October 6, 1894. 
THE GARDENING WORLD. 
83 
WEBBS’ 21 h BOX 
For Greenhouse Decoration, 4c., 
i Amaryllis Formosissima. 
ioo Crocus, five choice varie¬ 
ties. 
i Cyclamen Persicum. 
12 Hyacinths, choice named 
varieties. 
9 Jonquils, sweet-scented, 
i Lilium Lancifolium. 
6 Narcissus Bulbocodium. 
9 Polyanthus Narcissus. 
25 Scilla Siberica. 
100 Snowdrops. 
6 Tulips, Due Van Thol, 
scarlet. 
18 Tulips, early single, six 
varieties. 
6 Tulips, Rex Rubrorum, 
double. 
6 Tulips, Tournesol, dble. 
OTHER BOXES from 5 s. to 42 s. each. 
WEBBS’ BULB CATALOGUE. 
Beautifully Illustrated, and containing complete cultural 
instructions, Post Free, 6d. Gratis to customers. 
Seedsmen by Royal Warrants to H.M. the Queen and 
H.R.H. the Prince of Wales. 
WORDSLEY, STOURBRIDGE. 
ORCHIDS. 
Clean Healthy Plants at Low Prices. 
Always worth a visit of inspection. Kindly send for Catalogue. 
Exotic Nurseries, CHELTENHAM. 
SPECIAL CULTURE 
OF 
FRUIT TREES & ROSES. 
A Large and Select Stock is now offered for Sale. 
The Illustrated and Descriptive Catalogue of Fruits post free. 
The Descriptive Catalogue of Roses post free. 
THOMAS RIVERS & SON, 
The Nurseries, 5/1 WBRIDGEWORTH, Herts 
:ss!3 
HYACINTHS, TULIPS, 
Narcissi, Lillies, 
Snowdrops, 
Crocuses, 
Scillas, 
Irises 
Dicksons 
<$> 
BEST 
QUALITIES 
AT LOWEST 
RATES. 
Delivered Free by. 
Rail or Parcel Post. 
Descriptive Catalogue No. lit 
Post Free on application 
I Bulb Growers 
& Importers 
Chester 
For Market and Private Growers. 
Ornamental Trees,Shrubs, t. 
Descriptive CATALOGUES post free, 
J QHEAL & CONS, 
WI UP Crawley, Sussex- 
Pansies & Violas. 
FANCY PANSIES. 
I offer i pair cuttings of Miss Stirling and B. Doulton, the best 
var. in cultivation, these have been awarded five special 
prizes for the best new Pansies, and were the leading flowers 
in seven medal stands this season, including Edinburgh 
Glasgow and London, and 11 pairs of the best 1894 var. for 7s. 6d. 
My 3s. collection of 13 pairs includes one variety of Mr. C 
Kay's new Pansies and 3 pairs for 1894, 
SHOW PANSIES. 
One pair cuttings of a new variety and 12 pairs of the best 
1894 for 61- 
Four pairs of 1894 var. and g grand competition sorts for 3/- 
VIOLAS 
( A warded 4 Medals this season). 
I have 100,000 cuttings now ready for delivery. The follow¬ 
ing are the very best 20 new and old varieties for bedding 
and massing, and include the c-eam of the unrivalled rayless 
Violas. Seven are new 1894 var. and three are 1893 var. Mrs. 
C. F. Gordon, Cecilia, Beautiful Snow, Admiration, Goldfinch, 
Charmer, Commodore, M. Todd, Accushla, Lord Elcho, 
Wm. Niel, Duchess of Fife. Rayless type: Grandee, Border 
Witch, Christiana. Lutea, Queen of the May, Sylvia, Blue 
Gown, Blush Queen. I will substitute other varieties in place 
of any of the above not wanted. One pair cuttings of each var. 
for 4/-; 5 each for 7/6; 10 each for 13/6; 20 each for 25/- 
Catalogues Free to any Address. 
s. PYE, 
CATTERALL, GARSTANG LANG. 
For Index to Contents see page 94. 
" Gardening Is the purest of human pleasures, and the greatest 
refreshment to the spirit of man."— Bacon. 
NEXT WEEK'S ENGAGEMENTS. 
MondAv, Oct. Sth.—National Chrysanthemum Society : meet¬ 
ing of General Committee at 7 p.m. 
Bulb Sale at Pjotheroe & Morris' Rooms, and every 
day in the week. 
Tuesday, Oct. 9th.— Royal Horticultural Society : Committee 
Meetings at 12 o'clock. 
Sale of Nursery Stock at Woodlane Nursery, Islewortb, by 
Protheroe & Morris. 
Sale of Nursery Stock at the Milford Nurseries, Godaliniug 
by Messrs. Mellersh (3 days). 
