loam, one of leaf-mould, and one of well-rotted dung; to this, add another part of sand and broken charcoal. These must be well mixed, but not made fine, for the roots delight to ramify in rough, lumpy material. Use twelve inch pots for large plants; these must be perfectly clean, and properly drained; pick off a leaf or two from the neck of the plant, and keep it well down in the pot; make the soil moderately firm, and leave plenty of room for supplying water to the plant; keep them near the light, and draw a syringe full or two of water over them occasionally; this will keep them fresh and clean; and, by having the surface of the soil aways a little moist, they will grow vigorously and send numerous roots out of the sides of the stem, and from underneath the leaves; at the same time, see that the mass of soil does not get too dry, for, although the surface of the earth may be thus kept moist, the interior part may be quite dry, and the plants consequently receive a check. A practised ear will know when a plant requires water by the sound of the pot. As the flower-stems lengthen, gradually widen and arrange them, so as to allow full benefit of light and air, keeping them in place, by tying neatly to light stakes. While in flower, they must be kept shaded, cool, and airy. arid weather of May and June will soon rob them of their beauty, if attention is not paid to shading from bright sun, and the atmosphere kept charged with moisture, by watering the paths, under the stages, and all vacant places; if this is properly attended to, they will flower for six or eight weeks in the warmest of seasons, and display beautiful masses of their variously mottled, purse-like flowers..

The dry,

Plants intended for hybridizing should be placed by themselves; any two flowers of different colors, when crossed will produce innumerable intermediate varieties. With a small piece of wood, sharpened thin, scrape the pollen from the anther of the one, and apply it to the stigma of the other; and, where several crosses are effected upon one plant, distinguish them by threads of different colors, carefully noting down the same, so that there may be no confusion when the seed is ripe. Assist the plants with frequent waterings of liquid manure, while the seed is ripening; this will ensure

fine, plump seed, and gather it before the pods are fully ripe, as they are liable to burst, and the seeds disperse.

New Haven, Conn., February 12, 1849.

[If, after reading the above excellent article, by Mr. Saunders, and that by Mr. Kennedy, (p. 492) in addition to what has been said in our previous volumes, the amateur is not able to produce fine specimens of this most beautiful plant, it will not be for want of the most simple, plain, and concise directions for that object. Mr. Saunders's article was written some time since, and, in consequence of the appearance of Mr. Kennedy's communication, it was laid aside; but, at our request, he has kindly forwarded it for publication, though somewhat abridged from the original draft.

A flower so well worthy of universal cultivation as the calceolaria, and one which is yet so rarely seen in fine condition, deserves more than ordinary notice; and the results of the experience of every successful grower will be duly appreciated by all who prize such a delicate and varied flower as the calceolaria. Now is the time to sow seeds, when it has been neglected in the autumn, and if Mr. Saunders's directions are followed, a fine show of flowers may be obtained, from August to October.-Ed.]

MISCELLANEOUS INTELLIGENCE.

ART. 1. General Notices.

Tree Mignonette.-The Reseda odorata, or common sweet Mignonette, treated after the following manner, forms a real treat in the conservatory, during the winter and spring months.

Sow in spring a number of small four-inch pots. When up, clear off all the plants but one in the centre; as it grows, train it upwards to a stick, until it is a foot high, or two if you please; do not allow any side shoots to grow on the stem, and remove all leaves to within a few inches of its top. When the plant gets as high as you wish it, top it, and then it will throw out side branches; as they advance, pinch off their tops, until you have formed a nice bushy head to your plant, and, above all things, do not allow any bloom to appear, until it has become strong, which will be by winter, if it has been well attended to. For the first winter, it will be advisable not to have them in larger than eight-inch pots. Mignonette being an annual,

if the seeds are not picked off after flowering, it is ten to one that the plant will die. I have had excellent Tree Mignonette, three years old-very bushy, and full of flower all winter. Mignonette is often neglected at midsummer, when our hands are full of other work, and yet this is the very time when Tree Mignonette wants most care, for the flowers, not being wanted during summer, ought then to be removed, in order to have a fine winter display. To keep worms from entering and disturbing the roots, add a handful of soot at each shifting, over the drainage.

