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JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



[ Jane 1, 1871. 



The most profitable angle for the roof, all things considered, is about 45-, 

 l:)iit a very flat roof ^ill do for general purposes, when you have upright 

 glass in front, as that admits the sun's rays freely in winter, late autumn, 

 and early spring. The most economical mode of ventilating a fixed roof 

 has been referred to above. Leave a space 1 foot wide between the ridge- 

 hoards, and supply the space with boards, pivot-hung, that will open at 

 once when the support is withdrawn. The arrangement and amount of 

 piping will depend entirely on what is wanted from it, and the size of the 

 house. Supposing the house to be 40 feet by 20, about 200 feet of piping 

 would be necessary in order to ripen Grapes at the end of June, half as 

 much more to ripen tbem earlier, and double that quantity to have them 

 very early. The most profitable plan for the pipes would be to place 

 them level on each side within 2 feet or so of the respective sides, as 

 might be convenient. Pipes placed on the level wiU do more work than 

 those raised above each other in stacks. 



Vines not Fruiting (A. G.).— As the wood and foliage of your Vines 

 are looking well, there is a good prospect of your obtaining a crop of 

 Grapes nest year. For a conservatory, with plants underneath, the Vine 

 rods should not be less than 4 feet apart— 6 feet would be better— the 

 side shoots 18 inches apart The foliage will then have ample space to 

 expand to its natural size, and the wood will ripen well, without which 

 you will not obtain good Grapes. Finch the point out of the shoot two 

 leaves above the bunch, where there is no bunch pinch at seven leaves. 

 'Cold draughts are very injurious to Vines at any time, especially so at 

 "the time of flowering and after the Grapes are set^ "Water escaping from 

 the gutter in winter and saturating the border would be highly injurious 

 to the roots. The most probable cause of unfruitfuluess is the roots 

 being out of order; you should examine the border, and if the roots are 

 ■unhealthy remove as much as possible of the old material, and replace it 

 with fresh turfy loam. 



Vine Shoots and Grape Bunches Destroyed (A Subscriber].— "We 

 ■can detect no insects' eggs on the specimens enclosed, and we think the 

 mischief is what gardeners call " shanking." It is an ulceration caused, 

 we believe, by the roots not supplying sap sufficient to maintain the 

 growth of the Vine. More warmth to the roots and a regular supply to 

 them of weak tepid manure water might remove the mischief. 



Converting a Frame Pit into a House (An Old Subscriber).-~'We 

 ■would seriously advise you, as a yearly tenant, to have nothing to do with 

 brick walls or other fixtures on the ground to which you would like to 

 move, without a written signed agreement with the landlord. Not being 

 in the nursery trade, you would have no right to move a brick afterwards. 

 In many cases you could not move the woodwork. A friend of ours put 

 up a nice greenhouse vinery against the end of his dwelling-house, and 

 though as a yearly tenant he is not likely to be disturbed, he has taken 

 legal advice, and finds that when he leaves he must leave the house 

 behind him. This, we think, is extreme, but it just shows that a tenant, 

 to make himself safe, should have the coDsent of his landlord in writing 

 to move or sell, on hii changing his residence. We are not sure if we 

 thoroughly comprehend your pit further than this, that it is formed oat of 

 a cistern 27 inches below the ground level, through which a flue runs, that 

 the back of the pit is 30 inches above the ground, and 19 ioches above it 

 in front, width in the clear 5 feet 7 inches, from outside to outside 6^ feet, 

 length four sashes of 39 inches each, by 6 feet 7 inches. In this place 

 there is a difficulty in keeping the finer Geraniums in winter, though 

 Zonals do well. The iides of the pit are formed of double lines of spruce 

 Tjoarde 4 inche? apart, the space between filled with coal ashes to keep 

 -out frost, and we presume some sort of wall-plate to keep the ashes dry. 

