321 
THE GARDENING WORLD. 
January 24, 1&91. 
forcing houses, where Grapes ripen on the 
ground, and Peaches thrive outdoors superbly ! 
Talk of a land of Goshen, flowing with milk 
and honey!—California seems to be the place 
beyond all others which realises our conception 
of that famous hypothetical land. “ Oh, what 
must it be to he there ! ” Our old friend, Mr. 
B lrnett, still seems to sigh for the flesh-pots of 
old England—the Drill Hall, or the Temple, or 
the Royal Aquarium, or Chiswick—but were 
he to return to these gatherings for one short 
season he would be more than satisfied, and 
would fly back to his warm, sunny, social 
California pretty quickly. 
One hour of the Drill Hall as it was last 
week would satisfy the most hungry home-sick 
colonist for the rest of his life. We may well 
hope to learn as time rolls on of our friend’s 
labours and of his prosperity. He seems to 
have dropped into what is the Garden of the 
World. May he long remain there and 
prosper ! That his very excellent English 
training in horticulture will stand him in good 
stead there can be no doubt. Oh, that many 
of us were younger; what a rush would there 
be to find more pleasant times in the far-off 
region than our English weather just now 
affords ! _ 
he R. H. S. Committees. —There was 
something of the famous illustration of 
the waste of power resulting from the use of a 
steam hammer to crack a nut in the meetings 
of the Fruit and Floral Committees of the 
Royal Horticultural Society on the 13th inst., 
because the first body had but one collection of 
Apples before it, that required no special 
attention beyond voting a very appropriate 
award of a medal; and the other had but a 
couple of exhibits of no general interest. As 
the committees in question comprise some thirty- 
six members each, many of whom come from a 
long distance, naturally the question arises, 
Cannot something be done to find these gentle¬ 
men useful and interesting occupation when 
thus called together 1 
The Orchid Committee, in spite of the 
wretched weather which prevailed, had a fair 
share of work to get through ; but as this work 
has practically been abstracted from the old 
Floral Committee, some reason is found for the 
paucity of exhibits before the latter body. 
Possibly more exhibits will come before the 
Floral Committee shortly; but, so far as the 
Fruit Committee is concerned, literally nothing 
of interest is placed before it very much before 
the summer, so that its early meetings are 
often little better than farces. 
An excellent suggestion has been made that 
the committee might during the dull season cut 
out some work for itself; and it was proposed 
that the members might be invited to furnish 
at the next meeting in February, short, concise 
reports of the state of the Brassica crops in the 
country after the recent severe weather. It 
cannot fail to have attracted attention that the 
papers set out to be read at the society’s 
meetings are nearly all devoted to flowers, 
vegetables really getting no notice whatever. 
Against such exclusiveness the Fruit and 
Yegetable Committee, were it true to its voca¬ 
tion, should rebel, and set up some work in 
these products on its own account. Of course, 
initiative in this direction rests with the chair¬ 
man, Mr. Crowley, pretty much. Perhaps he 
will give the matter his careful consideration. 
Choice Shrubs. —In the admirable paper on 
^ Flowering Shrubs, by Mr. W. Goldring— 
of which we published a considerable instal¬ 
ment last week, and give the remainder in 
the present issue—attention is drawn to many 
choice and far from common plants, which may 
help very materially to beautify our gardens in 
the spring and summer months. Doubtless 
■with many persons the question arises, What 
shrubs so recommended are hardy enough to 
withstand an ordinary British winter 1 The 
question is a very proper one, and is important 
just now especially, because the intense severity 
of the winter weather reminds us that very 
many even generally recognised hardy shrubs 
have during some previous winters been killed 
wholesale : and when such is the case it is 
certain that the half-hardy or choice shrubs 
would suffer even more. 
Thus it is important to know what shrubs 
which bloom freely are really hardy and trust- 
worthy for planting, and what are less reliable. 
Certainly many shrubs which will exist south 
and west will not thrive farther north, but 
many which have hitherto thriven well north 
or west may this year be found amongst the 
list of the slain. Now there will be ample 
evidences found in the spring as to how shrubs 
generally have wintered, and where any have 
specially suffered it would be of exceeding im¬ 
portance it the names were published, and also 
the localities in -which they were growing at 
the time of injury. 
We may have a good report to show, we may 
have a bad one—it is yet too early to say ; but 
should choice shrubs, especially flowering ones, 
come through the present winter’s ordeal well, 
then will they have a fair right to be classed as 
hardy, and possess special claims upon the 
attention of planters. Mr. Goldring laments 
that many choice shrubs can hardly be found 
in commerce. Perhaps that is due to their 
comparative tenderness; and if it be so, 
planters have shown wise discretion in avoiding 
them. Evidently, to plant hardy shrubs is to 
be on the safe side. 
HE TREASURERSHIP OF THE ROYAL HORTI¬ 
CULTURAL Society. —We referred briefly 
recently to the announcement that Mr. 
Philip Crowley is to be Mr. Morris’s suc¬ 
cessor in the treasurership of the Royal 
Horticultural Society. It may not be 
generally known that Mr. Crowley is a 
member of an old and highly-esteemed 
Hampshire family, that he has long been a 
member of the Fruit and Vegetable Committee, 
and this year occupies the important position 
of chairman of that body. He is a most 
genial, kindly, estimable gentleman, and 
certain to be respected by his colleagues as 
he will be liked by the Society’s officials. 
These qualities naturally recommend him as 
much also to the general body of the 
Fellows and the outside public. 
