54 
THE GARDENING WORLD 
September 24, 1892. 
AN IRISH ROSE NURSERY 
Having seen the Rose exhibits of Messrs. Alex. 
Dickson & Sons, of the Royal Nurseries, New- 
townards, co. Down, at the Provincial National Rose 
Show, at Chester, I took the opportunity of paying 
their nursery a visit whilst in Ireland a.* the begin¬ 
ning of this month. I was indeed surprised to find 
such a large acreage under Roses, the nursery being 
over fifty acres in extent. It may interest your 
readers to scan over a few items concerning the 
Roses. They have this season dug up with spades 
a six acre meadow and budded 137,000 Roses in it ; 
in all they have budded over 200,000 Roses this 
season, but when one sees such items as 15,700 
Brunner, 8,000 Laing, 5,000 Dufferin, 5,000 Baroness, 
5,000 La France, etc., the number is soon made up. 
There were also some 600 seedlings, in which 
were some exceedingly promising ones ; but this firm 
stands well in connection with seedling Roses, in 
fact I was more charmed by their latest Gold Medal 
winner (Chester) Mrs. W. J. Grant than by any 
other Rose on the place. This hybrid-tea, a 
seedling from La France, for symmetry, colour, 
perfume, and floriferousness beats anything I saw, 
as I counted sixteen blooms and buds on a very 
small plant; certainly Marchioness of Londonderry 
s a noble Rose and will make a magnificent addition 
to the whites, being a pure white with thick leathery 
petals. Earl Dufferin was full of bloom, and I have 
not the least hesitation in saying that 1,000 blooms 
of Mrs. John Laing could have been staged had 
there been necessity. A visit to the nursery is well 
repaid, as the Messrs. Dickson are heart and soul 
rosarians.— M. 
--f—- 
THE PREVENTION OF 
POTATO DISEASE. 
To the statement which we copied from The Times 
into our last issue with reference to the practical 
trial of the Bordeaux Mixture which Messrs. James 
Carter & Co. have this season conducted on one of 
their seed farms at Bromley, we may now add the 
fact that on Friday of last week a number of gentle¬ 
men interested in the subject visited the trial ground 
to witness the conclusion of the experiments. It may 
usefully be stated again that the objects which the 
Messrs. Carter kept in view were of a two-fold 
character, namely, the prevention not the cure of the 
Potato disease, and to prove the correctness or other¬ 
wise of the results claimed to have been obtained by 
Dr. Aime Girard, in the six years’ trial conducted by 
him for the French Government. All growers 
recognise the fact now that a cure for the Potato 
disease is of no practical value, as a tuber once 
diseased cannot be made eatable, and that for a 
remedy against the ravages of the Phytophthora we 
must work rather in the direction of prevention. 
Many experiments have been made in this country 
during the last two seasons with the compound 
recommended by M. Girard, but from some cause or 
causes that have not been clearly explained, the 
results have been of a varied character, and not until 
now, so far as we know, have M. Girard's experi¬ 
ments been confirmed by the trials made by English 
growers. It was the fact that the numerous trials 
made gave such diflerents results that induced 
the Messrs. Carter to adhere rigidly to M. Girard’s 
recommendations, and with this view the conduct of 
the experiments was placed under the direction of 
Mr. Henry F. Moore, a well-known agricultural 
writer who had made himself thoroughly acquainted 
with the French scientist’s work, and the result not 
only confirms M. Girard's experiments, but is of an 
even more satisfactory character. 
