fir does not grow well here; and the balm of Gilead, very badly; but the silver fir, upon high rocky soils, particularly upon basaltic rock, grows better, and stands the wind better, than any of the spruce or fir tribe. The pine, or Scotch fir, as it is generally termed, grows well in deep sand, but is not a flourishing tree in our soil generally. The larch grows well in sheltered situations, where the soil is dry and hard, gravelly, or loamy; or in any kind of soil upon steep banks. The pinaster grows rapidly, and is the best pine for resisting wind. The cedar of Lebanon grows well here, particularly upon similar situations to those which I allege suitable to the larch. I have inarched several cedars upon the larch, which seem to promise well; and also upon spruce and silver firs, more recently. The cypress, when raised from seed, and not transplanted, grows luxuriantly. The acacias grow well, but break frequently in storms of wind. The Acàcia affìnis, a most beautiful evergreen, thrives well, but suffers by frosts. All the arbor vitæs grow well here, and also the junipers, called American cedars. I have planted the stone, or cembra, pine of Siberia, Pinus rígida, P. ponderòsa, P. taúrica, and the Corsican pine, all which promise to be very valuable trees in stormy and exposed situations. The Roman stone pine grows very well, particularly if not moved from the place in which it is sown; and P. Tæ`da, I believe, and P. halepensis, thrive well here, although they grow slowly. I have several others, and amongst them the deodara; but they are too young yet to afford indication of their future character and capacity to grow well here. The Magnòlia grandiflora has stood out as a standard for three or four years; and the catalpa, Judas tree, and mulberry also. The other deciduous magnolias grow well; and the deciduous cypress grows luxuriantly. The myrtle has been out of doors for two years in severe winters. The bay tree grows very well, and the arbutus in open exposed situations; but they require a dry subsoil. The kalmia grows well, also the cork tree, though very slowly. The common English elm stands the wind extremely well, and all the elms grow rapidly. The Cornish upright elm, which grows like a Lombardy poplar, is, I think, a very valuable tree for exposed places; as is, also, the weeping elm of America, which grows very luxuriantly and rapidly. The yew grows well, and to a good size, in this district, and resists the wind well. The Virginian scarlet oak grows slowly, and is brittle; but Quércus tinctòria promises to grow well. The hemlock spruce grows slowly here; the weeping willow, luxuriantly; but it suffers by the spring frosts, and sometimes is much injured from the same cause in winter. The cut-leaved alder seems to be a larger tree than the common one, and is a valuable tree; and a kind of ash with undivided leaves grows rapidly, and is a handsome tree. The balsam or tacamahac poplar, and the Ontario poplar, lately introduced, thrive well; the former resists the storm admirably, and grows rapidly in all soils. Poloc, Oct. 30. 1836. ART. VI. On the Management of Cape Heaths in the open Air during the Summer Season. By JOHN FYFFE, Gardener to the Rev. W. Mansfield, at Milton Bryant, Bedfordshire. HAVING been very successful with the "Cape Eríceæ" in pots in the open air, I shall not, I trust, be considered intrusive in forwarding to you, for the benefit of some of your numerous subscribers, an account of the mode of treatment pursued by me, which is as follows: After first taking out all the plants that I intend from the heath-house (say, at the begining of June), and removing them into pots according to their size, I have a bed of cinder ashes made to the depth of 12 in. or 15 in. and I then plunge the pots into it up to their brims, arranging them according to the height of the plants. Instead of giving large quantities of water in excessively dry weather (as is sometimes done), I give a moderate supply only; at the same time taking care to have the cinder ashes well soaked with water, which keeps the pots in a moist state during the heat of the day. I find this to be much better than the common mode of placing the pots out, and leaving them destitute of any protection from the penetrating rays of a hot sun, which must be most injurious to this very beautiful tribe of plants. When the pots are exposed, in the manner above mentioned, to the heat of the sun, they become quite hot: this consequently exhausts and dries up the soil; and no heath whatever, in this state, can recover, the fibres of the roots being so small, that they lose all their vital action; and the more you water, the sooner you hasten their decay. This error many gardeners fall into with respect to heaths, which are often set out, like other hardy green-house plants, without sheltering them from the scorching rays of the sun; besides which, they are frequently crowded too closely together, which greatly injures them, and brings on that rusty and unsightly appearance so often to be met with in our gardens. I would venture to suggest that the heaths should never be allowed to touch each other, but that they should all stand separate, in whatever form they may be placed; as, when this is the case, they cannot possibly injure each other. The principal rule to be observed in rearing heaths in houses is, to allow at all times free circulation of air; likewise to keep the pots in a moist state; taking care not to have them soaked too much with water, nor scorched with drought. I should also say, from my own experience, as well as from the practical instruction I received from the able curator of the Edinburgh Botanic Garden, that no heath ought to be put out of the house, when there is room to keep it in so that the plants may stand clear of each other; as, by being exposed in the open air, they are liable to get drenched by the heavy rains so frequent in the summer months, and which can only be avoided by awnings of canvass being erected (this, too, at a considerable expense), to protect them from the rain as well as from the scorching rays of the sun. Milton Bryant, Feb. 20. 