January  30,  1896. 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
97 
-  Cape  Fruit. — A  Southampton  paper  reports  the  arrival  at  that 
port  from  the  Cape  of  a  consignment  of  some  1200  boxes  of  Apricots. 
Much  of  the  fruit  was  small,  but  it  arrived  in  good  condition.  Bach 
Apricot,  we  learn,  was  wrapped  in  tissue  paper,  and  was  further  securely 
packed  with  wood  wool  and  cork  dust.  The  best  samples  realised  5s. 
per  box,  or  about  a  penny  each.  What  these  fruits  fetched  ultimately 
will  probably  not  be  known,  but  those  who  know  how  worthless  either 
in  flavour  or  succulence  are  Apricots  at  home  gathered  a  couple  of 
weeks  before  being  ripe,  know  full  well  also  that  these  Cape  Apricots, 
gathered  whilst  yet  comparatively  hard,  must  when  purchased  be 
flavourless  stuff  indeed.  Remembering  what  a  large  amount  of  labour 
has  to  be  expended  in  the  packing,  as  also  costly  material,  it  is  difficult 
to  see  how  the  port  price  over  here  can  repay  the  consigners. — R.  R. 
-  Poisonous  Garden  Compounds.— The  proceedings  recently 
instituted  against  seedsmen  or  other  dealers  in  horticultural  sundries, 
for  selling  weed-killers,  has  almost  reached  a  stage  of  ridicule. 
No  one  supposes  that  weed-killers  and  insecticides  are  less  harmful 
if  sold  by  a  chemist  than  if  sold  by  any  ordinary  dealer.  What¬ 
soever  danger  there  is  rests  with  the  user  of  the  article,  and  not 
with  the  vendor.  There  seems  to  be  some  professional  jealousy  at  the 
bottom  of  these  prosecutions,  chemists  evidently  regarding  with 
disfavour  any  sale  of  compounds  that  contain  poisons  by  other  than 
members  of  their  own  body.  It  is  difficult  to  say  where  the  demand  for 
the  sole  sale  of  useful  garden  compounds  may  stop,  or  what  an  ordinary 
dealer  is  legally  entitled  to  sell.  The  object  of  the  Act  of  Parliament 
is  no  doubt  a  good  one,  but  it  is  too  absurd  to  suppose  that  weed-killers 
sold  by  a  chemist  are  less  dangerous  than  if  sold  by  anyone  else. 
Gardeners  are  being  materially  hampered  in  their  use  of  these  valuable 
compounds  by  recent  action. — D. 
-  Schizostylis  COCCINEA. — Many  plants  of  the  Iris  family  are 
useful  for  winter-flowering,  and  among  these  none  is  more  graceful  and 
floriferous  than  this  bright  and  showy  African  plant,  often  called  the 
Crimson  Flag.  In  habit  of  growth  it  resembles  many  kinds  of  Iris,  the 
leaves  being  long,  narrowly  sword-shaped  or  almost  linear,  equitant, 
springing  from  a  fleshy  rhizome.  The  time  of  flowering  is  from  October  until 
after  Christmas,  the  flowers  remaining  in  perfection  a  considerable  time. 
It  flourishes  out  of  doors  in  England,  but  says  the  “  Garden  and  Forest,” 
as  it  is  of  little  importance  in  America,  except  for  indoor  use,  it  should 
be  grown  chiefly  for  this  purpose  in  pots  or  for  cut  flowers.  Late  in 
spring  or  early  summer  the  plants  should  be  divided,  from  three  to  five 
buds  being  left  on  each  root.  These  should  be  planted  out  in  a  bed  of 
loose  humus-rich  soil  6  to  8  inches  apart.  During  the  summer,  when 
dry  weather  is  prevalent,  the  bed  should  be  occasionally  soaked,  so  as  to 
inBure  a  robust  growth.  In  the  autumn  the  plants  may  be  lifted,  cleaned 
and  potted  for  winter  use.  They  should  be  kept  in  a  sunny  position  in 
a  cool  greenhouse,  where  they  will  flower  without  forcing,  some  coming 
earlier,  other  later,  thus  giving  a  succession  of  flowers  for  months.  After 
flowering  the  plant  may  be  left  in  the  pots  and  stowed  away  in  a  frame 
or  cool  greenhouse  until  the  time  comes  to  divide  them  and  plant  out  of 
doors  for  the  next  winter’s  use. 
