June JO. 
THE COTTAGE GARDENER. 
211 
having plants of one’s own growing. Eor these there 
are two classes of plants peculiarly applicable. The 
first of these are hardy plants, chiefly of an herbaceous 
pharacter, and requiring in winter similar protection as 
that afforded to alpines—namely, protection such as a 
covering of snow would render, which is well imitated 
by thick glass cases on the top of a house even, and, 
in severe weather, the benelit of a tarpaulin. Eor 
months during the cold season, no further care would 
be necessary than a little air in fine weather, to keep 
the atmosphere sweet, and prevent moulding and damp¬ 
ing. If the pots are plunged, little of the water-can 
will be required from November to March. After that 
period more air would have to be given, and then, in 
April and May, the whole lot may be turned out-of- 
doors, unless there arc a few very delicate and rare. 
The other class would suit those who can afford all the 
paraphernalia of a well-arranged plant stove. Were J, 
in fact, shut up to have one plant house, within three 
miles of St. Paul’s, as large as [ liked, and heated how 
I liked, and to grow what would succeed best and yield 
the most pleasure, I have a dim perception of drawing 
rather largely on the kindness and experience of Mr. 
Appleby—getting him to tell me the notch about this 
plant, the secret about that, the mode of surmounting 
the difficulties about a third, and ever so many mope ; 
and with labour, power, and money for a young stock, at 
edmmand, we could, as respects stove plants, orchids, 
and ferns, venture a hint to him to look after his laurels, 
even amid the salubrious airs of Uxbridge, and just 
because, with such plants little air would he necessary, 
unless when the sky was clear, and because, by the use 
of abundance of moisture, shading would be reduced to 
a minimum, unless when a plant was commencing to 
grow, or when it was desirable to retain the bloom as 
long as possible. Of course, things that would only 
grow in the shade could have a shady part of the house 
for themselves. 
A cool temperature at night, and early air-giving, will 
j thus minimise shading, and so far as growing and 
ripening are concerned, would render the process next 
to unnecessary, could we depend upon regular courses 
of weather. But in all shallow structures, such as pits 
and frames, shading is often required, when, after 
several days of dull, cloudy weather, one with bright 
sunshine suddenly comes. We see even hardy plants 
flag for several hours, under such circumstances, and 
unless the preventives of early air-giving, and additional 
moisture in the atmosphere, have been attended to, the 
danger of scalding and burning would have been im¬ 
minent, without shading, in all such structures. 
A syringe over head, or an hour’s shading, will often 
habituate the plants to the change, and no crumpling 
or scalding of leaves will be the result. But this 
shading should never remain a moment longer than is 
necessary. It is nothing uncommou to meet with people 
that can only have one prominent idea at one time. 
They will never do great things in gardening, unless 
they are fixed to one department, and hardly even then. 
It is nothing uncommon to see a man careful in shading; 
but go hours after the sun has been clouded, and there 
is still the shading. The necessity of removing, as well 
as putting on, is a sort of double idea, and that was too 
much for thorough attention. One of the cleverest 
men I ever knew, never held a situation long from this 
very cause. Whatever he w r as doing was done first- 
rate, because it received his undivided attention. There 
was no room for anything else, and the general results 
may be guessed at. There was praiseworthy attention 
to one object, but for all other things demanding equal 
care and thought, they might as well not have existed. 
Every minute’s shading more than is necessary renders 
the plant more enervated, and just requiring more and 
more of future shading and coddling. 
Having now said sufficient oEtbe principle to be kept 
in view in shading, let me now say a few words as to 
the modes and material. Eor though the hints thrown 
out would reduce shading to a minimum when growth 
and maturation were concerned, it becomes less or more 
iudispensable when we wish to preserve plants in 
bloom as long as possible. 
Eor this purpose, nothing is better for houses than 
thin calico, or open bunting, fixed by one side to the 
ridge of a house, and at the front side of the house to a 
round roller of wood, from one-and-a-half to two-and-a- 
half inches in diameter. In houses about thirty feet in 
length, a cord twice the width of the house, wrapped 
round a grooved wheel on the end of the roller, will be 
sufficient to let the roller up and down. As you pull 
the string, the resistance given will cause the roller to 
revolve and mount the roof, and by means of a pin in 
front, it may be fixed at any elevation. 
But even at the above length, or a little more, there 
will be a tendency in the roller and blind to drag at one 
end, and, therefore, in the cases of blinds over long 
houses, it is better to have two or three pulleys iustead 
of one. The mode of working is quite as easy, but 
different. Each pulley will require to he from three to 
five times the width of the houses. Eix the blind on 
the apex of the roof and to the roller, respectively, as 
stated above. Then, supposing you are to have three 
pulleys, one near each end, and one in the middle, fix 
your pulley lines firmly in these places to the apex of 
the roof, then bring down the cord on the glass, under¬ 
neath the shade, passing it over the wooden roller, and 
i taking it back again to the apex, and passing it there 
through a pulley wheel, and bringing the end of the 
line down over the roof again, so that you can easily 
J catch it by the hand. Do the end ones the same way, 
I only in addition carry the cord from the pulley wheel 
| along the apex of the roof, to another pulley wheel 
j close to the centre, and bring down the cord over the 
; roof in the same way as the first. You can thus take 
all three cords in your hand at once, by pulling which 
the blind will rise regularly from end to end, and you 
can fasten it at the top or any intermediate distance, by 
twisting the ropes round a post with a peg through it. 
When unloosed the weight of the roller will bring the 
blind down. On the same principle you may bring all 
the strings to one end, iustead of the middle, and you may 
have as many pulley-strings as you like. Three would 
be quite ample for a length of seventy or eighty feet. 
For pits, a similar plan may be used. Any mode, 
almost, is better than the littery mats we often use. I 
saw, the other day, a very simple and effectual mode in 
J operation at the Hyde Gardens. Mr. Russell uses thin 
bleached calico, about the width of the sashes—say two 
yards; each piece covers from four to eight or ten 
lights, according to the size of the pit. Each end is 
fastened to a rod of wood about half-an-inch in diameter, 
and a foot or two longer than the covering. On one of 
these the covering is rolled up when not wanted. When 
used, one rod is fixed at the end of the pit, or frame. 
You stand at the front of the pit, hold the lower end of 
the other rod in your hands, and, placing the other end 
on the apex of the back of the pit, you turn it round, 
walking briskly along, and leaving the cloth on the glass 
as you proceed ; the rod is then fixed at the other end. 
From having the rods longer than the pit you thus 
easily shade and uushade, without the rods ever touch¬ 
ing the glass. On the cloth, opposite the handles of 
each light, there are strings sewed on, which, when tied 
to the handles, prevents any wind but a hurricane from 
moving it. The rods, besides being thus useful, are a 
great saving to the shade, as when not Avanted, or in 
wet weather, they can easily be transported to a water¬ 
proofed shed. Any other cheap thin material, such as 
Nottingham netting, may bo used in a similar manner. 
