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TOUR2TAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
April  13,  18&9. 
Before  concluding  I  must  advance  a  few  remarks  on  watering 
large  specimens;  it  is  an  art  in  which  proficiency  can  only  be  attained 
by  years  of  experience  and  careful  observation,  and  even  with  good 
training  in  these  respects  it  is  not  everyone  who  can  master  the 
business,  as  it  is  necessary  at  the  outset  to  be  well  equipped  with  good 
perceptive  faculties  and  reasoning  powers.  The  appearance  of  the 
surface  soil  and  the  ring  of  the  pot  do  not  guide  us  much ;  we  must,  so 
to  speak,  be  able  to  see,  or  to  think,  through  the  whole  mass  of  soil,  to 
ascertain  the  exact  time  when  water  is  required.  When  it  is,  give  it 
freel  v,  again  and  again  till  there  is  no  doubt  about  every  particle  of 
soil  being  thoroughly  moistened.  Whenever  there  is  a  doubt  as  to 
whether  water  is  required  or  not  leave  the  plant  for  on  hour,  then 
examine  it  again  till  a  decided  opinion  is  formed ;  a  good  grower  learns 
to  decide  by  the  appearance  of  the  growth  if  water  is  required  when 
other  tests  fail  him.  To  water  a  day  before  it  is  necessary  is  often 
fatal  to  a  valuable  plant;  on  the  other  hand,  many  a  specimen  has 
been  lost  oy  allowing  it  to  become  dust  dry  to  the  centre  before  giving 
water ;  for  these  reasons  the  “  golden  rule  ”  to  observe  is  water 
constantly  at  critical  times.  Bain  water  may  be  termed  a  necessity 
for  Erica  growing,  but  should  the  supply  run  short  during  the  summer 
expose  to  sun  and  air  whatever  water  is  used  for  twenty-four  hours, 
and  place  in  it  a  bag  containing  soot,  which  will  help  to  counteract 
the  impoverishing  tendency  of  hard  water. — Plantsman. 
HORTICULTURAL  POSSIBILITIES  IX 
BERMUDA. 
[The  following  narrative  by  the  special  correspondent  of  The 
Times  will  be  read  with  interest.  Mr.  Bishop  is  known  by  many 
who  will  peruse  it.  He  was  the  winner  of  a  silver  medal  offered  by 
the  late  Dr.  Hogg  for  an  essay  on  manures,  and  this  mainly  led  to  his 
nomination  for  the  position  to  which  he  was  appointed  by  the  Colonial 
Secretary  on  the  advice  of  Sir  William  Thiselton  Dyer,  the  eminent 
Director  of  the  Royal  Gardens,  Kew.  Mr.  Bishop  w\as  a  persevering 
student  as  well  as  a  sound  gardener  and  industrious  worker  of  high 
character,  or  he  could  not  now  be  superintending  the  work  of  im¬ 
provement  inaugurated  by  the  Government  in  “a  veritable  Paradise 
set  in  the  balmiest  and  brightest  of  seas.”] 
“  The  islands  of  Bermuda  are  built  by  the  winds  on  the  most 
northerly  coral  reef  in  the  world.  The  prevailing  and  most  violent 
winds  are  southerly,  and  thus  the  southern  or  weather  edge  of  the  reef 
is  exposed  to  the  more  extreme  action  of  the  waves.  By  this  action 
the  reefs  as  they  reached  the  surface  have  been  for  ages  reduced  to  a 
fine  coralline  sand  composed  almost  entirely  of  carbonate  of  lime. 
There  are  over  a  hundred  islands  of  all  sizes,  but  the  main  portion  of 
the  land  is  fairly  continuous  for  some  twenty  miles  along  the  weather 
edge  of  the  reef. 
“  The  inhabited  and  cultivated  portions  of  Bermuda  consist  of  low 
hills  and  gentle  declivities  seldom  rising  above  300  feet,  and  clothed  in 
their  native  condition  with  the  Cedar  trees  for  which  the  islands  are 
famous,  but  the  Cedar  of  Bermuda  is  not  the  Cedar  of  Lebanon.  It 
is,  properly  speaking,  a  species  of  Juniper  w'hich  lacks  the  grace  of  the 
true  Cedar,  though  its  wood  possesses  the  same  colour  and  fragrance. 
