127 
THE COTTAGE GARDENER AND COUNTRY GENTLEMAN, December 4, 1860. 
WEEKLY CALENDAR. 
Day 
Day 
DEC. 4-10, 1860. 
Weather near London in 1859. 
Moon 
of 
M’nth 
1 
of 
Week. 
Barometer. 
Thermom. 
Wind. 
Rain In 
Inches. 
Sun 
Rises. 
Sun 
Sets. 
Rises 
and Sets 
Moon’s 
Age. 
Clock 
afterSun 
Day of 
Year. 
4 
Tu 
Laughing’ goose comes. 
29.900-29.495 
deg. deg. 
54-30 
S. 
•26 
m. h. 
51 af 7 
m. h. 
51 af 3 
m. h. 
42 10 
21 
m. 
9 
3. 
24 
339 
5 
W 
Black-throated diver comes. 
29.560-29.393 
56—32 
w. 
•12 
52 
7 
50 3 
morn. 
( 
8 
59 
310 
6 
Tk 
December moth appears. 
29.669—29.555 
41—29 
s. 
•26 
53 
7 
50 3 
5 
0 
23 
8 
33 
341 
7 
F 
Polyanthus flowers again. 
30.053—29.659 
49-32 
s.w. 
— 
54 
7 
50 3 
28 
1 
24 
8 
7 
342 
8 
Skylarks flock. 
30.282—30.154 
50—29 
E. 
— 
55 
7 
49 3 
53 
2 
25 
7 
41 
343 
9 
Sun 
2 Sunday in Advent. 
30.520—30.439 
43—27 
E. 
— 
56 
7 
49 3 
18 
4 
26 
7 
14 
344 
10 
M 
Wild swan comes; 
30.658-30.594 
44-24 
E. 
— 
58 
7 
49 3 
44 
5 
27 
6 
45 
345 
Meteorology op tiie Week.— At Chiswick, from observations during the last thirty-four years, the average highest and lowest 
temperatures of these days are 4G.7° and 34.8° respectively. The greatest heat, 60°, occurred on the 7th, in 1856 ; and the lowest cold, 14°. 
on the 6th, in 1844. During the period 117 days were fine, and on 114 rain fell. 
WORK FOR THE WEEK. 
KITCHEN GAKDEN. 
Should frost set in every advantage to be talren of 
it to wheel manures and composts on to the various 
quarters requiring them, and if they cannot be trenched 
in at once let them be laid in heaps at convenient dis¬ 
tances, and covered with soil. Ridged ground to be 
also forked over, to expose fresh surfaces to the action of 
the frost. Asparagus, if the soil in the frames in which 
the roots are planted should become dry, it will be 
necessary to water it with water of the temperature of 
the bed ; but this is not often required if the bed heats 
moderately, and the roots have been properly watered 
when planted. There should be at least five or six 
inches of soil of an open texture, such as leaf mould, 
&c., above the crowns of the roots after they begin to 
shoot. Air to be admitted at every favourable oppor¬ 
tunity to the productive beds. Beans (Broad), where 
they have been planted in rows, and have made their 
appearance above ground, draw the earth in ridges on 
each side of them, so as to afford some little protection 
from cold cutting winds. Cauliflowers, watch narrowly 
for slugs among the young plants, and keep them free 
from dead leaves. If any are planted in pots for the 
purpose of protecting them during severe weather they 
must be carefully attended to with water, or in the 
spring it will be found that time and labour had been 
uselessly employed. Herbs, any that may be wanted 
in a green state to be taken up with balls of earth 
about their roots, potted, and placed in a forcing-house. 
Lettuce, the plants in frames to have all the air that can 
be given them in mild weather. Keep them, and also 
any that may be in the borders, free from dead leaves 
and litter of all sorts that is likely to harbour slugs. 
Peas to be treated as advised for Broad Beans. 
FRUIT GAKDEN. 
