'i? THE GARDENING WORLD. 
January 25, 1908. 
-1 
. 
S.2 
fruit is m season from January till May, 
after which it is not of much use, either 
for cooking or for dessert, but even then 
if properly cared for it seems inclined to 
dry out rather than decay. The specimen 
illustrated we had from the Agent-General 
of the British Columbia Government 
at the Crystal Palace at the beginning of 
November last. The London Office of the 
British Columbia Government is Salis¬ 
bury House, Finsbury Circus, London. 
- - 
Vagaries of — 
Sweet Peas. 
To the Editor. 
Sir,—I am indebted to “ Grower” for hi? 
reference to my letter to you of some 
months ago on the vagaries of Sweet Peas 
in your issue for January 4th. 
As I said then, I received the most of 
the varieties I had on trial from a seeds¬ 
man friend. I have no doubt he pro¬ 
cured them from a source or sources he 
had confidence in, and my letter was 
printed in time that anyone could have 
seen them for themselves, and several did 
come and inspect them. In reference to 
“ Grower's” enquiry about Horace Wright, 
I had none with four, some with three, but 
mostly two flowers ; but is the main point 
to be aimed at in new varieties the larger 
number of flowers on one spray or stalk ? 
What variety will you get that has a more 
lovely appearance in a bunch than the old 
Coccinea, which has seldom more than 
two ? If “ Grower” could not grow for 
competition more than one or two of the 
varieties I mentioned, I should be pre¬ 
pared to go a good long way to see his 
collection when in flower. In naming the 
varieties I did, I had in view distinctness 
of colour. Who, for instance, in showing 
twelve varieties, would stage John Ingman 
and Miss Willmott or Countess Spencer 
and Enchantress ? ■ I consider that dis¬ 
tinctness in colour ought to be'a strong 
point in judging. I have nothing to add 
to or take from my former letter, but am 
somewhat puzzled to find a reason for 
“ Grower” being so long in referring to 
my question on the “Vagaries of Sweet 
Peas” unless it be he has some interest 
in the distribution of so-called new varie¬ 
ties. If that were the case, then it can be 
easily understood how he should take this 
opportune time of trying to dispel any 
doubts on the matter of novelties. 
I had a packet of Helen Lewis last 
year; mixed they were, but not one of 
them was like the Helen Lewis I saw at 
the Temple Show last May. Beatrice 
Whiley was the nearest approach to it I 
could remember. 
Would “ Grower” kindly give his 
opinion of which he thinks the best twelve 
varieties of Sweet Peas, the most distinct 
m colour, and all having been introduced 
before 1907 ? I am sure an expert such 
as professes to be would not only con¬ 
fer on me a favour but to many readers 
of the “ G. W.” 
Alex. Grigor. 
Sweet Peas. 
Work for January. 
As notes on the 1908 Sweet Pea novel¬ 
ties will appear separately from the 
monthly articles, these present remarks 
will deal with other seasonable Sweet Pea 
topics. 
At this season of the year one is more 
than ever reminded of the enormous 
popularity to which our flower has at¬ 
tained. Not only is the National Society 
prospering, but provincial societies, de¬ 
voted to the Sweet Pea, are springing up 
in many districts, while local horticul¬ 
tural societies, all of them, include classes 
for Sweet Peas within their schedules, and 
in many cases these classes are more 
popular than any others. 
If we turn to the seed trade, we find 
many old-established firms specialising in 
Sweet Peas and issuing special catalogues 
devoted to these flowers, while there are 
firms which supply nothing else. 
It may be wondered how long this state 
of affairs will last. There are certainly 
no signs of a slump yet, for the tide of 
popularity does not appear to be anywhere 
near the high-water mark. There is one 
thing to be feared, however, and that is 
the streak disease. Last year this was 
very troublesome, and although several 
important growers suffered, no reliable 
remedy seems to have been discovered. 
There is little doubt that much of the 
present popularity of the Sweet Pea is due 
to the introduction of the waved forms, of 
which the well-known variety, Countess 
Spencer, is an excellent example. Some 
strict florists do not care for this new 
class, but there is no doubt that they are 
great favourites with the general public. 
Certainly these waved varieties are very 
beautiful, but I hardly think that it is to 
this quality that they owe their popularity 
so much as to the great size which char¬ 
acterises most of them. None of the older 
varieties can approach in size to the new 
Spencer forms. Some of the old forms 
still hold their own, it is true, but in 
most instances this is due to the fact that 
waved forms of their colour have not yet 
been introduced. It is safe to say, how¬ 
ever, that in four years every shade that 
is now represented in the Sweet Pea will 
be on the market in the waved form. 
When discussing the pre-eminence of 
this new type, it is only fair to remark 
that the famous white, Dorothy Eclcford, 
although surpassed in size, must still, by 
reason of its purity and substance, be in¬ 
cluded in all representative collections. 
Last month instructions were given for 
sowing under glass for planting out in the 
spring, so they need not be repeated here. 
Other important work that can be per¬ 
formed now is that of preparing the soil. 
As a rule, the earlier this is done the 
better, but do not go on the soil if it is 
too wet, or more harm than good will re¬ 
sult. Animal manure used now should 
be in a fair state of decay, and as the 
months before planting time go by, the 
importance of this increases, for to use 
undecayed manure near the roots of the 
plants is to court failure. Manure that 
has done service in a hotbed is very suit¬ 
able. 
If a trench is being taken out, it is 
almost always advisable to replace the 
soil in the order in which it was removed. 
Old potting soil, if obtainable, may well 
be used to mix with the soil. 
All Sweet Pea lovers who possess green¬ 
houses should certainly grow a few plants 
under glass for early flowering, and it is 
not yet too late to commence. Flowers 
of good quality can by this means be ob¬ 
tained several weeks earlier than from 
plants grown in the ordinary way, and 
this without the application of artificial 
heat. Mr. H. J. Jones, of Chrysanthe¬ 
mum fame, in the spring uses several 
large greenhouses for this purpose, and 
other growers of the autumn queen might 
well use their glass for the same purpose. 
Seeds should be sown about six in a six- 
inch pot and kept near the glass. When 
four or five inches high they can be 
planted out under glass or repotted into 
large pots eight inches or so in diameter. 
With ordinary culture such plants easily 
reach the roof of the greenhouse, even 
when stood on the ground. When seeds 
are sown in the autumn for flowering 
under glass, it seems to benefit the young 
plants to pinch the tops off when they are 
two or three inches high. Almost all 
varieties succeed under this treatment, but 
Earliest of All and Earliest White are 
several weeks ahead of the ordinary varie¬ 
ties in the date of flowering, although not 
such fine flowers. 
In advising as to the selection of varie¬ 
ties, it is necessary to take into considera¬ 
tion the question of fixity. It must not 
be forgotten, however, that of some un¬ 
fixed varieties, the plants that do come 
true to type are better than any fixed 
varieties. Instance might be made of 
three of last year’s novelties:—E. C. 
Matthews, when true, a waved purple 
maroon of great size and far better than 
any other variety then in commerce ; Mrs. 
Charles Foster, quite the best lavender; 
and Mrs. Charles Mander, a giant 
magenta flower. Messrs. Baker’s, who 
raised the last mentioned, and who hold 
a stock of Mrs. Charles Foster that last 
year was almost fixed, were unfortunately 
not able to save any seed for sale of these 
two varieties, but possibly the reader, if 
he desires, can obtain seed somewhere. 
Although only a small percentage of the 
plants of these may come true, they may 
be more satisfactory this year, and in any 
case, where there is plenty of room, they 
are certainly worth growing. 
