203 THE GARDENING WORLD. November ' 28 , 1885. 
FRUITS, FLO WERS & V EGETABLES. 
Horse-radish Culture. —At the last meeting of 
the Sale Botanical Society, Mr. Plant read an excellent 
paper on this subject, in which he said:—In planting this 
useful vegetable begin at one end of the old bed and 
take out every bit of root, large and small, taking care 
of the long white thin pieces. Tie them in bundles 
and bury them in damp sand ; afterwards pick out all 
that are fit for use. Make a trench and bury them up 
to the crown in a corner of the garden. These will 
serve for kitchen use until your crop is ready. In 
planting the young shoots, prepare a bed 3 ft. wide, 
trenching and manuring it with good rotten manure, 
mixing it well with soil. This must be done about the 
end of February. Take all young roots; distinguish 
the crown end by clusters of young buds ; rub the roots 
up to 1 in. from each end with a rough cloth, the object 
being to remove the young buds which would diminish 
and retard the growth of the main stem. Plant in a 
horizontal position, inclining a little downwards. 
Feeding in the way of liquid manure, and watering in 
dry weather is desirable, and he further advised the 
removal of buds or shoots from the crown end, as it 
only tended to feed the leaves at the expense of the 
stem. 
Stephanotis floribunda, Fruiting. —Your 
correspondent, “A. M.,” asks if it is common for this 
plant to fruit in the s'outli of England. I know only of 
two instances of its fruiting. One was about nineteen 
years ago, when in the service of W. C. Standish, 
Esq. South Stoneham House, Southampton. A plant 
under my care produced a fruit about the size and 
shape of an ordinary hen’s egg. About two or three 
years later, when visiting a flower show at Christ¬ 
church, Hants, I saw a fruit, rather smaller, on a plant 
exhibited by a gentleman living near Ringwood. The 
gardener, Mr. Harrington, sent me some of the seeds of 
this fruit when ripe, but it never germinated. I have 
heard of other cases, but never saw them. — N. Bland- 
ford, The Gardens, Moor Hill, Southampton.. 
The fruiting of this popular plant is comparatively a 
common occurrence at Messrs. Lucombe, Pince & Co. ’s 
establishment at Exeter. One of their specimen plants 
is now carrying two very fine egg-shaped fruits, one of 
which measures 5J ins. in length and the other 6 ins., 
and they are far from being ripe. — TV. Napper, Nov. 
23 rd, 1885. 
Chrysanthemums. —Very many growers of these 
popular flowers (myself amongst the number) would be 
more than grateful to Mr. Molyneux if he would publish 
his modus operandi. Such a successful grower need 
fear no rival, and we should feel deeply indebted for 
particulars in detail from beginning to finish, say, as to 
what to do, when to do it, and what to avoid. We 
should also be glad if he would enumerate the best 
twenty to fifty kinds for exhibition and for successional 
flowering for private families. — TV. C. [We believe we 
are correct in stating that it is Mr. Molyneux’s intention 
to publish a little -work on Chrysanthemum culture ; 
but that is all we know on the subject. Perhaps Mr. 
Molyneirx will kindly enlighten us.—E d.] 
Aralia Sieboldi. —Some plants of this now in 
bloom in my house, are very stately and highly orna¬ 
mental. They have thrown up large panicles of white 
blossoms, somewhat resembling individually those of 
the Elder. On a sunny day many large flies come to 
the flowers, from which they appear to derive a sweet 
secretion. Even under glass, Aralia Sieboldi is much 
later in flowering this year than last year. It is a plant 
easily managed. — R. D. 
Chrysanthemums and Public Favour.— 
I congratulate you on the full and admirable reports 
you are publishing of the exhibitions which are now 
being held all over the country, and which augurs well 
for the Chrysanthemum. It is a great pleasure to your 
readers in the northern counties to be able, on Satur¬ 
day night, to take up your admirable paper and trans¬ 
port themselves, as it were, to the various exhibitions 
held in and around the metropolis, and I doubt not 
that your southern readers are equally interested in the 
progress we are making. The Chrysanthemum appears 
to be making a strong impression on the public here, 
and it will, I predict, become one of the most popular 
of flowers. It seems, some time ago, to have got up a 
few steps of the ladder and to have stopped there, but 
during the last few years it has assumed an onward 
movement, and as the seasons come round, we behold 
it gradually, but surely, climbing into public favour. 
