724 
THE GARDENING WORLD. 
August 22, 1903. 
The Charterhouse Mtjlberrt Trees. —The weather this year 
has proved disastrous to the fruit which is gathered nearly every 
year from the 16 Mulberry trees growing m the grounds of the 
Charterhouse. The trees themselves are in full foliage, and 
the couple that were planted two years ago by the Master, Canon 
Haig Brown, in the Master’s garden, are thriving m every way. 
In the old burial ground there are altogether eleven Mulberry 
trees, while in the Entrance Court there are three, and m the 
Preachers’ Court two, both of which were planted 70 years 
a <y 0 by the then Master, Archdeacon Hale, and are shoots taken 
from the famous Mulberry tree under which Milton used to sit 
at Cambridge. 
* * * 
The Fringes of Hampstead Heath. —-For some years past 
additions have been continually made to Hampstead Heath by 
the acquirement of private property as it came on the market. 
Judging from recent events, these rustic fringes will still con¬ 
tinue to receive additions owing to the numbers of the wealthy 
who settle down there and take an active interest in these 
northern heights of London. Hitherto Lord Iveagh has been 
actively engaged in advocating the preservation of open ground 
surrounding the heath, and has now taken up his residence there, 
having taken, over the fine house of Lord Glenesk. Lord Mans¬ 
field also lives on the heath at Caen Wood when in the neigh¬ 
bourhood of London, but more frequently his time is spent at 
Columbus’s Tree Dying. —The sacred Ceiba tree, which 
Columbus is said to have planted in Havana, is dying, and the 
Templete, where the remains of the great navigator have for cen- 
turies been guarded, is crumbling away, and may soon be re- 
duced to a heap of ruins. Yet neither the State nor the muni¬ 
cipal authorities appear to be taking any particular interest in 
these facts. The old tree began to wither during May last, 
its branches withering one by one, until now it has scarcely a 
leaf upon it. A shrewd American in business in Havana is 
endeavouring to purchase the tree, with a view to sending it 
to the St. Louis Exhibition, and afterwards cutting up the tree 
into relics. The Bishop of Havana, however, hopes, m the 
event of the death of the tree, to secure the remains for the 
Catholic Church, while the Spanish Charge d Affaires thinks it 
ought to be presented by the Cuban Government to the Duke 
of Veraguas, Don Cristobal Colon, of Seville, Spam, the lineal 
descendant of Christopher Columbus. 
* * * 
The Garden City. —Having secured a site for its first enter¬ 
prise, the Garden City is in a fair way of passing from the 
nebulous condition of a benevolent dream into that of actual 
fact. An estate 4,000 acres in extent, near Hitchin, on the Great 
Northern Railway, and lying a little to the west of Baldock, is 
to be converted into the first Garden City. A sum of £50,000 was 
necessary to enable negotiations for the acquisition of the land 
to be completed, and this being forthcoming, an arrangement 
has been come to. The new Garden City will bewRh manhours 
railway run from London; it stands from 250 ft. to 300 ft 
above sea level, and is furnished with an abundant supply of 
water. But, having obtained the land, more money is needed 
to make a start with the foundation of this modern Utopia, 
where overcrowding and high rents are to be unknown, where 
smiling gardens and open spaces are to predominate, and where 
intellect and morality are to be the most prominent cults t hose 
anxious to embark in the enterprise are, however, frankly ad¬ 
vised that they must not at this present stage regard it as a 
safe investment, which is, at all events, honest, since it is, per¬ 
haps, too much to hope that the Garden City will prove at once 
an El Dorado and Utopia. 
* * * 
Testimonial to Mr. Thomas Humphreys.— Quite recently we 
notified the appointment of Mr. Thomas Humphreys to the 
curatorship of the Birmingham Botanical Gardens. During the 
past ten and a-lialf years lie has been assistant, superintendent 
of the Roral Horticultural Society’s Gardens at Chiswick, and 
secretary of the Floral Committee. Mr. Humphreys is about 
to assume his new duties, at Birmingham at the beginning of 
October. In view of these facts, the members of the several 
committees with which lie has been so long connected thought 
it a convenient time to> recognise his valuable and faithful ser¬ 
vices with some testimonial. Accordingly, with this object m 
view, a committee lias been appointed to receive any subscriptions 
which those whose duties have led _ them in contact with Mr. 
