July 19, 1864. 



JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



55 



moderate sunshine, the more light we have we lite it the 

 better — in fact, even now, the precaution taken has more 

 reference to our water supply than to the force of the sun. 

 We noticed a little spider coming on in two or three places 

 in the orchard-house, and immediately we daubed all the 

 open spaces on the back wall with flowers of sulphur, made 

 into a paint with water and soft soap, so as to cause it to 

 stick. We then shut up about three o'clock, and well syringed 

 the trees. In three days we collected a handful of the worst 

 leaves, about twenty ; and though there were abundant 

 traces of where the insects had been, we only detected one 

 alive, and that sickly. The power of the sulphur is already 

 going off, and so we will add a little more. The sulphuring 

 should, indeed, have taken place before a trace of spider 

 appeared. We have far more faith in preventives than in 

 cures. Watered well the borders for trees on the back wall, 

 and placed on the surface of the pots bearing heavy crops as 

 much superphosphate as- we could take up with the thumb 

 and two fingers, and after watering we covered the surface 

 with half an inch of rough riddled mushroom dung, to lessen 

 the evaporation of moisture from the soil. The pots are also 

 plunged for three-quarters of their depth, and that helps to 

 keep the roots cool. 



Gave a good watering to Pigs ; damped the floors of 

 vineries where the fruit was late. Stopped and set Melons, 

 and frequently turned large fruit ripening, as when they 

 lie long in one position on a flat slate, &c, a mark is apt to 

 be produced, and the rind will be apt to crack there. We 

 have not yet uncovered our "Vine-borders wholly, but we 

 wish the sun had played on them for the last few days. 

 Pigs when fresh watered want more air, as otherwise they 

 are apt to crack at the sides before being thoroughly ripened- 

 up to the point. 



A correspondent asks the best way for sending fully- 

 ripened Pigs to a distance. Will some friend tell us ? For 

 ourselves, we consider that a Fig just fit to be eaten — that 

 is, like a globule of honey, will not bear to be carried farther 

 than from the tree to the dining-room. When they must 

 be packed they must be gathered before they are nearly so 

 ripe as this, and though, of course, eatable after a long 

 journey, they give no better idea of the luseiousness of a 

 Pig gathered when fully ripe, than Peas conveyed to Covent 

 Garden in sacks give an idea of nice young Peas gathered 

 just before they are shelled and cooked. 



Peaches in Peach-house have ripened faster than we 

 wanted them, and we picked them frequently before they 

 were quite dead ripe, as they keep better off than on the 

 tree, and journey better in consequence. When fully ripe 

 before being gathered and kept only for a short time, they 

 become mealy and lose their rich juiciness. A good deal of 

 tact is required to gather Peaches. The experienced man 

 knows if they are ripe enough by putting his hand near 

 them, hardly if at all touching them, as a touch is so apt to 

 leave a blemish. A gardener who could scarcely be driven 

 from his equanimity, did for once passionately jump out of 

 it when a person who knew no better went along fingering 

 every ripening Peach within his reach. This was even worse 

 than a great gardener in a fit of absence of mind, going 

 along admiring a house of Cucumbers suspended from a 

 trellis, and picking off each bloom from the point of each 

 Cucumber as he went along. " What are you at ? " at last 

 burst from the enthusiastic cultivator, who (as he told the 

 tale), was so astonished that he could not speak. 



OENAMENTAL DEPABTMENT. 



We intended to have had a gossip about the potting and 

 general management of stove and greenhouse plants, but 

 we would partly repeat the exceEent timely directions of 

 our friend Mr. Keane. The dry weather has rather browned 

 our lawn in places. Mowing as generally practised was 

 out of the question. Knifeing it so as to cut plantain and 

 daisies was more in demand. The mowing machine even 

 ■was little used, as it would have dipped rather deep, even 

 when held with a light hand. In some cases the scythe was 

 used lightly, and a good sweeping and rolling given. Of 

 watering we need say nothing, for we have confined that 

 almost to Calceolarias, and gave them only a little to keep 

 them right. Most of the smaller things, as Verbenas and 

 Calceolarias, have _b_een slightly dressed with riddled old 

 mushroom-dung. 



Most of the Calceolarias were so treated a month ago, as 

 the ground was quite hot enough for them. We are now 

 giving the dressing partially to Scarlet Geraniums, as the 

 ground is now hot enough to cause them to bloom freely. 

 We would thus dress all our beds now if we had the material, 

 as it saves much trouble in watering, and by keeping the 

 roots near the surface encourages flowering. — R. F. 



