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JOURNAL OP HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE (JARDENER. 



[ June 20, IMS. 



water copiously, otherwise their crop and season tpiU be 

 short. After the berries are set in dry lands, till they redden, 

 too much water in hot weather cannot be poured on them. 

 After every picking this must be repeated. My servant 

 says that he thinks the crops here are better than last year, 

 and that El-za is a^ain the best cropper. I have had it for 

 many years, and it has never failed me. 



I cannot conclude without saying how grieved I am to 

 read of the death of Sir Joseph Paxton— so valuable to the 

 horticultural and floricultural world, and to whom this 

 nation is so greatly indebted. His talent, his integrity of 

 puiiwse. and his good common sense, will be missed and 

 wanted ! I am sure that I express a universal feeling.— 

 W. F. KiDCLYFrE, Tar-rant Eushton.^ 



STEAWBEEEY CROP. 



The failure of Strawberries in these parts (West Middle- 

 sex), is beyond all pi'ecedent. Fine stools did not produce 

 a single truss. Others had a few trusses, the early blossoms 

 of which were killed by frost. Many of the secondary buds 

 have suffered in a way I cannot account for. The calyx is 

 killed and turns brown belore the flower expands, while the 

 embryo fruit is quite fresh, but of coui-se will never expand 

 any farther, much less come to maturity. The chief mischief 

 must have been caused last year, for my beds were never so 

 well done, and were all dug and mulched last Michaelmas. 

 My son tells me that tons have been sent in from the West 

 of England ; so I suppose they are better off there. 



Pears have suffered immensely from the maggots of that 

 fly, which you may remember I figured — from five to twenty- 

 five maggots in a Pear, and Beurre de Capiaumont, which 

 would have borne six bushels, will not have six Pears ! This 

 pest bids fair to rival the Vine mildew in its destructive 

 character, and we seem still moi-e powerless in preventing 

 its ravages. — F. J. G-. 



VISITS TO GrAEDE^sS PUBLIC AND PEIVATE. 

 The Palace Gaedens, Londondebky. 

 As the readers of The Journal of Horticulthke are 

 probably by this time aware, the gardens that I have the 

 opportunity of visiting are of a very varied character; but 

 I have invariably found tliat a good deal of the character 

 depends on the gardener under whose care they are jjlaced. 

 The days are past, I thinlc, for the class of gardeners who 

 knew their work and were above it, and those who did not 

 know their work and made believe that they did ; and I 

 believe employers generally have a better idea of the 

 intelligence, skill, and constant forethought required in 

 those who are employed in that capacity, and treat tliem 

 accordingly ; while gardeners do not now, as at one time 

 was not uncommon, pursue their own way without in the 

 least caring what his lordship, or one who is oftener a far 

 more important personage, his chef de cuisine, thought about 

 it. And this is only as it should he. It is very easy on gala 

 days to admire the wonderl'ul bunches of Grapes and the 

 delicious Pine that grace the dessert; but surely something 

 ought to be thought then, not only of the wealth tljat has 

 provide I the means whereby opportunity for growing such 

 was ali'orded, but also of the skill of those whoso wutuhful- 

 neas and intelligence have had so much to do with it; while, 

 on the other hand, if a gardener hnds that Sir Jasper or 

 Lord Uroadacres haa his peculiar fancies, and wishes to 

 have things done in a particular waj', it is equally clear, I 

 think, that those wishes should be attended to : no dignity 

 is lost, and a great deal of comfort is gained by so doing. 

 I have known places where a gardener, persisting in cari'ying 

 out hJB own j/lans, has so thoroughly disgusted hi.-) employer, 

 that ho gradually lost all interest in his garden ; while, 

 when the garden changed hands, and one undertook it who 

 properly considered what was due to his employer, an inter- 

 egt greater than he had ever had bidoie was aroused. Old 

 hotmeB were taken down and now ones built, and the garden 

 became a. daily source of pleasure. How many employers 

 h«Te I known who hardly knew one flower from another, 

 who have been go inoculated by the zeal and energy of their 



gardeners, that they have become zealous amateurs, and 

 have even budded into exhibitors. 



