76 
THE COTTAGE GARDENER. 
April 29. 
exchange plants with Mr. Bridger. If you send the flowers to our office, 
ou will have an opinion of them given by a competent authority, but not 
y Mr. Glenny. 
Wild Bees. — An old Gardener wishes for information “ how to era¬ 
dicate wild bees, of which large swarms have taken entire possession of a 
turf-bank in a small garden, on which they have undermined and 
destroyed the turf; and are now extending their destructive subterranean 
I work to the adjacent lawn.” We never heard of such a case before. We 
| should put a little spirit of turpentine in a bottle, and thrust the mouth 
j of the bottle into the opening to each nest at night, leaving it there until 
I morning. This kills wasps. Did any of our readers know of a similar 
case ? 
Hard Water (M. C, E.).—Yo\i may safely use it to all greenhouse 
plants, after putting one ounce of carbonate of ammonia to every sixty 
gallons, and allowing it to stand in the sun or any warm place for twelve 
hours. This will only cure hardness arising from the presence of some 
salts ; but the most certain mode would be to mix with the above-named 
quantity of water a quarter of an ounce of oxalate of ammonia. Putting 
salt into your cold pits was good for killing slugs, but it would absorb 
moisture from the air, and promote the damp which injured your ver¬ 
benas. The salt would not cause the paleness of your geraniums, we 
think. 
Rabbit Fattening {Gardenia).— They fatten best on oats and 
carrots—a portion of each. A rabbit is best from four to six months old, 
and requires a month to fatten. One cock bantam is sufficient for five 
hens ; get rid of the other two. If your soil is light as well as poor, give 
it a dressing of clay and stable-manure ; if heavy, give a similar applica¬ 
tion of road-drift, coal-ashes, and stable-manure. 
Heating Small Greenhouse (T. F.).— The hot-water pipes should 
run along the front , and, as the door is in the centre of the front, be 
sunk in an open bricked space; but as the house is small, perhaps 
passing the pipes'along the back of the house may do. You will have 
sufficient light and ventilation for your purpose. 
Gardener’s Place {Pluto).— You had better advertise for one. 
Poultry Eating Eggs {F. W.).—' Their having had egg-shells to eat 
did not teach them the bad habit. If giving them abundance of limey 
matter, and a change of food, does not cure them, there is no help ; you 
must get rid of them. If you do not give them animal food at all, give 
them some greaves; if you do give them animal food, then cease to do 
so, and give them more green food. 
Syringe (/. S. Stoke). —You will find plant-syringes at all dealers in 
hardware; one is as good as another. 
Cochin-China Fow'ls {Incubator). —It is quite possible to find some 
Polish fowls that will be more profitable than some Cochin-Chinas ; but 
if they are fed alike (and they certainly consume equal quantities of 
food) we are quite sure that the best Cochin-Chinas will surpass the best 
Polands in the number of their eggs; and you quite forget the high 
price that the Cochin chickens fetch, when compared with those of the 
Poland. The gentle habits of the Cochin fowls, and the ease with which 
they are kept within a fence not more than three feet high, will also give 
them a preference in the estimation of the amateur. We shall be very 
happy to publish the results of your own experience. 
African Plants. — M. B. has seeds from Africa, with these names— 
Bamea or Ochru; Kash bur; Sant; Hubb Aziz. Can any reader kindly 
help us to the botanical names ? 
Cochin-China Fowls {F. D. H). —It is certainly a great fault in 
your Cochin-China chickens, that of having a fifth toe. The parent birds 
(although without the fifth toe themselves) must have sprung from birds 
which have had a cross with the Dorking, and now throw back to that 
stock. If I mistake not, you will also find, as the chickens fledge, that 
they will show too much tail. The Spanish should be quite white in the 
face. I have been told that those which are red the first year may become 
white the second, but this I have not noticed myself.— Anster Bonn. 
