I^HIH -*■* 



THE 



GARDENERSVCHRONICLE 



[Feb. 



Vible that 



will snap the 



the additional we iit 

 limb, m which cm accidents may <*<* 

 2fc which no car. or .kill can ^ar£ It. 



M 



to their sex. 



BuTWe than this must be regarded 



All the canaries sent up 



from 



fun* a wry nriou question, 



to wh.. this statement » »PP''^ ,e - <? n 

 with safety be allowed to remain within the build- 

 £r hi' fortunate that they all stand where the 

 %5JL TJSSSmi-mm i. to be placed, because 

 ^o St the power to cauw their removal 

 iJW?!™. who are meet likely to suffer 

 *cidenU attendant upon their remaining; so 

 rSEophe will.* least, serve to .nerew 



of self-immolation, and thus a great 



in the purchase. «.. - - — --- „ m ler~eood tutors 

 country are voung birds ; brought U P " nd * r ,&°" f d 

 Si the Wk and the nightingale), but apt to de 



I em to be staunch. They may then be suspended any 

 where, and associated with any other songster * 



Those birds are considered most valuable, which lead 

 off with the nightingale's note]; concluding 



15 



prevent their over luxuriance m song. Also wl? 

 scantily supplied with food. When the candid 

 lighted, when the fire is seen to blaze upon the hi 

 and when the cups and saucers are heard to rattU* 

 the table— then you will be treated to "something* 

 listening to." William Kidd, New Road, Ifamin£3 



FOREIGN GARDEN GLEANINGS. 



St. Petersburgh. — St. Petersburgh, built* 



that 



J^^l^l^odTo* foreigner!, who will not fail 

 toaamire the patriotism that would rather put its 

 hie ml limbT in jeopardy than sanction the 

 detraction of a rotten tree. 



~ MARKET GARDENING ROUND MMMk 



No VII Rhi&aR-.— Mr. Joseph Myatt, «»f Deptford, 

 who » edebrated for Us fine Rhubarb, was the first to 

 enltivair it n a tare© scale. It is now nearly 40 years 

 M«r ha fimt **nt his two sons to the Borough Market 

 with five bunches, of which they cnuld only sell three. 

 Next cimwthev went they took ten bunches with them, 

 which were all sold. Mr. Myatt could even then see 

 that Rhubarb would, in time, become a public favourite, 

 mad th« rsault tia.^ proved the correctness of his view*- 

 for it ia now generally used both by rich and poor ; it 

 is no longer called « phytic ' as it was wont to be in 

 bygone day*. Rhubarb will grow in almost any soil, 

 provided U is rich but light land, well manured, will 



always pnxliiee a better flavoured stalk than a stiff, 

 retrntive clay W« have hail a great deal of rain this 

 winter, and Rhubarb in OOnttqtlMWi is not i tr so well 

 flavoured as in a dry and rather frosty season ; the 

 Htallut are full of watery juice, which the roots have 

 taken up ; and in *>ini places the tops of tho leaves are 



beginning to rot aiiK *t the straw. This has led some 

 market g ar de n er * toad <>\ -t means of keeping the roots 



dry. Mr. Mitchell, of Enfield, has grown his Early 

 Rhubarb this winter in the following manner. He 

 fiftrd tlw roots, packed them, with a little mould be- 

 tween them, on the floors of long sheds, and covered 

 tho crowns J (art thick with tree leaves. These pro- 

 Ami sufficient heat to bring it forward gently ; and I 

 nrvrr saw better or finer Rhubarb at Christmas. The 



wiih that of 

 the tit-lark thriug-jug, ^ swelling slur, and wateiv 

 tabWe^the toiltiTded with the - chewing » and 

 ^S^^of the latter, kept up in a long-contmued 

 strain are, when observable in any of these birds, cer- 



tain signs of excellence. wnm .._ 



There are a vast variety of tastes, and a vast number 

 of opinions, with respect to a - fine bird " Wjft«J 

 -a large number ! -noise, shrillness, and a rapid exer- 

 tion cany the palm. Others are pleased with a lengthy 

 song, whether musical or not 

 larded as the test of value. Chacun a son gout. 



