464 



JOUENAL OF HOKTICULTTJEE AND COTTAGE GAEDENER. 



[ June 29, 1871. 



TO CORRESPONDENTS. 



*** We request that no one -^^11 write privately to any of the 

 correspondents of the *' Journal of Horticulture, Cottage 

 Gardener, and Country Gentleman." By doing so they 

 are subjected to unjustifiable trouble and expense. All 

 communications should therefore be addressed solehj to 

 The Editors of the Journal of Horticulture, d'c, 17 i, Fleet 

 Street, London, E.G. 



K.B. — Many questions must remain unans"wered until next 

 week. 



Naming Flowers (C. H.).— We cannot name florists' varieties. A 

 dozen specimens at once is jast twice too many. 



^ Old Pine Strawbebhy [B. I. Z/.)-— Any nurseryman who advertises 

 in our columns could obtain it for yon. 



Packing Strawbeeby Plants {A. P.).— The following directiong ar® 

 given by an American nurseryman:—'* Take up good, sound, young, and 

 well-eetabhshed runners; remove all decaved leaves, tie the plants in 

 punches of twenty-five or fifty, with their crowns evenly arranged ; wrap 

 m moist moss; pack tight in an open bos, with the crowns upwards, 

 and nail slats across the top to keep them in, and yet allow free access 

 of air." 



Ants on Rose Trees {Qoddess).—YQ-a. had better spare the ants, they 

 do no harm and only feed on the honeydew deposited by the aphides. 

 It IS a popular delusion that they destrov the aphides, they are wise 

 enough not to kill the goose that lays the golden egg, and merely feed 

 on the honeydew, which is a secretion from the aphis. If, however, 

 ' Goddess " wishes to drive the ants away, she can do so by tying a 

 piece of tar-band round the stem of each standard Rose tree, dipping the 

 tar-band previously in carbolic acid. A fresh application of carbolic acid 

 to the tar-band will effectually prevent the ants from passing it, if at any 

 time the smell of the carbolic acid has evaporated. 



• ^^^^^''3-OFF Dead Flowers of Roses [H. A ).— Yon are quite righ* 

 in the plan you have usually followed, as there is no nse in leaving th® 

 dead unsightly heads of Roses on the trees after they have done bloom 

 mg. unless you wish to save seeds of choice varieties. It is better to cut 

 back to within four or five eves of the base of the shoot, on which the 

 Rose has bloomed. We doubt whether Monplaipor is hardv enough to 

 stand the winter out of doors unprotected. Much depends on soil and 

 climate. If in a sheltered position or against a wall it would most 

 probably he hardy enough. 



Iresine LiNDSNi Propagation {L. E.).~lt strikes freely from cut- 

 tmgB_. _ The cuttings may be of the points of the shoots, and if they have 

 two joints with the growing points it is sufficient. Trim off the leaves 

 from the lowest joint, and insert up to the next pair of leaves around the 

 Bides of pots about an inch apart, in a compost of equal parts loam, sandy 

 peat, leaf soil, and silver sand. Place in a gentle hotbed of 70% shading 

 from bright snn, keeping close, and just moist. In about a fortnight the 

 cuttings will be well rooted, and should be hardened-off, and then potted 

 ""*/ ■t. *^ 3-inch pots, placing in a cold frame, and keeping rather close 

 and shaded for a few days until established. They should be removed 

 to a greenhouse before cold weather sets in, and may be wintered amongst 

 other bedding plants, but are better kept in a coel stove or warm green- 

 house. The soil should be kept dry in winter, giving no water, only to 

 keep the foliage fresh. The plants may have 4rMnchpots in September, 

 and either have the points of the shoots taken'out, or be stopped to two 

 joints. The plants will give cnttings in February, and those struck in a 

 hotbed make nice plants by the bedding-out time. The beginning of 

 August is a good time to put in the cnttings. They will also strike freely 

 at that time in a cold close frame. 



Gtmnogramma Infested with Scale {M. S. B.).— The fronds you sent 

 us are covered with a black fungus occasioned by the secretions of the 

 brown scale (coccus), which you will find on the leafstalk (stipes) of the 

 fronds. The on'y remedy is to cut off the worst infested parts and re- 

 move all the insects that are not brown and hard with the point of a 

 knife. The best plan for those that are brown and hard is to take them 

 m the hand and rub them between the finger and thumb so as to destroy 

 the young, to which the brown scales serve as covering. You may then 

 brush over all the stipes and where the brown scale appears with a 

 solution of gnm arable, loz. to half a pint of water; ths gum to be 

 thoroughly dissolved. In two or three days wash ofi" with warm water. 

