54 
THE COTTAGE GARDENER. 
October 31. 
5 'ours, ort the coast of Loch Long, beyond Glasgow. If you plant these 
vines, you must give up all ideas of other climbers for this house, ex¬ 
cept, perhaps, Bignonia or Tecoma radicans gi'iindiflora, which requires 
the very same treatment in every respect as these hardy grape vines. 
We know Glasgow Green, and both sides of the Clyde below it; also 
some of the “ bunglers,** and best men in these parts ; and, as very little 
can be done on the coast until you go down next May, you will 
excuse us for not giving you a list of suitable plants for summer culture 
until w^e consider “a wee.** Some of our London readers, who know as 
much of Loch Long as of Timbuctoo, will be astonished to read your 
account of the gardening on that part of the west coast of Scotland. It 
■ will he no surprise here, however, to hear of the sons and daughters of 
wealthy fathers being so much in their garden. 
Koses on Turf {E. S, F.).—Standard roses will not do so well in 
groups when the roots are covered with grass as when they have an 
open circle or bed. A group of standard roses on grass, by the way, is 
one of the most frightful things that you could devise or think of for a 
flower-garden; something as if Her Majesty, while at Balmoral, had 
all the ladies of her household dressed in kilts of the royal tartan. 
Rather have them planted in this wise—three tall standards in the 
centre; five half-standards round them; and ten or a dozen strong 
dwarfs outside of all. These dwarfs should be worked plants on six-inch 
stems, and the grass might be laid quite close to the stems of the outside 
row; then, from May to November, who would know but your roses 
were “ on grass? ** All the plants or kinds of roses in a group of this 
kind, should be of equal strength, so as to keep up the uniformity of 
the whole. 
Flower-garden Plans {Ignohts and Others). —One will appear this 
month, and will be followed by others in a monthly series. 
Hardy Ferns (Tom Pouce). —As you intend transplanting native 
ferns from your own neighbourhood into your rock-work, which you are 
now constructing, you may begin at once, and go on with them, to the 
end of next March, as the weather allows. The smaller kinds you will 
easily remove, as their roots run near the surface; but the roots of the 
great, strong-growing ferns run very deep, and they must be trenched 
out to do much good; but if so treated, they want no balls with them. 
We have known scores and scores of pounds wasted in removing thick, 
square pieces of turf, or balls, from native fern brakes to “inoculate** 
parks and rough pieces in pleasure grounds, such balls carrying only the 
buds and leaving the roots behind. When a piece of fern land is broken- 
up for cultivation, the farmer will tell you that the roots of ferns are as 
bad to get rid of as the roots of docks, and this ought to teach us gar¬ 
deners that the large, common ferns come from pieces of the roots, and 
60 we ought to know better than plant only buds and balls. 
Moss Roses {An Old Raven). —You must take them all up early next 
month, trench the ground two spits deep, mixing a good quantity of 
rotten dung with it if the roots are long, black, and fibreless, as we expect 
they are, cut them back one-half, and cut in the branches quite close to 
the old wood, and if the old wood is long, cut one-half of the shoots to 
near the bottom; then replant them, and put some littery dung on the 
surface of the ground to mulch them, and next May, when you see the 
leaves coming out, begin to water them freely, and let them have some 
weekly to the end of July. If they come up strong, give liquid manure 
occasionally. 
Flower Garden Plan (W. T .).—The planting is unexceptionable, 
and as your Heliotropes agree with the Ageratums, there is no objection in 
the least against the mixture, and the centre bed is just the right place 
for them; but this is the only bed in your garden that is fit to be seen ; 
the four flanking it are dumpy, the rest quite frightful. We have not 
seen the work you allude to. 
Cochins v. Spanish.— Q. in a Corner says: “I like the spirit in 
which ‘ Gallus* writes; agree with him in general as to the excellence 
of Dorkings, but dissent from his conclusion in toto. Having kept 
almost every variety of fancy poultry during the last thirty years, and 
paid great attention to their consumption of food, always feeding them 
myself, I have arrived at the conclusion, that 2 / there is any difference 
in proportion to size, Malays are the greatest eaters; that Cochins do 
not eat more than Spanish or Dorkings, va proportion to size; that they 
are easily satisfied, and often leave part of their allotted food; and, in 
opposition to Mr. Bailey, no mean authority, I find they fatten rapidly, 
and that the short-legged variety lay on much flesh on breast and wings. 
