June 2, 1888. 
THE GARDENING WORLD. 
635 
The Japanese Date Plum. 
A fruit likely to be largely planted here shortly is the 
Japanese Date Plum (Diospyros), of which some eight 
or nine varieties are now procurable. I find the trees 
are being imported in thousands from Japan, and I 
believe some few are being propagated here. The fruits 
are usually retailed in the shops at one shilling each. 
They require to be perfectly ripe, otherwise they are 
extremely acid and astringent, hence the marketing is 
a matter of some little difficulty. 
We are just going through a long spell of dry 
weather, and there is very little moisture left in the 
ground, even at a depth of two feet.— C. B., Sydney, 
April 16th. 
-- 
OUR RUBBISH HEAPS. 
In gardens generally, an out-of-the-way corner is the 
receptacle for all garden refuse and rubbish from 
different parts of the grounds, and is, I fear, a spot 
ofttimes looked upon as a necessary nuisance in the eyes 
of all concerned. It is little thought of or cared for 
until the accumulation either becomes obnoxious to the 
nasal organs or a great eyesore, especially near large 
towns, where space is too limited to allow any portion 
to be utilised for this purpose. The sanitary authorities 
having strict orders concerning such matters, some 
radical means must, of course, be adopted for quick 
riddance of all decomposing matter. Again, in many 
of our open country places, the family residence, 
pleasure grounds, and vegetable gardens are all in such 
close proximity that—as the first head gardener I 
served under told me when I had deposited some refuse 
in that quarter in a rather dilatory manner—even the 
rubbish heap should present a tidy appearance. 
But it requires watchful care and good management 
to convert this apparent heap of rubbish into ammonia, 
water, and various mineral ingredients, such as phos¬ 
phates, potash, sulphates, &c., which are most welcome 
compounds for returning again to our gardens to assist 
in the proper development of plant and vegetable life, 
and much more to our advantage than, as is often the 
case, when allowed to remain so long as space or 
conditions will permit. Horses and carts are required 
in the latter case to clear away the rubbish to some far- 
distant spot, where it will cease to be a public nuisance. 
It can here be allowed to decay at leisure into humus, 
the soluble being washed into the ground, and the 
volatile wafted into the air, thus forming different 
gases, which are returned in due time, with the assist¬ 
ance of air and rain, to the earth’s surface, but, I fear, 
sparingly to the quarters from whence taken. This is 
a great waste, too often indulged in, even where every 
convenience is at hand for utilising the same, and to 
good purpose, with proper management. In many 
instances, this heap of refuse, when becoming objec¬ 
tionable for various reasons, instead of being subjected 
to the above stringent method, undergoes a sharp pre¬ 
paration by turning the whole, and adding a liberal 
dressing of lime to pulverise and hasten decay. It can 
afterwards be used for different garden crops to 
advantage. 
But the most useful method of preparing and 
utilising these unwholesome masses, and one which 
has been put into practice by us for some years, is to 
keep a fire going the greater part of the year, thereby 
charring all and sundry that comes to this spot. 
Scores of cartloads are procured annually from the 
remains of old potting soil, refuse, plants, prunings, 
sweepings from the pleasure grounds, &c., all of which 
goes through the fire to be purified from all fungus and 
disease. By an occasional turning, to thoroughly mix 
the whole ingredients, picking out the stones as the 
work proceeds, a large heap of valuable ashes and small 
bits of charcoal fit for immediate use will be the result. 
These will be found most useful for covering many 
garden seeds and mixing with potting soils. "We use 
it freely for early Potatos in pits and frames, obtaining 
beautifully clean and well-flavoured tubers of good size. 
This brings to my remembrance a case where an 
early batch of Potatos was rendered useless for the 
dining-room through being planted in a compost im¬ 
pregnated with the flavour of decaying Onions, which 
had been thrown on to the rubbish heap, and the soil 
used again before being thoroughly pulverised. The 
tubers had a strong Onion flavour after being cooked, 
which caused no small commotion between chef and 
gardener before the cause was detected. I am fully 
aware that it is in many gardens almost out of the 
question to have fires continually going, the odour 
therefrom being very objectionable, yet, taking advantage 
of favourable opportunities, with the wind in the right 
ARDENING MISCELLANY. 
direction, these difficulties can be somewhat surmounted. 
