380 JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. [ October 2s, 1882. 
will make good fruiting canes next year should they be wanted. 
From all appearances we shall not require to remove the Vines 
that have been fruiting for the next two or three seasons.— 
W. Bardney. 
NEW ROSES. 
I have been again looking through the new catalogues to see 
what the trade have to tell us about new Roses. The list of 
highly recommended is smaller than usual. It ranges, however, 
pretty widely from the two, which is all Mr. Prince admits to 
large type, to the twenty of Messrs. Wood and thirty-two of 
Messrs. Keynes. 
Mr. Turner offers a select eleven. Mr. G. Paul tells of twenty- 
six Hybrid Perpetuals, seven Teas, and four Hybrid Teas ; he also 
offers a single white and a single crimson Hybrid Perpetual. 
Single Dahlias are certainly very pretty, but I hardly expect to 
see single Roses in the boxes at present. 
Putting together what is said, I certainly gather that Helen 
Paul is about the best of the new Hybrid Perpetuals. “ Light 
tinted flesh, changing to pure white, perfect globular flower.— 
G. Paul.” “ Beautiful white, very large and globular.—B. R. 
Cant.” “ Light tinted flesh, changing to pure white.—G. Prince.” 
“ Fine, white, large, and globular.—C. Turner.” While Etoile de 
Lyon as a Tea is equally highly commended. “ Beautiful sulphur 
yellow, perfection in shape of flower and habit of plant.—G. 
Prince.” “ Very fine sulphur yellow, said to be one of the best 
yellows yet raised.—C. Turner.” I have had plants of both of 
these for the last four months, but do not feel able to say any¬ 
thing about them. Helen Paul has not shown much vigour. 
May Paul appears another strong grower of the red Gloire de 
Dijon strain ; of this I hope to know more next year. I can re¬ 
port very favourably of Reine Maria Pia, which is a most vigorous 
red Tea, and one of the sweetest Roses I know. I consider it, 
however, less of a Tea Rose than its sister Reine Marie Henri- 
ette, a real red climber, which has been relegated into the cold 
shade of the Hybrid Teas. Its pointed bud and foliage are very 
Tea like. I am glad to see that Mr. Turner and Mr. Prince both 
give it in their catalogues as a Tea. An endeavour should cer¬ 
tainly be made to induce the National Rose Society’s Committee 
to allow it to be shown as such. Since they turned out Cheshunt 
Hybrid a bit of red in the Tea boxes is sadly wanted. 
I ought, perhaps, also to allude to Hybrid Perpetual White 
Baroness. It is very pretty, but we have not yet arrived at the 
much-to-be-desired pure white A. K. Williams.—A. C. 
LABELLING FRUIT TREES. 
Your correspondent “ J.” (page 348) does well to call special 
attention to the neglect of this operation, which is, as you both 
say, not by any means “ trifling.” It is indeed not trifling for a 
gardener to come into possession of a fruit garden or orchard where 
there is scarcely one fruit tree named, and where he has slight 
chance of finding anyone to name them except the local and com¬ 
monest of the fruits. The higher-quality fruits, those of most 
consequence to him, are not easily determined, and it takes him 
years before he can get them all correctly named. I can give a 
recent and most forcible illustration of what I mean. When I 
came here there was scarcely one fruit tree that had a name to it. 
Those that had, the labels were found so faded that it was almost 
impossible to decide positively what was the real name. There 
were two Apples that were called by a purely local name, and a 
name that gave one no idea of their qualities. The consequence 
was that these Apples were treated as the most common of fruits. 
They went in to the cook just as they were wanted, and were 
peeled and used for the most ordinary culinary purposes, and I 
dislike having any tree or plant about me of which I do not know 
the name; so I made up a basket of fruit and sent them to you 
for naming, and this particular one proved to be Sturmer Pippin, 
one of the best and latest in use of all the dessert Apples, being, 
as I understand, a cross between the old Nonpareil and Ribston 
Pippin. Well, since it had its right name it has been put to its 
proper use, to the great pleasure and satisfaction of all concerned, 
and is raised from being anybody’s Apple to the dining-room 
dessert dish, where it proves to be a very great favourite. I could 
give many more instances of this prostitution of high-class fruits 
to common purposes from ignorance of the name if necessary. 
It is not necessary. 
