June 13th, 1885. 
THE GARDENING WORLD. 
647 
It may here be mentioned incidentally that an 
ingenious Apple-grower and dairyman has invented 
a martingale, which effectually prevents animals re¬ 
strained by it from raising their heads sufficiently 
high to injure the lower branches. It consists of a 
leather clasp round the fore-leg fitted with a ring, to 
which a rope tied to the horns can be fastened with 
a snap. 
We shall only add a single estimate of the profits of 
Apple-growing. It comes from Wyeside, where the 
Apple of the neighbourhood is the Blenheim Orange, 
which sold last season at from 6s. to 12s. per cwt. from 
the trees. An orchard planted with the trees the 
usual distance of 30 ft. apart each way, would give 
forty-eight trees to the acre, which, at 2 cwt. each per 
annum (it is a biennial bearer), and 8s. per cwt. as the 
average price, would yield a return of £19 4s. per acre, 
from which must be deducted the cost of gathering 
and marketing, Is. 6 d. per cwt., and the rent and any 
outgoings for management. If the grower plants an 
orchard by arrangement with his landlord, he must 
calculate interest of money on his outlay, and the 
difference between first cost and the sum to be paid 
him for compensation at quitting. Some of the best 
Blenheims sold last season at a fashionable watering- 
place were grown near the spot, in a deep rich loam, 
on the farm of a small occupier, on trees planted 
thirty years ago by the landlord. 
-—— 
SPRING - FLOWERING BULBOUS 
PLANTS. 
A coreespondent writes: “I have been much 
interested in seeing this season at Horticultural 
Exhibitions, collections of cut specimens of spring¬ 
flowering bulbs, but I am at a loss which to select for 
planting in my garden, not being acquainted with the 
habit or growth of many of them. Will you assist me 
by making a selection for me ?” Certainly. And we 
commence with the brilliant crimson Anemone 
fulgens, and its double variety, Fulgens plena. Both 
of these well deserve a place in the garden, and if 
planted in a good sandy loam will be found to flower 
admirably. To succeed these there should be a 
collection of the fine double and single varieties of 
Anemone coronaria, and as a speciality, the old double 
scarlet Anemone. Mr. Gilbert, of Burghley Gardens, 
has a very fine selection from this which I have seen 
in various places, and it is one of the best of spring¬ 
flowering plants. Then there is the Glory of the Snow, 
Chionodoxa Lucilire, a plant that certainly increases 
in popularity as it is better known, and we have no 
hesitation in placing it among the most effective of 
our early spring-flowering plants ; the flowers are blue 
with a white centre, and with this should be associated 
the purple Scilla bifolia, and the blue Scilla sibirica, 
both dwarf, easily grown, and very free. 
If our correspondent has convenience for growing a 
few Friesias in pots, then we would strongly recommend 
him to try a few bulbs of F. Leichtlinii and F. refracta 
alba. They are not dear, and they are exceedingly 
pretty. They require to be potted in September or 
October; eight or ten bulbs being placed in a pot, 
using loam, leaf-mould, and a little peat, well drain¬ 
ing the pots and placing them in a cold frame for the 
winter, and flowering them in a greenhouse. Some Ixias 
and Sparaxis can be managed in the same way; and 
like the Friesias they will be found very beautiful and 
effective. The larger Snowdrops are well worthy 
attention. We may assume that our correspondent 
already has bulbs of the single and double common 
Snowdrops; the larger ones are Galanthus Elwesi, 
G. plicatus, known also as the Crimean Snowdrop, the 
flowers very large ; and G. Imperati, the true Italian 
Snowdrop, but it is essential that it be obtained true 
to name, as there are spurious forms of it abroad. 
Then there is Gladiolus Colvilli, The Bride, a beau¬ 
tiful early-flowering form, so useful for cutting from. 
We find this does admirably in the open ground 
planted in October in rich light soil, and good bulbs 
supply a large quantity of cut-flowers for the sitting- 
room. A few bulbs placed in pots and grown in a cold 
greenhouse will flower earlier than in the open ground. 
