June 21, 1890. 
THE HARDENING WORLD 
667 
The growers had their troubles and anxieties then, 
even as now—the exposed situation of the Islands, and 
the lack of woods and trees, to provide natural pro¬ 
tection to their fields from the biting winds and heavy- 
gales which sweep over the land, gave them many a 
night in “the open,” keeping up fires around the 
fields to preserve the budding Potatos. 
It was this need of protection to their plants which 
caused them to supersede the loose stone divisions of 
land by planting Laurel, Escallonia, and other pic¬ 
turesque shrubs for hedges. This planting of hedges 
was, indeed, the foundation and preparation of the new 
development in the farming of the Islands. To-day 
the land is no longer given up solely to the growing of 
Potatos, Parsley, Asparagus, and Sea Kale, for a large 
proportion is devoted to lloriculture—a combination 
which has answered well in every way. The result 
may be seen in the absence of poverty, in the quiet, 
unobtrusive independence of the people, in the im¬ 
proved outhouses on the farms, and in the possession of 
better farming implements. The people are neither so 
rich nor so poor as they have been (it was a proverb, 
“Either a feast or a famine in Scilly ”), their life is 
freer of excitement than it used to be, and they seem 
to have fallen into the happy medium of comfort and 
content. 
Last season the following supplies were sent from the 
Islands to the various markets on the mainland by the 
steamer plying between Scilly and Penzance :— 
46,000 pads of fish (a pad is 50). 
200 tons of flowers. 
800 tons of Potatos X 280 tons sent by boats and 
smacks. 
150 tons of other vegetables. 
3 tons of Sea Kale from St. Mary’s alone. 
5 tons of Tomatos. 
The expense of carriage is 11s. per cwt. to Scotland, 
and 7s. 6 d. to Covent Garden. The salesman’s charge 
is 10 per cent, if he supplies boxes, and 7^ if he does not. 
It would be difficult to find land anywhere so bursting 
with life and growth as that of the Scilly Islands ; and 
were it not for the occasional want of rain, and the too 
great prevalence of gales, there would be no limit to its 
productiveness. The temperature is never intensely 
hot in summer, nor intensely cold in winter. 
The soil of the Islands is composed mostly of decom¬ 
posed granite and peat; here and there it is as black as 
soot. The very rich land seems to run in veins, while 
other has good rich soil for some distance down, till it 
touches the cold white clay. The soil is very loose, and 
drinks greedily every drop of rain ; it will not refuse 
“a shower every day, and two on Sundays.” The 
rainfall is quite different here from the mainland ; the 
average in Middlesex is 24 ins., in Scilly 31 ins., and 
in Cornwall it is 44 ins. The soil, good as it is, lacks 
phosphate of lime and ammonia, both of which can, 
fortunately, be supplied in a great measure by the sea¬ 
weed manure. 
The method here of making seaweed manure is to 
make a bottom, or foundation, of earth. On this the 
seaweed is spread, and covered with a layer of sand ; 
after a month or two the juices have penetrated the 
earth, which is then ready to be carted away and laid 
on the soil. The people use a peculiar-looking instru¬ 
ment for cutting through the seaweed manure. It has 
a blade 8 ins. long and 7 ins. wide. If the seaweed be 
driven in when Potatos are to be planted, it is put 
straight on the earth, and often worked in by the 
plough, and the Potatos* planted in at once ; then the 
soil and seaweed mixed are turned over on the Potatos. 
In Scilly the Potatos are planted much nearer the 
surface than on the mainland ; if they were so planted 
on the “main,” they would be destroyed by frost. 
Every farmer is, more or less, a flower-farmer ; but 
the larger ones grow also Potatos, Seakale, Asparagus, 
and Tomatos for the markets, as well as flowers. They 
keep a small number of cattle and sheep, and grow corn, 
but only sufficient for home use. They make their own 
butter, and keep poultry. But of all these last, nothing 
is exported; they have sufficient only for home con¬ 
sumption. The butter is exquisite, and would be 
gladly bought on the mainland, if it could be spared, 
and the same may be said of the fruit, which is grown 
principally at Pocky Hill and Holy Yale ; it is excellent, 
but only sufficient for home use, and, moreover, the 
Apples are too mellow to bear packing. 
