DECEMBER 3. l8 9 S - 



GARDENERS' 



MAGAZINE. 



793 



.< j i mmmunications should be addressed to the Editor of the Gardeners 

 '^gSTnb, 148 and 149, Aldersgate Street, E.C, 



. s c f plants, flowers, and fruits for naming or opinion should be sent to 

 SpCCi h- Editor of the Gardeners' Magazine, " Endsleigh," Priory Park, Kew, 

 Surrey, and as early in the week as possible. All parcels must be sufficiently 



prepaid. 



t Editor will be glad to receive photographs of gardens, plants, flowers, trees, 

 fruits &c, for reproduction in the Gardeners Magazine. He will also be 

 greatly obliged by correspondents sending early intimation of interesting local 

 events relating to horticulture. In sending newspapers containing matter to 

 which they wish to draw attention, correspondents are requested to distinctly 

 mark the paragraph. 



Secretaries of horticultural societies are invited to send early notification of fortt- 

 coming exhibitions and meetings, and are requested to advise us concerning 



change of date? 



A. C, Hackney : Six good dark roses 



Good Eark and Yellow Roses.- 



cie A. K. Williams, Xavier Olibo, Horace Vernet, Duke of Edinburgh, Louis 



and Capt. Hay ward. Six good yellows are Mdme. Hoste, 



Mdme. Lambard, Marie Van Houtte, and 



Van Houtte, 



Francisca Kruger, Caroline Kuster 



Jean Ducher. 



Eligibility cf Exhibitors —A. J., Reading : The lady is quite at liberty 

 to exhibit in other classes than those "for ladies only,'' provided of course there 

 are none " for gentlemen only," as from such she would be excluded by the 

 schedule regulations ; we presume, however, she would be debarred from compet- 

 in certain classes — provided there are sections in the schedule — as she 

 not be eligible to exhibit both as gardener, single-handed gardener, 



ing 

 would 



urseryman, and amateur, any more than a mere man would. With regard to the 

 eligibility of a gardener who serves on a committee, such a one has every right to 

 compete, so long as he conforms to the society's rules and regulations. 



Tomatos and Cucumbers for Profit.— R. S., Nottingham : Our advice 

 may not, perhaps, be the kind you desire or expect, but certainly we cannot advise 

 you to start a business for yourself in the cultivation of tomatos and cucumbers for 

 market when you have had no experience with either of these crops. You should 

 have at least a year's experience in cu\Uvating them ere you give up a permanent 

 position. It would require more glass than you mention . to ensure the income 

 you wish, even provided good crops and good prices were obtained. The income 

 could be supplemented by small cultures of various kinds that would not interfere 

 with either tomatos or cucumbers. Obtain knowledge by experience and observa- 

 tion, then commence in a quiet way and build up a business according as your 

 success, capital, and the demand shall dictate. We shall be pleased to answer 

 any further questions. 



Various Coloured Chrysanthemums.— In reply to the query from 



11 B. W.," London, as to the cause of his flowers being deficient in colour, Mr. W. 

 II. Lees writes :— One can only surmise that the treatment which the plants have 

 been subjected to has in one or more details been unsatisfactory. The only cause 

 (to which want of colour can be attributable) over which we have no control 

 would be the impure atmosphere of large towns, as plants grown under this 

 influence seldom develop good colours in their flowers, at least not in November. 

 This want of colour, however, is a failure which many growers experience in good 

 districts, and from observations I have made in several cases the weakness has 

 ken traced to one of three causes, and probably " B." will find one of these applies 

 to to* own plants. In the first place, the soil used has been of too close and 

 adhesive a character, and by the end of the season, after the constant waterings 

 of summer, it has become almost impervious to air, and as a consequence the 

 roots are unable to obtain the supplies they need. It is very important to the 

 W ei "development of all good qualities that the plant should be full of energy to 

 tne end, but frequently it happens, as in the case described, that the roots are 

 ttrjable to cany out their proper functions or are prevented extending their feeders 

 VUnth e final demand is made on them. A free use of old lime rubble, coarse 

 sand, and wood ashes is the obvious remedy when the soil is mixed for potting. 



Qthe second place, a close confinement when first housed, or even later on, 

 contributes to weak colour. The cooler the plants can reasonably be kept the 

 oetter will be their colours. Any unnatural forcing by fire heat and want of ven- 

 ^ c^mps the energies of the plant, and as a consequence the flowers suffer 

 vemT' 3,01 ^ 1011, Avoid crowding the plants as much as possible, and give as much 



wmation as the weather will permit. The other cause of mischief is a very 

 iro • 0Ce, f nc * ' s over - manuring the plants. Very frequently 

 as Dossil m - ^ e ^ r anx * et y to improve on previous efforts as much 

 Nothi gIV ? extra quantities an d more frequent doses of concentrated manures. 

