220 
THE GARDENING WORLD. 
December 7, 1895. 
A strong electric light near a tree is said to influence 
its growth powerfully in form and habit. 
It may afford consolation to remember that some of 
the Grapes which the beholder cannot reach really 
are sour. 
The cultivation of Spinach is believed to have 
originated in Persia about the time of the Graeco- 
Roman civilisation. 
Good keeping Pears. —Irate fruit consumer : “ Those 
Pears you brought me last were the same as my 
ancestors ate in the Stone Age.” Fruiterer’s boy : 
“ They must have kept well, Sir.”— Causajoci. 
A "Bicycle Lawn Mower” was shown at the 
State Fair, Syracuse, New York. This should 
please those who prefer riding to “ shanks’ 
mare ” when mowing the lawns. 
The next fruit and floral meeting of the Royal 
Horticultural Society will be held on Tuesday, 
December ioth, in the Drill Hall, James Street, 
Victoria Street, Westminster. The committees will 
meet as usual at 12 o'clock. An election of new 
fellows will take place at 3 p.m. 
An Englishman on the Continent.—We learn with 
much pleasure that Mr. Harman Payne, the 
Honorary Foreign Corresponding Secretary of the 
National Chrysanthemum Society, exhibited his 
splendid collection of coloured engravings of 
Chrysanthemums at the show of the Horticultural 
Society of Dauphiny, France, and was accorded a 
Silver-gilt Medal. He was equally successful at 
Lyons on the 16th ult., and we cannot imagine how 
our reporter overlooked the presence of a successful 
countryman at that show. Ay, we have “ a craw to 
pluck with him ” for that omission. 
Proposed Memorial to the late Dr. Woodman —We 
are more than pleased to learn that Mr. E. J. Jarman, 
merchant, Chard, Somersetshire, popularly known 
as the people’s seedsman, has most kindly undertaken 
the onerous duties of hon. treasurer to this fund, 
with W. Napper, 489, King’s Road, Chelsea, S.W., 
as hon. secretary. In such indefatigable and able 
hands this laudable work will, we think, be eminently 
successful, and v e hope, after erecting the proposed 
monument, to hear that a substantial balance is left 
for poor Mrs. Woodman, who has our warmest 
sympathy. 
Frozen Flowers from Australia. —A fine collection 
of blue and white Water Lilies (Nymphea gigantea) 
has been sent by a leading florist in Sydney, N.S.W., 
through Sir Saul Samuel, the Agent-General, for 
presentation to Her Majesty the Queen. The Lilies 
were frozen in ice, and received as long ago as 
August last by the Colonial Consignment and Dis¬ 
tributing Co., Ltd., being stored at Nelson’s Wharf 
until November 27th, when they were delivered at 
Windsor. In spite of the length of time, the flowers 
were in perfect condition, and, seen through the 
transparent ice, were very attractive. 
Royal Gardeners’ Orphan Fund.—At the meeting of 
the Executive Committee on the 29th ult., Mr. W. 
Marshall presiding, the following special receipts 
were announced : By sale of flowers at the Rugby 
Chrysanthemum Show, per Mr. W. Bryant, /52s. fid.; 
collected from visitors to Chrysanthemum display in 
the Grange Gardens, Wallington, per Mr. W. G. 
Cummins, £2 10s ; collected at Croydon Chrysanthe¬ 
mum Show by Mr. W. Beckett, £1 is.; Mr. F. 
Miller, Margate, 30s.; Mr. G. Harvey, Stanton-in- 
Peak, 25s.; Mr. M. Dunn, Dalkeith, 21s.; Mr. J. 
Miller, Ruxley, 10s.; Young Gardeners at Ruxley, 
ios.; Mr. H. A. Burberry, Birmingham, 15s ; Mr. J. 
Lemon Elm House, Chichester, 5s.; Mr. Turner, 
R.H.S. Gardens, Chiswick, 16s. ; Mr. G. T. Cole, 
Charters, Ascot, 16s.; Mr. J. F. McLeod, Roe- 
hampton, 15s.; Mr. R. Scott, Bradford, 14s. 2d ; 
Chislehurst Gardeners’ Association, per Mr. J. Lyne, 
5s.; Mr. A. D. Christie, Ragley, Alcester, 5s. The 
committee also gratefully acknowledged the receipt 
of some £170 from the committee of the " William 
Thomson Memorial ’’ and votes at the rate of one 
for every £5 were allotted for the same for the term 
of fifteen years. It was also resolved to hold the 
annual general meeting at Anderton’s Hotel on 
Friday, Feb. 21st. 
