848 JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. c October u, isso. 
are to be replaced shortly by a collection of the many beautiful 
varieties of Maple which have been of late years introduced from 
Japan. The belt at the end of the lawn has been excellently 
managed. It was necessary to shut out the road, so Laurels and 
quick-growing shrubs had to be planted. A wide belt was made 
for this purpose, but the Conifers of various kinds which were to 
be the prominent occupants of the belt were judiciously planted, 
and a broad edge of flowering plants placed in front; but as the 
Conifers grow the shrubbery is thinned out, the edging of plants 
is removed, and the turf is brought close up to the trees, which 
then sweep over the lawn. But I think the greatest triumph of 
all is the piece of water and its surroundings. There is a rivulet 
which comes down from the hills above, and which, skirting the 
farm, has been diverted here so as to form a very ornamental 
piece of water. It would not do to have it on a flat, and so a 
large quantity of earth has been brought here, banks are made all 
round and planted with hardy herbaceous plants and interspersed 
with some half-hardy plants from the greenhouse. On the water 
floated the white and yellow water Lilies, while on a wee island 
in the centre there was a clump of the double-flowering Arrow¬ 
head, Sagittaria sagittifolia fl-pleno, which has sown itself on 
various places at the edge of the water. Amongst the plants used 
was the large-podded Capsicum with its brilliant red pods ; this had 
an excellent effect dotted here and there over the banks. Now and 
then a bright bit of Coleus came in very effectively ; and the effort 
had been made, not only to give a good general effect, but also to 
attract the eye with little bits of colouring which leave nothing to 
be desired in artistic arrangement. Then the trees, of which 
there are not many, are utilised, also creeping plants, Aristolochias, 
Clematis, &c., clothe their stems, while here is a standard Jasmine 
with a stem as thick as one’s leg, and which must be very beautiful 
when its branches are clothed with their fragrant white flowers. 
It might be supposed from all that I have said, and the quantity 
of plants that are used, that there must be a large number of 
houses wherein to shelter them, and I was surprised to find that 
only two, and they not very large ones, were required. Some of 
the hardier plants were sheltered in a shed, but the greater number 
were placed in these houses, which must be tolerably full when all 
are placed in it. Although no bedding-out in the strict sense of the 
term is practised here, yet bedding plants, Pelargoniums, Coleuses, 
Calceolarias, &c., are used to a good extent, and this involves 
propagation, which had been already completed ; but I fancy 
that these will be less and less used, the desire of Major Horrocks 
being, as he expressed it, to get subtropical effects without sub¬ 
tropical plants. 
I am writing about the garden, or else I should like to have 
said something about the orchard, which is one of the best 
examples of fruit culture I have seen for a long time, and where 
I saw more Pears than I have seen altogether this year in the 
places I have visited. And here, alas ! I am at the length of my 
tether. I have only lightly touched on some of the many notable 
things in Mascalls, and I have said nothing about Weirleigh ; and 
there as I mount the hill I see the burly form of farmer Weir 
shaking his fist at me, and telling me that luncheon is waiting ; so 
I must part company with Major Horrocks and his very interest¬ 
ing garden, and reserve my notice of Weirleigh for a future issue. 
—D., Deal. 
, WELLINGTONIA GIGANTEA. 
In your issue of the Journal of Horticulture for September 
23rd, Mr. Moss, on page 283, refers to the remarkable growth of 
Wellingtonia planted in 1803, the circumference of which at 
6 inches from the ground is 9 feet 7 inches. Your correspondent 
also apprehends the wood of the Wellingtonia would be useful 
for building purposes. The growth referred to is certainly re¬ 
markable, and if the wood were hard and durable it would 
be a very profitable tree to plant extensively ; but within the 
last two years I have cut down four or five of these trees, 
ranging from 25 to 40 feet in height, and found when having 
their trunks sawn into lengths that the wood was very soft, 
coarse-grained, and spongy-looking. It also soon decays. The 
relative girths and height of these trees, although of the same age, 
is also remarkable—for instance, a tree 53 feet in height is 9 feet 
6 inches in circumference round the trunk at 6 inches from the 
ground, while another 30 feet in height at 6 inches from the 
ground also girths 9 feet 6 inches, and another tree 51 feet in 
height at the same distance from the ground is only 8 feet in cir¬ 
cumference round the trunk. As an ornamental tree the merits 
of the Wellingtonia are well known, and if planted on soil that 
suits it its fine pyramidal habit will make quite a feature. It 
will not flourish on poor, stony, shallow soil, but will become a fine 
tree on a deep rich loam. As an evergreen avenue tree it has a 
noble appearance. A straight drive here half a mile in length, 
with trees each side from 30 to 50 feet in height, has a grand 
effect; a curved carriage drive similarly planted does not look so 
well.—A. Harding, Orton Ilall. 
