3 6 ° 
THE GARDENING WORLD 
May 30, 1908. 
hardly be used in juxtaposition to a fiery 
and dominant scarlet, andAve must not 
forget that many of our old-fashioned 
favourites have in their newer strains finer 
forms and often more beautiful colouring 
than in the older. 
F. Norfolk. 
- +++ - 
. . The Cultivation of . . 
Summer Lettuces. 
Lettuces when well grown are gener¬ 
ally looked upon as one of the best plants 
for providing salad during the warm sum¬ 
mer months — more especially should it be 
a hot summer—and will be much appre¬ 
ciated. It is much better to- grow them 
when and where they can be cut fresh and 
crisp, than to rely on buying them, and 
often it is difficult to get them fresh and 
good. I will try and show how they can 
be grown to perfection, and if some 
trouble and pains are taken with them 
success will be assured. 
Many amateurs make a great mistake 
in their sowings, for more often than not 
they sow much too thickly, and sow too 
large a quantity at one time. The result 
is that there is too much fit for use at 
one time, and then the supply is over, and 
there is a blank. The endeavour should 
be to obtain an unbroken and continuous 
supply. Than Lettuce there is no salad 
that will repay more, if liberally dealt 
with. 
Commence by digging in plenty of well 
rotted manure, from an old hotbed for 
preference, and make a start on a shel¬ 
tered border. Draw the drills one inch 
in depth, and sow the seed very thinly so 
that very little thinning will be required. 
Except for the first sowing I should 
not advise any transplanting, for it means 
waste of time and labour. The drills 
should be one foot apart, and the same 
distance should be allowed from plant 
to plant, excepting in the case of very 
dwarf kinds, when 6 inches will be ample. 
Take into consideration the quantity re¬ 
quired from day to day and sow accord¬ 
ingly. If four rows of some 10 or 12 feet 
in length are sown every fortnight this 
should be ample to supply some two dozen 
Lettuces weekly throughout the summer. 
As the warm weather comes on select 
a cooler and somewhat shadier situation 
for them. I think, judging from my own 
observations that a mistake is made in 
sowing Lettuce where they are exposed to 
the full glare of the sun and it means 
much work in watering when this could, 
for want of thought, be avoided by select¬ 
ing cooler situations. If placed in too hot 
and dry ground they either run quickly to 
seed or are tough and flabby, and not*" fit 
for the table. Often one sees in looking 
over different gardens Lettuces planted 
in odd places, out of the way corners, 
under fruit trees, starved for want of 
proper nourishment. It is not to be won¬ 
dered at that they are a failure. 
During the hot days of July and August 
thev should be kept well supplied with 
water, and a good mulching of well de¬ 
cayed manure two or three inches thick 
spread round them will prevent rapid 
evaporation. 
For varieties : among the Cabbage sorts 
I know of nothing better than Favorite, 
Golden Gem, Summerhill, Continuity, 
and Tom Thumb Improved. Among the 
Cos kinds the best are Giant White and 
The Wilton Cos. This last-mentioned is 
especially good, and has been several 
times nearly lost in cultivation owing to 
its beine so loth to run for seeding. This 
is a variety raised in this neighbourhood. 
J. C. SCAMMELL. 
Wilts. 
-- 
Messrs. Carter and Co.’s Display at the 
Franco-British Exhibition. 
Visitors to the Great Exhibition should 
not fail to inspect the. splendid exhibit of 
flowers, shrubs and palms in the immense 
centre bed in the gardens of the Court of 
Arts which has been prepared by Messrs. 
James Carter and Co., of High Holborn, 
Messrs. Carter have also laid out the 
gardens and lawns of the Royal Pavilion, 
the Indian Pavilion and the Canadian 
Pavilion for which more than a million 
bedding plants have been required. 
In England Figs can be successfully 
cultivated close to the sea, that being the 
atmosphere in which they thrive. They 
do well on chalk in Oxfordshire. 
- a. w. - 
Prize Competitions. 
GENERAL CONDITIONS— Competitors must 
write on one' side of the paper only. Regular 
paid contributors to THE GARDENING 
WORLD or other gardening journals are de¬ 
barred from entering, but occasional con¬ 
tributors may compete. Thte name and ad¬ 
dress of the competitor must appear on each 
article sent for competition. The Editor’s 
decision is final, and he reserves the right 
to reproduce, in any way£ any article or photo¬ 
graph sent for competition. The conditions 
applying to each competition should be oare- 
fully read. 
