'September  22.  1898. 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
221 
an  extension  of  crop  was  concerned.  Although  the  flowers  dropped 
from  Runner  Beans  there  has  been  sufficient  for  everyday  use ;  dwarf 
sorts  podded  well;  but  were  late.  Cauliflowers  were  plentiful  until 
the  drought  penetrated  to  the  depth  of  their  roots,  when  they  ceased 
to  be  dependable.  Turnips  since  the  early  sowings  have  done  much 
better,  though  I  never  knew  the  flea  so  troublesome  early  in  the  year, 
dt  is  on  firm  ground  and  north  borders  where  the  supply  now  is 
available.  Lettuce  absolutely  refuses  to  grow,  and  Endive  languishes 
by  want  of  rain.  The  outcome  of  this  is  a  small  supply  for  present  use, 
and  if  frost  should  set  in  early  the  prospect  for  the  late  autumn  and  early 
winter  will  be  much  worse,  because  late  Cauliflowers  and  autumn 
Broccolis  are  backward,  and  it  was  difficult  to  get  any  sowings  for¬ 
warded  of  Spinach  and  late  Carrots.  Savoys  and  Brussels  Sprouts  are 
equally  late.  Cabbage  for  spring  use  are  waiting  in  the  seed  bed,  and 
until  rain  comes  there  is  no  prospect  of  their  being  planted,  ground 
being  dry  and  hot  to  such  a  great  depth,  and  water  for  them  quite  out 
of  reach. 
In  the  fruit  garden  Apples  have  been  reduced  quite  one-half  in  many 
sorts  by  premature  falling,  and  birds,  wasps,  and  flies  are  destructive 
-to  these,  as  well  as  Pears  and  Plums.  Pears  are  being  sample  1, 
almost  every  fruit  of  some  of  the  varieties,  by  the  wasps,  rendering 
■  early  gathering  the  only  means  of  saving  them,  notwithstanding  Scott’s 
destroyer  has  been  repeatedly  used  as  a  means  of  prevention,  and 
bottles  of  sweetened  beer  placed  within  their  reach.  Peaches  and 
Apricots,  too,  suffered  badly  on  open  walls,  and  they  have,  contrary  to 
their  usual  custom,  spoilt  a  good  many  indoor  Peaches  and  Nectarines. 
Many  nests  have  been  destroyed  within  a  large  radius.  I  never 
remember  in  any  previous  year  seeing  such  large-sized  nests.  Some 
were  of  the  dimensions  of  a  peck  measure  when  dug  out.  Presumably 
the  long  continued  and  excessively  dry  summer  has  favoured  them  in 
this  matter.  Of  hornets  we  have  much  fewer,  only  one  nest  being 
found  and  destroyed. 
In  the  Chrysanthemum  world,  where  water  is  short,  an  anxious 
time  has  been  spent  by  those  whose  ambitions  lead  them  to  hope  for 
rich  trophies  in  the  coming  autumn.  With  such  summer  weather  to 
ripen  the  wood,  and  a  plentiful  water  supply,  there  should  be  a  record 
show  this  year,  that  is,  provided  the  future  weather  is  favourable  for 
their  development. 
The  Rose  specialist  has  had  an  equally  anxious  time  for  his  flower, 
and  taking  the  weather  into  account,  the  Roses  of  the  past  season  have 
been  remarkable.  The  heavy  moisture-holding  soil  of  the  Midlands 
Told  favourably,  and  gave  the  growers  on  such  land  the  advantage  over 
those  on  that  of  a  lighter  description.  With  the  variability  of  the 
seasons,  the  grower  who  scores  this  year  may  in  another  suffer  a 
reverse,  but  there  is  little  current  consolation  in  this  fact. 
What  applies  to  the  Rose  specialist  may  be  said  to  repeat  itself 
in  the  case  of  the  Dahlia  grower,  both  from  an  exhibition  and  private 
point  of  view.  It  was  a  matter  of  surprise  to  find  such  a  wealth  of 
handsome  blooms  staged.  It  may  be  said,  however,  that  the  majority 
of  the  blooms  at  the  shows  generally,  are  representations  from  nurseries 
more  or  less  widely  distributed,  and  the  number  of  flowers  staged  by 
each  individual  exhibitor  is  only  a  small  selection  from  a  large  area. 
