1861 .] 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
115 
are often killed by the winter, and therefore 
need the protection of a few evergreen boughs 
or a little straw. The foliage is remarkably 
good; it is dark green, fresh and glossy. It 
bears the shears as well as the hawthorn, and 
may be formed into any fanciful shape. 
Fragrant Gkthra.—' This is not very common in 
gardens, but it is well worth having. It is a 
native shrub, growing wild in low and shady 
places ; hence it does not always succeed in the 
open borders of our gardens. Give it a deep 
soil, with a mixture of leaf-mold, and if possible, 
a little shade, and it will thrive. There is no 
great beauty in its habit and foliage, but its 
flowers, appearing in long white spikes, late in 
summer, are of the most exquisite fragrance. 
By some it is styled “spice-scented,” to denote 
the peculiarity of its odor. We could hardly 
get through the year without our annual whiff 
of the fragrant clethra. 
Doable Dwarf Almond.— Old-fashioned and 
time-lionored shrub, what garden can be com¬ 
plete without it! Many new-comers have tried 
to supplant it, but in vain; for on every returning 
May, it holds up its modest, rosy wreath, and 
wins the admiration of all who love flowers for 
their intrinsic beauty, rather than for their mere 
fashionableness. As long as we have a garden, 
however small, this shall have an honored 
place within it. 
The Lilacs. —Of course, everybody wishing 
his home to look home-like , will have some of 
these. The old purple and the white are excel¬ 
lent, but some of the newer sorts are better. 
The Persian are more finely cut and neater in 
the habit of their flowers—some are deliciously 
scented. The cut-leaved is very desirable, as 
are the following: Charles Tenth, Persian White, 
Double Purple, and Josikea. A group of lilacs 
in the shrubbery, always recalls to us the in¬ 
ventory of Henry the Eighth’s garden, taken by 
order of Cromwell, of which one line runs in 
this inappreciative way : “ Six Lilacs,—trees 
which bear no fruit, but only a pleasant smell.” 
The Flowering Currants. —Almost every body 
has the old, yellow blooming, Missouri currant; 
and they should add a few others of the same 
family. The double and single crimson are very 
fine, with the only drawback of being slightly 
tender at the north. The Gordon’s currant, a 
hybrid between the yellow and crimson, is har¬ 
dier and quite desirable. The foliage of all 
these somewhat resembles that of the black- 
fruited currant; the flow'ers are in pretty 
racemes, appearing in May. 
Sweet-scented Shrub. (Calycanthus Floridus .)— 
Less common than some others, but one of 
those shrubs which the more refined and 
discerning gardener will be sure to have. North 
of Albany, N. Y., the ends of the shoots are 
often nipped by the winter; but the plant soon 
recovers, and produces flowers on its new 
shoots. The blossoms are curious things. They 
are brown, or chocolate colored, with no par¬ 
ticular form or comeliness; yet they have such 
an exquisite, pine-apple odor, that they are great 
favorites with the ladies. May, June, and July, 
are its flowering months. 
The Upright Honeysuckles. —So styled, to dis¬ 
tinguish them from the climbing sorts. Per¬ 
fectly hardy, and grow in any common soil. 
There are two varieties ; one with bright, red¬ 
dish pink blossoms, and another with pale rosy 
or white flowers. The foliage appears quite 
early in the spring, and remains fresh all the 
summer. The bushes are neat, compact, almost 
globular, rising from four to six feet high. The 
flowers, which open in May, are succeeded by 
bright crimson and yellow berries which look 
like drops of coral. The robins are very fond 
of them. No one should be without one or 
more of these shrubs. 
The Deutzias .—The large, Garland Deutzia, has 
been a favorite for many years. It makes a high 
bush, resembling the Syringa, and has white 
flowers in May and June, not unlike the orange. 
A little tender at the extreme north, yet enough 
branches escape the frost to furnish flowers every 
year. It strikes easily from cuttings, and re¬ 
quires very little care. For a large collection it 
is indispensable. The small Deutzia gracilis, is 
the other in miniature, only it is hardier, and, 
in our experience, a more profuse bloomer. It 
is one of the finest of shrubs. 
We could easily extend our list, but purposely 
make it short for beginners. The foregoing will 
make an excellent foundation for a shrubbery. 
At another time, we may extend our catalogue 
and descriptions. 
--—«©*•.—-*-»>- 
How to Raise Celery. 
A description of Celery is unnecessary for 
most of those who live in or near cities, where 
it has long been a staple article for the table, but 
it is as yet cultivated in comparatively few farm¬ 
ers’ gardens. It is a native of England, where 
it grows as a rank, coarse weed, in marshy 
ground. By cultivation, the best stalks, which 
are edible, have been rendered crisp and deli¬ 
cate, of a most agreeable flavor, and equal or 
superior to any other plant for salads. It is 
also used as flavoring for soups and made dish¬ 
es. When once generally known, it will be con¬ 
sidered as indispensable in the garden as lettuce, 
or cabbage. It is usually eaten in Fall and Win¬ 
ter—by proper management it may be had from 
August to April. 
