XIV 



IRISH GARDENING. 



Note. 



The Progress of Agriculture in Nova 

 Scotia. — During last year great progress was 

 made in agricnlture. An experimental Iruil 

 farm has been established at Kentville, a beauti- 

 ful rural town in the heart of the great 

 fruit growing district. Professor J. W. Crowe, 

 of (Juelph, has been appointed as director. The 

 fruit growers of Nova Scotia expect good results 

 from the experiments made on this farm. In 

 March the Dominion Parliament voted £5,000 to 

 enlarge the Nova Scotia Agricultural College. 

 This work was necessary owing to the increasing 

 number of students attending the long and short 

 courses. This attendance has increased from 85 

 (seven years ago) to nearly 500. An assembly hall. 

 88 by 60 feet, has been erected. Two additional 

 class-rooms have been added. • A new horticul- 

 tural building with greenhouses attached form 

 I)art of the improvements. There is also an 

 entomological department with a glasshouse 

 attached where insects can be bred and studied 

 at all times of the year. The farm has also been 

 enla-ged to the extent of 40 acres. Another ad- 

 vanced step is the establishment of " Illustrated 

 Farms " in the agricultural centres, the objects 

 of which are to promote the mutual Interests of 

 the farmers, to increase their knowledge of 

 scientific farming, and generally to improve the 

 conditions of country life. Co-operation among 

 farmers has rapidly increased during the year. 

 Twenty-nine fruit growers' associations have 

 united in a central organisation which has been 

 incorporated by the Legislature. The operations 

 of this central body have been of great benefit to 

 the fruit growers. In these and other ways the 

 farmers of Nova Scotia have kept pace with all 

 the improved methods of agricultvire. 



Catalogues. 



An extremely handsome and well got uji seed 

 catalogue comes from Messrs. Webb A: Sons. 

 Wordsley, Stouibridge, full of really beautiful 

 illustrations, (iarden Peas, for which this llrm 

 has a great name, come lirst, and besides a good 

 collection of tlie well-known sorts there are 

 novelties in both the early and late sections. 

 Heans, Beet, Cauliflowers, Cabbage, Potatoes, 

 and in fact all the well-known vegetables are 

 represented by both new and old varieties, while 

 some little-known kinds of vegetables are also 

 to be found, and a page of information is devoted 

 to the making and renovating of lawns. The 

 list of flowers is a large one in the latter half of 

 the catalogue, and finely illustrated. Creen- 

 house flowers raised from Webb's choice .strains 

 of seeds fonn a striking feature at many shows 

 throughout the kingdom, while their annuals 

 give a blaze of colour during the summer in many 

 a garden. Such reliable firms give the greatest 

 care in the growth, selection, cleaning and 

 testing of their seeds so that a high standard of 

 germination is assured. Free copies of the 

 catalogue are given to customers, but the pub- 

 lished price is Is., post free. 



R 



eview. 



The December .Journal of the Royal Horticultural 

 Society of England is an interesting produ(;tion. 

 Prof. R. H. Biffen writes on " Investigations on 

 the Control of Disease in Plants." Sir Everard 

 Ina Thurn writes on " The Cocoanut Palm." In 

 some of the South Sea Islands this all-useful 

 palm supplies the natives with most of their 



DICKSON'S "HAWLMARK" SEEDS 



are by general consent admitted to be the best for the soil and 

 climate of Ireland. They are the produce of our own stock 

 seeds, and at our extensive trial grounds every variety, before 

 being sent out, is thoroughly tested; and exhaustive experiments 

 are constantly being initiated and carried out with the object 

 of still further improving our stocks. 



Those who wish to grow the best crops should sow the best 

 seeds, and we would point out that, all our seed crops being 

 carefully grown and harvested under personal supervision, our 

 seeds are of highest purity and germination. 



We never part with our stock seeds, so that it is important to 

 remember that our proprietary strains can only be obtained 

 from us. 



Before ordering your Supply for the Season it will pay you to look 

 through our Catalogue, which will he sent gratis and post free 



ALEX. DICKSON & SONS, Ltd. 



HAWLMARK 61 DAWSON STREET, DUBLIN 



