 

 have copies for distribution among their tenantry can have 

 them at the rate of 25 for 55. 

 Araltaria excklsa. — J. G. -B.— This strikes freely from cut- 

 tings put into sand about the middle of August. They should 

 be covered with a bell-glass, and placed in a close pit or 

 frame, where there is no bottom-heat. They must remain in 

 this situation (free from frost and damp) until the following 

 spring, when they should have a little bottom-heat to start 

 them. Plants of this, struck from cuttings, however, always 

 retain the fan-like habit of the branches, and they never make 

 & good leader.^f 



Books.— W. Payne.— For a gardener the Botany of Lindley's 

 u Theory of Horticulture" is what is most essential. Suppose 

 the chapters to be called Lectures, and you have what you 

 want. If you wish to analyse soils, and to go into similar 

 details, consult Johnston's M A-ricultural Chemistry." You 

 should apply to the Philosophical Instrument makers, such as 



Newman, in Regent-street, for catalogues of apparatus. 



E. T. R. F.— There 19 a full account of the Botanical produc- 

 tions of Melville Islands, North America, in the Appendix to 

 Parry's V Voyage to the North Pole." 



Chiswick Shows.— T. 17.— AH persons can exhibit, and there 

 are no other regulations than those which have been adver- 

 tised in our columns from time to time. 



Cucumbers. — R. C. B. — Your Cucumbers have more water 

 given them than they can consume, the effect of which is that 

 gum forms in their interior and eventually finds its way 

 through their surface. Perhaps you shade them too much; 

 or they may not have air enough — for we cannot suppose that 

 they are not warm enough in this sort of weather. 



Gracing. — Old Subscriber .—It is doubtless true that when the 



head of a tree is cut off, and a few scions are inserted upon 



it, it is hard to suppose that all the juices of the tree, which, 



in its original condition, would have gone to feed its head, 



* can go to the sustenance of the little twigs which are produced 



by the scions when they grow; yet it is Substantially so. All 



the branches and buds being removed, nothing else can take 



place. What happens is, that the organising force of the 



trunk is directed to those scions, and consumed by them, as 



jar as is m the nature of things practicably; wherefore, in 



fact, such scions make enormous shoots. But, inasmuch as 



2H « nonl y consume a certain small quantity of the organis- 



^f hftl i i^ e - " maind « continues locked up in the interior 



^Ji J^ i«l f \ D K future y ears > lt ^ wanted. If, upon grafted 

 trees you leave the natural branches, they are iptto attract 

 all the juices to themselves, and so starve the scions, which 

 consequently perish. * 



H J AT J^'~ J# P :~ U ►** iror \ tank has ^3 sides exposed it will 

 heat the air of a stove and also convey bottom heat It is 

 only when tanks are buried in soil that pipes become neces. 

 sary for air-heating. 



Hfdrangeas.— A Subscriber.— If you want to get large bushes 

 of Hydrangeas in the open air, plant them in good rich soil 

 form a basin of clay all round them six inches deep, and in 

 dry weather fill it with water every evening after they have 

 got fairly into leaf. Towards autumn withhold watering 

 altogether. Get their wood ripe. For winter, stuff straw be- 

 tween their branches, wrap them well in it, and mat them up. 



Insects.— J. W. G.— Your beetle is the Curculio Abietis. R. 1 



if. jf.— We believe the eggs are those of the earth-worm. 

 The black-beetles of Londop are cockroaches, the former 



I being a very improper name, as they do not belong to the 

 same order of insects as beetles do, but it is extremely diffi- 

 cult to conquer vulgar errors. We intend to make the Cock- 

 roaches the subject of a memoir as soon as we have an oppor- 

 tunity. The Poke-root is unknown to us. R. E.A.— We 



must beg of you in future to send your specimens protected 

 in quills, for they were all destroyed. We can give you no 

 advice beyond urging you to repeat the remedies which 

 appeared most beneficial. All that is known regarding the 

 pests you suffer from has been publi&hed in the 1st vol. of this 

 Journal, p. 196, and a more elaborate pauerwill shortly appear 



in the Journal of the Royal Agricultural Society. R. Apis's 



Insects with luminous tails are male Glow-worms. R. 



