Anguet  20,  18D6. 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER,  i?9 
— ■  Fbeesias. — Having  just  turned  out  my  pots  of  Freesia  refracta 
alba  and  F.  Leichtlini  major,  selected  the  bulbs  into  sizes  and  potted 
them,  a  short  note  on  the  subject  may  be  acceptable  to  some  readers. 
Six  and  7-inch  pots  were  washed  clean,  dried,  and  carefully  crocked. 
A  compost  was  prepared  consisting  of  loam  and  leaf  soil  with  an 
admixture  of  sand.  A  few  fibrous  parts  of  the  com{x>st  were  laid  on  the 
crocks  to  keep  the  soil  from  washing  down  among  them.  Then  each  pot 
was  three  parts  filled  with  soil,  gently  made  firm  and  level.  On  this 
the  bulbs  were  placed  as  nearly  equal  in  size  as  possible  for  each  pot, 
not  more  than  an  inch  apart.  They  were  covered  with  soil  just  so 
that  the  tips  were  buried,  the  pots  placed  in  a  frame,  and  completely 
covered  over  with  cocoa-nut  fibre  or  ashes,  until  the  bulbs  start  into 
growth. — E. 
- American  Apples. — While  the  export  trade  in  Apples  will 
not  open  for  weeks  to  come,  much  interest  is  displayed  in  foreign 
crop  prospects  and  the  possibilities  attending  this  branch  of  the  busi¬ 
ness.  Dealers  on  both  sides  of  the  ocean  do  not  anticipate  much 
business  in  late  summer  Apples,  but  express  hopes  that  with  the 
opening  of  the  regular  season  next  autumn  a  good  many  will  be 
wanted.  Our  foreign  correspondents  report  only  a  moderate  crop  of 
summer  fruit.  In  England  the  promise  continues  for  a  good  supply, 
though  not  so  general  as  last  year,  a  partial  drought  period  in  that 
country  affecting  orchards.  It  is  now  believed  that  the  crop  will  fill 
out  well,  supplying  home  demands  during  the  next  two  months.  In 
nearly  all  parts  of  Germany  only  a  small  crop  is  expected,  and  there  is 
a  good  prospect  for  American  and  Canadian  Apples  during  the  coming 
winter  season.  Summer  and  autumn  stock  would  not  sell  advantageously. 
Baldwins  are  a  favourite  variety  in  German  markets.  Other  fruit  crops 
are  yielding  or  promise  fairly  well  both  on  the  Continent  and  in  the  United 
Kingdom.  Non-keeping  sorts  are  those  mostly  grown  in  Great  Britain, 
and  they  must  be  sold  quickly  and  consumed  at  once,  leaving  the  way 
clear  for  liberal  quantities  of  sound  American  winter  stock.  A  leading 
dealer  at  Hamburg,  Germany,  recommends  for  that  market  the  ship¬ 
ment  of  only  prime  winter  Apples.  A  firm  of  Apple  dealers  at  Liverpool 
look  for  a  demand  for  choice  stock  later  in  the  year,  but  say  it  is 
impossible  to  form  any  idea  of  values  this  early.  The  effort  made  in 
some  quarters  to  establish  an  export  trade  in  Apples  packed  in  boxes 
has  up  to  the  present  time  been  only  measurably  successful,  foreign 
dealers,  as  a  rule,  preferring  the  standard  barrel  package.  —  (“The 
American  Agriculturist.”) 
CUCUMBER  PLANT  DISEASED. 
I  enclose  the  roots  of  a  Cucumber  plant.  Up  to  within  the  last 
few  days  the  plants  in  a  house,  50  feet  long,  have  been  healthy  and  full 
of  fruit  (only  just  come  into  full  bearing),  now  they  have  nearly  all 
flagged  down  and  died,  some  remaining  as  fresh  as  possible,  but  I  expect 
the  lot  will  go.  Can  you  account  for  it  by  an  examination  of  the  roo's  7 
— Kayneb  Hill. 
