November 19, 1885. ] 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
447 
subject for discussion was Grape-growing, opened by the latter gentleman, 
who detailed his method of cultivating ten varieties of Grapes in one 
house, and showed its success by exhibiting good, well-finished bunches of 
Mrs. Piuce, Madresfield Court, Muscat of Alexandria, Foster’s Seedling, 
Duchess of Buccleuch, Golden Champion, Black Hamburgh, Ac., which 
were (especially Mrs. Pince) pronounced to be excellent. The Secretary 
then gave some account of the Castle Coch vineyards of the Marquis of 
Bute, near Cardiff, and by the courtesy of Mr. Pettigrew, his lordship’s 
»ble gardener, the members were enabled to taste the produce of the vine¬ 
yard, a bottle of the vintage of 18S1 having been sent by him for that 
purpose. It was pronounced excellent, and bore a likeness to a good 
«till champagne. The discussion was continued by Mr. Boscawen and 
others, and the thanks of the members were given to Mr. Balderson for 
his interesting paper, and also to Mr. Pettigrew for his courtesy. It was 
■announced that the discussion for the next meeting would be opened by 
Dr. Masters. 
- We learn that Captain E. S. Bax (late 84th Regiment) has 
been appointed Assistant Secretary to the Royal Horticultural Society, in 
place of Mr. Henry R. Newport. 
-When difficulty is experienced in keeping grass green under 
trees IN open WOODS, particularly Pine woods where shade is cod. 
tinuous the year round, the “ Journal of Forestry ” recommends sowing a 
little nitrate of soda occasionally throughout the growing season when the 
weather is moist. This will bring a fine crop of verdure pleasing to the 
eye and agreeable to cattle. 
-An American contemporary states that during the past season 
■there were put up 48,508,248 cans of Tomatoes in the United States, 
being one-third less than the pack of 1883, the decrease in acreage being 
heaviest in the eastern States. It is said that a farmer in Salem County, 
New Jersey, last season raised 83 tons of Tomatoes on 6 acres of land. 
The crop was sold in the canning establishment for 7 dollars (nearly 
30s.) per ton. 
EARLY TULIPS. 
These merit special attention, as they are easily forced into flowert 
and are more showy than any bulb which blooms in winter. Early 
Roman and other Hyacinths are valuable, particularly on account of their 
delicate colours and delightful fragrance, but for conspicuous show the 
Tulips have merits all their own, and wherever a bright display of flowers 
is desired during the dullest and most cheerless winter weather the early- 
blooming varieties should be grown. They are easily managed, and bloom 
with great certainty. 
The single-flowered sorts are the best for early forcing. They grow 
and expand more freely than the double sorts, and in my opinion they 
are more graceful, especially when in the bud and not fully expanded. 
Our best early varieties are Canary Bird, clear rich yellow ; Bride of 
Haarlem, white striped with crimson; Pottebakker in three colours, 
scarlet, white, and yellow ; Le Matelas, white suffused with bright rose, 
very fine, but not the cheapest. All the Duo Van Thol varieties are 
excellent for early forcing. They are red, crimson, gold, scarlet, rose, 
white, and yellow in colour. The common scarlet, which is exceedingly 
showy, may be bought at 4s. per 100 bulbs, but the white is very much 
dearer. We are very fond of the scarlet, as it is so very showy for floral 
decorations at Christmas. 
I prefer the single flowers for early work, but some may like the 
double ones best, and the best of these are the double Due Van Thol, 
La Precoce ; the two Toumesols, red and yellow ; Imperator Rubrorum, 
and Murillo, which is pale rose and white. When the sole aim of growing 
them is to cut them, the bulbs may be planted in batches in shallow pans 
or boxes, but where they are wanted for decoration in pots these should 
be used of various sizes. We sometimes pot the bulbs singly in 3-inch 
pots, others are placed in threes in 4-inch pots, and more in 5-inch and 
6-inch pots, but no size larger than the last is used, and five or six bulbs 
in these make very pretty groups. The earliest may be potted in October, 
or as soon in November as is practicable. The soil used in potting should 
consist of three parts light loam, the other half-decayed manure and a 
dash of sand. A little drainage must be placed at the bottom of each of 
the pots. They may be filled to the rim loosely with soil, then insert the 
bulbs, and finally press the soil down firmly about them. When potting 
is finished the top of the bulbs should just be visible. When the soil is 
moderately moist no water need be applied, but they should be plunged 
at once under ashes, sawdust, cocoa-nut fibre refuse, or sand to the depth 
of 6 inches or more. Their position then may either be in a cool shed in 
a frame under a wall or out in the open. They must remain plunged 
until the growths are about 2 inches in height, and to attain this they 
must stay under the covering for three or four weeks, and when taken out 
they should be introduced to a temperature of 65° or more. There they 
will soon show the flower buds, and bulbs potted the first week in 
November will be in bloom by Christmas and the new year. The whole 
may be potted at once, plunged together and taken out on the same day, 
if the growths of the different varieties indicate that they are ready for 
this. Successional flowers may be produced by placing a quantity of 
them in cool house or frame, and transferring a number now and again to 
the warmer quarters. The Due Van Thols should be largely grown for 
Christmas decorations.—J. Muir. 
