August 8. 
THE COTTAGE GARDENER. 
359 
generalise as lie went on, lie will at once perceive, tlmt [ 
with the assistance of bell-glass, pit, or frame, he can 
realise for his few cuttings all the advantages I have 
i pointed out, by dibbling them firmly in a pot prepared 
! as above, watering, shading as required, keeping air 
from them by a glass covering, or a glazed calico, or oil 
paper covering, or a very shady place, and placing the 
pot in more light as growth advances. 
Having, for a general object, said this much on the I 
where, as the receptacle for the cuttings, should be pre- j 
pared, watered, and drained, before the cuttings are 
inserted, let us shortly direct attention as to the when. 
From spring to autumn, cuttings may generally be 
obtained; but when many are wanted, the best plan is 
! to wait until the plants have finished their chief burst 
of blooming. When the flower-stems are removed, more 
strength is thrown into the incipient young shoots, that 
generally push out in great numbers. Cut these neatly 
oft’when about two inches in length—though shorter 
ones will do—slipping them off as closo to the older ! 
stem as will not injure it. Remove the leaves for a 
quarter-of-an-inch, or so, at its base; cut clean across ! 
with a sharp knife at a joint there, or at the point where 
the cutting joined the parent stem. Insert the cuttings 
round the sides of a pot prepared as above, not nearer j 
than you can place a bell-glass, or a tumbler, over them 
—underneath which you can give air, and above it 
shade at pleasure; and, provided you can place that 
pot then in a cold frame or pit, you will be following 
the best means as to the how, though, as shown above, 
other more easy means may be adopted when propaga¬ 
tion is to be attempted in a wholesale way. Though I 
believe Cheirantlms Marshallii to be hardy, still, as it is 
not yet very common, I would advise potting the young 
plants, and keeping them under the protection of glass 
until the end of March. Where glass is not to be had, 
a dry place, and other means of shelter, such as glazed 
calico, branches, &c., should be resorted to for the first 
winter. 
PINKS. 
Several inquiries have been made as to the propa- 
! gating of these. The modes mentioned above will 
answer admirably. There is only one question that 
requires a particular answer—“ 1 cannot understand 
wdrat yon mean by slipping out the cuttings, so as to 
avoid the labour of stripping off leaves, cutting across ! 
the base, &c., before dibbling them in beds under hand- j 
lights,” &c. Nothing can bo simpler. Go to a plant; 
the fiowers will now be nearly gone, and a quantity of 
young shoots will have grown since planting-time. 
Decide on the shoots you wish to have for cuttings; 
seizo hold of each, one at a time, with the left hand, 
near its base, and catch the top between the thumb and 
forefingers of the right hand, far enough down to reach 
the second joint of the shoot; givo it a brisk pull, and I 
out it comes at that or the next joint, cleaner than any 
stripping or cutting could make it. Sometimes, a slight 
film may adhere to the base of the cutting thus ex¬ 
tracted, and that should be removed with a sharp knife. 
With this exception, the pulled cuttings are at onco 
ready for planting. And now, as to the planting in these 
j railway times, when if dispatch is not the order of the 
day we shall be left nowhere. On a bed, made as de¬ 
scribed above, smooth, moist, and level, I saw a man 
dibbling in Pinks, and leaving his,work behind him as if 
a fork, if not a ploughshare, had been there. Supposing 
that the bed, after being surfaced with a little sand, had 
been watered the day previously, pat it down gently, 
and just throw the slightest sprinkling of fine sand over 
it; then take a small dibber as fine as a lady’s bodkin, 
or finer, hardly larger than the diameter of the stem of 
the Pink-cutting, and with that make holes in rows 
across your bed—any clever urchin will make a hundred 
while I write a line or two—and into these little holes 
place the cuttings, and firm them gently with the thumb 
and finger as you go along. A gentle watering will 
finish the whole affair, and leave the bed as smooth as 
a level can make it. The use of the little dry sand will 
now be seen; it will get into overy little hollow round 
the cuttings, and hold them firmer than any patching 
with a dibble could effect. 
CARNATIONS. 
“ My Carnations are making too short wood for layer¬ 
ing. May I not try them by cuttings as Pinks ? There 
are some nice stubby pieces on the stem, too high for 
layering.” By all means. For hardy kinds, the same 
treatment as for Pinks will do; for those more valuable 
and tender, more heat will be required. For the most 
valuable, we would prefer inserting cuttings round the 
sides of small pots, putting these under a cool frame or 
hand-light for two or three weeks, giving them shading 
as required, and then plunging them into a mild hotbed, 
hardening them off again as soon as roots were formed. 
The same mode of cutting-making may be adopted as 
with Pinks; and that in rare kinds will enable you to 
leave the base of each shoot to break out again; but in 
the case of stubby little shoots on tho stem, it would be 
advisable to slip them off at once, close to the stem, 
and insert them at once. These will also stand, and 
rejoice in a little more heat to encourage rooting than 
the more succulent ones. R Fish. 
KINMEL PARK, NORTH WALES. 
Seat or R. Hughes, Esq. 
It must bo very pleasant to the owners of estates near 
the sea-coasts to find that uow or rare trees and shrubs 
are not injured by the severe frosts of such winters as 
the last. Kinmel Park is one so happily situated. 
Standing on a considerable elevation about two miles, as 
the crow flies, from the sea, which said two miles is a 
reach of flat, rich ground, producing excellent crops of 
corn, hay, potatoes, turnips, &c., on the right, you have 
a view of Rhyl, a watering place close to tho sea, and on 
the left, the pretty little Welch town, Abergili. In both 
places I noted several neat villas, built and building, with 
a view to accommodate visitors with lodgings during . 
summer. Directly in front of the mansion is a fine 
view of the sea, with the hills of Cheshire in the distance. 
The Chester and Holyhead Railway runs close to the 
sea-shore, having stations at the two towns above- l 
mentioned. Kinmel Park is well wooded with noble 
oaks in the lower, and fine beeches and elms on more 
elevated, grounds. These few hints will give tho reader j 
some slight notion of the favoured position of this place. 
The gardens, however, are not so good in site, for the 
ground slopes to tho north, and, consequently, the south 
wall is on the lowest part, hence, the top water, in heavy 
showers, runs down the walks and saturates the border 
more than is good for the Vines, Peach, and Apricot trees, 
although Mr. Mountford, the gardener, has done all that 
man can do to prevent and remedy the evil. Before j 
his time, they rarely, if ever, had auy Peaches worth 
gathering; tho trees mildewed, and the wood scarcely 
ripened; under such circumstances it was in vain to look 
for good fruit. In order to produce good peaches and • 
Nectarines, Mr. Mountford covered 220 feet of this wall 
with glass; first partially renewing the border, and 
placing good drains in the walk in front of the border, 
with upright openings covored with gratings, to catch the 
water. This was done two years ago. The first year the 
trees produced a fair crop of good fruit, and, what was of 
more consequence, healthy foliage and improved wood, 
which ripened perfectly in the autumn. When I called 
there last Juno, the trees had greatly improved (though I 
