472 
THE GARDENING WORLD, 
March 28th, 1885. 
The JlMATEiM' &KMM. 
THE GREENHOUSE. 
All fire-heat may now be dispensed with, as at this 
late season we are not likely to get frost sufficiently 
severe to injure the plants. As most of these will 
soon be starting to make their summer growth, it is a 
good time for potting them, and it should be attended 
to at once. The most suitable soil for the majority 
of them is a mixture of equal parts of peat and loam, 
but Chrysanthemums, Fuchsias, Pelargoniums and 
others of that class do best in the latter, if a little 
leaf-mould and rotten manure be added. Although 
the generality of hard-wooded subjects are unsuitable 
for amateurs, Camellias are easily managed, and no 
house is complete without them, as they look well 
with their bright glossy foliage all the year, and come 
into bloom at a time when flowers are scarce. These 
being of most value during the winter, plants should 
be grown with a view to get them at that season, 
which maybe done by placing the plants in heat now, 
and keeping them well syringed so as to assist them 
in forming their young shoots early and setting their 
buds, which they will then do long before they other¬ 
wise would. 
A good effect is produced in a greenhouse by planting 
Camellias out and training them loosely against the 
wall, or letting them run at their will, as they form 
a most excellent background, and produce far more 
blossoms than they are capable of carrying when 
their roots are confined to the limited soil and area 
of a pot, where they soon get cramped for want of 
room, and assume a starved look in the leaf. In 
planting them out, see that they have plenty of 
drainage and good rough fresh-cut turfy loam for the 
border, and if the loam can be mixed with fibry peat, 
all the better, as the two suit the roots and keep the 
foliage rich and dark in its colour. As berries of 
Solanums will now be falling off, the plants should be 
pruned hard back and then stood in a frame to get them 
to break, preparatory to plunging or planting them 
out as soon as the weather is warmer. If an increase 
of stock is desired, cuttings may be made of the tops, 
which, if put in under a bell-glass, strike freely on a 
back-shelf in the shade. 
To keep the house gay during the summer, there 
are many things that may be raised from seed, chief 
among which are Balsams, Celosias, Petunias, Sehi- 
zanthus, and Browallia elata, and for coming in 
next winter, Primulas and Cinerarias must not be 
forgotten. To get all or any of these to germinate, 
a little warmth is necessary, and much help may be 
afforded by having a pane of glass over the pot they 
are in. 
PITS AND FRAMES. 
The season for bedding will soon be here, and plants 
required for turning out in May should now be gradu¬ 
ally hardened by getting them out into any spare pits 
or frames, where, for a few days after their removal 
from the warm house, they ought to be kept close, 
that they may be gradually inured to the change, 
instead of the leaves suffering from the air coming 
fresh on them while they are tender. Although it is 
now getting late, cuttings of such things as Lobelia, 
Ageratum, Heliotrope, Verbena, Coleus, Iresine, and 
others of that class may still be taken off and struck, 
as the whole of them root rapidly, and quickly grow to 
a size large enough to make them useful for any 
purpose when wanted. 
There are many things that make a grand show 
during the summer that may be raised irom seed, 
chief among which are the double Zinnias, but as 
these are very tender it is better not to sow till the end 
of April, nor to put the plants out till the beginning 
of June. Asters, especially the p«ony-flowered kinds, 
make a magnificent display, and should be sown at 
once in pans, and placed where there is a little heat, 
to get the plants up, after which they may be pricked 
out under hand-lights, to grow them on a bit, and get 
them well rooted, preparatory to planting them out in 
beds. Stocks, such as the scarlet and white Inter¬ 
mediate, and the Ten Week, are very desirable, and 
require the same treatment as that for the Asters, as 
do likewise the Phlox Drummondi and Dianthus 
Heddewiggi, both of which should be grown. All the 
hardier sorts may be sown where they are to stand, 
and be thinned out after the plants are up, as they do 
best without transplanting. 
As frames will be set at liberty in a month or so, it 
is only wise to be prepared with plants of Melons and 
Cucumbers by that time, that they may be turned out 
then and set to work at once, as at that season they 
will only need a little ; bottom-heat just to start them, 
for what warmth they require after may be had from 
the sun by opening the lights late in the morning, 
and closing early in the afternoon, so as to bottle it 
in. The same treatment will help any plants that are 
now planted out and growing, but to keep up the right 
temperature a dung-lining will be necessary, if the 
heat declines, or growth will be slow. 
BEDS AND BORDERS. 
It often happens that evergreen shrubs in villa and 
other small gardens become overcrowded and encroach 
on the flower-borders or lawn through having been 
planted too thick, in which case they may now be 
moved with safety or pruned back, for, however hard 
they may be cut in at this season, they will soon break 
again and become refurnished with shoots, as all they 
require to induce them to start their dormant buds, or 
force them to make others, is full light and air on 
the wood. In transplanting, the thing is to lift 
with good balls of earth, which may be done by 
digging well round the plants and working the soil 
carefully from among the roots till the bulk is reduced 
to fair limits, when the plants may be transferred 
from one position to another without feeling much 
check. To save loss of time, before they are got in 
again, the holes for them should be prepared before 
they are taken up, as then they are not out of the 
ground long, but may be got in quickly, which prevents 
loss of sap and flagging of the foliage, and the plants 
are then able to re-establish themselves in a very few 
weeks. 