Mignonette delights in sandy loam, not too light, and, being a gross feeder, a little diluted manure-water may be given once a week with advantage. If this is contemplated, the mould need not be made so rich in the first instance.

Winter Mignonette, as it is generally called, requires to be treated differently from the above. It is generally sown about the 20th of August; if later, it will not acquire sufficient strength by winter for the London market. I generally grow from eight to ten plants, in a forty-eight-sized pot, which is six inches deep. For this sowing, it is safest to use a light sandy, and rather poor mould, for, if the latter is too rich and strong, the plants damp off during winter. Out of nearly a thousand pots, I have often scarcely lost one by attending to this, by not allowing a drop of rain to fall on them during winter, by never watering them unless they were flagging, and by admitting at all times plenty of air. In the case of frost coming, however, they are closely covered up, sometimes for a week or fortnight together; and, if you have not followed the above rules, you will suffer severely from damp. Do not expose your plants for some days after the frost breaks up, and that only by degrees; above all things, do not expose them to the sun. My anxiety to give them light, after being so long covered up, has sometimes led me, for the moment, to forget this, and I have suffered severely for my negligence.

Should the winter prove mild, the plants will root into the ashes they are placed on; therefore, they must be lifted up occasionally, to break the roots. Slugs will annoy you if you do not look after them; they fatten on Mignonette. To retard some of the pots, pinch the heads off the plants; by this means, they will not flower so strongly as those not pinched, and will yield a succession of bloom.-(Gard. Chron., 1849, p. 52.)

Gooseberries and currants.-If not done before, it will soon be time to prune gooseberry and currant trees; vegetable life is in activity much earlier in their case, than with other fruit trees, and it is always desirable that pruning should be finished while the tree is in a state of rest. Every advancing bud which is cut off, is so much abstracted from those which remain, and the life, thus wasted, ought to have been concentrated in the tree. From the shoots now cut off, select some of the best as cuttings, which will root immediately, if put in now. On the right management of these cuttings, the well-being of the future tree, and the comfort of the cultivator, will depend, and therefore a little trouble should be willingly incurred. Select strong shoots, and let the end to be inserted in the earth be cut sharp and clean to a bud; allow 3 or 4 inches to be buried in the soil, and 8 for

the stem above ground; 8 inches, I mean, exclusive of the part which is to form the head of the tree, which must consist of three or four buds, so arranged round the axis, that the future branches shall be at equal distances from each other, so as to secure a cup-like form, when the head advances. Having determined on the buds to be preserved, carefully exterminate all the rest, especially those on the part to be inserted for the roots. If this is not done, you will be troubled with suckers every year, a pest you will be free from, to a great extent, if this rule is attended to. I was about to make a more positive statement, but I remember finding suckers proceeding from the larger roots, and even from parts of the stem, where there was previously no bud. Do all you can to prevent the evil, and its existence must then be provided against, in the best manner afterwards, should it oc

cur.

In two or three years, the cuttings will have good heads, and they may then be placed in the situations they are finally to occupy. At that time, it will be proper to determine whether you will grow them as standards, or espaliers, the latter mode being adopted with success, especially in the case of those gooseberries, of a trailing habit of growth, peculiar to some of the best varieties, which makes it very difficult to form a good head. This determination refers more to the position in which the trees are to be planted, as it is manifest that the training of the bush must be regulated from the first, so as to make it an espalier or standard. In both cases, avoid close planting, by which nothing can be gained, but most probably much will be lost. Keep the soil around them free from weeds, and dig in every year a little well-rotted dung. To prevent the ravages of the caterpillar, it has been recommended to remove the surface soil every autumn, and replace it with fresh, brought from a little distance. It is said that the eggs are deposited near the trees, and are thus removed. A little quicklime, sprinkled over, might be equally effectual. I must confess, I feel a little ashamed of being obliged to speak doubtfully on this important subject, but I am not acquainted sufficiently with the habits of this insect, to speak positively, yet few persons have suffered more severely from its ravages, than I have.