-  Chemical  Manures. — Schoolmasters  in  Surrey  who  take 
horticulture  as  a  subject  in  their  evening  schools  with  the  elder  boys, 
like  to  have  in  their  schools  museum  samples  of  mineral  or  chemical 
manures  for  reference  and  example.  These  manures  are  obligingly 
furnished  for  such  purpose  by  some  of  the  leading  manufacturers  and 
dealers.  The  great  value  of  these  samples  is  that  they  familiarise  lads 
with  their  nature  whilst  yet  in  a  teachable  frame  of  mind.  Older  persons, 
whose  minds  have  got  into  a  settled  groove,  and  usually  a  narrow  one, 
find  it  very  difficult  indeed  to  understand  how  such  queer-looking 
substances  as  potash,  nitrate,  basic  slag,  or  bone  flour  can  have  any 
nutritive  properties  for  plants.  Lads,  on  the  other  hand,  like  to  learn 
about  their  nature,  origin,  and  capacity  to  fertilise,  and  in  that  way 
scruple  not  to  employ  them  as  manures  intelligently  if  the  chance  offers. 
That  is  great  gain.  If  elder  persons,  ignorant  of  the  properties  of  these 
compounds,  have  no  faith  in  them,  their  intelligent  use  cannot  be  looked 
for  ;  for  animal  manures,  even  in  the  most  wantonly  exhausted  and 
wasted  state,  they  regard  with  veneration,  simply  because  these  are  of 
traditional  employment,  and  yet  there  is  no  form  of  manure  usually  so 
very  unintelligently  applied  to  land  as  are  these  animal  manures.  When 
utilised  in  such  way  as  to  preserve  their  nutritive  properties  to  the 
utmost,  they  are  without  doubt  the  most  valuable  of  fertilisers.  Still 
we  cannot  have  these  in  such  abundance  as  to  dispense  with  mineral 
compounds.  These,  too,  when  of  proper  strength  and  carefully  em¬ 
ployed,  are  of  the  utmost  value  in  feeding  crops.— A.  D. 
-  The  Carnation  in  America. — The  Carnation  has  since  the 
year  1S60  rapidly  forced  itself  into  an  important  place  in  the  flower 
trade  of  the  northern  and  central  parts  of  America.  So  great  is  the 
demand  for  this  charming  flower  that  nearly  4000  florists  in  America 
are  engaged  either  wholly  or  in  part  in  growing  this  plant  for  the  supply 
of  cut  flowers.  It  is  estimated  that  fully  200,000,000  Carnation  blooms 
are  sold  yearly,  producing  to  the  growers  over  1,000,000  dollars.  The 
characteristics  of  the  Carnation  which  make  it  such  a  decided  favourite 
are  its  great  variety  of  colour,  delightful  fragrance,  beauty  of  form,  and 
excellent  keeping  quality. 
-* —  The  Conviction  of  Fern  Gatherers, — At  Totnes  recently 
there  were  convictions  of  Fern  gatherers.  This  is  speeially  worthy  of 
note,  as  showing  that  under  the  existing  laws  it  is  possible  to  impose 
some  check  upon  wholesale  collectors  of  Ferns  and  other  British  plants. 
According  to  the  report  of  the  case  two  men  were  charged  under  a 
warrant  before  the  Totnes  County  Bench  with  damaging  Devonshire 
hedges.  The  evidence  went  to  show  that  they  were  engaged  with  a 
horse  and  cart  in  the  wholesale  removal  of  Ferns,  and  that  about  5  cwt. 
of  roots  were  found  in  an  outhouse.  Previous  convictions  were  recorded, 
and  the  Bench  fined  one  £5  and  the  other  50s.,  together  with  the  amount 
of  the  damage.  The  money  not  being  forthcoming,  they  were  sentenced 
to  six  weeks’  and  one  month’s  imprisonment  respectively,  with  hard 
labour. 
-  Cauliflowers. — What  a  tribute  is  paid  to  the  mildness  of  the 
season  when  it  is  possible  to  obtain  small  yet  really  fresh,  sweet 
Cauliflower  heads  at  Id.  each  from  the  greengrocers.  This,  too,  at  the 
end  of  January  is  remarkable  because  so  late.  1  do  not  write  of 
Broccoli,  but  of  evidently  late  planted  Autumn  Giant  Cauliflowers,  for 
the  softness  of  the  stems  and  character  of  leaf  testify  they  are  of  this 
more  tender  Brassica  section.  No  doubt  something  is  due  to  the  nature 
of  the  summer,  as  plants  could  not  be  got  out  into  the  fields  until  very 
late,  indeed  in  many  cases  seeds  barely  germinated  until  late  in  the 
season,  and  naturally  the  plants,  if  put  out  at  all,  could  only  be  late. 
