140 
THldi GARDENING WORLD. 
October o0, 1886. 
THE KITCHEN GARDEN. 
The welcome change in the weather enables us to 
clear up arrears in the shape of finishing the lifting of 
late Potatos. We do not pit ours as dug, but place 
them in heaps near where the pit is, covering them up 
with mats, and allowing them to remain for a week or 
more ; by this means all danger of sweating when 
finally put together is avoided. We are disappointed 
with our crop this season, as they are smaller than 
usual and ill-shaped—especially the Magnum—un¬ 
doubtedly from the excessive drought of the summer. 
In many instances, the growth made since the rain is 
considerably larger than the first ; added to which, the 
latter is quite unfit for cooking. 
All other roots are of excellent quality and heavy 
crops, particularly the Carrots, many of which, when 
trimmed, 'weigh over 3 lbs. and are perfectly sym¬ 
metrical. If these are allowed to lie in heaps before 
storing, similar to the Potatos, they will be found to 
keep better. Chicory, Salsafy and Parsnips we shall 
not lift yet. We have taken advantage to give the 
finishing touch to the Celery-square, so that no further 
care is now necessary unless very sharp frost sets in, 
when, of course, protection must be given. If not 
done, lose no time in planting out Lettuce, as advised. 
The stock of Cauliflowers should also be potted, a mode 
very preferable to pricking out in frames, unless some 
can be left to button where pricked, when time is 
gained. Where Tarragon is much in demarftl, a good 
box of roots may be lifted, planted in leaf-soil, and 
placed in the Mushroom-House until started, when it 
may be gradually introduced to the light. — Walter 
Child, Croomc Court. 
-- 
THE GINGER BEER PLANT. 
We would not return to this subject, were it not 
for the fact that correspondents are often asking 
about it. It was fully described and illustrated in The 
Gardening World for January 9th, 1886. It is 
nothing but sedimentary yeast, and bears the same 
relation to ginger beer as brewers’ yeast does to the 
baker’s loaf, in other words, if anyone will supply him¬ 
self with all the necessary ingredients for ginger beer, 
except yeast, and then put a little of the sedimentary 
yeast called the “ Ginger Seer Plant” into his mixture, 
he will be able to make some uncommonly bad ginger 
beer, very suitable for giving himself a bad stomach 
ache or diarrhoea. 
The amazing part of this clap-trap subject is, that 
certain persons have been puzzled by it. In the Pro¬ 
ceedings of the Essex Field Club, vol. iv., p. 44, it is 
actually stated that one of the botanists at Kew had 
then been long studying this “ plant,” and (September, 
1883) was then trying it under various conditions. 
Whether this botanist was “ trying it ” for dinner and 
supper or “trying it” under his microscope is uncertain. 
Strange to say, one of your contemporaries in July 
last returned to the wretched “ Ginger Beer Plant,” and 
said:—“Nothing definite is known about the fungus 
called the Ginger Beer Plant,” and further on “We 
believe several eminent fungologists are investigating 
its characters.” All this is very amusing, and reads 
almost too rich to be true. It is a pity the world has 
Extraordinary development of the “Ginger Beer Plant," as 
observed under the microscope. Enlarged one million diameters. 
not yet learnt the name of the “botanist” at Kew, 
who is so sorely puzzled, or who the “several eminent 
fungologists” are, who are still “ investigating ” this 
unmitigated mare’s nest. — TP. G. S, Dunstable. 
FLORICULTURE. 
Mr. E. Sanderson’s Chrysanthemums. —- Our 
old friend, the president of the National Chrysan¬ 
themum Society, has, at his residence in St. Mary’s 
Road, Harlesden Park, Willesden, a superb lot of 
Chrysanthemums in bloom. He is, perhaps, a little 
early—the hot weather of a few days ago having 
brought on the flowers with a rush—still, the flowers 
being of great size and not yet developed, if the weather 
should be cool and dry, will yet last until the Royal 
Aquarium show. Our friend has a select collection of 
some 175 plants in about forty-eight varieties ; the 
plants are all grown on single stems to produce exhi¬ 
bition flowers, and they carry three and four blooms on 
an average. The plants are mainly in 16-sized pots, 
a few in 24’s ; the stems are very stout and hard, and 
the foliage large and finely developed. They are in a 
house 20 ft. by 12 ft., and so they are crowded pretty 
close together, as one might suppose ; but they can be 
seen, and so fine are the flowers that they well repay a 
visit just now. The following are in grand form :— 
Lady Hardinge, Mr. Shipton, Princess Beatrice, Queen 
of England, Lord Alcester, Alfred Salter, Golden Queen 
of England, Cassandra (white, tinted with lilac), 
Empress of India, Emily Dale, Jeanne d’Arc (wonder¬ 
fully fine), Princess of Wales, Princess of Teek, Anto- 
nelli (very fine), John Salter, Prince Alfred, Barbaro, 
Le Grand, Mabel Ward, Baron Beust, and Prince of 
AVales. This does not exhaust the list, but I have 
mentioned these because so full and fine, and charac¬ 
terised by such wonderful breadth of petal. Mr. 
Sanderson grows only the large-flowered incurved 
varieties ; not a single variety of any other type finds a 
place in his garden. Indeed, he has no room for them. 
It may be remarked that Mr. Sanderson takes cuttings 
as soon as possible after the plants have gone out of 
flower, and he gets them struck earlier than is usual. 
Perhaps this is the reason why he gets such wonderful 
development into his plants.— R. D. 
