“206 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
September  7,  1893. 
safe  from  attack  of  puccinia,  I  have  adopted  a  compromise  between 
■early  summer  sowing  and  plant  raising  under  glass  in  January.  The 
seeds  by  this  method  are  sown  in  the  end  of  August  or  the  beginning 
of  September,  the  latter  being  the  preferable  time,  as  the  seedlings 
require  merely  to  be  pricked  off  into  boxes  other  than  those  in  which 
they  were  raised,  and  potted  in  late  January  ;  whereas  those  from 
the  earlier  sowing  grow  so  strongly  as  to  require  pottir  g  in  October, 
necessitating  another  shift  in  spring  in  order  to  do  the  plants  justice, 
■and  the  result  in  either  case  docs  not  greatly  vary  when  the  flowering 
-stage  is  reached.  The  seedling  boxes  are  placed  in  a  cool  house,  and 
kept  there  until  the  young  plants  have  been  transferred  to  other  boxes. 
During  winter  they  are  kept  in  a  perfectly  cold  pit,  sometimes  in  a 
temperature  below  the  freezing  point,  but  absolutely  dry  atmospheri¬ 
cally.  Very  little  water  is  applied  to  the  soil  during  the  whole  of  the 
earlier  period  of  the  existence  of  the  plants,  which  are  ready  to  plant 
■out  some  time  towards  the  end  of  April  or  the  earlier  weeks  of  May> 
•up  to  which  time  there  is  no  reason  to  expect  the  appearance  of  the 
dreaded  disease,  which  is  due  solely  to  atmospheric  conditions.  The 
attacks  vary  considerably  in  virulence  in  different  districts,  though  it 
is  more  or  less  generally  distributed  throughout  the  country. 
The  desire  to  keep  the  enemy  at  bay,  or  to  at  least  lessen  the 
result  of  its  infestation,  induced  me  this  year  to  plant  the  stock, 
numbering  some  300  singles  and  doubles,  in  ground  that  was 
unmanured  till  after  the  young  pjants  had  taken  hold,  when  a  dressing 
of  superphosphate  was  applied.  Though  the  above  treatment  did  not 
«ave  the  foliage  from  infection,  it  proved  that  the  Hollyhock  may  be 
well  cultivated  without  the  aid  of  farmyard  manure.  The  plants  have 
indeed  grown  much  more  vigorously  and  taller  than  one  wished,  and 
for  ordinary  decorative  purposes  it  might  perhaps,  as  a  rule,  be 
advisable  to  grow  them  altogether  without  manure.  The  whole  300 
plants  formed  part  of  a  decorative  scheme  in  borders  of  hardy  plants, 
some  being  grouped  in  colours  and  others  dotted,  one  or  more  plants, 
throughout  the  borders,  and  one’s  feeling  with  regard  to  those  rising  to 
a  height  of  10  or  12  feet  was  that  nothing  would  have  been  lost  in 
general  effectiveness  had  they  stopped  growth  2  or  3  feet  nearer  the 
ground. 
Eeturning  to  the  treatment  of  the  plants.  As  the  puccinia  put  in 
an  appearance  shortly  after  plauting,  a  system  of  regular  spraying  of 
the  foliage  was  instituted  with  very  good  results.  The  material  used 
was  sulphide  of  potash,  prepared  by  Messrs.  Bentley,  Hull,  in  the 
form  of  sulphuretted  potash,  an  easily  soluble  dressing,  and  costing 
-about  sixpence  for  each  single  application.  The  disease,  however, 
obtained  a  grip  during  a  week  of  “  muggy  ”  warm  weather  in  July, 
during  which  time  spraying  was  discontinued.  The  results  as  a 
whole  were  eminently  satisfactory,  and  the  sprayed  Hollyhocks  have 
been  better  than  any  we  have  had  for  a  great  number  of  years. 
