374 
THE GARDENING WORLD, 
February II, 1893. 
THE VEGETABLE GARDEN. 
Brussels Sprouts at Chiswick 
Green winter vegetables of various kinds were 
greatly thinned out by the action of the severe frost 
extending from Christmas' last until well on into 
January. The destruction in suburban gardens is 
greater than in those some distance away into the 
country, and beyond the reach of smoke and a filthy 
atmosphere generally. Notwithstanding all these 
influences, the plantations of Brussels Sprouts in 
the gardens of the Royal Horticultural Society at 
Chiswick have stood the test very well. The plan¬ 
tations are not extensive, but the plants made 
vigorous growth last season, and the stems were 
well furnished with sprouts that have kept well— 
that is, such of them as have not been gathered. 
The greatest objection that can be pitted against 
them after this season of the year is that the sprouts 
will expand, becoming open rosettes, if the weather 
continues mild, so that fresh growth is excited. 
Cultivators should bear in mind not to use the top 
of the plant until the sprouts are gathered or about 
to be, otherwise the sprouts get unduly excited, and 
cannot last so long in good condition. 
The favourite at Chiswick seems to be Dalkeith 
Sprouts (otherwise known as King of the Brussels 
Sprouts), judging from the quantity of it grown 
compared with the others. The varieties, however, 
are not numerous, seeing that no special trial of 
Brussels Sprouts was made last year. The stems of 
the Dalkeith variety are about 2 ft. high, furnished 
with a great quantity of fresh sprouts, some of 
which are open, but others solid. The best of them 
are those just under and sheltered by the leaves of 
the head or crown. They are, of course, the latest 
as to the time of production on the stems, but the 
shelter afforded them by the leaves of the crown has 
had the advantage also of keeping them clean. The 
leaves are of a deep glaucous green, wrinkled in the 
usual way, and the whole plant bears evidence of 
being a robust growing and superior kind. The 
leaves, further, have not been injured in any way. 
Standard Brussels Sprouts are dwarfer, and of a 
lighter green, with large firm sprouts. The same 
may be said of Selected Sprouts, which in several 
respects closely resemble the last-named. All the 
three are choice kinds, but the Dalkeith variety has 
the most effective appearance. 
Christmas Drumhead. 
Several different kinds of Savoys and Drumheads 
■were planted last summer, on a west aspect border, 
in the gardens of the Royal Horticultural Society. 
The greater part of them succumbed to the severe 
frosts of the last two months, and others were 
greatly injured. The Christmas Drumhead has 
stood the test better than any. Only a small quan¬ 
tity of each was grown, and in the_ case of the 
variety under notice one plant was decayed'the other 
w-eek, and a second had commenced to split. The 
plants are very dwarf, with the large, flattened head 
lying close to the soil; the leaves are very moderate 
n dimensions, forming a deep, glaucous rosette sur¬ 
rounding the head, the outer leaves of which retain 
the same rich colour, and the whole yet quite solid. 
The name would suggest that it would be fit for 
use by Christmas, or that it lasted till that time, but 
the evidence of the past two months shows that 
it will remain much longer in a usable condition. 
Hardy Green Colewoit. 
There are several small-headed Cabbages that are 
recommended for winter use under the name of 
Coleworts. They are relatively hardy, owing no 
doubt to their small heads, just as we find that in 
the case of the large-growing kinds they keep better 
during severe weather than those which form large 
and solid heads, especially those termed white 
Cabbages. The two principal kinds that are sold 
under the name of Coleworts are the London or 
Rosette and Hardy Green. The latter not only 
keeps better after severe frost, but it also retains 
its rich dark green colour. The two kinds were 
planted between row's of fruit trees in the gardens 
of the Royal Horticultural Society at Chiswick, 
and the difference in colour was very marked after 
the severe weather had given place to a mild and 
moist time. If either of the two are to be planted 
with the view of resisting the severest frost we may 
experience, the Hardy Green should enjoy the 
preference, and it might also be planted in soil of 
a light and sandy nature than otherwise.— F. 
