274 
THE FLORIST AND POMOLOGIST. 
valuable. Fill a few lights with Asparagus 
every two or three weeks, to keep up a succes¬ 
sion during midwinter; a hot-water pit is 
the best place for this useful root. Parsley, 
Endive, and Lettuce, in frames, should have 
an abundance of air daily, and the same rule 
applies to small Cauliflowers and Lettuce for 
the spring. A slight hotbed should now be got 
ready for a sowing of Horn Carrot and frame 
Radish, and a few early Potatoes may be put 
in heat to sprout. Peach-house .—It will not 
be desirable to apply fire heat by night, unless 
the house falls below 40°, until the buds are 
well swollen and ready to open ; but a little 
fire heat may be given by day in dull cold 
weather, so that it does not exceed 55°. When 
a sunny day occurs, take advantage of it by 
closing the house early; in other respects air 
should be admitted daily, that the buds may 
break strong and produce bold perfect blooms, 
when there will be no fear about their setting; 
if any part of the border is outside the house, 
it should be protected from wet and frost by a 
covering of leaves, and thatched. Dress and 
train the next house, for bringing forward by 
the middle of the month. Pinery .—Where 
fruit is required to ripen in May, those plants 
which have been longest rested should now 
have additional heat to induce them to throw 
up ; the bottom heat, too, should be increased, 
either by turning up the bed, or replunging 
the pots; or, if heated by hot-water pipes, 
putting on more heat. When the plants are 
well supplied with bottom and top heat water 
should be given to the roots ; this excitement 
to grow will most probably result in the 
greater part of them showing; the top heat 
should be as dry as is practicable. We know 
a good grower who always at this season puts 
his plants in a flued pit to get them up, and it 
certainly produces the effect more quickly than 
pipes. I'or other Pines, consult our last direc¬ 
tions. The stock of fruiting plants intended 
for summer should now be kept quiet at about 
60° night, 7 5° day. Vinery. — The Yines 
started last month will now soon break. Thin 
out the buds as soon as the fruit is discernible, 
and stop the shoots one joint above the fruit, 
when grown sufficiently long. The night 
temperature may be raised by degrees to 60° 
at night, increasing this to 65° and 68° by the 
time the Yines get into bloom. To this may 
be added 10° extra for the day temperature 
when the weather is bright, but during dull 
weather work more slowly, that a sufficient 
amount of light may accompany the growth 
of the young wood. The second house should 
be dressed, trained, and the heating apparatus 
got ready for starting the Yines, so as to keep 
up the required succession. 
KITCHEN GARDEN. 
If a sowing of the Sangster’s No. 1 Pea was 
not made last month, no time should now be 
lost, planting them on a dry warm soil, not 
over-rich, but where they can be protected 
from the cutting blasts of March. Look to 
them after sowing, for mice, which very fre¬ 
quently spoil the crop unobserved. A small 
crop of Mazagan Beans may also be planted. 
EEUIT GARDEN. 
Hardy Fruit .—Where wall fruit trees have 
been much infested with insects, it is a good 
plan to unnail them at this season, pick off 
the shreds, and to boil those that will come 
into use again, to destroy the eggs of insects ; 
the best of the nails, too, after being heated 
in a shovel over a hot fire, and well shaken to 
remove the dirt from them, should be dropped 
into linseed oil; the walls may then be washed 
over with a wash composed of cement and 
Spanish red (for colouring), adding a little 
sulphur vivum. Where walls are old and the 
trees much infested with insects during the 
summer, we have found the above plan assist 
materially to keep the trees clean afterwards. 
Pears and Plums infested with scale should 
be dressed over with the Gishurst compound, 
using from three to four ounces per gallon; 
and the same composition may be applied to 
any trees on which insects have been trouble¬ 
some the past season. Continue the pruning 
and training of hardy fruit trees as the weather 
permits, and protect Figs by tying the branches 
together and wrapping haybands round them, 
or thatching the trees with fern or straw. 
Look to the fruit-room, and remove anything 
decaying before it infects adjoining fruit, 
keeping the air and temperature uniform, as 
advised in our last. 
FLOWER GARDEN AND SHRUBBERY. 
Alterations in this department, including 
earthwork and turfing, may be proceeded with 
when the weather suits. Deciduous trees and 
shrubs may also be planted, but unless with 
the very hardiest evergreens, which may be 
planted almost any time, we should defer the 
others till spring. Where the border soil of 
shrubberies is exhausted, a good dressing of 
dung should be added; now is a good time to 
thin out and prune deciduous shrubs. Rose- 
borders should be well dressed with manure 
forked in, or soaked with manure water. Keep 
the grass free from leaves and frequently 
rolled. 
florists’ flowers. 
Auriculas .—These should be kept quiet at 
this season. Give them only sufficient water 
to keep them alive, but keep them clear of all 
dead foliage and aphides, and give plenty of 
air. Carnations and Picoiees .—These will now 
require going over to clear them of all dead 
foliage, and to slightly stir the surface of the 
soil; give scarcely any water, and keep the 
lights off during fine weather, and tilted at 
the back on all occasions, if the weather is at 
all open, when the lights cannot be entirely 
removed. Dahlias .—Seed may be cleaned 
during this dull time, and wintered in a toler¬ 
ably dry place; damp or very dry situations 
will be alike injurious. Seed should be cleaned 
1 and stored in a dry, but not too dry a place. 
