DECEMBER 10, T808 



THE CARD ENERS' MA GAZWE. 



799 



Peas in Plenty. 



the month of August last it was my good fortune to revisit Wem, a little 

 ch oshire village that has become well known by name throughout the civilised 

 Id as the home of that grand old florist, Mr. Henry Eckford, who has given 

 W °such a host of beautiful sweet peas which delight us for months together with 

 U h 'r elegance and fragrance, and who also has raised and distributed many of 

 \h finest culinary peas in cultivation. It is about ten or eleven years since Mr. 

 F kford settled at Wem, and during that period his business has increased greatly, 

 and his seed grounds have proportionately extended to keep pace with it. For 

 many years a large proportion of the seed peas needed were grown for Mr. Eck- 

 ford in Essex, but the yield per acre was not comparable to that obtained at Wem, 

 w hile the quality was not so good as that of the home-grown sample. Then the 

 distance of E>sex from Wem is considerable. It proved a costly business to pay 

 for frequent visits to the seed farms to ensure the varieties being kept true and 

 free from rogues. Now, however, all this has changed, and besides having under 

 his immediate control all his new varieties of sweet and culinary peas, trials, 

 crosses, sports, and what not, Mr. Eckford can convey a visitor to his seed farms 

 in half an hour, as all three of his establishments lie within a mile or so of each 

 other, Altogether, Mr. Eckford has about thirty acres of land, and not less than 

 nine-tenths of this area is devoted to peas that are beautiful to look upon or good 

 for food. The latest addition is a fourteen acre lot at the little hamlet of Clive, 

 about two miles from Wem on the way to Shrewsbury, an open spot set in the 

 midst of bracing and charming country. 



Culinary Varieties* 



It was at once pleasant and provoking to see magnificent crops of culinary psas 

 at Wem at a time when in many a small southern garden this succulent vegetable 



idea of the Eckford culinary peas is to be obtained from Mr. Eckford 's iSgS 

 catalogue, for, putting aside the raiser's descriptions, it is seen that more than 

 half of the twenty-eight varieties listed have gained awards from the Royal 

 Horticultural Society, and most of these have been tested and proved at Chiswick. 

 bven the latest issue of the society's journal testifies to ihe excellence of the Wem 

 seedlings, for to the trial of thirty-nine varieties conducted at Chiswick this 

 summer Mr Eckford sent two, Bruce and Prior, and both these splendid forms 

 gained awards of merit. A great feature of the Eckford race of peas is that the 

 pons are produced m pairs, and each pod is packed as full as possible with large, 

 highly flavoured, wrinkled, narrow peas. There is no waste of energy in these 

 varieties - that fa to say, the peas are not clustered in the centre of the pod, leaving 

 vacant ends. So far as number of peas per pod is concerned, the girls who in 

 ormer days were anxious to find a pod containing nine peas, so that tbey nrght 

 lay it on the lintel of the kitchen door, and thus ensure to themselves as husband 

 the first single man who af:erwards entered, would now have no difficulty what- 

 ever in finding such pods at Wem during the summer, or even with ten, eleven, 

 twelve, aye, and thirteen peas per pod ; indeed, the greatest difficulty at the 

 Wem seed ground would ^e to find pods with fewer than nine peas. 



A few varieties must be mentioned, and perhaps a selection of twelve will 

 answer every useful purpose ; it shall be a baker's dozen, and arranged in the order 

 of use : Eckford s No. r, a grand early pea, five feet high, and bearing profusely 

 the whole length of the haulm ; Shropshire Hero, two and a-half feet, and The Don, 

 four feet, first-rate second earlies ; then follow Fame and Juno, the former four feet 

 and the latter under two feet in height ; Consummate and Critic, superb miin crop 

 forms, two and a-half and four and a-half feet high respectively ; the latter is one 

 of the very finest of peas no matter how considered ; Colossus and Memorial, 

 rising five feet each, both very prolific, and the former carrying immense pods full 

 of a dozen or so of large, splendidly-flavoured peas ; Superabundant and 



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SWEET PEAS AT MR. H. EC K FORD'S CLIVE SEED GROUNDS. 