The land selected consisted of a little less than an 
acre, and the Potatos were planted in ten long 
double rows, with the drills 30 in. apart. They 
were planted on April 8, the sorts being as 
follows:—1, Myatt’s Ashleaf; 2, Snowdrop; 3, 
Beauty of Hebron ; 4, White Elephant; 5, Carter’s 
King of Russets; 6, Carters Cosmopolitan; 7, 
Carter’s Improved Magnum Bonum ; 8, Ihe Bruce ; 
9, Carter’s Surprise; and 10, Imperator. The 
whole piece was divided into four equal parts, of 
which the first and third were dressed with the 
Bouille Bordelaise, and the second and fourth left 
undressed. The strength of the mixture was as 
follows:—22 lb of sulphate of copper (bluestone), 
22 lb. of unslaked lime, and 100 gallons of water ; 
this being the quantity necessary for an acre of 
Potatos. The sulphate of copper is of 98 per cent. 
purity, and is the Macclesfield patent sulphate of 
copper, this being the same as that used by 
M. Girard in his experiments. For the purpose of 
the experiment the first and third quarters were 
dressed with the Bouille Bordelaise on July 11 and 
August 2, and the second and fourth left undressed. 
The mixture was applied by the Antipest, the new 
knapsack distributor, invented by Mr. G. F. Straw- 
son, which did the work admirably. On the second 
occasion, a German machine was also tried,-this also 
doing good work. 
During the period of the experiment the weather 
has been as follows :— 
April 8th to 30th.—Rainfall: 1.50 in. (on ten days). 
The rain fell on continuous days from 
24-25UI1 to 28-2gth (0.55 in.). 
Frost was registered on thirteen occasions 
from April 10th to 30th, in intensity rang¬ 
ing from 1 to 7 deg. 
Severe snowstorm 1 a.m. to 8 a.m., April 16th. 
May. —Rainfall, 1.46 in. (on ten days). Very little 
rain (0.21 in. on eight days) until after the 
24-25th; and on the 25-26th there was 
registered 0.97 in. 
Frost registered on May 1st (5 deg.), May 7th 
(4 deg.). 
June. —Rainfall, 2.64in. (on fourteen days). Thunder¬ 
storm 28th, 8.30 p.m. to 11 p.m. Thermo- 
• meter : lowest 35 ; highest 98. 
July.— Rainfall, 2.53 in. (on eight days). Very se¬ 
vere thunderstorm on the 14th, 10.15 a-.m. 
and 12:30 midday, when 0.90 in. of rain fell. 
Thermometer : lowest, 39 : highest, 90. 
August.— Rainfall: 3.35 in. (on sixteen days); the 
heaviest fall was 27-28th, 0.98 in. Thermo¬ 
meter : lowest, 38 ; highest, 98. 
September 1st to 14th. — Rainfall: 0.57 in. (on seven 
days). Thermometer: lowest, 35 ; highest, 
83 - 
Early in the present month it was clear that dis¬ 
ease had appeared in the undressed portions ; and on 
September 6th one root was dug from the centre of 
one row of each variety in the first three sections, 
and with results as shown in the following tables, 
which conclusively prove that, when properly ap¬ 
plied, the mixture is clearly a preventive of this 
dreaded malady. 
First Quarter Plot.—Dressed. 
Row and variety. 
Weight of 
sound 
tubers. 
Weight of 
diseased 
tubers. 
Total. 
Cwt 
qrs 
lbs 
Cwt qrs 
lbs 
Cwt 
qrs 
lbs 
1. 
Myatt’s 
3 
1 
5 
— — 
3 
1 
6 } 
2. 
Snowdrops. 
2 
2 
12 
— — 
G 
2 
2 
I 3 i 
3 - 
Beauty of Hebron... 
2 
3 
18 
— — 
2 b 
2 
3 
20b 
4 - 
White Elephant 
_3 
2 
19 
— — 
2 
3 
2 
21 
5 - 
King of the Russets 
3 
3 
14 
none 
3 
3 
14 
6. 
Cosmopolitan 
2 
2 
7 
— — 
0$ 
2 
2 
7 i 
7 - 
Magnum Bonum ... 
3 
2 
19 
none 
3 
2 
19 
8. The Bruce . 
4 
0 
0 
none 
4 
O 
O 
9 - 
Carter’s Surprise ... 