 Ashes, if dry, are not bad for the purpose, but sawdust is better, and such 

 double boards well packed with sawdust in the interval would keep out 

 more frost than a 14-inch wall. Wehavenoobjectiontoyour widening the 

 place 80 as to make a little hou=e of it, quite the reverse, and if the flue 

 goes along the pit or cistern now we would let it remain, and bring it 

 back in the pathway behind. A good stout tile would make the top of the 

 'flue and part of the pathway too. Neither have we any objection to your 

 having hanging upright lights in front, but all these will add greatly to 

 the expense. You might also raise your present back wall, say to 6^ or 

 7 feet, high enough to walk under, and remove the present board wall in 

 front, so as to give the necessary width wanted, adding fresh glass to 

 the length of rafter. But keeping your position and economy in view, 

 this is what we would advise, merely premising that instead of a hipped 

 roof, you might have a regular span if you liked by increasing the width. 

 As you have a pit, we would leave it alone. The flue going beneath we 

 would set boards across for plants, and we would have a hotbed when we 

 liked. Then on blocks of wood, or a layer of bricks, we would lay down 

 -sills for the new house, 5 inches square, and mortice into them upright 

 atuds 3| inches square ; those in front to be Zh feet in height, those at 

 back 5A feet in height, width from 9 feet across. Have a ridge-board sup- 

 ported at each end, and one stud in the centre. Have the ridge-board so 

 ^3 to receive your sashes in front on rafters, these sashes to be move- 

 able at back. Finally have a hipped roof of fixed glass, leaving beneath 

 the ridge-boird from 6 to 7 feet. Three-quarter-inch boards screwed to 

 these studs on each side, and sawdust between, would make excellent 

 walls. Even single-inch boards, well seasoned and tongued, would do. 

 Painted with anticorrosion inside and outside, they would stand a long 

 time ; and when you wanted to remove them, you could take all down in 

 a short time and pack in small cnmpass. For a hipped roof in such a 

 little place we would have sashbars, say 15 inches apart, 14 inch by 

 ■2 inches, and grooves for the glass, not to be puttied but packed from 

 beneath ; and if there was not a flue we would not have one, but have a 

 small iron stove with a flat top, and thus be altogether independent of 

 bricks and mortar 



Clianthus Dampieri Culture (Lantana).~&.3 you have frequently 

 ■failed we give the essentials of culture. The seeds should be sown 

 singly in small pots, and be just covered with fine soil. Place the pots 

 in a warm greenhouse or intermediate house, on a shelf in a light, airy 

 ■position, just keeping the soil moist. The seeds should be sown in May. 

 If sown earlier they may be placed in a Cucumber or other frame, and 

 for some weeks be plunged in a bottom beat not exceeding 75"^, whence 

 they should be removed to a warm genial greenhouse or intermediate 

 house. Shift the young plants inlo pots two sizes larger as soon as the 

 roots show round the sides of the ball, and this shifting into larger pots 

 should be persisted in until the plants are in their blooming pots. In 

 winter a temperature of from 45^ to 50^ is most suitable, and in summer 

 a cool, well-ventilated greenhouse and a light position are necessary. 

 Water only sufficiently to keep the soil moist, but allow it to become dry 

 .liefore watering. Employ a compost of two parts turfy hazel or yellow 



loam, one part fibrous but sandy peat, and half a part each of silver 

 sand, charcoal in pieces from the size of a pea to that of a hazel nut, and 

 leaf soil, the whole well mixed and incorporated, providing efficient 

 drainage. The seed pots should be kept near the light, so that the plants 

 may have a short stem from the soiltothefirstpair of leaves, and in no case 

 should this at any after-potting be placed deeper in the soil than it was 

 at first. The main cause of the plants' going ofi" is covering the stems 

 too deeply with soil. It is essential that the base of the true stem should 

 be exposed in all its stages above the surface of the soil. Inattention to 

 this simple point often ends in the plants dying off suddenly at the neck. 

 CLniEER FOR North Wall of Greenhouse {A. .4.).— For the north 

 wall we do not know of anything that would serve you as a covering 

 except Ficus repens. Could you not have rockwork against it, and plant 

 with Ferns ? 



Unconquerable Flies (Tom Gardner). — Xs burning sulphur and 

 tobacco does not kill them, we cannot suggest a remedy. 



Scale on Orchard-house Trees {A. ^.).— The Peach sprays you en- 

 closed are severely attacked by the turtle scale. Coccus testudo. Have 

 every branch and stem brushed over sedulously with a hard brush, 

 and then with a painter's brush as thoroughly painted over with this 

 mixture: — Soft soap, 2 lbs.; flowers of sulphur, 2 lbs.; tobacco,! lb.; 

 and a wineglass of spirit of turpentine, llix the sulphur, turpentine, 

 and soap into a paste with warm water ; boil the tobacco for an hour in 

 a covered saucepan in some more water, strain it, mix it with the soapy 

 mixture, and then add enough water to make five gallons. 



