June 29, 1901. 
THE GARDENING WORLD. 
609 
Gardening is the prrest of human pleasures, and the greatest 
refreshment to the spirit of man "—Bacon. 
©Ijr ©griming Drift. 
Edited by J. FRASER, F.L.S., F.R.H.S. 
SATURDAY, JUNE 29 th, iqoi. 
The Editorial and Publishing Offices are 
now at 4, Dorset Buildings, Salisbury 
Square, Fleet St., London, E.C., where 
.all communications and remittances are 
to be addressed to the Proprietors. 
NEXT WEEK'S ENGAGEMENTS. 
Tuesday, July and.—R H.S. Committees in conjunction with 
the National Rose Society ; Hereford Rosa^how. 
Wednesday, July 3rd.—Hanley Horticultural Fete (2 days) ; 
Croydon Horticultural Society's Show; Farningham Rote 
and Horticultural Society’s Show. 
Thursday, July 4th.—National Rose Society in the Inner 
Temple Gardens, London ; Norwich Rose Show. 
Saturday, July 6th.—Royal Botanical Society's Meeting; 
Sociele Francaise d’Horticulture de Londres Meeting; 
Maidstone Rose Show ; Sutton Rose Show. 
Iew and Old Strawberries. —On Mon- 
' day last a large party on the invitation 
of Messrs. Laxton Brothers, Bedford, 
travelled from St. Pancras Terminus, 
London, arriving at Bedford by express 
train within the hour, although the distance 
is 48 miles. Promptly mounting the con¬ 
veyances the party was hurried off to the 
new nurseries of the firm in the Goldington 
Road, Bedford. Several acres are under 
Strawberries, which include over ioo of the 
standard and other varieties in cultivation. 
Needless to say all the very best are in the 
collection, including those that haye a local 
reputation only. Along with numbered 
blocks of seedlings, of which there seems to 
be hundreds of different sorts under trial, 
the list totalled 140, but in each block of 
seedlings were a few each of a great number 
of sorts raised by the Messrs. Laxton and 
now being carefully tried so that nothing is 
put into commerce but what is of decided 
merit. It was impossible in the time at 
disposal to examine a tithe of all the varieties 
on trial, but that is scarcely necessary in 
the case of old sorts that have been super¬ 
seded, and time is necessary for many of 
the seedlings to prove themselves. 
Undoubtedly the leading event of this 
extensive collection of Strawberries is the 
n,ew variety named The Laxton, which 
received a First-class Certificate from the 
Fruit and Vegetable Committee of the 
Royal Horticultural Society on the 18th inst., 
as will be seen under “ Plants Recently 
Certificated,” on another page. The Laxton 
is the result of a cross between Royal 
Sovereign and Sir Joseph Paxton, the pro¬ 
geny inheriting the good qualities of both, 
and supplying the desideratum that has for 
years been looked for by the general public, 
as well as by the painstaking and diligent 
members of the firm who have been work¬ 
ing assiduously for so many years to get it. 
The fruits are similar in size to those of 
Royal Sovereign, but more regularly of 
uniform, bluntly conical outline, even on 
the surface and of a dark but bright crim¬ 
son-red. The skin is firm so that it will 
carry well to market. In this respect as 
well as in colour it takes after Sir Joseph 
Paxton but the size has been derived from 
Sovereign as well as the greatly improved 
flavour. When just ripe, the flesh is juicy 
and of fine piquant flavour. It is also a 
very early variety, another point in its 
favour, and judging from appearances it 
will prove an excellent variety for forcing. 
The plant is of vigorous growth and 
a great bearer, so that in most of its 
meritorious points it excels' that popular 
favourite, Royal Sovereign, also raised and 
put into commerce by Messrs. Laxton. 
One plantation of it we noted consisted of 
old plants that had been divided in order to 
furnish stock. It is very unusual to increase 
Strawberries in this way, yet the crop in 
this instance was heavy. The variety 
originated eight years ago and was then 
picked out of a batch of seedlings so that 
the raisers have taken plenty of time to try 
it and prove its merits before putting it 
before the public. The accompanying 
illustration of it (p. 705) was put at our dis¬ 
posal by Messrs. Laxton Bros., and shows 
the beautiful and regular outline of a mas¬ 
sive, noble and handsome looking fruit. 
The value of such an extensive trial as 
this-is that all the varieties, new and old, 
can be compared, the one with the other, 
both as to earliness or lateness, cropping 
qualities, flavour, vigour of constitution, 
and other qualities that go to make a Straw¬ 
berry of the first order of merit. The 
ground we may say is a good holding pale 
red loam, inclined to be heavy, and being 
recently made into a nursery requires a 
good deal of working yet to get it into good 
friable order, by tilth and the application of 
farmyard manure. At present it is very 
dry, owing to the long continued drought. 
The soil seems admirably adapted for the 
purpose, however, and will, no doubt, pres¬ 
ently give a good account of itself. It 
would be too much to expect that all the 
varieties of Strawberries will succeed 
equally well at Bedford, but as a matter of 
course they do not all succeed anywhere. 
The trial in any case shows what can be 
done with certain varieties in that part of 
England. 
Royal Sovereign is growing in close 
proximity to The Laxton so that their rela¬ 
tive differences can readily be compared. 
