614 
May 27, 1899. 
THE GARDENING WORLD. 
Throwing Snails off the Track.—" Man, Tam, can 
you no ploo’ strecht,” said a farmer to his plough¬ 
man, "ye'er makin'an awfu’ bungle o’thae Tatie 
rows; see tae that yin, its like the Links o' Forth.’’ 
“ 'Deed, maister, but ye've a puir head on ye; canna 
ye see that the bends thraw the snails aff the track.” 
—Fife!!! 
Winter Beauty Tomato.—We understand that the 
entire stock of Mr. Mortimer’s new Tomato, Winter 
Beauty, which was exhibited at the R.H.S. meetings 
at the Drill Hall, on April i8th and May 2nd, and 
which received the Society's Award of Merit on the 
former date, has passed into the hands of Messrs. 
Sutton & Sons, of Reading, who will distribute it 
next season. 
The Flora of Hawaii.—Mr. George Morrison, 
writing to a friend in the United States, speaks of 
Hawaii as being rich in Ferns, Crotons, and other 
valuable plants, Bougainvilleas being remarkable for 
the abandon with which they grow and flower. 
There are, according to Mr. Morrison, but three 
distinct Orchids upon the island, so that orchidists 
will not expect much from Hawaii. 
Cattleya Skinneri Temples var.—This is probably 
the darkest flowered variety of C. Skinneri in culti¬ 
vation At all events it is a richly coloured one, the 
whole flower being a dark rosy-purple, with a white 
throat,reminding one of C. S. oculata in that respect. 
A plant of it which appeared at the Sale Rooms of 
Messrs. Protheroe & Morris, Cheapside, on the 12th 
inst., fetched 35 guineas.. 
Keeping Cut Flowers.—(1) Cut fresh young blooms. 
(2) Get them into water as quickly as possible. (3) 
Change the water every twenty-four hours, and 
always have it " chilled.” (4) Every day cut a small 
portion off the end of the stalks. (5) Place them out 
of doors or in a cool, dark cellar at night: this can 
be done always where flowers on a dinner-table are 
to be used on succeeding nights. (6) Place some 
pieces of charcoal in the vases when the flowers are 
getting old. (7) Place them, if it is preferred, in 
dishes of damp sand, covering it with moss. 
Plant Collecting.—Many of our finer or less 
vigorous British plants are in certain localities 
where they once flourished, now almost unrepresented. 
We hold the opinion that those collectors who would 
gather the last specimen of a plant to be found in the 
district is a person utterly without love at all for 
plants or flowers ; or if he or she has love, it is of a 
selfish nature. We read the story of a spectacled 
maniac “ on the job,” who came across a resident of 
the district, and enquired if he knew of anything of 
a special nature among ths plants around there. 
The countryman showed him a little plant which 
had been pointed out to him as rare. But no sooner 
done than the stranger with murmured thanks and 
congratulations on the richness of the district flora, 
fell upon his knees, and proceeded to dig the 
treasure up. 
Syndical Chamber of Belgian Horticulturists, &c . 
—At a recent meeting of this body combined with 
the Royal Agricultural and Botanical Society of 
Ghent, in the Casino, on the 7th inst., Certificates 
of Merit were accorded to Acacia paradoxa robusta, 
and Anopteris glandulosa, presented by M. E. 
Bedinghaus; to Cattleya Mendelii Souvepir de la 
Reine,shown by M.Vincke-Dujardin (by acclamation); 
to Azalea Somergem (branch or sport fixed) presented 
by M. M. Haerens Brothers; to Lycopodium 
pinifolium, staged by M. A. Rigout; andtoa Vriesia, 
a hybrid between V. psittacina and V. leodiense, 
shown by the St. Dorothee establishment. Certi¬ 
ficates for culture and flowering were accorded to 
Eriostemon floribundus, and Adenandra prostrata, 
both shown by M. E. Bedinghaus ; and to Clero- 
dendron balfourianum fol. var., shown by M. L. De 
Smet-Duvivier (with unanimity). A Certificate for 
Culture was accorded to Clivia souvenir de Mdme. 
Oct. De Schryver, presented by M. Oct. De Schryver. 
A Certificate for Flowering was granted to Lilac, 
Mdme. P. J. G. Aerts, shown by M. A. Toeffaert. A 
seedling Azalea, sown in 1895, was presented by M. 
