April 7, 1881. ] 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
281 
Pelargonium edged with dwarf blue Ageratum ; and Bijou Pelargonium edged 
with Lobelia. 
Tank Heating (E. C.). —The mode of conveying hot-water pipes through 
tanks in horticultural structures is not done with the object of “ excluding 
frost,” but when the tanks are covered for affording bottom heat to plants and 
crops, such as various kinds of stove plants, Cucumbers, Melons, Pines, &c. ; 
when open for maintaining a warm and very moist atmosphere in houses devoted 
to the culture of aquatic plants. For affording top heat hot-water pipes must 
be exposed in convenient positions, and in quantity in accordance with the 
temperature that is required by the plants or crops, and governed also by the 
height and exposure of the house. The subject of heating horticultural struc¬ 
tures is referred to in its various phases by Mr. Fawkes in a new work that has 
recently been published. It can be had from this office, price 10s. 6 cl., post free 
11*. 2d. Tanks are not suitable for heating greenhouses. 
Bone-meal (Inquirer). —We do not remember having published a special 
article on this subject. The value of bones in various forms as a manure is 
admitted, and bone-meal has been frequently recommended in our columns as 
a good and safe manure for plants and crops. We extract the following from 
our small manual “Manures for the Many” (post free 3.pf.).—“All bones con¬ 
tain more than half their weight of phosphate of lime, and are beneficial as a 
manure, because that chief constituent phosphate of lime is also a constituent 
of all plants ; and the gelatine which is also in bones is of itself a source of food 
to them. The bones must be applied to the crops in very small pieces, or in 
powder ; and 10 lbs., at the time of inserting the seed, are enough for 30 square 
yards, if sown broadcast; and a much smaller quantity is sufficient if sprinkled 
along the drills in which the seed is sown. There is no doubt that bone-dust 
may be employed with advantage in all gardens and to all garden crops ; but it 
has been experimented on most extensively with the Turnip and Potato, and 
with unfailing benefit. Mixed with sulphur, and drilled-in with the Turnip 
seed, it has been found to preserve the young plants from the fly. Mr. Knight 
found it beneficial when applied largely to stone fruit at the time of planting ; 
and it is quite as good for the Vine. To lawns the dust has been applied with 
great advantage when the grass was becoming thin. As a manure for the 
shrubbery, parterre, and greenhouse, it is also most valuable ; and crushed as 
well as ground, is employed generally to mix with the soil of potted plants.” The 
value of bone-meal has been rendered in the following expressive and suggestive 
verse, which students in schools of agriculture might well commit to memory— 
“ No bone-dust, no Turnips ; no Turnips, no Wheat; 
No Wheat and no Turnips, no cattle, no meat; 
No Turnips, no cattle, nor manure in the yard, 
Make bills for the doctors, and farming go hard.” 
Espalier Fence (Deodar). — There is no objection whatever to the bar 
fence you propose to erect. We know similar fences that have been erected 
half a century, and they are furnished with splendid trees. The height of the 
fence is very much a question of taste and adaptability to position. We have 
seen them of all heights, from 4 to 10 feet. A height of 6 feet makes a fine 
fence, the lowest bar being 15 inches from the ground, and the highest near the 
top, with five other bars at equal distances between. By this arrangement you 
will have seven branches on each side of your trees. A 5-foot fence, which is a 
good and useful height for espaliers, would afford the means of training six 
branches from each side of the trees. 
Varnish for Iron (Bailiff). —The following has been recommended, 
which we publish, as you request us to state a mode of making what you want; 
but we advise you to do as we do—purchase the varnish that has often been ad¬ 
vertised in our columns, and which is inexpensive and good. To make black 
varnish :—One gallon of coal tar, half a pint of spirits of turpentine, 2 ozs. of 
oil of vitriol, stirred, and laid on like paint. Mix with a piece of wood or stick 
the tar and vitriol, and then add the turpentine, and apply it with a brush. 
Mix no more than you can use at once, and then apply it as it becomes thick. 
