584 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER, 
December  27,  1900^ 
tbe  trellis,  cut  out  weak  attenuated  branches,  and  where  crowded  thin 
well,  having  suflBcient  of  last  season’s  growth  for  bearing,  with  space 
between  them  for  training  in  those  intended  to  displace  them. 
Thoroughly  wash  the  house  and  the  trees  with  soapy  water,  following 
with  an  insecticide,  for  aphides,  red  spider,  thrips,  and  scale  lurk 
about  the  trees  in  some  form,  ready  to  become  active  and  multiply 
when  forcing  operations  are  commenced. 
Secure  the  branches  at  once  to  the  trellis,  leaving  sufficient  room  in 
the  respective  ligatures  for  the  swelling  of  the  branches  and  shoots. 
Tight  tying  is  often  a  prolific  source  of  gumming.  Remove  the  loose 
surface  soil  down  to  the  roots  without  disturbing  them,  and  supply 
good  turfy  loam  in  lumps  from  the  size  of  a  nut  to  an  egg,  with  an 
admixture  of  about  one-fifth  of  well  decayed  manure,  not  covering  the 
roots  more  than  2  or  3  inches. 
All  correspondence  relating  to  editorial  matters  should  he  directed 
to  “The  Editor,”  iz,  iMCltre  court  chambers,  Fleet  street, 
Iiondon,  E.C.  It  is  reqm  sted  thst  no  one  will  write  privately 
to  any  of  our  correspondents,  seeking  information  on  matters 
discussed  in  this  Journal,  as  doing  so  subjects  them  to  unjustifiable 
trouble  and  expense. 
is  always 
the  ground 
deep  and 
louDg  Gardeners’  Domain. 
Broccoli. 
This  is  a  crop  that  well  repays  good  culture,  as  it 
appreciated.  To  be  certain  of  obtaining  a  satisfactory  crop 
should  be  carefully  prepared  by  well  trenching  2  feet 
manuring  liberally.  This  operation  ought  to  be  performed  some 
considerable  time  before  planting, 
preferably  for  a  previous  crop,  as  it 
is  essential  that  the  soil  should  be 
quite  firm.  Provided  the  ground  has 
not  been  too  much  impoverished  an 
old  Strawberry  bed  from  which  the 
plants  have  been  merely  chopped  off 
-with  a  spade  or  hoe  will  be  bmnd  an 
■excellent  position  for  Broccoli. 
This,  however,  will  not  be  the  case 
in  establishments  where  Strawberry 
beds  are  frequently  being  renewed, 
and  are  liberally  treated  whilst  in 
bearing. 
The  reason  for  having  the  soil  firm 
is  that  under  these  circumstances 
the  plants  make  hard,  woody,  fibrous 
stems  instead  of  soft,  sappy  ones, 
as  would  be  the  case  on  loose  rich 
soil,  and  are  consequently  better 
able  to  witbsfand  frost.  Another 
cause  of  failure  from  severe  weather 
is  planting  too  thickly.  This  is  often 
done  where  space  is  valuable ;  but 
it  is  false  economy,  for  is  it  not 
better  to  plant  half  the  number  and 
have  a  good  head  to  cut  from  each 
plant,  than  to  plant  thickly  and  lose 
i;he  greater  part  during  the  first  spell 
■of  severe  weather  ?  I  find  it  excel¬ 
lent  practice  to  plant  single  isolated 
rows,  for  the  sun  and  wind  can 
then  circulate  amongst  the  plants  and  harden  them  much  better  than 
when  in  beds.  I  once  had  occasion  to  plant  a  single  row  of  Broccoli 
in  an  open  field,  and  these  withstood  the  winter  much  better,  and  pro¬ 
duced  finer  heads  than  those  grown  in  the  kitchen  garden.  It  is  also 
a  great  mistake  to  plant  Broccoli  between  rows  of  Potatoes,  as  is 
frequently  done.  Not  only  does  the  haulm  shade  the  plants  to  a 
certain  extent,  but  in  removing  the  Potatoes  the  soil  is  loosened 
about  the  Broccoli,  which  is  very  undesirable,  as  has  been  pointed 
■out  above. 
Sowings  of  the  different  varieties  may  be  made  during  April,  beds 
of  good  friable  soil  being  prepared  on  a  warm  border.  It  is  immaterial 
whether  tbe  seeds  be  in  drills  or  broadcast  provided  they  are  sown  thinly. 
I  find  that  most  men  sow  u.uch  thicker  in  drills  than  they  do  when 
broadcasting  the  seeds.  It  is  important,  too,  that  the  plants  be  got  off 
the  seed-bed  before  they  become  starved  and  crowded.  Waiting  for 
rain  to  obviate  the  necessity  for  watering  is  often  the  excuse  for 
deferring  this  operation ;  but  it  is  a  mistake,  and  it  would  pay  better 
to  apply  water  when  required.  After  being  transferred  to  their 
permanent  quarters  care  should  be  taken  that  they  do  not  suffer  from 
drought.  By  careful  management,  and  the  selection  of  proper  varieties, 
Broccoli  may  be  had  to  follow  the  later  Cauliflowers,  and  a  supply 
maintained  in  favourable  seasons  throughout  the  winter  and  early 
spring.  After  the  heads  begin  to  form  it  is  advisable  to  look  over  the 
beds  daily,  cut  all  that  are  ready,  and  if  not  required  for  use  at  once 
store  in  a  cool  shed  or  other  frost-proof  structure.  They  will  keep 
fresh  under  these  conditions  ten  or  twelve  days,  whereas  they  would 
quickly  spoil  if  uncut. 