St. Mary’s has an area of 1,527 acres, most of which 
is under cultivation. The largest farmer owns seventy 
acres of cultivated land. Eight of these are devoted to 
flowers, and ten to Potatos. He grows no other 
vegetable, but a large quantity of Mangels. He owns 
1 Potatos planted In fresh seaweed are waxy. 
twenty-eight head of cattle, throe horses, and fourteen 
sheep. 
The cultivation of flowers has not reduced the amount 
of Potatos grown so much as one might think, and for 
this reason, every foot of land formerly waste, capable 
of cultivation, is laid under tribute for the flowers. 
An averaged-sized farm is held by a gentleman who 
farms thirty-six acres of tilled land, and 105 acres of 
common or waste land. Four or five acres are planted 
with flowers, and about seven with Potatos. He has 
twenty horned cattle and twenty sheep. He grows 
enough corn to feed the cattle, and the grazing-ground 
is contained ill the thirty-six acres. Seaweed is, he 
considers, by far the best manure for Asparagus. 
Tomatos have so gone down in price that 9 d. per pound 
is the price during December, January, and February. 
In planting he would use about 25 cwt. of seed Potatos 
to an acre, and he would consider between four and five 
tons an acre a good return. His preparation of the 
ground for receiving Potatos is to well press it and 
plough it, and dress it twice with seaweed and compost, 
the latter consisting of road-scrapings, earth, and 
“ anything good.” It is then ploughed down, scarified 
with a cultivator, and left to rest. Sometimes artificial 
manure is given, and a small quantity of guano is 
imported. On the waste lands an immense quantity of 
Ferns grow, which, being cut, make excellent beds for 
the cattle, and when they have served this purpose they 
form a capital manure. May and June are the great 
months for sending Potatos to market, though owing 
to the mildness of the winter, Potatos planted in 
December are often drawn again in March, when there 
is a good sale for them. After Potatos, he gets a fine 
crop of Mangels. 
Sea Kale is largely grown on the Islands, and sent 
to London, Birmingham, and Manchester markets. It 
is grown in the open air, and blanched in the same 
way as Celery, with the exception that it is planted on 
the surface instead of in the trenches. Sea Kale would 
be by far the most remunerative crop, and if only they 
could ensure 3d. and id. a pound for it, the Scillonians 
would go into its cultivation very largely. It requires 
no manure, but requires a light soil. At Tresco a great 
quantity is grown ; the cost per acre is £30 or £40, the 
return, £70 or £80. 
The Island of Tresco, though only twenty minutes' 
distance by boat (in fine weather), is much warmer 
than St. Mary’s, because of the sand all round it. 
Mr. Dorrien Smith’s farm at Tresco is essentially a 
model one. He spares neither expense nor trouble, 
and when a successful result is attained he shares it 
with his tenants. He uses about thirty tons of seed 
Potatos for planting. Twenty-five to thirty acres are 
planted with Potatos ; where possible, they are planted 
on slopes, so as to escape the wind, and the order of 
planting is “six rows, one miss.” The “miss” is well 
manured, and later on is turned up and spread over 
the six rows. Three tons of Sea Kale and five tons of 
Tomatos were sent from here last year. From seventeen 
to twenty acres are devoted to flowers. Mr. Smith is 
experimenting upon a parcel of land, dividing it into 
four—dressing one part with fish-manure, one with 
farmyard manure, the third with seaweed, and leaving 
the forth unmanured. He has 20 Channel Islands 
cattle, and about 100 pigs. The food for the last is 
cut up and cooked in a large boiler. The dried Fern 
makes good litter for pigs and cattle. 
All sorts of fences are tried on this farm for the 
protection of flowers and vegetables. The rush fences 
are too opaque ; the shrubs require great attention, 
and occupy valuable space ; but the open palings of 
wood protect while they permit the sun to play 
through. 
Of all the Islands, St. Martin’s produces the most 
Potatos, while some of the earliest come from Bryher. 
On the whole Islands there are between 400 and 500 
bullocks, 250 sheep, 100 milch cows, and 70 asses. 
There is no veterinary surgeon on the Islands, but one 
of the farmers is exceedingly clever in the treatment of 
animals, and all the farmers are more or less expert in 
this respect. 
-- 
THE FRUIT CROPS. 
