September 14, 1876. ] 



JOURNAL OP HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



227 



WEEKLY CALENDAR. 







Average 













Clock 



Day 



of of 



SEPTEMBER 14—20, 1876. 



Temperature near 





Sets. 









before 



of 



Month Week. 





London. 













Sun. 



Year, 









Day. 



Night. 



Mean. 



h. m. 



h. m. 



h. m. 



fc. m. 



Days. 



m. a. 





14 



Ta 





67.0 



46.1 



56 5 



5 B5 



6 15 



22 



5 9 



26 



4 42 



258 



IS 



F 





67.5 



15 9 



56.7 



5 31 



6 13 



1 54 



5 29 



27 



5 3 



259 



16 



S 





68 4 



46 8 



57.6 



5 39 



6 10 



8 24 



5 44 



28 



5 24 



260 



17 



8cn 



14 Sunday afteb Teinitt. 



68.9 



44 9 



56 9 



5 40 



6 8 



4 52 



5 56 



O 



5 45 



261 



18 



M 





68.2 



46.5 



57.4 



5 42 



6 6 



6 16 



6 8 



1 



6 6 



262 



19 



To 



Twilight ends at 8.3 p.m. 



67-b 



45.3 



56 3 



5 44 



6 -8 



7 39 



6 20 



2 



6 27 



263 



20 



W 





68.0 



44.0 



56.0 



5 45 



6 1 



9 1 



6 S3 



8 



6 48 



264 



Prom observations taken near London during forty-three years 



the average day temperature of the week is G8.0"*; and its night temperature 



45.5'. 















S ORING ROOTS FOR THE WINTER. 



HE storing of all kinds of roots cannot be too 

 well attended to. Their perfect preservation 

 depends entirely on liow the work is done. 

 Complaints of losing such and such a thing 

 throughout the winter are not unfrequently 

 heard ;. whereas most roots are quite as 

 easily kept in their dormant state as in 

 their growing one, but at the same time 

 they should be just as carefully seen to at 

 the one time as the other. 

 Roots requiring to be stored throughout the winter may 

 be divided into two classes — namely, vegetable and flower 

 roots. Amongst the former Potatoes are of the greatest 

 importance. Sometimes these are stared iu two different 

 lots ; tha one for seed and the other for use. In either 

 case the drying of the tubers is the first thing that must 

 be done. External moisture in the slightest degree quickly 

 causes decay when the tubers are laid together in a close 

 place. An o'pen shed is one of the best places for drying 

 them when wet weather prevents their being exposed in 

 the open air. They must be laid out thinly and should 

 be turned over every day, or every other day at the 

 farthest. When they are lifted out of the ground in dry 

 weather little or no earth will be attached to them ; but 

 when hfted wet, as is sometimes necessary, much of the 

 soil, especially if it is stiff, will adhere to them. This 

 cannot be removed when it is damp so freely as when 

 it is quite dry, so at first the roots should be spread out 

 as they are lifted until they become somewhat dry, when 

 they should be turned over and each of them rubbed with 

 the hand to remove the soil. When the small tubers 

 are separated for seed they should be laid aside at this 

 time. After the tubers have become thoroughly dry there 

 is no better way of preserving them than placing them 

 in ridges in pits. The formation of the pit may soon be 

 determined on. The spot on which it is to be made 

 should be somewhat sheltered, and the ground must be 

 quite smooth and clean ; the bottom may be from 3 to 

 4 feet wide, the length being decided on according to the 

 quantity there is to store. 



Having decided on this, place a line along and notch 

 out the shape of the pit with a spade. It is then ready 

 for the Potatoes. They should not be laid close to the 

 edge of the notch, but about 6 inches from it on each 

 side. In a 3-feet-wide pit this allows a base for the tubers 

 of 2 feet. From this width they must be built up in a 

 triangular form to a sharp point or ridge. This work 

 must be done on a sunny day. As the Potatoes are laid 

 in a quantity of drawn straw should he at hand ; a layer 

 of this must be placed along each side against the Pota- 

 toes to the depth of 3 inches, and a crowning layer must 

 be placed along the top. The Btraw should then be 

 covered with 6 inches of soil from the sides. This should 

 be dug out neatly so as to leave a trench along each side 

 of the pit, and the surface of the pit itself should be beaten 

 perfectly smooth and firm that all wet may. pass into the 

 side trenches freely. Sometimes a bunch of straw is 



> T o 8C7.—VLL XXXI.. New Seeies 



allowed to project here and there along the ridge with the 

 intention of allowing vapour to escape ; but these "straw 

 chimneys " admit water, and probably do as much harm 

 as good. In very severe weather it is often necessary to 

 throw an extra covering of litter over the ridge. When 

 stored early in autumn it is a good plan to open the pit 

 once or twice throughout the winter, selecting a mild 

 day for the purpose, and pitting afresh as soon as the- 

 Potatoes have been turned and the diseased tubers picked 

 out. A sufficient quantity to serve for some weeks should 

 be kept out, and as more are wanted they should be 

 taken from one end of the pit, which should always be. 

 closed up as before as soon as they have been removed. 



When Potatoes are retained throughout the winter in 

 sheds or " Potato houses," a dry atmosphere must always 

 be maintained, and the light must also be excluded. The 

 temperature should never rise above 40°, as a higher heat 

 induces the tubers to sprout, which must be guarded 

 against. 



Turnips may be kept in a perfect state of preservation 

 in the same way as Potatoes. Carrots, Beetroot, Par- 

 snips, Salsafy, and Scorzonera all roquire careful storing 

 in winter. They may all be placed in one house, and 

 under the same conditions. They should be dried after 

 lifting, but not to an extent that will cause them to shrivel. 

 They may be stored in a cool shed amongst sand ; th& 

 latter should be moderately dry. A layer about 2 inches 

 deep should first be spread along the bottom. A layer of 

 roots must then be placed on this, when they should be 

 covered with sand and another quantity of roots laid above 

 this, and so on until the bin is formed. Too many should 

 not be placed above each other — from eight to ten layers 

 being sufficient. Wherever the slightest decay is suspected 

 the whole should be turned over and the bad roots taken 

 out. A high temperature causes the crowns to buret into 

 growth; these growths should not be encouraged, but 

 should be rubbed off at each turning. 



Onions are always well worth looking after in winter. 

 They are mostly ready for storing early in September. 

 In dry weather they may be laid on the ground for a few- 

 days after they have been pulled up, turning them every 

 dry day. In wet weather they should be spread out in 

 an open shed, or some other place where air and sun can 

 have access to them, but no wet. When the tops are 

 dried up they are ready for storing in their winter 

 quarters. They keep best in a cool dry loft or room of 

 any kind where frost is entirely excluded. They may 

 be spread out on the floor or shelves, or hung in nets. 

 Sometimes they are strung together, and when this is the 

 case they may be suspended from the roof. In whatever 

 way they are stored they must be looked over frequently,, 

 as they are not exempt from decay. 



Flower roots requiring to be stored during the winter- 

 are of a varied character. Perhaps the most common is 

 the Dahlia. The stems of this plant should be cut off 

 2 or 3 inches from the root as soon as they are injured by 

 fro3t or decayed. The roots must then be lifted with a 

 fork, and covered over with dry hay or soil in the same 

 place, or one similar to that in which the Onions are ; 



N . 1159 —Vol. LVI., Ped SE-is»» 



