390 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
October  24,  1895. 
-  The  Next  Fruit  and  Floral  Meeting  of  the  Royal 
Horticultural  Society  will  be  held  on  Tuesday,  October  29th,  in 
the  Drill  Hall,  James  Street,  Victoria  Street,  Westminster.  The  Com¬ 
mittees  will  meet  as  usual  at  twelve  o’clock,  and  at  3  p.m.  a  magic 
lantern  lecture  on  Potatoes  will  be  delivered  by  Mr.  A.  W.  Sutton. 
- National  Rose  Society. — At  the  last  Committee  meeting, 
held  on  the  15th  inst.,  it  was  announced  that  Mr.  Alexander  Hill  Gray, 
the  distinguished  rosarian  at  Beaulieu,  Newbridge,  Bath,  had  offered  a 
prize  of  5  guineas  for  the  best  essay  on  the  hybridisation  of  Roses. 
Particulars  and  terms  will  be  shortly  announced. 
- “Shirley  Gardeners’  and  Amateurs’  Association.  —  A 
meeting  of  the  above  Society  was  held  at  the  Parish  Room,  Shirley, 
Southampton,  on  the  2l8t  inst.,  the  President  presiding  over  a  strong 
muster  of  the  members.  The  lecture,  “An  Epitome  of  Chrysanthemum 
Culture,’’  was  given  under  the  auspices  of  the  Hants  County  Council 
by  Mr.  E.  Molyneux  of  Swanmore  Park  Gardens.  Needless  to  say,  the 
address  was  of  a  most  practical  character,  and  it  was  further  enhanced 
in  value  by  illustrations  of  the  various  points  emphasised  by  means  of 
living  specimens.  A  hearty  vote  of  thanks  was  accorded  to  Mr. 
Molyneux. 
-  Violets  in  Frames. — Plants  that  were  lifted  and  planted 
in  frames  at  the  beginning  of  September  ought  now  to  be  growing 
freely,  and  should  be  carefully  looked  over,  and  all  the  old  leaves  turning 
yellow  or  showing  signs  of  decay  be  picked  off  to  allow  the  sun  and  air 
to  play  on  the  crowns.  If  the  old  leaves  are  not  removed  they  soon 
cause  the  crowns  to  damp,  which  must  be  strictly  guarded  against  if  a 
supply  of  bloom  is  to  be  had  during  the  winter  months.  Keep  the  lights 
off  in  fine  weather,  and  tilt  them  at  the  back  to  keep  off  heavy  rains. 
Always  allow  the  plants  abundance  of  air,  which  is  most  essential  for 
them,  never  closing  the  frames  entirely  except  in  the  case  of  frosts,  which 
of  course  must  be  excluded. — H. 
-  Aster  ericoides. — This  beautiful  Michaelmas  Daisy  is  not 
grown  nearly  so  much  as  its  merits  deserve,  flowering  freely  in  any  soil 
or  situation.  With  good  treatment,  such  as  it  would  receive  in  a  well 
kept  herbaceous  border,  it  is  decidedly  beautiful,  and  its  sprays  of  small 
white  flowers  are  very  effective  for  decorative  purposes.  1  have  before 
me  at  the  present  time  a  large  vase  filled  with  Dahlia  Glare  of  the 
Garden  having  sprays  of  this  Aster  intermixed  with  them,  forming  a 
pretty  and  effective  arrangement  that  will  stand  and  keep  well  for  a 
long  time.  To  those  readers  of  the  Journal  who  do  not  grow  it  I  would 
strongly  advise  them  to  purchase  roots  as  soon  as  possible,  feeling  sure 
they  will  be  delighted  with  the  many  ways  in  which  the  flowers  can 
be  utilised  for  decoration. — G.  H. 
