THE GARDENING WORLD 
April 20, 1907. 
278 
Your question has taken a long time to 
reach us, but you really made a mistake in 
mixing up questions fox the publisher and 
the editor. On, another occasion it -would be 
well to have the questions on different sheets 
of paper, even if placed in the same envelope, 
and to mark whether intended for publisher 
or editor. The long straw may be removed, if 
that has not already been done, and the more 
decayed portions may be pointed into the 
surface soil. You cannot give it any treat¬ 
ment that will make it earlier than your 
climate and season furnish. The first object 
should be to get a variety thait is naturally 
early. If you also want a good fate variety, 
that should also be procured. You cannot 
expect Rhubarb to start into growth early 
which was only planted last October. A few 
of the crowns may be lifted and forced, if 
they make good growth during the season. 
If not, you would have to wait another ,sea¬ 
son,. To give them every chance of making 
strong crowns you should net pull any 
leaves from the plants this year, but allow 
them to grow at liberty. You can then ob¬ 
serve which of the plants are suitably strong 
for forcing purposes, and have them lifted 
after the leaves die down and placed some¬ 
where handv until you commence forcing. 
It lifted immediately after the leaves die 
down in November, you can put the roots 
into boxes ox any other convenient vessel and 
place them in heat. If you have such con¬ 
venience for forcing,-you should be able to 
get the first supply by Christmas. Some 
gardeners have a Mushroom house at work 
in which this could be done; others place the 
roots in boxes near hot-water .pipes in a stove 
or warm pit. Others, again, have made up 
a pit of fermenting manure, or manure and 
leaves, and on this placed the roots of 
Rhubarb. Some have even gone to the trouble 
of erecting a rough sort of shed of wood 
covered with straw, in which they could force 
roots by means of fermenting manure. Still 
another pianos to coveT the crorwns with Sea- 
kale pots without lifting them, and to make 
a big heap of fermenting manure and leaves 
around and over these pots. They should, 
of course, have lids by which you can in¬ 
spect the Rhubarb to see whether the stalks 
have made sufficient progress. If the soil 
should get very dry it might be worth while 
watering with clean water, and also liquid 
manure, until the roots get thoroughly estab¬ 
lished. 
1754. Potting Vegetable Marrows. 
I ha\e some \ege.able Marrows which have 
come up rather long in the stem. How deep 
should they be potted? Will the seedlings 
require staking to keeip them from toppling 
over? (W. Hindmarsh, Cornwall.j 
Vegetable Marrows, like Cucumbers, are 
liable to get lengthy in the stem if reared 
9 
Urpth to -pot seedling Vegetable Marrows. 
in a warm place where the light is not very 
good. You oan get over this, however, by 
potting the .seedlings so that the seed leaves 
will not be very high above the soil. I hat 
is a better plan than planting them so that 
there is a long stem between the ground and 
the seed leaves. The accompanying illustra¬ 
tion will give you an idea of this. Re¬ 
place the plants -in the same house until the 
roots have taken to the fresh soil. Then 
place them near the glass in a house where 
they will get more air. 
FRUIT. 
1755. Transparent Globules on Vine. 
About six weeks ago I was advised by a 
friend to take in your paper, which I have 
done since then, and found it most interest¬ 
ing and instructive. I should be much 
obliged if you would answer the following 
questions in your paper. 1 hare a Vine in 
my greenhouse (heated only by the sun and 
the heat from two fires, the chimneys of 
which pass at -the ‘back of the wall). It is 
shooting nicely and showing plenty of flower 
shoots. I have read carefully your notes in 
last week’s number. In looking over the 
young shoots I find a lot of small transparent 
globules. Could you ‘tell me if they are 
•eggs cf an insect, or what they are caused 
by ? I syringe the Vine two or three times 
a week. 'The Vine is, I am told, six years 
old and rooted in the border outside the 
house. I have manured it this spring with 
Thomson’s Vine manure. (D; P., Glam.) 
You need not get alarmed at the presence 
of transparent globules on the young leaves 
of growing Vines, as they are merely exuda¬ 
tions from the leaves themselves, and con¬ 
sist of some gummy matter or wax, which 
might be described as waste matter. Dur¬ 
ing fine weather you could syringe your 
Vines twice a day, once early in the fore¬ 
noon and the second time when closing the 
house to economise heat in the afternoon. 
