Janaary SO, 1868. ] 



JOUBNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



93 



taste, an increasing lovo of hortiraltnro, an appreciation of the beauti- 

 ful, and a pleasure sought in retiued and domestic oruamoutution far 

 less observable on the Inst occasion of a visit made by your Conimitteo. 



'• What has greatly contributed to tliis progress has been the iuiro- 

 'iluctiou of variegated plants and shrubs, aud of the bedding system of 

 Hower-garden nrrangement. Not only was the progress evident in 

 the ornamental part of the gardens, but the vegetable portions were 

 cleaner, aud showed unmistakeablo tokens of good management. The 

 places open to inspection were undoubtedly thu property of the older 

 aud leading horticultmists ; yet it was evident to your Committee that 

 their example was influencing the community for good, and there was 

 no lack of imitation, not to say rivalry, in garden cultivation. 



" Your Committee must not fail to notice one garden, which for the 

 iadicious and beautiful combination of colours deserves gieat praise. 

 It was not on their list for inspection, but the taste displayed in the 

 an-angement of the lawn and the surrounding flower borders, induced 

 your Committee to stop and notice it. Mr. F. Gaudin. the proprietor, 

 had admirably dispot^ed his Zonal Pelargoniums, Verbenas, and 

 Calceolarias, whilst a simple line of white Pelargoniums, backed by a 

 row of Golden Kuonymns, running along a low wall, proved most 

 effective. 



" Next, it is encouraging to notice how great are the returns of in- 

 telligent and systematic labour. Your Committee's attention was 

 especially directed to this point. In many cases the results seemed 

 extraordinary, when compared with the amount of wages expended in 

 labour. Such are the effects of well-organised and systematic arrange- 

 ment that comparatively large gardens can be and are kept in good 

 order by the proprietor with the occasional aid of a farm servant, pro- 

 ducing surprising effects and most eatisfactoi^y results, when in the 

 care of a painstaking horticulturist. 



'* In an island in which limited incomes are the rule, it was gratify- 

 ing to find how much was done at a small outlay, and to this your 

 Committee wish particularly to call attention, as a means of encou- 

 raging, as a recreation, a more general devotion to horticultural pursuits 

 and tastes. 



" One pleasing feature noticed by your Committee was the long 

 connection, in many cases, between proprietors and their gardeners, 

 cases of thirty years, twenty-one years, fifteen years, and eight years 

 service ; nor was there any observable relaxation on the part of the 

 gardeners in the endeavour to do their duty to their employers ; on 

 the contrary — it seemed to have created as great an interest in the well- 

 doing of the place under their charge as could possibly be felt by the 

 proprietor. 



" It particularly strucV your Committee, and it is a well-known fact 

 among the members of the Society, that wherever the gardener is 

 *' encouraged " to exhibit, a spirit of wholesome rivali-y is engendered, 

 the effects of which, as a rule, are manifest throughout the whole of 

 Ms work. Y'our Committee failed to notice that there was a lack of 

 attention in any one department, or that one object was attained to 

 the detriment of another. 



" The effects produced by the judicious combination and contrast of 

 colour, whether in the leaf or flower, was most noteworthy, the two 

 most striking instances of this were the one at the Misses Auige's, the 

 other at Trinity Manor. 



" The wall fruit with the exception of that at the Misses Ainge's and 

 Colonel Le Couteur's, was very much below the average. Indeed, it 

 may be said, with few exceptions, that it is a failure this season ; on 

 the other hand, the Pear and Apple crop promises to be a plentiful 

 one. 



*' The Committee noticed with much regret, that the mildew on the 

 Grapes showed signs of having been very prevalent, owing, in most 

 instances to the presence of plants in the greenhouse. Still, your 

 Committee think this is not a necessary adjunct to the growth of plants 

 in the vinery, and that it may be avoided by adopting judicious treat- 

 ment, aud suggest the timely application of artificial heat, as soon as 

 there appear indications of the disease, admitting air freely on all 

 favourable occasions. It is stated by a gentleman of much experience 

 in the cultivation of this fruit, that if the plants are turned out for a 

 few days whilst the fruit is stoning, and heat supplied as above directed, 

 that the disease may be entirely prevented, without the necessity of 

 having recourse to sulphur, which, as frequently applied, does much 

 injury to the Vines, by choking up the pores of the leaves. It is 

 perhaps needless to remind growers that drought, insufficient nourish- 

 ment at the root, and over-cropping, axe predisposing causes of this 

 disease. 



