222 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER . 
September  5,  19<ll. 
herbaceous  nature,  Phloxes,  Hieraoiums,  Eryngiums,  Boooonia  cordata, 
and  many  other  handsome  border  plants.  Anyone  who  has  seen  the 
magnificent  collections  of  hardy  cut  flowers  staged  by  Scottish  nursery¬ 
men  at  the  more  important  horticultural  shows,  will  readily  understand 
how  fine  the  borders  must  be  from  which  these  collections  are  culled, 
and  at  Rothesay  these  typioal  borders  are  numerous. 
Coming  to  Roses,  what  do  you  think  when  I  say  that  Sunset,  Sunrise, 
Mrs.  Mawlev,  Liberty,  Clara  Watson,  and  other  of  the  new  and  most 
refined  Roses  have  already  become  established  in  open-air  quarters,  and 
on  well-exposed  ground,  too?  Each  and  all  seem  to  be  doing  well.  At 
the  time  of  my  visit  in  August,  budding  was  in  full  operation.  It 
reflects  the  greatest  credit  on  Messrs.  Dobbie  &  Co.  that  they  are  able 
to  show  the  stranger  these  fine  Roses  already  in  suoh  grand  form  in 
their  possession.  Without  attempting  to  enumerate  the  novelties, 
attention  may  be  directed  to  the  proper  catalogues  issued  by  the  firm, 
wherein  the  planter  will  discover  details  to  satisfy  him  or  her. 
Lastly,  I  should  like  to  refer  to  the  show  strains  of  Marigolds 
of  all  sorts.  The  blooms  on  some  of  the  plants  were  enormous,  and 
must  certainly  have  thrown  some  of  our  northern  patrons  of  these  very 
stiff  flowers  into  ludicrous  rapture.  By  feeding,  and  a  careful  system  of 
disbudding,  flowers  of  massive  proportions,  evenness,  depth,  and  purity 
of  colour  are  produced.  The  selection  is  great,  for  “  Dobbies  ”  have 
trained  their  attention  on  the  genus  for  years  past.  It  is  also  so  with 
the  autumn-flowering  border  Phloxes ;  a  wide  selection  of  the  most 
handsome  varieties  are  always  obtainable.  The  Violas  I  have  already 
alluded  to.  In  August  some  thousands  of  cuttings  had  already  been 
inserted.  The  earliest  of  these  will  be  rooted  and  ready  for  disposal  by 
October,  but  those  cuttings  put  in  after  the  middle  of  August  provide 
young  plants  for  the  execution  of  spring-time  orders. 
The  cosmopolitan  character  of  the  business  carried  on  is  evidenced 
when  one  begins  to  write  of  their  Potato  trials,  and  of  various  other 
vegetables.  These  are  all  included  in  their  proper  section.  Tomatoes 
in  pots  under  glass  are  represented  by  forty-seven  varieties,  grown  for 
seed  purposes  and  for  show  fruit.  Dobbie’s  Champion  and  Dobbie’s 
Improved  Conference,  together  with  Laird’s  Supreme,  are  three  of  the 
best  for  general  uses.  Under  glass  we  also  find  Fuchsias,  Cannas,  Zonal 
Pelargoniums,  Tuberoses,  and  Begonias  in  imposing  and  liberal  array. — 
Wandering  Willie. 
— - <•©•> - - - - 
Cucun\bers. 
The  recent  hot  weather  has  favoured  alike  the  consumer  and 
grower,  the  demand  for  fruit  beiDg  brisk  and  the  supply  adequate.  In 
'  order  to  maintain  the  successional  supply  of  fruit  unbroken  the  grower 
must  look  ahead,  and  take  steps  in  accordance  with  external  conditions, 
for  the  days  become  shorter  and  the  nights  colder,  therefore  the  house 
must  be  closed  earlier,  syringing  done  earlier,  every  advantage  beiDg 
taken  of  sun  heat,  and  the  precaution  to  prevent  excess  ol  moisture  on 
the  foliage  and  fruit  during  the  night.  In  cold  weather,  especially 
wet,  fire  neat  becomes  necessary  to  secure  clean  straight  fruits  without 
damping  or  twisting  at  the  “  nose,”  maintaining  a  temperature  of  70° 
to  75°  by  day,  and  65°  to  70°  at  night.  Allow  the  heat  to  rise  to  85° 
or  90°  from  sun  beat,  and  close  so  as  to  secure  the  latter  temperature 
to  95°  or  more  for  some  time  in  the  early  part  of  fine  alternoons 
Encourage  surface  rooting  by  top-dressing  with  lumpy  loam  and 
sweetened  horse  droppings,  and  sprinkle  a  handful  ot  soot  on  each 
square  yard  of  bed.  There  is  nothing  like  young  plants  for  producing 
clean  straight  fruit.  The  plants  will  require  stopping  to  insure  an 
even  spread  of  foliage,  and  on  the  corresponding  bearing  growths 
keeping  tendrils  and  male  flowers  removed. 