I would like to warn those who are about putting zinc labels to 
their fruit trees to pause before they use lead wire to fasten them 
on with, as recommended by your correspondent “ J.” I know 
a young orchard that was planted on an estate and the labels 
were put on with this lead wire ; and through the first winter 
those labels that were in the swing of the wind were chafed through 
and scattered all about the orchard, and in the long grass many 
were entirely lost. Use either galvanised, or what ironmongers 
sell as annealed wire, or copper wire, to fasten the labels to the 
trees with. Such is my experience of lead wire, that I consider 
you might as well tie them on with ordinary string or with bast 
matting as with lead wire. 
In addition to the method of naming each tree by a label, it is 
my rule always to make a plan of the orchard in my garden book— 
(every good gardener has a garden book full of all sorts of notes 
about his charges)—and dot the position of each tree in the book, 
and either put the name against the dot, or number the dot and 
put the name and number on another page, I contend that a plan 
of the orchard ought to be made at the time the orchard is planted, 
and kept with the other plans of the estate, and passed on from 
one occupier or owner to another, just as the other plans of drains, 
roads, fences, &c., are. We shall not get this done yet ; but to my 
mind it is a thing that ought to be done.—P. 
[Unquestionably it is, and we take care to do it.] 
SUCCESSFUL VIOLET CULTURE. 
There are but few places where Violets are not appreciated, 
and as a consequence the culture of these plants in frames is 
rapidly becoming fashionable ; but if it became generally known 
how simple are the requisite cultural details to be observed still 
more would make the attempt. At Crichel, the beautiful Dorset¬ 
shire seat of Lord Alington, Violets are both extensively and 
well grown by Mr. Beck, the experienced gardener, and, as his 
fame had reached this district, on a recent visit I took careful 
note of his practice. When it is stated a pit was specially con¬ 
structed for Violets, of which sixteen large lights are devoted to 
them during the winter, it will be readily understood how great 
the demand must be. Throughout the winter large numbers of 
blooms are picked daily, or at all events whenever the state of 
the outer temperature will admit of the pits being opened, and at 
times enormous quantities are available. On one occasion early 
in February, when Royal visitors were being entertained at Crichel, 
Mr. Beck states they could have picked nine thousand blooms 
had they been required. The variety relied upon for the autumn 
and winter supply is Marie Louise, and the blooms of this fine 
Violet generally measure 1^ inch in diameter, and occasionally 
are still larger. To succeed these the old Neapolitan is grown, 
and is also particularly fine. 
The pits above mentioned, which mostly face due south and 
are well sheltered, are constructed on a different principle than 
is usually the case, as they are about 5 feet high at the back and 
only 1 foot high in front. This extremely sharp pitch assures 
the Violets abundance of light, as the plants are disposed as 
near to the glass as possible without touching. No bottom or 
artificial heat whatever is given. The soil employed apparently 
consists of good enriched loam, which is trodden even and firm, 
and the plants are also firmly planted. No particular number 
of plants are disposed in each light, but the leaves just touch 
each other all round. This season they have made much less 
growth than usual, and consequently will be planted more thickly. 
The method of preparing the plants is also different from that 
generally adopted, and it is certainly the best I am acquainted 
with. Large open well-enriched borders are devoted to them, 
and they are divided and transplanted in the spring before the 
pits are required for hardening off bedding plants. It must be 
understood the so-called plants when lifted are really clusters of 
plants, the strongest in the centre having produced good runners, 
which are pegged down about the end of August or early in Sep¬ 
tember, and these prior to lifting about the first week in October 
are well rooted and yield some blooms. It is these rooted suckers 
which are separated and planted out singly the following season, 
the older central plants being then thrown away. A few strong 
crowns secured in this manner are found far superior in every 
respect to a greater number of weakly crowns. 
As before stated, no artificial heat whatever is given to the 
Violets in pits, whether in pots or planted out as the case may 
be ; on the contrary, cool airy treatment is constantly practised. 
The lights are drawn off at all times during mild weather, this 
checking both damping and exuberance of leaf-growth, two evils 
many find it difficult to counteract. The lights are sufficient to 
protect from moderate frosts, but if severe frosts are anticipated 
mats and litter are thrown over them. The pits during the pre¬ 
valence of a very severe frost have been kept closely covered for 
about fourteen days ; but in spite of this, and the blooms having 
been hard frozen, they, by being gradually thawed, have escaped 
apparently uninjured. 
Judging from the success attending Mr. Beck’s practice, the 
