March 5> i89 8 - 



GARDENERS' MAGAZINE. 



J 55 



fppt sauare, sunk into the central bed of a span-roofed hot-house, and directly the 

 old olant was cleared out the soil was removed, fresh soil put in, and the 

 SJr olanted firmly. The soil used was lumpy fibrous loam, decayed horse 

 drooping, and a sprinkling of half-inch bones. Treated in this way care was 

 necessary not to over-water at the start, but the plants soon became established, 

 after which water could be freely given, and there was no further check to growth ; 

 the bunches of fruit so grown were bigger than those produced by plants grown by 

 the shifting- on system. In my case no bottom heat was given, the spaces round 

 the boxes being filled up with blocks of granite, broken up as if for road making, 

 and I think this avoidance of bottom heat helped to keep the plants dwarfer than 

 they are usually seen. A temperature of 65 to 70 degrees as a minimum, with the 

 usual rise from sun heat, suits the plants, and the house should be frequently 

 damped down, a sa moist atmosphere is conducive to quick and healthy growth. 



Early figs will be swelling fast, and where the crop is a heavy one, copious 

 supplies of water will be necessary, liquid manure being given freely, but not too 

 strong ; this is a necessary caution when stable drainings form the supply, for this 

 is highly charged with ammonia, the fumes of which are dangerous to the tender 

 leafage. Trees planted out and grown on the extension system will require no 

 stopping, except of such shoots as are over-grown, but may be disbudded freely, 

 doing the work by d agrees until only sufficient shoots are left to furnish the trees 

 with bearing wood for next year. Pot trees require different management, as it is 

 not possible to grow these on extension lines, therefore the young growths should 

 be stopped when about eight or nine inches long. Such trees should be highly fed 

 almost throughout their growth, but I like to reduce the supply of liquid manure 

 to the roots during the period when flowering takes place, and the fruits are at a 

 standstill as regards swelling. On the same principle I reduce at the same period 

 the heavy drenchings given to planted-out trees, and content myself with keeping 

 the borders just sufficiently moist, as experience has taught me that very heavy 

 waterings at this period will cause a portion of the fruit to turn yellow and drop. 

 Syringe the trees freely on all favourable occasions, choosing the mornings of days 

 that promise to be bright, so that the leaves and fruit will become dry before 

 night. Syringing is a very necessary attention to keep down red spider. 



Strawberries, having set their fruits, should be thinned as soon as it can be 

 seen not only which are the best-placed fruits, but also whether these are well set 

 and likely to be shapely ; it is better to retain small fruits than deformed ones. I 

 do not advocate very severe thinning of such sorts as Vicomtesse Hericart de 

 Thury and Keen's Seedling, but each grower must be guided by his requirements 

 as to the number left on the plants. Those mentioned will easily carry ten to 

 twelve fruits in a six inch pot, but if large fruits are necessary, and room plentiful 

 enough to admit of big patches being forced, a less number must be left. When 

 the fruits commence to swell liquid manure should be given frequently, and I find 

 that it is best to vary the manure, giving alternate waterings of liquid sheep manure 

 and guano, the latter in a weak and clear state. Fresh batches should be intro- 

 duced to the forcing house as frequently as room can be found for them, so that 

 there shall be no break in the supply. Each batch should be cleaned by dipping 



in some insecticide before being placed in the house. ~J. C. Tallack, Liver mere 

 Park Gardens. 



s state- 



THE ACCOUNTS OF THE NATIONAL 



CHRYSANTHEMUM SOCIETY. 



To the Editor of the Gardeners' Magazine. 



Mr. George Gordon when criticising some of the items of expenditure in the 

 financial statement placed before the annual general meeting on Monday, drew a 

 contrast between the amount of show expenses charged in the financial statement 

 for 1891, namely £\z 16s. 3d., as against that of £yi 7s. 5d. in last year' 

 ment. I think Mr. Gordon was a little wanting in consideration for the secretary 

 in not giving him notice that it was his intention to call attention to tjiis item, for 

 though it was not necessary he should do so, common courtesy suggests this 

 wbuld have been the proper course. In 1891 three exhibitions were held at the 

 Royal Aquarium. In the financial statement for 1891, three items comprised the 

 show expenses, viz , hire of plants, £18 15s. gd. ; cartage, £11 os, 6d. ; show 

 expenses, £12 16s. 3d. ; total, £42 12s. 6d. I now take the three same items for 

 1897, when four shows were held, all of considerable dimensions, the November 

 one especially: Hire of plants, £6 15s. ; cartage, £4 ; show expenses, £32 

 7s. 5d. ; total, £43 2s. 5d. ; only 9s. lid. more than in 1891, with all the 

 difference in the number and size of the shows. The fact is that when I took 

 office at the end of 1890, I found myself the inheritor of a system which went to 

