March  12,  1S03. 
JOURXAL  OF  IfORTTCULTFRE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER, 
239 
Apple  Growing  in  Small  Gardens. 
Tn  Mr.  D.  Tlioiiison’s  letter  under  this  head  in  last  week’s 
issue,  page  202,  two  inaccuracies  appear.  The  la.st-  line  of  the 
third  paragraph  should  read  "  less  ”  instead  of  "  “  more  ’  abun¬ 
dantly  fed.”  In  the  third  line  from  the  bottom  of  the  column 
the  word  “  capable”  should  read  “  incapable.” 
United  Horticultural  Benefit  and  Provident  Society. 
The  usual  monthly  committee  meeting  of  this  .societ.y  was 
held  at  the  Caledonian  Hotel,  Adelphi  Terrace,  Strand,  on  Mon¬ 
day  evening  last,  Mr.  Charles  H.  Curtis  in  the  chair.  Thirteen 
new  members  were  elected,  bringing  the  total  number  of  benefit 
members  ui)  to  99(j.  Ten  members  were  reported  on  the  sick 
fund.  A  cheque  for  £30  7s.  was  granted  to  a  lapsed  member, 
being  the  amount  standing  to  his  credit  in  the  ledger,  and  having 
attained  the  age  of  sixty  years  is  entitled  tO'  the  same  by  rule. 
The  sum  of  £1  10s.  was  granted  tO'  a  sick  member  from  the  Con- 
vale.scent  Fund.  A  hearty  vote  of  thanks  was  given  to  the  chair¬ 
man  (Mr.  C.  H.  Curtis)  and  to  the  vice-chairman  (Mr.-  Thomas 
Winter)  for  their  valuable  services  for  the  past  year.  At  a  sub¬ 
sequent  meeting  Mi*.  Curtis  and  Mr.  Winter  were  re-elected  to 
the  same  office  respectively  for  the  ensuing  year. 
Croydon  Horticultural  Society. 
A  meeting  of  this  society  took  place  at  their  rooms,  Sunflower 
Temperance  Hotel,  George  Street,  on  Tuesday  last,  March  3, 
when  a  good  attendance  welcomed  a  member,  Mr.  W.  Briscoe, 
who  is  one  of  the  staff  at  the  Royal  Gardens,  Kew,  and  who 
kindly  came  down  to  read  his  prize  essay  on  “Propagation.”  In 
his  paper  he  dealt  with  every  part  of  thi.g  important  .subject.  At 
the  conclusion  of  the  paper  the  members  joined  in  good  discus¬ 
sion  on  various  points  in  the  es.say,  and  this  added  tO'  the  interest 
and  enjoyment  of  all  present.  A  hearty  vote  of  thanks,  pro¬ 
posed  b.y  the  chairman  (Mr.  W.  J.  Simpson),  supported  by  Mr. 
M.  E.  Mills,  and  agreed  to  by  all,  was  conveyed  to  Mr.  Briscoe, 
who  suitably  resirondcd.  Another  attractive  feature  to  the  meet¬ 
ing  was  some  splendid  specimens  of  plants  in  bloom  exhibited  by 
members  of  the  society,  viz.,  Mr.  E.  Kromer,  who  brought  ivell- 
grown  Lselia  Jongheana;  Mr.  M.  E.  Mills,  who  .showed  Cyclamen 
papilio  and  Dendrobium  Pierrardi  in  fine  form;  and  Mr.  A. 
fiidwards  bringing  good  flowered  plants  of  the  double  Cineraria. 
A  unanimous  vote  of  thanks  was  accorded  to  the  exhibitors.  Four 
new  members  were  elected.  The  next  paper  will  be  on  Alarch  17, 
when  Mr.  A.  C.  Roffey  will  discourse  on  the  treatment  of  Cucum¬ 
ber  culture. 
Chester  Paxton  Society. 
At  a  meeting  held  in  the  Gro.svenor  Aluseum  on  Saturday,  Air. 