The crop in this district is very poor indeed. It is the 
worst known for many years. We now realise the 
damage done by the sharp frosts in the latter part of 
April. Both Apples, Pears, and Plums, that were 
covered apparently with strong blossom, have scarcely 
set a fruit. Gooseberries—an important crop in this 
district—are very light and not more than half a crop, 
while Strawberries and Raspberries look well, and 
were never more promising. — J. Charlton , Farnley 
Grove Gardens, Corbridge-on-Tyne. 
Gardening 
ok 
-- 
Varieties of Pasonia albiflora. 
Sainfoin. —The flowers of this garden form are double, 
large, full, and of a uniform deep rose. Princess 
Mary.— The outer petals of this double form are broad 
and white, while the inner ones are very numerous, 
much undulated, and crisped. Duchess of Teck.— 
The great size of the flowers of this Pieony are very 
noticeable. The outer petals are broad, dentate, and 
of a deep pink. All the rest of the flower is made up 
of a mixture of smaller pink and white petals, cut and 
crisped at the margiu. Stanley; —This is a single 
variety, the flowers of which are globose, at least, until 
fully expanded, and have broad, deep crimson-red 
petals, sometimes shaded with violet along the centre. 
All four received Awards of Merit at the Drill Hall on 
the 10th inst., and were shown by Messrs. Kelway & 
Son, Langport. 
Duchess of Fife. —The flowers of this variety are 
single and of good size. The broad petals are rose 
coloured and numerous, surrounding a central mass of 
yellow stamens. Duke of Clarence. —The flowers 
of this variety are of great size, and fully double, 
forming a globular mass of pink, with broad white 
margins to the petals, nearly resembling the colour of 
the Rose La France. Emily Kelway. —This is a 
single variety, with deep red petals somewhat toothed 
at the apex, and yellow stamens. The three last 
named were shown by Messrs. Kelway & Son, 
Langport, at the June exhibition of the Royal Botanic 
Society on the 11th, and were awarded Floricultural 
Certificates. 
Rhododendrons. 
These are, without exception, the most magnificent of 
all our hardy flowering shrubs, and a bed of selected 
hybrids furnish quite a charming sight during the 
spring and early summer mouths. Those who intend 
forming new clumps or renewing old ones in the 
autumn will find that the most suitable time to make a 
selection is while they are in bloom. Otherwise, 
without you have considerable experience, it is better 
to leave the selection to the nurseryman, stating the 
price per dozen you are willing to pay, and the nature 
of the soil on which you intend to plant. It would be 
difficult to find a class of plants that adapt themselves 
so readily to different aspects. They flourish in a bed 
in a sunny situation, and I have seen them doing 
equally well with an open north aspect. In the choice 
of soil for their culture, peat is preferable, and one 
important advantage of having beds formed of this is 
that you can grow the finest and most tender varieties ; 
but in districts where peat is difficult to obtain, it need 
form no obstacle to the successful cultivation of the 
Rhododendron. I have found them to grow almost as 
well, and flower better, in ordinary stiff sandy loam, 
properly prepared by trenching-in a moderate amount 
of leaf-soil and brick and lime rubble. I avoid 
planting varieties of tender growth on soil prepared in 
that way, but select sorts of strong vigorous habit, 
which are none the less beautiful and interesting. On 
the contrary, if the soil is of a gravelly nature, a good 
dressing of rotten cow-manure, put on the surface after 
planting, and forked in or lightly covered with soil, 
will be found most beneficial. The common R. 
ponticum is the most suitable variety for planting as 
underwood in plantations, or furnishing a cover for 
game. I have frequently seen them blooming and 
apparently thriving under the ponderous branches of 
the Elm and Sycamore.— J. Charlton, Farnley Grove 
Gardens, Corl>ridge-on- Tyne. 
MethverTs June Broccoli. 
I HAVE grown Methven’s June Broccoli for three 
seasons, and can fully endorse all that is said in your 
last issue, both as regards its quality and as a late 
season kind. Two gardening friends were looking 
through the gardens here to-day, and we were all 
pleased to be able to say we should still be able to cut 
them for a week or ten days yet. Last season I cut the 
above Broccoli, and the same firm’s Extra Select 
Forcing Cauliflower, without any break ; the latter 
was sown in January, thus doing away with keeping 
Cauliflower plants all through the winter.— William 
Rusliton, The Gardens, Clerwood, Corstorphine, Edin¬ 
burgh, June 14 th. 
ISCELLANY. 
