December 13, 1864. ] 



JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



479 



New Ornamental-folia ged Plants (R~. D. T.).—Of the Mrs. Pollock 

 class of Geraniums you might add to those you already possess, Captain Meade, 

 Lady Cullum, and Sunset; also Saxifraga Fortuni, Lonicera aureo-reticu- 

 l?ta, Iresine Herbstii, and Aucuba japonica picta. We might name a host 

 of other plants did we know the purpose for which you require them, and 

 whether yon can command a stove temperature. You will, however, find a 

 list of the new plants of the year in " Hogg's Gardeners' Year Book," 

 about which you inquire. It is now ready, price Is. free hy post Is. 2d. 



Gorse or Furze Propagating (Rusticus) .—Vfe find it succeeds better 

 by sowing than transplanting, it being difficult to remove at any time, even 

 when young. 



Poinsettia pulcherrima Dying (H. V.).— Your plant is dying from 

 want of a suitable temperature. It is not usual for it to die down at this 

 season, nor in fact at any time, though it does lose its leaves after flower- 

 ing, when it should have a rest and be pruned in. It requires the heat of a 

 stove, and cannot be grown, so far as we know, successfully in a temper- 

 ature of less than 55° in winter, though we have had it doing fairly in a 

 conservatory at about 50°. We fear it is dying back because the shoots 

 were not sufficiently ripened, and you will only accelerate its death by 

 catting it back. Keep in the warmest and driest part of the house, and 

 give no water beyond a little to prevent the wood shrivelling. If you have 

 a hotbed ready in March we would plunge the pot in it, cutting down when 

 the eyes became prominent, and growing in the frame hotbed all the 

 summer, so as to have it in bloom early, which we fear will never be the 

 case if grown in a greenhouse. 



Shrubs for Growing Under Trees (Rusticus) .— The best that we know 

 are Berberis, or Mahonia aquifolium, B. repens, and B. Darwinii. They 

 are very ornamental, and form excellent game cover. We have a planta- 

 tion such as yours, which is desired to be ornamental, and we find that of 

 all things we plant in it Aucuba japonica does the best, and takes to the 

 situation better than any other plant. We have some plants 6 feet high, 

 and as much through, aad this under Elm trees which are large enough 

 for rooks to build in. Evergreen Privet does very fairly; so does the Box- 

 leaved Privet ; common Hollies, and common Laurels are indeed good plants 

 for such places, but difficult to establish at first, owing to the dryness of 

 such situations. We planted some hundreds last spring both of Laurels 

 and Hollies, also Aucubas, and, notwithstanding the unparallelled dryness of 

 the summer, we have not lost a single Aucuba, and many Laurels which 

 we thought dead are now shooting from the root ; the Hollies are still 

 alive, and will no doubt shoot with the return of spring. They were 

 watered regularly twice a-week. It is no use planting such things in dry 

 situations unless they are looked after until established. Common Yews 

 we have doing fairly, and Butcher's Broom well, Box does badly, Rhodo- 

 dendron ponticum middling,— the soil, however, does not suit such plants. 

 Alexandrian Laurel (Ruscus racemosus) does well, Portugal Laurels are 

 indifferent, and the Periwinkles are excellent for covering the ground. 

 We have not had many opportunities of seeing Skimmia japonica in such 

 situations, but feel justified from what we have heard in recommending it 

 for select spots in Bhady plantations. 



Birmingham Fruit Show (W. McP.).— Blenheim Orange and Blenheim 

 Pippin are the same Apple, and the collection in which it was exhibited as 

 two distinct varieties should have been disqualified. It was an oversight on 

 the part of the judges. The letter you copied was not intended for publica- 

 tion. 



Education of Gardeners ( W. D.).— The subject needs no further advo- 

 cating. You are quite right in considering a general knowledge of 

 chemistry is desirable to be possessed by a gardener, and you will find 

 chemistry fully applied to horticulture in "The Science and Practice of 

 Gardening" published at our office. 



