256 
THE COTTAGE GARDENER. 
January 22. 
present, therefore, may be comprised in a brief compass, i 
First, the pots should be clean, or new, well-burned, 
neither so hard as to be partly vitrified, nor so soft as j 
to be spongy, and very porous. The inferiority of the j 
latter, to well-burned pots, was first stated, so far as 1 j 
am aware, in the pages of this work. It the pots are J 
1 new, they should he steeped in water, and then dried; j 
otherwise they would greedily suck moisture from the j 
soil next them, and thus deceive you as to when water¬ 
ing is required. Old pots, after washing, should also 
j be thoroughly dried before using. If very dirty, the 
| scrubbing will be rendered more easy by putting soda 
in the water, and using it in a warm state: dip the pot 
in clean water after doing so. The man who would put 
| a nice plant in a dirty pot deserves to be, and in all 
; likelihood will be, a “ stick-in-the-mud ” for life. 
2ndly. Drainage. I merely recommended caps to 
cover the hole in the bottom of the pot: a good substi¬ 
tute is a piece of broken pot, with its convex side down¬ 
wards, so placed that a worm could not wriggle itself 
in. This must be surrounded with other pieces placed 
hollow. It matters not much what it is (crocks, pebbles, 
washed gravel, or charcoal; we would have a part of the 
latter, and would not object to some of each) provided 
there are several layers, and the smallest uppermost. 
This is of more importance if, as recommended above, 
the first crock is placed with its rounded side downwards ; 
for though that would not prevent the extra water 
draining away, yet it would be apt to become water¬ 
logged if the finer soil was washed down, and blocked 
up around it. To counteract this wo place the fine 
drainage uppermost, and, to make doubly sure, we place 
a thin layer of moss over the drainage to separate it 
from the soil. Moss, all things considered, is the best. 
Chopped wheat-straw is an inferior substitute, as it 
possesses none of the moisture-retaining qualities of the 
moss, and neither does it so effectually prevent the finer 
soil passing. From one-sixth to one-eighth of the depth 
of the pot may be considered an average for drainage; 
but for strong-growing Heaths less will do, and for 
tender, slowly-growing ones more will be necessary, 
unless great care is taken to prepare the compost in 
such a manner that there need be no dread about using 
the watering-pot. 
3rdly. The Compost. The right soil I have already 
described. The mode of preparing it must be regulated 
by the size and age of the plant, and the size of the 
shift given. It is generally got in turves from an upland 
Heath. For the first pricking-out of young plants, and 
for one or two subsequent shillings, these turves may be 
knocked or beaten to pieces with a spade. For such 
small plants the soil must be fine and lighter, that is, 
containing more sand, than that required for older 
plants. This is the only case in which I would admit 
of sifting in the common acceptation of the term, for - 
separating the ling and more turfy portions of the heath 
mould, as these latter will be required for older plants. 
For the second or third shiftiugs, when small shifts are 1 
given, the above sifted soil would answer well, provided ! 
it was sifted over again, with a very fine sieve, for | 
| removing the finer earthy matter. After the plants had j 
filled a four-inch pot, this is the only use 1 would put a | 
sieve to in preparing compost for them. After this, also, 1 
though it might not answer in a commercial establishment, 
I would advise amateurs to discard the spade for chop¬ 
ping their turves, and to pull them to pieces with their 
I hands. This will require more time, but you will have 
no reason afterwards to regret it as mispent. You will 
thus obtain pieces of the size you want, without a great 
portion being rendered too small for your purpose. In 
the tearing it asunder plenty of fine matter will bo 
! obtained to pack the lumpier pieces firmly. The best 
devised garden utensil is nothing compared to fingers 
for such work. The size of the turfy pieces must be 
proportionate to the size of the pot, and the size of the 
shift given. The larger ranging from the size of a field- 
bean in a four-inch pot to that of a walnut, and hen’s j 
egg in one of sixteen inches, with intermediate smaller 
sizes down to the dustier matter that unites them all 
together. Openness, united with firmness, is thus ob¬ 
tained for the equalizing of moisture and atmospheric ] 
influences. A result to be gained, neither by using 
few and large pieces, nor yet by going to the other 
extreme and adopting finely-sifted soil. The Heath 
soil if kept out of doors, will seldom be too wet, 
unless in rainy weather, when it may quickly be suffi¬ 
ciently dried. When kept under cover it is apt to be¬ 
come too dry, and then should be watered sufficiently 
through a rosed watering-pot, and turned over with the | 
hands, until it is found to be in that pleasant medium i 
state that is neither wet nor dry. Next to the un- j 
pardonable act of placing a heath in fresh soil, with its ! 
fiall of roots and earth in a dry condition, is the using 
compost, mud wet, or so dry that the water runs off'it, ! 
or stands on it, instead of going into it. 
The main part of the compost being thus secured, 
other ingredients must be added to increase its firm¬ 
ness and openness. The most important of these is 
sandy matter. Some heath soils have enough of sand 
naturally, but most require an addition, so that alto¬ 
gether it may constitute about one-fifth. Rather more 
will be wanted for young plants; less will do for older 
ones, and more especially if gritty, soft, broken free¬ 
stone constitutes an ingredient. The simd should be of 
the best quality as described for cuttings. About one- 
quarter part more may consist of equal proportions of 
charcoal, broken pots, and freestone, using most for 
large shifts, and proportioning the size of the pieces to 
the size of the shifts. R Fish. 
(To be continued.) 
ARTOCALYX ENDLICHERIANUS CULTURE. 
This fine plant, Endlicher’s Artocalyx, is another 
addition to the large tribe of Gesnerworts. It was dis¬ 
covered by M. C. Heller, a foreign botanist and col¬ 
lector, in the woods of Mirador, in the South American 
province of Vera Cruz, and was sent by him to M. Abel, 
an eminent horticulturist at Vienna. In his hothouse 
it flowered for the first time in Europe, in 1818. 
It is a remarkable plant, and of noble appearance; 
the stem is strong, and clothed with stout, short hairs, 
almost approaching to prickles; the leaves are very 
large, very strongly veined, and toothed at the edges; i 
the calyx, or flower-cup, is deep green, and thickly \ 
covered with almost black hair—from this circumstance 
it has its name, arto, bear’s skin, calyx, flower-cup. Its 
second, or specific name, is given in honour of 31. 
Endlicher, the celebrated botanist. The corolla is large, 
tubular, and swelling out to its margin, where it expands 
into five segments, the edges of which are deeply cut 
into fringes of yellowish hair. The outside of the corolla 
is of a golden hue; the inside of the segments is of two • 
colours, the ground colour being buff, but striped with , 
crimson purple. The flowers are produced on the stem, 
from the axils of decayed leaves, under the living ones, j 
and generally in pairs, the one opening before the other. ; 
It was found in mountainous regions, about 2000 feet 
above the level of the sea, and there, in the freshness 
of the shade, they flourish in the deep gorges of the ' 
mountains seldom visited by the foot of man. In these [ 
places, wdiero humidity arises from the still waters, or 
from decaying vegetables, they flourish upon such rustic 
pedestals as the short trunks of fallen trees, to which 
they fix by their long roots. Their single light stems, 
slightly woody at the base, raise their branches to the 
height of a man, ornamented with bunches of golden j 