P. De Vos. Marchand, and received honourable 
mention. An Honourable Mention for culture and 
flowering was also accorded to Polygala dalmaisiana, 
staged by M. E. Bedingbaus. 
465,731 acres, or about 70 per cent, of the whole 
Potato crop in Ireland in 1898 were of the variety 
Champion The Flounder was the sort next in 
favour, and some 50,000 acres were devoted to it. 
The XL All Fumigator and vapourising compound 
have a very secure place, and are well regarded by 
gardeners and all who have used them. We never 
found the patent to fail us when used as prescribed, 
and the safety and expedition with which anyone can 
use it, and the security for eradicating even swarms 
of insect pests together with the moderate 
expense and the after comfort—for it leaves no bad 
smell—combine to make Richards’ XL All vapouris¬ 
ing fumigator one of the most commendable adjuncts 
the gardener can secure. 
Manurlal Experiments—From a paragraph in the 
Chester Couratit of a recent date, we get what are 
put forth as facts from careful experiment in the 
manuring of Root-crops ; that for Turnips the slower 
acting phosphatic manures yield the most solid and 
more nutritive roots. By using the quicker acting 
super-phosphate, probably a heavier gross weight 
of crop may be gleaned but it is, when done, inferior 
for feeding, &c., to crops named by bone-meal or 
basic-slag. A judicious combination of phosphate, 
potash, and nitrogenous compounds will in the 
absence of good farm-manure, supply an acceptable 
manure for Turnips or anything else. 
Washing Blight from Fruit Trees.—An entirely new 
and greatly improved system for washing Hop and 
fruit trees from blight and insect pests has just been 
severely tested on the estates of several gentlemen 
owning large fruit plantations, and the results have 
been most satisfactory. It is one that has been 
introduced by Messrs. Merryweather & Sons, and is 
a great advance upon anything that has yet been 
done in this line. A portable steam pumping engine, 
of the firm’s well-known "Valiant ” type, is employed 
to pump the specially prepared wash from the tank, 
and deliver it through lengths of iron pipe or flexible 
hose to several points, from which branches are 
taken, and suitable outlets and valves provided. As 
many as twenty-four powerful jets can be utilised at 
one time, and the blighted foliage thoroughly and 
cheaply washed. The first trial took place at the 
establishment of Best, at Suckley, Worcester, and 
was a very great success. Sprays were thrown well 
over the tops of Plum trees over 20 ft. high, and Mr. 
Best expressed himself as being very satisfied with 
the way in which the plant did its work. The next 
trial was at the Toddington Orchard Co.’s plantation, 
under the supervision of Mr. C. D. Wise, the 
managing director, employing an engine of similar 
size and power. Here the wash was pumped through 
a length of pipe some 500 yards long (the pipe was 
ij in.), up a rise of 150 ft., with complete success. 
The application to Gooseberry washing was also 
tried, and splendid sprays were delivered through 
the Merryweather spreading nozzle. Plum trees 
were then tried, and jets were thrown over the 
highest trees, falling in strong spray over the foliage. 
Mr. Wise and the other gentlemen present expressed 
their high appreciation of the efficient way in which 
the engine worked, and said that the system 
was far ahead of any other at present in use. The 
third trial was held at the establishment of Mr. 
Isaac Reader, of Paddock Wood. Here, also, all 
the tests were very satisfactory, splendid jets being 
delivered through 1.600 ft. of piping. Mr. Reader 
expressed his high approval of the system, and re¬ 
marked that the plant was what he had wanted for 
many years, and that it was quite impossible to 
spray large trees with any other system. One great 
advantage of the system is that it is wonderfully 
portable, two men being well able to wheel the 
engine, and with it the boiler and furnace, to any 
desired point, light and strong wheels with drag- 
handle being provided. The engine will also act as 
a powerful fire engine, delivering a stream of water 
sufficient to quell any fire. By throwing the pump 
out of gear the engine is available as a motor for 
driving any farm or other machinery, and altogether 
forms a very valuable addition to any large planta¬ 
tion, combining cheapness in first cost with economy 
and efficiency in working. Another important 
feature in Mr. Merryweather’s patent is the arrange¬ 
ment of the suction pipes, so as to draw its supply 
of water and chemical from separate tanks in the 
required proportion. 
