170 
lugtlBt  liO,  189*. 
JOVllNAL  OP  itoM'iCVLTURP  AMD  OOTTAOP  OAfWPMPR. 
A  bed  of  spent  material  with  a  little  fresh  added,  about  6  inches 
larger  than  the  frame  and  18  to  24  inches  thick,  suffices.  It  should 
be  made  up  about  ten  days  in  advance  of  sowing  the  seed  to  allow  for 
settling,  then  levelling,  putting  in  the  box,  and  filling  in  the  inside 
to  within  9  inches  of  the  glass,  treading  well  down  and  evenly, 
then  placing  in  4|  inches  depth  of  rich  light  soil,  treading  this 
firmly.  Seeds  of  Tom  Thumb,  Commodore  Nutt,  and  All  the  Year 
Round  may  be  sown  in  alternate  row*,  these  6  inches  apart,  and  not 
later  than  the  first  week  in  September.  When  the  plants  are  large 
enough  to  handle  they  should  be  thinned  to  3  inches  apart,  retain¬ 
ing  the  strongest,  with  a  few  over  the  stipulated  number  for 
making  good  casualties. 
The  lights  must  not  be  employed  until  the  occurrence  of  frost, 
then  merely  to  exclude  it,  withdrawing  them  whenever  the  weather 
is  mild,  and  admitting  air  freely  when  occasion  requires,  keeping 
them  on  to  throw  off  wet.  But  little,  if  any,  water  will  be 
required  during  the  winter  months,  the  object  being  to  promote  a 
hardy,  sturdy  growth,  alid  prevent  damping.  Sometimes  a  white 
mould  appeal  s  on  the  leaves,  when  the  plants  must  be  dusted  with 
air-slaked  lime,  dry  and  fioury,  repeating  as  necessary.  On  the 
approach  of  severe  weather  line  the  bed  and  side  of  the  frame 
with  leaves  and  a  little  spent  litter  to  exclude  frost  rather  than 
furnish  heat,  which  must  be  strictly  guarded  against.  During 
severe  weather  cover  the  lights  with  mats  and  straw,  which  must 
be  removed  by  day  on  all  favourable  occasions,  but  when  frost 
rules  supreme  and  snow  lies  on  the  ground  there  is  no  need  to 
uncover,  but  leave  on  until  the  breaking  up  of  the  frost,  not 
removing  until  the  plants  are  thawed  if  they  get  frosted,  and 
gradually  inure  to  sun  and  free  ventilation. 
In  February  the  plants  will  begin  to  move,  then  sprinkle  a  little 
ammomated  guano  between  the  rows,  and  point  in  lightly  with  a 
hand-fork.  Ventilate  whenever  favourable,  draw  the  lights  off  on 
very  fine  days,  and  protect  from  frost.  Water  to  keep  the  soil 
moist,  but  only  give  it  when  dry,  and  by  the  middle  of  March 
every  other  plant  of  Commodore  Nutt  will  have  a  nice  little  heart 
— just  the  thing  for  whole  or  halves  in  the  salad  bowl.  By  the 
time  the  bed  is  gone  over  once  the  remainder  will  have  improved 
in  size  and  substance,  and  every  other  plant  of  All  the  Year  Round 
will  be  available  for  tie  kitchen.  When  the  plant*  stand  1  foot 
apart  they  will  have  fine  heads,  each  light  giving  two  dozen.  This 
is  the  only  way  I  have  found  the  so-called  forcing  of  autumn-sown 
Lettuce  reliable,  and  nearly  equally  early  Lettuces  can  be  had  by 
sowing  early  in  February  on  a  gentle  hotbed,  but  a  difference  in 
earliness  of  ten  days  or  a  fortnight  makes  a  vast  difference  in  the 
appreciation  at  table.  i 
Where  a  considerable  number  of  Lettufces  is  required  I  have 
found  frames  of  about  4  feet  width  the  most  satisfactory.  Lean- 
to’s  facing  south  on  a  warm  border  or  on  a  site  sheltered  from  the 
north  are  most  reliable.  The  soil  should  be  about  1  foot  from  the 
glass  at  the  back  and  9  inches  at  the  front.  The  surface  must  be 
fine  and  the  ground  firm.  If  enriched  the  manure  should  be 
thoroughly  decayed.  In  this  sow  All  the  Year  Round  in  alternate 
rows,  with  Bath  Cos,  Sugarloaf,  and  Hicks’  Hardy  White  Cos 
about  the  2l8t  of  August.  The  rows  may  be  6  inches  apart.  When 
the  plants  are  large  enough  to  handle  thin  the  Cos  to  9  inches  and 
the  Cabbage  variety  to  4J  inches  distance  in  the  rows.  Keep  off 
the  lights  until  the  approach  of  frost,  then  use  them  only  to  throw 
off  heavy  rains,  with  plenty  of  air  obtained  by  tilting  the  lights  at 
the  back,  and  as  protection  from  frost.  Anything  like  a  close  atmo¬ 
sphere  will  cause  d  imping  off,  leaky  lights  being  productive  of 
serious  disaster.  In  severe  weather  a  covering  of  mats  should  be 
given  over  the  lights,  and  these  must  never  be  withdrawn  whilst 
the  plant*  are  frozen,  otherwUe  the  sun  will  parboil  them  ;  but  in 
prolonged  frost  leave  on  until  a  general  thaw",  then  the  plants  will 
come  out  of  the  ordeal  as  scatheless  as  outdoor  ones  beneath  a  foot 
or  more^  depth  of  snow. 
