January 20, 1912. 



THE 



GARDENERS' MAGAZINE. 



43 



G, 



t 



their regard and esteem in which he was 

 hel<l by all who were interested in the 

 sm-iety. The President^ on behalf of the 

 subscribers^ presented Mr. Beckett with 

 a silver tea and coffee service, and an 

 ilhuninated address. The gift was suitably 

 acknowledged by Mr. Beckett^ who stated, 

 in the course of his remarks^ that during 

 the period he had been secretary the 

 sof'iety had disbursed £2^000 in prizes. 



Paris Spring: Show. — In 



V 4V i:> } f ^ 1 XT "Oil The Construction ot the isley 



sequence ot the lioyal International Hor- r> 1' ri i ?j * ^ t tt i 



\, 1 1 i T 1 1010 ^ Rock Garden"; August 2/, Mr, J. Hud- 



ticultural ii-xhibiti-on, London, 1912. open- ^, tt a t> J t ^ 1 i 



-.1 ]!, ' 00 \ +1 u • son, V.M.H., on " Recently Introduced 



iiig its doors on May 22 next the I'aris -.tt t -t o x 1 i/( tii- m 



<Z\..cr of fl.. ^.f ater Ldies ; September 10, Miss Troyte- 



Memorial Lecture) ; June 4, Professor J. 

 Bayley Balfour, F.R.S., V.M.H., on 

 Problems of Propagation " (Masters' 

 Memorial Lecture); June 18, Rev. Profes- 

 sor G. Henslow, V.M.H., on ''Professor J. 

 S, Henslow as Ecologist " ; July 16, Mr. E. 

 A. Bunyard,'on ''The Flowers of Apples and 

 Pears, and their Aid in Identifying Varie- 

 ties ; July 30, Mr. CecilH. Hooper, F.S.I. , 

 on '' The Pollination and the setting of 

 Fruit Blossom''; August 13, Mr. Pulham, 



THE HEMLOCK SPRUCES. 



The various species of Tsuga or Hemlock 



|)ring Show of the iNatiional Horticultural 

 society of France will be held somewhat 

 carl.er than usual, the date fixed being 

 trom May 15 to 22 of the same month. 



Success of Women Horticul- 

 turists. — Miss Lilian Hamilton, of 



Studley Horticultural College, writing in 

 the Alonthly Magazine of the North of 

 Kngland Horticultural Society, says: ''All 

 iivev the country there aie women who are 

 cither making a good living or increasing 

 their incomes by gardening. One lady in 

 li i'huul tohl a fr.end of mine, that she could 

 >hii\v hy lier books that she was clearing 

 CIJMU) a year from daffodil growing. One 

 oi our old students announced, at a meet- 

 ing of the College Guild, that she and her 

 partnei", also an old Studley student, were 

 dividing over £1,000 that year. Others wUl 

 not tell us what they earn, but when we 

 see new houses going up, and motor vans 

 10 cnrry the j^joduce added to their equip- 

 ""''II. di:i\v ()iir own conclusions, and 

 ^ htn ;,t a dinner party I decide that the 

 '-t (hvssed woman at the table is an old 

 >i'i-lley student, now a market grower I 

 teel she must be doing well. Now as^to 

 P<>sts! At present such is the denuuul for 

 u onien gardeners that every year I have to 

 -"ud four or five newly qualified students 

 uMe £'.)0 a year and all found is offered, 

 \\ luM-e I would rather send girls with greater 

 ■ M^" -euce. One year, two girls of twentv 



tortunate enough to secure such ])08ts, 

 '^1 one has remained in hers three vears. 



secDiid has left to take other and more 



n^^f^n.al work at an equally remunerative 

 larv. 



Perpetual Carnation Society. 



' ^;lM-:ng cxliihitinn of tliis society will 

 /'•■I'' tlu. Royal HorticultiirarHall, 

 , Square, Westminster, on March 



' '""I in connection theicnvitli a. oonfer- 

 ';.» i^<''T'<'tual carnations will he held in 



Mr. Oxtoby was elected secretary of 

 ^ '"vdon Chrysanthcnuni Society at 

 ; "-r'.t annual n.ectin-, in siucessinn to 



Mr. 



