THE COTTAGE GARDENER. 
51 
' October 24.] 
the plants in their possession at this untoward season of 
i the year. Damp weather, frosty nights, succeeded per- 
! haps sometimes by drenching rain, and sometimes by 
I bright sunshine, all require careful attention to prevent 
: evil effects from such sudden changes. 
Auriculas and polyanthuses should now be in frames 
or pits facing the south; the glass should be kept on in 
damp, foggy, or rainy weather, and air given freely 
by lifting the lights behind. In sunny weather the 
lights should be drawn entirely off, to give them the full 
; benefit of such cheering weather. Do not forget every 
! morning to look for the trail of slugs, and if any are 
I perceived, seek for them till they are discovered in their 
i hiding-places and destroy them. Very little water is 
required now, and that in moderate quantities and given 
; in the fore-part of the day. Carnations and picotees 
I ought now to be all potted and placed under frames,— 
1 watering them just enough, and no more, to prevent 
flagging. Dahlias must now be all taken up and stored 
! away. Late-struck cuttings continue under glass, to 
i induce the formation of small bulbs; they often make 
| the best plants for the succeeding year. Roses .—Now is 
I the best time of the year to procure additions to the 
! stock already growing. Early orders always secure the 
! best plants. Plant, stake, and mulch with short litter, 
and they will grow much better than later-planted ones. 
T. Appleby. 
THE KITCHEN-GARDEN. 
Asparagus. —If not already cut down and the ground 
cleared of weeds and refuse, the asparagus beds should 
now at once be attended to. We do not recommend the 
stems being cut down until they have begun to turn 
yellow, and the ground between the rows should, after 
clearing, be immediately well forked over, leaving the 
j surface rough and loose. Those who intend to top-dress 
j may take the earliest oppoi'tunity of wheeling on a good 
dressing of good strong manure of any kind that they 
i have to spare. Our system is, to lay a few boards be¬ 
tween two of the rows at a time, on which to wheel on 
the manure, so as to prevent trampling upon the ground, 
! and we shoot the manure out of the barrows right and 
left; by which means we mauure the space of two rows 
at once. Spread and fork it in immediately on each 
side, taking care that all is in some way covered with 
earth, and that the surface earth is left open and rough. 
Never since we have had the superintendence of aspa¬ 
ragus planting have we practised the four-feet-bed sys¬ 
tem, but we choose a good piece of ground, which we 
manure and trench well in in the winter season, and 
form it into ridges as rough as possible, forking it over 
frequently when frosty mornings and dry weather pre- 
! vail; and either sowing the seed in drills at two feet 
apart, or planting one-year-old plants at the same dis¬ 
tance. After having been established for two years, 
i every alternate row is carefully taken up for forcing; 
thus leaving the plantation in rows four feet apart, be¬ 
tween which, after the asparagus season of cutting is 
past, and the stems have grown to their natural height, 
a row of late cauliflowers is planted, which being thus 
partially shaded throughout the months of August and 
part of September, seldom fail to succeed well; and as 
the asparagus is at that seasou well supplied with 
liquid manure and salt, very little exhaustion is caused 
by the row of cauliflowers planted at that distance. We 
never practice the eartliing-up system or the covering 
the crowns of this esteemed vegetable any more than 
is rendered necessary in the application of manure, as 
we do not approve of the stifling method of blanching 
the shoots. Take care that a little of the best seed is 
put by out of the way of mice at this season for sowing 
next spring. 
Coleworts. —Should any strong colewort or savoy 
plants be remaining, and should there be any spare 
corner of ground, or any room between the rows of cur¬ 
rants, gooseberries, or raspberries, they may still be 
planted for coming in useful next spring; for it is some¬ 
times found that late planted vegetables of this kind 
will stand better than others the severity of the winter. 
Cauliflower Plants. —Those who adopt late sowing 
should now, as soon as the young plants become strong 
enough, commence pricking them into the small two- 
and-a-half or three-inch pots, and at once plunge them 
into light soil close to the glass, which may be kept over 
them for a few days after their being fresh potted ; and 
as soon as they may be considered to have thoroughly 
taken root, give air freely night and day, always taking 
the lights entirely off on every fine day. 
Cabbage Plants in every stage of growth should have 
the soil about them often stirred; and where only a few 
thousands are planted, all decayed leaves may be col¬ 
lected, and neatness be maintained with very little 
trouble. 
Onions. —Those onions in store, as well as all other 
root crops, should be occasionally looked over, selecting 
those that are in any way decaying. Underground 
onions and shallots may now be planted, and onions 
should also now be selected for seed. 
Mushroom Beds.— Make these in succession, as pre¬ 
viously directed, by collecting good stable manure, with 
which half-dried sheep or deers’ dung may be advan¬ 
tageously incorporated. Sufficient maiden loam should 
also be added to modify the heat and moisture which 
will otherwise carry off the most valuable properties of 1 
the compost. The beds should be well trodden or 
rammed down when the material is in order for forming 
them, and they should be spawned when at the tempe¬ 
rature of 85° or 90°, and be at once cased with about 
two inches of good holdiug maiden loam, in order to 
retain a proper degree of heat. Where the beds are 
made out of doors, or in open sheds, a moderate cover¬ 
ing will be necessary, which should be of a kindly 
mulching nature. If wood lice are troublesome, shake 
over the litter, sweep out the dusty short material clean, 
and, previously to the mushrooms showing, apply over 
the whole surface of the bed and other parts of the shed, 
if in a shed, boiling water from the rose of a watering- 
pot. This will not only effectually eradicate these pests 
by its application once or twice, but will also greatly 
assist the working of the spawn. James Barnes. 