3 
2 
IO 
none 
3 
2 
10 
10. 
Imperator . 
4 
3 
10 
none 
4 
3 
10 
Totals. 
35 
0 
2 
— — 
HM 
°° 
35 
0 
ioj 
Second Quarter Plot.—Undressed. 
Row and variety. 
Weight of 
sound 
tubers. 
Weight of 
diseased 
tubers. 
Total. 
I. 
Myatt’s . 
Cwt qrs 
1 2 
lbs 
17 
Cwt qrs 
— 3 
lbs 
25 
Cwt qrs lbs 
2 2 14 
2 . 
Snowdrops. 
1 
3 
10 
— 1 
21 
2 
1 
3 
3 - 
Beauty of Hebron ... 
2 
0 
10 
— 1 
12 
2 
1 
22 
4 * 
White Elephant ... 
2 
0 
25 
— 3 
21 
3 
0 
IS 
5. 
King of the Russets 
3 
2 
5 
— — 
12 
3 
2 
17 
6 . 
Cosmopolitan 
2 
0 
0 
— 1 
7 
2 
1 
7 
7 - 
Magnum Bonum ... 
3 
0 
21 
— — 
5 
3 
0 
26 
8 . 
The Bruce ... 
3 
2 
0 
— ■ — 
7 
3 
2 
7 
9 - 
Carter's Surprise ... 
2 
I 
10 
— — 
25 
2 
2 
7 
10. 
Imperator . 
3 
2 
23 
16 
3 
3 
11 
Totals. 
25 
2 
9 
3 2 
11 
29 
0 
20 
Third Quarter Plot.—Dressed. 
Row and variety. 
Weight of 
sound 
tubers. 
Weight of 
diseased 
tubers. 
Total. 
Cwt qrs lbs 
Cwt 
qrs 
lbs 
Cwt 
qrs 
lbs 
1. Myatt’s . 
I 
I 
13 
— 
— 
°i 
1 
1 
131 
2. Snowdrops. 
I 
I 
21 
— 
— 
°4 
1 
1 
21* 
3. Beauty ol Hebron ... 
I 
3 
12 
— 
— 
G 
1 
3 
12 
4. White Elephant 
2 
3 
17 
— 
— 
0 
2 
3 
ioi 
5. King of the Russets 
2 
2 
9 
— 
— 
0 
2 
9 
6. Cosmopolitan 
I 
2 
7 
— 
— 
0 
1 
2 
7 
7. Magnum Bonum .. 
2 
3 
0 
— 
— 
0 
2 
3 
0 
8. The Bruce. 
3 
0 
23 
— 
— 
0 
3 
0 
23 
9. Carter’s Surprise ... 
2 
2 
0 
— 
— 
0 
2 
2 
0 
10. Imperator . 
2 
3 
8 
of 
2 
3 
°i 
Totals. 
22 
3 
26 
0 
0 
2| 
23 
0 
Fourth Quarter Plot.—Undressed. 
Weight of ■ Weight of 
Row and variety. 
sound 
diseased 
Total 
tubers. tubers. 
Cwt 
qrs 
lbs Cwt qrs 
lbs 
Cwt 
qrs 
lbs 
I. 
Myatt's . 
— 
3 
14 — 1 
14 
1 
1 
O 
2. 
Snowdrops. 
— 
2 
26—2 
14 
1 
1 
12 
3 - 
Beauty of Hebron 
— 
3 
16 — 2 
23 
1 
2 
II 
4 - 
White hlephant 
I 
0 
14—3 
7 
1 
3 
21 
5 - 
King of the Russets 
I 
2 
0 — 1 
0 
1 
3 
0 
6. 
Cosmopolitan 
— 
3 
5 — 1 
0 
1 
0 
5 
7 - 
Magnum Bonum ... 
I 
0 
20 — — 
1 
1 
0 
21 
8 . 
