312 



JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GABDSNER. 



[ October 5, 1876. 



bulbs are potted in each in good turfy loam with a little stable 

 manure added to it. Small bulbs will produce one spike, and 

 those of a larger size two spikes of flowers. C. Yeitcbii is the 

 most noble of all this eection. The bulbs in strong plants are 

 sometimes over a foot long, and throw up spikes from 4 to 6 feet 

 in length. In striking contrast to it are the different forms of 

 the C. vestita section, with pure white flowers ; and others with 

 white flowers marked with red or yellow. They will thrive well 

 in any plant stove with a temperature of from 60° to 65°. The 

 leaves are infested with brown scale sometimes, but this is easily 

 removed with a sponge and soapy water. As there is much 

 danger from damp to be feared at this season, great care is neces- 

 sary in watering Orchids ; only give water when necessary, and 

 avoid as much as possible spilling it on the leaves or pseudo- 

 bulbs. All the shadings have been removed from plant houses, 

 and also from the Orchids, except those from cool parts, such as 

 Odontoglossum crispum, 0. triumphanB, 0. odoratum, &c. "We 

 still shade these from bright sun, and do not stint them for 

 water at the roots. The surface of the compost in the pots is 

 usually covered with live sphagnum, and when this is kept in a 

 healthy free- growing state it is not likely that the Orchids sutler 

 from want of water. Where insect pests abound, and as work is 

 not pressing, now is a good time to adopt means to extirpate 

 them; still, the most effectual way to destroy mealy bug is to 

 use a soft sponge and Boapy water, and patiently wash each leaf 

 and branch by hand. It is also well to destroy green fly by 

 fumigating j there is not so much danger of injuring the young 

 growths at this season as there iB in summer. 



FLOWER GARDEN. 



Cold nights and muggy damp weather warn us that it is time 

 to see that all bedding plants intended to be potted should 

 be seen to forthwith. The Tricolor Pelargoniums have been 

 already done. If they are not fairly established before the cold 

 weather sets in many of the plants damp off through the winter. 

 It is best to pot the plants in comparatively small pots, and 

 remove all the oldest leaves before doing so. It is also a mistake 

 to cut back any of the growths, as decay sets in at the cut part 

 and spreads downwards. As soon as the beds are cleared of 

 their summer occupants no time should be lost in planting the 

 early spring-flowering Tulips, Hyacinths, &c. The herbaceous 

 border requires to be looked over — all decaying stems removed, 

 and the more free-growing subjects must be cut back where they 

 are intruding on their more delicate and weakly neighbours. — 

 J. Douglas. 



RECEIVED. 



-Catalogue of 



TRADE CATALOGUES 



William Paul & Son,Waltham Cross, Herts. 

 Hoses. 



Ewing & Co., Eaton, near Norwich. — Catalogue of Boses. 



Godwin & Son, Nursery, Ashbourne. — Catalogue of Roses, 

 Fruit Trees, &o. 



George Tates, TJnderbank and Royal Oak Mills, Stockport. — 

 Illustrated Catalogue of Flower Boots. 



Little & Ballantyne, Carlisle. — Catalogue of Boses y Bhodo- 

 dendronsj Herbaceous Plants, &c. 



HORTICULTURAL EXHIBITIONS. 



Secretaries will oblige us by informing us of the dates on 

 which exhibitions are to be held. 



Hull. October 10th, 11th, and 12th. Mr. J. Chappell, 96, Prospect Street, 

 Sec. 



Jeeset (St. Helier's) (Fruit). October 11th. (Chrysanthemums). Novem- 

 ber 8th. Col. H. Howell, Hon. Sec. 



Northampton (Chrysanthemums). November 14th and 15th. Mr. W. 

 Gutteridge, 51, Denmark Road, Northampton, Sec. 



Loughborough (Chrysanthemums and Fruit). November 21st. Mr. John 

 West, Chapman Street, Loughborough, Sec. 



Margate. August 29th, 1877. Mr. C. D. Smith, Hon. Sec. 