It has often been asked, “has the Chrysanthemum had 
its day ? ” and some have gone so far as to say that 
they were afraid it had. They were, however, false 
prophets, for do we not see, at the present time, 
that almost every town and village has now its 
annual show ; everyone is -wondering how it is that 
the cultivation of the flower generally was not taken up 
sooner-. Of objections urged against the flower, a few 
have come under my notice. Some have said, “ Oh, 
they are too much trouble ; ” another remarks, “ Don t 
like to lower the floor, or to climb a 10 ft. ladder in order 
to see the flowers on the top;” and yet a third says, “ One 
monthsfeastandeleven months hard labour,not for me. 
But perhaps the want of a general knowledge of the 
requirements of the plant has had more to do with its 
neglect than anything else. However, I am pleased to 
know that its cultivation is getting better understood, 
and that some of the objections can be overcome was 
proved by the splendid group or bank of flowering 
plants in pots, staged by one of our local exhibitors, 
Mr. Hatch, at the recent exhibition, held in this town, 
and reported by you at p. 188 Here might have been 
seen the Jones’s, the Smith’s, the Brown’s, and the 
Robinson’s, standing as if spell-bound in front of 
this group, and mumbling something about “ no lower¬ 
ing of floors or climbing of ladders here.” The plant 
does not require the labour and trouble that some have 
thought necessary, as through the winter and spring 
its wants are few, protection from frost, an occasional 
use of the watering-pot, beiug its principal require¬ 
ments. Again, the plant is not particular whether it 
is growing in the Boroughs or the Counties, and, as a 
town flower, it has no equal. Given good soil, careful 
watering, and judicious dis-budding, and any trouble 
that is taken will be repaid by the pleasure obtained 
in watching them coming into flower in the dullest 
month of the year.— B. L., Huddersfield. 
Tuberoses at Strathfieldsaye. —Mr. Bell, 
gardener to the Duke of Wellington, grows Tuberoses 
in the following manner with satisfactory results. He 
plants them out of doors in May in rich light soil, and 
lifts them on the approach of frost, potting them into 
32-sized pots. They are then taken into the houses 
with the result that he has now some fine spikes of 
flowers with from fifteen to eighteen flowers on a spike, 
about 2 ft. high. Very fine flowers they are, too, and 
invaluable just now.— A. 0. 
Dahlias and Chrysanthemums. —A short 
time since, Mr. Murphy stated that he was still cutting 
single Dahlias and also Chrysanthemum Mad. C. 
Desgrange, from plants in the open ground. Although 
I had no plants of the latter out in the open, I had 
some in pots, and for some time they had been blooming 
in the conservatory, from which I had them removed on 
Saturday morning(14th inst.), as they presented a some- 
whatseedy appearance ; while the single Dahlias, as also 
Juarezii, Constance, and others of that class, were still 
fresh in appearance. Later in the day I cut creditable 
flowers of the Cactus Dahlia, Juarezii, though some¬ 
what deficient in colour through insufficient sun to 
develope its brightest hues, and as clean and clear 
blossoms of White Queen, and a good yellow seedling 
as I have cut during the season, the only difference 
being that the flowers were rather smaller. Of the 
varieties I have mentioned I cut quantities, and they 
have for the last month ol’ six weeks bloomed more 
profusely than either the scarlet, rose, or purple 
varieties, although the latter shades of colour have 
given a fair amount of flowers. It is quite a change in 
the order of events to have Dahlias in good condition 
after early Chrysanthemums are past, but on the same 
night the frost made short work of the Dahlias, the 
thermometer falling to 24°, which is rather too much 
for them to stand. On September 26th we had 6° of 
frost, and—excepting in the most exposed positions — 
with but little apparent injury to them.— E. Dumper, 
Limerick. 
Judging Chrysanthemums. — The awards 
made by the judges in the principal cut bloom class at 
the recent Bristol show were, I consider, very un¬ 
satisfactory ; and in drawing attention to the facts of 
the case in your columns, I do so in the hope that Mr. 