Outdoor Carnations. —I hear considerable com¬ 
plaint as to the lack of seed given by outdoor Car¬ 
nations this year, even the common singles or “Jacks,” 
proving shy. For success in this direction we want 
very dry weather during the blooming time, and a few 
heavy rainfalls just then, or gloomy weather, destroys 
the fertile organs. Of course, the finest double kinds 
seed sparingly at any time, and seed can seldom be 
obtained in this country except under glass and from 
artificially fertilised flowers. I have had good fortune 
sometimes, indeed, had such last year, and in addition 
to getting a very good lot of seed from the exceedingly 
pretty but smaller double French flowers, I got a very 
nice lot of seed from choice doubles, enabling me to 
raise several hundreds of fine plants, which will bloom 
admirably next year. Perhaps these may give me good 
fortune again, for I find that all such seed gives for the 
greater part double flowers. The French kinds are so 
wondrously free that they often bloom themselves to 
death, as it were, the first year. Some others happily 
stand, and will strike from pipings much more readily 
than will good border varieties, whilst, as cut flowers, 
all kinds of Carnations are very useful; I think those 
French forms are specially so, because they bloom so 
liberally, that it is not so needful to exercise great care 
in cutting. Seed obtained, either by saving or purchase, 
may be sown in the open ground at the end of April, or in 
a box under glass. The seedlings need but little special 
care, as, if dibbled out as soon as strong enough for 
moving into a piece of ground deeply dug and lightly 
manured, they will bloom there finely the following 
year, when, ample room being given, some of the best 
may be propagated by layers put over during the 
summer.— A. D. 
Gold-laced Polyanthuses.— We are pleased to 
find, by a letter just received from Mr. Samuel Barlow, 
J.P., Stakehill House, Castleton, near Manchester, that 
it is his intention next year—having worked up a fine 
stock of the finest named varieties — to cross the 
choicest flowers, and raise another batch of seedlings, 
as he did a few years since, when he produced Sunrise, 
Criterion, Model, John Bright, and a few others equal 
to the foregoing, which never saw the exhibition table. 
Of the four named, Model and John Bright are to be 
had. Criterion, a flower of high quality, we believe 
Mr. Barlow has altogether lost, but he has a few plants 
of his beautiful red-ground, Sunrise, the pollen of which 
he will use next season. In the batch of seedlings just 
THE PRINCIPAL CHRYSANTHEMUM SHOWS, 1886. 
Date. 
Name of Society. 
November 2 . 
Ealing. 
„ 2, -3 . 
Corn Exchange. Mark Ln.np _ 
7 3 ; 4 . 
Highgate, Finchley and Hornsey... 
„ 3,4 . 
Havant . 
7 4 . 
Brixton . 
7 4 , 5 . 
Stoke Newington and Highbury ... 
,, 5, 6 . 
Crystal Palace. 
7 8, 9, 10. 
Lambeth. 
,, 9 . 
St. Neots. 
,, 9, 10. 
Kingston and Surbiton .. 
7 10 ; 11 . 
National Chrysanthemum . 
,, 10,11 . 
Bath.. 
7 11 . 
St. Peter’s, Hammersmith 
11,12 . 
Burv St. Edmund’s. 
7 n ’,12 . 
Richmond . 
,, 11,12 . 
Portsmouth. 
„ 12 . 
Reading . 
7, 12, 13. 
Finchlev . 
,, 12,13. 
Huddersfield . 
,, 12, 13. 
Lewisham and District . 
,, 12,13. 
Canterbury. 
,, 16 . 
Yeovil . 
,, 16, 17. 
Watford . 
,, 16,17. 
Southgate ... 
,, 16,17. 
Winchester. 
,, 16,17. 
Brighton. 
7 16,17. 
Putney. 
7 17 ’. 
Luton. Beds . 
7 17 . 
Chelmsford and Essex . , 
,, 17,18. 
Hampstead. 
,, 17, 18. 
Bristol... 
„ 17, 18, 19 ... 
York . 
,, 18 . 
Hitchin . 
18 . . 
Chiswick. 
,, 18 . 
Taunton ... 
,, 18,19. 
Hull and East Ridiny . 
,, 19, 20. 
Sheffield and West Riding ... . 
,, 20 . 
Kettering. 
,, 22, 23 . 
Leeds . 
„ 23, 24 . 
Liverpool. 
„ 24, 25 . 
Birmingham . 
25 . 
Colchester and East Essex.I 
December 7, 8 . 
Edinburgh .; 
Name and Address of Secretary. 
R. Dean, Ranelagh Road, Ealing. 
H. Robins, Corn Exchange, Mark Lane. 
H. Barnaby, 49, Southwood Lane, Highgate. 
W. Goldsmith, Grove Road, Stamford Hill. 
W. G. Head, Crystal Palace, Sydenham. 
T. F. Davison, 9, Union Square, S.E. 
William Ratclielous, St. Neots. 
T. Jackson, Fyfe Road, Kingston. 
W. Holmes, Frampton Park Nurseries, Hackney. 
B. Pearson, 14, Wilson Street, Bath. 
T. Finch, Mulberry Cottage, West End, Hammersmit 
Peter Grieve, Orchard Street, Bury St. Edmund’s. 
W. Smith, 97, London Street, Reading 
C. H. Mobbs, The Lodge, Elm Grange, Church End 
Finchley. 
Henry Drake, 64, Limes Grove, Lewisham. 
W. T. Maynard, Yeovil. 
C. R. Humbert, Watford. 
G. James, Chase Side, Southgate. 
R. Porter & J. B. Colson, 45, Jury Street, Winchester 
J. Gardner, 5, Regent Street, Luton. 
W. Duffield, Chelmsford. 
J. E. Anderson, The Conservatory, Belsize Pari 
Gardens, N.W. 
Jno. Lazenby, Spurriergate, York. 
IL Falconer Jameson, Queen’s Dock, Hull. 
W. K. Woodcock, Oakbrook Gardens, Sheffield. 
E. Bridge, Tarbock Road, Liverpool. 
J. Hughes. 
