May  12,  1898. 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER, 
-  “Loads”  of  Potatoes. — Potatoes  are  sold  by  the  load 
throughout  the  West  Riding  of  Yorkshire.  A  load  weighs  18  stones 
(14  lbs.  to  the  stone),  9  loads  to  the  ton.— S.,  Yorks. 
-  Progress. — We  had  a  pleasant  surprise  by  post  this  morning. 
An  old  friend  in  a  new  form — or,  rather,  in  a  more  approachable  form. 
Paper  knives  are  always  to  hunt  for  when  wanted,  and  the  leaves  of  the 
Journal  are  so  tantalising — the  most  interesting  part  inaccessible.  But 
now  that  day  is  over,  and  the  good  old  paper,  with  its  charming  contents, 
is  neat  and  trim  as  a  bevelled-edged  book.  Perhaps  this  is  a  small 
matter  ;  but  no  matter  should  be  small  which  so  much  enhances  the 
comfort  of  the  reader. — The  Missus. 
-  Dwarf  Bean  Sion  House. — Until  this  spring  I  have  not 
proved  this  old  variety,  and  feel  sure  there  are  many  beside  myself 
unacquainted  with  its  merits.  The  newer  hybrid  kinds  now  so 
universally  chosen  have  given  the  older  sorts  a  poor  place,  but  the 
variety  under  notice,  according  to  my  experience,  deserves  special 
mention.  It  has  been  equal  to  any  other  I  have  grown  in  pots,  and 
set  its  crop  with  greater  freedom  than  some  others.  The  pods,  too, 
are  of  good  size  and  colour,  and  the  habit  of  the  plants  very  compact. 
It  certainly  is  a  variety  that  might  give  a  good  account  of  itself  if 
growers  gave  it  an  opportunity. — R.  A. 
-  Tarragon. — The  list  of  herbs  given  by  “  E.,”  page  369,  does 
not  include  this,  and  as  it  is  very  rarely  offered  by  seedsmen  ;  this^ 
perhaps,  explains  the  reason.  I  have  only  found  it  offered  by  one 
seedsman,  and  my  present  stock  was  obtained  in  this  way.  True, 
Tarragon  can  be  divided  easily,  and  is  of  free  growth,  but  cases  some¬ 
times  arise  when  seeds  would  be  invaluable.  In  severe  weather  it  has 
a  risk  of  being  destroyed,  and  herein  lies  the  value  of  seeds.  It  is 
customary,  where  this  herb  is  much  used,  to  lift  some  roots  in  the 
autumn,  place  them  in  boxes  of  soil  under  glass.  These,  in  spring,  can 
be  used  in  renewing  the  plantation. — Wilts. 
-  Vine  Mildew. — I  observe  Mr.  D.  Buchanan’s  practical  theory 
respecting  cold  draughts  being  a  prolific  means  for  the  production  of 
mildew,  referred  to  on  page  386,  and  of  the  wholesome  dread  some 
cultivators  have  of  this  insidious  affection,  red  spider  included  also. 
I  should  like  to  say  in  corroboration  that  I  had  a  forcible  illustration 
when  on  a  visit  to  Drayton  Manor,  Tamworth,  the  fine  old  seat  of  Sir 
Robert  Peel,  Bart.,  one  day  in  September  last,  of  a  simple  means  adopted  by 
Mr.  James  Mack,  the  then  able  and  persevering  gardener,  to  preclude 
the  admission  of  air  through  the  front  ventilators  or  sashes  of  the  well- 
cropped  vineries,  so  great  was  his  horror  of  the  presence  especially  of 
mildew.  The  means  in  question  was  simply  a  thick  lining  of  lawn 
mowings  or  other  similar  material  banked  against  the  sashes  outside, 
thus  forming  a  complete  barrier  to  the  ingress  of  cold  air,  and  on  no 
occasioli  during  the  season  of  growth  was  air  admitted  artificially 
excepting  through  the  top  ventilators.  Thus  by  the  means  indicated 
the  Vines  had  enjoyed  an  immunity  from  mildew.  Eurthermore,  the 
almost  total,  if  not  quite,  absence  of  red  spider  characterised  the  healthy 
condition  of  the  Vines  at  the  period  of  my  visit.  I  may  add  that  the 
Peach  houses  at  Drayton  Manor  bore  evidence  of  the  thoroughly  practical 
and  intelligent  system  adopted  in  the  management  thereof,  as  well  as 
the  creditable  state  of  the  gar<lens  and  grounds  altogether. — W.  G., 
Birmingham. 