washuf • q rifv will follow the ormer two and a-half feet and the latter five to six 



earde * memor y> and in larger ones was proving a vexation of spirit to the bupenomy > inc } inal j on8 are toward the latter, as it stands dry weather 



one J h ° had none to ° much of labour or water - No matter what the season, feet, ana or nc j» i aQci Q ensor will bring up the rear, and are two and a- 



l T*? depend upon seeing famous crops of peas at Wem. and when it is remem- M reaouy t _^ ct : VT i v# x nc varieties are paired, so that a smaller sclec- 



^ ? a y d ^pend upon seeing famous crops of peas at Wem, and when it is remem- 



then tfle pods are to r ^P en— f° r seed » not S reen P^s, is the end in view— 

 4e p e if/ 6 com P el led to admire the wonderful constitution and productiveness of 

 . Eckford vari^fiVc i n t h e matter of cultivation Mr. Eckford's 



from those adopted in good gardens ; 



orroe; , w * "*»iiuic are essential, and these are provided with an 

 Clonal ~* — . _ g. s . given The 



varieties. 



QonA a t not differ materially 

 dr essmgs of manure 



^ods do 



pectiv 



don ^an be made if Necessary. K you wan' later peas you mutt start again wkq me 

 tion can pe m* ^ ^ QCWC$t of lhc ncw ^ thc hneft of ihc u . sU ami 



early vanet le y h ^ higher price, then you cannot <h> better than 



have no o^on^o^ vanclic5 . ^ nr ;is SCCon<I c ' arly . Hruce and Royalty 

 try Ideal or I lonee ras j ^ thlt Wlil appetlr in thc 1899 



w . A T~ - ««*f wucu ume m 8 uu. c „i *uuuiice « B — ---- IO ; , " ' \Vem VVondcr, a beautiful dwarf early that is woode» Tally prolific ; 



*hr^K\r eeply P^ugbed as soon as possible after the crop has been harvested, ^, tai ^ ue a usc ful second early that fills up speedily ; and Diamond Jubilee, a 

 roui d h ° USed read y for P icked over " The soil is a,lowed t0 remaia d 1 * that succeeded splendidly under field culture at Clive and had no sticks 



sows ? 1Sa g business here, and it is highly probable that no other seedsman 

 *do£M Pr0duces under bis own immediate supervision such auantities of peas 

 HI a $ Eckford - The staff is not a big one but it is capable, and its members are 

 1 \e»A X A they have a g° od employer ; they know all about sowing peas (previously 



caaed), the lahpU *r» r~»Ax* «rith Mr. IL FrVfnr^. hi« creniai son Mr 



Places 



bes'H U1 cauies the work is done in a wonderfully short ti 

 r *ds of ^ e Cata ' ogued var i et i es °f sweet and culinary peas 



—»wu uapauie ioreman lvir. juuca ^ att mai mcic ii wwuig *- - 



Allies the work is done in a wonderfully short time in spite of the fact 



to support it. ^ A pea5 a|>c 1^^,™^ mo re and more popular, more 



Each year ' ' ' d tbey arr u . inK annually improved; as fast as any 

 extensively cuiu - . % :upcficdcd it „ dropped oat and its successor takes 



variety P**" 0 ™*^ richt method, for one does not want bewildering lists-but 

 its place, inis is h 



we do want thc best vanet.es. & ^ ^ 



bund 



year. Last year all the peas 



;r u " Jr ee aays, but, of course, tne weatner > 

 1(1 not worry about keeping an eight-hour day. 



and persistence l ^ f d ^'^^ c t)cauty f grace, and fragrance is mainly due. Then 

 cant flower to on f m shadcs ()f colon, or combinations of colours, 



Intone V hea'UUUi «JU *_ .'.A.^ 



in cludln n0te i" book conta ins notes of some fifty varieties of culinary peas, these 

 ktv e l>e y sorts th at are catalogued, or are named ready for distribution, or 

 ' > -iv-fJV 00 tr,al tuffidtttlw long to justify I4fgc brea<!ths being sown. I shall 

 for their Se m detail » nor even go to the extent of naming all the varieties noted 



s P*aaI excellence, mm thU would wove a tedious matter. Avcrygo(d 



for among 



peas suffice to please the roost fastidious and exactir 

 that will harmonise with the most subtle art shades 



can be decorated. The evolution of t "»e sweet pea ti one 

 which my ia«j - . borticulturally, at any rate, and, if ever a history of 



of the wonders « ^ of j, cnry Eckford wil , QCCupy g prominent pUce, 



floriculture is • 