To assist them in doing this a heavy watering 
should be given, and with sufficient force to wash the 
soil in amongst the roots, where it finds its way 
quickly if the heads of the shrubs are swayed to and 
fro, as they ought to be before the holes are quite 
filled, but it is necessary for them to be held very 
steady after, which may be done by driving a stout 
stake in the ground and tying the stems thereto. The 
next important matter is to mulch round them with 
some half-rotten manure, which will keep the ground 
about the roots in a uniform condition and enable the 
plants to get fresh hold speedily and render them able 
to take care of themselves. Besides the transplanting 
and pruning of shrubs it is also the proper season for 
clipping Ivy on walls or buildings, and when done 
thus early every leaf may be shaven off, as it quickly 
breaks again and becomes re-clothed with young 
foliage, which will look bright and green all the year. 
Beds ought now to be gay with Pansies, Forget-me- 
Nots, Arabis, Daisies, Primroses, and Hyacinths; or 
any of them, except the latter, may still be planted if 
lifted with good balls, and herbaceous plants of all 
kinds divided and transplanted, and seeds of hardy 
annuals and perennials sown. Among the last-named 
none are more valuable than Anemone coronaria, 
which, if sown now on a warm sunny border, in light, 
rich soil, will flower nearly the whole of next winter, 
and last on late into the following spring, and be of 
great service for cutting from. The seed may either 
be scattered broadcast or put in in drills a foot apart, 
but it should only be covered very lightly with fine 
mould, or it will not find its way through. Grass on 
lawns is now growing very fast, and ought not to be 
left to get long and rough, as nothing spoils the 
bottom so quickly, but rolled down and have the 
mowing machine over it at once, taking care, before 
doing so, to see that there are no stones about to 
injure the knives. 
THE FRUIT GARDEN. 
The weather during the whole of March has been 
exceedingly favourable for retarding the buds, which 
have been well kept back by the cold and absence of 
sun, and the season promises to be an unusually 
fruitful one, as there is little fear of the blossoms of 
hardy trees taking much harm at the late period they 
will be open, except it may be those of Apricots and 
Peaches on walls, which should be protected by having 
cheap thick canvas or other covering let down over 
them by night, and removed again in the morning 
that the flowers may have the benefit of full light and 
air, which agents are essential to get a free set. 
To keep the wind from dashing the protecting 
material about and causing it to chafe and damage the 
bloom, stakes or rails should be placed behind to hold 
it away from the wall. Although the cold and 
drought have been favourable in the way referred to, 
the arid state of the atmosphere has been trying 
for all fresh-planted trees, all of which ought to 
be mulched by having half-rotten dung or other 
littery matter laid round them, to prevent escape of 
moisture from the soil and encourage the formation 
of roots. 
Beds of Strawberries will now require attention, and 
as plants of these form fresh annual feeders round 
the crowns, it is a good plan during the process of 
hoeing and cleaning to draw some soil up to the 
clumps or rows, which will strengthen the plants 
very materially and assist them to throw up bold 
spikes of bloom. It is a good plan also, after the 
earthing up is done, to litter the beds down with long 
stable-manure, which will be washed clean and sweet 
long before the fruit is ripe, and up to that time will 
keep the ground moist, which is the great secret in 
growing fine Strawberries. 
Rhubarb plants may now be increased to almost any 
extent by dividing the crowns, as all pieces with 
single eyes will grow; but to get the sticks large, the 
land where the roots are to be planted must be heavily 
manured, and deeply dug, as the plants feed far 
about. A good way is to make large deep holes, 4 ft. 
apart, and manure and plant in them, the best kinds 
to grow being Hawk’s Champagne, and Victoria, the 
latter of which attains a great size. 
If the temperature of the house for Vines has been 
kept up by early closing, as advised, they will by this 
time be growing fast, and should be aided in this onward 
movement by syringing every afternoon when the 
weather is sunny and warm. As soon as it can be 
seen which shoots are showing fruit, most of the 
others may at once be rubbed out, as one to every foot 
or so along each side of the rod is plenty, it being 
useless to have more than there is room for to give the 
foliage free scope. The proper distance at which to 
stop the shoots is one or two joints above the buneb, 
according to the distance the Vines are apart, and 
whether there are plants standing below them that 
need light. 
THE VEGETABLE GARDEN. 
It will now be a busy time in the vegetable garden, 
as, besides the ordinary digging of all spare and vacant 
land preparatory to cropping, much seed-sowing has 
to be done ; and a border should be got ready at once 
on which to make the beds, as it is better to have the 
whole together, tha't they may the more readily be 
protected from birds, which, if not kept off by some 
means, are very destructive, pulling up the tiny plants 
just as they emerge through the soil. This may be 
prevented by netting the beds over, or covering the 
seeds with red lead, which is a capital plan, as they 
are safe then, and there is little trouble in doing it, 
as all that is necessary is to just moisten them in a 
saucer or pan with a little milk, and dust the lead 
over, when it will adhere and remain on till the seeds 
germinate. 
The kind of seeds to be got in now are all those of 
the Brassicas required for supplying vegetables during 
the su mm er, winter, and following spring, which are 
Cauliflower, Brussels Sprouts, Chou de Burghley, Kale, 
and several kinds of Broccoli, to come in early and 
late, besides Lettuce, Radishes, Carrots, Turnips, 
Spinach, and Beans and Peas for succession. The 
way to grow Broad Beans and Peas is to sow the 
rows wide apart, and plant some low crop between; 
and the same with Potatos, which should not be 
nearer than 4 ft., a distance that will afford space 
for planting a line of Broccoli, Brussels Sprouts, or 
any of the winter Greens midway ; by T following which 
plan double the produce is obtained from the ground, 
as the yield of Potatos, with so much light and air 
for the haulm, is something enormous. It is full 
early yet for planting French Beans, but those who 
have a warm, sunny spot may get in a few, and the 
same with Scarlet Runners, which are the hardier 
of the two ; and as they transplant so readily, it is 
