October 6, 1888.] 



THE GARDENERS' CHRONICLE. 



385 



repotted before growth is far advanced. Turfy loam 

 with some well decayed manure which has been 

 rubbed through a sieve, a sprinkling of soot, and 

 enough sharp sand to keep it open, is an excellent 

 compost for them. The sweepings from a veterinary 

 forge when thrown in a heap and allowed to lie until 

 well decomposed, is splendid stuff for mixing in the 

 compost for Pelargoniums. With old specimen 

 plants it is usual to repot them into smaller pots, and 

 again potting later on, which is an excellent practice ; 

 but good results may be had by placing them in their 

 flowering pots at once — a very convenient method 

 for large plants, but the other is preferable, generally. 

 After repotting water must be sparingly atforded 

 until the plants have fairly occupied the new 

 soil. At this stage, when not exposed to very 

 drying influences, I have known plants to go for weeks 

 without requiring to be watered, other than being 

 damped with a syriDge on bright days for a short 

 time after potting. Specially guard against the 

 attacks of greenfly by occasionally fumigating with 

 tobacco. Zonals "for winter flowering, which have 

 grown satisfactorily, but have not been placed in 

 their flowering quarters, should be removed to them 

 without delay, as if they are left out in cold frames 

 the flower-trusses will be liable to injury by damp. 

 The best position in which to flower these plants 

 during winter is in rather narrow and low houses with 

 a steep pitched roof; the range running east to west 

 would catch every ray of sunshine, and being narrow 

 the steep pitch of the roof would not favour drip. In 

 arranging the plants avoid crowding, but place them 

 in such a manner that the pots may be examined 

 readily before giving water to the plants. A mild 

 or rather dry air at a temperature of 50° — f>5°, and 

 ventilation in small amount on bright days, will 

 maintain a brilliant display. As the pots till with 

 roots liquid manure should be afforded the plants at 

 regular intervals. 



Ixoras. — To flower Ixoras well, a minimum 

 temperature of 70° should be sustained, and at no 

 season is t lis more requisite than the present. Jf 

 there be any deficiency of heat, not only will their 

 flowering period be short, but the flowers will 

 lack size and substance. Keep the roots in a staff 

 of uniform moisture, but a sodden condition must be 

 avoided, and in using liquid manure, it should be 

 largely diluted with water, and may be applied to the 

 plants often. Plants which are getting past their 

 best may as well have their shoots cut back; taking 

 any strong, clean points, which have not flowered to 

 make cuttings. These, if rooted quickly and grown 

 on, will make nice stuff with a large truss or two of 

 flowers each, next year. F. Boss, Bletchingley. 



The Flower Garden. 



Floweb Beds.- Sharp frosts will have been ex- 

 perienced generally over these islands, and the beauty 

 of tender kinds of plants destroyed. No time should 

 be lost in taking up all plants which are to be saved. 

 Tuberous Begonias should have the stems cut down 

 to within an inch of the tubers, placing the lattter in 

 a cool dry shed for a week or two, afterwards storing 

 them away for the winter in sifted cinder-ashes or 

 cocoa-fibre refuse, in some place where they will be 

 safe from frost, and, at the same time, where they 

 will neither get too damp nor too dry. I usually put 

 them in an old stable at first, and afterwards under 

 the staging in a late vinery. Zonal Pelargoniums of 

 one year old should be preferred for keeping through 

 the winter by shortening back the strongest roots ; 

