462 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
November 28, 1889. 
famous variety. The bloom before us is not quite 5 inches in diameter, 
but is one of the most attractive we have seen this year. 
CHRYSANTHEMUMS AT WALTON LEA. 
Mr. W. Kipps, gardener to John Crossfield, Esq., Walton Lee, near 
Warrington, is veil known as an expert cultivator of Chrysanthemums, 
and with Mr. J. Wright judged the cut blooms at Birmingham. Mr. 
Crossfield kindly opens his gardens free to the people of Warrington, 
and on two days last week a constant stream of persons took advantage 
of the piivilege accorded. The crowd was so great that hundreds could 
not pass through the conservatory, but had to be content with a view 
from the outside. Walton Lea is two miles from Warrington, and is as 
much famed for the specimen Hollies in the pleasure grounds, and the 
Camellias under glass, as for Chrysanthemums—indeed, the gardens are 
admirably managed throughout. 
THE KINGSTON AND SURBITON CHRYSANTHEMUM SOCIETY. 
The annual dinner of this Society was held at the Sun Hotel, 
Kingston, on Saturday evening last. The President, G. C. Sherrard, 
Esq., J.P., occupied the chair, and in a most able address displayed the 
great interest he tock in the Society. There was a very large attendance 
of members and visitors. The Treasurer, Mr. John Drewett, who is such 
a staunch friend of the Society, said that with one exception the re¬ 
ceipts at the recent Show were greater than on any former occasion, and 
with the increased subscriptions the present year was the best financially 
since the Society was established. He was also able to state that 
another twenty-five-guinea challenge cup would be provided for com¬ 
petition next year. The proceedings were highly enjoyable throughout. 
THE NATIONAL CHRYSANTHEMUM SOCIETY. 
The Floral Committee of the above Society held a meeting in the 
Royal Aquarium. Westminster, on Tuesday, November 26th, at 2 P.M., 
R. Ballantine, Esq., in the chair, and the following members were 
present Messrs. W. Holmes (Secretary), E. Sanderson, G. Gordon, 
L. Castle, G. S. Addison, H. Cannell, R. Owen. J. Kendall, G. Stevens, 
C. Gibson, W. E. Boyce, and J. Wright. Numerous novelties were 
exhibited by Mr. E. Beckett, Mr. R. Owen, Messrs. Carter & Co., and 
others, and several were considered promising, the exhibitors being 
requested to show them again another season. Only one was regarded 
as worthy of a first-class certificate—namely, a handsome Japanese 
named Volunteer from Mr. E. Beckett, one of the best additions of the 
season. It has some fluted recurving or slightly twisted florets, of a 
soft clear blush tint, the bloom deep, substantial, and grand for 
exhibition purposes. 
THE GHENT CHRYSANTHEMUM SHOW. 
Ghent Chrysanthemum Centenary Exhibition was opened on 
November 24th, when we are informed that there was a good display 
of plants, but comparatively few cut blooms. Of the English exhibitors 
a gold medal was awarded to Messrs. J. Laing & Sons, Forest Hill, for a 
collection of cut blooms ; silver medals were also adjudged to Mr. 
, Molyneux for cut blooms, and to Mr. Payne for an album of coloured 
plates A gold medal was also awarded to the National Chrysanthe¬ 
mum Society as “a token of regard ” from the Ghent Society. Medals 
were presented to numerous continental exhibitors in the various 
classes. 
LOCAL mushroom hunters. 
t 1 ^ or Rockingham, Sir ? ” said an old man as he got into a 
L. and N.W.R. carriage at Peterborough, in which sat an occasional 
correspondent. Having assured the old man that he was adopting the 
correct means for ultimately reaching Rockingham, other questions and 
answers followed, and the old man declared himself to be a Mushroom 
hunter. This was such an out-of-the-way occupation that the occasional 
correspondent began to think that it would perhaps form a subject for 
the gallery of local industries, and, therefore, plied the old man with 
questions fast and furious. At first the replies were simple and interest- 
mg, but later on, as the train was approaching Rockingham, the Mush¬ 
room hunter began to have some suspicions that he was being “ fished.” 
It evidently occurred to him that the occasional correspondent was 
seeking information, probably with a view of starting in opposition to 
himself. His change of manner at once became noticeable. He lapsed 
into a most guarded reserve, and the only information he vouched was 
to impress his auditor with the masses of wealth which Mushroom 
hunters were everywhere losing, and himself in particular. 
, -u j 6 a re ?Ry—before the rash suspicion seized his mind— 
furnished some curious information concerning Mushroom hunting. 
He was then on his way to purchase seven tons of the edible fungi. 
He would sell them again to ketchup makers. He anticipated he would 
have to give nearly £60 per ton for them, and was, therefore, about to 
incur an expenditure of £420. Seven tons of Mushrooms ! Where in 
the name of the sweet champignon would anybody get such a mass of 
Mushrooms as that from? Then he explained how it was done. The 
Mushroom hunter had to travel long distances by train and on foot, and 
he was obliged to have a boy and a horse and cart dancing attendance 
upon him. He himself badduiing the past few months travelled over the 
greater part of Lincolnshire and Huntingdonshire. His plan was to leave 
his horse and cart at a certain point and work round to it. He would travel 
perhaps twenty-one or twenty-two miles by train, and then proceed to 
walk across country, having previously arranged his route, and call at 
all shepherds’ houses. Why shepherds’ houses more than anybody else’s T 
Because shepherds walked over more grass land than anyone else, and 
were more in the habit of collecting Mushrooms than any other class.. 
