352 



JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



[ October 19, 1876. 



continues to produce its dense trusses most freely, and plants 

 of it]potted from the garden cannot fail to be effective in the 

 greenhouse and conservatory for a period of several weeks to 

 come. No plants lift more safely than Ageratums, for if potted 

 even when in fall flower the plants seldom lose a leaf if pro- 

 perly attended to. In a week or ten days after having been 

 potted liquid manure should be given freely, and the plants 

 will then continue flowering all through the winter. 



Some exceedingly effective bouquets are always to be 



found in the Central Avenue of Covent Garden Market. We 

 noticed recently one which, though formal, was very striking. 

 A white Camellia formed the centre, and from this to the outer 

 edge of the bouquet were six rows at equal distances apart of 

 Bingle pips of Stephanotis flowers — six pips in each row — the 

 angles being filled with Violets, and the whole edged with 

 Maidenhair Fern. Other bouquets were made principally of 

 Camellias, Roses, and Eacharises, with sprays of white and 

 scarlet Bouvardias slightly elevated above the more massive 

 flowers. This arrangement was very chaste and pleasing. 



As a proof of the mildness of the season Alternan- 



theras in the London parks have continued to put forth fresh 

 ieaves freely up to the present time, and these, especially in the 

 ease of A. amoeaa, are of the most brilliant colour, proving 

 that not only heat but moisture is necessary for these highly 

 coloured " carpet plants " to appear in their richest garb. 

 Tender though Alternantheras are, their beauty is retained 

 longer than that of the Golden Feather, the foliage of which 

 decays with extreme wet when the plants are planted closely 

 together. 



Messrs. Sutton & Sons have issued their list of prizes 



to be awarded at their Root Show in November. 



A Society of practical gardeners and others has been 



formed under tbe title of " The Bromley Common and District 

 Horticultural Society." Its object is the improvement of gar- 

 dening among all classes in the neighbourhood. Mr. J. Hobbs, 

 The Fernery, Bromley Common, may be applied to for par- 

 ticulars. 



In consequence of the extreme drought of summer 



being succeeded by a warm and moiat autumn Violets are in 

 many places flowering almost as freely as in spring. One of 

 the finest and sweetest is the variety recently raised by Mr. 

 G. Lee of Clevedon and named Prince Consort. The flower 

 of this variety is large, very round, pale blue, on a long stalk 

 which raises it above the foliage, and is very fragrant. Flowers 

 of Prince Consort were gathered for the market on the Sth of 

 September. 



M. Lejioine has raised a double-flowered Lilac, 



which he has named Syringa hyacinthiflora flore-pleno. He 

 applied pollen of one variety upon a hundred flowers of another, 

 obtaining in the first instance but seven seeds. S. oblata and 

 azurea plena were the varieties used. Other efforts were some- 

 what more successful. He has raised forty plants, of which 

 number but three have bloomed, one of which is the above. 

 The flowers resemble those of very small Hyacinths, hence 

 the name. 



A writer in the " Jahrbuch des Bremen'schen Garten- 



bau-Verin," on the change in the colours of flowers, says that 

 the changes in the colours of the flowers of Gladiolus versi- 

 color are among the most remarkable and wonderful of this 

 class of phenomena. Indeed this plant may be dubbed a vege- 

 table chameleon, so varied are the changes the colours of its 

 flowers undergo. In the morning they are brown, and during 

 the day they assume various hues, until in the evening they 

 become blue, and remain so during the night. The following 

 morning they are again brown, and during the day they pass 

 through the same changes as on the preceding day. 



■ Mr. Prince, late gardener at Ringwood Hall, has suc- 

 ceeded to the management of the gardens at Bladon House, 

 the seat of Fred. Gretton, Esq., Burton-on-Trent. 



The vegetable supply at Covent Garden shows no 



signs of scarcity as the result of the hot and dry summer, but 

 many vegetables do afford unmistakeable evidence of rapid — 

 in some instances too rapid — autumn growth. Cabbages are 

 of immense size, and many of them are split. Cauliflowers 

 are coarse and "blown." The majority of the Tnrnips are 

 cracked, and Potatoes are the reverse of smooth and tempting 

 in appearance ; with but few exceptions the tubers are un- 

 shapely, and most of them show signs of second growth, and 

 in some samples the second-growth tubers are larger than 

 those of the crop]proper. Endive and Lettuces are plentiful 



and good ; Celery generally coarse ; Leeks small ; Kidney 

 Beans, Tomatoes, and Mushrooms in fair supply, and ridge Cu- 

 cumbers and Vegetable Marrows are offered in large numbers. 



