400 



JOUKSAX OF HORTICTJLTTJKE AND COTTAGE GAKDENEK. [ November 15, 1864. 



Seed op Comealia ( W. J2.).— We do not know such a genus, nor a plant 

 by that name. 



Yeses fbosi Eyes— Figs foe. Back "Walt, of Vinery (A Constant Sub- 

 scriber). — Obtaining from eyes put in in February cane3 as thick as the 

 little finger by autumn, is no difficult mutter, and euch are frequently pro- 

 duced. The eyes are inserted about half an inch deep, singly, in small 

 pots of light, sandy, turfy loam, {-lightly watered, and plunged in a bottom 

 heat of from 85° to 20 p , -with a top heat of from 65° to 85°, and a moist 

 atmosphere. The eyes soon start into growth, and, if kept near the glass, 

 are not drawn up weak. To insure a sturdy and well-matured growth, a 

 free circulation of air is kept up, care being taken to avoid cold draughts. 

 "When the pots are filled with roots, or rather when these present them- 

 selves at the sides, the young plants are potted in seven-inch pot«, using 

 turfy soil of the same temperature as the house. This will be necessary in 

 lUaTch or April. They are asrain plunged in a hotbed of 80° or 85°, and 

 have a top heat of 65° by night, with a rise of 15° or 20° with sun and air, 

 the latter being given at 75°, and taken off when the thermometer sinks to 

 S0°. The Vines are gently bedewed overhead through a fine syringe, night 

 and morning, with soft water of the same temperature as the house. By 

 June the Vines will he strong, and need potting again. If it is desired to 

 insure strong canes that will fruit in the following season, select the 

 strongest, and have a 12 or 13-inch pot drained perfectly by a large crock 

 over the hole or holes, a couple of inches of smaller crocks above it, and 

 then 1 or 1h inch of half- inch bones mixed with a little turfy loam. Fill the 

 pot with soil to the required depth for the Vine, so that the latter may be 

 placed an inch or two deeper than before, filling in round the ball with soil 

 from turves a year old, aad leaving half an inch for waiering. Place in 

 the hotbed, and train the cane near the glass, if possible about 1 foot from 

 it, keeping up the same heat and moisture as before. Laterals will present 

 themselves at eveiy leaf; these should be allowed to grow, and the water- 

 ings being copious, and every alternate one liquid manure, the Vines will grow 

 at a rapid rate, and soon make a cane 20 feel long. This not being desired, 

 stop them at S, 9, or 10 feet, according to their strength, and this will cau s e 

 the cane to thicken, the laterals being stopped at the sixth leaf. More 

 laterals will take their rise from the stopped laterals, bnr. the cane will now be 

 beginning to assume a russet hue. The quantity of water is now to be 

 lessened, more air given, and the laterals by degrees brought nearer the 

 stem, until they are finally ren oved by the time the wood becomes brown 

 and hard. They are then cut clean away, in order to admit as much light 

 as possible to the wood, in oreer to ripen it effectually, and the house is kept 

 dry, and no water given, except to prevent the leaves falling prematurely. 

 By this plan we hare canes as thick as a walking-stick, and have fruit 

 on them in the following April— sis or eigh: bunches of about a pound 

 weight on each. Our " Vine Manual " contains directions for raising Vines 

 from eyes to fruit the following season. The Brown Turkey is the best of 

 Fics, and that you ceem to have under ihe synonyme of Lee's Perpetual. 

 "Brown's Perpetual'' is probably the Bron-n Turkey. Rich dressings of 

 manure (cowdung is best), or watering with manure water, will enable 

 yon to improve their size. The Singleton, or White Ischia, is a good Fig, 

 but a bad bearer. 



Aspaeagus-bed Making (M. P., Ponfefract).~T)T&m the ground effec- 

 tually to a depth of 4 feet. Make the bed now by digging out the soil 

 6 feet wide for a bed 4 feet wide find 3 feet deep; place a layer of dung 

 3 inches thick at the bottom, which may be partially decompose i stable 

 manure, and then a layer of soil; fork this up and thoroughly mix it with the 

 dung beneath, and then place another layer of dung and soil upon it, forking 

 as before, and so on, until the bed is brought to the level of the surrounding 

 ground ; then put on a layer of dung, with an ndditional 3 inches of leaf 

 mould, if you have it, and 6 inches of soil over that. Fork over the bed, 

 so as to mix the dung, leaf mould, and soil together, and leave rather 

 rough, so that the frost may do its work during tbe winter. In March fork 

 over the bed again, and in the last week in that month, or first of April, 

 plant three rows of Giant, two-year-old plants, at 1 foot apart. 



