118 
THE GARDENING WORLD 
October 20, 1888. 
The Amateurs’ Garden. 
■ ♦ ■ 
Tuberous Begonias. 
As the plants go out of flower or get too straggling or 
leggy to be of any ornamental value, induce them to 
go to rest and the tubers to ripen by gradually with¬ 
holding water. At the same time they should be kept 
in an airy well-lighted position till the foliage begins 
to change colour and become yellow. The stems will 
soon become severed from the tubers at a joint, when 
the pots may be stood away in some unnoticeablo 
position where they are neither exposed to drip nor 
frost. By laying the pots on their sides so as to 
escape drip they may be placed under the stages of the 
greenhouses, but, as already mentioned, everything 
which would give the house an air of untidiness, or 
that would tend to encourage vermin, should be rigidly 
excluded from any house containing flowering plants. 
Blowers for the Conservatory. 
Naturally the occupants of this house, and which kept 
the latter gay during the summer and autumn months, 
will now be assuming rather a shabby appearance, and 
unless other subjects have been grown to take their 
place the owners cannot now expect the house to 
be gay. Early Chrysanthemums are, however, very 
plentiful, and the later and large-flowering kinds will 
be in abundance in a week or two. Zonal Pelargoniums 
that have been grown on for the purpose of winter 
flowering will now make their presence felt if sufficiently 
well forward. Variety and fragrance is added by 
Mignonette, tree Carnations, Heliotrope, Salvias, 
Bouvardias, and various climbers, such as Passion 
Blowers, Lapagerias, and Tacsonias, whose brilliant 
flowers are appreciated at any time. Several late- 
blooming Heaths are now the pride of the show house 
on account of their small but numerous and pretty 
flowers. They include Erica gracilis, E. caffra, 
E. hyemalis, and a few others. Chinese Primulas and 
Cyclamens, where brought forward early, will also be 
mueh appreciated. To enable the above subjects to 
bloom freely—or, indeed, in the case of several, to 
flower at. all—-a temperature of 50° will be required, 
with a slight rise during the day. Keep Mignonette 
close to the glass, and water it very sparingly. Venti¬ 
late during the day on all favourable occasions, so as to 
maintain the plants in a healthy condition. 
Window 7 Boxes. 
As soon as the occupants of these get cut down, have 
them cleared away, together with the old soil in the 
boxes. A wholesale clearance of the plants at this time 
enables the cultivator to renew the exhausted material 
and supply fresh, making provision for ample drainage. 
The windows may be rendered very gay in spring by 
filling the boxes with bulbs and a few Wallflowers to 
take away the naked appearance during winter. 
Hyacinths and Tulips may be used in mixture, but the 
effect would be'better if unmixed, as the two subjects 
mostly flower at different times. Crocuses in great 
variety would also be appreciated by other growers, 
but they do not last long as a rule, especially if the 
weather is bad or the windows exposed. Very pleasing 
and lasting combinations can, however, be made with 
the use of Conifers, Box, variegated Hollies, Euonymus 
japonicus, and several of its variegated forms, E. 
radicans variegata, and other dwarf evergreen subjects. 
Small plants of Aucuba japonica would be much 
appreciated by many, especially those in town. The 
above-mentioned kinds, however, supply great variety. 
Amongst Conifers the Retinospora, Thujas, Cupressus, 
green and golden Irish Yews, and others offer a wealth 
of pretty subjects that are perfectly hardy, and 
amenable as well as appropriate for window decoration. 
The boxes may be entirely filled with them in mixture, 
or spaces may be left for the insertion of Hyacinths, 
Narcissi, Tulips, Scilla sibirica, Chionodoxa Luciliae, 
Crocuses, Primroses, Silene pendula compacta, or other 
subjects at the amateurs’ disposal or suited to his 
liking. 
Indoor Window Plants. 
What flowering plants there are in season, such as 
Chrysanthemums, Chinese Primulas, Zonal Pelar¬ 
goniums, and late Buchsias, maybe used for decorative 
purposes, as they are easily renewed if they should get 
damaged; but Heaths should never be taken into 
dwelling rooms if at all valuable, as the atmosphere is 
wholly unsuited to them, causing the leaves to drop in 
a short time, especially if the plants are allowed to get 
dry, which they are very liable to do. More acceptable, 
perhaps, and more suitable for the season are Bicus 
elastica and its variegated variety, Aralia Sieboldi 
Aspidistra lurida variegata, and Berns with leathery 
evergreen fronds. The latter include various species of 
Pteris, Polystichum, Cyrtomium falcatum, and Seolo- 
pendrium vulgare in great variety. 
