344 
THE GARDENING WORLD. 
Jan. 31st, 1885. 
THE GREENHOUSE. 
This is about the worst time of year for greenhouses, 
as now that Chrysanthemums and winter-flowering 
Salvias are over, there is not much to make them gay, 
but, fortunately, Camellias, Primulas, and Cinerarias 
will soon be in, and, by a little management, Deutzias, 
early Rhododendrons, and hardy Azaleas, may be 
made to follow, as they require but little heat to 
forward them, and the Azaleas and Deutzias, being 
deciduous, may be brought on by placing them under 
the stage, or anywhere in the dark, till the buds 
break, and the same with many herbaceous subjects, 
such as Lily of the Valley, Solomon’s Seal, Spiraea 
japonica, Dielytra spectabilis, and a host of things of 
that class, which really force best in the absence of 
light, and it is a good plan to cover the crowns with a 
few inches of cocoa-nut fibre, as that keeps them in a 
uniform condition as regards heat and moisture. 
Pelargoniums, of the show and fancy class, should 
have their shoots stopped by just nipping out the 
points, which will cause them to break back and 
become furnished below. If it is deshed to extend 
the size of the plants, all that is necessary is to pull 
down and tie out the branches, as when they start 
again they will fill up and furnish. To keep them 
dwarf and stocky, they must have full light, a shelf up 
near the glass being the best place, as there they are 
sure to grow short-jointed and strong. The zonal 
section, which includes most of the double and single 
kinds, are best kept quite dry and at rest for a time 
longer, but a few old Fuchsias should be started, and 
any young ones kept gently growing on, by giving 
them water when they need it, as they last 
much longer in bloom during the early part of the 
season, than they do when the weather becomes dry 
and hot. 
Although it is not desirable to have many climbers 
in a greenhouse, one or two take off the plainness and 
furnish the roof, for which purpose there is nothing 
more useful than Marechal Kiel or Gloire de Dijon 
Roses, and under the treatment they get there they 
are always at home, and afford an immense number 
of blossoms. To start with them, it is best to get good 
strong plants in pots, and to prepare a border for 
planting them in by putting a barrow-load or so of 
fresh loam, in which they should be turned out with 
balls entire, as then there is no check, and they start 
away vigorously and make some fine shoots. These 
afford the flowers, and ought to be encouraged by 
keeping green-fly off them, which may be done by 
fumigating, and now and then giving a heavy syringing 
to wash stragglers off. 
PITS AND FRAMES. 
Many have to make shift with these to winter bedding 
stuff in, but, unless there is a hot-water pipe in the pit, 
they are the worst places possible, as damp is almost 
as fatal as frost, and in close foggy weather it kills 
many plants, for without some means of expelling it 
they cannot be dried and the leaves decay in a whole¬ 
sale way and carry rot to the stems. To mitigate the 
evil the only thing is to pick them over frequently and 
give ah on all favourable occasions when there is any 
drying influence abroad, but, if it can be done, half 
succulent things, like Pelargoniums, should be got 
into a house. 
For propagating Chrysanthemums a cold frame is 
just the place, and cuttings should be put in at once 
and kept quite close till they strike. The shoots to 
be chosen are those that are dwarf and strong, and by 
a little care these may often be taken off with roots, 
when, if potted singly and grown on with plenty of 
air, they make the best plants. If cuttings are taken 
they should be about 3 ins. long and cut close to a 
joint, and, after the lower leaf is taken away, inserted 
in sandy soil, either singly or three or four in a small 
pot, after which all that is necessary is to give 
them a little water, and, as above mentioned, keep 
them close till they root, but on no account give any 
heat, as that spoils them by making them weak and 
long in the stems. 
As it will be time now to be raising seeds and 
propagating other plants that require warmth, a 
hot-bed should at once be made up, tan being 
a good material for the purpose, as it keeps in regular 
fermentation and makes a genial atmosphere that 
suits all things. Dung and leaves are the next 
best, but these need preparing by being laid up in a 
heap together and turned over to let out the rank 
steam, and after the bed is made up it is a good plan 
to have a thin layer of cocoa-nut fibre or sawdust to 
plunge the pots in. 
FLOWER BEDS AND BORDERS. 
Now that we have had a taste of sharp frost, and it may 
be expected to visit us again, plants of doubtful hardi¬ 
ness ought to be looked to and protected, as, owing to the 
exceptionally mild weather, they grew very late and 
are ill prepared to endure much cold. This being so, 
some dry straw, hay, or leaves should be put round 
Pampass Grass and Tritomas, and to keep either of 
these materials in their place, as well as to hide 
them, it is a good plan to stick a few evergreen 
branches around. Roses may be made quite safe by 
mulching with a good dressing of half-rotten stable 
manure placed loosely among them or round their 
collars, which is the vital or important part, for if 
they escape there they will break again, even though 
the tops get killed, as there are always dormant buds 
at the base. 
FRUIT AND VEGETABLE GARDENS. 
As all amateurs, who have a glass-house, essay to 
grow Grapes, it may be of use to many to say a few 
words on vine borders, especially as the present is a 
good time to make them. The difficulty with most is 
soil, but though it is desirable to start the vines in 
fresh stuff, it is not necessary in all cases to put 
much, as the natural land in some districts suits the 
plants well, for, unlike other fruit-trees, they are not 
over particular, but flourish in anything ranging from 
clay down to sand. What they dislike most is wet, 
and therefore the ground in front of the vinery should 
have a deep drain cut to carry off the water, that is, 
if it happens to be low and flat, but if otherwise, the 
natural fall will be sufficient to do all that is wanted. 