A. B.'s Barley is infested with the maggots of a fly called 

 Chlorops; the specific name shall be communicated as soon 

 as the specimens hatch. Mr. Curtis will feel obliged if A. B. 

 will favour him with some more specimens directed to 

 11, Robert-st, Hampstead-road, with any remarks he has to 

 make regarding the time when they were first noticed ; and 

 anything that may occur to him during the future growth of 

 the Barley, Mr. C. begs may be forwarded also, as he will 

 be arranging his materials during the autumn relative to the 

 Corn crops, for the Journal of the Royal Agricultural 

 Society. A Subscriber. — For a cure for wiieworm, see 



p.233, 1843, and p. 777, 1842. 



Melons.— Susanna.— Take your Melons before they are ripe, 

 peel them, and cut them into quarters; then throw them into 

 a thin syrup, and boil them gently over a slow fire for two 

 hours ; afterwards put them into wide jars. Look at them in 

 a week or ten days, and if they are likely to ferment give 

 them a second boil as before. 



Morphology.— J. 31. .Cheshire.— Double Heaths are very un- 

 common. In your case the additional coro.la is formed by 

 the change of part of the stamens into petals. 



Names ok Plants.— Sedum.— Linaria bipartita, not indige- 

 nous. 0. C— Clitoria Ternatea. Anon appears to be a 



young Epilobium hirsutum. X.X. X.— We do not see how 



your Gesnera differs from G. faucialis. Flowers ought never 

 to be sent in cotton wool, which dries them up. They should 

 be covered with damp brown paper before they are put into 



the box for post. A Young Botanist.— No. 1, Arrhenathe- 



rum avenaceum, attacked by Uredo segetum (smut); 2, A. 

 avenaceum j 3, Festuca elatior; 4, Avena strigosa; 5, A. 



flavescens; 6, Hordeum murinum.§ A Constant Reader. — 



Gesnera Suttoni. W. R.—lt is impracticable to name 



seedling plants that have not flowered; or if practicable.it 

 requires more time than we can spare. 3 is some Xanthoxy- 

 lon. The Corylus is a Viburnum. 



Pelargoniums.— Yerad. — Yourleavesare certainly very healthy 

 and the plants must be in good condition ; but we do not find 

 anything particularly remarkable in them. 



Potatoes.— Villager.— When Potatoes blossom and the flowers 

 fall off, no fruit succeeding, it is pro tanto injurious to the 

 crop to let such flowers follow their own inclinations j they 

 should be nipped in the bud. 



Quick Hedges.— Tyro. — There is a difference of opinion 

 whether Quick should be cut down as soon as planted, or 

 allowed to remain one year before the operation is performed. 

 Like all such questions, circumstances render the one plan 

 better at one time— the other at another. In such a dry sea- 

 son as this, it would have been better to have cut it down 

 upon first planting. A moderate quantity of soft charcoal is 

 evidently advantageous to all plants, if mixed with the soil. 



Roses. — E. F. L— The following are 10 good China Roses: — 

 Cramoisie superieure, Fabvier, Henry the Fifth, Napoleon, 

 Theresa Stravius, Paris, Clara Sylvain, Mrs. Bosanquet, 

 Eugene Beauharnais, and Archduke Charles. Liquid guano 

 may be applied with advantage to Peach-trees.J 



Royal Botanical Society.— Felix.— We have no right to 

 publish statements relating to the private affairs of the 



Society. If you want information apply to the secretary. 



Scrutator.— Your letter, as it relates to matters of fact, must 

 be verified by your confidentially giving your name. We will 

 then publish it, with a little curtailment. We agree with you 

 that exhibitors ought not to be judges. 