The ground among fruit bushes to be dug very lightly, 
■especially near Raspberries which have their roots close 
to the surface ; and it is better in all cases to dispense 
with digging when it cannot be done without injuring 
the roots. Prune Filbert trees and standard Pear and Apple 
trees ; and when the latter have made an over-luxuriant 
growth dig a trench two feet from the stem all round, 
and cut some of the strongest roots, especially the “ tap,” 
or roots that descend perpendicularly, this will induce a 
fruit-bearing state. The distance from the stem must be 
more or less according to the age and size of the tree, 
the larger the tree the further it will be necessary to keep 
from the stem in making the trench. Fruit trees infeeted 
with scale to have the bark well scraped and painted with 
a mixture of soft soap, cowdung, and lime, taking care 
to well work the composition into the crevices of the bark. 
FLOWER GARDEN. 
The smaller-growing shrubs—as some kinds of Cyti- 
sus, Spmeas, and Deutzias—require to be pruned annually 
to produce a good show of flowers, and to form well¬ 
shaped bushes. All the deciduous shrubs may now be 
pruned whenever there is time, except during severe 
frost. Auriculas and Polyanthuses in frames will re¬ 
quire but very little water. Remove dead leaves. Look 
over the Carnations and Picotees in pots, and if any of 
the lower leaves are withered or mildewed cut them off 
with a small pair of sharp-pointed scissors; and if any 
dust be lodged in the axils of the leaves it must also be 
carefully cleaned away. Where Rabbits are likely to 
attack Pinks give a top dressing of soot as a preventive. 
Now when all the leaves are down clear them up, an d 
put the borders, &c., into neat order for the winter; 
also sweep and roll the walks frequently, to make the 
place as enjoyable as possible at this season. Continue 
planting trees, shrubs, Roses, and Rose-stocks for future 
budding. Prune and nail, or tie in, all creepers on walls, 
trellises, pillars, &c. 
STOVE. 
Many plants will be sinking into repose here, and from 
such withhold water : of these may be named the Achi- 
menes, the Clerodendrons, Erythrinas, the Gloxinias, &c., 
with various bulbs; they will require to be forthwith 
placed on a shelf by themselves, and as the Gloxinias and 
Clerodendrons are liable to suffer from a low temperature 
it is advisable even when at rest not to expose them to a 
temperature below 50°. 
GREENHOUSE AND CONSERVATORY. 
The importance of maintaining a circulation of air in 
these houses must plead an excuse for so frequently recom¬ 
mending it; a moist, stagnant air is now more injurious 
to them than a cold, dry atmosphere. Camellias, as they 
come into bloom, to be placed in the lightest and driest 
part of the house, as the blooms soon become spotted 
and decay where the air is damp. Pelargoniums to have 
their shoots thinned, to produce stocky plants, and to be 
neatly tied out to sticks. A careful look out to be kept 
that plants may not suffer from drip. Mignonette and 
Neopolitan Violets will require an abundance of light 
and air to keep them from damping off. W. Keane. 
FRAMPTON PARK NURSERY, HACKNEY. 
Me. William Holmes. 
The late Dr. Frampton, of King’s College, London, had 
an estate of fourteen acres out in the suburbs, adjoining 
the nursery of the Messrs. Loddiges, at Hackney. His 
country house and gardens were there, and Mr. Holmes 
was his gardener; but London pushed out too closely 
upon the doctor’s privacy at last, and he had to shift his 
quarters to the west end, and let his Frampton Park for 
building ground, and Mr. Holmes took the first slice of 
the pudding from the side on which the Plums lay thickest 
—from the kitchen garden ; and some of Dr. Frampton’s 
forcing-houses are still at the old trade and doing well in 
the hands of the doctor’s right-hand-man, Mr. Holmes. 
After the first fall of the Horticultural Society, in 1830, 
the zeal and zest for Chrysanthemums went down with 
them about London, and kept about the lowest degrees 
on the scale for the space of ten or twelve years ; and wir 
No. 636.— Vol. XXV. No. 10. 
