July 6, 1371. ] 



JOURNAL OF HOETICULTUKE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



13 



rally a considerable amount of air that will find its way into 

 orchard houses independently of air-giving. Tnere is no cause 

 to be alarmed at a high temperature duiiug the diy from sun 

 heat, if air is given early, to prevent the chance of the accumu- 

 lation of heated, confined, scalding vapour. Providing the 

 temperature rises gradually, fluctuate?, and falls gradually, and 

 there is bo chance of confined heated vapour, there will be no 

 danger. Tnere is no heat so cheap as sun heat, and if you 

 wish to hasten maturation by its aid alone you must make the 

 most of it by giving less air morning and afleruoon. Orchard 

 houses that fall to 45° or 55° at night in June and the beginning 

 of July, would rise with air given early, though not in abun- 

 dance, to above 90° by midday ; but other things, as moisture, 

 attended to, there would be no harm done, and such a house 

 damped and shut up before 4 p.ii. would retain a good deal of 

 warmth in the first hours of the evening. No inconvenience, 

 but quite the reverse, U experienced in consequence of the 

 plants having a great but safe difi'erence of night and day tem- 

 perature. The comparatively cool temperature at night relieves 

 them, and presents them with more of their natural condition 

 than if, as used to be in forcing honses, the night and day 

 temperature were more unifo]m 



For the early ripening of Giapes in unhealed glass cases, 

 even when such early kinds as Hamburghs, Muscadines, and 

 S.veetwaters are grown, it is best to make the most of the sun 

 heat early in the summer. It is judicious to keep the houses 

 as cool as possible in spring, with abundance cf air, until the 

 Vines have broken freely, but after that the more they are 

 assisted w.th sun heat the sooner and better the Grapes will 

 ripen, and the sooner they are ripened the better they will hang, 

 if that should be desirable. Making the most of the sun heat in 

 July would be ot much more advantage than it would be to do 

 eo in September and later. 



Where there are two orchard honses, and one with Vines as 

 well as Peaches, it is best to make the latter the earlier of the 

 two, as the shutting-in sun heat to forward the Peaches will be 

 just what is wanted to forward and mature the Grapes. 



In late vineries, where the fruit is intended to hang throngh- 

 out the winter, it is now better to give fire heat in cold weather, 

 so as to hasten maturity, instead of giving such artificial heat 

 in the autumn when the sun is losing its power. The sooner 

 such late Vines mature their fruit the better it will hang if a 

 somewhat dry atmosphere be then maintained. 



OKXAIIENTAL DEPAET3IENT. 



We have now planted out our beds of Coleus, &3. We have 

 already stated how some of the finest leaves were browned on 

 a number of plants on June 25ih. We question if they would 

 have suffered so much if they had been planted out, instead of 

 standing in pots to be thoroughly hardened-cS. We have fre- 

 quently referred to the fact that plants standing in pots are 

 more likely to be afl'<;cted by the extremes of heat and cold 

 than those planted oat. Hence, even on the outside of a cot- 

 tage window, plants will thrive better and require much less 

 attention, if planted out in a box — ornamental or otherwise — 

 than they would do standing singly in pots. These Coleuses 

 furnish a case in point. Wishing to have enough and to spare, 

 we struck a good many late, four or five in a common 60 sized 

 pot. Not wishing to be troubled polti ig them, we planted them 

 out in a bed when struck, at about 7 inches apart, and placed 

 some sashes over them for a few weeks ; thus treated they soon 

 .made fine, bushy, dwarf plants. These have been fully ex- 

 posed for more than three weeks — rather more exposed, in fact, 

 than those in pots, but they suffered so little in comparison with 

 the pot plants that we have left many of the latter alone, and 

 supplied tbeir places with some scores, wo might say a few hun- 

 dreds, of these rather smaller but better-coloured plants, 

 raising them with good balls, as for this purpose they make 

 masses of fibres as freely as a Calceolaria. 



This simple fact also points to the importance of defending 

 the pots of tender, and especially hardwooded fibrous-rooted 

 plants — as Heaths, Epacrises, and Rhododendrons, alike from 

 bright sun and low temperatures. A pit will thus be better 

 than the open ground. Any simple material which will protect 

 the pots, if not plunged, will also be of advantage. We have 

 known some fine Rhododendrons in pots greatly injured by 

 a bright sun beating on red pots, and thus burning-up the fine 

 roots close to the sides of the pots. When such pots are left 

 too long unprotected out of doors, much injury is often caused 

 by the burning of the roots Azaleas and Gsmellias often snfier 

 from the roots being frosted, from the plants in pots stand- 

 ing out of doors too late in the autumn, and then there are 



endless inquiries as to the cause, when flower-buds fall or 

 shrivel-up. 



