July  29,  1897, 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
97 
Events  of  the  Week.  —  Though  the  season  of  Roses  is  almost 
done  horticulturists  will  still  be  busy  amongst  the  several  provincial 
shows,  of  which  Southampton  on  Saturday  and  Monday,  and  North¬ 
ampton  on  the  latter  day  and  Tuesday,  are  amongst  the  most  important. 
- The  Weather  in  London. — Since  our  last  issue  went  on  to 
the  machines  rain  has  fallen  heavily  in  the  metropolis.  On  Wednesday, 
2l8t,  jast  as  the  pages  were  being  finished  a  terrific  storm  was  raging  in 
the  north  of  London.  Almost  daily  since  then  there  have  been  local 
thunderstorms  with  heavy  rains,  and  these  latter  will  do  a  considerable 
amount  of  good  in  suburban  gardens. 
-  Bishops  Stortford  Show, — One  hundred  and  ninety-seven 
classes  are  particularised  in  the  schedule  of  the  show  of  the  Bishops 
Stortford  Hortlcultnral  Society,  which  is  fixed  for  Wednesday,  Aug.  11th, 
There  do  not  appear  to  be  any  open  classes,  notwithstanding  which  fact 
the  exhibition  should  be  a  good  one.  J.  Barker,  Esq.,  has  kindly  given 
permission  to  hold  the  show  at  The  Grange.  The  Hon.  Secretary  is  Mr. 
W.  Smith,  Bishops  Stortford. 
-  The  Manresa  Vine. — The  famous  Vine  at  Manresa  House, 
Roehampton,  the  seven  rods  of  which  in  the  aggregate  extend  over  a 
quarter  of  a  mile,  has  this  year  ripened  1030  bunches  of  Grapes — good 
bunches,  with  fine  berries  of  excellent  quality,  though,  perhaps,  not 
quite  so  well  finished  as  when  the  crop  was  somewhat  lighter.  They 
have,  all  the  same,  been  good  enough  for  the  Royal  tables,  large  consign¬ 
ments  having  been  sent  to  Windsor  Castle  to  supplement  the  supplies  of 
the  Royal  gardens  during  this  season  of  abnormal  demands  and  extra¬ 
ordinary  consumption.  No  man  in  the  kingdom  will  be  prouder  than 
Mr.  M.  Davis  is — the  planter  of  this  remarkable  Vine — “to  serve  the 
Queen  ”  with  Grapes. 
-  Border  Carnation  Mrs.  A.  Harkett. — This  is  a  fine, 
admirably  formed  perfumed  flower,  colour  rosy  carmine,  which  the 
raiser,  Mr.  Harkett  of  the  Rectory  Gardens,  Petersham,  exhibited  in 
bunch  form  at  the  recent  village  show.  The  variety  is  a  robust  grower, 
having  grass  of  the  character  of  the  well-known  Gloire  de  Nancy  type.  The 
flowers,  though  of  good  size,  do  not  split  the  calyx,  a  remarkable  charac¬ 
teristic  almost  in  good  sized  Carnations  now.  I  like  the  variety  very 
much,  and  grown  under  the  best  conditions — for  at  Petersham  the  plants 
are  simply  border-grown — the  flowers  should  rank  amongst  the  very 
best  of  the  colour.  The  hue  is  one  of  the  most  pleasing  the  Carnation 
■gives. — A.  D. 
-  Potato  Scab. — Potato  scab  was  so  prevalent  in  some  parts 
last  year  that  it  was  impossible  to  find  in  certain  districts  a  sample  of 
‘Potatoes  entirely  free  from  it.  This  disease  greatly  injures  the 
appearance  of  the  tuber,  and  entails  much  loss  to  the  grower.  Certain 
remedies  were  tried  recently  in  Canada  for  the  same  disease.  Three 
rows  66  feet  long  were  planted  with  very  scabby  Early  Rose  Potatoes. 
