October 12, 1889. 
THE GARDENING WORLD. 
89 
are grown elsewhere on land amounting to 17,000 
acres in 1888, and considerably more at the present 
time.” “Do you keep your eye on them in the 
different places ?” was iny next question, and the reply 
was, “Certainly; our men invariably inspect them 
while growing, and often superintend the harvesting of 
them.” In short, I was fully convinced that “ Webbs’, 
Wordsley,” care nothing for transitory fame, shun 
doubtful transactions, and avoid ease in securing their 
goods where there is any danger of mistakes occurring. 
The grounds also contain a great acreage of Webbs’ 
new or improved grasses, for temporary and permanent 
pastures and lawns, and over 2,000 varieties of vege¬ 
tables and flowers were in various stages of development 
or maturity. Peas receive much attention, ninety-five 
acres being devoted to them at Kinver, and the trials 
this year comprise about 200 sorts. Webbs’ special 
varieties were conspicuous, Royal Standard, Chancellor, 
Wordsley Wonder, Kinver Gem, Electric Light, and 
Stourbridge Marrow showing invincible qualities. Many 
other new Peas of Messrs. Webbs’ crossing and raising, 
not yet offered to the public, exhibited superior points 
in growth and bearing that 
will shortly make their 
mark in the world. Potatos 
are grown to the extent 
of seventy-five acres. The 
small trials embrace 350 
varieties, but the bulk is 
confined to Webbs’ Kinver 
Monarch, Wordsley Queen, 
Stourbridge Glory, Epicure, 
Wordsley Pride, Renown, 
Red King, Kinver Hill, 
Benefactor, Discovery, and 
others. Some of these were 
awarded Certificates of Merit 
at the recent Vegetable 
Conference at Chiswick, 
and 1 can give independent 
testimony as to their qualities 
on our own land. Of 
Webbs’ Emperor Cabbage 
there was a magnificent 
stock, and the Early Drum¬ 
head and New Flockmaster 
were of unusual excellence 
as field crops. Garden and 
field Turnips attracted my 
attention, and in a field 
containing upwards of thirty 
varieties of Swedes, I, un¬ 
aided, picked out Webbs’ 
Imperial, as I have long 
been familiar with its superior 
form in dozens of farms on 
this estate; it has an in¬ 
dividuality of its own every¬ 
where. Fear of trespassing 
on your valuable space 
deters me from going more 
into detail on the many 
interesting features to be 
found in every part of this 
colossal seed establishment, 
but the few hints I have 
ventured to give may tend 
to shadow its importance, 
and imply the care and at¬ 
tention devoted to uphold the 
seed productions of “Webbs’, Wordsley. ’—A Gardener 
and Farmer. __ 
A HARVEST THANKSGIVING 
SERMON. 
While it is not the intention of The Gardening 
World to touch in any way upon polemical matters 
that agitate the theological world, a sermon recently 
preached by the Rev. Professor Henslow, on the 
occasion of the harvest festival at Christ Church, 
Ealing, may be deemed not unworthy of notice. Basing 
his discourse on Deut. xvi., 9, 10, 11, the preacher 
pointed out that these words related to the institution 
of the Feast of the Passover, and remarked that the 
offerings demanded of the Jews were no longer required, 
but heartfelt gratitude for all material blessings. 
Nearly 2,000 years had passed away since this com¬ 
mand was virtually repealed. Harvest festivals had 
once again revived in Christian churches, but in a new 
form almost unknown to the Israelites of old. They 
were almost, if not quite, a barbaric people, to whom 
the love of beauty, in the festhetic sense, was little, if 
at all, known. This, however, was one of nature’s 
gifts, and demanded due satisfaction. Hence we fre- 
gated to the open border, or distributed amongst my 
less fastidious friends. Verily I can promise those who 
may adopt my suggestion a very great treat. As a 
working man’s flower the Alpine Auricula is beyond 
compare.— IV. W. 
-->2<-- 
“WEBBS’, WORDSLEY.” 