 cleaningand trimming the tops in theusualway, leav- 

 ing from four to six shoots to each, and afterwards put 

 them in shallow boxes, 8-inch pots, or heel them in, 

 on Vine or Peach borders under glass, and with- 

 hold water for the present. Alternantheras may be 

 potted up into 3-inch pots, using plenty of drainage 

 and a sandy loam and leaf-mould compost, placing 

 them in warm pits or houses afterwards. Echeveria 

 secnnda glauca in southern counties can be safely 

 wintered in cold frames ; and, where large quantities 

 are grown and this method is inconvenient, the better 

 practice is to build them up in banks of cinder ashes 

 against a south wall, outside ; the only protection 

 given being to cover them with garden mats on 

 frosty nights. Succulents of a more tender character 

 should be placed in pots or boxes, and put in a cool, 

 airy greenhouse. Palms, Aralias. Phormiums, 

 I'racxnas, Grevilleas, &c, if not already moved 



to their winter, quarters ought to be forth- 

 with. Avoid overwatering all such plants during 

 the winter months, and afford free ventilation at ail 

 favourable times. Clear away to the rubbish heap 

 all other plants not required, and if the beds are to 

 be replanted with Wallflowers, Arabis, Myosotis, 

 and other spring flowering plants, it is a good 

 plan to give them a light dressing of old hotbed 

 manure, to be dug in with the staple and left in rather 

 a rough state for another week or ten days previous 

 to planting. The beds for Hyacinths, Tulips, &c, 

 will require special preparations if the best results 

 are desired ; the beds ought to be welt drained, and a 

 liberal dressing of rich manure and sandy loam dug 

 in — planting to be deferred to a later period ; mean- 

 time the bulbs should be in readiness, and a decision 

 come to in regard to the arrangement of colours, 

 height. &c. Beds, borders, and clumps in the winter 

 garden which are to be filled with Conifers and dwarf 

 evergreen shrubs, ought to be got in readiness before 

 the end of the month. 



Bedding Calceolarias. — If not already done, cuttings 

 of these should now be put in ; fortunately there is 

 no lack of them this autumn. They are best rooted 

 and wintered in cold frames or turf pits — the latter 

 are preferred by many practitioners, and should be 

 made about 4 feet wide inside measure, 2 feet high 

 at the back, and 18 inches in front, using for the 

 purpose turves about a foot in width and 2 or 3 inches 

 thick, beat down with a spade, or make it firm 

 by treading as the work proceeds. Fill the inside 

 afterwards with half-decayed manure, such as has been 

 used for linings to Cucumber or Melon frames, 

 and tread it down quite firmly ; on the top of this 

 place a layer af sandy compost and Ieaf-monld with 

 a surfacing of sharp sand about half an inch deep, 

 and smooth over with the back of a spade, after 

 which the cuttings may be inserted in rows about 

 3 inches apart. If the weather happens to be dry at 

 the time give them a light watering overhead through 

 a fine rose, cover with frame-lights, and keep them 

 shaded from bright sunshine till rooted, and on 

 frosty nights protect with mats. After they are 

 rooted attend to ventilation on all favourable occa- 

 sions. J Horsrfield. Heytcsbury. 



Fruits Under Glass. 



Pine-appi.es which are swelling off should be kept 

 steadily at 70°— 75° at night, and S0°— 85° by day. 

 Do not use dung-water at this season of the year. 

 When stimulants are given, dust the surface of the 

 soil with Thomson's manure, and water alternately 

 with water only just coloured with guano. Large- 

 fruited varieties, as Cayenne, Charlotte Rothschild, 

 Providence, &c, should be well watered just at 

 at the point of commencing to colour, and no more 

 water afforded them, as a damp state of the soil 

 - during the ripening stage is liable to cause blackness 

 at the core. Keep the bottom-heat at 85° — 90° for 

 fruiters in all stages of swelling, and any plants 

 which may have started amongst the general stock 

 should be removed to the fruiting division at once, 

 as the temperatures in the other divisions will be 

 too low to suit their requirements. If a few suckers 

 are put in as they become large enough, they are 

 certain to start at other times than the general stock, 

 and require to be looked after. 



Those plants which have been under special treat- 

 ment for the past few weeks, and are intended to 

 start early in the season, should now be kept per- 

 fectly quiet till the beginning of the year. If the 

 plunging-bed be in a moist condition, little or no 

 water will be necessary with the lowered tempera- 

 ture. Let the temperature for these be 60° for cold 

 nights, and 55° for mild ones. When the sun 

 shines and the thermometer exceeds 65°, give a 

 little aii. With the roots of the plants in a state of 

 partial dryness the bottom-heat may be allowed to 

 decline to 75° without fear of injury. When the 

 bottom-heat is obtained by leaves and tan great care 

 must be taken not to exceed 80° when fresh materials 

 have to be added, which frequently happens at the 

 decline of the year, when fresh material must be 

 employed to freshen up the old. Let the bed be well 

 trodden to prevent as far as possible a too sudden or 

 a great rise, and to make sure partially plunge the 

 pots until such time as the heat has declined to a 

 safer point. 



