September 7, 1871. ] 



JOURNAL OF HOllTICULTXJKE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



173 







V/EEKLY 



CALENDAR, 













Bay 



ot 



Month 



^7 



Week. 





Average Tempera- i Rain in 



Snn 



Son 



Moon Moon 



Moon's 



Clock 1 Day 





tnre near London. 



43 years. 



Rises. 



Sets. 



Rises. ! Sets. 



Aee. 



Sim. Year. 









Day. 



Night. 



Mean. 



Days. 



m. h. 



m. h. 



m. h. 1 m. h. 



Davs. 



m. B. 



7 



Th 



Worksop Horticultural Show. 



70.3 



47.5 



689 



19 



23 afo 



82af6 



2Bal0 ' 2Jaf 2 



23 



1 59 , 253 



8 



P 





69.4 



48.0 



58.7 



19 



25 5 



29 6 



11 11 22 3 



23 



2 20 



251 



9 



S 



Eeigate Hose Show. 



69.1 



481 



61.6 



19 



26 6 



27 6 



morn. 12 4 



24 



2 40 



252 



10 



Son 



14 SUKDAT AFTSE TalKITT. 



69.7 



45.5 



57.6 



21 



27 5 



25 6 



3 55 4 



25 



3 1 



253 



11 



31 





68.7 



47.0 



57.8 



11 



29 5 



22 6 



5 1 29 5 



26 



3 21 



254 



12 



Tn 



Wolverhampton Horticultural Show. 



69.1 



44.8 



57.0 



16 



31 5 



2a 6 



14 2 1 58 5 



27 



3 42 



255 



13 



W 



Nottingham Horticultural Show. 



68,4 



45.7 



57.0 



19 



32 5 



18 6 



23 3 ' 19 6 



28 



4 3 



256 



From obaervationB taken near London daring forty-three years, the average day temperature of the week is 69.2^ and its night tem- 



perature 46.7^ The greatest heat was 91^ on the 7th, 1868 ; and the lowest cold ES', on the 7lh, 1S68. The greatest fall ot rain was 



1.50 inch. 









1 



COCHLIOSTEMA JACOBIANUM. 



ANY amateurs and gardeners set themselves 

 entirely against new plants, exclaiming that 

 all these new species are rubbish, and they 

 will conline themselves entirely to the good 

 old plants. Another class, again, fly into 

 the opposite extreme, and will have nothing 

 hut new plants, and are always eagerly and 

 anxiously watching the market to enable 

 them to be the first to catch any novelty 

 that may appear. Now, ia some respects 

 both these are wrong : for, without wishing in any way to 

 depreciate good old plants, there ai'e many really splendid 

 subjects of recent introduction which no garden should lack ; 

 on the other hand, there are many new plants which are 

 inferior in merit to kinds already in our possession ; so 

 that by adopting the extremes both parties are losers in 

 the end. The happy course to pursue is, therefore, a 

 medium one, carefully selecting plants which appear dis- 

 tinct, and which seem to merit attention for their superior 

 excellence. 



It is an undoubted fact that many grand plants have 

 been introduced into cultivation during the last ten years, 

 and amongst the best of them is that called Cochlio- 

 stema Jacobianum ; it belongs to the order Commelynacete, 

 and derives its generic name from the peculiar spiral ap- 

 pearance of its stamens. Being a native of Ecuador, it 

 must be grown in the moist stove, and whether grown for 

 the beauty of its foliage or its flowers, it is equally grand. 

 The leaves are strap-shaped, sheathing at the base, from 

 1 to 3 feet long, and about 8 inches broad, rich vivid green 

 in colour, and having a narrow margin of mauve. The 

 flowers are produced from the axils of the leaves, and that, 

 too, in the greatest profusion, as it commences flowering 

 usually in March and April, and continues without inter- 

 mission until Christmas. The flowers are produced in large 

 branching panicles, and in colour are light blue and intense 

 violet. Independently of the flowers, the stem is furnished 

 with large and conspicuous bracts, which are as persistent 

 as the flowers, and in colour are of a delicate mauve. 



