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JOTJENAX OF HOKTICTJLTDEE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



[ February 2S, 18G5. 



of Eweet fermenting material in the usual way, and in that 

 ckse the Hnings were used to keep up the bottom and top 

 heat. In another case, the inside of the pit was roughly filled, 

 very openly, to the suitable height, with stones, clinkers, &c., 

 a thin slat« bottom put loosely over all, and on this the soil 

 was placed. Some small diain-pipes every 3 feet or so, were 

 fixed inside back and front, one end communicating with 

 the rough chamber, and the other end opening into the 

 atmosphere of the pit. This prevented what might have 

 taken place from an enclosed non-conducting body of air, and. 

 to a certain extent kept the enclosed air of the pit in move- 

 ment. Owing to changes, we do not work pits in the same 

 way now — in fact, have none with linings ; but the solid 

 ■w^B which we did work, were buUt in three ways. One of 

 these pits had nine-inch piers opposite each rafter, the rest 

 ■was single brick on bed, laid in first-rate mortar made with 

 washed sand that made it almost as good as cement, and in 

 lids, opposite the centre of each light, a stout slate 1 inch 

 thick, 3 feet by 2, was fixed in the front and the back wall. 

 Given plenty of good fresh horsedung fr-om the stable, and 

 such a pit, unless in the severest weather, could easily be 

 kept at a temperature of fr-om 70" to 80°. 



A second pit had nine-inch piers opposite the rafters, 

 ■which were 4J feet apai-t, and the rest of the wall was of 

 4i-inch work from brick-on-bed. This also was built with 

 first-rate mortal-, not lime and mud. Provided we had the 

 material, we never had any difficulty in obtaining plenty of 

 heat. The third case was a nine-inch wall. It had been 

 pigeon-holed for Pines ; but, as there was no heat but linings, 

 it used to give us too much internal moisture in winter, and 

 so we blocked the holes all up. In turning linings against 

 stieh a nine-inch wall, we took care to keep the hot half- 

 sweetened material next the wall, and the fresh, new 

 material more at the outside ; and frequently we have felt 

 the inside of the wall in the morning, and foimd it as warm 

 as a flue. In such a thick wall it would be necessary to 

 have a wide lining in winter, and in mild weather extra 

 heat could be neutralised by extra air. 



Where there is abundance of fermenting material the 

 nine-inch wall would do well enough, but on the whole we 

 would much prefer the 4i-inch wall, or brick-on-bed, and the 

 smallest possible joints, with the best mortar. In all these 

 cases abundance of manure must be pre-supposed. In the 

 oases in which we used such pits we banked them up pretty 

 well to the wall-plate, and there was no want of fresh stable 

 manure when wanted. We brought it and placed it round 

 these pits at once, and thus made them the preparing and 

 fermenting-heaps for making beds below fr'ames, removing 

 it as it became sweet enough for that pui-pose, and supplying 

 fresh, but always leaving enough at the sides of the pit to 

 prevent a sudden check from want of heat. We found this 

 a very economical mode of sweetening the dung for other 

 beds, where the least rank steam would be destructive; 

 whilst, as respects these pits themselves, no steam could 

 pass through the walls. The only thing that required care 

 was to watch the direction of the wind in giving ah", so that 

 no rank steam should blow in at the opening. We hope our 

 worthy coadjutors wUl excuse this statement, as we believe 

 there are many cases where solid-walled pits, heated by 

 linings, would be as useful as those with pigeon-holed walls, 

 and in some respects less dangerous. Last season we were 

 much grieved to see the wrecks of Cucumbers and Melons 

 in such a pigeon-holed pit, belonging to an enthusiastic 

 amatenr. He had brought the mowings of his lawn to the 

 lining; a crack, unobsei-ved, had separated the soil inside 

 from the wall of the pit, and up this the rank steam ascended, 

 carrying ruin with it. 



Gave more room to Dwarf Kidney Beans, sowed more 

 took the chance of the thaw to take up more Sea-kale and 

 Bhnbarb, and put them in the Mushroom-house. Put, also, 

 a. few barrowBlul of dung on a bed now preparing for Mush- 

 rooms, and cleaned and swept those bearing. We have con- 

 stant proofs of the retentivenesa of vegetable life. The last 

 bed was pretty green with a crop of Oats. Now these must 

 first have passed through the stomach of the horse, and 

 then been pretty well heated in a heap before being formed 

 into the bed, and still they grew freely. In moderation, we 

 do not think they do much harm. If much covering is used 

 that soon ifjttles them. When a bed is backward, we prefer 

 • little Burfa<!e covering to giving much heat be)ow the bed. 