As to their excellence as a table fowl, much, I think, remains to be 
proved, as the price has hitherto proved a bar to a fair trial on a large 
scale. Allow me to say, that to sit down to a poultry-dinner, knowing 
that they are Cochins, and having a preconceived notion that they are 
not very good, is 7iot a fair trial. Will ‘ Gallus * or Mr. Bailey, who so 
kindly comes to his rescue, allow themselves to be blindfolded, and in 
that state sit down to table, having slices of poultry set before them, and 
then say whether it is Spanish, Dorking, or Cochin, from flavour only ? 
I If so, I will confess myself satisfied, but not till then. Is there not in 
! the wnme of Dorking a charm that would give relish to any fowl sold 
i under that name ? The only difference I could ever discover, was a flavour 
I in some Cochins approaching that of game, which can hardly be an 
objection. I know of a case w’here a very knowing gent sat down to dine 
' off a large Shanghai cockerel, dressed as a Turkey poult, and yet could 
not discover the cheat. So much for flavour. This, however, would go 
j to prove that in this breed there is a little difference in flavour ; but I 
1 write for information, not victory. As to productiveness, there is cer¬ 
tainly no comparison iDetween them and Spanish, as far as my experience 
goes; none in the ease with which chicks are reared,—the Spanish being 
proverbially difficult to rear. The opinion of some of the oldest and best 
fanciers has been sought, and it fully coincides with the above. One, 
when reading the article about the excellence of Spanish fowls as layers, 
laughed outright, and said that they were anything but good, when 
compared with Cochins.** 
Red Spider (A Twelve-month Subscriber). — We take it that by 
“ Garden Spider,** you mean Red Spider, and if so, tobacco-smoke will 
not kill or drive him away; neither will your other remedy,—sulphuring 
the house,-affect the Vry White Scaly, or the Soft Mealy Bug, if they 
j ftremcluded myour " levcral other insecte." Neverthelcii, it ii every 
good plan to turn out all plants once or twice a-year from a greenhouse, 
or from pits, and burn sulphur in those structures, and to keep the doors 
and ventilators closed fora day or two afterwards. Then, after a few 
hour*s free admission of fresh air, the house or pit is safe enough for any 
plant. If you use grass as you propose, the expense of keeping it in 
order will be double what it is now, but your place would look much 
better. Circles, not more than four feet through, and ovals, eight or I 
nine feet long, are the only shapes suitable for such strips of ground. ; 
Edging Plant {Lover of Flowers). —We do not know “a hardy her¬ 
baceous perennial that will be in bloom from the 1st of June to the end 
of September, and not to have pink flowers.** 
China Iris {W. G. N .).—It is not at all a fit plant for pots, unless . 
you were an expert gardener. Place it under a west wall, in rich light 
soil, and it will take care of itself, and blossom there; it is hardy enough, 
and wants no protection. ^ 
Peat (Y. Z.).—How can we tell you what to put it to, unless we knew ! 
what plants you cultivate, and the nature of your soil? It is not used i 
for Geraniums; but is especially required for Heaths and American | 
plants. Keep it under cover. Crocuses do not require manure, unless ' 
the ground be poor, but to be grown in a moderately rich, well-drained, ^ 
light soil. ; 
Phlomis floccosa (Subscriber).—This is a half-hardy evergreen, j 
and is so described in The Cottage Gardeners' Dictionary, if you read ^ 
the description there given. To avoid numerous headings, all the half- 1 
hardy species are put together. You are there told its average height, j 
colour of flowers, time of their being open, native country, and date of | 
introduction. We have little more to add to such history. It is called 
floccosa on account of its woolly branches. It flowers usually from July 
to October. There is a drawing of it in the Botanical Register, t, 1300. 
EauATioN OF Time {Coche^'ham), — We believe it is right; we are 
indebted for it to the Gardeners' Almanack, and for that the Stationers’ 
Company employ an astronomical authority. 
