886 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
[ April 27, 1893. 
- DESTROYixa Insects at Toddington.—F arther experimenti 
with the Stott appliances were conducted at Toddington on Saturday 
last, and we are informed they were in all respects satisfactory. A 
large number of fruit growers assembled on the occasion. 
- Spring Flowers in Hyde Park, — The spring bulbs in 
Hyde Park have been flowering magnificently, but many of them are 
now rather past their prime. This, at any rate, is the case on the 
eastern side of the Park. The Narcissi are gone, and so are the Hyacinths. 
Many of them, indeed, have been already cleared away to make room for 
summer bedding plants. “ Not for ten years,” says Mr. Browne, the Park 
Superintendent, “ have our bulbs been so forward as they are this year. 
Ten years ago they were past their best by the 7th of April, but we 
have never had them so forward since." 
- The Young Gardeners op Falkirk and their Half- 
holiday. —If the head gardener who does not appear in favour of a 
half-holiday for his assistant gardeners lives within the radius that is 
embraced by the Falkirk and District Association, he would see by the 
circular sent out by the Association that he would not be required to do 
the necessary work, as the circular suggested that one of the assistants 
be left on duty to attend to airing and watering, or any necessary work. 
I hope he will now do all in his power to assist in furthering the 
Improvement Association, as he thinks it is time one was formed in 
Falkirk, if he can see his way to do so. Since my last letter another of 
the leading proprietors in the district has granted the half-holiday, and 
I hope it will not be long before all assistant gardeners will enjoy the 
same benefit.—A. G. 
- Saturday Half-Holiday.—A s gardeners have to keep up 
with the times in their work, it is not surprising they should also want 
to do likewise as regards holidays. For several years our men have 
left off at four o’clock on Saturdays ; but this is too early in the middle 
of summer for closing many of the houses. What do the young men 
intend to do with the houses when they leave off at dinner time ?—shut 
them up or leave them open till Monday ? As Saturday is the busiest 
day, if they are to have a holiday, why not have it in the middle of the 
week or once a fortnight? Then half of the men could go each week, 
or a whole season’s growth may be destroyed by one of these half¬ 
holidays.—J. L. B. 
- Weather Reports.— 1 have great pleasure in replying to ; 
Mr. Easter’s questions on page S15, but am not certain that I under¬ 
stand them rightly, unless the word “ gross ” has by some means been 
substituted for grass. The thermometers here are hung in a Stevenson 
screen at 4 feet above the surface of the ground. They have been 
tested and certificated at Kew, and are periodically examined as to 
their correctness by an officer of the Meteorological Society, who visits 
the principal stations for the purpose. All the mean maximum and 
minimum observations sent by me to the Journal are taken from these 
two thermometers, also the mean temperature of the various months. 
The grass thermometer is placed in a position fully exposed to the sky 
near to the Stevenson screen. It rests on a piece of turf, and the word 
“ grass” is always added to all observations recorded from this instru¬ 
ment.—W. H. Ketton Mall Gardens, Stamford. 
- Awards for English Exhibits at Ghent.—A t the Ghent 
Quinquennial Show last week Messrs. Foster & Pearson, Limited, were 
awarded first prize, a gold medal, for the “ Beeston ” greenhouse heated 
with the “ Beeston ” boiler, also a silver medal for a span-roof frame. 
The roof lights of the greenhouse slide up and down, and are secured 
by a very simple arrangement at intervals of 3 inches, so that they 
cannot be lifted by the wind. The side lights are fast, and side ventila¬ 
tion is here given by the registered iron ventilators placed under the 
sill, so that the air is warmed by passing over the pipes as it enters the 
house. One door is provided for each house unless otherwise ordered. 
The lights can be at once removed if necessary to expose the contents 
of the house. The iron rafters which span from sill to sill give the 
“ Beeston ” houses great strength, and there is no danger of sides or 
roof giving way after a few years’ wear. Messrs. J. Veitch & Sons were 
awarded a silver-gilt medal for a splendid collection of their world- 
famed Amaryllises, and Messrs. F. Sander & Co. secured a gold medal for 
six new plants. Messrs. W. Cutbush & Sons, Highgate, as we mentioned 
last week, were represented by an extensive group of hardwood plants. 
The Veitch Memorial prize for the best hybrid plant in the Exhibition 
was awarded to M. Mar^chal, Liege, for Vriesia brachystachys major, a 
form having an inflorescence of greater length than the type. 
