October 5, 1876. ] 



JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE ANL COTTAGE GARDENER. 



311 



border city and its remarkable railway facilities are so well 

 known that the proposal will not only be encouraged by the 

 leading local horticulturists, but will also be largely supported 

 by the principal London and other metropolitan exhibitors, as 

 well as by those on the Continent." A provisional committee 

 has been formed, of which Mr. W. Baxter Smith is the Chair- 

 man ; and a meeting of influential supporters will shortly be 

 held, when fuller details will be entered into. We cordially 

 wish the enterprise the greatest success. Such an exhibition 

 we hope will be well supported on the borders ; and if the 

 great populations of the mining and manufacturing districts 

 on the east and the spinners of Lancaster and Preston can be 

 attracted in sufficient numbers, we see no reason why the 

 undertaking should not be a financial success, weather per- 

 mitting. 



Grevillea robusta is used in the mixed " subtropical " 



bed in front of the No. 2 Museum at the Royal Gardens, 

 Kew. It is one of the most elegant subjects for this style of 

 gardening, and we do not remember having seen it so used 

 elsewhere. It might be classed with Acacia lophantha, as 

 affording beautiful fern-like foliage, but from its more dwarf 

 habit is adapted for other combinations. If seeds are sown 

 now it would be easy to raise plants a foot high for planting- 

 out next season. They should, however, always be sown when 

 received, as the proportion of plants obtainable soon dimi- 

 nishes, though fresh imported seed may be expected to pro- 

 duce a good crop. Plants in 48-sized pots are extremely use- 

 ful for a variety of purposes ; for window and table decoration 

 they are valuable from the durability of their foliage. 



" J. S., Lanark" writes — " With reference to the notice 



taken in your Journal of the 7th September (page 211), of the 

 Cockscombs grown by Mr. Hawes, Henerton, I think it right 

 to state that there are to be seen growing at Ridgepark, near 

 Lanark, the seat of Charles Lindsay, Esq., a lot of Cockscombs 

 of splendid quality, measuring, one 42J inches by 16 inches 

 across the comb, another 41 by 16, another 39 by 15, and the 

 rest on an average 35 by 12, all grown in 10-inch pots, and the 

 plants only 10 inches above the pots. The grower, Mr. Henry 

 Sime, gardener, Ridgepark, like Mr. Hawes, has been well 

 known for years in connection with the cultivation of Cocks- 

 combs, and this year without the slightest difficulty he carried 

 off first honours at Glasgow and Edinburgh exhibitions, be- 

 sides, of course, our local show." 



DOINGS OF THE LAST AND WORK FOB 

 THE PRESENT WEEK. 



HARDY FRUIT GARDEN. 



Except gathering and arranging fruit there has not been 

 much done in this department. It is quite necessary to gather 

 the fruit when it is dry, aud also to handle it carefully. Fruit 

 that has begun to decay is removed at once. The importance 

 of doing this cannot be too much impressed upon those who 

 have, like us, little to spare and are anxious to make the most 

 of what they have. Nearly all the fruit has been gathered from 

 the walls, and when this is done the trees may be looked over, 

 and any pruning that is required should be done. We do the 

 most of this in the summer season, and as a general rule but 

 little of it is required now. It is always necessary to look over 

 the trees, and to cut off any spurs that project too far. It has 

 always seemed a rough method to take a stumpy birch broom, 

 as some do, and switch the decaying leaves off; but it is some 

 advantage to remove them, as the sun and air can then act more 

 freely upon the trees. When the leaves are switched off in this 

 way the work ought to be done with a new broom, and the shoots 

 should be gently stroked upwards, never the reverse way of the 

 buds. When there are only a few leaves they may be gently 

 removed by hand, and the trees should be gone over about twioe 

 a-week. It is more particularly Peach and Nectarine trees that 

 require this attention. The American blight can readily be dis- 

 oerned on the trees now, and should be destroyed by dipping a 

 small brush in paraffin, or we have found boiled oil effectually 

 destroy it. It ought to be well worked into the crevices of the 

 bark, where the insects find shelter. 



A correspondent inquired last week about the treatment of 

 Raspberries; they had not made sufficient growth to produce 

 fruit. Now, the Raspberry requires generous treatment, but it 

 often has the very reverse of this ; the plants are stuck into any 

 sort of ground without having any preparation made or manure 

 applied, and odd corners that will not grow any other crops well 

 are thought to be good enough for them. In hot dry districts 

 about the best position for Raspberries is a border behind a 

 north wall, and if the soil is light a few cartloads of heavy clay 

 Boil will be of great advantage. The border ought to be trenched 



and manured in the same way as has already been advised for 

 Strawberries. The way we have found Raspberries give the best 

 results from a given piece of ground is to plant the canes in rows 

 3J feet apart, and 18 inches between the plants; grow about 

 three canes to each plant, and tie them to stout wires strained 

 tightly along the rows about 3 feet from the ground; the canes 

 should be cut at about 3J feet from the ground. Of course, tho 

 method of training has nothing at all to do with the bushes not 

 bearing. If the young wood is stroDg and well ripened, and the 

 varieties good, they muBt bear fruit. The Raspberry is also 

 fond of a good supply of water at the roots. Any time in fine 

 weather after this Currant and Gooseberry bushes may bo 

 planted out. They will get established before the winter season 

 sets in, and will start into more vigorous growth next season. 



