November 14, 1903. 
The Gardening World 
GENERAL. NOTICES. 
We would earnestly urge secretaries of societies to notify us as far in advance as possible as to dates of meetings, shows, etc. We desire to do all in our power to have thes. 
lequately represented in the columns of The Gardening World. 
We respectfully request our readers, when they write to persons or Arms advertising in this paper, to mention that their advertisement was seen in The Gardening World 
bey will thereby not only oblige this paper, but the advertisers. 
MOTTO FOR THE WEEK: 
“ Ask of thy mother earth, why Oaks are made taller or stronger than the weeds they shade.’— Pope. 
Weekly Prize 
FOR 
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The Proprietors of The Gardening World 
will give a cash prize of Ten Shillings for 
THE BEST PARAGRAPH, or SHORT ARTICLE, sent 
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EXCEED ONE COLUMN IN LENGTH, but the value, 
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considered in making the award. Competitors 
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ON ANY SUBJECT COMING WITHIN THE SPHERE 
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The following Coloured 
Plates have appeared :— 
March 14.—NEW CHINESE PRIMULAS. 
March 28.—TEA ROSE “ CHAMELEON. 
April 4.-COLEUS THYRSOIDEUS. 
, April 18 —CESTRUM SMITHII. 
May 23 —SAXIFRAGA GRISEBACHII 
and A GROUP OF ALOCASIAS. 
May 30. — DENDROBIUM NOBILE 
ROTUNDIFLORUM and D.n. NOBILIUS. 
June 6.— CALADIUMS. 
. June 20.—ZENOBIA SPECIOSA PUL 
VERULENTA. 
July 4 —APHELANDRA AURANTIACA 
ROEZLII. 
July 11. — AUSTRALIAN PITCHER 
PLANT. 
August 1— BORONIA HETEROPHYLLA. 
September 12.— SIX NEW DAFFODILS. 
' October 3— LILIUM AURATUM PLA- 
; TYPHYLLUM SHIRLEY VAR. 
}> Back numbers may be obtained from the 
j publishers, price 2^d. post free. 
j) With the PRESENT ISSUE we present 
? a Coloured Plate of ROSE MME. N. 
LFVAVA^^FITP 
> NEXT WEEK we shall give a Half-tone 
0 Plate of CHRYSANTHEMUM MRS. 
J GEORGE D. JUDGE. 
Views and Reviews. 
Possibilities of the Wisley 
Garden. 
No doubt many of the Fellows of the Royal 
Horticultural Society, and alsoi outsiders who. 
are merely onlookers, are anxious to know 
what the society is going to doi with their 
new garden at Wisley. Pending the possi¬ 
bility of their taking possession or putting it 
in practical shape, it is to be hoped that the 
society will prepare a programme of what 
they are going to do with the garden, hut 
particularly the larger area, under cultivation 
and which may he put to the purpose of an 
experimental garden. 
The difficulty of access at, present will be 
one of the chief drawbacks, for the Fellows 
who- desire to visit the place, but if any real 
need should arise for conveyances, this one 
could be supplied either from Weybridge, 
Horsley, Byfleet, Woking, or from Kingston, 
For those advancing from the London side' 
we can imagine no more pleasant form of 
travelling than for the members toi assemble 
on given dates at Kingston-on-Thames', and, 
then engage conveyances drawn by horses 
or even the motor car. The road is of the 
best, being the Portsmouth Road from 
London, which passes almost in a, straight 
line from Kingston to Guildford, passing 
the immediate neighbourhood of the site of 
the new garden, at the south-west end of 
Wisley Common. A pathway through the 
common, for foot passengers at least could 
easily be improvised, and the walk would be 
a good preparation, for the pleasant surprise 
on emerging from the common,. 
Except for Fir trees and Heather, the 
common itself is barren enough, the geo¬ 
logical formation consisting of Bagshot sand. 
Where the garden is situated, however, the 
ground is much lower and more fertile, par¬ 
taking of the alluvial character of the valley 
of the Wey, which flows through the neigh¬ 
bourhood a little to the westwards of the 
garden. Immediately to the south-east of 
the garden the ground rise® unto a, knoll of 
150 ft above sea level, and is crowned with 
^ood timber. The garden would certainly 
be sheltered from this quarter, and on the 
east side' is the whole width of the common, 
one part of which, only a mile off, rises to a 
height of 400 ft., and is beautifully covered 
with Fir woods. This would certainly fur¬ 
nish the desired shelter all along the eastern 
borders at least, for even a belt of trees is 
much more valuable for breaking the force 
of injurious winds than walls of brick or 
stone, or even wooden fences. 
Immediately to, the south of the garden a 
considerable area, rises to an elevation, of 
100 ft. above sea. level. Northwards and 
westwards it drops down much lower, and 
for that reason is within the influence of the 
water that drains from the high ground of 
Bagshot sand which constitutes the rain-col- 
lecting area. Except on the east- side, how¬ 
ever, the ground is either cultivated land or 
pasture,, so that the garden would he open on 
those sides. If any particular shelter was 
necessary on the west or south-west sides, 
owing to prevailing winds, that might be 
easily furnished by a belt of trees, hut we 
do not think it would be advisable in any 
way to shut in the garden like a, box in the 
midst of trees. Light and air are of the first, 
importance, and the free play of the wind. 
s,o long as the garden, is not actually exposed 
to heavy gales for any continuous, length of 
time, is beneficial rather than otherwise. 
Here, then, we have the presence of woods, 
good soil, and plenty of water, so that the 
conditions for making a, good garden are a 
very varied one at present. We presume 
that the collections of herbaceous and alpine 
plants as cultivated by the late owner are 
to be retained much in the same form as he 
left them. This, of course, would include 
trees, and shrubs where such were necessary 
accompaniments to the cultivation, of cer¬ 
tain plants, and possibly in this case certain 
trimming or replanting with younger* 
material from time to time, as circumstances 
might suggest, would meet the case in main¬ 
taining the conditions necessary for the wel¬ 
fare of the plants which their late owner 
cherished and grew so successfully at Wisley. 
No doubt the late owner had many failures 
in trying to establish certain plants, but 
some of them would be sure to meet with the 
conditions best adapted to their welfare. 