Last year we potted up a batch of 500 Strawberries in 
a compost consisting of the above, adding one part of 
thoroughly decomposed matter from earth closets, 
having the appearance of fine black mould, two parts 
good pasture-loam, well mixed and kept under cover 
some months before using, with results so highly 
satisfactory as to ensure repetition of the same method, 
using soil from a heap of the above already in store. 
All who carry out the above details in thus making 
use of all garden refuse, will, I feel convinced, con¬ 
sidering the little labour bestowed, be amply repaid in 
obtaining large heaps of good useful ingredients, 
instead of what is ofttimes an offensive mass.— J. F. D. 
-->K—- 
TUBEROUS-ROOTED BEGONIAS. 
What are they coming to 1 
This is the question I put to myself as I walked through 
one of Mr. Henry Cannell’s houses of Begonias in his 
remarkable nursery, at Swanley, a few days ago. 
What size, what form, what substance, and what 
diversity of colour can be seen in the single varieties ! 
And what shall be said of the doubles ? Some are as 
large and full as Hollyhocks, some have blossoms like 
Camellias, others resemble in shape and symmetry the 
double Persian Ranunculuses that were so popular a 
quarter of a century ago, and now, alas ! so seldom 
seen. The half expanded beds of one variety resemble 
those of a Tea Rose. What a variety of colours also ! 
Some of the tints of orange are delightful in the 
extreme. Anyone who washes to realise some idea of 
the extent to which Begonias are grown by Mr. Cannell 
should pay a visit to his nursery, for they can be seen 
there by the thousand—from tiny plants just pricked 
off from the seed pans to plants of large size from 
two and three-year-old bulbs, that are producing won¬ 
derful heads of bloom. I think it would be reasonable 
to say that Begonias are grown at Swanley by the 
hundred thousand. In order to meet the great demand, 
it is necessary to raise enormous numbers of seedlings 
annually, and of these the very best types are selected 
for seeding, and also for potting for another season. 
The strain Mr. Cannell grows has one good quality—a 
robust and yet compact short-jointed habit. Ten years 
ago, and even less, Begonias had a tall and lanky 
habit of growth ; but by means of careful selection, the 
habit of growth has been improved concurrently with a 
bettering of the size, form, and substance of the 
blossoms, and now, so marked is the advance, that the 
question may well be put, What are they coming to ? 
and it is a very proper question to put. I think that 
at no great distant date the blossoms of the single 
types will approach in form those of the zonal Pelar¬ 
gonium. I could see evidences of this in some of the 
later seedlings at the Swanley Nurseries. 
I like Mr. Cannell’s method of starting the bulbs 
into growth ; they are well preserved through the 
winter, and as the time approaches when they will 
start into growth, they are laid out on a bed in one of 
the propagating houses, and as soon as signs of growth 
set in they are potted. Mr. Cannell states that he 
rarely has a tuber decay from following this plan. 
The fact is, as soon as potted, they begin to put 
forth roots, and then grow away merrily. But 
anyone interested in Begonias should see the 
Swanley collection, and then the beauty and high 
decorative value of the tuberous types can be rightly 
appreciated,— R. D. 
-- 
THE PARIS EXHIBITION. 
The principal awards made at the exhibition held from 
the 25th to the 31st ult. were as follows :—Prize of 
Honour—ASevres Object of Art, given by the President 
of the Republic : to Messrs. F. Sander & Co., St. 
Albans, for Orchids. Gold Medal given by the Minister 
of Agriculture : to M. Charles Yerdier, Ivry, Paris, for 
standard and bush Roses. A second Gold Medal given 
by the Minister of Agriculture : to M. Moser, 
nurseryman, Versailles, for hardy Rhododendrons and 
Azaleas. Gold Medal from the Prefect of the Seine : 
to M. Leon Duval, nurseryman, Versailles, for Orchids. 
Gold Medal from Dr. Andry : to Messrs. Vilmorin & 
Co., Paris, for annuals, plants, and vegetables. Gold 
Medal from Marechal Vaillant: to M. Bleu, Paris, for 
Caladiums and Bertolonias. Gold Medal given by 
Messrs. Vilmorin & Co. : to M. Leveque, Ivry, Paris, 
for Roses. Gold Medal given by the lady patronesses : 
to M. Debrie-Laehaume, Paris, for bouquets and floral 
compositions. Gold Medal of the City of Paris : to the 
Kitchen Gardeners’ Mutual Help Society of the Seine 
for various vegetables. Gold Medal given by M. 
