90 
THE COTTAGE GARDENER AND COUNTRY GENTLEMAN, May 11, 1858. 
soil, to help to make the mass easily permeable to water, and 
use manure waterings at tlie right time, in preference to 
clogging the soil and injuring the roots, by mixing up with 
tlie C compost sour, rotten dung of any kind. I have had too. 
little experience with sulphate and carbonate to be a sure 
guide for our correspondent, but some friend will, perhaps, 
I supply my deficiency. The great thing is, to err on the safe 
side, and not have the mixture too strong. Supposing that 
you use manure water alternately with clear, and that a com¬ 
mon garden pot will hold four gallons, then for such a pot of 
water, two ounces of Peruvian guano will be ample, three 
Ounces of superphosphate of lime, and three ounces of the 
patent blood manure. For Cinerarias and Calceolarias, nothing 
' answers better than cowdung three or four months old ; a 
bushel of that may be placed in a thirty-six gallon barrel, 
well mixed with the water, and a handful of lime thrown in 
to help to clear it. That, when used, should have as much 
j clear water added to it, so as to make it seventy-two gallons. 
1 A peck of good soot, with a little lime, even though by using 
! the lime you lose a little of the ammonia, will also make a 
similar quantity of liquid strong enough. Two pecks of deer, 
or sheep droppings, will also make seventy-two gallons strong 
j enough, and if at all fresh, the droppings should be in soak 
several weeks before using the water. It is safest to use 
it often, and not too strong at a time. If you have various 
manures, the plants will relish a change, as much as any 
animal would do. I know an excellent forcer of the Straw¬ 
berry, who, in fine weather, feeds them alternately with soot 
water, sheep dropping water, guano water, &c., taking care 
that in all cases the strength is moderate.—R. Fish.] 
SALYIA GESNERiEFLORA LOSING ITS LEAVES. 
“ I have a plant of Salvia gesnerajlora ; about six weeks 
ago its leaves began to get black at the points and round 
the edges, the blackness increasing towards the centre of the 
leaves till they fell off, or till I took them off on account 
of their unsightly appearance. The oldest leaves are now all 
gone, and only the comparatively young leaves remain, which 
gives the plant rather a bare appearance. It appears to be 
going to flower well, but it would greatly improve its appear¬ 
ance were it full of green leaves. I had, also, a plant of the 
same in 1857, and it did exactly tlie same. Can you tell me 
what is the cause of Avliat I complain of, and liow to prevent 
the same in future ? I recollect seeing a remark in one of 
your volumes to the effect, that if watering the plants was at 
any time neglected, it would be at the expense of some of the 
leaves. In consequence of seeing this remark, I was always 
very particular never to neglect watering them.”— An AMA¬ 
TEUR. 
[If you have given plenty of air and water, we fear we 
cannot assist you. Closeness, dryness, and too much heat, 
are liable to produce the effects you speak of. We are rather 
surprised, that at the end of April the Salvia is only going to 
bloom well: with most people it has been in bloom sometime. 
If your first flowers had gone, avc should not have been sur¬ 
prised at many of the larger leaves also taking their departure. 
No plant can be said to be thoroughly an evergreen, as respects ! 
keeping its leaves. Gardeners at places best supplied with 1 
evergreen Oaks, Arbutus, &c., know what a trouble they 
give, by dropping their leaves in summer. In the Salvia tribe, 
it very often happens, that the fading of the first flower- 
spikes is attended with a decaying of the first and larger leaves. 
I have previously mentioned how Avell Mr. Watson, of Ilex- 
ton House, generally manages this plant. I saw them the 
other day; the plants were chiefly in No. 16, or eight-inch 
pots ; were about a yard in height, and from four to five feet 
across at the top ; one mass of scarlet, but the first flower- 
spikes were all gone, and consequently the spikes were small, 
and the foliage also smaller, as most of the largo leaves had 
gone with the first spikes of bloom. I have always lost 
a part of the large foliage, when the first or primary'flower- 
spikes faded. I have not observed much, however, the 
black mark spoken of by this correspondent, and on that 
point would solicit information. I mention the above, that 
An Amateur meantime should not be extra discouraged; 
a little weak manure water will help the size of the leaves 
left. Be sure there is nothing wrong with the drainage, and 
then in favourable weather you can hardly w r ater over much. 
