Ootober 3, 1989. ] 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
283 
the trees within bounds ; but some are guilty of worse than 
neglect, as they do not allow to a tree sufficient room to grow 
without disturbance. They know that a Cabbage requires a certain 
space for its proper growth, and do not dig or plant within that 
space ; but they do not apply this knowledge to a fruit tree, but 
■dig and crop up to its trunk, more especially on the borders of 
wall fruit trees, as they rely on these borders for their best and 
■earliest vegetables. 
The case of wall trees and espaliers is worse even than that of 
-standards, as the extension of the boughs of the latter generally 
insures to them some limited space in which the surface roots are 
undisturbed. Nothing will compensate for destruction of surface 
roots, but the double-cropping of the ground renders it doubly 
necessary to supply by some means the deficiency of moisture and 
food caused thereby. Probably there is no plan more effective 
■than that recommended by Mr. Wright; it will minimise the injury 
•of double-cropping, and with reference to the trees which are 
allowed to grow naturally without interference with their surface 
roots, it will supply them with means of developing more perfectly 
both their growth and their fruit. 
The food for fruit trees in any soil has its limit, which is sooner 
Teached in the less favoured districts ; but before that limit is 
reached there is a period during which the soil contains less than is 
required for healthy growth, when the trees gradually become 
diseased and the fruit scrubby ; for this condition an artificial 
supply of food is the only remedy. Liquid manure combines 
both food and moisture, and its application in winter is more 
practical and effective. Practical because the ordinary work of the 
season does not interfere with the application being made thoroughly ; 
and effective, because it lays up in the ground a store of food on 
which the tree may draw for its first and most important growth.— 
Edmund Tonks. 
P.S.—As the following extract from a most instructive report 
on “ Fifty Years of Fruit Growth,” by Charles Whitehead, in the 
forty-ninth number of the “ Journal of the Royal Agricultural 
Society,” read by me after I had written the above, bears on the 
subject, I venture to quote it. “ In the description of fruit pro¬ 
duction in Kent it was remarked that growers had discovered that 
Cherry orchards require manure from time to time and were now in 
the habit of supplying this. This applies to other fruit orchards and 
to other fruit plantations to which manure is now in many 
instances most liberally applied. There are still growers in the 
cider-making counties who do not believe that the Apple and Pear 
trees require any assistance whatever. Generally speaking there 
has been a wonderful advance in this direction, which should be 
especially noted as constituting an element, and by no means an 
unimportant element, in the progress of fruit farming. It has 
been found that the progress of canker is stayed by plentiful 
manurings, and other disorders to which fruit trees are liable are 
checked by liberal treatment.” 
DESFONTAINEA SPINOSA. 
It is much t.o be regretted that in a great many public ornamental 
grounds care has not been taken to introduce our choice shrubs in 
larger numbers. Cemeteries give scope for a greater variety of shrubs 
than are often found there, and it has frequently occurred to me that 
no better place could be chosen for them, for many of the visitors need 
something that will interest and not offend them, and a more fitting 
object could not be found than a shrub with which the visitor is 
perhaps not acquainted. Laurels, Laurustinus, Lilacs, and the like, 
good and indispensable as they are, need not be the only shrubs planted, 
there being many others known and cultivated long ago that are far 
from being common even now. It is but seldom that the Phillyreas are 
met with, and no finer shrubs are grown than some of them ; they 
always look well, and sometimes, when loaded with berries, are quite 
handsome. The glossy-leaved Alaternus is equally ornamental. 
Desfontainea spinosa is a shrub in many respects resembling the 
Hody, only instead of being ornamented with berries, red or yellow in 
winter, it presents us in summer with an abundance of handsome 
orange-coloured flowers, resembling those of Lapageria rosea. The 
plant, I believe, is perfectly hardy, but ought to be classed amongst 
those flourishing in peat soil, more so, I think, than the Magnolia and 
some other plants. It is, nevertheless, more accommodating than some 
of them, and is well adapted for a low wall ; but here a plant on the 
open lawn flowered most profusely during the past summer, no doubt 
stimulated to this by the weather of the previous year. With us 
the plant is not fast-growing, but this I attribute to the lack of 
peaty matter in the soil, as I have seen it elsewhere grow more freely. 
To those who have not seen its fine, orange-coloured, tubular flowers, 
and who have a favourable position for a plant of moderate growth, I 
would say, Obtain one of this, and the first appearance of its blossoms 
will be an amp'e reward for any trouble that may be taken. 
I believe it likes a dry situation, but I am not sure of this ; still, as 
for plants of doubtful hardiness such a position is the safest, we must 
4ake it for granted as being the best for the Desfontainea, until perhaps 
someone finds out that one quite the contrary is better. Those places 
where I have seen it succeed were dry and sheltered from the coldest 
winds.—J. R. 
THE FRUITERERS’ COMPANY AT THE MANSION 
HOUSE. 