[The  roo‘-8tem  of  the  Cucumber  plant  is  clubbed,  and  the  cause  of 
that  is  attack  by  the  root-gall  eel  worm  (Heterodera  radicicola),  which 
is  in  the  free  state  on  the  rotten  part  of  the  stem,  and  in  the  fertilised 
state  within  the  galled  portion  of  the  roots.  We  mention  this  as  it  will 
be  doing  well  to  lift  the  diseased  plants  very  carefully,  so  as  to  remove 
as  much  of  the  roots  as  possible,  and  burn  them.  This  will  prevent 
those  in  the  free  state  passing  to  the  other  plants,  or  from  continuing 
their  existence.  Every  knob  contains  several  fertilised  females,  which 
will  give  rise  to  between  200  and  800  each  of  eelworm,  a  pair  of  these 
being  capable  of  producing  a  similar  number,  or  22,500  eel  worms  from  a 
single  gail.  We  further  advise  your  watering  the  whole  of  the  soil  with  a 
solution  of  kainit,  2  ozs.  to  a  gallon  of  water,  where  the  diseased  plants 
have  been,  and  where  the  plants  are  healthy,  with  a  solution  of  the 
same  at  a  strength  of  1  oz.  to  a  gallon  of  water,  giving  a  similar  amount 
per  acre  as  in  watering  the  plants.  Let  these  act  for  twenty-four  hours, 
then  follow  where  the  diseased  plants  have  been  with  a  solution  of 
nitrate  of  soda,  2  ozs.  to  a  gallon,  and  where  the  plants  are  healthy,  or 
apparently  to,  with  a  solution  of  the  same  at  a  strength  of  1  oz.  to  ^ 
gallon  of  water.  This  is  a  manurial  measure,  and,  according  to  experi¬ 
ments  we  have  carried  out  during  the  last  three  years  with  both  Cucum¬ 
bers  and  Tomatoes,  thoroughly  efficacious.  It  will  kill  the  free  eel- 
worms,  and  also  the  fertilised  females  in  the  galls. 
If  the  plants  are  not  too  far  gone,  they  will  recover  and  produce 
good  crops  indefinitely,  for  once  the  soil  and  plants  are  thoroughly  free<i 
from  the  eelworms  danger  is  at  an  end.  But  nothing  will  restore  the 
impaired  or  destroyed  tissue,  therefore  it  is  necessary  to  encourage  fresh 
roots  from  the  collar  of  the  plants  by  top-dressing  with  good  loam,  then 
they  will  sustain  the  top-growth  in  vigorous  health,  even  when  the  roots 
have  been  serionsly  injur^  by  the  eelworm.  There  were  also  a  number 
of  bacterial  bodies  associated  with  the  decay,  but  they  were  all  septic, 
and  in  nowise  the  cause,  but  the  consequence  of  the  decay  set  up  by  the 
eelwormi. — G.  A  ] 
SHREWSBURY  FLORAL  FETE. 
To-day  (Wednesday)  sees  the  opening  of  the  twenty-second  annual 
Floral  F6te  held  under  the  auspices  of  the  Shrewsbury  Horticultural 
Society.  Year  after  year  the  show  has  been  growing  larger,  and  each 
season  it  becomes  more  important  and  influential.  With  its  almost 
phenomenal  growth  it  must  not  be  considered  that  the  produce  staged 
has  deteriorated  in  quality  ;  on  the  contrary,  it  has  steadily  and  surely 
improved.  With  praiseworthy  foresight  the  Committee  has  almost  every 
year  brought  forward  some  new  class  or  new  attractions  to  make  the 
exhibition  as  complete  as  possible.  This  year  sees  the  introduction  of 
one  or  two  new  features,  to  which  particular  attention  was  called  in 
our  leader  last  week.  Taking  it  as  a  whole,  this  present  show  is  superb, 
and  in  dissecting  it  a  little  we  should  say  that  the  plants  and  flowers 
make  the  best  feature.  In  the  limited  time  at  our  command  we  cannot 
possibly  do  more  than  give  the  prizewinners  in  a  few  of  the  principal 
classes,  as  telegraphed  by  our  representative,  but  next  week  a  full 
report  will  be  placed  before  our  readers.  Though  heavy  rain  fell  early 
this  morning  it  cleared  later,  and  it  is  to  be  hoped  the  weather  will  remain 
fine  over  the  two  days.  The  entries  are  very  numerous,  and  it  is  the 
finest  show  the  Society  has  ever  held.  As  customary,  the  arrangements 
made  by  Messrs.  Adnitt  and  Naunton,  the  Honorary  Secretaries,  were 
splendidly  complete,  and  reflected  on  them  and  their  coadjutors  the 
very  highest  credit. 
Four  prizes  were  offered  in  the  class  for  a  group  of  miscellaneous 
plants  in  or  out  of  bloom,  arranged  for  effect,  in  a  space  of  300  square 
feet.  These  were  respectively  ^25,  £16,  £12,  and  £10,  and  it  is  almost 
superfluous  to  say  that  the  arrangements  were  of  the  very  best.  The 
lightness  and  grace  was  secured  at  considerable  trouble  and  by  using 
material  of  the  highest  quality.  Mr.  J.  Cypher,  Cheltenham',  was  first ; 
Mr.  Mee,  Nottingham,  second  ;  and  Mr.  Edmonds,  Bestwood,  third. 
