76 
THE COTTAGE GARDENER. 
October 30. 
j be, uniform or varied, speckled or striped, it is always charm¬ 
ing, and highly esteemed by amateurs. Its altitude appears 
to connect it with the “tournant” pigeon, from which it pro- 
i bably descends. Among the varieties that this pigeon has fur¬ 
nished, those individuals are generally preferred, the upper 
1 part of whose head is of a pure white, and all the rest of the 
I body resembling a silver pheasant; the black are also much 
' esteemed: the kind of enamel which covers them forms white 
: pearls round the neck, the bottom of which is a dull black, 
with a gorget, or breastplate, of a white enamel on the 
breast, and two white streaks forming, on their closed wings, 
the cross of St. Andrew. Others have the back, wings, head, 
and breast, black frosted with white, or, as if adorned with 
an enamelled lace work, with some white spots on the large 
black feathers of the wings. There are, also, some which, 
instead of a pure and unpolished black, are marked with 
white spots on a foundation more or less dark. A fifth 
variety is brown, and very much resembles the Swiss “ bai 
clore ” pigeon, but it is adorned with several rows of white 
pearles, from which it deserves the name of the ring¬ 
dove. M. Vieillot, from whom we shall borrow these 
details, thinks that one ought to make a race of the 
“ Coquelle Souabe ” pigeon, of which these would be 
the principal varieties. We are exactly of the same 
opinion as this learned ornithologist, and if we have not 
executed his judicious views, it is only because we 
would not increase our nomenclature by new names, which 
we should be obliged to give to these very interesting varie¬ 
ties ; names which would, probably, cause confusion, or, at 
least, a wrong use of them by those amateurs who might 
see them described for the first time. All these birds 
produce freely; but they are very wild, and precipitately 
quit their nest when one enters the dovecote; it is also 
necessary to place them nest in the darkest corner of their 
habitation. They likewise require great cleanliness. 
Beaiuded-helmeted Pigeon ( Columba galeata barbata ).— 
This is about the size of the Dutch, and resembles it, save 
in these differences,—all white with the exception of the 
head and tail, which are red; this last colour extending 
under the beak, and terminating almost in a point on the 
throat. This pigeon is very productive. 
Death’s-head-helmeted Pigeon ( Columba galeata fune- 
bris). —It very nearly resembles the preceding as to forms; 
it has a cock’s eye, naked feet, and the whole body perfectly 
white, except the head, which is black. It produces very 
well. 
(To be continued.) 
HERACLEUM GIGANTEUM CULTURE. 
The seeds, which require to lay torpid in the soil through 
the winter, should be sown at once, shallow, on rich ground; 
they will germinate early in the spring; and about April or 
May, when the young plants are about two inches high, 
they should be taken up with their roots entire, and trans¬ 
planted to their final destination, which may be in any 
situation where the soil lias been previously well-manured 
and deeply trenched, the top spit being passed through a 
coarse sieve. When the plant has commenced growing 
vigorously, weak liquid-manure may be given it with great 
advantage about once a week, throughout the remainder of 
its growth. The finest plant grown by myself this year, 
was one close to a pond; in which situation Mrs. Loudon 
says they grow to an enormous height and size; mine was 
not highly-manured, nor well attended to, but with this 
inferior cultivation, it attained a height of between twelve 
and thirteen feet, and a circumference of stem at the bottom 
joint of twelve-and-a half inches, and some of the leaves 
measured within an inch or two of five feet in their widest 
diameter. W. C. G. 
[This is from the gentleman who has kindly supplied 
gratuitously the seed of the Heracleum. —Ed. C. G.] 
BEDDING GERANIUMS. 
As this class of plants seems to have attracted much 
1 attention of late, may I ask the writers to your paper if they 
; remember an old sort having leaves almost as much in- 
| dented as Fair Helen, but a flower of a deep red or crimson. 
