276 



JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



[ October 4, 1877. 



have at this season. 'When the ground is wet it not only 

 requires more labour to wheel the barrows, but moving very 

 wet soil if it can possibly be prevented is a great mistake. The 

 amount of preparation must be determined by the state of the 

 ground. We have sometimes had to dig out a foot in depth of 

 gravel under the trees in order to obtain sufficient depth of 

 soil; at other times it has been necessary to dig out stiff clay 

 and mix sandy material with the compost. Some soils must be 

 ■well drained, others would not be benefited at all by draining. 

 Usually the stiffer the soil the more necessity there is for 

 draining. Something also depends on the district, whether it is 

 high or low; the rainfall also must be estimated, as this ranges 

 from 20 inches on the east coasts to 36 inches or more annually 

 on the western. Lichens and Mosses of sorts covering the stems 

 of the old trees is a sign of stagnant water in the soil. 



Gooseberry and Carrant bushes which have been covered over 

 to preserve the fruit for as long a. period as possible should have 

 the coverings removed on fine days to allow the fruit to dry, and 

 at the same time all mouldy berries should be removed. 



No time should be lost in getting Strawberry plants out before 

 the severe weather, which we may soon expect, sets in. If they 

 are planted at once they will grow considerably before the 

 winter, and would even bear a few fruits next year, but they 

 cannot be expected to carry a full crop when they are planted 

 late. Our own plants are now of large size, and the ground be- 

 tween the rows has been frequently hoed. The beds ought to 

 be free from weeds at this season, for it is difficult to hoe them 

 later. 



PINE HOUSES. 



It is now a good time to re-arrange the plants for the winter, 

 and to take the opportunity to thoroughly clean the glass out- 

 side and inside, aB also the woodwork of the houses. The tan 

 beds should also be turned over, and if necessary a little fresh 

 tan may be added ; but this ought only to be done in the caFe of 

 those plants that require to be incited into root-actioD, which 

 includes recently-potted suckers and plants which are now 

 throwing-up their fruit, or where the Pines are swelling. Plants 

 intended to be started about three months hence should be kept 

 quiet in a temperature of 60° at night, or even 55 Q in very cold 

 nights, and the bottom heat should not exceed 80° or 85°. Pines 

 are not nnfrequently crowded too closely together, and added to 

 this the plants may be too far removed from the glass; good 

 fruit cannot under such circumstances be produced. The plants 

 like plenty of light and with it as much air as possible. During 

 the late autumn and winter months the Pine houses must be 

 kept in a proper condition as regards atmospheric moisture. 

 After this time it is better not to have moisture evaporate from 

 the troughs fixed on the pipes. Sprinkling the paths and 

 possibly the walls of the houses twice a-day will be sufficient. 

 In fine weather admit as much air as possible. We would 

 rather have more heat in the daytime from the pipes so as to 

 admit a circulation of air, than to maintain the same tempera- 

 ture with closed lights and no artificial heat. Watering at the 

 roots requires to be done with caution. 



ORCHARD HOUSE. 



The trees were repotted some time ago and are now fairly 

 well established in their pots. Some of those not potted have 

 been top-dressed. Mr. Rivers was the first to distinguish be- 

 tween top-dres6ing and surface-dressing, and it is a distinction 

 with this difference, that at this season a large portion of the 

 surface soil in the pots is removed with a piece of iron re- 

 sembling the tine of a fork. This is replaced with rich soil 

 composed of equal parts of loam and decayed manure. It is 

 pressed down firmly with a wooden rammer similar to that 

 used in potting the trees. Surface-dreesing is merely adding a 

 little rich compost to the surface in June and July without dis- 

 turbing the roots at a time when the trees are in full growth. 

 To form handsome trees it is necessary to purchase " maidens," 

 and to pot them in 10-inch pots as early as the trees will bear 

 removal. It is frequently necessary to cut a considerable 

 portion of the roots off in order that the tree may be easily 

 potted, and we have not found the trees suffer from this severe 

 cutting-in. The potting material is very simple, merely good 

 tarfy loam four parts to one of decayed manure. We drain the 

 pots well and press the compost in quite firmly, working the 

 soil in amongst the roots. It ought to be noted, that if the 

 trees are sent from the nursery they should be carefully lifted, 

 and some damp moss or something similar should be placed 

 round the roots. We have often wondered whether the fruit 

 trees sold at auctions in London ever succeed well ; they lay 

 about in draughty places for days together with nothing round 

 the roots until every fibre is shrivelled. Such trees may be 

 sold cheaply, but they must be dear in the long run. 



GREENHOUSE AND CONSERVATORY. 



