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JOURNAL OP HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



[ Ootobor 16, 1873. 



Gohhil Oiamplon. — Tli;3 Grape, like all the others previously 

 described, was also good, aud seemed free from the faalt so 

 often attributed to it — i.e., craoking, and the bunches were all 

 nicely shaped and of good size, the berries, it is almost need- 

 less to say, being vary large. Mr. Hunter was of opinion that 

 this Grape would ouilive much of the abuse that had been 

 heaped upon it, bjl doubted whether it would attain the dis- 

 tinction of some o'.d well-known kinds. Certainly nothing 

 could be finer than its appearance at Lambton, and I under- 

 stood it had been good Last year also, the bunches being 

 equally fine, and the berries large and uniform. 



Mrs. Place's Mwcat. — This was also good, and well main- 

 tained the good name it has acquired elsewhere, the bunches 

 being large aud well filled out, which is not the case in every 

 place at which it is grown ; where we are accustomed to see a 

 large well-formod bunch when in the young state, but the 

 berries not swelling out to the required size, it has a naked, 

 stalky appearance. This was not the case with the examples 

 at Lambton, all being fully grown out and filled-in, so that 

 the laying dowa a bvrnoh on its side revealed but few foot- 

 stalks. It was a'so well coloured — another difficulty often 

 encountered with this Grape ; and the rods bearing it were 

 heavily loaded. On the whole, all that has been said in favour 

 of this Grape may be said to be fully borne oat by what was 

 seen of it here. 



Seedling Whi'^, — A very promising Grape, the rod of which 

 I was told was ouly inarched on the stock supporting it in 

 1372, aud yet there were four very fine bunches upon it — one or 

 more might be .5 lbs. weight or upwards — while its qualities in 

 the matter of flavour were not inferior to its appearance, so 

 that I expect we shall hear something more of this Grape, as 

 it had tlie appearance of one likely to keep well. The stalk 

 supporting the barry was stout, and the general appearance 

 of the whole robust and hardy, aud there crrtainly is a lack of 

 good-keeping Grap'"? of the white kind. The Golden Champion, 

 even witli those who manage it best, fails in this matter; and 

 although now &v\ than the White Muscat is mat with in a 

 tolerably good condition late in the winter, it is more often 

 shanked and ragged, and at best cannot equal the black 

 Grapes in keeping qualities ; the Syrian, Nice, and Trebbiano, 

 whether they constitute one, two, or three kinds, are all found 

 faulty in the stalk lata in the year ; therefore, a really good- 

 keeping white Grape will be an acquisition. I hope Mr. 

 Hunter will give us some more particulars about this promising 

 Grape. 



Muscat of Alexandria. — I need not say this Grape was ex- 

 tensively grown, as well as the varieties into wliich it is sub- 

 divided, as Bowood and Tynniughame Muscat, and also Canon 

 Hal!, and like tlio other kinds named they were all good ; the 

 old or normal form being, nevertheless, the greatest favourite. 

 Most excellent fruit well ripened was shown in one of the 

 houses, while the foliage was also all that couM be wished for. 



Plack Scedlinj. — Tliis was also a promising fruit, one or two 

 bunches appearing to exceed 5 lbs. ia weight. It had some 

 resemblance to Gros Guillaume, and like it would appear to be 

 more difficult to colour well, but the bunches were well shaped, 

 berries good, and there was still ample time for it to colour 

 well, which it promised to do, when it would present a robust, 

 well-eonditionad appaaranoa. It is a fine-looking Grape, and 

 one likely to make a name. 



Lady Doione's. — I need hardly say that this fine Grape was 

 also largely groTU, and there were plenty of fine bunches of it 

 too, but Mr. Hunter was not so anxious to have this Grape so 

 very large, as he justly observed that for very lata keeping a 

 madium-sized bunch was invariably better than a very large 

 one ; and the same remark held good with regard to the 

 Alicante and West's St. Peter's, which however good in January 

 are not always the best to look at in August. All three were 

 extensively grown, and in the bast possible condition, but they 

 were not so likely to figure at important fruit shows in Septem- 

 ber as they might do after Christmas, especially as there was 

 no lack of other kinds more befitting the time of year, and 

 accordingly better suited for the occasion. 



Alicante. — This useful late Grape was also duly represented, 

 aud more than one fine cane of it was loaded with large, well- 

 shaped bunches that promised to be of good service when the 

 short dark days of winter rendered such fruit really valuable. 

 I am not sure whether Mr. Hanter mentioned the varieties in- 

 cluded under the name of Alicante, for by catalogues and the 

 opinions of growers thara seem to be more kinds than one. 

