870 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
[ October 21,1888 
re-arranged and filled with the late-flowering sorts to form a succession to 
the main display. Two other houses not quite finished will contribute 
some attraction another season. The chief house is a lofty span-roof 
structure 65 feet long by 30 wide, the majority of the plants being arranged 
to form a central bed, tbe banks sloping to each side. All the best of the 
exhibition varieties are represented, together with a selection of this year’s 
novelties, the merits of which can thus be readily compared with those of 
the older favourites. The plants generally are dwarfer than usual, yet 
vigorously healthy, well furnished with foliage, and bearing buds of a 
most promising character. Mr. Davis thinks that Japanese varieties will 
be better than usual this season in most collections, but numerous com¬ 
plaints have been received respecting the incurved, which in many 
instances have hard centres and are not expanding “kindly.” 
Only a few of the novelties are yet sufficiently advanced to indicate 
their true characters, but two that appear likely to give satisfaction are 
William Clarke and Edouard Audiguier, both Japinese varieties. The 
former is remarkable for its curious colour, a kind of salmon suffused 
with red, the bloom of good substance. Edouard Audiguier is a very 
promising variety, andjone that will probably be much prized for its colour. 
The florets are long and narrow, but the bloom is full and o f good shape, 
the colour being an intensely rich crim?on maroon. La Triomphe, near 
the above, is noteworthy, but its true character cannot be decided at 
present; it seems to be one of the hybrids, something between a reflexed 
and a Japanese, it has a large bloom, broad floret, and is of a rather 
pleasing shade of rosy purple. William Holmes, which has already 
received four certificates this season, is past its best now, but one hand¬ 
some bloom remained at the time of our visit to show what a capital 
variety it is. Though not a novelty Frizou should be mentioned here, 
as it is a very useful bright yellow Japanese for early flowering, coming 
in well as a compinion to Jame3 Salter and Lady Selborne, its fresh 
clear tint being most acceptable. The two last named are contributing 
to the display, as also are the rosy mauve Mons. Tarin, the bright red Roi des 
Precoces, the free large white Pompon Mrs. Cullingf jrd, and La Vierge. 
It might be added, that both James Salter and Lady Selborne are flowered 
from the terminal bud, as Mr. Davis finds they open more quickly and 
are of better clearer colour. 
A new reflexed named Fulvie, of a rosy purple hue, will probably be 
found a good addition to the limited list of these varieties. The Pompon 
Alice Butcher is in capital condition, equally as free as its parent Lyon, 
and valuable for its fine bright reddish bronze colour. Blanche Pertuzes 
is a good early dwarf white Pompon, especially adapted for culture in 
pots, as it does not exceed 18 inches in height, compact and very free. 
Martha Harding, as here grown, is the same as Thomas Todman, which 
made its appearance two or three years since, and it is disappointing 
that more care is not exercised in distributing new varieties. 
A great many other varieties are fast advancing, but it will be quite a 
fortnight before they are in their best condition. 
IMPAT1ENS SULTANI. 
AMONGST the numerous conservatory flowering plants Impatiens 
Sultani ranks in my opinion as one of the best. With us it is exception¬ 
ally fine at the present time, flowering profusely. For cutting and table 
decoration I mu t admit we have better plants, "but for the conservatory 
it is most valuable, especially at this time of year. It is generally 
known it can be bad in flower all the year round with a succession of 
p’ants ; but the time it comes in most useful to us is in September and 
October, and 1 think in most establishments it will be welcomed then, as 
in October flowering plants are very scarce. My mode of having plants in 
bloom at the above-mentioned time is to insert cuttings about the middle 
of May. They will strike easily in any ordinary potting soil finely sifted, 
with a good sprinkling of sand. Place them in a bottom heat of 80° ; 
shade from sun. When struck transfer them into 60-size pots. The soil 
that I find to su t them best is equal parts of loam and leaf soil, with a 
little sand and bone-dust added. Place them in a good steady moist 
heat till the plants root into the new soil, and then gradually harden them 
in a frame. Examine the plants at intervals to see if they want potting, 
at it is a great mistake to let the pots get too full of roots. The final 
shift is into 32-size, or 6-inch pots, the same compost as before. Place 
the plants as low down in the pot as possible, so as to leave room for a 
topdressing a little later on, the compost for topdressing to consist of a 
mixture of leaf mould and spent Mushroom dung, with a little sand and 
bones added ; this last addition will greatly benefit them. Never stop the 
points of the plants ; let them grow in their own natural way, as I tiiink 
i . is far the best. About the beginning of Septe nber take them out of 
the frame into a conservatory. Stake the plants out as they require it, 
as when placed in conservatory, especially in dark places, they get drawn. 
Keep the plants in as light a p’ace as possible, as these flowers come a 
much better colour. The brilliant display they make till the Chrysan¬ 
themums are brought in will well repay for the trouble bestowed upon 
them.—W. Roberts, Llwyngmern, Machynlleth. 
BRIEF NOTES. 
