16 
THE GARDENING WORLD. 
September 10, 1892. 
To be constantly cutting away annual 
growths whilst the roots have unchecked 
action in the hope of producing fruitfulness 
is folly, hence it is necessary to create such 
a balance between root action and top 
growth as will produce the required result. 
If we would avoid the necessity far root 
pruning then we must plant our trees 
where they can grow as they may, only 
thinning out the branches rather than 
pruning the growths. Then in good time 
heavy cropping will ensue and that will be 
the best pruner, for roots and branches will 
then be brought into comparative harmony. 
acking Fruit for Market Sale.— A 
statement was made at the recent 
Plum Conference at Chiswick, that very 
probably some ninety per cent, of the best 
private gardens in the kingdom were now 
more or less market gardens. Could any¬ 
one be in the secrets of the chief fruit 
salesmen of the kingdom they would be 
astonished to find what great people were 
amongst their clients, and from how many 
fine gardens produce came for disposal. 
When we hear on the part of the legitimate 
market grower complaints as to foreign 
competition we are tempted to ask whether, 
if he suffers at all, it is not much more so 
from the illegitimate competition of noble¬ 
men and gentlemen's gardens than from 
outside products ? 
But the weak point in the gardener 
consignee of garden produce, especially of 
fruit, is his comparative lack of packing 
ability. Salesmen are constantly urging 
the necessity of greater care and capacity 
in this direction, but too often without 
avail. The recent fruit packing competi¬ 
tion at Earl’s Court, though limited to 
Grapes only, yet served to show how few 
gardeners, after all that has been done, 
really understand correctly the art of send¬ 
ing Grapes to market in such a way that 
they will reach the salesman in the best 
possible condition, and so enable him to 
obtain the best prices. Those gardeners 
who were at the recent show and closely 
observed the market produce sent by ex¬ 
perienced stage packers, must have thought 
how much there was for them to learn in 
this matter. 
It will be well if in connection with the 
proposed City fruit show of next year, some 
good market fruit prizes be instituted 
especially for gardeners, and they should 
not be confined exclusively to Grapes,but in¬ 
clude any other fruits in season. The send¬ 
ing of soft fruits, such as Grapes, securely 
by Parcel Post is also a problem difficult 
to solve. Without doubt parcels passing 
through the post are exposed to the greatest 
possible rough usage, and the severest test 
of good packing is applied. However, in 
this case such fruit cannot well be for open 
market sale. 
lower Show Prize Cards. —It is so 
often a subject for complaint on the 
part of exhibitors at flower shows that 
large loose prize cards get mislaid on the 
wrong exhibits, or almost entirely hide 
them from view, that it is a matter for 
wonder committees have not universally 
adopted the cheap, simple, and assured 
plan of gumming the prize labels on to the 
class cards, thus rendering tiansference to 
the wrong exhib t practically impossible. 
Only recently we have met with many un¬ 
pleasant troubles that have arisen between 
exhibitors because of this shifting of the 
cards, and even the secretary’s book has 
sometimes been wrong, because the clerk 
in charge was misled. 
There are two things which ought to be 
the rule at every show. The first is 
supplying each set of judges with red or 
blue pencils, to maik the exhibitors’ cards 
as they go as distinctly as possible. Those 
figures representing the judges’ actual 
awards could then never be challenged. 
The second is an attendant gumming prize 
labels on to the exhibitors’ cards according 
to the judges’ award as. fast as they are 
made. Nothing can be simpler or easier, 
and if another attendant follows'with the 
class book and enters the awards at the 
same time the entering and judging is 
complete. 
Another objection to these large prize 
cards is that they too often not only hide 
the exhibits when it is a dish of fruit or 
vegetables, but also the exhibitor’s name. 
This is specially the case when class cards 
are set upon sticks, and of course the prize 
card is stuck just in front of the class, 
much to the annoyance of reporters and 
the public. Still the chief object of every 
arrangement should be to prevent blunders 
which so often lead to unmannerly dis¬ 
putes. It seems to be so easy to do the 
right thing as well as the simplest, that it 
is wonderful so much trouble and expense 
should be incurred needlessly. 
he Weather.— How is it possible for 
Britons to avoid talking of the weather 
and making it the one eternal subject of 
conversation? What is there with us that 
is more erratic or brings more surprises ? 
We never know how to have the weather, 
although that does seem to know how to 
have us, and that so frequently too that 
we always feel that the weather has the 
best of us. We have been suffering just 
recently from a small cholera scare. 
Probably that has expended itself, at lqast 
we hope so. Still the cholera seems after 
all to be but a small matter compared with 
the weather, especially that of the past two 
or three weeks. What fierce cold winds, 
what frequent and continuous rains, what 
afflictions for our pleasures and pastimes, 
our flower shows, and fetes indeed for all 
our outdoor vocations and enjoyments. 
It was a pitiful sight the other day in a 
rural district to see the ripe corn standing 
drenched and sodden in the fields, and the 
anxious labourers driven for shelter beneath 
the thick overgrowth of the hedgerows, 
knowing that for another day at least they 
must endure enforced idleness and the corn 
must suffer greatly. It is true the growing 
root-crops in the fields have a luxuriant 
aspect, but great size of root and luxuriance 
of leafage is not all indicative of good 
feeding stuff, but rather of an excess of water. 
