January 2, 1897. 
THE GARDENING WORLD 
277 
Mercurialis perennis—It is a rare occurrence to 
find the Dog’s Mercury in bloom at this time of the 
year. At Ambleside, however, both barren and 
fertile blossoms may be found in a sheltered corner 
in a wood from October till May. 
A plentiful crop.—Hops were only half a crop in 
Kent last September; but hops are plentiful in 
London all the year round ; and hopping is a pleasant 
pastime, though a badly paying one to many people 
when they happen to hop on their neighbours’ best 
corn.— Snaggs. 
" Cottage Gardening.”—The half yearly volume of 
of this weekly periodical issued by Messrs. Cassell & 
Company, Limited, contains a good coloured illustra¬ 
tion of Cytisus scoparius andreanus, the brown 
winged Broom, and another of Azalea carminata 
splendens. The text concerns itself with seasonable 
articles on poultry, bees, allotments, food, house, 
window, and town gardens, suitable for amateurs. 
Bruce Potatos for late Planting.—From Ireland 
comes an account of an excellent crop of this well- 
known variety having been obtained from tubers 
planted on June 15th. Still a month later, on July 
15th, some more ground was planted with the same 
variety. The plants grew well but did not yield so 
heavy a crop as the June planted ones, neither were 
the tubers so large. It is stated, moreover, that in 
neither of these crops was a diseased Potato to be 
seen. The author of the account goes on to say that 
if instead of planting The Bruce, one of the dwarf 
early sorts had been planted on July 15th, it would 
have given a much better crop. 
Dundee Chrysanthemum Society.—The seventh 
annual meeting of this society was recently held in 
Lamb's Hotel, Dundee, Mr. W. S. Melville, pre¬ 
siding. When the balance sheet was presented it 
v/as found that the income for the year had been 
£65 7s., whilst the expenses had totalled £72 is. id. 
This left a deficit of £6 14s. id., and the funds at the 
bank had been drawn on to this amount. The 
chairman said that everyone would admit the excel¬ 
lence of the show, but they had been placed at a 
disadvantage in having their exhibition this year 
before the Edinburgh one. For their neighbour¬ 
hood there was no doubt that they were far too 
early. They had now to consider whether they were 
going to hold their show on a larger scale so that it 
might be more worthy of the society. The election 
of officers for the ensuing year was next proceeded 
with. On the motion of the chairman, Lord Provost 
M'Grady, was requested to continue to occupy the 
post of hon. president. Mr. W. S. Melville was un¬ 
animously chosen president; Mr. Laird, secretary ; 
and Mr. Croll, treasurer. The following gentlemen 
were appointed to serve on the committee :—Messrs. 
J. Beisant, J. W. Laird, J. Machar, J. Slater, A. 
Smith, D. Keillor, A. Cameron, R. Cairns, A. Crich¬ 
ton, —Dohnert, R. H. Low, and James Davidson. 
English Barley damaged by wet and unfit for the 
brewer or distiller, is being dried artifially and sold 
as cattle food. 
An Indian potentate has recently had electrical 
plant fitted up for lighting purposes, to enable him to 
gather crops by night. 
Yaller and Red Cabbages.—An old man from back 
of the hills, somewhat near-sighted, and not well 
posted on modern flower cultivation, attended the 
Chrysanthemum show last night. Pointing to a 
bunch of big blooms he said to one of the committee ; 
" Kin I get some seed from them air ? We do not 
grow any yaller and red Cabbages up our way. If I 
could jes plant some seed and git em growin’ 'fore 
my ole woman knowed anything erbout it, gosh, what 
a 'sprise 'twould be to her .”—Baltimore World. 
“The Studio,” anillustrated magazine of fine and 
applied art, gives in the October number, several 
photographic reproductions of Japanese flower 
arrangements. We admire the ,art as executed 
by this magazine, and the various contrivances 
for displaying the plants and flowers ; but 
we do not admire the scraggy looking specimens 
of plant growing, which constitute one of 
the most characteristic features of Japanese’garden¬ 
ing. The cultivation of stunted and contorted trees^ 
and shrubs of great age may be an art, but it is a 
very peculiar one. The vases, pots, baskets or other 
vessels in which the plants and flowers are placed 
are often excellent examples of art and workmanship. 
