August  30,  1900. 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER, 
199 
Recent  Weather  In  Xondon. — Metropolitan  weather  has  been 
most  unsettled  of  late.  On  Saturday  a  heavy  thunderstorm  with 
torrential  rain  passed  over  the  whole  of  London ;  Sunday  was  cold 
and  dull.  On  Monday  there  was  a  high  wind  with  occasional  showers. 
On  Tuesday  it  was  cold  and  dull,  but  very  little  rain  fell.  Wednesday 
opened  with  bright  sunshine,  and  there  was  every  prospect  of  its  con- 
tinnance  throughout  the  day.  ' 
Royal  Horticultural  Society’s  Fruit  Show  at  the  Crystal 
Palace, — The  Royal  Horticultural  Society’s  seventh  annual  show  of 
British-grown  fruit  will  be  held  at  the  Crystal  Palace  on  September 
27th,  28th,  and  29th.  Intending  exhibitors  may  secure  schedules  and 
other  necessary  information  from  the  secretary,  R.H.S.,  117,  Victoria 
Street,  London,  S.W. 
The  X900  Apple  Crop  In  America, — That  the  present  Apple 
crop  will  be  a  great  one  is  the  general  estimate.  A  few  unfavourable 
reports  from  certain  localities  do  not  influence  the  total,  and  it  appears 
that  the  year’s  yield  will  surely  equal  that  of  1896.  Increased  care  in 
cultivation  seems  to  tell  largely  in  this  result.  The  special  organs 
of  the  fruit  trade  are  impressing  the  necessity  of  careful  operations, 
especially  as  the  European  crop  promises  equally  as  well.  The  gross 
amount  of  the  Apple  trade  is  stated  to  be  50,000,000  dels. 
Olives  V.  Wines.  —  It  is  reported  that  an  observant  English 
official  in  Italy  has  drawn  and  continues  to  draw  attention  to  the 
gradual  uprooting  of  Olive  trees  in  certain  districts  in  Italy,  and  the 
substitution  therefor  of  the  Grape  Vine,  the  product  of  the  latter 
becoming  larger  year  by  year  at  a  falling  price.  In  a  few  years,  says 
the  official,  this  must  end  in  a  glut  of  wine  in  the  market,  selling  at 
prices  which  cannot  prove  remunerative  to  the  cultivator  ;  possibly  at 
that  period  it  will  not  be  possible  to  make  up  with  Olives  for  the  lee 
way  made  by  Vine  cultivation. 
How  Water  Ascends  In  Plants. — At  one  time  there  was 
considerable  difference  of  opinion  as  to  the  course  pursued  by  the 
sap  of  trees  in  ascending  from  the  roots,  and  that  followed  by  the 
food  materials  elaborated  in  the  leaves  when  being  transferred  to 
the  various  portions  of  the  tree  in  which  their  process  of  growth  was 
in  progress.  It  has  now  been  established  that  all  the  moisture  required 
by  the  tree  or  plant  for  its  existence  and  growth  is  taken  up  by  the 
roots,  and  that  the  water  so  absorbed  is  conveyed  to  the  higher  regions 
through  the  medium  of  the  woody  part  of  the  stem.  On  the  other 
hand  the  food  materials  elaborated  by  the  leaves  are  conveyed  to  the 
various  parts  of  the  plant  system  by  the  bast  tissues  which  immediately 
underlie  the  bark,  and  are  ranged  around  the  outside  of  the  wood. 
Domestic  Floriculture. — With  the  object  of  encouraging  a  love 
for  and  efficiency  in  floral  decoration  by  the  industrial  community,  his 
Worship  the  Mayor  of  Kingston-on-Thames  (Alderman  Meath)  early  in 
the  summer  offered  a  series  of  prizes  for  the  frontages  of  houses  not 
rated  over  £20 ;  a  committee  was  appointed,  consisting  of  municipal 
authorities  and  active  townsmen,  including  Messrs.  W.  Drewett,  W.  T. 
Wells,  and  A.  Dean,  with  Councillor  Syme  as  secretary,  for  carrying 
out  the  project.  Four  classes  were  formed,  with  five  prizes  in  each, 
for  the  prettiest  and  best  kept  flower  gardens  visible  from  the  street, 
also  for  window  boxes  and  wall  decoration,  the  prizes  in  the  larger 
classes  ranging  from  20s.  to  10s.,  in  the  smaller  from  Ifls.  to  4s. 
