October 7, 1899. 
THE GARDENING WORLD 
83 
A few Fine Sorts for Pots or Outdoors. 
EMPEROR, perianth deep primrose, tiump et rich ful1 
yellow, very large flower,per ioo,25s,; per doz , 
3s. 6d. 
JOHNSTONI QUEEN OF SPAIN, of a uniform soft 
delicate clear yellow, with gracefully-reflexiDg 
petals, per ioo, 17s. 6d. ; per doz., 2s. 6d. 
BICOLOR GRANDIS, 1 irge pure white perianth, 
large full yellow trumpet, late flowering, per ioo, 
22s. 6d.; per doz.. 3s. 
BICOLOR J. B. M. CAMM, perianth white, trumpet 
soft pale chrome-yellow, a most beautiful 
variety, per doz., 36s. ; each, 3s. 6d. 
PALLIDUS PRiECOX, perianth and trumpet from 
pale straw colour to white, very early, per ioo, 
8s. 6d. ; per doz.. Is 3d. 
INCOMPARABILIS PRINCE TECK, broad, finely 
formed creamy-white perianth, large yellow 
cup, per ioo, 21s.; per doz., 3s. 
INCOMPARABILIS SIR WATKIN, perianth rich 
sulphur, cup yellow, slightly tinged with 
orange, very large flower, per ioo, 25s.; per 
doz , 3s 6d. 
BARRII CONSPICUUS, large yelcw perianth, 
broad short cup, conspicuously edged bright 
orange-scarlet, a flower of much beauty and re¬ 
finement. per ioo, 15s ; per doz., 2s. 3d. 
BARRII FLORA Y8ILSON, pure white perianth, cup 
deeply stained orange scarlet, a very striking 
flower, per doz , 10s. 6d.; each, Is, 
LEEDSII DUCHESS OF WESTMINSTER, large 
white perianth, long soft canary cup tinged orange 
on first expanding, per doz , 25s.; each, 2s 6d. 
All Bulbs sent Carriage Paid on receipt of remittance. 
Send tor BARR'S ILLUSTRATED CATALOGUE of all 
the most beautiful DAFFODILS, with full particulars of 
Collections lor Amateurs and Exhibitors, FREE ON APPLI¬ 
CATION to 
BARR & SONS, 
12 & 13, King Street, Coyent Garden, LONDON. 
Nurseries— LONG DITTON, SURREY. 
LAIRD'S 
“DEMOTIC” 
H AS been pronounced by one and all to 
be the 
Best Artificial Manure 
on the Market. 
No Gardener can afford 
- - to do without it. 
FOR 
CHRYSANTHEMUMS, 
VINES, PLANTS, 
AND 
VEGETABLES 
It has proved to be indispensable to good 
cultivation. 
PRICES : 
Per cwt., 17/6 ; |-cwt., 9 /- ; £-cwt., 5 /- ; 
14 lbs., 3 /-. 
1 Cwt. and upwards Carriage Paid. 
Sole Manufacturers : 
R. B. LAIRD & SONS, 
LTD., 
17a, South Frederick St., Edinburgh, 
Finest Selected 
Roots. 
WEBBS’ 21/- BOX 
FOR 
GREENHOUSE DECORATION, 
&c. 
i Amaryllis Formosissima 
100 Crocus, five choice 
varieties 
12 Chionodoxas 
6 Freesias 
18 Hyacinths, choice named 
varieties 
12 Ixias, mixed 
9 Jonquils, sweet scented 
6 Narcissus Bulbocodium 
9 Polyanthus Narcissus 
25 Scilla Sibirica 
100 Snowdrops 
6 Tulips, Due Van Thol, 
scariet 
36 Tulips, early single, six 
varieties 
6 Tulips, Rex Rubrorum, 
double 
6 Tulips, Tournesol 
double 
OTHER BOXES, from 5 b tc 105s each. 
WEBBS’ BULB CATALOGUE. 
Beautifully Illustrated, and containing complete Cultural 
Instructions, Post Free, 6d. Gratis to customers. 
Seedsmen by Royal Warrants to H.M. the Quean and 
H.R.H. the Prince of Wales. 
WORDSLEY, STOURBRIDGE, 
‘ Gardening is the purest of human pleasures, and the greatest 
refreshment to the spirit of man."— Bacon. 
Edited by J. FRASER, F.L.S. 
SATURDAY , OCTOBER yth, 1899. 
NEXT WEEK'S ENGAGEMENTS. 
Monday, October 9th.—Sale of Dutch Bulbs (every day except 
Siturday) by Messrs. Protheroe and Morris, at their 
Auction Rooms, 67 and 68, Cheapside. E C. 