Snails.— F. H. R.—A correspondent (p. 737t 1843) states that he 

 has found decaying blooms of Sunflower to be the best trap 

 for snails. J 

 Strawberries. — G. P.'s British Queen Strawberry plants, 

 of last autumn's planting out, from the runners then made, 

 have borne a very good crop of fruit, both in size and quan- 

 tity, but the points of the fruit do not ripen but continue hard; 

 although the bulk of the Strawberry and that part more es- 

 pecially exposed to the sun, is soft and of a good flavour, 

 the points are almost like a core, and of unripe acid taste. 

 The situation is warm, and they have the sun for a consider- 

 able portion of the day. We presume the mischief to arise 

 from slow growth, on account of insufficient watering. 

 Sunken Pits.— Amateur, Reform Club 9 suggests that those who 

 are occupied in the formation of horticultural buildings, 

 while they direct their attention to the discovery of all sorts 

 of contrivances for heating and constructing them, have 

 generally overlooked one of considerable importance, namely, 

 the advantage of sinking them below the surface of the soil ; 

 and he remarks that, assuming the possibility of perfect 

 drainage from the bottom of the building, there would be in 

 sunken pits the advantage of an equable temperature. This 

 is true, and it is partly fortius reason, and partly for the sake 

 of economy, that the plan of building sunken pits has been 

 adopted here and there. Certainly, where ground lies high 

 and slopes so as to throw water rapidly off it, the advantages 

 anticipated would be gained ; that is to say, such pits could 

 be kept at a more equable temperature than others merely 

 surrounded by thin walls. But there are disadvantages 

 of considerable moment. Sunken pits are inconvenient to 

 get at; there is no pulling their sashes off and on with ease, 

 and ventilation is troublesome. Then again, in spite of all that 

 can be done, they will always be damp; and although this is 

 advantageous for some purposes, it is destructive to green- 

 house plants in long winters. Upon the whole, the incon- 

 veniences are at least as considerable as the advantages; and 



we doubt whether sunken pits can often be recommended in 

 gardens. 



Vines.- Hort Surf.— If, as you say, we state that we see "no 

 good reason against syringing Vines, even morning, noon, 

 and night, without exposing them to any danger, and a 

 correspondent in another part of the Paper says, ■■ Be careful 

 to have the Vines quite dry before the sun comes upon them 

 in the morning, as nothingis so injurious to the leaves as the 

 action of the sun on them when moist," this only shows 

 that it is, as we have told you, a debated question. We hold 

 to our own opinion; and we see that Mr. Roberts, than 

 whom no man has produced finer Grapes, does habitually 

 exactly what we recommend as a help against the Red Spider. 

 Very bright light appears to injure newly-moistened Vines ; 

 but why ?— that is an unexplained fact, if it be a fact. 



Miscellaneous. — X.— Nothing is more common than the 

 tobacco plant. It is an annual raised from seed, on a hot-bed 

 and planted out in the open border when the frosts are over! 



R. IT.— The quickest growing hedge to protect a flower 



garden, much exposed to south-west winds, and on the top 

 of a hill, is Furze; which, if well managed, is substantial 



and durable. A.J. B. — Your Cauliflower-seed is probably 



of bad quality. Change your stock. The Fern-leaved Beech 

 is a sport from the common Beech, and, like all sports, is apt 



to return to its original form, either wholly or in part. A 



Subscriber.— The irregularity of which you complain must be 

 caused by the folding, as the Paper is regularly paged except 

 the news part, which is left blank for the convenience of 

 parties who wish to omit it in binding. We have nothing 

 to do with the folding, we merely supply the trade in sheets. 



