THE GARDENERS' CHRONICLE 



P> 



27 



m a7^r=7od to relu*e tne Sovv-th.st e,^^*?? * 

 ,n gly welcome to the late Morocco ambassador , but 

 such a thing as a good Salad is now never dished in 

 England, if there be truth m the proverb : , 



° " L' insalata non e >«'»« «-e Oeila, 



Ore non c 'a pimpinella." 



This Pimpernel is our common Burnet ; "but, ' says 



its 



"Sampier," too, is cruelly neglected ;— " Not only 

 pickled, but crude and cold, when young and tender (and 

 such as we may cultivate and have in our kitchen- 

 gardens almost the year round), it is, in my opinion, for 

 its aromatic and other excellent vertues and effects 

 against the spleen, cleansing the passages, sharpening 

 appetite, &c, so far preferable to most of our hotter 

 herbs and sallet ingredients, that I have often wondered 

 it has not been long since propagated in the potagere, as 

 it is in France, from whence I have frequently received 

 the seeds, which have prospered better and more kindly 

 with me than what comes from our own coasts. It does 

 not indeed pickle so well, as being of a more tender stalk 

 and leaf, but, in all other respects, for composing sallets 

 it has nothing like it." We are all acquainted with 



u One that gathers Samphire" 



half-way down the face of Dover cliff; but how many 

 of our readers know the taste of the produce of that 

 " dreadful trade" ? The Samphire business now-a-days 

 must be a small concern. One or two species of Glass- 

 wort are sold and pickled in Norfolk by the style and 

 title of Samphire, but are as false a substitution as was 

 the fair maid who listed " under the name of Richard 

 Carr." The pickled Salicornias^taste of nothing but the 

 vinegar and the spices, and altogether differ from that 

 classic umbellifer the Crithmum maritimum. Were it 

 not unfair to disturb the repose of so good a man, one 

 would almost wish to raise the ghost of Evelyn to solve 

 a great difficulty of modern times — what is the mode of 

 dressing sallet I Family quarrels have arisen on the 

 subject; the salad-bowl may yet lead to divorces a 

 mensd. With us, an early recollection is simple lettuce 

 shred tolerably fine, just moistened all over with vinegar, 

 and dusted with sugar ; a preparation to be tried by 

 those hitherto ignorant of it. A mode that has been 

 dogmatically insisted on, as the only orthodox one, is to 

 wipe each leaf of Lettuce (which is alone admissible) dry ; 

 then to bring the oil in contact with every part of the 

 surface, finishing with the least dash of vinegar and 

 sprinkle of salt. This would be the order of the day- 

 pure and simple. A favourite Parisian top-dressing is 

 to place a little flock of fresh-water crayfish on the 

 summit of the verdant mass ; an appropriate garnish 

 for fish salads, and, with us, imitable by shrimps and 

 prawns when crayfish are not. The azure and blue 

 Mowers of Borage, and the orange and brown ones of 

 Nasturtium, are grateful to two senses at least ; but it 

 is not easy to have them fresh on a London sideboard. 

 Faded, they are as bad as the flowers out of Madam's 

 last summer's bonnet. Dr. Kitchener's cooked salad, 

 strewn over with a stratum of uncooked, deserves a 

 serious and unprejudiced consideration. 



Tarragon 



vinegar, or anything else which must predominate, we 

 hold to be heretical. Salad is good society ; whatever 

 is obtrusive must be excluded. Therefore we think that 

 the quality of the oil is not criticised with sufficient strict- 

 ness : if it has the least twang, it predominates over 

 everything, and you continue to taste it after it should 

 have been long forgotten. At this juncture our readers 

 will thank us for producing (by permission courteously 

 granted) a •< Receipt for a Winter Salad,- written many 

 years ago at Castle Howard by the late Mr. Sydney 



5° \i ?f S ?/* ve] y ( after school-days) used his 

 admirable talent for versification, that this specimen of 



1 If'. ^ fen although the prescription wer 

 not-whatit certainly is-in itself an excellent one 



** Two large Potatoes, passed through kitchen sieve 

 Unwonted softness to the salad give ' 



Of mordant mustard add a single spoon— 

 Distrust the condiment which bitessosoon • 



Tn ^S m A U $ th0U man of herb3 ' a '"It 

 io add a double quantity of «a!t. 