For my own part, now that my ear is more attuned 

 real " music," I infinitely prefer the German canary 



Not that all, or a twentieth part ol 



its duration being re- 



banks of the Neva, in lat. 59° 56' 31" N "* an ^ 

 47° 59' 30" E. (of Paris), is about 1535 'miles £ 

 Paris ; it covers a surface of more than 16,735 acre!* 

 which about 2447 are occupied by nursery and plp!___ 

 gardens, 2938 by kitchen gardens, and as ma_T? 

 meadows. The town being 54 feet above the feJL ■ 

 the Baltic, the solar heat is able to penetrate the atf 

 a greater extent than would otherwise be possible/ 

 thus to increase its fertility,* and render it more ft* 

 the culth ation of many flowers and vegetables. * 



In the 

 orders of 



year 1714, a splendid garden was made by. 

 Peter the Great, in the Apothecary'sU? 



y ■ u* 



to 



before all others. _ . . 



those that are brought over here from Germany are a gardens, 

 whit better than those of our own rearing. Some few, * ™. « 

 however, are placed by " Canary" breeders under first- 

 rate tutors ; and they sing with so much melody, so 

 much pathos, so con exprezzhme—thnt their value can 

 hardly be overrated. The birds / speak of, will cost 

 from three to four guineas each. The age to purchase 



They are then " true 



with a view to promote the study of botany. sT 

 years later, the Emperor Alexander converted? 

 marshy islands in the Neva into agreeable promeoai 

 which were soon surrounded by^elegant villas. We fc 

 hereafter give a more detailed description of tU 



• 



The soil for a few miles aronnd the town 



ym 



plan of forcing it about London consists in dig- 

 ging long pits to the depth of 2 to 3 feet, introducing 

 18 inches of hot dun _\ and then packing the roots closely 

 together in a little mould, covering the crowns with 

 hoops or with 6 inches of straw ; then hurdles 

 or mats, and finishing with 6 or 8 inches of straw, 

 the amount of the latter depending on the severity 

 of the winter. In this way strong well flavoured stalks 

 are produced, provided the weather is dry. The colour 

 i bright red, and the leaf is always very small. Many 

 prefer forced Rhubarb, on account of its tender fibre. 

 No skinning is re«[tiired, and it is much less acid than 

 that from the natural ground. Those who desire this 

 kind of Rhubarb, therefore, might easily obtain it by 

 placing about a barrowful of straw over each crown. 

 This covering would be cheap, and, besides bringing it 

 on a little earlier, i old help to manure the ground 

 and keep off frost. Rhubarb growing out of doors is so 

 Ample that little can be said respecting it. The ground 

 being heavily manured, a plant b taken up and divided 

 into as many eyes or bud as it possesses. These are 

 planted 4 feet apart, and by the autumn they will have 

 produced roots from 6 lbs. to 10 lbs. in weight. The 

 oldest roots are generally taken up for forcing ; and by 

 always having a good rotation, the grower has the power 

 of continually changing the ground, and thus obtaining 

 a heavier crop. The forced plants will furnish eyes for 



them at, is in their second year. _ m 



to their song. To listen to these birds by candlelight, is 

 a treat perfectly indescribable. Their s is the * music 



of the spheres.' ■ 



Canaries are of various colours. Those most in 

 request are the Jonoue, or bright yellow. The finest 

 are the bright yellow, with an admixture of black spots. 

 They should have no white feathers whatever. Then there 

 are the mealy, the mottled, the buff, and the grey. It 

 must be borne in mind, as I have before remarked, that 

 many birds despised for their colour, are in reality the 

 finest songsters of any. Plumage, therefore, should^ be 

 a secondary consideration, if you want a good song bird. | 



A bird in good health should be thin and trim ; and 

 very sprightly in his cage. If ever you see a bird with 

 his head behind his wing, in the day-time, conclude that 

 "his days are numbered." His sickness is "unto 

 death." Be very careful, when purchasing, to bear this 

 remark in mind. Keep a close eye, also, when any bird 

 is performing a call of nature, on the movement of his 

 tail. If he " bolts " it, like the nightingale, he is in very 

 bad health. I speak, of course, now, of seed-birds. If 

 what is voided be of a darkish hue in the middle, and 

 quickly dry, the bird is in robust health. Previous to 

 dissolution, what passes will be white and slimy, having 

 no black in it. A few hours more, and the curtain will 

 close on his career for ever. 