But to return to the Coleus. What beds we made we fiUed- 

 np at once with strong bushy plants, and we hope they will be 

 all right for the season. Four are edged with the white-leaved 

 Centaurea, and four with Polemonium ciEruleum variegatum. 

 We do not like to do, and undo, and do again, but we did so irs 

 the case of the Polemoniums. They had been planted five 

 weeks, but unfortunately, too far — 15 or 18 inches — from the 

 grass edging, and they were also planted quits high enough. 

 Our general distance of edgings from grass is 1 toot, and this 

 brings the plants quite close enough to the grass long before- 

 the season is over. Thinking it over, and finding no plan 

 better, we raised these Polemoniums and planted them deeper 

 and nearer to the grass lawn. Besides the labour, there was 

 no other difficulty, as the plants had rooted well, and could be 

 lifted with large balls, and when watered showed no signs of 

 their being moved. Such things must be done at times, how- 

 ever undesirable, as, if these Polemoniums had been let alone, 

 the autumn would have come before the fine foliage had covered 

 the earth between them and the grass, and half the beauty of 

 the beds would, therefore, have been destroyed. These beds 

 lend a great charm at once to a composition group, as before 

 they were introduced the masses of yellow Calceolaria were 

 rather too obtrusive. We shall even now have too much of 

 yellow and orange until we have more bloom on masses of 

 scarlet, and pink, and various-coloured Geraniums, which will 

 not be what they ought to be until we have a little more bright 

 weather. The rains have done much in exciting free growth 

 in Geraniums, but as we plant rather thickly, what we want 

 is more massive bloom. The rains have just suited the Cal- 

 ceolaria, and though many blooms were washed off, there are 

 still fine masses and plenty of bloom-heads showing. To our 

 eye there is nothing that makes-up for the want of Calceo- 

 larias in a composition group. There would be fewer failures 

 if it were'borne in mind that no amount cf bright sun will- 

 injure them if the roots are kept damp and cool. 



As soon as the ground shall be a little warmer we shall en- 

 deavour to mulch our Calceolarias, as by this means with the 

 least, or a minimum amount of watering we shall secure com- 

 parative coolness and moisture at the roots. Our plants did 

 well all through the dread dryness of last summer when much 

 watering was with us out of the question, and we attribute 

 their flourishing almost entirely to the mulching and the fre- 

 quent breaking of the surface of the mulching with a hoe. The 

 mulching was chiefly half-rotten dung and leaves broken rather 

 fine with the points of a fork. This does very well for th& 

 middle part of beds, but for the outsides the material should be 

 more decayed and be silted through a coarse sieve for neatness, 

 and if a little lime and soot be added birds will not care SC' 

 much to scratch it about in search of worms. 



We went on with potting, regulating, changing, cutting- 

 making, &c., as indicated in previous notices. The frost made 

 sad blanks among established plants of Cloves, and Carna- 

 tions so useful to cut in armfuls, but Pinks well established 

 have been very useful. We must put-iu a lot of pipings or 

 cuttings. Large pieces with a space of the old wood will strike 

 in a shady place if lime be given. Small pieces with a joint or 

 two from the top will strike freely in sandy soil under a hand- 

 light. Oiled paper as a cover does well. For such cuttings we 

 save labour and time by rarely using a knife. Take hold of 

 the shoot of the Pink or Clovo, near its base, with one hand, 

 so as to hold it steadily, catch the upper part abrnt the second 

 joint firmly with the other hand, give a sharp pull, and out 

 comes the cutting clean from the joint or node, wanting 

 nothing in general but to be dibbled in and receive a little pro- 

 tect on. Tbe cuttings, cleaner at the bottom than made with- 

 a knife, can thus be taken in as short a time as the process is- 

 described. — R. F. 



TRADE CATALOGUES RECEIVED. 



James Veitch & Sons, Royal Exotic Nursery, King's Eoad, Chelsea^ 

 London, S.W. — Catalorjue of Nev) mid BeaiUiful Plants. 



Joseph Meredith, Tlie Vineyard, Garston, Liverpool. — Catalogue of 

 Stove and Greenhouse P'a7its, Eedding and Ornamental Plants, d'C. 



TO CORRESPONDENTS. 



* i, * We request that no one will write privately to any of the 

 correspondents of the " Journal of Horticulture, Cottage 

 Gardener, and Country Gentleman." By doing so they 

 arc subjected to unjustifiable trouble and expense. All 



