128 
THE GARDENING WORLD. 
October 29, 1892, 
of varieties of fruit specially suitable for dry¬ 
ing purposes. Thus of Plums we have very 
few indeed suitable for drying. Our finest 
and most productive Plums have too thin 
skins and are on the whole too juicy, so that 
when dried the product is trifling. Then 
in the case of Apples the recent trial of 
several varieties of generally large fruited 
samples showed that the dried product was 
not in all cases so much as it should be to 
make fruit drying as a commercial under¬ 
taking profitable. Thus Lord Suffield gave 
of iolbs. of cored and peeled fruit only ilb. 
20zs. of dried product ; whilst we see that 
Beauty of Hants gave just double the 
quantity. Thus it will be seen that to 
make the process profitable we must find 
and grow varieties that give in the dried 
product not only the highest percentage of 
flesh but also sorts that are very pro¬ 
ductive. 
If it be that of Apples the most produc¬ 
tive sorts are those \yhich contain in the 
fruits by far the highest proportion of 
water, then is to some extent explained the 
reason of this great prolificacy. However, 
we can hardly doubt but that enquiries as 
to the varieties of fruits best fitted for dry¬ 
ing will be further pursued. It is satis¬ 
factory to learn that in the case of dried 
Apples the soaking in water essential to 
their usefulness in cooking brings back 
some two-thirds at least of their original 
weight, also that when cooked the product 
seems to be equal in flavour and general 
excellence to that of the fresh fruit. 
Horticultural Plagiarism.— -The recent 
exposure by Mr. A. F. Barron of a gross 
imposition in the form of wholesale purloin¬ 
ings from his book on the Vine, and palm¬ 
ing them off on gardeners in the West of 
England and upon the public in the columns 
of a garden contemporary?,as original,merits 
the widest publicity. Whilst we heartily 
commend gardeners for studying such a 
book as that named, and indeed many other 
good high class works on gardening, we 
cannot for one moment tolerate the whole¬ 
sale use of matter found in such publica¬ 
tions, in essays or papers read before gar¬ 
deners’ associations, even in the form of 
acknowledged extracts, because it should be 
the chief aim of all who write essays and 
papers to give their own practical experi¬ 
ence, and not the published knowledge of 
others. 
There is a good deal too much of this 
sort of thing existent, especially in relation 
to amateur efforts such as gardeners’ asso¬ 
ciations encourage. A gentleman who had 
heard a lecture on a branch of horticulture 
the other day asked the speaker, “ How did 
you acquire all this knowledge? ” “ Sir,” 
replied the lecturer, “ I have been a prac¬ 
tical gardener all my life, and have but 
combined intelligence with practical know¬ 
ledge.” Of course young men cannot say so 
much with such good reason, but what is 
asked of them is not that they should rely 
upon the teachings of others, in preparing 
papers or essays,but that they should depend 
upon their own practical knowledge chiefly, 
but always striving to have that knowledge 
assisted by hard study and careful reading. 
One of the admirable features of the pro¬ 
posed examination in Horticulture which 
may be instituted next spring by the Royal 
Horticultural Society isthat the candidates, 
not being called upon to write papers or 
essays but to answer a series of questions, 
cannot in any way invoke the aid of books, 
but must depend entirely upon know¬ 
ledge acquired in practice and in study. 
As to the case we referred to at the outset 
let it be regarded as a warning, the moral 
of which is—honesty in everything, even in 
writing essays, is the best policy. 
f HRYSANTHEMUM Show Boards. —There 
is a battle looming in the near future 
with respect to the size of boards on which 
Japanese Chrysanthemums shall be shown. 
It is all very well now to suggest, indeed 
even to legislate, in favour of boards that 
are very materially bigger than are those 
now in use, but the enlargement is not 
required because go d established varieties 
now produce bigger blooms than previously, 
or that the old boards were not large 
enough for them. The proposed enlarge¬ 
ment rather grows out of the great size to 
which newer sorts are producing blooms. 
Thus it is well worthy of consideration 
whether even seven inches from tube to 
tube on a board will prove a permanent 
enlargement, or only a tentative one. 
If, during the past five years blooms 
have developed in size so inordinately as 
to make some enlargement of boards need¬ 
ful, what may be the development in size 
some few years hence ? Probably the pro¬ 
moters of the enlargement movement will 
reply that the seven inch interval is enough 
for the present, but at least they should 
stop to reflect where the proposed enlarge¬ 
ment is likely to lead them to, because the 
proposal is made entirely in the interests 
of the big blooms, and in no case in the 
interests of the greatest quality and beauty, 
as found in many of the best incurved and 
reflexed Japanese. 
It was quite a relief to get rid, to some 
extent, from exhibitions of such flimsy, 
weedy flowers as Baronne de Prailly, 
Meg Merrilies, and a few others of that 
class; but the proposed enlargement of 
boards will but serve to bring them back 
again on to show tables, because there are 
not yet enough of huge-flowered forms of 
the recently introduced section to fill a 
dozen bloom box. 
elons.— When the Fruit Committee of 
the Royal Horticultural Society 
awards a Certificate of Merit to a seedling 
Melon late in October, it cannot be said 
that it is a body indifferent to Melons. 
How far this or any other variety that has 
been thus honoured during the past two or 
three years will credit the awards, time 
alone will show, but it is worthy of note 
that very few of these certificated Melons 
come largely into commerce, or still further, 
that they exhibit any improvement upon 
the older varieties. If we take Read’s 
Scarlet Flesh, Hero of Lockinge, Blenheim 
Orange, The Countess, and any couple of 
others of several years’ existence, we may 
well ask, in which way do the recently cer¬ 
tificated varieties excel them ? Probably 
not one alone in any respect. 
