THE 



GARDENERS' MAGAZINE. 



SATURDAY, MARCH 26, 1898. 



V' 



■ 



PARK. 



ROYAL BOTANIC SOCIETY GARDENS, REGENT'S 

 GENERAL ARRANGEMENTS, 1898. t 

 SPRING FLOWER SHOW, WEDNESDAY, March 30. Tickets 25. 6d. each. Summer 

 Plants and Flowers, and Royal National Tulip Society's Show, Wednesday, May 11. Floral 

 Fete and Children's Parade, Wednesday and Thursday, June 8 and 9. Tickets fo _L the 

 Summer Shows or Floral Fete, 4s. to April 30 ; afterwards 5 s„ or 7s. 6d. on the days of the If etes. 

 Fellows' packets often tickets £1 I IS. 6d. Twenty tickets £3, before end of April only. 

 Band Promenades every Wednesday, and certain Saturdays, from May 26. . 

 RHODODENDRON EXHIBITION by Messrs. J. Waterer, daily during June. 



EXHIBITION OF NATIONAL AMATEUR GARDENING ASSOCIATION, July 9. 



Ad SUMMER SHOW OF LADIES' KENNEL ASSOCIATION, THURSDAY and FRIDAY, 



Tune 23 and 24. 



BOTANICAL LECTURES, in May and June. 



Fellows and Members have free admission to all Fetes. 101 

 Nomination forms and all particulars can be obtained of the Secretary, at the Gardens, 



Regent's Park. _ 



ROYAL BOTANIC SOCIETY GARDENS, REGENT'S PARK. been imposed upon the policy that obtained, we will consent ourselves 

 SPRING FLOWERS. 

 EXHIBITION, WEDNESDAY, March 30, at Two o'clock. 

 Tulips, Azaleas, Orchids, Forced Roses, and other flowers. 

 Life Guards Band, by permission. 



Admission 2s. 6d. Tickets to be obtained at the Gardens, or by post. 

 Schedules of prizes to be had on application to the Secretary, at the Gardens. 



instructions to the committee to prepare a proper balance-sheet, to prepare 

 an estimate of the receipts and expenditure for the current year, and to 

 report on the advisability of reducing the number of shows or the expenses 

 of those which had been arranged. These instructions were carried out, 

 and the revised financial statement presented to the members showed 

 that it had been" necessary to draw from the reserve fund nearly ^50 to 

 pay off" outst anding liabilities, and that the estimated expenditure ex- 

 ceeded the estimated receipts by ^48. The committee wisely recom- 



£7 



The meeting 



OLKESTONE and DISTRICT GRAND CHRYSANTHEMUM SHOW 



(open to all England) will be held at the Pleasure Gardens Theatre, Folkestone, on 



November 15 and 16, 1898. 

 Open Classes for 24 Japanese, £4, £3, £2. 



,, 12 Japanese, and 12 Incurved, £4, £3, £?. 

 „ 12 Japanese, 50s , 30s., 15s. 

 „ 12 Incurved, 60s., 40s., 20s. 

 With Silver-gilt and Silver and Bronze Medals of N.C.S. 



Schedules now ready. 3 . 



J WASf 81801 *' } Joint Secretaries » 9» Radnor Park Crescent, Folkestone. 



99 



99 



99 



99 

 99 



9 9 



J^OYAL BOTANICAL AND HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY OF 



MANCHESTER AND THE NORTHERN COUNTIES. 



£600 IN PRIZES. 



Schedules of the Manchester Flower Shows are now ready, and may be had free on 



application to 



P. Weathers, 



Curator and Secretary, 



Royal Botanical Gardens, Manchester. 



THE THIRTY-FIRST ANNUAL SHOW of the TAUNTON DEANE 



1 HORTICULTURAL and FLORICULTURAL SOCIETY will be held in the Park, 

 Taunton, on THURSDAY, August tt 9 1898. Schedules may be obtained of the Secretary, 

 John S. Winsor, 16, Hammet Street, Taunton. 



accepted the recommendation ; and, instead of indulging in a speculation 

 as to what would have have happened at no distant date had no check 

 been imposed upon the policy that obtained, we will consent ourselves 

 Prizes for Hyacinths, with saying that the society is now quite sound financially, and that there 



is no reason why it should not build up a reserve fund proportionate to 

 the position of the society. Thejlateness of the hour at which the 

 questions relating to the place of holding the exhibitions was reached, 

 prevented them being discussed at any considerable length ; but we are 

 pleased to say that they'were considered in a business-like spirit, and in 

 the result a resolution was passed instructing the committee to consider 

 them, and report to a general meeting of members to be held in 

 November next. If this be done, the members will be in a position to 

 discuss the matter with profit to the society, and come to a decision on 

 proper data. Whatever may be the outcome of the inquiry which the 

 committee has been instructed to make, we have no doubt whatever that 

 the beneficial effect of the reforms that have been made will be felt long 

 before the date fixed'for the meeting, at which the results are to be pre- 

 sented to the members. 



