Saptember 20, 1877. ] 



JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



237 



I have nothing to say with a view to preserving the crops 

 affected other than seconding the remarks of your able cor- 

 respondents who have advised the taking-up of the crops npon 

 the first appearance of the disease in the haulm, or, without 

 waiting for the disease to manifest itself in the haulm, take up 

 the crop when full-sized or so soon as the setting of the skins 

 will allow. This is capital advice, but quite impracticable 

 with rain every day for three weeks or a month at a stretch. 

 To lift Potatoes with the soil little better than mud would be 

 suicidal, but to remove the haulm is an operation that may be 

 performed when the raising of the tubers from the wetness of 

 the soil is impracticable, for there is great difference between 

 lifting rods in a garden and acres in fields. 



Nor will I dwell on the means to be adopted for the avoid- 

 ance of the disease, such as keeping of the seed in sheds ex- 

 posed to atmospheric influence, the planting of kinds only 

 that arrive early at maturity, with the avoidance of fresh 

 stimulating manures in contact with the sets at planting, and 

 those artificial ones which induce to an increase of haulm, 

 being equally Bilent of " salus," inasmuch as though I hear of 

 its strengthening the haulm, and there being few tubers 

 diseased in those dressed therewith as compared with those 

 not dressed, but I do not see in this anything further than the 

 increased vigour of the plant, which implies the disease to be 

 of weakened constitutional origin, resulting of the plant's 

 subjection to an excess of organic manures, or their application 

 to this particular crop, out of all proportion to the inorganic 

 elements present in the soil, and forming such important 

 constituents in the structure and maintenance in health of 

 vegetable life, which is supported by the unerring evidence of 

 facts, as in most instances the disease is most virulent in 

 alluvial deposits — soil full of humup, those containing much 

 decomposing vegetable or animal manures. The first diseased 

 plot of Potatoes I saw this year was on land taken in or 

 enclosed from a moor as a cottager's Potato ground. The 

 ground may have been under crop with Potatoes near on to 

 a decade, certainly for more than seven years consecutively 

 cropped with Potatoes. The soil on the moor surrounding is 

 a black spongy peat about 9 inches deep, destitute of silicious 

 matter, with an under strata of sandy alumina, and a subsoil 

 of stiff clay. The soil immediately beneath the peat is largely 

 impregnated with oxide of iron, indeed the whole subsoil is bo 

 strongly impregnated with iron that the springs give out the 

 red_ oxide to the water. The very life of such soil for culti- 

 vation is to be found in applications of lime, especially mag- 

 nesian; but no such application had been applied, only 

 organio substances. There was no mistaking the disease in 

 the plot had its origin in curl, the remains of the plants 

 collapsing of curl being disposed irregularly through the 

 plot, the haulms of the other plants fast falling a prey to the 

 disease. This was at the middle of July, and at the end the 

 kind infected— I took it for Mona's Pride— was a mass of 

 putrefaction. This was fully a month before we noticed any 

 traces of the disease, and we had it a full fortnight before it 

 appeared in the fields. In one field I noticed a part of about 

 two acres with the haulm blackened and leafless, whilst the 

 other part was apparently unaffected ; in a fortnight they were 

 badly infected. 



My opinion is that we do nothing but propagate the disease 

 wholesale — fold our arms and despondingly watoh the ravages 

 of the murrain, instead of promptly setting to work upon its 

 advent and promptly removing every vestige of the disease in 

 the haulm ; and if we persist in this the probability is that 

 we allayed its ravages upon the present crop. Seoure sets un- 

 tainted with disease for planting, it being well known that un- 

 ripened tubers were known to be a sure remedy for curl so 

 far back as 1806, it being propounded by Mr. Thomas Dickson 

 of Edinburgh, in which he was confirmed by Mr. Knight. 

 There is one other point worth mentioning in respeot of 

 unripe tubers for planting— viz., the earlier ripening of the 

 resulting crop. 



I mention these subjects to show that we are at least less 

 practical in dealing with the disease of 1815 than was the 

 case at the commencement of the century with curl, and that 

 the best known preventives are identical with those then put 

 forth as a preventive of curl. — G. Abbey. 



CHESHUNT HYBKID ROSE. 

 I would desire to seoond most thoroughly what my good 

 friend Canon Hole has said in last week's Journal, and to say 

 how gladly we all welcome Mr. Peach's again wielding his pen. 



It is rather hard, however, to have to differ from him in so 

 doing; but so valuable is Cheshunt Hybrid esteemed in the 

 south-west of Scotland, that Mr. Mackenzie at Newton Stewart, 

 who has grown it pegged-down, now purposes (so thoroughly is 

 he satisfied with it) to make one large bed in a small garden of 

 it. When I was there in July it was in great beauty.— D., Deal. 