He invariably found that shepherds had a tub for Mushrooms, but many 
of them would not sell them at any price, as they made ketchup them¬ 
selves and sold it to a circle of local customers. On the other hand 
many were willing and ready to sell their Mushrooms, and would often 
indicate that “ Shepherd So and So had a tub to sell.” But how did the 
shepherds keep their Mushrooms until the “ hunter ” came ? They could 
not keep them for more than a day or so. Unless the Mushrooms were- 
quite fresh they were of no use to the “ hunter.” Many shepherds would 
get a stone or so of Mushrooms a day, and in such cases the “hunter” 
would find a good tub full. These he would buy, and either late that 
day or early the following day he would retrace his steps with the cart 
and take them away and put them on the rail at the first convenient 
spot. 
Then you are always sure of a customer ? Oh, yes. he could find 
customers for as many Mushrooms as he could get. One ketchup 
maker in Peterborough had received an order for making a stupendous 
quantity of ketchup for Messrs. Crosse & Blackwell, and he knew he 
had a ready market for Mushrooms there. He had no difficulty in find¬ 
ing customers for them in large quantities. But do these ketchup 
manufacturers all use real Mushrooms? is there no such thing as walnut 
limmings employed ? In the factories in which he had been in they all 
used Mushrooms, as they were cheapest in the end. In some years they 
were much more plentiful than others. The present year was very bad.. 
They were extremely scarce. He had been obliged to give as much as. 
£60 a ton often this year, while in other years he had been able to 
purchase large quantities for £40 a ton. But it cannot be generally- 
known that they are so valuable, or more care would be taken to 
collect or cultivate them ? He supposed that people must know that 
they were valuable, for they were generally sold in the shops at 6d. or- 
even lOd. a lb. How would it be possible for anyone to collect such a 
quantity as seven tons of Mushrooms altogether? They would have to- 
be collected in the way he had indicated. Half a stone here, three or- 
four stone there, and so on. Collectors had to give good prices for these 
small quantities, for shepherds knew their value, and it often happened- 
that after paying all his travelling expenses, the cost of his horse and 
van and boy, the profits were not very large. 
As Mushrooms, however, do not grow all the year round, the occa¬ 
sional correspondent questioned the “ hunter ” as to his occupation when 
Mushrooms were not to be gathered, and he replied that he then went, 
hawking crockery with his van. But by this time his suspicions had 
become aroused, and he gave many assurances that Mushroom hunting- 
was a “ losing game,” and that he had had quite enough of it, that this, 
was his last season he would have anything to do with it, and much, 
more to the same effect .—(Peterborough Advertiser.') 
SALT FOR FRUIT TREES. 
I notice, in an interesting paper on Plums read by Mr. T. F. Rivers, 
at the Horticultural Club, reported in the Journal, p. 439, that he states 
an American writer finds common salt very beneficial for promoting- 
health and luxuriance of Plum trees, but that Mr. Rivers fears to apply 
it. He need not be afraid to do so in limited quantities, such as usually? 
given to crops. As our soil is very deficient in soda, and finding it very 
beneficial for Strawberries, which contain a good deal of this in their 
composition, and other fruits likewise being partly composed of it, and 
thinking that canker might be a result of weakness of constitution, 
owing to the deficiency of some element of plant food required, and as B 
take care that they have an abundance of those commonly needed, this, 
year I added soda also, by means of an application of common salt at. 
the rate of 2 cwt. per acre over the whole of my fruit ground, which 
contains all hardy sorts of fruit, and many acres of Plums, and I have- 
been so far satisfied with the result that I propose repeating the dose 
next spring, and probably will make it an annual thing. Of couise 
massive doses would kill vegetable life.— Walter Kruse. 
HEDGE PLANTS. 
Of the objects on which cultivation is brought to bear there is, 
perhaps, none that presents a greater diversity in the results sought 
to be attained than that most indispensable of all fences, the hedge. 
Timber, brick and stone, with or without mortar, as well as the 
varied forms that wrought and cast iron are made to take, all more or 
less compete with the living hedge as a boundary between proper¬ 
ties and protection against cattle, but the hedge still survives, and 
imparts a degree of clothing to a district which artificial objects fail, 
to do, also in most instances affording more shelter than the hand¬ 
made structure has any pretensions to do. My object, however, is- 
not to contrast the merits of a live fence with those of a dead one, 
but to ascertain which are the most suitable plants for hedges, and- 
to point out how one that was brought before the public some 
years ago as likely to be useful for the purpose, has failed, and is- 
now but rarely met with ; in fact, it now only occurs in the back 
shrubberies, or other out-of-the-way places. Before drawing atten¬ 
tion to the merits of other plants let ua. take a glance at this, and" 
