434 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
May  20,  897. 
-  Gardeners’  Royal  Benevolent  Institution.  —  We  are 
requested  to  state  that  the  fifty-eighth  anniversary  festival  in  aid  of 
the  funds  of  this  Institution,  will  take  place  on  Wednesday,  May  26th, 
at  6.30  for  7  P.M.  (the  first  day  of  the  Temple  Flower  Show),  at  the 
*'  Hotel  Metropole,”  under  the  presidency  of  the  Rt.  Hon.  Lord 
Rothschild.  As  a  large  gathering  is  expected  on  the  occasion,  the 
Secretary,  George  J.  Ingram,  50,  Parliament  Street,  London,  S.W.,  will 
be  greatly  obliged  if  those  friends  who  desire  to  be  present  will  intimate 
their  intention  to  him  as  early  as  possible,  so  that  the  necessary 
arrangements  may  be  made. 
-  Floral  Decorations  at  Cheltenham. —During  the  recent 
visit  of  the  Prince  and  Princess  of  Wales  to  Cheltenham  the  decorations 
at  Messrs.  Cypher’s  nursery  were,  as  might  be  expected,  very  beautiful. 
On  each  side  of  the  road  a  column  had  been  erected  in  a  very  novel 
manner,  at  various  stages  of  which  towering  Palms  and  foliage  plants 
lent  enchantment  to  the  view,  a  splendid  pair  of  Phoenix  rupicola  adorn¬ 
ing  the  top  of  the  columns.  A  basket  of  Orchids  presented  to  the 
Princess  of  Wales  was  much  admired.  It  contained  some  grand  spikes 
of  Odontoglossums  Alexandra  and  cirrhosum,  also  lovely  sprays  of 
Oncidium  obryzatum  majus  and  Cypripediums  Rothschildianum  and 
grande,  and  a  few  grand  Cattleya  Mendeli  and  Lrelia  purpurata,  arranged 
with  long  sprays  of  Asparagus. 
-  Jubilee  Flower  Shows. — I  have  no  doubt,  because  so  early 
in  the  season  there  will  be  few  flower  shows  held  on  Jane  23rd,  but  I 
observe  with  regret  there  will  be  two  considerable  ones  near  London _ 
Richmond  and  the  Crystal  Palace.  The  former  is  held  a  few  days  earlier 
than  usual,  the  last  Wednesday  in  June  being  its  ordinary  fixture. 
The  latter  show  is  a  special  commemoration  show.  But  great  flower 
shows  cannot  be  constituted  by  mere  strokes  of  the  pen,  or  the  issue  of 
schedules.  They  entail  an  enormous  amount  of  work  in  the  preparation 
of  the  material  composing  them,  and  in  loading  and  carting.  Now,  it 
will  be  impossible  for  these  two  shows,  both  so  needlessly  held  on  the 
>  day  following  the  Jubilee  Bank  Holiday,  to  be  constituted  without 
entailing  upon  a  very  large  number  of  men  in  nursery  and  private 
gardens  a  hard  day’s  work  on  the  very  day  set  apart  for  a  national 
holiday,  because  of  the  Jubilee  celebrations  all  over  the  kingdom.  Why 
should  not  some  consideration  have  been  shown  towards  all  these  people  ? 
Why  compel  them  to  work  when  they  would  prefer  to  be  taking  part 
in  holiday  functions  with  the  rest  of  the  community  1  The  arrange¬ 
ment  seems  to  be  a  very  selfish  one.  That  because  of  the  difficulty 
likely  to  arise  in  securing  vans  on  the  Jubilee  Day,  great  obstacles 
will  be  placed  in  the  way  of  carrying  plants  long  distances,  there  can 
be  no  doubt.  That  is,  however,  a  matter  for  those  who  organise  shows 
and  exhibitors.  In  many  cases  furnishing  plants,  of  which  so  many 
groups  are  now  composed,  will  be  required  in  other  directions,  and  Roses 
may  be  expected  to  be  cut  to  the  last  flower  for  Jubilee  decoration. _ D. 