The  plants  from  seed  sown  early  in  August  will  be  ready  to  plant 
out  at  the  beginning  of  September.  The  house  being  a  lignt  one,  the 
heating  must  be  adequate  to  maintaining  a  temperature  of  70°  to  75°  in 
all  weathers,  with  a  bottom  heat  of  80°  to  90°.  However,  first  of  all 
thoroughly  cleanse  the  house,  removing  every  particle  of  old  soil,  and 
scalding  the  interior  with  boiling  water,  then  wash  the  woodwork  with 
ptraffin,  soitsoap,  or  carbolic  hard  soap,  cleansing  the  glass  with  clear 
water,  limewashing  the  walls  with  het  lime,  and  a  small  handful  of 
flowers  of  sulphur  in  each  pailful.  If  rubble  is  used  about  aud  over 
hot-water  pipes  for  bottom  heat,  see  to  cleansing  it  by  taking  out  aud 
scaldmg.  Make  the  drainage  secure  with  a  layer  of  turves,  previously 
charred  or  scalded.  Put  in  hillocks  or  ridges  of  soil  2  teet  wide  at  the 
base,  10  to  12  inches  deep,  and  1  foot  across  at  the  top.  Turfy  loam 
laid  up  until  the  grass  is  killed  (and  with  it  14  lbs.  of  basic  slag 
phosphate  and  7  lbs.  of  kaimt  per  cubic  yard),  chopped  up  rather 
roughly,  two-thirds;  fibrous  sandy  peat  one-third,  chopped  or  torn  up, 
rejecting  any  woody  matter  ;  old  mortar  rubbish  one-sixth,  freed  from 
laths  and  other  pieces  of  woody  substance,  the  rough  broken  small, 
form,  thoroughly  incorporated,  a  suitable  compost.  Being  neither  wet 
nor  dry,  it  may  be  made  moderately  firm. 
Plant  when  the  compost  is  warmed  through,  press  the  soil  gently, 
and  secure  the  plants  to  stakes  reaching  to  the  trellis.  Rub  off  the 
laterals  to  the  bottom  wire,  and  stop  the  leading  growth  at  about  the 
second  or  third  wire  of  the  trellis. 
Where  seed  was  not  sown  in  August,  and  Cucumbers  are  required 
at  the  new  year  onward,  sow  early  in  September.  The  varieties  of 
Cucumbers  are  legion  ;  none  is  better  than  Improved  Telegraph, 
Rochford  and  Cardiff  Castle  being  excellent.  Snow’s  Winter,  a  very 
old  variety,  and  seen  in  the  Syon  House  type,  may  not  be  procurable, 
otherwise  it  has  no  equal  for  swelling  in  the  winter  months.  Sow  the 
seed  singly  in  small  pots  a  little  more  than  half  filled  with  soil,  and 
cover  about  half  an  inch  deep.  Keep  the  plants  near  the  glass,  and 
earth  them  up  as  they  grow,  and  transfer  to  5-inch  pots  when  they 
need  a  shit t,  placing  a  stick  to  each,  to  which  secure  the  growth  as  it 
advances.  Train  with  one  shoot  by  rubbing  off  the  laterals  as  they 
show.  The  plants  will  be  fit  to  plant  out  during  the  first  fortnight  in 
October. — G.  A. 
Cottage  Gardens  and  Gardening. 
