92 



JOURNAL OF HORTICULTUEE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



[ Fobniary 4, 1875. 



wag dissolved syringed over them— in fact, over the entire 

 walla, for the purpose of killing insects, and I expect this, as 

 it dries perfectly white, to keep the flowers back a little. This 

 limewash is also applied to Gooseberries, Currants, Plums, 

 Ac, to keep the birds from destroying their buds. If made 

 properly with freshly-burned lime, no amount of rain will wash 

 it off. There is still some remaining on standard Plum trees 

 which was applied last winter ; and as I find it rids the trees 

 of moss and lichen, and, with the addition of dissolved sulphur, 

 of all insect pests, I mean to use it much more extensively 

 than hitherto. It is very glaring and unsightly, but I must 

 have fruit. Those who object to having it white may add 

 soot or some other innocent colouring matter, and it wUl stiU 

 be effectual for all the purposes named, excepting for retarding 

 the blossoms. — Williaih Taylok. 



NOTES FEOM MY GARDEN IN 1874.— No. 2. 



Did I not know how very great is the difference that soil 

 makes in the success or failure of many things I should have 

 wondered very much more than I do at the statements which 

 are made on the subject of Potatoes. When I hear so good an 

 authority as my friend Mr. Kinghorn saying that he has found 

 Climax an excellent one, or I see others writing that they can 

 make nothing of Suttons' Red-skin Flourball, I can only say 

 it puzzles me, and pass on. I have mentioned, as far as my 

 own culture is concerned, that I have some early sorts in my 

 garden, and the remainder in a field where the soil is of a very 

 light sandy nature. In the former I planted small quantities 

 of the following sorts — Brownell's Beauty, Extra Early Ver- 

 mont, Snowflake, Lee's Kidney, Myatt's Prolific, and Rector 

 of Woodstock. Of these the first was about as ugly and bad 

 a Potato as I ever care to see ; it was at once condemned, and 

 will never again find a place in my garden. Extra Early Ver- 

 mont seemed to me in no way distinguishable from Early Rose, 

 of which it seems to be a selected strain. Snowflake I regard 

 as the very best we have had from America — the only one, in 

 fact, that I should care to grow ; it is very white, of good 

 flavour, and apparently prolific. Lee's Kidney I received from 

 my neighbour Mr. Woodford, and found it to bear out all that 

 had been said of it ; it is akin to Myatt's ProUfic, but earlier, 

 and an excellent cropper. I have saved a good quantity of 

 seed, and think I shall quite discard Myatt's Prolific for it. 

 I find by the Messrs. Suttons' catalogue that the entire crop 

 has been purchased by them from Messrs. Lee. Rector of 

 Woodstock is a handsome round second early Potato of Mr. 

 Fenn's raising ; it is very floury, and I shall grow it again this 

 year. My only doubt about it is whether it does net lack 

 flavour, for while a Potato ought not to have any earthy taste, 

 it ought certainly to have some more flavour than a lump of 

 flour in the mouth. 



The varieties that I grew in my field piece were Lapstone, 

 Yorkshire Hero, Victoria, Suttons' Red-skin Flourball, Hun- 

 dredfold Fluke, Waterloo, and Suttons' Exhibition Kidney. 

 I this year altered my plan of proceeding. My first Potatoes 

 wore planted on February 2nd, and the whole were finished 

 by Febrnaiy 2l8t, and all were dug out by August 10th; and 

 the result is so favourable that I mean in future to adopt 

 the same course. The season was, as we know (while trying 

 so far as the largeness of the crop was concerned) an excellent 

 one as far as freedom from disease went, and I do not think 

 that I have had, either at the taking-up or since, a gallon of 

 diseased Potatoes ; but then I found that my neighbours who 

 left their Potatoes in the ground until September have com- 

 plained, not merely that many of them were diseased at the 

 lifting, but that they have lost a good many since. One thing 

 I was doubtful of : Some of the later sorts, such as Victoria, 

 were green in the haulm when they were lifted, and many of 

 them rubbed in the skin. I do not find, however, that this 

 affects their keeping qualities, and therefore the advice Mr. 

 Luckhurst gave me not to mind the skin not being set was 

 sound. Possibly it might have been better to have left them 

 another fortnight, but in harvest time it is diCficult with us to 

 get hands, and so I must either have dug them or left them 

 until after harvest ; and I am quite satisfied with the result 

 obtained by digging early. I cannot understand why my very 

 good friend Mr. Laxton should have planted as late as he did, 

 and do not wonder that the results in so many cases were dis- 

 appointing ; and while I do not see the advantage of planting 

 so very early as Mr. Radclyffe does, I am persuaded that early 

 planting and early lifting are the two surest preventives of the 

 disease. 



