May  11,  189D. 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER, 
393 
LIVERPOOL  NOTES. 
Amaryllis  at  Aigburth. 
It  was  my  good  fortune  a  short  time  ago  to  visit  Messrs,  R.  P.  Ker 
and  Sons,  Aigburth  Nursery,  Liverpool,  and  to  inspect  the  collection  of 
Amaryllis,  for  which  the  firm  is  famous. 
Having  watched  their  progress  for  several  years,  and  the  improve¬ 
ment  in  form,  habit,  and  floriferousness,  one  would  have  thought  it  almost 
impossible  to  advance  much  further,  but  progress  seemed  to  be  written 
over  all.  If  only  one  had  to  be  mentioned  to  support  my  statement  that 
would  be  quite  sufficient,  as  the  long  sought  for  pure  white  is  at  last 
found — a  very  small  bulb,  throwing  a  spike  which  was  without  marking 
of  any  kind.  Nor  is  this  all,  for  numerous  new  shades  are  appearing,  but 
they  are  at  present  unnamed.  In  striking  contrast  to  the  present  day 
varieties  was  one  of  the  old  types  in  bloom  Irom  Bermuda,  insignificant 
but  sufficient,  to  show  the  care  and  attention  paid  to  the  crossing  of  the 
oe  w  varieties.  Most  of  those  in  flower  were  bearing  two  spikes,  with 
from  two  to  eight  flowers  on  each. 
I  noted  a  few  varieties  particularly  choice  in  every  way  as  regards 
habit,  colour,  and  form  of  flower  : — Cassandra,  reddish  scarlet,  white  star 
and  bands  ;  Bacchus  and  Imperial,  rich  deep  crimson  ;  Monarch,  fiery 
scarlet  with  rose  bands  ;  Magnificent,  deep  crimson  with  salmon 
suffusion  ;  Scarlet  King;  Virgin  Queen,  white  striped  deep  crimson  ;  The 
•Queen,  beautiful  rounded  form,  almost  pure  white  ;  Pink  Queen,  glowing 
deep  pink,  very  handsome  colour  ;  Alelpomene,  light  ground,  heavily 
veined  red  ;  and  Saturn,  lighter  ground  with  red  veins  on  upper  petals. 
It  is  to  the  credit  of  Messrs,  Ker  &  Sons  that  they  should  take 
in  hand  a  flower  that  has  such  a  hold  in  the  Liverpool  gardens, 
aulicum,  equestre,  psittacinum,  Reginse,  and  others  having  been  brought 
over  by  the  Liverpool  merchants,  and  flowered  in  their  gardens.  Again, 
at  Prescot,  eight  miles  from  Liverpool,  the  useful  and  the  first  recorded 
tiybrid,  A.  Johnson?,  Jwas  raised  by  a  clockmaker  named  Johnson  ;  whilst 
at  Hurst  House,  near  Prescot,  the  late  Miss  Willis,  a  celebrated  horti¬ 
culturist,  had  a  choice  collection,  as  had  also  the  late  Rev.  Thos. 
Staniforth  of  Storrs  Hall. 
In  growing  Amaryllis  too  many  persons  think  that  almost  any 
■culture  will  suit,  but  to  bring  about  success  the  routine,  although  simple, 
must  not  be  neglected.  As  the  plants  go  out  of  flower  the  warmest  part 
cf  a  greenhouse  should  be  chosen,  and  copious  supplies  of  water  given 
until  August,  when  it  may  be  withheld,  and  the  bulbs  allowed  a  period  of 
rest.  Early  in  October  the  pots  should  be  laid  on  their  sides  under  the 
stage.  If  wanted  to  bloom  in  December  or  January  place  in  a  tempera¬ 
ture  of  60°  or  65°.  For  later  flowering  start  about  the  middle  of  January, 
giving  a  temperature  of  50°  to  55°,  watering  carefully  at  first.  If  the 
(bulbs  require  potting  see  to  it  just  previous  to  starting  them,  using 
two-thirds  of  good  loam  with  one-third  of  leaf  mould  and  silver  sand. 
Honour  to  a  Liverpool  Horticulturist. 
It  will  be  gratifying  to  the  many  friends  of  Mr.  R.  Wilson  Ker  to 
learn  that  he  has  been  chosen  to  adjudicate  at  the  exhibition  now  being 
held  at  St.  Petersburg.  In  addition  to  the  above  honour,  we  Liverpool 
people  appreciate  his  election  on  the  Floral  Committee  of  the  Royal 
Horticultural  Society.  Nor  is  the  journey  to  Russia  to  be  one  of  pleasure 
entirely,  for  aLhough  there  is  something  like  2000  miles  to  be  traversed, 
the  above  gentleman  and  his  brother,  Mr.  A.  W.  Ker,  have  taken  with 
them  seven  specially  constructed  cases  containing  selections  of  the 
Hippeastrums  referred  to  in  the  above  notes. 