Most  of  us  have  heard  of  Port  Sunlight,  “  the  model  village,” 
inhabited  by  the  employes  of  Messrs.  Lever  Bros.,  and  which  is 
situated  near  by  Liverpool.  Each  family,  we  believe,  has  a  house  to 
themselves  with  a  garden  attached.  The  whole  village  is  a  perennial 
sjurce  of  pleasure  to  the  visitor,  and  from  the  following  report  of  the 
recent  flower  show  held  there  we  see  how  much  good  the  Messrs.  Lever 
Brothers  are  endeavouring  to  do ;  would  that  other  philanthropists  or 
capitalists  might  interest  themselves  to  a  like  extent.  At  this  show 
something  over  300  prizes  were  offered,  the  most  interesting  section 
being  the  purely  village  competitions  for  the  best  kept  allotment,  the 
best  kept  back  yard,  window  boxes,  flower  borders,  and  the  most  neatly 
kept  house.  The  back  yard  display  was  also  good,  cultural  skill  and 
discretion  in  choice  of  plants  having  caused  several  unpromising  plots 
to  blossom  like  the  Rose.  The  first  prizewinner,  Mr.  J.  Darby,  has 
evidently  instilled  his  family  with  the  love  of  flowers,  for  one  of  his 
daughters,  Miss  Jessie  Darby,  had  in  the  show  one  of  the  most  beautiful 
bouquets  of  wild  flowers,  and  a  little  son  also  exhibited  in  a  similar 
class.  The  operations  of  the  society  are  very  wide,  as  was  demonstrated 
in  the  display  of  flowerB,  fruits,  vegetables,  live  stock,  and  knitting  and 
crochet  work,  and  in  every  depirtment  the  exhibits  were  entirely 
creditable.  Most  of  the  classes  were  open  to  cottagers  and  amateur 
gardeners  within  a  radius  of  four  miles  from  Port  Sunlight,  but  there 
were  several  for  all  comers,  while  the  housework,  baking,  and  similar 
classes  were  confined  to  the  villagers. 
Mr.  W.  H.  Lever,  president  of  the  society,  in  declaring  the  show 
opeD,  said  it  was  far  away  the  best  they  had  ever  held.  Speaking  of 
gardening  as  a  recreative  occupation,  he  said  the  raising  of  produce  was 
not  really  the  main  object,  but  to  provide  relief  after  one’s  daily  toil. 
He  knew  of  no  better  way  in  which  a  man  could  obtain  pleasant  relief 
than  by  working  in  the  garden,  but  it  must  be  his  own  garden,  and  he 
must  do  the  work  himself  (hear,  hear).  There  was  no  better  specific 
for  obliterating  the  worries  and  harassments  of  the  business  day.  In 
cultivating  plants  the  great  thing  was  to  put  them  in  the  right  place. 
The  Heather  from  the  wild  moor  would  not  flourish  in  the  garden,  and 
the  delioate  plant  from  the  garden  would  perish  on  the  moors.  Flowers 
were  like  humanity,  they  responded  readily  to  proper  treatment,  and  if 
one  felt  at  times  that  some  person  had  not  responded  cordially  to  some¬ 
thing  done  for  him,  there  was  comfort  in  the  thought  that  he  bad  not 
been  dealt  with  in  the  correct  way  ;  and  so  gardening  would  produce  a 
philosophic  frame  of  mind,  and  exeroise  an  effeot  morally  and  in  health. 
The  man  who  cultivated  his  garden  was  doing  as  much  good  in  his 
place  as  the  soldier  fighting  abroad  for  his  country.  He  was  serving 
his  country,  helping  to  make  it  respeoted,  and  maintaining  its  dignity 
quite  as  much  as  the  warrior.  Each  was  in  his  own  pl>»ce.  Curiously 
enough  they  would  find  in  history  that  the  periods  of  our  country’s 
greatness  were  just  those  periods  when  the  value  of  gardening  and 
tilling  the  land  were  properly  estimated,  and  when  those  occupations 
bad  fallen  into  disuse  the  prestige  of  the  country  had  declined.  It 
would  be  a  good  thing  for  the  nation  if  every  man  could  and  would 
cultivate  his  little  plot  of  land.  All  need  not  utilise  their  plot  for  the 
same  purpose  ;  some  might  grow  flowers,  and  others  poultry,  but  if 
each  had  a  bit  of  land  to  use  it  would  do  more  to  raise  England  than  all 
the  shouting  and  shrieking  about  war,  although  this  might  be  perfectly 
right  at  the  proper  time  and  in  the  proper  place.  The  question  of  the 
house  itself  he  was  not  discussing,  for  a  few  creepers  would  beautify  a 
house  more  than  any  architectural  work.  Nor  would  he  join  in 
unqualified  condemnation  of  the  so-called  jerrybuilders.  They  did  their 
best,  often  under  difficult  circumstances.  But  what  he  wanted  was 
that  every  house  should  have  a  plot  attached  in  which  that  householder 
oould  occupy  his  spare  time,  and  help  to  make  the  home  beautiful.  He 
would  like  to  see  a  law  that  no  house  should  stand  on  less  than 
400  square  yards  of  land.  In  Port  Sunlight  they  appreciated  that,  and 
knew  what  advantages  it  possessed.  In  regard  to  the  show,  it  produced 
healthy  emulation,  and,  although  a  man  did  not  win  prizes,  he  knetv 
that  his  garden  was  all  the  better  for  the  competition,  and  his  life  was 
all  the  better  for  the  garden  (applause).  In  conclusion,  he  congratulated 
them  upon  the  fine  display,  and  declared  the  show  open. 