 reduce the show expenses proper by taking from that amount, in order to make 

 it appear small, and heaping it on to cartage and hire of plants. In 1892 I 

 again followed the lead of my predecessors when making out the statement, and 

 then the account appears : Hire of plants, £19 7s. 6d. • cartage, £14 is. ; show 

 expenses, ^i6s. 13s. 4d. ; total, £50 is. iod. ; that year an October show, and 

 a much more extensive one, was substituted for the December one. In the state- 

 ment for 1894 (four shows being held that year) I determined to 

 put the show expenses in their actual proportions, and they read : 

 Cartage, 19s. iod. ; hire of plants, £4; show expenses 



nf $# ce ; t0ta1, ^ 47 3 s * 8d- 0ne more contras ting year, that 

 w 1889, before I became the secretary. Three shows were held this year, 



viz , September, November, and a small mid- winter exhibition in [anuary. The 



self-same figures ap pe ar thus : Hire of plants, .£17 6s. ; cartage and labour, £17 



103. 2d. ; show expenses, £18 5s. 8d. ; total, £55 is. iod. In 1895 these three 



of" 18 t0 • 52 l8s ' 3d# In l897, notwi thstanding the expansion of the 



snows, the same items amount only to £43 2S - 5<*. I have honestly endeavoured 

 m the face of mounting up of the value in the schedules of prizes to keep these 

 expenses as low as possible ; and as a substantial proof of this, I simply ask for a 

 comparison of the figures 1895 with 1897. In conclusion, allow me to remark 

 nat a g rea - deal has been heard of late about the Edinburgh show, which is held 

 sh aS k f model for London to shape a show by. I have the expenditure of this 

 snow before me, and it is a revelation. In addition to music, rent, printing, and 

 in v ^ s ! n S- these f our items amounting to ^426 9s. 9d. for one show— there is 

 m addition fitting Up markets, £103 18s. 4d. : general show expenses, ^120 12s. ; 

 the^ ih S ? x P enSe *> £ 1 ' I2S - 3 d - ; treasurer's expenses, ^11 2 s. 8d. Contrast 

 ese three items of s how expenses for one exhibition with the very moderate sum 

 o.*^ 2s. 5d charged for four exhibitions to the National Chrysanthemum 



Society. 



Richard Dean, Secretary. 



and^n*' GeorgE / ^aul, head of the firm of Messrs. Paul and Son, rose growers 

 lIert f^ er y m en, ^heshunt, has been made a justice of the peace for the county of 



Exhibitions and Meetings. 



READING GARDENERS 5 ASSOCIATION. 



The fortnightly meeting of the above association was held in the Club Room, 

 British iWorkman, on Monday last, the president* Mr. C. B. Stevens, presiding 

 over a good attendance of members. The subject for the evening was " A Chat 

 about Melons," introduced by Mr. B. Dockerill, The Gardens, Elmhuist, Reading, 

 a well-known grower and successful exhibitor of this fruit. The paper was of the 

 most practical nature, and dealt with the cultivation of the melon in all its branches. 

 Mr. Dockerill said he was obliged to condense a large subject into a small paper, 

 but trusted that it would be sufficient to open up a good discussion on the 

 principal points worth considering, for the melon was a fruit so widely known that 

 it was reasonable to assume that there was hardly a gardener who had not made 

 its acquaintance in one way or another, and it would be difficult to find a garden 

 of any dimensions where these excellent fruits were not grown. The require- 

 ments for their successful cultivation were not large, for they may be summed up 

 in the following words : Heat, moisture, fresh air, sunshine, and good soil. 

 Span-roof houses were preferred, standing in an open situation running from 

 north to south, and frames made on the same principle were certainly 

 preferable to the lean-to. After dealing with the inside arrangements of the house, 

 particulars were gi^en as to the making of the borders, the best soil to be used, 

 raising of the seed, the system of planting, stopping, topdressing, temperature, 

 ventilation, watering, &c. As to the varieties, after briefly referring to the sorts of 

 bygone days, such as William Tillery, Reid's Scarlet Flesh, Victory of Bath, &c, 

 the qualities of many of those grown at the present time were touched upon, the 

 foremost position as the best for all purposes, whether for growing in houses, 

 frames, for exhibition, or for flavour, was given to that grand variety, Hero of 

 Lockinge. In conclusion, the diseases to which the plants were subject were 

 referred to, and also the growing of melons for exhibition, a practice in which the 

 speaker had been exceedingly successful for at the Reading Horticultural Show, in 

 1892, in a competition for a brace of melons (fourteen entries), and for a single 

 specimen (twelve entries*, Mr. Dockerill was awarded the highest honours in 

 both classes, and as late as 1896 he again took first prizes in both classes, the 

 fruit in each case being grown in frames. 



