Januarj-  G,  1898. 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER, 
17 
the  tops  of  the  receptacles,  hut  not  to  any  great  depth.  Should  fer¬ 
mentation  be  too  rapid  steady  the  heat  by  treading  the  material  well,  or 
vt'diicing  the  height  of  the  heap.  It  is  very  important  that  the  forcing 
should  be  steady,  or  the  stalks  will  be  of  bad  flavour  and  colour.  Hawke’s 
(fliampagne  and  Marly  Ked  are  the  best  for  early  forcing,  and  AHctoria 
for  later. 
After  being  lifted  and  forced  Khubarb  roots  are  not  worth  replanting, 
and  the  stock  must  be  kept  up  by  lifting  and  dividing  unforced  roots, 
ileeply  digging  and  well  manuring  the  ground  before  doing  so.  Plant 
3  feet  apart  every  way  liefore  growth  commences. — P.  1).  S. 
GAIiDENEliS’  ROYAL  BENEVOLENT 
INSTITUTION. 
We  are  requested  to  state  that  Arthur  W.  Sutton,  Esq.,  of  Reading, 
will  preside  at  the  annual  friendly  supper  of  members  and  friends  of  this 
Institution  to  be  held  at  Simpson's,  101, Strand,  London,  on.Ianuary  20th, 
at  6  P.M.,  after  the  annual  meeting  and  election,  which  will  take  place  on 
tlie  same  date  and  at  the  same  place  at  .3  I'.M.  Friends  who  are  desirous 
of  being  present  at  the  siqrper  should  intimate  their  intention  to  the 
Secretary,  Mr.  George  .1.  Ingram,  50,  Parliament  Street,  S.W. 
We  have  pleasure  in  announcing  that  his  Grace  the  Duke  of  Portland 
has  kindly  promised  to  preside  at  the  sixtieth  annual  festival  dinner  of 
the  Institution,  to  be  held,  it  is  hoped,  in  .lune  next ;  but  the  date  is 
not  yet  fixed. 
Receiving  recently  my  voting  paper  for  the  Gardeners’  Royal 
Benevolent  Institution,  I  was  struck  by  the  number  of  applicants 
(forty-four)  for  the  pension,  and  that  nine  only  can  be  placed  on  the 
pension  list.  To  many  it  must  mean  years  of  waiting.  I  cannot 
help  feeling  that  the  Institution  does  not  receive  the  sujiport  from 
gardeners  that  it  deserves.  I  am  very  forcibly  reminded  of  the  wisdom 
of  becoming  a  member  of  the  Institution  by  looking  over  the  names  of 
the  ten  candidates  who  are  recommended  for  the  pension  in  compliance 
with  the  rules. 
It  was  my  privilege  to  serve  under  one  of  the  candidates  many  years 
ago.  Little  did  we  then  expect  what  was  in  store  for  the  grand  old 
place  which  had  sheltered  royalty  and  numbered  among  its  visitors  some 
the  highest  in  the  land.  Depression  came,  reduction  took  ]dace, 
eventually  the  place  w'as  let.  The  old  chief  still  held  on,  and  now  I  find 
lie  is  about  to  be  placed  on  the  pension  list,  and  most  heartily  do  I  wish 
he  may  long  enjoy  it.  I  would  urge  most  strongly  my  brethren  of  tho 
craft  to  at  once  become  members  of  the  Institution,  and  so  make  some 
provision  for  the  uncertain  future. — Alfred  4opkins. 
TUBEROHE  CULTURE. 
The  Tuberose  is  one  of  the  most  beautiful  of  all  our  bulbous  plants, 
and  one  which  should  find  a  place  in  every  greenhouse.  The  tubers  are 
cheap  in  price  and  of  most  easy  culture,  and  yet  it  is  rarely  one  sees 
I  hem  well  grown  by  amateurs.  Many  have  told  me  that  they  have  tried, 
hut  have  always  been  unsuccessful.  This  doubtless  was  due  to  the 
treatment  given  the  tubers,  as  with  proper  culture  no  one  should  fail  in 
being  successful.  Failures,  of  course,  do  occur  in  growing  Tuberoses,  as 
with  everything,  and  in  such  a  manner  as  to  render  it  impossible  to  state 
the  cause.  As  the  present  is  a  good  time  to  pot  the  tubers,  a  few  remarks 
on  a  method  of  procedure  which  has  been  found  by  myself,  as  well  as 
many  others,  to  he  an  excellent  one  to  follow,  may  prove  acceptable 
to  many  readers. 
