284 



Garden and Forest. 



[Number 386. 



Foreign Correspondence. 



London Letter. 



An Experimental Fruit Farm was established last year 

 at Woburn, in Bedfordshire, by the Duke of Bedford, with 

 the object of extending our knowledge of fruit-culture, 

 more especially in the county of Bedford, and, generally, 

 all over England. It is believed that ignorance of the best 

 kinds of fruit and of the best methods for their cultivation 

 prevails among farmers and market-gardeners, to whom, 

 therefore, this experimental farm will be a valuable guide. 

 There can be no doubt that in Bedfordshire, as in most 

 parts of England, first-rate fruit can be grown, but the 

 obstacle to its cultivation is the difficulty of obtaining any- 

 thing like profitable prices for it. In the pages of The 

 Gardeners' Chro7iicle, last year, there was a lively and most 

 interesting discussion of the question, Does fruit-growing 

 pay in England.? The well-known novelist, Mr. R. D. 

 Blackmore, who is also well known in this country as a 

 market-gardener, held that apples and pears at any rate 

 could not be grown at a profit. On the other hand, others, 

 chiefly nurserymen interested in the sale of fruit-trees, held 

 that given good culture, the best sorts, and care in market- 

 ing, hardy fruit paid well. The Duke of Bedford's farm 

 will not teach much more than any well-managed gentle- 

 man's orchard has taught all along, unless the cost of the 

 whole concern is carefully kept and balanced against what 

 the fruit realizes when sold in the open market. "Scien- 

 tific farming," which has been persistently pelted at the 

 heads of old-fashioned farmers here for the last ten or 

 twelve years, does not appear to improve matters ; indeed, 

 I have heard of farms which have got into a sorry mess 

 through being in the hands of so-called scientific farmers, 

 who generally have fads or make experiments which end 

 in failure. With a fair chance in his own market the Eng- 

 lish farmer and fruit-grower can hold his own against the 

 best. At present, however, he has no chance, and his 

 occupation will soon be gone. 



Garden Hybrids. — The origin of some of our most popu- 

 lar garden-plants is here the subject of animated discussion 

 in both scientific and practical journals, the garden Cine- 

 raria being the bone of contention just now. It is held, on 

 the one hand, that originally — say sixty or seventy years 

 ago — several species of Cineraria were crossed, and from 

 their progeny the present race of Cinerarias has been 

 evolved. On the other hand, it is contended that, although 

 it may be true that hybrids were raised as stated, all the 

 evidence of any value goes to show that C. cruenta, a tall 

 purple-tlowered species from the Canary Islands, is the sole 

 progenitor of the. dwarf, big-flowered, variously colored 

 Cineraria which is now grown in every conservatory. All 

 the essential characters of C. cruenta are present in the gar- 

 den Cineraria, while of the other species said to be con- 

 cerned in its origin no trace is discernible. The historical 

 evidence is conflicting, and supports one view as well as 

 the other. The scientific value of the problem is in the 

 light it is likely to throw upon the causes and extent of 

 variation of which plants are capable ; its practical utility 

 is in the assistance it will render to breeders of plants. In 

 my view, hybridization has had little or nothing to do with 

 the "improvements" of the horticulturist among plants 

 that are annually or at short intervals propagated by means 

 of seeds. Thus, such plants as Primula Sinensis, China 

 Asters, Brompton Stocks, Gloxinias, the Turban Ranuncu- 

 lus and Cinerarias are each the descendants of one species 

 only. I should like to hear of a case of a race of garden- 

 plants of the character of those mentioned which was 

 originated by true hybridization. Tuberous Begonias will 

 occur to many as an example, but there are botanists who 

 do not believe in the specific differences of the plants from 

 which these have been bred. Streptocarpus is another case 

 which will occur to others as the most recent case of 

 hybridization having resulted in an " improved " and varied 

 race of plants. But I know from experience that in a few 

 generations the one or other parent in each case becomes 



entirely eliminated, and we get back to the species we 

 started from. In other words, it is necessary to reintro- 

 duce the blood of the original parents into the seedlings to 

 maintain variety and a mixture of characters. Of course, 

 we have many beautiful races of garden-plants of quite 

 respectable antiquity, and which are of true hybrid origin, 

 such as Roses, Rhododendrons and Pelargoniums, but 

 these are perpetuated by cuttings, grafts, etc., and not by 

 means of seeds. To put the matter in the Darwin formula, 

 slightly altered, Nature abhors hybrids, which, if not abso- 

 lutely sterile, are so unstable that in a few generations the 

 characters of one of the parents entirely disappear. 



Finger and Toe Disease of Cabbages. — Mr. G. Massee, 

 F. L.S., of the Royal Gardens, Kew, has published an inter- 

 esting paper on this disease, also called "clubbing" and 

 "anbury," which often destroys large crops of vegetables, 

 upon the roots of which numerous nodules are formed, 

 and these in a short time convert the whole root system 

 into a slimy foetid mass. The disease is caused by a 

 minute organism related to fungi, and its name is Plasmo- 

 diophora brassicse. Mr. Massee goes further than most 

 vegetable pathologists, in not giving only the name of the 

 disease but in showing that, as the result of actual experi- 

 ment conducted by himself, the disease can be prevented 

 and even cured by very simple means. His conclusions, 

 given in the following extract from his paper, are : 



1. That in addition to cultivated plants, several common 

 weeds belonging to the order Crucifera? are attacked by 

 the Plasmodiophora. Hence the necessity for preventing 

 the growth of such weeds in fields and hedge-banks. 



2. That the germs of disease are present in soil that has 

 produced a diseased crop, and retain their vitality for at 

 least two years. 



3. That the development of Plasmodiophora is favored 

 by the presence of acids, and checked by the presence of 

 alkalies, agreeing in this respect with the fungi rather than 

 with bacteria. 



4. F'or the purpose of sterilizing infected soil, experi- 

 ments prove that either a dressing of lime or a manure 

 containing potash salts is effective, the last being most 

 valuable, as it not only destroys the germs in the soil, but 

 also arrests the disease in seedling plants, and at the same 

 time supplies one of the ingredients necessary for the 

 healthy growth of turnips. 



A National Cactus Society has been formed in England 

 " for the scientific study of this most curious and beautiful 

 family of plants and to foster a love for their cultivation." 

 I am surprised to learn, from a circular published by the 

 society, that there are 210 collectors and growers of Cac'i 

 in this country. It is intended to have exhibitions of the 

 plants, to give lectures, and to publish an illustrated journal 

 dealing exclusively with Cacti. The secretary of the so- 

 ciety is Mr. E. B. Chapman, of Frome, who-will be pleased 

 to receive information of any kind relating to the introduc- 

 tion and cultivation of new and rare sorts. Judging by the 

 number of catalogues and lists of Cacti received at Kew 

 from the United States, there must be many to whom a 

 knowledge of the existence of a Cactus society in England 

 will be interesting. Fifty years ago Cacti were favorites 

 with English amateurs. 



London. W. WalS071. 



Plant Notes. 



Rhododendron maximum. — This is the Great Laurel, which 

 is found in low lands from Maine to Ohio, but is most 

 abundant through the Alleghany region from New York to 

 Georgia. It is one of the best of our hardy Rhododen- 

 drons, and indispensable to planters who look to the per- 

 manent improvement of their grounds. It is one of the 

 best all-round shrubs in cultivation, and, perhaps, the very 

 best of the broad-leaved evergreens which may be de- 

 pended upon, after it is once established, for winter effects, 

 since it is so hardy that it needs no protection. It is also 

 one of our best flowering plants, the charming pinkish 

 white flowers coming in the greatest abundance at this 