—R. Fish.] 
BANKSIAN ROSES NOT BLOOMING. 
“ I have various kinds of white and yellow' in cool green¬ 
houses, and out of doors ; and I treat them w r ell as respects 
groAvth, and prune them pretty well, but I get feAv Roses.” 
[The reason, Ave suspect, is in the pruning. They are gene¬ 
rally tAvo or three years old before they bloom freely; they 
should have little pruning ; what is wanted is chiefly thinning 
out a lot of the small shoots that have floAvered, and, perhaps, 
removing any very extra strong shoots about July, that there 
seemed little chance of getting thoroughly ripened that season. 
Long, moderately-sized shoots are to be encouraged in summer, 
such as will get w ell ripened before autumn, and from each 
bud of such shoots next spring will a short shoot come, with ! 
its cluster of flowers; of course,buds from spurs will also bloom, 
but not so finely. Tlie little cutting needed should be done in 
early summer, so as to give room for the shoots to bloom next 
year. We lately saw r two fine plants in the conservatory at 
ITexton House; the white was especially fine ; it had been j 
trained to the top of the house, and Avas there flowering freely j 
from short, stubby bits of last year’s Avood. But the great j 
charm was in the long, streaming shoots, produced last sum- ! 
mer, and alloAved to groAv unchecked and unstopped, and 
which, though from three to five yards in length, w’ere a 
mass of bloom from base to point; and looking all the more 
lovely as they hung from the roof in graceful natural Avreatlis, 
with scarcely a tie seen to mark the gardener’s artistic care. 
These, when done flowering, w'ould be cut considerably back, 
and other shoots encouraged to take their place.] 
REMOVING BEES. 
C! I hat'e a hive or two of bees now at Caterham, on the 
Surrey hills. I Avant to remove them to VVanstead, about 
twenty-five miles. Can I do so ? and iioav ?”—J. L. 
[Your stocks of bees ought to have been removed at Christ¬ 
mas, or early in the year. There would now be risk of much 
injury, and perhaps of destruction, as the hives by this time 
are heavy, or ought to be, Avith stores, bees, and brood.] 
NADIRING THE STEWARTON HIVE. 
“ Having procured a Stewarton hive last year, and put a 
prime swarm into it, I am rather at a loss Iioav to proceed in 
regard to Nadiring in the present year. The swarm stands in 
two boxes at present, and has plenty of bees and honey; 
when requiring more room, I mean to put on a honey box. 
Then, as regards Nadiring, do you consider it essential to do 
so ? and, if so, would you do it with an empty box, or a full 
box of comb made last year, as 1 have choice of either ? Then 
as to an opening to the honey box, I mean to draw one of the 
shortest slides at each side; should rainy weather set in after 
seeing they have commenced storing in it, Avould you con¬ 
tract or extend tlie opening to it? I think there must be 
something in this part of management to be clear of brood.”— 
Inquirer. 
[We consider judicious Nadiring as the only plan to secure 
pure honeycomb. There are A'arious methods, but in your 
case we would say, add the box of comb made last year belo w, 
if certain that the tA\'o boxes are Avell filled; and when the 
three boxes are Avell stored, put on a honey box, and draAV out 
a slide on each side. Should the weather become Avet, after 
work has commenced in the honey box, push in the slides, 
leaving about an inch of space open. Under such circum¬ 
stances, if the bees become fewer in number on the comb in 
the honey box, you may be satisfied there is no brood, and 
should withdraw the tw r o slides again immediately the Aveather 
improves.] 
STRAWBERRY FORCING. 
“ 1. It is recommended in The Cottage Gardeners' Dic¬ 
tionary, and in the treatise of McEwen, to lay the runners in 
small pots in summer, and when these pots are filled with 
