Api'U !», 1874. ] 



JOURNAL OF HORTIODLTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



293 



tainod the opinion that if the Walnut flowers were abundant 

 the following oorn-harveat would be excellent. 



[For the accompanying illustration we are indebted to 

 Messrs. Cassell's edition of Figuier's " Vegetable World." — 



Eds." 



EXHIBITING HYACINTHS. 



At the metropolitan exhibitions during the last three or 

 four years certain exhibitors have made a practice of tying 

 two separate Hyacinth spikes together, so that they should 

 have the appearance of one spike only ; and in order to accom- 

 plish this it is sometimes necessary to cut off a large portion 

 of the bells on the two sides that are fitted together. The 

 c|uestion has arisen amongst growers, whether it is right to 

 manipulate the spikes in this way. The advocates for the 

 system say that, according to the wording of the schedules, 

 they are perfectly justified in doing so ; that one bulb in a 

 pot is what is demanded, and that you ought to get all out of 

 the bulb you possibly can. I have protested against this way 

 of exhibiting the Hyacinth, and there is one very great objec- 

 tion to it which I think ought not to be overlooked, and that 

 is the fact that a large number of persons who visit the exhi- 

 bitions go there to take notes of the best flowers with a view to 

 pnrchasing them for their own gardens. Now let us notice a 

 collection of Hyacinths. It contains a certain number of pots, 

 each with one plant and apparently a single spike in each. The 

 would-be purchaser takes his notes accordingly, and is per- 

 fectly innocent of the fact that the noble spikes he has been 

 admiring and which are such as he hopes to see in his own 

 garden next year are not houa futc but only a make-up. It 

 does seem like deceiving the public, although I believe those 

 who are in the habit of manipulating their Hyacinths in this 

 way would scorn the idea of doing anything of the kind. 

 Another objection is that where dressing is allowed other evils 

 will creep in, and what holds good in the case of the Hyacinth 

 will be applied to other flowers. Take the Auricula for in- 

 stance : when two trusses, as they sometimes do, come out of 

 the same crown, why not tie them together and make one im- 

 mense truss ? There is nothing in the schedule of the Royal 

 Horticultural Society to prevent this from being done ; but if 

 an old florist were sent to adjudicate on them it would certainly 

 be a case of disqualification. 



It seems to me that the schedules of the metropolitan socie- 

 ties might be compiled with more care, and that some sort of 

 instructions should be given for would-be exhibitors. In the 

 schedule being issued by the Metropolitan Flora! Society the 

 fallowing rule applies to Auriculas :— " No plant to have more 

 than one truss, and no tniss less than five pips." This settles 

 the matter at once, and a new grower knows what to prepare 

 without any further trouble. A similar rule should be inserted 

 in the schedule of the Royal Horticultural Society. As an 

 exhibitor of Hyacinths I would also strongly urge' the desir- 

 ability of confining the exhibitors to one spike on each plant. 

 Tulips are shown three plants in each pot, and the old growers 

 know this ; but should a new grower wish to exhibit, neither 

 the Royal Botanic Society's schedule nor that of the Royal 

 Horticultural Society gives any information. In the case of 

 the latter it was, I believe, an accidental omission, but in this, 

 as in many other matters, exhibitors want more definite rules 

 for their guidance. — .J. Pocolas. 



THE MIDLAND FARMERS' CLUB. 

 At the tenth annual meeting, held at the Great Western Hotel, 

 Birmingham, on February 5th, Mr. E. W. Badger, F.R.H.S., 

 read an essay " on Potatoes." He began by assuring his 

 hearers, " I have no new discoveries to announce respecting 

 Potatoes. The taslc I have undertaken is to place before you, 

 as plainly and briefly as I can, what is known about this im- 

 portant esculent, giving an account of whence we obtained it, 

 its cultivation, a description of some of the best varieties, and 

 an account of the murrain or Potato disease, with the results 

 of which I am afraid all of you are very familiar." 



Fully and ably Mr. Badger has done all that he purposed. 

 The essay occupies sixteen pages, and wo recommend it to our 

 readers. We will make but one extract. 



" Should the sets be whole or cut, and what is the best size ? 

