304 
THE COTTAGE GARDENER. 
August 22 . 
politan Shows, and have nothing to show, or offer, but 
the old things, the old plans, and the old everything 
else, except in a few rare instances, when wo find one, 
here and there, breaking out of the old tract; then wo 
wonder, admire, report, make up our minds to follow, or 
go a-head of the rare thing; but after a few trials, and 
a failure or two, we fall into the old ranks again, and 
tell the piper to play the usual tune of “It can’t be 
done and a’ that.” Rut now, while the spirit of our 
country is roused with this war, let us turn a now leaf, 
make new plants and plans out of old ones, and never 
stop till wc bring the world and all Russians to the 
same way of thinking as ourselves. D. Beaton. 
THINGS TO BE THOUGHT ABOUT IN 
PELARGONIUM CULTURE. 
“ Your directions are very good, but not explicit enough 
for cottage gardeners. I understand all about ripening 
the wood of these plants before pruning them back, 
and then spurring them to an iuch or two from the old 
wood of last season—but how treat them afterwards? 
If 1 keep them dry, they shrivel; if I water them, they 
produce excrescences, with a dozen of gouty shoots in j 
embryo, instead of one; if I pot them at once, into new [ 
soil, many bid me good bye. Let us have a little more 
of ‘ little matters’ if you please.” Most willingly. 
Servants should ever be obedient in all things reason¬ 
able. Many fair ladies explain, to their own satisfaction, 
the meaning of the word obey, when used in a most 
important epoch of their existence; but no such latitude 
of meaning can be allowed to those who are honoured 
to be in the smallest degree the servants of the public. 
The difficulty, in such a case as ours, is to reconcile the 
case and familiarity of the companion teacher, with the 
courtesy and attention of a servant—a difficulty in¬ 
creased, because we have frequently to guess at the 
wauts and wishes of supporters. Enquiries of corres¬ 
pondents, though often involving an amount of labour 
little dreamed about, are, upon the whole, most useful 
to us, as forming an index to the wants of our readers, 
and need, therefore, be seldom prefaced with apology. 
On the other hand, enquirers, in the capacity of kind 
employers, should be patient. Eew, in these days, 
pretend to be encyclopaedists in knowledge, even as 
respects the whole departments of a very ramified 
science—and it may often be desirable, before an answer 
can be given to any particular enquiry, to submit that 
answer, or crave for evidence of similarity of view, or 
extended information from one known to bo well versed 
in that particular branch of the subject. Every time, 
and these times are far from seldom, that I see The 
Cottage Gardener on the tables of some of our first 
gardeners, is not only a cheoring fact in itself, but 
doubly choering, when coupled with the consideration, 
that many of these would feel a pleasure in kiudly 
pointing out an error; or in giving detailed information 
cheerfully, when requested to do so. Our readers, there¬ 
fore, may rest satisfied, that no practice, except what is 
found to be the best, will long remain unnoticed and un- 
corrected, in a kindly spirit, in these pages. 
The evils alluded to as respects these plants can 
easily be avoided by keeping clear of the systems of 
extremes, by acting on the advice of Father Sun to his 
fiery-headed enthusiastic boy, and thus take a middle 
course. It has been recommended to keep tbeso plants 
exposed to the sun, and dryish, rather than otherwise, 
before pruning them back, in order that the wood may 
be consolidated before pruning. Something of a similar 
treatment must be persevered in until the spurs and 
snags break freely again. They will do this most 
quickly when kept slightly shaded, or in a shady place; 
but the shoots will not be equally robust with those 
that have burst their young shoots exposed to a more 
direct sunlight. To obtain that desideratum, and also 
keep the plants dryish, but not dust dry, two things 
will be greatly helpful—a frame, or pit, facing some 
point of the south, in which to place the plants after 
pruning, where they may have plenty of sun and air, 
and yet be defended from sudden showers. Again, the 
plants will be benefited by standing on the ground, or 
on a bed of ashes; or if on boards, with moss beneath 
the pots. In such circumstances, in dull weather they 
will imbibe almost as much moisture as they require 
from the bottom of the pot, and in hot, dry weather, it is 
much better to water the ground below, and tho spaces 
between tho plants, in preference to watering the plants 
overhead, or on the surface of the soil in the pots. 
After a hot, sunny day, and when the young shoots are 
just beginning to peep, a slight sprinkle over the stems 
with the syringe, just to moisten them, and hardly 
damp the surface of the soil, and then shutting the lights 
for an hour or two, and giving air for the night after¬ 
wards, will encourage the shoots to come robust and 
healthy. A smallish supply of water at the root should 
be given, until the young shoots have got from lmlf-an- 
inch to more than an inch in length, when they should 
be repotted. 
The cause of some of the tenderer sorts dying when 
potted, so soon after pruning back, is owing to the 
double check given to the plant, by depriving it of its 
foliage, and mutilating, and thus neutralizing root action 
at one and the same time. Sound policy points to the 
reverse of this, and by not potting so soon after prun¬ 
ing, the roots, untouched, and allowed to imbibe in 
the somewhat restricted mode referred to above, exert 
their influence in nourishing the bare spurs and stems 
to develope their buds and shoots, and when once these 
are present, then the roots have the old soil shaken 
from them, slightly pruned, if necessary, and transferred 
to a similar, or a smaller sized pot, and into lightish, 
rich soil, and kept rather close for a few days, until 
growth is froely proceeding, the young shoots will act 
reciprocally on the roots and cause them to elongate 
freely and healthily. Were the laws of reciprocity, 
which, in spite of all our selfishness, unite man to man 
in community of interest, as the above principle is 
recognised by all the great Geranium growers, how still 
more delightful would this beautiful world become! 
CUTTINGS OF PELARGONIUMS. 
“ In the multitude of counsel, I am bewildoringly per¬ 
plexed. Mr. A. says, draw drills in the open border, and 
there insert your cuttings, and leave them to root and 
take care of themselves. Mr. B. draws such drills, fills 
them with light, sandy compost, inserts his cuttings, 
and shades afterwards. Mr. C. is preparing beds by 
riddling and mixing nice sandy soil, and putting it over 
a docayed hotbed, to be surmounted with frame and 
sashes, that the cuttings may be kept shady and close; 
and Mr. D. inserts his cuttings round the sides of small 
pots filled half full with drainage; two-thirds of the 
other half being composed of sandy, gritty soil, and the 
whole surfaced with silver sand;—Which will be tho 
best for me to adopt?” 
Vory likely all would be best; according to your treat¬ 
ment, your kinds, or your circumstances. For instance; 
suppose you can now obtain some strong, stubby shoots 
of Scarlet Geraniums, some tlireo or more inches in 
length, and you have cut them across at the bottom at 
a joint, and removed one or two of the lower leaves, and 
allowed the base of the cutting to got hardened by 
exposure for a day or two, while tho top of the cutting 
was kept a little shaded ; a border prepared in the mode 
of A. and B., would answer very suitably, either with or 
without shade; tho drooping of the leaves, and even tho 