Guano Water foe Eyergbeens [A Constant Reader).— Weak guano 

 water will not injure tbe shrubs named if it be applied when they are 

 growing and stand in need of water, but it should only be given at that 

 time. It will do no good at other times, though it may not prove injurious. 

 The application of it to Geraniums successfully does nut imply that it may 

 be given to all plants indiscriminately. 



Wall Fruit Trees for the Midland Counties {T. S.).— You will have 

 room for ten trees, which should be, Peers— Marie Louise, Louise Bonne of 

 Jersey, Winter Nelis, and Beurre de Ranee. Cherries.— May Duke, Elton, 

 and Florence. Plums.— Green Gage, Purple Gage, and Coe's Golden Drop. 



Plants and Vines under One Roof (A. 2.}.— A detail of your experi- 

 ence will be very acceptable. Your queries thall be answered next week. 



Insect on Feen (/. S).— The insect on your Dicksonia antarctica is the 

 common brown tcale. l)ip the plant into a strong solution of starch, let it 

 dry on, and remain for a week, and then wash off by syringing. 



Seaweed for New Asparagus-Eeds (A Five-years Subscriber}.— We 

 have used seaweed with great success, not only in making Asparagus-beds, 

 hut as a mulching during winter, removing it in March. Your mode of 

 making the beds is good ; and, as you have little manure to spare for the 

 purpose, a foot thick of fresh seaweed will not be too much, mixing it with 

 the soil equally from top to bottom, hot keeping the hotbed manure nearer 

 the surface, still mixing it well with the soil to at least a depth of 18 inches. 

 You may bring the soil at tbe bottom of the trench to the top, which is 

 what we presume yon mean by bringing the loam to the surface, provid- 

 ing it is not heavy. The crown3 of the plants should be covered with 

 2 or 3 inches of soil at the time of planting. Your one-year-old plants are 

 good, but. they will be longer before they come into bearing than if two or 

 three-year-old plants were employed; but the certainty ot growth will bs 

 increased, and the produce betttr, by planting young plants rather than 

 those a year or two older. 



Names of Fruit (J. P., A Young Gardener and Subscriber). — Your 

 Apples and Pears were named in our Number of November 1st. page 360, 

 under the initials. J. P. (J. C. Wheeler).— 1, beuire" Claiigeau; 2. Uve- 

 dale's St. Germain : 4, across with the Siberian Crab, very pretty ; 5, Pjrus 

 trilobata. (Anxiuus Inquirer). — 2, Fondanted' Automne ; 3, GlouMorcean. 

 {Charles Ellis).— Your Apple is Court-Pendu-Plat. There is no work on 

 Apple-gathering, but you will find such ine tract ion in a!l good gardening 

 .books. {Albert). — 1, Bishop's Thumb j 3. Autumn Pearmain; 4, Parry's 

 Pearmain ; 5, Franklin's Golden Pippin. Number a omitted were not recognised. 

 {Old Subscriber)'.— 1 3 Pas^e Colmar; 2, (iansel's Bergamor. (P. Lang).— 



Your Pears are —1, Croft Castle; 2, Cra^anne; 3, Belle deNoel; 4, Crasanne 

 d'Hiver; 6, Vicar of Winkfield; 7, Xe Plus Meuris; S.Spanish Bon Chretien; 

 9. Bellissime d'tliver; 10, Verulam. (G. Wadhursi). — Pears.— 1. Vicar of 

 Winkfield ; 2, Beurre" Ditl ; 3, Easter Benrrfi; 4, Glou Morceau ; 5, Eeurre" 

 de Ranee ; 6, Beurre* Diel. Apples.— 2, Beauty of Kent; 3, Lamb Abbey 

 Pearmain; 4, Winter Greening; 5, Hawthomdea. (Japotiica).— Pears. 

 — 1, Gendesheim; 3, Fondante d' Automne. Apples. — 1, Wormsley Pippin ; 

 3, Reinette Doree ; 4, Adams' Pearmain; 5, Court-Pendu-Plat ; 6, Winter 

 Greening; S, Dumelow's Seedling; 11, Dutch Mignonne; 12, Eawthorn- 

 den. (J. L.). — 1, Dutch Mignonne; 2, Marmalade Pippin; 3, Loan's 

 Pearmain. (B, D.).—2, Count of Wick: 3, Pomme Violette ; 4, Haw- 

 thornden; 5, Royal Pearmain. (P. S.).—2, Napo'eon: 3, Bem-re* de Ranee. 

