416 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
f May S3, 1889. 
loam and peat or leaf soil and good drainage are requisite whether it be 
planted out or in a pot. 
TOMATOES RECOVERING—SULPHIDE OF POTASSIUM. 
I thank you very much indeed for your kind and most valuable 
reply (page 408), and my appeal for help re Tomato plants. I feel 
convinced that your diagnosis of the case is the true one, and shall profit 
by your advice. Luckily I took the right steps before your answer 
appeared—viz., the air was gradually increased until the top, sides, and 
ends of the houses were open night and day, using a fair amount of fire 
at the same time. The plants on the whole are much improved, but 
many are coming yellow in the young tops, as per sample. Do you 
advise a removal of these, or will they probably come round with better 
weather ? The weather here is warm and close, air stagnant, and sun- 
light very short. No water has been given the plants since spots ap¬ 
peared, and they came just after a rather heavy watering, and unluckily 
the weather turned dull directly, and has been so ever since, or fourteen 
days. Sulphide of potassium solution was tried first upon some plants 
not valued, without injury ; 1 oz. to a gallon was used on plants diseased, 
and you will, I feel sure, be glad to know that sulphur and linseed 
oil on the pipes, sulphide of potassium on the plants, with a dry atmo¬ 
sphere, proved a match for the peronospora even in dull wet weather. 
But if you would give your opinion on whether I had better cut away 
the plants coming yellow in young tops, or hope to see improvement as 
the season goes on, I shall be glad. I have Iggulden’s new Tomato 
book ; it is a great advance on the old edition.—F. W. 
[We print this letter because it contains suggestive hints, and if read 
with the reply on page 408 last week it may be helpful to others. One 
of the specimens now received is decayed 3 inches from the top. All 
such portions should at once be cut off, those simply discoloured we 
should leave in the hope of their recovery. This is not the first instance 
of improvement in Tomatoes by the change of treatment suggested.] 
THE TULIP, OTHER THAN SHOW VARIETIES. 
[Read by Mr. James Walker at the Horticultural Club.] 
The history of this family would, in itself, afford sufficient material 
for opening a discussion at a meeting such as ours. It is alwtys in¬ 
teresting and instructive to know the history of any family, but 1 must 
own I am not well up in the history of the Tulip, and so will leave the 
treatment of that part to someone else. The lines I wish to follow are 
practical and commercial. The latter word prevents me from including 
the show varieties here. I believe they will never become popular as 
cut flowers. As proof of this, one has only to look at the leading 
florists’ windows to see that not broken, but solid or decided colours 
are used for effect. All efforts, I fear, will fail to revive the florists’ 
Tulips section as market plants. 
The three classes I wish to refer to are the Dutch or bedding, the 
Parrot, and the species of the genus Tulipa. Their culture is simple 
.and well adapted to this country. The treatment of the varieties varies 
but little. The few species that are not quite hardy will be kept out of 
view. The first thing to be done is to select a sheltered situation. The 
land ought to be sandy-light up to medium loam. Wet heavy land 
ought by all means to be avoided. Select a piece that has grown a crop 
without manure, then apply plenty of new stable manure. It may be 
put in just before planting with the plough, or by bastard trenching, so 
as to place it 6 inches from the surface. When recommending new 
manuie I am aware I clash with many good cultivators, but I here give 
the finding as I have found it—that is, our results have always been 
better from new than from old manure. However, let it be new or old, 
it ought never to come in contact with the bulbs. 
Early in October is the best time to plant; 3 to 4 inches deep, 
° inches between the bulbs, and 8 inches between the rows represents 
my practice. Some recommend planting 6 inches deep, but when grown 
at this depth in large quantities the expense is largely increased in 
lifting. After planting there is little to do except keeping the bulbs clean, 
lor ordinary seasons they will be ready for lifting early in June. The 
time varies a little according to the season, but it is always safe to lift 
whenever the foliage begins to get yellow. If they have been in good 
quarters the flowering bulbs in most instances will have produced a 
good second-sized and also a small bulb, and the small ones will have 
developed into flowering bulbs. I may here say that if they are allowed 
to remain in the ground after they are ripe the skin of the bulb will be 
dark, and not the bright colour a saleable bulb ought to be. When 
lifted they ought to be placed in trays, boxes, or laid out in lofts, with 
plenty of air. A dark shed or outhouse is preferable, for if exposed to 
the sun or much light the skin will crack and come off. 
I have already said that the treatment is simple, but there can be no 
success if annual lifting is not practised, and the lifting and planting 
done at the proper time. I have also said that the culture is well 
adapted to this country. Now how is it we do not grow our own bulbs T 
Seeing that no nation in the world grants us the same privileges that 
we grant them, it becomes us to look round and see if we are not spend¬ 
ing large sums of money on a plant we could grow, if not better,, 
equally as well ourselves. For a number of years I have planted Dutch- 
grown bulbs alongside of home-grown ones, and the latter produced 
larger flowers than the former, and this was more striking in the Parrot 
species, a clear proof that these two sections prefer medium loam to- 
sand. I am a little surprised that the species are not more cultivated. 
