July 6, 1871. 3 



JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



none. In almost every instanee that I have heard of, that 

 •a^ually best of all Strawberri'js, Keens' Siedling, has this year 

 less fruit than almost any other variety. 



Oq the night of the 2-k'.h ult. the aurora borealia was very 

 brilliant for a short time, and daring the night the thermometer 

 re^^istered as low as 35°. — E. C. [ A.t R(]gby, on the same night, 

 we are informed by Mr. Harris, gardener at Naseby WooUejs, 

 there was a frost so severe as to turn the Potato leaves quite 

 black.— Eds ] 



THE ROYAL HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY'S 

 EXHIBITION AT NOTTINGHAM. 



June 27th — July 1st. 

 Tn continuation of our report of this Show — the most euc- 

 oessful of any of the country exhibitions which the Sjciety has 

 yet held — we now take up the 



VEGETvVBLES. 



"ThcBe were not sliowu so numerously as at some of the Society's 

 -previous country shows, but the quality was excellent. Messrs. Carter 

 -and Co. offered a silver cup, or £10, and a second prize of £'2, for the 

 ■best collection, including Carter's Hundredfold, Laxton's Quality, 

 Dwarf Waterloo, and two other varieties of Peas. The cup was taken 

 by Mr- Garland, gardener to Sir Thomas Dyke Ackland, Bart., Killer- 

 ton, with the above-named Peas, fifty heads of Asparagus, averaging 

 8 inches in length, and weiRbing altogether 7A lbs., escelleut Cabhages, 

 Lettuces, Broad Beans, Celery, Ouiou=), Carrots, Parsnips, Turnips, 

 and Beet. The whole of these, we understand, ^ere produced from 

 Messrs. Carter's seeds. ' The second prize went to Mr. D. Lumsden, 

 gardener to Lady M. Nisbet Hamiltou. Bloxholm Hall, Sleaford, for 

 excellent Globe Articholiea, Broad Beaus, Cabbages, Leeks, Ouions, 

 Potatoes, Radishes, itc. Mr. Gilbert, gardener to the Marquis of 

 Exeter, Burgbley, also competed, but onsuccessfully, thougb taking 

 the gardeners' prize, with £5 added by the Marquis of Exeter, for 

 eight kinds of vegetables and four kinds of salads — a prize first pro- 

 posed by himself. Second, third, and fourth prizes were also offered 

 in the same class ; the fourth, by Mr. Chapman, of Gloucester, being 

 his patent exhibiting case. Mr. Gilbert exhibited his vegetables in a 

 "box neatly bordered with fine Curled Parsley, and it contained very 

 fine Telegraph Cucumber.=, Mushrooms, Cauliflowers, Orangefield 

 Tomatoes, Dwarf Kidney Beans, William I. Peas, Lettuces. Beet, and 

 Mustard and Cress. An excellent collection from the Rev. C. C. 

 Ellison, Bracebridge Vicarage, Lincoln, was second; Mr. Miles, gar- 

 <lener to Lord Carrington, Wycombe Abbey, being third ; and Mr. G. 

 "Craddock. gardener to Lord WiUoughby de Broke, Compton Verney, 

 fourth. Messrs. Lumsden, Frisby, Meikle, Holah, Piaohey, and 

 others also sent very fiue-growu vegetables. The Loughborough Hor- 

 ticultural Society's prizes for sis kinds of vegetables, exclusive of 

 Potatoes, shown on trays not exceeding 30 inches square, were taken 

 by Messrs. G. Heafford & Son, Loughborough ; Mr. Draper, Dorring- 

 •ton ; and Mr. Nicholson, CoUingham. In the artisans' class for the 

 Bame, Messrs. Basford, Biddle, and Clarke, of Loughborough, and 

 Mr. Lacy, Bloxholm, were prizetakers in the order in which they are 

 named. 