NEWCASTLE BOTANICAL and HORTICULTURAL 

 SOCIETY-AUTUMN SHOW. 



September 12th and 13th. 

 Vigorous even in old age is the characteristic of the Newcastle 

 Botanical and Horticultural Society. Entered as it has on its 

 fifty-third year, it appears still young — is, indeed, growing not 

 only rapidly bat substantially. To what is to be attributed the 

 sudden — for it is sudden — resuscitation of this Society, which at 

 one time was in a comparatively deerepid state ? It may be 

 summed up, perhaps, in two words — discretion, enthusiasm. 

 Without enthusiasm the labour that has been given would never 

 have been forthcoming; without discretion that labour would 

 not have resulted so satisfactorily. But who has possessed 

 these important requisites ? Well, the Committee are anxious 

 to debit them to the Honorary Secretaries, Messrs. Taylor and 

 Frenob, while the Secretaries attribute the improved position 

 to the working Committee, such "good men and true" as the 

 veteran Garrett and his younger associates, Messrs. Edward. 

 Wilson, jun., William Dinning, Tranah, Plummer, jun, Adams, 

 and others. 



That is a good sign — the best evidence not only that all have 

 worked, but that they have worked in unity and harmony. The 

 real improvement, therefore, that has taken place is traced to 

 four essentials — discretion, enthusiasm, unity, and harmony. 

 They are worth mentioning, for with them any society may 

 flourish, as far, at least, as it is possible to make it do so; without 

 them no organisation can long remain healthy and prosperous. 



But wherein has this Society rendered itself so especially re- 

 markable 1 Let a few, a very few, facts answer the question. 

 Less than a year ago its subscription income was £180, and its 

 liabilities £200 ; now its subscription income is nearly or quite 

 £2000. In numbers the members a year ago were less than four 

 hundred, now they are nearly four thousand. Such results are 

 emphatically worthy of record, and Messrs. Taylor and French 

 (for while admitting the valuable services of every member of 

 the directorate), the gentlemen named mast have the honour 

 which according to the most impartial estimate that can be 

 formed is rightly their due. 



But who are Messrs. Taylor and French ? iB a question that 

 will very naturally force itself uppermost. Gardeners ? No, 

 not gardeners, yet without the aid of gardeners such results 

 could not have been achieved. The practical knowledge of 

 gardeners has been applied by gentlemen of position in the mer- 

 cantile world, whose commercial training has proved its power, 

 and whose business aptitude has achieved success. The manner 

 in which they have worked is, perhaps, not so easily appre- 

 hended, but it may be stated that they have visited shows in 

 other districts and noted points both to adopt and to avoid. 

 They have examined the systems of procedure of other societies 

 with the same object. They have proceeded on a liberal scale — 

 that is, when they have decided on a course they have carried 

 ont their plan fully and well. They have advertised and cir- 

 cularised systematically, and have secured support both local 

 and genera). Let an instance of " circularising" be noticed, for 

 there is no teaching so cogent as example. Leaflets we will call 

 them, setting forth in concise terms the advantages of a horti- 

 cultural society, have been distributed systematically. With 

 each a printed and ready-addressed postcard has been sent, re- 

 quiring only the name of the subscriber and the amount of sub- 

 scription entering. These have been returned by hundreds, 

 £10, indeed, having been received on the day previous to the 

 Show (the 11th intt), and £40 more on the day of the Show 

 alone. Of course every facility has been given to induce mem- 

 bership, and the utmost liberality consistent with sound com- 

 mercial principles has been exercised in the granting of pri- 

 vileges. The object, a wise one, is to place the Society on a 

 sound basis financially, by seeking Buch an income from sub- 

 scriptions that will render the Society independent of gate 

 money — that is, that its existence shall not be at the mercy of 

 that ever-impending contingency, a rainy day. 



The response to the efforts made to secure support warranted 

 the Committee in announcing three shows for the present year, 

 offering prizes to the amount of nearly £600. The spring show 

 in March was a gratifying success, the summer show in July is 

 admitted to have been the greatest and the best ever held in 

 Durham or Northumberland, and the autumn show held on 

 the 12th and 13th inst. was an excellent one, such as to satisfy 

 the promoters and to secure the approval and confidence of the 

 public. As an instance of the extent of the publio support 

 accorded it may be mentioned that the Society has enrolled 

 170 Vice-Presidents, including eleven Mayors, and it has the 



