24G 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
[ September 20, 1383. 
Messrs. Keynes & Co., to whom I am indebted for nearly all the 
dates given above, recommend the addition of the following—viz., to 
the Show varieties, 4, Canary ; 4, Herbert Turner ; 3, Henry Bond ; 
2, Lizzie Leicester ; 3, Miss Cannell ; 3, Mrs. Stancombe ; 3, Mr. 
J. C. lteid ; 2, Mr. Spofforth ; and 2, Triumphant. And to the 
Fancies, 3, James O’Brien. 
When glancing down the dates one cannot help being struck with 
the prominent position occupied by Dahlias of recent introduction, 
more than half the varieties named in the two lists having been sent 
out during the last four years, thus showing how rapidly both the 
Show and Fancy flowers are being improved. If we may judge by 
this one Exhibition alone the least constant of the best Fancy Dahlias 
appear to be— 
Charles Wyatt, exhibited four times as 
a Show and four as 
a Fancy. 
Flora Wyatt 
1) 
six 
11 
11 
six 
11 
Frederick Smith 
j| 
three 
}} 
}) 
once 
11 
George Barnes 
11 
eleven 
11 
11 
nine 
11 
Hugh Austin 
11 
five 
11 
}) 
five 
11 
James O’Brien 
11 
five 
11 
11 
three 
11 
As many as thirty-eight Fancy flowers were in all staged in the Show 
classes against seventeen Show varieties in the Fancy division. 
It is by no means claimed that the precise position given to the 
different varietie On the above lists is such as they ivould occupy in 
an extensive _, a ii.ia election. In the absence, however, of any such 
election I have thought that the foregoing particulars, imperfect in 
some respects though they necessarily be, may at least, prove of 
s rvice to those of your readers who, like myselt (and that principally 
through the lead given us by the National Dahlia Society), are 
beginning to take an interest in the cultivation of this grand autumn 
flower.—E. M., Croydon. 
MR. GLADSTONE APPLE. 
I HAVE been from home for some weeks, and in looking back over 
the Journal have met with an inquiry as to the origin of the Mr. Glad- 
s'one Apple. I hid mine from a nurseryman named Jackson, of, I 
think, the Blakedown Nurseries, Kidderminster. I am not sure about 
the address, but I know his name was Jackson. I must have had mine 
about 18G9, and I am not sure about the price at which the trees were 
a Ivertised, but 10s. to 15*. each, or some such a price. I know it was very 
h ; gh because I hesitated about giving so much. Mr. Bunyard says it is 
weak-erowing, yet it is a most healthy grower with me.— George Lee, 
Clcvcdon. 
THE PHYLLOXERA. 
Having had to battle with the phylloxera on a large scale 
two years in succession in a new range of vineries in these 
gardens a few years since, I heartily sympathise with Mr. 
Austen or any other gardener who may have to conteud with 
this formidable Vine pest, knowing, as I do, the labour, thought, 
and anxiety as to the ultimate result of the treatment neces¬ 
sarily attending such an important and laborious proceeding. 
My experience of the phylloxera goes to show that it is in scores 
of vineries in this country unknown to the gardeners in charge 
of them, and, who, if asked if they had the phylloxera, would at 
ouce answer in the negative, as I have done more than once, 
in bliss’ul ignorance of it being at the time in the vineries under 
my charge; and I may state that the ninety-two one-year-old 
Vines planted in the four new vineries here in the spring of 
1879 were home-grown. A few days after making the discovery 
of the phylloxera being in all my new vineries, and in one of the 
old ones to >, I paid a visit to a large neighbouring garden; and 
so convinced was I by the appearance of the Yines in some of 
the many vineries there of their being affected with the dreaded 
disease, that when I returned 1 communicated with the gardener, 
who happened to be from home that day. 1 he result was 
h; visit d me in the course of a day or two, and was made 
acquainted, not only witli my fears respecting his Yines being 
attacked with the phylloxera, bar also with the personal appearance 
of the insect itself in various stages of development. My 
friend was horrified with what he had seen—viz., thousands 
of the Yine-louse busy with the work of destruction on small 
pieces of fleshy Yine roots under a small microscope. The 
same autumn—a few weeks after his visit to me—he had to 
destroy the Yines in several of his houses in consequence of 
phylloxera being discovered on them. I mention these facts 
merely to show that gar ’eners who are unfortunate enough to 
get pihylloxera in their vineries should, as soon as they make the 
discovery, disclose the fact to their employers and neighbouring 
gardeners, giving both microscopic views of the insects at work 
on the Vine roots with a view to the latter being able to recog¬ 
nise the disease should the condition of their Yines be such as 
to render an investigation of the roots for a cause necessary, 
and to enable the former the betfler to understand the nature 
and magnitude of the work involved in the process of eradicating 
the most formilable insect enemy that Vine-growers at home 
and abroad have to contend with. 
