December 8, 1863. ] 



JOUENAL OF HOETICULTUEE AND COTTAGE GAEDENEE. 



453 



above thi'ee ijlantings has been consecutively cropped by me 

 witli Potatoes for sixteen years, part of the time only on 

 the ridge-and-trench plan. Brussels Sprouts and Broccolis 

 occupied the trenches ; and they are now spreading nearly 

 over the whole surface of the ground, so as to make it 

 appear almost incredible to a stranger visiting- the garden 

 how and where the Potatoes could have grown. 



FOUETH PLANTING. 



Before I begin to write the description of this, I must 

 thank an unknown brother bee-keeper wlio kindly sent me 

 on the 16th of last April, a Stewarton bar-and-frame hive, 

 filled with varieties of Potatoes from Scotland. Did they 

 come from Eenfrewshire ? The idea of a bar-and-fi-ame bee- 

 hive being presented to one of the straw-hive and milkjian 

 school like myself! thus trying to induce one, as it were, 

 to become scientific ! Nevertheless, the characteristics of the 

 package were worthy of the kind-hearted Scotchman, who 

 thus added the idea of futiu'e utility to present bounty. I 

 beg to assiure my unknown friend that I will, if I am spai-ed, 

 turn the hive to future account ; and that I have sufficient 

 command over myself not to dread the small end of the 

 wedge, though, had I the time and the means at my com- 

 mand, there is no telling at how many scientific tangents I 

 might fly ofi' iu that way. I am happy to inform a brother 

 bee-keeper that my hives are populous and well provided 

 with winter store. 



To return to our subject. I cannot do better than quote 

 their descriptions iu the words of the giver. 



" No. 1. Bough Bed. — A relic of the olden time — the finest 

 eating Potato known, and an immense cropper before the 

 advent of the disease, to which it almost totally succumbed, 

 being row nearly extinct in these pai-ts — procured ft-om an 

 old farmer who has kept it pure for the last seventy years. 

 Can only be grown now with any measure of success on 

 moss or old lea ground. 



"2. Bough White. — Another old esteemed variety. 



"3. G-i-yffe Castle Seedling. — An excellent Potato of fine 

 quality, a large cropper when well manured — a fortnight 

 earlier than the succeeding. 



"4. Walker's Second Early. — The very best the writer ever 

 grew of the many sorts now classified as above, or as Scotch 

 Eegents in the South ; fine quality, largest cropper, best for 

 general crop. 



"5. Seedlings of 1862, from Flukes. — This coarse yellow 

 variety and the Kough Eed the only sorts here that mature 

 seed." 



I thought I had planned how every foot of this garden 

 was to be occupied previous to the above arrivals. I knew 

 not what to do in an emergency like this, but the idea struck 

 me of digging oirt a trench of soil a spit deep fi'om between 

 the rows of Asparagus, and filling it up again with fresh 

 good compost, then sowing the Marrowfat Peas there, and, 

 when the growth of the Asparagus hanlm had sprung suffi- 

 ciently, to peg it down within a foot or so of the soil in lines 

 on each side, and then stick the Peas. Watered them well 

 and often with liquid manure (house sewage). The pegged- 

 down Grass afforded a natural mulching, an^.l such a crop of 

 Peas was the result as I seldom remembi'r — so much ground 

 gained for ever. When the Pea haulm was cleared away, 

 the Asparagus did not cast any shade, and I do not much 

 expect that we shall have cause to deplore a diminution of 

 heads next spring — at any rate the Potatoes took the place 

 designed for the Peas in the open quarter. 



May 12th. — Planted the Scotch Potatoes. During their 

 progress their tops made enormous growth, so much so, 

 that I was obliged to stake and tar-cord them within boimds 

 twice over. My man sj)oke dubiously about their being " all 

 tops and no bottoms," and I used to appease him by telling 

 him to rest his mind till we took them up, and that then we 

 should see. 



The Eough Eeds, time to their description, in one day 

 after the lightning and thunder experienced here about the 

 beginning of October, became blackened with disease, and 

 I took them all up on the first di-y day about a week after- 

 wards. They turned out to be a fine sample of Potatoes. 

