88(5 
THE COTTAGE GARDENER. 
February 13. 
the wholesale fruit-station, fragrant with apples, pears, green¬ 
gages, or whatever is in season. The southern open space 
is dedicated to cabbages and other vegetables ; and the ex¬ 
treme south front is wholly occupied by potato-salesmen. 
Around the whole quadrangle, during a busy morning, there 
is a party-coloured fringe of waggons bached in towards the 
central space, in which the light-green of cabbages forms 
the prevailing colour, interrupted here and there with the 
white of turnips, or the deep orange of digit-like carrots : 
and as the spectator watches the whole mass is gradually 
absorbed into the centre of the market. Meanwhile, 
the space dedicated to wholesale fruit sales is all alive. 
Columns of empty baskets, twelve feet high, seem progress¬ 
ing through the crowd “of their own motion." The vans have 
arrived from the railways, and rural England, side by side 
with the continent, pours in its supplies from many a 
sheltered mossy nook. It is very easy to discover, by a , 
glance, which are the home-grown, which the foreign, contri¬ 
butions. There stand the English baskets and sieves, solid 
and stout as Harry the Eighth, amidst little hampers, as 
delicate ns French ladies, and seemingly as incapable of 
withstanding bard usage. Yet some of these have come 
from Algiers, others from the south of France, with green¬ 
gages, and the majority from Normandy. France is begin¬ 
ning to send large quantities of peaches and nectarines, 
carefully packed with paper-shavings in small boxes; and 
even strawberries this summer have found their way here 
from the same quarter. The frost which occurred in the 
early part of the present year destroyed nearly all the fruit 
crops in the neighbourhood of London ; and were it. not for 
the bountiful stores which are brought from abroad, Covent- 
Garden would have been little better than a desert. 
The repeal of the high duty upon foreign fruit has so far 
widened the field of supply that it can no longer be destroyed 
by an unusual fall of the mercury. By means of the tele¬ 
graph, the steamboat, and the railroad, we annul the effects 
of frost, obliterate the sea, and command, at a few hours’ 
notice, the produce of the Continent. When there is a 
dearth in this country the fact is immediately noticed by the 
great fruit dealers in the City: the telegraph forthwith 
conveys the information to Holland, France, and Belgium ; 
and within forty hours steamers from one or other of these 
countries will be seen making towards the Downs and ad¬ 
joining coasts, and in another six their cargoes, fresh plucked 
from the neighbourhoods of old Norman abbeys and quaint 
Flemish stadthouses, are blooming in Covent-Garden. Fruit 
that will bear delay comes up the Thames by boat, and is 
discharged at the wharfs near London bridge, but the major 
part eventually finds its way to the “ Garden." 
(To be continued.) 
TO CORRESPONDENTS. 
Hop-Planting (E. Hauiley). —You shall have the Kent course of 
culture next week. 
Coating op Ice ( Subscriber ).—It has done no harm to hardy plants. 
Dorking Fowls (It, (?.).—The tuft on some of your chicken is 
evidence that at some period one of their ancestors had in his or her 
blood a cross of the Poland variety. We cannot tell how the feathers on 
the breasts of the cocks should be, as we do not know what variety 
they are. 
Canary Birds. — A Clergyman's Wife kindly writes to say to our 
correspondent “ Argus,” that there is an excellent work, entitled “ The 
Canary, a cage and chamber bird,” by W. Kidd, price Six Shillings. 
Young Rabbits (T. Watts).— They should be taken from their 
mother when five or six weeks old, accordingly as they are strong or 
weakly. 
has been cultivated for some years with success in America. It is spoken 
of as being very prolific, of good flavour, and the berries in size re¬ 
sembling Greengages; seventy-two berries filling a quart. Is anything 
known of it in this country ; if so, where could seeds or plants be ob¬ 
tained ? ” We shall be glad of a reply to this. 
Flower-garden Plan (Beatrice).—The garden is very well laid 
out, hut the flower-beds have been set down at random in the circular 
flower-garden, therefore, the planting cannot be done on any regular 
plan, and one plan of planting it will be as good as any other. We 
would plant the centre bed, No. 1, with perpetual Roses, and 5, 6, 9, 
10, and 12, with American plants, such as the best kinds of Rhodo¬ 
dendrons, Andromedas, Vacciniums, Heaths, Pernettias, and the like, and 
the beds which border the walk, 2, 3, 4, 7, 8, and II, with mixed flowers, 
and we would turf over bed 13, as being entirely out of joint. The 
position of tlie lieds on the sloping lawn is the best for that style, and 
this position ought to have determined the shape of the beds, but ad¬ 
vantage has not been taken of the rule. The two corner beds next the 
house, Verbenas, or Geraniums; the middle pair to he of yellow Cal¬ 
ceolarias, or QSnotheras, and the two farthest corners the best purple or 
rose Petunias; then No. 2 should be best white Petunia, or white 
something after that; no one can go wrong, as there is no system in the 
plan. The aspect for both the greenhouses is good. A man who under¬ 
stood such things might alter all the beds in one week, so as to make 
this garden one of the prettiest of that class in the “ West Riding.” 