Potatoes, very clean and good, were shown by Mr. Taylor, of 

 Malpas ; Mr. CradJock, Compton Verney ; Mr. Biddle, Loughborough ; 

 and in the class for four dishes, in which prizes were offered by the 

 Loughborough Horticultural Society, Messrs. Pickworth, Biddle, 

 Nicholson, Montiney, and Heafford & Son had excellent samples. 



Cucumbers were numerously shown in the class in which prizes were 

 offered by T. R. Starey, Esq , and the Local Committee. The Rev. 

 C C. Ellison was first with a wbite-spined variety, called Lick-'em-all ; 

 Telegraph, from Mr. Bolton, gardener to W. Worswick. Esq., Birstall 

 Hall, was second ; Berkshire Challenge, from Mr. Mitchell, gardener 

 to T. Cross, Esq., Rnddington Hall, third. From Mr. Lumsden 

 came a brace of the Sooly Qua Cucumber, which is probably a variety 

 -of Luff a. 



GARDEN STRUCTURES, ISIPLEMENTS, &C. 



Of these strictly speaking the Show was not very extensive ; fully 

 ■one-half of the articles exhibited were such as pertained but very little 

 •to horticulture. They attracted some little attention, no doubt, but 

 (perambulators, beds and bedding, grates and fire irons, carriages and 

 leather, which formed the major part, have very little claims to notice 

 at a horticultural show. 



Of hothouses there were several, although nothing very special, and 

 chiefly confined to local talent. The most commanding and substan- 

 tial, a perfect model of a plain, substantial, span-roofed house, was 

 ihat exhibited by Mr. Forster, of Beestou, the builder of Mr. Pearson's 

 world-famous orchard houses. This was after the same style, and is 

 specially worthy of commendation, light and airy, yet firm and strong. 

 The patent ventilating system, of Mr. Forster, by means of cog-wheels, 

 is likewise very admirable. A small moveable pit also was deserving 

 of special commendation, being exceedingly well adapted for amateurs. 

 Mepsrs. Wheeler & Humphreys, of Nottingham, also exhibited a very 

 substantial span-roofed house with patent ventilating gear. Messrs. 

 Dennis & Co., of Chelmsford, exhibited several erections of galvanised 

 iron, which, although light and airy, and uo doubt durable, had not 

 Iby any means a neat appearance. We cannot say we like them. Mr. 



Messenger, of Loughborough, exhibited a large range of houses on his 

 principle of construction, which had a very light and airy appearance 

 — just a little too slim, if one might say so ; the bracing and lyinT 

 together of the various parts being well contrived, so as to avoid centre 

 supports. 



Mr. W. P. Ayres exhibited one of his imperishable hothouses, which 

 are certainly deserving of especial notice. As far as iron and glass 

 are concerned they may lay some claim to the title assumed. The 

 whole of the outside of the roof is glass laid down like the slates or 

 tiles on the roof of a house, no putty being used, so that nothing but 

 the glass is exposed. The glass is held in its j.hice bv little zinc or 

 tin laps. Tlie shelves also are made of some bard material like terra 

 cotta. We like many of the principles exceedingly. Mr. Bickley, of 

 Birmingham, exhibits a small house showing an ingenious mode of 

 gluziug. The bars run transversely across the house about IS inches 

 apart; on these the glass is laid and supported by little strips of zinc 

 nailed to a piece of wood. We liked this very much. Mr. Voice, of 

 llarcross, Sussex, also exhibits another novelty iu ventilation. The 

 house is furnished with a centre cap or lantern, which can be elevated 

 at pleasure to one side or the other. By this means ventilation can 

 always he provided on the leeward side, and cold draughts of air may 

 he in a great measure prevented. 



Messrs. Green & Sons exhibited a number of their patent lawn 

 mowers, rollers, &c. Messrs. Fellows tt Bates had also on show Rau- 

 some's Automaton lawn mower. The Climax lawn mower is a very 

 ingenious handy little machine, the grass box being placed behind 

 instead of in front, and the cut grass being jerked backwards. By this 

 means the knives can cut quite close up to any object. We look upon 

 this as one of the best of late novelties. 



