376 
THE GARDENING WORLD. 
Feb. 14th, 1885. 
Tie JSLMAfEiis’ Barren. 
THE GREENHOUSE. 
In cases where a miscellaneous collection of plants 
has to be treated in this structure, it is a difficult 
matter to meet the requirements of all, as most of the 
hard-wooded subjects like a low temperature and 
plenty of air, while those of a soft nature need a little 
more warmth. This being so, the only way to arrange 
matters and accommodate the two kinds is to give and 
take, as it were, although it is better to dispense with 
certain things, such as heaths, except it may be the 
free-growing kinds like E. hyemalis, E. Wilmoreana, 
and E. gracilis, which are the most showy and useful 
for amateurs, as they come into bloom during winter 
and spring, and are the easiest of the whole family to 
manage. Striking a balance between the different 
plants referred to, the most suitable temperature to 
keep at this season by the aid of fire-heat is from 50 
degs. to 55 degs., which amount of warmth will agree 
with all flowers, and enable them to open freely and 
last a long time in perfection. 
To maintain a gay appearance and have the house 
well furnished a little foresight and management are 
necessary, as it is only by contriving and making use 
of every available place that a good succession of 
things can be kept up. In illustration of this, it may 
be mentioned that deciduous plants, such as Lilacs, 
Syringas, Ghent Azaleas, Deutzias, Solomon’s Seal, 
Lilly of the Valley, and others of that class, may be 
forwarded greatly by standing them under the stage, 
and Hyacinths, Lachenalias, Crocuses, Tulips, and 
similar bulbous subjects may be brought on by placing 
them on any of the back shelves near the glass ; but 
it should be borne in mind that they must not be 
neglected and allowed to suffer from want of water, or 
the blooms will be poor. Primulas and Cinerarias 
will be much helped by giving them weak liquid 
manure, but care must be exercised not to wet the 
hearts of the first named, or they canker and go off at 
the collars. 
Pelargoniums, both zonal and show kinds, should 
now have the points of the shoots nipped out for the 
last time before blooming, and as soon as they break 
again it will be necessary to give them a shift into 
larger pots, the best soil for the purpose being fibry 
loam in which they should be potted firm, and after¬ 
wards stood on light airy shelves, well up to the glass. 
As prevention is better than cure, it is a good plan to 
fumigate with tobacco occasionally to keep off green 
fly, which otherwise are sure to get into the shoots of 
the show and fancy varieties, when they soon stop the 
growth and cripple the plants. Calceolarias, both 
shrubby and herbaceous sorts, are also very subject to 
aphis, but the smoking of these latter must be done 
with care, as the leaves are soft and tender and will 
not bear much at a time. 
PITS AND FRAMES. 
The time has now come when these structures will 
be of great use, as there is propagating to be done, 
seed sowing to be carried out, and bedding stuff to 
be potted and started into growth, but before the 
active campaign begins, the first thing is to see that 
the glass and walls or woodwork are clean and in good 
order, as light is life to plants, and one of the chief 
things towards success is to be free from insects at 
the commencement, and lime-wash and water do 
much to rid pits and frames of these parasites. Tan 
is generally to be had for the carting near towns, and 
where it can be got fresh from the fellmongers, 
nothing is better for affording bottom-heat, as when 
sweated a bit before using, which it should be, the 
fermentation is steady and regular, and the mild 
steam it gives off, is just the thing for cuttings or 
tender seedlings, the one striking readily under its 
influence, and the seedlings growing with a strength 
and vigour quite pleasing to see. 
If tan cannot be obtained, the next best substitute 
is dung and leaves, mixed, but these must be prepared 
by being turned over a time or two, so as to let out 
the fiery gases, and when put into the frame, have a 
sprinkling of sawdust or cocoa-nut fibre over the top 
on which to stand the pots, or plunge them in if 
desired. 
