406 



JOUKNAL OF HOETICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



[ May 23, 1866. 



FLowBR-inEDtN Pi.ANTUJG (jV. C, S fiimjlt).— la fomo small aroups, if 

 on grass, i' iftcn answers well to edge all the beds with white, t'nt in such 

 a group us- yours, contuininu somo seventeen large beds, it would tenil to 

 proiDOio a monotonous Bamenetss; and thoufih blue is not, :is a rule, tolling 

 aifftlnec prass yet we would have that and other coIouts ior cdginffs rather 

 than havo 'hem all of one colour. If wo edged at all we csrtiunly would 

 edge all \uy croups. You deem to understand the matter f^o well that, 

 instead of ftiving explicit direcllone. it will be more satisfactory to yon to 

 dwell en a few gtmcral point;?. 1st. Being on grass we approve of editing blue 

 Lobelia in 1. 3, H. 17, with Silver Quoen Geranium ; but Cerastium would 

 have been beUii. because it could easily be kept lower than the Lobelia. 

 2nd. These four ci mnps indicate a system of opposite pairing, wliich is kept 

 up in 8, 10. ant! ', U. 'ind therefore we do not see the propriety of cross-. 

 pairing 4, 1^. and o, 12. Wq would make the pairs opposite, as 12, 14, and 

 4, 6, and continui- it with 7, 11, a, 13. &c. 3rd. We would not have the four 

 b€da round ihc ct-ntre clumps nil filled with yeilow Calceolaria, as, with the 

 exception of 12, 0, purple Verbena, there is uo particular colour to coDtrant 

 with them, and for Aurea floribunda blue is rather a better contrast. You 

 have 1 ami -i blue and white, why not make 2 and !G yellow and purple, 

 and then make 8, 10, yellow itnd blue ? 4th. As 1, 2, 3, tiro thn three beds 

 next the house, one of two rules as to heights ought to be obsprved. Either 

 these three beds should, if anything, be lowest; aud if the beds are not 

 level they should rise gradually, ut least in the centre beds, to U), 15, 17 ; or 

 9 in the centre should be ratlicr the highest, and the other ''cds fall to 

 either end to 2 and 1(5. More depends on the arrangement of heights than 

 is generally imuirintd. As at present proposed, your large crntre bed 9 filled 

 ■with Ceiitaurea, &c., will be the lowest, and 13 and 5 will be much higher. 



leaving it, as it were, in the bottom of a basin, whilst Stella in 13, will 

 occupy the rim. That centre No. 0, witli a dwarf '-craniam along with 

 Ceiitaurea, will be your prettiest bed. Stella in No. 5 would be too high' for 

 it when seen from the wulk at the house.— R. F. 



Cttoss-BRKEDiKG Verrknas {C. F- B.).— To croj-s the Verbena, the best 

 plan is to silt the tube so as to allow the pollen to act on the stigma. Prac- 

 tically the simplest plan is to place the plunta you wish to cross under glass, 

 close together, and surrounded with netting. The wind and the bees will 

 do what will give you some trouble aud require some nicety to do more 

 thoroughly. 



Cetarlock, &c. (A. Btltimore).—Thc sev*\& of Charlock burled deep in the 

 soil will retain their vitnlity for many years, and will vegetate when brought 

 to the surface. Oats if unbruised pass thvough horsea unLige.^ted, and vege- 

 tate freely afterwards. There is no such thing as spontaneous generation- 

 it is only a term for concealing ignoraoce of how an organised form is 

 created. 



Pkach Lkaves Cueled (/. B. Jo.^rf).— The eurling and blistering of the 

 leaves of Peacli trees on an open wall is attributed to their exposure to great 

 changes of temperature ; such carting very rarely occurs under glass. 



Names or Fruit (R. Q. rK.).^We cannot identify the Apple you have 

 sent. 



Names of Plants {X. I>. 5.).— I, Pterle cerlica albo-lineata : 2, Onychium 

 luoidum ; 3, Cystopteris fragilis ; 4, Platyloma rotundifolium ; 5. Polypodium. 

 vulgare; 0, Hymenophyllum tumbridgense ; 7, Not determinable ; 8, Poly- 

 stiehum auulcatum lobatum; 9, Polystlchum capense; 10, Lastrea dUa- 

 tata. 



XETEOROLOGrlCAL OBSERVATIONS ia tlie Suburbs of London for tlie Week ending May 20bh. 



Date. 



BABOUBTER. 



THEfiMOMETBB. 



Wind. 



Kain 



in 



inches. 



Geser.\l Kemauks. 



Air. 1 Earth. ' 



Has. 



29.896 

 29.667 

 29.704 

 29.905 

 30.189 

 30.327 

 30.286 



Min. 



Max. 



Min. 1 1 rt deep. 



2 ft. deep. 



Sun. 14 

 Mon. 15 

 Tues. IC 

 Wed. 17 

 Thura. 18 

 Fri. 19 

 Sat. 20 



Mean 



29.851 

 29.603 

 29.697 

 29.868 

 30.034 

 30.290 

 30.161 



53 

 58 

 64 

 65 

 70 

 71 

 75 



33 

 29 

 39 

 38 

 31 

 37 

 48 



54i 



54* 



54i 



55 



55 



.56 



57 



53 J 

 534 

 53$ 

 53^ 

 B3.J 

 54 



S.W. 

