July 5, 1877. J 



JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



21 



Propagating Leucophyton Browni {J. B.).— The above is the name of 

 the plant of which you have enclosed a spray. Full information on the best 

 mode of propagating it appeared in No. 847 (June 21st) of the present 

 volume of The Journal of Horticulture. 



Ants on Peach Tree {E. D. Lyon).— Invert a saucer in a larger saucer, 

 beep the latterfilled with water, and place the pot on the inverted one. 



Kose Cuttings for New Zealand— JVeZs-w asks for information how 

 and when to send them. "We shall be obliged by a reply from anyone who 

 has succeeded. 



Boses for Exhibiting (Tyro). — The best blooms are produced from 

 buds which have continued dormant until the spring after they were inserted. 

 For destroying aphides try the weaker solution yoa name, and if it fails 

 increase the strength. 



Ranunculuses (A. Boyle).— They are apparently the Dutch Ranunculus 

 imported by the seedsmen, and are described in their catalogues as Persian 

 Ranunculus. 



Ferns (S. Elliott).— There is a list of them and cultural directions in the 

 " Garden Manual," published at our office. 



Rose Buds Injured (J. F.). — High winds and low temperature have 

 shrivelled the points of the buds. 



Name of Orchid (J. B. C.).— Dendrobium Pastoni. 



JNames of Plants (J. P. Allen). — 1, Negundo fraxinifolia ; 2, Rhamnus 

 alpinus. {3. R. C.). — 1, Hemerocallis flava ; 2, Diplacus glutinosus. 



POULTRY, BEE, AND PIQEON 0HE0NI0LE. 



POULTRY AND BIRD NEWS. 



We hear that a controversy is being waged in southern Ireland 

 on the identity of a song bird. The London Standard says, " A 

 golden-throated chorister has been ravishing belated listeners 

 with its woodland notes from the grove by Nenagh Mills for 

 nigbts paBt." This bird is supposed to be the Nightingale, and 

 its strains, we are told, are very beautiful. But, unfortunately, 

 Goldsmith, Stewart, Marshall, and other authorities maintain 

 that the Nightingale never visits Ireland, and so students of 

 natural history imagine that this songster is a Blackcap, or 

 Woodlark, or Beed S parrow, all of which warble sweetly at night. 

 We believe this is the first occasion upon which a controversy 

 has ever been started upon the subject, so certain have our 

 Irish friends been hitherto that no Nightingale has sung in their 

 woods and glens. 



Lord Huntingfield's gamekeeper recently shot a fine specimen 

 of the Osprey Eagle. It measured from tip to tip 5 feet 2 inches. 



It is wonderful how tame birds become by kindness. The 

 Eev. C. Humphrey Cholmeley of Dinton Rectory, Wilts, has 

 for some years been in the habit of placing portable birds' nests 

 about his garden. They are formed from decayed branches of 

 trees, and are hollowed out, with a small hole made in the side 

 to admit the bird, while a lid on hinges closes the top. Tits of 

 all kinds, Nuthatches, &c, have annually built in these nests, 

 and the other day we had an opportunity of seeing them and 

 their inmates. One, which was placed on a ledge on a kitchen 

 garden wall, most especially pleased us. It contained a family 

 of ten little Blue Tits, which when fully fledged were piled one 

 on the top of the other. This nest was not only daily removed 

 from the wall for inspection, but was carried about for visitors 

 to look at, and on some occasions was even taken indoorB for 

 several minutes. The parent birds were, however, not the least 

 disooncerted, and waited on a neighbouring tree, caterpillar in 

 mouth, for the return of their family, evidently feeling quite 

 certain in their minds that their brood was in safe custody and 

 had not fallen victims to a devastating cat or any such creature 

 of prey. 



A gentleman, whom many of our readers knew as a most suc- 

 cessful exhibitor of poultry, about three years ago went out to 

 Natal to farm Ostriches. He tells us that the present fashion 

 of Ostrich feather-trimming for ladies' hats, jackets, dresses, &c, 

 has very greatly improved the trade, and has increased the 

 price during the past few years about 20 per cent. In 1874 

 feathers were used in England to the value of nearly half a 

 million of money. For these Ostrioh farms but little capital is 

 necessary, and the risk is small. Another one engaged in it says, 

 " 1 hold that from 300 to 400 per cent, of profit can safely be cal- 

 culated on upon the outlay both for birds and other expenses, 

 such as enclosures, plucking stalls, ' kraals,' and land rent." 



Two men, named Reuben Williams and James Cameron, were 

 convicted of fraud at the Central Criminal Court last week. 

 They had painted a Sparrow to imitate a Bullfinch, and had sold 

 it as such. James Cameron was sentenced to six months' im- 

 prisonment, and Rauben Williams to half that period, but both 

 with hard labour. 



We read in a contemporary that from a Blackbird's nest near 

 Southend-on-Sea have recently been taken two "snow white 

 Blackbirds." Their eyes are pick, and they are very promising 

 specimens. The same contemporary tells us this pair of birds 

 are on view alive at Mr. W. Nickats, Ingleside, Edmonton. We 

 have seen white Blackbirds and also pied specimens, but never 

 two snowy white from the same nest. 