Three times the ?P oon with oil of Lucca crown, 

 And once with vinegar, procured from town 

 True flavour needs it, and your poet begs 

 J he pounded jellow of two well-boiled eess 

 Let Onion atoms lurk within the bowl 6 * 

 And scarce suspected, animate the whole • 



Serenely fall, the epicure ma, 8a - gD ' 



L*, 7 Can » 0t - ham me ~ l hare di °ed f> day I" 



Calendar of Operations. 



(Pot the ensuina week.) 



<W„, ,i PORCls< » DEPARTMENT. 



bHOTJLD the weather continue wet and cold an add? 



arises n?%*& be ^^ ^s^ 



that z h™ i u U ? d * Vme bGrd€ra ' ^ often happen! 



m£jw Z* It ™ n J eT Z mach Chills the fcnJLg 

 SKI, l* ring th , e heat a S ain in t« action, a little 



Si un I 8 ^ e t d u over the t0 P « all that is required 



vino.™ Z W* lU: extreme; and where there are 



bS^sTxpoLTtn^ pi r s ' a r d *%** of «^,S 



not be paid to providing proper ventilation for the Vines, 

 at all times giving more or less air, according to the state 

 of the external atmosphere and the command of heat with- 

 in. No gardener can produce good fruit early in the sea- 

 son, unless there is a proper command of heat from the 

 pipes, and the flues in the back wall ; but with perfect 

 appliances he can create an artificial atmosphere, which 

 will do wonders even in the dull days of winter and 

 early spring. There is much work requires doing in 

 the houses at this season, that can be carried on to 

 greater advantage, during inclement weather, than out- 

 of-door work. The dust and soot should all be washed 

 off the glass, rafters, and walls ; after which the Vines 

 should be dressed over with a little sulphur and soap, 

 and tied. Inside painting may also be done, and the 

 walls whitewashed. Before commencing to force any 

 house, the state of the furnace should be properly 

 examined into, and all the flues cleared of soot, which 

 should be stowed away in some dry place, ready for 

 being used upon the ground before it is prepared for 

 sowing, or planting in the spring. Few insects can stand 

 it when applied in a dry state ; and besides this, it is an 

 excellent manure for most things. 



HARDY FRUIT GARDEN. 



In giving the Gooseberry and Currant compartments 

 their annual dressing, we seldom remove much of the 

 young wood, as the bulfinches, with the occasional 

 assistance of sparrows, destroy so many buds, that 

 there are sometimes scarcely any left to produce 

 fruits ; and when the trees have plenty of foliage on 

 them in March and April, the fruit is less liable to 

 be injured by frost. Should too many fruit set, they 

 can easily be removed, along with some of the shoots, 

 after all danger of frost is over. These plants should 

 have a little manure over their roots every year, and 

 in digging or forking among them, avoid cutting the 

 roots as much as possible. Any Pear or Apple trees 

 which grow near the vegetable compartments, and are 

 becoming too gross, from feeding upon the rich sub- 

 stances supplied to the vegetable crops, should be root- 

 pruned ; as it is anything but desirable that they should 

 be allowed to get into a rampant growth in the kitchen 

 garden, where everything should be kept to a certain 

 size, so as not to deprive the vegetables of any portion 

 of light and air. The orchard is the proper place 

 for large trees to be grown in ; and there, the sooner 

 they arrive at their full size the better, as they will 

 then cease making gross wood, and will bear more 

 and better flavoured fruit. Keep the heads of large 

 fruit trees from getting too much crowded, or you will 

 perhaps have a greater number of fruit, but at the ex- 

 pense of size' and flavour of quality. Remove Moss 

 and Lichens, by first scraping it off, and then washing 

 over the branches with a thick paint of lime, soot, fresh 

 cow-manure, and clay ; and if, in addition to being 

 mossed over, they are becoming exhausted with long 

 bearing, top-dress them with some good turfy soil and 

 manure. The fruit-room will at this season require 

 daily attention. The fruit least likely to keep should be 

 picked out for immediate use, or when they decay they 

 will injure the sound ones. Let an uniform temperature 

 be preserved, and give sufficient ventilation to allow of 

 the damp escaping. 



