November 30, 1895. 
THE GARDENING WORLD 
205 
invaluable, and, though disinfectant, these have no 
disagreeable odour. The high quality costume cloth 
is delightfully soft and light, closely resembling 
vicuna both in colour and texture, a little fine 
cheviot or other wool being intermixed with it. 
This is not the only marvellous feature of the peat 
industry. When the crude material is prepared and 
subjected to high atmospheric pressure, it becomes 
as hard as iron, as black as ebony, and takes on an 
equally beautiful polish. It has the advantage of 
being a perfect non-conductor, so that it is largely 
employed in the United States as tiles for lining 
refrigerator cars on railways, meat safes, ice houses, 
where it is said to save 6o per cent, of ice, and when 
used as a covering for steam pipes, it prevents the 
radiation of heat, and the consequent condensation 
of steam. A snow white paper can also be made of 
it, so tough that it can almost rival parchment. 
Such a prosperous look-out for the future cannot fail 
to cast a ray of hope into Irish hearts and light into 
Irish dwellings, and make the fair sister isle rise like 
a phoenix from her ashes. 
--- 
MESSRS. HARRISON & SONS, 
LEICESTER. 
Leicester is a town of growing importance in the 
Midlands, and dates back to very ancient times—in 
fact, its origin is lost in the mists of antiquity. When 
the Romans conquered Britain the middle portion 
of England was occupied by a British tribe named 
the Coritani: and whatever might have been the 
name of Leicester at that time, its modern name is 
partly of Roman derivation—namely, the camp 
(castra) on the Leir, changed afterwards to Stoure, 
and now the Soar. 
On this occasion, however, we are more concerned 
with the firm of Messrs. Harrison & Sons, which 
surely must be one of the most ancient in Leicester, 
seeing that it dates back to 1764, when the establish¬ 
ment was founded by Mr. J. Harrison, the great 
grandfather of Mr. John Harrison, the present 
principal. The chief offices of the firm are at 33, 
Market Place, Leicester, but the wholesale ware¬ 
houses are at 41, Welford Road, and the Midland 
Goods Station. Messrs. Harrison & Sons are seed 
growers on an extensive scale, both for garden and 
farm purposes. As in the case of other large 
growers, they have to take advantage of the sunny 
skies of other countries as well as our own in order 
to be able to supply their customers with all the 
necessaries for garden and field. The home or 
English seed farms are at Aylestone and West- 
cotes. 
In 1856 Mr. Thomas Harrison, the grandson of 
the founder, took the premises in the Market Place, 
and from that time changed the name of the firm to 
Messrs. Harrison & Sons. He took the chief 
management of the Lusiness till his death in 1882, 
when the present principal, Mr. John Harrison (see 
photo), who is the sole proprietor, took the reins of 
government in hand. The premises in Market Place 
include a large retail shop facing the market, as well 
as various Decessary offices, sample rooms, &c , in 
the rear. The extensive warehouse in Welford 
Road has six floors, both in the main building and 
in the wing. The former covers an area of 120 ft. 
by 50 ft., and the wing is 90 ft. by 30 ft. The 
packing is conducted on the first floor, where an 
immense quantity of garden seeds is stored (see illus¬ 
tration p. 209). Above this, on the second floor, Peas 
constitute the principal feature, together with the 
machinery used in separating the seeds from the 
straw and cleaning them. Other seeds are also 
cleaned here, including Carrots, for the dressing of 
which the machine makes Soo revolutions in a 
minute. The third and fourth floors of the main 
building are occupied with farm seeds of various 
kinds. 
Not the least important operation in a large 
seed establishment is the picking of Peas and Beans. 
An illustration of the interior of the room in which 
this is carried on may be seen opposite this. About 
fifty women are employed at this tedious process. 
Damaged seeds and those which have been eaten 
with grubs, or their germinating powers destroyed by 
any means, have all to be removed by hand, no 
machinery being competent for the operation. 
Hence, the picking of such seeds as Peas and Beans 
entails a considerable amount of expense in labour, 
after the most modern of machines have done 
their best. The room for picking these seeds 
is situated in a wing of the main building, on the 
second floor. All these several rooms and depart¬ 
ments are reached by means of hoists. The ware¬ 
house at the Midland Railway Station is intended 
for the reception of seeds as they come by rail and 
are shunted on to the sidings. All these houses and 
rooms are kept thoroughly clean, and the various 
cleaning and sifting operations are closely super¬ 
intended so that nothing is left undone that can be 
done in order to maintain the reputation of the house 
Mr. John Harrison, F.R.H S., M.R.A.S.E., &c. 
for the high-class character of the seeds, and the 
business-like way in which they are placed before the 
public. 