-  Horticulture  and  Cookery. — The  Dean  of  Rochester  has 
written  on  this  subject  as  follows  in  reference  to  a  book  which  we  have 
not  seen  : — “The  subjects  of  horticulture  and  cookery  are  of  great 
national,  social,  and  moral  importance.  We  would  magnify  their 
influence  wherever  the  opportunity  presents  itself,  and  to  the  full  extent 
which  the  circumstances  will  allow  among  all  classes  of  the  community. 
We  would  induce  the  farmer  to  renovate  those  miserable  collections  of 
dead  and  dying  trees  which  in  so  many  instances  he  calls  his  orchard. 
We  would  have  him  restore  the  old  waste  places  which  he  calls  his  garden, 
and  would  give  to  every  cottager  who  desires  to  have  it  a  sufficient  space 
for  vegetables,  fruit,  and  flowers,  instruct  him  in  the  selection  of  the 
fittest,  and  teach  his  wife  to  cook.  If  a  man  does  not  find  happiness  at 
home  he  will  seek  it  elsewhere  in  vain  ;  but  when,  after  his  day’s  work  is 
done,  you  refresh  his  eyes  and  his  palate  with  the  result  of  his  own 
handiwork,  you  do  much  to  make  him  satisfied  with  his  surroundings.” 
“  No  more  excellent  work  is  being  done  by  our  County  Councils  than  the 
establishment  of  school  gardens  at  selected  centres  to  be  cultivated  in 
plots  by  boys  of  thirteen  years  of  age  and  upwards  under  a  local 
instructor  ;  the  encouragement  of  cottage  gardening  and  allotments  by 
the  lectures  of  qualified  persons,  by  prizes  awarded  to  successful  culture, 
and  by  the  organisation,  as  at  Maidstone,  of  schools  of  cookery.” 
.lf)7 
-  Pood  of  Plants. — The  food  of  plants  which  is  derived  from 
the  soil  must  be  soluble  either  in  water  or  such  weak  acids  as  are  excreted 
by  root  hairs. — D. 
-  Rhododendron  Gripfithianum. — This  sfiecies  ranks  high 
in  a  genus  which  is  remarkable  for  the  large  number  of  gorgeous- 
flowerpd  species  it  contains.  In  the  temperate  house  at  Kew  a  large 
plant  is  now  to  be  seen  in  full  flower.  The  blossoms  are  produced  in 
loose  spreading  trusses,  averaging  nine  flowers  to  each  truss.  They  are 
white,  with  a  touch  of  pink  on  the  outside,  5  inches  across  by  4  in  depth 
When  not  in  flower,  the  size  of  the  deep  green  foliage  makes  it  a  striking 
plant,  the  leaves  often  being  9  inches  or  more  long,  by  3  inches  wide. 
In  some  gardens  it  is  met  with  under  the  name  of  R.  Aucklandi,  and  it 
is  figured  in  “Rhod.  of  the  Sikkim  Himalayas,”  t.  ii.,  under  that  name. 
Por  a  large  cool  house  few  plants,  if  any,  are  more  striking  than  this  and 
other  Himalayan  Rhododendrons.  Among  other  species  and  varieties 
flowering  in  the  temperate  house  at  Kew  are  R.  arboreum,  Nuttalli, 
ciliatum,  kewense,  Edgeworthi. — D.  K. 
-  Spinach  Beet. — As  a  substitute  for  the  ordinary  Spinach  this 
is  very  useful.  Usually  in  dry  summers  there  is  a  difficulty  in  keeping  up 
a  supply  of  Spinach,  for  the  summer  varieties  are  prone  to  run  to  seed 
quickly,  and  it  is  not  always  easy  even  to  get  the  seed  to  germinate  unless 
special  attention  can  be  paid  to  watering.  In  severe  winters,  too.  Spinach 
is  brought  to  a  standstill,  and  the  supply  cut  off  for  a  time.  The  Spinach 
Beet  variety  is  quicker  in  responding  to  a  genial  change  of  weather  than 
the  common  Spinach,  hence  its  value.  In  some  places  it  is  not  accepted  in 
the  kitchen  at  all,  in  others  only  when  no  other  is  available.  The  present 
is  a  very  good  time  to  sow  seed  for  securing  a  supply  lasting  until  April 
in  next  year,  one  sowing  from  this  date  sufficing.  Ground  lately 
occupied  with  winter  greens  or  Broccoli,  lightly  manured  and  dug  deeply, 
will  grow  as  luxuriant  a  crop  as  anything  the  gardener  has  to  produce,  it 
seemingly  having  no  insect  enemies.  A  light  sprinkling  of  salt  at  the 
time  of  sowing  or  later  is  beneficial  on  light  soils. — W.  S.,  Wilts. 
