150 



JOURNAL OF HOETICULTUEE AND COTTAGE GAEDENEB. 



[ Aognst 23, 1877. 



for moving each tree is exactly two minutes. I will return to 

 this subject. — Oesekvee. 



SPIRAEA FILIPENDULA PLENA AND OTHERS. 

 g Toue notice of S. ariasfolia (page 9-1) prompts my referring 

 to the very beautiful S. Eilipendula plena. Foliage dense and 

 Fern-like, forming an elegant clump with branching heads of ! 

 snow-white flowers, double, therefore very enduring; flowering 

 in July and August onward ; very pleasing alike in borders, 

 and for affording sprays (not scented) for bouquets and vases 

 — a combination of qualities rendering it one of the best of 

 hardy flowers. It attains to a height of IA to 2 feet, though I 

 have seen plants over a yard across and as much in height. 

 Masses of it stand out grandly in the front of shrubs. Its 

 roots are tuberous or knotted, propagation being effected by 

 division in spring. Every crown with a portion of root will 

 grow. 



Although Spiraeas in nature appear to prefer a moist situ- 

 ation, yet such is not by any means absolutely necessary, it 

 being of far more consequence that they have a soil containing 

 vegetable matter in a state of decay, or, failing that, liberal 

 applications to the soil of leaf soil or manure. All they want 

 is an abundance of humus. If the soil be dry we have only to 

 water copiously and top-dress with rich vegetable refuse liberally. 

 The best manure that I have employed is dried cow dung ; it 

 does not induce rank growth like the more stimulating horse 

 and fowls' dungs. 



There is no questioning the beauty of these plants in borders, 

 nor their great usefulness for affording flowers for cutting, to 

 say nothing of their remarkable adaptability for forcing ; yet 

 there is another purpose they might be put to with marked 

 advantage — specimens dotted irregularly on grass, or a mass 

 with irregularly disposed isolated specimens, there being a 

 great want of colour in most pleasure grounds, and in many 

 instances of form, which these and similar graceful or elegant 

 plants or grasses would to a great extent supply. S. ulmifolia 

 is a stately plant, S. venusta lovely, and S. palmata ia very 

 valuable. 



All the Spiraeas named, along with our very fine but neglected 

 S. Ulmaria, and its red variety (S. Ulmaria rubra) and the 

 variegated Meadow-sweet (S. Ulmaria variegata), are all avail- 

 able for forcing ; but the most easily forced is S. japonica, 

 though the others force readily enough if strong well-developed 

 crowns are employed. But all have a decided dislike to tobacco 

 smoke, the foliage being always more or leas damaged by it 

 whenever the house in which they are grown is fumigated; 

 hence during fumigation I always have the Spiraeas removed. 

 S. japonica (Astilba barbata) with S. palmata are not with me 

 hardy, the foliage being nipped by frost if after-growth has 

 commenced in the spring ; but the plants soon recover and 

 make fresh foliage quickly, and flower later than usual. I 

 have plants on a north border now (early August) well flowered. 

 ■ — G. Abbey. 



ROSE ELECTION. 



Our friend Mr. Hinton'a decision to have an exhibition Bose 

 election thia year I think a very good one. In common with 

 many of my profeaaional brethren I wish, if not too late this 

 season, it could have been extended to seventy-two exhibition 

 varieties, the number required for a first-class stand, instead 

 oi forty-eight. 



My reasons for wishing or suggesting it are that the exhi- 

 bition class cannot at all be fairly represented by forty-eight 

 varieties, when every amateur who exhibits in the class for 

 forty-eight must grow at least seventy-two of the best exhibition 

 flowers to meet the vicissitudes of our seasons. If a cold 

 showery rosetide seta in, very many of our grand double Eoaea 

 contained in the first forty-eight list will stain and not come 

 out so well as thinner and often second-rate varieties, so that 

 amateurs should grow nearly double the number of kinds they 

 intend to exhibit to be ready for any season. 