This  appears  to  be  the  indigenous  growth  of  the  islands.  Their  soil, 
however,  is  fertile,  and  when  carelully  cultivated  with  due  regard  to 
its  chemical  requirements,  it  will  grow  almost  anything  that  flourishes 
in  the  same  latitude  in  other  parts  of  the  world — a  latitude  south  of 
any  portion  of  Europe,  and  approximately  identical  with  that  of 
Madeira,  of  Alexandria,  and  of  Tripoli  on  the  coast  of  Africa. 
^  “  The  climate  is  mild  and  singularly  equable  even  for  such  a  lati¬ 
tude,  the  reason  being  that  the  islands  are  situated  on  the  eastern 
edge  of  the  Gulf  Stream,  and  entirely  protected  by  its  genial  influence 
from  the  spells  of  cold  which  in  winter  chill  the  same  latitudes  on  the 
Atlantic  seaboard  of  the  United  States.  The  range  of  temperature  is 
limited,  seldom  falling  below  50°  in  winter  or  rising  above  85°  in 
summer,  the  average  being  about  70°.  Frost  is  absolutely  unknown, 
fires  are  a  superfluity  except  for  cooking,  Strawberries  ripen  in 
January,  and  the  first  crop  of  young  Potatoes  is  dug  and  marke’ed 
before  Christmas.  There  is  scarcely  a  vegetable  product,  native  to 
the  latitude,  ot  any  economic  moment  which  cannot  be  growm  to 
advantage  in  the  islands,  and  many  tropical  fruits  and  plants  might 
be  added  to  the  list.  Bermuda  arrowToot  was  once  famous,  but  its 
cultivation  appears  to  have  been  almost  abandoned.  The  Cocoanut 
Palm  grows  here  and  there,  and  a  few  royal  Palms  of  stately  growth 
may  be  seen  in  a  garden  on  the  outskirts  of  Hamilton.  The  Grape, 
the  Olive,  the  Peach,  the  Pineapple,  the  Banana,  the  Orange,  the 
Lemon,  and  many  other  fruits  might  be  grown  to  advantage,  but  their 
cultivation  appears  to  be  entirely  neglected  for  economic  purposes  and 
only  to  flourish  in  a  few  private  gardens. 
“  Flowers  are,  with  one  important  exception,  only  cultivated  for 
private  use  and  pleasure,  but  their  variety  and  luxuriance  is  delightful. 
The  Freesia  is,  as  it  were,  the  winter  Daffodil  of  Bermuda  gardens, 
and  it  flowers  copiously  in  midwinter  associated  with  Cannas  and 
other  semi-tropical  blooms  on  the  one  hand,  and  with  Nasturtiums 
and  scarlet  Geraniums  on  the  other,  fl’he  Poinsettia  is  almost  a  tree 
covered  with  scarlet  stars,  the  Hibiscus  and  the  Datura  flower  freely 
throughout  the  winter,  the  Bougainvillea  grows  everywhere  with 
amazing  luxuriance  and  exceptional  depth  and  variety  of  colour,  and 
the  Oleander,  growing  to  a  height  of  15  feet  or  more,  is  a  hedgerow- 
plant  throughout  the  islands.  Roses  of  all  kinds  bloom  in  January,  but 
the  soil  is  too  light  for  their  perfect  cultivation. 
The  agricultural  industries  of  the  islands  are  at  present  limited  in 
extent,  and  indolently  worked.  Bermuda  has  never  recovered  tho 
prosperity  it  lost  when  the  shipbuilding  industry  declined.  The  Cedar, 
once  its  wealth,  is  now  only  its  protection  against  the  violent  storms 
which  sweep  the  islands.  The  soil  requires  manure,  but  the  pasturage 
for  cattle  is  scanty,  the  herbage  consisting  mainly,  not  of  grasses,  > 
but  of  creeping  plants,  which  cover  the  soil  without  making  much 
substance.  The  farmers  appear  to  be  lacking  in  enterprise,  and  to  be 
content  with  much  smaller  gains  than  they  might  make  with  more 
energy  and  a  larger  share  of  intelligence.  But  the  islands  exhibit  no- 
signs  of  poverty,  and  it  may  be  inferred  that  their  social  condition 
is  more  satisfactory  than  their  economical.  The  latter  is  very  far 
from  satisfactory,  to  judge  from  the  information  kindly  supplied  to  me 
by  Mr.  George  A.  Bishop,  F.R.H.S.,  the  energetic  and  capable  Super-- 
intendent  of  the  Bermuda  Public  Gardens  and  of  the  Botanic  Station 
recently  established  in  connection  with  the  Royal  Gardens  at  Kew  for 
the  development  of  the  agriculture  of  the  islands. 
