66 



JOUENAL OF HOETICULTUBE AND COTTAGE GAEDENEB. 



[ January 20, 1871. 



ripening, and to ripen perfectly they regnire a bigh tempe- 

 rature, especially by day, a dry atmosphere, and, of oonrae, 

 abundance of air. From their liability to crack the berries 

 ehonld be well thinned. The border may with advantage be 

 formed of one-fourth chalk, in lumps from the size of a walnut 

 to that of a hen's egg. 



Other kinds, neither Muscats nor Prontignans, I must again 

 divide into those not requiring much heat, and those which do. 



Kinds not requiring strong beat are — Black Hamburgh, 

 Frankenthal, Black Prince, Due de Magenta, Trentham Black, 

 and Black Champion, all black; Buckland Sweetwater, General 

 della Marmora, Golden Champion, Golden Hamburgh, and 

 Poster's White Seedling, all white or elighlly amber-coloured. 

 These ripen in August if assisted with a slight fire heat during 

 March, and later in cold periods and when ripening, constant 

 fire heat not being necessary for successful ripening. 



Kinds requiring beat are — Mill Hill Hamburgh, a fine Grape, 

 the finest of all the Hambnrghs ; West's St, Peter's ; White 

 Tokay ; and White Nice. These require a temperature averag- 

 ing 5° higher than is necessary for the Black Hamburgh and 

 the other varieties just named. 



Of late Grapes, the Muscats must take precedence. I recom- 

 mend Muscat of Alexandria, Bowood Muscat, Mrs. Piuce, and 

 Madresfield Court Muscat (the first two are not in good order after 

 Christmas — all four I would have in a house by themselves) ; 

 Lady Downe's ; Black Alicante, berries roundish-oval, large, 

 also bunches ; West's St. Peter's ; Burchardt's Prince, berries 

 oval, medium-sized, bunches long ; Barbarossa [Gros Guil- 

 laume], berries round, large, enormous bunches; Trebbiano, 

 berries oval, large, bunches enormous ; Syrian, berries oval, 

 bunches largest of all ; Calabrian Raisin, or Eaisin de Calibre, 

 berries round, large; Eoyal Vineyard, berries round, medium- 

 sized, bunches long. 



The Syrian, Trebbiano, and Eoyal Vineyard, may be objected 

 to on account of their poor flavour. In my opinion the Syrian 

 when well ripened is as good as many others, and it and 

 Trebbiano, for variety of dessert, are indispensable late in the 

 season when there is no other white kind so good as Trebbiano. 

 Eoyal Vineyard on the same score is also excellent for late pur- 

 poses. White Nice is well worth growing, though it is not so. 

 good in flavour as many, yet its enormous bunches always 

 command attention whether on the Vine or at the dessert. 



In conclusion, I would direct attention to the advisability of, 

 as far as practicable, growing in one house only kinds requiring 

 a similar temperature. Prequently we see an extensive vinery 

 planted with nearly every kind of Grape, and some not doing 

 so well as they otherwise would had the house been divided by 

 a partition of glass, and the varieties requiring least heat 

 placed in one part, and those needing most heat in the other. 

 There can be no objection to this arrangement, as the expense 

 of a division is but trifling, and the modifications needed in 

 the heating apparatus will not iavolve an expense that should 

 deter anyone from adopting the separate system. It is owing 

 to mixed planting and growing in one vinery kinds requiring 

 different temperatures, that some kinds have not their proper 

 place in popular estimation. For instance, Canon Hall Muscat 

 is rarely seen in good condition, and its companion Black 

 Damascus is little better. Both have one fault — i.e., non- 

 setting. What would they be were they grown in a house by 

 themselves, their roots in a heated border, and with a tem- 

 perature 5° higher than is given to Muscats ? — G. Abbey. 



OBTAINING MOIST HEAT. 



I HAVE a small propagating frame inside a warm honse, with 

 a flow and return round the house, and I have enclosed part of 

 one end of the pipes with bricks,' and put a frame on the top, 

 covering the pipes with blue slate to support the soil for the 

 cuttings ; but I find it is too dry, and burns np the cuttings 

 before they are rooted. I thought of having a zinc trough filled 

 \7ith water to fit inside the frame on the pipes, say 6 inches in 

 depth, and then to put the slates on the top to obtain a moist 

 heat. By having a tap at one end I might take the chill off the 

 water before watering. — Young Beoksee. 



