January 30. THE COTTAGE GARDENER. 329 
eye, and up to the point of junction with the comb, 
though a line of short black feathers is there frequently 
seen to intrude its undesired presence. It is certainly 
objectionable, and the less of it the better; but any 
attempt to remove, or to disguise this eyesore, should 
be followed by immediate disqualification. The white 
face is not perfected till after the first year, especially in 
the case of pullets. 
DIELYTRA SPECTABILIS. 
I have said that this beautiful plant begins to move 
into growth early in January, and that the leaves are 
seen above ground in February. They were up, with 
me, early in February, 1854, after enduring a hard 
winter before the first of the new year; hut they were 
not more forward this season, at the middle of January, 
than they were last year, although the long, warm 
autumn continued down to that period. All this proves 
that the plant is as hardy as the Poeony of the borders, 
and is as little affected by the state of the weather 
during the winter ; for the common kinds of herbaceous 
Poeonies form strong-growing buds under ground before 
the end of the old year, whether the glass has been at 
the freezing point, or at zero, from the middle of 
November. 
In all my experience, I do not recollect the winter, 
whether hard or mild, to have had any influence on the 
underground growth of the common Poeonies; and all 
my experience of the habits and requirements of the 
Dielytra spectabilis go to prove the same conclusion. 
Owing to this natural habit of forming strong-growing 
buds under the surface long before the sprouts are able 
to rise above ground, this kind of root may be potted 
for forcing very much later than others with a different 
habit. While the Rose, and many other plants, are best 
if they are potted twelve-months, or more, before they 
are put to forcing, the Dielytra and Poeony need not 
have twelve hours between the potting-beneb and the 
forcing-pit; but the same degree of heat is suitable for 
the Rose, the Poeony, and Dielytra. 
Except in the hands of very good gardeners, the 
Dielytra is seldom improved for forcing by being 
established in pots; and even then, to have them not 
established in pots for forcing is only a tythe of the 
trouble. They increase in size and in strength for flower¬ 
ing much faster in the open ground, if the soil is rich, 
light, and deep for them, than under the best pot treat¬ 
ment. The roots are always fit and ready to pot by 
Christmas, and may be so potted from that time, until 
the leaf is ready to expand towards the middle or end 
of February, or later, if the frost keeps it back. Roots 
that are put to forcing by Christmas may bo had in 
bloom by the middle of February, or earlier, or later, 
according to the judgment of the forcer. A novice 
should not force any plant so hard as an old prac¬ 
titioner, because his eye cannot so readily seo how far 
he can force without doing more harm than good. 
I have also said, that this Dielytra might be had in 
bloom from November, onwards, and I believe it may, 
with very little trouble; but as I do not now rule the 
roast, and cannot keep up a forcing establishment of my 
own, to prove such experiments, I am not quite sure of 
the point, having only had the opportunity of conducting 
about one-half of the experiment. In order to kill two 
birds with one throw, I shall begin tho history of the 
experiment by a tale about a friend of mine, who had 
engaged as liead-gardener with a country baronet. 
After wine, and all the philosophy bearing on garden 
pursuits were discussed, the worthy baronet broke short 
with, “By-the-by, there is one thing for which my 
garden has been noted for many years, and I should not 
like to lose the ci’edit of it for all the sciences put 
together, and I hope you will attend to it.” This noted 
thing was to have Asparagus to dinner on Lord Mayor’s 
day, the 9th of November. “ If you have a good stock of 
Asparagus, 1 can seo no more difficulty in providing a 
dish on the 9th of October than on Lord Mayor’s day, 
or on the 9th of any of tho months, till you have it from 
tho open ground,” replied the now gardener. Yet that 
man never forced a dish of Asparagus in his life, to my 
personal knowledge, and he owned as much to the 
baronet; but for years he never failed to have new 
Asparagus for the “ Newmarket dinner,” which was 
generally about the 9th or 10th of October. 
Now, tho way to have new Asparagus in the second 
week of October is much easier to manage than to have 
Asparagus in the second week in January; and very 
likely, to have Dielytra spectabilis in bloom on Lord 
Mayor’s day, is, at least, as easy as to have it so at 
the beginning of the new year. But in case that I 
may be in the wrong as to the estimate of the difficulty, 
or no difficulty, I shall give the receipt by which my 
friend supplied the early Asparagus, and by which the 
early-flowering of the Dielytra may be brought to pass; 
so that if the latter plant disappoint you, you will have 
the Asparagus as early as the Newmakct baronet, to 
balance the account. 
We, who write in The Cottage Gardener, seldom, if 
ever, point to one particular day of the month for doing 
this or that kind of work; yet we all know how necessary 
it is to have so-and-so done to a particular day in the 
autumn, more particularly; but my friend would pre¬ 
pare for his first dish of Asparagus on the fifth of 
September, and would keep to that day almost if it 
happened to fall on a Sunday. Tho preparation con¬ 
sisted in cutting off so much of the tops of one or more 
of the rows of three-years-old Asparagus plants as 
would furnish a dish or two for every week, for a month 
or six weeks; the roots, being still in active growth, 
would start immediately, with strong, fresh growth, and 
by the 25tli of September the young Asparagus were 
an inch or two long ; the old roots, or stools, were then 
taken up and placed in leaf-mould, over a mild hotbed, 
and when the season was mild, I have seen the lights 
nearly all off the pit before the end of the first week in 
October, to keep “ the grass” back for tho Newmarket 
dinner, on the 9th or 10th of the month; for, to tell the 
truth, the gardener was no other than your humble 
servant. 
Last September, I tried this experiment with four 
large plants of Dielytra spectabilis, which I had growing 
on a border, and another lot were headed down on or about 
tho 20th of September, and by the first week in October 
there were strong sprouts on the first four plants quite 
ready for potting, and for a slight forcing; and I am 
almost sure, that if I had the means to assist them on, 
I should have had them in full bloom before the end of 
November; yet these sprouts did not push above ground 
by the time 1 potted them towards the middle of January. 
Now, this move is well worth minding, and trying 
another year; the plants take no hurt from being cut 
down so early; and if they were not potted before Lord 
Mayor’s day the early cutting would not tell against them; 
on the contrary, it would preparo them for easier work 
at whatever time it was thought proper to pot them for 
an early bloom; therefore, with a good stock of plants 
in the open borders, and by potting a few of them at 
different seasons, or onco a month, from October to 
March inclusive, the plant may be had in the rooms, or 
conservatory, from November till it comes naturally from 
tho open ground. 
EARLY GRAPES. 
Most Grape-growers are now aware that it is easior, 
both for the Vines and for the gardener, to have the 
