68 
THE COTTAGE GARDENER AND COUNTRY GENTLEMAN, November 2, 1858. 
heat. The seedlings from the last are potted into thumb pots as j 
soon as handleable, arc transferred to 60’s when necessary, get a 
larger shift if the weather should be very severe, and are kept on 
the lloor of a glass-house, free from much frost, all the winter; and 
then, when the' ground is nicely aired, early in spring, they are 
turned out on a hue day,—some under handglasses and some in 
these ridges ; aud heads can be got freely in April. The frost 
docs not try them so much in the spring as with us ; but the days 
are often long, damp, and sunless. 
The wall and other fruit trees were in excellent condition, and 
the walks were very clean aud comfortable. As Box did not suit 
over well, the edgings were made very neatly of large pebbles, set 
firmly on end; and this gives no harbour for slugs, though the 
constant stirring, the charred material, ashes, Ac., must let those 
that remain at all have'a very Unpleasant life of it. No forcing 
is done with fire heat. Having the firing all together is an ad¬ 
vantage. There are some brick pits, for Melons, Ac., heated by 
linings, and these are boarded over for neatness. There are ever so 
many wood pits, earth pits, and turf pits, in the outside slips, for 
protecting and forwarding all sorts of things ; and there are a 
good number of frames, or boxes, set on dung beds, the mode of 
forming which beds I will just allude to, as being the safest and 
most economical, where a fair amount of fermenting material can 
be procured at first. I practised this mode many years ago, and 
could get Melons, Ac., as easily by it as with a hot-water appa¬ 
ratus. I was rather proud to find, that, without previously 
knowing it, our practice at that time coincided with that now, 
and I suppose then, adopted at Bicton. The distinctive features 
of making such beds seem to be these :—1st. Secure dryness for 
the bed, by a base of faggots, stones, Ac. 2nd. Have the dung 
and leaves well worked and sweet. 3rd. If very short and com¬ 
pact, place another row of faggots, or wood, in the middle of the 
bed, to keep it open. 4th. Do not build the bed too high,— 
from two feet to two feet and a half, or three feet at the most,— 
and there will be little danger of burning at the roots. 
5th. Make the bed at once so large as to have at least two feet— 
the more the better—all round (lie frame, or box. 6th. Ere 
long, bank up this outside space, all round, right to the top of 
the frame, and keep turning it a little, and adding when required. 
I need not say, that, whilst there is no danger of burning the 
roots, you can keep the atmospheric temperature pretty well at 
your command, and can have that dryish or moist at pleasure. 
We have used brick pits for early forcing much in the same way. 
Keep banked up to the wall plate, and you will have little trouble 
in turning linings, or often giving fresh ones. Protect the out¬ 
side with branches, or litter, when extra cold. 
Though not heated, we found a large range of lean-to houses, 
—some 240 feet long, sixteen wide, and about twelve high at 
back, aud five, or more, at front. These were divided into equal 
proportions,—Peaches at one end, Grapes at the other, and Eigs 
in the centre. In the last days of August, many fine Peaches 
and Nectarines were still remaining. Grapes were getting ripe, 
and, to keep them from damping when wet and foggy weather 
came, an iron stove, similar to what I mentioned the other week, 
would be placed inside : plenty of air being given, the heat from 
the stove would alike dry it and put it in active motiou. The 
Eigs were planted against the back wall, and trained down the 
roof, so that they were all above the head. The floor was 
pitched from side to side, but I learnt that the roots were con¬ 
fined to about two feet in depth, and little more than a yard in 
width. An abundant second crop was just coming in, aud we 
were told that the first crop had been abundant. We could well 
imagine what an amount of standing room such houses would 
give for early Cauliflower, early Potatoes in pots, and moderately 
early Strawberries and Erench Beans. 
Erom the outskirts of such a garden much may be learned. I 
will just allude to two or three circumstances. 1st. The ground¬ 
work of superior culture at Bicton is fresh, fibry soil,—sweet, 
well aired, and yet not much decomposed. There being vast 
commons all round, of winch Lady Rollo is proprietor, or lady 
of the manor, there is no difficulty in getting it in abundance. 