[Ton can have all the moist bottom heat you want by merely 

 lunning a waterproofed rim round the slate, say 1 inch deep, 

 cover It with small pebbles, and on that set the pots, with what 

 plunging material you think best — not to make heat, but merely 

 to retain it. A small pipe will enable you to keep the slate and 

 the pebbles moist. Your proposed substitution of a small tank 

 will answer, but if you cover the top seonrely your heat will be 



as dry as from the slate. With a tank, a cover of zinc or plate 

 iron pierced with holes would be best. — Eds.] 



SLOW COMBUSTION AND ECONOMY IN FUEL. 



My house is a span-roof, 17 feet long and 9 feet wide, heated 

 by a flue which runs round three sides under the stage. There 

 is no ashpit door, and no damper. I at first tried stopping up 

 the ashpit opening, after I had obtained a good fire, by loose 

 bricks, elates, or anything else that came to hand. This 

 answered pretty well, but I could never thoroughly depend 

 upon it. Occasionally I found a too vigorous fire, and the 

 thermometer inside registering 70° ; or the fire burnt quite out 

 in a few hours. The plan I now adopt answers much better. 

 I leave the ashpit always open, and thoroughly cleared out» 

 I obtain a good, large, bright fire, and keep it bright if th& 

 thermometer is lower than I wish it to be, until it rises to the 

 desired height, which it will do in a very short time ; I then 

 thi-ow on four or five shovelsful of fine ashes; I prefer the 

 ashes wet if the night is likely to be cold, as they burn rather 

 better than if dry. If the weather is mild, and I am anxious to 

 keep the heat down, I use dry ashes, and leave the fninace- 

 door about 2 or 3 inches open. I have frequently so left my 

 fire at six o'clock in the evening, and found it stiU alight at 

 three o'clock the next afternoon, and a nice steady heat main- 

 tained.— 5. Y. Z. 



[There are many roads leading to one place. We know your 

 plan will answer, but it is a wasteful one, as when a fui'nace- 

 door is left open, the air that freely passes over the fire cools 

 the flue, and there is a consequent loss of fuel. We approve 

 of getting- up the desired heat at once, and then having a slow, 

 combustion where a regular heat is wanted in continuous 

 frosty weather. Why not secure the same result more easily 

 and better by having a common, close-fitting ashpit-door, when 

 you can regulate draught ? You need no damper for a flue 

 then. We generally use ashes for backing-up. — Ens.] 



CONSEQUENCES OF THE WINTER. 



Now that the effects of the severe frost are pretty well known 

 and felt throughout the country, it will be interesting and 

 profitable to report from various parts to what extent we have 

 suffered, and the lowest degree of temperature registered. 



On the night of the 23rd of December our thermometer fell 

 to 1° Fahrenheit, and on the 21:th to 1° below zero. On both 

 days we had a heavy fall of snow to the depth of 1 foot. Com- 

 mon Laurels, Aucubas, and Laurustiuus are all severely injured 

 — not a green leaf to be seen on them, and it will be a diificult 

 matter to know how to out them until the new growth ccm- 

 mences. The Deodars are all severely injured, and must lose 

 all their leaves, and I fear many of our choice Koses will be 

 killed ; a fine plant of Mar6chal Neil on a south wall is killed, 

 while one on a north wall appears to be unhurt. 



What will most effect us at present (and to this I wish to 

 draw particular attention), is the loss of our vegetable crops, as 

 Broccoli, Savoys, and Brussels Sprouts. Cabbage stalks are 

 all killed, and we are glad to bury them to get rid of the un- 

 pleasant smell. Young Cabbages which were well covered with 

 snow are injured, but will recover if milder weather come. 



Any suggestions which can be offered by your correspondents 

 as to the best and quickest method of providing substitutes 

 for the losses we cannot repair, will, I am sure, be thankfully 

 received by those who may have suffered to the same extent as 

 we have done here in East Kent. I win conclude these few 

 remarks by suggesting a substitute for Peas, which I have 

 heard of and am about to try — that is, to sow any common 

 Peas in boxes in beat, and use the young green tops as a vege- 

 table. — William Addeklit, The Gardens, Bourne Park, Can- 

 terbury. 



The Cabbaqb. — The close-beaded variety, which is now more 

 peculiarly called Cabbage, was for many years imported into 

 England from Holland. Sir Anthony Ashley first introduced 

 its cultivation, and made the English independent of their 

 neighbours for a supply. This planter of Cabbages likewise 

 made his name known by other deeds less creditable to his 

 character. It is related that he had a command at Cales 

 (Cadiz), where he got much by rapine, especially froma lady 

 who entrusted her jewels to his honour; whence the jest on 

 him (like on Butler about the spoons, whether true or false). 

 The saying is, that be, Sir Ashley, got more by " Cales " than 

 by " Cab " and Caboage. ^3 tailors are said to be fond of 