The Grape Hyacinth and the Feathered Hyacinth do 
well in the open border, the former especially; there 
are two or three shades of blue of the former; the 
latter, when well established, throw up large feathery 
spikes of bloom, hence its name. As a matter of 
course, our correspondent has a collection of the 
varieties of Crocus vernus—the spring - flowering 
Crocuses. We think nothing is more charming than 
lines of these Crocuses planted permanently round the 
edges of beds and borders. If a new plantation is 
made the soil should be taken out to the depth of 
1 ft., then 4 ins. of good soil should be placed in the 
bottom of the trench, and two lines of Crocuses in 
mixed colours planted on it, then some more fine soil 
added, and the old soil returned and pressed firmly 
down upon the Crocuses. The sooner this can be 
done in the autumn the better, when the bulbs are 
fresh and plump. We have made a selection of 
Narcissi, which is set forth on p. 650. 
We have overlooked the pretty blue Wood Anemone, 
A. appenina ; then there is the bold and showy Crown 
Imperials, the pretty white Snowdrop-like Leucojum 
vernum, the yellow winter Aconite, and Triteleia 
uniflora. Here, then, is a selection that will be found 
moderate in price, interesting, varied, and pleasing. 
One last word of advice : Don’t drive off selecting the 
bulbs that may be required beyond September or early 
in October.— Quo. 
NOTES FROM GARDENS. 
Thornbury, Sheffield.— This beautiful residence 
is situated in one of the most picturesque parts of the 
west end of Sheffield, overlooking the Porter Yalley. 
The mansion is a neat and substantially built struc¬ 
ture, erected some twenty years ago for its owner, 
F. T. Mappin, Esq., M.P. The garden and grounds 
which surround it are about eight acres in extent, and 
beautifully laid out and planted with the choicest of 
trees and shrubs, all of which have been selected to suit 
the district. No crowding is allowed, but each plant is 
a perfect specimen, and all have the appearance of 
being as well cared for as any of the choicest green¬ 
house plants under glass, and there are not a few 
shrubs either, but some hundreds, which have had 
careful and constant attention from the day they were 
planted. 
The terrace, which is long and broad, runs parallel 
with the south front of the mansion, and contains a 
border running the whole length besides several beds, 
all of which, at the time of my visit, were very gay with 
the spring bedding. In another part of the garden, 
my attention was called to a bed of Alpine Auriculas, 
of numerous shades of colour, the ground between the 
plants being planted with Sedum glaucum, which 
produced one of the most pleasing effects I ever saw, 
and one -which I shall not soon forget. At the east 
end of the terrace is the conservatory, a very fine 
structure, built on the ridge and furrow principle, and 
which is divided into two compartments, one being 
a stove, and the other devoted to greenhouse flowering- 
plants. At the time of my visit (May 20th) this 
compartment was gay with Azaleas, Cinerarias, Cal¬ 
ceolarias, and several pots of Aquilegia hybrida, 
californica, and chrysantha, all of which are very 
pretty, and deserve to be more generally grown for 
such purposes than they are. Amongst the Azaleas 
I noticed two extra fine pyramids about 8 ft. high, 
and well furnished. Here also were a capital pair 
of Dracaena australis, Habrothamnus Newellii, trained 
up one side of the house, covering a large space, and 
producing an abundance of its beautiful clusters of 
bright flowers. 
In the stove there are several fine specimen Crotons, 
and other fine foliage plants; but the centre of attrac¬ 
tion in this compartment was a very fine plant in a 
14-in. pot of Medinilla magnifica, with twenty of its 
charming pendulous racemes of rosy-pink flowers. 
This fine stove plant is too seldom seen in this con¬ 
dition. In the Peach-house close by there is a fine 
crop of fruit, also'a fine plant of the Tea Bose Homere, 
which has given a supply of flowers for above three 
months, and is still producing them freely. Mr. Beed 
has another plant of it in a greenhouse, -which flowers 
quite as freely. In the same house are several plants 
of the old scarlet Cactus in flower, and Mr. Beed told 
me that the blooms last well in a cut state, after 
they have travelled to London, where cut flowers are 
often sent to the family during the season. 
