204 
THE GARDENING WORLD 
November 30, 1895. 
flowers from the earliest of times. Next 
to the Snowdrop, the Primrose must have 
been the earliest flower of the woods, copses 
and hedgerows as its name, indeed, implies. 
The Christmas Rose was introduced in 
1596 and was no doubt cherished. All of 
the above are still most ardently cherished, 
as are the Wallflower and Stock ; they are 
truly spring flowers and would be hailed 
with delight by our forefathers after the 
long, dreary winter had passed. Nor can 
we wonder at it. What would be the 
result, or how we should feel, if suddenly 
deprived of the numerousintroductions and 
wealth of improvements that keep the con¬ 
servatory and other houses gay during 
winter, would be difficult to imagine. 
-- 
A pure white Tiger Lily is occasionally found 
growing wild in Japan, but it is considered very rare. 
Erratum.—On p. 193, in the seventeenth line from 
the top, for " each fruit turning the scale," read “ one 
fruit turning the scale." 
Mr. A. Bayford, foreman at Madresfield Court 
Gardens, has been appointed gardener to C. I.ee 
Campbell, Esq., Glewston Court, Ross, Hereford, 
to fill the vacancy caused by the change made by 
Mr. S. T. Wright, as mentioned in our last issue. 
Fruit or vegetable.—Mike: “What is a fruit?” 
Pat : “ When it is eaten raw before it is cooked • 
after which it becomes a vegetable.” Mike : “ Is 
Strawberry jam a vegetable before or after ? ” Pat ; 
“ Be jabbers ! I never thought o’ that! ” 
Recent Awards.—The Gold Medal of the Scottish 
Horticultural Association has been awarded to Mr. 
William Colchester, of Ipswich, for his exhibit 
of Pure Ichthemic Guano and plants grown 
therewith at Edinburgh; and the same firm has 
also been awarded the Gold Medal of the Glasgow 
Chrysanthemum Society for the beautiful exhibit 
staged in the St. Andrew's Halls last week. 
Mr. W. Rushton. —We understand Mr.W. Rushton, 
at present engaged at the Gardens, Drumpillier, 
Coatbridge, is leaving his engagement in January 
next and will be open for a re-engagement. The 
reputation of this successful grower as a competitor 
at our leading shows is hardly necessary of comment, 
but in whatever sphere of life Mr. Rushton finds 
himself placed we heartily wish him the success he 
so rightly deserves. 
"As others see us.”—Our esteemed contemporary, 
American Gardening says The Gardening World is 
“ one of the brightest papers in England.” Numerous 
correspondents between Land’s End and John 
0’ Groat's House, many of whom were unknown to 
us as readers, have written us in similarly com¬ 
plimentary terms for weeks past. Oral testimony to 
the brightness and readableness of our pages has also 
been plentiful. 
Royal Botanic Society.—Over 800 students each 
year have free admission to the gardens, and about 
50,000 cut specimens are annually issued to such 
students gratuitously. The aggregate cost of the 
maintenance of the gardens and the scientific work 
carried on in them is shown by the society’s accounts 
to be about /6,ooo per annum. The garden is open 
to the public at a moderate charge on Mondays and 
Saturdays. 
A large number of blooms was sent to the floral 
meeting held at the Royal Aquarium on Wednesday, 
November 20th, for the inspection of the committee 
of the National Chrysanthemum Society. Many of 
the best growers contributed, among them Mr. H. J. 
Jones, Ryecroft Nursery, Lewisham ; Mr. R. Owen, 
Maidenhead ; Mr. W. Wells, Earlswood Nurseries, 
Redhill; Mr. Norman Davis, Lilford Road, Camber¬ 
well; Mr. E. Beckett, Elstree, Herts; and Mr. H. 
Briscoe-Ironside, Cedar Lodge, Burgess Hill. The 
last-named gentleman showed an especially 
meritorious collection, as, indeed, he usually does 
at all the floral meetings. None cf the blooms, 
however, were really displayed to the best advantage, 
as the light throughout the whole of the afternoon 
was terribly bad, and made it difficult for the eye to 
perceive their true colour. 
