326 



JOUKNAL OF HOETICULTUBE AND COTTAGE GABDENER. 



[ October 26, 1871. 



quite possible, but will not explain -why my Pears decay in less than 

 half the ordiDaiy time." 



EunriyG Roses (J. R. D.}. — Tonr Briar Roses having been badded 

 where they are to grow permanently, I should not move any so budded to 

 fill up vacancies or failures, but put in fresh Briars, and bud them nest 

 year. Kever disestabJish any Roses doing well. Stocks, either Briar or 

 ilanetti, established before budding, have a great advantage OTer re- 

 moved Roses. This is one of the reasons of nnrserymen"s successes at 

 Rose exhibitions. The first six Tea Boses you name are the best up to this 

 time, and the first two are the best of all — Devoniensis, Souvenir d'Elise, 

 Madame Willermoz, Souvenir d' uh Ami. and Adam. The following are 

 also goofi :— Homer, Rubens, Sombreuil, and President; and for glass 

 culture, Elise Sauvage, Vicomtesse de Gazes, and Madame Bravy. The 

 following are the best of the new Tea Roses, so far as I have seen 

 them— viz., Madame Margottin. Madame Trifle, and Marie Sisley. Marie 

 Sisley is a perfect globe and fall, and when it has a roseate band round 

 the edges of the petals it is a very superior Rose. — W. F. Radclyffe. 



Eendle'3 Plant Protectors (Jeune Jardinier).— Nothing more can be 

 said about them except as an advertisement. 



Cliheers for the South Front of a House (.^ma^eur).— Bignonia 

 radicans, Ceanotbus grandiflorus. C. azureus, Escallonia macrantha, Mag- 

 nolia grandiflora, Passiflora caerulea ; Roses Cloth cf Gold, Marechal Niel, 

 Sir Joseph Paxton ; and Eccremocarpus scaber. Tecoma is the same as 

 Bignonia radicans. Tecoma jasminoides will not succeed against a south 

 wall. To the plants you name you may add Jasminum grandiflorum, 

 Lardizabala biternata.Chimonanthus fragrans,Embothrium coccineum, 

 and Garrva eUiptica. The white Wistaria flowers as freely as the lilac one. 

 Lamnrque and Solfaterre are first rate Roses for a wail, so is Climbing 

 Devoniensis. Next to Passiflora cferulea, P. Comte Nesselrode is good, but 

 we question its succeeding on a south wall. It is, however, worth a trial. 

 All the Ipomffifls are too tender, and the same remark holds good of 

 Thnnbergias. Tropsolum speciosum will succeed. 



Planting out Belladonna Lilies (J. B. B.).— Plant them out as you 

 propose on the warm border in front of the stove, and give a top-dressing 

 of partially decayed leaves. 



Stephanotis floribcnda FEtfiTiNG (G. J3.).—lt is not unusual for 

 this climber to fruit. Several instances have recently been noted in oar 

 pages, and ten years ago we saw plants raised from seeds ripened in this 

 country. 



Wistaria sinensis Cuttings (Idem). — Put in cuttings of the young 

 shoots under a hand-light, when they are firm, in sandy soil, and keep 

 them moist and shaded. Layers, however, are preferable ; every joint of 

 the ripened young shoots will make a plant. When rooted pot and grow 

 them in a warm situation out of doors, encouraging a young shoot, and 

 take off its point at 4 feet. Stop the side shoots at threeor four leaves as 

 yon would those of a pyramid Apple or Pear. The plant sometimes' 

 flowers in autumn — in fact, it generally produces some stray blossoms at 

 that season, bnt the principal flowering takes place late in spring or 

 early in summer. 



Flower Garden Planting fC. T. H., Dorset).~JJ-nles5 we edged the 

 whole of the beds, we do not see how we could improve on your planting ; 

 but we think that 10 and 11 would he improved by Golden Pyrethrnm in- 

 stead of CerastJum, and then instead of Pyrethrnm we would place Ce- 

 rastium round 14, 15, 16, and 17. We feel sure the garden will look easy 

 and very pretty. 



Yaeeegated Mangold Leaves (J. L.).—'We would save the plant 

 having the yellow and green variegated foliage, and try if the seedlings 

 from it would come true, as then it might be useful in borders of fine- 

 folinged plants. It is possible that the seedlings may revert to their 

 original green type, and it is also probable that the variegation will re- 

 main, just as in the case of Kales. 



Gooseberries {Quis).— Yon cannot do better than apply to the nur- 

 seryman you name. 



Gathering Pears (Fwmn Taxcle) — The best time to gather your 

 Winter Crasanne Pears is when they will sever easily from the spur by 

 merely lifting the fruit upwards without twisting or wrenching them off. 

