August 9, 1S64. ] 



JOURNAL OF HOETICULTUEE AND COTTAGE GAEDENEE. 



K>5 



Princess op Wales (Knight's). — The earliest sort I know 

 of, and quite as early as May Queen, but much larger and 

 of exquisite flavour. 



I must not conclude without mentioning Sir Joseph Pax- 

 ton, of which I saw a few berries on calling upon Mr. 

 Turner, who, -with his usual politeness, allowed me to taste 

 them. This is another Strawberry worthy of general culti- 

 vation, and every amateur ought to be anxious to possess it, 

 and will find it a worthy companion to President, sent out 

 last year by Mr. Turner. — Ferdinand Gloede, Les Sablons 

 {Seine et Marne), France. 



CITY GARDENING IN NEW YOEK. 



One of the most pleasing features in this city is the 

 number and variety of shady trees planted along the side 

 ■walks of many of the principal streets and avenues, and, 

 being almost entirely deciduous, they form a most grateful 

 shelter from the scorching rays of the sun during the sultry 

 summer months ; and never has their shade been more 

 agreeable than during the last week of the past month (June). 

 The thermometer in the shade during that period daily 

 indicated 95" and 97°. One day, the 26th, it ranged up to 

 102° — an almost unprecedented heat for June ; so that when 

 at length the temperature fell to 75° we almost shivered 

 with cold, and had to resume thicker habiliments. 



The principal varieties of trees planted ore Catalpas, 

 Sycamores, Paulownias, Ailanthus, Hickory, Maples, Locust, 

 Elms, Lindens, Horse-Chestnuts, Willows, Tulip Trees, But- 

 tonballs, deciduous Cypress, &c. Besides doing good public 

 service as shady trees, many of these are highly ornamental. 

 Two weeks ago the Catalpas were one mass of bloom, and, 

 having a broad umbrageous foliage, they -would be most 

 pleasing objects for the eye to rest upon anywhere, and are 

 especially so in a crowded city like this. The Paulownias 

 flowered very profusely in May and June, setting very freely ; 

 but the Chestnuts do not flower "with the same rich profusion 

 that I have seen them do at Hampton Court. 



These useful and certainly most inexpensive public ser- 

 vants have most ruthless enemies in several varieties of 

 caterpillars, which attack them in early summer while the 

 leaves are yet tender, and seriously endanger their utility. 

 I have seen many trees of Maples, Lime, Chestnut, and 

 Willow almost entirely denuded of their foliage ; and just 

 now these present rather a curious appearance, having again 

 clothed themselves with fresh foliage, in striking contrast 

 to some of their neighbours, which enjoyed perfect immunity 

 from the " flank movements " of the caterpillars. The 

 Ai lanthus, Catalpa, and Paulownia are untouched. Of these 

 the graceful Ailanthus is most extensively planted, the only 

 objection to it being the sickly odour emitted from the 

 flowers when in bloom ; but this is not the case with the male 

 variety, which is now much sought after. The foliage being 

 of a much lighter tint, it is readily distinguished from the 

 other. The public squares are also well planted with trees 

 and shrubs, and just now the colour of the foliage is most 

 refreshing to look at. 



The other evening, taking a stroll in the " gloamin " 

 through Union Square, it was pleasant to behold thousands 

 Of the people walking about and sitting under the trees 

 enjoying the fresh breeze in the cool of the evening, the 

 water sparkling in the fountain, and the beauty of the 

 whole scene much enhanced by myriads of brilliant fireflies 

 flitting about, making the gas lamps for the prosaic and 

 unnecessary purpose of lighting the square look like a most 

 decided artificial innovation on nature. 



As an instance of the perfection to which city gardening 

 may be carried under many existing difficulties, we have the 

 compact and most judiciously arranged establishment of 

 E. Stewart, Esq., in Fifth Avenue, presided over by his 

 gardener, Mr. Davidson, where just now the grass is as 

 green and close-shaven as any nobleman in England could 

 wish his ancestral lawn to be ; and this is the more credit- 

 able, as we have had no rain, with the exception of a passing 

 shower, for fully two months. The show of spring bulbs in 

 the flower garden here would have delighted even the noble 

 proprietor of Cliveden. The Hyacinths in particular were 

 gorgeous, not only as a general mass, but also for individual 

 spikes ; and in June the Eoses were also very fine, but only 



too shortlived, the hot weather soon making sad havoc with 

 this favourite flower. A botanist might also light upon 

 some native varieties of plants stowed away in a corner, the 

 pickings of many a botanical ramble of a brother of the 

 present gardener. 