Of course, if you have flowering plants in 
your greenhouse, you cannot treat the Vine 
altogether as it ought to be, but make sane 
compromise. It might, at least, be syringed 
once every day with clean water. 
GARDEN ENEMIES. 
1756. Crickets Eating: Seedlings. 
Will you be good enough to tell me how to 
get rid of crickets, to trap or destroy them? 
Thev are creatures resembling grasshoppers. 
They cut off and eat seedlings in a small 
hotthousp wholesale. (D. L., Hants.) 
These crickets are troublesome much - in 
the same way as cockroaches, but may be 
dealt with like those animals. Get some of 
Steiner’s beetle paste from a chemist or your 
sundries man, and lav portions of this on 
pieces of slate or glass placed near their 
runs overnight. They can then be collected 
in the morning and placed out of the way 
until you are about to leave off work again. 
Another method of catching them is to get 
some pieces of dloth. roll them together, and 
lav them on the hot-water pipes. The 
crickets will collect there for shelter and 
warmth during the dav, and you can carry 
the cloths outside and destroy the crickets 
every morning. By this means you will get 
rid cf them. 
SOILS AND MANURES. 
1757. Liquid Manure for Vines. 
I have .some liquid manure from the cow¬ 
shed. Will you please tell me what strength 
1 could give to mv Grape Vine, and when 
to give it ? The Vine is now in flower. I 
gave it Thomson’s Vine manure at the start, 
2 lbs., to. the square yard. (C. H.) 
It all depends upon 1 the moisture of the 
soil as to what -strength you can give it. It 
would be well, however, never to give liquid 
manure unless the soill is well moistenei 
by clean water. If this was done the liquii 
manure could then- be used with ful 
strength. If the liquid has not been dilutee 
by nain or any similar means you could adc 
an equal amount of wateT to it, thus dilut 
in.g it about one-balf. 
MISCELLANEOUS. 
175 8. Landscape Gardener. 
I should .be much obliged if you could le 
me know the name of a good landscape gar 
dener. We have a very small place here 
but are determined to have it kept in a realb 
pretty and original fashion. (E. J. Hoey 
'Middlesex.) 
You might apply to Mr. William Gold 
ring, 28, Kew Gardens Road,- Kew, as he > 
a professional landscape gardener. 
1759. Size of Croquet Lawn. 
I shall be obliged if you will please tel' 
me the measurements of the boundaries of 1 
full-sized croquet lawn. (A. C. D., Kent.) 
By consulting the accompanying illustra 
tion you will note that from the poir. 
+ ___ 
Plan of croquet ground; 1, starting 
point; the central line lies between the 
two in the middle of the plan, and. from 
this to the boundary on the right is 
21 ft.; and from it to the boundary on the 
left is 21-ft.; the extreme width is 42 ft.; 
and the extreme length is 5.25 ft.; the 
crosses at the corners are 3 ft. from the 
boundary lines. 
marked winning peg to the boundary on 
either -side is 21 ft. The width of the whok 
piece would, therefore, be 42 ft. and tb« 
length 523 ft. Fiom the boundary to tn« 
winning peg is 103 ft., and from this to the 
other pegs marked along the centre io 5 ft- 
and io£ ft. from the turning peg to th< 
boundary. The crosses near each corner an 
3 ft. from the boundary line. 
17 60. Book on Sweet Peas. 
Will you kiu-dly inform me if $ere is 
such a book or pamphlet as “Sweet Peas. 
The Secret of Success,” by T. Jones, am 
if there is, where it is obtainable? (C° N 
stanx Reaxder, Cheshire.) 
We have heard that there is such a book 
but have not seen it. You could, however 
apply to the author, Mr. Thomas J5 >I jes 
Bryn, Penylan, RuaJbon, _ North Wales 
There is, however, a useful little book, rb 
Sweet Pea Annual,” published under tb 
auspices of the National Sweet Pea * ocie u 
at is., with postage extra. You. migb 
apply to the Secretary, Mr. C. H. Curti- 
Adelaide Road, Brentford, Middlesex. 