WEEKLY 
PRIZES. 
A PRIZE OFTEN SHILLINGS will be given 
for the best paragraph or short article on any 
gardening subject, such as hints of practical 
interest to gardeners, notes on the propaga¬ 
tion or cultivation of flowers, fruits or vege¬ 
tables, eradication of pests, etc. The para¬ 
graph or article must not exceed a column, but 
value rather than length will be considered in 
making *’ue award. Mark envelopes “ Com¬ 
petition," and post not later than the Monday 
following date of issue;,Entries received later 
thm Tuesday (first post) will be left over until 
t) ie following week. 
Two prizes of 2s. 6d. will be awarded each 
week for the two best letters, not exceeding 
150 words, on any interesting gardening sub¬ 
ject. 
RESULTS OF 
LAST WEEK’S 
COMPETITIONS. 
Some of the best papers in this competition 
are too long, an 1 we desire readers to keep 
within a column. 
The prize in the Readers’ Competition was 
awarded to “ J. W. Forsyth ” for the article 
on “ Saintpa ilia ionantha,” page 345. 
In the Prize Letter Competition a prize 
was awarded to “ W. Chalmers,” for the article 
on “ How to Make Leek Collars ” ; and another 
to “L. S. Small” for the article on “ Kohl 
Rabi, &c.,” page 344. 
Euphorbia (Poinsettia) 
pulcherrima. 
The season for propagating this beauti 
ful winter - flowering plant being dost 
upon us, a few remarks on our mode o 
treatment may be acceptable. 
I note that your correspondent “ Sunny 
side,” p. 166, says there is not a grea 
amount of skill required to grow thesl 
gorgeous plants. I do not agree wit! 
him. I maintain that to retain the foli 
age to the tops of the pots and produc 
bracts iS to 20 inches in diameter requir 
more than ordinary skill. To get stron 
plants, it is necessary to commence earh 
and where a large stock has to be worke 
up annually from cuttings of the youn 
growths taken off with a heel about th 
end of May or early in June and roote 
as quickly as possible, is laying th 
foundation for future success. 
The old stools may be placed in a ten 
perature of about 60 to 65 degrees ear] 
in April, near to the light, damping the: 
occasionally to assist them to break. Tl 
cuttings should be taken off when aboi 
three or four inches in length, dipping tl 
base in silver sand to prevent bleedin, 
Having some small pots clean, dry, ai 
filled with suitable soil, lose no time 
getting the cuttings inserted; these, 
plunged in a hotbed or placed in a pr 
pagating box and shaded, soon emit root 
Care must be taken not to overwater, . 
they are very liable to damp off. I 
soon as rooted, they must be gradual 
inured to more air until they are able 
withstand full exposure. 
When sufficiently rooted, they may 1 
repotted into 5-inch or 6-inch pots, whii 
must be well drained, for herein lies 0: 
secret of success. The following compc 
suits them well: Good fibrous loam, 
which may be added one-fourth of ha. 
decayed leaf mould, a small portion 
lumpy peat, a little old night soil, a du< 
ing of soot, wood ashes and silver san 
the whole to be thoroughly incorporat 
before using. The potting must be do 
firmly, but not hard. The plants, aft 
this, succeed best if plunged in a mi 
hotbed and treated to a growing tempei 
ture until the middle of September, wh 
they may receive more air to ripen t 
wood. 
Towards the middle of October th’ 
may be introduced into the floweri; 
house, which may be the stove or fernei 
The plants are greatly benefited by f:- 
quent applications of manure water uni 
the bracts are well advanced. 
For many years I had under my char: 
500 of these plants, ranging from t 
inches in height to 5 ft. 6 in. I pre ’ 
plants about 2 ft. 6 in. in 5-inch po. 
The chief points to be considered are ca - 
ful drainage and watering and firm p- 
ting. 
J. Snell 
Hall Gardens, Kirby, Misperton. 
-- 
A Snowdrop always resembles a you? 
girl who has arrived too early at her fit 
dance.— Queen. 