Sale of Nursery Stock at Cripp's Nursery, Tunbridge Wells, 
by Protheroe & Morris (3 days). 
Wednesday, Oct. 10th.—National Chrysanthemum Society's 
Show at the Royal Aquarium, Westminster (3 days), 
Friday, Oct. 12th.—Orchid Sale at Protheroe & Morris’ 
Rooms. 
Cft? 
Edited by BRIAN WYNNE, F.R.H.S. 
SATURDAY , OCTOBER 6th , 1894. 
JLessons of the Fruit Show. —The 
general impression throughout the 
country is that Apples are a scarce crop 
this year, and the allegation is doubtless 
true so far as orchard fruit in the ordinary 
acceptation of the term is concerned. 
Those who visited the show at the Crystal 
Palace at the end of last week and the 
beginning of this, for the purpose of veri¬ 
fying this impression, were doubtless agree¬ 
ably surprised, except, perhaps, in the case 
of some less fortunate who had no fruit at 
home. Apples were present in great quan¬ 
tity, and in fine condition, except that 
colour was not so highly developed as it is 
in seasons favoured with a greater amount 
of sunshine. It is only another illustration 
of the fact that “ with all appliances and 
means to boot” the certainty of outdoor 
crops is entirely dependent upon the 
weather, except where it is possible to 
apply a little protection to palliate the 
influence of a fickle climate. A number of 
nurserymen and fruit growers are indebted 
to their plantations of dwarf bush, pyra- 
midal, and cordon trees for their success at 
the Exhibition, and private gentlemen 
would obtain their best fruits from the same 
sources and from wall trees. The success 
of a London exhibition of hardy fruits does 
not in any year depend upon the crop 
obtainable from standard trees. The latter 
are mostly a failure in the case of Apples, 
whereas dwarf trees on the Paradise stock 
have, in many localities, yielded a bountiful 
crop of fruit of the first magnitude. The 
difference between success and failure in a 
bad year should act as a salutary lesson 
which ought to be laid to heart. Last 
year, with its abundant sunshine, ripened 
the wood of fruit trees admirably, and the 
blossom in spring was profuse, yet the late 
frosts of May destroyed all prospect of a 
crop on large trees, whereas the dwarf 
ones were loaded in other gardens and 
plantations. That is a fact to be borne in 
mind. 
Pears blossomed earlier and set an abun¬ 
dant crop, which was invulnerable to frost. 
The theory that ‘late flowering varieties of 
fruit trees escape frost has now been blown 
to the winds, and has no significance. The 
plentiful crop of Pears has presented 
nothing remarkable on the Exhibition table, 
either as to quantity or size, though 
perhaps quite up to the average in the 
latter respect. The fruits are greatly lack¬ 
ing in colour, owing to the short duration 
of sunshine, though they may improve by 
keeping. The Pear requires a longer 
season and more sunshine to bring it to 
perfection than the Apple, so that the best 
samples always come from the south. A 
collection from the Channel Islands looks 
like strangers, both as to size and colour, 
amongst the smaller and greener specimens 
of home growth. The inference is that the 
Pear is more truly a native of the south 
than the British Islands. The specimens 
of Uvedale’s St. Germain Pear, weighing 
three to four pounds, and other varieties in 
proportion require special culture in a 
specially favourable climate. One lesson of 
the show was that the premier awards, say 
for eighteen or twelve dishes of Pears, 
went to those whose fruits of all the 
varieties were most evenly balanced as to 
size. 
Orchard house fruit has much to recom¬ 
mend it, though we may rest assured that 
it will never be the salvation of fruit growing 
in this country, even if brought to maturity 
without fire heat. Both Apples and Pears 
look clean skinned, and in the case of the 
latter, especially, they have a riper appear¬ 
ance. The difference is so great in a good 
collection of fruit that the public is apt to 
be led away with the idea that it is a 
matter of culture or variety. The educa¬ 
tional value of a show would be greatly im¬ 
proved if all orchard house fruit were pro¬ 
minently labelled as such, so that the public 
might grasp the meaning of the difference. 
The promoters of a show might attend to 
this matter even if exhibitors are indifferent 
to it. Trees in pots require a greater 
amount of attention than those planted out; 
but when fire heat is used the expense must 
be greater. The attendant’s time, the 
average cost of the house over a given 
number of years, the fuel bill, and feeding 
must all be taken into account in calcula¬ 
ting the cost of the fruit produced. Even 
with fairly advanced prices this mode of 
culture could hardly be expected to pay. 
The trader has, of course, other interests to 
serve by this method of culture, and the 
private grower has to study the needs of a 
family and the possibility of obtaining an 
early supply of fruit till those in the open 
ground come to hand. Not only are the 
