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JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
[ February 4, 1892. 
under cultivation. This forms quite a business by itself. They are 
dried in warehouses specially built for the purpose, and afterwards 
bunched and packed for export. 
Hollyhocks are extensively grown, but there, as in this country 
they are subject to disease and are an uncertain crop. Hardy 
perennials are grown in large variety, although not in such 
quantities as annuals. Several collections I know contained from 
1000 to 2000 varieties all kept for seed purposes. One firm in 
particular made a point of leaving as many species as prssible, if 
only a plant or two of each, that is provided it was suitable to the 
climate and could be made to produce seed. Of Sedums I have 
observed between twenty and thirty distinct species. Aquilegias in 
almost endless variety. Delphiniums, Lychnis, Papaver, Linum, 
and Anchusa are to be found in great numbers, and also 
■some grand specimens of Heracleum giganteum and Verbascum 
olympicum. This latter grows to a large size, from 8 to 10 feet 
high, and measures 5 feet through. The flowers are more of a 
'bronzy yellow than the variety known as the Shepherd’s Glut) 
which grows wild in this country, and looks grand when in full 
bloom. 
The pits in which most of the plants are raised deserve a word 
■or two of notice. They are constructed of wood, are generally not 
more than 9 to 18 inches high, the soil cleared out to a depth 
of about 3 feet ; they are then filled up in the following manner. 
Firstly, a layer of rough stalks, then a good layer of fresh 
manure to within about 9 inches of the top, and well trodden down. 
This is allowed to settle for a day or two, and upon this is placed 
a layer of fine soil in which the seedlings are raised. 
During the summer they are used for growing some of the 
more tender annuals, such as Cockscombs, Portulacas, &c., so that 
protection may be given if necessary during cold nights. The 
soil and manure is removed in the autumn and carefully put away. 
In this manner it is being utilised whilst preparing it for future 
potting operations. They are used in winter for storing Wall¬ 
flowers and autumn-sown Stocks, as before mentioned. 
The drying houses are of great size and several storeys high, the 
floors of some measuring 200 feet by 50, and filled with numerous 
shelves or drawers ; these are about inch deep, with rough 
canvas bottoms so as to allow the air to circulate freely. They are 
made to fit in a framework much in the manner of a chest of 
drawers. The floors are also fitted with heating apparatus, so that 
in wet seasons the drying can be carried on more effectually and 
quickly. 
The plan of improving and selecting stocks of seed is as 
follows :—As soon as the plants are fully in bloom they are care¬ 
fully examined, and the best and truest as regards colour or shapes 
are singled out by placing a stake next them. When the seed is 
ripe they are carefully gathered by themselves, and kept for stock 
the following year. This is very necessary in the case of some 
annuals, which show a great tendency to revert to the wild state, 
and at the same time it improves the stocks from year of year, so 
that everything is brought as near perfection as possible. There 
are some unscrupulous persons who do not take so much trouble, 
and care little what seed they send out provided a market can be 
found ; but the above method is carefully and conscientiously 
carried out by all firms of good standing and repute. 
Not many vegetables are cultivated in this particular district, 
but the few that are deserve notice, especially Cauliflowers, for 
which Erfurt is justly famed, and the locality seems made 
by Nature for their culture. The chief Cauliflower grounds are 
situated on a low lying strip of land some miles in length and 
intersected by warm springs, which never freeze, even in this 
rigorous climate. This ground is cut up into patches about 
100 yards long by 20 wide, and the springs are so arranged as to 
surround it on all sides like ditches, and are about 9 feet wide. 
The patches themselves are raised from 2 to 3 feet above the level 
of the ditches, and form a high well-drained bed for the plants, 
whilst a copious supply of water is always on hand. 
The method of watering is very simple—viz., a bowl about 
the size of an ordinary hand cup fitted to the end of a pole 10 to 
15 feet long, and with this the water is taken from the ditches 
and thrown on and around the plants. This entails a lot of labour, 
especially during the hot dry summer months. Cauliflowers 
flourish wonderfully under such treatment, and form a very remu¬ 
nerative crop to the market grower. 
The ditches are utilised for growing Watercress, which flourishes 
in great abundance, and Erfurt is one of the few places in Ger¬ 
many where these can be grown in any quantity. This is due to 
the springs, which keep the water at an even temperature all 
the year round. Many seedsmen make arrangements with the 
market gardeners, so that they have the privilege of selecting the 
best of the Cauliflower to stand for seed. It is altogether a very 
uncertain crop, especially in wet seasons, being much subjected 
to mildew. 