A  class  that  is  always  attractive  at  Shrewsbury  is  for  twenty  stove 
and  greenhouse  plants,  of  which  not  less  than  twelve  must  be  in  bloom. 
The  prizes  here,  again,  cannot  be  termed  other  than  generous,  for  they 
are  £25  and  £20,  there  being  only  these  two  scheduled.  Mr.  J.  Cypher, 
with  magn'ficent  examples  of  first-class  culture,  secured  the  coveted 
premier  award  from  Mr,  Finch,  Coventry,  who  also  showed  in  admirable 
form. 
Prizes  of  £5,  £4,  and  £3  were  offered  in  a  class  open  to  all  England 
for  six  distinct  Orchids  in  flower.  Naturally  the  specimens  staged  were 
well  up  to  the  mark  in  all  respects,  especially  these  of  Mr.  J.  Cypher, 
who  secured  the  first  prize. 
Nurserymen  and  all  residents  without  the  boundaries  of  the  county 
of  Shropshire  were  excluded  from  a  class  for  a  group  of  miscellaneous 
plants  in  and  out  of  bloom,  arranged  to  produce  the  best  possible  effect 
in  a  space  of  100  square  feet.  Again  the  contributions  were  extremely 
meritorious,  and  reflect  high  credit  on  Messrs,  Kynnersley,  Leighton 
Hall  and  France,  Hayhurst,  the  fortunate  exhibitora. 
Turning  now  from  plants  to  the  cut  flowers  we  come  ♦'o  a  display  of 
the  most  braitiful,  most  diversified,  and  most  interesting  character. 
The  classes  are  numerous,  the  prizes  distinctly  liberal,  and  the  exhibitors 
men  who  have  won  or  are  winning  their  sours  in  the  horticultural  arena. 
The  chief  class,  to  quote  the  schedule,  is  for  “  a  display  of  floral  arrange¬ 
ments,  in  a  space  12  feet  by  5  feet.  Any  design  in  flowers  admissible, 
entirely  at  the  discretion  of  the  exhibitor.”  The  prizes,  four  in  number, 
were  £12  IOa,  £10,  £7  lOs ,  and  £5.  and  the  first  three  winners  were 
Messrs.  Perkins  &  Sons,  Coventry  ;  Jenkinson  &  Jones,  Shrewbury,  in 
the  order  named. 
To  the  greatest  fruit  class  we  called  specific  attention  last  week, 
and  shall  not,  therefore,  go  into  details  again  here.  It  is  termed  in 
the  schedule  a  “  decorative  dessert  table,”  and  the  best  was  arranged 
by  Mr.  Meindoe,  who  scored  96^  points  ;  Mr.  Gleeson,  Stanmore,  was 
second  with  92^  points  ;  and  Mr.  Goodacre  third  with  88.J  points.  There 
were  five  competitors  in  this  class. 
For  a  collection  of  twelve  dishes  of  fruit,  not  less  than  six  kinds 
or  more  than  two  varieties  of  any  one  kind,  the  competition  was  very 
keen,  as  the  produce  staged  was  of  exceptionally  high  quality.  The 
class  was  open  to  all  comers,  and  the  exhibit  from  Mr.  Harris,  Eastnor 
Castle,  who  secured  the  first  prize,  was  very  good  indeed.  Mr.  MeIndoe, 
Guisborough,  was  second,  and  Mr.  Goodacre,  Elvaston,  third. 
Grapes  are  always  shown  in  the  best  of  condition  at  Shrewsbury,  and 
this  season  proved  no  exception  to  the  rule.  Our  reporter  wires  that 
Mr.  Campbell,  Mickleover,  with  Gros  Colman  and  Black  Hamburgh, 
was  placed  first  in  the  class  for  four  bunches  of  black  Grapes  in  two 
varieties,  followed  by  Messrs.  Lambeit,  Oswestry  and  Goodacre ; 
while  in  a  similar  class  for  white  Grapes  the  successful  stagers  were 
Messrs.  McDonald,  Clanna  ;  J.  Craven,  Allerton  ;  and  Goodacre. 
An  innovation  to  this  show  was  what  was  termed  a  “garden 
produce  class,”  and  of  which  we  gave  an  extract  on  page  146  of  our  last 
issue.  The  competition  in  this  class  was  splendid.  Mr.  Waite,  Esher, 
was  first  with  86^  points,  Mr.  Goodacre  second  with  84^  points,  and  Mr. 
Meindoe  third  with  83^  points. 
