312 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER, 
Arr:i 11,1895. 
Weather in London.— Doll cloudy weather has chiefly pre¬ 
vailed in the metropolis during the past week. Eain fell heavily 
on Sunday morning last, but, with the exception of slight showers, 
none has fallen since. Tuesday was a splendid day, warm bright 
sunshine prevailing. At the time of going to press the sky was dull, 
but with every appearance of the sun breaking through, raising hopes 
of fine weather for the holidays. 
- The Weather in the North.—U p to the 9th inst. winter 
had not quite departed. On three mornings of the week preceding 
frosts of 5° and 6° were registered, and cold weather had generally 
prevailed. Sunday was clear, with a sharp north wind ; Monday dull 
and chilling. In the evening rain set in, with a high N. W. wind, 
which continued little abated on Tuesday morning.—B. D., S. Perthshire, 
- The Thomson Memorial Fund.—I n consequence of the 
insertion of additional names at a busy moment when preparing for 
press last week some asterisks were omitted from the list on page 297, 
and consequently the members of the English Executive Committee 
were not correctly indicated. These are Messrs. A. F. Barron, Bruce 
Findlay, P. E, Kay, G. Monro, G. Norman, F. Sander, J. Smith, 
K. Tait, Owen Thomas, H. J. Veitch (Chairman), J. G. Veitch (Honorary 
Secretary), H. Williams, and G. Wythes. 
- Picotee-EDGED CINERARIAS. —With the present extensive 
range in colour of the best strains of Cinerarias it would appear difficult 
to find anything new in colour. When looking through Messrs. Sutton’s 
collection at Reading the other day I noticed one plant decidedly edged 
in true Picotee fashion. Each floret constituting the fully rounded 
blossoms of a rosy crimson hue was distinctly edged with white. If this 
type can be maintained (and I see no reason why, as the plant noticed 
was one obtained by careful crossing and selecting), a distinct and 
pleasing break will have been obtained that will add interest to an 
already useful as well as pleasing section of winter-flowering plants.— 
E. Molyneux. 
- Heating by Hot Water.—I was glad to see Mr. W. Taylor’s 
article on page 252 on heating, as I am particularly interested in this 
subject. I should especially like to see more about coating mains with 
asbestos and other mixtures. There must be an enormous waste of heat 
when the mains are not coated with something. What would be the 
cost of coating them per square foot or lineal foot length of pipe, and 
what would be the estimated saving in fuel ? If we were to suppose 
that long lengths of mains cost, say £20 to coat them, would the outlay 
be covered in twelve months in the fuel saved ? It was thought by 
some that the Liverpool boiler contest was a white elephant, but I am 
glad to find that the figures I compiled for the Journal have been 
studied by Mr. Taylor at any rate, and may after all prove useful to 
some. I shall at the first opportunity revert again to Mr. Taylor’s article 
on heating, in which there are some ideas worthy of note and full 
consideration.— W. Bardney. 
- The Charles Collins’ Fund.— A meeting of the Committee 
of the above Fund was held in the Horticultural Club Room, Hotel 
Windsor, Victoria Street, S.W., on Monday, April 8.h, Mr. George 
Gordon occupying the chair. It was reported that the amount received 
was £66 2s. 9d., included in this sum were two subscriptions of a guinea 
and 5s. respectively not yet to hand. The Hon. Secretary read 
a letter from Mrs. Collins stating that she had an opportunity of 
acquiring an old-established and flourishing baby linen and fancy 
business for £83, this sum including cost of fixtures, goodwill, and 
stock. She mentioned that prior to her marriage she had been 
apprenticed to and had some years’ experience in a similar business, and 
felt sure from the thorough investigation which had been made into the 
one offered that it would afford a comfortable livelihood. It was 
unanimously agreed that the sum of £66 2s. 9d. be paid to Mrs. Collins 
for the purpose, and the Treasurer was accordingly authorised to draw 
and forward a cheque for that amount. The Committee also desires to 
thank all who so generously responded to the appeal; and especially 
Mr. H. J. Jones of Lewisham, who gave a second donation of £2 ISs., 
making £6 in all.—T, W. Sanders, Hon, Secretary. 
- Gardening Appointment.— Mr. R. Leech has been appointsd 
head gardener to Mrs. Bickham, Gorsefield, Bowdon, Cheshire. 