The top spit of this is taken, and that not deep ; and, when 
brought home, it is built up iu narrow stacks, with lfipped and 
thatched roofs ; and though a good portion of the Heath, Gorse, 
Ac., is taken with it, yet, to prevent it even then getting too 
compact together, brushwood aud faggots are placed in layers iu 
the heap, in order that the air may circulate freely nil through 
it. 2nd. Several large buildings, in the way of sheds, securely 
thatched with straw or Heath, formed entirely of rough wood, 
without a nail in the whole, and made almost wholly by the 
garden men. A nice lesson is here given in log-cabin making, if 
ever that should be required. A great convenience is also given 
for drying all sorts of seeds, working at large jobs on rainy days, 
and keeping dry and in good order all the larger utensils and im¬ 
plements used upon the farm and garden. 3rd. A bottom was 
made by a layer of Eurze and Heath, but chiefly of the former, 
for all the stacks of victuals, and into that neither mice nor rats 
would intrude their noses. Such stacks are built low and small, 
on account of the gales from the sea; and, noticing that the 
thatching was cut close, instead of hanging over a little, in the 
way of eaves, as in this neighbourhood (Luton), I was told, that 
the ear end of the sheaves was kept more upright than with us, 
and that, therefore, there was no danger of rain entering. 
With much kindness, Mr. Barnes explained his mode of sheep 
rearing, and keeping them free from foot rot, and other diseases, 
and showed us splendid fields of Swedes and Mangold Wurtzel,— 
the plants in wido rows more than met, and had large roots 
there. In every department, the greatest order and system were 
apparent. This order is greatly promoted by a series of rules 
insisted on among the men. A number of years ago, I tried 
some of these rules, and found they saved a great deal of annoy¬ 
ance. They did then work with me, and then got into disuse, 
but I think of reviving them. An abstract of these I shall he 
happy to give, if it should be deemed desirable. Meanwhile, I 
close this long gossip about Bicton, by expressing the pleasure 
I felt, in shaking hands with, and receiving kindness from, a gar¬ 
dener, from whose practice, as embodied in his writings, I had 
previously derived much instruction and advantage. R. Fish. 
THE WARDIAN CASE. 
This name is understood to menu a glass-covered box, or pot. 
When Mr. Ward first introduced it to the notice of (lie public, 
it was thought necessary to be kept close, as if the plants in it 
were about to be exposed to a long sea voyage, and required to 
be kept from contact with the external air. This was a great 
and, in many cases, a fatal mistake. The plants, even where 
they existed for a short time, became attenuated, and of a sickly 
pale hue, and soon died. I have frequently had to refit and 
replant the cases in London for different parties, until at last 
they were iu despair, and gave them up, and consigned them to 
the lumber-room; for the owners said, even when the case was 
fresh planted, the moisture condensed on, and obscured the sight 
of, the interesting Ferns and other plants, aud thus took away 
the pleasure that would have accrued had the glass been kept 
clear. 
I always admired these tiny glass-houses, and, indeed, do so 
now. I think it a great pity that any mismanagement slioidd 
have a tendency to discourage the use of these interesting orna¬ 
ments of the drawing-room, or staircase, or wherever they may 
be placed. In order, as far as lays iu my power, or influence, 
to prevent such a misfortune, and to induce cultivators to try 
then' skill in planting and managing these glass-covered plant- 
cases, I will give my experience on the subject in this essay, and 
I trust my remarks will be found useful to many readers of The 
Cottage Gakdeneb. 
The Glass Case may be of any form and size. It should, 
however, have the following conditions :—1st. As it generally is 
placed in a room, where if the superfluous water escapes it will 
be objectionable, provision should be made to catch it. This is 
easily accomplished by having a water-tight imder-case, with a 
tap at the lowest part, to draw off the superfluous water. 
2nd. The soil to fill the case with should he of a porous nature, 
and should be elevated above the rim of that part of the case 
that holds the soil. 3rd. The upper, or glazed part, should be 
quite distinct, and then, when it is lifted off, the operation of 
culture may be easily performed. If the case is a large one, 
it will for safety be necessary to have two persons to lilt off 
the glazed, or upper part. A greater interest may be created by 
forming miniature rockwork, with some light porous stone, or 
cinders, washed over with Roman cement. Where this is 
adopted, small interstices should be left within, or between the 
pile. Pumice stone is the best material that I can find for this 
purpose. It is sufficiently light and porous, and answers admi¬ 
rably. Considerable taste may bo displayed in forming this 
mimic rock. It should he of a varied outliue, both in the height, 
level, and the sides and ends,—a mere sloping wall is a very 
formal and tasteless affair. For the sake of variety, different 
coloured stones may bo used. 
