October 7, 1893. 
THE GARDENING WORLD. 
81 
measuring 261 in. in circumference, in. in dia¬ 
meter, and weighing gj ounces, in a field between 
Treworgie and Tr^iddick.—Mr. W. Stark, gardener, 
Netherton House, Mid Devon, has gathered some 
strawberries last week measuring 3 in- in circum¬ 
ference They were grown outdoors. The Attle¬ 
borough allotment holders are gathering a marvellous 
lot of potatos. A single specimen has turned the scale 
at 3 lb. 2 oz.,and the general yield is four strikes to the 
rood. Considering that the land is let at gd. per 
rood, the holders are reaping a good return for 
their outlay. Prior to conversion into allotments, 
the ground was old turf pasture. Some remark¬ 
able signs of the season are now to be witnessed 
in South Lincolnshire. Strawberries have just been 
gathered from a garden in Spalding, and at Long 
Sutton some raspberry canes are bearing. At 
Crowland a Chestnut tree, from which every leaf 
fell off in July, is now in full bloom, and clothing 
itself with leaves as in spring. 
Complimentary Dinner to Mr. H. E. Milner. On 
Thursday evening of last week a complimentary 
dinner was given in the French Restauraunt at Karl s 
Court to Mr. H. E. Milner, and which proved to be 
one of the pleasantest social gatherings held there 
this season. There were between eighty and ninety 
gentlemen present, and Professor Stewart, President 
of the Linnean Society, presided. After the usual 
loyal toasts. Professor Stewart proposed the health 
of Mr. Milner, and referred in felicitous terms to 
that gentleman's exertions, not only to form a 
gardening display, as last year, but to add thereto 
that of forestry. The speaker concluded by asking 
Mr. Milner to accept an antique silver bowl, which 
had been subscribed for by personal friends and 
members of the staff in recognition of his labours. 
Mr. Milner, evidently moved by the feeling mani¬ 
fested, thanked all around him for the cordiality of 
their reception, and in acknowledging the hearty co¬ 
operation of his fellow-directors, and of everyone 
with whom he had been brought into contact during 
the existence of the Gardening and Forestry Exhi¬ 
bition, said he desired to specially recognise the 
great assistance accorded him by Messrs. Cundell, 
Turner, and George Culley. 
A Remarkable Bouquet.--A lady writing in The 
Times from Coik at the end of September says: — 
“ The composition of a small nosegay of fresh 
flowers gathered in County Cork will seem incred¬ 
ible even to those who have watched the progress 
of this remarkable summer. The bouquet consists of 
bramble leaves dyed with the most gorgeous autumn 
tints—nothing unseasonable in that!—surrounding 
Apple blossom developed from buds which should 
have lain dormant until the awakening breath of next 
spring aroused them. The flowers are as dainty and 
perfect as the usual spring bloom, but appear 
strange in uheir setting of old leaves instead of 
the soft delicacy of the undeveloped foliage usually 
attending these precocious blossoms. Then there 
are wild Roses and buds gathered from a bush 
which bore similar blossoms on April 26th of the 
present year, and lastly, groups of strawberry 
blossom as jaunty and fresh as those of the early 
summer, and apparently unconscious at present of 
the rapid approach of cold frosts which have 
already spread their icy fingers over counties to 
to the north of County Cork. Reports, too, from 
Killarney and other places tell of laburnum trees 
in full bloom, while adjacent are bushes laden 
with fruits of deepening hues, and close by the 
Arbutus displays its richest of crimson-red berries.” 
An Australian Catalogue.—The trade literature of 
our leading seed firms is now so admirably turned 
out and so acceptable in all respects that we are 
rather apt to think that in this, as in many other 
things, we have the best, and certainly as regards 
our leading trade catalogues we have much to be 
proud of. But our friends in the colonies are 
making wonderful strides in the same class of 
literature, and in the annual seed and plant cata¬ 
logue for the present year, issued by Messrs. 
