November 14, 1872. ] 



JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



377 



I have observed that dry summers at the time of maturation 

 are favourable to the Potato ; and that this year, following the 

 electrical rains, the wind being north-east, we had several 

 severe hoar frosts just preceding the outbreak. All the reme- 

 dies proposed have failed ; still the following, as practised 

 here, will greatly aid you. Plant early ripeners, and some 

 among them that will keep well till new Potatoes come in. 

 Do not manure the Potatoes , but manure highly the preceding 

 crops. Do not plant at the fall till the ground is thoroughly 

 cooled. If the tubers have started, break off the scions. If 

 the plants appear above ground before spring frosts are over, 

 draw the earth over the plants, or earth them up at once. 

 Started tubers planted in March will be up long before dormant 

 tubers planted in the autumn ! The frosts will cut down the 

 plants, and the tubers will be smaller, the crop less, and the 

 ripening a fortnight later. Plant more than you are likely to 

 want. After the crop is lifted you can have a good crop of 

 Early Stone Turnips, some of which will afford you " tops" in 

 the spring before Cabbages come in. I get off my garden 

 three crops in two years. Finally, look over your Potatoes, 

 and remove the decaying or decayed ones. — W. F. Radclyffe. 



GOLD AND SILVER TRICOLOR AND BICOLOR 

 GERANIUMS. 



How beautiful were the Gold and Silver Tricolor and Bicolor 

 Geraniums, with their varied and resplendent colours, as they 

 adorned our gardens in the early summer ! and they would 

 have longer continued to do so had it not been for the very 

 unfavourable season. Can anything connected with horticul- 

 ture be more enjoyable than noting the progress of those 

 interesting subjects ? 



I had four oval beds ; in one containing the Golden class, 

 Prince of Wales took the first place. The style and freedom of 

 its growth and its brilliancy of colour will insure its becoming 

 the most popular of all bedding and show Geraniums. Sir 

 Robert Napier and Lady Cullum must always rank deservedly 

 high. Countess of Craven, Achievement, and Lucy Grieve (the 

 last two slow growers) are all of the rarer kinds that I possess. 



I am induced to give my small experience, trusting that 

 among your correspondents some will diffuse their knowledge 

 by giving lists of the best kinds for show and bedding purposes, 

 as well as hints on the situation and compost best suited to 

 develope colouring. 



Mrs. Rousby, Miss Burdett Coutts, Italia Unita, and Mabel 

 Morris are very good among the Silver Tricolors. I am aware 

 there are some more highly-prized varieties, but I am not 

 sufficiently acquainted with them. 



The Bicolors were not by any means themselves this sum- 

 mer, and although I have a great variety of them, I feel quite 

 incompetent to pass judgment on them. Empress Eugenie is 

 very pretty, but was completely spoiled by the hail and con- 

 tinued rain ; St. John's Wood Star, Prima Donna, and Fairy 

 Ring were among the best. The dark ones became too robust, 

 and too yellow as well. Sybil held its ground remarkably 

 well. The fourth oval was entirely composed of Mrs. Beuyon 

 and Mrs. Pollock, their high colouring continued longer than in 

 the other three. A large tuft of Pampas Grass in the centre, 

 with an equal breadth of turf between each bed, prevented 

 any appearance of monotony. — An Amateur, South of Ireland. 



with a microscope the spot whence the scale came off, young 

 live ones would be discovered. — T. C. Clarke. 



CLARKE'S INSECT DESTROYER. 



I should be glad if you would correct a slight error in a 

 recent number. Instead of 1 oz. of the compound to the 

 gallon, say 3 ozs. to the gallon for a winter dressing, and 2 ozs. 

 to the gallon for a summer dressing. Syringing is the best 

 way to apply it at a temperature of 120° ; there is then no 

 danger of injuring the buds. 



Three years ago my Peach trees were full of scale ; this year 

 I have not seen one. My compound has completely eradicated 

 it, and several other persons who have used it tell me the 

 same. My trees have not required a dressing all the summer ; 

 they have not had one since last year's winter dressing ; 

 they have only been syringed once a-day with clear water, 

 and I have not observed an insect upon them. By rights they 

 ought to have two dressings in the winter when the leaves are 

 off, one a fortnight after the other. For instance, supposing 

 the first dressing to kill all the scale insects on the trees, in a 

 fortnight or three weeks afterwards the insects will begin to 

 fall off, and the very place where they stuck to the branch no 

 solution or dressing could touch ; and if one were to examine 



LEE'S PROLIFIC BLACK CURRANT. 

