212 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
March  6,  1890, 
The  soft  fruits  from  abroad  commence  with  Strawberries,  some 
very  good  ones  coming  from  Honfleur  in  shallow  handle  baskets, 
containing  about  6  lbs.,  some  hundreds  of  baskets  arriving  daily  in  May. 
These  are  followed  by  Red,  White,  and  Black  Currants  from  France, 
which,  as  a  rule,  are  very  fine,  and  coming,  as  they  do,  before  ours  are 
ripe,  sell  well.  Then  come  Cherries,  commencing  from  Spain  and  the 
South  of  France,  and  working  North  as  the  season  advances  ;  in  this 
way  they  make  a  long  season,  covering  about  two  months,  and  there  has 
been  ever  20  000  flats  sold  in  one  day  about  Whitsuntide.  But  by  being 
picked  unripe,  to  stand  the  journey,  they  are  much  inferior  in  quality  to 
ours,  and  I  think  it  is  only  because  they  come  at  a  time  when  there  is 
not  much  variety  of  fruit,  as  well  as  being  very  tastefully  packed,  that 
they  sell. 
It  is  when  Green  Gages  and  Plums  commence  that  the  salesmen  of 
foreign  fruit  get  busy,  as  the  enormous  amount  of  those  coming,  and  the 
long  time  they  cover,  is  marvellous,  an  increasing  quantity  coming  each 
year  from  Italy,  so  that  from  the  time  they  commence,  so  far  South, 
until  Paris,  the  North  of  France,  and  Germany  contribute  their  crops, 
covers  about  three  months.  As  many  as  10,000  to  15,000  flats  are  often 
sold  daily  before  our  English  Plums  are  ripe.  Apricots,  too,  thrive  better 
abroad,  and  come  in  considerable  quantities  from  Southern  France  and 
Spain. 
Pine  Apples. — These  now  are  entirely  a  foreign  fruit,  as  it  is  quite  a 
novelty  to  see  an  English  grown  one,  and  then  only  from  private  places. 
But  they  come  in  shiploads  from  the  Azores,  and  although  the  price  is 
much  lower  than  it  used  to  be,  they  still  increase  in  quantity.  At  first 
they  only  attempted  to  send  them  while  the  Orange  boats  were  running, 
but  of  late  years  it  pays  them  to  run  special  steamers  for  Pines  alone,  the 
value  of  that  crop  being  now  much  more  than  that  of  the  Oranges  grown 
there.  The  St.  Michael  Pines,  too,  have  almost  driven  the  old  West 
Indian  Pine  from  our  market,  as  the  second  class  fruits  are  Bold  as  cheap 
or  cheaper  than  the  West  Indian  ones  used  to  be. 
Grapes. — These  still  come  in  large  quantities  from  Spain  and 
Portugal,  but  with  the  exception  of  Almerias,  which  keep  for  months  in 
cork  dust,  there  are  very  few  pay  to  come,  and  I  think  it  is  not  far  distant 
when  the  Almeria  growers  will  have  to  turn  their  attention  to  something 
else.  The  only  imported  ones  now  finding  favour  are  those  coming  from 
the  Cape,  and  as  these  are  principally  black  and  white  Muscats  of  fine 
quality,  and  also  coming  iD  March  and  April  when  our  home  grown  ones 
are  scarcest,  they  are  acceptable  as  a  good  quality  low-priced  Grape. 
Pears. — These  commence  from  France  and  Italy  with  such  sorts  as 
Jargonelle,  Louis  Bonne  and  Williams,  and  up  to  two  years  ago  our 
main  supply  was  from  there,  but  now  cool  chambered  ships  and  cool 
cars  in  trains  bring  such  sorts  as  Williams,  Beuruj  Hardy,  and  Doyenn^ 
du  Comice  by  thousands  of  cases,  in  perfect  condition,  from  California  ; 
and  if  it  can  be  made  to  pay  by  reducing  freight  the  supply  from  there 
seems  enormous,  and  will  run  the  French  very  close  ae  well  as  the  Eng¬ 
lish  ;  but  at  present  the  freight  of  a  case  containing  40  lbs.  fruit  is  over 
4s.,  and  unless  temperature  is  very  carefully  regulated,  they  turn  very 
quickly  when  exposed,  and  do  not  keep  so  long  as  the  French  ;  some 
very  fine  Plums  have  also  come  from  there  in  good  condition.  California 
has  a  great  advantage  over  England  in  regard  to  Pears  travelling,  and 
that  is,  they  seldom  get  rain  while  the  fruit  is  ripening,  and  that  of  course 
is  greatly  in  favour  of  any  fruit  standing  a  journey,  as  well 
as  the  hotter  climate  ripening  them  more  thoroughly.  Easters  coming 
in  winter  do  not  need  cool  chambers,  and  therefore  come  at  a  lower 
freight.  A  great  many  Peaches  came  from  California  this  last  autumn, 
but  were  of  very  poor  quality,  being  mostly  clingstones,  and  were  only 
♦  fit  for  costermongers. 
