NOVEMBER. 



157 



Cucumber-frame. Do not water it, but put dry leaves over the surface. Put 

 the lights on only at night, or in bad day weather. I lost last winter none so 

 treated. If a pot-plant arrives in summer in clayey mould, baked as hard as a 

 brick in the pot, before you plant it out, soak it in a bucket of water till the 

 ball is wet through, or you will never wet it ; white fungus will then ensue, 

 and the plant will make no growth. A twelve-hours rain alone will wet this 

 hard ball. After you have wintered your novelties in the frame, in May plant 

 them in two rows with their balls on raised banks, such as thorn hedges are 

 planted on. I planted out this spring sixty-six frame- wintered pot plants, and 

 forty Roses. Even established Roses have grown and bloomed better. The 

 banks are about 3 feet wide, with ditches between them ; the banks run 

 north and south, so that the rising sun heated one side, and the setting 

 sun heated the other. The top is heated by the sun in the ascendant. After 

 planting I put on a heavy mulching of black dung battened down, and covered 

 the manure with 2 inches of burnt field ashes to protect the mulching — these 

 were also battened down. Water during the torrid weather was poured on 

 the centre copiously. Thirty-three in equal shares of eleven, were Prince 

 Camille de Rohan, Due de Cazes, Princesse Mathilde, and one Vulcain — all 

 dark Roses. I saw, on one occasion, besides continuity of blooming, eighty 

 good blooms at one time — a very fine sight. Many of these plants are now 

 from 4 feet high, and strong. 



I am induced to send this article from the great number of too flattering 

 encouragements which I have received from all grades in society, and from all 

 parts of the kiugdom. 



Ruslito?i. W. F. Radclyfee. 



CONCERNING NEW HYACINTHS. 



In reply to your correspondent " Quo," What constitutes a new Hyacinth ? 

 &c, allow me first to say that the six new varieties shown by us on the 18th of 

 March last had never been exhibited in London before, and, I believe, in no 

 place in the United Kingdom. The sorts were Feruk Khan, Fair Maid of 

 Denmark, San Francisco, Prince of Orange, Estella, and Rouge Eclatante ; 

 this last I was aware was not absolutely new, although very scarce ; but from 

 my notes I could not find that it had ever appeared at a public show. Maria 

 Theresa, which " Quo " says was one of the six, was merely placed by the side 

 of the above ; and I understand from my foreman it was marked off by him 

 before the Judges saw them. At any rate I never intended it as a new one, 

 having many years ago exhibited it as such ; and my standing rule has been 

 every season to stage none in this class that have ever been seen before ; and 

 I hope it will not be considered out of place for me to take little credit to 

 myself in stating, that nearly every first-class Hyacinth that now occupies 

 anything like a position has been introduced into England by ourselves. Take 

 as example Robert Steiger, Grand Lilas, Florence Nightingale (Fabiola), 

 Madame Van der Hoop, General Havelock, Mont Blanc, &c. 



I do not consider that the Dutch information as to dates can in any way 

 determine what constitutes a new Hyacinth. Your quotation from the third 

 Dutch correspondent especially leads me to this conclusion, in which he says 

 Due de Malakoff was raised in 1857, and sold for exportation in 1858, it being 

 a well-known fact that after such a sort is selected from the seedlings as would 

 be likely to be worth cultivation, it takes from five to seven years to get bulbs 

 sufficient for this purpose ; and then it is probable they would retain them for 

 a year or two longer to test their quality. I always consider a new Hyacinth 



