36 
THE COTTAGE GARDENER. 
April 17. 
Means, and six Easter Beiirre; these four kinds, there¬ 
fore, may he put down as our best late Pears. 
Apples. —Mr. Hutchensou also sent four kinds of 
very good dessert Apples; but they were not so “ fresh ” 
as they want them in London for exhibition. They wore 
the Cockle Pippin, Golden Harvey, Syke House Russet, 
and Nonsuch. 
Strawberries. —The very finest Even's Seedling Straw¬ 
berries I ever saw so early were from Mr. Turnbull, 
gardener to the Duke of Marlborough, at Blenheim. I 
am near enough to the mark, when I say that they were 
as good-looking as any that were shown last July at 
the Regent’s Park, which was the finest show of Straw¬ 
berries I ever saw. Mr. Snow, gardener to the Earl de 
Grey, had the next best Keen's ; but Mr. Ingram, from 
the Royal Gardens at Windsor, beat them with his own 
seedling, called the Prince of Wales. This was the 
second occasion, I think, on which Mr. McEwen, from 
the Duke of Norfolk, took off the palm with pot Straw¬ 
berries. He also had a beautiful dish of mixed Straw¬ 
berries. Mr. Brown, gardener to John Parnell, Esq., of 
Waltham Abbey, had a good dish of Keens; and Mr. 
John Elemming, gardener to the Duke of Sutherland, at 
Cleveden (not our friend at Trentham) sent six pots of 
Cuthill’s Black Prince, to show that it is entirely unfit for 
forcing. Others say as much, while many find it the 
most useful of them all for early forcing. I believe, I 
was the last in England who successfully grew the 
Downton Strawberry; but after trenching that bed, I 
could never grow it again, and I believe that Mr. 
Ingram himself could not grow a row of the British 
Queen Strawberry in the kitchen-garden at Shrubland 
Park. I could fill a book with such exceptional cases, 
in all branches of gardening, on which science has not 
yet sent a single ray of light. 
Pine-apples. —They were good and numerous; but, 
strange to say, Mr. Jones, gardener to Lady Charlotte 
Guest, one of the very best Pine-growers among us, 
sent a fruit full three weeks behind its time. The 
bottom pips were as black as my hat, and not fit to 
eat; and Mr. McEwen, another of our very best gar¬ 
deners, sent a fine Pine in full prime, but with a de¬ 
formed top. We had, also, one dish of Sea-kale, from 
another first-rate gardener, which was hardly worth put¬ 
ting in the pot, “ such miserable little bits.” These 
are sad drawbacks to the pride of an old gardener. 
The first prize was taken by Mr. Thomas Bailey, Shar- 
diloes, with a Prickly Cayenne, 4 tbs. 4 ozs.; the se¬ 
cond by Mr. McEwen, with a Smooth-leaved Cayenne, 
3 tbs. 8 ozs.; and the third by Mr. Brown, Waltham 
Abbey, with a small Moscow Queen. 
Cherries. —Mr. Shuter, gardener to the Earl of Wil¬ 
ton, at Heaton Park, north of Manchester, sent a good 
dish of May Duke Cherries. Heaton Park is the only 
place about Manchester which 1 did not see in 1832. 
Raspberries.- —Mr. MoEwen, of Arundel, exhibited a 
specimen of perfeetly-ripe fruit of Rivers's Perpetual 
Raspberry, the first forced Raspberry I recollect before 
the Horticultural Society. The first I had seen was at 
Powis Castle, in 1830, along with Gooseberries and Cur¬ 
rants, together with Star Apples, Litchi, and Longhan, 
and many other tropical fruits in the same house ! 
FOREIGN PRODUCTS. 
The foreign Pears and Apples from Mr. Solomons 
eclipsed all our kinds. His Tomatoes and Cardoons 
must come from Algiers, if not from the Gold Coast; 
but his Oxalis crenata roots were not a tenth so good as 
I had them near Sudbury twenty years ago. His foreign 
Potatoes might yield more starch, if they were grated 
for the purpose ; but they were not a whit better than 
those from the Duke of Norfolk, by Mr. McEwen; nor 
much beyond those from the Speaker. The foreign 
Salads beat us altogether, the Lettuces and Endive par¬ 
ticularly, and perhaps the early Carrots ; but we force 1 
Chicory (Barbe de Capuchin) much better than the i 
French; but perhaps their “notions” are so much j 
different from ours. We also bring the Mushroom to as 
great perfection as the French, in many of our private 
gardens. Mr. McEwen and Mr. Tillyard had as good 
Mushrooms that day as Mr. Solomons. 
VEGETABLES. 
For the information of young gardeners, I may say 
that Mushrooms should not be publicly exhibited after 
the film which hides the gills from below is rent or 
open. One that measures two inches from edge to edge 
across the gills is a very good size; if it is wider than 
this, without being thicker in proportion, it is not a bit 
better for the extra width. Like Potatoes, or Strawberries, j 
every Mushroom in the dish ought to be as near of a 
size as possible; six great loppy ones, with eight fine, 
and twenty little buttons, would disgrace an apple- 
woman were she to send them all in one dish. They 
never want to see “ buttons ” of Mushrooms at these 
exhibitions; because they are sure to come, if you watch 
them, before the big ones. No matter how large the 
Mushroom is, the film ought to be perfect, and on 
removing it, the gills ought to look fresh and of a pale 
pink colour; if it is the least black the cholera is in it, 
or some other poison. 
Mr. McEwen took the first prize with forced vege¬ 
tables ; say, Potatoes and Mushrooms very fine; Sea- 
kale, Kidney Beans, and Asparagus, all very good. Mr. 
Tillyard was second, with excellent Mushrooms, Cucum¬ 
bers, Rhubarb, Potatoes, and Sea-kale; and Mr. Brown 
sent a good sample of Peas, the sort called Sutton's 
Early Emperor. 
HOP TOPS AND ROSE TOPS. 
These were in Mr. Solomons’ collection from abroad. 
These are little white sprouts, an incli-and-a-half long, 
taken from under the surface of the ground when the 
plant begins to grow. Of this kind of vegetable the 
best I know is the young tops of the Wild Rose in our 
hedges. Before the shoot is four inches long, and ; 
before a flower-bud is formed, an inch or two of the ! 
succulent part is nicer than Asparagus, but not of that | 
flavour; ten minutes will boil it, and a little white : 
sauce to dip them in is all the preparation for them. ! 
I have often partaken of this dish; but I never tasted I 
these “ hop tops.” D. Beaton. j 
GREENHOUSE VINERY OVER A SHED. 
“ I am desirous of erecting a stove or greenhouse at 
the rear of my house on a space elevated fifteen or 
sixteen feet above the ground, and shall take it as a 
great favour your giving your opinion upon the same. 
If my plans are correct, or can be improved upon, any 
suggestions you can make will oblige. The purposes to 
which I wish to devote the glass structure are for grow¬ 
ing Vines trained to the roof inside the house, but these 
to be planted on the roof of a building, the earth to be 
eighteen inches deep, and of what length and depth you 
think most proper. I intend the soil to be placed in a 
vat, or shallow box, raised above the roof on blocks, and 
lined with zinc or lead, with or without holes, or otherwise 
the vat, well pitched or coal-tarred, and placed on the roof 
of shed. I intend to have an inclined bed of earth on 
which to grow, say Pines, the same inclining towards 
the shed, which is to be the front of the house; but at 
nine feet from which is my next door neighbour’s house, 
towering ten feet above the floor of my intended 
structure; the space, eleven feet, six inches, and 
also sloping towards the door arc the walls of my house, 
two stories higher than the Jioor of the intended green- 