 Mnmo 3 h° quickl y def eats the object in view. An overdose of sulphate of 

 theT i estroys P erha PS half the delicate roct hairs which are busy preparing 

 •amir h^° X * °* P' ant > or a to ° liberal sprinkling of some compound 

 * mist if* v k* lls al1 ^ e roots near the sur f a ce, and so the mischief is done 

 •hstarf f J ndn< ; ss > and ^sults in a proportionate failure in colour, in size, or in 

 fcllcd th -f blooms. It is like trying to cram chickens after having half 

 thecauf em • then wonderil \g wli y tlie y do not fatten. One can never overdo 



HloygJ 11 a B* inst jWCr-nianiaiog, it is the stumbiin^-block Which almost everyone 



pvenaft* al i S0I ? e time or other, and if I were to advise that no more manures are 

 c l -s woul \ £ dS arC talcen » oth er than weak liquid cow manure, results in many 

 *PW ment P aps > be much more satisfactory. At any rate, I may say do not 

 liable m ° D m ° re P* ants tllan Y ou can afford to lose, and never employ qui;kly 

 p > ;nts i n a h nures except in the smallest quantities and in solution. One or two 

 * ic 2 left ^ e f t ^ atment of your plants which we do not approve of are— (1) Their 

 earl.tr |k 1 Until the end of October ; they should have been housed a month 

 n 1 kvourabl ng ' dam P ni 2 hts which we usually experience through October are 

 *hich are t0 the adva ncirg flowers of disbudded plants at least, and those 

 fc:din g witr?° Wn aS bushes > not disbudded, are safer under cover. (2) The 

 **d thL ^P^P^sphate, sulphate of potash, and sulphate of ammonia. If 



could PC *'~ ' 



questionable advantage. If y0U r soil contained a fair proportion of limj it is 

 possible that the repeated weekly applications of these manures were too much, 

 laken separately, one ounce of ammonia sulphate is enough for three gallons of 

 water, and it a variety of animal manures are used alternately, as has been advised 

 in the Gardeners Magazine at various times, the sulphate of ammonia need 

 not be given more than two or three times, and this between September 2< and 

 the end of October. (3) The blooms should be shaded from bright sun soon 

 atcer they commence to expand, for, though heavy shading is not good for colour 

 development, strong sunshine, on the other hand, is equally injurious to the flowers. 

 Another well-known cause of deficiency of colour is too early bad selection, and 

 hough you say the want of colour was noticeable in the bush-grown plants where 

 the buds would be late terminals it is possible your Viviand Morel and Chas. 

 LMyis were on buds taken too early, as you say these were crown buds. The 

 best time to secure buds of the two varieties named is from August 25 to ^ 



considerable care in watering after the plants are housed is very essential to the 

 lull development of colour; too much moisture is easily given. The soil should, of 

 course, not be allowed to become dry, but must approach this condition before 

 water is given, and each plant must have its requirements duly attended to. 



Croquet Ground.-W. A., Bexhill: According to the laws of the All 

 England Croquet Club a full-sized croquet ground should measure forty yards by 

 thirty yards. In a line through the centre of the length of the ground two hoops 

 and two pegs are placed ; each peg is put eight yards from the end boundary of a 

 thirty by forty ground, with the central hoops eight yards apart and eight yards 

 from the nearest peg. The comer hoops should.be in line with the pegs and seven 



yards from them. The accompanying diagram will assist you, but we may rem irk 

 that croquet is often played on smaller grounds, and it is not necessary, except for 

 matches played according to the A.E.C.C. rules, to allow so much spice around 

 the actual lines of play. No marking is needed, as in lawn tennis, $0 that once 

 the measurements are made and the points indicated by a sunk p»g it is easy to 

 set up the six hoops and two croquet pegs. 



Should Exhibitors have Extra Assistance f A correspondent 

 writes as follows : "At our recent chrysanthemum show prizes were offered for a 

 group of chrysanthemums arranged for effect, and the class was oprn only to 

 single-handed gardeners and amateurs. There were three exhibitors, myself 

 among them, and we all had a little assistance to bring our plants to the exhibition 

 hail the evening before the show, such assistance being, I believe, quite allowable 

 bv all societies. The point atwut which I desire an opinion is whether either of the 

 exhibitors should have been allowed to us; outsi le aid in arranging the group, and 

 such as would severely handicap the less fortunate ones. On entering the place of 

 exhibition on the morning of the show I found a professional gardener and 

 member of the society, but not an exhibitor, altering one of the groups to 

 male- it more symmetrical. I objected to his interference, on the ground that it 

 «u as much the duty of the exhibitor to arrange his plants as to have grown them ; 

 rhP excuse was that the real exhibitor had not the time to be present. My object 1 >n 



laid before a meeting of the committee after the show, but it was decided that 

 ^exhibitor might obtain what assistance he required. The altered group was 



taste 



arrangement ( 



wnbin 



exhibitor and anyone he may secure to assist him. 



lorrespondent, for if the society 

 we enu,c 7 s j^which only a single-handed gardener or an amateur may corn- 

 arranges a c ^ jt js the duty 0! the society to make such regulations afl shall 

 pete we no ^ dq favour for the competitors. If such regulations do not 

 ensure a lair du!e (^mittee is greatly to blame. It is useless to confine a 



exist, then ine rar( ] enC fs and then allow a competitor to have the advantage 



not ca ^ ^ ery weak so,u tion, so that no harm to the rcots took place, they socie 

 U5e faj lure in colour, but both the superphosphate and potash were of right 



a farce. In singl 

 he should scon 

 society should 



fessional assistance ; the thing i* contradictory, and such a class 

 ■i/hmled classes each exhibitor should fizht for 14 his ain hand 



and the committee of the 



advantage of an antagonist, and the commute 

 that be has no opportunity of doing anything 



