September 
THE COTTAGE GARDENER. 
300 
Late Dessert Pears. —In late situations, late ri¬ 
pening kinds, such as the Glout morceau and d’Arem- 
berg section, the Ne plus meuris, the Winter neilis, 
the Beurre ranee, &e., will, at times, prove too late to 
get their full amount of flavour, unless some extra 
means he taken to admit the solar rays. When such 
is the case we advise another inspection of the trees, 
and if any of the cut-hack spray can he further 
shortened hack, so much the better. In extreme 
cases, the whole to be removed in winter might he 
removed clean away at once, for the embryo blossom 
buds will enjoy the full amount of solar light as well 
as the fruit. It is for want of precaution of this kind 
that so much bad “ setting” is complained of in the 
spring; what else could be expected from the sharp 
white frosts of April attacking half-organized blos¬ 
soms ? 
Suckers.— Another point of bad culture is the per¬ 
mitting suckers to grow through a whole summer, 
smothering the lower branches of fruit trees. The 
harm they do to the root is as nothing in comparison 
with the damage often occasioned by their insinuat¬ 
ing themselves (as they frequently do) at the back of 
the branches of wall trees, and then brandling forth 
and choking by their gross shade the sprigs or buds 
on the lower portion of the tree. 1 f such have not 
been destroyed, let them be rooted out immediately. 
R. Errington. 
THE ELOWER-GARDEN. 
Routine Work : Propagation. —This month and 
the next may be denominated, with strict propriety, 
preparing and conservative months; preparing for 
next year by propagating, and conservati ve by taking 
care of them when propagated. Bearing these two 
principles in mind, our readers will act wisely if, 
taking time by the forelock, they carry these princi¬ 
ples out. The plants that ought to be propagated 
now, if not already done, are anagallises, cinerarias, 
fuchsias, gaillardias, heliotropes, lobelias (dwarf), 
mimuluses (herbaceous), petunias, phloxes, penste- 
mons, salvias, shrubby calceolarias, scarlet geraniums, 
and verbenas. Put these cuttings rather thickly in 
six-inch pots, placing them in a frame, and, for a 
fortnight, shading pretty closely when the sun shines; 
after that, gradually leave off the shade. By this is 
meant shade a shorter time every day, and to prevent 
them from being too hot give air very moderately at 
first, increasing the air as you lessen the shade. 
This must be attended to in all cases of plant culture, 
whether in frames, pits, or glass houses of any des¬ 
cription. Whenever shading is used, the quantity 
of air given ought to be lessened; and as the cuttings 
or plants attain strength to resist or bear the power 
of the sunshine, the quantity of air given ought to 
be increased. In the case of cuttings which we are 
now treating of, as soon as you perceive symptoms 
of growth try them as a bird tries its young when 
she observes the wings nearly grown. If the cut¬ 
tings will endure the sun and air you may be pretty 
sure they are rooted, and then give air and light 
accordingly. In order to keep them low bushy 
plants, pinch off the tops at a very early stage; this 
will induce side shoots, which may be stopt again. 
If you have plenty of room you may pot off' the 
most forward, but this is not absolutely necessary at 
this season, of the year, as the plants will not grow 
much during the winter months, and by keeping 
them in the cutting pots a much larger number of 
plants can be preserved for the spring. 
Supposing you have been successful in propagating 
these useful plants, the next thing is to prepare for 
tailing care of them; and, besides cuttings, you will 
have by-and-by a host of other plants for which 
room will bo required to conserve them from the 
winter's frost. Prepare, then, in good time, safe re¬ 
treats. Build pits of bricks laid well in mortar; if 
expense is not minded build them with hollow walls, 
that is, two rows of brick with a space of about three 
or four inches between, and a coping at the top to 
bind them together. The air in this cavity acts as a 
non-conductor, keeping out the cold of winter and 
the heat of summer. If you have the means to send 
a hot-water pipe through the pits in front, it will be 
useful in extremely cold weather, especially in the 
more northern districts. Cover these pits with glazed 
frames, and provide mats and straw. 
Straw Mats. —We have used straw mats, and 
found them excellent, as no frost could penetrate 
them, especially if a covering of bass mats were 
added. Straw mats are formed of little bundles of 
wheat straw tied together so as to form an oblong 
mat of proper size for the frame it is intended to 
cover: generally those frames are about four feet 
wide and five feet long, and the straw mats ought to 
be of that dimension. They ought not to hang over 
on any of the sides. Having got all these things in 
readiness, you are prepared for any sort of weather. 
To our cottage friends who cannot afford brick pits 
we strongly recommend pits made of turf, which are 
good shelters for wintering half-hardy plants, and 
even, if well made and duly covered, of keeping alive 
more tender things; moreover, we say to all our 
readers, of whatever rank, be in time. Have those 
frames, pits, &c., got ready without delay, for Jacky 
Frost is something like a railway train—he will not 
wait till you are ready for him. 
Hardy Liliums. —A correspondent having in¬ 
quired for a list, and directions for the culture, of 
these splendid flowers, we have the greater pleasure 
in giving that information because we know it will 
be useful to many of our readers. The lilies have 
been great favourites from time immemorial; Solomon 
mentions them with great praise, and our blessed 
Lord says that that prince of wisdom, when most 
gorgeously apparelled, was not equal in beauty of 
array to one of these. Beyond dispute they are the 
most regal of all flow'ers, whether we consider their 
majestic bearing, or whether we look at the pure 
unsullied white of Lilium candidum (white lily), or 
the brilliantly spotted tiger-like, Lilium tigrinum. It 
is a great recommendation to the tribe, also, that they 
are perfectly hardy, and, comparatively speaking, of 
easy culture: only a very few species require an 
extra amount of care. 
Being a large tribe, to cultivate them successfully, 
so as to show off their majestic forms, a rather large 
space will be needful to contain them, even if only 
one or two of each be grown. The following are the 
names of the species, and the number of varieties 
are denoted by figures. The letter a prefixed denotes 
that the species is rather tender. 
Lilium candidum (white); a. Japonicum (Japan); 
a,, longijiorum (long-flowered); Nepalense (Nepaul); 
Garolinianum (Carolina); bulbiferum (bulb-bearing), 
2 var.; latifolium (broad-leaved); a. lancifoliinn (lance¬ 
leaved), 3 var.; spectabile ( showy) ; a. concolor (self- 
coloured) ; Catesbcd (Catesby’s); Philadelpltiuni (Phi¬ 
ladelphian) ; Andinum (Andes); Canadcnse (Cana¬ 
dian) ; pendulijlormn (pendulous); superbum (superb); 
Martagon (Turk’s cap), 5 var.; a. glabrum (smooth); 
croceum (crocus) ; Ghalcedonicum (Clialcedonian) ; 
