124 



THE GARDENERS' CHRONICLE. 



[August 4, 1888. 



are bearing well. Apricots and Peach trees are 

 recovering from the ungenial spring, but there is a 

 sad deficiency of fruit. There are many cases of 

 failure in Plum trees, but there are good crops of 

 Damsons. The dry weather of last year clearly 

 caused the blanks in the Strawberry grounds. I 

 do not remember so many instances of blindness in 

 the plants. La Grosse Sucree has suffered as little as 

 any from this prevailing weakness. W. Ingram, Bel- 

 voir Castle, Grantham. 



Norfolk. — The season has been a most trying 

 one for all kinds of fruit, having had frost twice this 

 month (July), making ten months out of the twelve in 

 which we have had frost, with a continuance of north- 

 east wind, which has caused nearly all kinds of fruit to 

 be scarce. Cherries and Strawberries are the best 

 crops ; Apricots are quite a failure ; Peaches and 

 Nectarines nearly so. Some sorts of Pears, such as 

 Marie Louise, Beurre dAmanlis, and Easter Beurr6, 

 are a good crop ; other sorts are very thin. Apples 

 are eaten with maggot and falling off; Plums very 

 thin indeed ; small fruits are a good crop, except 

 Gooseberries, which lost a great many buds through 

 the birds, Strawberries are very fine. Walnuts 

 were plentiful, but many have dropped off. H. 

 Batchelor, Catton Pari. 



Suffolk. — The spring opened full of promise as 

 regards the fruit crop, as there appeared to be plenty 

 of bloom ; but though this was unusually late in 

 unfolding, the weather was so unpropitious then and 

 after that little of it set, and what did set has been 

 sadly thinned since by late frost and cold. Apples 

 and Pears have been much affected by maggot, 

 which has preyed on both leaves and fruit, but the 

 rains have now washed the trees clean. J. Sheppard, 

 Woolverstone Park, Ipswich. 



Apricots are almost nil. Peaches and Nec- 

 tarines with us are a good crop — the trees clean and 

 healthy. Although the Plum crop is under average, 

 pyramid trees of the following sorts are carrying fair 

 crops : — Early Prolific, Rivers' Orleans, Victoria, 

 Large Black Imperial, Sultan, Denniston's Saperb, 

 and Farleigh Damson. Apples and Pears blossomed 

 profusely, but the crop of fruit is much under 

 average. The leaves of Apple trees were badly 

 riddled by insects ; recent heavy rains have washed 

 the trees, and the growth they are now making is 

 clean and healthy. Small fruits are plentiful and 

 good. Strawberry plants and the fruit have suffered 

 from mildew, and owing to the prevalence of dull 

 cold weather the fruit is deficient in flavour. Much 

 fruit of dessert Cherries dropped at an early stage of 

 growth ; that left is small in size. Both Plums and 

 Cherries are pretty clean ; aphides and blackfly are 

 at present conspicuous by their absence. The lea fage 

 of Filberts is full of holes, and the crop is short. 

 J. Wallis, Orwell Park, Ipswich. 



Essex. — A remarkable feature connected with both 

 Apples and Pears was the abundance of bloom upon 

 the latter, and the excellence of the blooms upon the 

 former, which upon some sorts — Wellington's, for 

 instance — were each as large as Dog Rose blossoms, 

 yet these grand flowers proved less fruitful than is 

 generally the case. Striped Beaufin, however, will 

 shortly have to be propped up, so excessively heavy 

 is the crop. Wellingtons come next in point of 

 prolificacy. W. Earley, Double House, Ilford. 



The blossoming of the trees was very late, 



and the weather favourable for most fruits. Apples 

 were, of course, later than Pears, Plums, Apricots, 

 and Cherries. The weather was fine when the 

 Apples blossomed abundantly, and yet we have a 

 crop much under the average. The blossoms did 

 not set. I cannot understand why. Strawberries were 

 much cut up by east winds, which also affected the 

 blossoms in bud, as much of the fruit is malformed. 

 James Veitch is the best variety this year. J. Douglas, 

 Great Gearies, Ilford. 



We had a great show of splendid blossom 



for all kinds of fruit. The trees were attacked when 

 in bloom by caterpillars, which played sad havoc, 

 and in some cases will probably result in the death 

 of the trees. Cordons and other trees which have 

 had their roots attended to have fared by far the best. 