- Lime Juice. —As indicating the demand for this wholesome 
product we are informed that the “Hilda” has just arrived in the 
Mersey from Montserrat, West Indies, with 50,000 gallons, being the 
first arrival of new season’s juice. This vessel is now regularly engaged 
in bringing over Montserrat lime juice, whieh is consigned solely te 
Messrs. Evans, Sons & Co., Liverpool. 
- Gardening Appointments. —Mr. William Poole, for the last 
three years foreman at Ncstell Priory Gardens, Wakefield, has been 
appointed head gardener to General Marsack, Elstead Lodge, Godaiming. 
Mr. Frederick Tapper, foreman at The Gardens, Rangemore, Burton-on- 
Trent, has been appointed gardener to Lady Scott, Sundridge Park, near 
Bromley, Kent. 
-Winchester and District Gardeners’ Mutual Im¬ 
provement Association. — The Committee of above Association 
have arranged for a practical test of the value of the so-called 
preventives of the Potato disease to be held the present season, 
the application of the remedies to be given before such of the 
members as care to be present. This is a very good idea, and worthy 
of consideration by other societies in other districts. 
- Outdoor Auriculas.—A s evidence of the diverse nature and 
earliness of the season as compared with the average of preceding 
spring.^, I may mention that outdoors it was a most unusual thing to 
have Alpine or laced Auriculas in bloom at Bedfont, when I lived there, 
in the middle of April. When I looked in at the seed growers last 
week I found hundreds of plants not merely in full bloom, but some 
were apparently getting rather past their best. Under ordinary condi¬ 
tions, even in cool houses and frames, it seldom happened that plants 
were at their best by the Auricula Show.—A. D. 
-Horticulture in Surrey.—M r. A. Dean, who with Mr. 
Luckhurst and Mr. W. P. Wright, has been assisting Mr. J. Wright in 
delivering lectures on horticulture in Surrey under the auspices of the 
County Council Technical Education Committee, gave the last of the 
winter course at Leatherhead on Tuesday last week, taking for his 
theme, by special desire, “Hardy Perennials,” dealing with this 
popular section of garden flowers, from Christmas Roses to Michaelmas 
Daisies. The lecture was admirably illustrated by a beautiful show of hardy 
flowers kindly furnished by Messrs. Barr & Son from their Long Ditton 
grounds, also many bunches of charming varieties brought by Mr. Peters, 
(gardener to H. P. Sturgis, Esq.) and Mr. Mease (gardener to A. Tate, Esq.), 
Leatherhead. It need hardly be said that, whilst greatly assisting the 
lecture, these flowers were also keenly inspected at the close by the 
audience, whilst practical topics, such as vegetables, divided into re¬ 
spective sections and dealt with fully, and fruits in the same way, have 
proved exceedingly interesting. Flowers have hosts of admirers, and any 
talk concerning them is always followed with the liveliest satisfaction. 
- Fibrous Roots.—W e find a surprising want of knowledge as 
to what is a fibrous root. Really a fibre, as technically understood, is 
not a root any more than a leaf is a branch of a tree. Roots, to be sure, 
are formed out of fibres, and when a tree has a number of small roots 
it is not uncommon to say that it has an abundance of fibres. Fibres 
are the small white, thread-like that are principally engaged during the 
growing season in gathering and collecting food for the plants, just as 
leaves do the same work for the branches. Towards the end of the year 
nearly all these fibres die ; only a very few that are present live over 
until the next season. They are not roots. If, however, one lives over, 
it eventually becomes a root. Fibres, as thus limited, are of no sort of 
benefit to a tree in transplanting. What is needed is an abundance of 
healthy, vigorous, one or two-year-old roots. Sometimes people say that 
in order to transplant a tree successfully it is well to dig around it one 
year, first cutting off the main roots, and in this way getting a number 
of “ fibres ” for the next year. It is in this sense that the word tends to 
mislead. Fibres are not thrown out when these larger roots are cut but 
small roots. One cannot have too many of these small one or two-year- 
old roots in transplanting. They are full of life and vigour, and aid 
materially in supporting a plant. But fibres, as limited in their 
definition in this paragraph, are of absolutely no consequence, and in 
many respects are rather an injury than a benefit. We have known 
evergreen trees moved with what were supposed magnificent roots—that 
is to say, there were thousands of real annual fibres—and yet die after¬ 
wards, no one seeming to understand why it should be so ; but the trouble 
is that this large mass of sponge-like threads prevents the earth from 
coming into contact with the large roots, and then they are far more of 
an injury than a benefit.— (^Meehan's Monthly.') 