Good  varieties  for  autumn  use  are  Early  Purple  Cape  and  Veitch’s 
Self -protecting  ;  for  winter,  Dickson’s  Perfection,  Winter  White,  Snow’s 
Superb  Winter  White,  and  Improved  Purple  Sprouting  ;  for  early  spring 
Adam’s  Early  White,  Frogmore  Protecting,  and  Leamington ;  and  for 
late  spring  Dickson’s  Omega  and  Late  Queen.— W.  R.  R. 
Fig.  153. — Bunching  Lilac. 
Adiantnms  Unsatisfactory  (J.  Z>.).— It  is  probable  that  the  fronds 
continually  springing  up  are  really  eaten  by  the  black  Vine  weevil, 
Otiorhynchus  sulcatus,  which  is  at  times  very  destructive  to  the  young 
fronds,  cutting  them  off  close  to  the  soil.  The  pest  is  somewhat  difficult 
to  find,  as  it  falls  to  the  soil  when  alarmed  and  shams  death,  being  the 
colour  of  the  potting  material  and  not  readily  detected.  It  feeds  at 
night,  therefore  the  plants  should  be  carefully  examined  after  dark  with 
a  lantern,  entering  the  house  cau¬ 
tiously  and  not  turning  on  the  light 
until  by  the  plants.  Possibly  the 
culprits  will  be  detected,  and  should 
be  collected  into  a  vessel  containing 
a  little  paraffin  oil.  This  is  the 
surest  method  of  dealing  with  this 
pest ;  we  have  frequently  taken  the 
pots  one  «fter  the  other  and  shaken 
them  sharply  inverted  over  a  white 
cloth,  the  beetles  dropping,  and  are 
easily  collected.  As  the  plants  have 
been  improved  by  dusting  them  with 
lime  and  soot,  we  should  continue 
the  proced'ire,  especially  that  of 
lime,  which  often  has  a  good  effect 
on  the  soil  and  aids  the  plants  well 
in  their  growth. 
Bunching  French  Lilac  {W.  Wes¬ 
ton). —  The  accompanying  illustra¬ 
tion  and  paragraph  will  convey 
all  the  information  you  require. 
Bunches  of  Lilac  for  vases  are  in 
great  demand,  and  to  produce  the 
most  graceful  effect  with  a  limited 
number  of  trusses  the  procedure  is 
as  follows  : — A  handful  of  damp 
straw  is  folded  as  represented,  and 
tied  at  a,  giving  it  the  form  of  a 
Mushroom.  The  stems  of  the  Lilac 
are  forced  through,  the  ends  coming 
out  at  B.  For  hiding  the  straw  and 
sprays  is  secured  at  c,  and  a  large 
part  of  the  stems  a  fringe  of  Box 
yet  free  bunch  is  provided. 
Blood  for  Vine  Borders  (Hf.  R.). — The  blood  you  can  obtain  now  in  a 
fresh  state  mav  be  diluted-  with  from  ten  to  twelve  times  its  bulk  of 
water,  and  applied  to  borders  inside  and  out  in  about  tbe  same  amount 
as  in  an  ordinary  watering.  The  blood  thus  used  is  a  valuable  fertiliser 
for  Vines  and  fruit  trees,  the  blood  itself  consisting  of  about  80  per 
cent,  of  wa  er,  2^  to  4  per  cent,  of  nitrogen,  and  fractional  parts  of 
I  percent  of  phosphoric  acid  and  alkali  salts.  To  preserve  tbe  blood 
for  use  in  a  dry  state  proceed  as  follows  :  In  a  trough  or  shallow  box 
thoroughly  mix  the  blood  with  about  5  per  cent,  of  freshly  slaked 
apparently  dry  lime,  and  cover  the  mixture,  with  a  thin  layer  of  lime. 
This  mixture,  when  dry,  can  be  kept  for  a  long  time  without 
appreciable  change.  About  4  ozs.  of  the  blood  thus  prepared  may  be 
used  per  square  yard.  It  is  also  an  excellent  plan  to  mix  the  blood 
with  wood  ashes,  one  bushel  of  wood  ashes  to  6^  gallons  of  blood,  this 
being  prepared  similar  to  that  of  lime,  and  when  dry  can  bs  used  in  the 
same  manner,  but  it  is  a  much  better  all  round  fertiliser  and  of 
especial  value  for  Vines  and  fruit  trees,  applying  4  to  8  ozs.  per 
square  yard  in  advance  of  their  starting  into  growth,  and  pointing 
in  lightly. 
Ferns  for  Shaded  Houses  (S.  L.).  —  The  house  would  answer 
best  for  hardy  Ferns  of  the  choicer  sorts,  such  as  Adiantum  capillus- 
Veneris,  Asplenium  marinum,  Athyrium  filix-feemina  vars.  Barnesi, 
cirtiim  mubifidiim,  formosum  cristatum,  Pritchardi  cristatum,  and 
Victorias -  Blechnum  Spicant  ramosum,  Lastrea  opaca,  L.  dilatata 
ramo-enstata,  L.  filix-mas  cristala  angustata,  L.  filix-mas  Iveryana 
cristata,  Onoclea  sensihilis,  Osmunda  interrupta,  0.  spectabilis, 
0.  regalis  cristata.  Polypodium  vulgare  ramosum,  Polystichum 
acnleatum  proliferum,  P.  augUlare  cristatum,  P.  angulare  Wollastoni, 
Scolopendrium  vulgare  apiforme,  S.  crispum  maximum,  S.  Valoisi, 
Struthiopteris  japonica,  and  Woodwardia  angustifolia. 