The leaves of the Apple trees are completely destroyed 

 in some instances. A. Ocock, Havering Park, Romford. 



MIDLAND COUNTIES. 



Warwickshire. — On the whole we have this year 

 the best all-round average crop of fruit of the last 

 ten years, but the continued heavy rainfall is doing 

 great damage to all small fruits. B. Greenfield, Priory 

 Gardens, Warwick. 



Apricots are thin. Some years we get a 



good crop and fine fruit, but the Apricot generally 

 in this neighbourhood is at best but a casual crop. 

 The fruit, however, when they come are good. 

 Apples had fine healthy blossoms, but are certainly 

 disappointing. Pears on standard trees are agood crop, 

 and with a fine autumn may prove a fairly good crop. 

 On walls, notwithstanding the magnificent bloom, 

 the fruit is thin. It may be interesting to remark 

 that a fine tree of Marie Louise which was figured 

 in the Gardeners' Chronicle a few years since, and 

 which has borne excellent crops most years, is this 

 year almost barren with the exception of a small 

 portion, on the opposite side of which a fire burns 

 continually. This seems to point to the fact that 

 the old system of flued walls was not a bad idea. I 

 wonder what they are doing now with the flued walls 

 at Erskine — on the Clyde. I remember when there, 

 thirty-six years ago, under the then grand old 

 gardener, Mr. Shiels, that Grapes, Figs, and Cherries 

 were ripened by means of walls so heated. Plums 

 are perhaps less satisfactory than the Apples and 

 Pears. Standards, so far as I have observed, are 

 comparatively fruitless. There are a few on walls — 

 but certainly not a crop. Peaches. — Of these out-of- 

 doors I cannot very well speak, as they do 

 not now get the attention from me they 

 used to get ; and unless the trees are 

 well managed, and kept clean, they cannot be 

 expected to fruit satisfactorily. Cherries have done 

 fairly well, both on standards and also on walls. 

 The Cherry orchard at Brandon, near here, is this 

 year, I am told, very satisfactorily cropped. Small 

 fruits are a plentiful crop ; they only want a little 

 dry sunny weather to finish them off. Strawberries 

 are somewhat disappointing ; last year the weather 

 was dry, and we gathered great quantities ; the same 

 beds this year are barren throughout, yet the plants 

 looked healthy in the extreme. One quarter should 

 have borne well this year before being dug up. We 

 are now busy buying and begging plants for a fresh 

 start. The season, so far as it has gone, has been a 

 very wet, and in many respects a very unkind one, 

 especially for the setting, swelling, and ripening of 

 fruit ; yet it is nothing much worse than many others 

 of the fraternity may remember, who, like me, are 

 now placed as regards age in the front ranks of the 

 seniors. Some say the seasons are changing ; so 

 they do, but they merely oscillate between the better 

 and the worse — nothing more. In this we have the 

 authority of Cowper — and no bad one either — who 

 published "The Task" in 1784, in which we find 

 him writing — 



" England, with all thy faults, I love thee still — 

 My country ! And while yet a nook is left, 

 Where English minds and manners may be found 

 Shall be constrained to love thee. Though thy 



clime 

 Be fickle, and thy year most part deformed 

 With dripping rains, or withered by a frost, 

 I would not yet exchange thy sullen skies, 

 And fields without a flower, for warmer France 

 With all her Vines, nor for Ausonia's groves 

 Of golden fruitage, and her Myrtle bowers." 



I admit that, this year, the lowest temperature has 

 been chronicled ; and, although we have had much 

 cloud and much rain, I can easily remember in the 

 June and July of other wet seasons, having far 

 greater floods, i.e., speaking of this neighbourhood ; 

 so that, comparing these deformed seasons with the 

 deformed ones alluded to by Cowper over a 

 hundred years ago, we may come to the conclusion 

 that we have not altered much, either for the better 

 or for the worse. One more quotation, and 

 I have done. This is from Shakespeare, who 



wrote towards the end of the sixteenth century, and 

 was more severe on the weather than even Cowper 

 {Midsummer Night's Dream, act i., sc. ii.) : — 



" And through this distemperature we see 

 The seasons alter ; hoary-headed frosts 

 Fall in the fresh lap of the crimson Rose ; 

 And on old Hyem's thin, and icy crown, 

 An odorous chaplet of sweet summer buds 

 Is, as in mockery, set. The spring, the summer. 

