270 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER, 
September  16,  1897. 
to  the  shade  and  coolness  beneath  the  trees  here  must  be  extremely 
pleasant  for  the  visitors  to  this  lovely  domain.  From  hence  we  made  our 
wa}^  towards  the  quaint  old  town  of  Tetbury,  delighted  with  the  beauties 
of  Westonbirt,  and  convinced  that  the  day  had  been  most  profitably 
spent. — H.  .1.  Wright.  ■ 
LIYETiPOOL  AND  DDSTJiK'T  FPUIT  REPORTS. 
Following  my  system  of  last  year  I  am  sending  the  usual  fruit 
reports  from  our  district,  taken  from  gardens  where  hardy  fruit  is  well 
grown,  and  where  the  collections  are  kept  pretty  well  up  to  date.  The 
situations  are  varied,  and  may  be  taken  as  fairly  characteristic  of  the 
districts  mentioned. 
Cleveley,  Allerton. 
Mr.  Cromwell  has  planted  extensively  of  late  years,  and  has  now  a 
grand  collection  of  young  pyramids  in  full  bearing.  Early  kinds  of 
Apples  are  much  the  best,  this  being  attributed  to  the  fruit  having  been 
set  prior  to  the  severe  frosts  the  third  week  in  May,  which  seemed  to 
destroy  the  blossoms  on  late  growing  kinds.  Pears  in  the  open  are  better 
than  on  cordons  on  walls,  although  much  below  the  average.  Plums,  nil. 
Strawberries  have  been  excellent,  the  varieties  grown  being  Royal  Sovereign. 
Scarlet  Queen,  President,  and  Due  de  Malakoif.  Stevens’  “Wonder  Mr. 
Cromwell  has  not  succeeded  with,  either  in  pots  or  planted  out.  Of 
Raspberries  Superlative  is  fine.  Blackberries  increase  in  favour,  Mr. 
Cromwell  advising  their  cultivation  most  emphatically  for  preserving  with 
Apples.  The  arch,  30  yards  long  by  9  feet  wide,  is  just  now  clustered 
with  ripe  fruit,  from  20  to  30  lbs.  being  gathered  on  the  6th  inst. 
Allerton  Priory. 
Mr.  Craven  grows  hardy  fruit  to  the  best  advantage,  although  the 
trees  are  very  old.  Apples  are  moderate,  some  good,  notably  on  standards. 
Pomerov  of  Lancashire  (a  highly  coloured  local  variety,  and  wonderful 
cropper),  Warner’s  King,  Lord  Derby,  Ecklinville,  and  King  of  the  Pippins. 
Pyramids  are  better — Lane’s  Prince  Albert,  Ribston  Pippin,  Worcester 
Pearmain,  Potts’  Seedling,  Cox’s  Orange  Pippin.  Cellini,  usually  good, 
is  this  season  a  complete  failure.  Plums  and  Damsons  are  failures. 
Cherries  almost  so.  (iooseberries  and  Black  Currants  good.  Reds  fairly 
so  ;  Pears  thin.  Jargonelle,  Beurni  de  Amanhs,  and  Durondeau  being  the 
best. 
Calderstone,  Aigburth. 
Apples  are  a  fair  average  crop.  Pears  are  the  same,  Mr.  Tunnington 
praising  the  good  shelter  from  the  cold  winds  and  May  frosts.  Peaches 
and  Nectarines  outdoors  are  carefully  cultivated,  in  splendid  condition  in 
every  respect,  the  crop  being  abundant,  showing  what  can  be  done  in  this 
respect  at  the  present  time,  but  wasps  are  most  troublesome.  Ajiricots  in 
the  open  arc  more  than  half  a  crop,  but  Plums  are  a  failure.  Small  fruits 
have  been  good. 
Elm  Hall,  M'avertree. 
Hardy  fruit  has  been  much  improved  since  Mr.  Bracegirdle  came  inti> 
charge.  Apples  are  a  good  crop,  especially  “Warner’s  King,  Keswick 
Codlin,  Sutfields,  Grosvenois,  Ecklinville,  Stirling  Castle,  Bismarck. 
Lane’s  Prince  Albert.  Of  dessert  Irish  Peach,  King  of  Pippins,  and 
Ribstons  ax’e  the  best.  The  Russet  section  is  not  so  plentiful.  Pears  are 
fairly  good,  .largonelle,  Marie  Louise,  Louise  Bonne  of  Jersey,  Durondeau, 
Clapps  Favourite,  Pitmaston  Duchess,  and  Winter  Nelis  being  fine. 
Plums  and  Cherries  have  been  very  scarce.  Figs,  Apricots,  and  Peaches 
slightly  protected  very  good.  Small  fruits  have  been  plentiful. 
Highfield,  M^oolton. 
The  Apple  crop,  always  good  with  Mr.  Haigh,  is  this  year  excellent. 
Pears  in  the  ojien  are  a  failure,  but  there  is  a  good  average  crop  on  walls. 
