386 



JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



( November 20, 1866. 



in the autumn of 1864 ; I counted sixty-two bunches of Grapes 

 on it this spring. The caue is short-jointed, and in some 

 places broke with two laterals together. On these appeared 

 three bunches, on other laterals two, on others one. Now, if 

 the bunches could have been distributed evenly on each side 

 of the cane, they would have hung about 4 inches apart, each 

 bunch thinned to forty berries, and if each berry contained two 

 seeds, the Vine would have had to support 4966 seeds ; and if 

 three seeds were in each berry, which I consider about the 

 average, it would have had to have supported the large number 

 of 7440 seeds. That to which I want to draw the attention of 

 yourself and all those who raise Vines from seed is, that 

 much time might be saved by producing early Grapes without 

 seeds. 



Length 



of 

 Vine. 



Number 



of 

 bunches. 



12 feet 

 Ditto 



Number of I Number of | Total 



berries on, seeds in each number of 

 each liunch. berry. berries. 



40 

 40 



2480 

 2480 



Total num- 

 ber of seeds 

 to support. 



7440 



HOME GROWTHS. 



A most interesting exhibition of what may be collectively 

 termed home growths was produced at the Royal Horticultural 

 Gardens, South Kensington, on Saturday week. The collection 

 was sent by Mr. Robert Fern), who lives with the Rev. G. W. 

 St. John, at the Rectory, Woodstock, for which collection, 

 besides ten first-class certificates for the individual subjects, 

 we believe it is intended to grant one of the Society's silver- 

 gilt medals. 



First in importance were some thirty sorts of Potatoes grown 

 by the exhibitor in the Rectory garden on the rielge-and-trench 

 system, as detailed in Nos. 163 and 164 of this Journal — all 

 clean healthy tubers, and most creditable examples of cultiva- 

 tion. A fact, however, in connection with them, which is un- 

 doubtedly of greater public interest, is that they constitute a 

 selection from one hundred varieties after thirty years' expe- 

 rience. As such, therefore, it will be useful to give their names 

 and the brief descriptive remarks which Mr. Fenn appended on 

 the labels. 



The varieties were divided into Frame, Garden, and Farm 

 Potatoes, for each of which divisions a first-class certificate 

 was awarded, and were as follow : — 



FBAME. 



Shutjnrd Seedling.— First early, short glazed foliage. Suit- 

 able for keeping and forcing. Excellent flavour. 



Early Ten-week (Round).— The old Early Betty? Perhaps 

 the earliest and best of all for frame work. Indebted for the 

 kind to Mr. Rivers. 



jfrgg's Coldstream (Round).— First early. Most suitable as 

 an only kind for a small garden. Flavour first-rate. 



Wlii'te-I'ln: om Ash-leaf.— Good for production in pots and 

 boxes. Throws fine early tubers. 



ll'ebb's T, legrapli, — Produces fine early tubers, though coarse, 

 where the ground is good. 



Mitchell') Early ^Ibioh Kidney.— Small glazed foliage. Suit- 

 able for forcing. 'Good-flavoured. Soon arrives at firmness. 



Premier. — A new seedling. A great acquisition ; without 

 doubt the best of any early sort as regards bulk of crop. A 

 first-class early tuber, arriving at its greatest perfection in a 

 light soil. Very handsome, medium foliage. Indebted for the 

 kind to Mr. J. Gardner, Aston Hall, near Birmingham. 



OABEEN. 



Daintrre's Seedling (Round). — Second early. A first-class 

 flesh, and a first-class cropper. 



Rirers's Royal Ashlcaf. — An early second early. An excel- 

 lent Potato to' dig from the soil during the summer. Yellowish 

 flesh, of good flavour. A bountiful cropper. Fine foliage. 

 Taken up very late, and the kind withstood the disease very 

 well. 



Haigh's Kidney.— Spare foliage. Not a large cropper, but a 

 firm nourishing Potato. Second early. 



Early Emperor (Round). — Super-tuberated last year, spoiling 

 the crop. This year it almost succumbed to the disease. A 

 fine Potato, nevertheless, in a good season, and more suitable, 

 perhaps, for field than for garden culture. 



Forty/old (Round). — Excellent for mashing. Second early. 



Fenn's Onwards (Round). — A cross between Jackson's Kidney 

 and the Fluke. So far as my experience with this sort has 



gone I consider this to be one of the best round Potatoes in 

 cultivation. A good cropper and keeper, white flesh, with a 

 fine flavour. A healthy, dark, medium foliage. 



