E COTTAGE GARDENER AND COUNTRY GENTLEMAN, Eebedaev 26, 1861. 
7 
Elegans, and of all \ cross section from Lobbianum, remain 
in the ground all the ter as safe as nuts, and come up by 
thousands next April and fay, and make far better plants than 
all the hotbed sowings in the country. The bother is that not 
one out of a score of that brood ever comes true from seeds, 
therefore, cannot be depended on for beds; but for sowing on 
roots and in wildernesses these seedlings often come better suited 
than the parents. » 
The Lophospermum scandens would do no good, for want of 
room, as you propose ; but a year-old plant of Maurandya would 
do very well if the soil and situation suited.] 
A REMEDY FOR THE POTATO DISEASE. 
In all affected Potatoes, even before the disease is visible to 
the naked eye, there is found a degree of moisture very far in 
excess of that met with in sound Potatoes; and this watery 
principle gradually increases until the disease itself makes its 
appearance, when the character of the Potato is changed; and 
the transition from comparative soundness to complete rotten¬ 
ness is sometimes the work of a day, but oftener the doings of 
an hour. Cultivators are indebted to Professor Bollman, of 
St. Petersburgh, for the accidental discovery of a remedy, which 
has been found to answer so well in Russia that on many estates 
drying-houses have been built for the purpose of carrying out 
the experiment, and it has been in operation in that country 
since 1853 ; it has, consequently, undergone seven years’ trial. 
In the autumn of 1853, Professor Bollman received from a 
friend (a Colonel in the Russian army stationed in Siberia), a 
sample of a new Potato, with which he received two recom¬ 
mendations—namely, good in quality and a perfect hundred¬ 
fold in produce. These Potatoes were accidentally placed on 
the back of a stove used for heating the Professor’s study, where, 
by some mischance, they were forgotten till the planting season 
arrived. When discovered, they were shrivelled so much that 
fears were entertained they would not grow at all. However, 
the Potatoes were planted, and flourished to such a degree that 
the two recommendations before mentioned were pronounced to 
be verified; and what was more remarkable still, although all 
the Potatoes in the neighbourhood, and throughout the country, 
were more or less affected by disease, every Potato of the new 
kind was entirely free from the disorder. This induced the 
Professor to adopt the expedient of drying ; and, in consequence, 
the entire produce was submitted (after being dug) to a high 
temperature, which had the effect of charring some of the Pota¬ 
toes, and shrivelling the rest. It was surmised at the time that 
-some of the charred Potatoes were killed. They were, never¬ 
theless, planted at the proper season ; and the charred Potatoes 
grew, and did quite as well as those Potatoes which were merely 
shrivelled. The year 1855 also proved that, although the 
disease was generally distributed throughout the country, not 
one of the Professor’s new Potatoes was affected by it in the 
least. The experiment was again repeated in 1856; and the 
crop exhibited the same freedom from disease. The kinds 
mostly in cultivation were then operated on—sorts which were 
yearly more or less affected by the disease—still with the same 
result. The digging time of 1857 produced a splendid crop of 
Potatoes. Upwards of three acres were planted with kiln-dried, 
Potatoes; and although the produce exceeded 1600 bushels, not 
a diseased Potato was discovered. In 1858 Professor Bollman 
erected a drying-house, with heated floors, on his estate; and 
within the past two years similar erections have taken place on 
the different estates of the principal landed proprietors. It is 
gratifying to find that the action of the shrivelling process on 
Potatoes already diseased arrests the progress of the infection, 
and kills the disease, thus leaving a portion of the Potato sound 
enough to be eligible for spring planting. It has been stated 
that by the constant raising new varieties from seed, for plant¬ 
ing, the disease may be considerably diminished; and this 
proved to be the case with the Eluke Kidney, for the first two 
years after it was introduced, and even after its cultivation had 
become pretty general, this famous Kidney had not been attacked 
by disease; but last year the Eluke had been in some instances 
as badly diseased as the Fortyfold, Regents, &c., so that the 
process of kiln-drying promises far greater advantages and more 
certain results than all the expedients put together which have 
been from time to time offered for the consideration of the 
public .—{Irish Farmer's Gazette?) 
