May  24,  1900. 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER, 
447 
prjoyed  the  beautiful  in  life,  would  assist  the  cause  that,  extended  a 
helping  hand  to  those  whose  labours  were  largely  directed  towards 
making  the  earth  more  beautiful  and  more  fruitful.  His  Grace  coupled 
with  this  toast  the  name  of  Mr.  Harry  J.  Veitch,  the  treasurer  of  the 
Institution. 
Mr.  Harry  Veitch  thought  it  necessary  to  preface  his  remarks  by 
saying  to  the  regular  attenders  that  there  was  little  fresh  for  him  to 
say,  but  asked  them  to  remember  that  there  were  always  new  comers 
whom  they  were  anxious  to  keep,  and  for  whose  benefit  his 
remarks  were  made.  Two  points  were,  however,  fresh  to  all — 1,  That 
it  was  the  first  time  his  Grace  the  Duke  of  Portland  had  been  with 
them,'  and  whom  he  desired  to  thank  for  his  presence  ;  and  2,  They 
had  to  deplore  the  loss  of  their  late  president  who,  joining  the  Institution 
in  its  boyhood,  had  stayed  with  them  to  help  and  advise  until  it  had 
reached  a  vigorous  manhood.  He  referred  to  the  honour  that  was  done 
to  the  Institution  and  to  gardening  by  the  Prince  of  Wales  in  becoming 
their  president.  Mr.  Veitch  then  placed  before  his  auditors  some 
striking  statistics  of  the  work  that  had  been  and  was  being  done  by  the 
Institution,  and  looked  for  that  support  which  would  not  only  enable 
them  to  continue  their  present  course  but  to  enlarge  their  sphere  of 
usefulness  in  a  community  where  work  was  hard  and  nay  not  always 
large.  He  referred  to  the  Victorian  Era  Fund  and  the  Good  Samaritan 
Fund,  explaining  briefly  the  aims  and  objects  of  each,  and  concluded 
by  appealing  in  admirably  chosen  terms  for  assistance  greater  than  had 
ever  been  given  before. 
Viscount  PowERscouRT  in  rising  to  support  the  claims  of  the  Insti¬ 
tution  which  had  been  so  clearly  demonstrated  by  Mr.  Veitch,  said  he 
wished  to  pay  a  tribute  to  the  memory  of  the  late  Mr.  Malcolm  Dunn, 
whom  he  had  known  and  respected  for  many  years  as  an  able  gardener 
and  a  straightforward,  upright  man. 
“  Horticulture  ”  was  placed  in  the  hands  of  the  Eight  Hon.  A.  H. 
Smith-Barry,  M.P.,  who  expressed  his  diffidence  in  undertaking  such  a 
task  in  the  midst  of  an  assemblage  of  experts.  A  knowledge  of  horti¬ 
culture,  he  said,  carried  i;s  back  to  the  cradle  of  the  earth  and  brought 
us  forward  through  all  ages  to  the  present  day,  but  notwithstanding  the 
glories  of  the  gardens  of  the  Egyptians,  Babylonians,  Eomans,  Greeks, 
Japanese,  Chinese,  Moors,  French,  Italians,  and  other  peoples,  he  did 
not  think  they  could  have  had  anything  to  beat  the  gardening  of  the 
present  day  in  England.  Horticulture,  he  said,  was  a  science  that  all 
in  differing  degrees  could  enjoy.  Mr.  Smith-Barry  coupled  with  the 
toast  the  name  of  the  Very  Eeverend  the  Dean  of  Eochester,  who,  he 
said,  was  known  the  world  over  as  an  authority  on  all  gardening 
matters. 
Dean  Hole  was,  as  is  customary,  enthusiastically  received.  He 
had,  he  said,  passed  eighty  milestones  on  the  journey  of  life  ;  he  had 
dined -in  royal  palaces  with  the  best  Queen  that  ever  lived,  and  he  had 
taken  tea  in  hovels  of  mud ;  he  had  numbered  amongst  his  friends  men 
famous  in  all  the  arts  and  sciences,  but  of  them  all  he  considered  the 
greatest  artists  were  those  who  beautified  the  land  in  which  they  lived. 
He  related  in  his  own  inimitable  way  anecdotes  of  his  life  and  the 
people  he  had  met,  and  many  a  happy  laugh  was  evoked  during  the 
speech.  The  recreation  of  horticulture,  he  affirmed,  never  palled  ; 
the  love  of  a  garden  never  faded.  The  garden,  he  said,  was  or  should 
be  a  place  of  seclusion,  repose,  and  restful  peace,  and  as  such  he 
considered  the  change  from  stiff  formality  to  natural  infoimality  a 
step  in  the  right  direction.  He  thanked  them  for  their  sympathy  in 
listening  to  him,  and  wished  them  from  his  heart  “  the  long  and  happy 
life  of  a  gardener.” 