For planting the vines in, there is nothing equal to 
fresh turfy loam, such as is to be got from waste 
places by the roadside or any old pasture, and this 
should be chopped up rough and used pure and 
simple, as admixtures often do more harm than good. 
The soil beyond, however, ought to be trenched deep 
and have a dressing of thoroughly rotten manure 
worked in, as then the vine roots will be able to 
extend freely and find the food and moisture they 
want. Although they may be planted now, it is quite 
as well to wait till the middle of March, but at 
whatever time, the thing is to shake the plants out, 
and disentangle their roots, and then lay them in 
regularly straight out in the border, covering them up 
while doing so with the new soil, and finishing off 
with the surface level and smooth. 
Those who have established vines, and wish for 
early Grapes, may begin to force by keeping the house 
closed and a little fire going, so as to raise the tem¬ 
perature to 55 degs. or so by night and 60 degs. by day, 
which degree of heat, with moisture from syringing 
the rods and damping the floors, will soon start the 
buds. 
In the outdoor fruit department it is time for 
all planting to be brought to a close, as trees put in 
late stand but a poor chance of becoming established. 
As soon as they are in, see that they are secured from 
wind-waving by having stakes, or proper supports, and 
ties to keep them steady, and that the ground 
immediately over the roots is mulched with a 
layer of half-rotten manure, which is a great help to 
all fresh moved things, as it prevents frost entering, 
and maintains the soil about the plants in a regular 
condition as regards warmth and moisture. 
In the vegetable garden there is little now pending, 
except the necessary manuring and digging of the 
land so as to be prepared for cropping, the time for 
which will soon be here, and if the ground is thrown 
up rough, the action of frost will have a good effect in 
disintegrating and making it friable, and in proper 
condition for sowing the seed. 
TORENIA CONCOLOR. 
The Torenias are deservedly popular garden plants, 
from their elegant and floriferous habit, and the 
beautiful colours of their flowers. T. concolor was 
introduced from China by Fortune to the Horticultural 
Society’s Gardens in 1844. It was found growing in 
marshy ground, at an elevation of 2,000 ft., in Hong 
Kong. The colour of the corolla is a beautiful 
violet; and except in this respect it is very similar to 
T. asiatica and T. hirsuta. The former of these has 
a corolla of a purple-blue tinge, with a very dark 
purple blotch at the tip of each of the three lower 
corolla-lobes. The latter has a reddish rather than 
a bluish tinge, the upper lobe is reddish-purple, the 
side lobes are very dark purple, and the lower one 
white with a purple margin. It is figured in the 
January number of The Botanical Magazine, from 
plants which flowered at Kew last August; seeds 
having been sent by Mr. Ford, of Hong-Kong. 
Toeexia Foedii.— This second species is also 
figured in the above-named work—a species new to 
science. It flowered at Kew last June, from seeds 
sent in 1883 by Mr. Ford, superintendent of the HoDg- 
Kong Botanic Garden (after whom the species is 
named). These were obtained in an expedition to the 
Lo-fau-Shan mountains, on the coast of China, 
opposite to Hong-Kong. Its nearest ally is T. 
cordifolia, which has a pale blue corolla, while 
T. Fordii has a pale straw-coloured corolla, the two 
side lobes having a violet blotch at the tip. It is less 
showy than some of the other species, but is still a 
neat and pretty little plant. 
- Cr"o - 
TRICOLOR AND ZONAL 
PELARGONIUMS. 
Tkicoloe Pelargoniums are often found deficient in 
numbers for the requirements at bedding time, with 
the result that the beds are thinly planted, and on 
that account are ineffective. I have known this to go 
on in the same establishment for years in succession, 
yet when properly treated they are among the most 
easy plants to multiply. Where any difficulty is 
experienced is generally where the system of taking late 
autumn cuttings is followed. The plan I have followed 
for several years and with the best results is to let the 
plants take their course through the summer, never 
removing any cuttings except it be to bring the plants 
into better and more regular form. These plants are 
lifted in the autumn before they get bitten by frost, 
potted into suitable sized pots, and placed in a warm 
pit, such an one as the summer Melons were grown in, 
and when they have taken to their pots they are 
removed to a cool vinery for the winter. 
About the middle of January these plants are 
removed to a vinery that is started about that time, 
and where they will receive a little warmth for a week 
or so prior to the cuttings being taken off. This is 
done some time during February, but if a good brisk 
heat is not at command, it ■would be better left to the 
beginning of March. A position near the glass at the 
warm end of a stove suits them well, but we have 
followed another plan for several years, which is to 
put the cuttings into 60-size pots in a mixture of loam, 
leaf-soil, and sand in equal parts, the pots being well 
drained. These are then plunged into 48-size pots, 
packing some moss round the sides and at the bottom, 
when they are stood on the warm pipes in a pit or 
house, where they can be exposed to sun and light. It 
is surprising what an amount of heat these cuttings 
will bear. Under this treatment I have known 
hundreds of cuttings to root in a very short time 
without losing a single one. When treated in this 
way, however, care must be taken that the pots of 
cuttings do not suffer for want of water, and they 
should be removed to cooler quarters as soon as they 
have taken root. 
The present is also a favourable time to look over 
the Zonal section of Pelargoniums, both single and 
double, and take off cuttings, according to the require¬ 
ments, to grow for flowering next autumn and whiter. 
We usually look out a plant or two of each variety, 
and cut them down, after which the plants may be 
put into a little more heat to break. These cuttings, 
if treated in the same way as the tricolors, soon root, 
when they may be potted on with the ordinary bedding 
plants, and when they have been put into suitable 
sized pots, that is, large enough for the purpose for 
