308 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. L April 12 , uses. 
surface roots. Vines may grow luxuriantly without any roots near the surface 
as yours did when the roots were 3 feet below it, and in such a case liquid 
manure would do no good ; but if the border is interlaced with roots near the 
surface, then the Vines, if heavily cropped, will be assisted with the sewage. 
You will find it advantageous to keep the surface of the borders moist in hot 
weather by covering them with manure. Heat and drought drive the roots 
downwards however bad the soil may be there, and however good it may be near 
the surface. Sewage is good for everything you name, but should not be given 
to plants in pots until they are root-bound and need more support than the 
soil affords. You must also test the strength of the liquid on some common 
plants in pots that you can afford to kill, and Cabbages in the open ground, 
before applying it to Vines or plants of value. Sewage varies in strength con¬ 
siderably, and there is nothing like a few experiments for determining the 
question of its proper dilution for your purpose. It is valuable for all,kinds of 
crops that require rich food, and the soil is tolerably well drained. 
Oxide of Iron for Roses (M., Liverpool ).—We do not know that we can 
do better than quote what Mr. William Paul has said on this matter in his ex¬ 
cellent work “ The Rose Garden ” as follows :—“ Opoix, a French apothecary, 
attributes the superiority of the Roses grown for medicinal purposes, in the 
neighbourhood of Provins, to peculiar properties of the soil, which contains iron 
in considerable quantity. We know, by the research of chemists, that the petals 
of the Rosa Gallica contain oxide of iron ; and I have long thought that the 
iron which abounds in the soil of one of the nurseries here is an ingredient of 
importance in the culture of Roses. I would not say that it is indispensable, 
but beneficial, and am almost confident that it heightens the colour of the 
flowers. On turning up the soil its ferruginous nature is in places distinctly 
seen. In an undrained field adjoining the nursery the water frequently collects 
on the surface in the form of a thick brown liquid, like so much rust, which is 
covered here and there with a film, on which the sky is distinctly mirrored. 
When the soil in this nursery is hoed or forked, the rapid increase of growth of 
vegetation is striking beyond measure. This practice is known to promote 
growth in all soils, but the extent to which it does so here is, I think, due to 
the oxygen of the air changing the iron contained in the soil from a substance 
pernicious to vegetable life into one favourable to its development.” We have 
not had experience in applying iron to the soil; if any of readers have we shall 
be glad to hear from them on the subject. But we know that some soils con¬ 
tain too much iron for vegetation, and it is important that the nature of the 
soil be ascertained before any applications of this nature are made. 
Clematis cirrhosa ( W. J. X.).—As we have a woodcut in hand of this 
Clematis, we give it (fig. 74) as it will indicate the characters better than mere 
verbal description. The flowers are small, white, and pendulous from the 
axils of the ovate or elliptical leaves, and are produced freely at the points of the 
branches. The species is related to C. calycina, and was first noticed by Clusius 
in Andalusia and Gibraltar, being also found in other parts of Spain. It is said 
to have been cultivated by Gerard in 1596, and was grown by Miller at the 
Chelsea Botanic Garden for more than forty years in the open ground. Though 
hardy, however, it is usually grown in a cool house. 
Chrysanthemum Crimson Velvet and King of Crimsons (Se¬ 
cretary ).—We thought we had made it clear some time ago that King of Crimsons 
is not a new but an old variety. It is totally distinct from and many years 
older than Crimson Velvet. Whether the latter has been confounded with the 
former or not by the writer you quote we cannot tell, possibly it has. We 
should not like to say that he “ knows nothing about Chrysanthemums,” but we 
admit freely our belief that his knowledge of the varieties and their peculiar 
cultural requirements is by no means equal to your own. We have grown both 
these varieties, and we know of none richer and brighter in colour, Crimson 
Velvet being perhaps the more glossy of the two. This we scarcely consider a 
true reflexed variety. The majority of the flowers are reflexed, but well-grown 
examples incurve more or less. In fact, when it was first sent out by Mr. Salter 
(we think in 1865) it was said of it, that as it did not “incurve very closely it 
showed its colour well.” We have had partially incurved flowers, though we 
have never seen one sufficiently incurved for including in a stand of that section ; 
but we have seen several that could not have been excluded from a stand of 
reflexed blooms ; they were, however, too small. King of Crimsons, on the con¬ 
trary, we do not think possible to produce with incurved petals, nor have we 
ever seen it with tasselled florets like Triomph du Nord. As for its being a 
Japanese variety that is out of the question, as these forms were, we think, not 
grown to any extent before 1867, whereas King of the Crimsons was as well 
known in 1849 as it is now. We should not be surprised to learn that this very 
useful and effective variety is about forty years old. It is admirably adapted 
for specimens, and some very fine examples of it are usually seen at the South¬ 
ampton Show. Although we cannot publish your letter at present, it shall not 
be destroyed. We have had no complaint from the cultivator you name. 