National  Am.yteur  Gardeners’  Association. 
Last  Thursday  evening  the  Liverpool  branch  of  the  above  Society 
held  its  monthly  meeting,  when  some  very  good  exhibits  were  brought  by 
members,  but  naore  especially  the  Orchids  by  Mr.  Drake,  whose  blooms 
of  Cattleya  citrina  were  awarded  a  special  prize.  Mrs.  Drake  won  the 
prize  for  a  gentleman's  buttonhole,  and  Miss  Hunter  for  Auriculas. 
Other  prizewinners  were  Mrs.  McGregor,  and  Messrs.  Redfern  and 
Gillanders.  As  usual  the  lecture  for  the  evening  commanded  the 
attention  of  all  present.  The  lecturer  was  Mr.  J.  ClifiFe  of  Waterloo,  who 
ohose  the  subject  “Budding  and  Grafting  Roses.”  In  a  most  business¬ 
like  manner  Mr.  ClifiFe  described  the  processes  of  “  budding  and  grafting,” 
and  strongly  advocated  the  merits  of  the  budded  over  the  grafted  Rose, 
which  latter  he  advised  should  never  be  bought.  He  gave  some  very 
interesting  information  regarding  Stocks.  For  a  dry  soil,  and  where  it 
is  necessary  for  the  roots  to  go  deeply  in  search  of  moisture,  he  recom¬ 
mended  the  seedling  Briar,  but  for  all  purposes  and  all  things  considered. 
If  one  must  choose,  then  he  would  take  Roses  budded  on  the  Briar 
cutting.  A  vote  of  thanks  concluded  a  pleasant  meeting. 
Double  AVallflowers. 
AYhatever  objection  may  be  urged  against  double  Wallflowers,  we 
cannot  afford  to  ignore  their  claims  at  this  season  of  the  year.  Two  beds 
filled  with  dwarf  bushy  plants,  carrying  spikes  some  12  to  15  inches  in 
length,  of  all  shades  of  brown,  claret,  purple,  and  hosts  of  intermediate 
shades,  are  now  delighting  us  with  their  handsome  appearance  ;  the 
foliage,  too,  which  is  much  more  striking  than  in  the  single  varieties, 
greatly  enhances  their  appearance.  For  bedding  purposes  they  are 
invaluable,  and  as  the  season  for  sowing  is  almost  at  hand  I  should 
recommend  a  packet  to  be  purchased.  When  planting  out  give  more 
space  than  for  the  single  varieties.  To  get  the  best  results  from  them 
they  should  be  transplanted,  and  sufficient  space  given  to  allow 
of  perfect  development,  and  when  planting-out  time  comes  round,  each 
plant  can  he  lifted  with  fine  roots,  and  receive  no  check.  By  adopting 
this  system  there  will  scarcely  be  a  feeble  plant.  Another  detail  is,  when 
the  winter  is  past  the  plants  will  have  become  somewhat  loose  about  the 
stem.  Fill  in  the  spaces,  making  the  ground  firm,  give  a  slight  top¬ 
dressing  of  artificial  manure,  or  water  with  liquid,  when  spikes  of  flower 
almost  double  the  size  will  be  the  result  of  this  small  attention. 
The  Weather  and  the  Fruit  Crop. 
Frosts  of  various  degrees,  but  of  sufficient  intensity  to  blacken,  and 
from  reports  from  the  Cheshire  district,  to  destroy  acres  of  early  Potatoes 
and  blacken  Rhododendrons  in  flower,  have  been  the  order  for  the  past 
few  days,  and  it  causes  serious  misgivings  as  regards  the  Pear,  Cherry, 
and  Plums,  which  have  been  in  full  flower  for  the  past  fortnight.  It  will 
be  a  great  disappointment  if  wo  have  a  short  crop  again  this  season,  as  in 
many  instances  last  year  it  was  almost  nil.  Apples  are  not  in  full  blossom, 
and  so  we  hope  that  this,  our  most  useful  of  fruit,  will  be  spared  the  rude 
blasts  of  the  cutting  winds  of  early  May.  Currants,  Gooseberries,  Rasp¬ 
berries,  and  Strawberries  are  grand  in  appearance. — R.  P.  R. 
PINCHINa  FRUIT  TREES. 
I  THINK  pinching  to  a  certain  extent  assists  in  fruit  bud  formation, 
provided,  as  Mr.  Luckhurst  says,  the  work  be  done  rightly  and  at  the 
proper  time.  I  venture  to  say  that  trees  from  which  barrowfuls  of  shoots 
have  been  cut  each  season  for  years,  and  still  produce  few  or  no  fruit 
buds  could — in  the  course  of,  say,  two  years — be  made  very  fruitful  by 
pinching,  in  conjunction  with  other  processes  for  preventing  an  excess  of 
sap  forcing  its  way  into  a  thicket  of  gross  shoots.  By  checking  this 
excess  of  sap  through  having  the  roots  under  proper  control,  I  can  then 
pinch,  and  prevent  an  excess  of  barren  shoots,  in  faith  of  helping  to  form 
fruit  buds.— H.  Mitchell,  Druidstone. 