Russet Kidney. — A new seedliug of the same parentage as 

 Fenn's Onwards. A peculiar tuber, with peculiarly good keep- 

 ing qualities. It has a firm mealy white flesh, and is not fit 

 for cooking till the May after lifting. A tolerable cropper, 

 having a most diminutive Fluke foliage. 



PebbU White, or Huntingdonshire Late Kidney. — An excel- 

 lent long keeper. 



Bceliiee (Round). — A new seedling from the Fluke. A very 

 nice rather early kind, most suitable to dig as wanted in the 

 early summer months. As regards colour and flavour it is the 

 same as Wheeler's Milky White. Medium dark foliage. 



FAEM. 



Sutton's Finest Regent (Round). — The finest-flavoured, per- 

 haps, of all the Regents. 



Cheshire Pink Eye (Round). — An excellent field Potato. Es- 

 caped the disease this year. First-class for the table. 



York Regent (Round). — A good farm Potato, well suited for 

 market purposes. 



WaVtefis Regent (Round). — A Scotch second early Potato. 

 An excellent sort, suitable for a large household. 



/ ■'/■< ei'earer. — A good farm Potato, very substantial, and of 

 fine flavour. Immense topper and cropper. 



Vaiutree's Neic Seedling. — A first-rate household Potato, 

 a good market kind, and excellent for field culture on land in 

 tolerable heart. 



Prolific (Round). — An excellent field Potato, good for the 

 household. Flesh of first-class quality. 



Xegro. — A good cattle Potato, the best of its class. An 

 immense cropper and topper. A good tuber for a poor man. 



It'hite Fanner. — A first-class field Potato, good for household 

 purposes. 



Fluke. — The original kind, good for the household, and good 

 for the market. A late Potato. Suitable for field culture. 

 Very scarce, many spurious kinds are sold for it. 



lirujfe Gn&tle Seedling iRound). — A Scotch Regent. A second 

 early, suitable for a large household. Flavour excellent. 



Rritish Queen. — Flesh first-rate. Foliage coarse. Most suit- 

 able for planting on poor soil. 



It may be useful to add that Mr. Fenn considers Premier, 

 Shutford Seedliug, Eaily Ten-week, and Hogg's Coldstream 

 the best for frame cultivation, and the last is, besides, a first- 

 rate kind for general use. For the garden he gives the pre- 

 ference to Fenn's Onwards, Fortyfold, Rivers's Royal Ashleaf, 

 the Old Lapstone, Daintree's New Seedling, and Pebble White ; 

 and for the farm, to Fluke, Brilish Queen, Giyi'fe Castle Seed- 

 ling, Walker's Regent, Sutton's Finest Regent, and Cheshire 

 Pink. 



Another interesting portion of Mr. Fenn's exhibition was 

 entitled, " A Ten-years' Study on the Manufacture of English 

 Grape, Gooseberry, and Rhubarb Family Wines, without any ad- 

 dition of spirituous liquors, published in The Journal of Hok- 

 ticultukk, Nos. 5rt9 and 592, Old Series, and 235 and 236, New 

 Series," and accompanied by examples of the system of Grape- 

 growing. One of these was a photograph of the kitchen garden 

 and south-east front of the Rectory, showing the system of 

 training the Vines for wine-making, and part of the apiary ; 

 another was the representation of an extemporised vinery, glass 

 being substituted for tiles on the roof of a lean-to shed. In 

 this vinery the Esperione Grape ripens perfectly without arti- 

 ficial heat, and the structure is made to do duty as a cool 

 greenhouse in winter. For this purpose it is heated on the 

 system described in No. 239. Esperione Grapes ripened in 

 this structure for dessert use received a first-class certificate, 

 and similar awards were made for Fenn's Grape glasses, de- 

 scribed in a former volume ; and for the mode of training and 

 ripening Grapes against open walls for wine-making, illus- 

 trated by a model of a portion of the wall, with Vines and 

 bunches of Royal Muscadine and Esperione Grapes. For samples 

 of Royal Muscadine and Esperione Grape wine, first-class cer- 

 tificates were also awarded, the Judges' opinion of the former 

 being, " A grand wine, sound and perfectly vinous ;'' and of 

 the latter, " A very good wine, fine colour, and a good bouquet, 

 rather sweet, which it will lose by keeping. Will be an excel- 

 lent wine when aged." Of Parsnip wine, the verdict " excel- 

 lent " was also recorded. 



In addition to the above we noticed a collection of honey, 

 wax, &c, obtained on Fenn's depriving system (see No. 83), 

 without destroving the bees; and first-class certificates were 

 awarded for ruii honey, and for Fenn's breakfast honey glass. 