Another  year  I  intend  to  try  a  Potato  fungicide,  and  I  have  been 
wondering  if  any  Journal  people  have  any  hints  gained  from  personal 
experience  to  offer  on  the  subject.  That  remedial  measures  may,  as 
I  have  just  said,  be  followed  by  a  certain  amount  of  success,  I  have 
•  proved  to  my  own  satisfaction,  and  if  other  growers  will  give  the 
■•results  of  their  practice  I  am  convinced  the  publication  will  be 
•appreciated  by  many  other  readers  besides  myself. 
Last  year  I  saw  some  very  pretty  single  forms  of  Hollyhocks  in 
an  Essex  garden,  but  lovely  as  the  colouring  is  in  many  of  the  flowers 
I  have  grown  this  year,  I  should  hesitate  to  recommend  them  in 
•opposition  to  doubles,  which  are,  as  decorative  plants,  altogether 
superior  to  single  varieties.  Moreover,  the  plants  most  cut  up  by 
disease  have  been  singles ;  but  one  cannot  count  much  on  that, 
because  of  the  capricious  nature  of  these  parasites.  At  the  same  time 
I  could  not  help  remarking  how  plants  in  close  proximity  to  each 
other  were  variously  affected,  one  being  quite  clean,  and  alongside  it 
another  badly  smitten,  pointing,  perhaps,  to  constitutional  defects,  as 
in  the  case  of  the  Potato. 
I  have  also  this  season  made  a  few  experiments  with  regard  to 
staking.  Stakes,  at  the  best,  are  things  to  be  deprecated,  and  I  am 
pleased  to  find  that  stout  short  sticks  have  proved  as  effective  in 
supporting  the  plants  as  the  usual  lengthy  ones. — R,  P.  Brotherston. 
FROM  WEST  TO  EAST. 
From  the  Welsh  border  to  the  German  Ocean  by  seven  trains, 
stopping  at  all  stations,  seven  changes,  five  rushes  ar:d  two  rests,  is 
suggeftive  of  what  might  have  happ.ned  in  the  early  days  of  the 
railway  era.  A  journey  of  202  miles  in  twelve  hours  might  have 
been  regarded  as  a  feat  then  by  the  railway  companies,  and  it  was 
felt  somewhat  of  a  feat  now  by  two  half-roasted  passengers  in  the  tents 
at  Shrewsbury,  to  get  from  that  historic  centre  in  the  morning  to 
cool  themselves  at  Cromer  in  the  evening,  as  they  began  to  fear 
they  would  have  to  spend  a  night  on  the  way.  As  it  happened, 
however,  they  were  fortunate,  as  by  leaving  by  the  10  20  a.m.  they 
actually  reached  their  destination  by  10.40  p.m.,  and  soon  forgot  the 
anxieties  of  the  journey.  _ 
It  happened  in  this  way.  The  younger  of  the  two  gardeners,  who 
had  been  working  hard  in  the  over-heated  show  tents,  thought  he  was 
not  very  well,  and  as  he  remembered  having  derived  considerable 
benefit  by  a  sojourn  on  the  breezy  Norfolk  coast  last  year,  was  seized 
with  an  inclination  to  go  again.  The  elder,  also  tent-sweltered,  on 
being  consulted,  thought  that  he  himself  was  in  urgent  need  of  ozone, 
and  bis  junior  of  fatherly  attention,  and  arrangements  were  forthwith 
completed.  “  Bradshaw  ”  is  helpful,  useful,  and  generally  reliable,  but 
when  it  guides  trains  into  contact  with  the  Shrewsbury  Show  the 
latter  proves  the  stronger,  as  setting  time  tables  at  defiance. 
Instead,  therefore,  of  the  10.20  for  Stafford  airiving  “on  time”  a 
“  special  ”  took  its  place  and  emptied  its  cargo  of  humanity.  Then 
another,  a  third, and  a  fourth,  while  the  “regular”  was  resting  behind. 
It  managed  to  creep  in  la'er,  and  it  then  crept  on,  resting  at  every 
station,  and  only  arriving  at  Stafford  too  late  for  the  Rugby  express. 