-  Rhododendron  Thomsoni. — Sir  J.  D.  Hooker  speaks  in  high 
terms  of  the  beauty  of  this  species — in  the  description  accompanying 
fig.  12  in  “ Rhododendrons  of  the  Sikkim  Himalayas” — as  he  found  it 
growing  at  an  elevation  of  from  10  to  13,000  feet.  At  the  present  time 
several  plants  are  to  be  seen  in  flower  in  the  Rhododendron  dell  at  Kew, 
where  they  form  conspicuous  objects  among  their  surrounding  neighbours. 
The  flowers  vary  a  little  in  size  and  shape,  the  average  size  being  2  inches 
long  by  2 1  across  the  mouth.  They  are  produced  in  loose  heads  of  eight 
or  ten  together,  and  are  very  richly  coloured,  being  deep  blood  red,  with 
a  glossy  or  waxy  surface.  It  has  been  used  for  hybridising,  and  several 
very  good  varieties  are  the  result ;  the  chief  difference  between  these 
hybrids  and  ordinary  garden  varieties  being  in  the  looser  heads,  more 
tubular  flowers,  and  the  thicker  or  more  waxy  texture  of  the  blossoms. 
In  gardens  where  Rhododendrons  are  made  a  feature,  as  many  species  as 
are  hardy  enough  for  the  district  should  be  grown,  as  with  very  few 
exceptions  they  are  showy  and  interesting. — D. 
-  The  Horticultural  Club. — The  Hotel  Windsor  was  upon 
last  Tuesday  evening  the  scene  of  quite  an  exceptional  gathering  of  the 
members  of  the  Horticultural  Club.  All  were  present,  saving  only  those 
who  were  unavoidably  prevented  by  illness  or  absence  from  home.  The 
occasion  was  the  celebration  of  the  eightieth  birthday  of  the  Secretary 
and  founder,  the  Rev.  H.  H.  D’Ombrain.  After  having  given  the  usual 
loyal  toasts.  Sir  John  Llewellyn,  Bart,  rose  and  proposed  the  toast  of 
the  evening.  He  alluded  in  feeling  terms  to  the  great  age  and  long 
service  to  horticulture  of  the  Secretary.  No  one,  he  said,  ever  found 
fault  with  a  clergyman  for  cultivating  the  hobby  of  horticulture.  It  was 
a  refining  pursuit,  in  every  way  consistent  with  his  humanising  calling, 
and  tended  to  brighten  the  lot  of  those  within  his  cure.  Money,  he  said, 
was  not  everything,  but  it  was  in  many  cases  an  evidence  of  active  esteem, 
and  all  the  members  had  therefore  united  in  contributing  each  an  equal 
sum  for  a  birthday  gift.  This  was  enclosed  in  a  purse  expressly  worked 
for  the  Secretary  by  a  lady,  and  which  he  had  unfeigned  pleasure  in 
presenting  to  Mr.  D’Ombrain.  Mr.  D’Ombrain  in  replying  was  visibly 
moved.  He  said  that  he  recognised  with  pride  the  unexampled  gathering. 
He  saw  before  him  many  faces  he  had  known  for  more  than  thirty  years, 
and  if  there  were  some  old  faces  missing,  their  places  were  now  worthily 
occupied  by  those  of  their  descendants.  He  lived  in  two  worlds,  his 
pastoral  and  his  horticultural,  but  between  the  two  he  obtained  nothing 
but  refreshment.  While  not  anticipating  an  indefinite  future,  he  still 
hoped  that  he  might  be  spared  to  celebrate  many  happy  meetings  with 
those  he  was  addressing.  Mr.  Monro  having  spoken  with  satisfaction  of 
the  lightness  of  his  labours  in  canvassing  the  members,  and  of  the 
unanimity  and  alacrity  of  their  replies,  the  company  proceeded  to  an 
informal  entertainment  for  the  remainder  of  the  evening. 