 S. 



s.w. 

 w. 



E. 



.02 

 .01 

 .00 

 .02 

 .00 

 .00 

 .00 



Overcast ; very fine ; tine ; cool at nieht. 



Slight drizzle; densely clouded; very fine; slight frost at 



Very fine : cloudy ; fine tliroughout. [night. 



Cloudy and fine ; sliglit ram ; overcast ut night. 



Very fine throughout: dry air; cool at night. 



Very fine throughout. 



Very fine ; hot and dry ; air very dry ; warm at night. 



29.996 



29.927 65.14 | 36.43 ' 55.21 



53.71 





0.05 



POULTRY, BEE, and HOTISEHOID CHRONICLE. 



THE WOODBRIDGE POULTRY EXHIBITION. 

 That the show just concluded has been by far the most 

 Buccessfnl of any held by this Society admits of no question, 

 for, independently of the decided superiority of the birds 

 exhibited as a whole in classes, or individually, the entries 

 themselves show an addition of fifty pens beyond the aggre- 

 gate of last year. This favourable result is entu'ely attri- 

 butable to the harmonious manner in which every member of 

 theWoodbridgeCommittee personally interests himself in the 

 success of the undertaking, even as though the results were 

 altogether attributable to his individual exertions alone. By 

 the kindness of Major Long the Abbey Grounds have been 

 always placed at the sei-vice of the Society, and these grounds 

 contain specimens of the horse-chestnut of a growth but 

 rarely met with, one especially (now in full blossom) being 

 folly 40 yards in diameter, and of equal height — a tree 

 which appeared to excite the admiration of every visitor. 

 To those sightseers, also, who last week paid Woodbridge a 

 visit, a stroll to the Seckford Almshouses situate within a 

 stone's throw of the Poultry Show failed not to be most 

 interesting, as being one of the most commodious and 

 extensive range of buildings in the kingdom devoted to 

 a cbantablc purpose. The whole have been erected without 

 any restriction as to outlay, and the accommodation 

 throughout admits not of improvement. To the aged poor, 

 perhaps, a greater boon could not have been aUbrdod, for 

 not only is a happy home in their declining years placed 

 within reach, but a small and exceedingly well-fitted church 

 is provided for their accommodation. It is replete with 

 every convenience, and daily services are regularly con- 

 ducted, the galleries only being open to the public generally. 

 In walking, through the graveyard attached the ages of those 

 interred spoke strongly that such a charity was no mean 

 acijuisition to any locality, and tended to longevity. The 

 two eldest inscriptions were each ninety-one, the youngest 

 sixty-two, whilst the ordinary age would be about eighty- 

 four. An additional interest was giv(!n to the seeno by the 

 fact that several pairs of Nightingales build here annually. 



and by the kindness of our guide, we were introduced to 

 a nest containing several young ones, to which the mother 

 bird was so anxiously devoted that she actually continued her 

 maternal duties (although three faces were gazing upon her 

 for several minutes, within the distance of only a couple of 

 feet), without the slightest emotion or concern whatever, nor 

 did the male bird sing with less energy on account of our 

 intrusion. It is evident that known security gives these birds 

 such confidence, and thus adds a peculiar charm to the whole 

 neighbourhood. Many of the plants are of exceeding 

 beauty, and the grounds of the charity arc particularly well 

 kept. 



But to return to the show-field. The poultry were exhi- 

 bited under two extensive tents, and the arrangement of the 

 pens was very good. Game fowls headed the prize-schedule, 

 Mr. Fletcher, of Stoncclough, near Manchester, taking both 

 cups, the one with a splendid pen of Black Keds, the second 

 cup with a pen of Ecd Piles. The competition was capital, 

 and the difficulty of winning, of course, proportionate. 

 Dorkiiujs were generally good, but tindoubtedly open to much 

 improvement in respect to condition. The Cochins were one 

 of the principal features of the show, and here Captain 

 Heaton, of Manchester, took both the principal premiums 

 mth birds of great merit, a group of light Silver Cinnamons 

 taking the cup, and his well-known Bulfs the second place. 

 Besides these, there were exhibited such White and Par- 

 tridge-coloui'cd Cochins as could easily have secured prizes,, 

 had classes been allotted %> them respectively. The Spanish 

 class was a very good one, and the class for Dark Brahmas 

 one of the best wo have seen for years. The Light Brahma 

 class was not nearly so good. The Hamhurrjli classes were 

 not equal to those met with in the northern counties of 

 England, but mucli better than those of the Woodbridge 

 Show in previous years. Tlie Kxtra Variety class was one of 

 the best in the show, and embraced all the most popular and 

 unique breeds. Game JUantams mustered strongly and of 

 good (|uality. 



The Aylesburj' Ducks and Geese were unusually good, and 

 but for the mishap of death to a Duck during transit, for it 

 had been evidently dead for hours, all the prizes would hav© 

 gone to Mr. Fowler, of AyleBbuiy. 



The "Emu fowls" in the selling class were a decided 

 rarity, and drew muoli public attention. 



