344 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
[ May 1, 1884. 
three weeks, and rain within five miles in plenty.—J. E. W., Grange- 
over-Sands. 
The cold easterly winds with frost on most nights of last week (18° of 
frost being recorded on the morning of the 23rd of April, on the previous 
night 10°, and the following 12°), have left their mark on vegetation, many 
hardy plants that had been stimulated into activity by the previous mild 
weather having had their tender growths injured. 
Pears coming into blossom have had their tops blackened, and Potatoes 
cut off level with the ground, and other vegetables have suffered propor¬ 
tionately. This is unfortunate, as there is a great paucity of vegetables 
owing to the mild winter having caused them to run to seed long before 
the customary time. Fortunately we have fine breadths of Broccoli not 
injured in the slightest, and wonderfully fine Cabbages, Ellam’s being far 
ahead of all others. 
The set fruit of Plums are all blackened, Apricots are for the most part 
destroyed, and the same remark applies to Peaches and Nectarines. Pears, 
too, seem in a poor way, and have no doubt suffered severely. Raspberries 
have had the points of the shoots cut and are quite brown, the most forward 
of the Gooseberries being blackened, and those but in the flower state I fear 
are injured, as the bees do not care about them. Currants seem to be better, 
only the upper part of the bunch being damaged, and Black Currants appear 
little or none the worse. Strawberries do not appear to have suffered. 
Apples, of course, are safe, only a few sorts being in bloom.—G. Abbey, 
Paxton Park Gardens , St. Neots. 
The severe frosts of the past week have done most serious damage, 
and probably in many cases have caused a total loss of the fruit crop at 
Girtford and the district. The blossoms of all the earlier sorts of Straw¬ 
berries, and even the small unopened buds of these, as well as those of 
Apples, Pears, Plums, Damsons, and Cherries, are apparently all injured 
past recovery. The only hope remaining is for such sorts as Court-Pendfi- 
Plat Apple, the late Strawberries and the earliest Pears, sueh as 
Doyenn6 d’Etd, which have well set their fruit and do not as yet show 
signs of falling, although the ovaries seem blackened, and it is probable 
these Pears may disappear later on. Gooseberries, except old unpruned 
bushes in sheltered spots, are falling. The Red Grape Currant has a 
chance of a partial crop, as the blooms are not so forward, and the young 
foliage of Strawberries is also much injured. Raspberries in bud, as well 
as the young offsets of these and the common Bramble, are also affected. 
The buds of Vines, Walnuts, and early Oaks show similar results. Roses, 
where not cut back, have the young shoots and buds withered. The blossoms 
and stems of the earliest Peas have not escaped. The young growth of 
Laurels is also blackened. Hardy Ferns, Borage, Anchusa, Myoeotis, 
Clematis Jackmanni, Violets, Chrysanthemums, and many hardy plants are 
much injured. Anemone japonica has suffered very severely, and even 
the blossom of the common white Nettle and the young shoots of Clover 
are shrivelled. The lowest temperature registered in the locality was, I 
believe, 10° of frost on the night of the 19th and 11° on the 23rd inst. 
Previous to last week fruits of all kinds seemed in vigorous health, and 
the blossom strong and indicative of a full crop, but everything much in 
advance of the normal period. Altogether, I never recollect 6uch disastrous 
results from April frosts in the East Midlands.—T. Laxton, Bedford. 
A correspondent informs us that “ Fruit-growers about Southfleet and 
Higham in Kent state that serious mischief has been done to Cherries and 
Plums by the cold of this and last week. Some of the Pears have also 
suffered. In reference to this subject, a Covent garden salesman writes to 
a daily contemporary:—“ The gravest fears are entertained with regard to 
the safety of the fruit crop for the ensuing season. We learn from some 
of our most important growers in Kent and Middlesex that the recent severe 
frost has totally destroyed the crop of stone fruit. The Pears are certainly 
decimated if not totally destroyed. Even the Apples have been frozen 
through, and therefore cannot possibly come to maturity". Black Currants 
are very greatly injured; hut the Gooseberry, owing to its abundant 
foliage, has partially escaped the general destruction.” 
As an example of the injury to fruit in the neighbourhood of the 
metropolis, it may be remarked that in Streatham the fruit generally 
appears to have suffered most severely. In the gardens at Leigham 
Court House Plums have been almost entirely destroyed, Pears have 
suffered greatly; Cherries, Currants, Gooseberries, and even Apples, of 
which the flowers were not fully open, have been similarly affected. 
Although the promise was very good, there will not be half a crop of 
any kind of fruit. The lowest temperature has been about 10° of frost. 
SPECIAL SOCIETIES. 
The remarks made by Mr. Dodwell at the Auricula Show, coupled 
with the fact that I have received the private letter to which he alludes, 
makes it clear that he assumes, without one tittle of evidence, that I 
wrote the paragraph “ Fair Play,” which has so excited his wrath. He 
states, moreover, that I shrank from coming to the meeting, although I 
received an intimation from him. Permit me to say that the letter was 
not received by me until after I returned from London on the 22nd, and 
that therefore I knew nothing about what was to take place. All this 
compels me to do what is very distasteful to me, but which I am obliged 
to do in order that it may be seen that whenever I do dissent from Mr. 
Dodwell I am not actuated by any personal feeling. 
