October 25, 1877. ] 



JO TRNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



323 



Three or four inches of clay will practically convert the top 

 spit into loam. After some years I should trench and clay 

 again. In most districts a little judgment and forethought 

 will provide all the clay that may he required at a trifling cost ; 

 but if every load has to be carted from a distance I should 

 adopt a plan, which I believe is carried out at Loxford Hall 

 gardenB by Mr. Douglas, of placing a shovelful of strong loam 

 round the roots of each plant as it is put out. Few of your 

 readers can have worse soil to contend with or produce better 

 results. — Essex. 



FILBERT CULTUEE IN KENT. 



The Filbert (Corylus avellana)— a corruption of " full beard," 

 as it was originally styled, to distinguish it from smaller 

 nuts — so highly appreciated at dessert, is cultivated extensively 

 in the neighbourhood of Maidstone. It is not grown to any 

 extent beyond a circuit of seven or eight miles round that 

 town, though there are a few plantations at Ightham, about 

 thirteen miles north-west of it, and in the West Kent fruit- 

 growing district. It does well upon the soils of the ragstone, 

 but thrives exceedingly upon the Atherfield clay, locally oalled 

 the " coomb," which has been described a? follows by a prac- 

 tical farmer:— " There is a very narrow belt of land running 

 along the escarpment of the ragstone, which, though of a very 

 heavy and adhesive texture, is astonishingly productive in Hops, 

 fruit, and grain." The situation best suited is a southern 

 elope, sheltered from rough winds, which are apt to snap off 

 the delicate shoots in the early spring and bruise the blossoms. 

 Filbert trees are always grown on cultivated land, planted 

 nnder standard Apple, Pear, and Plum trees. Fruit bushes 

 are generally planted as well. Filbert trees are set about 

 13 feet apart, giving 257 trees to the acre : they are invariably 

 propagated by suckers obtained from old trees, and put in 

 nurseries until they are two or three years old, being carefully 

 pruned and trained to the required form. 



The first operation in an established Filbert plat is to open 

 a small trench round each tree, to get the suckerB or " Epawns " 

 from off the roots and lower part of the stems. Rags, shoddy, 

 fur-waste, sprats, " sheep-trotters," hop-bines, are used for 

 manure. Digging the land is done with the spud peculiar to 

 Kent, before Christmas if possible ; before the trees are pruned, 

 that the bloom, which appears very early, may not be rubbed 

 off. Pruning or cutting Filbert trees is a most elaborate pro- 

 cess. Each branch is examined by the tree-cutter, who leaves 

 the finest young wood that he sees, or ought to see at a glance 

 if he knows his business, to be bloom-bearing, and cuts away 

 all wood of coarser, older growth, comparatively unfruitful. 

 The "bloom," or cluster of pistilline flowers, is remarkably 

 pretty, like a small scarlet star upon the extremities of the 

 shoots. It is fertilised by the " catkins," as the stamineons 

 flowers are called, growing on the same branches, some of 

 which are left by the judicious cutter. After the pruning the 

 trees look mere skeletons. A stranger who had seen Filbert 

 trees thus naked and forlorn in the winter would be surprised 

 to see them in September with a wonderful wealth of leaves, 

 branches, and nuts upon them. A typical tree has a stem of 

 about 2 feet in height, from which the branches are trained to 

 spread out laterally, and to form a centre of a saucer-like 

 ahoot, with a diameter of 7 or 8 feet, and a height of about 

 .6 feet. After pruning, nothing is done until July, when most 

 growers have the long suckers taken from the middle of the 

 trees, and the leading shoots are broken off to relieve them 

 from the burden of supporting unproductive wood. Mr. Webb 

 states that he saw some Filbert trees near Maidstone which 

 iiad grown 40 lbs. of nuts on each tree. A crop of a ton, or 

 even more, is occasionally grown ; but the average yield may 

 be set at about 8 cwts. per acre. 



Filberts are frequently sold on the trees, as the growers 

 have Hops to attend to, and do not want the trouble of pick- 

 ing and selling them at the busiest time of the year. They 

 are for the most part sent to Covent Garden in sieves which 

 hold about 28 lbs. of green and 40 lbs. of ripe or harvested 

 rmts. It is customary to send a portion of the crops to Lon- 

 don when the bunches are quite green, and the kernel not by 

 any means developed. There is a certain demand for these, 

 as they look well on the table, though at this time they have 

 but a mere soupron of the true Filbert flavour. When Filberts 

 sell well at this stage some growers send their whole crop up, 

 as the weight of green nuts is nearly double that they would 

 have if duly harvested. 