11 Can a Boiler Explode when the Flow is only a Quarter on ? ” 
(An Under Gardener). —This is an important question, and j-our case is a common 
one—namely, that of a boiler, &c., to heat a conservatory, and coils of pipe in 
the mansion so arranged as to be heated separately or together, as' is clearly 
indicated by the directions on the board by the valves, which states “ that the 
valves of one circulation are not to be shut unless the other circulation is 
open.” This means that the water must have means of circulation or the 
boiler must, from the expansion of the water in heating, explode. Instructions 
of this kind are rarely given, but they are highly necessary for those stoking, many 
young men not being acquainted with the principles of heating by hot water ; 
indeed, we have more than once known a boiler heated by the fire with all the 
valves closed, and the water from its expansion making the boiler move in its 
place. If it had not been noticed soon enough there would have been an explo¬ 
sion, not more perhaps than to have attributed the disaster to a flawed plate, 
bad rivetting, or the boiler not being properly constructed, when in fact the 
real cause of injury would have beeu ignorance or neglect on the part of the 
stoker. Instructions of the kind named above ought to be in every stokehole 
where the boiler heats more than one compartment separately or together, and 
if attended to many a breakdown would be averted. As to the complaints 
about the heat in the mansion not being regular, that depends entirely on the 
stoker, although he may not know the heat other than as you state by feeling 
the pipes. If the pipes are hot either the coils are not sufficient for their pur¬ 
pose or more heat is wanted than can be had from hot water, but we do not 
think this is exactly what is wanted. Heat is wanted in the mansion, and none 
at the same time in the conservatory. Why should not the coil pipes be worked 
so as to heat the mansion when heat is not required in the conservatory ? 
Surely heat is not to be expected without fire, and as no heat was required for 
the conservatory it appears to have been supposed that none was required for 
the mansion. This appears to us as if inviting complaint, for what sun would 
do for a conservatory it would not for a mansion, it not passing through walls 
the same as through glass. We now come to your point. The heat was turned 
entirely off the conservatory, the “ fire was checked, the draught shut off, and 
the house circulation valve turned about a quarter of its full distance.” We do 
not wonder that on telling your chief what you had done he stated “ you were 
running a great risk, as the hot water having a large body of heat round it 
must have vent somewhere.” Clearly you did not follow the instructions on 
the board, as “ one valve was not to be shut unless the other was open.” The 
furnace was at its full heating power or near thereto, hence the checking of 
the fire and draught, and the house circulation valve was only turned on a 
quarter, whereas, as no heat was wanted in the conservatory, it should have been 
turned on full. With a “ quarter on ” it was straining the boiler by diminishing 
the waterway, and were there a weak place in it, it was a sure method of finding 
it. It was no use checking the circulation of the water to keep down the heat 
in the mansion, for it would rush through the “ quarter on ” rapidly ; for as your 
chief truly stated, “ it must go somewhere,” and if it could not get through fast 
enough then must come an explosion, the boiler plates or surface being unable 
to resist the pressure. We are glad of the opportunity of stating our conviction 
that more breakdowns occur with boilers through inattention to the require¬ 
ments of a free circulation of the water than to what our correspondent has 
been led to conclude, as many others have done—viz., “ driving very hard.” If 
a boiler will not do its work without being driven, the sooner it is taken out 
and replaced by one that works properly the better. There is nothing so 
wasteful about a garden as boilers requiring to be driven, as in that case more 
heat escapes from the chimney than is abstracted by the water. 
Plants for Name (W. II. IF.). —Our rule is not to name more than six 
specimens at the same time from a correspondent. These must be in good 
condition and fair examples of the species. Flowering plants can only be named 
from flowering sprays, and Fern fronds must have spores. When sprays of 
shrubs and trees are sent, some particulars of their habits must accompany 
them. Specimens always arrive in the best condition when packed with a little 
damp moss and sent in tin boxes. Sprays simply enclosed in letters arrive every 
week, and the majority of these are either so much crushed or withered as to 
render it impossible for anyone to determine their names. In some cases a piece 
of the root of flowering plants, if it possesses any marked characters, is a great 
assistance in naming the specimens. 
Names of Plants (S. IS.). — 1, Cypripedium barbatum ; 2, Sedutn carneum ; 
3, Adiantum assimile; 4, quite shrivelled. (A Young Gardener). —The spray 
and cone are of Pinus Pinaster. (Mrs. C. Edwards). —Iris fimbriata. (Acron). — 
The spray is quite insufficient for identification. 
COVENT GABDEN MARKET.—ArRlL 6. 
Trices remain much the same, with little business doing. 
fruit. 
8. 
d. 
9. 
d. 
s. 
d. 
8. 
d. 
Apples. 
4 sieve 
2 
6 to 4 
6 
Melons . 
each 
0 
otoo 
0 
Apricots. 
box 
0 
0 
0 
0 
Nectarines. 
dozen 
0 
0 
0 
0 
Cherries. 
