154 
THE GARDENING WORLD 
November 6, 1886. 
applied with advantage. "With this treatment a nice 
show of flowers may be kept up all through the winter, 
and, as the plants get past flowering, they may be- 
stored away in frames, and planted out in borders at 
the bedding season. 
Plants, if cut down when flowering is done, and 
placed in a Vinery to break, and afterwards taken out 
and repotted in the same sized pots, will be found to 
amply repay for the trouble. It will be necessary to 
afford them a nice position, and to give them every 
encouragement, and they will again yield a good show 
of flowers in a short time. If large specimens are 
wanted, they may be potted on again as needed, and 
will make large plants by the autumn. I, however, 
prefer plants in small pots, struck annually, as they 
are more useful for decorating purposes ; in fact, they 
may be used for almost anything. It is almost useless 
to attempt to give a list of varieties; I will, however, 
mention a few that may be relied on as good sorts 
for winter work. 
Doublc-floivered Varieties .—White Wonderful, Alba 
perfecta, Amelia Baltet, Souvenir de Carpeux, Vesta, 
Madame Thibaut, Emile Lemoine, Wonderful, Madame 
Maurice Aubery, Comtesse H. de Choiseul, General 
Farre, Lucy Lemoine. 
Singlc-flowcrecl Varieties. —Eureka, White Vesuvius, 
Empress of Germany, Henry Jacoby, John Gibbons, 
Mrs. Leavers, Master Christine, Llebe, Vesuvius, Lucy 
Bosworth, Edith Pearson, Dr. John Denny. — Wales. 
■ --- 
STOKE-HOLES AND HEATING 
BY HOT WATER. 
I AM very glad to see that your correspondent, 
“ Hortus,” has brought up the question of the stoke¬ 
hole in last week’s impression. This, in conjunction 
with the broader question of heating glasshouses by 
hot water, is one well worthy of discussion in the 
columns of The Gardening World, and I hope it 
may be taken up in earnest by someone having full 
opportunities of thoroughly testing the subject. The 
reason for this is, that having taken part in a discussion 
on the question some years ago, in which I held, along 
with others, the opinion expressed by the originator, 
that a continuous rise in the flow-pipe throughout its 
whole length, was not only unnecessary but an evil, so 
much irrelevant matter was introduced that the dis¬ 
cussion was stopped. 
Hot-water engineers have a theory that it is almost, 
if not quite, necessary to sink the boiler by excavating 
a deep stoke-hole, in order to have the rise of the flow- 
pipe on a slow gradient up to its extreme length, 
which is its highest point. This continual rise they 
hold is the best, if not the only way of ensuring perfect 
circulation in the pipes. This is theory, and it is held 
on their part that what may be correct in theory must 
also be correct in practice. But all practical men, that 
is, the men who have the work to perform, not those 
who hold the theory, know what a nuisance these deep 
stoke-holes are in many cases, leaving the expense of 
them out of the case altogether. In the progress of 
the discussion referred to, it was proved on several 
points that the engineers were wrong in both theory 
and practice, and, so far as it went, the consensus of 
opinion and practice was decidedly against them. 
Instances were then given of the different apparatus 
working on the same principle as that quoted by 
“Hortus,” and which were giving entire satisfaction 
to those who had them in use, and their evidence 
completely upset that put forward in defence of the 
continuous rise in the flow. 
I hoped at the time when the different systems of 
boilers and fittings were on their trial at the late 
exhibition at Liverpool, that some attention would 
have been given to this point by the judges, but if any 
notice has been paid to it I have not yet seen any 
mention of it. Considering the importance of the 
principle, and the expense and annoyance very often 
incident to these deep stoke-holes, I should, for one, 
be pleased to see the matter set at rest. — JR. Stevens, 
Paston. 