TO CORRESPONDENTS. 



%* All correspondence should be directed either to "The 

 Editors," or to "The Publisher." Letters addressed to 

 Mr. Johnson or Dr. Hogg often remain unopened unavoid- 

 ably. We request that no one will write privately to any 

 of. our correspondents, as doing so subjects them to un- 

 justifiable trouble and espense. 



Housemaid's Barrow.— Under the above name a correspondent procured 

 ■what he terms " a valuable garden liquid-manure distributor with one wheel, 

 the Bame as a common barrow." He obtained it through an advertisement 

 in our columns ; he desires to know if he cau obtain a similar article. 



Eoses in Pots (E. L. W.).~ If you refer to our number published on 

 August Slst of thiB year (No. 805), you will there find full directions for their 

 culture. 



Son, for Radishes {Inquirer).— Your soil is too rich, as the Radishes only 

 produce tops. The red and the white Turnip-rooted varieties are to be sown 

 now. There is no mode of driving away rats except by ferreting them. 



Fruit Culture {An Old Soldier).— Our " Fruit Culture for the Many/' 

 price 4d., free by poBt 5d. 



Title to Grapes (J. H. S.).— You would probably be considered only a 

 lodger, and that the Grapes on the wall are the landlord's. You had better 

 agree to divide the crop. 



Name of Tree {James Long). — It is impossible to be certain from such a 

 specimen, but we think it is the common Alder, Alans glutinosa. 



Name of Lilt (C. R.). — It is Lilium tigrinum, the Tiger-spotted Chinese 

 Lily. It was introduced during 1S04 by Mr. W. Her, and cnltivatedin Eew 

 Gardens. Kiempfer says that the Japanese eat the bulbs. 



Potato Haulm Manure {J. H.). — You are quite wrong in thinking it 

 objectionable becanse it is poisonous. It decays in the soil, and itB elements 

 only after that decomposition are absorbed by the roots of the crop. Drift 

 sand is as serviceable as silver sand if all earthy particles are washed-out 

 from it. 



Schoolmaster Potato. — " H. G. B. ; ' wishes to know where this can 

 be purchased. 



Fuchsia and Fungus (T. E.). — The Fuchsia is a morphological sport, 

 and the bit of f ungU3 no one could identify. 



Walnut-leaved Kidney Potato (I. W. A., Reader). — It is not the same 

 variety as the Ash-leaved. The leaves are of a different shape, size, and 

 colour, the stems more dwarf, and the tubers smaller. Miniature Hyacinths 

 we believe are only small specimens of the common Hyacinth. 



Greasy Coat Apple.— " N. H. P." suggests that this may be the " Greasy 

 Pippin" mentioned by Downing in his " Fruits and Fruit Trees of America." 



Charcoal for Vine Borders {W. Kinnear).— The best way is to mis it 

 with the compost when the borders are prepared. Two bushels to a cartload 

 of soil is a good proportion. If your borders are made and you wish to apply 

 it, you can do so by spreading a bushel to each 9 square yards of Burface and 

 digging it in. It is best in lumps from the size of a walnut to a man's fist. 



Fuchsia Leaves Eaten {An Old Subscriber), — The leaves have been 

 eaten by some weevil or caterpillar. Probably you would find them at work 

 were the plants closely examined, particularly if the former — i.e., weevils, be 

 the cause, by examination of the plants at night. Were the plants syringed 

 with a solution of soft soap it would make the shoots and leaves distasteful 

 to the insects. 



Climbers for Conservatory (B.). — You have all the fragrant climbers 

 Either you will have to have duplicates, in which case there is none finer or 

 sweeter than Mandevilla suaveolens, but you appear to be without such fine 

 subjects as Lapageria rosea, L. alba, Tacsonia Van-Volxemi, Habrothamnus 

 fascicularis, H. aurantiacus, and Luculia gratissima. The two latter are 

 sweet. 



