August 25, 1892. ] 
169 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
Maidenhead Show. —With reference to your remarks in 
iast week s issue concerning the staging arrangements for groups at 
"this Show, I, as an exhibitor, heartily endorse them, for with me, and I 
■believe with most of the exhibitors, the plan adopted has been most 
■severely criticised, it being not one-half so popular or effective as the 
■ordinary general way of grouping. Besides this, the accounts for last 
year’s expenses include “ £23 for staging, carting of same, &c. a 
■sum, almost the whole of which is, in my opinion, really wasted, and 
which might be much better utilised either in giving extra prizes 
or in maintaining the old ones, for I notice this year a dropping off 
in the value of the prizes in certain classes. I trust the Committee 
will take note of your comments, and that beforo another show is 
held we shall see Maidenhead as much “up to the times” in effective 
arrangements as it certainly is in the quality of the exhibits.— 
Exhibitor. 
Tomato Challenger. —Yet another new Tomato, although 
siot so new, as it received honourable mention at the Guildhall Fruit 
•Show, and the variety is being sent out by Messrs. Hurst & Sons. Mr. 
Arthur Collins (Collins & Gabriel) invited me some six weeks ago to go 
and see this Tomato growing in their houses at Hampton. I could not 
get there until a few days since. There is some sense in going to see a 
variety that is represented by about 3000 plants, all in abundant fruit, 
fillling house after house, for there are two houses 124 feet long and 
12 feet wide, quite full of plants, trained up the roof, and in the centre 
bed, and some five or six shorter houses full also. This Tomato is 
a splendid cropper; the fruits are produced in clusters all up the stems 
They are both deep and round, of rich colour, and literally a Plum with 
•the breadth of an Apple, indeed the deepest, and for its size heaviest 
fruit. I have seen. It also has capital ilavour. For market purposes 
■Challenger could hardly bo excelled, as it is just the size to suit the 
market taste, for large fruits will not do at all.—A. D. 
- Growing Many Varieties op Strawberries.—T here are 
other reasons for growing many varieties of Strawberries than those 
stated by the Editor on pages 1)9-100. Strawberries are so much the 
children of circumstances that we cannot depend on any variety giving 
a satisfactory crop every year. Early bloomers may be destroyed by 
frost or stormy weather, while all varieties are liable to be destroyed 
by heavy and continuous rains. One season may give us a heavy crop 
ol earlies, while the late and intermediate varieties may be destroyed. 
Some Strawberries grow and yield large crops with careless cultivation, 
while others will not bear well unless with the greatest care in all the 
■details of culture. 1 believo this care, or carelessness, as the case may 
be, has more to do with the result of a crop or no crop than favourable 
or unfavourable soil or locality. I have grown a hundred varieties of 
Strawberries at one time beside seedlings, and the foregoing are my 
impressions. There is another important thing in connection with 
Strawberry growing. Stout fruitstalks that stand erect and, as some 
say, carry the fruit abovo tho soil, are desirable, but 1 doubt their 
existence, as all Strawberries come to tho ground with a heavy crop. 
Short fruitstalks beneath heavy and healthy foliage escape frosts, the 
erect ones do not.—VV. T. 
- IIuyton and Roby—with Whiston—Horticultural 
Society. —The IIuyton and Roby Horticultural Society, which at one 
time was one of the leading societies in tho Liverpool district, but which 
has been abandoned for a number of years, is about to enter upon a new 
lease of usefulness by holding a Chrysanthemum, plant, and fruit Show 
on Nov. 12th. Recognising tho valuablo work done by tho cottagers, it 
is including tho important colliery district of Whiston, where cottage 
gardening is carried out in an excellent manner, and has been promoted 
for tho purpose of stimulating still further tho growth of flowers, fruits, 
and vegetables, and more especially for the encouragement of cottage 
gardening and the cultivation of allotment gardens. It is not intended 
to Interfere with any other society ; the date of exhibition and all other 
arrangements are iixed so as not to clash with any local Show. Coming 
to the work of electing olfleors and making all necessary arrangements, 
tho Committee do not contemplate holding an outdoor Exhibition this 
year, but prizes will be awarded to those cottagers having tho best kept 
vegetable garden and the best kept mixed garden, the work of judging 
being comment d on Aug. 22nd. About £50 will be awarded at the 
autumn Show, there being good prizes for Chrysanthemums in pots, 
miscellaneous plants, and fruit, both for professional gardeners, amateurs, 
and cottagers. The principal class is for twenty.four blooms, distinct, 
twelve Japanese and twelve incurved. In addition there are special 
prizes—for ladies only—for vases or epergno decorations. Lord Derby 
has kindly promised to become President. In addition there is an excel¬ 
lent list of patrons. Geo. G. Musson, Esq., Holly House, Roby, is an 
ideal Chairman ; J. G. Kitchen, Esq., Fernwood, IIuyton, and Henry 
Middleliurst, Esq., Sandficld, Archway Road, Roby, are Hon. Treasurers ; 
and an excellent Secretary has been found in Mr. J. Taaffe, Bay Tree 
Cottage, Roby. A strong Committee has also been secured, and the 
Huy ton and Roby Show promises to occupy once again a foremost 
position.—R. P. R. 