Obtaining a Stock of Purple King Verbena (P. J. A.).—U you have a 

 gardener friend he would most likely be in a position to let you have the 

 greater part of the cuttings desired by the beginning of next March. If 

 you could obtain half, or even a fourth of them, by the first week in that 

 month, you might have a hotbed of well-sweetened dung made a fortnight 

 previously, 5 feet high at back, and 4 feet in front, and a foot wider than 

 the frame all round. This would give a bottom heat of from 80« to 85°, and 

 a temperature of from 70° to 75° within the frame. A few inches of rather 

 dry soil should be placed over the bed, and 2 or 3 inches of moist sand upon 

 it. The cuttings, being inserted in pure silver sand, in saucers, without 

 drainage openings, will, if the soil be kept wet, strike in ten dajs or a 

 fortnight. You may then place some rather light loam and leaf mould 

 within the frame for a few days, to become warm, and in this the cuttings 

 may be potted singly in 60-sizerl pots when well rooted, watering gently 

 with water of the temperature of the frame. Continue them in the frame, 

 and when sufficiently grown take off their tops, and make cuttings of these, 

 the bed being lined to keep up a temperature of 60° or 65° at night. These 

 cuttings will strike in another ten days or a fortnight, and be ready for 

 potting off, and in about ten days more they will each furnish acutting from 

 the point. The cuttings from which they were taken in the first instance 

 will, through the stopping, by this time have made two, three, or more 

 shoots, now of sufficient length for cuttings, which, with those already 

 struck, will give you something like the number of cuttings desired, and of 

 course plants by the latter part of April ; but you must so time a bed as to 

 have it ready for the third lot of cuttings by the third week in April, 

 the two first batches being gradually hardened off. The last batch will be 

 struck in ten days or so, when they are to be potted off, and, when well 

 established, gradually hardened off, so as to bear plantingout in the last week 

 in May, Providing you cannot obtain one-fourth of the number of cuttings 

 desired by the beginning of March, we would purchase, if we could, a dozen 

 strong plants (which we very much question if we could do), and place them in 

 a mild hotbed, not so hot as for cuttings ; and having other beds ready to strike 

 the cuttings in as they are obtainable, twelve good plants would furnish 

 the number of cuttings you require; but we fear the main difficulty will 

 not be in obtaining the cuttings, but the plants to take them from. Your 

 best plan would be to make friends with some gardener who has these 

 plants to furnish by the thousand. Failing this, we do not think you could 

 do better than purchase a few dozen strong plants early in spring, even 

 if you gave for them a trifle more than the regular price. 



Cineraria Leaves Curling (J. P. F.).—lf your Cinerarias are free from 

 fly why do you smoke them once a-week ? We have no evidence, but think 

 that most likely the curl in the leaf is from the frequent use of the tobacco 

 smoke, and letting it reach the plants in a hot state. 

 Address (S. J. V, 2T.).— We have not Mr. Noye's address. 



Caladiums— Cobcea scandens— Gloxinias (Rosa-flora).— We fear the 

 Caladiums will perish if kept in a greenhouse during the winter. They 

 should be wintered in a stove, and be kept on a damp floor, so that the soil 

 may be kept a little moist. If kept dust dry the roots are liable to rot when 

 they are watered in the spring. If you have no better place than a green- 

 house, you will make the most of it by keeping them in the hottest part, 

 and not letting the soil become too dry. If the case was heated they ought 

 to have been kept in it without water all winter. Pot them in March, and 

 put them in the case a<t once, watering sparingly until growth fairly com- 

 mences, then water freely. Cobcea scandens does not flower because it has 

 not room enough on a small wire trellis. Give the plants large pots to 

 grow in, and the upper part of a back trellis in the greenhouse, and they 

 will bloom abundantly ; or, if you want anything to cover the roof in order 

 to afford a little shade to Ferns and the like, your two plants will cover 

 them in a short time. You will do no good by cutting them down until 

 they become unsightly, when the cutting back will induce fresh shoots with 

 finer foliage. Give the Gloxinias very little water and keep near the glass, 

 and they will go to rest as soon as they ought. Keep in the warmest part 

 of the greenhouse all winter, placing the pots on a damp floor, but without 

 any water. Shift in March from thumb pots into 24*s, watering gently; and 

 do not water much, only keep the soil just moist until they begin to grow. 

 If you have a hotbed to plunge them in after potting they will do all the 

 better, and you may grow them in it until they are showing for bloom, when 

 they will do well in the warmest part of the greenhouse if they are hardened- 

 off a little before removing them from the hotbed. 