Only  in  exceptional  cases  are  Dahlias  able  to  give  that  wealth  of  blossom 
common  to  the  autumn  season  when  labouring  under  such  adverse 
conditions  as  that  imposed  on  vegetation  at  the  present  time. 
In  the  nursery  and  private  ground  small  shrubs  have  a  difficulty  in 
making  the  advance  one  likes  to  see,  and  the  case  is  much  worse  with 
large  trees  and  shrubs  replanted  during  the  past  winter  and  spring. 
Where  watering  can  be  done  occasionally  these  may  be  kept  moving, 
if  only  slowly,  but  the  dead  and  withering  shrubs  to  be  seen  give 
evidence  only  too  plainly  of  the  state  of  the  ground  in  which  they 
have  had  to  eke  out  an  existence.  On  the  other  hand,  growth  in 
established  trees  is  in  many  instances  even  more  vigorous  than  if 
the  ground  were  in  a  more  normal  condition.  This  is  more  conspicuous 
in  heavy  ground.  Herbaceous  plants  show  a  similar  state  of  things; 
the  delicate  and  surface  rooting  kinds  are  far  from  useful,  while  the 
strong  and  deep-rooting  ones  are  perhaps  as  good  as  in  any  previous 
year,  when  conditions  apparently  were  sometimes  so  much  more 
favourable. 
It  is  comparatively  easy  to  understand  the  unsatisfactory  state  of 
things  existing  when  the  rainfall  is  brought  to  bear  on  the  matter, 
and  the  seriousness  of  the  situation  can  only  be  met  by  steadv  and, 
for  some  days,  continuous  rain.  My  record  shows  a  loss  of  over 
11  inches  compared  with  last  year  up  to  the  end  of  August,  and 
the  past  fortnight  has  produced  only  one-hundredth  part  of  an  inch, 
which,  with  a  rising  barometer,  does  not  give  promise  of  better, 
but  rather  of  failing  results.  The  springs,  too,  are  so  low  that  they 
do  riot  replenish  themselves  from  day  to  day,  and  whatever  weather 
may  intervene,  it  must  be  late  in  winter  ere  water  springs  will  attain 
their  normal  condition,  or  the  soil  about  the  trees’  roots  becomes  well 
moistened. 
The  aspect  of  the  case  may  be  summed  up  in  the  large  extension 
of  labour  in  water  carriage  without  any  due  proportion  of  benefit 
derived  from  the  long  and  protracted  drought.  It  may  do  some  good 
in  begetting  a  thought  for  future  contingencies  by  way  of  providing 
more  adequate  supplies  of  water,  either  by  local  storage  or  by  convey¬ 
ance  from  some  distant  reservoir,  and  if  this  is  done  it  will  not  only 
be  of  temporary,  but  permanent  benefit. — W.  S.,  Wilts. 
Roses  in  New  Zealand. 
The  following  description  as  to  the  behaviour  of  some  of  the  grand 
introductions  of  Messrs.  Alex.  Dickson  &  Sons,  Co.  Down,  will  be  read 
with  interest  by  English  and  foreign  readers  alike,  coming  as  they  do 
from  a  New  Zealand  gentleman  who  has  given  them  a  thorough  trial. 
Mrs.  W.  J.  Grant. — Really  superb,  and  is  one  of  the  best  and 
most  popular  ;  very  sweetly  scented.  I  should  describe  the  colour  as 
a  magenta  pink,  if  I  may  be  allowed  the  term,  as  it  reminds  one  of 
the  colour  of  Bougainvillea  glabra,  though  darker.  It  is  always  in 
bloom. 
Tom  Wood. — This  is  very  fine  and  distinct  in  form,  though  a 
colour  of  which  we  have  rather  too  many,  like  a  dull  Ulrich  Brunner. 
Helen  Keller. — Very  neat  and  beautiful  in  form  is  this  Rose ; 
colour  a  rose  pink,  a  vast  improvement  on  the  old  Madame  Charles 
Crapelet. 
