January 30, 1886. 
THE GARDENING WORLD. 
345 
NEW VARIETIES OF POTATOS. 
As of making books there is no end, so in the 
matter of the production of new Potatos there appears 
to be no limit. Year by year some new sorts are sent 
forth to stand or fall according to their merits ; but it 
ought to be stated in strict justice to raisers, that no 
new Potato should be condemned until it has been 
grown two or three years. 
Our illustration represents a new variety in course of 
distribution by Messrs. Sutton & Sons, of Reading, 
under the name of Sutton’s Seedling. It will be seen 
that it is a very handsome kidney, the tubers large, 
elongated, with eyes of a very shallow character, a 
russeted skin, which is a great recommendation with 
many ; and having during the past year been subjected 
to trials in many different kinds of soils, it has, accord¬ 
ing to published reports, proved itself a very valuable 
variety. It was raised by Mr. James Clarke, who also 
raised Magnum Bonum ; the foliage is of moderate 
height, it is fit to dig at the same time as Beauty of 
Hebron, and produces a large crop. One who has 
cooked it reports, “ as good as any Potato could possibly 
cooked the flesh is black veined with white. It is 
recommended for exhibition purposes ; but what chance 
will it stand with those judges who are prone to pass 
over a yellow-fleshed Potato as inferior to a white one ? 
Messrs. W. W. Johnson & Son, of Boston, Lincoln¬ 
shire, are offering one of the best new Potatos of last 
year, viz., The Colonel, raised by Mr. J. Hughes, of 
Eydon Hall, Byfield. This received a First Class 
Certificate of Merit from the International Potato Com¬ 
mittee in 1885. It is a white Potato of very handsome 
kidney shape, an excellent cropper, and an excellent 
main crop and exhibition variety. It will be remem¬ 
bered that it was finely shown at the Crystal Palace in 
October last. The same firm is also offering Dean’s 
President, one of the fine strain of Bedfont-raised seed¬ 
lings ; it is a fine and handsome white round, mid¬ 
season, of first-rate quality, and strongly recommended 
for market-garden work. 
Mr. C. Fidler, of Reading, who is showing a great 
amount of enterprise in the dissemination of new 
varieties of Potatos, this season offers five new varieties, 
foremost among which is General Gordon, which was 
Potatos of an exceedingly valuable character, any pro¬ 
duction obtained from S. Maglia needs to be of a very 
decided and distinctly good character to make headway 
in this country ; but the seedlings so obtained will be 
certain to have an interest for many as botanical 
curiosities. 
-- g- 
THE CULTIVATION OF VEGE¬ 
TABLES. 
At the usual fortnightly meeting of the Manchester 
Horticultural Improvement Society, held on the 21st 
inst., at the Memorial Hall, Albert Square, a paper 
was read by Mr. Atkinson, of Reddish, on “Some of 
our most important vegetables, their cultivation and 
diseases.” Mr. Tait occupied the chair. Mr. Atkinson 
said that hitherto the scientists had been in a majority 
in the society, so far as the reading of papers was con¬ 
cerned, and with a view to bring out the experience of 
practical gardeners, he was pressed some weeks ago to 
write one. He consented, and as it was his first 
attempt in that line, he hoped they would bear with 
any little mistakes that might appear in the paper. 
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Sutton’s Seedling Potato. 
be—floury, flavour super-excellent.” What] higher 
praise can be given to it as a table variety ? Another 
new variety is Sutton’s Abundance, also raised by Mr. 
Clarke, and said to have resulted from a cross between 
Magnum Bonum and Beauty of Hebron ; the tubers are 
white, flattish-round in shape, medium haulm, a good 
cropper, and regarded as likely to make a standard 
main-crop variety. 
Messrs. Carter & Co., of High Holborn, and others 
are offering The Tillage Blacksmith, a second early, 
white round that attracted much attention at the last 
exhibition held by the International Potato Committee 
at the Crystal Palace, because of its handsome shape 
and singularly rough netted skin. It is so named 
because raised by a village blacksmith in Scotland ; it 
is a heavy cropper, and of excellent quality when 
cooked. The same firm are also offering a veritable 
black Potato, under the name of Carter’s Cetewayo, 
which many may be, perhaps, disposed to grow because 
of its great novelty of character. It is said the original 
stock came from Zululand, and we are further informed 
that this Potato forms the staple food of the Zulus for 
a certain portion of the year. The shape of the Potato 
is that of the kidney, somewhat irregular, and when 
awarded a First Class Certificate of Merit at the Inter¬ 
national Potato Show at the Crystal Palace in October 
last. It is a handsome white round variety, of medium 
size and fine russety skin, a heavy cropper, and a 
valuable main crop variety. Reading Giant is a long, 
flattish, round variety, white, the haulm strong, and a 
very heavy cropper. Snow Queen is a second early 
white round, somewhat resembling Paterson’s Victoria, 
a heavy cropper, and an excellent quality variety. 
Bountiful is a half-round white variety, a heavy cropper, 
and promising to make an excellent market Potato. 
Perfection is an early white round, being fit for table 
early in July, a heavy cropper, and capital table 
quality. 
As nothing new is announced from Ealing this season, 
we may assume that Mr. Dean has exhausted his late 
break of Bedfont-raised seedlings ; but London Hero, 
Chancellor, and Bedfont Rose demand a passing notice, 
for they are yet scarce but deserving of an extensive 
cultivation. Whether the new crosses obtained by 
Messrs. Sutton & Sons and others from Solatium Maglia 
will produce a new, distinct, and valuable break re¬ 
mains to be seen. One thing is quite certain, that 
seeing we now possess a strain of English-raised 
He had not written it with the intention of giving in¬ 
struction, because he knew there were gardeners 
connected with the society who were much better able 
to deal with the subject than he was. His purpose was 
to invite a discussion amongst those who are acquainted 
with the growth of some of our most important vege¬ 
tables and their'diseases, such as “clubbing,” “maggot,” 
&c. He had, therefore, selected seven vegetables and 
one herb : Peas, Asparagus, Celery, Cauliflower, To- 
matos, Onions, Marrows, and Parsley. 
Peas. 
He directed attention to these in the first place 
because in his estimation they are the most important 
of vegetables. There is no other so great a favourite, 
and a good crop of Peas reflects greater credit on the 
gardener than that of any other vegetable. His expe¬ 
rience was, that where the land is spent, and he has 
a large quantity of rubbish, such as leaves or other 
decayed vegetable matter, it is best to mix this with a 
quantity of fresh lime. This mixture affords some¬ 
thing to work upon, and this he trenches into the 
ground two spits deep, or what is known as double 
digging, some in the bottom and some in the middle, 
say early in the autumn. In spring he marks out the 