Surplus Garden and Farm Produce (/. S .).—If you have no other 
land for growing Mangolds, &c., for stock than is shown in the plan you have 
sent—that is, in the walled kitchen garden, neither you nor anyone else can 
have any substantial surplus of either farm roots or garden vegetables for sale, 
if the family and stock be well supplied. Many owners of small gardens 
estimate garden produce at much more than its selling value. They have re¬ 
gard to the purchasing price, forgetting that in the majority of cases two 
profits have to be made before the vegetables reach the consumer, except in the 
case of a small local demand, and then the selling prices are usually low. If 
your fruit trees are in a fully productive state you may perhaps during some 
years have a little fruit to spare ; and you may possibly raise a few hundreds 
of very early Lettuces planted in the autumn close to those walls which have 
a warm aspect, and very early Potatoes may be obtained much in the same way. 
If you can get such crops as these ready a few days before the markets are well 
supplied you will find the advantage of enhanced prices. By working on this 
principle—that is, turning any special natural advantages that your garden 
may possess to the best account, you may occasionally make a few pounds off a 
comparatively small space ; but it is practically impossible for you to have any 
“ great portion ” of surplus produce of the different crops throughout the season. 
Your question on Potatoes as you have put it is unanswerable. No one can 
possibly estimate the produce per acre of “various sorts,” and in this case we 
should certainly not grow “ various ” sorts, but should find out oue or two 
varieties that succeed best in the soil, and grow these exclusively. If you could 
obtain, say, 3£ tons of Myatt’s Prolific, or 6 tons ot Magnum Bonum per half 
acre, you would do very well. If you turn to page 77 of the Journal, the issue 
of July 27th, 1882, you will find the record of a crop of the former of twice the 
weight we have indicated, and the manure that was used in producing it. This, 
however, was quite an unusual yield. In growing Potatoes or anything else as 
much depends on the skill of the cultivator as on the nature of the soil. If you 
have only two men—the figure you have made being so obscure that no one 
here can tell whether it is meant for a 2, 3, or 5—you will not have to search 
long for work wanting doing. 
Climbers for East Aspect (C. S. 7?. V., Surrey). —A trellis of stout wire 
will answer best for your purpose. Before covering the house front with Portland 
cement drive in iron staples 4 feet apart, leaving them far enough out to project 
through the cement, so that the wires can be fastened to them after it is put on. 
A row of staples at top and bottom and five rows between, or forty-two staples 
for each space of 20 by 24 feet. Strain the wire diagonally so as to make a 
diamond pattern, both for stability and neatness, and give it two or three coats 
of paint. The climber you mention is probably Ligustrum coriaceum, of a dis¬ 
tinct, compact, and very neat habit of growth, but for the beauty of its flowers 
and bolder appearance Ligustrum japonicum is decidedly preferable, only it 
requires rather more care in pruning and training to keep it within bounds. 