Another stove is filled with Ferns, Gardenias, and a 
few Orchids in flower, the back wall and part of the 
roof being covered with Bougainvillea glabra laden 
with flowers. In this house also is one of the finest 
plants ever produced of Adiantum Farleyense, which 
is close upon 6 ft. in diameter, and quite a mass of 
fronds. In the kitchen garden, which is well cropped 
and neatly kept, there is a span-roofed orchard-house 
filled with Peaches, Nectarines, Plums, Pears, and 
Cherries, most of which appear to be setting fruit 
plentifully. Close by are two vineries; the early one 
is a lean-to (20 ft. by 16 ft.), and the late one a 
span-roof (35 ft. by 22 ft.), and out of these two 
houses Mr. Beed told me that he supplied his 
employer’s table with Grapes last year for close upon 
eleven months. This year his early Grapes are very 
good. In the late house I noticed some fine plants of 
Linum trigynum, 7 ft. high, and which never fail to 
produce an abundant supply of flowers through the 
winter months. The next two compartments are 
occupied with Orchids and other small decorative 
plants, amongst them being several varieties of 
Crotons and Dracaenas, which are very brightly 
coloured. These gardens in every department reflect 
great credit upon Mr. Q. Beed, who has been in charge 
for upwards of three years.— J. IF., S. 
RAILWAY GARDENING. 
None better than they who are doomed to wait the 
half hour or so which is now considered such a long 
time for the next train know the pleasure of a garden 
at the railway station as a means of passing the time. 
At a few of the stations the culture of flowers is carried 
out so successfully that lovers of them are by no means 
anxious for the arrival of the conveyance which is to 
bear them away. 
At the Norbiton and Kingston Hill Station a very 
pretty example is to be found, the long promenades 
running out at each end of the covered in part of the 
station being cleverly laid out with rock-edged borders 
planted with Lupins, Boses, Pinks, Carnations, Pyre- 
thrums, Hollyhocks, Pink Silene, and many other by 
no means common plants. A few clumps of rockery 
crowned with Periwinkle and other suitable plants, 
and an occasional vase mounted on rock, seems to give 
an artistic outline to the whole, and the Honeysuckle, 
Clematis, climbing Boses, and Jasmine trailing over 
the fences make a pleasant background. The tall 
signal-box too at the end of the platform is quite 
picturesquely covered with Ivy, and calls up rather 
the remembrance of the old watch tower than the 
nineteenth century railway signal-box. Many of the 
plants are in bloom, and all are in good order, reflect¬ 
ing great credit on those who tend them. 
It is with regret that we note already the encroach¬ 
ment of those large advertising boards, without which 
and their rent the railway company could do very well. 
Already “ The Largest Circulation,” the irrepressible 
“ Mustard,” and some grand blends of “ Scotch ” and 
“ Irish ” appear. Would that “ The Largest Circula¬ 
tion ” would keep off the railway shrubs and thus set 
the example to the other advertisers and induce them 
to confide the spread of their celebrities to its columns, 
and those of its contemporaries of the public press. 
The profusion with which advertisements are crowded 
nto some railway stations must, it seems to me, reduce 
to the barest chance the possibility of any he^d being 
taken of them.— J. 
—— 
NEW GARDENING PATENTS. 
[Compiled by Messrs. Lulman cO Co., Patent Agents, 
S, Essex Street, Strand, London, TF.C.] 
1891. Fumigating Hothouses, &c. (T. Elcome, 
4, Chesnut Villas, Upper Norwood).—The fumigator 
is made of sheet iron, oval in shape, and is divided 
into two parts by a perforated false bottom. In the 
upper part is placed the fumigating material, and in 
the lower a fire is made. The cover is perforated and 
moveable. Stout handles are hung on by rings, at 
each end of the vessel. 
2022. Hoes (D. Smith, Wolverhampton).—This 
relates to the manufacture of Brazil hoes, i.e., hoes 
which have checks projecting forward from the eyes. 
A short length of bar for making the hoe is held in a 
heated condition edgeways between two compression 
dies which give the exterior shape to the eye and poll- 
piece, the eye being formed somewhat shorter in an 
edgeway direction than the finished eye is intended to 
be. The partially-formed eye is then held in a solid 
bottom die while a forcing tool or punch is caused to 
descend and form the interior of the eye, the metal 
being forced towards a recess in the die and a wad of 
metal remaining connected at its front end to the eye. 
The punch is so shaped as to leave lumps or thick¬ 
nesses of metal on the interior of the eye. 