Mr.  Jeremiah  Colman,  Master  of  the  Skinners’  Company,  gave  the 
toast  of  “  Our  Visitors,”  for  whom  the  Venerable  the  Archdeacon  of 
London  responded. 
The  subscription  list  was  read  out  by  Mr.  G.  J.  Ingram  at  this  point) 
and  considering  the  calls  upon  everyone  owing  to  the  war  in  Africa, 
the  famine  in  India,  and  the  fire  in  Ottawa,  must  be  deemed  eminently 
satisfactory.  Fears  were  entertained  that  it  would  fall  very  short 
indeed,  but  though  it  is  not  a  record  the  efforts  of  the  speakers  were 
successful,  as  the  total  sum  secured  was  £1980,  which  Mr,  Sherwood 
undertook  to  make  up  to  £2000.  The  principal  amounts  were  — 
his  Grace  the  Duke  of  Portland  50  guineas,  Messrs.  Eothschild  &  Sons 
100  guineas,  Baron  Schroder,  Mr.  N.  N.  Sherwood,  Mr.  A.  W.  Sutton, 
and  Wr.  M.  H.  Frquett  Sutton  each  £50;  Mr.  E.  Tait£36,  Mr.  W.  Gold¬ 
ring  £35,  the  Worcester  Auxiliary  £80,  Mr.  G.  Monro,  including  the 
Covent  Garden  table,  £123  9s.  fid.  ;  Messrs.  Fisher,  Son  &  Sibray 
£26  5s, ;  Mr.  and  Mrs.  H.  J.  Veitch  each  £25,  Mr.  J.  Colman  £26  58., 
the  Skinners  Company  £21,  Mr.  F.  Ley  £31  10s.,  Mr.  J.  Eochford  £31, 
Messrs.  B.  S.  Williams  &  Son  £21,  Messrs.  W.  Mackay,  M.  Gleeson, 
and  J.  Lambert  each  £20 ;  Mr.  E.  Piper  £15,  Mr.  J.  Hudson  12  guineas, 
Mr.  H.  Eider  £11,  the  Hon.  Alban  Gibbs,  and  Messrs.  H.  Tiarks, 
J.  Laing  &  Sons,  G.  H.  Eichards,  G.  A.  Dickson,  G.  Paul,  J.  G.  Veitch, 
J.  H.  Veitch,  and  J.  Wood  &  Son  each  10  guineas,  with  numerous 
other  smaller  amounts,  giving  the  grand  total  of  £2000. 
Mr.  H.  N.  Sherw'ood  proposed  the  toast  of  “  Our  Chairman,”  and  in 
the  course  of  his  remarks  pressed  upon  his  Grace  to  induce  the 
Duchess  of  Portland  to  become  one  of  the  vice-presidents  of  the 
Institution,  which  the  chairman  in  replying  undertook  to  do. 
The  proceedings  were  brought  to  a  close  with  the  toast  of  “  The 
Secretary,”  to  whose  strenuous  efforts  the  Gardeners’  Eoyal  Benevolent 
Institution  ow'es  a  large  measure  of  its  prosperity. 
Hardy  Fruit  Garden. 
Disbudding  and  Thinning.— Where  superfluous  growths  are  yet  soft 
enough  to  be  removed  with  the  finger  and  thumb,  this  method  of 
removal  may  be  adopted ;  but  when  the  base  of  the  shoots  becomes 
hardened  and  woody,  the  shoots  must  be  removed  with  a  sharp  knife,, 
making  a  clean  cut.  The  practice  of  disbudding  and  thinning  out 
shoots  in  the  early  stages  is  practised  as  a  ready  means  of  regulating 
growth  and  avoiding  a  crowded  state  of  the  trees.  Trees  that  are 
bearing  a  crop  are  much  benefited  by  the  timely  removal  of  unneces¬ 
sary  shoots,  for  light  and  air  are  admitted  more  freely.  Ou  the  other 
hand,  trees  in  an  unfruitful  condition  may  in  time  be  rendered  pro¬ 
ductive  if  carefully  disbudded  and  the  shoots  thinly  disposed.  The 
process  of  removal  must  always  be  gradual,  as  it  is  not  desirable  to 
rub  or  out  out  large  quantities  at  one  time,  which  is  likely  to  give  a 
serious  check,  and  might  result  in  stone  fruits  gumming.  Wall  and 
espalier  trees  require  attention  equally  all  over,  while  bosh,  pyramid, 
and  standard  trees  are  prone  to  be  crowded  with  growth  in  the 
centre.  Neglect  in  carrying  on  disbudding  and  thinning  with  stone 
fruits  results  in  injury  to  the  successional  shoots,  which  demand 
abundance  of  light  and  air  to  develop  and  become  well  ripened  for 
future  bearing. 