- Outdoor Early Peaches.—T hese have been wonderfully 
good this season. On the 25th of July we gathered the first fruit of 
Alexander from a south wall, and five days later from a tree growing 
against a west wall, both two-years-planted trees. The former gave us 
five dozen medium sized highly coloured fruits; indeed, the manner in 
which they coloured was a surprise, as the weather was none too bright. 
The flavour of this variety is only second-class, but being so early this is 
not considered so great a drawback as it would be otherwise. On 
August 3rd we gathered Early Louise from a south wall, and Hale’s 
Early the following day from a similar position. The former wa 3 of 
good size and highly coloured and of much better flavour than Alexander. 
I consider this one of the best early Peaches for outdoors. Hale’s Early 
is the best in quality of the three ; the fruit swells to a good size and is 
exceptionally well coloured ; in fact, with us it puts on intense colour, 
more than any variety, except, perhaps, Bellegarde, which is now fast 
approaching the ripening stage. Waterloo is said to be the best of tho 
early varieties. I hope to prove it next season ; one tree of this sort has 
not yet arrived at a fruiting stage.—E. Molyneux. 
-A Scottish Show Dispute.—A n unfortunate dispute has 
arisen between Messrs. Cocker &c Son, the well-known Aberdeen Rose 
growers, and the Committee of the Royal Horticultural Society of 
Aberdeen. Disapproving of a new departure in the policy of the 
Society Mr. Cocker, sen., who had been one of the directors, resigned 
and intimated the withdrawal of his usual contribution towards the 
expenses of the Show. Thereupon the Committee refused to accept an 
exhibit from Messrs. Cocker & Son at their show. The firm brought an 
action against them to compel them to do so, but it was shown that a 
rule existed that all exhibitors must be members and pay their sub¬ 
scriptions by August 1st. The fact of Messrs. Cocker & Co. not having 
paid their membership subscription by that date caused the verdict to 
go against the pursuers. It would be foolish to presume that Messrs. 
Cocker & Son did not intend to pay their subscription ; as a matter of 
fact they offered it a few days later, but it was then refused, and it 
appears clear that the Committee took shelter in a technicality. We 
agree with the Sheriff that it was a pity such a case should have been 
taken into court. 
- Fruit Prospects in Bedfordshire.— Duchess of Olden¬ 
burg, Kerry and Wykcn Pippin, also Court-Pendfl-Plat Apples, taken 
as a whole, are about half a crop ; Blenheim Orange, Fearn’s Pippin, 
Jolly Beggar, and Schoolmaster are carrying good crops ; Lord Suffield 
and the Codlin type are cropping well. Pears as bush trees are 
very thin of fruit, except Louise Bonne of Jersey, Bon Chr&tien 
(Williams’), and Beurr<S Clairgeau ; but on walls they are better. Plums 
generally are a very thin crop, Victoria being the best ; but on walls 
Rivers’ Early Prolific and other culinary kinds, and also Green Gages, 
are carrying fairly good crops. Apricots are thin generally. Peaches 
and Nectarines on unprotected walls are carrying full crops, but they 
are ripening later than usual, and the fruit is rather smaller, owing no 
doubt to the cold and cloudy weather in July. Cherries are not much 
grown ; they are about half a crop, rather small. Walnuts and Filberts 
are generally good. Bush fruit—including Gooseberries, Currants, and 
Raspberries—arc plentiful. Gooseberries and Currants have been very 
much infested with the caterpillar, which has given us much trouble to 
keep under ; the bushes were so bad that we had them well sprayed 
with the garden engine, using clean water, following quickly with a 
rather strong dressing of soot and lime under the bushes, giving a good 
dusting round the stems, so as to prevent them crawling up again ; this 
plan seemed to effectually destroy them. Strawberries have been good 
and plentiful; Laxcon’s Noble was the first to ripen on the 9th of June 
in a very open and exposed situation, finishing the first week in August 
with Oxonian and Laxton’s Latest of All, the latter a very good Straw¬ 
berry of tho British Queen type and flavour ; A. F. Barron, Jas. Veitch, 
and Laxton’s Commander (this variety has very strong flower stalks, 
supporting tho fruit well above the ground). I have no outside experi¬ 
ence of John Buskin, but it is a good forcer.—G. R. ALLIS, Old 
Warden Parle, Biggleswade, Beds. 