A practical business man, Mr Crowley 
will be able to render good account of the 
society’s finances equally with displaying a 
generous use of them. Niggardliness or 
stinginess, which leads to the starvation of 
an important field of operations, such as 
Chiswick Garden is, can hardly be the 
policy of the Council, and we hope to find 
the new treasurer displaying in that direction 
distinctly a non-cheeseparing policy. It happens 
happily that Mr. Crowley is a near neighbour 
at Croydon of the hon. secretary, the Rev. 
AT. Wilks, and it should be a matter for 
congratulation that the two chief officers of 
the society will thus have every facility for 
intercourse. 
AAV venture to hope that the change in 
the treasurership will enable Mr. AVilks to 
continue in the office he so ably fills, and 
which he would leave only amidst a chorus 
of universal regrets. This is an additional 
reason why we rejoice in the selection of 
Mr. Philip Crowley for the office of 
treasurer. That it indicates the further 
shaking off of the trammels of the Ivew faction 
is matter for hearty congratulation. 
-- 
3Ir. J. E. Remlle, son of the late Mr. AV. Edgcumbe 
Rendle, of A T ictoria Chambers, AVestminster, died at 
his residence at Fulham on the 14th inst. 
Nursery Dinner.—Messrs. John Pope & Sons, King’s 
Norton Nurseries, Birmingham, gave an annual dinner 
at Mr. John Pope’s private residence to the leading 
employes in the various branches of their business, and 
on the 15th inst. a large party of the heads of depart¬ 
ments and gardening friends enjoyed the hospitality of 
the firm, and cordial good wishes were expressed for 
the long continuance of the happy friendly feeling exist 
ing betwixt masters and men. Unfortunately Mr. 
John Pope’s health is far from being what could be 
wished, he like many others, having fallen a victim to 
the terribly severe weather. 
The Pansy.—AVe have been favoured by Mr. C. 
Harvey, Baker Street, Stirling, with a neat little brochure 
of some fifty-six pages, 16 mo. demy, on the propagation 
and cultivation of the Pansy, from the pen of an 
experienced grower, Mr. Charles Kay, Mill Farm, 
Gargunnock. Mr. Kay discourses upon the raising of 
new varieties from seed, the cultivation and the enemies 
of Pansies, and the properties of show and fancy 
varieties in a style that is refreshingly free from techni¬ 
calities, while eminently practical. It would be a 
valuable little work to put into the hands of any young 
amateur. 
Death of a Centenarian Gardener.—AVe are in¬ 
formed of the death, on AVednesday morning, of Mr. 
Adam Scott, of Chesterfield, who passed the age of 100 
years in May last. Mr. Scott, who in his day was an 
excellent gardener, was the son of a gardener at 
Chatsworth, his father being in charge there before 
Mr. Grubb, who was succeeded by Sir Joseph Paxton. 
A Welcome Accident. — It seems that the Bor¬ 
deaux mixture, which is coming to the rescue of 
gardeners as a destroyer of rot, mildew and blight, was 
first used in vineyards near Bordeaux to keep off 
thieves. The outer rows of some vineyards were 
sprayed in order to render the berries distasteful to 
marauders. After a while it was noticed that these 
sprayed rows did not suffer from mildew, while the 
inner, unsprayed rows suffered badly. AVhile the 
Bordeaux mixture will be the basis of the cheap fun¬ 
gicides, it is probable, however, that it is gradually 
being modified into simpler and more convenient 
formulas of copper solutions .—Popular Gardening. 
The late Mr. Shirley Hibberd.—In the American 
Florist of Christmas Day, there is an excellent portrait 
of Mr. Hibberd, and a brief appreciative autobiography 
written by Mr. John Thorpe, formerly well known iu 
our midland districts when a nurseryman at Stratford- 
on-Avon, and now so well known in the L nited States 
as a horticulturist. Mr. Thorpe writes: “Not only 
was he the editor of a great magazine, and the author 
of many works on garden topics, but he was also an 
excellent practical cultivator of plants, and an earnest 
hybridist and experimentor with them. Zonal Pelar¬ 
goniums were one of his hobbies, and his collection of 
Ivies was the most complete in the world, and his 
monograph on Ivies is a very valuable book. 
The Cork Forests of Spain.—The United States 
Consul at Barcelona says that, according to a calculation 
made by the administration of forests, the extent of 
cork forests in Spain is about 255,000 hectares (hectare 
= 2'47 acres), distributed as follows:—80,000 in the 
province of Gerona, 45,000 in Huelvas, 32,500 in 
Carceres, 28,000 in Seville, 20,000 in Cadiz, 11.500 in 
Cuidad Rial, and 9,500 in Cordob3. In the localities 
exposed to the north, the cork is better than in those 
exposed to the south, and it is seldom found in 
calcareous soil, preferring always that of the felspar, 
this being found principally iu the province of Gerona. 
It grows and develops in ground of very little depth, 
and sometimes in very stony ground. 
The Fire at Messrs. Hurst & Son's.—AVith much 
pleasure we publish the following communication from 
Messrs. Hurst & Son, with reference to the fire which 
to .k place on their premises, on the morning of the 
17th inst., the published reports of which we are glad 
now to know were much exaggerated “ As we hive 
received several letters from sympathising friends 
respecting the fire which occurred on our premises on 
Saturday last, we beg to state that fortunately it was 
but a slight one. It is true it was alarming at the 
time, and would probably have proved serious had it 
not been promptly discovered and extinguished. The 
damage done was very slight and confined to a very 
small space. It occurred in the basement of one of our 
shops and quite apart from the warehouses, and has in 
no way interfered with tho conduct of our business. 
AVe shall be much obliged if you will kindly insert this 
letter in your paper, for the purpose of removing a 
wrong impression which seems to have been created in 
the minds of some of our friends, in consequence of 
the somewhat exaggerated reports which have appeared 
in the London Papers.” 
