48 
THE COTTAGE GARDENER. 
April 15. 
costs nothing, as it will ultimately give its value in 
manure. Gardeners do not require to be told how soon 
a man and boy will uncover a long range of glass. A 
barrowful of fresh sandy loam is placed in each light, 
with a little sand on the surface, patted down moderately 
firm. The cuttings are inserted from two to three inches 
apart in September, and shaded until they are struck. 
The sun gives all the heat that is requisite. As soon 
as struck, the hardier they are kept the better, by full 
! exposure to all the sun and air they can get, and pro- 
j tecting from rains. In fact, from the middle of October 
to the middle of March they will hardly ever ask for the 
water-pot. Whenever the outside thermometer ranges 
from 35° to 40°, air given top and bottom will keep the 
plants healthy and stubby. In severe weather, if the 
thermometer inside gets down to 35 u , you may let your 
covering remain on for days and weeks. When thus 
cool, I have had Verbenas and Calceolarias shut up for 
a month, and looking strong and healthy when gradu¬ 
ally uncovered. The furnaces of uncovered houses was 
no sinecure then. By the end of March, or the begin¬ 
ning of April, if the plants were getting too thick, they 
could be thinned into a bed, and protected with mats, 
or calico, as done by our friend Mr. Gardener. Thus, 
, nothing in the shape of extreme nicety—nothing of 
! artificial heat—no danger of steam from hotbeds, would 
be encountered, and all the bother of potting and un¬ 
potting, and carrying and lugging them from place to 
place, entirely prevented. 
A friend of mine has entirely dispensed with pots and 
boxes for his Scarlet Geraniums for some time. He 
inserts thousands of cuttings in a Melon-pit in the 
autumn. He keeps them as hardy as possible in winter. 
He has the command of a hot-water-pipe when he likes, 
however. About the end of March the plants are lifted 
and planted out more thinly into an earth bed, made 
like a wide Celery-trench, and are there protected by 
; straw, hurdles, &c., until May. It was lately detailed 
1 how Mr. Eraser, of Wilderness Park, strikes his Calceo- 
| larias under hand-lights, and keeps them there all the 
I winter with the necessary protection of fern. I should 
j judge that Mr. Scobie had 400 stout, stubby Verbenas 
in a light. A common sized light, with a little heat 
beneath it, would hold nearly 500 cuttings in March 
and April, as they would not remain long before being 
i planted out. 
In conclusion, all honour to our correspondent and 
j others that succeed so well, and are advocates for 
spring propagating; and all success to those who, alike 
for beds and pits, in addition to covering, desiderate a 
hot-water pipe as a most valuable auxiliary. If, on the 
whole, the majority should decide on spring propagating, 
' on the score of economy in labour and trouble, let me 
hint gently, that they will know where to lay the blame, 
when the filling every house with store pots becomes a 
more intolerable nuisance than it even now is, and 
other products wanted in spring and early summer 
must play second-rate to batches of cuttings. Many 
employers are quite up to the mark iu the system of 
cramming their houses, though how that helps good 
gardening, or saves time, they stop not to inquire. Our 
brethren of the spade might do worse—especially those 
stinted in labour power—than make an effort to have a 
proper place for everything. Glass is cheap enough now, 
and yet the space under glass gets more crowded than 
ever. Look at a pit, or bed, filled with bedding-stuff, 
all with fibrous roots, inserted in the soil at once, 
heated, too, with a hot-water pipe, if you can get it, and 
think how much bother and trouble are saved, when, 
from the inserting of the cuttings in August and 
September, they wanted hardly anything before they 
were planted out in May, before which time the lights 
might be used for other purposes. 
When any such scheme is tried, the great elements of 
success are, a dry bottom, a raised surface, and means 
taken for throwing off the water to some distance from 
front and back. There will be time enough to think of 
this before autumn. Any reader who may gain any 
thing from this desultory paper, will owe their thanks to 
the Ayrshire Correspondent. R. Fish. 
CYPR1PEDIUMS, OR LADIES’ SLIPPER 
PLANTS. 
(Continued from Vol. XV., page 42G.) 
3. Position. —The frame to receive the plants after 
they ni>e potted should have had a fresh coating or two 
of paint inside and out, or, if the paint is not required, 
the wood should be well washed with soft soap and 
warm water, to destroy all insects and their eggs or 
larva. The glass and putty should he thoroughly re¬ 
paired and clean washed, and then the flume should be 
placed in a position facing the south-east. I prefer this 
aspect, because the plants will then receive the benefit 
of the morning sun, and part of the mid-day sun; whilst 
the long afternoon gives the plants time to recover from 
the sun heat and consolidate their growth. Having 
placed the frame, then have ready a quantity of coal- 
ashes, sift them, and lay the rough siftings at the bottom 
inside the frame ; these will prevent worms coming up 
through the soil into the pots ; then put in a layer of 
the fine ashes, thick enough to bring the pots within 
six inches of the glass; then place the pots, the largest 
in the back row, and fill in ashes amongst and to the 
back of them ; afterwards set in the second row, and fill 
up between them and the first row, aud so proceed till 
all the plants are in their position. Place the light on, 
and let them remain a few days closed up. 
4. Watering. —They will require no watering for a 
fortnight, and then only a very gentle one, just enough to 
settle the top soil and keep it moist. As soon as the 
young shoots appear above the surface of the soil a 
second light watering may be given in the fore part of 
the day, giving air at the same time. In all fine weather 
the plants should have an abundance of air, by tilting 
up the lights behind, or drawing them entirely off. As 
the season advances, this giving of air will dry the soil, 
therefore the waterings, as the plants advance in growth, 
must be more frequent and in greater abundance, only 
taking care that one good watering dries up before the 
next is applied. The greatest quantity of water must 
be given when the foliage is fully expanded, and whilst 
they are in flower. When in the latter state the water 
should never be allowed to wet the flowers. As soon as 
the lower leaves begin to fade the quantity of water 
must be lessened, and more seldom given, in order that 
the plants may be induced to go gradually to rest. In 
winter they require no water. 
5. Summer Treatment. —Part of this has been in¬ 
cidentally mentioned under the head Watering. All 
that I have to add is, that in very bright, hot, sunny 
weather, a thin canvass shade will be necessary to pro¬ 
tect the plants from too much evaporation. All weeds, 
as a matter of course, must be diligently drawn up and 
taken to the rubbish heap. Also, keep a strict look out 
for slugs and snails, especially in the early part of the 
year, just when the buds are pushing through the soil. 
If one or more should get into the frame and gnaw off 
the top in that young state, such a misfortune would 
almost be sufficient to kill the plant. Wood-lice are 
almost as destructive, therefore they must also be hunted 
for. A toad or two in the frame would devour them 
with eager rapidity. When the flower-stems begin to 
appear it is very probable the Green Fly will make 
its appearance also. They are easily got rid of by 
occasional smokings of tobacco. The Red Spider, too, 