4? lb. 
0 
0 
0 
0 
Oranges . 
V loo 
4 
0 
8 
0 
Chestnuts. 
bushel 
12 
0 
18 
0 
Peaches . 
dozen 
0 
0 
0 
0 
Figs. 
dozen 
0 
0 
0 
fl 
Pears,kitchen .. 
dozen 
2 
0 
3 
0 
Filberts. ... 
IPib. 
0 
0 
0 
0 
dessert . 
dozen 
4 
0 
8 
0 
Cobs. 
v tt 
2 
0 
0 
0 
PineApples .... 
& tb 
1 
0 
2 
0 
Gooseberries ., 
4 sieve 
0 
0 
0 
0 
Strawberries .... 
per lb. 
8 
0 
12 
0 
Grapes . 
n> 
6 
0 
1.5 
0 
Walnuts . 
bushel 
0 
0 
0 
0 
Lemons. 
^ case 
12 
0 
18 
0 
ditto . 
t* 100 
0 
0 
0 
0 
VEGETABLES. 
8. 
d. 
s. 
d. 
S. 
d. 
s. 
d. 
Artichokes. 
o 
0 to 4 
0 
■* 
0 to 1 
c> 
Asparagus. 
bundle 
0 
0 
0 
0 
Mustard* Cress . 
punnet 
0 
2 
0 
3 
Beans,Kidney... 
%> loo 
i 
0 
i 
6 
Onions. 
bushel 
3 
6 
5 
0 
Beet, Red. 
dozen 
1 
0 
2 
0 
pickling. 
quart 
0 
0 
0 
0 
Broccoli. 
bundle 
0 
9 
1 
8 
Parsley. doz 
bunches 
6 
0 
0 
0 
Brussels Sprouts. 
4 sieve 
0 
9 
i 
3 
Parsnips. 
. dozen 
1 
0 
2 
0 
Cabbage . 
0 
6 
1 
o 
quart 
0 
0 
0 
0 
Carrots. 
bunch 
0 
4 
0 
6 
bushe ) 
3 
9 
4 
0 
Capsicums. 
F 100 
1 
6 
2 
0 
Kidney. 
bushel 
4 
0 
4 
6 
Cauliflowers. 
dozen 
0 
0 
3 
6 
Radishes_ doz .bunches 
i 
6 
2 
0 
Celery. 
bundle 
1 
6 
2 
o 
0 
4 
0 
G 
Coleworts_doz. 
bunches 
2 
0 
4 
0 
Salsafy. 
bundle 
i 
0 
0 
0 
Cucumbers. 
each 
0 
6 
i 
0 
Scorzo’nera . 
bundle 
i 
<5 
0 
0 
Endive. 
dozen 
1 
0 
2 
0 
Seakale . 
basket 
3 
0 
3 
8 
Fennel. 
bunch 
0 
3 
0 
0 
%>’ ft-. 
3 
0 
0 
Garlic . 
. V tt>. 
0 
6 
0 
0 
Spinach . 
bushel 
3 
0 
0 
0 
Herbs . 
bunch 
0 
2 
0 
0 
Turnips. 
bunch 
0 
4 
0 
0 
Leeks. 
. bunch 
0 
3 
0 
4 
Vegetable Marrows each 
0 
0 
0 
0 
POULTRY AND PIGEON CHRONICLE. 
THE UTILISATION OF WASTE LAND. 
(Continued from page 263.') 
Let us compare the advantages of planting after a well-made 
fallow and that of digging holes in a hard and unfilled surface. 
In the former case the trees would root quickly and spread under 
ground without difficulty during the whole period, until they may 
be felled whilst young or left for maturity as timber. In the 
latter case, however, when planted in such strong land, with 
merely holes dug to take the trees, it will prove the grave of the 
far greater portion, and any which may survive never can make a 
profitable growth, nor can the untilled surface be horse or hand- 
hoed, so as to keep the land clear and free from weeds. We there¬ 
fore assume that the cost of fallowing is money well expended, and 
without it the land had better be allowed to continue in the same 
wasteful state as before planting had been decided upon. As it 
may be desirable in the opinion of some landowners to plant Firs 
only for a crop of ripe timber, we beg the reader to refer to the 
article upon this subject in this Journal dated the 6th of May, 
1880. In following up the subject of quick returns, however, we 
will refer to the close system of planting as before stated, in 
which case the small ridges we have named of 10 feet wide will 