We seem assuredly to have come to the 
end of our tether with regard to Melons, 
whether in the production of flavour, of 
form, beauty and productiveness, real 
advance seems hopeless. That is at least 
a fair inference to be drawn from our ex¬ 
perience of new Melons during the past 
few years. It does seem as if the great 
mistake of breeders is constantly employ¬ 
ing varieties that seem to have reached the 
maximum of goodness, instead of taking 
one such variety only, and then going back 
to some other commoner sorts, even of 
Cape or Egyptian Melons, of which we 
sometimes find in this country imported 
fruits of the highest quality. 
--- 
A Friendship Garden. —The Prince of Wales, while 
the guest of Lord and Lady Brooke at Easton 
Lodge, near Dunmow, planted a specimen of the 
Maidenhair Tree, Salisburia adiantifolia, on the 
lawn at Stone Hall, one of the most ancient struc¬ 
tures on the Easton estate. In this romantic spot, 
says Bell's Messenger, a flower garden has been laid 
out under the personal direction of Lady Brooke, 
who terms it her " Friendship Garden,” her friends 
and relatives being invited to plant trees, evergreens, 
etc., there as mementoes of their visits to the Lodge. 
Lady Brooke is also arranging a Shakesperian 
border, the object being to include in it every plant 
mentioned in Shakespeare's works. 
F. oyal Horticultural Society.—The next meeting of 
the society will be held as usual in the Drill Hall, 
Westminster, on Tuesday next, November ist, at 3 
o'clock in the afternoon. A paper on " Fruit Trees in 
Pots” will be read by the Rev. W. Wilks, M.A. 
Among the exhibits, Chrysanthemums will doubtless 
form a conspicuous item, especially as prizes are 
offered for competition in three different classes. 
Bergamotte.—The Daily News says : “ There is but 
one spot in the world where the Bergamotte tree can 
be cultivated with profit—a fact of some importance, 
since its essence is indispensable in the manufacture 
of numerous perfumes and medical preparations. 
The spot referred to is Reggio, in Calabria, that ex¬ 
tremity of the Italian peninsula which is familiarly 
known as ' the toe of the boot.’ Our Vice-Consul, 
Mr. Kerrich, suggests that there is a good chance 
here for enterprising English capitalists of getting a 
highly profitable monopoly of the Bergamotte crop, 
by buying up from the producers all that they extract. 
At present the Reggio Bergamotte suffers both in 
quality and reputation through the frauds of small 
traders who, it is said, mix it with ten parts of adul¬ 
terating matter.” 
Flower Growing in Scilly.—A Cornish correspondent 
writes :—As year by year passes so comes additional 
attention to the flower-growing industry of Scilly 
Islands. This year, we have it on good authority, 
several scores of acres more than any former year 
have been laid out for the cultivation of that always 
welcome flower the Narcissus. So far there has 
nothing occurred to prove that the yield will be as 
rich and abundant, ordinarily speaking, as formerly, 
but with increased plantings, and thousands of yards 
more than ever of sheltered houses, the market will 
be stocked, if not earlier, which is probable, certainly 
more extensively. The out-door plants in the 
gardens of Cornwall are looking exceedingly well this 
autumn, and the Chrysanthemums shown at the 
local exhibitions have been far above the average so 
far. Of these and the probable causes more anon. 
National Chrysanthemum Society.—At a meeting 
of the General Committee, held on Monday evening, 
Mr. R. Ballantine presiding, the honorary secretary, 
Mr. R. Dean, announced that the Holmes Memorial 
Cups were finished, and were regarded by those who 
had seen them as very fine specimens of the silver¬ 
smith’s art. The recommendation of the Floral 
Committee, that a Silver-gilt Medal be given to Mr. 
John Erland, of Wellington, New Zealand, for his 
exhibit of frozen blooms at the September Show T , 
was unanimously adopted. An interesting and 
cheery letter was read from Mr. H. Briscoe-Ironside, 
a former member of the committee, now residing in 
Italy, and who stated that since he had been in the 
sunny south he had got together some eighty varieties 
of Chrysanthemums, and was hopeful of obtaining 
seed. His description of Chrysanthemum culture 
in Italy was not of a flattering character. The 
committee had brought under its notice a paragraph 
which appeared in last week’s Journal cf Horticulture 
with reference to “ grave allegations ” made against a 
member of the Society’s Floral Committee, and a 
sub-committee, consisting of the officers of the 
Society, was unanimously appointed to investigate 
the matter at once. It was announced that the 
November Show would be opened at one o’clock on 
the 8th by Lady Saunders ; that the annual dinner 
would be held as usual early in December ; and that 
a smoking concert would be held early in the New 
Year. Seventeen new members were elected. 
Streptocarpus Galpini.—At first sight and at some 
little distance the flowers of this new species remind 
one of S. polyantha, but the flowers are much larger 
and different in shape. The solitary leaf is also of a 
different shape, being ovate-oblong, pointed, and of 
large size, while those of S. polyantha are more nearly 
orbicular. The flowers are very oblique, 5-lobed, and 
of a pleasing or soft light blue, with a large, 
slightly 3-lobed white blotch extending from 
the base of the three lower lobes down into 
the throat. The flowers are borne in racemose 
cymes and in quantity from each plant. A bunch of 
flowers was shown at the Drill Hall, on the iSth 
nst., from the Royal Gardens, Kew. 
