776 JOURNAL OF THE ROYAL HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



trees are also touched upon. The following varieties of various fruits have 

 proved the best in Massachusetts : — Grapes, Worden, Campbell, Green 

 Mountain, Concord, Delaware ; Blackberry, Agawam, Snyder, Taylor, 

 Eldorado ; Raspberry, Cuthbert, King, Curtland, London ; Currants, 

 Red Cross, Wilder, Fays, Cherry, and Pomona ; Strawberries, Clyde, 

 Haverland, Howard's No. 36, Sample, Gandy Belle. — F. J. C. 



Orcharding", Experimental Work in. By H. H. Michener ( U.S.A. 

 Hort. Soc. Iowa, 1901. p. 266). — In a short article the writer advocates 

 and encourages constant experiments by growers of fruits, &c. He begins 

 by saying that the horticulturist has a mania for experimenting with and 

 testing all new fruits of merit, also quite frequently those of no particular 

 value ; it is well he should have this mania, for otherwise who is there 

 that would ? The thorough testing of all new fruits should be left to the 

 experienced fruit-grower and nurseryman who spends his entire time in 

 the study of the habit of growth, proper cultivation, &c, of each particular 

 variety. Experimental work should be carried out along definite, practical 

 and systematic lines, making a complete record of everything. The 

 experimenter should have a large number of tests started each year, so 

 that perhaps at least one would be of sufficient value to continue further 

 testing. The writer takes as an instance the Peach, and gives descriptive 

 instructions as to the crossing, &c. — V. J. M. 



Orchards sprayed with Poisonous Washes, Grazing in. Anon. 



(Joarn. Bd. Ayr. vol. ix. pp. 193-195). — The result of the experiment 

 corroborates the observations of practical men and also the results and 

 conclusions derived from similar trials conducted years ago in America, 

 namely, that stock may be kept on land where trees are washed with 

 arsenites. Copies of this paper may be obtained free on application to the 

 Secretary, the Board of Agriculture, 4 Whitehall Place, London, S.W. 



R. N. 



Orchid Exhibits, Judging of. By G. T. Grignan (Rev. Hort. 

 p. 210 ; May 1, 1902). — Suggestions as to proper determination of points 

 of merit, ornamental and cultural, and as regards rarity. Considers that 

 where unnamed exhibits are in question, a printed schedule should be 

 filled up as the exhibits are inspected, this eventually to determine the 

 award.— C. T. D. 



Orchids, Some Remarks on the Cultivation of. By M. Verdoncx 

 (Bull. R. Soc. Tosc. Ort. v. p. 156 ; May 1902).— The soil termed at Ghent 

 u Azalea soil " is the best fitted for potting of Orchids. It is a kind of 

 humus occurring at the surface of the ground in woods in which dead 

 leaves and decaying twigs are found. Preferably it should be slightly 

 sandy, and composed of foliage of Oak, with a proper proportion of Horn- 

 beam, Elm, and Beech leaves. It need not be sifted ; enough if the 

 arger bits and the insufficiently decomposed twigs be removed. Some 

 growers mix sphagnum or fibrous substances with it, but the writer finds 

 pure leaf-mould yields the best results. Orchids grown in this soil need 

 not be repotted for two or three years. Sphagnum is placed on the soil 

 around the plant and serves as an index of the amount of humidity in 



