June 13. 1903. 
THE GARDENING WORLD . 
503 
®he Gardening World. 
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EDITORIAL NOTES. 
Messrs. Alexander Cross and Sons, Limited, 
Ilasgow, write ns to- the effect that certain 
tat-ements- appearing in a, report of a recent 
fleeting of the Scientific Committee of the 
t.H.S. which we inserted in this journal are 
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-O'— 
Fruit from the Cape. 
Last season nearly 15,000 boxes of fruit 
! reached London from the Cape. That figure 
! ias already been exceeded about two- months 
ago. All this fruit is put under the hammer 
: when it reaches this countiy, and it comes in 
such excellent condition of preservation that 
the prospects of the industry already promise 
great- things. It would be rash to predict 
to what proportion the industiy may attain, 
but a short time ago Mr. H. E. V. Pickstone, 
managing director of Rhodes’ Fruit Farms, 
wasi not so reticent. He reckons that in the 
course of a year or two- the imports of fruit 
from South Africa will reach 500 tons during 
each week. A prominent Covent Garden 
dealer thinks that if the fruit Is- properly 
selected and carefully packed, it will reach 
this countiy in. such perfect condition as to 
ensure the continuance of the trade on paying 
lines. No doubt a great deal of the fruit 
is bought out of curiosity in the early stage® 
of such an industiy, and we consider that 
African growers will have to- tempt their con¬ 
sumers with fruit of high quality in order 
to keep up the demand for the imports. No 
doubt those who are engaged in fruit-growing 
in South Africa will be up to all the latest 
moves, not being hampered by old systems 
and mere matter of old-time routine. 
Varieties of good quality will undoubtedly 
secure the greatest and longest patronage, 
and if the varieties are at present of inferior 
quality, it will be to the advantage of the 
growers to- raise new and improved varieties. 
- 0 - 
Trees for London Thoroughfares. 
Some time ago we mentioned the kinds of 
trees- that were to- be planted in the new 
London thoroughfares to be known as Kings- 
way and Aldwych. Sir Edwin Arnold ha-sl 
been discussing the subject and comparing 
eastern and western streets in the matter of 
trees. He goes further, and speaks about 
flowery fields and running water, which to us 
would seem more appropriate in connection 
with the “ Garden City that is to be than 
with London. In the olden time the founders 
of London planted their city by the River 
Thames and where running brooks were also 
fairly plentiful, considering the nature of the 
surrounding land. The modern caretakersi 
of the City have had all these brooks care¬ 
fully covered, and only their names remain to 
indicate their former existence. One, in¬ 
deed, does empty itself into the Serpentine; 
but until it makes its debut- there it is en¬ 
tirely hidden under ground. The Fleet 
Ditch, at one time entered by Roman galleys, 
has been completely covered till it joins the 
Thames. There is also no evidence of the 
Wall Brook, except in the name Walbroo-k 
in the City. In- the case- of London, however, 
we think the authorities have been wise, in 
covering in the streamlets and brooks which 
could not have been otherwise nor better 
than open sewers, owing to the quantity of 
filth that would have found its way into them. 
Addition to the Herbarium at Kew. 
In 1853 a building, which was originally 
the King of Hanover’s house, on the north¬ 
west comer of Kew Green, was procured for 
the purpose- of forming a library and her¬ 
barium t-o- receive the specimens and books 
belonging to the late Sir William Hooker. 
This is now the oldest part of the building, 
and is wholly occupied by the library belong¬ 
ing to- the Herbarium, Royal Gardens, Kew. 
An extensive new wing, extending northwards 
from the King of Hanover’s house, was built 
in 1876. Sir William’s unique collection wasi 
purchased by the Government in 1866. Dur¬ 
ing the last two decades tlie additional 
specimens of dried plants received at Kew 
have grown to such proportions that the 
original building and the large wing became 
thoroughly incapable of conveniently contain¬ 
ing the specimens in such a- manner as to be 
readily got at. Another wing similar in size 
to that built in 1876 has just been completed 
and fitted up internally with a ground floor 
and galleries, the floors of which are incom¬ 
bustible. A long corridor connects the 
original building with this wing, so that the 
herbarium is now more than doubled. The 
specimens are now being moved out of the 
first wing that was built and packed away 
into the new structure in order that- the older 
wing may have floors put- into the galleries 
of the same non-combustible material as the 
new one. This will necessitate an immense 
amount of labour toi Mr. William Bo-tting 
Hemsley, F.R.S., the keeper of the her¬ 
barium, and his staff of assistants. After 
the old wing has- been renovated and brought 
up to date, the specimens will then have to- 
be 1 arranged in systematic order throughout 
the two wings and the corridor connecting 
them, while the original building will con¬ 
tinue- to- accommodate the library. The her¬ 
barium contains about one- million and a-ha.lf 
botanical specimens mounted on a. million 
sheets of paper, and stored in mo-re than, five 
hundred cabinets with a double set of shelves 
each. The library contains about twenty 
thousand volumes. Dried specimens are not, 
always the- best- material for the identification 
of plants which may be received, owing to- the 
imperfect- character of some o-f them, and 
the fleshy nature of the plants in other cases, 
which dry very badly and lose their original 
form. The library contains- books with an 
immense number of coloured plates- and 
other drawings, but besides these, about one 
hundred thousand drawings' of plants have 
been accumulated from time to time, and 
these will prove of immense service to the 
workers in the herbarium. 
—o-—• 
Strawberry Prospects. 
All over the countiy there is a great outcry 
about the destruction of most- kinds of hardy 
fruit, except Strawberries, the anticipations 
in this case being good. A grower at Bo-tley, 
in Hampshire, reckons that he will commence 
picking on the 15th or 16th ins-t., unless 
cold and wet weather intervenes-. 
