August  15,  1895, 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTIGULTUhE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
161 
run  alone,  and  consequently  has  to  conform  to  the  wishes  of  the  Crystal 
Palace  authorities ;  and  they  having  with  much  inconvenience  to  the 
frequenters  of  the  Palace  given  an  hour  to  a  private  view  to  its  members, 
it  is  incumbent  on  the  Society  to  do  its  very  best  to  make  matters  run 
smoothly  in  this  respect. — D.,  Deal. 
MIGNONETTE  FOR  SPRING. 
The  present  month  is  the  best  season  for  making  a  sowing  of 
Mignonette  in  pots  for  spring  flowering.  It  is  well  known  by  most 
persons  who  have  attempted  to  grow  this  modest  but  sweet-scented 
plant  that  it  is  very  impatient  of  being  transplanted,  and  therefore  it  is 
advisable  to  sow  at  once  in  the  pots  in  which  it  is  intended  to  bloom 
the  plants. 
The  most  convenient  sizes  are  4J,  5,  and  6-inch  pots.  These  should 
be  thoroughly  clean  inside  and  out.  When  dry  place  in  crocks  for 
drainage,  first  fixing  a  fair  sized  piece  nearly  covering  the  bottom,  with 
the  concave  side  downwards.  Over  this  put  some  smaller,  and  make 
level  with  others  of  still  less  dimensions  to  fill  up  the  interstices.  Cover 
this  with  a  substantial  layer  of  partly  decayed  turf  or  flaky  cow 
manure,  pressing  it  down  firm  and  level.  The  drainage  is  thus  com¬ 
plete,  and  as  much  depends  on  this  portion  of  the  cultural  details,  the 
time  spent  in  carrying  it  out  well  is  not  thrown  away.  A  slight 
sprinkling  of  soot  may  also  be  added  before  filling  in  the  soil,  as  it 
prevents  the  ascent  of  worms  into  the  compost  during  the  autumn  while 
the  pots  stand  in  cold  frames. 
The  compost  must  be  rich,  so  that  it  will  carry  the  plants  through 
every  stage  of  growth  successfully,  without  becoming  sour  and  unsuit¬ 
able  if  otherwise  properly  managed.  I  have  found  the  following  to  give 
good  results — two  parts  loam  partly  decayed  and  turfy,  half  a  part  each 
of  manure  and  sweet  leaf  soil,  a  little  wood  ashes  and  soot,  with  a  good 
handful  of  pounded  lime  rubbish,  one-fifth  of  sand,  and  a  handful  of 
Standen’s  manure  to  each  peck  of  soil.  The  compost  thus  prepared 
should  not  be  too  moist ;  but  it  must  by  no  means  be  dry,  for  this 
reason,  that  considerable  compression  is  necessary  in  order  that  as  much 
rooting  material  as  possible  may  be  packed  in  a  small  space.  Firmness 
of  the  soil  insures  a  stocky  growth. 
I  have  found  that  the  simplest  way  of  filling  the  pots  with  the 
required  quantity  of  compost  consists  in  heaping  the  soil  well  above  the 
rim  ;  then  with  a  few  jars  of  the  bottom  edge  of  the  pot  on  the  potting 
bench  the  soil  is  shaken  down  level  with  the  rim.  This  is  not  sufiicient, 
as  the  compost  must  he  rammed  down  as  hard  as  possible  with  a  blunt 
stick.  Make  it  quite  level,  it  then  being  ready  for  sowing  the  seed. 
Sow  liberally,  but  not  thickly.  Undue  crowding  must  be  avoided 
in  the  first  instance  because  it  causes  weakly  growth  ;  but  it  is  advisable 
to  have  a  surplus  of  seedlings  in  order  to  select  a  convenient  number 
distributed  over  the  surface  in  an  even  manner  when  the  final  thinning 
is  completed.  Cover  the  seeds  lightly  with  fine  soil,  just  hiding  them 
from  light  being  sufficient,  and  press  the  soil  level  with  the  smooth 
bottom  of  a  small  pot.  The  best  position  for  the  pots  after  sowing  the 
seed  is  a  cool  frame,  standing  them  on  a  moist  base  of  ashes.  Cover 
the  surface  with  paper,  and  shade  the  whole  from  the  sun  until  the 
plants  appear.  Light  sprinklings  of  water  may  be  applied  whenever 
the  surface  soil  dries,  but  avoid  saturation. 
Directly  the  seedlings  make  an  appearance  air  ought  to  be  gradually 
admitted.  Coddling  the  seedlings  causes  them  to  lengthen  and  weaken 
rapidly.  Once  they  exhibit  this  tendency  it  is  difficult  to  correct,  as 
their  long-jointed  appearance  militates  against  a  sturdy,  upright 
development  and  the  plants  need  support  sooner  than  they  should. 
