March 17. 
THE COTTAGE GAllDENEE. 
403 
The scasou for blooming thebc really lovely plants 
generally e.\tencls through tho months of May, 411110, 
and July, hut sucli plants as bloom in full perfection in 
iMay, will bo (piitc out of bloom for tho July shows, 
tlicreforo it will bo necessary to have at least two sots of 
jilants to bo able to exhibit at tlio shows at tlie begin¬ 
ning and tho end of tho season; or if the cultivator only 
intends to exhibit at one, whether early or late, he 
should take his measures accordingly. Eor a May 
show tho plants will reiiuiro a little forcing, and for the 
j July show they will require to bo retarded. It will be 
difKcult to exhibit at such extreme points of the season 
with one greenhouse. A cold jiit will be necessary for 
tlio latter mouth. In it tho plants should bo placed 
early in April, and plenty of air given, with a duo 
amount of shade to prevent the heat of the sun hurrying 
them on into bloom before the time. With such an 
usefid adjunct, and due attention, tho plants may be 
retarded so as to bo in the greatest perfection on the 
very day they are required. Eor the Juno show there 
need be no i)articular attention bestowed, because the 
natural heat of the season will bring them on sidli- 
ciently (with the ordinary cares of watering, giving air, 
and shading when the sun shines too ])Owerfully) to bo 
in the linest bloom by the middle or latter end of that 
I month. 
These various turning points of culture may appear 
I to the tyro in Geranium growing to bo sulliciontly tire¬ 
some and minute to bo attended to for so long a period 
as two years ; but he will find, if ho neglects any one 
j point, that his attention in all the rest will be nullilied 
! and useless for the purpose of winning a prize at a 
respectable exhibition. T. Aiu-lerv. 
{To he coiUiitueJ.) 
CAUltUTS ON GROUND NOT ADAPTED 
EOR THEM. 
Notwitiistanuing the advances made in Horticulture 
of late years, there are some productions which arc yet 
dillicult to cultivate in many gardens whore other crops 
attain to great perfection; and though it would be uu- 
roasonablo to suppose that those uncertain ones might 
be the progeny of parents from a warmer and more con¬ 
genial climate, yet, in the case now before us, as well as 
in several others, this plea cannot bo urged, for the 
original is of Rritish growth ; but cultivation, when 
carried to great perfection, is so often accomplished by 
a sacrilicc of the plant’s hardihood, that we must take it 
for granted that this forms one of that class, for though 
the wild Carrot is yet to bo found in our fields and other 
lilaces, very probably in as great number and perfection 
as when it first attracted tho notice of a semi-barbarous 
people as an article of food, yet tho many generations 
that have since assisted in its improvement have passed 
away, and loft it with an impaired constitution, unable to 
support itself in soils not exactly suited to its wants, while 
its ancestors were less fastidious that way. Now, that 
this state of things is tho result of successive “ breed¬ 
ing in-and-in,” will bo admitted by all; neither have wo 
any reason to find fault, when the improvoment in that 
part of the vegetable most serviceable to us is taken 
into account; because a similar sacrilico has been made 
in most of our common fruits which aro indigenous 
with us, or rather their parents were so ; and, if we are 
to believe all that has been written of late, it would 
appear that the most important of our “ Cereals” have 
a near relationship with some of our commonest weeds. 
Although the Daucus carota is found wild, even now, in 
many of our fields and lanes, yet its forked gnarly root 
contrasts strongly with the cultivated article from the 
most favourable districts, which, for distinction, we will 
call that deep alluvial loam so common on tho margin 
of rivers and other low places at tho base of hills, where j 
the accumulated debris of countless ages has deposited ; 
a mass of matter, at once grateful to this crop and others i 
which delight in a soil of this kind, but as it does not ’ 
always happen that every garden possesses such a soil, ; 
the nearest approach that can be made must bo effected i 
with such materials as come to hand in the greatest j 
abundance. j 
Lot us suppose tho soil to b« opei'atod ujion be one of 
that class of stubborn clays or heavy loam, which, 
though capable of producing abundant croj)s of many 
things, are certainly not tho kind best adapted to produce 
a heavy crop of good useful Carrots; but as the space 
required for this purpose in most ordinary gardens is 
not largo, it would certainly bo worth a little trouble to 
prepare tho ground beforehand for this crop, which may 
bo done by digging in large quantities of loose opening 
matter, as road scrapings, gritty sand from a river, or 
other place where water has washed out all its per¬ 
nicious qualities; pit sand may also bo used, but wo are 
not so partial to it as to river or drift sand. Now, to 
these may be added “ brick-dust,” or, what is still better, 
“ charcoal-dust,” with any reasonable quantity of stone 
chippings that can be had, oven chips of wood aro not 
without their uses; and, in some cases, saw dust has 
been used with advantage. But we aro not advocates 
for limo or chalk, which in so many other instances aro 
tho best pulverizers of stiff soils ; but the latter may be 
used with groat advantage if done so tho year before 
the crop. Wo have seen a successful experiment with 
a copious dressing of an opposite ingredient on stiff 
retentive soil, which was peat or bog earth dug in rather 
liberally. This substance, however, ought to bo added 
the year before, likewise, as its combination with the 
soil is slow. 
When, therefore, tho crop of Carrots is a desidera¬ 
tum, worth sacrificing something for, wo advise having 
a piece of loose open ground which has been digged 
or trenched as deep as its staple will allow with safety; 
or, in other words, ground for Carrots ought to be 
trenched two feet deep, provided tho soil bo good at 
that depth; but should it not bo so, then trench it as 
deej) ns it is good, and keep what had previously been 
tho top spit to tho top again, and dig into tho bottom 
part some good rotten dung, or other enriching matter, 
which will, in addition to affording nourishment to the 
descending fibres, likewise keep tho ground open and 
porous. The top portion, if tolerably rich by previous 
dressing for former crops, had better not have any 
additional su])ply for this; but any of tho substance 
named above may bo dug in to lighten a stiff' or reten¬ 
tive soil. This being done, it will bo in a condition lit 
for sowing as soon as the top becomes so mellowed down 
as to rake in tolerably well, which, however, is seldom 
the case until it has had some severe weather iq'on it, 
as sharp frosts, successive dry, cutting winds, or other 
mellowing inlluences;—the first-mentioned performing 
that duty quickest. 
Wo will suppose that everything has gone on well, 
and that tho ground is in pretty fair order for sowing by 
tho beginning of April, which is quite soon enough ; 
prc])aralions must then be made for it, which is done 
by simply drawing drills a foot apart, as shallow as 
will just allow tho seed to bo sown, and covered balf-an- 
inch deep. This season, however, threatens not to 
allow this kind of work to bo done in all cases ; there¬ 
fore, when waiting to get upon tho loose ground seems 
impracticable, without treading it too much, it will | 
be better to dig a portion and sow a row or two, and 
then dig again, standing always on tho undug ground. 
This process of digging and sowing simultaneously 
is very appropriate to ground so stiff and stubborn 
as a great deal of it is after a wet winter like 
