July IS, 1876. ] 



JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



29 



strnotion worthy of being universally adopted. One of these 

 ie in the system of glazing. The glass, instead of being out in a 

 straight line, is rounded like a cheese-cutter or the blade of a 

 turfing iron ; this causes the rain to run down at the middle 

 of the glass panes, and quite prevents the water from soaking 

 down between the glass and sashbars. The under sides of the 

 bars are also constructed with a runnel from the top to the 

 bottom of the house, and all condensed water is carried down 

 this runnel to the wall-plate, so that there is no drip either 

 from condensation or rain. The top ventilator is moved by 

 machinery, which is worked by a wheel and axle outside the 

 houses. A man can move the whole top ventilation of a house 

 100 feet long with apparent ease, and the apparatus when 

 opened to its fullest extent prevents any rain from reaching 

 the plants underneath. The ventilation and glazing adopted 

 by Mr. Pearson is as perfect as any that I have ever seen. 



There are some very good Grapes of the old-established 

 sorts grown, but the houses are not specially intended for 

 Vines, as many other plants are grown in them for the greater 

 part of the year. In a lean-to house are the famous seedling 

 Vines which Mr. Pearson has raised by crossing with the 

 American varieties. Here are the original canes of Mrs. 

 Pearson, Golden Queen, and the Chilwell Alicante. If I re- 

 member rightly Mr. Pearson received a prize, given through 

 the Royal Horticultural Society, for Golden Queen, as the best 

 new fruit of that year. It is one of the richest-flavoured white 

 or golden-coloured Grapes that has yet been raised ; the bunches 

 are large and shouldered, and the berries large. Mrs. Pearson 

 is a distinct-flavoured white Grape which I have not yet tasted, 

 but it is said to be superior even to Golden Queen. Besides 

 the above there were raised, previous to this, Dr. Hogg and 

 Ferdinand de Lesseps. The first-named is the best Frontignan, 

 round-berried white Grape ; the bunches and berries are much 

 larger than the old White Frontignan, or Chasselas Musque 1 . 

 Ferdinand de Lesseps was raised by crossing the Strawberry 

 Grape by some of our English varieties. It is Strawberry- 

 scented, and a delicious-flavoured golden-coloured Grape. 



The pot Vines were in excellent health, including a large 

 quantity of Golden Queen and Mrs. Pearson. The Black 

 Muscat of Alexandria (Muscat Hamburgh) , is worked upon the 

 Frankenthal or Tlamburgh stock ; but I think if Mr. Pearson 

 has opportunity he should try it upon the Muscat of Alex- 

 andria. Mr. Pearson had something to show by way of ex- 

 periment in one of his houses of young Vines. One particularly 

 healthy Vine making most vigorous growth was pointed out as 

 one that had fifty-three wireworms in the soil. This was done 

 to prove that this pest does not injure the roots of Vines ; and 

 most conclusively has it done so, for the plant was turned out 

 of the pot a few days after my visit, and the greater number of 

 the wireworms were alive and well, but they had not grown fat 

 on the Vine roots. Many gardeners in Britain will be glad of 

 this conclusive experiment, and will not spend their time in 

 hunting for a few wireworms that may be in the turf used to 

 make their Vine borders. The Vine borders at Loxford Hall 

 were made almost entirely of turf that contains quantities of 

 wireworm, but they were not picked out, and the Vines have 

 flourished from the day they were planted until now, pro- 

 ducing annually many first-prize Grapes and healthy clean 

 foliage. On the other hand, the wireworm is an intolerable 

 pest to the Carnations, and many fine plants are destroyed by 

 it annually, although all the soil is picked over two or three 

 times before using it. 



One of the greatest attractions at Chilwell at present are 

 the seedling Zonal Pelargoniums. There are many hundreds 

 flowering this year for the first time, and hundreds more that 

 have been marked and are now being rapidly propagated to be 

 sent out. One of the best, and it has been out some years, is 

 Corsair. I have not yet seen it planted-out in beds, but it 

 would certainly be a good bedder from what I have seen of it 

 in a mass. I noted Mrs. Walter as being a very fine variety 

 with golden tricoloured leaves ; the light crimson zone and 

 yellow margin was very striking. Lady Sheffield is a plain- 

 leaved sort with bright rose-coloured flowers. H. S. Stanhope, 

 very dark crimson ; Mrs. Walter, crimson ; and Livingston, 

 deep rich soarlet ; Colonel Seely is a very bright scarlet. All 

 the above are distinct, the habits of the plants good, and the 

 trusses large and held-up on stout stalks. Many of what Mr. 