With regard to varieties I still cling to my often-expressed 

 opinion, that the Lapstone is the best Potato grown for eating. 

 It is not so heavy a cropper as some, but its flavour is excel- 

 lent. Yorkshire Hero is very similar to it, but somewhat later, 

 and of the same good character for eating. I believe that for 

 the cottager, who looks for productiveness, there is nothing to 

 exceed Buttons' Red-skin Flourball. It is a late Potato, but 

 I lifted it at the same time as the others. It is one of those 

 large-growing Potatoes that are unsuitable generally for garden 

 culture ; and as I have more than once said, the proper way 

 to use it is baking. What are we to say to our Potato culture ? 

 I have just read that in America a codified statement of trials 

 has been given, and that 1 lb. of Brownell's Beauty produced 

 1018 lbs. Surely we must be all wrong in our method of cul- 

 ture when 60 or 70 lbs. from 1 lb. of seed is considered a large 

 crop. 



My experience in Cucumber-growing is but small, nor can 

 I say much as to sorts. I had Pearson's Long Gun last year, 

 and found it good ; but I beUeve the two best out are Douglas's 

 Tender and True and Suttons' Duke of Connaught,the former 

 black spine and the latter white spine. The first I beUeve 

 better fitted for a house, the latter excellent for a frame, where 

 I am going to try it this year. 



In the same way I can only say with regard to Melons, that 

 I am quite satisfied that for the small amateur, who like myself 

 can only use a pit that has been devoted to other objects, 

 there is nothing to be compared to Munro'a Little Heath 

 Melon. It gives so readily a nice little crop of fair flavour, 

 that I do not think it is possible to substitute any other equally 

 good for it. 



Another excellent little novelty is The Queen Onion. It 

 comes in so quickly, makes such pretty little bulbs, and stands 

 the winter so well, that it deserves a place in every amateur's 

 garden — not to take the place of such sorts as Nuneham Park, 

 Improved Reading, and .lames's Long-keeping, but for early 

 use, and for sowing in the autumn for early spring use. 



I have not entered on the subject of Broceolis, &c., for in 

 truth I know not what to say. I have been disappointed in 

 finding, that although I planted so as to get as I hoped a good 

 succession, I have found them all coming in of a heap. It 

 may have been my fault, but it is none the less so. 



Such are my experiences of vegetables in 1874. I must 

 repeat that I do not intend to disparage other varieties by 

 speaking favourably of these, but I can only say that in my 

 own cultivation I have found them as I have stated. — J)., Deal. 



WHITE-EDGED GERANIUM LITTLE TEOT. 



Among the large number of new bedding Geraniums that 

 are annually introduced, varieties of sterling merit occasion- 

 ally present themselves, and which quickly obtain a place in 

 every garden, not from any puffing or startling announcement 

 upon the part of the raisers, but from that genuine excellence 

 and intrinsic merit which, however much neglected in other 

 things, certainly makes its way among plants. Foremost 

 among such was the famous Tom Thumb, still quoted as an 

 example in habit of growth of what a bedding Geranium 

 should be. SteUa, again, was another "standard kind;" so 

 was, and still is, Waltham Seedling; so was Mrs. Pollock, and 

 such is Little Trot. 



The white or silver-edged section of Geraniums has never 

 been a very extensive one, nor has it comprised many really 

 meritorious kinds. Alma, Bijou, Flower of the Day, and Per- 

 fection were once grown by tens of thousands, but it was 

 solely for the beauty of their foliage ; in every other point 

 they were found wanting. Flower of Spring in its bushy 

 habit was a considerable advance upon aU those kinds, as were 

 May Queen and Miss Kingsbury ; but none of these or others 

 of later date can at all approach Little Trot in any way. Its 

 growth is spreading, dense, compact, and very dwarf— all 

 points of merit in a bedding plant, and in all of which plants 

 of this section have hitherto been lamentably deficient ; but 

 it is in the striking and chaste effect of its broad white leaf- 

 margin that it shines so conspicuous and is so superior to 

 other kinds. It particularly attracted my attention in the 

 trial beds at Chiswick last autumn. One was drawn to it in- 

 voluntarily, precisely as to the glorious masses of Viola Per- 

 fection which were there, and conviction came to one's mind 

 with the sight of each that the raisers had not only succeeded 

 in making a " hit," but had conferred a real boon upon all 

 who love flowers. 



I was about to add that I had no particular interest in my 