-  New  Corn  Product. — The  discovery  that  the  pith  of  the 
corn  stalk  can  be  used  in  the  construction  of  war  vessels  is  likely  to  be 
of  benefit  to  agriculture  in  more  than  one  way.  The  chief  use  of  this 
pith  is  for  a  packing  between  the  inner  and  outer  shells  of  the  vessel,  so 
that  when  pierced  by  a  projectile  it  will  absorb  water  and  swell  so 
rapidly  as  to  close  the  opening  before  the  vessel  leaks  to  a  dangerous 
extent.  Experiments  with  this  pith  have  been  so  satisfactory,  says  the 
“  Garden  and  Forest,”  that  it  has  been  adopted  in  the  construction  of 
American  vessels  of  war,  and  European  nations  have  commissions  for 
investigating  the  same  material,  so  that  the  use  of  corn  pith  will  make  a 
market  for  what  was  once  a  waste  product.  In  the  process  of  extracting 
this  pith  the  blades  and  husks  are  removed,  and  the  stalks  are  cut  into 
small  pieces.  When  the  pith  is  taken  out  from  this  stalk,  the  remainder 
is  ground  up  into  a  flour-like  substance  which  resembles  bran.  Some 
experiments  with  this  “  new  corn  product,”  as  it  is  called,  have 
been  made  at  the  Maryland  Station,  with  the  remarkable  result 
that  it  is  found  to  contain  11  per  cent,  more  of  digestible  matter 
and  2  per  cent,  more  of  digestible  protein  than  the  whole  fodder 
does  when  shredded.  It  does  not  contain  as  much  digestible  albumi- 
noides  as  Wheat  bran,  but  it  equals  that  food  in  the  total  amount  of 
digestible  matter.  It  keeps  as  well  as  bran  or  Cotton-seed  meal.  It  is 
in  such  condition  that  it  can  be  uniformly  mixed  with  any  ground  grain, 
and  when  used  as  a  base  it  is  possible  to  make  a  complete  and  normal 
ration  for  stock  in  one  bulk  without  the  necessity  of  feeding  grain  and 
hay  separately.  Animals  fed  upon  such  a  ration  eat  it  with  relish,  and 
keep  in  normal  condition.  Since  there  is  only  1  lb.  of  pith  to  14  lbs. 
of  blades,  husk,  and  stalk,  this  new  material  amounts  to  a  very  consider-  ] 
able  portion  of  the  fodder.  I 
-  Flowers  at  Chelsea. — At  all  times  of  the  year  flowers  are 
to  be  found  in  the  famed  nursery  of  Messrs.  James  Veitoh  &  Sons,  but  at 
the  present  time  the  display  is  more  than  usually  imposing.  One  large 
house  is  such  a  mass  of  floral  beauty  as  is  rarely  seen — Liliums,  Azaleas, 
Heaths,  Spiraea  astilboides,  in  fact  almost  all  greenhouse  flowers  of  the 
season  contributing  to  the  display.  In  another  house  is  a  rich  floral 
feast  of  Gloxinias,  and  many  new  forms  of  Streptocarpus  of  an  interest¬ 
ing  and  attractive  character  evoked  admiration. 
-  Reading  College. — The  fourth  supplement  of  the  Journal 
of  the  University  Extension  College,  Reading,  has  reached  us  from  the 
Agricultural  Director,  Mr.  D.  A.  Gilchrist,  B.Sc.  This  report  deals  with 
the  field  experiments  that  have  been  carried  out  by  the  College  in  the 
counties  of  Berkshire,  Dorsetshire,  Hampshire,  and  Oxfordshire  during 
1896.  Besides  these  there  are  articles  on  manures  by  Mr.  Gilchrist, 
and  a  report  on  injurious  insects  by  Mr.  P.  H.  Foulkes.  The  book 
contains  much  matter  that  would  prove  interesting  to  cultivators  of  the 
soil,  more  especially  farmers,  and  it  may  be  obtained  from  the  College 
for  6d. 
-  “  The  Country  Gentlemen’s  Catalogue.” — A  copy  of  this- 
book  for  1897  has  just  reached  us  from  the  publishers,  Messrs.  Eden 
Fisher  &  Co.,  32,  Mitre  Street,  London,  E  C.  Including  the  advertise¬ 
ments  the  catalogue  comprises  upwards  of  220  pages,  and  is  clearly 
printed  on  good  paper.  Almost  all  departments  of  sport  in  which 
gentlemen  take  an  interest  are  referred  to  more  or  less  briefly,  while 
notes  relating  to  farming  are  plentiful.  Chapters  on  manuring  land, 
feeding,  and  dairying  should  afford  valuable  hints  to  soil  cultivators, 
and  the  list  of  agricultural  shows  is  complete.  The  price  of  the  book, 
which  is  strongly  bound  in  red  covers,  is  3s.  6d. 