Eve tempting Adam.—Mr. M’Nab, orginally from 
the " land of the mountain and the flood,” now one 
of the most famous fruit growers in America, paid a 
visit to the art exhibition at Philadelphia, and was 
seen by one of his friends to be inspecting a picture 
of “ Eve tempting Adam,” and shaking his finger 
in scorn at it. His friend went up to him and 
said, " You do not like the picture, Mr. M’Nab ? ” 
“ No,” said the latter, " the painter must have been 
a shallow-brained fellow.” “ But,” said his friend, 
" the painter has produced some of the finest of 
modern French creations.” Said M’Nab, “ the 
Apple he has put into Eve’s hand did not exist till 
about 25 years ago.” 
Potato Growing.—The second lecture of the session 
was delivered to the Glasgow and West of Scotland 
Agricultural Society, on December 2nd, by Mr. 
William Kerr, Hondston, Girvan, who dealt with the 
" Growing of early Potatos.” He had no hesitation 
in saying that the best spot in the British Isles for 
early Potatos was the district along the west coast of 
Scotland, between Ballantrae, and Culzean Castle. 
There was no doubt that the best foundation for a 
crop of Potatos was a liberal dressing of farmyard 
manure. The best mixture for a good crop was 
fifteen to twenty tons per acre of dung, and ten 
or twelve cwt. of artificial manure. Mr. Kerr said 
that farmers were blamed for growing soft varieties, 
but they were really in the hands of the merchants, 
and had to grow what varieties they could get the 
highest price for. 
Sevenoaks Gardeners’Mutual Improvement Society. 
—At the meeting held on December 15th, at which 
Mr. J. Rivers presided, Mr. F. W. E. Shrivell, 
F.L.S., gave a lecture on “The Use of Chemical 
Manures in Horticulture.” A description of the 
work carried on at the experimental station at 
Hadlow, together with a short digest of the results 
was given. The lecturer laid great stress upon the 
value of suitable chemicals when applied to various 
Brassicas. Thus, twenty-five loads of London dung 
per acre produced a crop of 12 tons 6 cwt. of Savoys ; 
but when 4cwt. of nitrate of soda, 4 cwt. of super¬ 
phosphate of lime, and 5 cwt. of kainit per acre were 
given, as much as 18 tons 2 cwt. per acre of Savoys 
were obtained, at a cost of about £3. Small 
dressings of nitrate of soda and superphosphate of 
lime upon Tripoli Onions also brought forth remark¬ 
able results. Brussels Sprouts benefited greatly by 
the application of the same manures, the price of 
the increase in the crop being in every case much 
above the cost of the manures. The lecture was 
illustrated throughout by numerous photographs. 
The application of various manures to Potatos, 
Carrots, and cereals, was also detailed. A lively 
discussion followed, in which many prominent 
members of the society took part. At the close 
Mr. Shrivell promised, in answer to a special 
request, to give another lecture at an early date. 
Wonders and Romances of Insect Life.—This was 
the title of a recent lecture given by Mr. Fred Enoch 
at the London Institution. All the insects upon 
which he discoursed were, he said, common 
occupants of London gardens. " Green fly ” was 
the first in the list. This when present in any 
number was most destructive to Sycamore trees. 
Consequently such insects as the “wasp fly” the 
grub of which would destroy as many as 125 of the 
“ green fly ” in an hour rendered great service to 
gardeners. Mr. Enock described at length the 
appearance and construction of the "wasp fly.” The 
Black Currant mite was so destructive that it had 
attracted the attention of the Board of Agriculture. 
The only way to get rid of this troublesome mite, 
however, was to pick off all the infected buds and 
burn them. He here remarked that in entomological 
matters the people of the United States were a 
hundred years ahead of us, for when the Orange 
groves were threatened with devastation by some 
insect, an expert was sent to Australia to bring back 
a parasite which speedily cleared the trees of the 
pest. The decorative galls upon Willow trees next 
received attention, the insects causing these 
excresences being described very minutely by the 
lecturer. The lecture was illustrated throughout by 
means of lantern slides prepared from drawings 
made and photographs taken by Mr. Enock. 