Massange : to M. Chantin, Paris, for Palms andCycads; 
and the Gold Medal of the society : to Madame Block, 
Brussels, for greenhouse plants. 
Double Poeticus Nareiss. 
Of all the family this seems to be the most useful, 
simply because it turns in when every other member of 
the tribe is over. The flowers are pure white, fine and 
double, almost resembling those of the Gardenia. 
Scores of acres of ground beneath fruit trees are devoted 
to the culture of these double white Daffodils in some 
London market gardens—indeed, far more of space 
than is given to any other of the Narcissus tribe. The 
clumps are broken up and re-planted about every third or 
fourth year, so that in any well-arranged garden there 
is a considerable breadth being broken up every season. 
Deep planting helps to check early blooming, so that 
in this way, as also from re-planting a breadth every 
year, the flowering season is greatly prolonged. The 
bulbs have made such good growth that they seem to 
be none the worse for the baking they received last 
summer—indeed, Narcissi generally seem to have 
suffered nothing from last year’s drought.— A. D. 
How to Soften Hard Water. 
A contrivance for softening hard water, invented 
and patented by Mr. Wm. Gordon, Greville Lodge, 
Amyand Park Road, Twickenham, is now in use in his 
Orchid houses for improving the condition of the 
ordinary filtered water by precipitating the chalk held 
in suspension by it. The invention consists of some 
zinc tanks erected above the large brick one sunk in 
the ground or beneath the level of the floor, and from 
which the water is dipped for use. To 30 gals, of 
water 14 lbs. of quicklime is added, making, of course, 
a very strong solution. The latter is allowed to run 
into a mixing tank, which is supplied with a constant 
stream from the main, at the rate of one part] of the 
solution to four or five of ordinary filtered water. The 
mixing of the two causes the whole of the chalk to 
become precipitated in a solid form, and the purified 
water then runs into the tank from which it is dipped 
either for watering the Orchids or for syringing them. 
An examination of the Cattleyas showed them to be 
perfectly clean, and free from the deposit of lime with 
which all the plants become disfigured when syringed 
with ordinary filtered water. 
The Hungarian Bitter Vetch. 
A form of this variable plant has been flowering finely 
for some time in the nursery of Mr. T. S. Ware, Hale 
Farm, Tottenham. It is the Orobus pannonicus varius 
of botanists, although the second name is frequently 
omitted in the gardens where it is grown. It is a pretty 
Vetch, but by no means common. The standard or 
upper petal is pale rose, while the wings and keel are 
yellow. The stems are little, if at all, branched, and 
grow from 12 ins. to 18 ins. in height, flowering in 
May. 
Aubrietia deltoidea, var. Leichtlini. 
On p. 600 Aubrietia Hendersoni is mentioned as being 
the best coloured one we have ; there is, however, one 
which is far more distinct than all the other blue ones, 
and which, therefore, deserves to be well known. It is 
A. deltoidea, var. Leichtlini, the flowers of which are of 
a most beautiful red, which gets darker as the flowers 
grow older. As they expand there is a yellow eye, but 
this afterwards disappears and changes into a dark 
purple. It flowers as freely as the others, and enjoys a 
good place on the rockery, as is shown by the plant in 
the Royal Gardens, Kew.— F. J. Goemans. 
Combretum purpureum. 
Notwithstanding that several species of this genus 
are grown, or attempted to be grown in this country, 
we seldom see them in flower. The present is one of 
the species to which this fact particularly applies, and 
although we occasionally see it as a pot plant in stoves, 
it may only be looked upon as a cumberer of the ground 
from the fact that it seldom or never blooms. At 
Pendell Court, Bletchingley, we noticed it the other 
day planted out against the back wall of a stove, and 
flowering beautifully. The individual blooms are 
comparatively of small size, but produced in great 
numbers in dense unilateral panicles or compound 
racemes from the lateral branches that hang away from 
the wall. The specific name does not apply, as the 
corollas are scarlet, while the longly exserted stamens 
are crimson. The leaves are opposite, oblong, leathery, 
evergreen, and the plant constitutes a beautiful climber 
when planted out and allowed to grow undisturbed. 
