266 



JOURNAL OF HOETICDLTUEE ANJ) COTTAGE GAEDEKEE. 



t October 5, 1871. 



fresh, however small. VTe would not advise this in the ease of 

 strong plants of Savoys and Brussels Sprouts, though they may 

 not have a sound leaf left on them. We would wash them 

 with the syringe as stated above, and with the help at the 

 roots of such rains as we have had, we feel very confident we 

 should obtain many gatherings of nice small heads or shoots 

 from the stems, ten times more in quantity than we could 

 expect from young plants turned out at the end of September. 

 In all such cases we should, then, advise the leaving of the strong 

 stems, though the leaves are mostly eaten and gone, but to 

 make doubly sure the ground might be forked over, and young 

 plants dibbled in between. The old stems, if sound and fresh, 

 "will, however, be the plants to depend on for large heads. 



Cauliflowers. — As soon as the ground shall have become a 

 little drier we shall plant out what we intend for hand-lights, 

 will most likely pot some, and prick-out where a little protection 

 can be given, as with all our after-care the earliest Cauliflower 

 is generally the best. For late-heading Cauliflower the raius 

 have been very favourable. Xoung Cauliflowers intended for the 

 flrst crop nest year can hardly be too young now. They are 

 less liable to button than older plants. 



Celenj. — Fortunately we have plenty earthed-up to go on 

 with, as we should not like to earth-up in such weather. Most 

 likely after so much rain we shall use sifted furnace ashes 

 r'jund the plants to keep worms and slugs from the stems. 

 "We have had sent us some leaves of Celery much infested with 

 the Celery grub, which, secure between the two skins, eats up 

 "the jaicier substance between them. There is no remedy now 

 bat taking off all such leaves, and burning or otherwise destroy- 

 ing them before the grubs eat their way out to go to the earth, 

 and pass through their chrysalis state. The most simple and 

 sSective preventive we have found is very slightly dusting the 

 plants several times with dry soot after the end of June. The 

 scent seems to deter the fly from depositing its eggs, and where 

 there are no eggs there will be no grubs. At any rate we have 

 not been troubled since we used that simple precaution. 



FP.UIT GAP.DES. 



The winds have blown down some of the best fruit, and the 

 most forward will need gathering as soon as dryness seta in. 

 Oar crops of Apples and Pears are very fair, but in general a 

 small crop, especially of Apples, is the rule in this neighbour- 

 hood. As an evidence, a gentletEao, who has a large garden 

 which he cultivates for profit, told us he had a wonderful crop 

 «f Apples last year, and could make but very little of them. 

 This season he did not think he had a tenth part of the crop 

 of last year, and yet he received from a dealer just five times as 

 •much money for them. In some places, as at Luton Hoo, 

 i'ears are far beyond an average crop. The diSerence as to 

 the yield of fruit at two places is in some seasons astonishing, 

 though there may be no great distance between the places, and 

 the treatment given very much alike. 



Filberts and Nuts which are ripe should be gathered so as to 

 J)6 safe from their many admirers, four-footed and two-footed. 

 When dried pretty well we never found them keep better than 

 when packed pretty tightly in 10-inch pots, the pots set closely 

 in a place of an equal rather low temperature, with a sod of 

 turf reversed placed over the pot, and merely a double layer of 

 paper beneath it. Of course, mice and rats must be looked 

 after, or they would soon empty the pots as effectually as 

 squirrels would do. This idea was first suggested to us by 

 finding nuts with the outside covering even fresh in the under- 

 ground storehouse of a squirrel in the month of ilirch. 



We thought that after such deluges of rain our fruit would 

 be free from wasps and insects, but we found some hard Seckle 

 Pears to-day pretty well filled with wasps ; but we must say, in 

 all honesty, that they seemed to have taken possession after 

 mice and rats had nibbled a way for them. The wet, too, we 

 find has cracked a number of fine Plums before they are ripe. 



For general details we must refer to previous numbers, 

 merely stating that late Peaches in the orchard house are now 

 very useful, that late vineries wanted more air and more heat 

 in these wet days, and that to neutralise the deluges of rain we 

 put some 6 inches of dry litter over the outside borders. We 

 would have used sashes or other modes of throwing-off water 

 if we could. 



0R>;AlIESTAIi DEPAKTMEXT. 



We have alluded to the effects of the rain ; one simple fact is 

 worth noting. If flower beds are kept picked — that is, all 

 dead and decaying blooms removed, a moderate rain does them 

 little injury. If faded flowers are washed over fresh ones, the 

 appearance is greatly marred. We expected rain, and turned 

 all available labour to pick the beds on a dry afternoon. As 



stated, the beds, say of Geraniums, so thick with fine masses 

 of bloom that you could scarcely find room for a finger be- 

 tween them, stood the rain of four days and four nights with 

 impunity ; so that if no rain and winds had succeeded, the 

 beds and borders would have suffered but little. This favour- 

 able result so far was to a great extent owing, in our opinion, 

 to the previous removal of all faned blooms. 