Cutting-down Old Vines (R. G. M.). — In cutting-down near the ground 

 the object is to secure youDg rods in place of the old, as that tends in a 

 higher degree to facilitate the flow of the sap than through old worn-out 

 wood. We have tried both — i.e., cutting to within a few inches of the ground 

 and to the bottom of the rafters, and had good results in both cases, but the 

 former is much the better of the two. By all means retain the young shoot, 

 and cut the old cane or rod away just above the young shoot. 



Geraniums Leggy {Amateur). — The soil probably is too rich and loose- 

 We should firm the soil so as to induce slow growth, or plunge the plants in 

 the potB so as to cover the rim about an inch deep. The cause usually of 

 Tricolor Geraniums withering or browning at the edge is mostly from ex- 

 cessive moisture over the'leaves, especially after a period of dryness. 



Sawdust Mixed with Horse Droppings for Mushrooms {T. H.). — 

 We have nsed the droppings from a loose box bedded with sawdust for form- 

 ing Mushroom beds, and never had a more abundant crop nor longer con- 

 tinuance of fieshy Mushrooms. We only wish we had some at command. 

 No funguB of a deleterious kind accompanied the Mushrooms. 



Leaving Edgings of Golden Feather Pyrethrum {An Amateur). — 

 We presume the plants are very dwarf and compact, in which case and being 

 plants from seeds recently they will answer admirably, being very effective 

 in spring. A little fresh soil placed around ; the plants up to the stem will 

 do good. 



American Blackberries (Leeds).— We know of no nurserymen in Eng- 

 land who sell these varieties. 



Lime for Slugs {Novice).— Quicklime is better than gaslime for destroy- 

 ing slugs. Dust the surface with the lime until it is white, and repeat the 

 application if needed. It is applied most effectually during the evening 

 when the slugs are moving about. 



Select Dahlias {S. B. G.).— Acme of Perfection, Lord Derby, Alexandra, 

 Scarlet Gem, Thomas White, Sir G. Smythe, John Standish, Paisley Paul, 

 Criterion, Mrs. Stancomb, Lord Palmerston, Charles Backhouse, Ada Tnnln, 

 Countess of Pembroke, Mrs. Dorling, James Hunter, Her Majesty, Lady Jane 

 Ellis, Lady Derby, Andrew Dodds, Julia Davis, Miss Henshaw, Lotbair, and 

 James Wilder. Those are show varieties, which you must not exhibit with 

 fancies, a dozen of which are — Mrs. Saunders, Rose Flake, Grand Duchess, 

 Flossy Williams, Marquis of Lome, Flora Wyatt, Harlequin, Gem, Mtb. Good- 

 win, Rev. J. B. Camm, Chang, and Lord Dalkeith. The others in your list 

 we do not know. 



Tea-scented Roses (E. S.).— Cloth of Gold, a Noisette, which you prefer 

 to Marechal Niel, would succeed admirably against the wall. All those you 

 name would succeed well, but all Tea-scented Roses require protection in 

 winter except in warm situationa. 



Working Seedling Briars {Idem). — You may pot the plants and keep 

 them plunged in coal ashes about an inch over the rims of the pots, taking 

 care to keep them well supplied with water. The only fear is too weak growth, 

 and rooting beyond the pots. They may be turned out of the pots after the 

 buds have taken. * 



Raising Pinus austriaca from Seed {Idem). — Sow the seeds in March 

 in light sandy soil in an open situation, covering them about three-quarters 

 of an inch deep. The seedlings should be transplanted in the autumn in 

 rows a foot apart, and 3 inches distant in the rows. 



Insects Like Wasps Burrowing in a Dead Tree {W. H. Cooke). — 

 The insect you have observed is not one of the social wasps [Vespa vulgaris), 

 but a solitary species, Crabro leucostomus, which has selected flies to deposit 

 in its cells for the support of its young when hatched. — W. 



Insects on Primula Leaf {L. M.). — The very minute insect and the leaf 

 sent are in so shrivelled a condition that it is impossible to determine the 

 name of the former. Its relics look like the very small caterpillar of a moth. 

 — W. 



