. 808 
THE GARDENING WORLD 
September 26, 1903. 
WORK OF THE WEEK. 
The Kitchen Garden. 
Potatos. — Unless already dene, complete the lifting of all 
main crop varieties without delay, and place them under cover 
to dry, taking advantage of wet days to sort them. Unfortu¬ 
nately, owing principally to the unfavourable season, many 
varieties are badly infested with the Potato' disease, and should 
the new variety, Northern Star, prove to 1 be disease resisting, 
as is claimed for it, during such a summer as the past, it will 
indeed prove to be an invaluable addition, as it is undoubtedly 
a good cropper and of first-rate quality. 
French Beans. — Late sowings in heated pits should be kept 
in a sturdy condition by airing freely on all favourable occa¬ 
sions, but. at the same time take advantage to syringe freely 
and shut up early on fine, sunny afternoons. Those coming 
into bearing on south borders will continue to bear for some 
time to come if temporary lights are erected over them and 
well matted up in case of frost. Make another good sowing 
in 7-in. or 8-in. pots, and place in a gentle heat. The pots 
should be well drained, and use a compost of a light porous 
nature. Immediately the young plants are above the soil, place 
them on shelves near the glass in a growing temperature, and 
pinch out. the leading growth, as it is made to induce them to 
break. 
Vegetable Marrows. — Two or three degrees of frost will 
generally put an end to these when in an exposed position, but. 
the season can be prolonged for some time by fixing a tempo¬ 
rary framework and covering with mats or other suitable 
material whenever necessary, and very late plants may have 
frames and lights placed over them, and be treated in much 
the same way as. Cucumbers. Cut any fruits as they become 
•ready; place the ends in water, and store in a cool place, 
where they wall keep in good condition for some time. 
Beetroot.— The whole of the crop should now be lifted and 
stored away in sand or ashes in a place of safety for the winter, 
every care being taken not to' damage or bruise the specimens 
in any way. 
Carrots. —These should also be taken up, except in the case 
of very late sowing on south borders, which may be left and 
pulled as required. Small to medium-sized roots are generally 
much more in demand than the larger ones. Thin out late 
sowings in pits and frames, but. leave them moderately thick, 
as these young roots are generally much esteemed. Dust with 
soot frequently; syringe, and shut up early in the afternoon 
to encourage as much growth as possible. 
Celery,- - Take every opportunity of fine weather to clean, 
and place finely-prepared soil round the plants for blanching, 
but before doing so make quite sure that the roots are 
thoroughly moist, for, although the rainfall has been excessive 
this year, at the present time ours require water, and good, 
crisp, nutty-flavoured Celery cannot be obtained if allowed to 
become dry for any length of time ; and after the final earth¬ 
ing has been done, there is little chance of rain reaching the 
roots. There is yet plenty of time for earthing the latest 
rows which are required for spring use, as it is well to bear 
in mind that it will keep very much better, especially if a 
severe winter is in store for us, if kept unblanched as lonij as 
possible. Celeriac, or Turnip-rooted Celery, should be lifted 
and stored in a cool shed on the first, approach of severe frost. 
1 find it keep well if placed crowns upwards and stood in single 
la} ers in boxes, just covering them with road sand. 
Seakale. Where .this is required early, as it. is in many 
cases, little difficulty will be experienced in obtaining it bv 
using retarded crowns. Very good heads indeed can be cut 
from this, which will take about three weeks if placed in a 
cellar or ordinary Mushroom house. 
Chicory.— Where this is required, cut. off the tops, lift, and 
place small quantities in the warmest end of the Mushroom 
house, taking care to exclude all light. 
Cabbage— Make use of any vacant ground by filling U p with 
Cabbage, as m the event of severe weather, when other winter 
vegetables suffer considerably. Cabbage plants, if properly 
earthed up, will come through practically unharmed. Keep 
the surface soil well stirred between earlier plantings. 
Aldenham House Gardens, Elstree. E. Beckett. 
Notes on Hardy Plants. 
Border Carnations. — Owing to the damp weather these have 
required but little attention since layering, and will now be 
sufficiently well rooted to take them off the old plant. Whether 
they are to be potted up or planted in their permanent situa¬ 
tion for next year’s flowering will have to be determined by 
the nature of the soil one has to deal with. Where the soil is 
light and dry in winter it will be best to plant them now, so 
that they become well established. The ground should be 
deeply dug or trenched, with some decayed manure added and 
a fresh position chosen annually, allowing the plants a distance 
of 1 ft. or 15 in. each way. Where the soil is of a heavy tex¬ 
ture the layers' should be potted up into 60-sized pots, using 
a fairly light porous compost and clean, well-drained pots. 
These should be placed in a cold frame on a bed of cinder ashes, 
and not coddled in any way. Whether planting out. is prac¬ 
tised in the early autumn or spring, it is advisable to prepare 
the ground beforehand, and if any wireworms are in evidence 
some soot, lime, and wood ashes should be freely added and 
thoroughly mixed with the soil, as these pests are particularly 
fond of Carnations, and quickly work havoc unless means are 
taken to destroy them. It. is also a good plan to place pieces 
of Cairo! about in the bed at intervals, which the wireworms 
are sure to go for, and can then be easily trapped. 
Cyclamen. — It is a. good time now to plant these, and where 
they succeed well there are few plants more charming when 
in flower. They are very desirable for a. shady nook or part, 
in the rock garden, or for planting in the grass. A suitable 
compost, will consist of plenty of well-decayed leaf soil, good 
loam, and road sand. If the natural soil is not. suitable for 
their requirements it should be taken out to quite a foot in 
depth, and some of this compost placed in. A thorough 
drainage should also be ensured, for, though the plants like 
plenty of water when growing, it should be able to pass freely 
away. Plant the corms just below the surface of the soil, not 
too closely together, leaving sufficient space between each for 
them to develop perfectly, and press the soil firmly about them. 
These will need the first season to become well established, 
after which they should be left undisturbed unless circum¬ 
stances necessitate replanting. 
Phygelius capensis. —At the present time this is quite one 
of the most, desirable of the select autumn flowering herba¬ 
ceous plants, the colour of the flowers being red, which is none 
too plentiful at. this time of year. The flowers are produced on 
erect stiff spikes about 2ft. in height, and being very continuous 
a. bright display is made well on into the autumn. To see it to 
the best advantage not less than five or six plants should be 
grown together, and a warm position in the border should be 
given, as in cold districts it is liable to get killed in cold 
winters if planted in an exposed position, though it proves 
hardy in this locality. It. is advisable when the stems have 
died down to give a good covering of fine ashes or some similar 
material, removing this not. too soon in. spring, as the new 
growth appears rather late. 
Propagation can be easily effected by dividing the root stock 
in spring, or by cuttings inserted at the present time in 60- 
sized pots, and wintered in a, cold frame. The tops of these will 
probably die off above the soil, but at the same time may be 
found to have become well rooted, and will break up again 
freely with the approach of spring. 
Physalis Franchetti. — This comparatively new species of the 
winter Cherry is a very great improvement on the older well- 
known form, P. Alkekengii, and worthy of inclusion in any 
border or shrubbery, the outer covering of the fruits being 
much larger, and it is also a. stronger grower. The growths 
should be supported to 1 prevent the ornamental fruits becoming 
damaged, and if cut before damaged by the rain are very useful ' 