We now return to the point whence we set out, the annual pruning of the trees. First cut away as much of the bush, as will leave it accessible to sun and air, and preserve a compact and open arrangement of the branches. If the tree is old, remove as much as you can of the older wood, and introduce young shoots in its place. Gooseberries and currants bear on last year's wood, not exclusively, but principally, and yet a very different mode is adopted for each. The former are trained so that last year's growth shall remain as long as possible, one or two buds only at the extremities being cut off. Currants, on the contrary, are spurred, each new shoot being cut down to within two buds, a few leaders excepted, for the future enlargement of the tree. The same plan may be adopted with the gooseberry, but it will have this disadvantage; the fruit will be too crowded to allow of proper expansion, whereas, the pendent form of a bunch of currants allows of closer quarters. Summer pruning should not be neglected, as there can be no doubt that the removal of the profuse growth of that season, judiciously,

will throw greater strength and maturity into that which is permitted to remain.

If very large fruit is wanted, the berries must be thinned out, and liquid manure applied, but a separate paper would be necessary to detail all the arts and crafty ways of gooseberry fanciers. In picking fruit for use, let direction guide your hand, as a thinning equally all over will do more good to the remaining berries, than the common practice of stripping whole branches at once.-(Gard. Chron., 1849, p. 52.)

Cultivation of Celery.-In our last number, we copied an article on the cultivation of this fine vegetable, and now present our readers with the following. Mr. Cole presented some of his celery for exhibition, and with it he communicated his mode of cultivation as follows:

Herewith I take the liberty of handing you six sticks of Celery, of a kind which I have grown for the last three years, and which, I think, both in point of size, solidity, and flavor, will be found superior to any which has hitherto been cultivated. The specimens sent are not selected, but are merely examples of a general crop, planted without any object in view, beyond that of the supply of my employer's table, and entirely without ever thinking of sending any of it for public exhibition. My stock consists of six hundred plants, planted in rows, four feet apart, and the plants nine inches apart in the row; and I have not a doubt that the whole crop would average six pounds per stick. Not the least remarkable excellence in this Celery is, that it will stand twelve months without running, or starting for seed, and such a thing as a pipy or stringy leaf, I have never noticed, so long as I have grown it. For a more substantial detail of my method of cultivation, I may remark, the seed was sown the first week in February, and so soon as the plants were large enough, they were pricked out in garden soil, rich in vegetable matter, under hand-glasses. The trenches were prepared in the usual manner, in the first week in June, by excavating them nine inches deep, and digging in a good dressing of the spent dung of an old Mushroom bed. The plants were, of course, strong when they were planted out, and each was removed to the trench with a good ball of earth adhering to the roots, so that (afterwards receiving a copious watering) they sustained little or no check. In earthing Celery, I generally endeavor to steer between the two extremes of frequently earthing, and earthing only when the plants are full grown, believing that a little earth, after the plants are fully established in the trenches, say a month after planting, promotes the rapid growth of the plants, more especially if they receive a good soaking of weak liquid manure, or soot-water, a day or two before they are earthed. Soot-water is an excellent manure for Celery; and where worms and other insects are troublesome, a little dry soot dashed along the rows will be found a preventive of their ravages. The kitchen garden here being upon a boggy subsoil, and the level of the river Dart, which passes through the grounds, I do not find it necessary to water the plants more than once or twice after they are planted out; but, in more elevated situations, it is almost impossible to give too much water, always, however, preferring to give a thorough soaking once every fortnight, rather