266 
THE GARDENING WORLD 
December 27, 1890. 
The Amateurs’ Garden. 
SEASONABLE WORK in the GARDEN. 
Begonias and Gloxinias.—Sowings maybe made 
of each of these for an early batch. Those who have 
corns or tubers may also pot up a batch of Gloxinias 
for the earliest display. In sowing seeds make up a 
light compost of peat and loam, using plenty of clean 
silver sand. Use shallow seed pans, and after draining 
well, fill up to within i in. of the rim ; press firm, 
and after levelling, sow the seeds thinly. Give a 
slight sprinkling of the same compost, not so much as 
to cover the soil, but merely to hold them in position. 
Cover with a square of glass until the seeds germinate, 
and then place the pans on a shelf near the glass and 
gradually ventilate, finally removing the glass from the 
pans altogether. 
Azaleas for Early Work.—In selecting Azaleas 
for early work, attention should be given to those which 
have the most forward buds. Some of the white 
kinds, such as Narcissiflora and the old A. indica alba 
hardly require any forcing, particularly the former, 
and should be largely used. A. amrena forces readily, 
and supplies a large quantity of bloom. Flag of Truce 
and The Bride are also well adapted for early work. 
Eupatoriums.—E. odoratum has long been in 
flower, and its place will presently be taken by E. 
rapirium, which is now rapidly advancing. E. Wein- 
mannianum is, as a rule, but sbowdng its flower heads, 
and must receive plentiful supplies of water and be 
kept near the glass to preserve its foliage in good 
condition. All, however, require an abundance of 
water, particularly after their pots are filled with roots. 
Weak liquid manure given occasionally will also prove 
a great assistance. 
Epacris.—When hard forced, in order to get bloom 
early, the flowers of this class of plants come poor and 
small. Wore satisfaction is obtained by pruning back 
the plants, or a batch of them, early in the season, 
and starting them into growth afresh in a brisk heat. 
They then ripen their wood early, plump up their 
flower buds, and naturally come into bloom early with 
very little coaxing. 
Carnations. — The tree or perpetual-flowering 
section should now be quite gay, thus rewarding the 
cultivator for his unceasing care of them when flowers 
were more plentiful than at present. Keep the house 
at a night temperature of 50°, stand the plants in a 
well-lighted position near the glass, and ventilate on 
all favourable occasions. 
Chrysanthemums.—See that cuttings have been 
taken of all the varieties of Chrysanthemums which it 
is intended to preserve. A list should be kept, 
marking all those of which cuttings have been taken. 
Sorts which have not yet afforded the requisite quantity 
of cuttings should be headed down to induce them to 
throw up suckers. 
Vineries.—Should the fruit room uot be in working 
order, preparations may now be made for receiving the 
late-keeping Grapes, that is, those which are intended 
to furnish a supply till April or May. It should be 
thoroughly cleaned, warmed and ventilated to expel 
moisture. A temperature of 40 Q to 45° should be kept 
up, and every effort should be made to prevent sudden 
fluctuations of temperature. Muscats and others of 
that class may be cut whenever the house is in order, 
but thick-skinned ones like Lady Downes should be 
allowed to hang on the Vines till they attain their full 
flavour. 
Cucumbers.—The weather for some time past has 
been extremely unfavourable to the well-being of 
Cucumbers making growth, as no ventilation has been 
possible. Take every advantage of sunshine, venti¬ 
lating when the temperature rises sufficiently high, and 
closing early in the afternoon. Syringe lightly on fine 
days, in order to prevent the rapid increase of red- 
spider. Feed occasionally with weak liquid manure if 
the plants are growing freely. 
Strawberries in Pots.—The long-continued cold 
weather makes work in forcing very difficult, and in 
few cases is forcing made more futile by the action of 
cold and sunless weather, than in the forcing of 
Strawberries. The best plan to pursue under the 
circumstances is to maintain a low temperature, and wait 
for better weather. Artificial heat can be applied to 
any extent, but the result will merely be a failure, 
unless a certain amount of sunshine, or at least good 
light can be secured. 