To raise celery for Summer use, a hot-bed is 
needed, which should be prepared, in this lati¬ 
tude, as early as the second week in March. 
After the hot-bed is made in the usual manner, 
but with about twelve inches of soil upon the 
manure, allow it to stand ten or twelve days for 
the weeds to spring up, which can then be de¬ 
stroyed, and the bed kept clean with little trouble. 
Make drills six inches apart by pressing the 
edge of a board into the soil an inch deep, and 
sow the seed. The Solid White variety is gen¬ 
erally preferred. When the plants are up, -thin 
them to an inch apart. Air them a short time 
each morning; keep them shaded with mats on 
clear days, from about 10 A. M. to 4 P. M. Wa¬ 
ter with cold water about twice a week, apply¬ 
ing it at noon, and immediately replacing the 
mats. Hoe between the rows to keep out weeds, 
only when the plants and soil are dry; other¬ 
wise they become rusted and are spoiled for 
after-culture. When about three inches high, or 
near the first of May, they are ready for trans¬ 
planting. It is well to give more air, to harden 
them off, a few days before removing them. 
Dig trenches one foot wide, two feet deep and 
four to five feet apart. Put in six inches of well 
rotted cattle or hog manure, fill in with six inch¬ 
es of soil, and mix the whole thoroughly. 
Choose a clear day, w T ater the beds freely an 
hour or more before transplanting, that the earth 
may adhere to the plants. Fork over the pre¬ 
pared soil in the trenches, and leave the middle 
rounded up higher than the sides. Put in the 
young plants twelve inches apart, and shade 
them for a few days to prevent wilting. 
Hoe them occasionally to keep out weeds, but 
only in dry weather, and when the leaves are 
free from dew, and always be careful to keep all 
earth from the center of the plant; otherwise it 
will rust and be spoiled. Draw in earth enough 
from the sides of the trench to cover the lateral 
roots three inches deep, but do not draw togeth¬ 
er the heart of the plant while young. If drouth 
occur, frequent hoeing is better than watering. 
When eight or ten stalks are formed, and the 
tallest is eighteen inches high, draw in earth 
from the sides, and bank up the plant as high as 
the first outside leaf—draw the stalks together, 
while doing this, and be careful to keep earth 
out of the center. When the heart has grown up 
even with the outside leaves, give a second earth¬ 
ing, drawing it up so that the bank stands about 
two feet high. As soon as the heart reaches to 
the outer leaves again, the celery is ready for 
use. It will attain this point about thirty days 
after the first banking. 
For Fall and Winter celery, choose a rich 
sandy loam, and enrich it with plenty of good 
manure thoroughly worked into the soil. Sow 
the seed in drills a foot apart, the same as di¬ 
rected above. Thin them to about half an inch 
apatt. Hoe frequently to keep dowm weeds and 
supply moisture, but never while the dew is on. 
The plants will be ready for the trenches about 
the first of July, after which, the treatment is the 
same as described above. Further directions 
for digging, preparing for the table, preserving 
for Winter, etc., will be given at the appropri¬ 
ate season. Many of these hints are derived 
from a treatise by Mr. Roessle, probably the most 
successful cultivator of celery in this country. 
-■»-«——«•»——»_»_-- 
Sweet Potato Culture—Starting the Plants. 
To the Editor of the A merican Agriculturist: 
I herewith give you the method of starting 
sweet potatoes in the Spring, to obtain sets for 
transplanting, which I have adopted after twen¬ 
ty years experience. From the 1st to the 10th of 
April I begin by digging a trench 2b feet deep by 
7 feet wide, and as many feet long as I have 
bushels of seed. The tubers for seed vary from 
1 to 2 inches in diameter. In the bottom of the 
trench refuse hay or other litter is laid to the 
depth of a foot, well trodden down, and water 
poured upon it, a bucketful to each foot in length 
of the trench; warm water is preferred, as it 
raises a heat sooner. Next a layer 4 inches 
thick of warm stable manure is placed on the 
hay, leveled nicely, and left lying as loose as 
may be. The manure should have been heaped 
up a few days before, to commence heating. I 
then place 5 inches of the lightest soil I can find 
upon the manure, spread it evenly, and lay the 
potatoes upon it as near each other as possible 
without touching. These are covered 1J inches 
deep with light soil, and over this I put a final 
layer of hay, making it one foot thick around 
the edge of the bed, and rounding it up gradu¬ 
ally to the center, where it is 5 feet thick when 
finished. 
The heap is watched closely, and I examine 
it daily, by making holes in the hay large enough 
to admit my arm, and run my finger down to the 
bottom of the potatoes: if it be warmer than 
blood heat, the hole is left open, and if the heat 
increases, the hay is turned over to allow the 
steam to escape. After 10 or 12 days, if the 
weather be fine, the heap is uncovered for a few 
hours, and if the plants are coming up nicely, 
this is repeated daily, leaving the covering off a 
little longer each time, until it is entirely dis¬ 
pensed with, when the sets are ready for trans¬ 
planting. J. 
Gloucester Co., N. J 