John  Weaver,  Christleton  Hall  Garden.s,  read  an  interesting  and 
instructive  paper  on  “  Bottled  Fruits.”  Air.  Weaver,  who  is  a 
recognised  authority  on  this  subject,  stated  in  his  introductory 
remarks  that  this  was  no  new  idea,  as  books  told  us  that  it  was 
largely  practised  by  the  ancient  Egyptians,  and  he  presumed  had 
been  in  fairly  common  use  ever  since.  He,  however,  contended 
that  much  more  might  be  done  at  the  pre.scnt  time  in  the  way 
of  bottling,  or,  more  correctly  speaking,  sterilising,  fruits  of  all 
kinds,  as  the  means  of  doing  so  were  within  the  reach  of  all.  If 
this  were  more  largely  adopted  there  would  be  a  less  likelihood 
of  the  .summer  -markets  being  glutted,  and  consumers  would  be 
ensured  of  supiilies  of  fresh  fruit  at  all  seasons  of  the  year.  He 
proceeded  to  give  detailed  particulars  of  the  methods  which 
should  be  adopted  to  ensure  success,  and  illustrated  his  remarks 
by  a  collection  of  carefully  .sterilised  fruits  in  bottles,  which  con¬ 
sisted  of  Plums,  Nectarines,  Gooseberries,  Raspberries,  Red  and 
Black  Currants,  Alulberries,  Ac.,  all  of  which  appeared  to  be  in 
perfect  condition,  although  some  were  over  two  years  old.  For 
dietetic  purposes,  he  .said,  there  was  no  comparison  between 
fruits  sterilised  in  this  way  and  fruits  preserved  in  tins,  either 
with  or  without  sugar.  An  interesting  di.sciission  followed,  in 
which  the  chairman  (Air.  H.  G.  Little),  Air.  Aliln,  and  others  took 
part,  and  at  the  clo.se  Air.  X^’eaver  was  heartily  thanked  for  liis 
valuable  paper. 
Royal  Meteorological  Society. 
At  the  ordinary  meeting  of  the  society*,  to  be  held  at  the 
Institution  of  Civil  Engineers,  Great  George  Street,  We.stnun-ter, 
S.W.,  on  Wednesday,  the  18th  inst.,  at  7.30  p.ni.,  a  lecture  will 
be  delivered  on  “The  Passage  of  Sound  Through  the  Atmo- 
■sphere,”  by  C.  V.  Boys,  F.B.S*.  The  lecture  will  be  illustrated 
by  experiments  and  lantern  slides. — N .  AI. 
Weather  in  the  North. 
AVith  the  exception  of  the  3rd,  which  was  bright  and  cold, 
and  of  the  earlier  part  of  Sunda5',  which  was  fair  and  pleasant, 
the  week  ending  the  9th  current  has  been  very  disagreeable, 
heavy  showers  of  rain,  sleet,  and  snow  being  of  almost  incessant 
occurrence.  On  two  mornings  there  was  a  slight  frost.  Alonday 
was  calm,  but  very  wet  and  cold. — B.  D.,  S.  Perthshire. 
The  Gardeners’  Royal  Benevolent  Institution. 
The  programme  for  the  smoking  concert  and  festival  recently 
held  by  the  Liverpool  Auxiliai*y  was  illustrated  on  three  of  it.s 
pages  by  artistic  designs  by  Air.  J.  A’oung,  Floral  Nursery,  West 
Derby.  The  pictures  of  the  sandwich  men  were  rvorthy  of  F.  C. 
Gould  or  C.  T.  Reade,  and  that  of  the  modern  amateur  gardener 
watering  his  plants  with  both  hose  and  can  in  a  torrent  of  rain, 
only  requires  the  devoted  amateur  to  be  holding  an  umbrella  to 
make  it  complete! 
The  Weather  at  Hamilton. 