 The picking-off with a knife is a tedious proceeding, but is safe. We 

 advise it in preference to any wholesale destruction by compoeition, 

 which on Ferns require very great care. 



T, ^^A^^^^ Fruit Trees {J. H. D.).— All the kinds you name may be 

 budded at the beginning of Julv, in forward seasons, and this year about 

 the middle of that month ; but much depends on the weather and the 

 season. As a rule the Cherry is the first fit to bud, then yon may fo'low 

 with the Apple and Pear, then the Plum, and last the Peach and Nectarine. 

 If yon have Apricots they will stand second. You will find instructions for 

 budding, and much information relating to gardening craft, in the 

 " Science and Practice of Gardening." It may be had post free from our 

 oflace for Ss. S^d. All budding should be done by the close of July, in 

 forward seasons np to the second week in August. There is no work 

 treating of what you name. You ought to have the " Cottage Gardener's 

 Dictionary," price from our office, free by post, 7a. 2d. 



Floor for Shed (Passion).— We have our shed floors formed of cement* 

 They are very hard, even, dry, aad durable. The floor is made level, and, 

 if any loose soil is put in, rammed firm. Then put on about 6 inches in 

 thickness of brickbats or other rubble, and make the surface as small as 

 possible, breaking the surface with a hammer. When this ia complete it 

 should have left about an inch deep for the cement. Then take of Port- 

 land cement about equal parts to that of gravel sifted through a half- 

 inch riddle. The gravel should be free from sand or dirt, and if not it 

 should be washed. We use sea gravel. Mix with water to the consii- 

 tency of thin mortar. Run on, and make level, smoothing over with a 

 trowel, making an even Burlace. The cost is about 2«. per yard. 



Sowing for Flowers next Spring (Idem).— Alvssum saxatile com- 

 pactum, Arabis albida, Aubrietiagr£eca, Canterbury Bells vars., Myoaotis 

 sylvatica and var. alba, Brompton Stock, Viola coruuta, V. lutea, Wall- 

 flower—double German, single dark, and yellow. 



Japanese Hoketsuckle Flowering.— We are obliged to the writers 

 of fifteen letters telling of this; it is evidently so usual an occurrence 

 that no one need advise us of the fact. 



Various (A Constant Subscriber). — 1, Geraniums to flower in June may 

 be stopped at the beginning of May, or about seven weeks before flower- 

 ing. 2, For flowering in winter. Salvia cuttings ought now to be put in, 

 and the plants forwarded so as to have them strong and bushy before 

 autumn. It is now quite late enough. Ours are well-established in 

 small pots from cuttings struck at the end of May. 3, ^chmea f ulgens 

 is a stove plant, and very fine for winter flowering. 



Night Soil Utilising (S. Wales) —The earth is the best disinfectant. 

 Could you not apply it to the soil and dig it in at once ? The best plan, 

 however, is to mis it thoroughly with dry soil, and in this way there is no 

 need of a disinfectant. The soil should be placed on it in a shed, and 

 covered with the dry soil there is no smell of consequence. The sewage 

 may be poured on the ground, either diluted with water between growing 

 crops of vegetables, or on ground before cropping. 



_ Lilt of the Valley in Summer (A Constant Subscriber).— G'wa a top' 

 dressing of well-rotted manure about half an inch thick, and copious 

 waterings in dry weather. 



Mildew on Plants in Conservatory (Idcm).~lt is usually most 

 abundant in a moist, close, badly-ventilated structure. The only remedy 

 is to dust the infested parts with flowers of sulphur. Camellias, Heaths, 

 and Azaleas now removed from a conservatory to the open air ought not 

 to be pruned. It will do away with the flowering next year. 



Cauliflowers Buttoning (C TF.).— Your plants run, or what is known 

 to gardeners as *' buttoning." The most frequent cause is planting old 

 plants, those that have been a long time sown and are old before plant- 

 ing, the check consequent on that causing them to run. We advise you 

 to raise your own plants, sowing the seed thinly in an open situation, 

 and when about 3 inches high prick the plants out about 3 inches apart, 

 and when 6 inches high plant out 2 feet apart. Water well in dry weather, 

 and apply liquid manure between the rows. Instead of being the size of 

 a half-crown piece, the heads should be the size of a quart basin. 