 Mr. Maw, of Benthall Hall, published the result of his elabo- 

 rate experiments in the .Tournal of the Royal Agricultural 

 Society for 18C7 : I may briefly put that result in the following 

 quotation :—' Of the whole series of thirty-nine experiments 



twenty-five were in favour of large sets, and fourteen showed 

 an opposite tendency ; but the proportion borne between these 

 numbers does not fully represent the actual result, which is 

 more fairly stated by the weights of the balances on either 

 side ; for whilst the gains on the twenty-five (acres) experi- 

 ments, calculated per acre, amounted to 04 tons S cwt. 1 qr. 

 (U lbs. in favour of large sets, the gain (fourteen acres) on the 

 fourteen experiments favourable to the smaller sets amounted 

 to only 34 tons 17 cwt. 1 qr. '27i lbs., leaving (after setting the 

 gains against the losses) an average net balance ou the thirty- 

 nine comparisons of more than 1 ton 10 cwt. in favour of the 

 larger sets on each advance — namely, from X oz. to 2 ozs., 

 from 2ozs. to 4 ozs., from 4 ozs. to ozs., and from G ozs. to 

 8 ozs. . . . Every increase in the size of the set from 

 1 oz. up to 8 ozs. in weight produces an increase in the crop 

 much greater than the additional weight of the set planted.' 

 . . . Further, ' weight for weight, cut sets produce, as 

 nearly as possible, the same weight per acre as whole 

 Potatoes.' " 



NOTES AND GLEANINGS. 



Wr are very glad to hear (says Natiin') that negotia- 

 tions are pending for the transfer of the valuable Museum of 

 Natural History, which was formerly in the possession of the 

 East India Company, from the India House, where it has been 

 for some time stored, to South Kensington, where it will at last 

 be available for reference and study. 



BicTON House, the seat of Lady Rolle, near Budleigh 



Salterton, Devon, had a narrow escape from destruction by fire 

 on the 30th of last month. Its gardening whilst superintended 

 by Mr. Barnes and Mr. Begbie was frequently commended to 

 the notice of oiu readers, and we rejoice to find that its con- 

 servatory and orangery have been but little injured. The 

 exertions of the steward and domestics were most praiseworthy, 

 and but for them the loss, instead of £0000, might have been 

 more than ten times that amount. 



— - The Syndics of the Cambridge Botanic Garden in 

 their annual report state that the Curator has nearly completed 

 the re-arrangement of the herbaceous plants, and it is hoped 

 the laborious task will be finished in the ensuing year. The 

 plant houses are in a good state of repair, but overcrowded. 

 The Professor and Curator are unable to see in what manner 

 the number of plants kept in them can be materially reduced 

 without injuring the efficiency of the garden. Several of tho 

 finest and most valuable specimen plants now threaten to grow 

 through the roofs of the houses. Tho Syndics acknowledge 

 some donations of foreign seeds and plants, but they are under 

 the necessity of discouraging gifts of seeds of plants belonging 

 to warmer regions, because of the watt of room for their proper 

 cultivation. — (Naturr.) 



An International Hortictltueai. Snow is to be held 



at Florence in May, from the 11th to the 'Joth. The SociCtr 

 Royale Toscane d'Horticulture offers 100 medals of gold, 221 of 

 silver, and 131 of bronze, and five grand pri.f (Vliniiiieiir are 

 ofl'ered respectively by the King of Italy, the Minister of Agri- 

 culture and Commerce, the province of Florence, the town of 

 Florence, and the lady patronesses. Prince Demidoff and 

 Professor Parlatore have also placed gold medals for special 

 classes at tho the disposal of the Committee. Coincidently 

 with the Show the International Botanical Congress will be 

 held at Florence under the presidency of Professor Parlatore. 

 The programme of subjects for discussion includes questions 

 on the nature and functions of hairs on plants, on ceU-circu- 

 lation, ou the latex, on the automic movement of the leaves 

 of plants, on the causes which determine the direction of the 

 root in the germination of a seed, ou the causes which influence 

 the direction of the growth of branches, especially of weeping 

 trees, on the analysis of the organs of reproduction between 

 cryptogams and phanerogams, as well as many other subjects 

 more widely known, and sulijects of debate such as the origin 

 of Bacteria, the determination of fossil plants by their leaves, 

 the distinction between species, race, and vaiiety, and the origin 

 of insular and alpine floras. The President and Secretaries 

 of the Societi' Royale Toscane d'Horticulture announce their 

 readiness to communicate with any Ijotanists who wish for 

 further information with a view to attending the Congress. 

 The official language of the Congress will be Italian, but 

 papers may be communicated and discussions conducted in 

 any language. Representatives to the Congress have been 

 appointed from the various countries of Europe, and from 