Effects , of Over-cropping.—It is the very worst 
policy one could follow, that of swelling too heavy 
crops. The fruits are not fruits at all then, and as 
for Plums subjected to such conditions, they have no 
more flavour that a piece of chewing-gum. 
— ■ - - 
SUCCULENTS. 
The cultivation of this most interesting class of 
plants, as a hobby for amateurs to indulge in, 
presents some unique advantages to those who have 
a limited amount of time and space at their disposal. 
No other class of plants can be accommodated in so 
limited space, and at the same time in as great a 
variety; and their requirements being very simple 
they can be well attended to by those who could not 
well afford the time necessary for the successful 
cultivation of other classes of plants. 
Succulents embrace several extensive genera 
among which are very widely diversified forms of 
growth, some grotesque in the extreme, others 
symmetrically beautiful in growth, many with 
inconspicuous and unattractive flowers, others whose 
inflorescence is most gorgeously beautiful. Many 
are armoured with spines of a most formidable 
appearance, others with hair like spines arranged in 
tufts, especially is this the case with the Opuntias, 
whose growths studded as they are with these tufts 
occasionally beguile the unwary into trying the 
effect they would have if put to the same purpose as 
brushes made by man. 
Turning to the Echinocactus we have plants, 
small in proportion to the Agaves, but withal a most 
interesting family, just ribbed balls of vegetable 
matter, armed in some instances with very formid¬ 
able spines, and clothed with a cutaneous membrane, 
which retains the moisture of the plant under the 
heat of a tropical sun. These are mostly of humble 
stature, only a few inches in height. Then looking 
among the Cereus, one finds plants of trailing habit 
whose growth extends sometimes to many feet, some 
of them having flowers of great beauty. The some¬ 
what celebrated night flowering Cactus belongs to 
this genus. Among other beautiful flowering plants 
are the Epiphyllums and Philocactus among Cacti. 
Other flowering subjects among succulents include 
Aloes, Mesembryanthemums, Crassulas, Portulacas, 
not forgetting the Agaves, some throwing up spikes 
upwards of 20 ft. in height, with massive foliage. 
Some among them are among the most symmetrical 
and beautifully variegated plants we have; and 
again there are some of much smaller growth, and 
which can well be accommodated on a top shelf a 
foot or so from the glass. 
These discursive remarks have been called forth 
by a visit to an old friend whose business is con¬ 
nected with the building trade. His collection of 
succulents is grown in a few small houses hemmed 
in on all sides by buildings, so that his plants get 
quite a modicum of either light or fresh air. I may 
add that he has been an enthusiastic collector of them 
for many years, and the condition of his plants 
under the disadvantages in which he is placed is 
highly creditable; and I may also add it is one of the 
very best private collections with which I am 
acquainted. The following he regards as among the 
most noteworthy among his plants :—Echinocactus 
Grusonii, E. spinosum var. Catamargurae (the white 
species of this in common with a few others when 
moistened become blood-red), E. rubidum superbum 
(redspines), E. viridescens, E. Lecontei (a formidable- 
looking but beautiful thing with spines 3J in. long), 
E. saltillensis, E. Wislizeni (the fish hook Cactus), 
E. ornatus (distinct), E. myriostigma (spineless, 
the Bishop’s Mitre Cactus), E. Poselgerianus (the 
gouty plant), Mammillaria Grahamii, M. Nicholsoni, 
M. nivea, M. senilis, M. lasiocantha, M. rhodantha, 
M. longimamma, Cereus senilis, Echinocerus pectina- 
tus rigidissimus, Cereus gemmatus, Pilocerus* 
Fosterii, P. Lenninghausii, P. Jamarcan, Cereus 
grandiflorus, Cereus Macdonaldii, Cereus Bridgesii, 
Opuntia basilaris, O. caudata, O, nevadensis, O. 
monacantha, O. Leonii, O. dejecta, Gasteria macu¬ 
losa, Agave densiflora, A. caerulescens, A. dealbata, 
A. glaucescens, A. Verschaffeltii, A. Scolymus, A. 
horrida, A, medio-picta, and A. striata. 
I fear taxing the patience of the editor with more 
names. These are only a tithe of what tbe 
collection embraces. There are Cotyledons, 
Mesembryanthemums, Stapelias, Euphorbias, and 
numerous other curious and interesting plants, in the 