Overhauling. —This is a subject well worthy of being brought to 
the front, as poiutel out by “ Experientia Dicet” at page 311, but my 
mot ve in referring to it is to draw attention to the Vines and Peach trees 
now languishing in hundreds of gardens and which need attention at the 
roots. Many Vines and Peach trees are termed “worn out” at the time 
when they ought to be at the height of fertility. Many gardeners regard 
disturbing a Vine or Peach root as little better than sacrilege, but if they 
only knew the benefit that would result from the old soil being removed 
from the roots, these being lifted and laid in fertile soil, they would 
regard it as part of their annual wcrk. It only needs a little courage to 
start, and if delayed for another eeason it only means another poor crop 
of fruit. Where the borders are partly inside and out, one part could be 
renewed one season and the other the next, and instead of the crop being 
weakened the following season it would be much better. The time to do 
the work is as soon as the crop is off and the leaves still on. The work 
should be performed quickly, so all hands that are available should be 
employed in the work. If the border is a wide one, a trench should be 
cut straight through, 8 feet from the Vines or Peach trees, and the soil 
carefully worked out from amongst the roots. As the work proceeds 
these should be kept out of the way. If the drainage is out of order it 
should be rectified, and the roots carefully laid in the new soil as near to 
the top as it is possible to place them. A good watering with tepid water, 
and if an outside border covering a foot deep in leaves, will complete 
the operation. 
Apple Yorkshire Beauty. —At page 315 “A Thinker” asks for 
further particulars about Apple Yorkshire Beauty. It is really the old 
Greenup’s Pippin, and which is its original name. Whilst being shown a 
few weeks since through the Witley Court Gardens by Mr. Austin he 
pointed out this Apple as of good quality and very prolific. The fruits 
were hanging like ropes of Onions.” The following is the descrip¬ 
tion given of it in the “ Fruit Manual —“ Fruit above medium size, 
3 inches wide and 2£ deep, rounded ovate, broadest at the base, and with 
a prominent rib on one side, extending from the base to the crown. Skin 
smooth, pale straw coloured tinged with green on the shaded side, but 
covered with beautiful bright red on the side next the sun, and marked 
with several patches of thin delicate russet. It was discovered in the 
garden of a shoemaker at Keswick named Greenup.” This is one of the 
little known Apples well worthy of extensive cultivation. 
Trenched v. Untrenched Soil. —I do not wish to enter into the 
discussion between Mr. Iggulden and “ A Kent'sh Gardener,” but I can 
fully believe how injudicious it would be for Mr. Iggulden to trench the 
garden at Marston as trenching is generally understood— i.e , two spits 
deep, the good soil being placed at tbe bottom and the bad on the top. 
the result being poor crops. The garden that I have charge of has as stiff 
and unworkable a soil as any garden in this country, but yet it is not bad 
soil, for when any vegetable gets established they will “ go.” It has 
taken many years to get the surface into “ fettle ” by draining, liming, <fcc., 
and if this top soil was turned down it would take many more years to 
get it into order again. We do a little trenching occasionally, but it is 
what is termed bastard trenching— i.e., two spits deep, the good and top 
soil being placed at the top and the bottom turned over and improved by 
burned garden refuse. A great deal of the soil has been burned in some 
parts of the garden, and we intend to burn as much as we possibly can 
this winter, and with draining and liming is about the best corrective a 
heavy soil can have. In a garden that I had charge of in North Wales 
you could trench as much as you liked, as the crops of vegetables testified, 
but then it was an alluvial soil. In another garden “ on the gravel ” we 
had to trench (but not to bring the gravel up) and work in plenty of good 
soil.—A. Young. 
THE NON-VENTILATING SYSTEM. 
On the saving of Cucumber seed when tbe plants are grown on the 
“ express system,” I have but little to say, and intend to be brief. I know 
very little about the subject, never having put seed-saving into practice 
when growing Cucumbers without ventilation. The Prescot growers save 
their own seed, and some of them grow for sale, but not on a large scale 
I have every reason to believe. 
Mr. Iggulden believes that more fruits can be produced without the 
aid of ventilati >n than by the old general system ; there can be no doubt 
whatever on that point by all familiar with this method of culture. But 
he affirms that the plants pro luce more than they can perfect—his 
qualification of perfection I have not overlooked. In growing Cucumbers 
for daily use in private gardens or f ir the market who wants them to per¬ 
fect an average number of seeds ? It is not only better for the plants, but 
the fruit is better for use when cut before it can be determined whether 
they contain perfect or imperfect seed. For all purposes—except seel 
bearing—a Cucumber is perfect when ready for cutting on whatever 
principle it mav be grown. My friend admits that the fruits grow very 
fast. Now, I have always been under the impression that the quicker 
they can be grown the better they are, and this is a point in favour of the 
praitice I pointed out a few years ago. When seed is required, whatever 
system of culture is pursued, the plants must be given special treat¬ 
ment, and not exhausted by fruiting before an attempt is made to save 
seed. Some varieties are very shy seeders, and if every flower is fertilised 
a la-ge per-centage of fruits will prove barren. 
Mr. Iggulden has tried the new system, and now condemns it because 
he has failei. It is clear, judging from his article on the subject, that my 
friend does not understand this method of growing Cucumbers, and there¬ 
fore I am not surprised that he failed in his first attempt. He is prema¬ 
ture in his condemnations, and evidently did not think that those familiar 
with the system would discover the weak points in his method of proce¬ 
dure. The main contention is that it will never answer in private 
gardens on account of the close and constant attention that is required to 
carry it into effect successfully. This is one of the weak points in Mr. 
Jggulden’s article, and displays his want of knowledge on this subject. No 
other method of culture with which I am familiar gives such an immunity 
from trouble, care, and attention as the Prescot system of culture. Why 
