38i 



JOUENAL OF HOETICULTUEE AND COTTAGE GABDENEE. 



[ Jane 1, 1871. 



was not beanty bnt utility. We seldom see fralt trees sur- 

 rounded by guards if they are liable to be attacked by rabbits, 

 for the guard is put round the boundaries. Why not do the 

 same with ornamental grounds ? for I am certainly one of those 

 who think there are very few subjects not liable to be attacked 

 either by rabbits' mouths or feet. Once a good wire fence is 

 put up, give the gardeners permission to keep them down ; few 

 will be left to do any harm. Of course I am now referring to 

 pleasure grounds and the like. 



Not less objectionable are the many large stakes we too often 

 see, many of which are larger than the tree they are intended 

 to support ; and some persons are not contented with one, but 

 must have two, frequently not required, and oftener counter- 

 balancing the good they do by their evil in rubbing against the 

 bark — the least friction means death to the branch of a Conifer. 

 Many are the specimens spoiled by it, and quite as many have 

 had their heads blown oS in consequence of the cord not having 

 been loosened in time ; it also takes away the idea of the tree 

 being a native plant, which I think all trees should appear to 

 be. All plants should be self-supported, and if planted pro- 

 perly when young will be so more frequently than many sup- 

 pose. If it is necessary to have support the most convenient 

 way is to have a collar round the tree with three pieces of wire 

 attached to it, and fastened to pegs placed in different directions 

 in the ground. This method is to be recommended as much 

 for its neat appearance as for the welfare of the tree. It pre- 

 vents much friction, consequently there are no dead branches. 

 I have often thought that a collar similar to that used for dogs 

 would be a great convenience, so as to enable a person to draw 

 it in or let it out at will. I imagine that a steel band inlaid 

 with an elastic substance such as gutta pereha would answer 

 well. Cannot some person invent such a thing ? 



I will just note in addition to what I have said as to rabbits 

 attacking one tree and leaving another of the same variety, 

 that the same occurs with different species of the same genus 

 — for instance, the Thujopsis. I never found them touching 

 T. borealis, even during the last severe winter, and that, too, 

 where newly planted out in a wood. Oq the other hand, Thu- 

 jopsis dolabrata cannot be left without protection. I find that 

 rabbits clear all the Thujas and Biotas ; indeed these two classes 

 seem to be ihtir li'.bits, with the exception of Thuja gigantea. 

 We have several dozens of this planted out in all sorts of 

 situations, but I never find one touched. I noticed with regret 

 how fond rabbits are of the Irish Juniper (Juniperus hibernica), 

 they have cleared dozens for us, whilst on the other hand they 

 scarcely touch the Swedish Juniper (J. sneciea). I could enu- 

 merate others, but those named are most permanent in my 

 mind at present. 



With the name of the best of all rabbit-proof trees unfortu- 

 nately I cannot furnish you, but I think it is a Cnpressus. I 

 have sent to many, but they all famish me, to my knowledge, 

 with the wrong name; indeed several nuiserymen who have 

 been this way are equally ignorant. I have enclosed a sprig 

 for your opinion. [It is Eetinospora pisifera beyond a doubt. 

 —Ens.] It is a remarkably fast-growing handsome tree, which 

 the rabbits never touch. We have here many dozens of them 

 planted out in all situations and soils, bnt a dry bog suits them 

 best. The tree throws out its branches horizontally ; the 

 young growth is pendulous, and straightens out with maturity. 

 It is of very bufhy growth, being almost as broad as it is 

 high, much the same in form as a Cedar or a Cnpressus macro- 

 carpa, which we do not find eaten by the rabbits. The foliage 

 is rather lighter tban that of the American Arbor- VilK, hut it 

 does not turn off so brown in winter. It is remarkably hardy, 

 and strikes easily by cuttings. It is altogether a first-rate 

 Conifer, and ought to be in every collection. 



The difficulty in ascertaining the name of this plant brings 

 ;o my mind how little is known by gardeners and even nur- 

 serymen of Conifers, beyond a few of the most popular Piceas, 

 Pinuses, and Cufressuses. If we find a person who can recog- 

 nise seven or eight he is " well up." I had occasion to send 

 for a couple of dozen of Pinuses, &c., to a large nurseryman 

 this last seeson. The answer was for several of them, " We are 

 quite sold cut;" indetd, of some I sent for they knew nothing, 

 and others were really not fit to be sent anywhere but to 

 the rubbish heap, being more dead ihan alive. As to roots, 

 after the amputation they received from the spade there were 

 very few left. With regard to the frequent transplantation 

 which we see stated in the catalogues, I fear it is oftener said 

 than done, at least except in the case of the few popular species 

 mentioned above. Eeform is urgently wanted. 