Some time before Mr, Dodwell removed to Oxford I gathered from 
him that he was in much trouble and anxiety owing to pecuniary losses 
and a threatened action for libel. Some days after, in thinking over 
our conversation, it suggested itself to me that it would be a grace u 
and acceptable thing to present him with a testimonial on the ground o 
the benefits he had conferred on floriculture ; but feeling that I was not 
a sufficiently old friend to put myself at the head of it, I wrote to Mr. 
Charles Turner, who cordially approved of it and warmly took it up. 
Now, is it likely that, having done this, I should be influenced in any 
remarks I may make by anything but a desire for what I consider the 
interests of floriculture ? As I say, it is excessively distasteful to me to 
mention such things ; but my numerous friends will appreciate, 1 am 
sure, my motives in so doing.—D., Deal. 
ANTENNARIA TOMENTOSA. 
I find this one of the mosFeffective and useful edging plants, and it is 
the more valuable because it is quite hardy. Its colour, too, a silvery 
white, is very suitable for placing next either turf or Box edging, and 
behind it may be placed with pleasing effect almost any of the shades of 
colours in ordinary or carpet bedding. _ „ 
Flower beds are generally made up 2 or 3 inches above the level of 
the turf. When ready for planning a hoe or a spade is generally run round 
the bed, setting the soil up with a sharp sloping edge. This is necessary 
for the purpose of keeping the edge of the turf clear for the edging shears, 
and also for the sake of neatness. In the case of carpet beds this sloping 
side is covered with some such suitable plant as the above named, hut m 
ordinary bedding the edging is more generally planted on the top of it, 
consequently it is bare black earth for weeks till the plants grow and hang 
over it. Three or four years ago a neighbour sent me a few pieces of this 
Antennaria that he had left after bedding-out—one of those considerate 
actions so often met with in all true lovers of gardening. _ I have continued 
increasing my stock of it till we have now, at the special request of my 
employer, edged nearly all our flower beds on grass witli it. And when 
we consider that it is permanent, and that all the keeping in order it 
requires is picking off the flower stems in May, the saving of edging 
plants and labour in keeping would be considerable where much bedding is 
done. The plant is very easily and quickly propagated by pulling it to 
pieces and replanting, as it runs on the surface and roots along the steins, 
and a stock of it is soon got up. We confine this edging simply to the 
raised edges of the beds, and when once done it will stand for a number 
of years and requires no attention, whether you plant the bed with ordinary 
bedders, carpet plants, half-hardy annuals, or mixed border fashion, and it 
is particularly suitable for spring beds. I commend this to all who would 
have their beds look neat with the least amount of labour.— R. Inglis. 
ORCHIDS AT WESTBROOK:, SHEFFIELD. 
In the Journal of Horticulture of April 3rd, 1884, there is a paper on 
the above subject, which subsequently appeared in the Sheffield Weekly 
Telegraph, which I cannot allow to pass unnoticed, as I feel it dis¬ 
paraging to myself. . 
Your correspondent, “ W. K. W.,” says, “ The late proprietor, H. 
Wilson, Esq., was a great lover of Orchids, and spent large sums in their 
purchase and cultivation, and under the skilful management of his gar¬ 
dener, Mr. D. Clements, his became one of the best private collections in 
the provinces. In 1881, however, during the illness of Mr. Wilsop, which 
eventually terminated fatally, a large portion of the collection was 
disposed of at Stevens’ rooms.” In endeavouring to answer that, I would 
ask how could Mr. Wilson be ill in 1881, when he died in November, 1880, 
and the Orchids were sold in June or July of the same yeaT. 
Again, he says, “ For a year or two from then little was heard of 
Orchids at Westbrook, but at the present time a great revival appears to 
have set in. Mrs. H. Wilson and her son, Mr. Alfred Wilson, appear to 
unite in supporting their able gardener, Mr. Pidsley, who is an 
enthusiastic and skilful cultivator, and appears likely to soon restore the 
collection to much of its former excellence.” To what years docs 
“ W. K. W.” refer when little was heard of them ? I had charge of 
them over three years, and when I left them I defy “ W. K. W.” to prove 
that they were not as healthy and strong as any in the provinces or 
metropolis. He also speaks of the strength of the spikes of Odontoglots. 
If he would look back in the “ Garden ” of May 27th, 1882, page 3C6, he 
will find notice of an Odontoglossum in flower at that time which had three 
spikes from one pseudo-bulb, one spike having twenty-nine another thirty- 
two flowers, the third I pinched off. To further show that the Orchids were 
good I will quote what a gentleman once said who had visited Westbrook 
for seventeen years. His remark was that “ he had never seen anything 
like them before, and he would tell Mrs. Wilson so and in nearly the 
same words one of the family not residing in Westbrook told me, also 
referring to the plants. I will now ask Mr. Woodcock whether “ nothing 
was heard of the Orchids ” after he left the neighbourhood ? Again, he 
says the Odontoglossums fill two span-roofed houses, each about 40 feet 
by 12 feet. I must once more correct him by saying that this is not so, 
and that one house is considerably less than the other. I should not 
attempt to make these corrections were it not that several gardeners 
of Sheffield called to see me about the subject. 
In conclusion, let me state that it was neither Mr. Wilson’s nor Mrs. 
Wilson’s wish that I should leave. I will therefore allow your readers to 
judge between us. As for Calanthes, I had them with spikes 6 feet 
6 inches long, and 3 feet 2 inches in length of bloom open at one time 
on one spike, I have enclosed copies of two testimonials from Mrs, 
