432 
THE COTTAGE GARDENER. 
September 11. 
would do, but she fears their growth would be too slow, 
as the centre of the wall to be covered is nineteen feet high; 
and the object is to have a green background, to show off 
tk9 flowers on the stages.” 
[Bignonia chirere would cover the wall nineteen feet high, 
from top to bottom, and to any length beyond that of the Crystal 
Palace, in two or three years, if good stout plants of it were 
in a good, rich border, about five or six feet apart. Some 
people will tell you this is a stove plant, because Lady 
Grenville first flowered it in a stove; but it is just as hardy 
as C'obw.a scandens. It is more than likely, however, that it 
would not flower on this back wall until it was very old ; but 
as you only want a green back, it would be of little con¬ 
sequence. Tecoma jasminoules is the next best for fast , 
covering your back wall; but it is ten to one if it would j 
flower sooner than Bignonia chirere. Both would require a j 
good deal of stopping and training till they covered the wall, j 
and a great deal more of stopping after that; but both of j 
them flower better on the last year’s growth, if that is on old 
spurs which have been stopped for years and years ; there¬ 
fore, the secret is, to cut out all old wood on the spurs, 
leaving only last season’s growth, at every winter pruning, 1 
and to stop this growth as often as it needs it every summer. 
On this very plan we flowered chirere, for years, in the 
coldest greenhouse ; but jasminoides ought to be in the open 
air to bloom so freely. But on a good conservatory wall, 
and right pruning, it never fails to bloom; and such i 
beautiful flowers! in long, clustered wreaths; but we 
never saw it in good bloom in doors. While these were 
in progress, we would plant Lophospermums, Maurandias, 
Heliotropes, and Cobieas, between them, and prune them 
all back very close in winter. Are you aware that the 
common “ Cherry-pie,” or Heliotrope, is one of the best ■ 
greenhouse climbers ?] 
PRUNING PASSIFLORA CCERULEA. 
“ Having a blue Passion-Flower growing over the roof of 
my greenhouse (inside), which has now become very thick 
and bushy, obstructing air and light, although it is loaded 
with its beautiful and fragrant flow'ers, will you kindly 
inform me if I may prune it in; and if so, how close; and at 
what season of the year ?— Theophilus.” 
I 
1 
[There i3 no plant which stands better against the j 
effects of the severest pruning than the blue Passion-Flower 
inside a greenhouse. You might cut out whole shoots any j 
day during the summer. You might cut off every shoot and 
leaf on Midsummer day, and leave it as bare as a fishing- J 
rod, without hurting it in the least, for it would soon be in [ 
full force again; but just at this season it would not be good 
practice to cut in the plant too much, because it would 
make new shoots of no use ; but you may thin the plant as 
much as you choose, and the shoots you leave on it may 
be cut down to one-half their lengths; and if they grow 
again, stop them before they can shade anything, and next 
January or February give they early pruning, by cutting back 
every shoot of young wood to just one eye from the old 
wood, unless you want to cover more space, and if you do, 
any of the long, young shoots of last summer may be trained 
in all except a yard or so of the top. If it is not a positive 
cruelty, it is certainly not a wise plan to keep all the head 1 
of a blue Passion-Flower inside a greenhouse all the year 
round. Can you not take out a square of glass somewhere 
to let out some of the shoots, from May till the frost comes, 
then prune and take them back to winter ?] 
RED INSECT TROUBLESOME IN AUTUMN. 
“ I shall be obliged if you can inform me what insect it is 
that is so troublesome to persons, particularly females, 
frequenting gardens, by burying itself in the skin and caus¬ 
ing inflammatory pustules, with intolerable itching ? 