- Mr. Theodore Groom, late Scholar of St. John’s College,. 
Cambridge, has been appointed to the Professorship of Natural History,. 
Royal Agricultural College, Cirencester. 
- We learn that Mr. Edward Step, the popular writer on 
botanical subjects, has written a pocket-guide to British wild flowers, 
with coloured illustrations, to be published by Messrs. F. Warne & Co. 
The title of the book will be “ Wayside and Woodland Blossoms.” 
- “ Fine Strawberries,” “ Auguste Nicaise.”—I n the 
gardens at Grimston Park, on April 6 th, a magnificent dish of the above 
Strawberry was gathered. The fruits, twelve in number, weighed 
18ozs. The heaviest fruit weighed over 2 ozs., and the largest measured 
7^ inches in circumference, being of excellent flavour. A finer dish of 
fruit would be difficult to secure.—J. S. 
- Royal Meteorological Society.— At the ordinary meet¬ 
ing of the Society, to be held by permission of the Council of the 
Surveyors’ Institution, at 12, Great George Street, AVestminster, on- 
AVednesday, the 17th inst., at 7.30 p.m., papers will be read by F. Camp¬ 
bell Bayard, LL.M., F.R. Met.Sec., and William Marriott, F.R.Met.Soc.,. 
on “ The Frost of January and February, 1895, over the British Isles.” 
- American Fruit Trade —A New York contemporary says- 
notwithstanding the fact that fresh fruits come across the continent 
from California by the train-load at nearly all seasons of the year, dried' 
and canned fruits are annually exported from the same State in still 
greater quantities. Last year dried and canned fruits equivalent to- 
30,000 car-loads, or 140,000,000 lbs., w’ere distributed throughout the- 
world. 
- Asclepias nivea. —This is a small but healthy and very free 
blooming tender species that thrives admirably out of doors in the summer 
and blooms abundantly after July. Its flowers are white, and although 
small they are numerous and useful for cutting. It likes good soil just 
as well as any other plant, but will also live and bloom well in ground' 
so warm and dry in summer that most other plants would fail in it, and 
we like it on this account, and plant a clump of about fifty plants of 
it every summer. 
- Observations on Current Topics. —“ E. M.” thinks Lady 
Hume CampbellVioletisnot white, as inadvertedly stated bya correspon¬ 
dent, but blue. He also thinks Ivy does produce true roots from the stems- 
and sends a sample. He imagines there is a mistake in the date of 
the Batley Flower Show (November 17th), as that date falls on a 
Sunday. He believes April or May too late for sowing seeds for 
main and late crops of Broccoli as advised by Mr. Iggulden, especially 
if the plants have to be grown in cold heavy soil. He also thinks 
Tomato plants are often too small when planted in the open. His 
plants are now 3 inches high, and will soon be transferred to 5^-inch 
pots for gaining strength by the time of planting. 
- White Violets. —I found through an error arising from the- 
shifting of names that I referred on page 293 to Lady Hume Campbell 
as a double white. Not having seen the variety previously I was not 
aware that it was a pale blue form sent, hence I have to retract. The 
white in question was Swanley AVhite, I am informed ; certainly a very 
fine-flowered variety, and would be very highly esteemed were it also 
more fragrant. As Swanley White seems to be Comte Brazza’s White,, 
we have this section materially reduced ; indeed, this form being much, 
the best, it seems useless to grow any other. AVhen complaints are mado 
with respect to the indifferent flowering it probably results from having 
failed to increase stock by means of the stoutest and most robust 
runners, or of crowns when divided.—A. D. 
- Kale Thousand-head. — Although this is the coarsest 
growing of all the Kales, and in good, deeply worked soil attains 
huge dimensions, yet the plants seem to be exceptionally hardy when 
grown in less rampant form. I have recently seen on the Surrey- 
sand, in an open exposed situation, some remarkably green uninjured 
breadths, and can envy the possessors that they have such promise of 
tender greens immediately, whilst almost everywhere all other winter 
greens are so destroyed. Obviously Thousand-headed Kale should not 
be planted too early, and the plants are preferably grown in rather firm, 
soil, where the usual tendency to excessive leaf growth will be checked, 
and in the most exposed positions. A green Kale that in ordinary 
seasons we are disposed to regard as only fit for cattle, is this year 
indeed a valuable crop.—D. 