One of the chief things in striking cuttings is to 
have good sharp sandy soil to insert them in, and it is 
equally important that the pots be well-drained, which 
should be done by half filling them with broken 
crocks, and placing over them a thin layer of moss, 
or the rough siftings from the soil, filling up with the 
fine on the top, and if the cuttings are then properly 
made, dibbled in and watered, they cannot fail to 
root. If damp shows itself by any of the leaves 
decaying, it is a proof that the frame is too close, or 
that there is too much steam, which amounts to the 
same thing, and it should be let off by just tilting the 
light to allow the slightest crack of air, but if symptoms 
of flagging are seen, the air must be taken oS by day 
and put on at night. Pelargoniums and other fleshy 
things of that class, do not like confinement, but do 
best on a shelf, if they can be placed in a warm 
house or pit -where the atmosphere is moist enough 
to keep then- foliage fresh till they strike. 
THE FRUIT AND VEGETABLE GARDEN. 
Amateurs generally combine the useful with the 
ornamental and grow Grapes as well as flowers in 
their greenhouses, and very well the two do together 
if the plants are properly chosen and the vines are 
not too close and are kept thin enough not to throw a 
dense shade. As the season for ripening the fruit is 
short, the thing is to start and get the buds to break 
early, as a month gained at the end of the season is a 
great object, for it enables one to finish oil the Grapes 
well by the end of September, and when that can be 
done their quality is far superior to such as ripen 
later on, which instead of being rich and sugary are 
poor and watery, and will only hang a short time on 
the vines. 
To start these and get them to break regularly, all 
that is necessary is to make use of the solar rays, by 
opening the ventilators late in the morning, when the 
thermometer has reached about 60 degs., and closing 
again by two or half-past, when the floors should be 
sprinkled to cause a moist atmosphere. Not only will 
such treatment suit the vines, but it will be beneficial 
to most plants and flowers, as the heat by night will 
run down, and need not stand higher than 50 degs. 
In the outdoor fruit department, Plum and Cherry- 
trees, and Gooseberry and Currant-bushes must be 
watched, as bullfinches generally find out the first- 
named, and sparrows the latter, and devour the buds 
just as they are breaking, and thus do away with all 
chance of a crop. 
Manuring and digging are the chief operations to be 
carried out in the vegetable-garden, but before doing 
either it should be decided what crops are to be put on 
the ground, as some, such as Cabbage, Broccoli, 
Brussels Sprouts, and Onions, require the land 
trenched and heavily manured, while Carrots, Beet, 
Turnips, French Beans, &c., do not need the soil to be 
deeply worked, and if it is in good order, they are best 
grown without fresh manure. As weeds will now be 
showing, the hoe should be run between the rows of 
Spinach, young Cabbage, and other spring crops 
standing, as the stirring of the surface does much 
good besides cleaning the beds. 
— Q--_r — 
CULTURE OF INSECTIVOROUS 
PLANTS. 
The cultivation of these plants is by no means 
difficult. They require pretty much the same 
description of soil, moisture, and general treatment. 
Nepenthes alone requires much heat; an average 
temperature of 70 degs. suits them very well. The 
soil should consist of fibrous peat, with the earthy 
matter shaken out. To this should be added from a 
third to a half of chopped sphagnum, and a sprinkling 
of charcoal, pot-sherds, and silver sand thoroughly 
well mixed. This will form a free open compost. 
Owing to the large amount of water required, good 
drainage must also be given. In re-potting Nepenthes, 
very small pots or baskets should be used, in com¬ 
parison with the size of the plants, and great care 
taken not to injure the delicate roots. It is better 
not to shake the old soil out, unless it has become 
soured and unwholesome. It that case the soil should 
be washed away, thus preserving the roots. The best 
time for this operation is about the middle of 
February. They should be placed near the glass, and 
not shaded too heavily, unless in very bright sunshine. 
