

O.I 



1855.1 



THE GARDENERS 





cur*! at on 

 two months 



s are of free growth, persons commencing their 

 ahould be careful to procure good healthy pro- 

 young plants, avoiding pot-bound leggy things, 

 re very unfit for beginners. If plants are pro- 

 re the best situation for them for the next 



CHRONICLE 



373 





they can be securea irom nrignt sunsmne, 

 id afforded a free circulation of air. If (hey appear 

 to iwuire more pot room, this should be seen to at 

 Meain order to get them well established in their pots 

 •ore winter ; and it will not be advisable to give a 

 tm large shift after this season. Attention should be 

 rid to having the ball in a nice moist healthy state ; for 

 So plan* should be repotted except this is the case, 

 aad particularly hard wooded plants. For soil, use good 

 llrong rich fibry peat, with a small proportion of rich 

 IBellow turfy loam, well intermixed with plenty of sharp 

 tflrer sand, and some lumpy bits of charcoal, or clean 

 ginall pateberdsto keep it open and permeable to water, 

 and ensure good drainage. If stopping is required, this 

 should be done as soon after potting as the roots appear 

 to hive taken to the fresh soil ; or in the case of plants 

 that do not require repotting, it should be done at once, 

 and the shoots should be kept nicely tied out, in order 

 to induce a bushy habit of growth 



Ttebest situation for r 

 the glass in the greenhouse, where they will have 

 all : the light possible and a free circulation of air 

 on every favourable^ opportunity. At that season 

 water must be adminstered very care r ully, never 

 priD* liny until it is absolutely wanted, and then 

 sufficient to thoroughly moisten the ball. Turn the 

 plants occasionally, to prevent their getting one- 

 sided through the shoots turning to the sun, and give 

 the leaves a gentle washing with the syringe occasionally, 

 to clear them of dust, &c. ; but do this on a bright 

 morning, so as to avoid damp. About the middle of 

 March the plants should be cut back, if necessary, to 

 secure a sufficiently close growth— for they will be too 

 small to be of any service for flowering— and placed in 

 the warmest end of the house, or removed to where the 

 night temperature may average about 45°, syringed 

 over-head on bright days, and kept rather moist. Here 

 they will soon push their buds and start into free 

 growth, and when this is the case the roots should be 

 examined giving a liberal shift if the ball is covered 

 m healthy roofs. Afford the same careful attention 

 Mer repotting as recommended above, keeping the 

 tooephere mo i 8 t, and watering sparingly until the roots 

 toke into the fresh soil. Perhaps the best directions 



™ lff£ ♦ g,V f n * S t0 tem P e ™ture during spring 



2?™ * r i gUkte lt accordin S to the amount of Lht, 

 toe?™ the plants growing as freely as can be done with- 



JS 2S § r ° w ' h l ^t by all means avoid this, 

 Z;" 1 ? 011 the , specimens. Remove to a cold frame 



that vegetables sold in the London markets 'are mfW^ ^ — s— - _ 



in point of quality to those sent into a eentlemen'S^ I ^^ * moderate ero P of Apricots; last vea- we 



m the country/simply from their ha^ 4-uJl w^ ™ V'-V 



short time packed closely together. For the market 



they must necessarily be gathered and packed the 



previous day, travel to town during the night, and in 



warm weather they are often sold in a heated stale, even 



•n that short space of time. But howdo matters stand when 



they are closely pac ked in a ship in large quantities for 

 a much: longer period ? They must be in a state of 

 ncipient fermentation at least, before they can reach 

 thejr destination, and I much doubt if any medical man 

 would recommend vegetables to be eaten in that state, 

 or consider them wholesome. - - ' 



counted on my walls 1800 Apricots before thinning, bat 

 this year we must be contented with 2184 (sic) before 

 tlnnn,ng- mo re than we expected. But it U no t 

 wholly a W for when the re is a moderate crop 32 



SSTlS! f ° r 1 g - 0tten 10 ° A P ricots wdl thinned-ou 



TnoS\hS ^ nn ^». and have a far superior flavour, 

 wtifidal hiS m - thG /Pri^-house, without any 



rnlte e o a n } tL r0 w m X^ ir ^'^ ^ ^^' 