28th 



"3S^^rl£^Z^^^^9 



28tn Dec. i. t. H -we have heard nothing raor^ 



respect to your Numbers. — incog, will find an ansiJS 



his question in last week's Paper, p. 432.: J. £.-S5i5 



mercury is a dangerous poison, producing serious vol* 

 ing and diarrhoea. It is called Mercurialis, because thev .i 

 that the God Mercury discovered its uses.--Tn 22 U 7 

 scriber.-Yfe do not see how we can possibly give vou t£ 

 detailed advice that you require. General advice will kJ^ 



. vjlendinniuf 

 end to the £ 



chuntina, of which you will find a full account in a Lead? " 



Article in a former No. A Subscriber.— There is r.othi ' 



deleterious or poisonous in the ripe fr uit of Cactus speciosisri 



mus.± A Subscriber.- You may clip your Box-edrinrt 



now; they may be also done with advantage in spring *-__! 

 Flora.— For Camellias, mix your guano with cow's urine * 



A Subscriber.— If your seed is good it will grow • but thl 



kinds are apt to be long in coming up. -The Alstrrjemeria re 

 quires bottom-heat ; the others would also do better with it* 



but will succeed without it.t Clericus.— If your Straw 



berry plants are young and runners troublesome, they should 

 be removed before they have taken root, which will give the 

 stool plants full possession of the soil. The removal of your 

 Fuchsias from a warm to a colder situation would cause the 

 tops of the shoot to become curled and distorted, or the 

 neglect of sufficiently supplying them with water wo'uld pro- 

 duce the same effect. In the former case a little care will 

 soon recover them; in the latter the remedy is apparent* 



Clericus.— We have still a few copies of the Gardeners' 



Chronicle, vol. for 1843 ; price 2Q.s., clo'h. 



SEEDLING FLORISTS' FLOWERS. 

 Antirrhinum.— W. M.— We are glad to find this beautiful tribe 

 taken up ; it is, no doubt, susceptible of great improvement- 

 we, however, see but two varieties that are new amongst 

 your seedlings, 6 and 5.* 



Calceolarias. — R. $ S. — Your seedling is a flower of fine 

 form, and the spotting very pretty; but the ground colour not 



being uniform, is a detriment to the value cf the flower.* 



R. 6'.— Your seedlings are rich in colour, and would have 

 been welcomed a few years since, but they are small com- 

 pared to the flowers of the present time; they are, however, 



of good substance.* S. S. — Spotted specimens aie become 



common; some of your varieties are fine and peculiar; the 

 best are/.Nos. 47, 45, 98, 5", 46, 108; 7—47 is particularly fine.* 



Fuchsias. — B. B. — The seedling is a large and very stout 

 flower; the sepals expand, and show the corolla, which is 

 very large and stout, with a slight dash of purple added to 



the crimson ; it is a handsome variety.* A Novice.— Year 



seedling is a large richly-coloured and very stout flower, 

 crimson tube and sepals, having a stout corolla, with a slight 

 tinge of purple ; a good and handsome flower.* 



Pansies. — J. J. J. — Neither of your Fansles will suit the pre- 

 sent taste; they are deficient in size and substance.* 



J. C. — No. i is very inferior to the dark selfs in cultivation; 

 No. 2 is extremely pretty, from the margin being similar on 

 all the petals ; it, however, wants substance and size.* 



Petunia. — B. B.— Your Petunias are large, but they are very 

 inferior to the variegated varieties produced at the present 



time.* W. M.— Unique superb is a remarkably rich and 



fine-coloured variety. Exuctum, also, is a fine flower. 

 Beauty superb is good also in colour, but this and the other 

 two varieties have the outline too much cut in upon at the 

 divisions of the corolla.* 



Pelargoniums. -J. /. J— Nos. 1, 4, 5, 6 are flowers bad in 

 form, having petals too long and narrow. 2 and 3 are better 



in form, but they are common in colour, and too small.* • 



J. D. W.—Mury Deane is a very pretty variety; the colours 

 are clear, spot intense, and the pure white centre gives the 

 flower a very lively appearance.* R. S.-Both your seed- 

 lings are pretty little specimens; No. 1 is the best; its colours 

 are of a higher quality, and the white throat gives it a supe- 

 riority over No. 2 ; they want size.* A. K.-Your seedling 



is a flower of good form ; deep velvety maroon upper petals, 

 with rosy fringed edge, rosy under petals, with a blotch in 

 each ; these petals are rather fringed at the edge also, which 

 is the defect in the flower.* — /. D. P.-W {• im f ^ r ble t S 

 form a correct opinion of a flower sent flat in a letter , ine 

 colours are clean, but it appears to want substance very 



much* J. S. I.-Gem. The colour, form, «»J » b «* a, f" ? 