T omatos. 
The plants for the first crop will have been sown 
about New Year s Day, and by this time will have 
been potted into small pots. They must be kept 
in a nice growing temperature, as near the glass 
as possible. Outside the influence of the London 
fogs, the first crop can be obtained from plants 
struck in the autumn ; these, if potted on in January 
will give fruit earlier than seedlings. I daresay 
many gardeners who have never lived within the 
influence of these fogs think that a great deal of 
fuss is made about them by those living near 
London, but all I can say is that it is almost impos¬ 
sible to over-estimate the mischief caused by them. 
To keep autumn-struck Tomatos through the winter 
is generally impossible, and tw»o years ago all the 
early seedlings were so crippled during February as 
to be quite useless. Such a lot of Tomatos are 
now' required in most establishments that gardeners 
have to use every available corner under glass to 
grow them, but by growing a number in pots a 
good quantity of early fruit may be grow n in Peach- 
houses and vineries. The great drawback to 
this plan is their liability to disease, as they do not 
get sufficient ventilation ; but as a rule this trouble of 
disease does not appear until the summer, and by 
this time several good bunches of fruit will have 
been gathered off each plant, and as the succeeding 
crops w ill be ripening, and Tomatos becoming more 
plentiful, the early pot plants as they become in¬ 
fested with disease can be thrown aw’ay. 
Those who have a house or two to devote to their 
culture can to a great extent defy disease by free 
ventilation and the use of sulphur or anti-blight 
composition, but I have not found anything to stop 
the disease in fruit houses, where a high or moist 
temperature has to be kept up. For the earliest 
crop Sutton’s " Earliest of All ” is about the best, 
and any good strain of “Perfection” for general 
use.— G. H. S. 
AS OTHERS SEE US. 
No observant person strolling through the London 
suburbs, or for that matter through any part of Eng¬ 
land, can fail to be impressed with the loveof flowers 
w'hich seems to prevail among the people. The 
typical house in the outskirts of London has a front 
of some thirty feet, and stands back some fifteen or 
twenty feet from the street. This front space is 
almost invariably a garden, lovingly cared for, re¬ 
freshing the eye wdth its variegated beauty, and 
seemingly reflecting in its brightness the happiness 
of the little circle within. To “ keep the Roses over 
the door” is synonymous wdth keeping the hearts in 
the household young and buoyant through weal or 
w'oe. This love of flowers extends even to the work¬ 
ing classes, and there may be seen about English 
workmen’s houses, renting for say ten shillings a 
week, more attractive looking gardens than many an 
American country place renting at from $2,000 to 
$3,000 a year can boast. More likely than not the 
small English suburban dwelling will have in addi¬ 
tion to the garden a greenhouse, of modest dimensions 
to be sure, but affording with its “ 25 x 10 ’* ample op¬ 
portunity to its owner of seeing flowers in bloom all 
the year round. The small greenhouse can be, and in 
fact often is,looked after by its owner. His willingness 
to do this shows a love for flowers that at the same 
time indicates the delight with which he must regard 
the successful results of his care. He know's every 
flow’er, every leaf. The finest specimen in his col¬ 
lection may owe the beauty through which it charms 
every beholder to his tender care of it when it was an 
unpromising weakling. He has in his modest green¬ 
house a little family of fronds and flowers—a family, 
too, no member of which dares dispute his authority. 
It is easy to imagine what a garden or greenhouse 
must be of a bright Sunday morniDg to the man who 
has been confined to his business office all the week. 