The  whole  tubers  in  one  plot  were  treated  with  a  solution  of  corrosive 
chloride  of  mercury  (corrosive  sublimate),  made  by  dissolving  2  ozi. 
of  corrosive  sublimate  in  15  gallons  of  cold  water ;  the  Potatoes 
were  allowed  to  stand  in  this  liquid  for  two  hours,  drained, 
then  cut  into  two-eye  sets,  and  planted.  Plot  No.  2  was  planted  with 
Potatoes  treated  with  a  liquid  composed  of  1  lb.  of  bluestone  (sulphate 
of  copper),  dissolved  in  three  pails  of  water ;  the  whole  tubers  were 
immersed  for  two  hours  in  the  liquid,  then  cut  up  and  planted.  Plot 
No.  3  was  planted  in  the  same  manner  with  the  untreated  tubers.  None 
of  the  “  treated  ’’  Potatoes  would  have  been  considered  scabby  by  the 
average  purchaser,  The  bluestone  treatment,  however,  was  found  to 
seriously  injure  the  germination  of  the  seed  Potato,  and  only  about 
■40  per  cent,  grew,  and  there  was  in  consequence  a  small  yield.  Although 
the  corrosive  sublimate  treatment  did  not  completely  eradicate  the  scab, 
the  injury,  says  a  contemporary,  was  very  slight.  The  treatment  with 
bluestone  was  nearly  as  effective  in  preventing  scab  as  the  corrosive 
sublimate  ;  but  the  germination  of  the  tubers  was  so  badly  injured  that 
the  crop  was  greatly  reduced.  Corrosive  sublimate  is  a  virulent  poison 
when  swallowed  by  man  or  beast,  and  great  care  should  be  used  to 
prevent  accidents  ;  but  no  injury  results  from  handling  the  fluid  of  the 
proper  strength. 
-  Cyclamen  Culture.— “H.  T.  M.,  Stoneleigh,"  writes: — 
Please  correct  an  error  which  appears  in  my  article  on  page  70,  as  I  am 
afraid  it  will  mislead  some  of  your  readers.  The  paragraph  I  refer  to 
reads  thus  :  “  When  they  show  the  second  leaf  is  the  right  time  to  pot 
singly  in  thumb  pots,  keeping  them  on  a  light  shelf  in  a  oool  tempera¬ 
ture  all  winter.”  For  cool  read  lO'irm  temperature;  [The  word  “  cool  ” 
was  clearly  written  in  the  manuscript,  and  we  did  not  feel  justified  in 
altering  it.] 
-  Isle  of  Wight. — The  flower  show  in  connection  with  the 
Royal  Isle  of  Wight  Agricultural  Society  was  held  at  Ryde  on  Wednes¬ 
day  and  Thursday,  July  2l8t  and  22nd.  Both  days,  unfortunately, 
were  showery.  The  number  of  entries  fell  below  last  year,  but  the 
exhibits  were  up  to  the  average.  The  principal  exhibitors  were 
Messrs.  Kent,  Grist,  Niblett,  Brook,  Goble,  Wolfe,  Price  and  Leak. 
Mr,  Goble  obtained  for  his  excellent  stand  of  Carnations  the  Isle  of 
Wight  Horticultural  Improvement  Association’s  Certificate  for  Cultural 
Merit. 
- Northamptonshire  Horticultural  Society. — On  Bank 
Holiday,  August  2ad,  and  the  following  day  the  above  Society  will  hold 
its  sixteenth  annual  Show  in  Delapre  Park,  Northampton.  As  has  been 
the  custom  in  previous  years  an  excellent  schedule  has  been  compiled, 
and  the  prizes  offered  in  each  division  should  bring  together  an  admirable 
display  of  garden  produce.  There  are  open  and  restricted  classes.  In 
addition  to  the  flowers,  fruits,  and  vegetables  there  will  be  other  inter¬ 
esting  attractions.  The  Secretary  is  Mr.  W.  B.  Troup,  5,  Deangate» 
Northampton. 