The  weather  of  the  past  week  can  receive  no  better  name 
than  “  miseranda  tempestas,”  Tuesday  being  the  only  good  one, 
in  the  seven.  The  week  was  otherwise  stormy,  varied  with 
heavy  .showers  of  hail,  sleet,  snow,  and  rain.  Except  on  the  up¬ 
land  the  snow  melted  as  it  fell,  and  frost,  though  .sensibly  felt 
in  the  atmosphere,  was  scarcely  appreciable.  Gardeners  and 
farmers  will  now  be  getting  anxious,  and  looking  forward  for 
congenial  weather  for  seed  sowing.  Our  rookery,  which  adjoins 
the  garden  wall,  is  alive  with  commotion  since  the  fiicst  day  of 
Alarch.  Though  that  particular  day  was  not  the  best  for  a 
start  in  the  nest  building,  yet  it  was  made,,  irrespective  of  it.s 
sanctity,  as  well  as  its  weather.— C. 
Sutton  Coldfield  Gardeners’  Association. 
On  the  Gth  inst.  this  enterprising  and  flourishing  society  held 
its  annual  .social  gathering  at  the  Station  Hotel,  when  about  fifty 
of  the  members  and  friends  assembled  under  the  presidency  of 
Air.  F.  Ford,  to  partake  of  an  excellent  dinner,  supplemented 
with  music,  songs,  and  recitations.  Air.  J.  N.  Brown  (the  hon. 
secretary)  was  responsible  for  the  succe.ss  of  the  arrangements, 
and  the  treasurer  (Air.  C*.  Townsend),  in  seconding  the  toa.'-t  to 
the  president  (Air.  P.  Foulk.s)  and  officers,  proposed  by  Air.  T.  B. 
Grove,  remarked  that  there  was  a  sati.sfactoi'y  balance  of  about 
£30  deposited  in  the  bank.  In  a  few  words.  Air.  J.  H.  Thomp¬ 
son,  Walsall,  gave  the  toast  of  the  evening,  “  The  Society.”,  Air. 
G.  F.  Grove  gave  “  The  Visitors  and  the  Press,”  coupling  the 
names  of  Air.  J.  Thickbroom  and  Air.  W.  Gardiner,  who  each 
responded  in  humorous  terms.  “  The  Chairman  ”  was  proposed 
by  Air.  Parker,  who  had  been  for  eighteen  years  as.sociate<l.  witli 
the  a.sisociation. 
The  late  Mr.  P.  S.  Peterson. 
P.  S.  Peterson,  a  Chicago'  nurserjunan,  died  of  pneumonia  a 
short  while  ago.  He  Avas  one  of  the  city’s  early  settlers.  He 
came  to  America  from  Sweden  in  1851,  and  after  following  his 
profession  in  the  Eastern  States  a  foAV  years  ago,  .supplementing 
the  training  he  had  received  in  Europe,  e.stablished  his  businefes 
in  Chicago  in  1856,  and  remained  at  the  head  of  it  until  his  death. 
Probably  no  one  citizen  ha.si  done  more  towards  beautifying 
Chicago  than  he.  The  countless  trees  and  .shrubs  that  grace  the 
parks,  boulevards,  and  private  grounds  Avere  to  a  large  extent 
.sprouted  at  the  Peterson  nursery.  These  and  the  500-acro 
nursery,  and  the  private  park  of  tAvelve  acre'.s,  form  an  enduring 
monument  to  the  art  and  industry  of  Air.  Peterson.  Though 
not  a  politician.  Air.  Peterson  serA-ed  as  a  trustee  of  JefferS'On 
many  years,  and  most  of  the  good  roads  and  bridges  in  that  dis¬ 
trict  are  due  to  his  efforts.  Peterson  Avenue,  Avhich  AAas  named 
for  him,  he  opened  for  a  distance  of  tlu'ee  miles  at  his  OAvn  ex¬ 
pense.  As  a  philanthropist  his  name  i.s  knoAA  ii  from  one  end  of 
SAveden  to  the  other.  Air.  Peterson  A\a.s  for  many  years  a 
member  of  the  Union  League  and  Germania  dubs,  and  of  horti¬ 
cultural  societies  at  home  and  abroad.  In  1894  he  Avas  made  a 
Knight  of  Ahasa  by  the  King  of  Sweden.  Air.  Peterson  Ipves  a 
AvidoAV  and  one  sou. 