We learn from Land and Water that Mr. Bell has succeeded 

 in reti ring seme young Emus in Dumfriesshire. The female bird 

 laid niueteen eggs, and the male was allowed to sit upon eleven 

 of them, of which six have hatched. We hear these little ones 

 are growing fast, and are very beautiful to look at, beiDg striped 

 with black and white. They are being fed upon biEcuits crumbled 

 and mixed with oatmeal and green food. We consider this very 

 interesting, and hope Mr. Bell may be fortunate in bringing 

 them up. 



"it will be remembered that Mr. T.C.Burnell had his beautiful 

 Dorking cock (second prize, we believe, as a cockerel at the 

 Aquarium) rnispenned at Banbury. The Committee have 

 awarded this bird an honorary first prize most deservedly, Mr. 

 Burnell with his kind thoughlfulness having objected to putting 

 the Committee to the expense of awarding a prize in money, 

 though the mispenning we conclude originated with them, the 

 bird having been penned in the disqualified pen, which pen we 

 at the time mentioned in our report. 



Incubators seem to be creating a sensation at the present 

 time. This is truly an excellent occasion, for eggs are now 

 cheap, and the risk of hatching is perhaps smaller. So those 

 withful of starting an incubator during the coming spring would 

 do well to try at once, so as to get their hands in. We hope to 

 give a paper on the subject at an early date. 



We hope that one of the next chapters of the " Ba6ses Cours " 

 will be on the very celebrated yards of the Countess of Dart- 

 mouth, to be followed by those of the Rev. Hans Hamilton, Mr. 

 Q. B. C. Breeze, Mr. Leno, and others. 



Messrs. Cassell, Petter, & Galpin are bringing out in monthly 

 parts a book on Canary birds, &c. Each part will be richly 

 illustrated, and the whole work will be such as has never before 

 been attempted by any one authority. 



A circular is in existence concerning a poultry farm. We 

 would recommend all our readers to carefully study the matter 

 before taking a share. We cannot imagine that those expe- 

 rienced in poultry lore have set this scheme afloat. The cir- 

 cular states that in June chickens from fifteen to Bixteen weeks 

 old may command the price of 4s. 6d. to 8s. each. We can only 

 say that in the country we are now able to procure a brace of 

 really good fowls for 4s., and we cannot believe these prices 

 would remain so low if in London one bird will make more than 

 that sum. We do not know where this farm would be situated, 

 but we see Is. 6d. per dozen is charged for eggs, while no car- 

 riage expenses are put down in the list of expenditure. We are 

 now living two hours from London, and from the first week of 

 March to the present date we are able, and have been able, to 

 procure freshly laid eggs at Is. the score. This speaks for itself, 

 and novices should be on their guard. — W. 



THE BIRMINGHAM POULTRY EXHIBITION. 



A meeting of the Committee was held at Bingley Hall on June 

 25th, under the presidency of Mr. G. C. Adkins, for the purpose 

 of revising the schedule of prizes for the coming year. _ A num- 

 ber of alterations were made, and Borne of the prizes slightly re- 

 duced, in order to find money for one or two additional classes 

 without increasing the total amount to be competed for. 



For instance, the value of the cups in the Brahma classeB 

 were reduced from £5 to £4 to put them on a par with the other 

 breeds ; and the second prize in several cases, where the entries 

 are usually small, was reduced from £1 to 10s. In the class for 

 Cinnamon and Buff Cochins the first prizes were increased from 

 £2 10s. to £4, and the two special cups for this breed abolished. 

 The prizes for Black Cochins were increased. Hitherto the old 

 and young birds have competed together, but henceforth they 

 will have separate classes. A new class was introduced for 

 Langahans, cock and hen of any age, with prizes of £2 and 10s. 

 Considerable alterations were made with regard to the selling 

 classes. Up to the present time they have been confined to 

 Brahma Pootras, Dorkings, and Cochins, but a new clais has 

 now been opened for all other varieties, with prizes of £2, £1 10s., 

 £1, and 10s. The entrance money has been reduced in these 

 classes from 8s. to 5s. per pen, and the maximum price is in all 

 eases fixed at £2 per pen. 



Coming to the Pigeon department the classes for Short-faced 

 Balds and Beards were again amalgamated, as the change did 

 not come up to the anticipations of the Committee. An ad- 

 ditional prize is given to the Tumblers of any other variety, and 

 the Trumpeters are divided into two classes — mottled and any 

 other colour. The silver cup hitherto given to Runts, Arch- 

 angels, and Fantails will be competed for by the two former 

 breeds and an extra one given to the Fantails ; a tbird prize is 

 given to the Fantails of any other colour. An additional silver 

 cup is offered for Jacobins, and that hitherto competed for by 

 Jacobins, Turbits, and Owls will be devoted to the two latter 

 kinds. An extra silver cup is given to the Dragoons and also to 

 the Antwerps. A selling class is opened for a pair of any variety 

 of Pigeons, with prizes of £2 and £1, the price of the pen not to 

 exceed £2. 