Thinning  out  the  seedlings  must  be  performed  at  intervals,  leaving 
each  time  the  small  plants  clear  of  each  other.  Thus  no  risk  is  run  of 
making  gaps  which  may  be  difficult  to  fill,  and  the  seedlings  seem  to 
grow  all  the  better  when  not  too  far  apart  at  first.  So  long  as  the 
thinning  is  done  in  time  the  plants  will  not  suffer.  Air  given  judi¬ 
ciously  strengthens  them,  and  while  the  stems  remain  sturdy  at  the 
base  there  is  little  fear  of  a  weak  growth  beginning.  On  many  occa¬ 
sions  full  exposure  to  air  will  have  a  beneficial  effect.  It  is  better  to 
have  sturdy,  small,  almost  dwarfed  plants,  than  tall  elongated  pots  of 
seedlings.  The  latter  will  continue  a  weak  growth,  but  the  former 
with  light,  air,  and  cool  treatment  move  slowly  but  surely.  The  pots 
ought  never  to  be  saturated  with  rain,  and  to  this  end  keep  the  lights 
over  them  in  doubtful  weather.  Allow  refreshing  dews  to  reach  the 
plants  whenever  possible. 
When  the  weather  in  the  autumn  becomes  damp  and  cold  transfer 
the  pots  to  a  shelf  in  the  gieenhouse  clo^e  to  the  glass,  where  they  will 
maintain  their  sturdy  character.  After  the  turn  of  the  year  a  gradual 
development  will  take  place,  and  the  plants  must  be  staked.  Lateral 
shoots  may  be  allowed  to  extend  and  each  will  flower,  but  the  centre 
•stem  gives  the  finest  spike.  With  judicious  watering  and  feeding  the 
plants  continue  to  bloom  fir  two  or  three  months,  commencing  early 
m  March.  All  the  seed  pods  should  be  removed  before  they  exhaust 
the  plants.  As  the  roots  at  this  time  are  numerous  and  active  the  plants 
must  not  suffer  for  even  a  short  time  for  want  of  water,  Sutton’s  Pot 
Mignonette  is  the  best  1  have  grown  in  the  manner  indicated  in  these 
notes.  Miles’  Spiral  and  Machet  are  also  good  pot  varieties. 
Clay’s  Fertiliser  sprinkled  on  the  surface  of  the  soil  in  the  pots  when 
the  plants  commence  to  flower,  at  the  rate  of  a  teaspoonful  to  a  5-inch 
pot  and  watered  in,  affords  nutrimt-nt  which  the  plants  appreciate. 
Once  a  week  is  sufficient ;  weak  aoot  water  may  also  be  given. — E.  D.  S. 
GENISTA  CAPITATA. 
This  is  an  attractive  hardy  little  plant  of  shrubby  habit  that  flowers 
early  in  the  season,  and  concerning  its  usefulness  there  can  be  no 
question,  A  variety  of  Genista  umbellata  has  been  named  capitata, 
distinguished  from  the  species  by  the  silky  hair  clothing  the  branches 
FIG.  24.— GENISTA  CAPITATA. 
and  leaves,  and  said  to  be  a  native  of  Mogador.  The  leaves  are  trifoliate, 
the  bright  yellow  flower  in  compact  terminal  heads  (see  fig.  24),  and  are 
produced  freely.  The  species  is  a  native  of  Barbary,  being  found  on 
dry  hills.  A  Genista  quite  distinct  from  the  above  has  appeared  in 
gardens  under  the  name  of  G.  umbellata,  wnich  has  been  assigned  a 
place  among  the  varieties  of  G.  lusitanica,  a  spiny  shrub,  native  of 
Portugal. 
RAISING  AND  PREPARING  VINES  FOR  PLANTING. 
The  discussion  which  has  been  going  on  in  the  pages  of  the  Journal 
on  the  condition  of  young  Vines  for  planting  cannot  but  prove  profitable 
in  more  senses  than  one.  Interesting  it  certainly  has  been.  As  an 
“  on-looker”  it  has  brought  to  my  mind  events  which  have  occurred,  and 
which  have  brought  both  successes  and  failures  in  the  method  of  plant¬ 
ing  sucU  an  apparently  simple  plant  as  ihe  Vine.  The  Vines,  as 
described  by  “  Grower”  (page  78)  and  further  referred  to  by  Mr.  John 
Thomson  (page  111),  are  certainly  the  ones  to  secure,  as  then  we  are 
sure  of  success,  all  other  details  being  equal, 
I  will  give  a  case  in  point.  It  is  now  eight  years  since  I  had  occasion 
to  plant  several  young  Vines.  They  were  such  as  described  by  “  Grower,” 
and  planted  similarly — ie.,  the  pots  being  crammed  with  hard  wire-li’xe 
roots,  which  were  disentangled  at  the  time  of  planting.  At  the  end  of 
the  first  season  these  Vines  were  favourably  noticed  in  the  Journal,  and 
the  following  year  were  allowed  to  carry  several  bunches  of  good  Grapes. 
A  few  years  afterwards  I  had  occasion  to  plant  another  set,  and 
which  had  to  be  purchased.  On  turning  them  out  of  their  pots  the 
roots  were  in  anything  but  a  satisfactory  condition,  the  greater  portion 
also  having  decayed  on  account  of  their  previous  soft  and  ill-ripened 
state.  However,  what  roots  there  were  were  disentangled  and  laid  out, 
and  treated  similarly  in  every  respect  to  the  previous  ones,  which  had 
