BU 



JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



[ October 13, 1877. 



Bon Chretien, one of which is that Francois de Paul, the founder of the 

 Minimes, beiDg called to the Court of Loiiii XI. for the recovery of his health 

 ■was styled by that Monarch " Le Bon Chretien," and that he brought along 

 ■with him from Calabria some of the fruit of the Pear now called "Winter Bon 

 Chretien, -which is said to be there grown in great quantity. Hunting 

 seriously affirms that the Pear appears to have received its name at the 

 beginning of Christianity, and that from this title it merits the respect of all 

 Christian gardeners. Another opinion is, that St. Martin, Bishop of Tours, 

 ■was the first who obtained this variety, and that a king of France, having 

 tasted it with him, asked, when it was presented to him, for Des poires de ce 

 Bon Chretien. But, perhaps, the mott probable derivation is from the sup- 

 position, more or less well grounded, that it is the CruBtuminm of the 

 Romans, but whether or not it is so is difficult to determine. Switzer says 

 they are so called from not rotting at the heart, but beginning to decay from 

 the exterior part. 



Magnolia (T. B.).— The leaf is of a Magnolia conspicua. It is unusually 

 large, but this is accounted for by rich soil and the climate of South Devon. 



Bulbs in Water (J. G.).— The best bulbs to grow in water are Hyacinths. 

 By using cocoa-nut fibre as you propose Crocuses and Tulips will do pretty 

 well. Mr. Barr of King Streat. Covent Garden, has grown and flowered the 

 "pretty sweet-scented Iris alata in a Hyacinth glass." Other bulbous or 

 tuberous-rooted flowers may be tried in the tame way. 



Planting SpiE-£A japonica and Nertera depressa (Sambo).— Spiraea 

 japonica and S. palmata are quite hardy, though liable to have the foliage 

 cut by severe late spring frosts. They should he planted in good rich light 

 soil in a sheltered yet open situation from November to March in mild 

 weather. Nertera depressa is hardy on moist rockwork in peat or vegetable 

 soil in a sheltered situation, but is best wintered in a frame. 



Applying Charcoal and Bone Dust to Flower Beds [Idem). — Both 

 are first-class manures. Charcoal may be used at the time of making the 

 beds. A dressing 2 inches tbick mixed with a foot depth of the surface soil 

 is the most we have used to a strong soil, an inch thickness of charcoal and 

 worked in with a fork would be a sufficieot application to ordinary -textured 

 loams. One peck of bone dust per rod (30£ square yards) distributed oyer 

 the surface and pointed in with a fork lightly prior to planting is very in- 

 vigorating to most plants, notably Pelargoniums cultivated for their foliage. 



Cutting Down "Variegated Rhododendron [Dan). — Cut it down to 

 the height required during moist weather at the close of April or early May. 

 Propagation is very tardy from cuttings, but layers made now or in spring 

 are certain to form plants quickly, the shoots being notched previously to 

 being pegged in the ground. 



Bougainville a spectabilis and L:elia purpurata not Flowering 

 [Subscriber).— The Bougainvillea should have the roots confined to a very 

 limited space as compared with the extent of surface to be covered by the 

 plant, and to be very sparingly watered after the growth becomes free, the 

 object being to have the wood firm and well ripened. "Watering should cease 

 in August, only a little should occasionally ba given to prevent excessive 

 flagging, and the wood should he trained thinly so as to expose it fully to 

 light and air. By keeping dry from August to March your plant ought to 

 flower, pruning being restricted to thinning the shootB. The Lffilia does not 

 flower because we apprehend it is kept constantly growing, whereas it requires 

 a plentiful supply of water and moisture until the growth is complete, and 

 should then be kept dry and fully exposed to light, when it will flower in due 

 course, provided the growths are sufficiently strong. 



Names of Fruits [Essex). — Your Apple is Gloria Mundi. (I. P. H.). — "We 

 do not recognise your Pear. The deformities are not uncommon. (J. D. 

