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JOURNAL OF HOETIOULTUBE AND COTTAGE GABDENEB. [ September 22, 1870. 



nature in wild scenery. When annuals have sown their seed 

 on borders a great portion of the young plants may be carefully 

 retained ; they will bloom early and strongly in spring, especially 

 the Californian kinds, and may, moreover, be transplanted in 

 February to desirable situations. Lawns should now be well 

 attended to as regards mowing and rolling ; and Dahlias, Heli- 

 anthemums, tall Phloxes, Asters, and Delphiniums should once 

 more be examined and sticked before October. Take off all 

 layers of Carnations and Picotees. Those which have but little 

 root should be potted and placed under glass like pipings ; 

 this is better than allowing them to remain on the parent 

 plant. Auriculas may be set in their winter quarters, only 

 covering them during heavy rain. When the soil is dry about 

 Dahlias draw it up round the stems to protect them from aDy 

 unlooked-for frost. 



GREENHOUSE AND CONSERVATORY. 



Housing tender plants will at this period occupy attention. 

 Where pits or frames are at liberty, or can be made so by root- 

 ing up the remains of exhausted Cucumbers, Melons, and 

 other crops, there is no absolute necessity for stationing every 

 plant or tribe precisely where it is to remain throughout the 

 winter. Protection of this sort for a short time will contribute 

 more than houses to the production of sturdy and well-ripened 

 wood, possessing a greater tendency to blossom, and more 

 capable of enduring a severe winter than would otherwise be 

 the case. In such places they must be secured from the earth 

 worms. This is easily accomplished, especially when the 

 frames are raised above the common ground level. A good 

 soaking of lime water should be followed by a coating of cinder 

 ashes 3 inches in thickness. Nearly all house plants, except, 

 of course, stove plants and Orchids, 'may be kept thus until the 

 early part of November, taking care to mat-up at night in 

 suspicious weather, and to give abundance of air in the day. 

 The glasses or lights should by all means be washed thoroughly. 

 Such a course as here detailed will prevent the hurrying-off of 

 late annuals, Achimenes, and a variety of other gay things, in 

 order to make way for the winter stock. Towards the middle 

 of October, if not before, the Chrysanthemums ought to be 

 staged, and housing them is frequently the cause of a re- 

 arrangement of a considerable portion of other stock. ThoBe 

 who have a house or pit for everything will not need any ad- 

 vice on this head ; the majority, however, are very differently 

 situated. Continue in the conservatory to weed out flowers of 

 a temporary character on the eve of decay, and to supply their 

 places with good specimens. The introduction, however, of 

 some of the hardwooded tribes which have been placed out of 

 doors (unless they can be placed in temporary situations for a 

 while) will fill many vacancies. Every attention having been 

 paid to autumnal and winter Roses, as recommended in former 

 calendars, they will now be found of great utility, both in this 

 and other ornamental structures. In cases where there are 

 many stove plants in this house, it will be necessary, in the 

 event of the weather becoming cold and wet, to use a little fire 

 heat ; but be as sparing of this as circumstances will allow, 

 particularly if there are other plants in the house likely to be 

 injured by being kept too warm. In the latter case it will be 

 advisable to dispense with stove plants, even at the expense of 

 rendering the house somewhat bare of flowers, rather than to 

 keep them there and, on their account, run the risk of injur- 

 ing other plants. Be careful not to overwater plants brought 

 from the stove ; also use water at a temperature of from 70° 

 to 80°, as watering with cold water plants that have been 

 brought from a warm house injures the young and tender roots, 

 shortens the duration of the blossoms, and often ruins the 

 plant. Use weak manure water for Salvia splendens and ges- 

 nerasflora, so as to preserve the plants in a vigorous state, and 

 keep them blooming as long as possible. Give air freely on 

 fine days, and thin out the twiners on the roof wherever this 

 can be done with propriety, in order to expose the plants to all 

 the light possible. In housing the out-of-door plants, be sure 

 to place the Geraniums and forward Cinerarias where they will 

 enjoy both light and air, and near the glass if possible. Hard- 

 wooded plants may stand farther back, except young stock of 

 Ericas, Epacrises, and similar choice subjects. The Chinese 

 Primroses will do in partial shade, and in the dampest part of 

 the house. 



PITS AND FRAMES. 



