March 20.] 
THE COTTAGE GARDENER. 
3B3 
scythe was put by, and now if the first mowing is put off 
till the grass looks as if it must be done, tbe whole 
bottom ot the blades will have blanched in the moss, as 
surely as rhubarb or seakale under pots and boxes. 
Then if cold easterly winds come on after the first 
mowing, and next May and June turn out to be very 
dry, this blanched bottom cannot possibly bear up 
against it, and the consequence will be that the finer 
kinds ot grass will be ruined, and the coarser sorts have 
it all for themselves. Early mowing, even where no 
traces of moss can be seen, is one of the great secrets for 
keeping the grass fine. I saw a newly laid down flower- 
garden, ten days ago, where the crop of Italian rye-grass 
would make a good bite for a flock of sheep, and the. 
owner, a scientific gentleman, believed that this strong 
grass was favourable for nursing the finer kinds; I 
pointed out to him that there could not be a greater 
error. Lawn grass does not want nursing; the true 
way of nursing grass under the scythe is to let every 
blade of it have an equal share of light and air. The 
mowing machine is far better than the scythe for the 
first cutting or two where moss is getting ahead, because 
the moss is so elastic that it yields under the scythe, 
and is up directly behind the mower to blanche the 
tender grass as before. First of all have the lawn run 
over with old stumpy brooms, or a brush harrow, then 
sweep clean and roll it two or three times, and next day 
it is fit to cut. D. Beaton. 
THE EOS ARY. 
Soil tor and Transplanting Boses. —Mr. Appleby 
hit the right nail on the head the other week, when he 
stated emphatically—“ A good deep loamy soil, with a 
dry bottom, is the best soil for the rose.” In no other soil 
will they flourish for any length of time, without greater 
demands upon the compost-heap and the manure repo¬ 
sitory than can well be spared, except roses constitute 
the all-in-all consideration ; for then they may be made 
to flourish in any soil, however naturally unpropitious. 
In the very best of soils they are hungry fellows, like 
the horseleech, ever crying, Give, give ; and hardly 
nodding acquiescence, did you even rob your celery of fine 
decomposed material to enrich them. In all soils, but 
especially in hungry, light, and gravelly ones, they dearly 
like a regular soaking several times with manure-water 
after the first of April. The rose dislikes stagnant 
water, as much as being left in a dry state. Hence for all 
gravelly and chalky soils, wonderful as are the effects 
of huge dressings of good dung, yet for a permanent 
result nothing beats a moderate dressing of clay, nicely 
mixed and divided with the staple soil. When large J 
masses of bloom, rather than fine specimens of flowers 
are wanted, the plants may be allowed to grow large and j 
remain a long j)eriod in the same place. When fine 
individual blooms are wanted, the plants must not only 
be kept close pruned near home, but should have the ' 
privilege of having fresh pasture ground every three or 
four years. The rose rarely does well when mixed with 
J other flowering plants, unless they want treatment 
similar to themselves. I have attempted to combine a 
| rosary of tree roses, and other flowering plants beneath, 
j but with anything but satisfaction. Boses, to be fine, j 
i must have the ground to themselves, and then you can 1 
give them the rich treatment they like and deserve. 
Where alterations are suggesting themselves, roses may 
yet be moved with perfect safety, provided they are rather 
closely pruned, and a branch of evergreen is put over 
them for a week or two. The hedges may also now be 
ransacked for briar stocks, and planted in good soil for 
future budding. B. Fish. 
GREENHOUSE AND WINDOW 
GARDENING. 
General Management of the Greenhouse. —Amoug 
the characteristics of our times, the spirit of criticism, 
and the prevalence alike of the attempt and the desire 
to make knowledge easy, holds no inconspicuous place. 
The ability to criticise comes more easily to the many, 
than the family inheritance of acres and wisdom descends 
upon the few. My apprentice master used to say “ a 
fool can find or make a flaw in a wise man’s greatest 
work.” The danger is that criticism let loose, is too apt 
to beget in the critic an over-complaisant opinion of his 
own transcendant powers, and thus becomes not an 
incentive, but a barrier to progress in all that is ennobling 
and refining. Everything is extremely simple to a 
critic before he tries it; and then it will frequently 
happen that the greater the simplicity the greater his 
difficulty, unless lie valiantly cuts the knot by boister¬ 
ously disparaging what he cannot understand. We 
now and tlien^ieet with a full-fledged specimen. Ladies, 
in the height of enjoyment in a flower-garden, arc en¬ 
gaged in admiring and remarking upon the contrast 
and shading of colours in groups of flowers, as only 
ladies, witli their acute sense of the beautiful, can do. A 
gentleman unexpectedly joins them. Beauty! pshaw! he 
can see no beauty. That! why it is a mere weed. 
This! trumpery. The others! trashy. Green carpeted 
lawn ! stuff. Give him the hillocky meadow, the rough 
ploughed field. As he uttered these outpourings of 
oracular critical wisdom, he was above noticing that the 
smile of enjoyment was exchanged for the blush of 
indignation. 
Very different are the reasons which have led to the 
heading of this article. A correspondent, in an interest¬ 
ing letter, part of which has been already referred to, 
wants some general rule or rules as to potting, pruning, 
watering, resting, heating, and ventilating greenhouse 
plants; confesses that at one time he thought himself 
au. fait in gardening, and capable of managing any plant, 
but that now he feels quite puzzled, and despairing of 
following out in detail ample directions for each par¬ 
ticular family ; he thinks that mediocrity at least may be 
realised by attention to some general rules respecting 
greenhouse management, and that obliging him would 
oblige many others in a similar predicament. Now, valu¬ 
able as general rules are, and anxious as we are to meet 
our readers’ wishes, I must honestly state, that attention 
to general rules will seldom carry the lover of plants to, 
and far less beyond, mediocrity, unless, from tbe experi¬ 
ence of others or bis own experience and practice, he is 
enabled to reduce general into particular rules. There 
are general rules for the management of a menagerie; 
but without attending to the appropriate and particular 
wants of the different inhabitants, there would soon be 
gaps in tbe establishment. So it is with plants. Who, 
for instance, would think of treating in a similar manner 
an Epacris and a Pelargonium ? The desire of our 
correspondent is a very laudable one; only let him 
neither expect too much from it, nor yet be contented 
with mediocrity. The feeling is very natural in these 
knowledge-made-easy times, and especially as respects 
gardening, about which every body understands as if it 
were by instinct. For ourselves we can state two facts; 
first, that as we get older, we see our deficiencies more; 
and, secondly, that even in these knowledge-made-easy 
times, and grateful we are for them, no knowledge really 
useful, or that will minister to a refined enjoyment, can 
be attained without study and labour ; and if this holds 
true in any thing, it holds particularly true in gardening. 
General rules are admirable; nicety in detail, attention 
to trifles, are everything. Should this be a damper to 
young aspirants? No; but it may teacb tbe wisdom of 
not attempting too much at once. A few families well 