Mr. Ormsou, of Chelsea, and Messrs. Weeks, exhibited examples of 

 their boilers, which are well known, and require no special notice. 

 Messrs. Jones & Rowe had on view also Mr. Westland's Witley Court 

 boiler, with furnace-door and everything complete. This seems to be 

 a very powerful boiler, but rather complex in construction. 



Mr. Matthews, of the Potteries, Weoton-super-Mare, had on show a 

 great stock of dower pofs, ornamental vases, flower stands, &c., which 

 weie specially worthy of commfudation. There has been a great want 

 for cheap, handsome (lower pots, which Mr. Matthews seems now likely 

 to supply. Mr. Sankey, Bulwell Potteries, Nottingham, had also a 

 goodly stand of flower pots, ttc, of admirable make. 



A rather ingenious apparatus for the application of the liquid com- 

 pobitions for the destruction of aphides, &c., on plants, named Fretting- 

 ham's vaporiser Wds shown. A small portion of the liquid is placed 

 iu the vaiioriser — a bottle which is filled with some tubes like a soda- 

 water bottle, and by blowing through these lubes, the material is dis- 

 tributed in thin spray over any part of the plant, with scarcely any 

 waste. 



Mr. Rendle had on view a great number of his patent plant protec- 

 tors, and in great variety, giving the protection of a single tlower pot 

 to that of a good-sized house. Many of Mr. Rendle's appliances will 

 he found extremely useful, especially to amateurs. The most of the 

 other subjects were of a very miscellaneous character, and call for no 

 special remark. 



A DINNER of horticuIturiBts was htld at the Exchange Rooms 

 at Nottingham on the 27ih uU. The Rev. S. R. Hole presided. 

 We need only give a few extracts from the records of the 

 " doings of that day." 



The CuAiKMAN said he had never said grace with more satisfaction 

 than he had done that day. He was not an epicure, but he felt some- 

 what, as the ])oet expressed it, " Fate cannot harm ine, I have dined 

 to-day" [laughter]. Englishmen used to have no dilbculty about 

 dining ; but somehow or other there had been some difficulty pre- 

 viously in holding a gardeners' dinner at these annual meetings. 

 They had previously wanted the presence of those who were at the 

 head of the Society, but here they were to-night [cheers]. They had 

 the best show to-day that ever the Society had had in the provinces 

 [cheers], and there had been no want of harmony iu making it a 

 happy one throughout [cheers]. In reply to the question which had 

 been put as to why they were so anxious about the dinner, he said the 

 gardeners who came to these meetings had great sympathy and fellow- 

 ship for each other; they wanted to cement their old friendships, and 

 to meet men they had heard about all their lives. Did not young 

 painters wish to know a Millais, or a young soldier a Napier ? He 

 had known the time when he would have gone forty miles to meet 

 Thomas Rivers, of Sawbridgeworth [cheers]. What they wanted was 

 unity, and they had it to-day more than they ever had it before. He 

 saw many around him who had talked about it, and it was a matter of 

 congratulation that the wind had gone from the north into the west 

 [cheers and laughter]. He would tell them who had been one of the 

 greatest advocates and promoters of this union — that was the chief 

 magistrate of Nottingham, who sat on his right hand [cheers]. The 

 Mayor told him that he bad astonished him iu making that remark, 

 but he {the speaker) had attended every meeting of the Committee, 

 and had found his Worship working in the most generous way to 

 forward the interests of the Society, and with the greatest energy and 

 goodwill that any man could show [cheers]. His Worship ofi'ered to 

 take the chair wheu this dinner was proposed, but he was anxious for 

 anyone to take it who knew more of gardening than himself [cheers]. 

 He gave them *' The health of the Chief Magistrate of the town," and 