“ Some of my friends have been excessively annoyed by 
it, and have, on a needle’s point, extracted several from the 
wounds they caused; but it is too minute for my vision, or 
for any glass I possess, to show mo its shape or structure ; 
all 1 can see is, that it is a living creature, in motion, and of 
a red colour. Country people, I hear, call it “ the harvest 
hob," or bug, it being very prevalent in the harvest fields.— 
T. M. W.” 
[The insect here alluded to is one of the Acari, or Mites. 
It is so minute, that if it were not of a brilliant crimson 
colour it would be not easily detected. It is the "Leptus 
autumnalis, and commonly called “ the harvest bug,” either 
from its occurring at that period of the year, or for 'attack¬ 
ing the legs of the harvest men. This insect buries itself 
at the roots of the hair, and sometimes causes tumours, 
and even fever, but always great itching and inflammation.] 
GLOXINIA CULTURE.—SOWING BERBERIS 
AQUIFOLIUM. 
“ Some time ago, you were so kind asto instruct me how to 
grow Gloxinias. I succeeded admirably to a certain point; 
my plants looked vigorous, and the foliage was very fine ; 
but, for some reason, the flower-buds, when they had attained 
the size of a barley-corn, turned brown at the points and 
withered; the foliage still looks well, and I have a few 
flowers on them. Would you kindly state the probable 
cause, that I may try and be more fortunate next year ? I 
shall follow the instructions in The Cottage Gardeners 
Dictionary for their general treatment. 
“ From your instructions, I have propagated some from 
leaves, which are still in the pots of sand. Please say how 
I am to manage them. 
“I wish, also, to know if the seeds of Berberis aquifolium 
should be sown with the fruit upon them, or squeezed out 
first ?— Berberis Aquifolium.” 
[The leaves of your Gloxinias looked well from present 
good management, and the flower-buds withered from former 
bad treatment. Let them go quietly to rest this winter, and 
next year you will reap the benefit of your present system. 
Keep those you have propagated from leaves in growth, or 
green, as long as possible; to the middle of January, if you 
can. When you cannot keep them longer green, dry them 
off, and leave them in the sand as they are till they come up 
again from next growth. Then, as soon as you see them 
coming, turn them out of the pots, and pot each one into a 
separate small pot, in very light compost. 
As the Berberry seeds lie idly in the ground all the 
winter, it is best to sow them whole. Some persons affirm 
that all berries and stone fruit come better from seeds sown 
with the pulp on.] 
MOOR-PARK APRICOT DECAYING.—TRAINING 
PEACH-TREES AND VINES. 
“ I have a fine Moorpark Apt icot tree, which, three or four 
years ago, had one of its principal branches die. I cut it off 
close at the place from which it started, and painted the 
wound, which made an effort to heal; but I have discovered, 
to my regret, that from this place, half-way round, and three 
inches above and three inches below the arm is dead. Not¬ 
withstanding, its foliage looks very healthy, and the branch 
is supporting a good crop of fine fruit. What must I do with 
this to save my tree ? 
[All that you can do is to clean out the dead wood round 
the wound, and to keep the opening from the air, as much 
as possible, by some moist plaister or another, such as cow- 
dung and dry lime-dust; or, indeed, anything to keep the 
air from the wood.] 
“ My Peach-trees are very healthy, and free from blight 
of all sorts, with a good crop of fruit—a thing which never 
occurred to me till I had the good fortune to meet with The 
Cottage Gardener —but some of the shoots are much 
shaded with their own leaves. I have pushed some of the 
points of these under a neighbouring shoot, and some I 
have pinned to the wall with a nail, so that the solar rays 
fall with all their light, and beat upon the body of the shoot: 
but will this arrangement of their leaves derange their func¬ 
tions injuriously ? ” 
[It is part of Mr. Beaton’s creed to cut in two every leaf 
which hangs over another leaf, or shades a soft part of a 
shoot, on stone-fruit against a wall, as early as the 20th of 
August. Healthy Peach-trees produce about four times 
more leaves and shoots than ought to be allowed. You did 
wrong when you pushed the leaves under the shoots ; you 