Young birds, as I have already mentioned, are apt to 

 be unsteady in their song. All undue excitement there- 

 fore must be avoided. Never, under any circumstances, 

 keep RIM canaries in their vicinity. Although they may 

 not see them, yet they can hear them twitter ; and they 

 will answer each other from morning till night. Thus 

 is the serenity of their minds unduly disturbed, and their 

 strains of melody are interrupted. Hen birds should 

 only be kept for * breeding " purposes, and in a room 

 far remote from the males. The male bird may be 

 easily recognised from the hen, by his " dare-devil " 

 sprightliness and vigour. He will be found to sit bolt 

 upright on his perch, and to stretch out his neck at full 

 length, to .see all that is going forward. He is also 



poor and difficult of cultivation ; the vegetation ism 

 and the woods, composed for the most part of Wfe 

 Alders, Maples, Aspens, and especially of Fir * 

 Birch, attain but a very moderate size, except in & 

 parks belonging to the Emperor and the prinea 

 nobility; but on the other hand, the woods and mar*. 

 are full of a great variety of bushes, with berries, amocs 

 which we recognised Rubus* and VacciniumfTl 

 fruits of the former constitute, even at St. Petersburg 

 considerable article of commerce; they are eaten insfc 

 of Strawberries. 



In spite of its poverty, the soil of St. Pela_| 

 burgh yields an abundance of market garden plan 

 and supplies all the wants of the population I 

 this great city. The soil was found, on examination, 

 consist of a siliceous clay ; the stratum o( ve^e 

 earth only covers strata of turf and pure clay. 



Its climate. — The total absence of any shelter 

 forests, allows the north and west winds to zii 

 a fatal inflence over St. Petersburgh ; and its cta( 

 is severe and changeable As to the seasons, u 

 general rule, winter affords 162 days of continual fw 

 then follow 40 or 60 days of spring, if that term a 

 be applied to a season in which it freezes regularly i 

 and night ; lastly, summer continues for 143 days,* 

 is, without any intermediate stage, followed by fie 

 The mean maximum degree of cold is — 1 6° F. ; butt 

 are always certain days, on which the thermow 



stands as low as — 22 Q or 



27° 



■Ad § 



The heat in summr 



continual succession, without growing plants for the 

 purpose, and the eyes may be divided and planted again 



r a mam crop. I have practised this plan on a small 

 acale many years ago. 



The following are four first-rate sorts: Mitchell's 

 Early Albert, Randall's Early Prolific (this is as yet 

 Utie known, but it is eight or 10 days earlier than the 

 Lmmeos; it is high coloured and well flavoured) 

 Myatt's Linnaeus is next in earliness, and Myatt's Vic- 

 toria is the latest. Twelve heads (leaves and stalks) of 

 the latter weighed 70 lbs. 



Early Pius.— These are sown in rows 3 feet 6 inches 

 apart, in December, on borders under walls, and by the 

 sides of hedges ; Cabbages or White Cos Lettuces 

 pricked out of the frames, or from under the hoops 

 where they were becoming crowded, are planted between 

 the rows. The Peas are never staked II _ oulw > 

 teed are the Early Frame and Improved Bishop's and 



up. The sorts 

 tny frame and Improve 



Groom s Dwarf. Peas do not now pay the London 



Eowers. ™ — 



taller, and more vivacious about the eye ; the eye of the 

 hen being " tame," and her movements lack-a-daisically 

 "measured." The larynx of the throat is also more fully 

 developed in the male. He opens his mouth to good 

 effect, and every note tells. The hen, on the contrary, 

 jabbers, and makes " much ado about nothing." 



Canaries, when young, are most assuredly imitative ; 

 if, therefore, you associate them with other birds, let it 

 be with a first-rate linnet, woodlark, or titlark. What- 

 ever strains they may borrow from these, are unobjec- 

 tionable. They all " discourse most eloquent music." 



By the way, all lovers of candlelight songsters 

 (which beat all others hollow), should associate these four 

 birds in one room, arranged so as they may not see each 

 other but listen to each other's song. The effect pro- 

 duced by such a choir is enchantingly beautiful. 