Molyneaux, or some member of the National Chrysan¬ 
themum Society will kindly give us the benefit of their 
experience on the point raised, &c. ; with their decision 
I shall be perfectly satisfied. In the class referred to, 
the prizes were offered for twenty-four cut blooms, 
distinct, of large-flowering Chrysanthemums, Japanese 
and Anemone excluded. The stand that was awarded 
the 1st prize contained blooms of Empress of India and 
Mrs. Cunningham, which are well known to be 
synonymous, and although the judges admitted that, 
they were the same, contended that they could not 
disqualify on'that account. What appears to me to be 
so inconsistent in the matter is, that although the 
certificate of the National Chrysanthemum Society was 
offered in this class for twenty-four distinct varieties, 
the judges awarded that certificate to a stand that 
contained two blooms which the leading members of the 
National Chrysanthemum Society do not consider 
distinct. — Exhibitor. 
Celery, Sutton’s White Gem.—I have grown 
white Celery for the first crop for several years ; but it 
is never so good as the pink kinds, and has, in fact, 
been despised when the latter has been fit to lift. In 
the past autumn I had one row only of the above- 
named kind for first crop, and it certainly proved a 
crisp, solid, good white kind, and I regret I did not 
plant more of it. The cook likes it better than the 
pink kinds for certain culinary purposes, i.e., for sauce 
to accompany game, as well as for serving as a second- 
course dish. It is also a dwarf and most compact 
growing sort, distinct in habit as seen growing side 
by side with other varieties, and very sweet-flavoured. 
I intend next year to grow more of it. — T. TV. 
The Late Pear Congress.—A considerable 
amount of dissatisfaction, I find, exists amongst the 
contributors to the recent congress. Some are dis¬ 
satisfied with the meagre amount of information con- 
cerningit given by the press, after heralding it with such 
a flourish of trumpets ; while others complain that 
their exhibits have not been acknowledged by the 
authorities ; while some growers who were not exhi¬ 
bitors have received official thanks for their services as 
members of the general committee. Again, it was 
expected that fruits sent unnamed would be named by 
the committee as far as possible, and that those sent 
incorrectly named would be corrected ; but I hear of 
one kind in particular which was accidentally sent under 
a wrong name remaining uncorrected to the closing 
day, and yet it was so dissimilar to the true one that it 
ought not to have escaped notice. There were also 
many kinds left unnamed. To be charitable, would the 
matter bear a little ventilating now ? For we can 
scarcely expect the above explained when we get the 
promised report on the congress. — TV. C. 
Chrysanthemum Princess of Wales.— 
My name having been mentioned in connection with 
Mr. Monk’s blooms shown at Stoke Newington, I had 
better state a few facts. My attention was first called 
to the two blooms shown as Mrs. Heale and Princess 
of Wales, by a friend, and as both blooms 
were shown quite white,-and either could have been 
shown for Mrs. Heale, I gave it as my opinion that 
they ought not to have been shown on the same stand. 
Later on my attention was again called to the same 
blooms ; this time, in the presence of the judges, the 
blooms were taken from the stand and carefully com¬ 
pared, and I still failed to see any difference, except in 
size, and could not alter my former opinion. Mrs. 
Heale being a white sport from Princess of Wales and 
Princess of Wales being a coloured flower, what else 
could the judges make of it but a Mrs. Heale? Mr. 
Monk admits his Princess was shown quite white, and 
states that the plant had been in a shed for ten days, 
which would account for its whiteness, but the judges 
and the public did not know under what condition the 
bloom had been grown, and I would advise Mr. Monk 
not to show it again so white when showing a Mrs. 
Heale on same stand or he may find himself disquali¬ 
fied. It was an error of judgment on his part to show 
it so white. No one knowing Mr. Monk would doubt 
for one moment but that it was shown in perfect good 
faith. I cannot understand why Mr. Monk should 
think I ought to have consulted him, as I had no more 
interest in the matter than any other visitor to the 
show.— J. George, Putney. 
Chrysanthemum Dr. Barrie.—I have no 
wish to enter into a controversy with Mr. Clark (see 
p. 186) in respect to what is done by the National Chry¬ 
santhemum Society at its floral meetings, at all events 
not until he can write his criticisms in a little more res¬ 
pectful manner. But in regard to the Chrysanthemum 
under notice, I wish to inform the readers of The Gar- 