 Pearson thinks his best flowers were not out at the time of my 

 visit. Some other good varieties have been recently noticed 

 by Mr. Muir. 



There is also a very large span-roofed conservatory which 

 contains a fine lot of healthy plants, the most useful amongst 



them being the Azaleas, of which there is a superior collection. 

 I made a few notes of some of the best and most useful for 

 decorative purposes. Charmer is a very good sort, with large 

 well-shaped rosy purple flowers. Eclatante has deep crimson 

 flowers Bhaded with dense purplish crimson. Mdlle. Marie 

 Lefebvre, fine white. Mdlle. Marie Van Houtte, white with 

 rose stripes, is a fine sort. Comtesse de Beaufort, pale rose, 

 upper part of the petal crimson. Mdlle. Leonie Van Houtte, 

 very pure white with rose marking. Due de Nassau, a good 

 old sort with rosy purple flowers. 



A large number of early-flowering Pelargoniums of the large- 

 flowered or show section are grown for cut flowers early in the 

 year, and well adapted they are for this purpose. Bridal 

 Bouquet is one that should be grown everywhere ; the plants 

 were covered with a profusion of pure white flowers with a 

 delicate rose blotch on the upper petals. Digby Grand is also 

 a fine free-flowering variety ; the flowers are fringed pure 

 white, with a dark blotch on the upper petals. Like the rest 

 of the productions at Chilwell, all the plants in this house are 

 clean and well cultivated. 



I ought not to omit noticing two immense Rose bushes 

 which were growing in the orchard house. One is Lamarque, 

 and under glass the flowers were white, though they may be 

 described as pale straw when grown out of doors ; they were 

 produced in great abundance and of fine quality. The other 

 was a grand plant of Marechal Niel, which produces annually 

 between two thousand and three thousand flowers. TheBe two 

 are the best Noisette Roses, and should be grown wherever 

 space can be had under glass. They should be planted out. 



Mr. Pearson has a well-kept lawn adjoining his house, on 

 which there are some handsome coniferous trees, Pinus macro- 

 carpa and Cupressus Lawsoniana being large and very perfect ; 

 and here the new bedding Pelargoniums are tested in small 

 beds cut out of the turf before they are recommended to the 

 public. 



I cannot conclude this short notice without giving a meed 

 of praise to a younger son of Mr. Pearson, who has had a con- 

 siderable part of the management during his father's illness, 

 and who seems quite as great an enthusiast as Mr. Pearson 

 both in plant and fruit culture, and I must also thank him for 

 the great pains he took to show me everything in the con- 

 struction of the houses and the culture of the plants and fruit 

 trees. — J. Douglas. 



ASPECTS OF NATUEE.— JUNE. 



" The mead is onr study, and Nature our book.' 

 Whatevee may have been the charaoter of the weather 

 during the earlier months of the year, June generally brings 

 us a time of full summer, a season when we may take extended 

 rambles in the country and still eDJoy " the long sunny lapse 

 of a summer day's light," for our return when wandering in 

 woods and lanes, rambles on moor or in meadow, will give us 

 the largest bouquet of wild flowers that it is possible to gather 

 during any time of the year ; indeed, so many lovely blossoms 

 are around us, that the great difficulty is to know which to 

 choose for emblems of Flora's garland for the month ; but as 

 the Rose has been chosen queen of the parterre so will we 

 make her first among wild flowers of June. The Briar is in 

 the resplendence of her beauty, and hangs her pliant blossom- 

 decked sprayB over every hedge, or twines around the Oak sap- 

 ling in the copse, and in companionship with the Honeysuckle 

 or Eglantine hangs graceful feBtoons of foliage and flowers 

 across many an unfrequented path. To the uninitiated all 

 wild Roses are alike ; but those who have gathered them with 

 affection and sought them in different habitats have learnt to 

 distinguish several varieties, from the deep rich petals of the 

 darkest, down through all the shades of pink to pure white. 

 Nor are the foliage and growth of all similar, for beyond those 

 which have lighter or darker green leaves, more robust or more 

 pliant stems and branches, the beautiful sand Rose is distinct 

 in all its features, growing as it does on low sandy hills, ex- 

 posed to the bleak winds which blow from the ocean. Its 

 natural growth is that which best befits a plant that has to 

 bear the beating of many storms. The finest specimen is in- 

 deed but a low shrub thickly set with branches rising almost 

 from the base, the leaves being of a deep rich brown, much 

 serrated and very small, the beautiful pure white flowers being 

 strongly scented. Every stem is clothed with fine but number- 

 less spines, as thick as those on a Moss Rose, and it is these, 

 doubtless, which protect the hearts of the plant from being 

 choked up during its early growth by the thick clouds of sand 