Roses pegged down {A Recent Subscriber). —We have set our face 
against the plan of pegging down Roses altogether, for reasons long 
since explained; therefore, we said nothing about it in The Cottage 
Gardeners' Dictionary, Super-phosphate of lime is good for Roses, no 
doubt, but good old cow-dung, we think, is far better for them; but try 
the two, and let us hear the result. 
Potatoes in Cold, Wet Clay {M. R. P.), —Do not plant your 
potatoes in such a soil until February. Until then keep them buried in 
layers alternating with coal ashes, or sand, in a cool, dry shed. When 
you plant, do so in beds about four feet wide, with deep alleys between 
to drain them. Lime, bricklayers’ rubbish, coal ashes, and tan, would 
be good applications to such a soil. We should plant Ash-leaved 
Kidneys. 
Sail-cloth for Fruit-tree Sheltering (A. Z., W -n).—You 
may obtain this of Messrs. T. and D. Henry, 44, Mark Lane, London. 
Planting Potatoes {K. H., Dublin ).—We regret that the gentle¬ 
man who instituted the experiments is dead, but we are promised a 
report of their results. 
Liver - COMPLAINT in Rabbits. — In number 205, Sept. 2nd., 
“ Amicus ** asks if any reader knows a cure for liver-complaint in 
rabbits? I believe it to be caused by damp, and want of fresh air, also 
by moist or unwholesome food. I have had rabbits killed by it, that 
have thriven well in an open grass-plot, till a wet week came on. I think 
it may be known by the rough and lean appearance of the animal, and I 
have cured it by keeping them clean and dry, and giving them salt in 
their dry food. Ido not think that the rabbits often grow out so fine 
afterwards if they have it bad.—B. P. B. 
Cochins not Fatting. —I must beg to differ from “Gallus,” and 
Mr. Bailey, respecting Cochin-Chinas not fatting. My young fowls have 
always been exceedingly fat and delicious eating, and have been pro¬ 
nounced excellent by all that partook of them. Mine, however, are not, 
I think, the largest sort, more like what “An Old Subscriber ’* calls the 
Lovell Cochin-Chinas. So the varieties may differ in their gastronomic 
qualities.—B. P. B. 
Pickled Samphire {E. S. D .).—Well sprinkle your fresh-gathered 
samphire with salt. Cover it with spring water, and let it stand twenty- 
four hours; then put it into a brass pan, with another handful of salt, 
and cover it well with vinegar. Cover the pan close, and set it over a 
slow fire until green and crisp, at which moment take it off, for if allowed 
to get soft it will be spoiled. When cold, tie over your jar both a bladder 
and a leather. Samphire may also, we believe, be kept all the year in a ' 
strong brine of salt and water, throwing it into vinegar just before you 
wish to use it. 
Names of Pears {Mr, Watson), —No. 1. Marie Louise. No. 2. 
Beurre d’Aremberg. No. 3. Marie Louise. No. 5. Easter Beurre, 
small, bad specimen. No. 8. Napoleon, ditto. No. 13. Nelis d’Hiver. 
No. 14. Glout Morceau. No. 20. Duchesse d’Angoulome. No. 21« 
Nelis d’Hiver. 
Potatoes {E. 0.).—We should grow no other Kidney Potato than 
the Ash-leaved} and no other round Whites, iha.u Rylott's Flour Ball, 
Fox's Early Delight, and Hopetoun Early. 
Names of Plants (Tyro), — Escallonia montevxdensis, or floribunda, 
for we believe the two species are identical. It grows without shelter in 
the Dean of Winchester’s garden, at Bishopstoke, Hants. {Rev. R. M. 
E.)i —The plant found by your botanical friend in a field near Cloyne, in 
Ireland, is not a Verbascum. but Celsia Cretica, a half-hardy biennial 
native of Crete, but growing like a weed in the garden of the Warden of 
Winchester College. It must have escaped from some garden. 
London: Printed by Harry Wooldridge, Winchester High-street, 
in the Parish of Saint Ma^ Kalendar; and Published by William 
Somerville Ore, at the Office, No. 2, Amen Corner, in tne Parish o 1 
Christ Church, City of London.—October Slit, 1953* 
