312 



JOURNAL OF HOKTICDLTDRE AND COTTAGE OAbDENEB. 



[ Ootobor 28, 1869. 



to be turnod out of doors in tbe summer with the Azaleas, <to., 

 and now (October) a fine plant will bo the result, with every 

 sboot completely covered with flower buds ready to burst 

 forth at the least excitement; and the flowering once begun 

 will continue nearly the whole of the winter. — H. Babdis. 



MR. L.VXTONS PEAS. 



Now that the Supreme Pea oontrovoray seems to have sub- 

 sided into somelhing like a sensible climax in your correspon- 

 dent "J. W.'s" letter, I may, perhaps, be permitted, without 

 the risk of doing Messrii. Carter S: C^., and Mensrs. Hurst an 

 injustice, to state what I believe to be the cause of the ex- 

 tremely wide differences of opinion amongst your correspon- 

 dents respecting this Pea. 



The character I, as a foster-parent, have always had and 

 given of my progeny is, that it is a second early Pea of the 

 Prizetaker class, in heigbtifrom 4 to 5 feet, and, consequently, 

 requiriug to be sown at about Euch a distance from row to row, 

 and I could have wished the vendors had taken their description 

 either from mine or from observations extending over more 

 than one exceptional season, for I fear this hiis been the cause 

 of the mistakes wLicli the majority of those who have fuiled 

 with it have made. In most cases where this has occurred, I 

 have found that it has been treated as an early variety of the 

 style of Saugster's No. 1, and consequently disappointment 

 has been the resnlt ; whereas Supreme, in my opinion, has 

 snflicient to recommend it without needing to be sent out as 

 an early dwarfish Pea. Supreme was selected by me as by far 

 the most shiking for its deep green colour, leuglli of pod, and 

 productiveness, out of hundreds of varieties, the results of 

 crosses between Laxton's Prolific and Little Oem. For earli- 

 nese, 1 do not even consider it a competitor with modern 

 Tarietios. I have, however, its early type in William the 1st, 

 which runs about 2 feet 6 inches high, and was the earliest 

 deep-coloured selection of the long-podded class from the above 

 crosses. This has proved itself, both here and at Chiswick, to 

 be the best of all the early Peas, and will in Us turn, I believe, 

 Bupplaut most of the earlies requiring short sticks. 



Of the dwarfer varieties I have many earlier and superior to 

 Little Gtm, but of Iheso a limited number of the very best 

 only will be allowed to make the public acquaintance ; and I 

 regret hero to have to alludo to the fact that so-called va- 

 rieties have, without my authority or even knowledge, been 

 publicly exhibited as Laxton's and to which it would seem I 

 am expected to stand in loco pait:nlis, as if I had not a large 

 enough family of my own. Amongst the numerous adoptions I 

 have in prospective fiom my own family, are dwarf varieties 

 between Veitch'a Perfection and Ne Plus Ultra, and many 

 taller varieties of different breeds at present quite unapproach- 

 able for size, beauty, colour of seed, and distinctness, but as I 

 yearly select from many hundreds of crosses and varieties, 

 with the object of allowing only a very few of the best to see 

 the public light, some time must elapse before these can all bo 

 in the hands of the gardening community. 



In conclusion I would recommend your readers to give 

 Supreme the same space as Prizetaker and Laxton's Prolific, 

 and to sow as early in the year as soil and circumstances will 

 permit, for I have found the later sowings usually neither so 

 fine nor so productive as the earlier. The true Supreme has 

 a roundish blue seed, and a long deep green pod, coming in a 

 few dajs after Prolific, and, as one of your otherwise adverse 

 correspondents stated, approaches No Pius Ultra in flavour if 

 it is not gathered too old. The exceptionally extreme seasons 

 ol the past two or three years may, in conjunction with the 

 above sujigtstioas, reconcile some of the wide disoreponcits 

 between the results obtained by your correspondents, but I 

 fear it is not given to me nor any other mortal to explain them 

 all.— T. Laxion. 



GROWING GRAPES FOR PROFIT. 



Wnicn is the more advantageous in a pecuniary point of 

 ■view, the early forcing or non-forcing of Grapes for the market ? 

 Supposing one has early sorts of strong established Vines four 

 years old, do you think forcing them in the first year (to 

 begin) to be ripe, say, as early as June, in the second year by 

 May, in the third year by April, giving them a rest every fouith 

 year, would hurt them ? 



And supposing good Grapes to be obtained for the markets 

 at the above peiiods, do you think they would pay as well as 

 Tery lata sorts from equally good Vines, brought in very late 



every year, say ripe for market from October to March, after 

 deducting from forced Vines all expenses of fuel for forcing, 

 and allowing the fourth year as a rest '.'—A. B. 