This plant should have liberal treatment, and should 

 by no means be allowed to become potbound in small 

 pots. The soil ought to he peat, loam, leaf mould, and 

 good well-decomposed manure in equal parts, with silver or 

 river sand added liberally. The drainage should be good, 

 as it enjoys copious waterings ; the water collects in the 

 base of the sheathing leaves, and this should by no means 

 be poured out, as it is a great source of nourishment to the 

 plant, and not injurious as some frequently think. 



Cochliostema Jacobianum is so extremely ornamental 

 both in foliage and in flower, and so easily grown, that no 

 stove, however small, should be without it. — Experio 

 Crede. 



VARIETIES OF PEAS. 

 There is, probably, no vegetable held in so much esteem 

 as a (hsh of nice green Peas. In many establishments it 

 is positively necessary to maiutaia a constant supply from 

 No. 645.— Vol, XXI., New Sebies. 



May to November. In order to do this, a certain amouat 

 of attention and forethought is indispensable. I have 

 often heard the remark made that Peas will grow any- 

 where, and under any circumstances. Of course those who 

 entertain such notions know but little of the matter. 



The garden ground here is not well adapted for vege- 

 table culture, being of a very light nature, resting on a 

 gravel subsoil. I believe a rich deep loam is essential to 

 the successful development of all kitchen-garden crops; 

 without it they cannot resist the summer droughts. My 

 eajrliest crops of Peas are generally good, and obtained 

 without much extra trouble. It is during hot dry weather 

 in July that our kitchen-garden difiiculties commence. I 

 find the only way to obtain crops is by trenching the 

 ground as deeply as the subsoil will permit, at the same 

 time addiirg a liberal portion of manure ; this should be- 

 done in the previous season, if possible. Dm'ing dry 

 weather the hoe is kept at work amongst them, and during 

 excessive drought they require to he watered. This is 

 efl'ected by drawing a drill on each side of the row, and 

 filling it up with water, giving sufficient to saturate the 

 ground to a good depth. A small quantity of water is 

 worse than useless. 



For the earliest crop I grow Taber's Perfection ; it does 

 not come in quite so early as Sutton's Ringleader, but it 

 is a much better cropper, and can be recommended as a 

 very useful variety. Dickson's Favourite and Harrison's 

 Glory come in next, sown together they are ready to pick 

 at about the same time ; both varieties carry large crops. 

 They are much grown in the fields in this neighbourhood 

 to supply the London market, and succeed Sangster's No. 1. 

 or Daniel O'Rourke. During the Pea-picking season a 

 large number of extra hands, principally women and boys, 

 are employed. The crop is seldom picked over more than 

 twice. At the second picking the haulm is pulled up, and 

 the ground is ploughed, and immediately planted with 

 Coleworts. Laxton's Supreme I have grown since it was 

 first sent out. This is a moderately taU variety, and car- 

 ries a good crop of large weU-fiUed pods. Champion of 

 England and Veitch's Perfection are both grand Peas, 

 too weU known to require any recommendation from me. 

 These, with British Queen, I have found sufficient for all 

 purposes. 



There are many new sorts which are highly recom- 

 mended. If some of your readers or contributors have 

 found any of them to be distinct or superior to existing 

 varieties, perhaps they will kindly give us the benefit of 

 their experience. I received one named Magnum Bonnm. 

 on trial this season; it is equal in quality to Veitch's 

 Perfection, but grows as tall as Champion of England, 

 and carries a large crop of the best-filled pods I ever- 

 saw. — J. Douglas. 



TEA- SCENTED ROSES. 



I QUITE agree with your correspondent " SiiFJ-sorL " that 



the Tea-scented Roses are by no means difficult of culture. 



Indeed, if treated properly, they axe easier to deal with than 



some other groups of Roses. But we must not lose sight of 



No. 119T.— ToL. SLTT., OiB Sebies. 



