122 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
[ February 14, 1834, 
quality of its rather small roots. Here Fig trees do not long 
escape damage by frosts, and a good house has done away 
with the necessity of so much care being expended over 
them. In less moist localities I should have no fear of 
failure in the open air, and should take every pleasure in 
their cultivation. — W. Iggulden, Alarston. 
EXPERIMENTS IN POTATO CULTURE. 
In your issue of July 5th, when you kindly favoured us with 
advice on the subject of manuring Potatoes, you were also good 
enough to interest yourself in our proceedings and to express a 
wish to hear of the result. This I should have given before 
now but that my notes thereon were all in the rough, and I have 
been too much occupied rntil quite lately to get them into 
proper order. Before going further I will avail myself of this 
opportunity to thank you most heartily for the kind advice you 
have given me from time to time, advice to which I attribute the 
greater part of our success. 
By the time your answer to my query reached my hands I 
was absent in Brittany, and, time pressing, my partner had 
already applied the mixture which 1 had suggested—viz., 1^ cwt. 
nitrate of soda and 1 cwt. nitrate of potash per acre. I may 
here mention that the whole of the ground had been trenched 
two spades deep, and had received a liberal application of lime, 
ordinary superphosphate, and compost. This season I hope to 
try over half of our ground the mixture you recommended—viz., 
J cwt. nitrate of soda, \ cwt. potassic chloride, and f cwt. super¬ 
phosphate. 
The Sologne, in which our work lies, is not by any means a 
favoured district either as regards its soil or climate. The 
former, as a rule, consists of large tracts of black, sour, sterile 
Heather soil, varied here and there with patches of stiff, cold, 
unworkable clay. Sometimes a spit deep of the heath soil over- 
lies the bed of clay, and when the two are worked up together 
forms about the most favourable compound we have to deal 
with. The climate, too, is very unreliable — subject to great 
extremes of heat and cold, of drought, and where undrained of 
saturation. 
Of the land we put under Potatoes about half the total 
extent (say three-quarters of an acre) consisted of meadow land 
—such as meadows are in these parts —and had been planted up 
with Asparagus on the Argenteuil system. This was perhaps 
the most suitable soil we had for the purpose. The Potatoes 
(Royal Ashleaf and Magnum Bonum) were planted in the ridges 
between the lines of Asparagus, and in the case of the latter 
gave a most satisfactory return. 
The remaining ground, of about the same extent, consisted 
equally of two totally different soils, one-half being a stiff cold 
clay, in which we grew Myatt’s Ashleaf, Schoolmaster, Snow¬ 
flake, and the French variety Saucisse with moderate success; 
and the remainder, which was all sandy heath soil, was planted 
with Bresee’s Prolific, International, Adirondack, Queen of the 
Valley, Reading Russet, Paterson's Victoria, and Scotch Cham¬ 
pion. From some of these the best results were obtained. The 
chief object of putting the ground under Potatoes was to render 
it fit for use as forest nursery this coming season, and, unless 
appearances are very deceptive, we have fully succeeded in our 
object. On the whole, the variety rather than the nature of the 
soil seems to have effected the results. 
It will be observed that we cultivated a single French variety 
—viz , the Saucisse Rouge, which has a considerable reputation 
in this country, owing solely, I fancy, to a want of knowledge 
of better varieties. It is a large, coarse, hard, yellow Potato of 
bad quality, subject to disease, and has not even the merit of 
being a heavy cropper. 
The following table will show the quantities planted of each 
variety and the yield obtained, and its per-centage in the seed 
put down. 
YIELD. 
2 cwt. Royal Ashleaf. 
cwt. lbs. 
Per-cent. 
2 
V 
Magnum Bonum. 
. CO 0 . 
1 
Snowflake. 
9*28 
1 
Bresee’s Prolific . 
. 10 20 . 
. 10*20 
1 
Myatt’s Ashleaf . 
. 10 0 . 
. 10-00 
1 
Sancsse. 
10 41 
5(5 
lbs. 
Schoolmaster . 
14 
>> 
Scotch Champion . 
2 92 
. 22*57 
14 
>> 
Paterson’s Vicroria.. 
. 1 88 . 
. 1428 
14 
>7 
Queen of the Valley _ 
2 93 . 
. 23-00 
14 
Mona’s Pride. 
1 16 
9*43 
7 
Reading Russet . 
. 1 42 . 
7 
International . 
. 2 0 . 
.. 32-00 
The return of Magnum Bcnum, Royal Ashleaf, and Myatt’s 
Ashleaf I have been obliged in part to give my estimate, but I 
believe I am well within the mai'k. 
