582 
THE GARDENING WORLD . 
•July 16, 1904 
screw-pine—and longer in proportion to the size of the plant. 
Though not strictly yellow, but assuming rather a pale green 
shade, intersected lengthways by long streaks of silvery white, 
they are nevertheless yellow towards the apex. Small plants 
are well adapted for table decoration. Giving the P. sanderiana 
much sunshine induces high colouring of the leaves ; keeping 
the soil dry is also of benefit in this respect.. The latter course, 
however, must not be overdone, or the consequence will be the 
departure of the bottom leaves, and probably much of the 
healthy brightness from the surface of the foliage. 
Suckers appear in abundance round the base of the stem. 
These are easily propagated by inserting them in sandy soil 
and keeping up;a,plentiful supply of heat and moisture in their 
vicinity. 
Like the t.wo foregoing—introductions, Dracaena kewensis 
appears to he easily cultivated, and is well worth a position 
among any others of the many valuable foliage specimens. The 
bright green foliage, with its red tint, gives this plant a tran¬ 
scendent show, evident even when viewed at a. distance among 
other green-leaved plants. Its culture is the same as that advo¬ 
cated for the majority of others of the same genus. Dracaena 
kewensis wall undoubtedly become popular. 
The three above' species agree' with the usual stove tempera¬ 
ture, although, with the exception of the Pandanus, they ought 
to flourish in a lower temperature. Jambs P. Dickson. 
The Alleged Seedless Apple. 
We have received the following from M. Ballard Dunn with 
reference to the new seedless' Apple which has been extensively 
exploited in the general Press during the past few months. Mr. 
Dunn is officiating as general Press agent for John F. Spencer, 
of Grand Junction, Col., by whom it is claimed the seedless 
Apple' was developed. Some of Mr. Dunn’s statements' are 
quite surprising to fruit-growers, and many will look forward 
to seeing the Apples and tree® with more than usual interest. 
The new seedless Apple, developed by John F. Spencer, of 
Grand Junction, Col., bids fair to be of. greater importance 
than. was. the seedless Orange, for the reason that, the Apple 
interests are larger than the Orange interests, and the market 
for both Apples and Apple-trees is' larger. When it is known 
that seedless Apple nurseries have been, established in Utah, 
Idaho, California, Missouri, Michigan, New York, New Jersey, 
Delaware, Pennsylvania and Canada, in addition to the home 
nursery in Colorado, all within a few weeks, the rapidity with 
which the new Apple is being taken up can be appreciated. 
The new Apple has many features' that make it of special 
advantage. The very absence of seed make® the Apple worm- 
les®, it. being a known fact that the Apple worm lives off the 
seed. The trees also are blossomless. Late frosts leave the 
seedless Apples still bearing, although the ordinary Apple 
tree® growing alongside them may be barren. This has been, 
proven in Mr. Spencer’s! orchard at Grand Junction. The tree 
has a hard, smooth bark, and is not nearly so likely to be 
injured by insects as the ordinary tree, both for this reason 
and on account of the lack of blossoms, 
Mr. Spencer is an old fruit raiser, and during his labours 
and experiments, extending over a dozen years, lie never 
breathed hisi purpose-to anyone, and for months after success 
had crowned his efforts he said nothing about, it, and his, secret 
was learned only by accident. In his orchard at Grand Junc¬ 
tion he has 2,000 trees.—“ The American Florist.” 
Seizure cf Foreign Gooseberries.— Chief Inspector Thomas, 
of Bermondsey Borough Council, and Dr. Brown, medical officer 
of health, exhibited to Mr. Chapman four tons of foreign Goose¬ 
berries from which a very sour smell was wafted into court. 
They had been seized on delivery at a jam factory, but had not 
been accepted there, and the owner had consented to their 
condemnation. Fermentation had been caused by sea water in 
transit. An order to destroy was granted. 
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR. 
Arabia alpina flore pleno. 
To the Editor of The Gardening World. 
Sir,—In hisi pleasant little note “ B. W. J.” speaks of e 
above as A. albida. Might I ask the editor to give a define 
statement concerning this? 
I have more than once seen this variety, and also the sin e 
form referred to as A. albida ; in fact, it is so mentioned n 
page 417. Nevertheless, one of our foremost Scottish haiy 
plantsmen, definitely states that it is not albida, but alpij. 
According to my own knowledge A. albida has larger flow s 
and less serrated foliage than, A. alpina. In Johnson’s I> 
tionary A. albida is given as, blooming in July and A. alp a 
as< flowering in May. Both these dates are very late. W. A 
[The 1 same plant mentioned by our correspondent was put i:o 
commerce under both named', and the dual appellation - 
since been continued by different growers. The tit 
authorities', however 1 , are agreed that the correct name isl, 
albida, flore pleno. The leaves are hoary, with brand d 
hairs', and that is the characteristic of L. albida, the later 
name, meaning whitish, applying to the leaves. L. alp a 
is a greener plant, with smaller flowers, while the pi it 
under notice is hoary, and of robust growth, with la e 
flowers 1 .—Ed.]. , 
The Luxury of a Garden. 
To the Editor of The Gardening World. 
Sir 1 ,—“ J. W. J.,” in his' opening remarks on " Fi b 
Vegetables ” in your issue of last week, touches on the quesfn 
of the possession of a garden being a luxury. I can, agree v h 
him when he says 1 : “ The balance is not all against the garde.' 
Certainly a, garden is a luxury where expensive hobbies re 
ridden, such as Orchids, or where an attempt is made to gw 
all the so-called new and improved varieties that are annu.ly 
put on the market. 
A good deal may be said for the garden where choice flow s. 
fruit and vegetables, are grown for the mansioni-house, >t, 
taking into, account the pleasure one ought to derive fmi 
their garden. The value of this last cannot be given in le 
yearly balance-sheet. Take any of our large private establh- 
ments. Total up the value of all that leaves the garden ir 
the house in, say, six months' or 1 during the stay of the fani v. 
and gardeners who do not keep such account will be surprnd 
at the result. 
When, one considers that the nobility, as a rule, deal olv 
at first-class houses and pay the highest rate for their supp s, 
a, reckoning of the outlay for a similar time may be-line, 
and through the comparison of the results the monetary vfie 
of the possession of a garden, will be plainly seen. 
Where a large house party is> always coming and going, ot 
to speak of the many servants, T think it, could be cledv 
shown that, the garden: is the only department from whic a, 
landed proprietor gets any real return. Certainly it is ot 
from game-rearing nor hunting, and yet the' garden expeie- 
are often the first to be curtailed. 
The gardener who serves a family who look on the gar mi 
as, a sort cf factory that lias to pay, and whose sole desir is 
to see how much can lie produced, is to be pitied. Hapjh 
there are not many such garden-owners 1 , and may they eet 
grow fewer! 
This is a question that is worth discussion, 
other readers will give their opinions. 
and perhaps see 
T. B 
Cottonseed Cake and Slugs.— Various plants in the seed ig 
state may be saved from the ravages of slugs by placing p lie ^ 
of cottonseed cake near the plants, so as to draw the marauds 
away. 
