308 
THE COTTAGE GARDENER. 
February 12 , 
cuttings made in spring are for planting out the same 
season; and those made at the end of summer, for 
keeping a store of young plants through the winter. 
The best place we ever knew for striking verbena cut¬ 
tings, was in the pit or frame we described in a former 
number of The Cottage Gardener. That pit consists 
of a platform supported upon walls, with a frame set 
I upon it. It is heated with stable-litter under the plat- 
| form, aud by linings of the same material. In this 
i frame almost every cutting took root in ten or twelve 
days. The season for making the first crop of cuttings 
is about the middle of February. They may be put in 
till April, so that with diligence and care thousands of 
I young plants may be raised for planting out in May. 
It will be desirable to place the plants to produce cut¬ 
tings in a gentle heat, to cause them to make young 
shoots. These are the best kind of cuttings, and strike 
the quickest. When they have grown a sufficient length, 
preparations must be made to put them in. These 
consist of pots to place them in, soil to fill the pots, 
and a layer of sand upon the soil. Drain the pots 
effectually; then place some rough parts of the compost 
upon the drainage; fill the pots with the compost (con¬ 
sisting of light loam, peat, and leaf-mould, with a free 
mixture of sand), to within an inch of the rim of the 
pot, and this inch should be filled up with pure white 
sand. The pot is then ready for the cuttings. Cut 
these off the tops of the plants; trim off the lower 
leaves, and plant them round the edge of the pots pretty 
thickly; then give a little water to settle the sand, and 
place them in the frame, which, by that time, ought to 
be duly heated to receive them. 
One point in making cuttings must not be forgotten, 
and that is, to make them small. They should not be 
more than two inches long, even rather less would 
strike sooner. Our amateur friends might think larger 
cuttings would more quickly make larger plants, but 
they would be much mistaken. Small cuttings strike 
root so much more quickly, that they soon overtake the 
large ones in size, and surpass them in growth. 
When they are in the frame, great attention must b6 
paid to shade them from the sun, and to give air every 
morning, to let out the moisture or steam that will have 
collected dining the night. Should the weather be cold, 
the frame should have a covering of double mats, to 
protect them from frost. As soon as roots are formed, 
let them be potted off into what are called small 60-pots. 
These are about two-and-a-lialf inches across; replace 
them in the frame for a very few days, till they have 
made fresh roots, then put them either in a greenhouse 
or a cold frame, well covered up at night as long as 
cold weather lasts. 
The tops of these first-struck plants may be taken off 
and made use of as cuttings. This will cause the plants 
to break side-shoots and become bushy. When the 
plants are fairly established, abundance of air must be 
given. In mild weather, draw off the lights of the 
frame; and, in rainy weather, give air by tilting the 
lights in the centre, that is, place a small garden pot 
upon the rafter, and let the edge of the light rest upon 
it; prop up the side of the light the furthest from the 
point the wind blows from, should any prevail. By 
this means, you will have plenty of nice bushy plants, 
either to devote to pot-culture or planting-out in the 
beds. 
The method of putting in cuttings for winter stores, 
is somewhat similar. The only point to mind, is to 
have them well-rooted before the cold weather sets in. 
\\ here large quantities are required for the flower- 
j garden, the cuttings may be planted in beds, under 
1 glass, and suffered to remain there till spring ; but the 
; florist, who only cultivates sufficient for exhibition pur¬ 
poses, will not need such immense numbers, yet it is 
I desirable to strike a certain quantity of each good kind, 
to preserve the stock, and have bushy plants to put in 
for pot-culture. 
There is another method sometimes practised of pro¬ 
pagating this plant, which, for persons who have little 
room, or do not possess a frame or propagating-house, 
may be useful, aud that is, placing the cuttings in a 
garden saucer filled with sand, and kept very moist, 
even to keeping the pan full of water amongst the sand. 
In a small stove kept at 00°, cuttings so placed strike 
easily and quickly, but great care must be observed to 
pot cuttings, so placed, immediately that roots are 
formed, or the water would soon cause them to rot off. 
The winter-storing consists in placing the plants in a 
cold frame, covering them up securely in frosty weather, 
giving air on all favourable occasions, and just water 
enough to keep them alive. Every decayed leaf must 
be instantly removed, and should any mildew appear, 
the plants should be dusted with sulphur to keep it 
down. If the cultivator possesses a greenhouse, a few 
bushy plants may with advantage be placed on a shelf 
near the glass. These are sure to pass through the 
winter unhurt, and will make the very best plants for 
pot-culture, besides affording early a supply of excellent 
cuttings. The best way is always to keep a stock, and 
propagate more than is wanted. There is always room 
in the flower-border to plant out the overplus, or there 
is the pleasure of being able to give away a few plants 
to a neighbour or poor cottager, to ornament their bit 
of flower-border. T. Appleby. 
(jTo be continued.) 
ONIONS, THEIR CULTURE AND NEGLECT. 
Whether it be the tyranny of fashion, or a morbid 
sense of delicacy, which has all but banished this valu¬ 
able bulb from the tables of the affluent, we know not, 
but certainly it does not find its way thither to one-half 
the extent we are told it does in other countries, where 
: it can be grown, and where a taste for the “ useful ” has 
been sufficient to overcome that “fastidious denial,” 
which, we believe, is the only excuse for its more general 
! use here; and as the highest authorities have pro- 
! nounced the onion not only wholesome and nutritious, 
but likewise valuable for properties peculiarly its own, 
we trust the day is not far distant when our fair friends 
will deign to patronise this neglected vegetable when 
sent to table, prepared a la Soyer; for we rest assured 
that until we have their consent, we must not eat onions, 
but must content ourselves with the little of its extract 
that does find its way to our tables under the disguise of 
| something else. Now, the farm labourer in most of our 
southern counties is not under such restraints; there 
he may be seen eating his bread and raw onions with a 
! zest which the epicure in vain seeks for amongst his 
innumerable dishes, cooked and prepared in accordance 
with the most improved practice of the day; and though 
I we have no doubt the rustic would willingly exchange 
\ his onion and salt for a beef steak or mutton chop, and 
benefit by the change, yet we should be at a loss to find 
a better substitute for animal food; and the healthy 
appearance the rural population have in the districts 
where this bulb is most grown and used, tells, in un¬ 
deniable language, that their food agrees with them 
But as our duty is simply to attend to the cultivation of 
this and other productions, we must apologise for this 
digression, which was solely dictated by a desire to see 
the onion rendered more useful. 
The position of the onion bed is often the same in 
the garden of the cottager as in that of a prince—“ the 
best that each affords ”—and surely no one grudges it 
that distinction, as nothing at all resembling a substi¬ 
tute can be obtained for this crop, as the cottager knows 
can be had for most others, of which he is less par¬ 
ticular. Every one, also, admires a “good bed” of 