To have an abundance of pitchers produced, they 
should be kept constantly cut back, as when growing too 
freely they usually fail to produce pitchers; and this 
is what might be expected, bearing in mind what has 
been stated regarding their habits. So long as the 
plant is drawing plenty of nourishment from its 
roots, it has less need to develop pitchers, but when 
cramped and pot-bound, they develop freely. 
Some years ago, on going through our stoves with 
Mr. Stuart Low, who had just come home from 
Borneo, where he had discovered some interesting 
species of pitcher-plants, and showing him a very fine 
plant of Nepenthes Raffiesiana, and asking him what 
they were like at home, he said, “ You never see them 
bearing pitchers like those, but simply one here and 
there, and mostly near the ground. But after a fire 
has taken place, and the forest burnt down, the 
Nepenthes spring up just covered with pitchers.” 
So that in our case the pruning-knife gives equal 
results with the forest fire in the home of the 
Nepenthes. I prefer, on the whole, seeing pitcher- 
plants grown in baskets, as the pitchers show in them 
to better advantage. 
A good many hybrids have been raised in this 
country and in America—the best by far, indeed, 
I may almost say, the best pitcher-plant in cultivation, 
is Nepenthes Mastersiana, raised at Chelsea in the 
Messrs. Yeitch’s nursery. It is a hybrid between 
N. sanguinea and N. distillatoria. I have succeeded 
in raising a large batch of hybrid Nepenthes, the 
result of a cross between N. Raffiesiana and N. 
Chelsoni. They, at all events, are most interesting 
plants in the seedling stage. The first leaves pro¬ 
duced, after the cotyledons or seed leaves, are 
perfect little pitchers, and every leaf since produced 
has developed a pitcher, which they are likely to 
continue for min g so long as they are in the young 
condition. With a few exceptions, Nepenthes are 
readily propagated from cuttings, the simplest way 
being to insert the cutting through the bottom of an 
inverted flower-pot, without any soil, placing it in a 
heated case, in fact rooting the cutting in moist air, 
and afterwards potting them off in the usual way. 
Sarracenias require much the same soil as Nepen¬ 
thes, but in re-potting nearly all the old soil should be 
shaken out and almost no heat but that of the sun 
given. An ordinary greenhouse is the best place to 
grow them. They should be firmly potted, slightly 
raised in the centre, and the surface covered with live 
sphagnum. They also require abundance of moisture ; 
to ensure which, the pots should stand on sphagnum, 
which retains the moisture. This is better than 
placing them in flats of water, as in this way the soil 
is apt to sour, thus causing decay at the roots. All 
the species are increased by division, and from 
seed. 
The various species of Drosera, including Dionsea 
and Drosophyllum, require the same treatment in 
every respect as that stated for Sarraeenia, the only 
exception being that the soil should be made a little 
less rough. With this difference, they may be very 
well grown together and treated alike. Droseras are 
easily raised in quantity from seed, and in some 
strong-rooting kinds such as Drosera dichotoma, by 
root-cuttings. If the roots are cut up into the 
smallest pieces and strewn over the surface of a seed- 
pan, covered lightly with sandy soil and introduced 
into heat, in February; then, keeping them close for 
a few weeks, each little piece of root will grow. 
Almost any quantity of this elegant species may be 
thus had in a single season. 
Notwithstanding all then- dangerous enticements 
to insect life generally, insectivorous plants are as 
liable as others to be preyed upon by the ordinary 
plant pests. Green fly attack the young leaves of 
some, causing them to become deformed; on others 
thrip and scale do much damage if allowed to get a 
hold. These must be kept in check by the usual 
means for destroying such pests.— R. Lindsay, Royal 
Botanic Garden, Edinburgh, in Forestry. 
—t r— — 
A correspondent of The Live Stock Journal states 
that in November he planted 13,000 Drumhead 
Cabbages in an open field, and at the present time 
cannot find one that has not either been eaten off 
close to the ground and destroyed, or the leaves eaten 
off close, by rabbits and hares! 