-  The  Beddington,  Carshalton,  and  Wallington  Horti¬ 
cultural  Society. — The  annual  exhibition  of  this  Society,  probably 
the  best  of  its  kind  in  Surrey — the  produce  of  allotments  and  cottage 
gardens — will  be  held  on  Bank  Holiday,  August  2 ad,  in  Beddington 
Park,  near  Hackbridge  Station,  on  the  L.B.  &  S.C.  Railway.  A  con¬ 
ference  is  to  be  held  at  five  o’clock,  at  which  it  is  announced  that  ques¬ 
tions  will  be  answered  on  any  gardening  subject,  and  advice  given  on 
any  difficulties  that  may  be  experienced  with  flowers,  fruit,  or  vegetables 
by  Mr.  J.  Wright  ;  while  Mr.  A.  Dean  will  treat  on  the  condition  of 
cottage  gardens  and  allotments,  and  make  suggestions  for  future 
improvements. 
-  Turnip  and  Tap-rooted  Beets. — I  have  specially  noticed 
of  late  the  general  excellence  of  the  Egyptian  Turnip-rooted  section  this 
year.  These  roots  figure  prominently  and  well  on  exhibition  tables  in 
July.  I  cannot  say  so  much  for  the  tap-rooted  varieties,  for  it  is  evident 
their  time  is  not  in  July,  and,  indeed,  hardly  in  August,  except  towards 
the  end  of  that  month.  The  pulling  of  these  tap-rooted  forms  to  exhibit 
in  the  summer  leads  to  great  waste,  not  only  because  the  selected  roots 
are  too  immature  to  be  used,  but  so  many  others  are  pulled  and  rendered 
useless  in  the  process  of  selection.  Would  it  not  be  well  that  these  tap- 
rooted  forms  be  eliminated  from  schedules  until  later  in  August,  as  the 
Turnip-rooted  forms  are  so  much  more  in  season  at  the  present  time?  — 
Observer. 
-  Sutton’s  Peerless  Pea. — Although  I  have  had  under  my 
charge  this  season  numerous  very  fine  Peas,  this  variety  is,  I  regret  to 
find,  not  included.  I  met  with  it  the  other  day  under  interesting 
circumstances — judging  cottage  gardens,  and  at  Hook,  Surrey,  I  was 
taken  up  a  farm  road  to  a  couple  of  cottages  occupied  by  cowmen 
employed  on  the  farm.  These  men  have  to  rise  and  commence  work 
feeding  and  milking  cows  at  3  A.M.,  have  a  few  hours  for  rest  in  the 
middle  of  the  day,  then  resume  work  again  about  two  o’clock,  and  keep 
on  till  late.  It  is  a  hard  life,  no  doubt,  but  it  is  under  such  labour 
conditions  as  these  that  the  men  cultivate  their  cottage  gardeus.  The 
soil,  to  make  matters  more  difficult,  is  a  very  stiff  stubborn  clay,  and 
when  I  recently  saw  it  the  surface  was  like  half  bricks,  being  baked  into 
hard  lumps.  Yet  the  crops  generally  were,  for  such  soil,  excellent,  and 
showed  that  any  partial  failures  here  and  there  were  in  no  sense  due  to 
lack  of  labour  or  energy.  It  was  in  each  of  these  gardens  I  found 
Sutton’s  Peerless  Pea.  The  men  had  no  doubt  purchased  some  seed  and 
shared  them,  for  each  one  had  a  good  row.  The  variety  grows  to  3  feet 
in  height,  is  stout  and  sturdy,  and  a  great  cropper,  carrying  very  fine, 
long,  slightly  curved  pods,  very  handsome,  and  well  filled.  They 
quite  took  both  myself  and  fellow  Judges  by  surprise,  and  each  made  a 
note  of  the  variety  for  next  year’s  use.  Although  we  had  seen  some 
good  Peas  before  none  equalled  these  fine,  pods  of  Peerless.  It  is  very 
evidently  a  first-class  addition  to  that  desirable  race — 3-feet  Marrow 
Peas,  and  should  be  universally  gT0.v?n.  ^he  peas  are  green,  tender » 
and  sugary. — A.  D. 