Root and vegetable seeds constitute a leading 
speciality of this old firm, whose beginnings date 
back for 131 years. An account of the annual show 
of farm, root, and vegetable produce, fostered and 
carried on by Messrs. Harrison, may be seen on 
another page, and to which the reader may refer to 
gain an idea of the nature of that exhibition, and the 
specialities which it is meant to encourage. We here 
state, however, that amongst the seeds offered for the 
present year are some sixteen or seventeen magnifi¬ 
cent Peas, including Harrison’s Early Eclipse, which 
is announced as the earliest in cultivation, and 
possessed of all the good qualities of an early Pea. 
Harrison’s Ameer Pea had its merits recognised 
some years ago by a First-class Certificate from the 
Royal Horticultural Society. Messrs. Harrison 
have also paid considerable attention to Beans for 
many years past, and their own specialities include 
Robin Hood and Harrison’s Emperor Bean. They 
have also devoted many years to the development of 
special varieties of the Brassica tribe, including 
Harrison’s Westcotes Broccoli, Improved Brussels 
Sprouts, Champion Ox, Victoria, and selected Eves¬ 
ham Cabbages, all having their particular qualities 
and recommendations. Improved Hearting Kale is 
another good thing that might be more largely grown 
than it is. Practically it is a dwarf-curled Kale, the 
central leaves of which remain closed up, forming a 
head similar to that of a small Cabbage. This head 
constitutes the more tender eating, but the outer or 
expanded leaves also make a good vegetable, particu¬ 
larly after they have been made tender by a few 
nights of frost. Carrots, Celery, Parsnips, Lettuce, 
Radishes, Turnips, Toroatos, and other useful vege¬ 
tables have also been turned to useful account, and 
many selections and improvements are annually 
offered to the public. 
Though great attention is thus given to vegetables 
for the garden and field, the flower garden is not by 
any means neglected. Popular annuals, such as 
Stocks, Asters, Zinnias, Sweet Peas, and others, are 
raised and distributed throughout the country in 
considerable quantity. The old favourites in the 
best forms run side by side with the new—that is, the 
novelties that go to keep up the public interest by 
fresh surprises. Chinese Primulas, which contri¬ 
bute so largely to keep the house gay during the 
winter months, also find a worthy place in the list of 
seeds sent out by the firm. 
In addition to seeds of the two leading divisions 
of plants, the garden has to be supplied with a multi¬ 
farious assortment of requisites, and in these days 
of progress and scientific advancement Messrs. 
Harrison make every endeavour to be fully up to 
date. Accordingly, the visitor may find fumigating 
materials and insecticides, together with garden 
manures and other requisites. Not merely are large 
gardens supplied but those of various sizes are 
catered for, and assortments of vegetable and flower 
seeds made up in packets to meet the requirements 
of different purchasers. An interior view of the 
parcelling room, where this operation is effected, 
may be seen on p. 209. For these several illustra¬ 
tions, which have appeared in "Illustrated Leicester," 
we are indebted to Messrs. Harrison & Sons. 
The English seed farms of the firm are situated at 
Aylestone and Westcotes, and consist of some 200 
acres of land, well adapted for the raising and 
maturing of seeds in this country, the climate of 
which is not always blessed with that amount of 
sunshine necessary for the ripening of seeds of 
exotic plants and the harvesting of the same in first- 
class order. We, and all concerned, however, may 
take consolation from the fact that other countries 
have their attendant risks before the seed harvest 
can be garnered to the shelter of the store rooms. 
The land at Aylestone and Westcotes is laid out in 
suitable plots, as is the case at other well-conducted 
seed farms in this country. There is also some land 
set apart for the purpose of making comparative 
trials of various subjects, and for testing the 
qualities and recommendations of novelties. The 
latter, when they come from abroad, are not put 
upon the market until their merits have been 
determined. These trials should be of great interest 
to all concerned in the cultivation of flowers and 
vegetables. The results of each trial are carefully 
Pea Picking Room. 
