December 10, 1904. 
THE GARDENING WORLD 
999 
Potato Sutton’s Discovery. 
I enclose a. photograph of a crop of Potato Sutton’s Dis¬ 
covery grown by me front 2 lb. of seed', the resulting crop being 
607 lbs. of tubers, all of the finest quality and entirely freei 
from disease. The 2 lb. of seed contained ninlei tubers, one of 
which was very small and! had only one eye, so that practically 
I had to work from eight tubers. At the end of March I cut 
the tubers into fifty-four sets, all single eyes, potted them singly 
in 18-size pots, and placed them in a. pit with a little bottom 
heat. As soon as they had made sufficient growth to allow of 
cuttings being taken, I took omiei from, each plant, and from 
this first batch of cuttings I took another cutting from each; 
altogether, I took 278 cuttings. When all were well rooted, I 
transferred them to a brick pit with movable lights which 
were tilted back -on tine days and put on every night. By the 
end of May they had made very strong plants. On May 23 I 
planted 263 on a, piece of ground 16 yards long by 9 yard 
wide. No: manure had been put on the 1 land for two: years, and 
no artificial manure was: used iu any form. The plants were 
well watered twice during July, and the crop: was: lifted on 
October' 13th. The tubers are very slow to start growth in the 
spring, which I think goes! to prove that this variety will be 
a good sound late-keeping variety. It also: requires a 
long season of growth in order that, it may be ready to 
lift' by October. I should advise planting as early in 
March as possible, as it has a tendency to keep on 
growing till cut, down, by frost. This variety is, in my 
opinion, the king of all heavy cropping, disease-resist¬ 
ing varieties. H. Green. 
The Gardens 1 , Norton Hall, Lincolnshire. 
Coniferae. 
Now that the autumnal tints have passed away and 
before our early flowering shrubs begin to open, we, look 
to the evergreens and especially the Conifers for colour 
and effect in the landscape. 
For small gardens; the Retinosporas and Cupressus 
should be included and small plants; will vie with the 
Euomymusi for the decoration, of the window-box, while 
the rockery may be relieved somewhat of its bartemess 
by the judicious use of many dwarf sorts. 
As! lawn specimens, the Abies, Piceas and Cupressus have 
few equals; in Picea pungens glauca, the glaucous tint almost 
approaches to: blue, while the Cupressus yield a, variety of 
shades, from the neutral green, to the bright yellow C. law so,n- 
iana lutea and pisifera, aurea. If the lawn; is extensive, the 
Firs and Cedars will impart a sense of brightness, and cheer¬ 
fulness. Evergreens, give 1 stability to the scenery, and should 
be an important, feature in the vicinity of the house, for they 
retain their beauty throughout the year, also: giving shelter 
and not causing a, bother with fallen leaves. 
Few of the Conifers will stand the smiokei of towns, with 
the exception of Cupressus nutkatensis and Ginkgo biloba 
(syn. Salisburia. adiamtifolia), called the Maidenhair tree. 
Thriving specimens of the Ginkgo are seen in 1 the middle of 
towns, making one wonder why it is not planted more gen¬ 
erally. The tree is deciduous, with the leaves very distinct, 
being shaped like those of the Maidenhair, imparting a light, 
and airy aspect, and before falling the leaves! assume a rich 
go,1 deni tint; thei growth is often rather slow when young, 
though this character might fit it for positions where strong- 
growing trees are tool large. T'axodium distichum, the de¬ 
ciduous Cypress,, grows naturally in 1 the swamps of America, 
and here it grows and is probably seen to the best advantage 
on the borders of a lake or stream. The foliage is of a, light 
and pleasing green, contrasting well with other deciduous trees. 
At Syon House is one of the finest specimens in, this country, 
and 1 there ha,s developed its Characteristic, knees or buttresses 
on the roots,; the function of theise are to supply air to, the 
roots. 
Most of' the Conifers may be transplanted till late in the 
season; October or from February to May are the preferable 
months. Large specimen's should be moved with a, good ball 
of earth so as not to injure the roots. No hard and fast rule 
can be given' as to soil, but a good 1 loamy soil does well for the 
majority. Pines succeed in a diy, sandy soil where Firs would 
get stunted. There is, an additional advantage gained by 
planting Firs in a strong soil in that by starting to grow later 
some of the choicest and most excitable species escape the late 
spring frosts. The Retinosporas n,cw classed with Cupressus, 
and also, Abies Douglasii dislike chalk, and will not thrive to 
any extent where this is abundant. 
Occasionally, after a, very heavy fall of snow, it is necessary 
to go round with a pole, and 1 shake off the masses of snow 
which collect on the branches; otherwise they might break 
under the pressure. 
The Firs, Pines and Sequoias are best propagated by seed 
if they can be obtained; the different, varieties of Cupressus, 
Retinosporas and also, Cryptoimorias may be, propagated by 
cuttings, of about 3 in. in 1 length, taken with a, heel inserted in 
river sand under a, handlight about September or October. 
The Firs, may also be grafted, but due regard must be paid 
to the affinity of stock and scion. 
Abies pectinata forms a, stock for A. nobilis, brachyphylla, 
coneolor, etc.; while Picea excelsa forms a stock for P. pun¬ 
gens glauca and P. ajanensis. In grafting these it, is im¬ 
portant, to, secure leaders for the grafts, for if laterals are 
taken,, one-sided plants usually result. The Golden Larch, 
Psieudodarix Kaempferi and Sciadopitys vertieillata,, cam be 
grafted on to pieces of their own roots. 
Nil Desperanduii. 
Notes on Manuring. 
At this season a, good heap of well decomposed stable 
manure is a valuable asset to every gardener, and the, com¬ 
parative ease with which such manure can be buried at the 
proper depth during digging operations is doubtless one reason 
why much of this valuable fertiliser is applied during autumn 
and early winter. At the sarnie time, it, is possible that, a free 
use of rougher or ranker manurei at this season, would he more 
economical, and also; in many cases, give better results. Tha t 
the autumn application of well-decayed manure is wasteful is 
a,t once, apparent,, when one considers how rich in, nitrogen 
such manure usually is, and the length of time which must 
elapse before crops can occupy the ground so treated. 
As a, plant food, nitrogen is one of the most valuable, but it 
is also one, of the most difficult to, retain in the soil, more so, in 
winter, when heavy rains are frequent, and if ground is well 
drained, or subsoil ,opem and porous; much of this valuable 
element is washed into the drains, or down through the subsoil 
beyond the reach of any crops. This loss! is certainly less in 
old gardens rich in humus; as this, ha,g the faculty of absorbing 
much of the nitrogen contained in the manure; neither do 
heavy and retentive soils part with nitrogen so, freely as do 
Potato Sutton’s Discovery. 