London: Printed by Hugh Barclay, Winchester High-street, in 
the Parish of Saint Mary (Calendar; and Published by William 
Somerville Orb, of Church Hill, Walthamstow, in the County of 
Essex, at the Office, No. 2, Amen Corner, in the Parish of Christ¬ 
church, City of London.—February 13, 1853. 
SitUmtis'fmnitiL 
UNEQUALLED NEW MELON, 
GOLDEN DROP GREEN FLESH. 
EDWARD TILEY having purchased the whole 
of Messrs. Wood and Son’s stock of Seeds of the above-named Melon, 
can with confidence recommend it to all growers of that splendid fruit. 
It has been thoroughly proved by an eminent Melon grower, and declared 
by all who have seen and tasted it to be one of the finest-flavoured 
Melons yet grown. It is a very beautiful colour when ripe, skin very 
thin, flesh firm and solid, and of a most superior melting and delicious 
flavour. Free setter and prolific bearer. It possesses a great advantage 
over others in its exceedingly handsome appearance when placed upon 
a table or on the stall of a fruit salesmen, and for exhibition this Melon 
will he the favourite. 
THE KING, Superb Scarlet Flesh Melon.—This is a variety very 
much wanted, and which has for some time past been neglected, but is 
now becoming in great request; such being the case, Edward Tiley 
has just procured a stock of this most superb Hybrid Scarlet Flesh 
Melon, which he can recommend with as great confidence as those 
before sent out by him, and which have all given the greatest satisfaction 
to the public. 
Each of the above varieties maybe had in packets containing six seeds, 
Is 6d per packet. 
The following fine varieties of Melons can be highly recommended, 
and are all warranted true :— 
The Queen .. 
.. Is 
Bromham Hall 
.. Is 
Incomparable 
.. Is 
Golden Ball 
.. Is 
Golden Perfection .. 
.. Is 
Bowood 
.. Is 
Victory of Bath 
.. Is 
Camerton Court 
.. Is 
Chichester Prize 
.. Is 
Beechwood 
Windsor Prize 
Emperor 
Fleming’s Hybrid Persian 
Blackall’s Green Flesh 
Bailey’s ditto 
Snow’s Hybrid 
Gordon Castle •• 
Is 
Is 
IS 
Is 
Is 
Is 
Is 
Is 
A packet of the Golden Drop and one of the King Melon, and one 
packet of any other variety mentioned will be forwarded, post free, on 
receipt of 3s 6d in cash, or penny postage stamps. 
EDWARD TILEY, Nurseryman, Seedsman, and Florist, 14, Abbey 
Church Yard, Bath, Somerset. 
TV/0 N EW CUCUMBERS.-SIR COLIN 
Our Back Numbers ( M . H . L.).— You can have them from No. 
4 1 to 52, but not stamped; they will be Threepence each, and can be 
had of any bookseller. Any one wishing for back numbers had better 
complete their sets, for they are rapidly becoming scarce, and will not be 
reprinted. Your other questions next week. 
Birmingham Fancy Rabbit Ci.ub. —The Secretary is—“Mr. 
Joseph Lawrance, junior, at Messrs. Bulliwants, Button Manufacturers, 
Great Charles Street, Birmingham.” 
New Rochelle Blackberry. —“In Chambers's Journal, No. 40, 
for November, mention is made of a New Rochelle Blackberry, which 
CAMPBELL and GENERAL CANROBERT.—For the full description 
of the above two unequalled Cucumbers, and the List of EDWARD 
TI LEY’S Collection of Cucumbers and Melons—which have all been 
thoroughly proved—see Advertisement and Cut in The Gardeners ’ 
Chronicle of January 13, 1855. 
Sir Colin Campbell, 3s 6d per packet. General Canrobert, 3s 6d ditto. 
A packet of either of the Melons mentioned in the former Advertise¬ 
ment will be given to the purchaser of the two above Cucumbers. A 
remittance in cash, or penny postage stamps, must accompany every order, 
and the whole or any part (as the case may be) will be immediately 
forwarded. 
EDWARD TILEY, Nurseryman, Seedsman, and Florist, 14, Abbey 
Church Yard, Somersetshire. 