Perhaps  of  all  the  imported  fruits  Apples  touch  the  English  grower 
most,  as  they  come  now  nearly  all  the  year  through,  commencing  in 
April  from  Tasmania,  followed  by  those  from  France,  Italy,  and 
Germany,  and  all  the  winter  from  the  United  States,  Canada,  and  Nova 
Scotia.  But  notwithstanding  all  these  supplies  I  maintain  that  our 
growers  could  hold  their  own  if  they  would  grow  saleable  sorts  and  take 
the  necessary  trouble  in  packing. 
From  all  reports  the  Tasmanian  growers  cannot  increase  the  quantity, 
as  the  freight  and  cost  of  ca»e  comes  to  about  4s.,  and  by  being  so  long 
in  the  cool  chamber  they  are  not  a  patch  on  English  for  flavour,  and  if 
larger  quantities  come  it  will  be  impossible  to  get  a  remunerative  price 
for  them.  American  apples  do  not  need  the  expense  of  cool  chambers  in 
transit,  but  to  enable  them  to  send  all  through  the  winter  they  are  com¬ 
pelled  to  keep  them  in  expensively  constructed  warehouses,  where  an 
equal  temperature  is  maintained  so  as  to  protect  them  from  heat  as  well 
as  frost,  and  so  enable  them  to  lengthen  the  period  of  sale  as  much  as 
possible.  And  this  of  course  adds  greatly  to  the  cost,  while  our  climate, 
suiting  Apples  as  it  does,  should  enable  us,  by  adopting  the  right  system 
of  grading  and  packing,  to  hold  the  American  at  bay  till  the  bulk  of  our 
crop  is  sold,  and  instead  of  this  growers  seem  to  play  with  the  trade  all 
the  autumn  and  winter,  with  the  result  that  in  a  full  season  as  many 
are  wasted  as  marketed,  while  the  foreigner,  by  growing  saleable  sorts 
and  putting  a  regular  supply  on  the  market,  secures  the  bulk  of  the 
trade  with  an  inferior  article. 
Tropical  fruits  come  in  very  small  quantities,  except  Oranges  and 
Bananas,  the  latter  increasing  in  popularity  each  year  ;  they  come  from 
Madeira  and  Canary  Islands  principally,  but  attempts  are  continually 
being  made  to  bring  them  in  good  condition  from  West  Indies  and  even 
South  America.  Mangoes,  Custard  Apples,  and  Avocado  Pears  from 
Madeira,  Lychee  Nuts  from  China,  and  an  annually  increasing  quantity 
of  Green  Figs,  Walnuts,  and  all  kinds  of  nuts  from  Spain,  Italy,  Greece, 
and  many  other  countries. 
Having  touched  briefly  on  our  fruits  and  the  sources  from  whence 
they  come,  I  think  we  must  arrive  at  the  following  conclusions  : — 
1,  That  the  English  are  becoming  much  larger  fruit  eaters  than  they 
were,  and  this  contributes  largely  to  the  decrease  of  drunkenness, 
amongst  the  lower  classes  especially. 
2,  That  an  attractive  and  suitable  package  is  always  of  great  assistance 
in  establishing  a  trade,  and  that  no  trade  can  be  made  without  a  steady 
and  constant  supply. 
3,  That  the  demand  having  increased  to  such  an  extent,  it  now  pays 
growers  to  devote  their  time  to  fewer  articles,  and  by  giving  their  whole 
attention  to  them,  are  more  likely  to  succeed  than  by  dabbling  in  every¬ 
thing.  The  grower  who  sends  the  largest  quantity  of  a  good  article 
regularly,  makeB  a  large  connection  for  his  goods,  and  we  can  often  sell 
out  a  large  consignment  to  better  advantage  than  a  small  one,  though 
the  quality  of  the  latter  may  be  equally  good. 