.. , . . •-- The amazing swarms of wasrs 



»» » Proper suppl, of f re9h «~„|,I M everv Z,° '° !. ,21 ' h « J '«'< ■"» "™ »' ■»«• -«M. They dear.™,! 



emciency, and possibly be the means of keeping many 

 out of the hospitals, the plan may be recom 

 mended upon economical grounds, it being cheaper 

 to provide the articles on the spot than to trust 

 T*J? unc t e f. taiQ s»PP'y from a great distance. 

 Rnl. qua " t, , t ' es of P l as > Bea ^ Kidney Beans, Scarlet 

 Kunners, Cabbages, Cauliflowers, Radishes, Lettuces, 

 Cucumbers, Carrots, Onions, &c, might be produced in 

 a short time, and would doubtless be looked upon as a 

 ^od-send by the troops. A few good kitchen gardeners, 

 with a staff of some 15 or 20 men each, placed in 

 different localities, within reach of the camp, and out 

 ot range of the Russian guns, would produce an enormous 

 T^ ? f u ve S e ? ables in » few weeks in such a climate 

 * h »* of th « Crimea. Great quantities of suitable manure 

 could be easily procured from the cavalry encampment 

 which being trenched into the ground at a proper depth 

 would greatly tend to meet the difficulties attending dry 

 weather during the summer months. The principal 

 gardeners would find suitable employment in directing 

 the labour of the men under their superintendence, 

 sowing all the seeds with their own hands, and seeing 



that the vegetables were gathered in the state most fit 

 tor use. 



Perhaps some would raise objections to what has been 

 here suggested on the ground of the great uncertainty 

 ot all warlike movements, and because the scheme has 

 somewhat too domesticated, easy, and comfortable an 

 appearance about it. But why not make even camp 

 lite as comfortable as circumstances will admit, and 

 deprive war of as many of its horrors as possible. ' I am 

 certain that, should the authorities at the War Office ever 



t^themrll Ca K her becomes »*tall favourable, and 



2od r?mI7 gthe S , Ummer M ^commended for last 

 SS' e menttT g th f ' minute attention an<1 car eful 



SET I . ° , y Way 0f securiD S handsome 

 Vamens. If a second shift should be required in 



entertain the idea of sending gardeners to the Crimea 

 to raise vegetables for the use of the army, the organi- 

 sation of such a scheme could be speedily and ^easily 

 effected ; and once the machinery was in motion with 

 such an object in view, it would doubtless be found to 

 work as satisfactorily as ever did the "navvies" at 

 Balaklava. A. D. 



coarse 01 

 oe done, 

 *tao disc 



Hutsft 



*J "ther- firm K^Sffi 



THpc *^*uie winter. 



«i^:ZT£ t Trr d f for Iast r ter 



•icientW laive R • th f P ' anta are considered 

 ^»iry Part b »f <Z flowenn fc ^y should be kept in a 

 *•". K thev m! 8 r enhouse unti » they come into 

 *■* if the! a ?e Th 7 e , m ° Ved *° the ^^ervatory, 



'AS ^monl - fr r bright sunshiae > they 



lwo m onths in beauty. Alpha. 



Home Correspondence. 



Protection of Fruit Trees, dkc.—My trees having borne 

 such abundant crops of Apricots for three successive 

 years I was rather fearful that this year there might 

 be a failure, and those feara were augmented by the un- 

 usual severity of the season. There was a prodigious 





W ff a« fit ERS F ° R THE C ^MEA. 