Four feet apart is close enough for the permanent health and vigour of the 
climbers, and this distance will enable you to have eight plants arranged in the 
order they are named—Lonicera flexuosa, the sweetest of all Honeysuckles ; 
Ligustrum japonicum (Japanese Privet), Jasminum officinale (White Jasmine, 
very fragrant), Escallonia macrantha, Lonicera brachypoda, almost as sweet as 
L. flexuosa, Berberis Darwinii, Jasminum nudiflorum (Yellow Jasmine, flowering 
in winter and early spring), and Ceanothus rigidus, quite 1 a"dy enough for an 
east aspect in Surrey, and very lovely in spring with densely clustering pale 
lavender flowers. One, three, five, and seven are deciduous, the others arranged 
with them alternately are evergreen. Let the growth mingle, and you will thus 
have a clothing of green foliage in winter, and the fresh growth and beauty 
peculiar to the other seasons of the year as well. Plant carefully as soon as 
possible in rich soil 3 or 4 feet deep and wide, and see that there is an outlet for 
rain water, which is apt to accumulate about the foundations of buildings. 
Top-dressing for Melons (IF. J.). —Soil saturated with urine is an 
excellent and powerful manure, and would form a good top-dressmg to any 
plants and crops that required more support than the soil in which they are 
growing affords. For Melons and Cucumbers bearing heavily, also Vines and 
fruit trees, Tomatoes, Strawberries, Chrysanthemums, and such-like gross feeders, 
it would, judiciously applied as to time and strength, be useful. You had better 
place a portion of it on the surface of the soil in which some common plant, a 
Zonal Pelargonium for instance, is growing, with the object of testing its 
strength. By this means you can easily ascertain to what extent the soil 
will need to be used with it for applying to more valuable plants. So long as 
plants are growing freely and satisfactorily they require no rich top-dressings, 
and it is not until pots and borders are crowded with roots and the soil partially 
exhausted that assistance in the form indicated can be profitably applied. In 
all probability your preparation will need to be mixed with three times its bulk 
of soil, and perhaps more. This is a point you can easily determine by a few 
simple experiments on plants in pots and garden crops. 
Names of Fruits (F. J.).— Cobham. 
Names of Plants (A. M.). —The Primula is P. scotica, and the Narcissus 
is N. minor. (J. Smith).— Corydalis bulbosa. Flowers of two Dendrobiums 
have been sent us by a correspondent who does not give us any name or initials 
to which we can reply. The white flower is Dendrobium crepidatum, and the 
other Dendrobium pulchellum. (F. R. F.). —1, Myrsiphyllum asparagoides ; 
2, Callistemon rigidum ; 3, Eupatorium odoratum ; 4, Allium neapolitanum. 
Supering (M. B. I ).).—A few days after your hive has its combs covered 
with bees a super should be put on it. Judging from your description of the 
state of the hive, we think it will be ready in about ten days for supering. The 
bees would enter the super more readily through the bars than through the 
crown holes in the wooden top if it could be fixed securely on the bars. Your 
hive appeal's to be very healthy and prosperous. 
COVENT GARDEN MARKET.— APRIL llTn. 
Business still remains better, with good supplies of indoor fruits and 
vegetables. 
FRUIT. 
Apples. 
s. 
d. s. 
0 to 7 
d. 
0 
Grapes . 
s 
It). 5 
d. s. 
0 to 12 
d 
0 
» . . 
Apricots. 
per barrel 20 
0 
40 
0 
Lemons. 
case 10 
0 
20 
0 
. doz. 0 
0 
0 
0 
New Grapes .... 
ib. 8 
0 
12 
0 
0 
o 
0 
Nectarines. 
dozen 0 
0 
0 
0 
Chestnuts. 
. bushel 10 
0 
12 
0 
Oranges . 
100 6 
0 
10 
0 
Currants, Black 
. i sieve 0 
0 
0 
0 
Peaches . 
dozen 0 
0 
0 
0 
„ Red.. 
. j sieve 0 
0 
0 
0 
Pears,kitchen .. 
dozen 1 
0 
2 
0 
Figs. 
. dozen 0 
0 
0 
0 
dessert . 
dozen 1 
0 
2 
0 
Filberts. 
0 
0 
0 
Pine Apples, Eng 
lish ft. 1 
6 
2 
0 
„ 100ft. 0 
0 
0 
0 
Raspberries. 
ft. 0 
0 
0 
0 
Gooseberries .. 
. i sieve 0 
0 
0 
O' 
Strawberries ... 
oz. 0 
6 
0 
9 