-  The  Arnold  Arboretum.  —  By  an  arrangement  recently 
concluded  between  the  President  and  Fellows  of  Harvard  College  and 
the  city  of  Boston,  important  additions  have  been  made  to  the  Arnold 
Arboretum.  These  include  two  parcels  of  land  with  an  area  of  about 
20  acres  within  the  boundaries  of  the  original  Arboretum,  but  reserved 
by  the  city  for  its  own  uses  when  it  wag  established  ;  two  pieces  of  land 
with  an  area  of  about  3  acres  on  the  north-west  border  of  the  Arboretum, 
and  purchased  by  the  city  last  year  ;  a  piece  of  land,  the  property  of 
Harvard  College,  south-west  of  the  old  Arboretum,  with  an  area  of 
67’6  acres  ;  this  consists  of  a  high,  rolling,  grassy  hill,  the  second  highest 
land  in  the  city  of  Boston.  From  the  summit  of  this  hill  fine  views  are 
obtained,  the  wooded  portions  of  the  Arboretum  lie  at  its  base  ;  to  the 
Southall  the  Blue  Hill  range  is  in  view  ;  the  waters  of  Massachusetts  Bay 
are  seen  to  the  south-east,  and  to  the  north  and  west  a  broken  well-wooded 
country.  With  these  additions  the  area  of  the  Arboretum  is  222  6  acres  ; 
two  and  one-third  miles  of  drives  have  been  finished  and  planted,  and 
under  the  new  arrangement  the  city  of  Boston  is  to  construct  one  and 
three-tenth  mile  of  additional  roads.  Among  the  scientific  gardens  in 
the  United  States  and  Europe  only  the  Royal  Gardens  at  Kew,  with  an 
area  of  251  acres,  exceed  the  Arnold  Arboretum  in  size,  and  it  is 
probably  safe  to  say  that  no  other  scientific  garden  of  such  an  area  is 
so  accessible  to  the  people  of  a  great  city,  or  possesses  such  a  diversified 
surface  and  such  advantages  in  the  way  of  natural  woods.  The 
Arboretum  lies  entirely  within  the  limits  of  the  city  of  Boston,  and  is 
not  more  than  four  miles  from  the  centre  of  population,  being  easily 
reached  by  one  line  of  railroad  and  by  two  lines  of  electric  cars,  while 
the  park- way  which  unites  the  different  parks  of  the  City  Park  System, 
starting  from  the  Public  Garden,  in  Arlington  Street,  in  the  heart  of  the 
residential  quarter  of  the  city,  skirting  the  town  of  Brookline  and 
enclosing  Jamaica  Pond,  forms  its  eastern  boundary  and  connects  it 
with  Franklin  Park  beyond.  By  this  parkway  the  distance  from  the 
common  to  the  Arboretum  is  six  miles. — (“  Garden  and  Forest.’’) 
-  A  Large  Pear. — Mr.  E.  Molyneux  informs  us  that  he  has 
just  gathered  from  a  cordon  tree  a  Duchesse  d’Angouleime  Pear,  15|^  inches 
in  circumference,  and  weighing  2  lbs.  2 J  ozs. 
- Prize  Fruit  Essays.  —  We  understand  that  the  Royal 
Horticultural  Society’s  prizes  and  certificates,  with  silver  medals  given 
by  Dr.  Hogg,  will  be  presented  to  the  successful  essayists,  Mr. 
L.  Castle  and  Mr.  S.  T.  Wright,  on  the  29th  inst.  at  3  P.M.,  in  the 
Westminster  Drill  Hall. 
- Chippenham  Horticultural  Society. — A  deputation  of 
this  Society  recently  waited  on  the  President,  John  Gladstone,  Esq.,  at 
Bowden  Park,  and  presented  him  with  a  silver  medal  in  commemoration 
of  the  silver  anniversary  of  the  Society.  The  medal,  which  was  richly 
embossed  and  inscribed,  was  presented  by  Mr.  A,  Wright,  the  Secretary,, 
and  suitably  acknowledged  by  the  recipient. 
- Flowering  of  Jerusalem  Artichokes. — Is  it  not  very 
unusual  for  this  to  occur  ?  I  have  a  large  bed  in  full  bloom,  and  quite 
a  show  they  make.  The  flowers  are  borne  in  trusses  or  spikes,  and  are 
of  a  bright  yellow,  almost  like  a  Rudbeckia,  but  the  eye  is  yellow  and 
not  black.  The  stems  are  from  12  to  15  feet  high,  and  every  one  is 
blooming.  I  have  never  seen  such  a  thing  before. — H.  Harris,  Denne 
Gardens,  Horsham. 