In  the  spring  it  is  merely  a  matter  of  affording  a  little  stimulant, 
nothing  being  better  than  genuine  Peruvian  guano.  Water  also 
must  be  given,  but  only  when  needed,  and  the  plants  getting  plenty 
of  air  the  growth  will  be  sturdy.  At  the  end  of  March  or  early 
in  April  the  Cabbage  variety  will  be  fit  to  cut,  and  after  this  the 
Cos  varieties,  neither  of  which  requires  tying,  but  I  prefer  to  do  so, 
for  it  certainly  helps  the  blanching,  and  the  heads  are  handier  for 
packing. 
Growing  in  frames  for  planting  out  in  the  spring  is  a  very  old- 
fashioned  and  good  practice.  The  bed  is  made  up  some  time  in 
advance  of  sowing,  about  18  inches  high,  filling  the  inside  of  the 
frame  with  similar  material  to  the  bed  to  within  1  foot  of  the  glass. 
About  6  inches  of  light  soil  is  placed  in,  the  whole,  including  the 
manure,  being  trodden  down  evenly.  The  seed  is  sown  broadcast 
about  the  middle  of  September,  and  the  sashes  kept  on  until  germi¬ 
nation  takes  place,  when  air  is  freely  admitted  in  fine  weather. 
Damping  is  the  chief  thing  to  be  guarded  against,  therefore 
water  should  be  sparingly  supplied  daring  the  winter.  Frost  must 
be  excluded  so  far  a*  possible  by  covering  with  dry  litter,  otherwise 
ventilating  freely  on  all  favourable  occasions. 
When  large  enough  to  handle  thin  to  about  2  inches  distance 
apart,  and  in  February  or  as  soon  after  a*  the  weather  is  favourable, 
set  the  plants  where  they  are  intended  to  grow.  To  do  any  good 
outdoors  they  must  be  sturdy  and  hardy  in  the  frame,  being 
gradually  inured  to  the  weather  before  planting  out.  Some 
grower*  sow  again  at  the  beginning  of  October  in  a  frame, 
treating  similarly  to  the  preceding  batch,  the  object  being  to  get  a 
successional  planting  and  supply  of  heads.  The  varieties  usually 
employed  for  these  sowings  are  Silician  (Drumhead)  and  Stanstead 
Park  in  Cabbage  varieties,  Brown  (black  seeded)  and  Hick’s  Hardy 
White  of  Cos.  The  plants  are  placed  1  foot  apart,  and  in  setting 
with  the  dibber  care  is  taken  to  fill  in  the  holes  from  the  south 
side. — G.  Abbey.  '  * 
(To  be  concluded.) 
HYACINTHS  AND  TULIPS  FOR  BEDDING. 
In  acceding  to  an  invitation  to  read  a  paper  on  the  above 
subject  I  may  say  at  the  outset  that  it  is  not  my  intention  to  enter 
into  the  history  and  propagation  of  the  Hyacinth  and  Tulip,  but 
rather  to  confine  my  remarks  to  a  few  words  on  their  general 
treatment.  I  shall  give,  too,  a  list  of  varieties,  and  suggestions 
as  to  how  these  can  be  associated  in  beds  so  as  to  give  the  be*t 
effect. 
It  is  customary  to  begin  with  the  cultivation  of  a  plant,  and 
name  the  varieties  afterwards  ;  but  on  this  occasion  I  propose  to  a 
certain  extent  to  reverse  the  procedure,  for,  after  all,  we  have  very 
little  to  do  with  the  cultivation  of  either  the  Hyacinth  or  Tulip 
beyond  the  preparation  of  the  ground  and  planting  them.  We 
cannot  add  one  single  extra  flower  to  the  apiae  of  a  Hyacinth  or  an 
extra  flower  to  the  Tulip  :  that  is  already  done  for  us  by  the  Dutch 
growers,  who  are  very  pleased  to  supply  them  to  us  by  the  hundred 
or  thousand.^,  ready  grown. 
There  is  no  doubt  with  proper  treatment  we  can  increase  the 
size  of  the  individual  flowers,  and,  al*o,  we  can  preserve  the  greater 
portion  of  our  bulbs  for  a  second  or  even  a  third  year’s  planting  ; 
but  unless  the  flower  spikes  are  cut  off  as  soon  as  their  beauty  is 
past,  abundance  of  water  given  for  some  time  after,  the  foliage 
allowed  to  die  down  naturally  before  lifting,  the  bulbs  and 
subsequent  flowers  will  be  very  poor  indeed  compared  with  good 
freshly  imported  ones.  One  thing  I  may  mention  here,  never  mix 
the  newly  imported  bulbs  with  the  old  ones,  even  if  "they  are  the 
same  variety,  because  the  old  bulb*  will  be  in  flower  a  considerable 
time  before  the  new.  This  may  seem  strange,  but  nevertheless  it 
is  a  fact. 
Hyacinth*  for  bedding  should  be  of  good  and  distinct  colours, 
and  for  an  effective  bed  not  more  than  three  varieties  mu*t  be 
used.  Where  the  beds  are  small  two  colours  are  sufficient.  It  is 
not  usual  to  associate  other  flowers  in  bed*  of  Hyacinths,  but  some 
of  the  Narcissi  or  Daffodils  are  occasionally  planted  alternately 
with  them,  and  if  mixed  with  light  or  dark  blue,  pink  or  crimson 
varieties  the  effect  is  very  good.  The  beds  may  have  an  edging  of 
some  other  plants  rounq  them,  such  as  Arabis,  Pansies,  or  Violas, 
and  Crocuses  planted  in  a  double  or  triple  line  6  or  8  inches  deep 
may  remain  as  a  permanent  edging  for  years. 