On Wednesday evening, September 25th, at the Mansion Houso, 
the Lord Mayor entertained the Master and members of the Fruiterers’ 
Company, and also the members of the General Purposes Committee of 
the City Corporation. Before the dinner the usual presentation of 
fruit was made to the Lord Mayor. The fruit, the very finest specimens 
of English produce, chiefly comprised Pine Apples, black and white 
Grapes, Apples, Pears, Peaches, and Nectarines, and was artistically 
arranged on tables in one of the small drawing rooms. 
Mr. R. S. Mason, Master of the Fruiterers’ Company, addressing 
the Lord Mayor in the presence of the guests who arrived early, said 
that, in accordance with the ancient custom, the Company had the 
honour to present to the Lord Mayor the annual specimens of fruit. 
This year, in accordance with the wish of the Lord Mayor, the specimens 
were entirely of English growth. The Company desired through him 
to express the appreciation they felt of the interest the Lord Mayor 
took in promoting the better cultivation of choice and hardy fruit. 
Referring to the part the Lord Mayor had recently taken in successfully 
settling a labour question, he said that if the cultivation of fruit and 
vegetables were carried on in this country to the extent that it might 
be, the congestion of the labour market in the great towns would be 
very considerably reduced. 
The Lord Mayor, in acknowledging the presentation, said he had 
made it known that he should prefer the gift to consist entire'y of 
British grown fruit, because he felt there was a great necessity at the 
present time to offer incentives and give encouragement to the growth 
of fruit in this country ; and he believed that if due attention were 
given to fruit cultivation British fruit would be as good as, if not better 
than, that imported from abroad. He had, as the Master had stated, in 
recent years taken considerable interest in the subject of fruit growing ; he 
had done his best to persuade his fellow countrymen that it was necessary 
and desirable, and would be very advantageous to the community, that 
the cultivation of fruit in this country should be regularly and 
systematically extended. In the course of recent researches he had 
met with a successful example of fruit cultivation on a small farm not 
far from a large town. The area of the farm was 12 acres ; and the 
farmer gave him figures which showed that—excluding the growth of 
fruit under glass—the net profit, after paying rent and other outgoings, 
was £137 10s. in 1887, and in the fol'owing year, when exceptional 
causes were in operation, it fell to £121 10s. He had no doubt that 
others could, by perseverance, attain equally satisfactory results. He 
congratulated the Company on the magnificent fruit which they were 
able to present under the limitation that none of foreign growth should 
be included. 
Having accepted the fruit, H. R. Williams, Esq., Past Master of the 
Fruiterers’ Company,then introduced Mr. J. Wright to his Lordship, at the 
same time explaining the object they had in view in offering a prize for 
an essay on fruit, to which Dr. Hogg kindly added a gold medal as an 
incentive to competitors. Sixty persons, he said, applied for the parti¬ 
culars of the competition, but only fourteen sent in essays, the number, 
he suspected, being limited because of the stipulation that each com¬ 
petitor was required to make a declaration to the effect that he had at 
least ten years’ actual experience in the cultivation of fruit, and to 
indicate where the experience was obtained. Mr. Williams observed 
that this stipulation would naturally restrict the number of essays, but 
correspondingly increase their value. Most of them, he had been 
informed, were of great merit, but the prize was unanimously accorded 
to the one sent in by Mr. J. Wright. This he had seen, and was highly 
satisfied with it, and believed it would be largely circulated and do 
much good. He expressed his pleasure in finding that the successful 
competitor was on the staff of Dr. Hogg’s Horticu'tural Journals. This, 
he thought, must be gratifying to Dr. Hogg, and would inspire public 
confidence in those Journals and the advice and instruction they con¬ 
tained. Mr. Williams further added that Dr. Hogg knew nothing what¬ 
ever about Mr. Wright’s action in this matter. He was not apprised of 
the existence of the essay till it was completed and sent in. He had 
never seen it, and only learned the decision of the Judges by announce¬ 
ment in the usual way. He then produced the prizes for formal 
presentation. 
The Lord Mayor immediately handed them to Mr. Wright, with, as 
he said, very great pleasure indeed. He had had the opportunity of 
glancing through the essay, though he had not had time for reading it 
carefully and critically. lie was satisfied, however, it was a valuable 
contribution on the important subject of fruit production, and asked of 
the author the acceptance of his sincere congratulations. He (the Lord 
Mayor) as was known, took great interest in the home culture of fruit, 
and strongly desired to see its development; aryl he felt sure that the 
action of the Fruiterers’ Company would contribute powerfully to that 
object, that the essay, he believed, pointed the way clearly, and he 
therefore held out the right hand of fellowship to Mr. Wright, whom he 
trusted would see good results from the work he appeared to have done 
so well. 
The medal has a handsome ornamental border of Apples, Pears, 
Grapes, and various other fruits entwined, while the centre bears the 
words : —“Presented by Robert Hogg LL.D,, F.L.S.” On the reverse 