Then the Potatos with the Corn have 
suffered too, indeed we have too much 
reason to fear that the disease which just 
prior to the coming of the heavy rains was 
so slight in its attacks, has now become 
widespread and is doing much mischief. 
Were the weather not as it is a stereo¬ 
typed subject of talk with us, the present 
condition of our crops and many other 
things so much affected disastrously by it, 
is of itself ample excuse for making it a 
subject of conversation. We do not feel 
the effects of a cold wet autumn alone at 
the moment, but the following year also. 
Thus the rains are generating the pro¬ 
duction of far too much coarse, sappy 
growth on fruit trees, which will be to the 
detriment of fruit production next year. 
-—- 
Mr. G. T. White.—We regret to hear of the death, 
at sea, of Mr. G. T. White, of Winchmore Hill, the 
well-known Orchid collector. Mr. White had been 
a collector in South America and in the East for 
some years, and mainly, if not entirely, for Messrs. 
Hugh Low & Co., of Clapton. He was, we under¬ 
stand, returning from an Eastern expedition when 
his death took place, but the exact particulars are 
not yet known. 
Kew Gardens.—The new Chief Commissioner of 
H.M. Office of Works, Mr. Shaw-Lefevre, has 
promised to receive a deputation in November next, 
on the subject of the earlier opening of these gardens 
to the public. 
Rock Plants at Chiswick—The Royal Gardens, 
Kew, have made an acceptable donation to the Royal 
Horticultural Society of upwards of 200 named 
plants for the rockery at Chiswick. 
The Bristol Chrysanthemum Show is announced to 
be held on November 16th and 17th. 
Chrysanthemum Madame Desgranges.—All lovers 
of the Chrysanthemum know the value of the white, 
early flowering Madame Desgranges, and its yellow- 
counterpart, George Wermig, and will therefore 
be pleased to learn that there is now a pink sport in 
existence, or rather a sport which has the white 
petals edged with pink. The sport originated with 
Mr. Russell, of Mitchell, Farnborough, Hants. 
Royal Horticultural Society of Aberdeen. —The 
accounts of the annual show of this society, held on 
18th, 19th, and 20th August, have now been made up, 
and show a surplus of over /500, after paying the 50 
per cent, additional prize money which was promised 
by the directors on the condition that the fete proved 
a success. The acting directors are to be congratu¬ 
lated on the splendid result attending their labours. 
The surplus last year was only £60. 
Yellow Cactus Dahlias have never yet been over¬ 
abundant, nor of particularly good quality. We 
have much pleasure therefore in announcing that a 
really good one made its appearance at the Floral 
Committee on Tuesday, and was unanimously voted 
an Award of Merit. It was raised by Messrs. 
Keynes, Williams & Co., of Salisbury, and has been 
named Kaiserin. 
National Chrysanthemum Society.—At a meeting of 
the general committee on the 2nd inst., it was 
announced that Lord de L’Isle, of Penshurst Place,had 
kindly consented to become a patron of the society. 
Nine new members were elected, and the Stockport, 
South Shields, Borough of Longton, and the Lizzard 
Chrysanthemum Societies were admitted into affilia¬ 
tion. The latter, it may be noted, is the most 
southern society in England, having its head¬ 
quarters at Penzance, and it has been established 
with great hopes of being successful and useful. 
Mr. William R. Smith, curator of the Washington 
Botanic Garden, is the elected president for the 
ensuing twelve months of the Society of American 
Florists; and Prof. Trelease, of St. Louis, is the new 
vice-president. The society held a very successful 
convention at W ashington in the middle of last 
month, and decided to meet again next year at St, 
Louis. 
The Onion Crop in America.—From returns made 
to American Gardening by some two dozen of the 
leading seedsmen in the States, it appears that the 
area of land devoted to Onions this year is much 
larger than usual, and that, barring accidents, the 
crop will be one of the largest ever raised, and prices 
probably low. Yellow Onions will be especially 
abundant, and white ones comparatively scarce. 
Cobea scandens variegata.—" W. L.,” Perthshire, 
asks if it is not an unusual occurrence for this popu¬ 
lar climber to produce fruit, remarking that on a 
large plant in his conservatory there are a quantity 
of fruit, and he does not remember having seen the 
plant in fruit before. As a matter of fact it is un¬ 
usual to see this plant fruiting because it is seldom 
that it can be allowed to grow to a sufficiently large 
size. When it can be given room enough it fruits 
freely. 
The Shrewsbury Horticultural Fete. —Another great 
success was scored here at their last exhibition, when 
the income of the society for the year reached 
^3,700. The weather on the first day was delightful, 
not too broiling. The morning of the second day 
was threatening but cleared off soon after midday, 
and 53,000 persons were present. Nearly /700 worth 
of cheap tickets were sold beforehand. It was a 
grand exhibition and all passed off happily. 
How our Ferns are Exterminated.—A correspondent 
of Nature Notes says :—“ When visiting lately a 
beautiful village in the heart of the Scotch High¬ 
lands I was sorry to observe a placard posted in a 
prominent position, stating that the local church was 
in debt, and that it was proposed to lessen this by 