1837. ART. VII. On protecting the Crocus, when in Blossom, from Sparrows. By WILLIAM ANDERSON, F.L.S., &c., Curator of the Chelsea Botanic Garden. A BLACK thread, tightly stretched over an edging of crocuses, when in flower, completely protects them from being eaten by sparrows, as they generally are in the neighbourhood of London. The thread must not be nearer the crocuses than 10 in., nor higher than 1 ft.; as the scare is effected by the sparrows not seeing the thread until they alight on the ground under it; when, seeing something artificial, they think it is a trap, and fly off without waiting to examine whether it is so or not. Black threads are equally effectual when stretched over newly-sown seeds; but I find that the threads, in that case, must not be more than 3 ft. or 4 ft. apart; though this may only be applicable in the case of our cockney sparrows, which, you may have observed, when they alight on horse droppings on the public road, turn up one eye to see that all is safe. When they do this in gardens, they see the thread, and fly off. Botanic Garden, Chelsea, March 13. 1837. ART. VIII. On the Management of the Vine. By A. FORSYTH. LET the Vine-bed or Border be made of the following earths :Loamy turf that has been pared quite thin, and stocked in narrow tiers, for one year at least, three parts; and one part of the following mixture: any dry, well aerated animal manure that can most conveniently be got, such as horse droppings, or those of cattle, deer, or sheep, without litter, laid in alternate layers with old plaster or old building lime mortar (the older the better): no matter if there be a few brickbats in it. Let the whole be well pounded, and mixed with the dung, which ought to be in a proper state as to moisture, to ferment a little; after which, let it be frequently turned, always keeping it rather dry; it may then be wheeled into the bed or border. The loam, when put into the bed or border, should be in pieces about the size of bricks and half bricks, brought from the stacks or tiers where they were originally piled, mixed with the manure, and laid once for all in the place where they are finally to remain; without any turning, chopping, or pounding whatever, which only injures the loam, and renders it too compact, and too much akin to puddle, for vine roots to prosper in. About 16 ft. wide, and from 2 ft. 6 in. to 4 ft. deep, may be considered a moderate width and depth for a vine border, on a substratum of draining at least 1 ft. deep. On the top of this the vines reared in the manner hereafter stated may be planted. If out of doors, plant the vines 3 ft. from the front of the house, just covering the root-ball of each about 2 in.; over which place a hand-glass. This will keep off rain and concentrate heat. Then lay the cane about 2 in. under ground, till it enters the aperture, or arch, into the house; and over this place another hand-glass; or, instead of hand-glasses, a layer of hot dung or leaves, 1 ft. thick and 6 ft. wide, may be laid along it. It is presumed that the border has been made in autumn; in which case, this planting is to be done in February; especial care being taken that the border does not get either too wet or too dry. In the former case, thatch it; and in the latter, mulch it with fermented dung from old linings or the like; and water it with clean water. This I consider preferable to recent drainings from the cattle layers. To grow the Vines. Get some eyes from plants which you have seen and proved; cut them at in. above and below the eye, and insert them singly in pots (of the size 60), about in. under the soil, about Christmas. Keep them growing in a moist heat (say 60° Fahrenheit), and shift them regularly as they require it; training their stems against the wall or trellis in the hot-house. With good culture, in twelve months, they will have stems as thick as the little finger, with 4 ft. of well-ripened cane, and plenty of vigorous roots. When planted in the Vinery, let them be grown in a like heat till autumn, when the house may be uncovered to ripen the wood: but care must be taken to prevent their freezing. In winter, cut back till you find the wood of a firm texture and good size. Under good culture, from 6 ft. to 9 ft. of firm short-jointed wood may be got. It is always better to leave the canes rather short than otherwise. As regards stopping the leader in growing the canes, I should always grow 5 ft. or 6 ft. of useless vine; that is, I should not stop the vine till it had got 5 ft. or 6 ft. beyond where I expected to cut to in the winter pruning. When you commence growing in the spring, which should not be too early (say Feb. 15.), let the temperature be low (say 50° Fahrenheit), and the atmosphere moist, that the vines may break at all the eyes. The canes, for this purpose, ought to be laid quite level; and, as soon as shoots have been protruded from the eyes, the canes may be fixed to the trellis, and the temperature increased; but I should by no means allow then to bear fruit yet (unless, perhaps, a cluster on each vine, to prove the sorts). If I intended to force for early fruit the third year, to save repetition, I shall refer to the "Diary of Forcing," which I have already given (Vol. X. p. 547.). To have grapes in their proper season, I would begin to excite the vines in the middle of March, by keeping the temperature about 50° or 55° Fahr.: if it will keep at this without fire heat, so much the better. When the vines are coming into flower, 60° Fahr. would do them good; and, after that is over, and the fruit thinned, they will do very well at 55° Fahr. as a minimum, and at 85° Fahr. as a maximum, of sun heat. I would cause the lateral shoots, or spurs, to bear the grapes, which I would stop at one joint beyond the fruit, and, in pruning, cut back to one eye. That I may be clearly understood, I shall assume dates : Jan. 1. 1836. Vine eyes potted. Feb. 14. 1838. Vines excited. Jan. 1. 1838. Canes pruned or cut March 15. 1839. Vines excited. back. July, 1839. The fruit ripe. The sorts I would cultivate are, Muscat of Alexandria, Dutch Sweetwater, White Frontignan, White Muscadine, Black Hamburg, Black Prince, Black Frontignan for vineries, and Black Espérione and White Muscadine for walls. ART. IX. On the Potato, particularly the early Varieties. My respected father cultivated this root during a period of half a century; and I have prepared sets, planted and cultivated them, after his instructions, under his eye, and since that time, for a period of nearly twenty years. I have also had it in my power to mark their culture in different parts of Britain (some 500 miles between), in various soils, and under various circumstances, with as various success; and, notwithstanding all the experiments that have been made (as detailed in the Horticul tural Transactions, and other papers on this subject to which I have had access), it does not appear to me that any of the writers have reached the root of the evil. In the first place, then, according to our theory, there is a radical error in the practice, much in vogue among the growers |