March 3, 1900 
419 
THE GARDENING WORLD. 
Gold Medal Collections 
OF — 
VEGETABLE SEEDS. 
Arranged to Produce a Constant 
Supply. 
WEBBS’BOX, 
WEBBS’BOX 
Containing Vegetable Seeds 
(or succession, 
Containing Vegetable Seec’s 
for succession, 
Containing Vegetable Seeds 
for succession, 
Containing Vegetable Seeds 
2/0 
5 /-, 
7 / 6 , 
WEBBS’ BOX, 
WEBBS’ BOX, Contai fo i ri v cc!s t ! toi! Seeds 12/6, 
Olher Boxes at 21 /-, 31 , 6 , 42 /-, 63 /-, 105 /-, & 210 /' 
each. 
Carriage Free by Post or Fail. 
“ I took 21 Priies at Mickleover Show on July 29th, 
with the produce of your Seeds.”—Mr. J ohn N avlor, 
Cattle Hill Farm. 
See Webbs' Spring Catalogue, post Tree, Is. 
Gratis to Customers. 
WORDSLEY, STOURBRIDGE. 
H. JONES’ 
Ryecroft Collections of Vegetable Seeds coniain a 
very liberal quantity of all the most approved kinds 
to give a supply of Vegetables throughout the jear. 
8®” Try my 12/6 Collection, 
Smaller Collections, 5 /- and 7 , 6 . 
Ryecroft Co’lections of the mest advanced types 
in Sweet Peas :— 
36 Beautiful Yars , named, 100 seeds of each, 5/- 
24 „ „ „ 100 „ „ 3/6 
18 . 100 „ „ 2/6 
12 „ „ ,. 100 „ 1/9 
Carriage free on receipt oj remittance. 
Catalogues free on application. 
Ryecroft Nursery, Hither Green, LEWISHAM. 
£105 Cash Prizes 
DANIELS BROS,, 
Seed Growers, NORWICH, 
Offer One Hundred Guineas for Competition 
during igco, and have selected such subjects as 
can be easily grown by amateurs, Peas, Broad 
and Runner Beans, Brussels Sprouts, Celery, 
Potatos, Parsnips, Carrots, Beet, Leeks, Onions, 
and Tomatos; Asters, African Marigolds, and 
Stocks. 
Before purchasing Garden Seeds, send for 
Catalogue (post free), which gives full informa¬ 
tion as to theabo'e Prizes, which are in addition 
to the very large number given by the Firm 
through the numerous Shows. 
DANIELS BROS. 
Seed Growers, NORWICH. 
CUTHBERT’S GARDEN GUIDE 
And illustrated Seed Catalogue for 19C0 
Is now ready, and may be had free on application. 
R. & G. CUTHBERT, Seed Merchants, 
SOUTHGATE, N. 
ESTABLISHED 1787. 
VETO'S 
New Melon 
“GUNTON SCARLET. 
99 
■ 
Award of Merit, R H S., Oct. 11 th, 18 8. 
Fruit of very attractive appearance, 
medium size, beautifully netted, and of 
a very pleasing colour, while the flesh 
is of great thickness, and delicious 
flavour. 
Per Packet, 2/6. 
(fde&ea>. 
“ Gardening is the purest of human pleasures, and the greatesi 
refreshment to the spirit of man."— Bacon. 
Edited by J. FRASER. F.L.S. 
SATURDAY , MARCH yd, 1900. 
dotation Crops and Artificial 
-C Manures.— There are still consider¬ 
able differences of opinion as to the necessity 
for a strict observance of the rules of rota¬ 
tion cropping. In many gardens good crops 
of Onions, Potatos, Carrots, Parsnips, 
Dahlias, and other flowers and vegetables, 
are taken off the same ground for many 
years in succession, with the best of results. 