COVENT GAEDEN MAKKET.-July 16. 



The market continues to be well supplied, and the demand i3 brisk. Pines, 

 Grapes, Peaches, and Nectarines are sufficient for all requirements. Of 

 Apples some good fruit of early kinds may now be had; and of Pears some 

 excellent Jargonelles have come in from the continent. Strawberries are 

 now falling off; the supply principally consists of Elton, with a few British 

 Queens from late places. Of Asparagus, which is generally over by this 

 time, some remarkably good samples are still to be had. Kidney Beans are 

 beginning to come in in quantity, and bring 7s. per half sieve. 



FRUIT. 



Apples £ sieve 



Apricots ,.doz. 



Cherries lb. 



Currants, Red... J sieve 



Black -... do. 



Figs doz. 



Filberts <fc Nuts 100 lbs. 

 Gooseberries . ...^ sieve 

 Grapes, Hamburghs lb. 



Muscats 



Lemons 100 



Melons each 



d. s. 

 6 toO 

 S 



p. d. 



Mulberries quart to 



Nectarines doz. 8 



Oranges 100 10 



Peaches doz. 12 



Pears (kitchen). ..bush. 



dessert doz. 



Pine Apples lb. 



Plums h sieve 



Quinces " do. 



Raspberries ......lb. 



Strawberries ...punnet 



Walnuts bush. 14 



VEGETABLES. 



Artichokes each 



Asparagus bundle 



Beans Broad \ sieve 



Kidney qtn. 



Beet, Red doz. 



Broccoli bundle 



BrusselsSprouts h sieve 



Cabbage doz. 



Capsicums 100 



Carrots bunch 



Cauliflower doz. 



Celery bundle 



Cucumbers each 



pickling doz. 



Endive score 



Fennel bunch 



Garlic and Shallots, lb. 

 Gourds &Pumpks. each 



Herbs bunch 



Horseradish ... bundle 



d. a. 



4 toO 

 6 



Leeks bunch 



Lettnce score 



Mushrooms pottle 



Mustd. & Cress, punnet 

 Onions bunch 



pickling quart 



Parsley £ sieve 



Parsnips doz. 



Peas quart 



„ bushel 



Potatoes sack 



New bushel 



Radishes doz. bunches 



Rhubarb bundle 



Savoys doz. 



Sea-kale basket 



Spinach sieve 



Tomatoes doz. 



Turnips bunch 



VegetableMarrows doz. 



d. s. 



4to0 



TO CORRESPONDENTS. 



We request that no one will write privately to the de- 

 partmental writers of the " Journal of Horticulture, 

 Cottage Gardener, and Country Gentleman." By so 

 doing they are subjected to unjustifiable trouble and 

 expense. All communications should therefore be ad- 

 dressed solely to The Editors of the Journal of Horticul- 

 ture, Arc, 171, Fleet Street, London, E.C. 

 "We also request that correspondents will not mix up on the 

 same sheet questions relating to Gardening and those 

 on Poultry and Bee subjects, if they expect to get them 

 answered promptly and conveniently, but write them 

 on separate communications. Also never to send more 

 than two or three questions at once. 

 N.B. — Many questions must remain unanswered until next 

 week. 

 Beurrk Bosc Pear Leaves {E. B.).— They are attacked by a parasitic 

 fungus. We know of no remedy. 



Seeds from the Royal Horticultural Society {S. E. -ET.).— The spe- 

 cimen you enclosed is Erysimum Peroffskianum. We are surprised by your 

 complaint of the seeds sent out by the Society, because we never heard 

 before of their being unsatisfactory. 



Mimulus Flower (Mauckline).— It did not reach our office until the 11th, 

 and was totally dried up. 



Gas Burneiis in Greenhouse (M. C. t Lymington).— They will be very 

 injurious to the plants, unless within a stove or a glass globe, with a tube 

 rising from it and passing into the outer air. We mention a glass globe 

 because you may wish the gas to light the greenhouse. 



Strawberries on Chalky Soil {Provincial).— We have grown Straw- 

 berries on a Hampshire chalky soil ; but we had to make the soil 18 inches 

 If you do this, and have the bed covered in the spring 



deep of good loam. _.,......., 



vir^Z.^A^S ^jrT-u^™^ '■"iT'^Tl"*^ an inch deep with cocoa-nut fibre refuse, you will be able to obtain crops 

 We could not give them more than half f Strawberries. We found Keens' Seedling, Comte de Paris, and Hooper* 

 an inch, but we should have given them more if we had it. I Seedling succeed well. 



