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THE GARDENERS' MAGAZINE. 



January 27, 1912. 



Ireland. The variety is of much merit for 



exhibition. 



Although in this list of twenty-four varie- 

 ties I have not been able to include one 

 from each of the various colour classes, yet 

 I believe I have included those of most 



MARKET INTEREST IN 



SWEET PEAS. 



There is no gainsaying tlie fact that the 



_ modern Sweet Pea has aroused a consider- 



floment,^ and certainly those that I have able interest in market-growing communi- 



SWEET PEA ETTA DYKE 

 A pure white waved variety. 



ties. The interest may be a commercial 

 one, yet at the same time the market men 

 may be said to take quite as much interest 

 in the cultivation of this flower as any other 

 section of the community, though, perhaps, 

 from their own particular point of view. 



No doubt the popularity of the flower has 



^ _ <J.one much to stimulate its cultivation, for 



French Beans-— Where a regular one v.xn always walk round C'ovent Garden 



proved to be useful for various purposes. 

 If they should be taken en bloc as a col- 

 lection, it will be found that not one variety 

 is included that, with good cultivation, will 

 fail to do the raiser, grower, and myself 

 justice. Thomas Stevenson. 



supply of these are required, fortnightly sow- 

 ings must be made. A good plan at thi^ 



is to sow six seeds m 4in. pots, trans- 

 ferring them when large enough to 8in. 

 pots, and potting them low enough to allow 

 two top-dres.sings. It is remarkable the pro- 

 gress and ultimate benefit the plants receive 

 from top-dressings as advised. Use a com- 

 post of loam, -dried horse-droppings, grit, 

 and wood-ashes, and maintain a temperature 

 of not less than &) degrees. Syringe during 

 favourable weather to keep down red spider. 

 Support the plants with hazel or other csiiit- 

 -able branches, and pinch the tops of the 

 shoots when high enough. When cropping 



g-ive the plants occasional manurial water- 

 ings ; using all liquids at the same tem- 

 per at a re as the h ouse . Plen t i f ul a n d X e 

 Plus Ultra are two sure croppers at this 

 season, and Canadian Wonder is perhaps the 

 l>est variety for later bat<;hes. Sow broad 

 beans in a cool house. — G. Ellwood, 



ing. 



Market in the season and see the most up- 

 to-date varieties grown to such a stato of 

 perfection that they would not disgrace 

 even the National Sweet Pea Show. But 

 for market use all and sundry varieties are 

 not available, and the would-be cultivator has 

 to make a careful selection of his colours, 

 for plenty of our best peas, from an exhi- 

 bitor's point of view, would be wwthless 

 for market purposes. 



Although a wide range of varieties is 

 grown^ the colours must be decided, bright, 

 and clear; washy pinks, thin blues, ma- 

 gentas, and most of the fancy sorts are 

 absolutely barred, for nobody would buy 

 them. The flowers of the varieties selected 



have substance, or they will not 

 pack well, and, above all, they must have 

 long stoms. These qualities are somewliat 

 difficult to obtain, but they are to be found, 



must 



first by proper selection of varieties, and 

 afterwards by special cultivation. 



Sweet pea growmg for market is rather 

 an expensive matter, for the land must be 

 well cultivated and heavily manured, while 

 the seed is a considerable item, especially 

 in the past few years ; then the stakes dip 

 pretty heavily into the profits, while the 

 labour is another somewhat heavy item. 



The Cropping Season. 



The season cannot be described as a long 

 one, for the indoor crop starts in April aiul 

 goes through May and June, and by the 

 time we reach the middle of July the mar- 

 ket is tired of peas, and as soon as the 

 stems shorten up they barely pay for gathei . 



I remember that in May last fine 

 bunches could be bought from 2s. Gd. to 4s. 

 per dozen bunches, while a few years back 

 these would have realised at least 9s. to 

 10s. per dozen ])unches ; but I fear tlip 

 day of high prices has departed!, never 

 to return. There are numbers of grower^ 

 who wil' tell us that sweet pea culture 

 for market does not pay, and I am in- 

 clined to this opinion myself, unless the 

 very best sorts are grown wuth the best of 

 ■tultivation and packing, then, no doubt, 

 they w^ill give a return; but there must be 

 thousands of bunches sold in the summer 

 that never return a penny profit to the 

 grower, and now that the " streak " disease 

 has become so prevalent the crop will have 

 to be regarded as a problematical one, for 

 last season there were crops that did not 

 give a profitable picking for more than three 

 weeks owing to this disea.se, and from a 

 commercial point of view^ the cure or pre- 

 ventive seems as far off as ever. 



Culture. 



In some favoured districts the seeds are 

 sown in the autumn in the open ground, 

 and where the plants survive the winter 

 this crop work out well, for they come 

 in on the first flush of the market, but there 

 are so many enemies to contend with, that 

 the bulk of groovers sow early under glass, 

 and plant out early in April, for seed of 

 the ne^ver kinds is too expensive to risk in 

 the open air all winter, especially where 

 birds and mice are troublesome. 



Quite a large trade has sprung u]> in 

 recent times for seedling plants in pots. 

 These are sent to market by the thousand. 

 I fear it would astonish our exhibitors if 

 they only saw^ these little pots crowded 

 with young plants. I should guess there 

 are often tw^enty to thirty in a three-inch 

 pot, but unless they are packed full, the 

 buyers will not look at them. 



Varieties. 



It is ininecessary to give the colours of 

 the different varieties, as they are so well 

 known, but the following are largely grown, 

 with many others. Mont Blanc, Dorothy 

 Eckford, Emily Henderson, Etta Dyke, 

 Eiu liautress, Giladys Tnwin, Countess Spen- 

 eer, Miss AVillmott, Mrs. Hardcastle Sykes, 

 Nora T^UAvin. Hdeii Lewis. Queen Alexan- 

 dra, Ladv Cirisel Hamilton, King Edward, 



Frank Dolby, Clara Curtis, Evelyn Hemus, 

 and Asta Ohn. 



Mixed bunches are also to be obtained in 

 the cbea])er grades, but I should think 

 they hardly pay for packing. 



Packing:. 



This subject has l3een lately dealt with 

 in these columns, but I may menti<ui that 

 scores of boxes of flowers find their way to 

 the street carts solely because of bad pack- 

 ing, or packing them while the flowers are 

 w(4. Rrnised or <lamaged flowers are use- 

 l(^ss lor nntrkt^t or anv otln^r purpo.so. 



J. B. RioiNO. 