Grape Diseased {J. D.).— It is very severely shanked. Apply more 

 nourishment and warmth to the roots. 



Sundials ( ). — We cannot tell where you can purchase one. Some 



correspondent will, perhaps, send ns the information. Put on it, if you 

 obtain one, the Temple monitory motto — " Go about your business." 



Mushrooms in Beds {J.E., ^n(icerp).— There is little risk of nnwhole* 

 some Mushrooms growing in prepared beds with proper Mushroom spawn 

 used. The heating of the materials does much to extirpate all unwhole- 

 some Fungi. A few Fungi may sometimes appear before the true Mush- 

 room appears, but they are so different that there is no difficulty in dis- 

 tinguishing them. There are no better instructions for Mushroom- 

 growing than have appeared in our pages. 



Pluiis on Leafless Shoots {An Amateur). — It used to be supposed 

 that stone fruit would not swell nor ripen unless there were a terminal 

 shoot, or, at least, some leaves before the fruit, but we have gathered fine 

 fruit when these were wanting. Still it is desirable to have such leaves 

 to keep up a healthy circulation of sap. In your case we would thin the 

 fruit more than usual, encourage shoots further back, and as soon as the 

 fruit was ripe cut out all these leafless shoots. The cause is the want of 

 a wood bud at the point, or on the shoots. All the buds had been fruit 

 buds. This is sometimes apt to happen when the piuching-back system 

 in summer is rigidly carried out. You cannot pot your Black Ham- 

 burghs too soon into 12 or 18-inch pots, and if they fill the pots well with 

 roots, and the wood is well matured, they will show fruit well next 

 season. Everything will depend — first, on free growth ; and secondly, on 

 maturing and hardening that growth. 



Heating Yineet and Greenhouse (TF. ij.).— We should prefer the 

 heating as at No. 1, the boiler being placed at the junction of the two 

 houses. You can then heat the two houses, each independently of the 

 other. In plan Ko. 2, you must take the pipes through the vinery to 

 heat the greenhouse. You may, however, ho manage as to take a flow 

 and return merely through the vinery, the other pipes being shut ofi" 

 when not wanted. If you do not raise the temperature of the vinery 

 above 45^ in winter, it will not matter heating that before the greenhouse, 

 if there is enough of piping in the latter to make a lowish temperature 

 in the water suitable. A bed in tho centre of the vinery would make a. 

 good propagating-pit, especially if you cover the bed with liijhts or 

 sashes. You can thus have a higher temperature, say 60° to 7o- in the 

 air of the bed, and not more than from 40*^ to 45' in the general atmo- 

 sphere of the house. 2, There is little practical difference in wood or 

 iron for glass roofs, the last if galvanised will cost less afterwards for 

 painting. There have been at least three editions of Loudon's " Enoy- 

 clopsedia of Gardening," the last the best. 



Return Flue {An Old Subscriber).— There is no objection to tho 

 return flue so as to have the chimney at the same end as the furnace. 

 There is also no objectioa to the raising the same flue to the ground 

 level. If there is a difference, the furnace being left all the same it will 

 draw all the better, but when you raise the flue you lose the benefit of 

 the sunk cistern or pit. We would prefer raising the new part of the fluo 

 and letting the other remain as it is. You may grow Vines in such a 

 house 4 feet apart, it you do not want plants in summer, and if the average 

 temperature in winter for your plants is not above 45^. All herbaceous 

 plants are suitable for an herbaceous border, but you must choose as to- 

 whether you want them tall, dwarf, or of medium height. A Phlox 

 6 feet in height and one less than 6 inches would not do woU together. 

 These matters should be stated. 



Red Insect on Orchard-houses Peaches (C. C.).— We cannot con- 

 ceive what you have on the Peaches unless it be Aphis Perslcffi, but that 

 is not small, and it Is more black and brown than red. You say It is not 

 red spider. Wo would use soap water and tobacco water, and in th& 

 morning after syringe strongly with clear water. 



Insects {Old Rowley).— The insects which have attacked tho roots of 

 your Lettuces are the larvro of one of the smaller species of daddy long- 

 legs (Tipula sp.). The roots should be carefully searched as soon as tho 

 plant flags, and the larvce destroyed by hand. We know no liquid appli- 

 cation which will destroy them without injuring the plants. Cbildren 

 should be employed to catch the flies when they appear in tho perfect 

 state.— I. O. W. 