[Where fuel is at all reasonable, forced Grapes will pay 

 better than late ones, as Grapes from houses in winter have to 

 compete with good foreign Grapes. The questions, however, 

 are euch tliat we should like the opinion of growers experienced 

 with the London market.] 



TIIK VEITCH MEMORIAL. 

 I.N accordance with a desire which has been freely expressed 

 amongst horticulturists, that a memoiial to the late Mr. James 

 Veitch should he establislied, a meeting was held yesterday in 

 the Koyal Horticultural Society's Council Uooni, Soutli Kensing- 

 ton, to take action m the matter. James Ijatcman, Esq.. F.R.S., 

 occupied the chair ; and amongst those present were Dr. JIastcrs, 

 Messrs. G. F. Wilson, T. Moore, Standisb, Gibson, Z. Stevens, 

 A. Salter, J. Douglas, G. Tillyard, AV. Itobinson, W. Dean, 

 J. llust, 1". llulland, T. Monro, C. Penny, Smith, of Dulwich, &c. 

 After some preliminary observations by the Chairman, Mr. T. 

 Moore read numerous letters of adhesion to the projected me- 

 morial, containing propositions alniot equally niunerous as to the 

 form it should take. The Chairman summarised these imder 

 two heads — practiu.i!, and memorial, i >f the former, the beet 

 appeared to him to be those instituting medals or pri?;c3 cither 

 for new plants or good specimens of cultivation; of the latter, a 

 mon\imtnt or portrait. Now, a good portrait might bo obtained 

 for £-J0, a h.'id monument for £5U0, and where, as in Mr. Veitch'B 

 case, the family themselves were in a position to erect a monu- 

 ment, he was strongly inclined to tho jjortrait. 



G. F. Wilson, Esq., cordially agreed in the suggestion of a 

 portrait as the most fitting memorial. He tlien moved the first 

 resolution — That a desire having been expressed to perpetuate the 

 memory of the late Mr. Veitch, this meeting, fully approcia'.ing 

 Mr. Vcitch's claims on (he grateful remembrance of horticul- 

 turists, and the loss his family and thjy have sustained, eflect 

 shall be given to this desire. This resolution having been 

 seconded by Mr. Gibson and carried imanimously. Dr. Masters 

 proposed, and Jlr. Standish seionded, the next, that a Committee 

 be appointed. The third resol\ition, proposed by Mr. W. Dean 

 and seconded by Jlr. Kust, was that the Committee be authorised 

 to obUiin subscriptions, and that Mr. G. F. Wilson bo Treasurer ; 

 and the fourth, moved by Mr. Standish and seconded by Mr. 

 Gibson, that Mr. T. Moore be requested to act as Secretary. It 

 was further decided that the subscription list should be closed on 

 Lady Day next, and that gardeners' svibscriptions bo limited to 

 a guinea. As it was conceived the amount raised would far 

 exceed the cost of a portrait, the meeting considered that the 

 latter might he supplemented by prizes for good cultivation, 

 whether of plants or fruits, and it was carried unanimously that 

 no med.^1 should be struck to be called the Veitch medal, but 

 that any prize should be called simply the Veitch prize, and 

 might be awarded in money, or otl.erwise, as might hercafier be 

 decided. Several suggestions were made as to the Eubjecls for 

 which these prizes should he awarded and how thty should b« 

 comptted for, but the details were left to the Committee, and 

 after a cordial vote of thanks to tho Chairman, moved by Dr. 

 lla.''ters, the proceedings tenninated. 



Tho names of the General Committee, of the sep.irate Com- 

 mittees for Engl.and, Scotljind, and Ireland, as well as the reso- 

 lutions in full, will be found in our advertising columns; and 

 we iiave only to add that those desirous of sending in their 

 contributions at once towards the proposed memorial may for- 

 ward them to G. F. Wilson, Esq., 'Treasurer of " Veitch Memo- 

 rial Fund," care of Mr. Richards, Koial Horticultural Societj', 

 South Kcusingion, London, W. Fiu'lhcr, local secretaries, who 

 have yet to be decided upon, will be empowered to receive sub- 

 scriptions towards the object in view, and their- names will 

 appear in due course. 



APPLICATION OF MANURES. 

 Ik No. '142 of this Journal, at page '221. ia an article under 

 the above heading, by Mr. Pearson, in which he ssys a cor- 

 respondent lays great stress on tho necessity of covering 

 manure as soon as possible after it is spread, and Mr. Pearson 

 calls it "mischievous, not only because it ia erroneou.', but be- 

 cause it leads to injurious practice." I, for one, would feel 

 greatly obliged to Mr. Pearson if lie would be so kind as to de- 

 scribe why it is erroneous, and bow it can lead to injuiions 

 practice, for I am of the same opinion as the corresj oudent he 