FLOWER CARDEN. 



This is a good time to prepare labels for all orna- 

 mental trees and shrubs in the flower garden and plea- 

 sure ground ; and when well painted, and thoroughly 

 dry, they can be put in their proper places, andwill 

 give much interest, and an air of good management to 

 the whole. Turf may still be laid ; and where the 

 ground is wet, and liable to be infested with worms a 

 few inches of coal ashes should be used for laying it on. 

 Crocuses will now be pushing through the ground and 

 the mice will soon become very troublesome, unless they 

 are stopped in time. Traps should be laid in imme- 

 diately to destroy as many as possible, before they dis- 

 cover the Crocuses ; as afterwards they are very parti- 

 cular about taking the bait. If there are any choice 

 seeds of Rhododendrons or Azaleas, which it is desirable 

 should be saved, they must be seen to at once ; as during 

 sunny days in January, the capsules will open, and the 

 seed drop out. 



FLORISTS' FLOWERS. 



Much of the routine culture lately recommended 

 must be persevered in. — Polyanthuses in frames are 

 sometimes attacked by mice ; they eat the hearts out 

 of the plants, whilst Auriculas they do not meddle with; 

 traps should be set as soon as their ravages are appa- 

 rent or they soon do serious mischief ; in frosty weather 

 give the bed for Ranunculuses a turn over. 



KITCHEN GARDEN. 



Let the tienching of vacant ground be done with all 

 convenient despatch, unless when it is frozen ; as the 

 clods, if turned over in that state, will remain a long 

 time ere they thaw ; as, by loosening of the soil, non- 

 conducting cavities are created, which check the progress 

 of heat, either upwards or downwards. Instances have 

 been recorded of ground being trenched during a severe 

 frost, and of the clods being found, or by partialfy thawed 

 at Midsummer. In mentioning the protection of kitchen 



arden crops, we omitted to recommend the branches of 

 Spruce Fir, Yew, or other evergreens. These are quite 

 as effectual, if used in sufficient abundance, as litter and 

 other matters, which are too untidy to be seen in a well 

 kept kitchen garden. Attend to the forcing of Rhubarb 

 beakale Asparagus, Chicory, &c, and keep up a supply' 

 if possible equal to the demand. Let Cauliflowers 



t-ndive, and Lettuce, in frame, be frequently examined 



and divested of _de,aying foilage ; and protect from S 



_____ _ # ' 



ravages of slugs, by carefully sprinkling a little lim P 1^7 

 soot upon the surface of the soil. ° ^ and 



State of the Weather near London, for the week 'ending Dec _ itr, 

 a» observed at the Horticultural Garden, Chiawickf ' ' ^ 





Dec. 



Friday.. 

 Satur. .. 

 Sunday . 

 Monday 

 Tue8. .. 

 Wed. | .. 

 Thurs... 



Babometbk. 



Max. 



A.veraze. 



• • • 



30.118 



30.087 

 29.760 



29 812 



30.226 



30.288 



30.357 



TBMPBRATUBn. 



Of tne Earth 



29 995 

 29.9G8 

 29.564 

 29.543 

 30.1 1 63 



30.2151 



30.3 IS 



52 

 53 

 49 

 46 

 46 

 41 

 41 



43 

 46 

 38 

 35 



30 



24 

 25 



ean 



47.5 



49.5 

 43.5 

 40.5 



38.0 



32.5 

 33.0 



foot 

 deep. 



42i 

 43 

 45 

 44 



42i 



42 



42 



2 feet 

 I deep. 



I 



30.095 I 29.959 | 46.8 1 34 4 I 40.G 43.0 



414 

 42 



43 



44 

 43^ 

 43 

 42 



42 7 



Wind, 5 





S. 

 6.W. 



S. 



E. 

 N.K. 

 S.E. 

 S.W. 



Dec. 



19— Fine; exceedingly fine; overcast. 



20-Hazy and drizzly; cloudy; densely overcast and mild. 

 21 — Bain; boisterous at night. 



22— Constant rain thioughout the day ; clear at night. 