I quite agree with the remarks of your correspondent 
“Hortus,” at p. 133. I am sure it would be a great 
relief if some means could be found for dispensing with 
deep stoke-holes. I, for one, am troubled with one 
which is 11 ft. below the ground level, and until lately 
we had to stand on two bricks to get to the fire. At 
the present time water is running in through the wall 
as though it were a sieve ; but we are not quite so 
much troubled in getting to fire-up now, as I had a 
well sunk in the floor and a pump put in, which lands 
the water outside to be carried off by a drain. ‘‘ Hortus ’ 
speaks of stepping over his shoe-tops into these water- 
traps ; I can tell him of a worse case than that. When 
an apprentice, I was going round my fires one cold 
winter night, and stepped very nearly up to my arm- 
pits in a stoke-hole, and got such a fright I shall never 
forget; it cooled my courage, I can tell you. The 
stoke-hole in question was built by a Cheshire firm of 
horticultural builders, and I hope they will not forget 
to put a drain to the next one they make. — T. J. JD. 
I was much pleased to see the reference to stoke¬ 
holes made by “Hortus” in your last issue, and 
hope to see more correspondence on the subject. 
He refers to a boiler, fixed on the ground level, heating 
200 ft. of piping from 2 ft. to 3 ft. below it. Well, if 
this answers in one place, why uot in others, aud why 
should w 7 e have inconveniently deep stoke-holes at all ? 
We have some pipes fixed where the flow-pipe has to 
fall 3 ft. to pass under a walk to some pits, and rise 
again 1 ft. inside the pit, and it works well; but the 
return-pipe has a slight fall to the boiler.— V. J. 
- =->£<- - 
MUSHROOM CULTURE.* 
In the culture of the Mushroom some are successful 
and some are not, at times failing to produce them even 
in Mushroom houses erected purposely for their culture, 
whilst- many gardeners and amateurs, with very re¬ 
stricted accommodation at hand, obtain good supplies 
all the year round. I have grown Mushrooms for 
several years, adopting several plans, but with the 
simple plan I work upon now I rarely have a failure. 
The only accommodation I now have for cultivating 
Mushrooms is underneath a stage in a cool greenhouse 
without the aid of heat from liot-water pipes. The 
house is 20 ft. long by 1-1 ft. wide, span-roofed, with a 
path through the centre. Underneath one side of the 
stage.are six divisions for six beds, each 3 ft. long by 
4J ft. wide, and with a depth of 18 ins., a single brick 
wall dividing the beds. 
Wooden shutters are used in front, and moveable 
board divisions from the stage above the beds, so that 
manure can be easily got in and out. Three large zinc 
pans, each 6J ft. long by 41 ft. wide, with a hole at 
one corner for the water to pass away when watering 
the plants, prevents any dripping of water on to -the 
Mushroom beds. Manure is gathered every morning 
from our stables, and the droppings and short straw 
placed under au open shed, care being taken to prevent 
its heating itself into too dry a state ; and when 
sufficient is obtained for a bed, it is turned over every 
day for a week, aud when it has lost all its deleterious 
fermentation and the heat is on the decline, it is put 
into any of the beds which require making up, and two 
or three days after, the spawn is put in and 2 in. of 
good soil put on the top, and in six weeks we are 
cutting a good supply from these newly made beds. 
With regard to beating the soil hard, as some re¬ 
commend, I give it only a moderate firmness, as I well 
remember failures from excessive treading and failure 
of the spawn to germinate. I spawn when the beds 
register a heat of about 80°, for it is a great mistake to 
spawn a bed with the heat over 10'Q°, and from this 
cause failures frequently arise. I have found so con¬ 
stantly that my Mushrooms are firmer in the flesh, 
tenderer and more juicy, grown under such conditions 
as I have indicated, than when grown with fire-heat. 
With the plan I adopt, and making a new bed directly 
one gives out, I keep up a good supply for a small 
family, and the heat from the manure of the new bed 
penetrates the wall on either side, and gives renewed 
vigour to the other beds. I seldom water, but if I do, 
I use ■water from 80° to 90° in temperature with a good- 
sized piece of salt dissolved in it. Just a word or two 
with regard to the enemies we have to deal with in 
Mushroom culture. I have used as a simple remedy 
for catching woodlice, a rotten piece of wood placed 
close to the side of the bed, giving just sufficient space 
for the woodlice to harbour taking it out each morning 
and clearing off the woodlice. I made up, on August 
22nd, two beds, each 3 ft. long and 4^ ft. wide, and I 
began cutting the last rveek in September, aud these 
* Extract from a paper read by Mr. J. Crooke, at a'meeting of 
the Birmingham and Midland Counties Gardeners’ Mutual Im¬ 
provement Association, on October 20th. 
beds have already produced over 50 lbs. of fine 
Mushrooms. 
