August IS, 1861. ] 



JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



123 



WEEKLY CALENDAR. 



Day 



of 



M'nth 



Day 



of 



Week. 



AUGUST 16—22, 1861. 



Average Temperature 

 near London. 



Rain in 



last 

 37 years. 



Sun 

 Rises. 



Sun 



Sets. 



Moon 

 Rises. 



Moon 

 Sets. 



Moon's 

 Age. 



Clock 



before 



Sun. 



Day of 

 Year. 









Day. 



Night. 



Mean. 



Days. 



m. h. 



m. h. 



m. 



h. 



m. h. 





m. s. 





16 



Tu 



Sea Holly flowers. 



73.1 



51.5 



64 3 



17 



49 at 4 



19 af 7 



20 



6 



18 S 



14 



S 58 



229 



17 



W 



Artichoke flowers. 



73.1 



50.5 



61.8 



20 



51 4 



17 7 



51 



6 



41 4 



O 



3 46 



230 



IS 



Th 



Golden Oat Grass ripe. 



73.6 



51.8 



62 7 



13 



52 4 



15 7 



18 



7 



6 G 



16 



3 32 



231 



19 



F 



Tansy flowers. 



73.1 



51.8 



62.4 



17 



51 4 



13 7 



47 



7 



29 7 



17 



3 19 



232 



20 



S 



Sun's declination 13° IS' N. 



72 7 



51.3 



62.0 



16 



55 4 



11 7 



15 



8 



51 8 



IS 



3 5 



233 



21 



Sun 



13 Sunday after Trinity. 



72.4 



49.8 



61.1 



13 



57 4 



9 7 



44 



8 



11 10 



19 



2 50 



234 



22 



M 



Ladies' Traces flowers. 



71.4 



49.9 



60.2 



14 



59 4 



7 7 



17 



9 



28 11 



20 



2 35 



235 



From observations taken near London during 



the last thirty-seven years, the average day temperature 



of the week 



is 72.8° 



and its 



night 



temperature 



50.9°. The greatest heat was 92° 



on the ISth, 1812 ; and the lowest cold, 32°, on the 2lst, 



1850. The 



greatest 



fall of raiu was 



1.12 inch. 















ORNAMENTAL GEASSES. 



EASSES give a feature to open 

 situations similar to that which 

 Ferns do to those which are shady ; 

 some are elegant, others graceful, 

 not a few attain majestic propor- 

 tions, and all are more or less 

 curious and ornamental. They 

 rant amongst the most attractive 

 and graceful ornaments of the 

 flower garden, and impart a light 

 graceful appearance such as is not 

 afforded by any other tribe of 

 plants. They are, besides, easily 

 cultivated by those who are little 

 versed in horticulture ; and in 

 this country the hardy kinds grow 

 freely inmost soils and situations, 

 and of such I propose to treat, 

 noticing, in addition, tender kinds 

 which flower in the first year, and 

 which, though perennials, are not capable of withstand- 

 ing the winter with us. 



PERENNIAL GRASSES. 



All or most of these delight in a rich, deep, moist, 

 loamy soil. To do them justice it should be trenched or 

 loosened to a considerable depth, and a liberal dressing 

 of manure or leaf mould worked in if the ground is poor 

 and light. The situation must be open, but sheltered 

 from wind by trees at a distance, otherwise the cold 

 cutting winds of spring and the summer gales destroy 

 much of their beauty. Sunny or warm dry situations, 

 as south borders, are not suitable for them, nor are they 

 adapted for growing in shady places under trees ; but 

 open spots on lawns answer well for those which may be 

 planted singly, and ordinary borders for those of smaller 

 growth. 



They are increased either by division of the root or by 

 sowing the seed. The first is a ready way of obtaining 

 plants, and is best accomplished when these commence 

 growth in the spring. It consists simply in taking off 

 with a trowel or spade the offsets, with a little root at- 

 tached to each, planting them in the places required, and 

 afterwards watering them until they become established. 