The former is pale in colour by comparison, 
and the fruits, though generally conical, are 
frequently flattened in the case of the 
largest berries. The skin is softer so that, 
popular as it is, it must give way to the new 
comer. The other parent, Sir Joseph 
Paxton, also growing in proximity, is a 
smaller conical fruit than either of the two 
above mentioned, and the flesh is much 
firmer, and less luscious. Its chief recom¬ 
mendations are that it fruits regularly and 
carries well, which made it the popular 
market variety it is. The greater size and 
finer appearance, as well as the flavour and 
weight of crop, of The Laxton and Royal 
Sovereign should in time greatly reduce the 
acreage of Sir Joseph Paxton even for 
market purposes. Another variety of great 
repute for flavour is Countess, but is not of 
very vigorous growth, and the crop is, con¬ 
sequently, light. It is most esteemed in 
private establishments. The plants of 
Steven’s Wonder are fairly vigorous and the 
crop good, but the berries are often much 
flattened and very pale in colour. A 
Strawberry that enjoys some repute on 
account of its being one of the perpetual 
bearers is St. Joseph, of French origin. 
The plants are very dwarf in habit, and 
bear a fair crop of small, deep red berries, 
but the flesh is soft and though possessed of 
a peculiar aroma has not the decided flavour 
of the British fruits. An attempt has been 
made to improve it by crossing Royal 
Sovereign with it. St. Antoine de Padoue 
is one of the results of this cross, and bears 
larger berries than St. Joseph and of better 
flavour, but the flesh is rather soft and 
watery. It would nevertheless be esteemed 
by some on account of its continuous bearing 
character. 
The flavour of Lucas is peculiarly aroma¬ 
tic and by some growers is esteemed for 
this special quality, but the berries are 
small, round and deep red. Although we 
made its acquaintance twenty-seven years 
ago it has never enjoyed very extensive 
cultivation. The fruits of the less well 
known Newton Seedling are firm, but not 
of high flavour, though rather pleasant 
when fully ripe. Johij Ruskin produces a 
small crimson berry, but not of very high 
flavour in the south, and the plants are small 
and of weak growth. McMahon is similarly 
weak in growth but the berries are larger 
than those of the previously named variety. 
Crescent Seedling is also a weak grower 
here, producing small berrie=. That named 
Georgier Lesieur also seems worthless tor 
this part of the country at least. On the 
contrary Sir Harry produces small, dark red 
berries of good flavour. Moderately early 
is Mentmore, a popular variety with many 
growers. It is the result of Noble x 
British Queen, and is much darker in colour 
than the latter, and earlier, both qualities 
being derived from Noble. The flesh is 
firm until dead ripe, of good flavour and 
richly aromatic. The variety is also a good 
cropper. The small, bluntly conical, red 
berries of Scarlet Queen are of good 
flavour and pleasantly aromatic. Its parent¬ 
age was Noble x King of the Earlies, both 
notable as being the first early varieties 
that combined good size with their other 
recommendations. A.nother of the old 
varieties coming under our notice about 
twenty-seven years ago is Sir Charles N apier, 
not a very vigorous grower, but of excellent 
flavour, and still esteemed by some culti¬ 
vators for that quality. The flavour of 
Leader (Noble x Latest of All) is peculiar 
though pleasant, and the berries are of a 
light red hue. It bears well. President is 
highly esteemed for its rich and pleasant 
flavour by a great many growers, and 
though it grows and bears very well it does 
not keep up a very lengthened supply. For 
private establishments it enjoys a fairly 
extended cultivation. Vicomtesse Heri- 
carte de Thury was pointed out as an “ old 
friend ” and the rejoinder that it was “ a 
good old friend ” tound a response from a 
good few of those present. The late Mr. 
Robert Thompson, superintendent of the 
Royal Horticultural Society, was sent to 
France about forty years ago to pick up the 
most meritorious of the French varieties 
then under cultivation, and this was the best 
he brought back. It produces small, coni¬ 
cal, dark crimson-red berries of excellent 
flavour ; while the plant is of dwarf, compact 
habit with leathery almost evergreen foliage, 
and fruits evenly and regularly in soils of 
a light or heavy description. By forcing 
and retarding, together with the practice of 
planting it on different aspects in the open 
air it may be had in fruit all the year round 
by those who can manage it properly. It 
may be described as having the same 
relation to Strawberries generally which 
Black Hamburgh does to the rest of the 
Grapes. 
It may be of interest to mention some 
others in this vast collection noted at ran¬ 
dom during the short time at our disposal. 
The small round berries of Collin’s May 
Queen are freely produced and possessed of 
a pleasant though peculiar aroma, but its 
earliness will hardly compensate for the 
small size of the fruits. The berries of 
Kimberley are plentifully produced and the 
flavour delicious though the pulp is rather 
soft. Old Pine of Carolina produces fairly 
large roundish, pale red fruits, of peculiar 
and rather pleasing aroma, and though the 
pulp is soft the skin is fairly firm. Eleanor, 
though formerly enjoying some repute in 
private gardens, is a very weak grower. 
Some cultivators have considerable confi¬ 
dence in Auguste Nicaise for forcing pur¬ 
poses, and manage it fairly well. The pulp 
is rather firm when grown in the open, 
and possessed of a rather peculiar aroma 
I wTien dead ripe. That named Sensation is 