[We consider this well worthy of a trial. No experiment 
could be more easily made, for any one could put some of his 
seed Potatoes into a moderately-heated oven, and keep them 
there until well shrivelled, or even slightly burnt on one side, 
but not so much as to injure the vegetating power of the tubers. 
Let three rows be planted with these oven-dried sets alternately 
with three rows with sets from the same sack of Potatoes not 
oven-dried, and at taking-up time let the comparative produce 
of each three rows be accurately weighed, and the comparative 
amount of diseased tubers be ascertained and reported to us 
for publication.— Eds. C. G.] 
CONSTRUCTING- AND HEATING A SMALL; ] 
YINERY, &c. 
I HAVE two Vines (a Sweetwater and a Black Hamburgh), 
planted about four years ago against a south wall 10 feet high. 
They form two branches about two feet from the ground, which 
are trained horizontally; and from them ascend, at proper 
intervals, to the top of the wall, fine rods the growth of last 
summer. The ground was not prepared for them, but they 
were merely stuck in—because I had them by me, and were, in 
fact, neglected pot Vines. No particular care has been taken 
of them, and they have merely partaken of the dressing of the 
flower-border two feet wide, with at times a little blood and 
liquid manure. Perhaps their prosperity may be accounted for 
by their being planted on the site of an old pigeon-house; the 
soil being a deep black mould full of large flint, between which 
and the marl there are about six feet of sand. There was a fine 
show of fruit last year, but it came to nothing on account of 
the season. Now, I wish to turn these Vines to account by 
placing a small greenhouse over them, 10 feet wide, about 24 
feet long (the distance to which the two Vines at present extend 
along the wall), the front to be 5 feet high. What would be 
the best height for the back wall ? 
The Vines are to be the main consideration; but I wish for 
a shelf two feet wide in front, and a low stand towards the back 
—not high enough to shade the Vines on the back wall for 
flowers. °The roof is to be fixed, but made in large sashes, so 
as to be moveable to the site of a new parsonage in two, or at 
most three, years time; the ventilation to be formed by openings 
at the top of the back wall (which I suppose must be raised), 
with sashes to open in front. Would it be best to confine the 
Vines to the back wall, or to train them also down the glass at 
intervals of four feet ? Now, bearing in mind the temporary 
nature of the structure, how could the flowers be best protected 
in the winter, and the Vines a little assisted ? On the north 
side of the back wall I am about to fix a thirty-gallon copper, to 
be used occasionally for cooking purposes in the winter. Could 
that be turned to account by forming the front shelf of a wooden 
tank two feet wide—the length of the house, and connecting it 
with the copper by small flow and return pipes, with stopcocks 
to cut off the communication during the short intervals that 
the copper might be used for other purposes? I wish to run 
the flue from the copper under the path of a small orchard- 
house. The ground level is three feet higher in the yard and 
small orchard-house than it is in the intended greenhouse; so 
that a place for the copper would have to be sunk that much at 
least, in order to bring the top of the copper on a level with the 
tank, which is to form the front shelf in the greenhouse. The 
flue could not have much rise. Would large flints do for the 
bottom and sides of the flue after it gets a certain distance from 
the fire? They would be underground, as the borders are 
raised above the path in the orchard-house.—A Devonshire 
Vicae. 
[The wall being 10 feet high, and the house to be 10 feet 
wide, there is no occasion for raising the wall uuless you like; 
but, of course, the higher you raise it the longer would be your 
sloping roof. As that roof is to be fixed, you might have a 
double wall-plate to your wall, and strong studs every three feet 
between the wall-plates, and between these studs you might have 
ventilators fixed on pivots. If you did not contemplate forcing 
early, you might have ventilators all the way between your 
sashes on the Sir-Josepli-Paxton principle. If none of these 
modes suit you, you must have two or three ventilators at the 
apex. If you did not mean to force the Vines, one opening at 
the apex in the middle, and an opening at each end over the 
doorway, with air in front, would be enough for a twenty-four- 
feet house. If your flue is to be covered over we do not see 