Continue to afford young stock careful attention, and en- 

 deavour to have it well rooted and strong, without keeping it so 

 close or warm as to render it sappy and liable to damp off on 

 the first approach of wintry weather, as is often the case with 

 stock raised in heat late in autumn, and then stored in cold 



pits for the winter. Admit air freely to all plants that are 

 rooted sufficiently to bear it without flagging. — W. Keane. 



DOINGS OF THE LAST WEEK. 

 The rains have done good to everything, but the frosty nights 

 after the rain have rather interfered with the brightness of the 

 flower garden, the petals of many of the Geraniums looking a 

 little bleached, and the larger leaves of Coleus looking brown. 



KITCHEN GARDEN. 



We said so much on the kitchen garden last week, that we 

 shall confine our remarks to two or three matters. 



And first as to watering. We have three inquiries if it 

 would be of any use to employ sewage water, not too strong, to 

 Celery, Cabbages, and Brussels Sprouts after the rains we 

 have had. If the rains have not been much heavier than we 

 have had, we say decidedly Yes, as they have not gone deep 

 enough with us ; and, again, we would prefer giving a good 

 soaking of such sewage water in damp, drizzling weather, as 

 the plants would derive much more advantage from it than in 

 fine sunny weather, when a portion of the watering would again 

 be soon exhaled into the atmosphere. A cloudy, drizzling day 

 is the best for giving an artificial watering a good chance. 

 Sewage water though rather strong, will not injure such 

 plants when rooting freely, and greatly helps to keep many in- 

 truders away. The smell at first deters many insects from 

 laying their eggs, and all crawlers will keep aloof if they can 

 find sweeter soil. A late bed of Brussels Sprouts planted in 

 dry soil, and merely moistened well in the drill when growing 

 and rooting freely, grew as if by magic after receiving a good 

 watering at the roots with sewage on a drizzling day, with a 

 smart shower at times. W^hen the sewage is at all strong, or 

 smells very much, it is well to keep it off the foliage, but when 

 not very strong it will do no harm over the foliage of common 

 things if it be clear enough to leave no deposit. When clear 

 we have found it good to syringe with, for driving away green 

 fly and red spider. We have found it as effectual for killing 

 aphides on Cabbages, Cauliflowers, &c, as clear rather strong 

 lime water. Bat when so used it should be clear, so as to leave 

 no mark behind. 



Our Cabbageworts are now getting tolerably clear of the fly, 

 which threatened to clear everything before it. We noticed 

 a fine field of Turnips the other day almost destroyed by the 

 fly, whilst others have suffered greatly from grubs. It would 

 have been true economy in the case of the first to have used a 

 dozen or score of harrelsful of clear lime water, or clear, not 

 too strong, sewage, and, in the second place, to have examined 

 the ground round the Turnips, as the grubs keep near the sur- 

 face in their first stages. 



Brussels Sprouts Early.— Owe earliest are just showing, but 

 not so early as we would wish. We have several inquiries like 

 that of "A Friend," who says, "I sowed early, pricked out, 

 and then planted strong plants early, and what with sewage 

 and other waterings they have grown strong and tall with fine 

 broad heads, but the side shoots, the sprouts, are only showing, 

 and seem as if they refused to swell." To gain the desired 

 object, the fine tops must be stopped. The simplest mode 

 would be to cut them off, but that would entail a loss, as these 

 heads, after a little frost, are even sweeter, when cooked like 

 young Cabbages, tkan the little sprouts. When a severe frost 

 occurs immediately after the cutting, and the stem at all splits 

 at the cut part, the stem is apt to be injured. To prevent any 

 of these disadvantages, and yet encourage the firm side sprouts 

 to swell, with a sharp knife take out from the crown the central 

 axis of growth. You will hardly notice that the little central 

 point has been withdrawn, but it will soon tell in throwing 

 more strength into the side-shoot sprouts all up the stem. For 

 winter and early spring use Brussels Sprouts and Scotch Kale will 

 yield the greatest and most profitable gatherings, with, perhaps, 

 the exception of a fine old quarter of Cabbage, each plant now 

 forming a large stool. Young Cabbages just hearting are now 

 exceedingly sweet and tender after the rains. 



Endive. — A good portion of ours was pricked out thickly, so 

 that we could water and shade it, as we could not have found 

 water for it if planted at regular distances in the dry weather. 

 A portion of this we have turned out with good balls, so as not 

 to suffer from the moving, on raised ridges, one row along the 

 centre and two rows on each side. We find that on such ridgea 

 the plants withstand frost and damp much better than when on 

 the level, and when well established, with a little moisture at 

 first they grow as freely and as strongly as if they were placed 