 The Walker's Second Early proved the bulkiest crop, 

 15 tons per acre. The Gryffe Castle Seedling threw the 

 finest tubers, many of them " with laughter cracking both 

 their sides " — jovial-looking fellows in rough jackets. At 

 the time of their taking up we cooked specimens of them 



all, and they looked white and well in the dish ; but it was 

 too early for them to be fine in theirflavoiir ; it would not be 

 fair iu me to give judgment on their qualities in that way 

 before next February. I am sorry to say that the Rough 

 Eeds up to this present date, November 3rd, are half of 

 them decayed with the disease. No other of the kinds have 

 shown the least symptom of it, nor, I am happy to say, 

 with the exception of the Negro, liave any of the sorts 

 which I have grown this year. There has been complaining 

 in our streets by the slovens, who allowed their crops to 

 remain needlessly long in the ground, about disease, but 

 they get no sympathy from me. With the excej)tion of the 

 Eough Eeds, the tubers from the north will be a gi'eat 

 acquisition in this neighbourhood, for, being strong-toppers 

 and of a disposition to crop, they wUl, pai-ticularly to the 

 allotment-holders whose land is chiefly of a light and stone- 

 brashy nature, be just suitable. 



Some of the seedlings I have great hopes of, though, as 

 they arrived to me in a small letter-envelope and weighed 

 scarcely more than an ounce, I can for the i>resent only 

 judge of their peculiarities thus : — Four of the little tubers 

 flowered with light pink blossoms ; one mth a dark pink 

 blossom ; three with white blossoms ; and six gave no blos- 

 soms at all. Nine produced round Potatoes, two Kidneys, 

 and three are Fluke-shaped. All are white but one kind, 

 which has a pink crown and eyes, and which is also covered 

 with the robin's-eye protuberances similar to the early 

 Walnut-leaf. In form this is like its Fluke parent. I have 

 them in careful keeping. Another promising seedling I also 

 retain for next year's pi'oving. 



Having an hour's time or so to kill ere the Woodstock 

 train arrived at the Eeading station, I went to Sutton and 

 Sons', and spent the time very pleasantly in viewing their col- 

 lection of seeds, and in overhauling their Potatoes. I found 

 them well up in the varieties both old and new. I wanted 

 particularly to see the Early King in the mass, and I must 

 say it runs out too much for my liking, being a mass of all 

 shapes ; it will require a careful selection of its handsomest 

 seed annually to rectify this undesirable feature. Hamper 

 after hamper was goodnaturedly hauled out and opened for 

 my inspection, tUl I faiily apologised for the trouble I was 

 giving, and then a rough-skinned white Potato came to view, 

 a very magnet for me. It was labelled "Newest Eegent 

 Seedling," a first-rate-looking Potato, round, and not nearly 

 so deep in the eye as the generality of the Eegents, and the 

 roughest-jacketed fellow I ever saw. Half-a-gaUon of them 

 are now reposing amongst my stores. Two sufficiently large 

 for cooking were measured in ; they boiled firmly mealy, 

 having if anything a rather yellower tinge than then- name- 

 sakes. Although too early for a true judgment to be formed 

 they have the Eegent smack, and I thought it to be of a 

 finer farewell flavour. They wiU prove a late store variety, 

 and for the cockneys, whose palates chiefly prefer ithe 

 Eegents, these wiU come in admirably. 



Some of the finest Eegents I ever saw, were grown this 

 autumn at Eushbrooke Hall Gardens, near Bury St. Edmunds, 

 by Mr. Wigg ; and the crops of Peaches and Nectarines on 

 the open walls, and the Pears and Apples both on the walls 

 and on espaliers there, were a sight to behold. I believe 

 Mr. Wigg had had a Koyal George Peach tree with its crop 

 photographed a few days before my visit. The largest of 

 Flukes were being dug from the old dark sandy loam, 

 (exactly similar to the soil in Eushbroke Hall Gardens), in 

 the garden within the walls of Cari'isbrooke Castle, Isle of 

 Wight, some six weeks ago ; but the careful scratiny and 

 the contemptuous jerking aside which many of them under- 

 went told a tale of disease, as I watched the operation from 

 the ruins. — Upwards and Onwajjds. 



VuLGAP-iTY IN Cucumbers. — We never dreamt until re- 

 cently of the existence of an aristocracy of appetite. We 

 overheard in a market the foUowiug brief dialogue between 

 an old woman and a little giil, while they were standing in 

 fi-ont of a vegetable stand: — " Grandmother," said the little 

 girl, " buy some of those Cucumbers." " No, my child," 

 replied the lady. " IVhy not ?" asked the little gfrl. " Be- 

 cause I should hate to be seen carrying them home, when 

 everybody knows they ai-e only a penny a-pieoe ! " The little 

 girl did not appear to appreciate the excuse. 