 Names of Plants (P. W. Sleaford).— Your Fern is Cyrtomium falcatum. 

 (A. L. P.). — Your Ferns are— 1 and 2, Pteris tremula ; 3, Phlebodium 

 aureum. (Filices).-l, Lastrea Filix-raa*; 2, Athyriuiu Filix-fceaiina ; 

 3, Lastrea dilatata ; 4, Nephrodium mol'.e; 5 and 7, Asplenias! ebeneum ; 

 6, Cystopteris fragilis. These are, probably, the correct names, but no one 

 can be certain from such scraps of fronds. (A. McKelvie).— A capital cristate 

 form of Cystopteris fragilis, somewhat approaching to regia. [31. P.). — We 

 are still of opinion that your plant is Salvia Grahami. It certainly is the 

 plant known by that n;irae in gardens, and, as far as we can see, only 

 differs from the wild specimens, with which we have again enrnpared^it, in 

 being more robust in h-ibit ; but that is no m'>re tuan might be expected in 

 a garden plant, particularly in one upon which tbe nybridiser has been at 

 work. Are you quite sure that the plant you formerly had was correctly 

 named? {Annie,.— 1, Bupleurum fruticosum ; 2, Ruscus racemosus. (J. Pi.) 

 — Tiibernamontana coronaria. (S. A ).— Probably A. monanthemum, but 

 perhaps one of the allied Mexican species, as leptophyllum. There is not 

 enough to decide by. The other is Campyloneuron decarrens. (A Ten- 

 months Subscriber).— Phltboliuin aureum. ( XV. P.). — 1, Nephrolepis tu- 

 birosa; 2, Anemia flexuosa. 



POTJLTEY, BEE, and HOUSEHOLD CHRONICLE- 



BRAHJIA POOTEAS. 



It is said there are people who honestly disbelieve that 

 Napoleon Buonaparte ever existed; who think Waterloo a 

 sort of historical fiction. On the other hand, it is said 

 people repeat falsehoods till they believe them true. It is 

 said George TV. related a charge at Waterloo till he fairly 

 believed he commanded and led it in person. It is hard to 

 know how to describe or to classify this hallncination. It 

 may exist with the strictest veracity, and the persons may 

 be satisfied they are telling truth, while they are, in sober 

 earnest, guilty of that which to every one else is a palpable 

 falsehood, without any foundation whatever. 



There are others who will not believe a thing after it has 

 proved itself. The result may be plain as the sun at noon ; 

 but it will not be believed, or it will be tortured and twisted 

 till it looks or sounds difficulty. Henry V. of France, as 

 some call him, the Duke de Bordeaux as others call him, 

 had a public reception at Frohsdorf for those of his faith- 

 ful nobles who chose to undertake the pilgrimage from 

 France to that place. We should imagine the old marquises 

 and the " preux chevaliers," dating in unbroken line from 

 the Crusades, the real " sang azur" for generations ; gTand 

 old fellows— we do not believe many young ones went — 

 but rather fussy, and sticklers 'for etiquette. The dear 

 Prince lived as usual, a full allowance of meals, and very 

 little walking. When he was at table the pilgrims were 

 allowed to circulate through the apartment. When he 

 walked they followed, and admired him at a distance. 

 Fancy a party of four, all wearing the cross of St. Louis, all 

 mounting the white cockade : gentlemen to the backbone — 

 two old, two middle-aged. It is known the Prince is some- 

 what lame, and, though painstaking conceals it at times, at 

 others it is very perceptible. Fancy him walking along a 

 gravel path forty yards ahead of the four pilgrims. Every 

 now and then, when the plan of the gardens permitted it, 

 they cut across or ran round in order to be able to see him 

 nearer, and probably to be recognised. On one of these 

 occasions, after he had passed, the two fine, tall, old men 

 stood watching him. All at once there was an exclamation 

 from one of them. "Ah!" he cried, "our dear Prince has 

 one leg shorter than the other." " Shame," said his com- 

 panion ; " it is impossible — our Prince cannot be lame." 

 " But see, he limps." " Yes," shouted the other, " that is 

 because one leg is longer than the other, not shorter!" 

 " But you must see — " " No I won't see, and I can't see ; 

 he may have a longer leg, he cannot have a shorter !" and 

 the two old friends parted in dudgeon. 



Very ridiculous, is it not ? Well, then, how about the 

 Brahmas ? In entering on the question we address our- 

 selves to two classes. We will tell "W. H. B." that which 

 we believe to be true, and have tried. When we have done 



