October 19, 1871. ] 



JOURNAL OF HOETICULTUKE AND COTTAGE GAEDENER. 



305 



c'liefly to keep out intruders, as before now on mild nights, 

 merely from leaving air on, we have had numbers of pretty 

 Cauliflower plants cut down by grass mice and rats. Kill and 

 trap as you may, there will never be an end to such work so 

 long as game are encouraged and fed close to the garden. 



One reason of our endeavouring to have the tops of our 

 hand-lights sound is the use we put them to, when not 

 wanted as protectors out of doors, for all propagating purposes 

 during the season. Then, instead of using the bottoms of the 

 glasses, it is often more handy to set the tops on bricks or a rim 

 of wood. We think, however, most of our readers will now be 

 convinced how much more economical it would betousea square 

 or two squares of glass in a frame instead of the double-hipped 

 soof of the hand-light. The catting of the glass to meet all 

 the angles and triangles of the tops of the hand-lights is of im- 

 portance at the present day, on account of the time it takes ; 

 but when glass was expensive, the working-up of all the little 

 pieces became a matter of economy. It is altogether different 

 now, for generally large squares in moderation are cheaper 

 than small ones covering a similar space. 



We think it important to make these remarks, as we have 

 -had several inquiries since last week respecting simple glass 

 protectors. We still hold that a wooden frame with a glass 

 top is the simplest if not the best, and of such we wish we 

 could greatly increase our little stock. Although not at liberty 

 to mention names, we may state that one friend who never 

 tried for early Cauliflowers formerly, had some last season so 

 early as to surprise all his neighbours. These were obtained 

 from a protector formed of four pieces of wood nailed together 

 with eight nails, and enclosing a space 20 inches square, a 

 little elevated on the north side. The tap was covered with 

 one square of glass, from 21 to 26 oz?. to the foot, without a 

 frame of any kind, resting on the boards. He was so satisfied 

 with what he could produce in the way of early Cauliflowers, 

 that we believe he has made a number of such boxes since, and 

 had the glass square secured in a wooden frame 2 inches wide. 



For mere protection we have long satisfied ourselves that a 

 1-inoh board is nearly as good as a 41 -inch brick wall, and 

 2 inches as good as a 9-inoh wall. Where the object is to 

 obtain as much acceleration as possible from summer beat, 

 brick will be superior to wood, as the heat which is absorbed 

 during the day will be given out at night. Much the same 

 result may be obtained even from single wooden structures 

 by shutting up early. We have seen beautiful Cucumbers at 

 the end of May and Jane from seeds sown in a shoemaker's 

 workshop in February. They were kept near the stove until 

 the seedlings were above ground, placed near the window during 

 the day in a small glass case containing a tin that could be filled 

 with hot water, and left nearer the stove at night until the plants 

 were ready to go to a frame or pit, when they would pay well for 

 all the care involved. 



With all the advantages of hot-water heating there ia still 

 this disadvantage, that it has greatly lessened the requisite 

 attention bestowed on everything when there were no such 

 advantages. In conversation with several great gardeners 

 lately they all seemed to agree in this — that it was diminishing 

 the attention exercised by the young gardeners of the day in 

 too many instances, because so much could be done by the 

 simple turning of a valve, and most probably the valve would 

 remain fixed when it ought to be open. After all it is attention 

 to these little matters that makes up the elements of success. 

 The youth who has a mind above giving attention to trifles 

 ought never to think of being a gardener. We were once 

 acquainted with a clever youth, who knew something of almost 

 every " ology," sadly put out because he was taken to task for 

 such a simple thing as not giving air early enough to a Peach 

 house. That want of air, however, made almost every Peach 

 drop before stoning time. Successful gardening results not so 

 much from great scientific and intellectual attainments — though 

 these are desirable when attended with a humble teachable 

 spirit — as from a simple but careful attention to httle things. 

 It ia the latter qualification that has enabled some compara- 

 tively unlettered gardeners, and even cottager and amateur 

 gardeners, to achieve such wonderful results. Get, then, most 

 certainly the best possible means if yon can, but never despise 

 the simplest modes or the most economical makeshifts if you 

 cannot readily get what you consider the best ; and for encou- 

 ragement let us say that some of the largest establishments are 

 often those where the most must be made of the simplest and 

 most economical arrangements. By economical we mean for 

 the time only, as there are reasons why a small yearly expense 

 should be incurred rather than that ten or twenty times the 



amount should be spent at once, though this might be the 

 most economical in the end. 



