JOUBNAL OP HOKTICULTUfiE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



[ May 25, 1871. 



where markets are close at hand and there is steam or rail- 

 way transit. We can produce the results of any climate ; but 

 we cannot in point of economy and earliuess compete with 

 mors sunny and southern latitudes. The conclusion of the 

 matter in our opinion is just this, that the possessors of gardens 

 dose to market towns north of London may often find it more 

 economical to purchase early productions than to grow them. 

 If they are several miles from such marts the expense of going 

 and coming must be taken into account. Then to this must 

 be added the great value of freshness and perfection. Those 

 Potatoes on the stall looked very well. Our practised eye could 

 see at once that when cooked they would be waxy and sticky, 

 destitute of the rich flivour of a folly ripened floury tuber just 

 iaken out of the soil, and which, instead of sticking, would be 

 almost melting in the mouth. Still, the Potatoes referred to 

 would be new, even if in quality they were inferior to good old 

 Potatoes. Change in such matters is ever desirable, and the 

 hardworking man appreciates such a change even more than 

 those who are ever seeking after some new enjoyment. We 

 should be sorry if rapidity of transit should in the ease of the 

 possessors of gardens lead them partially to lose the sense and 

 relish of what is really the best. Last year a gentleman told 

 us that his Peas were all eaten by vermin, and he had resolved 

 to grow no more, lay part of his garden in fallow, and send to 



only five miles off, and get a few pecks or bushels as 



wanted. He did so last year, and heard no complaints as to 

 ^juality; he was not much of a judge, and cared nothing or 

 little about Peas. This again is just a case in point. There 

 must be a perfect want of the sense of taste it a man can par- 

 take with equal relish of Peas that have been bagged and sent 

 to mtrket, exposed on a stall, and bagged or basketed again 

 hefore being shelled, and those which have been carefully picked 

 a short time before they are boiled. 



Kidney Beans. — Our first sowings out of djors are a failure. 

 The seed, though treated with every care, has rotted as it 

 swelled, entirely owing, we believe, to the want of sufflcitnt 

 heat. As soon as we found this to be the case we sowed in 

 <5-inch pot?, five or six beans in each, and planged them in a 

 mild hotbed. When duly hardened off we shall plant them out, 

 hills and ail, disturbing them but little. It was no fault of the 

 seed, as that came up without a miss in a little heat. Several 

 similar cases have occurred from sowing la her early, and the 

 seed has been blamed when cold and wet were the causes of 

 •failure. Had the first two weeks of May been warmer and drier, 

 ■the seedlings would have been right enough. Scarlet Eunners 

 hive stood the early sowing better, and are peeping through, 

 and those not doing so are safe. The weather, however, has 

 been cold enough for them ; in fact, as yet we have had the 

 months of April and May reversed, and we shall not be in too 

 great haste to turn tender plants out of doors. Bedded plants 

 and Dahlias early planted have been injured in some places as 

 snuch as the Potatoes, and though Ihey may recover, it is as 

 well that such checks should not be experienced. 



Watering and 2Iulching.—'SVe found that our earliest Peas 

 cut of doors were rather at a standstill, but we disliked the 

 idea of watering them, Eoses, &o., until the ground should be 

 warmer. The weather being milder, we soaked the rows with 

 Louse sewage, as from suds and dish-washings, which in the 

 spring and autumn months are always warmer than the open 

 air water. Gave also a watering to the earliest Cabbages, for 

 we want them in, as they are later than usual, even the earliest 

 of them, having lost the most of those planted in the autumn. 

 These, as well as the Peas, had the surface soil forked over 

 previously, as the rains had rather baked the surface, and 

 where free growth is concerned an open surface is all-import- 

 ant. The Potatoes at the foot of walls, and which had become 

 ■dry from the rains not touching them, have done wonders 

 since they were watered with sewage slightly warmed. When 

 fully exposed we should never think of watering Potatoes. In 

 dry seasons, however, they are the better of earthing-up; it 

 helps to keep more moisture about the roots. We never had 

 finer Potatoes than last season, and yet the fibres must have 

 searched far for moisture, as the tubers seemed as it they 

 had been gathered from mounds of dry ashes. The earliest 

 spiing Ciuliflowers were also well watered, and to keep the 

 moisture in, earth was drawn with a hoe to the stems, so as 

 to leave a hollow all the way for future wat^ r'.og if necessary. 

 If the weather should continue dry we shall mulch all such 

 crops with half-decayed dung, or anything we can find, to save 

 watering, and when plants are well established this often 

 answers better than frequent watering. 