Anderson & Co., 216, 218, Pitt Street, Sydney, we 
have an intensely English-looking production, which 
in the matter of size, letterpress printing, and 
illustrations compares in a remarkably favourable 
manner with the best of our own. A careful 
perusal of the lists show that most of our best seeds 
and garden plants are appreciated in far-off 
Australia as much as they are here, but there are 
also many things which grow to perfection and are 
popular there that we in Europe are practically 
unacquainted with. Thus we have a coloured 
illustration of "New Japanese Persimmons,” a 
variety of Diospyros Kaki we presume, with luscious- 
looking, crimson, smooth. Tomato-like fruits, and 
which are said to have become most popular in the 
Sydney markets. The improved. Japanese varieties 
are noticed as being ” much superior to the old 
Chinese Date Plums, and are correctly described as 
a Tomato-shaped fruit with thin skin, flesh when 
ripe, delightfully sweet and luscious, with a most 
agreeable flavour in all varieties.” The plants are 
said to be very productive, and bear large crops of 
fruit every year. The plants would require an 
orchard house in this country, and we could wish 
that some one would introduce them and give us a 
taste of their quality. 
--*•- 
NATIONAL CHRYSANTHEMUM 
SOCIETY. 
The new Chrysanthemums are beginning to put in 
appearance, and at the meeting of the Floral Com¬ 
mittee of the above Society on September 27th, 
some highly promising new varieties were staged. 
Mr. George Gordon was in the chair. Foremost 
was a very fine white Japanese, named Mrs. C. B. 
Myers, broad petalled, reflexed, and having a slight 
primrose centre, a really magnificent variety for 
early exhibitions. This came from Mr. Robert Owen, 
nurseryman. Maidenhead, and was unanimously 
awarded a First-class Certificate of Merit. Mr. E. 
Row-bottom, The Priory Gardens, Hornsey, also had 
a similar award unanimously granted for President 
Boril (E. Calvat), magenta-rose, with a golden 
reverse to the broad petals, a reflexed variety of 
great promise. A First-class Certificate of Merit 
was also awarded to Mr. Norman Davis, Lilford 
Road Nursery, Camberwell, for an early-flowering 
decorative Jap. named M. Gustave Grunerwald, 
white with very slight sulphur centre, dwarf, and 
remarkably free. Mr. Davis also had H. Shoesmith, 
a primrose coloured Marie Hoste, the petals reflexed 
at the base, but incurving in the centre, a very fine 
broad petalled variety that with age will probably 
become white. As only one bloom was on the plant 
the committee wished to see it again. Mr. E. 
Beckett, The Gardens, Aldenham House, Elstree, 
had Delicatum, a seedling raised in Guernsey, colour 
blush, small thread-like florets, full reflexed, and 
very pretty. From Mr. W. J. Godfrey, nurseryman. 
Exmouth, came two new Japs., viz., Devonshire 
Lass, creamy-white, with a yellow centre, and good 
broad petals, very promising, and the committee 
wished to see it again, as they also did Madame 
Edouard Rey (E. Calvat), deep pink to rose, with a 
silvery reverse, a very promising broad petalled 
incurved Jap. 
ROOT PRUNING. 
This is one of those subjects respecting which there 
will ever be a great diversity of opinion, influenced 
very much by the circumstances under which the 
advocates for or against it are placed. There are 
soils and situations where it will rarely be needed, 
because from poverty of soil or bad climatic con¬ 
ditions, trees make a stunted growth, and deep, rich 
soils where if left unchecked trees will grow so 
luxuriantly that unless some restraint is put upon 
them, they will form fruit buds very sparingly till 
they have grown on for 3 ears, and Nature putting a 
check on to them they are eventually thrown inta a 
fruit-bearing condition. 
Now, as only those who have ample room can 
afford to wait till this takes place some artificial 
method must be resorted to, and root-pruning be¬ 
comes a matter of the first importance to those who 
have only a limited space and yet who wish tp grow 
a variety of fruits. Those who contemplate doing 
root-pruning or transplanting now that the fruit will 
in most instances be gathered, can begin operations 
at once ; but in many instances, owing to the long 
drought, it will be desirable to give trees to be 
operated upon a good soaking previously, and if any 
trees are to be done which have been undisturbed 
for a lengthened time, it will be best to do half 
round them now, and leave the other half till next 
season. All roots that are operated upon should be 
finished off with a clean cut, and if fresh soil is put 
into the trench thrown out to get at the roots,,fresh 
fibres will soon be at work among it. No amount of 
top pruning will be so efficacious in producing 
flower buds as a judicious root-pruning.—G. 
FORDE ABBEY, CHARD. 
