April  8,  1897. 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
293 
-  Weather  in  North  Bedfordshire. — Here  in  North  Beds 
9°  of  frost  was  registered  on  the  morning  of  Tuesday,  March  30th. 
April,  instead  of  warm  showers,  was  ushered  in  by  a  fall  of  snow 
sufficient  to  clothe  the  Conifers  and  new  mown  verdure  in  wintry  attire. 
On  the  5th  7°  of  frost  was  registered. — H.  T. 
- March  Weather  at  Driffield.— Mean  temperature  at 
9  A.M.  (corrected),  42'37°.  Wet  bulb,  40  29°.  Mean  maximum,  48  29°. 
Mean  minimum,  36  8°.  Highest,  57  6°  on  the  21st ;  lowest,  25'4°  on  the 
30th.  Mean  of  maxima  and  minima,  42  54°.  Mean  radiation  tempera¬ 
ture  on  the  grass,  308°.  Lowest,  18  6°  on  the  2nd.  Rainfall,  3'41  inches. 
Number  of  rainy  days,  twenty-one.  Greatest  amount  on  one  day,  0  58 
on  the  2nd. — W.  E.  Lovel,  Observer ,  York  Road ,  Diiflield. 
-  March  Weather  at  Hodsock  Priory,  Worksop. — Mean 
temperature,  44,5°.  Maximum  in  the  screen,  61  -8°  :  minimum  in  the 
screen,  23  5°  ;  minimum  on  the  grass,  13  5°  on  the  30th.  Number  of  frosts 
in  the  shade,  five  ;  on  the  grass,  fifteen.  Sunshine,  95  hours,  or  26  per 
cent,  of  the  possible  duration.  Rainfall,  244  inches;  rain  fell  on 
eighteen  days.  A  very  warm  month,  similar  to  last  year,  but  with  more 
rain.  Excess  rain  since  January  1st,  2'7  inches.  First  swallow  on  31st. 
— J.  Mallender. 
-  Weather  at  Dowlais. — The  following  is  a  summary  of  the 
weather  here  for  the  past  month: — Total  rainfall,  7  87  inches,  which 
fell  on  twenty-six  days,  with  a  maximum  of  1  32  inch  on  the  2nd.  There 
was  a  sharp  snowstorm  on  the  3rd.  Mean  maximum  temperature,  48  1°  ; 
minimum,  33- 7°  ;  highest  reading,  63°  on  the  23rd  ;  lowest,  22°  on  the 
29th.  The  wind  was  in  the  S.W.  and  W.  on  seventeen  days,  and  in  the 
N.  and  N.W.  on  seven  days.  There  were  seven  sunless  days.  A  very 
rough  month,  with  strong  winds  the  most  of  the  time,  often  blowing 
quite  a  gale.  Heavy  thunder  and  strong  lightning  on  the  4th  and 
16th  and  17th. — Wm.  Mabbott,  Doivlais,  Glam. 
-  Sussex  Rainfall.  —  The  total  rainfall  for  March  at  Abbots 
Leigh,  Hayward’s  Heath,  Sussex,  was  5'09  inches,  the  heaviest  March 
rainfall  in  sixteen  years,  being  3  01  inches  above  the  average.  Total 
for  the  three  months,  10  45  inches  ;  3  79  inches  above  the  average.  The 
heaviest  fall  was  0  89  inch  on  the  2nd.  Rain  fell  on  nineteen  days. 
The  maximum  temperature  was  60°  on  the  21st  ;  the  minimum  28°  on 
the  30th  ;  mean  maximum,  5104°  ;  mean  minimum,  38° ;  mean  tempe¬ 
rature,  44'52°,  which  is  3°  above  the  average.  A  wet  and  stormy  month. 
Not  till  the  third  week  was  it  possible  to  go  on  the  land  to  get  crops  in  ; 
since  then  it  has  been  fairly  dry  and  workable.  The  1st  of  April  was 
extremely  wet  and  cold,  with  sleet  at  mid-day.  A  thunderstorm 
occurred  on  the  31st  with  heavy  showers.  Vegetation  is  forward  for 
the  season. — R.  I. 