 The chilling autumn, angry winter, change 

 Their wonted liveries ; and the 'mazed world, 

 By their increase, now knows not which is which." 

 William Miller, Combe Abbey Gardens, July 23. 



Northamptonshire. — The Apple crop here is a 

 very good one. Some varieties, such as Lord 

 SufiSeld, Bridgwater Pippin — a variety little known 

 in the South and a first-class Apple — Blenheim 

 Orange, Hanwell Souring, are amongst the best. The 

 heavy rains are spoiling what Strawberries we have. 

 All bush fruits are very abundant. G. H. Goldsmith, 

 Floore House, Weedon. 



All Apple and Pear trees suffered very much 



from caterpillar ; some trees in the orchard were 

 stripped of all their leaves in June. Of Strawberries, 

 Sir J. Paxton and Sir C. Napier never bloomed ; 

 J. Veitch and President were good. Bush fruit 

 generally is abundant. E. Cole, Althorp Park, North- 

 ampton. 



Beds. — The present season is about the worst I 

 remember for most kinds of fruit No doubt much 

 of the blame may attach to the extraordinary dry- 

 ness of the past season. Although the trees were 

 loaded with blossom there was a very small per- 

 centage of the blooms set ; and immediately after 

 the Apples blossomed we were visited with a perfect 

 plague of caterpillars, which denuded the trees of 

 foliage in a week's time. Strawberries require sun 

 badly, as the fruit is very insipid. W. M. Baillie, 

 Luton Hoo Park, Luton. 



Oxfordshire. — Apricots and Plums are irregular ; 

 the buds of the latter were much injured by birds in 

 early spring. Cherries are generally good. Peaches 

 and Nectarines are rather thin, and the leaves 

 blistered a good deal. Apples are very poor, espe- 

 cially orchard trees ; dwarfs on the Paradise stock 

 are fairly good ; the trees have not been injured by 

 caterpillars in this immediate neighbourhood. Pears 

 good on walls, but thin on open trees. Small fruits of 

 all kinds are most abundant. Strawberries good, but 

 much injured by the heavy and constant rains. Nuts 

 scarce. Walnuts somewhat irregular, small and late. 

 G. Stanton, Park Place Gardens, Henley-on- Thames. 



Bucks. — Notwithstanding a prolonged period of 

 cold and sunless weather that prevailed in the spring, 

 the fruit crops, taken collectively, are looking satis- 

 factory in this district. Apples and Plums are a 

 partial crop, Pears and Cherries generally good, 

 and Apricots promises to be so. Peaches and Nec- 

 tarines are not so abundant as last year. Bush fruits 

 clean and good but late. Strawberries less abundant 

 than last year, and nuts likewise. 67. T. Miles, 

 Wycombe Abbey, High Wycombe. 



Apples and Pears are a poor crop. Plums, 



such as Green Gage and Victoria, and Damsons a very 

 heavy crop ; the trees are healthy and the fruit swell- 

 ing up well. Strawberries are much in want of dry 

 warm weather. Walnuts and Peaches are a very 

 good crop. J. Smith, Mentmore, Leighton Buzzard. 



Speaking generally, the fruit crops of this 



district are considerably under the average, the cold 

 and dry spring being the chief cause of this. Peaches 

 and Nectarines suffered from the severe frosts and 

 easterly winds, and are carrying, in consequence very 

 little fruit ; the trees, however, are now looking well, 

 having benefited much from the copious rains of the 

 past few weeks. Apple trees were infested with 

 caterpillar, but I notice that here and there a tree 

 has escaped, and is bearing a fair crop. Bush fruits 

 and Strawberries are plentiful, but want sun to ripen 

 them. C. Herrin, Dropmore, Maidenhead. 



Herts.— Apricots blossomed weakly, and were 

 imperfect in the bloom, owing, no doubt, to last 

 year's drought. Peaches are a good average, thanks 

 to a copious supply of water while the fruit was 

 swelling-off last year. Apples are very erratic. 