^ArK 1 ha3 - bee ? Iate1 ^ eXmiD S itSelf 



•***« to erecf? 1™/ m * h « Ea «t by sending out 

 "^■-'WL I» h UtS ,' &C ) ' for its convenience%nd 

 ^7 taMmi«f * 2*y . d . 0wn »»w»ys ^r the more 



-eookin 



ted c 



.T'.snd arrow rw"' HK , e ? e best use of their tea, 

 £*•> ZtZl ?„l e ^^ an . d h - to dr 



J! *k »nd r w, undlH t0r , USe in the ^nip-nurses for 

 *1 **««» hoi , * ' a , d \ celeb «ted cook to teach 

 «*e,a n d. " W t0 ""ke the best use of their t™ 



?*>t to U ^5 

 it had 



»00l(i 



CJ 8 Wte ^ed a wi,°h T h the bettw » ** *Wch might 



ir . and th2 6 - EaSt , are like1 ^ to last 8« 

 w that „S* J 8 8end,n S gardeners to the 



bee 



•atfta 



^ N 



■.V*""" J i am not « "'",'" s "" c J;r ' 1 "'" ners ou g n « t( > 

 2 P , reced *i the LT th n fc the la "er ought not to 

 US ^tables w^m* Gardeners to raise abund- 

 ^ he army. in a ?„. dpro . mote .the healih and com- 



*ktfttli. 



ly on 

 from 



r; . e articles ar« . . ' , g reat a distance 

 »hiS 11,tt| ng that re< J mr ed. 



SeriS"* « different g nt Ub,eS COuld be obt ained in 

 2S ** they co u .a T" 3 ° U the shores of the Black 

 <**£"£* 8 horrti me be to Tr7 1 ed m 8tea "^rs in a 

 •W#?* ^mp, '"I B alaklava, and thence by 

 **JS!ft the time I{ cons >derable period must 

 52?,^ delC^ f :, h * U t^y were gathered till 

 ^Su 1 ^ th, y w r i7; A e use of the troops ; and, 



*■% - AU * thtkXT:^ ^ UCh de teriorated 

 l*«ked ^""ed to 8d „h a 1ow tha t » very short 



"*'«*» this coC^V 6 ^^ 1 - when clo8e, y 



«7- * ew wUl dispute the fact 



checked their career, Wsa^d a nuf ^ ^ ^ 

 { used to destroy these noxious insects with sulphur and 

 gunpowder, but this year we adopted an easier and more 

 effectual remedy, using coal-tar at Ad. per gallon. We 

 poured about a pint of coal-far, from the gas-works, into 

 the mouth of each hole, and digging even the next day. 

 not a single wasp was found alive. This year I have 

 ottered a reward of a penny for each queen wasp 

 brought me during May rnd June, and I h^ve already 

 received a considerable number— 114. They are 

 mostly found amidst the Gooseberry bushes, feeding on 

 their buds as they open. The great collection of Ever- 

 green S and scarce nnd variegated plants at my summer 

 residence, 6 miles distant, must not be passed over. My 

 Evergreens got through the first frost without receiving 

 scarce any injury ; but the second frost— thermometer 

 16 to 15°— scorched two Cedars of Goa, 15 feet high, 

 a variegated Ariatotelia, a numerous variety of Phillyreas, 

 and a variety of Laurustinus ; while the var eties of 

 French Holly 30 feet, Arbutus 33 feet, another Goa 

 Cedar 8 feet, variety of White Cedar 6 feet, Thuja 

 pendula, Arbutus andrachne 4 feet, and a very great 

 number of others, withstood the severity of both frosts 

 m the open air, and were as fresh and green as ever. 

 About 10 years ago I bought a fine Deodara 3£ feet high, 

 and at the same time turned another out of a pot about a 

 foot. They are both now 15 feet high, but the latter one 

 will speedily outstrip its rival ; and it shows us the 

 advantage of choosing small plants, and reminds me of 

 a letter which I wrote in 1826 to the Bath Society, 

 strongly urging the use of Acorns in making plantati .ns 

 of Oaks. I conclude ray letter with a toast — " Milder 

 seasons and success to gardening." W. B> M. Lisle, 

 L.L.D., St. Fagan's, Cardiff. 