Humphreys may feel disposed to give. The chairman of 1 11 s 
committee is Mr. H. B. May, Dyson’s Lane Nurseries, Upper 
Edmonton, and the secretary Mr. Richard Dean, V.JM.H., 
Ranelagh Road, Ealing, W. 
QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS. 
The Editor invites enquiries for reply in this column. These 
enquiries may cover any branch of gardening. Questions should be 
put as briefly as possible, and written on one side of the paper only ; 
a separate sheet of paper should be used for each question. 
Readers are also invited to give their fellow gardeners the benefit 
o+ their experience by sending supplementary replies. 
Replies cannot be sent by post, even if a stamped , addressed 
envelope is enclosed, and the return of specimens cannot be undertaken. 
Anonymous communications are treated in the usual editorial manner. 
Address letters: The Editor, ‘‘The Gardening World,” 37 and 
38, Shoe Lane, London, E.C. 
Troubles of an Amateur. (Jones). 
You say the subsoil of your garden is clay, and bad clay too, 
though we are not quite sure what you mean by that, except that 
it is very heavy and difficult to work. It might be well worth 
while draining it if it is wet for an undue period after ram, but 
that you will have to determine on the spot. Clay soils can be 
worked so as to be capable of raising a great variety of crops, 
whereas a sandy or gravelly soil, on the other hand, is moie 
difficult to render fertile. You make no mention, of trenching, 
but trenching is one of the most important operations in a 
warden, and by means of that alone you will be able to greatlj 
improve the character of the soil. There is. no necessity for 
turning the subsoil to the surface, at least all at once, lhe 
chief point should be to turn it over in the trench, so, as to make 
sure it is all thoroughly broken. _ Use plenty of manure ot a 
limhit character for mixing with this subsoil, and in the course 
of a few years’ time it may be all turned to the surface and 
utilised in its turn with the present surface soil. You may bear 
in' mind, however, that a little of this subsoil may be brought 
up annually and worked in gradually with the rest, so that in 
the course of time you could have the soil well broken up, 
..,.... +...] ..I..I m iv., 1 with manure to a depth of two or three feet. 
Manure for Heavy Soil. (Jones.) 
You could not have a more suitable manure for clay soil than 
that obtained from the stables of horses. Being of a light nature, 
it serves to loosen, up the heavy clay, and is more suitable in 
this respect than cow manure, which goes down solidly and holds 
more water. It will be greatly to the advantage of the garden 
if you put some of this manure well down every, year, so that 
when the subsoil is ultimately brought to the top it will be well 
enriched. Soot, lime and bones, which you mention, are also 
very useful in. their way, but when the soil has been trenched 
and aerated to a considerable depth these manures will be much 
more effective than they are at present. 
Hybridising Lilies. (M, M Laren.) 
We are pleased to learn that you are following out your ex- 
periments with Lilies and hybridising, as well a.s raising them 
from seeds. We should have been pleased to see a fresh flower 
of the one you mention., even if you could not have sent us a 
stem. Possibly when they get stronger and produce more 
flowers you could then send us a specimen, as we should always 
be pleased ‘.o see such things and to describe them for the benefit 
of our other readers. You do not say whether you had only one 
seedling or a number. It is always well to raise a number of 
seedlings if possible, not only for the sake of variety, but to secuie 
the best ones which turn up. Raising seed from small plants is 
apt to retard their growth to some extent, but if you have a 
number of equally good seedlings the very best might he selected 
for seeding ..n:l the others allowed to develop and ripen their 
bulbs without being distressed carrying seeds. 
Willow for Tying Raspberry Canes. (E. A. S.) 
Several Willows might be employed for this purpose, but none 
are more suitable than the slender twigged and typical foim u 
Salix purpurea and the golden osier S. alba vitellina. These 
may he cut after the leaves have dropped and stood in a shadei 
place with their ends in soil until the canes are ready for tying. 
Should any of the stouter twigs be inclined to break you coiu 
always avoid this by twisting them a little before you commence 
tying. There is a method of tying Raspberry canes by puffins 
the twigs round one another, then twisting them like a rope 
and the loose end is then pushed in beneath the tie. This hole 
the canes tightly to the stake until it is time to cut them dowi 
after the fruit is gathered. 
Richardia Little Gem not flowering. (W. Read.) 
Many growers are tempted to leave too many tubers in t n 
pot in potting them up in the autumn. Your best plan, wou >- 11 
