466 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
[ November 23, 1893, 
amount of exposure to moisture that Apples will beneficially endure is 
astonishing. Who that has been raking leaves beneath Apple trees 
some two months perhaps after the crop has been gathered has not 
found some fruit buried in the leafage that are as plump and fresh as 
if just gathered i How admirable do the surroundings seem to suit 
Apples in such a case. 
Has anyone ever tried the stacking of Apples in leaves outdoors ? A 
hard floor beneath trees is selected, a bed made up 10 inches high with 
solid pieces of turf, the floor thinly littered with clean Elm leaves, then 
on that a layer of Apples, then a layer of leaves very thin, further layers 
of fruit and leaves, keeping the top into ridge fashion, covering ail with 
6 inches of leaves, and over all some straw mats to throw off the rain. 
Into such a pit no ordinary frost could enter, and during very severe 
weather a thick coating of litter laid over all would exclude the hardest 
frost. Can anyone doubt but that from out of such a stack Apples 
would come as fresh as possible, even at the end of the winter, whilst 
the plan would cost next to nothing ? Of course only picked fruits of 
good medium size should be so preserved.—A, D, 
I HAVE read with interest Mr. Iggulden’s article (page 437) as to the 
results of Apple culture this season, and I endorse most of what he 
says respecting the non-keeping of the fruit. Most varieties are over 
fully a month before their time, but it must be borne in mind that 
they were ripe for quite that period before their usual time. 
Our experience as to varieties seems to have been very similar to 
Mr. Iggulden’s. Beauty of Kent, however, we do not expect to keep 
after the end of November in ordinary seasons, but Manks Codlin is 
still in good condition with us, and this variety I have noticed usually 
keeps longer from our heavy soil than from others. Welington (Dume- 
low’s Seedling), Alfriston, and Lane’s Prince Albert are also keeping 
well at present, as also are most of the late desserts. Amongst the 
midseason varieties King of Pippins is keeping well. 
It was quite expected that fruit would not keep well owing to the 
great heat, and there were many cases of actual sunburn, the same as 
they experience in California. The dry hot period, being followed by 
a spell of wet immediately before the ripening, was undoubtedly the 
cause of the spots and the rapid decay of the fruit. I should think 
it probable that the sudden flow of sap when the fruit was almost 
rips caused the rupture of some of the cellular tissues, thus setting 
up fermentation and decay in the parts affected. 
As to the American varieties, these have with us done better than 
ever we have known them before. Washington, Melon, Mother, and 
King of Tomkins County, have all done remarkably well. I cannot, 
however, speak of Newtown Pippin, as we long since gave up growing 
it as worthless in this country. It does not, however, at all follow 
that it would be wise to plant these varieties extensively ; in fact I 
consider that it would be the greatest folly to do so, as probably another 
generation will pass before we experience a similar season. Therefore, 
let us not be alarmed by the exceptional circumstances of the past 
extraordinary summer, but continue to plant those varieties which 
experience of years has taught us to be the most reliable for giving an 
average crop. 
I quite agree with Mr. Iggulden that we are now in some danger of 
running to the extreme of planting too few varieties. Unfavourable as 
the season has been, and probably disastrous to some growers, yet there 
are many others who have done well. I was looking over some planta¬ 
tions in our county (Sussex) the other day where bush Apples are grown 
in large numbers, and principally of early varieties, and the proprietor 
spoke of being well satisfied with the result of this year’s operations. 
He sent his fruit to market early and realised good prices.— Joseph 
Cheal.J _ 
Newtown Pippin, Sutton Beauty, Peck’s Pleasant, Mother, Meloa, 
Washington, King of Tomkins County, Buckingham, Monmouth Pippin, 
Winter Peach, Wagener are all in good condition, and seem likely to 
keep. English Apples are in very bad condition.—T. Francis Rivers. 
FLORAL NOMENCLATURE — CURIOUS SPELLING OF 
NAMES. 
I CANNOT quite understand on what grounds “ S. W. F.” (page 439) 
bases his criticism of my remarks on this subject (page 399). hIs first 
sentence implies that I had recommended gardeners to make themselves 
acquainted with Latin, Greek, and French, whereas I never even hinted 
at such a thing, knowing how utterly impossible the task would be. 
The greater number of the youths who take to gardening know little or 
nothing of these languages at the time of their leaving school, and 
when they get to work there is not much time left to devote to them 
after the more urgent studies have received attention, even had they 
inclination and capacity for acquiring them. This being so, pronuncia¬ 
tion and spelling will, no doubt, remain faulty, as your correspondent 
remarks, and certainly will this be the case when either are required 
on the “ spur of the momentbut as writing labels for home use or 
to place on exhibits is, or ought to be, undertaken deliberately, I repeat 
there is no necessity whatever that the least mistake in spelling should 
occur, for the simple reason that the reliable guides named in my letter 
are easily procured. 