I have been thinking very much lately about tubs, or rather 



wooden baskets, which were in vogue some years ago. It is"- 

 much the safest plan to have trees in them, but they appear to 

 be dispensed with, as I am informed, for two reasons. First, 

 purchasers are not willing to pay the extra carriage, but this 

 drawback is well compensated by safety in removal and the 

 little check experienced ; and if the tree is to be planted in an 

 unfavourable situation the loss of two or three years' growth 

 is prevented, if not the life of the tree saved. The second reason 

 was that the iron hoops around them are considered by some 

 to be very detrimental to the trees. My informant quoted as 

 an instance some of the Araucarias planted at Bicton not doing 

 so well as could be wished through this, as some suppose ; but 

 to my knowledge the major part of them are doing very well. 

 That is no reason why such tubs should not be adopted, as bad 

 results can be easily prevented by cutting the hoops in two or 

 three places after the tree is put where it is to grow. — J. T., 

 Maesgtcynne, South TTales. 



DESTROYING WORMS AND MOSS ON A LAWN. 



I SEE a question asked in your Journal this week. How to 

 get rid of moss in a shrubbery ? In reply the following may 

 be useful. My lawn was much infested with worms, which 

 rendered it necessary to sweep it almost daily to look at all 

 well ; there was also a great quantity of moss on it. To destroy 

 the worms I had it well watered with a solution of corrosive 

 sublimate, about a teaspoonful powdered to eighteen gallons of 

 water, and I find that, as well as destroying the worms, which 

 were swept up in gallons, all the moss is also destroyed and 

 the grass uninjured. — Philip Ckowley, Waddon House, Croydon^ 



[Tour query you will see replied to by our answer to another 

 correspondent. — Eds.] 



WATER SUPPLY AND STORAGE. 



The best mode of economically securing a sufficient supply 

 of water is becoming every day of more importance in those 

 districts where there is no running stream near. " Why don't 

 you drive some tubes into the ground, on the American pump 

 principle, as they did lately in the war in Abyssinia ? " says 

 one ; but we should have to drive 300 feet before we could 

 reach any water to pump. " I am surprised you do not have 

 Artesian wells, they would yield you such a supply," said a 

 scientific lady. Occupying as high ground as any within 

 some miles of us, it would be rather a singular thing to find 

 water bubbling up under such circumstances from a moderate 

 boring. True, we have found lakes and reservoirs of water 

 on the tops of hills, but that is rather an exceptional cir- 

 cumstance. Where the water is near the surface, there is no 

 plan so simple and economical for securing water as sinking a 

 well, or driving down a tube ; but it is a serious matter when 

 you must go down some hundreds of feet to reach the water- 

 level. Under such circumstances the contest between the 

 merits of wells and tanks and reservoirs is likely to be quite as 

 animated as that between hot-water pipes and hot-water tanks 

 for gardening purposes. One of the great drawbacks of deep 

 wells is the fact, that there is ever a liability to expense in the- 

 breaking of machinery, and in proportion to the depth the 

 difficulty in reaching the water, securing fresh air for wor'imen, 

 &c. The tank is often the simplest and the best. 



Some time ago we detailed how a large building and brick- 

 making firm effected a great saving, when, instead of carting 

 water a long way uphill, and a steep hill, too, they set apart an 

 acre of ground, and had it laid on a uniform slope, so as to tend 

 to a rough tank at one point, covering the ground with a thin 

 layer of concrete rolled firmly. From that space of ground in 

 the driest of these summers they have had abundance of water 

 for a large brickfield. 



On a neighbouring estate occupying an elevated position, the 

 water question was every year becoming more serious as re 

 spects farm, garden, &c., and some years ago a place pretty 

 well an acre in extent was fixed upon, a reservoir built of bricks 

 and cement, and the drainage of from one to two thousand acres 

 conveyed into it, and there has been no scarcity of water since. 

 Even last summer, dry as it was, only lowered the level of the 

 water in this reservoir a few inches. The cost of digging, brick 

 and cement, and labour, was, we are told, £1000, but it has 

 proved to be money most profitably laid out. Carting has 

 chiefly been resorted to, but with a small force pump, and the 

 necessary piping, the water could be sent over all parts of the 

 establishment. Of conrse, those who can secure water other- 

 wise have no occasion to go to such expense ; bnt in many 



