Angnst 27, 1885. ] 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
195 
6 inches), and the spurs upon them on opposite sides 18 inches. This would 
give you stronger and better ripened wood and much finer fruit. The roots 
are in a very poor kind of border, but as the Vines show plenty of fruit the 
soil cannot be in a very wet sour condition. We hardly think Muscats the 
size of peas now will come to anything. Apply a dressing of quicklime in 
autumn at the rate of a bushel per rod (30J square yards), and point it in 
with a fork. It will not answer to make holes in the front wall and a border 
inside, as the roots will not be induced to enter it, or very tardily. Train 
the rods more thinly, and you will soon see a marked improvement. 
Heating a House for Cucumbers and Tomatoes (Idem). —You will need 
bottom heat for the Cucumbers, two rows of 4-inch pipes for each bed, pre¬ 
suming there will be one on each side of the house with a pathway up the 
centre, and two rows of 4-inch pipes will be needed for top heat. Bottom 
heat is not necessary for Tomatoes, and for top heat you will require two 
rows of piping along both sides of the house to afford the requisite heat in 
winter. 
Training a Passiflora (A. J.B.,Brixton). —We scarcely understand your 
letter. You ask the “ best time for slipping, and whether it would harm 
them if trained up now.” If you desire to propagate from your plant, young 
shoots cut into lengths of 6 inches, and inserted in pots or boxes of very 
sandy soil, kept moist and covered with a bellglass or squares of glass, and 
stood in a warm shaded place, will strike now. The ends of the cuttings 
should be severed close to a joint from which the leaves are removed, and be 
inserted firmly a little more than half their length in the soil. The plants 
may be trained now over the space they are desired to cover, but not crowd¬ 
ing them closely together, as the more thinly they are disposed the harder 
the growths will become, and the better they will flower next year. 
Propagating Dracaenas (J . B. W.). —If you will split some flower pots 
lengthways and place the two parts together around the stems close to the 
leaves, fill the pots with a free compost of loam, leaf mould, and sand, affix 
them firmly, and keep the soil moist, the pots will become filled with roots, and 
the tops can be cut off. If the stem is rather hard, rooting is facilitated by 
notching ; but if not hard, and they should not be where the pots are placed, 
they root freely without being cut. Hoots are also emitted into thick balls 
of moss tied firmly round the stems and kept constantly moist in a warm 
house. 
Grapes Shanking (A. II. G.). —It is very difficult to account for the 
G-rapes shanking. Overcropping can hardly be the cause in the case of the 
Alicante, which is lightly cropped. No doubt if the “thousands of sur¬ 
face roots ” were allowed to become dry there would be a break in the supply 
of sap, and this might cause the failure, especially if followed by a deluge of 
water and a damp atmosphere. Perhaps you started the Vines early, and 
forced out the bunches before there was good root-extension for their sup¬ 
port. The other Vines are too heavily cropped, and the sooner the fruit is 
cut the better, or the Vines will be so weakened as to be unable to perfect 
even a fairly good crop this year. Do you open the ventilators very early in 
the morning? There is something wrong in the management somewhere, 
and we have observed that when a person makes such a mistake as to over¬ 
burden young Vines he is apt to commit other errors. If the border is inside 
the house is it moist throughout the mass ? If wet on the surface and dry 
below the Vines will not flourish. We are very willing to help you, but only 
appear able to do so by suggesting possible mistakes, or directing your at¬ 
tention to matters that may possibly require your attentive consideration. 
Carnations (L. P. Bouchier). —Pride of Penshurst is good, and the pods 
do not split; Belle Halliday is also good, and you may grow both. You 
will find a list of Carnations and Picotees for beds on page 83, the varieties 
being arranged as nearly as possible in the order of merit under the respec¬ 
tive sections. Strong plants of seedling tree Carnations will stand the 
winter the same as the others, and flower when large enough in the open 
air, and continue flowering for a long period. 
Seakale (Knoclchlinn). —WhenJSeakale is flowering the stems should not 
be cut down to the ground. The proper method is to take off the heads 
before the flowers expand, leaving all the foliage on the stems, as the leaves 
secrete matter for the formation and support of crowns at the base of the 
stems. The flower heads when cooked in a young succulent state are ex¬ 
cellent, many persons considering them delicious. If you have any not too 
far advanced try them ; ours were pinched off several weeks ago. 