 Duffus). — Hawthornden. (Fitz). — 1 acd 2, Not known; 3, Dumelow's Seed- 

 ling; 4, Gloria Mundi; 5, Wormsley Pippin; 6, Golden Winter Pearmain. 

 (Northern Spy).— I, "Winter Peach; 2, Walhurst Pippin; 3, Rhode Island 

 Greening; 4, Morris' Russet; 5, Pitmaston Golden Pippin. (Rev. B. Percy). 

 —Lincoln Codlin. (C. J. B.). — Cambusnethan Pippin. (Connaught Sub- 

 scriber).— Tat. (W. H.Ashwiti).— 1, Gloria Mundi; 2 and 3, "Winter Haw- 

 thornden ; 4, "Very like Golden Beinette ; 5, Cobham ; 6, Lewis's Incomparable. 

 (G. F. B.).— lj Not known; 2, Duchess of Oldenburg; 3, Cellini ; 4, Beauty 

 of Kent. (J. Edge).— Northern Spy. (Sedgley).— Towerof Glamis. (R.B.L.). 

 L, Winter Peach ; 2, Herefordshire Pearmain ; 3, Dumelow's Seedling ; 4, Not 

 known; 5, Bedfordshire Foundling; 6, Baron Ward. (A Ten-years Sub- 

 scriber).— 1, Flower of Kent; 2, Winter Gilliflower; 3, Ord's; 4, Winter 

 Colman; 5, Bedfordshire Foundling ; 6, Braddick's Nonpareil. 



Names of Plants (C. T.).— Viburnum Lantana. (Rev. T. A. B.).— We 

 have no plants on hand unnamed. Seud some fresh specimens. (A Sub- 

 icriber, Andover and T. J.). — "Viburnum Lantana, the Wayfaring Tree. 

 (A. M'Donald). — Tecoma radicans. (N. ft). — Specimen of Fuchsia insuffi- 

 cient. (Cycad).— Coccoloba platyclada. (Ten-years Subscriber).— 1, Leyce3- 

 teria formosa; 2, Erythrina crista-galli. (A. Y. D.}. — Sedum spectabile. 

 (T.Hyde).— White Beam (Pyrns Aria). [J. P.).— Duranta PlumierL (Q.B.C.). 

 — 1, Coccoloba platyclada; 2, Cystopteris fragilis. 



POULTEY, BEE, AM PIGEOU 0HR0NI0LE. 



TOUTING SHOWS. 



Theke is a system very prevalent in the present day among 

 the managers of poultry exhibitions which we consider very 

 objectionable. The matter to which we refer is the plan of 

 writing round to the chief exhibitors a day or two after the 

 entries are supposed to have closed in the following way: — 



" Blankshire Show. Please Bend some entries ! Open up to . 



At present have only two Dark Drahma cocks and two ditto 

 hens ! Others proportionately weak. Hope you will help." 

 This little note, generally written on a postcard, is then sent 

 round to perhapB half a score of (for example) Dark Brahma 

 breeders by the same post ; and though it may be true that at 

 the time they were sent only two entries had been made in 

 thoBe particular classes, generally most of the recipients of the 

 postcard imagine on its arrival that they can get a prize very 

 cheaply and so are constrained to send au entry, whereas by the 

 fact of many thinking the same the class is frequently made 



larger and the competition more severe than is usually the case. 

