June 30. 
THE COTTAGE GAllDENEll. 
and potted in small pots, and placed under a cold frame 
to encourage free growth, only take care to plant them 
out in nursery rows before the roots become matted 
round the pot sides. Should any of them have done so, 
carefully disentangle them, spreading the roots out 
equally on every side. These remarks on potting otF 
the cuttings apply equally to those struck in pots on 
the hotbed. 
The very commonest of Coniferm may be propagated 
by cuttings in a still more summary way. As soon as 
the annual growth is perfected, take off the cuttings, and 
plant them in rows across a shady border, making them 
very firm in the soil. The kinds that will grow by this 
simple means are the Irish Yew and its varieties, the 
common Arbor vitce, the Swedish Junipers, and most 
other small-leaved varieties that are very hardy. The 
large-leaved Conifers do not strike easily by cuttings, 
but must, where seed cannot be procured, be propagated 
by grafting, of which I shall write by-and-by. 
No method of propagating this fine tribe is, however, 
so satisfactory as that by seed. Many of our readers 
are, no doubt, aware that great quantities of seeds are 
annually imported into this country, and from these wo 
obtain abundance of young plants. Government has 
! even paid some attention to this point, and have ap- 
: pointed lour eminent nurserymen to raise the seedlings 
(I refer to the Deodar Cedar from the Himalaya moun¬ 
tains) to be planted in the Iloyal Forests. From this 
we must infer that the Commissioners of Woods and 
Forests cither have no means of raising the seeds, or no 
i men skilful enough to entrust them to. 
I have been led away, by the above remarks, from my 
| subject, and am tempted again to digress to inform our 
I readers, growers of Coniferse, that there is, in Scotland, a 
j society established for the purpose of sending out a 
j collector to search for seeds of Coniferse, as well as other 
hardy trees ; and I have been informed that they sent 
one out some time ago, and have just now received 
their first consignment of seeds from Oregon, which 
consist principally of Finns nobilis, P. monticola, P. 
Pattoniana, and P. ponderosa, besides several that are 
thought to be new. As public attention has been 
directed to our national forests, why does not the 
government send out collectors to gather seeds ol good 
and rare hardy timber trees? If honestly done, the 
public would never grudge the expense, though the 
proceeds of this outlay would be for the benefit of the 
coining generations. T. Appleby. 
(To be continued.) 
THE PINK. 
{Continued from page 200 .) 
Properties of the Tine. —As some of our readers 
may not exactly understand when their plants and 
seedlings produce blooms of first-rate quality, I shall 
describe the properties florists have agreed upon to con¬ 
stitute a perfect flower. Not that such a flower is often 
seen, even at the best exhibitions, but such forms and 
colours should be constantly striven for, till perfection is 
obtained. And let no new beginner despair because lie 
may not succeed at first. Perseverence must bo his 
motto, and he may feel assured that success will follow 
in time, provided my instructions are well and diligently 
followed up, whether he tries his skill in growing esta¬ 
blished varieties, or the more speculative operation of 
raising seedliugs. 
The Pink is now a very much improved flower, if 
compared with what it was in my younger days. Then 
eight petals were considered quite sufficient to form a 
good flower. I remember one that was thought a mas¬ 
terpiece, and there are many florists yet living in the 
213 
north of England that will remember it also. It was 
named 13owe’s Suwarrow; and, certainly, as far as 
colouring went, it was much superior to any then in 
cultivation. Such semi-double flowers are not tolerated 
now, excepting, perhaps, in some few places in the 
north. In the south, a flower must be fully double; so 
much so, that it should form tho half^ of a ball, rising 
up to the centre, and should be perfectly circular in 
outline. Each petal should be stout, broad, and smooth 
at the edges. This smoothness is called rose-edged, that 
is, without any notches or teeth. In lact, the edge 
should be as if it had been clipped smooth and even 
The lowest tier of petals should be the widest, reaching 
in diameter at least from two to two-and-a-half inches. 
'The next row should be shorter, so much so, as to show 
the lacing fully on the lower petals; and the next shorter 
again, and so 'on up to the centre, which should be well 
filled up without confusion. The ground-colour should 
be pure white. The lacing, or circular stripe, should 
leave an edge of white outside of it, and another inside; 
this lacing of colour should be of the same width as the 
outside edging of white, and should be smooth and even 
at the edges; in fact, laid on as if it had been traced by 
a skilful hand with a fine camel hair pencil. Then, at 
the bottom of the petals, there should be another body 
of colour, the same as the lacing, to form a bold rich eye. 
I have given an example above of the old style of the 
so-called then perfection of the Pink. I will now, to 
show the contrast, give an example of the sty le in which 
the properties of a good Pink are exemplified at this 
day. Mr. Turner, of Slough, last year exhibited a new 
Pink, named Optima, which may bo described as a 
flower of fine form, perfectly round, smooth at the edges, 
full size ; ground, pure white, with an even, solid lacing 
of rich dark purple, and very double. This flower may 
be considered as being as nearly perfect as possible. It is 
very double, and full up to the centre. Every raiser of 
new varieties should procure this, grow it well, and bloom 
it finely, and then compare the seedliugs as they open 
their blossoms, and if they do not come up to, and even 
surpass this example, cast them away. Any flowers 
that have self-coloured petals; the calyx, or flower-cup, 
split on one side ; any notching on the edge of the 
petals; or any specks, or spots, on the ground-colour; 
if the petals are thin and flimsy ; or any of them project 
beyond the circle, or overlap the petals below, so as to 
hide the lacing;—any flowers having these faults, per¬ 
manently, must be discarded at once, lor all these are 
bad properties, and would disqualify the variety as an 
exhibition flower. 
With these brief notices of the properties of this 
charming, fragrant, hardy flower, I close my paper on 
Pink Culture, and now shall proceed to give a very select 
list for 1853. Just now is the time to procure pipings, 
and I would recommend purchasers wishing to add to 
their collection, and having conveniences for striking 
pipings, to give their orders. Pipings can be sent easily 
and quickly through the post, and, ii packed in a tin 
case, lined with damp (not wet) moss, will travel safely 
hundreds of miles. 
PURPLE AND DARK LACED PINKS. 
Arthur (Turner), extra; smooth on the edge; good 
shape. 
Ada (Head), fine. 
Beatrice (Kirtland), rosy-purple ; good. 
British Queen, dark. 
Black Prince (Parker), new and fine. 
Charles Peers, Esq. (Looker), good. 
Charmer (Hooper), extra. 
Criterion (Maclean), dark purple; very fine. 
Desdemona (Bragg), fine large petals; extra. 
Earl of Carlisle (Turner), very dark, lacing clean; 
well-formed flower. 
Edgar (Turner), extra fine; purple. 