 23— Fine; clear; overcast. 



24— Hazy; veiyfine; oyercaat; frost at night. 



25— Clear; very fine throughout ; cloudy at night; frosty 



Mean temperature of the week, 24 deg. above the average.' 





.01 

 Sfl 

 .11 



2\ 

 .00 

 .00 

 .00 



T49 



State of the Weather at Chiswick, during the last 25 26 years for the 



ensuing week, ending Jan. 3, 1852. 



Dec 



and Jan. 



Sunday 23 

 Mon 29 

 Tues. 30 

 Wed, 31 

 Thurs. 1 

 Friday 2 

 Satur. 3 



P ^! 



41.2 

 42.8 

 44.* 

 43.9 

 42.6 

 41-5 

 42.0 





-If 



a; 



> 



< 



29.8 



31.7 

 33.4 

 33.0 

 30.6 



29.7 

 31.0 



go. 



35.5 

 37.2 



3S.9 

 38.5 

 36.6 

 35.6 

 36.5 



No. of 

 Tears in 

 which it 



Rained. 



8 

 11 

 10 



7 



9 



8 



14 



Greatest 

 Quantity 

 of Rain. 



Prevailing Winds. 



0.16 in. 



0.17 



0.30 

 0.42 

 0.70 

 0.21 

 0.56 



3 



2 



3 

 3 



; 



* w 



a • co <* it 



$>i 



n< 



4 

 3 



1 



6:-| 1 

 4 2 4 



1 &j- 



2, 51 



3! 2 J 

 9 2 fi 



i 7 



3 3 



3 5 



5 5 



i 

 5 



6 



4 



B 



4 

 4 



I 



3 

 3 

 6 

 5 



The highest temperature during the above 

 1833— therm. 56 deg. ; and the lowest on the 



12 deg. 



period occurred on the 30th. 

 1st, 1837, and 3d, 1827-therm 



Notices to Correspondents. 



Back Npmbers : T 8 P« You can have the number for Juno 

 14th, 1851. 



Birds : E C. We are indeed pleased to know that our u advice " 

 has been so useful to you, in saving the lives of your two 

 birds ; but raw beef and egg must be only occasionally used, 

 as it is of too laxative a nature for such small birds. Keep 

 them warm through the winter, and all will be well.— J C W. 

 Your favour came to hand, and we will not lose sight of your 

 request. The new year will give new life to all these little 

 creatures, and we will speak of them in turn. The Set. 

 lark, being young, will open * early.' Keep him from 

 draughts.— Jane L, We have just saved the 1 fe of a favourite 

 and valuable canary, who has been suffering in the precise 

 manner you state. We gave him a little siale bun, dipped 

 in milk, and afterwards in moist sugar. He refused food 

 in every shape — this alone excepted. This shows how we 

 must study the " peculiarities" of Song Birds. Write again. 

 — >W P. Tnese bat-folded birds are too often "wild." You 

 must suspend him at some considerable height, and not let 

 him see the light of a candle. The shadows thereby pro- 

 duced 'fright him from his propriety.'— Eleanor. Procure a 

 bird that is at least two years old, and a fine songster ; you 

 may then teach your young birds " how to excel."- Nmetta. 

 Give him, immediately, some fresh-boiled milk ; and, to in- 

 duce him to partake of it, soak in it some crumbs of stale 

 bread. He will rally.— W J. Discontinue the Hemp-seed at 

 once.— Winnifred. From 21*. to 42«. Such birds are well 

 worth their cost. - Dorothea. Prevent your birds seeing 

 each other. This is alone the cause of their silence. 

 — Lucy. Our advice last week was minutely correct, lou 

 may, for a time, lessen and reduce the enemy, but they 

 will return in armies. Procure a common cage, having toree 

 sides of wood, and the front wire. The cost wiH be about 

 2s. Gd. Also, let the top be of wood. If your large cage** 

 of mahogany, which we much doubt, it must be taken to 

 pieces, and well washed with spirits of wine and turpen- 

 tine before being again put together. Stdl, we ™ u *f J* 

 faithful-all will avail nothing, and your bird will eventually 

 perish. All cages, excepting those made of mahogany, are 



to be dreaded. W. K % . h{ 



GtA 88 Walls. We have many communications upon , tta 

 interesting subject. It is, however, desirable to reserve 

 them for a short time, until we have further details concern- 



inir Mr. Ewing's plan. ... __,.__, ** A - 



Horf : X Y Z. These are climbing plants, and will powM« 



16 feet long in rich stiff soil. They do not bear _ a berrj , W 



H,.ps from which beer is made are the female infloreicence. 