Notwithstanding my Yines being affected with phylloxera 
in 1879-80, they made good growth in the new borders and 
houses, but their habit of flagging in the presence of sunshine, 
together with the circumstance of yellow blotches appearing on 
the leaves, qnizzled me not a little, until 1 made the discovery 
four or five months after pflanting, August 27th, that they had 
phylloxera. And here it may be interesting to note that the 
disease, in the gall as well as in the tubercle form, first showed 
itself on the only American (Strawberry) variety which we then 
bad on the place, a fact which proves conclusively that the 
American varieties are not phylloxera-proof. Having tried 
various experiments and recorded the results with the Yine 
louse, my experience goes to prove that the only safe method 
of eradicating the phylloxera is the “stamping-out system”-— 
viz., burning the Yines, removing the soil, and thoroughly dis¬ 
infecting the house by washing the woodwork with soft soap 
and warm water, the brickwork several times with hot lime, 
and placing over the drainage (keeping close to the. walls and 
piiers) an inch thick of common garden salt, which will kill any 
affected or other roots existing among the latter. This operation 
should be pioceeded with as soon as the phylloxera has been 
detected and permission obtained. Yine eyes having been secured 
from some good Grape-growing establishment, and heeled-m 
out of doors until the following January, they should be washed 
in warm water and then inserted singly in the ordinary way in 
3-inch piots. The young Vines will be ready for planting in the 
newly-made borders in April, they having been transferred to 
larger pots during the interval, their roots and general condition 
being keenly and suspiciously observed during the process of 
plotting and transplanting. 
Experience also goes to show that if Yine borders could be 
completely submerged for a couple of weeks together in July, 
August, or the early part of September, when the phylloxera is 
in various stages of development—the young ones just hatched, 
full of activity and life—the extirpation if the pest would be 
effected. 1 am led to this conclusion bjr experiments made with 
the mse ts by immersing pieces of roots badly affected with the 
following results :—I he insects which had been immersed for 
two days in clean water disappeared altogether, whereas those 
which had been placed in saucers of soot water (except the young 
ones) though drowned, had not vanished, but were rendered 
more transparent, from a yellow brown to a transparent and 
viscid colour, showing their lines and spots more pilainly than 
before they were immersed and viewed through the same micro¬ 
scope. Experiments with Yines in pots also ihow that whatever 
liquid may be applied to a Yine border with the object of killing 
the phylloxera must have instantaneous effect—that is to say, it 
must be strong enough to kill the insects in passing through the 
soil without at the same time producing a si uilar effect on the 
Yines; and, in my opinion, that wdiicli shall succeed in doing the 
former will also accomplish the latter. Having in August, 1880, 
obtained that which I was refused the qirevious year—viz., per¬ 
mission to adopt the “ stamping-out system,” I immediately 
set to work as above described, striking and planting my Vines 
in 1881, and fruiting them the following year, their condition 
then and now being such as to justify the assumption of our 
having dissolved partnership, for ever, let us hope, with the 
qiliylloxera, which for two years had been to us an extra source 
of deep* thought, labour, and anxiety.—H. W. Ward. 
NOTES ON THE CHRYSANTHEMUM. 
“A Grower and Exhibitor’s” seasonable note on the Chrysan¬ 
themum reminds me of a promise I made some time ago to note the 
result of Chrysanthemums cut down the last week in June and first week 
in July, as recommended by you on page 538, last volume. This was 
strange news, no doubt, to many who believed it impossible to obtain 
exhibition blooms from dwarf plants, the general idea being never to 
check the plants. Those who had the courage to adopt your advice will, 
if the plants have received attention, be rewarded with sturdy specimens 
from 3 to 4 feet high. They who have not as yet obtained the flower 
buds must not blame the system, but attribute their failure to starvation. 
Far north the buds will be now showing. I was doubtful at the time 
about cutting down some varieties, fearing that the buds would not form 
or be very late, but I am perfectly satisfied with the result up to the pre¬ 
sent time ; for plants so treated began to show buds, the earliest varie¬ 
ties the second week in August, the remainder up to the first week in the 
present month. It is impossible to say yet what the flowers will be, but 
if stout wood and plump buds afford any criterion to judge by they ought 
to be fine. Tue only varieties that did not break well with me this 