A frosty night or two came as a warning to remove all the 

 Cape and New Holland plants into their winter quarters, as they 

 not only suffer from frosts but we may expect continuous rains, 

 which will do much iDj'ury by saturating the soil and causing 

 the death of the small fibrous roots. There are scarcely finer 

 plants at this or any other season of the year than the Lapagerias 



alba and rosea, and after their culture is understood few plants 

 are easier managed. We have been potting layers which were 

 pegged down rather more than twelve months ago. The young 

 plants had formed quite a mass of roots, many of them as thick 

 as a goosequill; these were carefully preserved, and the plants 

 were potted into pots that seemed large for the size of the plants, 

 but were necessary to preserve the thick brittle rootB. The 

 pots were well drained, and the potting material employed was 

 simply light fibrous peat; in this the roots luxuriats with the 

 greatest freedom. Lapagerias are sometimes placed in heat : 

 this is a mistake, as the plant is almost hardy and will suffer 

 from too much heat. To grow it well it must be kept rather 

 cool during summer. In our hot dry district a house facing 

 north is the best place for it, and when it is grown in a house 

 well exposed to the sun it is best to shade the plant from it. 

 We syringe the leaves twice a day, and keep the roots always in 

 a moist medium. 



A few aphides had settled on the stage Pelargoniums, but two 

 nights fumigating with tobacco smoke checked their further 

 progress. Cinerarias were also fumigated for the same reason. 

 This pest must be destroyed on its first appearance, or, what is 

 better, fumigate when the plants seem quite clear, as preventing 

 is better than destroying them after they have gained a footing. 

 Where plenty of flowers are wanted at this season Zonal Pelar- 

 goniums and Fuchsias are suitable plants to grow, as they may 

 be kept in flower until the Chrysanthemums are ready to take 

 their place. In a week or tsn days it will be necessary to take 

 all the Chrysanthemums under glass, a3 the frost, should it set 

 iu severe, "will damage the buds, especially those that show 

 colour. 



FLORIST FLOWERS. 



Dahlias are still in great beauty where the frost has not 

 touched them. This grand old flower when planted in a suit- 

 able position is still a very king amongst autumn flowers. The 

 great many coloured globes nodding on their slender stalks have 

 always an imposing effect. They are best either planted as a 

 background to other flowers or as a foreground to a shrubbery 

 border; but those who grow for exhibition generally prepare a 

 piece of ground by trenching and manuring, and plant the 

 Dahlias in beds with about 4 feet between the plants. The 

 fioweriug growths mnst be thinned out at this season, and all 

 flowers which are past their best should be promptly cut off. 



Hollyhocks have now mostly finished flowering; if so, the 

 stems must be cut off near the surface of the ground — just above 

 where the young growths are likely to come out. About the 

 end of October the plants Bhould be lifted, varieties that are 

 Bcarce should be potted, and the ordinary stock may be planted- 

 out close together where they may be protected from too much 

 wet, which causes more injury to the plants than severe frost. 



We have looked over the Auriculas, and have pioked-off the 

 withered leaves and any trusses of flowers that are coming up. 

 If thesa are picked off at once the spring bloom will not suffer 

 much from it, although it is certainly better when no autumn 

 bloom requires picking off. Young offsets are potted off as thoy 

 require it, but we shall not pot any after the middle of this 

 month ; it is better to allow them to remain until the spring, 

 Bay the end of February or the first week in March. 



Many of the Pinks have longer stems this year than ubup.1, 

 but they are now branching-out freely. We have placed small 

 sticks to them to prevent the stems from snapping off at the 

 surface of the ground; this they will do in high winds if not 

 supported. Carnations and Picotees are now fairly establiehed 

 in pots, and we remove the lights, except during high winds and 

 heavy rains. The plants require a fair supply of water at the 

 roots. — J. Douglas. 



TKADE CATALOGUES KECEIVED. 



H. Cannell, Swanley Nurseries, Kent. — Autumn Catalogue of 

 Plants a?id Bulbs. 



William Ramsey, Joyning's Nurseries, Waltham Cross, N. — 

 Select List of Boses, Fruit Tre's, Bulbs, &o. 



Edmondson Brothers, 10, Dame Street, Dublin. — Autumn 

 Catalogue of Hyacinths, Tulips, Lilies, Crocus, Anemones, 

 Banunculus, Gladioli, &c. 



Augnste Van Geert, Ghent, Belgium. — General Plant Cata- 

 logue for 1877-78. 



Louis Van Houtte, Royal Nursery, Ghent, Belgium. — Cata- 

 logue of Azaleas, Camellias, Bhododendrons, £c. 



TO CORRESPONDENTS. 



*„* All correspondence should be direoted either to "The 

 Editors," or to " The Publisher." Letters addressed to 

 Mr. Johnson or Dr. Hogg often remain unopened unavoid- 

 ably. We request that no one will write privately to any 

 of our correspondents, as doing so Bubjecta them to un- 

 justifiable trouble and expense. 

 Calceolaria Soil (An Old Subscriber).— We could find no insects in the 



soil. 