Seed Sowing.—Where a supply of plants for 
sub-tropical gardening is required, it will now be 
necessary to set about sowing those kinds which are 
raised from seed. This applies to Eucalyptus globulus, 
and other species, to Grevillea robusta, Acacia lophantha, 
Cannas, Wigandias, and similar subjects. By sowing 
now, it will allow them to attain a suitable size for 
planting out in May. 
Hedychiums, Cannas, &c.—It will be advisable 
to look over the stock of roots of these things to see 
that they are not rotting and spoiling one another. 
The tuberous roots or rhizomes of Salvia patens often 
kept underthe same conditions in winter will also require 
overhauling. It may be that some of them lying too 
near the hot-water pipes are being dried and shrivelled 
up, owing to the excessive firing during the past few 
weeks. The same thing applies to Dahlias, Marvel of 
Peru (Mirabilis Jalapa), Gladioli corms and similar sub¬ 
jects stored away for the winter. 
-->X<-- 
CHRYSANTHEMUMS FOR 
EXHIBITION* 
One of the first things an intending exhibitor has to 
do, is to ascertain how many plants can be properly 
housed, and also how many can be well grown through 
the summer. Better results will be secured from 300 
well-attended plants than from double that number 
partially neglected. Selection of varieties is another 
important matter ; but with the valuable additions we 
have of recent years it is much more easy to obtain a 
good selection than formerly. The beautiful new 
Japanese seedlings have so enriched the collections, 
that it makes us wish for new incurved seedlings besides 
the valuable sports we have in that class. Perhaps the 
most convenient way to ascertain which are the best 
varieties for exhibition, is to take the National 
Chrysanthemum Society’s catalogue for a guide, and 
then note the varieties in the winning stands at the 
exhibitions. Good novelties possess much interest, 
and should be added when possible. Directly the 
exhibitions are over, when the varieties seen are fresh 
in the memory, compare the list for the following 
season, marking against each variety the number of 
plants you intend to grow. Additional cuttings should 
be inserted to allow for losses and weak plants. It is 
much better to have a choice of plants in the spring, 
and be able to reject any that are weak or not quite 
satisfactory. The strong competition of the present 
time should induce the exhibitor to grow specially for 
the classes in which he has a chance to win. It is 
much better for him and for the exhibition too. A 
grower who has a small number of plants stands little 
chance of winning a prize in a large class ; but by 
growing a few plants each of the best varieties, and 
entering the smaller classes, he is much more likely to 
be successful. Large exhibitors, too, are more success¬ 
ful in the end by not attempting to do too much. 
Havingdetermined the numbers and varieties to grow, 
and so commenced for the season, make due provision 
to protect the plants from checks of all kinds. The 
Chrysanthemum is subject to so many checks that 
constant attention is required throughout the year. 
Injury arises through suddenly exposing them to cold 
draughts, especially if struck in heat, by allowing 
them to become root-bound before re-potting, by 
the soil becoming dry at any period of their growth, and 
by excessive use of chemical manure. I will detail a 
few points of the system of culture I have followed 
with a fair amount of success. 
Cuttings. 
These are inserted at the end of November, and the 
beginning of December, and are placed in a cold pit. I 
have inserted cuttings much later with good results, 
but it is convenient to have them early, and to be able 
to clear out the large pots. I prefer strong and sturdy 
cuttings about 3 ins. long, taken off level with the 
soil in the pot in preference to those dug out of the soil 
or stem cuttings, although stem cuttings are used 
occasionally when others are not to be had. Small 60- 
sized pots are used, placing one cutting in each pot. A 
crock is placed over the hole in each pot, and the pot 
is filled with soil, consisting of half loam, half leaf- 
soil, and a fair amount of sand. The base of the 
cutting resting on a little silver sand, the soil is made 
moderately firm, and is then ready for the pit. Any 
good varieties that have deteriorated for more than a 
season are obtained from a fresh source, where they 
can be depended on being true to name. A change of 
stock is always desirable where good exchanges can be 
From a paper read at the Chrysanthemum Centenary 
Conference on November 15th. 
made. The cuttings are placed in a cold pit, or with 
only such heat as is desired from a Melon bed made the 
previous spring, and are arranged a few inches from the 
glass. The cold pit has an inconvenience in the 
covering it requires, but I think *the cuttings are 
improved in constitution by the cool treatment, though 
it would be injurious to cuttings taken out of heat to 
place them in a cold pit. Where large blooms are 
grown it is necessary to use fire heat for two or three 
weeks to protect them from damp, and in my opinion a 
cool after treatment is beneficial to them when the 
cuttings are hardy and vigorous. As the cuttings are 
rooted we remove them to an adjoining pit, where they 
are gradually inured to air, and when well rooted they 
are ready for 
Potting. 
