JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
[ December 6,1S38. 
5 26 
The very useful Bourbon Souvenir rle la Malmaison strikes readily, and 
eo also does Baron Gonella, Cheshunt Hybrid, and La France, which 
also might safely be classed with the Hybrid Teas, rarely fail to strike, 
and are among the best that can be grown. All the Hybrid Perpetuals 
should be tried, but it is useless to attempt striking cuttings of Moss 
Roses. 
Ordering Hoses. — In many districts it is advisable to commence 
planting Roses at once, and in any case no time should be lost in order¬ 
ing what are required from the nurseries. If they cannot be planted 
directly they are received they will not be injured if kept laid in thickly 
by their heels—that is to say, with their roots covered with fine soil, till 
they can be properly planted. Where dwarf or other Roses are liable 
to be killed to the ground or to the snow line by extra severe frosts the 
bushes ought to be ordered, and when received be laid in closely till 
early next spring. Being k4pt well together they can readily be pro¬ 
tected when necessary by either strawy litter or bracken, and will form 
many root fibres before they are disturbed again. 
Selections. — Hybrid Perpetuals. —The following may be grown 
for all purposes, either on dwarf or tall Briar stocks, or on their own 
roots — Abel Carriere, Alfred Colomb, A. K. Williams, Baronne de 
Rothschild, Beauty of Waltham, Boule de Niege, Captain Christy, 
Charles Darwin, Charles Lefebvre, Countess of Oxford, Countess of 
Rosebery, Dr. Andry, Duke of Wellington, Duchess of Connaught, Duke 
of Edinburgh, Edouard Morren, Emily Laxton. Empereur de Maroc, 
Francois Michelon, General Jacqueminot, Her Majesty, John Bright, 
John Hopper, La France, Madame Gabriel Luizet, Madame Prosper 
Laugier, Madame Thdrese Levet, Mdlle. Eugdnie Verdier, Mdlle. Marie 
Rady, Marie Baumann, Maurice Bernardin, Merveille de Lyon, E. Y. 
Teas, Prince Camille de Rohan, Senateur Yaisse, Ulrich Brunner, Violet 
Bouyer, and Xavier Olibo. The foregoing is a rather long selection, but 
it does not exhaust the list of varieties worth growing. 
Bourbon Boses. —Of these the best are Acidalie, which succeeds 
admirably against walls ; Baron Gonella, Queen of the Bourbons, and 
Souvenir de la Malmaison. All are suitable for planting against walls 
or in the open, and Queen of the Bedders, one of the most floriferous 
Boses in cultivation, Garden Favourite and Malmaison Rouge are also 
worthy of a trial. 
Tea-scented and Noisettes. —As a rule the majority of these succeed 
best against sunny walls and fences, but many of them do well either as 
dwarfs or standards in the open. Even the old Gloire de Dijon and 
Marechal Niel frequently form fine floriferous heads on tall Briar stocks. 
Some of the best of the Teas are Alba Rosea, Anna Ollivier, Catherine 
Mermet, Climbing Devoniensis, Duchess of Edinburgh, Etoile de Lyon, 
Gloire de Dijon, Grace Darling, Isabella Sprunt, Madame Berard (good 
for walls), Madame Falcot, Madame de Watteville, Marie Van Houtte, 
Niphetos, President, Reine Marie Henriette (for walls), Souvenir de Paul 
Neron, Souvenir d’un Ami, Sovenir d’Elise, The Bride, Sunset, Adam, 
Oomtesse de Nadaillac, and Rubens, the three last named being the least 
hardy in the selection. Of the Noisettes Celine Forestier will do well 
either as a standard or against a sunny wall, and Jaune Desprez, Madame 
Caroline Kuster, Marechal Niel, and Reve d’Or, Triomphe de Rennes, 
and William Allen Richardson all quickly cover walls or pillars, and as a 
rule are very floriferous. 
Other Roses.— Moss Boses succeed either as dwarfs or standards, 
and the most reliable are Baronne de Wassenear, Captain Ingram, 
Common, Comtesse Murinais, Lanei, Reine Blanche, and White Bath. 
The foregoing are summer flowering only, and those of a perpetual 
character worth growing are Eugenie Verdier, Blanche Moreau, Perpetual 
White, Soupert et Notting, and Salet. The Hybrid China and Hybrid 
Bourbon Roses are all suitable for covering pillars either against 
dwelling houses or in the shrubberies. Some of the best are Blairi 
No. 2, Brennus, Charles Lawson, Coupe d’H4be, Paul Perras, Paul 
R'caut, and Vivid. The white and red varieties of Rosa rugosa are very 
effective in the front of shrubberies, and these may either be grown as 
half-standards or as bushes. Single Boses are becoming very popular. A 
selection of these ought to include the copper and yellow Austrian Briars, 
the Persian Yellow, Paul’s Crimson, and White Perpetual, Polyantha, and 
Macartney Simplex. The old China Boses are also still worthy of culture, 
notably Cramoisie Superieure, Mrs. Bosanquet, Old Plush, and Old 
Crimson. The white and yellow BanTtsian Boses are suitable for 
jfianting against the sunny fronts of houses and for covering pillars. 
They are evergreen and beautiful when in flower. For north or cold 
walls such strong climbing Roses as Amadis, Dundee Rambler, Felicitd 
Perpetuee, and Rampant are suitable. The Miniature or Fairy Boses 
are best adapted for pot culture, but Lawrenciana rubra, White Fairy, 
and Alba will succeed in the front rows of Rose borders. 
KITCHEN GARDEN. 