Ellen  Drew. — Up  to  the  present  this  is  worthless  in  the  country, 
Anna  de  Diesbach  being  the  best  of  the  colour,  Reine  du  Midi 
following.  Duchesse  de  Morny,  of  the  same  shade,  was  discarded 
twenty  years  ago. 
Mavourneen. — The  first  flowers  after  pruning  are  really  fine,  the 
rest  being  thin  and  flat;  a  drawback  is  its  only  blooming  once 
during  the  season  ;  colour  delicate  shade  of  flesh,  outer  petals  marked 
or  flaked  with  pinkish  r«se. 
Marjorie. — In  every  sense  grand  ;  the  blending  of  colours  is 
lovely ;  two-thirds  of  the  flower  is  pure  white,  the  centre  a  deep 
salmon  flesh.  I  should  say  this  Rose  is  better  here  than  in  England. 
Muriel  Grahame. — Another  exceedingly  fine  variety,  of  a  pale 
creamy  white  colour.  I  like  it  better  than  The  Bride.  The  latter 
opens  a  greenish  white,  while  the  former  opens  a  creamy  white, 
becoming  beautifully  flushed  with  rose  on  the  backs  of  the  petals 
When  fully  expanded,  as  in  Marie  Van  Houtte,  to  my  mind  it  is  the 
grandest  sport  yet  obtained  from  Catherine  Mermet,  also  stronger 
than  the  parent  or  its  other  sports. 
Kathleen. — Not  yet  recovered  from  the  voyage  out ;  at  present 
a  H.T.  of  the  colour  of  John  Hopper,  with  little  or  no  scent. 
Mrs.  R.  G.  Sharman  Crawford. — Thoroughly  first-class,  a  most 
taking  shade  of  creamy  flesh,  deepening  into  almost  a  rosy  pink  on  the 
edges^of  the  petals.  First  season  after  arrival  it  was  quite  single, 
second  year  semi-double,  third  back  to  its  true  character. 
Marchioness  of  Dufferin. — Very  large  and  full,  a  finer  Rose 
than  Her  Majesty  for  this  climate,  almost  the  same  colour,  but  does 
not  burn  or  turn  off  like  the  latter  ;  very  strong  or  vigorous. 
Marchioness  of  Downshire. — Almost  on  an  equal  with  Mrs. 
J.  Laing  for  merit ;  flowers  somewhat  similar  in  colour,  though  growth 
quite  distinct;  free  flowering  and  vigorous. 
Marchioness  of  Londonderry. — A  fine  exhibition  Rose  if  pro¬ 
tected  from  sun  and  dew,  of  enormous  size,  almost  exactly  the  same 
shade  of  colour  as  Souvenir  de  la  Malmaison;  in  this  climate  very 
strong,  stout  and  dwarf.  A  plant  only  gives  a  few  flowers  in  spring, 
and  does  not  make  a  second  growth. 
Margaret  Dickson. — A  beauty  when  pruned  to  well-ripened 
wood,  of  superb  form,  colour  white  with  deep  flesh  centre;  a  strong 
grower,  throwing  up  ten  or  a  dozen  stout  thorny  shoots  some  6  feet 
m  height.  If  pruned  to  these  maiden  shoots  I  find  it  rather  thin; 
not  a  continuous  bloomer.  Worked  on  the  Manetti  it  makes  a  grand 
standard  for  other  varieties. 
Jeannie  Dickson. — A  beautiful  long  bud  when  half  open,  fine  for 
cutting.  It  is  of  the  President  Thiers  or  Victor  Verdier  class,  and  is 
the  best  of  its  kind,  and  requires  cutting  early  in  our  warm  climate  or 
soon  expands.  It  does  not  show  the  yellow  zone  at  the  base  of  petals ; 
free. 
Earl  of  Dufferin. — A  grand  Rose  in  the  autumn,  of  beautiful 
form  and  colour,  uncertain  in  spring ;  too  double  to  open,  unless  we 
have  extra  nice  weather. 
Lady  Helen  Stewart. — Growth  strong,  but  not  good  as  yet 
here. — R.  P.  R. 