The strong-growing varieties are placed in 6-inch pots, 
the weak growers in 4-inch pots. The following I 
consider weak varieties :—In the incurved, Empress 
Eugenie, Barbara, Mrs. Heale, Mrs. W. Shipman, Lady 
Hardinge, Nil Desperandum, Princess Beatrice, Cherub, 
Princess of Wales, Miss M. A. Haggas, Yiolet Tomlin, 
and Mrs. S. Coleman ; in the Japanese, Meg Merrilies, 
Ralph Brocklebank, Japonais, Madame John Laing, 
L’Adorable, Criterion, and Jeanne Delaux. The shift 
into 6-inch pots is a large one, but it succeeds well 
with me. 
The plants are well watered before potting, 
and the soil being in a moist condition they do not 
require water for some time, and the roots quickly take 
to the new soil. The pit is kept rather close for a few 
days ; the plants are damped over the foliage occasion¬ 
ally of bright mornings. When the soil is becoming 
rather dry, they are given one good watering, after 
which the plants are separately watered as required. 
There is danger of the weak varieties not rooting 
quickly into the 6-inch pots, the soil becoming heavy 
and possibly dry, and that is why the smaller pots are 
used, but they are transferred into the 6-inch pots as 
soon as they are fairly rooted, and not allowed to 
become root-bound. 
The soil at this potting consists of two-thirds loam, 
one-third of leaf-soil, a free addition of sand, and a 
6-inch potful of bone dust to each two bushels of soil. 
The pots are carefully crocked, and a little rough turf 
placed over the crocks. As the plants are established 
in their pots they are gradually hardened, until the 
lights are left off night and day. The final shift is 
given from the last week in May until the second week 
in June, placing the strongest growers in 10-inch 
pots, and the others in 9-inch pots. The soil is made 
up of two parts loam, medium for stiffness, half part of 
well-decayed cow manure, half part leaf-soil from 
Oak leaves, a liberal amount of sand, and a 6-inch pot 
of bone dust to every barrowful of soil. A little soot 
and wood ashes is added, the whole well mixed together 
and placed under cover for use. 
No detail in connection with the growth of this 
plant is considered of more importance than draining 
the pots, and it is quite equal in importance to the 
composition of the soil. Well-crocked pots allow all 
superfluous water to escape ; the free passage of air 
keeps the soil sweet, and assists the formation of 
healthy roots, capable of assimilating liberal supplies of 
liquid manure at a later stage. The soil is well 
rammed as potting proceeds, and the pots are then 
wheeled out to a sheltered position open to the sun, 
but protected from high winds. They are placed in 
rows 8 ft. apart, to allow plenty of sun and air to reach 
them to assist in ripening the wood, and they are 
arranged on boards to prevent worms entering. 
Manures. 
Many artificial manures are recommended for applica¬ 
tion. For the use of amateurs, and where the use of 
natural manures are objectionable, they afford valuable 
aid when used with care. For those unable to get a 
good supply of natural manures, and for application 
during a long spell of wet weather they are beneficial. 
I have had the best results from natural manures 
obtained from a cesspool with the drainings from cow¬ 
houses and piggeries, to which is added a little soot. 
After an extended practice I am convinced a continued 
excessive use of artificial manures is one of the causes 
of damping in the lower florets of light coloured blooms. 
—Charles Gibson. 
Asp atria Agricultural College. —At the dis¬ 
tribution of prizes at this college, on the 19th inst., 
Sir James Whitehead, Bart., delivered a very interest¬ 
ing address on the subject of hardy fruit culture, which 
has been issued in pamphlet form. 