 This comparatively new variety is, as it deserves to be, 

 largely advertised in your columns. Last season I wrote 

 favourably on it in the pages of the Gardeners' Chronicle. At 

 that time I had only seen it growing one season, and that in 

 the raiser's garden. I have since grown it in the gardens here, 

 and have seen it growing at several other places ; perhaps, 

 therefore, you will allow me to state that I can fully endorse 

 the good opinion I entertained of it. Right worthily does it 

 deserve the name of Prolific, for the bushes this season (which, 

 by the way, has been a very unfavourable one for Currants as 

 well as for other fruits in this neighbourhood) , were literally 

 smothered with fruit. The bunches are of moderate length, 

 the berries large and very even in size, with scarcely any 

 small ones. They are very sweet, and of an agreeable flavour, 

 without that acidity which makes the Black Currant so unpopular 

 as a fruit for the dessert. Another great recommendation this 

 variety has is its long hanging and keeping properties. Those 

 grown here were planted in a border with several other 

 varieties, and I gathered fruit of Lee's Prolific quite three 

 weeks after that of all the others had either dropped off or 

 shrivelled up. Many new kinds of fruit sent out of late years 

 have caused much disappointment, often turning out to be 

 inferior to older proven varieties, so that cultivators have 

 become wary of what they do purchase ; but I have no doubt 

 but all will be pleased with this variety after giving it a trial, 

 as I believe it to be the very best we have in cultivation. I 

 have no hesitation in stating that I think it will, when its merits 

 become better known, be the most popular variety of its class 

 in every garden establishment, more especially with the 

 market gardener. — Thomas Foote, Gardener to Sir Arthur 

 Elton, Bart., Clevedon Court, Somerset. 



DESTROYING PLANTAINS AND OTHER WEEDS 

 ON LAWNS. 

 I can fully endorse all that is stated by Mr. J. Wright 

 respecting the efficacy of oil of vitriol for eradicating plantain 

 and other weeds on garden lawns ; it has been practised here 

 very successfully for several years past. Although the use of 

 the blacking-bottle and notched dip 'stick is rather novel, I 

 have no doubt it answers the 

 purpose well. What we use is a 

 small narrow-necked glass bottle 

 similar to the rough sketch en- 

 closed, and such as is used by 

 chemists in laboratories, &c. 

 One may be purchased at any 

 chemist's at a very trifling cost. 

 If the glass stopper in the side be kept firmly in its place the 

 liquid will only come out by drops, and therefore the operator 

 is not so likely to waste the acid or throw it over his clothes, 

 as would otherwise be the case. If the acid can be procured 

 pure it may be considerably diluted with water, in some eases 

 quite one-half, and it will still be sufficiently strong for all 

 weed-killing purposes. — W. Nichol, Drinkstone Park, Bury 

 St. Edmunds. 



Sale of Orchids. — On the 7th and 8th inst. Mr. Stevens 

 sold by auction Mr. Marshall, of Enfield's, collection of Orchids. 

 There were 555 lots, and they realised more than £1000. 

 Cattleya Triana^ Ruckerii sold for £7 7s. ; Odontoglossum 

 triumphans Marshallii, £10 10s. ; Cypripedium grandiflorum, 

 £8 ; Laelia acuminata, £6 ; Masdevallia Veitchii, £10 10s. ; 

 Angraseum sesquipedale, £6 ; Sobralia macrantha (Woolley's 

 var.), £12. 



HARDY GEMS.— No. 5. 

 I have followed no systematic plan in my short notices of 

 these plants, preferring to jot down my thoughts and expe- 

 riences as the ink flows from the pen, so that my readers will 

 have a great variety of both geDera and species brought to 

 then - notice, somewhat in the manner they are thrown in our 

 way during a botanical ramble ; I therefore now ask ycu to 

 observe those beautiful patches of bright yellow flowers, which 

 are so conspicuous, they are — ... ,.,...... . 