My chief object to-night is to show what can be done 
on so small a scale, and I recommend the culture of 
the Mushroom to all present, as a more appreciated 
vegetable cannot well be sent into the house for an 
employer’s use. I just wish to say before I sit down 
that I have recently obtained much valuable informa¬ 
tion from a practical treatise on the culture of the 
Mushroom, written by Mr. Wright. It can be obtained 
at a cost of Is., and this indispensable guide, under the 
name of Mushrooms for the Million, will be a friend to 
all. An interesting discussion followed, in which 
Messrs. Bick, Jinks, Wood, Wheeler, Jones, Harris and 
Spinks took part, the last-named gentleman describing 
the method of cultivation practised in France. 
-- 
THE TOADS IN COUNCIL. 
A somewhat hj 7 percritical correspondent writes :— 
Mr. Worthington Smith does not suggest what the 
urgent business may be under discussion by the four 
reptilian worthies, illustrated in The Gardening 
World for October 16th, hut it has struck me that 
possibly the gentleman at the bottom has just been 
dispatched on a “ mission ” to Kew, to see how the 
“authorities” are getting on in the introduction of 
economics in the practical branch of that much-lauded 
establishment. Possibly the upper toad (if feeble¬ 
minded enough) is advocating the establishment of 
hereditary life presidentships over all scientific societies 
and national institutions ; perhaps he also wishes 
(judging from the expression of his countenance) to 
establish new orders of companionship of Turveydrop, 
Pecksniff and Lazarus, with suitable “decorations” 
for each order. But no proper toad would suffer 
himself to he decorated in any way, or by any one, or 
tied with a rosette of any sort, like a brainless 
Michaelmas goose, or an inferior Christmas pig in a 
butcher’s shop. If the two toads ou the right 
and left are unmitigated scientific unworthies (which 
it is clear they are not), they may be advocating 
the prepayment of professional professors for work 
which will never be done, and the money endow¬ 
ment of some scientific “ring.” It would be cruel to 
suggest that they may be thinking of the establishment 
of a Kew Pioyal Mutual Back-scratching Society, all 
new members to be near relatives (blood or professional) 
of “the old stagers.” 
If the toad on the right is a sensible toad, he 
is possibly objecting to the luncheon skirmishing pro¬ 
clivities of certain fashionable pseudo-scientific societies, 
and to scientific “rings” and scientific wire-pulling 
of all sorts ; and he possibly thinks that Professor 
Huxley ought not to have had room for “ considerable 
reason to complain that too frequently those who 
have obtained grants through the committee make 
no report of the rvork done to the society, but leave in¬ 
formation on that head to reach us as it may, through 
the publications in which the results obtained by the 
grantee are made known ” ; and that Nature (Nov. 26, 
1885, p. 74) ought not to have had room to say “ pro¬ 
fessional devotion and a dash of impudence are quite as 
frequently the passport to the ‘ professional eminence ’ 
of an expert as scientific abilit 3 T .” What does it all 
mean ? 
-- 
Hardening Miscellany. 
The Madresfield Court Grape.— Evidently 
the disorder from which this particular Grape is 
suffering has become chronic or is fast approaching 
that unenviable condition, else, may I ask why this 
annual discussion about its cracking propensity? No 
matter what variety it may be, someone will be found 
bold enough to champion its cause, and this particular 
one evidently does not lack supporters, albeit its 
vagaries are of the most grievous kind. One had better 
imagine than attempt to describe (when a particular 
stage has been arrived at in the culture of what I may 
safely be permitted to term, this spoilt child of a 
Grape) the look of consternation on the visage of 
the cultivator as he walks through his Yineries and 
perceives his crop which he has so carefully nursed, 
spoilt by the dreaded cracking of the tender skin. 
Now this Grape has been in commerce, as far as 
my memory serves me, something like twenty years, 