I think the English owe much of their hardiness to 
their love of flowers. In their gardens and green¬ 
houses they find easy and pleasant diversion from 
the cares of business hours. I should say the sense 
of restful recreation which comes over the possessor 
of beautiful plants when he is among them is just 
what the average American business man needs after 
the feverish excitement of his everyday life. If the 
satisfaction and pleasure and the many advantages 
to be derived from a greenhouse stocked with beauti¬ 
ful plants were generally known here, the green¬ 
houses of this country would many times outnumber 
those of England. What a delightfully new and 
stimulating interest is daily awakened upon entering 
a flowerhouse made brilliant with the freshly opened 
blossoms, each day unfolding new surprises and 
wonders. 'The very air is charmed with sunlight, 
pure and fragrant. What a stillness and separadon 
from the outside world and affairs of business I Can 
one fail to recuperate and rest, while enjoying these 
visits to one s plants and flowers — among stately 
Palms, waving Ferns, and all the rare and exquisite 
variations of colour and shape of Orchids, Azaleas, 
Genistas, and the hundreds of other variedes of 
foliage and flowering plants ? 
There are over 300 floral societies in England, and 
the private places on which professional gardeners are 
employed number more than 4,400. In this country 
the growth of interest in floriculture, both professional 
and amateur, has been wonderfully rapid during the 
last twenty-five years, showing, of course, an equally 
rapid growth of love for flowers. The first florist's 
establishment in the United States came into exis¬ 
tence in 1S00, and during the two decades immedi¬ 
ately following only two more were started. In 1890 
a total of 4,659 professional florists' establishments 
were reported ; and eighty per cent, of these had 
come into existence during the last twenty-five years. 
These establishments aggregate more than 38,000,000 
square feet of glass, cover a space cf 891 acres of 
ground, and are valued at about $40,000,000. The 
total sales of plants and flowers in 1890 amounted to 
$27,000,000, a figure which shows the importance of 
the industry. 
The growth of interest in the cultivation of flowers 
seems to have kept pace with the growth of the 
public taste in art and of the public interest in 
science; for floriculture touches upon art on one 
hand and upon science on the other. This charac¬ 
teristic makes it an exceptionally interesting occu¬ 
pation, the amateur soon discovering that his pas¬ 
time is also a study of some of the most exquisite 
works of nature, and at the same time a source of 
refreshment and delight to his aesthetic senses. 
Darwin, it will be remembered, devoted years of 
study to the fertilization of Orcnids by insects, and 
published a notable work under that title, the results 
of his observations forming an important link in the 
chain of evidence supporting what we know as the 
Darwinian theory. A singular characteristic of the 
Orchid family for instance, is the inability of the 
flowers to fertilize themselves like other flowers, and 
produce seeds Their fertilization is dependent 
upon the transfer of pollen by insects from one 
flower to another. Interesting characteristics like 
these, and the opportunity which floriculture affords 
of discovering or studying them, make it a most 
fascinating pursuit. —James R. Pitcher, in New York 
Daily Tribune. 
--*«-— 
Hardening Miscellany. 
CJU -c/o 
EASY WAY OF FORCING LILAC. 
With reference to the remarks of your correspondent 
“ S.,” p. 359, I may say that the idea of forcing 
Lilac in the way he describes is not a new one, as I 
have myself adopted the same method for the past 
five years with fairly good results, and I have lately- 
seen it forced in the same way in two or three places 
around this neighbourhood. I find that some of the 
Ghent or American Azaleas will force in the same 
way, and I have a branch of the latter in flower at 
the present time —Tom Parrott, The Gardens, Beech- 
wood, Clapliam Common, S. IT. 
HARDY CYCLAMENS. 
In spite of the continued severe weather which pre¬ 
vailed from Christmas onwards, hardy flowers of the 
early kinds are beginning to make their appearance 
again, especially those under the shelter of a frame. 
Several varieties of the C. ibericum and C. Count 
type are now flowering in a cold frame in the nursery 
of Messrs. J. Laing & Sons, Forest Hill, notably C. 
Atkinsi album, one of the prettiest of the hybrids. 
The flowers are relatively large, and white with ex¬ 
ception of a large violet purple blotch at the hase of 
each segment. The leaves are roundly cordate like 
those of C. Coum, but they- are marbled with grey like 
those of C. ibericum on the upper surface, while the 
under surface is purple. There is a variety of C. 
Coum with blush-coloured flowers and a violet-pur- 
