370 
THE COTTAGE GARDENER. 
[September 12. 
main plant, potted into small pots, and placed in a 
shady place for a time, to establish themselves by 
making fresh roots. They may then be placed in a 
more open situation, and subjected to the usual routine 
of culture. 
Tillandsia stricta (Stiff-leaved T.); Brazil.—A small 
plant, seldom attaining more than half a foot in height; 
the leaves are glaucous (milky green), rather narrow, 
very rigid, and recurved; the flowers are produced on a 
scape four inches high; they are small, but of the most 
intense and lovely blue, which renders them very at¬ 
tractive and desirable. 
Culture. —The best way to cultivate this little gem 
is to fasten it to a block with some moss attached to it ; 
syringing it freely, and sometimes taking it down and 
dipping it in the cistern, holding it there until every 
part of the plant, block, moss, and roots are thoroughly 
saturated. This plant is very scarce on account of the 
difficulty of propagating it; the only certain way is by 
division, but care must be taken that each division has 
some roots to it, or it may be expected to perish. 
Vriesia psittacina (Parrot-beaked V.) ; Brazil.—A 
splendid plant when in blossom. The plants grow to a 
foot in height; the leaves are of a light green, and form 
at the base a kind of cup, like Aclimea fulgens, which 
holds water; the flower-scape rises up in the centre of 
the plant, and attains the height of two feet; the bracts 
are placed on each side of the scape, at a distance of 
three or four inches from each other; the flowers are 
produced out of the bracts. The beauty of the plant 
consists in the extreme brilliant scarlet colour of the 
stem and bracts; there is a finish and a polish about 
them quite wonderful. Tire flowers are white. 
Vriesia splendens (Splendid V.); Brazil.—The leaves 
of this plant are exceedingly beautiful, they are elegantly 
marked in bands of chocolate colour, very strongly and 
clearly defined; the flower-scape rises to the height of 
two feet; and the bracts are scarlet, closely piled over 
each other. The flowers are white. Decidedly worth 
growing. 
Culture. —The same as Aclimea fid gens. 
T. Appleby. 
FLORISTS’ FLOWERS. 
Dahlias. —There is no flower that shows so clearly 
the advantages of a rather elevated site for a garden as 
the dahlia. Frequently in the valley or lowland it will 
be cut off even in this month, so as completely to 
destroy its beauty for this year, whilst in a garden more 
happily situated on a rising ground it frequently escapes 
till the end of October; the reason is obvious enough, 
even to the commonest observer, the heavy fogs descend 
to the lower garden and drive up the warm air to the 
higher one ; thus, if the cold amounts to the freezing 
point the flowers in the lower garden suffer from it, 
whilst the others escape. Of course this only can take 
place to a certain extent; if the frost is very severe it 
will also reach the higher parts, and destroy all tender 
flowers iu every garden ; but it frequently happens that 
there is a slight frost in September, just severe enough 
to spoil the blooms in gardens so unhappily situated. 
A very slight protection would prevent such ill effects; 
we have used, with great success, common garden mats, 
just stretched over the pilants upon stakes high enough 
to clear them. Should the weather prove dry it will 
still be desirable to water dalilias freely at the roots. 
This is a good time to make remarks and notes upon 
the different varieties, setting forth their good and bad 
qualites, so as to bo able to regulate them next year. 
Tulips,Ranunculuses, and other Bulbs. —Attention 
must bo paid to the different beds these fine flowers are 
to be planted in for next year. Turn over the soil and 
: mix it with enriching materials as soon as possible. 
Gladioli. —These fine summer flowers have now 
finished their bloom and growth for the year. They 
require to be taken up, dried, and kept in a cool place 
till spiring. Should any of the G. psittacina still continue 
green in their foliage, take a spade and just lift them 
up ; this will have the effect of checking the growth of 
such late plants. T. Appleby. 
THE KITCHEN-GARDEN. 
Celery plant out, and water well at the time of p>lant- 
ing; earth stir among the growing crops, and earth up) 
the forward. That which is full grown, bury up well, so 
that it may be well bleached, and soon fit for use. In 
earthing up the younger crops, first loosen the soil with a 
fork, and then go along the rows with the hand, and hold¬ 
ing the pdants in one hand, draw up the earth round the 
plant with the other; then, with the spade, give it a 
deeper earthing, but not so as to bury the hearts while 
the plants are growing. The earthing should be done a 
little and often, but the finishing touch should bury it 
up well. These earthings should alw r ays be done in dry 
afternoons ; and the previous forking in the forenoon. 
This is just the season for extensive Cabbage and 
Colewort planting, only the soil to receive them should 
be made thoroughly good with plenty of manure. Water 
at the time of planting. Also prick out seedlings in beds 
from the seed-beds, so as to have good stocky plants for 
future planting. 
Riant out any kinds of Borecoles, or Savoys, or even 
Brocolj 3, if any remain unpdanted—all may be found 
useful. 
It is late for sowing Turnips, although I have sown 
as late as the 10th of September, yet I have bad a very 
useful crop of this vegetable: both of nice little bulbs, 
and an abundant suppily of greens, too, in the spiring 
months. The young growing cropis should be well 
thinned out in time, and the hoe passed among them 
often. 
The August-sown Carrots in the open borders should 
be well fingered out, and the earth stirred among them 
often. Carrots (Early Horn kind) may now be sown 
in either old melon or cucumber-bed frames, first stir¬ 
ring up the earth, and adding a little more, so as to bring 
the crop up nearer to the glass. 
Cariioons, earth up when thoroughly dry. 
Cauliflowers, prick out, as soon as they are large 
enough to finger, into a good rich bed, in an open situa¬ 
tion, so as to have the required number of good healthy 
sturdy plants for planting out under hand-glasses, and 
otherwise to pirotect through the winter. When a 
little better bed than common is required, it may be done 
iu this way :—Trench or well dig up any small pilot of 
ground, piulverize well as the work goes on, line it 
out in the usual way ; and then, to make it a little better 
than common, give the whole bed a surface-covering of 
either leaf-mould and loam, or well-rotted dung and 
loam, well broken and mixed together, and run through 
a coarse riddle or sieve. The mould from an old hot-bed 1 
is just the thing, with a little of the old rotten bed mixed . 
up with it. Rut from one to two inches thick of this 
mixture over the whole surface of the bed. It is sur¬ 
prising how the roots of the young pilauts will run along 
in beds made up in this way. 
Endive, plant out, and prick out, of both kinds, and | 
tie up for blanching; also Lettuces the same, and prick 
out in open beds, so as to have a good supipily to chooso 
from next month. 
Melons and Cucumbers. —Back up with linings ; 
be sparing with the water-pot, and shut up early. 
Mushroom-beds, make, and look after spawn, as an 
abundance is often to be found in cither breaking up) 
an old mushroom-bed or old hotbeds, which should be 