The Vegetable Garden. 
Before the recurrence of any more frost, have the late 
batches of Celery finally earthed up to protect them 
from its effects. Choose a dry day for the operation, 
when both the soil and the plants will be in such a 
condition that they can neither get puddled nor muddy 
in the working. Binish the planting of Cabbages for 
spring use as well as that of Coleworts. The little heat 
that still remains in the soil will allow of the plants 
getting established before the approach of winter. 
Clear away all vegetable rubbish and weeds so as to 
keep the garden clean, and prepare for digging or 
planting as the case may be. The planting season is 
now practically upon us, but as fruit trees drop their 
leaves planting will be carried on in real earnest, and 
amateurs would do well to be prepared as to what their 
requirements will actually be, so that planting may 
be completed in due season. 
-- 
NATIONAL APPLE AND PEAR 
CONFERENCE AT CHISWICK. 
The conference and exhibition, opened at Chiswick on 
Tuesday afternoon last, proved in its initiatory stages to 
be of a singularly practical and interesting character, 
collections of excellent fruit from all parts of the 
country being staged, and visitors being present from 
counties so wide apart as Midlothian in the north, and 
Dorset in the south. At 3 p.m., when Sir Trevor 
Lawrence, Bart., M.P., took the chair, supported by Dr. 
Hogg, Mr. G. B. Wilson, Mr. H. J. Veitch, Mr. T. B. 
Haywood, the Rev. W. Wilks, Colonel Beddome, Mr. 
Dyer, and Mr. Morris, there was a fair attendance 
of visitors, mainly consisting of well-known practical 
horticulturists. 
The President’s Speech. 
The president, in opening the proceedings, remarked 
that, while he disclaimed any pretension to be entitled 
to express any opinion on the subject of fruit cultivation, 
he yet was aware that a very large amount of interest 
was at the present time being brought to bear upon the 
question. This was in some measure due, he believed, 
to observations made by gentlemen occupying positions 
in the political world who were somewhat at a loss 
very often for a subject. An address of considerable 
length was lately made at Hawarden, by Mr. Gladstone, 
and he was not quite sure that those persons who had 
read the accounts of ladies, with thirty or forty chickens, 
making £5 a year, and of others making a profit 
variously stated at from £200 to £40 a year from an 
acre of strawberries, and who thought they might 
repeat these remarkable successes, were liable to be a 
little disappointed. It was important in dealing with 
this subject that they should not pitch their antici¬ 
pations too high, and that it should not be supposed 
that in a reasonable extension of the cultivation of 
hardy fruit would be found any real panacea for the 
troubles which had been afflicting the agricultural 
classes of this country. The utmost that could be 
done would be to give those classes some small help, 
where intelligence and skill were brought to bear. Of 
course, as long as we continued to import such large 
quantities of fruits and vegetables—between six and 
seven millions sterling in value—persons would point 
to that total as indicating a direction in which more 
might be done in this country. But it must not be 
forgotten that that total included some fruits which 
could not be cultivated in this country, and further, it 
was by no means clear at present that where hardy fruit, 
such as Pears and Apples, could be successfully culti¬ 
vated, it could be done so as to bring anything like a 
satisfactory profit. He had been asking two authorities 
what they thought on that subject. One gentleman, 
who was a most successful cultivator of fruit, had told 
him that where all possible care and intelligence were 
bestowed upon the cultivation of Apples and Pears, the 
profit was not more than about 6d. per sieve. The other 
gentleman, on the other hand, had said that he was 
quite certain that for all the hardy fruit which could be 
grown in this country a good market could be found. 
In the present conference the exhibition of such 
varieties only as found favour, or might be considered 
thoroughly worthy of cultivation, had been invited ; 
and one object of the conference was to illustrate by 
facts and examples the present state and future prospects 
of commercial fruit culture in this country. That, he 
ventured to think, was a thoroughly practical object; 
and, having regard to the exceedingly unfortunate 
season which they had passed through, it must be 
admitted that the present show of Apples and Pears by 
the leading fruit growers of the country was eminently 
satisfactory. After referring to the attacks made upon 
nurserymen in connection with the question of worthless 
varieties as uncalled for and ungenerous, he said that 
the Horticultural Society had been most anxious to do 
all it could to lead the public in wisely making use of 
the feeling that existed for the cultivation of hardy 
fruit. 