 At all events the normal kind, if it be right to call it such, was 

 in the best possible form, and all but finished. 



Of the other kinds of Grapes, I believe, but am not certain, 

 that Gros Colman was grown ; also Royal Vineyard, Foster's 

 White Seedling, and some others, but I omitted to notice 

 them distinctly, and therefore must leave their description to 

 other hands. I ought not to omit mentioning that in look- 

 ing over the Grape houses, one producing some of the finest 

 fruit was only planted in 1869, while in another housa, a 

 Black Hamburgh Vine planted against the back wall occupied 

 the whole length of it, which was somawhere about 90 feet. 

 I may also further remark, that notwithstanding the large 

 size of the bunches described above, and their worth con- 

 firmed by the position they took at the Manchester Show 

 (Mr. Hunter taking the lion's share of prizes for Grapes), the 

 foliage was not extraordinarily large, certainly not so large as is 

 mat with in places where the fruit is not half so fino, neither 

 was the wood larger or stouter than is often seen in other 

 places, but it w.as as hard as twigs of Beech where it had 

 ripened, and the foliage was in all eases healthy ; even when it 

 was ripening off the early Vines, it had tha healthy yeUow 

 appearance which out-door foliage ought to have when clear of 

 insect or other ailments. — J. Robso.i. 



NOTES AND GLEANINGS. 



Dr. Hooker says that Captain Markham has most kindly 

 presented to the Herbarium of the Royal Gardens, Kew, a 

 small but very interesting collection of plants brought back by 

 him from his recent Arctic voyage. Amongst them are foar 

 specimens which he obtained from Dr. Bessel, who collected 

 them in lat. 82" N., the most northern position from which 

 any phanerogamic vegetation has hitherto been procured. The 

 locality appears to have been on the east side of Smith's 

 Sound. The species are Draba alpina, L. (Alpine Whitlow 

 Grass) ; Cerastinm [alpinum, L. (Alpine Mouse-eared Chick- 

 weed) ; Taraxacum Dens-leonis, Desf. var. (Dandelion) ; Poa 

 flexuosa, Wahl. (Zigzag Meadow Grass). — (Nature.) 



— — The financial results of the Manchester Fruit and 

 Flower Show were: — Receipts, £2907 8;. lOd. ; expenditure, 

 £2134 3s. 5d. There is therefore a balance in its favour of 

 £833 5s. 5d. 



The volume of Artisans' Reports upon the Vienna 



Exhibition, published by the Society for the Promotion of 

 Scientific Industry, Manchester, will be pubUshed about the 

 2()th of this month. There are thirty-six reports. 



ANOTHKRinstanceof the Effect OK Soil, ox the Colours 



OP Flowers is furnished by Herr Max Leiehtlin, who trans- 

 planted a Lilinm Coridion into heath soil, when the flowers 

 changed from sulphur yellow to red. This fact would appear 

 to show that L. Parthenoion and Coridion are in reality varie- 

 ties of the same species. — (Enijlish MeehanU.) 



— - Not long since we were shown a collection of Japan 

 Flags (Iris K.eiipferi), which impressed us as being unusually 

 fine. "They have proved entirely hardy in the latitude of New 

 York, aud the flowers are large aud of a great variety of colours, 

 from pure white to deep blue, beautifully veined and mottled, 

 many of them tipped with yellow. Their easy cultivation and 

 propagation must certainly make them popular with the horti- 

 cultural public, as they belong to a class of plants that know 

 how to take care of themselves. They bloom after tha old 

 Garman Flags, and thus aid in prolonging the season. — [New 

 York Tribune.) 



WORK FOR THE WEEK. 



KITCHKM G.AHDEN, 



Rarely do we have a more favourable season than the present 

 one for digging and trenching ground, and as there are few gar- 

 dens but would be benefited by the latter operation, I trust the 

 fine weather will not be allowed to pass without attention to 

 this subject. Asparagus is generally considered to be one of 

 the greatest luxuries the garden produces, but it is very rarely 

 found to be what it ought to be, aud this arises in a groat 

 measure from the bads being improperly made. It is a very 

 common practice not to attempt to prepare the ground till the 

 time of planting; a large quantity of dung is then dug-in, aad 

 the roots immediately planted. It is not our intention at pre- 

 sent to give the details of planting, but only to recommend 

 those who intend making new bads in tha spring to prepare tha 

 ground immediately by diggiug-in and well mixing a large 

 quantity of duug and leaf mould with the soil ; the ground may 

 than be slightly forked-up in the spring, and the bads formed 

 aud planted. Tie-up Cardooiis for blanching when the leaves 

 are quite dry; twist haybands round so that the earth does not 