As often as otherwise, perhaps, the ground 
has been specially prepared for such crops 
in gardens, and in a way that would be im¬ 
practicable in the field. Some crops there 
are, however, that would baffle a good 
gardener to grow successfully on the same 
ground year after year without the impor¬ 
tation of fresh soil, which would practically 
amount to the same thing as rotation crop¬ 
ping. Another question is agitating the 
minds of experimenters and scientific men 
at the present time, and that is, can rotation 
crops be grown successfully without the aid 
of farmyard manure. The Agricultural 
Committee of the Wilts County Council 
has beer; carrying on experiments for the 
last four ) ears at their Quemerford Station,* 
Wilts, with the object of determining this 
question, and answer it, in the affirmative, 
by stating “ that real y good rotation crops 
can be grown without the aid of-farmyard 
manure for many years, provided that arti¬ 
ficials be j udiciously employed.” The crops 
grown were Mangel, Barley, Beans, and 
Cats, in this respective order for the four 
course rotation. Mangel and Beans repre¬ 
sent garden crops ; and it would be easy to 
find substitutes for the others amongst the 
many subjects which gardeners are called 
upon to cultivate. 
The manures employed in these experi¬ 
ments were kainit, superphosphates, basic 
slag and nitrate of soda. The kainit and 
basic slag, being very slowly soluble, were 
applied in the autumn ; the superphosphates 
in early spring ; and the nitrate of soda in 
separate dressings after the seedlings were 
above ground, the first immediately after 
germination, and the others at intervals of 
three or four weeks. The ground under 
experiment was laid out in plots, and 
during the first year the object aimed at 
was to determine what quantity of nitrate 
of soda was the most economical to apply to 
Mangel, Barley, and Oats, respectively. 
We may here state that heavy crops might 
result from heavy dressings ; but unless the 
produce is sufficiently great to give a good 
return for the extra outlay, in fact to do 
more than pay for the extra manure, then 
no object is gained in applying such a heavy 
dressing. The proper way to solve this 
point is to leave a plot of ground unmanured 
by way of a check to ascertain what weight 
of crop it will produce without manurial 
applications. Of course this check is ob¬ 
served in all the experiments under notice. 
The real profit is that which accrues after 
so much has been set aside to pay for the 
manure. This is a point which gardeners 
do not seem to consider. If a heavy crop 
is secured the cost seems to be disregarded 
or quite immaterial. When a knowledge 
ot the chemistry of manures, and the 
economical advantages of employing them 
in ceitain proportions, come to be more 
widely diffused amongst gardeners generally 
there will be less indiscriminate manuring 
than is carried on at present. If the aim 
is to get the heaviest crop, or the largest 
roots, or fruits regardless of expense, the 
same heavy applications may continue to 
be made for exhibition purposes. The 
same would apply to fruits for market, pro¬ 
vided the price paid by the public for extra 
large samples were sufficient to recoup the 
grower. Thus the question comes to be a 
very complicated one amongst the garden¬ 
ing fraternity. 
From an agricultural point of view the 
case is-quite different. In the case of Mangel 
the Wilts County Council found that 4J 
cwt. of nitrate of soda per acre constituted 
the most economical dressing ; for Barley 
it was ii cwt., and for Oats 2 cwt. These 
differencesare brought about by the peculiar 
requirements of each respective crop, and 
the different faculties each possesses for 
collecting ihe nitrogen present in the soil. 
It was demonstrated that Beans were in no 
way benefited by applications either of 
nitrate of soda or sulphate of ammonia. 
We have frequently, on previous occasions, 
stated the reasons for this peculiarity 
evidenced by leguminous crops generally. 
The second j ear was devoted to the purpose 
of ascertaining the most economical dressing 
of superphosphate for those crops. This 
proved to be 1 cwt. per acre for Mangel ; 
and 3 cwt. each for Barley and Oats. Very 
little material advantage, that is, profit, 
*Report of the Calna Agricultural Demonstrations. 
E>re & Spottiswoode, London—East Harding 
Street Fetter Lane, E.C., 1900. 