'Ktol!!' | "ho retired. 



n \p 'n*'^^'^ secretary for 



\ears past. 



'-ectures.-The follow^n^ 



tnr, "1 the Royal HortC 



Soc.u.ty, pro.,an,me for tire cur- 



^at o of ^"'"^ri^r^ '^^^^ ^^'^ Proposed 

 ' k\ . 1 " ; February (i, 



'•'ants f 'V"'' K-C.M.G., on 



'•'■"i-M H V^-^^^-^^f P^as'- March 



'■""^ ■ ■ \ ril '/ ?r- ^If^'' V.M.H., on 

 V.M.H ' i Lynch, 



rn.r'-. ^'^'"^^ for a Warn, 



^HKl [)roughf' (Masters' 



( 



Bullock^ on Cape Pelargoniums ; Sep- 

 tember 24, Mr. C. Herman Senn, on " How 

 to Cook some of the Root Vegetables " ; 

 October 8, Dr. Charles Crowther, on " The 

 Influence of Atmospheric Impurities on 

 Vegetation ; October 22, the R^v. Profes- 

 sor G. Henslow, V.M.H. , on ''The Senses 

 of Plants"; November 5, Miss Edith R. 

 Saunders, on Double Flowers"; Novem- 

 ber 19, Dr. George Hamilton, on ''Some of 

 the Gardens of Bournemouth and Neigh- 

 bourhood " ; December 3, Mme. Tzikos St. 

 Leger, on " The Vegetation of the Lslands 

 of Lake Maggiore," 



Societe Francaise d'Horticul. 



ture de Lcndres.— The annual dinner 

 of this society, which, for many years has 

 taken place in January, will be held at 

 the Cafe Royal, Regent Street, on March 

 30, when Mr. N. N. Sherwood will preside. 

 Further particulars may be obtained from 

 Mr. G. Schneider, 3, Meredytli Road, 

 Barnes, S.W. 



spruce are useful deoorative trees, whilst 

 some of them produce valuable timber. Al- 

 though all are not generally hardy in the 

 British Isles, there are jsome which may be 

 grown almost anywhere, whilst the more 

 tender species thrive well in the warmer 

 <ounties. They are of North American 

 and Asiastic origin ; those native of the 

 former country being distributed from 

 Canada to the southern Allegbanies and 

 Califoi *nia, and the Asiatic kinds being 

 found in Japan, China, and the Himalayas. 

 The Hemlock spruces are easily separated 

 from the ordinary spruces by reason of 

 tbeir flat, soft, yew-like leaves and more 

 plumose branches. As is tbe case with most 

 other eone-bearing trees, they thrive best 

 in places where the climate is fairly moist 

 thioughout the growing season, where late 

 spring frosts are not expeiienced, and 

 where the ground is cool ami moist, but not 

 water-logged. Such ideal <*on(litions are 

 not, however essential to tluMr success, for 

 well-grown specimens are found where con- 

 ditions cannot be considered to be first rate. 



The species available for cultivation are 

 as follows: 



North American. 



T. canadensis, the Common Hemlock 

 spruce, is widely distributed through the 

 north-eastern Ignited States and Canada, 

 extending as far north i\s No\-a Scot in. 

 Towards the southern parts of its Jiabitat 

 it grows 100 feet high, but its average 

 height is about 50 or 60 feet. Its oblong 

 linear leaves are one-third to two-thirds of 



M. Vig-er.— His term of office having an inch long, amd rounde<l at the apex. 



expired, M. Viger has, at the earnest re- 

 quest of a deputation of the National Hoi'- 

 ticultural Society of France, agreed to 

 allow himself to be renominated as presi- 

 dent of that society. Most Engl sh and 

 other visitors to the French horticultural 

 shows will rejoice that M. Viger will still 

 continue to take an active interest in hor- 

 ticulture in general^ and in the national 

 society in particular. 



The Flowering Time of 



Apples. — In an interesting contribution 

 from the Wislev Laboratorj- to the recent 

 issue of the ^ R.H.S. Journal," Mr. F. J. 

