IRISH GARDENING 



means of prevention in such cases is the applica- 

 tion of heavy dressings of quick-lime to the soil. 



Lime is, in point of fact, one of the most use- 

 ful substances at the command of the gardener, 

 to be used as a means of improving- the crop- 

 producing power of his soil. It not only acts as 

 a carrier of valuable food into the system of the 

 plant, but it influences the availability of dung, 

 dung residues, and organic matter generally, as 

 well as most of the artificial manures applied to 

 the soil. It promotes the nitrification of soil 

 ammonia, and thus saves it from loss ; it 

 prevents the precipitation of phosphoric acid in 

 the form of insoluble salts ; it liberates potash 

 frjm certain minerals in the soil, and prevents 

 the soluble potash salts applied as manures from 

 passing into unavailable and therefore use- 

 less compounds. It is, in short, indispensable 

 for good culture, and high _\iclds of healthy 

 crops free from disease can only be obtained 

 by keeping the soil well supplied witli it. 



There must be hundreds of gardens in the 

 country the cropping powers of which would 

 be immediately and surprisingly increased by 

 the application of a suitable dressing of lime 

 to the soil. 



Small Holdings a.nd their Possibilities. - In a 

 pamphlet written by Mr. Ttios, Smith, supervisor of tile 

 " Fels ■■ small holding's in Essex, and entitled " .A Solution 

 of the Unemployed Problem," the following statement 

 occurs in an introductor)' note : — ** In 1905 Mr. Joseph 

 Fels purchased a farm of over 600 acres on the River 

 Blackwater, in the parish of Mayland, Essex. W hen 

 the farm was taken over it was in a very neglected 

 condition. The buildings were in disrepair, the roads 

 were bad, gates and fences were timible down and the 

 sea wall was breached. The only persons regularh' 

 employed on the whole 600 acres were three men and 

 two boys. 



"At the present time there are no less than 53 men and 

 seven boys in full work on the estate, and about 20 

 women in partial employment, and in addition to 

 these, 21 small holdings yield enough to provide for the 

 same number of families. Including all these, it is safe 

 to say that about 400 persons are maintained, ami the 

 development of the estate is only yet at the l>eginning. 

 .•\part from the earnings of the small holders, the wages 

 bill is well over ;£l3,ooO a year. 



*' There are now on the estate 40 cottages, i6,oco 

 superficial feet of glass houses, two acres of French 

 garden, 50 acres of land planted with fruit trees, one- 

 and-a-half miles of water mains supplied from a recently 

 bored artesian well, a School House, Baths, Co-opera- 

 tive Store, Post and Telegraph Office, Lending Library, 

 Social Club, Co-operative Productive Association with 

 spacious packing shed, and it is hoped that there will 

 soon be a Public Hall." 



Current Topics. 



By E. Knowldi.n, I'.R.H.S. 



STILL they come," and more power to 'em all. 

 .And in all the gaiety of shrimp-pink, coarulean- 

 blue, sage-green, virginal-white, and Ireland's 

 own, of course. Of such are the schedules of the 

 District Horticultural Societies to hand. .And, as we 

 say, still they come. Here is the latest — " Stillorgan 

 and Foxrock Horticultural Society,'' and the first effort 

 of the sturdy youngster will be in the grounds of the 

 .Stillorgan Convalescent Home on July 23rd, with 44 

 classes embracing all sections, the cut flowers, fruits, 

 and vegetables of which will be duly handed over to the 

 convalescents at the close of the show. We note that 

 Sir John Barton, C.B., is the, president, and T. F. 

 Crozier, Esq., .Avonmore, Stillorgan, the hon. secretary, 

 whilst each name on the committee is an earnest of 

 what we shall e.xpect. Just prior to the above we 

 received the schedule of the North Kildare Cottagers' 

 and .Amateurs' Society, which holds high festival in 

 Straffan, July 21st ; and just before that again the Naas 

 District Horticultural Society, with its fixture at Naas, 

 August 4th, and Kingstown, .August nth. Kildare, it 

 must be said, being rurally situated, caters for the 

 cottagers especially. 



Now, the question crops up, what — what magnetism, 

 wliat microbe is responsible for the sudden eruption? 

 .And from that the weightier one still— is it going to last ? 

 We only venture to express an opinion on the latter 

 part, and that is chiefly derived from a day spent with 

 the North Kildares in Castletown two years ago. We 

 are the better able to draw our deductions from the fact 

 that the evening turned out "soft," but that in nowise 

 seemed to abate the ardour of the cottagers, who from 

 an early hour wended their way. to the rendezvous and 

 stayed to the finish. Here, at all events, sufficient 

 interest was displayed by exhibitors as to leave no open- 

 ing for judicial errors, for we had not been long on the 

 ground, or rather grass, ere a venerable dame, clasping 

 to her bosom the family fuchsia, came up with — " I believe 

 you're thejudge." (We confirmed her faith.) " Because 

 I want to tell yer, as you didn't judge us last year, that 

 I always get first prize for m' fewshy. " She was 

 thanked for her courtesy. Then, who could forget the 

 expectant but respectful group craning their necks 

 through the tent opening as their fate was decided, or a 

 hundred little things beside which showed the keen, the 

 intense, interest in all which went to make the rural 

 holiday. 



Sporting Kildare, we may add, was catered for by a 

 donkey race, the chief event of which was on a par, we 

 presimie, with the Conyngham Cup, for over this parti- 

 cular item excitement became perfervid, and how the 

 favourite 1i>st is now a matter of history. It was with 

 pride in his port and defiance in his eye the owner 

 hoisted his gossoon on deck, and such a sleek, well- 

 groomed ass should have behaved better ; as a matter 

 of fact, all the coaxing which ranged from grave 10 

 gay, from lively to severe, elicited no more than an 

 indignant look from the steed as he turned round 

 and faced his owner, whilst less pretentious animals 

 cantered g.iily to ihc winning post. To sum up from 