Plums  are  in  the  same  position.  Of  small  fruits.  Gooseberries,  Red  anrl 
Black  Currants  have  been  half  a  crop,  with  Raspberries  quite  up  to  the 
average,  and  Strawberries  very  good. 
Knowsley  Hall. 
Apples  are  very  good,  the  best  being  Lord  Derby,  Lord  Suffield, 
Bismarck,  Schoolmaster,  Cellini,  Potts’  Seedling,  Yorkshire  Greening, 
Ribston,  Blenheim,  and  King  of  Pippins.  Pears  are  under  average  iu 
quantity  and  quality.  Bush  fruit  has  been  a  fair  crop,  whilst  the  best 
Strawberries  have  been  British  Queen,  Hoyal  Sovereign,  Leader,  a  grand 
addition  ;  Latest  of  All.  and  Oxonian.  Plums,  as  in  most  places,  are  a 
complete  failure.  ^Ir.  Doe  has  the  trees  in  capital  condition. 
Court  Hey,  Broadgreen, 
Apples  are  a  fine  crop  throughout  ;  Pears  very  poor,  the  fine  cordons 
on  the  wall  have  suffered  much  from  May  frosts.  Bush  fruits  have  been 
a  very  fair  crop,  and  Strawberries  good. 
Blacklow  House,  Roby. 
We  have  an  excellent  supply  of  all  kinds  of  Apples,  many  of  which 
have  had  to  be  thinned.  Bi  amley’s  Seedling  fruiting  for  the  first  time 
promises  to  be  a  welcome  addition.  Pears  are  not  a  heavy  crop,  but  of 
good  form,  and  with  a  fine  September  will  improve  greatly.  Such  sorts 
as  Citron  des  Carmes,  Beurres  Capiaumont,  Diel,  d’Amanlis  and  Bose, 
Hacon’s  Incomparable,  Magnate,  Marie  Louise,  Prince  Consort,  and  the 
delicious  Doyenne'  du  Cornice,  are  all  well  cropped.  Gooseberries,  all 
kinds  of  Currants,  and  Strawberries  have  been  first-rate,  but  Plums  and 
Cherries  almost  a  failure.  Liquid  manure  has  had  to  be  used  freely,  as 
the  majority  of  our  trees  are  bordering  on  the  half  century. 
Oaklands,  Spital. 
Mr.  Ranson,  who  has  seen  twenty- three  years’  crops  gathered  in,  says 
this  season’s  is  certainly  the  worst.  Ajiples  are  a  first-rate  crop  and  fine 
fruit.  Pears  bbing  about  a  third.  This  is  a  noted  Damson  and  Plum 
district,  but  the  crop  is  almost  nil  for  miles  round,  a  hundred  fruits  of  the 
latter  having  to  suffice  for  Mr.  Ranson  in  place  of  some  3  or  4  cwt.  in 
former  years.  Strawberries  and  Raspberries  have  1  een  capital,  but  failure 
must  be  written  of  the  Currant  crop. — R.  P.  R. 
VIOLA  NOTES. 
Violas  to  blooin  well  over  a  lengthened  period  require  a  rich  and 
moist  soil,  not  necessarily  wet,  but  one  which  will  supjiort  the  plants  in 
dry  weather.  Even  a  light,  well-drained  soil,  rich  in  humus  by  liberal 
dressings  of  manure  and  leaf  soil,  will  give  stamina  to  plants  in  dry 
weather,  enabling  them  to  withstand  its  effects  with  better  results  than  are 
produced  from  plants  in  a  heavier-textured  soil.  Violas,  it  must  be  borne 
in  mind,  are  not  marsh  plants  ;  they  grow  on  knolls,  or  slopes,  or  in 
ground  free  from  stagnant  water  ;  therefore,  though  a  moist  soil  be 
desirable,  it  should  be  well  drained,  moisture  being  afforded  by  supplies 
of  water  in  a  prolonged  dry  period. 
Ground  for  Violas  ought  to  be  trenched  or  stirred  to  a  depth  of  15  to 
18  inches,  as  good  soil  admits.  It  is  of  no  use  going  down  with  a  view 
to  bringing  to  the  surface  matter  which,  before  it  can  be  available  as 
food  for  jilants,  requires  amelioration  by  atmospheric  inffuence  and  an 
addition  of  organic  substance.  Trench  the  ground'in  autumn,  putting  in 
some  partially  decayed  vegetable  refuse  not  further  from  the  surface  than 
a  foot ;  and  if  the  ground  will  not  admit  of  being  turned  up  deeper  loosen 
the  under  strata,  placing  the  manure  upon  it,  throwing  the  surface  rough 
for  the  winter.  In  spring  dress  the  surface  with  leaf  soil  or  manure 
Plants  raised  from  seed  grow  more  upright  and  do  not  branch  nearly 
so  well,  and  are  not,  for  a  time  at  least,  so  fforiferous  as  are  those  from, 
cuttings.  Seedlings  are  not  good  the  first  year  ;  it  is  not  until  the  plants- 
are  cut  down  that  dependance  can  be  placed  upon  seedlings  for  a  full 
display  :  hence  I  do  not  advise  the  plants  to  be  raised  from  seed  except  for 
the  origination  of  improved  varieties.  Those,  however,  who  wish  to  raise- 
plants  from  seed  may  sow  the  seed  the  middle  of  August  up  to  early 
September  in  light  rich  soil  in  a  sheltered  situation,  pricking  out  the  seed¬ 
lings  3  inches  apart  in  a  sheltered  spot  in  October,  and  planting  them  in 
.  March  or  early  in  April. 