Lolium temultntum or Darnel. — Being aware that this 



Grass has always been considered poisonous, I was in- 

 duced, while living in Lancashire about two years ago, 

 to make some inquiries as to whether any instances were 

 known of its having exercised any deleterious effects 

 upon persons who might have partaken of it, as it 

 seemed impossible from the great quantities of it that 

 were very generally found growing in the fields amongst 

 the Wheat that the two could be thoroughly separated 

 when they came to be reaped, and the grain prepared 

 for food. I ascertained, however, that it was customary 

 where Darnel was much intermixed with Wheat to put 

 the latter through a sieve, whose meshes were of such a 

 size as to retain the larger grains of the Wheat, allowing 

 only the smaller grains and the seed of the Darnel to 

 pass through. My informant told me of an instance in 

 which this mixture had been ground, and part of the 

 flour used in making a pudding, of which a number of 

 persons partook ; the effects were nausea, vomiting, and 

 staggering, as if inebriated. The above particulars, 

 although they do not make us acquainted with the 

 quantity that will produce a certain effect, still go to 

 establish the fact that Darnel is poisonous, and may 

 perhaps serve to elicit from some of your other corre- 

 spondents something more conclusive on the point. 

 Robert Grey, Hadzor Gardens, Droit loich. [ We should be 

 very glad of further evidence upon this doubtful point] 

 The Potato Disease again! — I herewith submit to 

 your inspection specimens of Potatoes called here the 

 early Dutch. I planted them on the 20th of March, 

 and a slight covering at night is all the protection that 

 has been given them. Is it the disease they are 

 attacked with % One of the stacks is much rotted at the 



We have had a 



base, as is the tuner growing .. ___ 



return of cold east wind, with frost and 

 morning, after a few davs* fine 



growing 



hail, this 

 weather. 



[This 



is a 



bloom, and every thing seemed to promise as large a 

 crop as last season, but the frosts continued every night. 

 On the 3d of May the thermometer was down to the 

 freezing point, and on the 5th of May there was ice 

 here as thick as a penny piece, and my gardener, Mr. 

 Evans, was met by wet fogs, which penetrated into 

 every corner. After feeling much for the severe losses 

 of my brother gardeners during this severe spring I 

 feel thankful that my own losses have been 1 ut trivial ; 

 and I have the pleasure of informing you that my weaser varieties than others, and in that case a short 



canopy, represented by the accompanying woodcut, has stick should be used to keep the plant steady in the 



07 __ — ¥ _ — — _ 



E. K. S , Pembrey, Llennelly, South Wales. 

 bad state of the Potato disease.] 



Rhododendron Dalhousice. — A fine plant of this 

 beauti'ul Rhododendron is now in flower in the garden 

 of James Hunt, Esq., of Pittencrieff. This is the first 

 of the kind that has flowered hr Scotland on its own 

 roots. W. W. E. 



The Balsam. — Few indoor annuals are more striking 

 or Bhowy than a well-grown Balsam, which is quite a 

 boon to us in the decoration of the greenhouse and 

 conservatory during the late summer and autumn 

 months, lt is often, howtver, badly managed, and 

 allowed to remain in the seed pot till the young plants 

 are drawn up like* straws. They are then potted off, 

 two in a pot, and put into some out-of-the-way corner 

 in the forcing-houses, where they again " draw " and 

 become so lanky as not to be able to support their own 

 weight. The order then is, " Get those Balsams potted 

 off into single pots and staked up." Now, this is 

 mismanagement, for on no account should stakes be 

 applied to Balsams ; sometimes, however, you may find 

 weaker varieties than others, and in that case a short 