A pink sport from the decorative Chrysanthemum 
Ivory has turned up in America It is named Ivoire 
Rose. 
Death of Mr. Richard Gilbert.—We deeply regret 
to learn of the passing away, on the 22nd inst., aged 
seventy-five years, of that good old friend of so 
many of our readers, Mr. Richard Gilbert, for 
many years gardener to the Marquis of Exeter, at 
Burghley House, Stamford. In our next issue we 
hope to refer more fully to the life work of this great 
English gardener. 
Mr. J. Davidson, foreman in the seed department of 
Messrs. J. Veitch & Sons, Chelsea, and who is 
retiring through ill-health, has just been presented 
by his fellow-work men with a handsome timepiece of 
the value of £10, together with two valuable candle¬ 
sticks and a handsome illuminated address. These 
presents were on view at Chelsea during the week. 
Ripe Raspberries.—Mr. Thomas Wood, of Swanley 
and Crockenhill, and at Sevenoaks, where he is at 
present residing, has gathered from his fields a 
second crop of Raspberries of between two and three 
tons, which have been made into jam. Several 
pecks of second crop or maiden cane Raspberries 
have also been picked during October in sheltered 
fields in the Crays and at Orpington ; bunches of 
Strawberries (second yield of the season) were also 
gathered in the same district during the early days 
of last month, and a fairly large ripe Strawberry 
(upon which, however, were found traces of early 
morning frosts) was picked in a Cray Valley field. 
A bunch of ripe Raspberries gathered at Erith, in 
Kent, was handed to us on the 20th, and the bearer 
had an armful of the same. 
Epping Forest.—The report of the committee of 
experts, which was appointed to inquire into the 
thinnings of Epping Forest, was placed before the 
Common Council on the 14th inst., but that body 
was otherwise engaged at the time. It now turns 
out, that in the opinion of experts, no great harm has 
been done. These experts were Messrs. Freeman- 
Mitford, C.B., James Anderson, Wm. Robinson, 
A. D. Webster, and Dr. Schlich, who would, 
apparently,(like to cut down the Pollard-Hornbeams 
so characteristic of the forest. Their idea is to clear 
out some of these clumps and sow seeds of Oak, 
Beech, and other forest trees upon the ground. In 
course of time this would, no doubt, give a much 
more natural appearance to the forest. The experts 
recommend that the southern portion of the forest 
should be left alone for some time to come, but 
would like to open out more new glades in other 
portions. 
Tree-planting at Exeter.—In beautiful weather the 
first of the many Lime treos which are to grace the 
Exeter Road and the Esplanade was planted on the 
13th inst. by Mr. R. Ley, C.C. Chairman of the 
Exmouth District Council. The trees are being 
provided by private enterprise, the cost of those 
which will be planted in the Exeter Road being de¬ 
frayed trom a fund contributed by residents in 
Withycomb parish, and those on the Esplanade being 
given by Mr. Pimm, draper, of the Strand. The 
Committee who have successfully brought about this 
scheme for beautifying the town are Mr. H. S. 
Robinson, Mr. W. Tomkins, and Mr. Pimm. At 
noon there was a large gathering at the corner of 
North Street, in the Exeter Road, The ceremony 
commenced with the children of the Board Schools, 
under the direction of Mr. Mann, singing an 
appropriate solo. Then Master C. A Robinson pre¬ 
sented to Mr. Ley a spade, bearing a suitable in¬ 
scription, and Mr. Robinson, in a few well-chosen 
remarks, asked Mr. Ley’s acceptance of it. -The 
tree was then duly planted by Mr. Ley, the children 
the while singing selections. This part of the 
ceremony concluded with the children singing “God 
save the Queen.” Afterwards three hundred were 
given a bun. The company then marched to the 
Esplanade, when the first tree at the Eastern End 
was planted. The boys of Exmouth College, under 
Mr. C. Salter, met the company, and a similar 
ceremony was gone through, Mr. Pimm asking Mr. 
Ley to plant the first tree,—A vote of thanks to 
Mr. Ley was proposed by Mr. Pimm and seconded 
by Mr. Bray, and carried with loud and hearty 
cheers. 