If we take Gesneriana, Fulgens, Elegans, Elegans alba, Eetroflexa,. 
&c., their effect in beds or borders is simply grand. 
The question will naturally arise, Can they be grown to pay? I have 
had some experience in growing them by the acre, and cannot throw 
out the hope that a fortune can be made, but if properly managed a. 
fair profit may be realised. In field culture we cannot always be cer¬ 
tain of sound market flowers. I have seen a shower of hail damage 
thousands of buds, and the sun shine out ten minutes afterwards and 
smile on all the destruction the hail had done. Partridges and rooks, 
are fond of the buds when young. Such are a few of the difficulties to 
contend with. However, so far as I have seen, none of these misfor¬ 
tunes interferes with the development of the bulbs. 
Now, if we compare our advantages and disadvantages with the- 
Dutch growers, how do we stand? One thing is very certain, we do 
not find the Dutch growers asleep. What they do they do well. Our 
advantages over them are better and cheaper land, and no one can 
dispute but that we have more of it. There are hundreds of acres of 
suitable land in this country. We can also procure cheaper manure. Out 
great disadvantage is the want of skilled labour ; in this the Dutch 
grower has a great advantage over us. I believe one of their workmen 
will lift as many bulbs in one day as ours would do in four. No doubt 
if cultivation increased here our workmen would improve. Taking all. 
things into consideration I believe we could place the Tulip in the 
market as good and as cheap as the Dutch grower. 
1 have a robust faith that with a sturdy will and a little skill 
England truly may be made the home for the Tulip. 
LOUGH CUTRA CASTLE, CO. GALWAY. 
On March the 23th I redeemed a pledge made two years ago to visit 
these beautiful gardens. After a wet drive Ennis was reached as the watch¬ 
man was calling the hour of four. The horse refusing to go any further,, 
and being twelve miles yet from Lough Cutra, we had to obtain a car,, 
no easy task at that hour ; at last we discovered a carman unloading 
his mails at the post office. When asked if he would take us to Lough 
Cutra he expressed his willingness to do so for a sum considerably over 
his legal fare. After lengthy arguments on both sides we had to give 
in, no other car being obtainable for hours. After leaving Ennis the* 
moon came out, and the day breaking soon after, we obtained a glorious 
view of the country. Save the “ pratie gardens ” there is but little of 
the land under tillage, it being a mutton-producing country as testified* 
by the vast numbers of sheep on either side of the road. It would be 
almost impossible to till land there on a large scale, owing to the 
large quantity of stones ; everywhere as far as the eye could see they 
were visible, some of them as “large as a house," standing on end,, 
looking every minute as if they would fall. Many other smaller sizes 
were also abundant ; in fact I remarked “ that there was enough to 
make a rockery from there to Dublin,” and models they were for 
making rockeries, all full of “ pockets ” with scarcely a smooth stone 
among them. As we neared our destination ponds and, what I then con¬ 
sidered large lakes were frequently passed, interspersed with here and 
there a bog by way of variety, until we reach one of the lodges and pass, 
through the well wooded park, catching a glimpse of a lake which I 
shall refer to again. Leaving the Castle to the right of us we pass 
through the well appointed stable and model farmyards, untiL 
eventually we reach the garden, on the confines of which is the gar¬ 
dener’s house ; it is one that is in keeping with the Castle, &c., a house, 
such as I wish every nobleman and gentleman in Ire'and was compelled’ 
to build for their gardener, and so knock down the cabins that they are 
too frequently domiciled in. 
After a warm welcome from Mr. and Mrs. Dunne we proceed to see 
the gardens. On the left of the garden door we enter a cool Fig house- 
recently erected ; the trees are doing remarkably well. Leaving this 
we pass into a house used later on for Tomatoes, but ac present filled with- 
bedding plants. On the opposite side of this enclosure are situated the- 
potting sheds, fruit room, bothy, stokeholes, and sheds, the walls at either 
end being covered with Currants on the cordon system, Apricots and a 
Mar6chal Neil Bose. In the centre are numerous pits in which Begonias,, 
of which an immense quantity are required, are being grown for bedding- 
purposes. We pass on from these to the garden containing the bulk of 
the houses. The first range entered consists of a stove about 30 feet long- 
and 10 feet wide ; the centre stage is filled with Palms and a miscellaneous 
collection of large plants, while the side stages are filled with useful 
little stuff for decorative purposes. The walls from the stage to the roof.: 