The  bulbs  should  be  potted  firmly  in  5-inch  or  6-inch  pots,  in  a 
compost  consisting  of  sandy  loam  and  leaf  mould  in  equal  parts,  but  any 
good  soil  will  grow  them  quite  well.  One  of  the  most  important  points 
to  be  considered  is  efficient  drainage.  This  matter,  I  am  inclined  to 
think,  is  very  often  attended  to  in  a  careless  manner,  which  cannot 
possibly  be  conducive  to  good  health  and  success  with  this  or  any  other 
plant.  After  having  been  potted  they  may  be  plunged  in  a  frame  from 
which  frost  is  excluded.  I.et  the  pots  remain  there  until  it  is  desired  to 
start  the  plants  into  growth,  when  they  may  he  introduced  into  any 
convenient  place  where  a  slight  bottom  heat  (!an  be  given  them.  They 
will  soon  commence  pushing  iqi  their  leaves,  which  always  appear 
considerably  before  the  flower  stems.  During  the  time  they  are  in  the 
frame  little  or  no  water  should  be  given,  but  when  they  are  growing 
freely  ample  supplies  must  be  afforded,  both  of  pure  water  and  of  liquid 
manure,  the  latter  made  of  cow  manure  suiting  them  best. 
When  in  flower  they  may  be  placed  in  a  room,  window,  or  the  green¬ 
house,  but  in  the  event  of  their  being  used  for  the  ornamentation  of  rooms 
it  must  be  borne  in  mind  that  their  perfume  is  very  powerful,  and  that 
where  one  would  scent  a  room  delightfully  half  a  dozen  would  give  off  a 
perfume  which  would  be  ojipressive.  This  is  more  especially  the 
case  at  night,  when,  like  the  Night-scented  Stock  (Matthiola  bicornis), 
the  scent  is  far  more  pou'erful  than  it  is  in  the  daytime. 
'Puberoses  may  also  be  growm  with  success  in  the  garden,  hut  the 
position  chosen  for  them  must  be  naturally  warm  and  sheltered.  In 
cold  wet  soils  they  arc  almost  certain  to  perish.  In  planting  out  of 
doors,  which  should  not  be  done  until  the  weather  is  very  much  warmer, 
it  is  a  good  plan  to  take  out  a  moderate  de]ith  of  soil,  substituting  in 
place  of  it  some  thoroughly  decomposed  manure.  Over  this  place  the 
soil,  the  same  as  is  advised  for  pot  culture,  in  which  the  bulbs  may  he 
planted.  Tuberoses  planted  in  the  open  ground  in  May,  in  the  manner 
advised,  will  afford  a  good  quantity  of  flowers  during  September. 
For  use  in  bouquets,  buttonholes,  and  sprays  the  chaste  white  flowers 
are  unexcelled,  rivalling  the  Rose,  Lily  of  the  Valley,  Camellia,  and  the 
fragrant  Gardenia  in  popularity.  The  bulbs  in  potting,  I  have  omitted 
to  say,  should  not  be  entirely  covered  with  the  soil,- but  should  be  left 
with  about  half  an  inch  of  the  apex  protruding. — II.  R. 
SOMETHING  LIKE  A  GRAPE. 
The  berry  (fig.  4,  A)  will  tickle  Mr.  Iggulden’s  fancy,  as  it  is  very 
like  a  Tomato,  and  interest  many  readers  of  the  Journal  of  Ilortioulture. 
I  believe  it  is  the  largest  Grape 
on  record,  being  exactly  5| 
inches  in  circumference.  Though 
w'hat  the  sender,  “  A.  S.,’’  calls 
a  “  malformed  berry,”  accord¬ 
ing  to  current  acceptation  of 
“  standard  ”  form,  it  was  per¬ 
fect,  without  spot  or  blemish, 
black  as  jet  in  colour,  thick  in 
flesh,  juicy,  and  richly  flavoured; 
finer  were  never  seen  of  Black 
Hamburgh,  or,  perhaps,  any 
other  Grape. 