-  Hardy  Bulb  Culture  in  England. — I  note  on  page  268 
of  your  last  issue  that  your  correspondent  “  G.  H.  H.”  says  I  recommend 
it  “  as  a  means  of  pulling  the  British  farmer  out  of  the  quagmire  of 
agricultural  depression.”  This  was  not,  however,  my  object,  for  bulb 
culture,  in  order  to  make  it  a  pecuniary  success,  requires  far  more 
intimate  technical  knowledge  than  most  British  farmers  possess.  Bulb 
culture  is  a  special  thing,  and  requires  special  knowledge,  as  well  as  a 
most  suitable  soil  and  climate,  or  the  results  may  be  as  disastrous  in  this 
as  in  other  special  systems  of  cropping  the  land.  Again,  a  knowledge 
of  the  best  markets  is  as  essential  as  production  of  a  good  sound  article) 
even  although  flowers  and  bulbs  do  in  a  sense  advertise  themselves  if 
seen  by  those  who  want  them.  Now  and  then  a  farmer  might  grow  a 
few  bulbs  with  profit,  but  it  is  by  no  means  likely  to  be  a  crop  likely  to 
benefit  farmers  generally. — F.  W.  B. 
-  The  Horticultural  Trade  of  the  Island  of  Bute. — 
On  Tuesday,  the  23rd  ult.,the  Marquis  of  Bute,  the  Provost  of  Rothesay, 
opened  a  new  post  office  in  that  town.  Hon.  Sheriff  Mackirdy,  in  his 
speech  at  the  opening  banquet,  thus  referred  to  the  gardening  industry 
carried  on  in  Rothesay  and  neighbourhood  : — “  The  only  considerable 
trade  now  is  the  trade  of  market  gardening  and  the  raising  of  seeds  and 
plants.  Coincident  with  the  decay  of  other  trades  he  had  mentioned, 
they  had  this  very  important  trade  rising  up  amongst  them.  Without 
making  any  invidious  comparisons,  he  might  mention  that  of  the  dozen 
or  so  firms  engaged,  one — that  of  Messrs.  Dobbie  <&  Co. — had  risen  to  a 
very  important  position  in  regard  to  the  trade  of  the  kingdom  in  its 
own  department.  In  one  year  they  had  sent  out  no  fewer  than  140,000 
parcels,  &c.,  through  the  post  office,  at  a  cost  of  £1500  for  postage  alone. 
It  was  a  trade  which  seemed  to  suit  the  genius  of  Rothesay,  and  they 
proved  it  by  carrying  on  a  business  which  depended  so  much  on  geniality 
of  weather  and  good  soil.” 
-  Aberdeen. — An  association  is  being  formed,' at  the  instance 
of  the  General  Council  of  the  University  of  Aberdeen,  for  the  purpose 
of  diffusing  information  regarding  the  wants  of  the  University,  and  of 
collecting  funds,  and  applying  the  same  to  purposes  tending  to  promote 
its  efficiency  as  a  seat  of  learning.  In  the  enumeration  of  the  more 
pressing  wants  of  the  University,  the  second  place  is  given  to  “a  botanic 
garden,  and  funds  for  its  maintenance  ;  ”  and  among  the  lectureships 
suggested,  “  forestry  ”  holds  a  good  place.  Already  a  large  and  influential 
number  of  gentlemen  have  become  members  of  the  Association,  and  the 
names  are  still  coming  in.  It  is  sincerely  to  be  hoped,  says  a  contempo¬ 
rary,  that  Dr.  James  W.  H.  Trail,  Professor  of  Botany  in  the  University, 
will  soon  have  one  of  his  pet  schemes  carried  out — the  establishment  of 
a  botanic  garden. 
-  Japanese  Bamboo.  —  Bamboo  and  bamboo  wares  constitute 
an  important  item  in  the  miscellaneous  export  commerce  of  Japan. 
Bamboo  for  shipment  abroad  is  grown  in  several  districts,  the  varieties 
differing  somewhat  according  to  localities.  In  Hiroshima  the  black 
and  the  spotted  varieties  grow  ;  the  former  is  produced  in  Kochi* 
Bamboo  grown  in  Yamaguchi,  Oita,  and  Ehime  belong  to  the  cheap 
varieties.  The  cultivation  of  black  Bamboo  is  carried  on  extensively 
in  Kochi,  where  a  tan  (a  quarter  of  an  acre)  of  Bamboo  yields  30  to 
60  yen  per  year.  Bamboo  is  exported  to  most  countries  of  Europe, 
and  also  to  America  and  Australia.  The  bulk  of  the  Bamboo  shipped 
from  Kobe — from  which  place  nine-tenths  of  the  total  are  imported — 
goes  to  England,  the  varieties  being  black,  spotted,  and  white.  To 
France  and  Germany  the  black  and  white  sorts  of  the  best  quality  are 
shipped  ;  while  long,  bleached,  angling  Bamboos  are  in  demand  in  New 
York. — (“  Journal  of  the  Society  of  Arts.”) 