I have been led into this train of thought by a visit lately 

 paid to the Palace Gardens at the Bishop of Derry's — by 

 no means what would be called show gardens, and what, in 

 fact, by many of our southern friends would be considered 

 very indifferent. But without that they have a good deal 

 of interest, for there has been a battling wil;h all sorts of 

 adversaries. When the present excellent prelate came to 

 the see, the cathedral and the garden were much on a par. 

 In the foi-mer, the hideous deformities of what some one 

 has called the dark ages — the last century — had destroyed 

 any architectural beauty, though it never could destroy the 

 historic interest of those old walls, to which in former days 

 the citizens of Den-y crowded to hear George Walker exhort 

 them to steadfastness in the cause of liberty and truth ; 

 while in the latter there was, in fact, nothing but a wilder- 

 ness. It had been let out for the sake of the fruit trees ; 

 grass had grown over the whole of the five acres which it 

 contains, and there was not even a path in it. To restore 

 the cathedral was the good bishop's first care, and it had 

 been opened again just three years on the very day that I 

 visited it. The garden was an after-consideration; but it 

 was not until the present intelligent and earnest gardener 

 took possession of it that real progress was made ; and not 

 only were there difficulties of this nature, but the soil is not 

 naturally a good one. It rests on shale, I believe, and is 

 consequently somewhat hungry, while in that northern 

 climate I was assured by the gardener that the most sunny 

 and summery weather was in the months of April and May, 

 and yet nowhere have I seen a better promise both of flowers 

 and fruit. The old wall trees have been replaced by new 

 and excellent varieties of Pears, for to ripen Peaches out of 

 doors so far north is out of the question, and the attempt 

 has been consequently abandoned. Peas were well in bloom, 

 but they had been grown in turves in-doors and then planted 

 out. Experiments were being made on some of the early 

 kinds which have been so much vaunted this season, and 

 about which I fear we shall find that there has been a good 

 deal of 1mm. One sort I tried last year which was to be 

 ever so much earlier than Daniel O'Eourke, whereas it was 

 really eight or nine days later. I learned here what may 

 be an old, old story to many, but which to me was new — 

 that the best method to prevent the birds from eating seeds 

 is to soak these before sowing in a solution of red lead, 

 about a teaspoonful to an ounce of seed ; the lead to be 

 mixed with a small quantity of water in a basin, and then 

 the seed thrown in and well shaken about in it. I was 

 assured by Mr. Goodman that this answered completely, 

 that he had tried various ways, but that no plan was so 

 effectual as this. To those who live in the neighbourhood 

 of towns especially, into whose gardens all the sparrows of 

 the locality come to picnic, this may be worth knowing. I 

 saw the beds so treated : evidently the vitality of the seed 

 had not been destroyed, for nearly every seed must have 

 grown, while beds ni>t treated thus and netted had been 

 ravaged by the rascals, who, although they may do some 

 service, do also a good deal of injury. 



Tlie amount of glass was small, but it was well managed. 

 I have never seen Vines in pots better grown, and those 

 l)lanted in the house were also evidently thriving. Muscat 

 of Alexandria was preferred to any of the same class; and 

 Chavousli, Royal Vineyard, and other new sorts were being 

 introduced. Strawberries (Black Prince and others), were 

 and had beeu for some time fraiting ; and abundance of 

 rich ana luscious i'ruit bore testimony to the excellent 

 manner in which they had been treated. In the centre of 

 the garden is a long walk extending from end to end, with 

 fine Privet hedges at each side. This was to ho planted as 

 a ribbon-border, the background being ibrmed by Holly- 

 hocks; and Lobelia, Perilla nunkinensis, scarlet Geraniums, 

 and variegated Mint were used to complete the ribbon. 

 I have no doubt that when in flower this will have a very 

 fine cil'ect. In the various squares vegetables of all kinds 

 were doing well, although tlie presence of some old but 

 good varieties of A])ple trees hindered that completeness 

 which all good gardeners, Mr. Goodman amongst them, 

 desire. One or two I noticed were laid down in grass, and I 

 found on inquiry (hat this was done in order to give the land 

 a rest. It hod been so abused for many years, that this 



