! 358 
THE COTTAGE GARDENER. 
August 11. 
i from 2s. to 2s. fid. per half sieve. Apples are now 
j general, and consist of the Old Joanneting and Mar- 
j garet. Of the former, we have not seen so many in 
the markets for several years; they make 4s. to 5s. 
j per bushel. There are windfalls of other and later 
! sorts, which are used aud only fit for cooking. Pears 
| have also made their appearance ; some from the conti- 
| nent, which consist of the Long-stalked Blanquet, or, as 
I the French call it, “ Blanquet a long queue” and the Petit 
Muscat Of English growth, we have the Green Chisel, 
and a few unripe Lammas. Plums from the continent 
have arrived, unripe, and in bad condition, as usual. 
They seem to be the Orleans, or, as they call it, “ Prune 
Monsieur.” 
Vegetables, as we have already said, are abundant, 
and make the same prices as we have quoted in former 
reports. H. 
THE LILY OF THE VALLEY. 
P .raises may be published of recent introductions, 
but which of them may ever supplant this, or the Moss 
Rose, or Mignonette? Some things, therefore, in gar¬ 
dening, are beyond the caprice of fashion, and nobody 
doubts the continuance of their influence. For the 
bridal, or any other, bouquet, who shall despise this 
lovely and chaste flower, whether as a denizen of our 
forcing houses from December until March, or as yield¬ 
ing its charming groups of little snowy and fragrant 
bells in our borders and woodland walks in May and 
June? Some account of its culture, from one who has 
grown it in various forms for the last twenty years, may, 
I trust, prove useful to the readers of The Cottage 
Gardener. 
We gardeners are placed in a somewhat singular 
position, in some respects—a “thrice told tale” comes 
with a tolerable good grace from a talkative gardener, 
providing he can throw any new matter into his subject; 
and what gardening topic is it into which new life can¬ 
not be infused? The out-door culture of this Lily is 
the first consideration; for, like the Sea-kale, its style 
aud quality, when forced, depends much on its high 
culture during the growing season. The Lily of the 
Valley will grow pretty well in any good garden soil; 
but to grow it in the highest perfection of which it is 
capable, some extra consideration must be given to the 
compost. It succeeds to admiration with us in a dark 
and unctuous loamy soil; and we have a north border 
here in which I have grown my whole stock for twenty- 
two years, merely changing from one end to the other 
in making new plantations. But this border is exceed¬ 
ingly rich in decayed vegetable matter; and those who 
wish to excel in Lily of the Valley culture, must not 
fancy, that because this plant is found growing tolerably 
well in neglected situations it is averse to manures and 
high culture. We have seen them grow in woods in 
great breadths, and in tolerable style; but then the two 
chief conditions were present—partial shade, and abund¬ 
ance of the decayed leaves of many years. 
As to the staple soil, then, for Lilies of the Valley, I 
am of opinion that a darkish and somewhat stiff soil 
will produce the finest buds ; and one essential is, that 
the ground be not liable to droughts, for they love a 
permanent moisture. As to shade, I have ever found 
them finest on a north border; but, be it understood, 
they are not within five feet of the wall, consequently, 
the sun shines freely on their foliage; but then the 
border surface inclines considerably to the north, and, 
of course, the ground is much cooler and damper than 
it would be on a southern incline. It is very probable 
that an east or west boi’der would be superior still. 
There are, at least, three distinct modes of cultivating 
Lilies of the Valley for forcing. The first, growing them 
in patches in the open ground, and potting such patches 
when two years old. A second is, to grow them in pots; j 
the latter plunged in a rich medium; and a third, to j 
take up the roots, and single them out in November, 
sorting all the finest eyes, and placing them thickly in 
pots adapted to the purpose. I think, that for very 
early forcing, those grown in pots will be found the : 
best, inasmuch as it is necessary that the roots should 
not be disturbed, and that the crowns should go to rest 
betimes. For succession crops they may be cultivated 
by the first mode; and for the latest the third mode may 
be best adopted. Let it, however, be distinctly under- , ! 
stood, that I do not by any means desire to “ hedge in ” , 
any of our readers by this course alone; they will do well J 
by any of the above modes, if the roots be strong; if 
they are badly grown, the forcer will be defeated in his 
aim. I may now detail the planting process, together 
with the preparation of the soil. 
Let a plot of ground be selected in the beginning of 
March ; a plot possessing the conditions before named. 
It must be deeply dug, and the parts well broken, and 
during the process means must be taken to introduce as 
much as four inches in depth of very old manure; the 
kind I prefer is old hotbed linings, composed of about 
equal parts manure and tree leaves, but which have 
crumbled to pieces with age and turning. To those who 
cannot obtain such a valuable article, 1 say, lay hold of 
any old black residue, whether of the wood-pile, the 
rubbish-heap, old thatch, or old rotten weeds; anything 
which has once been living vegetables, and has become 
a black residuum, through age and exposure to the air, 
is eligible. This, however, I address to the needy ; for, 
after all, there are few things so good as the hotbed 
linings. The ground being thus prepared, stations may 
be marked out for the Lily patches, if to be forced in 
pots, according to our first mode. We force them in 
pots of about nine to eleven inches diameter, and it is 
necessary so to plant the patches, as that they may 
readily fit the proper sized pot when taken up. 
The ground is marked out in lines of two feet dis¬ 
tance ; these lines to receive the patches of Lilies at 
about fourteen inches apart; therefore, pegs put down 
at that distance form points around which a thick 
cluster of Lily-buds has to be planted. This done, a 
pot of about seven inches in diameter is used to stamp 
circles around each peg, and on this circle, and within 
it, the Lily-buds are dibbled as thick as they can be 
placed. Each patch will thus be made to contain from 
twelve to fifteen eyes or buds, which is as many as are j 
necessary to form a good potful of blooms ; and when 
planted, a top-dressing of rotten manure, in a mellow 
state, is spread nearly three inches thick all over the 
surface of the Lilies. Through the ensuing summer 
they are kept clear of weeds; and after a second summer’s 
growth they are first-rate buds, and will give every satis¬ 
faction to the forcer. 
I may now advert to the second mode: growing them in 
pots. 1 will not say what has been done, or what may be 
the general practice; but rather point to what I con¬ 
ceive would be a superior practice. I would advise that 
pots of a peculiar character be “made to order” for 
them; and that for two reasons—one, that none of our 
ordinary pots are well adapted to set off' their character 
to the best advantage; and the other,that pots differing 
somewhat from the common run will facilitate high 
culture. They need a pot wide and shallow, rather than 
narrow and deep; and I think we may say, pots about 
ten inches in diameter, and about seven to eight in 
depth, would be highly eligible. But as I have to re- j 
commend a plunging mode of culture, in order that the j 