It was never a free grower as a potted plant, but when 
turned out, not known at that period, did so well. It was 
called Moore's Victory; a variety certainly superior to Rouge 
el Noir, or any of that class. I should think it may still be 
found somewhere. I remember seeing it some five or six 
years ago, in the hands of an enthusiastic admirer of old 
plants; but, I believe, through some accidental means, he 
lost it again. Although, as a show flower, it cannot bo 
expected to take its place with our Conflagrations, Sunrises, 
Sunsets, &c., yet, if restored, I durst venture to say, it will 
surpass them as a flower-garden ornament. I think some 
of the elder brethren of our craft will remember it as being 
contemporary with Daveyana, Mucmnthum, Commander-in- 
ChieJ | and some others, which the ups and downs of twenty 
years or more, have effaced from my memory; but, like 
many others, I should hail with pleasure the appearance of 
my old favourite, if restored to the place it deserves; and 
I am much deceived if it does not become a credit, rather 
than a disgrace, to its younger brethren. If, therefore, any 
of your readers remember this old variety, and have seen 
it in cultivation lately, I should feel thankful for their com¬ 
municating, through your journal, such particulars regarding 
it as they are in possession of; or, perhaps, some of your 
departmental writers may yet have it, if so, by replying to 
my inquiries in some forthcoming calendar, they will confer 
a favour on an old subscriber.—S. N. Y. 
TO CORRESPONDENTS. 
*** We request that no one will write to the departmental writers of 
The Cottage Gardener. It gives them unjustifiable trouble and 
expense. All communications should be addressed “ To the Editor of 
The Cottage Gardener, 2, Amen Corner, Paternoster Row, London. 
Plant-Houses in Connection with Public Works (W. B .).— 
You have made a step in the right direction. We have no doubt but 
that the wasted heat from such works will one day be made available for 
gardening purposes. The reason why, in your present contrivance, you 
have had more leaves, at times, than fruit, is probably owing to your 
trying so many plants. The heat and close atmosphere that would suit 
some, would encourage too much the giowing principle in others. In 
your contemplated arrangement, with only direct sunlight for three or 
four hours in the middle of the day, there will not be the same advan¬ 
tages for growing plants, as having a structure with glass all round in 
the centre of your flower-plot; but the advantage of having it in con¬ 
nection with your house—a very great one, so far as pleasure is con¬ 
cerned—and the fact that plants will thrive in such a position, with a little 
extra care, connected with the circumstance that there will be no com¬ 
parison in expense either in the first or future cost, would lead us to 
adopt your suggestion, even if we should some day have a little pit or 
house made for the purpose of keeping this one always supplied with 
bloomers. We will keep the matter in mind; in the meantime, to meet 
your case, we will say, first, that there will be no danger to health , pro¬ 
vided you can give plenty of air in summer, and sufficient in winter, to 
prevent the sitting-room being influenced by damp ; and, secondly, that 
you must be sure that the continuous heat passing at one end, with other 
contrivances, will give you enough to keep from too low a temperature in 
winter. In summer, it will be advisable to be able to give abundance of 
air at that end, and, if at all hot, to have a number of vessels filled with 
water set on the heating medium, or near it. 
Calla TEtiiiopica (fiid).— This had better be divided, or rather the 
small suckers taken off and grown by themselves, and the stronger ones 
will probably reward you with blooms next spring and summer, if you 
keep it rather dry all the winter; but you have allowed it to stand in 
water too long. It is now called Richardia /.Ethiopica. 
Various (H. G. 7?.).-— Canna : this genus is at present in a rather 
disordered state, and we can form no idea of what you have got. If the 
suckers are very numerous remove the weakest; if not very numerous 
allow them to remain, and you will thus have a succession of bloom. 
Many, if raised early in a hotbed, will bloom the same summer in a 
greenhouse. All that we know require, at the least, from 45° to 50° in 
winter; and a medium temperature, at the least, of from 65° to 70° in 
summer, to bloom well. The Guernsey Lily , to succeed a second time, 
must have every encouragement given to its leaves after flowering, giving 
them, as long as they keep green, plenty of heat, and moisture, and light. 
This will, probably, ere long, receive further attention. Mushrooms. — 
You may know good ones by the fine pink flesh-coloured appearance of 
the gills when half-grown ; by the pleasant smell, and the somewhat 
firm feel when held in the hand. The nearest in appearance to the true 
mushroom has a slimy feel, and by no means a pleasant smell. There 
are other tests, but we have not proved them, and these are quite 
sufficient for every one who has seen a true mushroom. When gathered 
from the fields, they should he obtained from open places. When 
spurious mushrooms appear on cultivated beds, we have always found 
that they appeared some time before the true ones, and were all swept away 
before they came, so that danger here is next to impossible. Vine 
Preserving. —The vine planted out in spring, if wood-ripened, will 
need no protection ; to make sure, put a little litter over the roots, and ] 
place the lower part of the vine loosely in a piece of mat, or tie a few 
straws along it until spring. Miniature Plants. —How made to grow 
into a small space? By placing them in poor soil, and giving just water 
enough to keep them alive, with a little more than usual in summer. 
Many little succulents so grown obtain a sufficiency of moisture from the 