, With regard to my “ list of errors,” which it appears to “ S. W. F.” 
that most have arisen “ from an endeavour to copy illegible labels,” it 
IS not quite clear whether he means that I or the exhibitors had 
“ endeavoured to copy.” 1, however, carefully copied the card or paper 
labels attached to the exhibits, which labels had doubtless been written 
for the occasion. The exhibitors ought to have copied a good cata¬ 
logue. 
I quite agree with your correspondent that the mastery of these 
long names is one of the gardener’s hardest tasks, and being one of 
them, and not a classical scholar, I can speak from experience. 1 also 
join with him in respecting those who have overcome the attendant 
difficulties ; but the gardener who exhibits such spelling as the speci¬ 
mens I gave at page 399 deserves—well, to have his attention drawn 
to it, for I am convinced that It arises from nothing else than negli¬ 
gence. The careful man who has a doubt will find ways and means to 
satisfy himself about it.—W est Anglia. 
FEEDING FRUIT TREES DURING AUTUMN AND 
WINTER. 
I quite agree with Mr. Dunkin, page 349, that not nearly enough 
attention is paid to the roots of trees after the fruit has been gathered. 
Very often we experience a long spell of dry weather during September 
and October. How can the buds for next year’s supply of fruit be in 
a fit condition to give a full crop of the finest fruit if the roots are not 
supplied with the proper nutriment ? 
Directly the fruit is gathered from any kind of wall tree I have the 
soil for several feet away from the wall thoroughly soaked with clear 
water. All kinds of hardy fruit except Peaches, Nectarines, and Cherries 
receive much benefit from a copious supply of liquid manure during the 
winter. Several Apple trees fifteen years planted produce good crops 
of fruit now that hardly bore at all previous to the stimulant being 
given them. To no other cause do I attribute the improvement in these 
trees, but it is right also to record a failure. 
The soil here is heavy and retentive. The application of liquid 
manure to the roots of Warner’s King Apple during the winter caused 
the fruit the following season to be hollow in the centre. Since we 
ceased giving the winter stimulant we have had no hollow fruit, though 
it is smaller. The fruit perhaps does not attain the same size as previously, 
but it is sound, and that is of more consequence. I do not say the same 
defect would be visible in light soil. If the weather of February is dry 
I usually well soak the soil about the trees then. To a tree of the age 
stated we give not less than 80 gallons of liquid manure direct from the 
farmyard tank. A mere surface watering does little if any good.— 
E. Molyneux, Swanmore Park, HaMs. 
ROYAL METEOROLOGICAL SOCIETY^ 
The first meeting of this Society for the present session was held on 
Wednesday evening the 15th inst., at the Institution of Civil Engineers, 
Great George Street, Westminster, Dr, C. Theodore Williams, President, 
in the chair. Twenty-three new Fellows were elected. 
Mr, F. J. Brodie, F.R.Met.Soc., read a paper on “The Great 
Drought of 1893, and its Attendant Meteorological Phenomena.” The 
author confined his investigation to the weather of the four months 
March to June, during which period the absence of rain was phenomenal ; 
barometric pressure was greatly in excess of the average, temperature 
was high, with a large diurnal range, and the duration of sunshine was 
in many places the longest on record. The mean temperature over 
England was about 4° above the average. Along the south and south¬ 
west coasts the sunshine was between 50 and 60 per cent, of the possible 
duration. The rainfall was less than half the average amount over the 
southern and eastern parts of England, the extreme south of Ireland 
and a portion of Durham and Northumberland, while over the southern 
counties of England generally the fall amounted to less than one-third 
of the average. The smallest number of days with rain was at the North 
Foreland, where there were only eighteen. 
Mr. W. Marriott, F.R.Met.Soc,, gave an account of the “ Thunder 
and Hailstorms ” which occurred over England and the south of Scot¬ 
land on July 8th, 1893, Thunderstorms were very numerous on that 
day, and in many instances were accompanied by terrific hailstorms and 
squalls of wind. It was during one of these squalls that a pleasure boat 
was capsized off Skegness, twenty-nine persons being drowned. About 
noon a thunderstorm, accompanied by heavy hail and a violent squall of 
wind passed over Dumfries and along the valley of the Nith. Many of 
the hailstones measured from 1 inch to U inch in length. At the same 
hour a similar storm occurred at Peterborough, From about 2 until 
10 P.M. there was a succession of thunderstorms over the north-east of 
England and south-east of Scotland, and at many places it was reported 
that the thunderstorms were continuous for nine hours. Two storms 
were remarkable for the immense hailstones which fell during their 
prevalence over Harrogate and Richmond in Yorkshire. The hailstones 
were 4 and 5 inches in circumference, and some as much as 3 inches in 
diameter. Great damage was done by these storms, all windows and 
glass facing the direction from which the storm came being broken. It is 
computed that within a radius of five miles of Harrogate not less than 
100,000 panes of glass were broken, the extent of the damage being 
estimated at about £3000, The thunderstorms in the northern part of 
the country travelled generally in a north-north-westerly direction at 
the rate of about twenty miles an hour. They appear to have taken the 
path of least resistance, and consequently passed over low ground and 
along river valleys and the seacoast. Several storms seem to have 
followed each other along the same track. 