-  Streptocarpuses  as  Bedding  Plants. — The  time  is  not 
far  distant  when  these  plants  will  be  largely  employed  as  bedding 
plants.  Grown  strongly  under  quite  cool  conditions  in  the  spring,  a 
fnll  crop  of  bloom  may  be  had  from  them  during  the  summer.  For 
filling  bare  places  on  the  rockery,  too,  they  will  be  useful,  giving  variety 
as  well  as  a  quantity  of  flower  when  the  regular  occupants  have  ceased 
to  beautify  their  proper  home. — E. 
-  Californian  Lemons. — The  Lemon  groves  of  California 
have  this  year  given  small  fortunes  to  their  owners.  The  growers  have 
learned  to  cure  the  fruit  so  that  it  compares  favourably  with  imported 
Lemons,  and  the  crop  is  large,  A  correspondent  of  the  “  New  York 
Tribune”  writes  that  the  product  of  groves  planted  ten  years  has 
amounted  to  as  much  as  3600  dols.  an  acre  this  year,  of  which  at  least 
one-half  is  profit.  We  apprehend  that  it  must  be  a  good  grove  and  a 
good  year  to  insure  such  results. 
-  Vine-growing  in  Russia, — Relatively  little  is  heard  of 
Russia,  says  the  “American  Agriculturist”  as  a  Grape-growing  and 
wine-producing  country,  yet  viticulture  there  has  made  considerable 
advance  in  recent  years,  and  the  Government  is  keenly  alive  to  fostering 
its  growth  and  further  development.  Just  now  the  officials  are 
struggling  with  phylloxera,  which  first  appeared  in  Russia  in  the 
Crimea  region,  in  1879,  A  phylloxera  commission  was  established  and 
governing  committees  appointed  in  every  direction,  but  in  spite  of  the 
energetic  measures  all  efforts  proved  fruitless.  The  present  appropriation 
for  fighting  the  disease,  763,000  dols.,  will  be  distributed  this  year  in 
equal  shares  among  all  the  affected  regions.  It  has  been  agreed  that 
the  culture  of  American  Vines  in  Russia  is  indispensable  in  order  to 
protect  the  future  of  Russian  Vine  culture.  The  Consul-General  at  St. 
Petersburg  says  the  Crimean  viticulturists  seem  to  be  especially  afraid 
of  the  American  Vines,  giving  as  reasons  the  heavy  cost,  the  bad  quality 
of  the  wine  produced,  the  danger  of  infection,  and  the  difficulty  of 
grafting. 
-  The  Inclement  Weather. — The  weather  over  England  on 
Tuesday  was  miserably  cold,  gloomy,  and  wet,  especially  in  our  eastern 
and  southern  counties,  where  the  rain  was  almost  incessant.  In  many 
instances  the  temperatures  recorded  were  very  little  in  excess  of  those 
rdinarily  experienced  in  midwinter,  and  in  some  parts  of  the  midland 
and  northern  districts  there  were  perceptible  falls  of  sleet  or  snow.  On 
the  coast  the  weather  was  rendered  additionally  unpleasant  by  the 
presence  of  a  strong  wind  from  the  north-eastward,  and  a  very  rough 
sea,  a  gale  being  reported  in  Norfolk,  as  well  as  in  the  Irish  Sea  and  at 
the  mouth  of  the  English  Channel.  In  the  metropolis  rain  set  in  very 
early  in  the  morning,  and  continued  with  scarcely  any  interruption 
throughout  the  day,  the  total  amount  measured  up  to  6  P.M.  being 
0’43  inch.  The  maximum  temperature  reached  in  London  was  only  44°, 
or  precisely  equal  to  the  average  for  the  months  of  January  and 
December,  and  13°  below  the  average  for  October.  In  sixteen  years  out 
of  the  past  twenty-five  there  was  no  October  day  in  London  with  so  low 
a  maximum  reading  as  that  of  yesterday.  Over  Ireland  and  Scotland 
the  weather  yesterday  was  comparatively  fine,  the  temperatures  recorded 
in  tbe  latter  country  being  upon  the  whole  rather  higher  than  on 
Monday.— (“  Daily  News.”) 