Tuesday, October 10th.— R.H.S. meeting at Drill Hall. 
^Recollections of the Fruit Show.— 
After all that has been said and done 
and seen in connection with the great 
annual show of British grown fruit at the 
Crystal Palace, the most lasting impressions 
will be those produced by the Apples. This 
applies to the general public, and to the 
gardeners who came to exhibit or merely 
to see the show, but particularly to those 
who have witnessed this exhibition for the 
first time. Big fruits there were of Pears 
in considerable quantity, considering the 
general scarcity of Pears this year ; and in 
a lesser degree fine samples of Melons, 
Peaches, Nectarines, Plums, and Grapes 
were shown ; but after all the colour of the 
Apples more than anything else is the 
feature for which the show of ’99 will be 
remembered. We have seen this show 
when Pears were particularly noticeable on 
account of their size, and the quantities in 
which they appeared on the exhibition 
tables; but that was a }ear when the fates 
settled the Apple crop while yet in blossom, 
and the Pears by another stroke of our 
fickle climate escaped the scathing finger of 
late frosts. The state of the weather during 
the critical period of any given crop, that 
is, when in blossom, is the ruling factor that 
determines whether the crop will be a 
success or fadure. Extreme heat and 
drought afterwards or the extreme cold and 
wet to which this island may be subjected 
in summer, are matters of secondary and 
minor importance to spring frost in deter¬ 
mining the quality and quantity of any given 
crop for that season. 
Much wet is favourable to the swelling 
of the fruits, even if it retards maturity; 
but drought may to a large extent be 
counteracted by the skill of careful and 
enthusiastic cultivator?. When Pears con¬ 
stitute the principal crop of a season, 
whether that is a wet or a dry one, the 
autumn show is bound to be a green one. 
Apples under either condition make a more 
attractive show although it is the general 
belief that a fair amount of rain greatly in¬ 
creases the colour of the fiuits. There are, 
however, many conditions and “ ifs ” that 
we cannot depend upon rain alone, nor to 
soil, nor any given locality, to fully account 
for the coloration of Apples. There is a 
much greater rainfall in the north of Eng¬ 
land and in Scotland generally than in the 
south of England, yet we never get either 
size or colour in the north that can hold 
their own when placed alongside of the best 
of the southern or south-western produc¬ 
tions. Latitude and the length of the 
season would appear to be strong factors in 
developing Apples and Pears of the largest 
size. Similar reasoning applied to those 
fruits in Britain generally would seem to 
point to the conclusion that heat and mois¬ 
ture are both equally necessary for the pro¬ 
duction of the finest samples we see at 
exhibitions. Some emigrants from the old 
country wrote back to their friends that 
Oregon was a country of rain and red 
Apples, from which one would readily con¬ 
clude that heat and moisture were necessary 
to the production of highly coloured Apples. 
Oregon lies between the same latitudes as 
the southern half of France, whereas the 
latitudes which bound the British Isles, 
correspond to those in which the southern 
half of Canada lies. 
The British public appears to be imbued 
with the idea that what is good to look at 
is also good to eat ; and is ready to pay a 
higher price for highly coloured fruits, than 
colourless ones. Cox’s Grange Pippin and 
Ribston Pippin, the best flavoured of British 
Apples, are amongst the least attractive. 
Both were shown in fine form at the 
Crystal Palace, yet we fear they attracted 
very little attention except from those who 
are conversant with their merits. Lady 
Sudeley, The Duchess, Tyler’s Kernel, 
Hollandbury, Hoary Morning, Peasgood’s 
Nonsuch, Cox’s Pomona, Wealthy, King of 
Tomkin’sCounty, Merede Menage,Worces¬ 
ter Pearmain, Gascoyne’s Scarlet, Beitig- 
heimer,Bismarck,and many othersthat could 
be named were simply magnificent. Lady 
Sudeley in one case at least was unusually 
highly coloured, but to what this is precisely 
due it would be difficult to say. That 
variety and Gascoyne’s Scarlet are amongst 
the most showy of British Apples, when 
the colour is developed to its highest capa¬ 
bilities, or as it was on this occasion. As 
a bright yellow Apple none surpass Queen 
Caroline, even when Golden Noble and 
Yellow Ingestre are reckoned with. Graven- 
stein 14 a variable Apple as to colour, and 
many came into the same category, but 
some of the samples at the Palace were so 
highly coloured as to be scarcely recognis¬ 
able by those whose fruits were less highly 
favoured. Taking a cursory glance at the 
show it seemed to us that the best coloured 