We need say nothing of lawns. Nothing could be better for 

 them ; and as to walks, we shall pass a roller over them as soon 

 as the weather is dry enough. The chief work has been re- 

 potting Pelargoniums that had broken after being pruned, 

 potting Lycopods and Ferns, taking Salvias, Heliotropes, &c., 

 under shelter, puttiug-in cuttings under glass, cleaning, sur- 

 face-stirring, and giving abundance of air to the cuttings struck 

 and striking. As we must keep our cuttings in little room 

 without potting, this last matter of air-giving is of importance 

 for keeping them stubby and healthy in winter. We also took 

 under glass Scarlet Geraniums that had been repotted — at least 

 part of them — for late autumn and winter blooming. Most of 

 our cuttings have been protected from the rain, but the sashes 

 have been raised back and front to allow the air freely to pass. 

 We would house Azaleas and Camellias now if we could, but 

 we must look after them and wait a little longer. If we had 

 intended doing much in the way of forcing Lilacs, Ehodcden- 

 drons, and hardy Azaleas, we would have nad them potted by 

 the middle of October, and if the pots had a little bottom heat 

 all the better. We have thus forced Eoses well in winter that 

 were taken out of the ground and potted in October. The 

 great point is to be obtain fresh roots before you start the 

 buds.— E. F. 



TRADE CATALOGUES RECEIVED. 



William Paul, Waltham C/oss, London, X. — Hose Catalogite, 

 1871-7-2. 



E. G. Henderson & Son, Wellington Eoad, St. John's Wood. 

 London, N.W. — Catalogue of Bulbs and Flvwer Boots. Steve and 

 Greenliuuse Plants, tic. 



Eichard Dean, S, Denmart Villas, Ealing.— Catalogue of Hyacintlis 

 and other Bulbs, Hardy Bedding Flants, d-c. 



Butler & McCulloch, Covent Garden Market, London, W.C. — 

 Catalorjiie of Dutch and Cape Bulbs, tC-e. 



William Thomson, Tweed Vineyard, Clovenfords by Galashiels. — 

 Catalogue of Vines and Pines. 



Barnard, Bishop, & Barnards, Xonrich. — Catalogue of Garden 

 Requisites. 



Child & Co., 49, Darley Street, Bradford, and Bradford Nurseries, 

 Shipley. — Catalogue of Dutch Bulbs, d-c. 



George Yates, Underbank, and Eoyal Oat Hills, Stockport. — Cata- 

 logue of Flov:er Boots. 



D. Dauvesse, Avenue Dauphine, Orleans. — Catalogue of Fruit and 

 Ornamental Trees and Shrubs, d-c. 



Haupt- Catalog der Koniglich Prinzlicli Niederliindischen Baumschu- 

 len, Muitau (Park-Inspector, E. Petzold). — Catalogue of Fruit and 

 Ornamental Trees and Shrubs. 



David G. McKay, Market HiU, Sudbury, Suffolk. — Descriptive Cata- 

 logue of Dutch Flower Boots, Bases, Fruit Trees, Ornamental Trees 

 and S?u-ubs, dx. 



TO CORRESPONDENTS. 



Books (Delia, Scarborouiih]. — For exotic Ftrns, Hooker's "IconesFili- 

 cum;" for English Ferns, Moore's '* ^"ature-printed Ferus." They have 

 coloured plates. 



OFFENsrvELT-saiELLT^G FCNGUS (TF. Simons). — It is Phallus impudicus, 

 long known and common. 



Botanic Garden (J. STnith). — Many gardens are termed "Botauie," 

 which have no just pretension to the name. If it is really intended to 

 make the garden illuslratlve of the science of botany, a portion of the 

 garden should have plants in it arranged accordingto the Natural System, 

 and all have labels with the names written upon these. Even ia all other 

 parts of the garden each plant or group of the same plant should be simi- 

 larly labelled. As to the ornamental parts, that must be left to the judg- 

 ment of the managers. 



Who is a Practical Gardener? (Rose). — A man who understands 

 gardening, and can cultivate the plants grown in a garden, and perform 

 the operations there required is a practical gardener, though he never 

 was apprenticed to one of the trade. 



Outgoing and Inco^ung Tenant iIjiqnirer).—The incoming tenant 

 need not pay you for the trees you have planted, and if you injure or 

 remove them the landlord could recover their value from you. 



Eeurre Bolewtller Pear (G. A. T.). — This is stated to be one of 

 the best late Pears, succeeding the Easter Beurre, carrying on the 

 succession several weeks later, and being of as good quality at the begin- 

 ning of May as it was in March. It requires to be grown on the Pear 

 stock. We cannot say whether it is to be depended upon in the midland 

 counties. Bergamotte Esperen forms a more healthy and fruitful 

 pyrainid. 



Peat (5. E. C). — Any of the dealers who advertise in our columns 

 would readily supply you, at your railway station. If you want but a 

 small quantity you might obtain it from a neighbouring nurseryman. 