DEATH  OF  MR.  W.  Gr.  HEAD. 
After  a  long  period  of  suffering,  often  of  the  most  acute  character, 
Mr.  Head,  who  was  for  eighteen  years  Garden  Superintendent  at  the 
Crystal  Palace,  sank  to  rest  on  Saturday  last.  Though  the  deceased  had 
been  unwell  for  a  considerable  time  before  other  than  his  most  intimate 
friends  were  aware  of  the  fact,  the  serious  nature  of  his  complaint 
became  evident  to  those  who  travelled  with  him  from  the  Shrewsbury 
Show  last  August. 
Shortly  after  that  event  it  was  found  by  the  highest  medical  authori¬ 
ties  that  Mr.  Head’s  life  could  only  be  prolonged  by  a  serious,  delicate, 
and  dangerous  surgical  operation.  This  was  performed,  and  it  has  been 
little  short  of  a  marvel  that  he  survived  so  long. 
The  late  Mr.  Head  was  a  genuine  gardener.  He  was  born  at 
Worthing  in  1837,  his  father  being  then  a  small  nurserymen  there.  In 
due  time  young  Head  was  apprenticed  to  Mr.  McEwen,  who  was 
gardener  to  the  Duke  of  Norfolk  at  Arundel  Castle,  and  subsequently 
became  Superintendent  of  the  R.H.S,  Gardens,  Chiswick.  From 
Arundel  the  young  student  went  to  Shrubland  Park,  succeeding  Mr. 
A.  F.  Barron  there,  who  also  went  from  Arundel.  Mr.  Head  passed  to 
Drumlanrig,  where  we  think  be  became  foreman.  He  subsequently 
served  in  the  gardens  at  Castle  Dykes,  then  at  Abernar  in  South  Wales, 
and  was  eventually  appointed  plant  foreman  at  Chiswick  at  the  time 
when  many  plants  were  required  for  the  conservatory  at  South 
Kensington.  . 
From  Chiswick  he  went  to  Kew,  where  he  was  employed  in  a  similar 
capacity,  and  from  there  was  sent  to  make  and  plant  the  gardens  of  the 
Agri-Horticultural  Society  of  Calcutta  at  Alipore.  He  was  in  India 
about  seven  years,  and  soon  after  his  return  to  England  Mr.  G.  Thomson 
resigned  his  position  at  the  Crystal  Palace,  Mr.  Head  being  appointed 
his  successor  in  1879. 
At  that  time  it  had  become  necessary  to  reduce  the  expenditure  m 
the  garden  and  pleasure  giounds,  and  Mr.  Head  was  just  the  man  for 
the  emergency.  Active,  zealous,  and  industrious,  he  determined  to 
make  the  best  of  the  means  at  his  disposal.  He  worked  like  a  Trojan, 
and  others  had  to  work  too,  or  they  were  not  made  happy.  He  had  tons 
of  effete  soil  removed  from  the  borders  in  the  Palace  and  fresh  brought 
in  ;  then  soon  after  the  plants  and  trees  showed  the  effects  of  it  in 
invigorated  growth.  A  gas-light  exhibition  held  in  the  transept  undid 
all  the  good  he  had  done  and  more,  for  it  spoiled  the  appearance  of  the 
noble  building  for  years.  Still,  Mr.  Head  did  Dot  sit  down  and  grieve, 
but  worked  on  undaunted  to  make  the  best  of  the  position. 
His  activity  at  flower  shows  was  well  known  to  many.  He  did 
not  march  about  with  a  wand  and  direct,  but  often  did  as  much  work 
as  two  or  three  men  in  moving  and  arranging  the  exhibits  to  produce 
the  best  general  effect ;  and  when  he  was  very  busy  it  was  well  not  to 
ask  him  trivial  questions,  as  he  would  only  have  time  for  short  replies, 
almost  incapable  of  being  misunderstood. 
The  late  Mr.  Head  was  a  man  of  energy— of  work,  but  had  a  warm 
heart,  and  was  a  ready  helper  in  causes  of  charity  and  cases  of  mis¬ 
fortune  that  came  to  his  notice.  He  was  a  quick  and  excellent  judge, 
highly  respected,  and  was  the  recipient  of  a  presentation  a  few  years 
ago,  while  everything  that  could  be  done  for  him  during  his  period  of 
suffering  was  done  most  readily  by  those  who  knew  him  best. 
We  hear  the  remains  of  Mr.  Head  were  interred  yesterday — 
Wednesday,  the  7th  inst. — at  Chiswick. 