The most satisfactory result that I have to note in connection 
with our experiment is that out of the whole crop above men¬ 
tioned (save Saucisse) I have only been able to find up to this 
date one small diseased tu 1 er, and that occurred among the 
Schoolmaster. It is possible that even this was a tuber of 
Saucisse that had found its way in by accident. Magnum 
Bonum has proved a little coarse in flavour, but all the rest are 
as excellent in quality as could be desired. 
In this district the Potato crop is a most important one, and 
by the introduction of new and improved varieties the return 
might not only, I am convinced, be at least doubled but also its 
value greatly enhanced. This season our hope is to give our 
experiment considerable extension, not only in the extent under 
cultivation but also by adding several new varieties to our list, 
and I trust we may in time see some improvement in the Potato 
cultivation of this district. 
These notes have already by far exceeded the limits I had 
intended to assign to them, therefore I must not let my ardour 
on the subject carry me away at greater length.—E. J. C. B., 
Loire et Cher. 
CACTACEOUS PLANTS. 
GENEEAL CULTTJKE. 
{Continued from page 86.) 
Temperature .— Where a large and mixed collection of Cacti is grown 
in one house, species from widely differing positions and climates have to 
submit to a uniform system of culture as regards temperature ; but ihis, it 
appears, is not a particular disadvantage, for if a few general rules are 
observed these plants will thrive under any reasonable treatment. The 
delicate Mamillarias, the robust Cereuses, and the most tropical of the 
Echinocactuses can be grown together in a house to which no heat is 
applied during the winter except to exclude frost, but then they should be 
kept very dry and must be placed in warmer quarters in the spring to start 
them into growth. I know an extensive collection which has been so 
treated for some years with good results, but they are under the care of an 
experienced cultivator who has devoted a life to the study of their pecu¬ 
liarities, and anyone who is not familiar with such plants would act un¬ 
wisely in testing them so severely. The safest winter minimum tempera¬ 
ture is 50° to 55° for all the tropical species, the half-hardy, and in wet 
districts even the hardy sorts, being preferably wintered in a frame where 
they can be protected from frost. From March onwards the temperature 
may be raised to 70° to 80°. while with sun heat it may be increased to 90°. 
In the height of summer, by which time the growth of the majority of 
the species will be completed, the house or frame must be fully ventilated, 
and no shade will be required. A free exposure to the sun is as requisite 
to consolidate the growth of these plants as in the case of most fruit trees. 
In the autumn the temperature may be gradually reduced as the external 
heat diminishes, 60° to 65° by day, and 50° to 55° at night, suiting all the 
family. 
Soil .—It is a general idea that for these plants a special and elaborate 
compost is absolutely indispensable, yet they can all be satisfactorily grown 
in ordinary loam and sand provided the latter be added in sufficient pro¬ 
portion to render the whole thoroughly porous, and there is no doubt 
whatever that the conventional lime rubbish is often employed in quanti¬ 
ties that are positively injurious. In the case of delicate plants the pieces 
of broken bricks used may occasionally have a bad effect by attracting and 
retaining the moisture near the roots, and the lime in excess has a tendency 
to diminish the porousness of the soil. A small proportion of lime should, 
however, be employed for the Cereus and Opuntia type, as these secrete 
crystals of oxalate of lime in large quantities, and it is also advisable to 
add some finely broken bricks when the loam is inclined to be heavy. Indeed 
for all the strong-growing Cacti such material may be preferably em¬ 
ployed, as it enables the cultivator to supply water more freely and safely 
than would otherwise be the case. The pots must be carefully drained, as 
this is a matter of much importance. From one-fourth to one-half the 
depth of the pot should be filled with draining materials, according to the 
size and condition of the plants which mostly require but little soil. 
Water .—Under the cool system already mentioned very little water 
is needed for at least three months in the year—namely, November, 
December, and January, though when in pots the plants should be 
examined once a week. Some growers, however, especially those in the 
trade, turn the plants out of the pots at the commencement of winter, 
shake the soil from their roots, and lay them upon dry sandy soil, where 
they remak without the smallest supply of water until it is desired to 
start them in spring, when they are planted out in a frame to make then* 
growth, being syringed and watered freely. In the ordinary Cactus 
house, which is kept at a rather higher temperature, water is needed more 
frequently even in winter, but some experience is required to determine 
the proper time to apply it. The soil must never be allowed to get in a 
stagnant saturated condition, or the strongest plants will soon die, and it 
is often more easy to judge by the appearance of the plant whether 
moisture should be supplied. If the whole tissue seems to be plump and 
full none is needed, but if there is the slightest approach to laxness, or a 
dullness in the surface colour, water should bo given. In the spring and 
early summer, when growth is advancing, whether the plants are in a 
house or frame, slight syringing in the afternoon is veiy beneficial, par¬ 
ticularly after potting, and it will not be necessary to apply water direct 
