23G 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
Marck 29,1834. 
my crop from a plot of ground of similar dimensions was almost 
annihilated. I pondered deeply over that article. I should bo 
pleased if Mr. Chinnery would oblige by stating the routine he 
would adopt if he were circumstanced as growers are in this district. 
His advice could not fail being valuable.—J. J. Craven, Allerton 
Fr/ory Gardens, Liverpool. _ 
I HAVE not been much troubled with Onion maggot, and conse¬ 
quently have never made any special preparation of the ground in 
anticipation of it, but twice with an interval of three or four years 
when the plants were 3 or 4 inches high, I found them very badly 
attacked I instructed my gardener to saturate silver sand with 
petroleum, and to strew the mixture treely along the lines of the 
Onion plants, with the result that the disease was checked at once, 
tbe plants assumed perfectly healthy form, and on each occasion 
the ultimate crop was quite equal to the average. Of course, 
peti oleum was the active agent, and any friable dry soil might take 
the place of the silver sand.—E. Tonks. 
Being a defeated cultivator of Onions and Carrots through the 
ravages of the maggot, which neither soot nor petroleum nor late 
sowing will prevenc, so far as my experience goes, I did not mean to 
give evidence, but to hear it. Having read some of it, I desire to 
record a haphazard success. In the spring of 1892, owing to the 
previous cold and wet summer, my Strawberry plants were not so 
robust as they usually are the spring afte' planting, so I resolved 
to have a line of Onions between the rows. The seeds were sown 
under favourable conditions. The main crop was delayed several 
days through rain coming, and ultimately the seeds were sown 
under very unfavourable circumstances. Although but a few days 
elapsed between the sowings, which were only a short distance 
apart, the early so wn Onions were ahead of the latter the whole 
season, and did not present a single bad bulb, while the latter had 
scarcely a sound one. This, I think, goes far to corroborate 
reliable evidence, and urges Onion growers to have two sowings, 
one early and the other late, and if the latter are swarming with 
maggots destroy them.—W. T. 
Your correspondent, “ W. K. W.” (page 198), seems to jump at 
the conclusion that he is the lecturer to whom I referred on 
page 159. Of course whether be is or not I am not in a position to 
say ; but be must have misunderstood the true aim of my appeal, 
and also the spirit with which I referred to the lecturer. He is 
certainly under a delusion when he refers to me as the person who 
asked “ the very foolish question, with the object of raising a 
laugh at his expense,” as during the lecture alluded to I never 
uttered a word. He also mistakes the meaning of the little joke 
about the “Professor” with the long names, as I wrote with the 
object of showing more clearly that, with regard to all difficulties, 
whether from pests or diseases, the great object to be aimed at was 
the cure, or to make my meaning plain, something that by a 
judicious application at certain seasons would ultimately thoroughly 
eradicate the pest. 
So far from any desire to ridicule the lecturer I may add that 
his lecture was very plain and interesting, and the principal points 
referred to by him all tended to show that good cultivation is one 
of the main roads to success with everything. But the lecturer 
did not say that he had any remedy that would really destroy the 
Onion maggot, only to prevent it attacking the crop; and knowing 
him to be a thoroughly practical man, I came to the conclusion 
that if anything definite on the subject had come before the public 
he would have mentioned it. I think that “ W. K. W.” will agree 
with me that my appeal has elicited some very valuable informa¬ 
tion on a very important subject, and I hope hundreds of readers 
may be benefited by it and as deeply interested as myself, and then 
I shall feel that “ the very foolish question ” was not asked in 
vain.—W. S. E. 
TIMELY HINTS ABOUT SPRING BEDDING. 
Si’RiNG-ELOWERiNG plants are now fast unfolding their beauty, 
and will continue to increase in attractiveness during the next two 
months. Tne flowers of Snowdrops and Crocuses have once more 
faded, and left fresh green masses of leaves behind ; but these 
early harbingers of springtime, whose bright beauty is always 
missed, are so quickly followed by a variety of other flowers that 
we speedily cease to lament their lo^s, while admiring the varied 
beauties of the attractive blossoms which succeed them. 