-  Prunus  Davidiana,  —  The  first  tree  with  conspicuous 
blossoms  to  flower  this  year  in  the  Arnold  Arboretum  was  the  North 
China  Peach,  Prunus  Davidiana,  which  has  been  extraordinarily  beau¬ 
tiful.  This  tree  is  perfectly  hardy,  but  the  flowers  are  often  killed  by 
frost  after  the  buds  begin  to  swell,  and  during  the  ten  or  twelve  years 
that  it  has  inhabited  the  Arboretum  it  has  only  once  or  twice  before 
flowered  as  profusely  as  it  has  this  spring,  and  although  producing  more 
or  less  flowers  every  season,  it  has  not  borne  fruit  yet  in  the  Arboretum. 
According  to  a  transatlantic  contemporary  P.  Davidiana  ought  to  be 
better  known  as  an  ornamental  tree,  as  it  flowers  before  any  of  its  kind, 
and  the  pale  pink  petals,  although  not  as  large  as  those  of  some  forms 
are  exceedingly  attractive.  The  cultnre  presents  no  more  difficulties 
than  other  Prunus  more  generally  grown. 
-  Maplewood. — Maplewood  has  a  distinct  and  positive  value 
for  flooring  which  no  other  hard  wood  which  is  workable  possesses.  Its 
hardness  and  smoothness  give  it  power  to  endure  the  severest  wear;  it 
has  a  light  and  attractive  colour,  and  it  can  be  cleaned  as  easily  as 
Maple.  It  has  hitherto  been  abundant  enough  to  meet  the  growing 
demand  in  every  part  of  the  continent  and  the  requirements  of  the  large 
export  trade.  Nevertheless,  since  only  a  part  of  the  tree  is  utilised,  the 
waste  of  the  lumber  is  great,  and  the  best  hard  Maple,  which  is  found 
in  the  lower  Michigan  peninsula  and  in  Wisconsin,  is  disappearing 
more  rapidly  than  even  the  Pine  did,  because,  as  a  rule,  good  Maple 
land  is  good  farming  land.  The  time  seems  to  be  coming  when  the 
supply  will  be  depleted,  and  the  ”  North-Western  Lumberman”  is,  no 
doubt,  right  when  it  complains  of  the  reckless  competition  under  which 
this  valuable  product  is  sacrificed. 
-  Woolly  Aphis. — Although  I  cannot  tell  your  correspondent 
Mr.  Hiam,  page  388,  why  woolly  aphis  is  called  American  blight,  I  can 
tell  him  something  more  useful — viz.,  what  will  kill  it.  In  most  old 
gardens  a  few  gnarled  treasures  of  Apple  trees  are  to  be  met  infested 
with  woolly  aphis  (American  blight).  The  owners  prize  these  old 
stumps  so  much  that  it  is  considered  little  short  of  sacrilege  to  touch  a 
twig  of  them.  Such  trees  become  nurseries  for  producing  and  dis¬ 
tributing  the  pest.  This  state  of  matters  can  now,  however,  be  remedied 
with  the  use  of  “  Spidacide,”  a  new  product  of  exceptional  merit,  which 
every  gardener  and  fruit  grower  should  know.  Last  autumn  we  applied 
it  with  a  syringe  at  the  strength  of  half  a  pint  to  the  gallon  of  tepid 
water  to  some  trees  then  white  with  woolly  aphii,  with  the  result  that 
every  insect,  so  far  aB  we  could  tell,  was  killed,  and  not  a  leaf  injured. 
This  efficacious  insect  eradicator  cannot  be  too  well  known. — J.  Riddell. 
[If  this  new  product,  recommended  so  highly  by  a  practical  man,  is 
manufactured  for  sale,  it  can  be  made  known  in  the  usual  manner  by 
which  other  useful  products  have  found  their  way  into  gardens  all  over 
the  kingdom.] 