“  At  present,  apart  from  local  requirements  and  supply,  the 
agricultural  exports  of  the  islands  consist  almost  entirely  ot  Onions, 
Potatoes,  and  Lily  bulbs.  The  latter  is  the  most  lucrative  crop  of 
all,  the  yields  of  an  acre  of  wel'-cultivated  land  being  as  much  as  £480 
in  bulbs  sent  to  market  in  New  York,  besides  a  large  quantity  of  stock 
bulbs  reserved  for  subsequent  cultivation.  The  Bermuda  or  Harris 
Lily  was  introduced  into  tne  islands  not  many  years  ago  and  is  now 
one  of  their  staple  products.  With  such  a  yield  per  acre  it  discourage.s^ 
nearly  all  other  forms  of  agricultural  industry,  but  in  spite  of  its  affinity 
for  the  soil — it  is  almost  impossible  to  eradicate  it  when  once  the  land 
has  been  planted  with  it — it  rapidly  deteriorates  unless  cultivated  with 
[  care  and  intelligence,  unless  the  soil  in  which  it  is  grown  is  properly 
cleaned,  fertilised,  and  well  worked,  and  unfess  the  bulbs  used  lor  stock 
are  well  selected  and  carefully  cleansed  from  parasites  and  other  sources 
of  disease. 
I  “  The  bulbs  when  matured  are  dug  up  and  shipped  for  New  York, 
where  they  are  classified  according  to  quality,  and  distributed  to  the 
Various  horticultural  markets  of  the  world.  The  culture  is  so  profit- 
,  able  as  to  iiiduce  carelessness,  and  the  yield  is  by  no  means  so 
abundant  as  it  might  be,  the  soil  often  being  left  foul  and  the  bulbs 
imperfectly  cleansed,  with  the  result  that  many  crops  are  lost  or 
seriously  injured  by  blight  and  other  forms  ot  disease.  Mr.  Bishop 
has  devoted  special  attention  to  this  subject,  and  last  year  he  addressed 
to  the  Board  of  Agricultuie  in  Bermuda  an  exhaustive  and  most 
instructive  ‘  Report  on  the  diseases  affecting  the  Lily  in  Bermuda, 
their  cause,  treatment,  and  prevention.’  He  has  .since  supplemented 
this  report  by  a  series  oi  letters  addressed  to  the  Bermuda  ‘  Royal 
Gazette,’  on  the  u?e  and  selection  of  fertilisers  and  disinfectants 
specially  adapted  to  the  climate,  soil,  and  cultural  industries  of  the 
islands.  These  investigations  have  aroused  much  interest  among  the 
Bermuda  farmers,  and  may  in  time  produce  important  results. 
“  Next  to  the  Lily  in  importance  comes  the  Onion,  and  the  two 
are  often  grown  side  by  side  iu  alternate  patches  on  a  Bermuda  farm.. 
The  crop  is  lucrative  even  at  a  yield  of  some  7  to  10  tons  per  acre, 
which  is  about  the  average,  though  a  higher  form  of  cultivation 
would,  as  I  am  inlormed  by  Mr.  Bishop,  enable  from  24  to  36  tons 
per  acre  to  be  grown.  The  Onions  are  exported  to  New  York,  and  the 
earliest  are  ready  for  market  before  the  end  of  the  year.  Of  Potatoes 
two  crops  are  grown  in  the  year — one  harvested  about  Christmas,  and 
the  other  in  March. 
“  These  are  the  three  commercial  crops  of  the  islands,  and  even 
with  a  negligent  culture,  such  as  prevails  at  present,  they  are  grown 
to  great  advantage,  though  they  suffer  largely  from  blight  and  other 
maladies  which  might  be  materially  abated,  if  not  prevented  alto¬ 
gether,  by  such  measures  as  Mr.  Bishop  recommends.  But  the  farmers 
of  Bermuda  are  for  the  most  part  content  with  such  profits  as  the  soil 
and  climate  spontaneously  yield,  and  they  are  slow  to  adopt  new 
methods  and  appliances.  It  is  certain  that  by  such  measures  as 
Mr.  Bishop  has  recommended  the  crops  of  Lilies  and  Onions  might  be 