How very much I wished for a picture of this 
beautiful as well as interesting old abbey ! As it 
was recently presented to me on a bright sunny day 
as I stood on the elevated lawn that sloped so grace¬ 
fully down to the abbey front, and saw not only the 
framework of verdure in front of fine trees on either 
side, but also a noble bank of trees and scenery on 
the Somerset hills which rose up behind and in the 
distance. The abbey, some 800 years old, is in a 
state of perfect preservation, its diverse forms of 
Tudor and Gothic architecture being happily 
blended, and are aided by many fine climbers, the 
which serve and add charm, while the old stone 
walls and antique mullioned windows furnish much 
that is picturesque. Inside th? abbey is most sump¬ 
tuously furnished, and altogether it is a most 
interesting and delightful residence. Its present 
owner is W. H. Evans, Esq., and the gardener, Mr. 
J. Crook, formerly of Farnborough Grange. 
Like to all abbeys, the building stands in a valley 
near to the small stream known as the Axe, hence 
whilst the pleasure grounds lie somewhat high, the 
kitchen gardens are low, indeed close behind the 
abbey, for we may very well imagine that the monks 
of old who were good gardeners, loved to have the 
scene of their labours near at hand, and although a 
moat formerly divided the abbey from the gardens, 
that has long since been filled up. Mr. Crook’s resi¬ 
dence, which stands in the gardens, is taken from out 
of a portion of the old dormitories, and if very close 
to the abbey is also close to the scene of the gar¬ 
deners’ labours. There are the customary vineries 
and other glass houses here, and grapes are very 
well done. One house contains Black Hamburgh 
Vines, thirty-five years old, and yet these fruit well. 
Lady Downes Seedling and Black Alicante had 
capital crops. A corridor house with Peaches and 
Nectarines on the backwall, and Plums and Peaches 
trained flatwise, some five feet in height, along the 
front, and quite unheated, seems to be a most valu¬ 
able structure. 
Here the crop of Peaches begins with Amsden 
June ripe the first week in July, and runs through 
till the middle of October with Acton Scott, Crimson 
Galande, Gros Mignonne, Royal George, Noblesse, 
Walburton Admirable, Royal Vineyard, Late 
Admirable, and Sea Eagle, and one of the best 
of all late Peaches, good in flavour and colour, 
Gladstone. Some Plums were also carrying late 
crops, especially Coe’s Late Red, Ickworth Impera- 
trice, Coe’s Golden Drop, etc. The chief Nectarines 
are Violet Hative, Pitmaston Orange, and Hardwicke. 
About on the garden walls are capital crops of 
Peaches, Plums, Pears, etc., and Plums especially 
have been largely bagged in muslin to protect them 
to the latest possible moment, as the fruits are much 
needed for the shooting parties. Apples do well 
here, both on bush trees in the garden and on 
standards in the orchard. Colour is remarkable, 
especially on Cellini Pippin and upon a variety very 
like it, but still dissimilar, growing on several fine 
trees in the orchard. Ribsten, Cox’s Orange, King, 
and other Pippins are in very beautiful condition. 
The vegetable crops are good. Potatos, Onions, 
Carrots, Celery, indeed, everything in this depart¬ 
ment is good, the crops clean and very neatly kept. 
There is, of course, the customary hundred or two 
of Chrysanthemums in pots, which everybody seems 
to have good this season. In the kitchen garden 
flower borders which line the central paths contain 
clumps of both hardy and tender flowers which are 
delightful, especially so are huge clumps of Zinnias 
in colour. Phlox Drummondi, Henry Jacoby Pelar¬ 
gonium, Anemone japonica alba, etc. These 
borders are backed by Espalier trees. Some plants 
oi Primula obconica claim special interest, because 
Mr. Crook has spent much labour in striving to 
hybridise these with pollen from the Chinese Prim¬ 
rose, and apparently with some success, as he has 
now larger, deeper coloured flowers, and some have 
fringed edges. However, attempts at improving 
this free Primula are but yet in their infancy. In a 
frame ground and on a north wall Tropaeolum 
speciosum does capitally, blooming brilliantl}-. 
One of the prime features of the pleasure grounds 
is a fine hardy herbaceous border, well filled 
throughout, not by small plants but by big clumps, 
for Mr. Crook is an enthusiastic advocate of this 
style of planting to get due effect, and he is right. 
Big pieces of Anemones, Helianthuses, Rudbeckias, 