This, although perhaps the most striking, is not by any 

 means a solitary instance of successful city gardening; and 

 the taste for such is rapidly developing on this side of the 

 Atlantic, in spite of the many drawbacks at present existing. 

 — David Fottjlis, New Torlc. 



ORCHAEJJ-HOTJSES EST THE NOETH. 



I regret to find that Mr. Eivers has awakened the ire of 

 our brethren in Yorkshire. Mr. J. Acomb, as the mouth- 

 piece of the offended party, has shown that fine Peaches can 

 be grown near large manufacturing towns. I could name 

 more than fifty places in the heart of the West Eiding, 

 where Peaches and Nectarines are grown quite equal to any 

 produced elsewhere, and I have no doubt whatever as to 

 their being much superior to any grown in orchard-houses 

 in much more favourable localities farther south. But 

 their being grown under glass has nothing to do with the 

 question. " Have they been grown in houses of simple 

 construction without artificial heat ? " I have given my 

 reply in the negative, and it has only been met by con- 

 firmatory evidence. True, we are told that such orchard- 

 houses have succeeded in some places, but questions of im- 

 port are not settled by isolated cases, but by the majority. 



Within a circle of some ten miles in diameter I find 

 twenty-three orchard-houses, and nothing like successful 

 Peach-growing to be seen in any of them, being nineteen in 

 favour of the " ayes." More than this, a nurseryman 

 travelling to and fro in the north writes, "I have seen 

 many of these houses, but never found a crop of Peaches in 

 any of them," adding, "I have no doubt that Peaches can 

 be grown, but the question is not what can be, but what 

 is." So with Peaches at and near Bradford; Peaches are 

 grown successfully in many places in heated houses ; and 

 even without such assistance, when protected with a sub- 

 stantial wall, you may see them in almost every garden 

 of note; but we must travel over one hundred miles of 

 country to Liverpool or Nottingham, or, if we like it better, 

 have a two-hundred-mile ride to Herts, to see that which is 

 said to be grown in many places in the north, still nobody 

 knows where, and when we ask where, we are told to go to 

 the places named. We are to go to France to see what wil 

 enable us to overcome the difficulty of the situation. We- 

 are to shut our eyes to the fact, that our neighbours have 

 abundance of Peaches in houses constructed so as to be 

 suitable for the climate ; and whilst we have nothing but . 

 a structure totally inadequate for the purpose intended, and 

 knowing what will enable us to overcome the difficulty, we 

 must avail ourselves of the orchard-house without telling 

 those who furnished the " wrong thing," that we are not 

 pleased with it. Very few persons having spent .£100 on an 

 orchard-house, and after much annoyance, like to be told 

 that it is unsuited for growing Peaches, and will require an 

 outlay of .£50 to make it suitable for their production. 



Passing over the lucubrations of " Pendle," and others, 

 not excepting my other opponent, "Wyeside," I come to 

 what may be taken as the arbitrary charge of the judge to. 

 the jury, or an explanation of some questionable point ot 

 law. I allude to the Editors' note appended to my reply to 

 " Wyeside," at page 8. 



The superiority of fruit grown under glass over that on 

 walls, results in their being "nearly" as fine, luscious, and 

 high-flavoured as the best ever grown against a wall. Their 

 inferiority is admitted. Point 1, Fruit ripened naturally 

 is superior to that produced by artificial means, is therefore 

 conceded. Mr. Pearson will be pleased to take notice that 

 his superiority dwindles into nearly equal. There is a great 

 deal of difference between nearly equal, equal, and superior. 



The question of light is also conceded. Point 2, Peaches 

 under glass receive less light than those on a south wall. 

 " Wyeside " will, of course, take cognisance that my pal- 

 pable error is admitted to be correct. 



As to the other points in dispute, which I will term 

 point 3, that orchard-houses for the growth of the Peach 