Blush Hyacinth (A. M .).—Your question i3 not as you suggest, “ unrea" 
sonable,” but quite the contrary. The Hyacinth to which you refer is not 
likely to be La Grandesse, the bulbs of which are too costly to be largely 
grown for “ flower shops.” It has a massive spike with closely set pure 
white hells, and is perhaps the finest white Hyacinth in cultivation. 
From your description of the floweis we suspect the variety to which you 
refer is either Norma or Tubiflora. The former isdwaif, with large bells 
thinly arranged on the spike, colour very delicate pink, changing almost to 
blush. The latter is flesh colour, with large bells and a taller spike. Norma 
we know is largely grown for market, and this is possibly the variety you 
have admired. You might order bulbs of both, which are cheap, but we 
should have the greater nirmber of the variety last mentioned. We know a 
gentleman who has 700 plants grown of Norma for the decoration of his 
London mansion. 
Heating Glass Structure (Chas. E. Smith ).—We presume you wish the 
structure heated so as to afford two different temperatures, as you have a 
division in the house, practically forming two houses or divisions. In that 
case you will need four rows of 4-inch pipes in one structure to maintain a 
temperature of 60° to 65° at night, and 70° to 75° by day, as required for 
stove plants, and two rows in the other to afford a temperature suitable for 
greenhouse plants. It will be advisable to have the pipes so arranged that 
you can heat the houses separately or together, which will entail somewhat 
more expense in the first instance in valves as well as piping, hut it will be 
more satisfactory and cheaper in the end. We should think the vertical 
boiler would be sufficiently powerful to heat the quantity of piping you will 
require, as you will not have 200 feet altogether, but its power will of course 
depend on its size, of which you do not furnish particulars. We should not 
go to the expense of another boiler until we had ascertained the heating 
capacity of the present one, which we think will be sufficiently powerful 
unless of a very small size. We should have 4-inch pipes, those being the 
best for general purposes. 
Crassula coccinea (Miss Kemp). —We presume this is the plant to which 
you refer, and is commonly known as Kalosantlns. If all the shoots are 
cut down the plant will not flower next year, but will be fine the year after, 
and on this account cultivators often have two sets of plants ; but it often 
happens that plants with only two shoots will produce but one head of 
bloom, and then the second shoot will be sure to follow the year after, and 
thus a plant may be made to flower every year. If this plant with two 
shoots offers to flower on both instead of one, and you wish the plant to 
flower every year, you must forego the pleasure of having both shoots to 
flower the first season. In that case, as soon as you can perceive the flower- 
buds in the spring, you must cut down one of the two shoots, and let the 
other one flower. The lower down the shoot is cut the better. If there is 
only an inch or two of it left, it is sure to produce three times the number of 
young shoots that will be necessary to retain. If you select three of the best 
placed, these will be enough for a plant so young; therefore, instead of two 
flower-heads, we have only one of them, and three others coming up to 
flower next season. As soon as the single truss of flowers begins to fade, 
about the middle of August, this flowering shoot must be cut down close 
likewise, and from it succession shoots will be obtained, so that, in a large 
old specimen there are many flowering shoots and suceession ones growing 
on at the same time; and, as soon as the plants are done flowering, the 
shoots which have borne the flowers are cut back to different lengths, 
according to the size or shape the plant is intended to be grown. Every por¬ 
tion of the old shoots cut off in August will make cuttings ; but the best 
cuttings are obtained from the top ends of young vigorous shoots; they 
will root in a greenhouse, window, or frame. Abundance of air, strong sun¬ 
light, and plenty of water during their two months of active growth, but 
little during the rest of the summer and autumn, and scarcely any in winter, 
are the leading principles in their culture. 
Names of Fruits (E. H. B .).—1, Nectarine Peach ; 2, if the flowers are 
large it is Barrington ; 3, too much decayed—perhaps a small specimen of 
Dr. Hogg; 1, Nectarine Victoria ; 2, Rivers’ Orange ; 3, Albert Victor, but 
we cannot be certain about any of these, not knowing the size of the flowers. 
(W. M. Bose). —Citron des Carmes. 
Names of Plants.—We only undertake to name species of plants, not 
varieties that have originated from seed and termed florists’ flowers. 
Flowering specimens are necessary of flowering plants, and Fern fronds 
should bear spores. Specimens should arrive in a fresh state in firm 
boxes. Slightly damp moss or soft green leaves form the best packing, dry 
cotton wool the worst. Not more than six specimens can be named at once. 