This covering increases the temperature of the air close to 

 the surface of the bed, and after some experiments and much 

 observation, we do not consider Mushrooms grown in the 

 dark at all inferior to those grown in light. In one sense 

 thoy often please better, as the buttons are generally so 

 white. 



Ice CoUecting. — On Tuesday we had a rare day at this work, 

 filling our ice-well to the crown, and passages as well. From 

 the severe frost on Monday, the ice was not only fuDy 4 and 

 5 inches thick, but it was almost as hai'd as flints, and the 

 breaking was no joke. In fact, wo could not break it very 

 much, only sufficiently so to obtain a lot of powdery matter 

 to fill up all holes among the larger pieces, so as to exclude 

 air. We believe that if such ice had been cut in blocks and 

 carefully built together, with a little water run over so as to 

 fill up evei-y cranny and be well frozen, it would have kept 

 better than with all our pounding and smashing ; but we 

 could not spare time for any such nicety. Even the breaking 

 we gave told upon the arms and shoulders of the breakers. 

 People who have the chance should try and store up a heap, 

 as, independently of the luxury, many a useful life has been 

 Saved in the case of fevers, &c., by a timely application of 

 ice. We couid envy no owner the feelings that would lead 

 him to demur for a moment to filling a basket in such an 

 emergency. 



In the course of time the covering of the dome of our well 

 and passage has been reduced, and the earth that is left has 

 been made like a honeycomb, by the combined efforts of 

 rabbits and rats ; but as soon as con-fenient we must add to 

 the thickness of earth, and take means for preventing the 

 future burrowing of all such vermin. 



FEinT GARDEN. 



Out of doors little or nothing has been done. In-doois 

 Strawberries in bloom have been placed in the best places ; 

 but those swelling do so but slowly in such weather. Regu- 

 lated Vines ; sprinkled those starting. Placed a foot or so 

 of warm leaves next the ground on the first vinery-border, 

 as the covering put on previously had become wet and cold 

 n-om the snow soaking through it. Even though we removed 

 a good deal of it on other places, we were glad to let it 

 remain as the best of aU protectors. It has thus saved 

 vegetables and field crops veiy much. Sprinkled Peach 

 trees just as the buds were opening. In the Peach-house 

 n itued the ants very busy on one part of a tree, and fsared 

 that all ^^as not right ; and true enough there were two or 

 three patches of our old enemy the brown beetle. We at 

 once dusted all we could see with hellebore, and in a few 

 hours washed the place where wo saw them with strong soft 

 soap water, and again with Gishurst. We did think we had 

 entirely desti-oyed them, and were much annoyed at their 

 re-appeai'ance. We washed the whole of the v/oodwork and 

 the trees with hot soap-water : syringed all woodwork, trees, 

 pipes, &o., several times with the same at a temperature of 

 from 160° to 170°, or even more ; then we removed carefully 

 about Is inch of the surface soil, aprinkled the surface ol 

 what was left with hot water, and then top-dressed afresh, 

 washed the walls and painted the trees all over with Gis- 

 hurst, tied trees, and filled the house with bedding Gera- 

 niums. Now, after all this cai-e some perfect insect or some 

 eggs must have escaped all our heated water and painting. 

 We thought we had quite got rid of the worst insect ever 

 we met with ; and we must carefully watch for the slightest 

 appearance of them, even of a single one, and give it no 

 chance by its amazing fecundity to fill the place again. 

 After such care we begin to fear that we introduce such 

 enemies at times in our fresh soil and our manure waterings 

 when taken from the dunghill. It would be a safe plan to 

 boU the latter before using it when cool enough ; but then, 

 so few of us have such conveniences. We have forgotten to 

 mention that we smoked this Peach-house well with tobacco 

 and bruised laurel leaves before we washed it ; and if not 

 brought in, some one or more, or some eggs, must have 

 escaped all our care. We havo observed no more as yet, 

 but these few if let alone would soon be myriads. In 

 fecundity the green fly is nothing to them. 



OENASIBNTAL DEI'ABTMBNT. 



Here the chief work has been potting and taking drde<3 

 KoO into warmer places. We havo also cleared a pit of 

 young plants of Contauxea argcntea or ragusina, and pre- 