 The seeds may be sown in the open ground m any de- 

 scription of well-pulverised soil, covering lightly with 

 fine soil. The ground should be kept constantly moist ; 

 and a mat, or some such material, thrown over the seed- 

 bed in dry weather will secure a speedy germination. 

 The shade must be removed at night, and discontinued 

 after the seeds have brairded. After this they will only 

 require copious supplies of water in dry weather, keeping 

 clear of weeds, and thinning if closer together than one 

 in a square inch. It is desirable, however, to sow them 

 thinly, so that there may be no necessity to thin them 

 until they are of a size fit to handle, when the whole may 

 be taken up and transplanted, or pricked-off into beds, 

 No. 177.— Vol. TO./Ketv Semes. 



allowing a distance of 3 inches from plant to plant every 

 way, so that they may grow strong, and when of sufficient 

 size they may be removed with balls to their final quar- 

 ters. When pricked off they should be well watered, 

 and shaded for a few days until established. 



The best method, however, of raising the better kinds 

 of hardy Grasses from seed is to drain a seed-pan or pot 

 one-third its depth with some rather large pieces of crocks 

 over the holes in the first instance, some smaller above 

 these, and over all a thin layer of moss, and then to fill the 

 pan to within half an inch of the rim with any light turfy 

 loam with which about one-sixth of sharp sand has been 

 mixed. Level the surface, and sow the seeds thinly and 

 evenly on it, and cover with a little fine soil, no deeper 

 than just sufficient to hide the seeds ; then gently press 

 the surface with the hand or the bottom of a flower-pot. 

 Give a gentle watering through a fine-rosed watering-pot, 

 and place in a house with a gentle heat. The soil shoidd 

 be gently sprinkled with water once or more during the 

 day, so as to keep it constantly moist. When the tiny 

 blades appear and are well up, remove the pan or pot to 

 a cold frame, which must be kept close for a few days 

 until the plants become a little hardened, then gradually 

 admit air, and after they are hardened off, remove the 

 lights in mild weather, drawing them on only when drench- 

 ing rains and severe frosts occur. 



When sufficiently large to handle, pot them singly into 

 48-sized pots in a compost of rich turfy loam, replace in 

 the frame, and keep them close, shaded, and well watered 

 for a few days until established. After this inure them 

 to the open air, and to secure free growth keep them 

 well supplied with water at the root, giving a sprinkling 

 overhead on the evenings of hot days, which will much 

 refresh them. Dryness is very injurious to Grasses, and 

 a badly-drained soil not less so. Perhaps the soil may 

 be naturally light and dry, if so a liberal application of 

 manure worked into the soil prior to planting will be 

 advantageous ; and after they become established water 

 them copiously twice a-week with weak manure water 

 during hot dry weather. Good, sound, and rather strong 

 loam suits the majority of the perennial Grasses, and 

 they do well in clayey moist soil, provided it be drained 

 so as to remove standing water from the under strata or 

 subsoil. When once well established they require but 

 little attention, this being limited to cutting away decayed 

 growths ; but in the case of Grasses of doubtful hardi- 

 ness and those somewhat tender, the dead portions, on 

 account of the protection which they afford the crowns 

 or stools, should not be removed till the fresh growth is 

 somewhat advanced in spring. 



Gyneritjm argenteum (Pampas Grass). — This is, per- 

 haps, at once the noblest and most handsome of all 

 Grasses. It likes a moist soil, but flowers most freely 

 in that which is of a rather light nature. Asa specimen 

 on a lawn, or exhibited singly or in groups in arbore- 

 tums, and by the sides of or on islands in lakes, it has 

 a charming effect. It is from the plains of South Ame- 

 rica, grows from 8 to 10 feet high, has proved hardy in 

 nearly all parts of the kingdom, and largely as it has 

 No. 823.— Vol. XXXII., Olt. Series. 