Thinning  Fruit. — Small  and  ill-placed  fruit  may  be  removed  from 
Apricots,  Peaches,  and  Nectarines.  This  may  be  done  before  the 
stoning  process  takes  place,  after  which  give  the  final  thinning,  leaving 
Apricots  4  to  6  inches  apart.  Nectarines  8  inches,  and  Peaches  10  inches. 
The  small  fruits  have  sufficiently  developed  on  Plums  to  see  which  are 
swelling  the  most  freely.  All  others  may  be  removed,  and  those  that 
remain  to  develop  will  be  finer  in  consequence.  Dessert  Pears  on 
walls,  fences,  and  as  pyramid  trees  may  have  the  fruits  thinned,  com¬ 
mencing  now  to  remove  the  small  fruits,  and  those  not  well  placed  for 
swelling.  The  thinning  of  Cherries  is  not  imperative,  though  to  secure 
very  fine  fruit  it  may  be  adopted  on  small  trees  in  the  open  and  those 
on  walls.  Apples  may  eventually  be  thinned,  large  examples  only 
being  secured  by  reducing  the  number  on  a  tree.  Gooseberries  may  be 
thinned  now  to  any  extent,  as  the  berries  can  be  used  for  pies  and  tarts. 
The  bushes,  therefore,  in  this  way  usually  receive  all  the  thinning  they 
require.  The  advantages  of  thinning  are  the  better  flavour  and  larger 
development  of  the  fruit,  as  well  as  the  strain  upon  the  trees  lessened, 
thus  enabling  them  to  build  up  good  fruit  buds  for  another  season. 
The  Destruction  of  Insects. — Wall  fruit  trees  are  almost  always 
attacked,  more  or  less,  with  insects  at  this  period,  and  some  measures 
have  to  be  taken  in  order  to  effect  a  clearance  of  them  from  the  trees. 
A  dry  rooting  medium  is  mainly  the  cause  of  the  presence  of  aphides 
and  red  spider.  In  seeking  for  the  cause  of  attack' and  finding  it  is  dry 
soil,  copious  supplies  of  water  should  be  given,  and  the  surface 
afterwards  mulched.  At  the  same  time  destroy  the  pests.  Aphides 
attack  the  points  of  shoots,  the  black  fly  usually  doing  so  in  colonies. 
One  method  of  exterminating  them  is  to  dip  the  shoots  in  a  solution  of 
tobacco  water,  made  by  pouring  half  a  gallon  of  water,  boiling,  upon 
1  oz.  of  shag  tobacco.  Strain  when  cold,  and  add  an  ounce  of  soft- 
soap.  The  Gooseberry  and  Currant  saw  fly  deposits  eggs  on  the  tinder 
sides  of  the  leaves,  and  they  forthwith  hatch  into  small  caterpillars, 
which  soon  make  havoc  with  the  foliage.  Dustings  of  hellebore  powder 
will  destroy  these,  but  as  the  substance  is  poisonous  the  fruit  should  be 
washed  before  using.  Flowers  of  sulphur  or  fine  lime  are  safer 
remedies.  For  the  winter  and  codlin  moth  larvae  1  oz.  of  Paris  green 
to  20  gallons  of  water  is  considered  the  best  remedy.  The  mixture  during 
application  must  be  kept  well  mixed,  so  as  to  insure  even  distribution, 
this  being  best  effected  by  delivering  it  with  a  spray  distributor. 
The  first  application  may  be  given  as  soon  as  the  blossoms  fall,  and 
the  second  a  few  weeks  later.  A  sulphur  and  softsoap  solution  is  a 
good  remedy  for  red  spider,  also  frequent  syringing,  and  maintaining 
the  soil  moist.  The  blistered  and  curled  leaves  seen  on  Peaches  and 
Nectarines  are  not  the  result  of  insects,  but  of  a  fungus  which  is 
prevalent  on  trees  growing  in  cold  draughty  positions.  The  leaves 
affected  should  be  picked  off,  and  if  possible  shelter  afforded  the  trees 
in  future  from  east  winds. 
Young  Wall  Trees. — With  the  trees  now  growing  freely  it  is 
important  that  the  growths  receive  proper  attention  in  disposing  them 
on  the  surface  of  the  wall  to  the  best  advantage.  Apricots,  Peaches, 
and  Nectarines  bear  on  the  young  wood,  therefore  nail  or  tie  in  shoots 
of  medium  strength  at  full  length.  Apples,  Pears,  Plums,  and  Cherries 
which  are  to  have  a  certain  number  of  main  branches  disposed  on  the 
space  available  ought  not  to  have  them  originated  too  closely,  but  in 
such  a  manner  that  they  will  run  out  a  foot  apart.  The  main  growths 
of  cordon  trees  may  extend  without  stopping.  Stop  the  side  shoots  of 
cordon  Gooseberries  and  Currants  when  three  pairs  of  leaves  have  been 
formed. 