Mr. T. Pledger.—We understand that Mr. T. 
Pledger is shortly about to resign his appointment 
as gardener and bailiff to the Rev. E. W. Northey, 
Woodcote, Epsom. After twenty-two years’ service 
there he has taken over a dairy and poultry farm 
that has for some years been successfully carried on 
by his father, who is now retiring from business. 
We wish Mr. T. Pledger every success in his 
undertaking. 
Worcester Gardeners’ Benevolent Institution.—Mr. 
R. C. Smith-Carrington presided at the first annual 
meeting of this branch held at the Guildhall on 
December 21st. The balance-sheet showed the 
totality of receipts to be £175 9s. 6d., with an 
expenditure of £172 5s. In presenting their report 
the committee expressed their indebtedness to those 
who had subscribed to the funds, and also to Earl 
Beauchamp for throwing open his grounds to them. 
A letter was read from the head office notifying the 
committee’s appreciation of the value of the services 
rendered by Mr. J. H. White, the hon. secretary and 
treasurer of the Worcester branch. The election 
of officers followed, Earl Beauchamp being asked 
to continue as president, and Mr. J. H. White 
as secretary. The Mayor of Worcester (Mr. Dyson 
Perrins) was chosen chairman of the Executive 
Committee. 
Improving on Nature—The latest direction in 
which the energy of our Gallic friends has asserted 
itself is distinctly interesting. It consists in giving 
perfumes to flowers to which nature has denied them, 
or to which only unpleasant ones have been vouch¬ 
safed. The African Marigold has anything but 
a pleasing odour naturally, but may be given one 
artificially. It is said that this is effected by steeping 
the seeds of successive generations in solutions of 
various scents according to the wish of the operator. 
Thus, sunflowers may be made to smell like a Rose, 
and Marigolds like violets. It is averred that even 
large trees when in bloom may have their blossoms 
scented to fancy, by boring a hole in the trunk, and 
pouring in a solution of the desired odour. This 
remarkable industry is pursued to a considerable 
extent in Paris. 
Queen's Commemoration.—A committee has been 
formed by four societies, which are interested in the 
preservation and acquisition of open spaces and 
places of historic interest or natural beauty. These 
societies are the Commons Preservation Society ; 
the Metropolitan Public Gardens Association ; the 
Kyrle Society ; and the National Trust for Places of 
Historic Interest or Natural Beauty. There is a 
universal feeling in favour of doing something 
towards commemorating the reign of Queen 
Victoria, as being the longest in English history. 
The committee, formed by the above societies, has 
an idea that a locality which is taking common 
action for the purpose, may fitly provide for itself a 
plot of ground, or place of natural beauty or historic 
interest, to be dedicated to the common use and 
enjoyment of its people. This may be called a 
" Queen Victoria ” Garden, Park, Playground, 
Memorial, Field, or whatever name indicates its 
destined use. In the Metropolis, and in all populous 
and growing towns, the inadequate supply of open 
space is generally recognised. In view of the rapidly 
increasing urban populations, few towns are suffi¬ 
ciently provided in this respect. In many rural 
districts some of the landowners are liberal in allow¬ 
ing the use of their ground for special purposes ; but 
these arrangements are liable, to suffer owing to 
changes of ownership, &c. It is desirable, therefore, 
that the people should have open spaces which they 
can enjoy in their own right. Places dedicated to 
public recreation afford the largest social range of 
enjoyment to people of all classes. National 
memorials of this kind are of the greatest possible 
advantage, because they may be bequeathed to 
future generations, and can neither pauperise the 
people nor injure their self-independence, while it is 
a boon that they cannot procure for themselves. 
Open spaces also require less management than per¬ 
manent institutions, and they are hardly capable of 
diversion from their object, through lapse of time 
and changes. Details have to be considered 
separately for each locality. The Joint Committee 
will be glad to give any advice or assistance in their 
power to any Local Authority, or to any landowner 
or other person who may be disposed to act upon 
the above suggestions ; and should anyone, not in a 
position to contribute in kind after the manner sug¬ 
gested, nevertheless be anxious to further the 