Little boy to another, who is eating a nice Ribston 
Pippin —" Give us a bite, Joe ; just a little ’un.”— 
“ Noa, noa, Tim, I can t spareit.” “ Well, then let's 
have the core ?” "Go along, man ! Core, do you say ! 
this ere Apple ain’t agoing to have no core.” 
Peach Stones in California have been found to 
burn as well as the best coal, and to give out more 
heat in proportion to weight. The stones taken from 
fruit that is tinned are collected and sold at the rate 
of £^ per ton. 
How to get a beautiful Sward.—An American 
millionaire whilst on a visit to one of the stately 
homes of England was much struck with the magnifi¬ 
cent apppearance of the lawns, and asked to see the 
gardener, with a view to getting information from 
him as to the kind of treatment necessary to obtain 
such beautiful sward. After the gardener had given 
him minute directions as to sowing, rolling, mowing, 
etc., the Yankee asked wonderingly : "And is that 
all ? ” " Not quite,” replied the Englishman. " We 
let it stop for a few hundred years, and then we get 
grass.” 
The Glasgow and West of Scotland Horticultural 
Society.—Mr. John Coats, solicitor, 160, Hope Street, 
Glasgow, has been appointed to the secretaryship of 
this society in succession to Mr. Charles Macdonald 
Williamson, resigned. The election took place at the 
annual meeting, and Mr. Coats, who has for years 
beenconnected with the society as assistant secretary, 
received the appointment by a large majority. The 
keen interest which he takes in horticulture and all 
the movements connected with it well fits him for the 
post, apart from the wide experience he already 
enjoys in regard to the West of Scotland Society in 
particular. He has our cordial wishes for success. 
National Chrysanthemum Society.—As may be 
expected the quantity of the material sent to the 
Royal Aquarium for the consideration of the Floral 
Committee of the above society was much smaller at 
the last meeting on November 27th than it has been 
at previous gatherings. However, Mr. H J. Jones, 
M. Calvat, Mr. W. Wells, and Mr. Robert Owen, 
all showed some fine flowers. The last-named 
cultivator was awarded a small Silver Medal for his 
splendid collection of some five dozen large blooms. 
This is a slight departure from the ordinary proceed¬ 
ings of the N.C.S., as the blooms sent at special 
floral meetings such as this are chiefly intended to 
compete for certificates. 
Staff Dinner at Ryecroft Nurseries.—Saturday was 
a red-letter day at Ryecroft. By way of commemora¬ 
ting the highly successful results attained this season, 
Mr. H. J. Jones entertained the entire nursery staff 
to dinner on Saturday evening. Mr. Jones rightly 
attributes much of bis success to the thoroughness 
and loyalty with which he is supported by his staff, 
and the men appreciate to the full this kindly recog¬ 
nition of their services. The function took place at 
Mr. Jones’ residence, Courthill Road, and after the 
excellently-served repast, the meeting became one of 
a social character. Signor Frederico provided some 
apt illustrations of the art of legerdemain to the 
evident delight of the assembly, whilst the musical 
arrangements were capably looked after by Mr. 
Sidney Cozens. Toast and song followed in quick 
succession, and on the stroke of midnight the 
company dispersed with three times three for their 
host and hostess, with one more for the ladies. 
Lectures in Devon.—A course of lectures on " Fruit 
Culture,” under the auspices of the Devon County 
Council Technical Education Committee was con¬ 
cluded in the third week of November at Oakford, 
Bampton, the lecturer being Mr. D. C. Powell, 
F.R.H.S., Powderham, Exeter. Considerable in¬ 
terest was taken in the lectures, the average being 
twenty-three. At the conclusion Rev. D. Campbell, 
in proposing a vote of thanks to the lecturer, spoke 
of the able manner with which the different subjects 
had been handled, showing that he had a good 
practical knowledge of his subjects. From the great 
interest which had been taken in the lectures, which 
had been supplemented with many and various 
practical demonstrations in the orchard, garden, and 
the lecture-room, he looked forward to its being 
attended with good results. Mr. Jose seconded, 
comparing their lectures and attendance to other 
.counties and districts that had been complete 
failures. The vote was heartily accorded. 