VINERIES. 



The early houses are being prepared for forcing in the way 

 that was recommended a few weeks ago. If we could, in addi- 

 tion to other washings and cleanings, have the inside woodwork 

 painted, say every second year, it would be an excellent deterrent 

 to many insect peBts. Besides red spider, ordinary house spiders 

 lodge in the crevices of the walls and woodwork, and as soon 

 as the berries are formed the smaller spiders get into the centre 

 of the bunches, and by-and-by they work their webs round the 

 outer sides of the berries, very much injuring the bloom. In 

 late houses where the Grapes are quite ripe much oare is neces- 

 sary to prevent decay in the fruit. Deoaying leaves must be 

 removed at frequent intervals, as it is when the leaves are 

 decaying in the house that there is most danger from mould on 

 the berries, causing decay. If the fruit is not quite ripe no 

 time must be lost in keeping up the proper degree of heat, say 

 from 60° to 65° in the Muscat house, and 5° less in the Black 

 Hamburgh house. Lady Downe's and Alicante require as much 

 heat as Muscats to finish them off well. 



PINE HOUSES. 



Where fruit is now ripening attention must be given to ven- 

 tilating the house as much as possible, but the temperature 

 must be kept sufficiently high to bring up the flavour in the 

 fruit — 65" at night, rising to 75° or 80° by day with sun heat. 

 "We have been cutting Charlotte Rothsohild and Smooth-leaved 

 Cayenne, and a variety introduced from the mountainous dis- 

 tricts of Columbia named Mordilona. It is said to ripen in a 

 lower temperature than other Pines at present in cultivation in 

 our English gardens, but we have tried it with the other sorts 

 only. The leaves are much like those of the Smooth-leaved! 

 Cayenne, and the fruit has the appearance of that variety, but 

 it is not so symmetrically formed. The fruit is very jnioy, and 

 will be a good winter variety. It is not necessary to say that 

 the atmosphere should not be very moist, although it will be 

 necessary to damp the pathB and walls in bright weather twioe 

 daily, and once in dull weather. Succession houses for the 

 present must be kept moderately cool at night. The Pines that 

 we intend to start early in January are now kept dry at the roots 

 with a bottom heat not exceeding 85°, and the temperature of 

 the house about 559. 



PLANT STOVE AND ORCHID HOUSES. 



This is a very dull time for flowers in this department, but we 

 are never altogether without them. The Stephanotis floribunda 

 has flowered profusely, and its pure white delicately- scented 

 waxy-looking flowers are always welcome. Very useful, too, 

 is the Urceolina aurea, a Peruvian bulbous plant introduced 

 by the Messrs. Veitoh of Chelsea some years ago. Its yellow- 

 greeaish-tipped pendulous flowers are distinct and pretty. We 

 grow it with Amaryllis, and the same treatment suits it. The 

 Amaryllises are now at rest in a cool house. The soil has 

 been allowed to become quite dry, and no water will be given 

 to the roots until it is time to start them into growth. This 

 should be done at different times, so as to obtain a succession of* 

 flowera. Ours are started with a little bottom heat and a tem- 

 perature of 50° to begin with, increasing it to 55°, which is high 

 enough in the winter season ; but if it is necessary to raise the 

 temperature to 60°, or even 65° to Buit other plants, this will not 

 be hurtful to the Amaryllises if bottom heat is supplied at the 

 same time. When the bulbs are started in a high temperature 

 without bottom heat, this forces the flower stalk up prematurely, 

 the result being that the flowers are produced without the 

 leaves, which is not desirable. 



Some of the Orchids are now in flower, and most welcome they 

 are at this season. Laslia autumnalis is in full beauty; the 

 flowers are very handsome, but subject to disfavour on account 

 of tbeir powerful odour, which is disagreeable to most persons. 

 Certain Masdevallias, Buch as M. Veitchii and M. Harryana, have 

 thrown up autumn flowers. We never had the last-named speoies 

 do so in the autumn before this year. The autumn-flowering 

 variety of Dendrobium formosum giganteum is also showing 

 fine flowers, and they laBt in good order for nearly two months 

 at this season. The different varieties and species of winter- 

 flowering Calanthes are now throwing-up their flower spikes. 

 These plants are easily grown, and well worth all the attention 

 required to keep them in good condition. The moBt useful sized 

 pots are those about 5 or 6 inches in diameter. About three 