Although the winter is severe in these parts, and continues 
sometimes late into the spring, they are not troubled with wind 
frosts, &c., to the extent we are ; for when the frost breaks up it 
seldom returns, and towards the end of April and the beginning of 
May when the warm rays of the sun begin to make themselves felt, 
the w’hole land is like a hotbed, and on the first hot day it is no 
unusual thing to see clouds of steam rising from the ground. At 
this period everything grows with great rapidity, and planting and 
sowing are vigorously carried on. Outdoor Cucumbers are sown 
about this time, and if the weather continues favourable quickly 
make their appearance and usually bear abundant crops. They are 
grown largely, both for seed purposes and for pickling. The latter 
is performed as follows :—By placing the Cucumber in a large 
earthenware pot, and mixing with them certain portions of salt, 
vinegar, and Dill (this herb giving them a peculiar flavour much 
appreciated), when full the pot is placed in a warm dry place, arid 
in a week or so is fit for use, and will keep in good condition for a 
considerable time. This pickle is known by the name of Sauce 
Gherkin, and is largely used by all the working classes. 
Roses are preserved through the winter by bending the trees 
down to the ground, and placing a good depth of soil over them ; 
in fact, burjing them, and it is surprising how quickly they 
break out into foliage and flower after being uncovered in the 
spring. 
Labour is, on the whole, very cheap. The average wages of a 
working man is from 7s. to 9s. per week, and for this they have to 
work from five in the morning till seven in the evening, and in 
winter one hour less, commencing at six instead of five. In 
summer the hands are employed in the seed grounds, and during 
the winter months in the warehouses cleaning and dressing seeds. 
Much of the lighter field work, such as hoeing, cleaning, and 
gathering seed, is done by women and girls, who work in gangs 
under the charge of a foreman. They are very expert in the use 
of the hoe, and will get over nearly as much ground as a man. 
They earn from lOd. to Is. per day, and many have to walk 
several miles to and from work, as the majority live in the sur¬ 
rounding villages. A though the hours of labour are long, I do not 
think more work is performed than in this country with over ten 
and a half hours a day, and on the whole they are not such 
“ stickers” to work as our average English workmen. 
Plants and Hoeticultuee in Hainan.— The great island of 
Hainan, off the south-eastern coast of China, is but little known to 
Europeans, although since 1877 there has been a treaty port there. Mr. 
Parker, the Consul at Kiungchow, the port in question, lately made a 
short journey in the interior of the island, of which he gives some 
account in a recent report. He travelled about sixty miles up the Poh- 
Chung Kiver to within a mile or two of Pah-hi, which is, at most seasons 
of the year, considered the limit of navigation for all but the smallest 
craft. He walked round the walls of Ting-an city, one of the disturbed 
districts during the recent rebellions, on New Year’s Day (February 9tb). 
They are just one mile in circuit, and differ little from those of other 
Chinese cities. Wherever he had an opportunity of walking diametri¬ 
cally across lengthy curves of the river he found the enclosed area to 
be extremely well cultivated. Though not so flat, its general appear¬ 
ance recalled many features of the Tonquin delta, e8j)ecially in its 
great wealth of Bamboos. The productions of the soil are much the 
same, the Papaw, Areca Palm, Sweet Potato, Turnip, Ground Nut, Orange 
tree, &c.; but a peculiar Hainan feature is the Cocoa-nut Palm. Another 
peculiarity of this region is the ubiquitousness of the dwarf Pandanus, 
probably the same as the P. odoratissima of Fiji, the fibre of which is 
used in the manufacture of grass cloth, and is usually known to foreign 
trade here as Hemp. Much of the land was under Sweet Potato culti¬ 
vation, and every household seemed to possess a few pigs of the very 
superior and stereotyped Hainan variety, black as to the upper and 
white as to the lower part of the body, with a dividing line of grey 
running along the side from the snout to the tail. These wholesome- 
looking pigs are fattened on the Sweet Potato, and do not rely for 
sustenance upon precarious scavengering, as is the case with the repul¬ 
sive and uncleanly animals of North China. Land contiguous to the 
river is irrigated by enormous wheels, 40 feet in diameter, of very inge¬ 
nious construction, moved by the current, needing no attention, and 
discharging perhaps 100 gallons of water in a minute into the trough 
above, day and night without intermission. The temperature during 
the week ranged between 50° and 60° Fahr. Among the trees which 
attracted his attention was one locally called the “ Great-leafed 
Banyan,” which looks remarkably like the Gutta-percha tree. The 
natives seem to use its gum mixed with gambier, in order to make that 
dye “ fastbut there is some doubt whether it is not the sap of the 
real Banyan tree which is used for the purpose. A very strong silk is 
made from the grub called the “ celestial silkworm,” or locally “ paddy 
insect.” This grub is found on a sort of Maple. When full grown it 
is thrown into boiling vinegar, on which the “ head ” of the gut, or 
‘■' silk,” appears ; this is sharply torn out with both hands drawn apart, 
and is as long as the space between them, say 5 feet. It is so strong 
that one single thread of it is sufficient to make a line with which to 
catch the smaller kinds of fish.— (Nature!) 