This term has become a household word with all who 
read a gardening or farming paper, as it appears in all 
of them throughout the year in connection with the 
seasonable disposal of seeds of every description. This 
indicates that “ Webbs’, Wordsley,” are persevering— 
that they take advantage of the best channels to secure 
public patronage, but probably few of those who read 
their intimations or procure their seeds have any con¬ 
ception of the exceptionally favourable means they own 
of supplying the articles they recommend. In the 
ordinary run of seed places, unless one hits on the right 
time for inspecting them, nothing but empty stores are 
to be found, and the intimation that the importations 
have not arrived yet gives one no chance of gaining 
information or telling what 
the stocks may be; but 
there is much beyond the 
“shop” to be found at 
“Webbs’, Wordsley.” At 
Kinver, in the neighbour¬ 
hood of Stourbridge, they 
own over 2,000 acres of 
land that is devoted, as 
much as possible, to growing 
stock seeds, hybrid seed¬ 
lings, new kinds of all de¬ 
scriptions, selected strains, 
and trials of endless variety 
and interest. It is in this 
that the innermost workings 
of their seed business can be 
readily observed, and their 
whole mode of action is 
exposed to public view and 
criticism. But they court 
this ; and after inspecting 
their system of raising seeds 
and placing them in the 
hands of the public more 
than either once or twice, I 
have no hesitation in as¬ 
serting that the soundness of 
their methods of producing 
genuine seeds is alone 
responsible for the eminence 
they have secured in the 
seed world. There is also 
every prospect of this being 
augmented in the immediate 
future, and retained so long 
as they feel inclined to give 
the attention they now do 
to the production of the 
highest-class seeds. 
It is now well known to 
everybody that Stourbridge is 
in Staffordshire, that Words¬ 
ley is near Stourbridge, 
and that both owe their 
universal notoriety to their 
connection with “Webbs.” 
In appearance they do 
not ditter from other provincial towns of a like kind, 
but the Wordsley Seed Stores have a prominence that 
cannot be hidden. In extent they stand head and 
shoulders above any buildings to be seen in the whole 
part'of that countryside, and they give a telling im¬ 
pression of the wonderful extent of the seed trade. 
The blocks of warehouses are, to facilitate operations, 
conveniently arranged and are as close to each other as 
possible. Two of them are of a like size—viz., 180 ft. 
long, 60 ft. wide, and 70 ft. high. There are five 
floors in each, and these are probably the largest seed 
stores in the kingdom. But a year or two ago these 
and more were not found sufficient to accommodate the 
seeds at Wordsley, and last year the Messrs. Webb 
were compelled to erect another new warehouse, which 
is 120 ft. in length, 50 ft. wide, and 75 ft. high. At 
the same time the office accommodation, which is 
situated here, was also considerably increased. A few 
glasshouses are also in use here for testing the ger¬ 
minating powers of seeds, and the extensive sets of 
machinery for cleansing and sorting seeds are the most 
perfect obtainable. 
From Wordsley to Kinver is a distance of five miles, 
and much as the excellent arrangements at the seed 
stores may please anyone, the trial grounds and seed 
farms at Kinver prove still more interesting, especially 
to those who understand culture, and have sufficient 
knowledge to compare what they see here with what 
is found elsewhere. I found the soil, situation, and 
climate admirably adapted for seed rearing, and the 
skill displayed in culture is most efficient. There is a 
system at once apparent in all that is done here, which 
readily accounts for the facility and accuracy which 
characterises the whole of Messrs. Webb’s business 
transactions. The care that is constantly exercised in 
keeping all kinds of seed stocks true reduces the 
chances of any mixture or substitution to the lowest 
minimum, if not to an absolute impossibility. 
What are termed the trial grounds are many acres in 
extent, and there is here collected every kind of vege¬ 
table form that is used in garden or farm for the 
annual production of all kinds of crops. The growing 
of these is no new matter, but has been going on for 
years, the object being to prove to Messrs. Webbs’ own 
satisfaction what is good and what is bad, to give them 
the opportunity of selecting, and to furnish the best 
Pear, Beurr£ de L’Assomption. See p. 93. 
forms to be used as parents in the important work of 
hybridising and raising new and improved forms of 
vegetation. Their untiring, zealous, and very skilful 
operations in this respect have been crowned with well- 
merited success, as in Peas, Potatos, Wheats, Oats, and 
other leading crops in garden and farm, Webbs’ 
varieties have gained an invincible standing. They 
have accomplished much, too, by selecting, and all 
who have grown many plants from seed know that this 
is a very necessary operation, and when carried out 
with intelligence, as it is here, is productive of much 
good. There was a superior evenness about the 
majority of the stock plants here that I have not seen 
surpassed elsewhere, and I was assured it was the profit¬ 
able result of care in adhering to the good forms, and 
the unhesitating extermination of bad ones. In this I 
had gratifying proof of the advantage of seedsmen 
being able to give personal supervision to the produc¬ 
tion of their own stocks, which gives them a confidence 
in recommending them that many covet. “ But,” I 
remarked, “you surely cannot grow all the seeds you 
dispose of in your 2,000 acres here?” The reply was, 
“Oh, dear no; but our 2,000 acres here annually 
furnish us with pure and genuine stock seeds, and these 