Gapes in Poultry {A Hertfordshire Lady ).—The “gapes” is a very 
troublesome and dangerous complaint among chickens. As you justly 
observe, prevention is better cure, and as this proceeds, I believe, from 
cold, it is advisable to shelter the coops from the east wind so prevalent 
just now, and also from wet. When placed in the warm sunshine, they 
especially require this protection. In an early stage of the complaint, 
cure is not hopeless. Hold the beak of the chicken open, and clean the 
throat well with a feather dipped in oil; let this be done every morning, 
and give occasionally a small pill of Barbadoes aloes. It is needless to 
add, that the little invalids must be kept warm.— Anster Bonn. 
Cochin-China Fowls {E. Dingle ).—I have known Cochin-China 
fowls’ eggs hatch at various times, between the nineteenth and twenty- 
second, or even twenty-third days, and a correspondent of The Cottage 
Gardener mentions some which came as late as the twenty-fourth. In 
unluckily getting no chickens from your 54 eggs, you are not alone, for 
many have complained of the same mischances this spring. The chicks 
dying in the egg-shell, may arise from various causes ; from some fault 
in the parent birds; from the eggs having been stale; from want of 
warmth or steadiness in the sitter; or from sitting them in too dry a 
situation. I have not found this happen more frequently with Cochin- 
China than with other kinds of fowls. I consider eight months old too 
young to breed from.— Anster Bonn. 
Names of Plants.— (X. Z.).—No plant reached us with your note. 
{H. B.y Kingsbridge).—Thomasia quercifolia, a hardy greenhouse plant. 
(C. H. (?.).— 1. Pittospermum ferrugineum. 2. Teucrium fruticans. 
3. Cineraria macrophylla of “ The Cottage Gardeners’ Dictionary.” 
4. Tecoma capensis. 5. Malva creana. 6. Did not reach us. {A Learner). 
—Yours is that rare plant Ranunculus parnassifolius, worthy of a place 
in every collection. It arrived as a specimen ought, with its root, leaves, 
and flowers in good order. 
CALENDAR FOR MAY. 
ORCHID HOUSE. 
Air: now that the days have lengthened, and the sun obtains much j 
power, air must be given liberally. If the house is built, as we recom- | 
mended, facing east and west, the sun will have great power early in the ! 
morning, and late in the afternoon, and therefore air must be given 
accordingly. Baskets, examine weekly, and such as are dry give a good 
steeping in tepid water. Catasetums, Cyrtopodiums, and plants of 
similar habit, will now be growing freely, and should be as freely watered 
at the root, care being taken that no water lodges in the hollow of the 
young leaves. Dendrobiums, and any other plants in flower, should 
either be removed to a cooler house till the bloom is over, or be placed at 
the coolest end of the house, and more air given there; but they should j 
be removed into their growing quarters till they have formed the new 
bulbs. New Plants, such as have just been received from abroad, 
should not have much water or great heat till fresh growths are com- 1 
menced. Heat : during this month the greater part of the plants will 
be making rapid growth; the heat must be kept up to the maximum. 
Moisture must also be plentifully bestowed upon the internal air ; wet 
the walks, walls, and pipes, two or three times a day, especially in the | 
morning and afternoon. Insects, such as snails and slugs, will abound; 
destroy them diligently. It is a good practice to look in upon them in 
the evening, with a lamp or a candle; they may be probably found at 
their work of destruction. Potting, if not finished last month, should 
now be completed ; let the weeds be all drawn up, for they will grow even 
in an orchid-house. Shading, apply daily when the sun shines. Sy¬ 
ringe : this will be in constant requisition, especially for plants growing 
on blocks. Water, at the root, bestow liberally to all growing plants, 
but withhold it gradually as the bulbs arrive at maturity. 
T. Appleby. 
STOVE PLANTS. 