 Chittenden ably discusses the subject of 

 Pollination in Orchards," a>nd points out 

 that the time of flowering of apples varies 

 between rather a\ Ido limits, both as to its 

 commoncriiuMit and as to tlie period over 

 which the flowciion <-oiuinues. It com- 

 iiiriUH^^ ill s()uth-(^:»st Kiigl':nul about the 

 third ^\'(H'k in A])rii in <^:- riy years, and con- 

 tinues into the s(M ()iu1 week in June in late 

 vears. Durinu; the four vears 3908-1911 In 

 wliii'h recor<ls ha\t^ hceii kt^pt at the Roval 

 Horiicu'tiwal Sccietv's «rai-d(Mis at Wislev 

 the earliest apple to open, J^ed Astrachaii, 

 was in full bloom in 1910 on A])ril 21 ; in 

 1911. yi'ix 2: in 1909. M :v 3: and in 1908, 



*■ • 



Mav " : wliih^ tlu^ most consistentlv late- 



flowerino; vai'ict v. Roval Juhibn 

 full flower in 



, ^va•^ 111 

 on May 23; in 19119, 

 May 17; in 1910, IVlay 20; and in 1911, 

 May 19. The period during which (nii> 



vai i(*ty or other of apple was in fuU flower 

 (ignoring the few days, a^bout seven or 

 eight, before^ and the few, about eight or 

 nine, after full flowering time, ihiring 

 which some flowers wn^re open) was, in 

 1908, 18 davs (Mav 6 to Mav 23); in 1909, 



20 dny,s (M'lv 3 to Mmv 22): in 1910, 35 

 days (Aprii 21 to Miv 2iV) ; and in 1911, 18 

 dav.s (M :v 2 to M-iv" 19). 



Messrs. S. Rivers and Son were 



awarded a gold medal for tlieir exhibit of 

 oranges at the Royal Hoi'tii ultural Society's 

 meet'ng on Jnnuarv 9. 



In America the wood is used for building 

 piuposes, but is considered to be inferior to 

 that of T. Mertensiana. Nmnerous garden 

 varieties are known, the more distinct being 

 those with weeping branches. These are 

 milfordensis pendula, pendulaargentea, and 

 Sargeuti pcndula. Argentea is recognised 

 by reason of its greyish leaves, variegata 

 by its variegated foliage, and macrophyllii 

 by having larger leaves than the type. 



T. caroliniana, the Carolina Hemlock 

 spruce^ occupies a more southerly range of 

 country than T, canadensis. Its flattened 

 linear leaves are one-third to thn'o-quarters 

 of an inch long, petiolate, dark greiMi and 

 shining, with conspicuous silvery bands be- 

 neath. It is not very common in this 

 country. 



T. Mertensiana , tlie Western Hemlock 

 spruce, often called T. Albertiana, is found 

 on the western side of X. America. It 

 grows JHore fiotdy than the eastern species, 

 and is more valued for timber in its native 

 country. In the British Isles it appears to 

 be the most suitable of all the Hemlock 

 spruces for planting under forest condi- 

 tions, and there is reason to suppose that it 

 may turn out to be a profitable^ timber tree 

 in certain localities. The woml is used in 

 America for general building purposes, rail- 

 way sleepers, etc. \\'hen growing with the 

 Canadian Hemlock spruce, it may be dis- 

 tinguished by its more vigort)Us habit and 

 single trunk ; T. <'anadensis often forming 

 a series of trunks from om^ root-stock. 



T. Pattoniana, the Ca^ifornian Hemlock 

 spruce.— This is a very beautiful species 

 \\ luui well grown, for it forms a shapely 

 bush or small tree with bluish or glaucous 

 foliage. Cnfortunately, it is less hardy 

 than the other kinds, and only thrives satis, 

 factorily in tlu^ warmer parts of the coun- 

 try. The pubescent branches are well 

 clothed with leaves three-quarters to one 

 in<h in length, which are distinctly nar- 

 i-ow(M- than those of other species. The two 

 -silvery l)ands on tbe ander surface, wdiich 

 are so juominent in other species irive 