The Bruce. 
3 
I 
11 j — — 
2 
3 
1 
13 
9 - 
Carter’s Surprise ... 
I 
1 
0 — — 
14 
1 
I 
14 
10. 
Imperator . 
2 
I 
7 — — 
20 
2 
1 
27 
Totals. 
14 
0 
1 1 3 1 
11 
17 
1 
12 
The following table gives the totals of the two 
duplicate experiments:— 
Dressed 
plots. 
Undressed 
plots. 
In favour 
of dressed 
plots. 
Cwt qrs lbs 
Cwt qrs lbs 
Cwt qrs lbs 
Weight of sound tubers 
Weight of unsound 
58 0 0 
39 2 10 
18 1 18 
tubers . :.. 
- - II 
6311 
630 
Total yield . 
Ln 
CO 
O 
46 2 4 
1127 
It will thus be seen that in whatever aspect the 
experiment is looked at it is in favour of the dressing 
by the bouillie Bordelaise. So far as sound tubers are 
concerned, the yield is over two tons per acre more 
than in the undressed portion (the two plots being 
less than half an acre), while the quality of the 
tubers is better. 
-- 
THE ONION IN EXCELSIS. 
It is now the custom of Mr. Henry Deverill, of 
Banbury, a town long since renowned for its Onions, 
to offer prizes annually in September for the best 
specimen of his famous pedigree Onions, several of 
which he has introduced of late years. Since Mr. 
Deverill instituted this annual competition his Onion 
show has grown greatly in importance and extent. 
His object in offering prizes is for the purpose of 
encouraging the cultivation of his pedigree stocks, 
and when seed from these is obtained and the plants 
subjected to high cultivation remarkable results 
follow. The prizes offered by Mr. Deverill are open 
to all comers ; but in the three leading classes it 
was stipulated that the bulbs should be grown with 
the aid of Thomson's Vine, Plant, and Vegetable 
Manure. 
An Onion exhibition at Banbury is no new feature; 
there are records extant showing that Onions were 
exhibited for prizes sixty years ago, and it is men¬ 
tioned that about 1832 the best Onions measured 12m. 
round, and they Avere thought to be wonderful in 
that day. Thirty years ago a noted Banbury grower 
—George Warde—beat all previous records by ex¬ 
hibiting twelve Onions weighing 14 lbs., and they 
were the heaviest ever before exhibited. One of the 
most striking improvements in our ordinary garden 
Spanish or Reading Onion was that known as the 
Banbury Improved White Spanish, which is still 
grown to a large size. 
On the occasion of Mr. Deverill’s annual show on 
the 15th and 16th inst., he divided his prizes over 
four classes ; there were ninety entries in all, and 
these, with some shown not for competition, brought 
the number up to about 1280 bulbs. They not only 
filled Mr. Deverill’s seed shop in the market place 
but some had to be staged on tables placed in the 
street front of the shop. Never before had so man}' 
Onions of such astonishing size and superb quality 
been brought together. 
Class 1 was for 12 specimens of either one of the 
following varieties of Onions, viz., Rousham Park 
Hero, Anglo-Spanish, Royal Jubilee, and the Lord 
Keeper or Advancer. Rousham Park came into 
commerce first in point of time, and is said to have 
been raised by Mr. H. Wingrove, of Rousham Park 
Gardens, from a cross made between the Reading and 
Brown Globe ; and possibly this fine variety had 
much to do in producing some others of the same 
type. In this class, forty lots of twelve were staged, 
the first prize going to Mr. N. Kneller, gardener to 
W. S. Portal, Esq., Malshanger Park, Basingstoke, 
with Anglo-Spanish, raised by Mr. G. Neal, gardener 
to W. P. Southby, Esq., Bampton, Oxford, from a 
cross made between the Reading and the Grocers 
large Spanish Onion, the twelve probably averaging 
20 in. in circumference, and weighing 22 lbs. They 