I am aware it may be said the collective number of varieties 

 sent in by numerous rosariana aa laat year would swell the list 

 to more than seventy-two to select from; but this, I think, 

 will not meet the case, as in some of the previous Koae elections 

 many of the old yet good second-rate Eoaes very well known 

 were repeated over so many times that an undue prominence 

 was given to them over better Eoses less seen and kuown. I 

 would ask Mr. Hinton if it would not be best to more distinctly 

 divide this forthcoming exhibition election into two claaaes — 

 northern and southern exhibitors ; and if some, say twelve able 



southern professionals, as well aa an equal number of " ex- 

 professional " amateurs, would kindly send in their lists of the 

 best seventy-two exhibition Eoses, arranged, as Mr. Hinton 

 suggests, in order of merit, we Bhould then have a truly valu- 

 able official guide for all exhibitors throughout the southern 

 half of England. The same thing would of course be done 

 for the northern half — Scotland and Ireland. 



I will conclude these remarks by giving the names of the 

 southern professionals who I earnestly hope will thia season 

 give our able returning officer their lists and support, as it will 

 greatly help the exhibition cause— making more rosariana, en- 

 abling them to spend their energy and strength only on the best 

 varieties to the exclusion and weeding from our too lengthy 

 catalogues of worthlesa varieties which have not been proved 

 on the exhibition table. A word another time about the best 

 garden Eoses— the Btay-at-homes ; they must and will be 

 sharers in the spoil. Here follow names and invitation to 

 Messrs. Cant, Cooling, Corp, Cranston, Davison, Durbin, 

 Keynes, Mitchell, Paul, Prince, Turner, Walters, Curtis.— H. 0., 

 Torquay. 



THE CIDER FRUITS OF HEREFORDSHIRE. 



THE FOX- WHELP APPLE. 

 [Continued from page 132.) 

 Fio. 28 at page 132 is taken from a good specimen of the 

 fruit which was exhibited at the meeting of the Woolhope 

 Club at Hereford in 1876. The fruit came from a tree which 

 had been in possession of the same family for 130 years, and 

 the tree itself is supposed to be 200 years old. Fig. 29 (page 

 132) represents a longitudinal section of the fruit exhibiting 

 the structure of the eye, the tube, and the core ; and the lower 

 part ia a transverse section of the same fruit showing the 

 formation of the cells. 



Fig. 33. 



The form of the fruit varies according to the age of the tree, 

 and this is the case with most varieties. Figs. 33 and 34 are 

 taken from fruit grown by John Bosey, Esq., of Lyde, and 

 exhibit the result of successive graftings from one graft taken 

 originally from one of the old trees of the Fox-whelp. Fig. 33 

 represents a fruit from a tree which ia the result of four suc- 

 cessive graftings, the scions being taken in each instance from 

 the tree grafted the previoua year ; and fig. 34 is that from a 

 tree which has had the grafting repeated five times. 



The home of the Fox-whelp Apple, be its origin what it may, 

 is in the deep clay loam of the old red sandstone in the central 

 districts of Herefordshire, and especially in the valleys of the 

 rivera Lug and Froome. The chief orchards in the villages of 

 Lugwardine, Westhide, Withington, Holmer, Lyde, Moreton, 

 Sutton, Wistaston, Marden, Bodenham, Burrup, Wellington- 

 on-the-Lug, and those of Weston Begard, Yorkhill, Stretton, 

 Granditon, Eggleton, the Froomes, the Cowarnes, and other 

 villages on the Froome, are seldom without several old trees 

 of the Fox-whelp Apple. The broad valley of the Wye does 

 not generally present so good and rich a soil. The river has 

 been so erratic in days gone by that large beds of gravel and 

 marl are to be met with in all directions, and the orchards of 

 repute therefore are only to be found on the rising slopes of 

 the valley out of the river's reaoh. Here are many excellent 