Cuttings  give  the  best  and  most  floriferous  plants.  Take  the  cuttings- 
towards  the  end  of  September  or  first  week  in  October.  Choose  for  them 
a  sheltered  border — under  a  low  wall  or  fence — and  moderately  rich  soil,, 
made  fine  and  level,  surfacing  with  a  thin  layer  of  sand.  Let  the  cuttings 
be  of  the  shoots  which  spring  from  the  base  of  the  plants,  not  using  the 
exhausted  ffower  growths,  and  about  to  3  inches  long,  pricking  them  in. 
about  half  their  length  2  inches  apart,  firming  them  well  in,  completing, 
with  a  good  watering.  In  a  very  bleak  position  the  cuttings  may  be  put 
in  a  frame  and  wintered  in  every  respect  like  Calceolarias. 
Flapt  them  out  in  spring  before  dry  weather  sets  in,  and  in  no  case 
defer  their  planting  until  the  usual  time  of  bedding,  for  Violas  and 
Calceolarias  are  not  able  to  contend  with  drought  if  it  come  upon  them 
before  their  roots  have  obtained  a  good  hold  of  the  soil.  Short  duration 
of  bloom  and  sudden  collapse  are  due  to  late  planting. 
Plants  from  cuttings  made  in  early  October  will  give  an  effective 
summer  display,  but  not  unfrequently  Viola  beds  become  seedy  in 
autumn,  as,  indeed,  all  plants  do  that  have  been  in  a  high  state  of  perfec¬ 
tion  during  the  hot  summer  months.  For  a  late  or  autumn  bloom,, 
cuttings  may  be  put  in  in  May  or  .June,  affording  them  shade.  An 
amateur  tells  me  (and  I  have  seen)  how  to  root  Violas  and  Pansies  in 
summer — namely,  put  them  in  between  the  rows  of  early  Potatoes  where 
the  cuttings  are  shaded  from  the  sun,  lift  the  jdants  with  balls  the 
first  showery  weather  after  rooting,  and  plant  them  where  they  are 
required  to  bloom.  For  a  spring  display,  or  rather  early  summer,  for  it 
is  not  until  May  that  Violas  are  in  their  beauty,  the  cuttings  should  be 
put  in  the  second  week  in  August,  and  be  in  their  fiowering  quarters  in 
October.  An  earlier  bloom  will  be  had  by  wintering  the  plants  in  frames, 
planting  out  during  March.  Potted  and  plunged  in  cocoa-nut  fibre  refuse 
they  stand  well,  and  if  in  the  open  a  top-dressing  of  the  same  material  is 
of  great  assistance  to  the  ]>lants.  Plants  divided  in  October  and  then 
planted  will  afford  a  good  early  display. 
Violas  stand  wet  well,  better  perhaps  than  any  other  flowering 
bedding  plants,  and  succeed  in  summer  in  high  cold  siutations,  where 
more  tender  sub  ects  do  not  have  other  than  a  starved  appearance. 
Being  moisture-loving  plants  they  are  benefited  by  a  top-dressing  in 
summer,  for  if  mulching  has  the  property  of  retaining  heat  in  winter,  it 
possesses  equally  the  power  of  retaining  moisture  in  summer.  Soak, 
therefore,  Viola  beds  with  water  in  dry  weather  before  the  soil  becomes 
hard  and  cracked  if  heavy,  or  dusty  if  light,  applying  the  water  to  the 
roots  rather  than  overhead,  and  mulch  with  short  manure,  which  will  be 
hidden  by  the  foliage.  Neater  than  manure  and  as  good  is  .cocoa-nut 
fibre  refuse,  and  if  this  is  placed  close  up  to  the  jdants  they  will  produce 
fresh  shoots  freely,  wLich  will  root  into  the  mulching. 
To  keep  the  plants  in  fiowering  order  through  the  summer  it  is. 
necessary  to  cut  off  the  seed  pods  and  to  thin  out  the  old  stems,  thereby 
encouraging  young  growth  ;  and  this  attended  to  before  the  plants  are- 
exhausted,  frequently  going  over  the  beds,  attending  to  them  with  water 
and  weak  liquid  manure  in  dry  weather,  we  shall  find  Violas  continue 
blooming  from  early  spring  to  late  summer  in  as  good  a  state  of 
perfectiveness  as  most  descriptions  of  flowering  bedding  plants. — G. 