As  far  as  I  can  glean  from  the  various  opinions  already  expressed, 
there  are  not  many  gardener's  in  favour  of  summer  pinching.  I  trust 
pinching  will  not  be  confounded  with  summer  pruning,  or  perhaps  the 
discussion  may  prove  a  hindrance  instead  of  a  help  to  those  who  are 
hoping  to  profit  by  it, 
I  have  been  experimenting  for  some  few  years,  and  at  one  time  I 
thought  I  could  bring  young  trees  into  fruiting  earlier  by  continuous 
pinching.  The  idea  was  to  prevent  strong  roots  by  preventing  strong 
growths,  and  thus  get  fruit  buds  on  the  current  year's  growth.  X 
succeeded  with  some  varieties,  but  not  others,  and  not  sufficient  with  any 
to  pay  lor  the  extra  labour.  I  took  the  points  of  the  shoots  out  when 
they  had  made  five  full  sized  leaves,  and  the  sixth  was  half  developed. 
All  other  shoots  were  stopped  to  one  leaf  as  soon  as  that  leaf  was  formed. 
Shoots  would  grow  out  from  three,  and  sometimes  four  of  the  leaves,  and 
a  fruit  bud  would  sometimes  form  at  the  next  leaf  below  the  lowest  shoot. 
These  remarks  apply  more  particularly  to  Apples. 
Summer  pruning  I  consider  essential  to  all  fruit  trees  which  are  winter 
pruned.  In  Apples  aud  Pears  I  consider  the  best  time  is  when  the  points 
of  the  shoots  show  signs  of  growth  ceasing.  Pears  about  the  end  of 
June,  Apples  about  the  end  of  July.  But  they  differ  according  to  season, 
soil,  and  variety.  Summer  pruning  causes  fruit  buds  to  form  on  the 
previous  year's  growth,  that  is,  the  dormant  buds  below  the  shoot  or 
shoots  which  have  been  pruned  back,  also  on  the  old  spurs  which  wmuld 
have  been  smothered  and  too  weak  if  summer  pruning  had  not  been 
done. — J.  L.  _ 
[We  are  inclined  to  think  that  enough  has  been  said  at  present  on  the 
general  question  of  pinching,  which  has  been  confounded  in  some  instances 
with  summer  pruning,  and  would  now  ask  our  able  practitioners  and 
others  to  consider  a  few  definite  questions,  and  under  the  heading  of 
“Blossom  Bud  Formation  ”  explain  in  separate  paragraphs— 
1.  What  is  a  blossom  bud  I 
2.  How  it  is  formed  ? 
3.  AVhat  helps,  and  what  hinders,  its  production 
4.  If,  and  in  what  way,  a  blossom  bud  can  be  changed  into  a  growth 
bud  ? 
Some  of  our  friends  occasionally  say  they  would  like  to  contribute 
more  frequently  but  feel  at  a  loss  for  a  subject.  They  have  one  now  ;  and 
with  those  questions  correctly  answered,  we  suspect  the  philosophy  of 
pruning  will  be  better  understood.  In  the  meantime  we  thank  all  our 
correspondents  (some  of  whom  have  still  more  to  say)  for  the  many 
useful  hints  they  have  given  in  the  several  communications.] 
Blackthorn  Winter. — It  does  seem  as  if  this  touch  of  wintry 
weather,  which  comes  in  with  the  blooming  of  the  Blackthorn,  or 
thereabouts,  never  can  be  evaded.  Certainly  southwards  the  touch 
of  cold  keen  easterly  winds,  with  sharp  white  if  dry  frosts  at  night,  came 
this  year  a  little  later  than  usual,  and  Plum  bloom  was  largely  over,  but 
it  caught  the  Cherry  and  Pear  bloom  in  its  greatest  profusion.  If  the 
fertile  organs  of  this  have  escaped  harm  all  the  same,  certainly  it 
will  be  wonderful.  There  is  not  only  a  great  bloom,  but  there  is  far  too 
much.  If  frost  has  killed  one-half  of  it  there  will  be  plenty  left,  but  then 
it  is  the  bloom  which  might  have  set  best  and  produced  the  finest  fruits, 
that  possibly  may  have  been  killed.  We  shall  soon  be  hearing  from 
many  directions,  as  to  the  effects  on  the  fruit  bloom  of  the  latest  touch  of 
Blackthorn  winter. — Observer. 
