t 
FEBRUARY. 
19 
are diseased, or they are treated very injudiciously indeed, they will be sure to 
flower, and that freely. For winter and spring in-door gardening, they are 
indispensable, only they are so fragrant, that to many persons their presence 
in a sitting-room becomes unbearable. My pots promise me a fine head of 
bloom. So strong are they that the rootlets thrust the bulbs up out of the soil. 
Gently and firmly I press them down again, and when this is done, they rarely 
evidence signs of another uprising. I generally pot lightly ; I do not like that 
the roots of any of the strong-growing bulbs, especially, should be cramped for 
want of room; if the bulbs rise when the rootlets go downward, the pressing 
down again is a very simple and conclusive process, whilst the light potting 
allows of a free drainage, and thus prevents what often injures early-flowering 
bulbs—stagnant water about their roots. 
So far all is preparatory; next month I hope to enact a first scene or two 
of the drama now in rehearsal. 
Quo. 
ON STRAWBERRY CULTURE. 
There are a few leading principles in the cultivation of this delicious 
fruit which I am inclined to believe would be more generally acted upon if 
they were better known. I do not presume to teach our leading gardeners, 
who, of course, have nothing to learn on the subject; but there are many whose 
practice is altogether so desultory, that they do not obtain half the produce 
and pleasure which they might enjoy, if they would follow out the cultural 
practice which I purpose to set forth as shortly as I can. These leading prin¬ 
ciples will consist of the soil, and its preparation for planting; the method 
of preparing the plants, and planting in the bed ; the after-management of 
the plants and beds; and though last, not least, the rotation of cropping the 
ground. 
The Soil. —If we could always choose our soils, we should in this case 
select a strong, deep, hazel loam; but in the absence of that, the practice 
should be directed to the attainment of a soil as near as possible to such in 
condition and texture; thus, soils of a very light and sandy nature should be 
largely mixed with a compost of heavy land approaching to the condition of 
clay, and also a moderate proportion of rotten manure. Heavy lands, on the 
contrary, will be benefited by dressings of any light and silicious composts 
calculated to open and improve their texture; this is, of course, pre-supposing 
extreme cases, but the generality of soils are probably neither one nor the 
other, and are capable of growing tolerable crops, but all require dressing with 
compost, and whatever may be the condition of the soil, the dressing should be 
regulated in accordance thereto. In preparing the soil for planting, it should 
first be trenched up roughly at least 2 feet in depth, and exposed for some 
time to atmospherical influences. A week or so previous to planting, let the 
surface of the bed be knocked over and levelled with a Canterbury hoe, or 
three-tined tormentor, and apply the dressings of compost and manure, and 
prick them in with a steel fork, taking care to incorporate the natural soil and 
the composts well together, leave the surface tolerably level, and when it is suffi¬ 
ciently dry not to adhere to the shoes, let it be well trodden over in both 
directions. And let the operator throw the weight of his body into every 
tread, the object being to consolidate the top soil to a certain depth; then rake 
the surface level, and the bed is ready for planting. 
The Preparation of the Plants. —In this case time is everything; 
many cultivators only begin to think about plants when the time comes for 
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