 We maintain that if such a missive ia sent to Mr. Jones it should 

 be also stated that the Messrs. Brown, Smith, and Robinson also 

 have had such an one, or else it appears to us to be obtaining 

 entries on false pretences. We received such a card the other 

 day, and have above copied it verbatim, only altering the name 

 of the breed. And the fact of the system being worked aa we have 

 described was very vividly brought home to us, for a poultry 

 fancier who was staying with us at the time, in the course of a 

 post or two, had his letters forwarded from his home, and 

 among the enclosures was afac-simile of our own card ; and he 

 in his turn leaving us went to stay with a fresh poultry ally, 

 and found to his surprise that he too had received just another 

 card. This gentleman, however, very properly considers that 

 equity Bhould be the maxim of all shows, and as he did not like 

 the idea of entries beiug obtained by theBe means he wrote to 

 the writer, and remonstrated with him on the unfairness of 

 writing in the same terms to so many without stating to each 

 who else he had written to among exhibitors of the various 

 classes. He also wrote to ns in the following words, and his 

 letter was a type of many such we have received. We quote 

 from it: — "In my reply to the postcard, which I took some 

 pains in wording, I said that had I intended exhibiting at Blank- 

 shire my entries would have been made in due course, and that 

 I thought it very unfair to those exhibitors who had duly 

 entered their birds that the lists should be kept open after the 

 day originally fixed, and still worse that the Committee or 

 Secretary should endeavour to swell the lists by informing a 

 number of possible exhibitors of the classes in which there was 

 likely to be little competition. I added that I waB aware I was 

 not the only exhibitor to whom a Bimilar communication was 

 addressed." The reply of the gentleman who sent about the 

 cards was in the following terms : — " By dint of hard work and 

 almost cadging for entries they have come up to more respect- 

 able numbers. I know it has become the custom to write 

 round as I did to the well-known exhibitors if entries are short 

 at the last moment, and if I had not found it to be the general 

 practice from the oldest established shows down to the smallest 

 local ones to do the same thing I might have hesitated^ to take 

 such a courBe. It was done with no intention of deceiving any- 

 one or drawing them in under false pretences, for surely there 

 is no harm in striving to get up the strongest competition 

 possible, especially when prospects look as gloomy aa ours did, 



with only ■ entries on the evening of the date first announced 



for closing." 



Against the practice there ia this to be said — that those who 

 make their entrieB at the proper time are not equally treated 

 with those who are allowed to enter some days after the 

 advertised date ; for the first make their entries without know- 

 ing if certain birds of theirs will be ready by the time, while 

 others by waiting do not enter unless their specimens are in a 

 fit state, and so have the better chance ; while if the date had 

 been closed to all at one time, either all would have had to share 

 alike in the uncertainty of the matter, or the first comers would 

 have had the class to themselves and less competition against 

 them. Again, atainst the toutingprinciple many perhapB would 

 not have entered because they had arranged for their birds to be 

 on the day at some other exhibition, but on receiving the card 

 imagine inferior birds will win ia such small competition and so 

 make their entries, whereas the similar cards being sent to many 

 the claas ends in being large and the chances for less valuable 

 birds to win small. What should consequently be done is what 

 the Secretary of an important show said to us the other day : — 

 " Choose the last possible day before the Bhow is held when 

 entries can comfortably be received, and then publish that day 

 and keep to it." Exhibitors will soon find out that the rule 

 is observed and accordingly enter in time, which will stop all 

 the necessity and consequent unpleasantness of the touting 

 system. — W. 



ALEXANDRA PALACE POULTRY SHOW. 



This makes the third of the metropolitan shows for this 

 season, and we are sorry that it has, on the whole, come off 

 Bhort in the number of its entries. This was, however, to be 

 expected, for we never remember so large a number of import- 

 ant chicken exhibitions being held within so short a space 

 of time in the early part of one season. We must, however, 

 congratulate Mr. Nicholls on his admirable arrangements. The 

 pens were all on one level, while the cards were placed on them 

 as soon as each slip was handed in from the Judge. We were 

 greatly pleased at this, and Mr. Nicholls has inaugurated, we 

 hope, a oommendable system for future shows. The Judges were 

 — for poultry, Messrs. Mathews, Hewitt, and Teebay; and for 

 Pigeons, Messrs. E = quilant, Tegetmeier, and Capt. Heaton. 

 We must content onrselves with noticing the chief objects of 

 merit in each class, as the early date of going to press necessi- 

 tates it. The quality of the birds was good, and many of the 

 awards most judiciously made, while others, though under the 

 same adjudicators, were much reversed from those of the Dairy 

 Show last week. 