Change,  wait  awhile,  then  go  on  with  the  “slow”  to  Rugby;  change 
here  again,  wait  an  hour,  and  “catch”  another  “slow”  to 
Northampton.  Arrive  just  in  time  for  still  another  of  the  same 
steady-going  kind  for  Peterborough,  where  the  Eastirn  train  was 
impatiently  panting  to  get  out  of  the  station,  hardly  giving  passengers 
time  to  get  in.  After  a  merry  rush  of  about  five  minutes  it  was  a 
case  of  a  few  getting  out,  and  so  on  till  March  was  reached,  when 
the  disturbing  sound  was  heard — “  Change  for  Ely  and  Norwich.” 
Let  us  take  a  glance  back  at  the  &. untry.  We  solaced  ourselves 
by  agreeing  that  the  trains  gave  us  an  opportunity  for  see  ng  the  most 
ot  it,  instead  of  whirling  us  past  everything,  without  seeing  anything 
in  particular.  The  junior  is  a  southerner,  and  had  to  battle  with  the 
drought ;  and  the  senior  had  been  a  wfitness  of  its  scorching  effects. 
Very  different  were  the  fields  and  backs  in  the  Midlands.  In  the 
south  they  were  either  black  or  nearly  white — black  by  burning 
through  sparks  from  passing  engines,  white  or  hay  coloured  by  weeks 
of  scorching  sun.  Through  the  counties  of  Salop,  Stafford,  and 
Northampton  they  were  more  or  less  refreshingly  green,  and  station 
flower  gardens  hash  and  bright.  What  may  be  regarded  as  a 
bountiful  harvest  was  gathered  in,  and  field  rcot  crops  were  100  per 
cent,  better  than  south  of  the  metropolis.  Orchards,  however,  did 
not  appear  to  be  anything  like  half  laden  with  fruit,  and  perhaps  the 
majority  of  trees  within  the  line  of  vision  were  barren.  So  much  for 
the  Midlands,  now  to  the  eastern  counties. 
The  flat  Fen  lands  from  Peterborough  on  to  and  beyond  Ely 
astrnished  the  young  “invalid.”  He  opened  widely  his  eyes  cn 
seeing  acre  alter  acre  of  Potatoes  in  luxuriant  growth  as  green  as 
in  June,  with  light  shining  green  stretches  of  Mangolds,  and  between 
and  beyond  them  miles  of  Wheat  like  a  billowy  sea  of  sheaves  and 
stooks  and  uprising  stacks  extrnding  to  the  horizon.  Passing  lush 
banks  of  spring-like  grass  and  crossing  streams  rum  mg  straight  as  a 
line  for  miles,  the  dried-out  traveller  brightened  up  and  felt  cooler 
than  he  had  been  for  two  months.  “Nothing  Ike  a  ‘change’  for 
bringing  health,”  he  remarked,  though  he  had  experienced  five 
“  changes  ”  and  had  two  more  to  follow,  one  of  which  seemed  to 
trouble  him.  The  summer,  that  has  been  so  exhausting,  not  to  say 
disastrous,  to  many  Turnipless  farmers  in  the  arid  South,  has  evidently 
been  an  ideal  one  to  their  brethren  in  the  Fens,  and  no  one  will 
begrudge  tl  ese  of  their  fortune  in  grain  and  roots,  for  how  they  “live” 
in  wet  seasons  is  somewhat  of  a  mystery. 
From  March  we  traverse  a  great,  but  rich  expanse,  as  flat  as  a 
table,  and  after  sundry  “stops”  the  picturesque  pile  of  Ely  Cathedral 
comes  into  view,  with  the  little  city  nestling  around  it  embosomed 
in  tues.  It  cannot  be  described  as  an  crisis  in  the  desert,  but  rather 
as  an  umbrageous  mound  in  an  almost  treeless  plain.  The  fiat  goes 
ferth,  “Charge  for  Norwich,”  and  there  we  find  await  of  over  an 
hour.  The  junior  begins  to  despair  of  reaching  his  destination  with¬ 
out  a  night  on  the  way..  He  seems  a .  trifle  unsettled,  and  at  last 
summons  ccurage  to  ask  if  I  have  any  “change?”  This  means  of 
the  kind  that  bears  her  Majesty’s  imprint.  Well,  yes,  I  think 