In the fine dry weather of the week, with the exception of 

 hoeing and slightly forking the surface of the ground among 

 young Cabbages and Lettuces, thus admitting air and deterring 

 slugs, we have done little in the kitchen garden. We have 

 planted, however, more Cauliflower, pricked out a lot of young 

 Onions to stand the winter and come in early, and earthed-up 

 Celery, using thin boards and pieces of spouting to place some 

 ashes round the outside of each plant. As to the Cauliflower, 

 a little drift sand on the surface of the soil prevents the plants 

 from damping, and the rougher the sand the less likely are 

 snails and slugs to go over it. 



Lettuces on Banks. — These did so well with us last winter, 

 when BO many under the protection of frames and at the bases 

 of walls stood very badly, that on a piece of ground from which 

 the summer crops have been taken we have thrown up three 

 wide ridges, and planted them with Lettuces. These ridges 

 run north and south, their sides, therefore, sloping to the east 

 and the west respectively. The bases of the ridges are marked- 

 out 6 feet wide, the apex of each ridge is therefore also 6 feet 

 from its neighbour. This distance secures two things — the 

 apex of each ridge is well raised above the ground level, and 

 the gutter or farrow between two ridges is considerably below 

 the regular ground level. To the comparative dryness of the 

 plants in winter we attribute their greater safety as compared 

 with those planted on the level ground. On each of these 

 ridges we have five rows of plants, two on each sloping side 

 and one along the apex. The ground was well pulverised, 

 and then gently beaten with the back of a spade before plant- 

 ing. The rows are a foot apart, and the plants 6 inches from 

 each other in the row, as the plants, though stubby, are small, 

 and if they. stand well, they can be thinned-out to a foot 

 apart in the spring, when the thinnings will come in for suc- 

 cession. With a little mulching in spring we found the plants 

 on the ridges arrived at great perfection with little or no water- 

 ing. The greater depth of good soil made up for their greater 

 exposure, and the gentle forking over the surface before mulch- 

 ing enabled the spring rains to percolate freely. A crisp early 

 Lettuce being so much enjoyed by many who have only a 

 small rather open garden, must form our excuse for mentioning 

 these details, as we believe that on them the success will chiefly 

 depend. This double-sided ridge will often be more suitable 

 than a bank sloping to the south, as the greater the heat at one 

 time the more risk from frost at another. Such improvised 

 banks are suitable for any soil, but most useful when the soil ia 

 rather heavy. When the Lettuces are gone the banks can be 

 levelled as before ; but if we had plenty of ground we should 

 not object to such banks as the above, and also others running 

 east and west for a continuance. In the latter case we should 

 have them of double the width at the base, and the south slope 

 we would make larger than the north slope. In such cases 

 we have found the south side most useful for early Cauliflowers, 

 Potatoes, &c., whilst the north side was valuable for summer 

 Lettuces, and late Strawberries. A great deal may be done 

 even in small gardens by making, as it were, so many climates 

 for ourselves. 



Onions. — After the ground was well dug and firmed by 

 rolling the surface in this fine weather, the Onions were 

 fastened by the roots, without burying the stem at all, a secret 

 for obtaining fine bulbs instead of thick long necks. We often 

 do this in the early spring, but we get them rather larger when 

 they are planted in autumn for the roots to get firm hold 

 before winter. 



Celery we earthed-up, some wholly, especially the dwarf, but 

 the tall red only partially, to enable the heart to rise well. At 

 this season it is well to take advantage of the dry weather for 

 this purpose, as the dews of night will partly supply the waste 

 by evaporation during the day. There will also be little or no 

 danger of bolting, or of seed-stems appearing in consequence 

 of dryness at the roots. 



FBUIT DEPAKTJUENT. 



We have not been able to remove a second sprouting of little 

 shoots from bush and pyramidal trees as we wished, since the 

 more air and sunlight there is admitted, the better ia it for the 

 buds to be left. The weather was so tempting that we gathered 

 the most of our hardy fruit, though from present arrangements 

 we have been obliged to store it away temporarily, as we feared 

 that after a week of frosty mornings there might come close, 

 damp weather when the moon appears in the evening instead 

 of in the morning. The careful handling of all the keeping 

 fruit ia of much importance. One singular fact has happened 