4,  And,  lastly,  that  the  old  parrot  cry  of  doing  away  with  the  middle¬ 
man  is,  or  should  be,  quite  exploded,  as  any  practical  grower  knows  it 
pays  him  best  to  devote  his  time  at  home  and  leave  the  selling  to  one 
who  makes  it  his  business  ;  and  a  very  difficult  business  it  often  is, 
as  it  is  most  ruinous  to  a  trade  to  take  advantage  of  an  apparent 
scarcity,  for  we  often  find  we  gain  a  few  shillings  and  perhaps  check 
the  trade  and  lose  pounds  in  getting  the  customers  on  to  them  again. 
The  distribution  of  fruit  is  a  business  in  itself,  and  as  the  old  cry  still 
occasionally  crops  up  in  our  horticultural  press,  I  cannot  resist  a  word 
in  behalf  of  the  importance  of  the  “middleman.” 
MR.  E.  MOLYNEUX  UP  TO  DATE. 
Several  years  ago  we  published  the  portrait  of  this  well-known 
gardener  when  he  was  near  the  zenith  of  his  Chrysanthemum 
growing  fame.  He  ha9  changed  since  then,  and  so  have  the  flowers, 
especially  the  Japanese  varieties.  Whether  he  would  take  the  same 
lead  in  competition  in  these  days  as  he  once  did  with  Japanese 
blooms,  is  a  moot  question.  We  have  more  imposing  varieties  now, 
and  there  are  more  skilled  growers  than  ever.  He  knows  very  well 
that  the  best  stands  of  ten  years  ago  would  have  no  chance  now  in 
leading  competitions.  There  has  not  been  the  same  striking  advance 
in  the  culture  of  incurved  blooms,  though  excellent  varieties  have  been 
raised,  which,  when  well  represented,  add  weight  to  exhibits  ;  yet,  we 
may  venture  to  say,  that  rarely  do  we  find  stands  of  them  that  excel, 
or  even  equal,  in  depth,  firmness,  and  superb  finish  combined,  those  of 
the  ci-devant  exhibitor  and  present  day  judge.  After  an  intimation  that 
we  should  give  a  recently  taken  portrait  of  Mr.  Molyneux,  we  had 
sundry  letters  referring  to  the  matter.  In  all  of  them,  from  writers 
who  had  been  in  correspondence  with  our  coadjutor,  but  had  not  seen 
him,  the  proposal  was  welcomed.  One  person,  however,  was  a  little 
inquisitive,  but  also  it  would  seem,  a  little  shy,  for,  without  disclosing  his 
identity,  he  managed  to  get  someone  else  to  write  and  ask  “  Why  we 
intended  giving  the  photo.”  The  bold  intermediary  had  a  private  reply, 
from  which  he  would  gather  that  his  question  was  considered  premature, 
and  he  will,  perhaps,  not  consent  in  haste  to  be  a  secondhand  fisherman 
again.  We  give  the  portrait — 1,  Because  we  have  been  requested  to  do 
so  entirely  unknown  to  Mr.  Molyneux  ;  and,  2,  because  he  has  bestowed 
more  pains  and  labour  in  carrying  out  the  recent  Chrysanthemum 
election,  including  the  tedious  and  time-absorbing  nature  of  the  tabula¬ 
tion,  than  persons  who  have  not  had  experience  in  such  work  can  have 
little  idea.  As  he  has,  as  far  as  he  could,  shown  Chrysanthemums  up  to 
date,  we  do  not  think  the  occasion  inappropriate  for  showing  the 
returning  officer  “  up  to  date,”  and  that  is  the  “  reason  why  ”  he  is 
privileged  to  appear  in  connection  with  the  work  that  he  has  done 
so  well. 
CHRYSANTHEMUMS  UP  TO  DATE. 
In  our  issue  of  February  20th,  the  votes  in  Mr.  Molyneux’s  analysis 
for  fifty  Japanese,  twenty-four  Japanese,  and  twelve  new  Japanese  were 
published,  and  we  now  complete  the  work  by  giving  the  votes  for 
thirty-six  and  twenty-four  incurved.  This  section,  like  the  other,  will 
be  found  extremely  interesting. 
Votes  for  Thirty-six 
99  Lord  Alcester 
99  Empress  of  India 
99  Jeanne  d’Arc 
98  Queen  of  England 
96  Princess  of  Wales 
96  Mrs.  S.  Coleman 
95  Charles  H.  Curtis 
Incurved  Varieties. 
95  Miss  M.  A.  Haggas 
95  Baron  Hirsch 
94  Miss  Violet  Tomlin 
94  Robert  Petfield 
92  James  Agate 
92  Madame  Darier 
91  *  Golden  Empress  of  India 