In order to keep your birds in continual song, hang 

 them up in situations where they cannot by possibility 

 get a sight of each other. I have often heard people 

 express surprise at their canaries not singing • and I 

 have frequently been consulted as to the cause! It has 



extreme ; in June and July, the mercury often w4 

 86° and 91°. The frost usually sets in about thei 

 of September, and continues until the end of April,; 

 even the middle of May. 

 ^ There are, in fact, but two seasons at St. Peterste 

 viz., summer and winter ; for that part of the years 

 hardly be called spring, when the Neva is still k a fa 

 road. Mild weather is first felt in the beginning 

 May, and then vegetation is developed with in* 

 ceivable rapidity, and in less than a week, summer 

 at its height. The real summer ends in the begim 

 of August. In no place is the value of the fee seas 

 felt so much ; as soon as it makes its appearance, I 

 town is deserted, and every one betakes himself toi 

 country. It is but seldom that the fine days of sum* 

 are interrupted by a storm ; those we witnessed «f 

 short, and not violent. The summer nights at > 

 Petersburgh are more beautiful than anything n J 

 conceive in our temperate climate. They are> 

 days ; we have often sat reading and writing at aB» 

 of the night in June and part of July without an/* 

 light than that afforded by Nature. It migfe* 

 be said, that in this season the Russian capttW 

 one continuous day two whole months long;*' 

 soft light of night does not disappear until * * 

 returns to the eastern horizon and announces* 

 approach of day. The greatest length of any J 

 20 hours ; but, as we have already said, there is J 

 period of the year, no such thing as darkness, a* 

 vitality of the plants is constantly stimulated by W 

 Massons Report. 



They are therefore largely grown in Kent, 

 burrey and Bedford, where the ground is 

 equally early and cheaper. 



BEANs.-The Early Mazagan and Early Long-pod 

 are grown upon warm borders in rows 2 feet 6 inches 

 apart, with some other crop between the rows. The) th( 7 have commenced singing in all the jo7ousnesfof 





arisen, in nearly every instance, from the manner in 

 which their cages have been suspended in the room 

 Immediately after the arrangement has been altered' 

 and the birds have been kept out of each other 



sight, 



only care they require is taking their heads off after the i their nature - 

 plants show a fair quantity of blossom. This concen- * " 

 trates the sap, and makes them a week earlier The 

 main crops of Beans are obtained from the counties 

 above-mentioned. Jamts CtUhill, Camberwdl 



BRITISH SONG BIRDS. 



Ttf VTfTTT T, (CAG1 BllM ' N °- 2 -> 



No. XVIIL— By purchasing your birds in the manner 

 I have recommended, you will not, cannot be deceived 



The reason is obvious. Their attention, 

 when thus separated, is not diverted from their 

 and a spirit of rivalry induces them to do their 

 not to be surpasaed. 



song; 

 utmost 



a ?r y u? P ar * icu,a , rl y wi9h y«» birds to sing by can- 

 dle-hght, darken their cages in the dav-tim/c/.a l> 



day-time, so as to 



VILLA AND SUBURBAN GARDEM^ 

 The rage which has existed of late years for *\ 

 plants in beds, has, unfortunately, reached even tt» 

 garden. I say unfortunately, because it detra* 

 that variety and interest which arises from in**-* 

 ral and varied collections- It may be imaging 

 what is desirable in extensive gardens, mu3t be *T 

 so in those of limited extent ; but this is » «J 

 because in the former there is ample room fi*j* 

 play of all kinds of ornamental flowering pl«*^ 

 in the latter the great art is to bring into *> ^ 

 a space as much variety as possible, without P ^ 

 ing confusion. What are termed herbaceous & a £ 

 plants, have of late years been greatly neglected. , 

 principally from the prevalence of the taste loT^T 

 arid grouping individual varieties, so as to p^ 

 blaze of flower at a particular season. rhp ^ ■ 



The 



4 



of such gardens during a great portion of theyej 

 be denied, unless the beds are supplied *»"• < 

 flowering shrubs, the expense of which^^under. 



— -j-rraT"" 9 * 



• B. chama;aionu, and arc tic us', L. 