Successions should not be encouraged to grow much 

 after this season, as the growth made now will be 

 lacking in substance ; and give only sufficient water 

 to keep the plants in a state of health. As a plant 



in a state of partial dryness will stand a much lower 

 temperature than a wet one, 65° will be quite high 

 enough as the night temperature, and air should be 

 given to the pit when the thermometer reaches 70° 

 by day. Suckers which were potted in August will 

 have well filled their pots with roots. Should any 

 of them be likely to require more pot-room before 

 the winter is over it is better to give a shift into pots 

 one size larger. Let the bottom-heat be lowered to 

 80° and air admitted when the thermometer reaches 

 70°. The night temperature should be 60° — 65° at 

 present. The fires should now be started in the 

 afternoon to prevent a too rapid decline of the side 

 warmth. W. M. Baillic, Luton Hoo. 



The Hardy Fruit Garden. 



Lifting and Koot Phoning. — The season is now 

 at hand when these operations will demand attention, 

 and in the meantime it would be well to get some 

 sound fibry loam coarsely chopped up, so that when 

 the work is taken in hand there shall be no delay. 

 Loam is generally all that is needed for this purpose, 

 unless the soil should be of a very heavy nature, 

 when a little lime rubble or burnt soil may be added, 

 to induce the trees to make plenty of fibrous roots 

 and short-jointed fruitful wood. It is best to take 

 this kind of work in haud as early in October as 

 circumstances will allow, and while the trees still 

 retain their foliage, so that advantage is taken of 

 some slight root-action before the total fall of the 

 leaf. Fruit trees, owing to loss of crop by frost and 

 a too rich soil, are liable to make an excessive 

 amount of unfruitful wood; such trees can always 

 be brought to a fruiting state by being root-pruned 

 or lifted. For bushes and low pyramids lifting the 

 roots is the best, as they can then be examined readily, 

 and can be laid out in a regular fashion and win, in 

 a short depth from the surface. In fact by carrying 

 out lifting in a systematic manner such trees 

 can always be kept within bounds, which is a great 

 desideratum in small gardens. The roots should 

 always be lifted with a ball of soil attached in 

 proportion to the size of the tree ; the tap-roots, if 

 any, must be cut away, and the ends of all roots 

 that may be broken in the lifting neatly trimmed 

 with a sharp knife, when the tree may be returned 

 again to the same hole from which it was lifted, 

 or planted in another situation. When filling in 

 about the roots use a barrowload or more of the pre- 

 pared soil, place some at the bottom of the hole, and mix 

 the remainder with the staple soil, in which to lay out 

 the roots, and tread all moderately firm. When all 

 is finished give a good watering, and afterwards 

 mulch the surface ; and should the weather be sunny 

 for any length of time an occasional syringing will 

 be beneficial. For large trees root-pruning, and not 

 lifting, must be resorted to. This will consist of 

 taking out a trench a certain distance from the stem 

 and securing all the roots found as the digging pro- 

 ceeds, taking great care to dig out the soil under the 

 ball, and cut away the descending tap-roots. If the 

 tree is a very large one it is not advisable to 

 prune the roots the whole way round in one 

 season, but to do a part one year and the 

 remainder the next. The distances from the stem 

 at which the trench should be taken out ■ must 

 alwavs depend on the stretch of the branches, 

 but as a rule the distance may vary from 2 feet to 

 3 feet 6 inches. The ends of the severed roots must 

 be neatly trimmed off, and when filling the trench 

 again, add a fair proportion of new soil — unless the 

 staple is unsuitable, when it would be advisable to 

 fill with new soil, proceeding as before. A. Ward, 

 Stoke Edith Pari:. 



Veitch's Perfection Pea.— When walking 

 lately through the large well-cropped kitchen garden 

 at Harewood House, in this county, I was much 

 struck by several rows of the above-named Pea. 

 Owing to the wet season we have had in the North, 

 v the haulm was fully 18 inches higher than is usual in 

 drier seasons— it was close on 5 feet high. Each 

 side of the rows was fairly thatched, for about 

 2 feet 6 inches, with large, well-filled pods of Peas, 

 of first-class table quality. On the same quarter 

 were a number of other Peas growing, including 

 some of the newer varieties, but Mr. Fowler, the 

 gardener, told me that none came up to Veitch's 

 Perfection as a really trustworthy Pea during the 

 month of September. H. J. C, Grimston, Tadcaster, 

 Yorks. 