The famous Gen. Lafayette tree, at Scituate, Rhode 
Island, was split in two during a terrific thunder¬ 
storm in September last. 
The Onion is a native of Persia, Afghanistan, 
Beluchistan, and possibly of Palestine, but not of 
India, as stated by a contemporary. 
A thoughtful aspirant to distinction in theprofession 
has come to the conclusion that there are only two 
classes of gardeners to be convinced that industry is 
the soul and life of a garden—namely, the men and 
women. 
Boys and Raspberries.—We are so often told that 
boys will be boys that we are almost tempted to ask 
if it is reasonable to expect them to be anything else. 
If a boy has not got " go ” enough in him to get 
into mischief, or to help himself to Raspberry jam 
when he has a chance, you had better put his feet in 
warm water and send for the doctor. Boys, in their 
love of Raspberries, are not fools, for in any form it 
is a delightful fruit, this being the reason why no 
outside fruit commands such a quick sale or that 
pays so well .—East Anglian Daily Times. 
Yucca gloriosa in November.—Large plants of this 
noble member of the Lily family usually recognise the 
proper time to flower, and do so during the summer 
months. A fine plant in the open air at Finsbury 
Park had flowered in the proper season, but at that 
time had only one flower spike. At the beginning of 
last month another spike bore fully-developed and 
expanded flowers. Other four, making six in all, 
have been pushing up for some time past. The 
unusually warm month of September may be 
responsible for this behaviour. 
A great novelty has been produced in the nursery 
gardens of Messrs. Fox, of Penzance. It is a 
Chrysanthemum plant which has brought out six 
complete composites clustering in a sessile manner 
around the tip of one slender stalk. After being cut 
from the parent plant this curious flowering shoot 
continued to expand five of the six blooms, and so 
successfully as to assume the appearance of one 
perfect bloom, with this distinction, that there are 
five circles of green leaves, making this unique ex¬ 
hibition or Chrysanthemum show a novelty of 
novelties. 
Dr. D. Morris, CM G , read a paper at the Linnean 
Society on the 21st ult., on the Development of a 
Single Seed in the Fruit of the Cocoa-nut Palm 
{Cocos nucifera). Alluding to the occurrence of Palms 
with twin and bifid stems arising from one base, it 
was shown that these were due (1) to several seeds in 
one fruit; (2) to more than one embryo in a seed 
or (3) to a branching of the primary shoot. In cases 
cited by Rumphius, Forbes, and others, several 
seeds were found in one fruit. The course of 
development of the single cell was illustrated by 
means of lantern-slides. The obliteration of the two 
cells began about the second or third week after the 
spathe was open ; by the end of the seventh week, 
they were reduced to narrow slits which were still 
traceable in the mature fruit. 
Torquay Gardeners' Association.—At the meeting of 
this Association on the 15th ult., Mr. N. Stone, 
gardener to Mr. J. A. Shaw Stewart, of Dunrod, read 
a paper on “ The Management of the Orchard 
House.” Dr. R. Hamilton Ramsay presided over an 
attendance which, considering the stormy weather, 
was satisfactory. Mr. Stone took it that an orchard 
house, whether it was an ordinary lean-to Peach 
house or the more elaborate span-roofed house, 
differed from the greenhouse or any like structure in 
that it was altogether devoted to the growth of one 
or more kinds of fruit trees, either planted out or in 
pots. It was necessary that such a house should be 
placed in a sheltered position, free from the shade 
of trees, and sufficiently elevated to allow of proper 
drainage. A dry bottom was essential and a span 
roof, running north and south, was, perhaps, the 
best form for it to take. Mr. Stone followed with 
detailed notes on the stocking of and general culti¬ 
vation of fruit trees in an orchard house. Mr. 
Wilkinson mentioned a few varieties of Peaches and 
Nectarines for successional supply. Mr. Stone 
enumerated Gros Mignon, Goshawk, Early Beatrice, 
among Peaches ; and Lord Napier, Violette Hative, 
Humboldt, and Pitmaston Orange, finishing with 
Pineapple, among Nectarines. 