An interesting and profitable discussion ensued, in which Messrs. 

 M. H. F. Sutton, Turton, Martin, Woolford, Bound, Ilobbs, Neve, 

 and the President took part. A hearty vote of thanks was given to the 

 lecturer for his very practical paper. Exhibits were small in number, but interest- 

 ing. Mr. Thompson, gardener to F. Wheeler, Esq., Tylehurst, exhibited a two- 

 spathed arum ; and Mr. Dockerill some excellent blooms, equal in quality to 

 those seen in November, of Mrs. E. W. Clarke and J. H. Taylor chrysan- 

 themums. 



NATIONAL CHRYSANTHEMUM SOCIETY. 



The annual meeting of this society was convened for Thursday, February 28, at 

 Anderton's Hotel, Fleet Street, at seven o'clock. There was one of the largest 

 gatherings we have seen on such an occasion, and the proceedings were ot a more 

 animated character than usual. The chair was taken by Mr. T. W. Sanders. 

 The usual formalities, such as the reading of notices, minutes, &c, were soon 

 transacted, and then the chairman called upon the secretary, Mr. R. Dean, to 

 read the report and financial statement of the committee for the past year. 



Report of the Committee, 1897. 



At the termination of another year's operations, your committee can congratu- 

 late the members upon the steady and satisfactory progress still being made by the 

 society ; its work during the past twelve months was carried on with energy and 

 success ; its resources are as great as ever ; its supporters more numerous ; it is 

 financially sound ; and its prestige knows no diminution. During the year four 

 exhibitions were held, and, as is usual, they were of a high order of merit. The 

 meetings of the Floral Committee maintain their interest and usefulness, and the 

 societies in affiliation show a substantial increase. In common with some kindred 

 societies, your committee took steps to commemorate the Diamond Jubilee of her 

 Majesty 'the Queen, by instituting some special classes, which were competed for 

 at the November show, and proved interesting features. A Commemoration 

 Fund was opened, and a fair proportion of the amount offered as special 

 prizes obtained. 



The Jubilee edition of the catalogue, 1896, is still in constant demand ; it has 

 been found most useful by affiliat ed societies, and it will be gratifying to the 

 compilers to know how greatly it is appreciated. Inquiries are being made as to 

 the probable issue of a supplement ; a desire is also occasionally expressed that 

 the publication of a year book be continued if possible. The Classification 

 Committee have held a sitting, and dealt with certain varieties of incurved 

 flowers defining their proper pssition. This committee has sought and obtained 

 from the General Committee larger powers, which will enable them to make from 

 time to time such recommendations affecting the exhibition of plants and blooms 

 which it may appear desirable to adopt in practice. A sub-committee has been 

 M^tel-Sth the revision of the rules, and after full and patien consideration 

 hav ^ recommended material alterations, which they belief* will, . if adopted, 

 fnTproveTe procedure of the society in several particulars, and bring the rules 

 generally into closer agreement with its practice. 



During the year ending December 31st, thirteen Fellows and one hundred and 

 fourteeTordinary membefs have been elected to the society, and the number of 

 I Ltitc In offili/tion have increased by eleven. An agreement has been entered 

 nTX vour S Society to hold four exhibitions 



Z the viz. : in September, October, November, and December ; 

 and the directors commemorate the fact that the National Chrysanthemum 

 Societv has held their exhibitions at the Aquariam for the past twenty-one years 

 bv offering special commemorative prizes at the November exhibition. The 

 schedule of prizes for the four exhibitions have undergone revision, and a substantial 

 increase in money value has been made in several leading classes. A specud class 

 for twelve vases of specimen 



duced at the November show ; the president, Sir Edwin Saunders, generously 



giving the first prize of £20. 



Your committee most heartily thank the President, as well as all donors of 

 special prizes at the various exhibitions, as they are frequently the means of 

 brincinc out some novel features, adding to the attractiveness of the various shows : 

 and highly appreciate the warm interest Sir Edwin Saunders takes in the work 

 and success of the society. Your treasurer, Mr. J. R. Starling, who has been 

 connected with the society by membership since 1878, who was appointed treasurer 

 in 1879 and has held that office ever since, is compelled by ill-health to insist 

 upon the resignation of that office, he, for the same reason, placed in the hands of 