CANKER IN FRUIT TREES. 
In his note under this heading, Mr. Hiam says (page 404) that he 
has thought about it and wiitteu about it until he is tired. I, too, have 
thought about it for over four years, two years of which I spent in a 
situation where every Apple tree on the place was more or less cankered 
and almost barreD, so that the fruit room was filled annually with bought 
fruit. Last year we were able to fill it with “ home-grown,” while this 
year we could sell some surplus. To be brief, my opinion, and it is a 
firm one, is this—Gardeners, as a rule, spoil their fruit trees by too much 
kindness in two ways : first by digging and manuring annually ; secondly, 
by a too frequent use of the knife, commonly called pruning, but which 
in many cases is simply cutting into some shape agreeable to the eye. 
This has more to do with canker than many will admit. 
The remedies used here were not in any way elaborate. Lifting and 
root-pruning were adopted in most cases, in others all cankered wood was 
cut out carefully, the latter and syringing with petroleum mixture being 
purely out of respect to Mr. Hiam’s insect theory. Might I be allowed to 
“ blow my horn ” I would say that if given healthy trees to start with 
(healthy trees should have stock and scion of an equal growth without 
rupture or blister) a moderately firm soil with good drainage, the roots 
being kept to the surface by mulching, and I venture to predict that 
canker would be a thing of the past.—C. L. Ritchie, Redhills House, 
Belturbet, Cavan, Ireland. 
CHRYSANTHEMUMS LA PURETE AND MDLLE. LACROIX. 
While perusing the interesting series of articles entitled “ Amongst 
the Chrysanthemums ” in the Journal of Horticulture for the 5th 
of November I was no doubt, in common with many other readers, struck 
with the curious coincidence concerning Mdlle. Lacroix and La Purete. 
The former, or more accurately speaking a variety bearing that name, 
is in my collection, and a few weeks ago I was impressed very forcibly 
with the great resemblance that Mr. Owen’s variety La Purely bore to it. 
This was at a recent floral committee meeting of the N.C.S., and the 
decision they arrived at that the two were identical did not surprise me 
when reported in a contemporary journal. 
It now appears that there is abundant evidence that the Chysan- 
themums bearing the two names are everywhere proving to he the same 
thing, although both names have been recorded on the certificates granted 
to the flower. This fortunately is not of so frequent occurrence as might 
be the case, and there is probably no one flower except that with which I 
am now dealing that has been certificated so many times under two 
different names. 
Last year we had almost a parallel instance in the case of Jeanne d’Arc 
and Mdlle. Madeleine Tezier, the former of which, however, had happily 
received a certificate aright, although it was also discovered under the 
latter name. But these two varieties were subsequently found to be dis¬ 
tinct, and so I venture to believe will those which properly bear the 
names of La Puret6 and Mdlle. Lacroix. 
As in cultivation in this country, there is, as previously said, but little 
doubt that one flower passes under two names, and the question to be de¬ 
cided is, What is the proper name to be applied to it ? 
These varieties, La Puretd and Mdlle. Lacroix, were raised by a 
grower whose name is not familiar to any great extent in this country, 
and were distributed by him as far back as 1882, if not two years before. 
The descriptions given in his list of novelties suggest the idea of two different 
coloured flowers, and it can hardly be imagined that any man would send 
out in the same set one fluwer under two names and with different de¬ 
scriptions. I do not of course say such is an impossibility, but still, 
prudence would certainly not commend a proceeding of this kind. 
As far as I know few English nurserymen deal direct with the grower 
referred to, and in this fact lies the whole of the mystery, according to 
my way of thinking. Had La Puretd and Mdlle. Lacroix been obtained 
in the first instance from the fountain head the first would, there is every 
reason to assume, have proved to be the white variety we now have, and 
the other would have been a flower of a rosy hue. 
My belief is merely founded upon catalogue information, and is 
naturally put forward with the hesitation that such meagre information 
supplies, but in substantiation of this one of my correspondents in France, 
a large and able grower, gives the two as distinct varieties. Some 
readers may be interested in having the original description, which I 
append hereto. 
“ La Purete. —Japonaise ; fleur enorme a longs petales diversas, 
tuyautds d’une blancheur incomparable unique dans les Japonaises (extra 
belle). 
“ Mdile. Lacroix.—J aponaise ; fleur de toute grandeur, d’un blanc 
rosd, passant an blanc pur (superbe).”—G. Harman Payne. 
GRAPES—JOHN DOWNIE v. ALNWICK SEEDLING. 
As Mr. Dunn and Mr. Downie have apparently deemed it unnecessary 
to give any reply to my question upon the above Grapes, theiefore it is 
with some reluctance that I again revert to the subject. In the first place 
I wish it to be clearly understood that I impute no unworthy motive to 
either gentleman, everyone who, like myself, have the pleasure of their 