Mr. S. Hibberd, in moving a vote of thanks to the 
council of the Royal Horticultural Society, remarked 
that he had no confidence in similar associations which 
had been started lately, and he should like to see the 
society by its action render it unnecessary that these 
other bodies should be promoted. Mr. Cheal seconded 
the motion, which was.agreed to, after which the presi¬ 
dent declared the exhibition open, and said the question 
whether the matters touched on by Mr. Hibberd came 
within the province of a horticultural society was one 
upon which opinions might differ. They were, no 
doubt, of importance in connection with fruit growing. 
But their main object now was to enable persons who 
devoted themselves to the growth of hardy fruit to* do 
so to the best advantage. He was informed that the 
collections exhibited that day were much more accur¬ 
ately named than those shown in 1883 and 1885, which 
proved that one result of these conferences had been 
that people understood their business much better now 
than they did at that time. 
On visiting the exhibition of Apples and Pears at 
Chiswick, many will no doubt be agreeably disappointed 
if they expect to see a poor turn-out of small, 
badly coloured samples of fruit, owing to the past 
wet and sunless summer. Even allowing that many of 
the largest and most highly coloured specimens have 
been grown in pots, the least sanguine must be 
prepared to admit that, even in the worst of seasons, 
the British climate is capable of producing wonders in 
the way of fruit growing. There is, evidently, no 
reason why we should not beat the foreigner out of the 
market, even with the finest samples. Though lacking 
colour, sometimes the flavour of home-grown fruit is 
second to none. 
The Display in the Vinery. 
On entering the large vinery, a splendid sight meets 
the eye. Two large tables run along the centre for 
nearly the whole length, while the side benches are 
fully occupied all round. The first collection con¬ 
fronting the visitor on entering by the right-hand side 
is that of Messrs. J. Veitch & Sons, Chelsea. Most of the 
specimens were grown in their fruit nursery at Langley, 
near Slough, and very fine they are. Cellini, ’Warner’s 
King, The Queen, Cox’s Pomona, Lord Suffield, 
Lord Grosvenor, Stone’s Seedling, Ribston Pippin, 
Winter Hawthornden, Grenadier, Alfriston, Peasgood’s 
Nonsuch, Prince Albert and Tom Putt are all splendid 
examples of cultivation, each according to its kind, 
and we could name as many more in the collection of 
fifty, and the same might be said of other exhibits were 
the space at our disposal. There are nineteen entries 
in this the first class for fifty of the best sorts for culti¬ 
vation, and amongst the undermentioned are many 
most meritorious collections. Next on the table comes 
the Sherborne Castle collection, with neatly-written 
labels indicating whether the trees were grown as 
standards, pyramids, bushes, or cordons, and the stocks 
used. Peasgood’s Nonsuch, Lord Derby, Lord Suffield, 
Eeklinville, Hawthornden, Hollandbury, Cox’s Pomona, 
and others are grand samples. Messrs. R. Veitch & 
Son, Exeter, comes next, exhibiting splendid samples of 
Peasgood’s Nonsuch, Lord Suffield, Emperor Alexander, 
Cox’s Pomona, Worcester Pearmain, and others too 
numerous to mention. Messrs. Dicksons, Limited, of 
Chester, have excellent samples of Pott’s Seedling, 
Eeklinville, Ribston Pippin, Warner’s King, and others. 
The collection is less highly coloured than more 
southern-grown specimens as a rule. Warner’s King, 
Grenadier, Lord Grosvenor, Lane’s Prince Albert, and 
Stirling Castle are some of the finer specimens of 
Messrs. H. Lane & Son’s exhibit from Berkhamstead. 
A meritorious collection is that from Messrs. Wm. Paul & 
Son, Waltham Cross, including Cox’s Pomona, Warner’s 
King, Lady Henniker, Beauty of Kent, Stirling Castle, 
and others. Mr. T. Bunyard, Ashford, Kent, has fine 
samples of Beauty of Kent, Cox’s Pomona, Golden 
Noble, Warner’s King, and others. Mr. J. H. 
Rose, Lockinge Gardens, Wantage, shows a collection 
in which the specimens are rather small, Northern 
Greening, Yorkshire Beauty, and Cox’s Pomona being 
amongst the best. Mr. Charles Turner, Slough, 
exhibits good samples of Lord Derby, Catshead, 
Alfriston, Blenheim Orange, &c. The best specimens 