this flower are good : it wants a little more width in the lower 

 petals; the upper petals are rich and hue; the colour terra, 

 riates abruptly at the base, and leaves a narrow raarg in of 

 rose-colour round the upper part. No. 4 is fine and jdewrabte 

 in colour, of good sub.tance, with an intense ; spo , tne 

 flowers were shaken to pieces, but the lower peta h ; are en 

 dently too Jong for a finely-formed flower * Dromore. 



are not acquainted with the name of your flower ; *J P re £ n 

 along are very moderate. It is impossible to account for a 

 single flower on a truss coming imperfect.*—- A. ae m 

 Subscriber.-The best flower in your collection w No. o be mg 

 of good form and substance; 3 and 7 are common, ana ro^ 

 much alike ; 2,5, 4, and l are ahso very "oae^^^ 



petals; its principal defect is the ^^"^^agine 

 common in colour, but fair in form ; this flower, ' we in. ^ 

 curls back too m uch. 3, petals rather too long, an of the 

 stance is not carried through to the edge, but tms P» iQ 



flower is left thin and uneven. 4, a pretty flo we r, s 



the edges of the top petals. 5, top peuu 

 1. 6, petal, too narrow , and thin. /, • «7 



form, but thin on 



high, and blotched. 6, petals too narrow, »»"""';• " tals 



pretty variety; margin well defined on the toy . pe ^ 



these 



appears to be too thin also. There is good promise ^ 



seedlings, but if you compare them i *ith u ig 



varieties of the present day, you will perce ive in a ^^ 

 generally a dtficiency of substance, which siioum aod 



out to the margin of the petals.* A A0P '^f ant |; ill in colour 



very pretty seedling; the lower petals are beautiiu. ^^ 

 and form ; the flower, altogether, is small ; the wD^ g ^ 



gives it a lively appearance.* J. •>• •>> *" • s c i ea r and 



Femarkably fine and showy greenhouse varieties,^ 

 rich in colour, but rather deficient ir .that ^Pfgf Irst-rate 

 and clean set of the petals which <; » stl Q tut fi e n f c e le ar rose- 

 varieties of the present day. No. 1 is a , m to0 

 coloured variety, with white centre; upper ^petais^ a ^ 

 small for the size of the flower. 2 is also -a flow er do nQt 

 fine in colour, but when fully «»»anded the flow er ^ 

 retain their form ; the under petals ar e too yarrow ^ 

 same fault, and is common m colour. 15, Booacm 

 an inclination in the petals to c « l . b »f k - i^tS wpsraW 

 in colour or form ; when expanded the lower peUd r ^ ita 



from the upper. 18, very large, and » u P e "° r '"Jscurlback. 

 broad under petals ; but when fully open, the petals .< 



r:s:s eel* ^ssrssssz* - • 



will make a desirable border variety, or for tne v lant 

 bedding out: it is described as a |re« btoome , e^ ffl5? 

 having 12 or 14 stems, and each stem hawng 18 io 

 the colour is a rich bright carmine.* ^ ata sn- 



Thunbkboias.-J. Fryer.-U .your *"to*&°™& siz e,they 

 perba and aurantiaca superba retain their increase 



are certainly a great improvement. „ ariprv br ight rosy 



Verbenas.- IT. W.-Hudsoniiis a good I^Jl"/ .S .1 .- 



purple, with a white eye dist.net to «don^ crirn - 



Your seedling is a fine dark variety, °/ » ric JO e expall d well a 



son maroon colour; the *™ w * x ;£ifL*eWt**** 

 it is one of the best dark-colcured varieties we u 



t 

 i 

 H 



i 

 1 