 But for appearance surface manuring has advantages of its 



own. The manure will not yield the luxuriance of growth that 

 it would do when mingled with the soil, but it will give greater 

 sweetness and richness even to the best vegetables ; and as for 

 fruit and flowers, there can be no doubt of the value of manure 

 on the surface, instead of incorporating the manure with the 

 soil. A farmer, with whom we had an argument once about 

 leaving his rather strawy manure to be dried on the field like 

 so many heycocks before plonghicgit down for Turnips, thought 

 he had us at an advantage when he saw rather rotten manure 

 exposed on the surface of a flower bed to become thoroughly 

 sweetened before it was pricked in shallow. But the objects 

 aimed at were quite different — rapid and luxuriant growth in 

 the ease of the Turnip, moderate growth and free-blooming in 

 the case of the flower bed. Without noting chemical principles, 

 there can be little doubt as to the fact that all manures of vege- 

 table or animal origin tell most on free-blooming when pre- 

 sented in a sweet state, and within free reach of atmospheric 

 influences. 



With all our progress we have yet much to learn as to water- 

 ing, manuriog, and surface-mulching. Many a plant out of 

 doors and in-doors is watered out of existence. Mulching 

 with litter or dung will help to keep roots warm in winter, but 

 if left on in the warm days of spring and early summer it will 

 just have the opposite effect of keeping the soil cool : hence for 

 even vegetables, and especially for flower beds, it is important 

 that the soil be warmed before mulching is freely resorted to, 

 as when applied it not only helps to keep moisture in, but also 

 to keep heat out. 



Then as to the effects of manure in a rather fresh rank state, 

 and similar manure more wasted and decayed, but nicely 

 sweetened, anyone may convince himself by just trying two 

 rows of Celery differently treated. If we desired huge plants 

 rather than sweetness and crispness, we would give a good 

 depth of strong rather fresh manure, with 8 inches of more 

 rotten manure and soil on the top. Were le ?s free gi-owth and 

 sweetness of flavour the oliject, we woub"^. :„ from 6 to 9 inches 

 of well- sweetened decayed hotbed dung, with about an equal 

 amount of soil. 



As we have nothing but tanks now to depend npon, our 

 main pond being dry, we shall not be in a hurry in finally 

 transplanting much Celery, as but little water will serve it 

 whilst in the beds in which it was pricked out. 



FETJIT EEPAItI3IEST. 



Took the opportunity of a warm morning to give a good 

 engining with water to Apricots and Peaches. The wind shifts 

 so much to north and east, that it would not be prudent to 

 lash the trees late in the afternoon. We used chiefly clear 

 soot water, as it rather nourishes the foliage, and no insects 

 seem much to like it — it is always better to keep them away 

 than to destroy them when they come. Some of the trees have 

 Buft'ered considerably from the frost, but the crop will be very 

 fair. Plums we fear will not come up to our expectation, and 

 the rich profusion of bloom. For days when in bloom the 

 trees were constantly wet, and then frosty nights and cold 

 easterly winds seemed to wrap the petals round the incipient 

 finit like so many tight indiarubber bands, and instead of 

 swelling, great numbers dropped off". There will on most kinds 

 be a fair crop, but we do not think we shall need much thin- 

 ning. Apricots, too, are very impatient of constant damp 

 whi st they are in full bloom. "With drainage secured it is not 

 easy to hurt them with moisture at the roots. Many trees be- 

 become unhealthy and ultimately die from dryness at the roots 

 alone. In many places, if fine weather continue, they will 

 rejoice in a good watering. 



We watered all the most forward Strawberries out of doors, 

 missing this season the plants which did not show bloom, as 

 they are growing quite strongly enough. In some cases it is 

 easy to detect a fruitful and an unfruitful plant at a distance, 

 the latter is so much more luxuriant. This holds good as re- 

 spects the plants turned out of pots last season after they had 

 fruited. As already stated, we came to the conclusion that the 

 frost killed the fruit buds. Some pieces are pretty well up to 

 the mark, but as a rule, our crop will not be equal to that of 

 former years. 



Peach and Nectarine trees in the orchard house have been 

 watered, and we must begin to thin freely. The trees are 

 loaded with fruit, but they had glorious sunshine when in 

 bloom. We gave a good soaking to trees in the Peach house, 

 the fruit swelling to ripening, using previous to watering a 

 sprinkling of superphosphate on the borders. Weak guano 

 water is also very beneficial after the last swelling is progress- 

 ing. We have less faith in guano than heretofore, we fear 