 The Winter Crasanne ripens uncertainly, and rarely ripens at all. The 

 best way to use them is to stew them. 



Not Watering Vines {A Novice).— Ih-eWnes will not sufi'er, though 

 the soil on the surface of the border may be dry for a couple of inches or 

 so, as the roots are so far from the surface. You could not keep the 

 Grapes well if the soil is watered now. We do not think that any mode 

 of keeping Grapes quite equals leaving them on the Tine in a dry house, 

 hut the bnnches keep very well with the shoot inserted in bottles of 

 water, or even into Turnips or Beetroot. The important point is, that 

 the place where they are put must be airy, dry, and free from frost. It 

 is often advisable to make a compromise, and so treat Grapes after 

 Christmas, as whilst they hang the house cannot be used for other pur- 

 poses. 



Erecting a Tineet, &c. (TT. A''ocfc)— Asyouhave awaU at the north 

 Bide, we would for early Grapes recommend a lean-to house. For earli- 

 ne?s, too, we should prefer bringing the glass roof within 2 or 3 feet of 

 the ground : hut as you want to walk all round. yoQ will require the front 

 to be from Z\ to 6 feet in height, and about 4 feet of that to be glass. 

 With Vines planted at the back and in front, a wooden or an open iron 

 trellis would be best for walking on. The sparred shelf for plants might 

 be 2i feet from the ground in front, and the central stnge S feet 

 from the ground. A fiat stage would do well, but you can have more 

 plants if your stage has a centre and falls to the back and front. If you 

 force early, the bf:dding plants will have to be removed soon after you 

 begin to force. Such simple houses do most service when the Vines are 

 assisted rather than forced. The depth of 2 feet will do for the Vine 

 border, bnt as you plant inside, the drainage must be looked to before 

 making the border. A flue will heat such a bouse, from 20 to SO feet long, 

 admirably. As to expense, we could not do better than refer you to our 

 advertising columns, where you will see how much a cheap house will 

 cost. 



Greenhouse Shelves {M. G). — The proposed alteration of shelves 

 will not interfere with the bedding Geraniums, &c .furtherthan from the 

 lowering of the shelves they will be at a greater distance from the glass 

 and will, therefore, be more liable to draw. The ammonia from a Mnsh- 

 room-bed beneath the stage will not injure the plants, nor will the steam 



arising from the forcing of Rhubarb and Sea-kale, provided the dung be 

 sweet. The Mushroom-bed will give off some heat, and render less fire 

 heat necessary. It is now too late to put in cuttings of Verbenas, except 

 in a brisk heat. You may tab-e up the old roots with balls, pot them, and 

 winter them in the greenhouse. They will efford you a number of cut- 

 tings in spring, and these will strike freely in gentle heat, and make good 

 plants by the end of May, 



Evaporating-pans on Hot-water Pipes (J. E).~The zinc pans will 

 answer admirably for the purpose, and with care will last many years. In 

 making the base semicircular to clasp the 4-inch iron pipe, there" will be a 

 depth ol water at each side, and if there be from three-fonrtbs to 

 1 inch in the centre, it will do for general purposes. Of course, if the 

 depth over the centre is 2 inches it will take a longer time to evaporate the 

 water. If the pans are made to fit the pipes tolerably well, there will be 

 a considerable amount of evaporation by merely setting them on the hot- 

 water pipes. The evaporation will be increased if along the sides, at 

 bottom, and each end there is a coating of white or red lead not overthick. 

 But if you want the greatest amount of evaporation from your pans, you 

 mustsmearthe rounded bottom well over with red lead or thick paint, and 

 then squeeze it firmly down on the pipe when it is rather cool. In the 

 first two cases the air, however small the quantity of it between the hot- 

 water pipe and the trough, acts as a non-conductor. In the third case no 

 air can be left. A clever mechanic would not believe that between the 

 secord and third mode there could be much difference, until he saw that 

 the second method took double the time to evaporate a certain quantity 

 of water that the third method did. 