Scillas and Chionodoxas are now giving attractive lines or masses 
of rich colour. I find them extremely effective for planting closely 
in small beds, where they can be left undisturbed. I place the 
bulbs about 4 inches deep. During the summer these beds are 
filled with Musk, Lobelia, or some other dwarf-growing plant 
which does not necessitate very deep digging. By giving a good 
coating of well-decayed manure during the autumn the bulbous 
plants may be left undisturbed for years—in fact, till they have 
become so crowded as to require more room for development. The 
earlier kinds of Hyacinths are also beginning to open their flowers, 
and so are the French Anemones, both double and single varieties 
being extremely effective. 
The plants already treated of are excellent for a detached 
group of beds, as they flower within a short time of each other, 
make a distinct feature, and do not intefere with the arrangement 
of the main portion of the flower garden, which is expected to be 
at its best by the end of April. Suitable plants for providing a 
display about that time are Aubrietias Leichtlini and Ficebelli, 
Arabises alpina and alpina variegata, Myosotises in variety. Wall¬ 
flowers, Polyanthuses, Cerastium tomentosum, Alyssum saxatile, 
Daisies and Violas. I have several beds edged with Sedum acre 
aureum, which looks extremely attractive with its golden tipped 
stems and leaves throughout April. Silene pendula, edged with 
white Viola Marchioness of Tweeddale, makes a splendid bed by 
the first week in May. 
I have the above named plants in flower simultaneously. A 
good deal of attention is required from the present time onwards. 
When the soil is fairly dry upon the surface the beds should 
be gone over and have the soil pressed firmly around the 
plants, making good any vacancies which occur, finishing by 
stirring the surface with a Dutch hoe. This hoeing should if 
possible be repeated each week, as nothing tends so much to 
forward the flowering time as this cultural operation, which admits 
the warmth of sunshine into the comparatively cold ground, and 
thus sets the forces in motion which Nature has provided for 
stimulating the growth, which is considerably retarded in springtime 
through lack of warmth in the soil. It is also necessary to have 
the beds furnished as evenly as possible, and any plants, therefore, 
that show signs of growing weakly should receive assistance by 
applications of liquid manure, or a little soot strewn between them 
in showery weather. Timely attentions to such details as these 
leave the unmistakeable mark of finish upon the beds so treated 
when the plants are in flower.— H. Dunkin. 
PROPOSITIONS ON FRUIT. 
Mr. George Cole of Canterbury, a diligent advocate of ex¬ 
tended fruit culture on enriched soil, and also of improved methods 
of packing, sends us seven propositions. Our correspondent’s 
desire is most commendable, and he enforces his views with great 
ability in various newspapers, appearing always ready for a tilt 
with objectors to his propositions. He wishes (1) to feed the 
soil with whatever manures may be available, as he knows that 
much fruit-growing matter is wasted while land is starving; 
(2) he wishes to have the fullest and best possible supply of home¬ 
grown fruit; and (3) he desires that it shall be sorted and packed 
in a manner to tempt instead of repel purchasers, as is the case 
with vast quantities of fruit bundled into the markets. The pro¬ 
positions are as follow ;— 
1, No Apples in the world are equal to English Apples properly 
grown in an average season, and our other fruit—namely, soft 
fruit, is as good as can be grown in any country in the world. 
2, A great deal of our fruit is gathered unripe so as to allow 
it to stand five or six times “ handling,” and shooting from one 
basket, or measure, or scales into another, and finally into a paper 
bag—for instance, Ked Currants. It is not a quarter so well 
packed as is fruit from abroad. 
3, That the quantity of fruit now eaten in England is nearly 
double that eaten fifteen years ago, and might be doubled again in 
six more years. 
4, That we could grow all the hardy fruit we need by utilising 
London and other town manure, which can often be had “ for 
fetching away.” Corn can be imported in sacks from any distance, 
fruit cannot. 
5, That every family which now affords to have butter or 
cheese or bacon for breakfast ought to have, and would like to 
have, a quart of good, well-ripened fruit on their table daily for 
eight months in the year, but they do not have it because it is 
so difficult to get good, clean, sound, and fresh at a fair price. 
Whereas anywhere, and at any time, we can get tinned American 
fruit, dried American or Normandy Apples, bottled French Plums, 
and dried or preserved Carlsbad Plums, in attractive packages. 
6 , The railways bring up a ship’s cargo of foreign fruit in ha’f 
the time to London and other towns—say, from Portsmouth, 
Southampton, or Folkestone—that they will convey soft fruit from 
Kent. For instance, Canterbury Strawberries must be “ on rail ” 