Thus  the  winter’s  mildness  has  enabled  all  such  late  plantings  to  head 
in  admirably.  Prices  of  green  stuffs  no  doubt  are  low,  but  the 
abundance  unharmed  compensates  somewhat. — PRACTICE. 
_  Asparagus  for  Decoration.— I  can  speak  in  the  highest 
praise  of  Asparagus  for  winter  decoration,  as  I  find  it  will  mix  and  look 
well  with  any  kind  of  everlasting  flowers,  giving  a  lightness  and  tone 
of  colour  not  easily  obtained.  For  a  large  vase  I  would  recommend 
«  A.  D.”  (page  52)  and  others  to  mix  some  long  sprays  of  the  berried 
Asparagus  with  the  silvery  seed  pods  of  Honesty,  and  they  will  have  a 
decoration  that  will  look  well  for  months  in  any  room  or  hall.  On 
January  18th  I  saw  a  large  vase  and  two  smaller  ones  filled  with  the 
Asparagus  cut  about  the  end  of  August  last,  looking  very  little  the 
worse.  The  best  time  to  cut  the  Asparagus  I  find  is  when  the  grass 
commences  to  change  colour,  which  varies  from  the  middle  of  August  to 
the  same  time  in  September,  according  to  the  weather.  From  a 
marketable  point  of  view  I  do  not  think  it  would  prove  profitable,  as  it 
is  difficult  to  pack,  and  the  slightest  injury  to  the  berries  turns  them 
black,  which  spoils  them  for  decoration  and  sale.  The  best  way  to 
remove  dust  is  to  give  them  a  sharp  puff  with  a  pair  of  bellows.  If  the 
sprays  are  not  wanted  for  use  immediately  when  cut  it  is  a  good  plan 
to  tie  them  in  bundles,  place  a  piece  of  tiffany  round  them,  and  hang 
up  till  wanted. — G.  H. 
_  Leominster  Horticultural  Society.— The  annual  meeting 
of  this  Society  was  held  at  the  Town  Hall,  Leominster,  on  Friday  last, 
and  those  present  included  Messrs.  J.  A.  Daggs,  F.  G.  Saxby,  R.  Morrow, 
F.  G.  Lulman,  H.  L.  Saxby,  T.  Bannister,  C.  A.  Saxby,  A.  J.  Hewitt. 
G.  Chatham,  C.  Edwards,  F.  Bradford,  W.  J.  Geaussent,  and  W.  II. 
Phillips,  Hon.  Secretary  and  Treasurer.  Mr.  J.  A.  Daggs  was  voted  to 
the  chair.  Mr.  W.  II.  Phillips  presented  a  financial  statement  for  the 
past  year.  The  total  income  amounted  to  £57  3s.  11  id.,  including  sub¬ 
scriptions  £40  19s.  6d.,  and  the  expenditure  was  £57  3s.  5d.,  the  principal 
item,  of  ccjirse,  being  that  for  prizes  at  the  annual  show,  amounting  to 
£34  5s.  ;  there  was  thus  a  balance  in  hand  of  6^d.  The  meeting  then 
proceeded  to  the  election  of  officers  for  the  ensuing  year.  The  Committee 
elected  will  consist  of  Messrs.  C.  D.  Andrews,  T.  Bannister,  R.  E.  Bate¬ 
man,  G.  Chatham,  J.  A.  Daggs,  W.  E.  Hyde,  J.  G.  Lulman,  R.  Morrow, 
G.  Page,  G.  T.  Preston  Robinson,  C.  A.  Saxby,  C.  H.  Gardiner,  and 
E.  Moly'neux.  The  election  of  President  was  left  in  the  hands  of  the 
Committee.  The  Chairman  proposed  the  re-election  of  Mr.  W.  H. 
Phillips  as  Secretary  and  Treasurer,  expressing  the  indebtedness  of  the 
Society  to  his  successful  work  during  the  past  year,  and  this  proposition, 
seconded  by  Mr.  R.  Morrow,  was  very  heartily  agreed  to. 