The male Hop is not worth growing. w^u. s. not 



Medlabs: JP. The change of colour in the Medlar n . nrt 

 decay, but ripeness ; that kind of ripeness wh ,ch isc sled 

 Netting. The austere qualities of the Medlar become sac 

 cbarine, and with the change in quality comes a change m 

 colour. The young lady is perfectly light. 

 Nam.s of Feuits: J W. 1. Napoleon -2, 4, Beam Ranee 

 3, Beurre Diel ; 5, Glout Morceau ; 6, Passe Colmar 7^ h.mg 

 of the Pippine 8, Golden Noble.l|-if B. 1, Cour t oW 

 2, Golden Pippin; 3, Northern Greening. 4, Blenhom 



Pippin ; 5, St. Germain ; 6, Beurre ^^f-}^\l.s, 

 be.m Pippin • 2, Kilkenny r Pearma.n ; 3 Court of WwJ^j 

 King of the Pippins : 7, Hornread 1 earmain 8, «or^ 

 Greening ; 9, Probably Wormsl.y P ppin ; 10, *?*™£l(». 

 main; 12 Golden Noble; 14, Hollandbury 16, ^ " sl ° ' 

 17, ii-jmeloW. Seedling; 19, Pennington's Seedling. 

 AC. 1, 28, King of the Pippins ; 2 . Hollandbnry ; 3 H«n.t» 

 Grise ; 4, Ileinette dn Canada ; 7 , London .Pippin^ 8,^ 

 Pearraain ; 9, Bedfordshire Foundling ; 10, * w ^ n ' a f n ^ n > i 

 11, Golden .Reinette ; 12, Dutch Mign nne ; 14, le Dnn £_„ s 

 Seedling; 16, Courtof W ' *" "" ' 

 Diel; 22, Glout Morcesu 



25, Beurr6 d'Aremberg; 27 Bucnanan '• °/""» ,7-ir eor j 3, 

 Bezo de Caisaoy-U-^rwudet. 1, Brabant WUjnjw^ , 



Boston Russet 

 o, 16, Blenheim 



Old Nonpareil; », i urmurB wireum 8 , --, -• p, arS on' 

 Fomme de Neige; 13, Brickley Seeding ; , "• i.j.,..* 

 Plate ; 15, Kim? of the Pippins ; 18, Dumelo- - smoiim ■ 

 Kirke's Lord Nelson ; 2«, Hoary Morning 

 Spring Beurre; 3, Knight's Monarch, true 

 Monarch, the fait e and worthless U «i„„t»ie • 652 



Names or Plants : Erzerwm. 206, Telepbinm "f Dt »^; r ., 

 Polygala comosa.-fF O H. The Deodar, or Indian^ tew, 

 J W. The genus Cupressus and the genus J « n, P e J"" \ con e, 

 be dutinguished except when in fruit. The hrst has a 

 the second the fleshy body called a Galbnlus. 



SrancEFias: J A. Yon will not strike tbem t^jf$X. 

 You may graft the shoots when quite soft next y* ° ' ^ 

 strtiog them on the soft young wood of the comrouu K ^ 



Vines: J B. We cannot precisely State the Propernea ^ 

 Prince Albert Grape. The Black Alicant is the •»™"5 loBf $ 

 well known Black Prince. It is a good bearer, aua "^Blsc* 

 well. In this respect it ha» the advantage ot we 

 Hamburgh, y tflfl 



V As usual, many communtcatlone hare b " n *f"' ce( j»rJ 



late, and others are unavoidably detained till tn e ,le , e0C « 

 inquiries can be made. We must also beg for the r °°" » bfl j« 

 of those numerous correspondents, the insertion e* 

 interesting contributions is still delayed. 