Tane-heated House (An Old Subscriber). — ^Will not 6i feet to the ridge 

 be rather low for a 15-feet-wide span-roofed house? With a 4-feet-wide 

 tank in the centre you will either have little head room, or if the sides of 

 the house are high enough forthat, then thereof must be rather fiat. With 

 sufficient head room it would not matter if the sides were rather low, as 

 we presume you intend to have a platform all round for plants. We have 

 no objection to the tank-heating, but we do not perceive how a saving in 

 expense is to be managed when good piping can be had for 9d. per foot ; 

 but that is a matter of opinion. Unless the tank is well made of wood, 

 we do not think that either a cement or an iron tank would be so 

 cheap as having iron pipes with rubble round them for affording bottom 

 heat. The objection to wood is, that it gives out little or no heat from 

 the sides, but only from the slates on the top. If a tank is formed of 

 brick or iron, the sides will radiate heat. In such a case the s'des might 

 be 7 inches in height, though the water inside might be no higher than 

 3 inches, or at most 4 inches. You are quite correct in respect to the 

 mode of connecting the tank with the boiler, but the tank must be level 

 throughout. The tank will answer admirably, but our own opinion is, 

 that pipes would be cheaper, packing round them rubble, and coverings 

 the top with fine-washed gravel, with holes or pipes inserted upright to 

 pour water among the rubble when necessary. With the 3-inch pipes 

 round the house besides, there would be no difBcnlty in keeping up in 

 severe weather a temperature at least 10° higher than from 45^ to od^ in 

 ■winter. With these pipes your tank need not be more than 4^ inches 

 deep. See what is said of having the sides deep. The water would cir- 

 cnlate freely enough in both tanks and pipes if, as you propose, the pipes 

 were on a lower level than the tank, but tiie pipes must be close all round, 

 and at the highest point an air pipe must be inserted, which, if open at 

 the top, must stand a foot higher than the level of the tank. You had 

 better have an opening in the top of the tank, so that by means of a plug 

 you may be able at times to regulate the fiow, until the pipes on the lower 

 level get their fair portion of the flow. Sometimes that may be neces- 

 sary. A small saddle boiler or a small conical one will equally answer 

 your purpose if it be properly set, well used, and a damper be regulated. 

 House for Plants {J. P.). — We have no doubt that the proposed plan 

 will answer generally. Planting out or plunging pots as required will 

 look neater than any stage. The plants will not get weak as in the esta- 

 blishment you refer to, nor will they be disinclined to bloom freely, as 

 the light in your case will be unobstructed, and the ^iass will be so much 

 nearer the plants. The small boiler inside the house will do, but it would 

 be better if you could feed it from the outside. One pipe round the house, 

 with such a surface of glass exposed, vriU scarcely keep the frost out iu 

 severe weather. We have no objection to the proposed mode of glazing, 

 only we should like some soft non-conducting material between the glass 

 and the iron clips. 



Orchard-house Construction (T.H T.). — With trees against the back 

 wall it will be better to have no standards planted there, if the pathway 

 should be a little nearer. You can then have Ihe back wall in fruit to 

 the bottom of the wall. The other arrangements as regards planting and 

 pots will do. The ventilation will not be too much ; it will be sufficient 

 if you have a ventilator at each end, say a triangle from 24 to 30 inches 

 wide at the base- It would be advisable to divide the house and heat one 

 part, and for fruit in June it would be advisable to have a couple of pipes 

 in the coldest portion. For your earliest end you may have White Fron- 

 tignan, Black Hamburgh, Boyal Muscadine, and even Muscat Vines. For 

 the late house have Black Hamburgh. Trebbiauo, West's St. Peter's, and, 

 if heat is given, Lady Downe's. L)f eany Peaches have Early Grosse 

 Mignonne, Noblesse, Bellegarde ; of Nectaiines, Elruge, Hardwicke Seed- 

 ling, Rivers's Orange, Violette Hative, &c. 



NiTRO-PHOSPHATE. &c. (E. F. W.).—l get my nitro-phosphate from 

 Mr. Blandford, of the Dorset Nurseries, Blandford. It is the same, I 

 believe, as " blood manure." I use it for Peach and Nectarine trees, a& 

 well as Roses, when the trees are heavily cropped. " Steevie " takes up 

 a double handful, drops it into my three-gallon watering-pot, gives it a 

 eood stir with a stick, and then pours over the ''radius of the roots." 

 One, two, or three gallons according to the requirements of the trees — 

 Roses or wall trees— is poured on the roots. It is an excellent manure 

 and innocuous. Apply it to the Rose trees in April, or at any time they 

 require it. I am not a vinitor, but when Mr. Beck, Mr. Start's distinguished 

 gardener, came to see the Roses and wall trees, I told him my two Black 

 Hamburghs (fifty years old, planted outside), shanked "first-rate'' every 

 year. He said, *" Pluck them up, plant new Vines inside, have an arch- 

 way for the roots to rnn out into the outer soil, and then you will have 

 some good Grapes." — W. F. Radclvffe. 

 Spiders (A Lady in Cheshire). — Many spiders live through the winter; 

 I in fact, some individuals lead ns to the conclusion that their existence 

 ] may last several years. Of those that hybernnte, some continue in the 

 1 net which they have constructed in the autumn, and others migrate 

 I from one spot to another in mild weather, making occasional nets to 