Wireworms (A Subscriber). —A. dressing of gas lime will cause them to 

 move if it do not destroy them, and yet it is not a safe dressing, as the 

 land must remain some time before it will be fit for cropping. Soot ap- 

 plied in quantity sufficient to blacken the surface has been found very 

 useful, also lime at the rate of 100 bushels per acre. There is nothing to 

 equal Carrots and Potatoes as a bait. A few inserted about 2 inches in 

 the soil, and examined, will result in a great many of the wireworms 

 being destroyed. You think four a great many to be found at a Bean. 

 We have this spring taken fourteen from the root of a Lettuce. They are 

 doing serious injury, and in ground like yours recently added to the 

 kitchen garden. 



Destroying Ear-wigs (J. R. TF.).— The best plan is to trap them. The 

 traps may be obtained of most nurserymen and seedsmen. Try to poison 

 them. Lay for a few nights saucers containing a little honey near their 

 haunts, and if the earwigs take that then mis an equal proportion of 

 arsenic with the honey. 



Caterpillars on Pear Trees (T. Collison), — Your Pear trees are 

 probably infested by the caterpillars of Bombyx: Neustria, or Lackey 

 Moth, which cluster in large numbers beneath a web-like tent. They are 

 most easily got rid of in an early stage of their growth; hand-pick and 

 destroy them. All caterpillars infesting fruit trees should be picked off 

 by hand. 



Insects on Pear and Black Currant Trees (G. B. C.).— The flies 

 sent (at the present time so abundant on these trees) are the Bibio hor- 

 tulana, which are bred in decaying mould, and are not injurious to the 

 trees, to which they have resorted to suck up the honied secretion emitted 

 by the myriads of aphides with which they are, unfortunately, at present 

 80 much infested. — I. 0. W. 



Caterpillar Attacking Roses {A, D. M.). — The caterpillar sent is 

 that of the Geometra elinguaria, one of the looper species. It is not 

 a usual Kose-eater, but is not very choice in its food. — I. O. W. 



NAiiEs OF Plants ((?. B. Clarke). — Claytonia perfoliata, native of the 

 N.W. coast of North America. It was introduced into England as long 

 since as 179S. (S. C. (?.). — "We cannot name plants from leaves only. 



POTJLTEY, BEE, AND PIGEON CHRONICLE. 



WHAT POULTRY SHOULD I KEEP'?— No. 1. 



BANTAMS. 



In diseonraiag in a number of papers upon what poultry it is 

 best for a person to keep, I begin with Bantams — the smallest 

 first, but certainly not in self-esteem, so that if the little birds 

 could be consulted, they would think me right, for they would 

 say, " Bantams first of course." Bat I have another reason : this 

 is late in May, and the right time to be getting sittings of Ban- 

 tams' eggs, for if hatched earlier than June they would in a few 

 generations cease to be Bantams, and become small fowls, ex- 

 ceeding diminutiveness being their most essential point. But 

 yet, again, the smallest first is the right rule, for in a pro- 

 cession the most important personages walk last. So bearing 

 this in mind, exhibitors of elongated Ducks, pursy Geese, and 

 bloated Turkeys, may be consoled, as their pets are, by com- 

 mittees, judges, and reporters, always placed last of all. 



As to Bantams, they are scarcely kept so generally as they 

 ought to be, and they could be kept likewise with profit ; for 

 wherever there is a small yard or garden, and wherever there 

 is a family, however few in number, there with the little bits 

 and scraps that must always be on plates and dishes, there ac- 

 cording to size of premises and family. Bantams may be kept, 

 and with profit, too. As says Jlr. L. Wright, in " The Prac- 

 tical Poultry-Keeper," " We believe them to produce quite as 

 much for their food as ordinary breeds, but their chief use is 

 in the garden, where they eat many slugs and insects with very 

 little damage. On this account they may be usefully and pro- 

 fitably kept where a separate poultry yard is found impracti- 

 cable." I would add, as a Bantam fancier for life, that no 