*'Iu the Vegetable department there was much to admire, both as 

 regards the varieties cultivated aud the high state of perfection to 

 which they were grown. Here the progress was very marked, and it 

 is evident that the periodical Shows held by the Society, have unosten- 

 tatiously, but surely, attained the object the Society had in view — viz. ; 

 the encouragement of the cultivation of such newly introduced varie- 

 ties as were marked improvements upon the older ones ; some of the 

 indirect results being the abundant and beautiful daily supply to be 

 seen in our local markets, and the yearly increasing exports to the 

 English markets. The rotation of crops was, in most instances^ 

 rigidly attended to. 



" This leads to the consideration of a topic which cannot be over- 

 looked by your Committee — viz., the growth and return during the past 

 season of the early Potato crop. In one instance which has come 

 under their notice, the yield has been Bis tons per acre, and has sold 



for .£'25 per ton, giving a total return of .£1.50 per acre* besides tho 

 availability of the land for a second crop. On making inquiries, your 

 Committee learnt that the total quantity exported during thu past sea- 

 son has amounted to ;J'J20 tons, which at £8, wouhl give a return of 

 flSl,8tiO from this branch of island produce alone. This crop, though 

 not heavy, is quite an average one, and with the high jirico realised, 

 may be said to have given good returns for outlay. But it ia feared 

 the store varieties will prove much diseased and yield a poor crop." 



TIME FOR STARTING VINES. 



A HAS a vinerv planted with Vines, from pots, in May last, 

 in a border in the centre of the house, one Vine up the rafter, 

 and the other down. The Vines are chiefly Muscats. They 

 grew very well, but. of course, ripened-off quite late (Novenaber). 

 Well, A is advised by B to start these Vines early this season 

 by the assistance of artificial heat. C recommends quite the 

 opposite, he says that the Vines ought to start '* of their own 

 sweet will." Between the two opinions A is bothered, and 

 would be obliged to the Editors if they would decide for 

 him.— X. 



[We agree thoroughly with C, and as the Vines ripened their 

 wood late, we would let them start almost naturally, and then 

 encourage growth and early ripening, so as to start earlier in 

 1869.] 



CUPRESSUS MACROCARPA AND OTHER 

 CONIFERS. 



As Mr. Rohson has asked for accounts of Cupressus macro- 

 carpa, I am tempted to tell you what my experience has been 

 here. Two plants in strong, hut well drained clay, near a 

 brook, were killed root and branch in the spring of 1867. Three 

 on higher ground, in loam, Kentish rag lying beneath, were un- 

 touched. In this case I think we may attribute the cause of 

 death to the clay, and the damp rising from the water. Cu- 

 pressus Uhdeana in this same low ground is unhurt. 



Some years ago I planted two trees of Tasodium semper- 

 virens, one in fairly dry ground, the second in soil so wet that 

 the hole had to be kept open by spades till the tree was planted. 

 The second grew feet, while the first grew inches, and the case 

 is still the same, only in a minor decree. I give you under- 

 neath the dimensions of my best Wellingtonia. Height, 

 27 feet 2 inches ; girth of stem at about 1 inch from the ground, 

 feet 10 inches ; circumference of branches, 43 feet 6 inches. — 

 J. EiDSWAT, Faiiiaicn, Tonhridgc. 



SHREWSBURY'S NONPAREIL GAS-HEATING 

 APPARATUS. 



Wherever gas can be obtained as the source of heat, this is 

 the simplest and most efficient mode of heating that we have 

 yet seen. For entrance halls, conservatories, greenhouses, 

 offices, harness rooms, and elsewhere it is most appHcable, for 

 when not required for heating purposes it may be removed 

 until the cold season returns. Several of these apparatuses 

 would heat a large conservatory or a church, andwould bo 

 more desirable than more expensive methods of heating. 



The apparatus is a boiler with a flow pipe into a pedestal tank/ 

 and a return pipe from this to the boiler ; the whole less than 

 5 feet long, 2 feet high, and 8 inches wide. They can be had, 

 however, of larger dimensions. 



The gas furnace and the actual boiler are enclosed in a stout 

 sheet iron case, and the gas flames are so disposed that their 

 heat is profitably expended in raising the temperature of the 

 water, and cannot act directly on the outer case or on the pipe 

 through which the products of combustion are conveyed ; con- 

 sequently the external parts of the contrivance never get too 

 hot. 



The boiler itself is cylindrical, and has a tube or several 

 tubes running through it. These tubes are bottle -shaped, 

 wide below and contracted above. The boiler and its tubes are 

 of cast iron. The gas-burners are placed directly under the 

 bottle-shaped tubes, so that the greater part of the beat must 

 be expended in raising the temperature of the water surround- 

 ing these tubes. To prevent any serious loss of heat by the 



• "A second instance has been reported to your Committee, in which 

 fifty perches of land have returned .£70. This last is almost incredible. 

 but seems well authenticated. The variety cultivated was the Early 

 Fluke (a fixed sport from the old Fluke)." 