■ Alluding to the show of fruit at the Centennial 



Exhibition at Philadelphia, the New York Tribune states that 

 space is provided for 14,000 dishes, and most of it is already 

 occupied. The Fruit-Growers Association of Ontario send 

 1500 dishes, and Appies from Nebraska are numerous and 

 good. But " the most remarkable display in the building is 

 that of California fruit, brought east in refrigerator cars. It 

 is in fine condition. In size the fruit is unequalled, and its 

 quality is very good. The Peaches are very large and tempt- 

 ingly luscious. Clusters of Grapes are shown, which in this 

 part of the country seem fairly enormous. The beauty of 

 some of them is beyond praise. The Apples, Pears, and Plums 

 are almost equally remarkable. Nectarines, Figs, and Almonds, 

 both green and ripe, are also shown. This fruit was brought 

 here by an agent acting for a large number of fruit-growers. 

 Besides that exhibited, a stock is on hand for sale in the 

 building." 



DOINGS OP THE LAST AND WORK FOR 

 THE PRESENT WEEK. 



KITCHEN garden. 

 The Asparagus stalks had changed to the yellowish tint in- 

 dicative of ripeness, and we have had them removed. We like 

 to cut them off before the seeds drop, as they vegetate next 

 season and become troublesome weeds. Signs of the coming 

 winter are to be seen in the falling leaves, which litter about 

 the garden walks and give the place an untidy appearance ; we 

 contrive to sweep and clean up at least once a-week. Weeds 

 have grown a good deal on the walks, and there is nothing for it 

 but to pick them out by the hand, and this must be done at 

 once, as the weather will soon be too cold for this sort of work. 

 Wnen walks have been laid down a number of years, and the 

 gravel is loose, weeds grow abundantly; and if it is difficult to 

 keep them under, a good plan is to slightly turn over the surface 

 to the depth of 2 or 3 inches and give the walk a fresh dressing 

 of fine gravel. Wnen finishing off the walk ought to be left 

 highest in the centre, but not so much as to be felt by the feet ; 

 a very slight rise from the side to the centre is sufficient to 

 drain-off the water. 



If Box-edgings require altering or relaying, the work ought 

 to be done at once, so that the edgings become established before 

 the winter. The gravel must be cleared well away from the 

 side that is to be relaid, and the ground be forked over and 

 well broken up ; it Bhould then be trodden down firmly and 

 made perfectly level. When the line is tightly stretched cut 

 the soil from the side next the walk with a clean spade, and 

 when the Box is laid in it must not be more than about '2 inches 

 above the surface of the soil. Box is by far the neatest and best 

 edging where it succeeds. We have tried ornamental tiles, and 

 they also form a neat and durable edging ; but where they are 

 only bedded in the soft ground or gravel they drop out of their 

 position and require to be put straight about once a-year, and 

 this is the best time to see to that. There are different sorts 

 of gravel adapted for different circumstances, and there are 

 different opinions as to which is the best sort of gravel for 

 kitchen-garden paths. Preference is usually given to that which 

 binds well; but in every case the foundation of the walks 

 should be laid with rough stones or broken bricks, and if the 

 subsoil is such that water does not drain freely through it, it may 

 be necessary to lay drain-pipes along the paths. If a loose sur- 

 face is preferred, the gravel must first be sifted to separate the 

 large stones, then it must be passed through a finer sieve— one 

 that will retain the smaller stones, passing the sand through 

 only. The large stones must be put in at the bottom and the 

 smaller on the top. There must be 2 or 3 inches of small stones 

 on the top, else the larger stones will work up and be in the 

 way. After it has been levelled smoothly with a rake a heavy 

 roller must be passed over the path about six times to make it 

 firm and perfectly level. 



Slugs have been very troublesome on newly-planted Lettuce. 

 We have dusted the ground over with qnicklime ; but the most 

 effectual way to eradicate them is by hand-picking with the aid 

 of a lantern at night. 



vineries. 



The damp muggy weather has been very injurious to ripe 

 Grapes, and every precaution is necessary to prevent decay 

 spreading amongst the berries. Immediately a decaying berry 

 comes into contaot with a sound one, the mould causes the 

 sound one to decay. In such weather it is necessary to look 

 over the bunches at least twice a-week, and to cut those decay- 

 ing out. The thick-skinned variety, Lady Downe's, does not 

 show any signs of decay, while many decaying berries have been 

 cut out of the more delicate and thin-Bkinned Muscat of Alex- 

 andria. As a rule the white Grapes require the most attention, 