Covering Asparagus-beds in Winter (II. iV. U.).~ Unless you wish to 

 have the Asparagus with a long slender underground shoot with no more 

 of it eatable than the green or purple tips, there is no benefit in the French 

 system which you mention. In what way the uncovering of the roots in 

 winter can benefit the plants we cannot perceive; and we know very well 

 if the soil were taken off the crowns in autumn that the frost would kill 

 every crown so exposed in winter, for Asparagus, though a native of this 

 country, becomes very tender through high feeding or rich manuring. The 

 crowns in winter otight not to be covered with less than from 3 to 6 inches 

 of soil, 3 inches more of manure being added every autumn. It should, 

 not be too rotten, so that it may act as a manure and protection at the same 

 time. Taking the roughest of this away in March, and forking the shortest 

 into the beds at the same time, is the best method of securing strong shoots 

 in April onwards. These are not fit for cutting until they are from 

 3 to 6 inches out of the ground, or more than half green or purple, that 

 part only having the flavour of Asparagus, the underground white part 

 being about as tough, and quite as tasteless, as the root of an Elm tree. 

 This is the English system, and the same as that pursued by your gardener. 

 Year-old plants are not covered with soil or anything in autumn, for, not 

 being highly fed, they are not s® tender as old plants. The French system 

 differs from the English in earthing the beds in spring, so that the shoots 

 may be blanched their full length, or to a length of 9 inches with the tips 

 just coloured. Such look very nice, but are tasteless. The beds being 

 covered with soil in spring it is necessary to take a quantity of it off in 

 autumn, so as to prevent the roots or crowns rotting, as they are liable to 

 do when in a wet soil, and in order that the roots may be better manured, 

 and not to expose them to the atmosphere, for that can do plants little good 

 when they are in a state of rest. In this case the soil requisite to blanch 

 the shoots would have to be put on the beds again in spring. There cer- 

 tainly would be no harm in trying the French method; but if you wish 

 good Asparagus for table keep to the old plan.— G. A 



Stench in Greenhouse (Erin-go-bragh). — Without more particulars we 

 cannot account, with certainty, for the bad smell from your flue. If 

 newly done the lime would give off strong vapours when a strong fire was 

 used. In such a case you had better use a slow fire all day during the mild 

 weather, with plenty of air in the greenhouse, until the bricks and joints 

 are slowly dried. Are you sure that clean water was used for making the 

 lime, and also that the bricks were sound and good 1 for we recollect of a flue 

 being made with bricks from what had been a manure tank, and no time 

 would remove the smell. In either of these eases much more care and 

 patience must be used. Does the flue draw freely 1 for if not the smoke will 

 be apt to come through the joints ; and if rubbish, such as cinders, contain- 

 ing bits of cloth, feathers, vegetables, &c, is used, if the smoke do not come 

 through the odours will. Is your iron pipe for the smoke large enough 

 for the flue, or if large is it clear throughout ? as they soon fill, and the 

 scent from themselves, and then from sending smoke back, is bad. Use, at 

 first, good dry fuel. 



Hot-water Pipes for Cucumber-house (Wig an).— You do not state the 

 height of your 8 feet wide and 23 feet long span-roofed Cucumber-house, 

 with a bed 2 feet 3 inches wide on each side ; but allowing it to be of the 

 ordinary height, we would say that one pipe all round below the beds would 

 be sufficient for Cucumbers in May. To get Cucumbers all the winter, or 

 very early, you had better have two pipes for bottom heat beneath each bed, 

 and two for top heat all round. 



Heating by Gas (G. P. S.).— We should be glad if some experienced 

 correspondents would etate tneir practice as to this mode of heating. We 

 adopted it some years ago successfully. Meanwhile we would state that 

 few plants suffer more from gas fumes than Ferns do, and, therefore, the 

 fumes should be kept out of the house by having a tube or chimney to pass 

 into the outer air. Could not the house be heated from the same place as 

 that which is used for the greenhouse? If the results of the combustion of 

 the gas are got rid of, we have no doubt that gas would serve the purpose. 



Celery Bolting {Bickley).—VfQ presume you mean tfeat your Celery is 

 throwing up the flower-stalk, and therefore becoming unfit to send to table. 

 You would find lately the whole rationale of this in ah article by Mr. Fish. 

 Dryness at the roots is the chief cause, and the nett cause is checking 

 growth before planting out. 



Tuberose Culture (Jane).— We fear no better results will attend your 

 efforts another year, as the roots seem to be considerably weakened. We 

 would pot them in March in turfy loam of a rather strong nature, giving 

 only a slight watering, and keeping on a shelf in the greenhouse. In April 

 plunge the pots in a mild hotbed (75°), and keep them there until the first 

 week in August, giving a good supply of water, and syringing the plants 

 overhead, so as to keep down attacks of red spider. They should be kept 

 near the glass. When they have made all the growth they appear disposed 

 to do reduce the supply of water to half for three weeks, and in three weeks 

 more leave it off. During the winter keep the pots in a light airy part of 

 the greenhouse. 



