294 
THE COTTAGE GARDENER. 
but it is our turn to show those who complained, that 
they are themselves growers and raisers, and that the 
fancy Dahlias are rapidly approaching the original show 
kinds in quality, and greatly excel them in brilliancy. 
M. N., who sends us some striped Pansies, lias got into 
a new strain, hut it is a bad one; there is nothing dis¬ 
tinct about them; they are cloudy as well as stripy. 
No. 7 may do to seed from, hut Salter’s collection con¬ 
tains a dozen better than any forwarded by M. N. We 
prognosticate a fancy class of Pansies, and they indicate 
an advance quite equal to that made by fancy Dahlias 
and fancy Geraniums. 
Pink ( JohnE .)—We have no opinion of size ; chance 
may give us a Pink as large as a Picotee; in fact, we 
have one quite as large, hut it is a confused mass of 
petals, which could never, we think, be placed in any 
form by the best dresser. The two sent by J. F. are of 
the same kind, but very much worse, inasmuch as they 
have deeply serrated edges. 
Pink (C. M. W.). —Not so good as Turner’s Master¬ 
piece, and on the same way. Picotee worthless; for 
though tolerably clear on the upper surface of the petals, 
strongly striped underneath; and this results in bars 
right through in three blooms out of four; besides, the 
colour underneath spoils by reflecting on the surface of 
the petal under it. We think the bloom sent has been 
the only one that could be found so free from bars on 
the surface. 
Box of Dahlias (T.) —The finest Dahlia that was 
ever raised will not always come well at first. Barmaid, 
with two rows of petals; Queen of the West, all but 
single; Mrs. Hansard, ugly and ill-formed; King of 
Dahlias, oval instead of round; and other popular 
flowers, equally worthless, are received. Our correspon¬ 
dent must be thoroughly inexperienced if he fancies 
these early specimens any evidence of a flower’s quality. 
We could send him in return Sir F. Bathurst, Magnifi¬ 
cent, Mr. Seldon, Fearless, Essex Triumph, Princess 
Radzville, and all our very best tried and approved 
varieties, quite as faulty. “ There’s a good time coming 
boys, wait a little longer.” 
Hollyhocks (Mr. Parson’s Seed). — H. S. has 
no right to grumble if he can obtain such flowers as 
those sent from purchased seed. We shall be happy to 
give an opinion on a few of the best, when sent in good 
condition and full bloom. The blooms sent are too 
small, evidently from starved plants; size cannot be 
attained without good cultivation. The best that can 
be done now is to water them with manure water; a 
spade full of decayed dung to ten gallons of water, 
allowed to soak for a day, and well stirred ; give them a 
good watering with this, and if the ground be at all 
hard, fork the surface a little before the watering. The 
colours of O. 17, M. 1, and G. 21, are promising, and 
the flowers close. 
Falconbridge Carnation (Turner). —New, striking 
in colour, and, for so deep a colour, good in the white. 
It is the most desirable Carnation that we have seen for 
some time. It is of the full size, tolerably well built, 
smooth on the edge, and unlike everything else we have. 
G. G. 
FLORISTS’ FLOWERS CULTURE. 
Auriculas and Polyanthuses. —Keep these flowers 
yet in their summer position, behind a north or north¬ 
east wall. Such plants as require it should now he 
potted; these will be sucli as were offsets last autumn, 
and are stout healthy plants. This late potting will 
encourage them to grow stronger, and will tend to 
prevent their showing flowers. Seedlings of last year 
should also have a shift now for the same reasons. 
Seedling Auriculas of this year, if they have done well, 
will be nice little stocky plants, and may be potted off 
[August 7. 
out of the seed pans into small pots 3^- inches wide. 
The strongest will, probably, flower in the spring. 
Seedling Polyanthuses need not be potted singly, but 
should be planted out into a bed of rich, light earth; 
each plant should be allowed four or five inches square 
to grow in. In this bed they may be allowed to flower, 
and when that takes place, the best, or rather such as 
possess the requisite properties, should be taken up, 
carefully potted, and attended to in the same way 
as the named varieties, till their good properties have 
been fully proved. In whatever state the plants are, 
whether named varieties or seedlings, constant attention 
must be given to keep them clear of all kinds of insects 
or reptiles that feed upon them. Slugs must be dili¬ 
gently looked for, and destroyed as soon as they are 
found. The green-fly will, during dry weather at this 
time of the year, sometimes infest them. Tobacco-water, j 
reduced to a moderate strength, and gently showered 
upon them from a fine rosed syringe, is the most de¬ 
structive agent against this pest. It should be applied 
when the soil in the jiots is moderately dry. In 
that state they will bear a jiretty strong syringing, 
to wash off the dead insects and cleanse the leaves from 
the tobacco-water. The smoke from the leaves of the 
same plant (tobacco) will, also, kill them; but they must 
first be placed in a cold frame, in order to confine the 
smoke a sufficient time to effect the purpose. Worms, 
if they appear, may be easily got rid of by watering 
with lime water. Dead, or decaying leaves, either from 
the plants themselves, or from trees or shrubs near 
where they stand, should be daily removed. If care¬ 
lessly allowed to remain, there is danger of the process 
of decomposition affecting the living healthy leaves 
themselves. It, therefore, behoves the cultivator to look 
over his stock of plants almost daily, and remove those 
dead and dying leaves. 
Water. —This, during dry weather, must be regularly 
supplied in such quantities as they require, and no 
more. In the comparatively shaded situation in which 
these plants are placed very small quantities of water 
will be necessary, still that quantity must be supplied. 
Should moss or weeds appear on the surface of the soil, 
they should be instantly removed, by stirring the surface 
to remove the moss, and carefully drawing up the weeds. 
With these attentions the plants will thrive, and continue 
in a healthy condition till the time arrives to remove 
them into their winter quarters. 
Carnations and Picotees will now be in great per¬ 
fection, the season being at least a fortnight later than 
usual. The wet, dark weather that has prevailed lately, 
has also had the effect of prolonging the blooming 
season. Continue to protect the blooms from heavy 
rains, driving showers, and bright sunshine. By such 
shelter the season of flowering may be considerably 
prolonged. As the flowers fade, unless seed is wanted, 
let them be cut off. Save seed from the most perfect 
flowers, and the best varieties only. Layering, if not 
already finished, must, without delay, be diligently 
attended to. We must refer to former volumes of The 
Cottage Gardener for the mode of performing this 
interesting and pleasing operation. As soon as the 
layering is finished, give a gentle watering to settle the 
soil close to the layers. If there are too many layers, 
or if any shoots are accidentally cut clean through, they 
may be made into pipings, a technical term for a cutting 
of a carnation, picotee, or a pink. Three joints will be 
sufficient to form a piping, the lowest pair must be cut 
off, and they should be then inserted into a 4-inch pot 
close to the side; place them under a hand-light, or in 
a frame set upon a spent hotbed. Here they will root 
and make nice plants, though it must be admitted that 
for carnations and picotees, layering is the most certain 
way to increase them. 
Dahlias. —These, the glory of the autumnal flower- 