Death of Mrs. Bruce Findlay.—The many friends of 
Mr. Bruce Findlay, the most respected curator of 
the Botanical Gardens at Old Trafford, Manchester, 
will deeply regret to learn of the sad bereavement he 
has sustained by the death of Mrs. Findlay, on the 
Wednesday evening of last week. 
The Birmingham Show. —There is a strong belie 
that this is to be a great centre, if not the leading 
place, for Chrysanthemums in the near future. It is 
easily reached from all parts of the country. The 
judges at the recent show were occupied from 11 a.m. 
till after 3 p m. in judging the cut flowers alone. 
The ground floor, the gallery, and another place was 
practically monopolised with Chrysanthemums. A 
competent and reliable witness told us that the 
incurved blooms were the best that have been seen 
at any show this season, and they were well dressed. 
Ealing Gardeners' Society.—On Tuesday, the 19th 
inst., a paper on the “Fuchsia" was delivered before 
the above society by Mr. W. J. Simpson, who 
handled his subject in a very able way. Mr. 
Simpson claimed for the Fuchsia a foremost 
place in the decoration of the conservatory or 
the flower garden. He emphasized its suitability for 
pots, baskets, pillars, and for bedding-out; and gave 
cultural hints for each section, in addition to the best 
species and varieties, according to the purposes for 
which they were severally required. Mr. Simpson 
said that a good specimen Fuchsia possessed 
characteristics of a highly ornamental type, and that 
the pendant flowers, often with vivid colours, pro¬ 
duced such a glorious effect that no conservatory 
could be said to be complete without it. A specimen, 
such as he had in his mind, “ when seen lives in the 
memory. The discussion which followed was rather 
tame because no one could take serious exception to 
the admirable manner in which the subject was dealt 
with. The chair was occupied by Mr. D. Cooper, 
who presided over a very appreciative audience. 
Market Gardeners and the G.E.R.—We are pleased 
to learn that the Great Eastern Railway Company 
is endeavouring to meet the complaints so frequently 
and fairly made with reference to the heavy rail 
charges made for the conveyance of market garden 
produce to London and other stations. The com¬ 
pany proposes starting an experiment on the first of 
December when the rate to London and Great 
Eastern suburban stations from stations as far off as 
Soham, Newmarket, Mildenhall, Tivetshall, Beccles, 
&c , per passenger train, will be fourpence for 20 lbs., 
and one penny for every 5 lbs. above, up to 60 lbs., 
including delivery. To obtain the privileges of this 
rate, the produce must be packed in boxes, which 
are on sale at the different stations, or similar ones, 
which must be nailed, not corded, and the carriage 
prepaid. The boxes are charged at a very moderate 
price also, and are of varied sizes, ranging from iof 
by 7J by 3 inches for ijd., up to 2i| by 14 by 7 
inches for 3d. The intention in providing boxes of 
this character and price is to prevent the necessity 
of empties being returned. The concession is a 
generous trial on the company’s part, and we hope 
that it will have a good eflect all round. 
Moss Litter and Peat Industries.—The Indians of 
South America believe that a light may be seen sus¬ 
pended, as it were, over the spot where gold or silver 
lies concealed, and there is a strange analogy to be 
traced between that light and the “ will o' the 
wisp ” that has for ages hovered over the Irish bogs, 
indicating, it may be, if not the precious metal itself, 
at least its equivalent. Science has now discovered 
an infinite variety of uses for this once despised 
material, considered to be only a sorry substitute for 
coal. The Moss Litter and Peat Industries, 
Limited, 32, Queen Victoria Street, E.C., now put it 
through six processes, the last of these producing a 
most valuable absorbent wool for surgical dressings, 
its antiseptic qualities giving it the preference over 
the ordinary cotton wool. When used for dress 
purposes, it resembles the tweed so much in vogue, 
and has already obtained Royal patronage. The 
colours range from chocolate-brown to golden tan, 
but it is shortly to be produced in all the fashionable 
shades of blues and grays. Blankets are made in 
different qualities, from those suitable for convict 
ships, workhouses, exploring parties, &c., to the 
finer ones, fitted for carriage, travelling, and sofa 
tugs. For nurses’ costumes and infirmaries they are 