Achimenes, attend, with support for the weak-growing; give freely 
plenty of water to those advanced in growth; pot the last batch this 
month. A. picta is a fine species to bloom in winter. Air, give liberally j 
to keep down at minimum point the internal atmosphere. Baskets, if i 
any are used for drooping plants, should be taken down frequently, and j 
dipped in tepid water. Cuttings of stove plants : the plants will now ! 
be making young growths, and these make the best cuttings ; take them 
off, and put them in sand in heat. Gloxinias and Gesneras, repot, 
and syringe every day. Ixoras, specimens, tie out; young plants place 
in dung-heat, to encourage rapid growth. Gardenias, now in flower, 
remove into the greenhouse, to prolong their blooming season. Heat, j 
keep up to the maximum, 70° by day, 60° by night. Moisture to the 
air, supply liberally by flooding the walks twice a day; Oleanders, place 
in pans of water, to cause the blooms to open freely, and encourage 
growth. Syringe : use this instrument freely every fine day, avoiding 
such plants as may be in flower. Potting : continue to repot young ( 
stove plants, to bring them on in growth. Weeds: let none appear 
beyond the seed; keep everything tidy, and neat, and sweet, in order to 
render the stove attractive and agreeable. T. Appleby. 
FLORISTS’ FLOWERS. 
Auriculas and Polyanthuses, shade, and keep well supplied with 
water; pot seedlings, and sow, if not done last month. Carnations 
and Picotees, finish potting without fail; plant out seedlings to bloom ; 
sow seed. Cinerarias, shade; pot off seedlings as they grow ; it is not 
too late to sow seed yet. Dahlias, harden off, and plant out towards 
the end of the month; cuttings of rare kinds may yet be put in. Holly¬ 
hocks, stake, and water with liquid manure. Pansies, in bloom, 
shade from sun ; water and stir the soil about them ; keep them clear of 
weeds. Pinks, stir the soil between the rows, and apply a mulching of 
short dung. Ranunculuses, water freely in dry weather. Tulips, 
protect from frosty nights and heavy rains ; retard the bloom, if too early, 
by shading during hot sun. Verbenas, plant out, b.; in pots, water 
freely, and shade. Look out for weeds, slugs, and various insects, and 
destroy them constantly and diligently. T. Appleby. 
FLOWER GARDEN. 
Anemones, water well between the rows. Annuals (Tender), remove 
into another hotbed; pot, if not done in April; water gently, and give 
air as much as possible; prick out April-sown. Antirrhinums, plant 
and sow for late autumn bloom. Auriculas done blooming, remove 
to N.E. aspect, where they will not have the sunshine after nine; offsets 
with roots detach, and plant three in a pot; seedlings keep in the shade; | 
water moderately in dry weather ; auriculas to seed should be kept from ! 
wet. Awnings, or other shelter, continue over beds of tulips, e., now in | 
bloom. Bedding-plants, be not in too great hurry to plant out; the j 
middle of the month is time to begin any of the half-hardy plants. I 
Biennials, sow, b., in rows, thinly. Bulbous Roots, generally, ! 
directly leaves decay, take up and store; seedlings shade through mid- i 
day ; plant again after separating offsets, or else store until the end of | 
July. Carnations; remove side-buds from flower-stems; shade from ! 
meridian sun ; water in dry weather; put sticks to, and tie stalks ; sow. ! 
Dahlias, old, part and plant, b.; young, plant out, e. Dress the 
borders, &c., frequently. Flowering Plants require staking, &c. 
Fuchsias may be planted. Grass, mow and roll weekly. Gravel, 
roll weekly. Hyacinths, take up and store as leaves decay. Migno¬ 
nette, sow for succession, b. Mixed Borders, go over twice this , 
month, and mark such plants as seem out of place. (Enothera ma- I 
crocarpa, make cuttings of when the young shoots are three inches 
long. Prune and transplant Laurestinus when done flowering; also 
prune Berberis aquifolia. Perennials, sow, b.; propagate by 
I slips and cuttings. Polyanthuses, part, and shade throughout the 