MORE ABOUT POTATOES. 
I AM not surprised at hearing that those who grow largely for 
the market hold Champion and Magnum Bonum in high esti¬ 
mation. The object they have in view—namely, to grow those crops 
which will afford them the best return with the least amount of 
risk, has naturally led them, after the experience of the past few 
seasons, to select these varieties as meeting their requirements 
best; and, provided that the bad seasons continue, and that the 
growers mean to give in, confessing that the disease has defeated 
them, and that they must have poor Potatoes or none at all, such 
a course would seem to be the wisest. 
I am not prepared to give up the fight in this way, nor do I 
believe in continual bad seasons. I have taken the trouble to 
make inquiries among the principal growers in this neighbour¬ 
hood, and find that although for several years their patience and 
their pockets have been sorely tried, they have this season been 
rewarded with an extraordinary crop. The disease has been 
practically nil, and the yield of all varieties enormous. Potatoes 
are ridiculously cheap. The common varieties have, I hear, been 
sold for as little as 2s. 6d. per sack of 160 fibs., which is less than 
a farthing per pound. The present price ranges from Gel. to Is. 
per 20 lbs. 
The varieties most in favour among market gardeners here are 
for a first crop Myatt’s Improved Ashleaf, followed by Gloucester¬ 
shire Kidney. Nothing has yet been found to supersede these 
old well-tried varieties. From personal experience I can speak 
well of them. Myatt’s slightly sprouted in heat, and, planted in 
the open ground without any protection in January, was fit to 
dig on May 26th. Early Rose does not seem to meet with general 
approval. There appears to be a prejudice against this Potato, 
owing to the pink tinge which sometimes pervades it when cooked. 
In wet seasons, or when grown on heavy land, this defect often 
occurs. I grow it largely and consider it a most valuable early 
kind. This year the colour is excellent, and some tubers grown 
on light peaty soil are as white as snow and floury to the centre. 
The crop is quite double that of Myatt’s and perfectly free from 
disease. Many people complain of not being able to grow this 
variety on account of its being so liable to disease. Even in the 
worst of seasons I hardly ever lose any from it, as by planting 
properly prepared sets sufficiently early, it is all dug and eaten 
or sold by the end of June. But, then, this is Devonshire, and I 
live on the top of a hill, and have hardly ever known the frost 
cut my Potatoes, although down in the valley half a mile away 
they are frequently blackened in May. Snowflake is another 
variety almost discarded by market growers. Like other white- 
flowered first-class Potatoes, it is undoubtedly very liable to suffer 
in wet seasons; but it is a splendid Potato, almost without a 
fault besides, and there is none that finds a more ready sale or 
commands a higher price in the market. I have kept to it; and 
though last season I only had half a crop, this year I have been 
rewarded with a magnificent yield of the finest quality with 
scarcely a diseased tuber among them. 
Late Rose is another good variety very little grown about here. 
I find it to be a grand cropper, a good keeper, and second only to 
such as Snowflake and the old Lapstone Kidney for quality. The 
yield is at the rate of 12 to 14 tons per acre, quite free from 
disease. It finds a ready sale, and, being beautifully white and 
mealy, gives general satisfaction. 
Among late Potatoes Magnum Bonum and Champion are the 
present favourites. The crop of the former is enormous and quite 
free from disease. The quality is barely second-rate, but the 
appearance of the tuber is good and helps to make it sell well, 
though not at the best price. In my opinion it is neither a garden 
Potato nor a Potato for a gentleman’s table. A friend who has a 
large establishment and grows a great many Potatoes for home 
consumption asked me a day or two since to have a look at his 
field where four or five men were engaged in lifting. The principal 
crops were Rocks and Magnum Bonum. The crop of the latter 
was excellent, but he said, “ I don’t like them, they are waxy and 
the flavour is poor.” My experience of it, as grown in rather 
heavy soil, is the same. 
The open market is the finest test of quality that exists. 
Buyers are always willing to pay a good price for a good article. 
There I find that among kidneys the old Lapstone and Snowflake 
always head the list, commanding the highest prices ; and though 
the superabundance of inferior varieties affects the price of the 
best considerably, there is still a good margin between them and 
such as Magnum Bonum. 