SAVING THE PEACH CROP. 



w 



I L T S 



HORTICULTURAL 



SOCIETY 



For 



ANNUAL SHOW AT SALISBURY, 



August 10, 1808. 

 £120 IN PRIZES. 

 Schedules apply to George Nicholson, Secretary, Salisbury. 



HORTICULTURAL SHOW ADVERTISEMENTS are inserted in this 

 column at One Shilling per line, the minimum charge being Fiye Sh tilings. Advertise- 

 ment Office, 148 and 149, Aldersgate Street, London, E.C. 



notice to advertisers. 



Owing to the continued increase in circulation, the " Gardeners' 

 Magazine " will in future go to press earlier. No advertisement can be 

 guaranteed insertion, or altered, unless received before Four p.m. on 

 Wednesdavs. 



Notes of the Week. 



One of the chief difficulties in the outdoor culture of the peach in 

 the United Kingdom is unquestionably the effective protection of the 

 flowers and young fruits from spring frosts, and as this difficulty neces- 

 sarily arises from the early period of the year in which the trees bloom 

 methods of retarding the development of the flowers are deserving of 

 careful attention. In this direction numerous experiments have been 

 made in this country, but in no instance with conspicuous success ; un- 

 nailing the trees that the growth may not be unduly stimulated by the 

 heat radiated from the wall, shading the trees in advance of the flowering 

 season, and reversible walls, are perhaps the most important of the 

 various methods of retarding the flower buds that have been suggested. 

 The reversible walls were the invention of the late Mr. Shirley 

 Hibberd, who devoted much time and money in perfecting the idea, and 



they consisted of panels of wood so made that they could be shifted from 

 one side to the other of the trellis to which the trees were trained. During 

 the winter the panels were placed on the south side of the trees to 

 screen them from the stimulating effects of the sun, and there they re- 

 mained until the trees were in bloom, when they were removed to the 

 north side. Theoretically the idea was a capital one, but it was found 

 impracticable to have walls of sufficient height to ensure success in peach 

 culture because of the enormous weight of the panels. Shading with 

 canvas blinds is seldom adopted, and attempts at retardation are now 



NATIONAL CHRYSANTHEMUM SOCIETY. practically limited to unnailing the branches and keeping them away 



Halk-an-hour or so before midnight on Monday the adjourned from the wall until the buds are beginning to expand. The risk of the 



annual meeting of the National Chrysanthemum Society was brought to 

 a close, and although the members who formed part of this memorable 



precocious flowers being injured by frost is by no means confined to this 

 country, but is equally great in much lower latitudes than ours. In tlie 



gathering must have been wearied by the discussion, which had pro- State of Missouri, for instance, where peach culture forms an important 



ceeded with but one slight break for five and a half hours, the majority industry, the destruction of the blossom buds frequently inflicts a con- 



conld hardly have failed to experience a sense of satisfaction that the siderable loss upon the growers. It is therefore not surprising that the 



whole of the business had been disposed of. The first adjournment was, subject should have been investigated, and it would appear that the ex- 



under the circumstances, inevitable, but a second would have been highly 

 undesirable, for not only is it necessary the schedule should now be 

 issued ; but it is desirable the controversy should not be further continued. 

 The results of the action of those members who are desirous that the 



periments conducted at the agricultural experiment station at Colombia 

 have given results of considerable practical value. Missouri lies 

 in nearly the same latitude as the south of Spain, but, as a matter of 

 course is subject to the extremes of weather characteristic of a conti- 



affairs of the society should be conducted on business lines will be regarded nental climate, and has a lower temperature than is experienced in Eng- 

 as satisfactory or otherwise according to the standpoint from which they land. The injury done to the fruit buds in Missouri -is usually due to 

 are judged ; but we have overwhelming evidence that they have given the effects of frost upon them after the buds have been stimulated into 

 much satisfaction to the majority of the members. More might possibly growth by warm weather during the winter and early in the spring. The 

 have been accomplished with advantage, but sufficient has been done to premature development of the buds is due to the warmth the buds receive, 

 place the society on a more satisfactory basis than at any previous and is practically independent of the activity of the roots, as proved by the 

 period in its history. The air has been cleared, the members have shown fact that it may occur on warm sunny days, while the ground is frozen 

 that they are determined the committee should exercise the powers vested to a considerable depth. The flower buds of peach trees are well able 

 in them, and the members of that body have at last become alive to the to withstand the effects of from ten to twenty degrees below zero, pro- 

 necessity of accepting their responsibilities. The action that was taken ' vided they are dormant ; on the other hand, a frost with the thermo- 

 with a view to enable the members to know exactly the financial position meter at zero will kill buds that have, under the influence of warm 

 of the society at the present time was fully justified by the events. The weather, previously commenced to swell. Shading the trees with board 

 report and balance-sheet were referred back at the first meeting with sheds, and whitening them to prevent their absorbing too, inueh, heat, 