Prices of Filberts range from 5d. to Is. per lb., according 



to the supply. They are not much influenced by the com- 

 petition of foreign nuts, none of which have the flavour or the 

 appearance of the genuine KentiBh FilbertB, although the 

 quantity of nuts of all kinds imported is very large. The value 

 of the imports of thiB duty-free fruit, which chiefly comes 

 from Belgium, France, and Brazil, amounted to £584,325 in 

 1875, as against £408,291 in 1871. 



The Kent Cobnut, or Lambert's Filbert, is superseding the 

 old-fashioned Filbert in a degree, and is generally preferred 

 for new plantations ; it is a much larger nut than the Filbert, 

 with a thicker shell, and is a more hardy and more abundant 

 bearer. As these trees do not thrive so well under standards 

 as Filberts, they are now generally planted by themselves, 

 with bushes under them, or with Plums, Damsons, or half- 

 standard Apple trees. They are treated in the same way, 

 requiring, perhaps, to be cut a little harder than Filbert trees. 

 A casual observer would not notice the difference between 

 Cob and Filbert trees, but their leaves are different ; the whole 

 growth of the former is more vigorous, and its " bloom," or 

 pistilline cluster, is darker than the Filbert bloom. As a rule, 

 Cobnuts make rather higher prices than the Filberts. — (Royal 

 Agricultural Society's Joxirnal.) 



CHRYSANTHEMUMS FOR EXHIBITION. 



As the shows of this fine autumn flower are approaching, a 

 few hints on the management of exhibition blooms may not be 

 inappropriate. Last year the best kinds opened very early, 

 and such as Beverley, Aurea Multiflora, Prince Alfred, Queen 

 of England, Empress of India, and several good varieties were 

 over before showing commenced. This year the plants are a 

 little later, and good stands ought to be forthcoming. I have 

 frequently noticed flowers staged with very bad centres, some 

 flat and reflexed, others with too much centre through not 

 taking them in hand sooner. If the plants be looked over 

 carefully, or rather the flowers, every day, takiDg each flower 

 about fourteen days before it will be up in the centre, and take 

 the eye carefully away with a pair of tweezers, then by tying 

 the flower down facing the floor or stage will make a great 

 difference in the appearance of it when wanted for the Btand, 

 especially such sorts as Queen of England, White Globe, 

 Empress of India, Prince Alfred, and all the long-petaled 

 varieties. It will also retard the flowers if getting too forward. 

 Some will say flowers well grown should not have an eye, but 

 it is almost impossible to grow them without. Also, when the 

 flower comes very full without an eye the middle of the flower 

 often spoils a stand through the petals being small and often 

 of another tint of colour ; therefore, all this Bhould be re- 

 moved as I said above, and in the same manner aB the eye. 

 It will be found that the space will soon be covered by the 

 other petals. Such kinds as Aurea Multiflora, George Glenny, 

 and Mrs. G. Bundle seldom want dressing at all unless exposed 

 to too much Bun, which is very injurious when the flowers are 

 erect, but if suspended will not id jure them so much. This 

 will be found a far better practice than to place the blooms 

 in dark sheds and cupboards, as I have seen done frequently, 

 which destroys the colour of the flower before half open. I 

 have seen Golden Eagle, Bev. J. Dix, Princess of Wales, and 

 other varieties exhibited with not an atom of their true colour 

 left through being exposed too much to the sun. 



The very best way to bloom the Chrysanthemum, to obtain 

 superior flowers and good colour, is to place the plants in a 

 vinery or Peach house, if span-roofed so much the better, 

 placing the pots at the sides of the house and tying the 

 plants to the wires, allowing the flowers to hang down. They 

 will enable the cultivator to look into his flowers and keep 

 them free from vermin much better than when the plants 

 are crowded together in a large bed. I have written more 

 for the instruction of the young beginner than for the expe- 

 rienced exhibitor. — J. P. 



TEA ROSE NARCISSE. 



I could never discern why this little gem of a Rose has not 

 found more favour with the Bose-growing public If I were 

 asked to name one Rose for general usefulness I should not 

 hesitate for a moment to say Narcisse. I am fully aware of 

 the " old Gloire's " claim. I do not forget many others ; their 

 worth is fully acknowledged when I say, Give me Narcisse for 

 any of them. 



"But it is a Tea," you will say, "it is too tender." Not a 

 bit of it ; it is as hardy as old Gloire, and such a little beauty, 