In  looking  for  something  like 
it  I  found  a  figure  of  a  similar 
berry  in  Loudon’s  “  Gardeners’ 
Magazine”  for  October,  1835 
(])age  546),  which  measured  4| 
inches  in  circumference,  and 
there  shown  in  hoth  vertical 
and  horizontal  sections.  This 
berry  was  grown  in  a  Pine 
stove.  Vine  planted  outside,  the 
grower  (Mr.  Thomas  Forrest, 
Kinmel  Park,  Cheshire)  stating 
that  he  frequently  had  the 
Black  Hamburghs  4  to  4^  lbs. 
per  bunch,  which  certainly  was 
not  bad  for  Vines  under  the 
rafters  of  a  Pine  stove. 
By  giving  a  vertical  section 
to  the  berry  just  alluded  to  it  is 
seen  to  be  “  twin,”  with  nine 
seeds,  as  shown  in  the  hoi  izontal 
section.  ‘‘A.  S.’s”  is  a  triple 
{B),  but  only  contained  six 
perfect  seeds,  one  ovule  (a) 
being  abortive.  This  horizon¬ 
tal  section  shows  the  arrange¬ 
ment  of  the  seeds  around  the 
central  axis  ;  but  still  more 
clearly  defined  in  the  vertical 
section  ((7),  the  central  and  the 
side  seeds  eorresponding  to  the 
ovaries,  the  berry  being  really 
a  sort  of  three  in  one,  thus 
beating  the  Black  Hamburgh 
berry  of  sixty-two  years  ago 
in  Loudon’s  “  Gardeners’  Ma¬ 
gazine." 
IVhy  some  flowers  have  a  varying  number  of  ovaries  nobody  knows, 
but  they'  come  sometimes,  and  the  fruit  deserves  tracing  for  the  benefit  of 
future  generations  -  at  least,  such  is  the  view  of — G.  Abbey. 
THE  AWARDING  OF  EQUAL  PRIZES, 
Once  again  the  question  of  awarding  equal  prizes  at  horticultural 
shows  has  cropped  up.  Having  read  with  interest  ”  Sadoc’s "’  opinion  on 
page  597, 1  must  confess  I  do  not  agree  with  him  when  he  states  that  he 
does  not  think  it  possible  for  two  exhibits  of  a  similar  nature  to  be  so 
arranged  that  the  merits  of  each  are  absolutely  equal.  I  say,  Point  them 
how  you  like,  if  done  impartially  it  is  possible  for  the  total  to  be  the  same  ; 
and  if  so,  is  it  not  the  fairer  way  to  place  them  equal  I  May  I  ask.  Is  it 
not  just  as  fair  to  award  equal  prizes  at  horticultural  shows,  as  is  often 
done  by  judges  in  racing  and  all  kinds  of  sports  I 
I  notice  “  Sadoc  ’’  refers  especially  to  the  awarding  of  equal  first 
prizes  to  a  group  of  >  hrysanthemums  and  foliage  plants  at  the  late  York 
Show.  As  I  was  one  of  the  judges  on  that  occasion,  I  can  assure  him 
we  spent  much  time  on  the  two  groups  in  question,  and  every  particular 
m  which  he  alludes  to  was  thoroughly  considered  by  the  six  judges, 
some  of  whom  were  quite  strangers  to  me  ;  but  I  take  it  for  granted  they' 
were  all  judges  of  the  highest  ability,  or  th#y  would  not  have  been 
selected  for  such  an  important  show  as  York,  probably  one  of  the  very 
best  held  in  the  North.  It  is  true  we  were  equally  divided,  three  being 
for  one  and  three  for  the  other.  At  my  suggestion  a  seventh  expert  was 
called  in.  He  most  carefully'  went  into  every  detail,  and  he  came  to  the 
conclusion  that  the  two  groups  were  so  equal  in  merit  that  he  could  not 
conscientiously  separate  them.  Now  I  contend  that  in  such  a  case  as  this 
it  was  the  bounden  duty  in  fairness  to  both  exhibitors  to  award  equal 
prizes. — F.  BecKETT.  Aldenham  House  Gardens,  Elsiree,  Herts, 
Fig.  4.— Berry  of  Black  Ham¬ 
burgh  Grape. 
References.  —  A,  general  appearance. 
B,  horizontal  section  ;  a,  abortive  ovule. 
C,  vertical  .section.  (All  natural  size.) 