Forcing Asparagus.— We cut our first dish of this favourite 
vegetable on November the 24th. The produce was ready for cutting in 
twelve days after the roots were placed in the forcing quarters. It is an 
■easy matter to secure plenty of Asparagus in winter where the crowns 
are well developed and abundant, but these two conditions are absolutely 
necessary. Roots that have been well grown for four or five years force 
freely, but a hotbed and frame are not the best appliances to use in 
forcing at this season nor until the spring. Our forcing place is not 
very elaborate ; it is a low pit with a bed in front, a stage at the back 
and a pathway in the middle, heat being supplied by a flue which goes 
under the bed in front but is exposed along the bacls, the former giving 
athe bottom heat and the latter the surface warmth, aad it is here we are 
now cutting Asparagus. The roots are lifted without breakage and 
packed as close as they will stanl in the bed with a little soil under 
them and as much over them as will cover the crowns. Water to make 
the soil moist, keep it in this condition and the bottom heat ranges from 
75° to 85°. For maintaining a supply place in more roots as soon as the 
heads from the preceding are ready for cutting. It is fully exposed to 
the light from the first and grows as if it was in the open air. 
The Mushroom Supply. —If good Mushrooms can be gathered 
daily or every other day, they will scarcely fail to meet with acceptance 
in the kitchen and on the table. A large bed formed in a potting shed in 
October is now producing multitudes, and will continue bearing until 
after Christmas, as the heat in it now is 79°, not 10° less than when it 
was spawned, and so long as this can be maintained Mushrooms will be 
produced. For retaining heat the beds should be about 18 inches in 
depth, and very firm. In making up new beds let the manure be 
moderately dry, turn it frequently to allow the surplus moisture to 
escape, then press the material into a firm mass. 
Kidney Beans. —-Of late we have had much rain and little sun¬ 
shine. damp and dullness predominating, and these are conditions not 
favourable to the success of Kidney Beans in pots, and to secure pods 
throughout December the temperature must be kept at 75° or 80°, not 
less than the former, and the plants should be kept moist at the roots, 
but a damp atmosphere must be avoided. Sow seed to produce plants 
that will bear about the end of January. 
Forcing Seakale.— Seakale does not force so freely as Asparagus. 
It requires upwards of four weeks to be ready by Christmas. Select the 
strongest crowns to force thus early, planting a number of them in a 
10-inch or 12-inch pot. Eighteen or a dozen pots will give a good 
supply. A hotbed made in the Mushroom house or a dark shed will be 
suitable for plunging the pots in up to the rim. Pots may also be placed 
on hot pipes or a flue, but the growth must be made in total darkness, 
as green Seakale is not good. If placed in any warm place with the pots 
exposed, much water will be required, but when plunged very little 
suffices. The time has not arrived when the crowns can be forced with 
advantage in the ground. 
Forcing Chicory.— Forced Chicory is one of the most valuable 
winter salad plants we possess ; the roots are Carrot-like in form, and if 
dug up, potted, and plunged with the Seakale they will soon produce a 
large quantity of creamy, crisp leaves that will be much relished as 
salad. Cold frames containing Lettuce, Endive, Cauliflowers, &c., are 
now very damp, and should be ventilated freely on every favourable 
opportunity. 
PLANT HOUSES. 
Adiantum cuneatum. —When the whole of the fronds that are 
suitable for cutting have been removed from these plants place them in 
a temperature of 50°, and keep the soil rather dry side at their roots. 
Do not place them in a lower temperature, or they will fail to start freely 
into growth afterwards. They will rest under the conditions advised 
and be ready for a good start again early in January. Do not keep 
plants still growing in a temperature above 55°, and admit air when the 
weather is favourable. Fronds from plants grown on this principle will 
last double the time in a cut state, as would be the case if they were 
grown in a warm confined atmosphere. Keep young plants in fiO’s 
steadily advancing, so that they will be ready in a month or six weeks for 
placing into 5-inch pots. These will yield useful plants for decoration 
or cutting by April. 
Scented Pelargoniums. —Where the foliage of these are appreciated 
in a cut state watch carefully for aphides, for they are very liable to 
attack these plants at this season of the year. If the plants are sub¬ 
jected even to light fumigation with tobacco the foliage will turn yellow. 
The best means of eradicating aphides without injury to the plants is to 
dip the parts affected directly the insects are seen in a weak solution of 
tobacco water. Avoid cutting out the tops of a number of plants, for 
they will continue growing in a temperature of 55°, and will yield 
suitable leaves in succession for use in small vases. Keep plants from 
which all the growth has been removed rather dry. 
Cypripedium insigne. —While this plant is doing duty in the con¬ 
servatory be careful not to give too much water. Dj not stand the 
plants in draughts or crowd them. To show the flowers to advantage 
let the plants be slightly elevated above surrounding objects. 
Bouvardias. —As these cease flowering keep them on the soil with 
their roots rather dry to induce complete rest. Many are lost after 
flowering by being kept too wet. The object now is to rest thoroughly 
those that have done service, so that they will be ready for starting 
early to yield strong robust cuttings for next year's stock. 
Zonal Pelargoniums. —Where these are employed in conservatories 
many will cease flowering during the present month. Select the best 
shaped free-flowering varieties, and place them on a shelf close to the 
glass where they can be kept in good condition for the present without 
growing. With gentle heat after the turn of the year these will soon 
flower again. Plants not required for this purpose may be kept dry at 
their roots until the middle of January, when they can safely be pruned 
and started again into growth. Water plants in flower with care, and 
keep the atmosphere of the house dry. Weak stimulants may be given 
every time water is needed. 
Heliotropes. — To keep these flowering freely they must have a 
temperature of 60°. Plants that have been employed up to the present 
in a temperature 10° or 15° lower will show signs of discontinuing growth. 
If these are removed at once to the temperature advised above they 
I will soon grow and flower freely again. 