(Mrs. H. S.). —The specimens with no numbers attached are Salisburia 
adiantifolia, Taxodium distichum, Antennaria plantaginifolia. (J. G .).— 
1. Sedum album ; 2, a Selaginella resembling a variety known iu gardens as 
densa; 3, Epilobium angustifolium ; 4, Lycium euvopteum; 5, Campanula 
pumila; 6, Sedum spurium. (G. J.). —1, Lysimachia lanceolata 2, 
Veronica longifolia ; 3, V. gentianoides; 4, Spirrea salicifolia ; 5, insufficient 
to be recognised; 6, Linaria Cymbalaria. ( J.D.P .).—The plant with white 
flowers and pinnate leaves is Spiraea Lindleyana; the other is Eucomis 
punctata. 
COVENT GARDEN MARKET.— August 26th. 
Trade quiet, but at low prices clearances are eventually made. 
FRUIT. 
s. d. 
s. 
d. 
s. 
d. 
s. 
d. 
Apples. 
i sieve 
1 6 
to 8 
6 
Melons. 
i 
0 to 
2 
0 
Cherries .. .. 
0 0 
0 
0 
Oranges. 
8 
0 12 
0 
Filberts, Kent.. per 100 lbs. 
25 0 
0 
0 
Peaches . 
per doz. 
1 
6 
8 
0 
Currants, Red 
A sieve 
3 6 
4 
0 
Pears, kitchen 
dozen 
0 
0 
0 
0 
„ Black .. 
£ sieve 
4 0 
6 
0 
,, dessert 
dozen 
1 
6 
2 
6 
Figs . 
dozen 
1 0 
1 
6 
Pine Apples English .. lb. 
2 
0 
S 
0 
Gooseberries.. .. 
h sieve 
1 6 
2 
0 
Plums. 
a sieve 
1 
3 
4 
0 
Grapes . 
0 6 
2 
0 
Strawberries.. .. 
.. it. 
0 
0 
0 
0 
Lemons•• , 
•. case 
15 0 
21 
0 
St. Michael Pines 
. .each 
3 
0 
7 
0 
VEGETABLES. 
s. d. 
8 
d 
— 
s. 
d. 
s. d 
Artichokes .. . 
dozen 
1 0 to 0 
0 
Lettuce. 
. dozen 
1 
0 to 
1 
3 
Asparagus .. . 
bundle 
0 0 
0 
0 
Mushrooms .. . 
punnet 
0 
6 
1 
0 
Beans, Kidney 
lb. 
0 3 
0 
0 
Mustard and Cress 
punnet 
0 
2 
0 
0 
Beet, Red .. . • 
dozen 
1 0 
2 
0 
Onions. 
bunch 
0 
3 
0 
0 
Broccoli. 
bundle 
0 9 
1 
0 
Parsley .. dozen bunches 
2 
0 
s 
0 
Brussels Sprouts . 
£ sieve 
0 0 
0 
0 
Parsnips. 
dozen 
i 
0 
2 
0 
Cabbage . 
dozen 
0 0 
1 
0 
Potatoes. 
cwt. 
4 
0 
5 
0 
Capsicums .. . 
100 
1 8 
2 
0 
,, Kidney . 
cwt. 
4 
0 
5 
0 
Carrots. 
bunch 
0 3 
0 
4 
Rhubarb. 
bundle 
0 
4 
0 
0 
Cauliflowers .. 
dozen 
2 0 
3 
0 
Salsafy. 
bundle 
1 
0 
0 
0 
Celery . 
bundle 
1 6 
2 
0 
Scorzonera .. . 
bundle 
1 
6 
0 
0 
Coleworts dcz. bunches 
2 0 
4 
0 
Seakale .. .. per basket 
0 
0 
0 
0 
Cucumbers .. . 
each 
0 3 
0 
6 
Shallots. 
.. a. 
0 
3 
0 
0 
Endive. 
dozen 
I 0 
2 
0 
Spinach .. .. 
bushel 
2 
0 
4 
6 
Herns . 
bunch 
0 2 
0 
0 
Tomatoes .. % . 
.. ». 
0 
4 
0 
5 
Leeks . 
bunch 
0 3 
0 
4 
Turnips. 
bunch 
0 
4 
0 
6 
THE CLERGYMAN’S FARM. 
C Continued, from page 172.) 
A desire to know our best sorts of Grass and Clover inti¬ 
mately prompted the sowing of small trial plots with the best 
selection to be had of them, and it was the remarkable result 