Though  the  notice  was  short  there  were  no  fewer  than  eighty-four 
entries,  and  so  close  and  meritorious  were  the  competitions  that  in 
addition  to  the  twenty  prizes  offered  the  judges  were  constrained  to 
recommend  ten  more.  The  mayor  at  once  generously  agreed  to  give 
the  thirty  prizes.  Recognising  the  commendable  nature  of  this  compe¬ 
tition  the  County  Council  provided  adjudicators,  and  on  the  invitation 
of  Mr.  H.  Macan,  organising  secretary,  Sir  Trevor  Lawrence,  Bart.,  has, 
in  view  of  the  circumstances  of  the  case  and  remarkable  response  to 
the  mayor’s  laudable  endeavour,  kindly  consented  to  distribute  the 
prizes  at  4  p.m.  on  Saturday  8th  September.  The  function  should  be 
interesting,  and  it  is  certainly  not  a  common  occurrence  to  find  the 
mayor  of  an  ancient  borough,  a  leading  County  Council,  and  the 
president  of  the  Royal  Horticultural  Society  joining  forces  in  the 
interests  of  domestic  floriculture  of  the  nature  above  indicated. 
United  Horticultural  Benefit  and  Provident  Society. — A 
special  meeting  will  be  held  at  the  Caledonian  Hotel,  Adelphi  Terrace, 
Strand,  W.C.,  on  Monday,  September  lOtb,  at  8  p.m.,  for  the  purpose  of 
taking  into  consideration  the  recommendation  of  the  committee  upon 
that  part  of  Rule  8  which  relates  to  the  secretary’s  salary. 
Orchid  Fibre.  —  Orchids  are  famous  for  beauty  and  general 
attractiveness,  but  it  is  not  generally  known  that  they  have  a  place  in 
the  arts  that  minister  to  the  physical  wants  of  man.  But  in  some  parts 
of  the  tropics,  where  Orchids  abound,  a  very  delicate  fibre  is  prepared 
by  the  natives,  which  they  use  in  the  preparation  of  the  many 
ornaments  these  races  prepare  for  trade  with  the  paler  races  of  men. 
Report  of  the  Shrewsbury  Show. — Messrs.  Buchanan  of  Kippen 
near  Stirling,  write  informing  us  that  owing  to  a  mistake  the  tickets 
attaching  to  the  prize  exhibits  in  the  new  Grape  section  had  to  be 
altered  after  the  show  was  opened,  so  that  their  Grape  Diamond 
Jubilee  should  appear  as  taking  the  first  place  and  not  the  second  as 
represented  in  our  report.  Also  by  an  oversight  Messrs.  Jones  &  Sons 
of  Shrewsbury  were  only  credited  with  a  “  gold  medal  ”  instead  of  a 
“  large  gold  medal,”  which  was  really  their  award. 
Shrewsbury  Floral  Fete. — On  Wednesday  there  was  a  falling 
off  in  the  gate  receipts  of  £82  as  compared  with  the  corresponding 
day  last  year,  the  total  being  £797  against  £879.  Considering  the 
treacherous  weather,  this  must  be  regarded  as  a  very  satisfactory  state 
of  affairs.  On  Thursday  it  was  anticipated  at  five  o’clock  that  the 
decrease  of  receipts  for  the  day  would  be  £150,  but  at  the  conclusion 
of  the  show  it  was  found  that  the  takings  amounted  to  £1808,  a 
decrease  of  only  £44  on  the  receipts  of  the  second  day  last  year,  and  a 
considerable  increase  on  the  amount  received  at  previous  fetes.  The 
lowest  estimate  gauged  the  attendance  at  60,000,  which  is  very 
gratifying  to  the  committee  and  to  the  town  generally.  Thus,  not¬ 
withstanding  the  very  indifferent  weather,  the  total  receipts  were 
£4600,  or  the  second  best  on-  record.  From  an  early  hour  in  the 
morning  thousands  of  excursionists  arrived  by  train. 
Iiondon  Woods. — The  nearest  approach  to  wild  woodland  within 
fifteen  miles  from  London  (at  all  events  on  the  south  side  ot  the 
Thames)  is  to  be  found  within  reach  of  the  Chelsfield  and  Halstead 
Stations  of  the  South-Eastern  Railway  (direct  Tonbridge  line).  The 
Knookholt  Beeches,  on  the  summit  of  the  hill  above  Halstead,  are  a 
familiar  object  to  those  who  have  looked  south-eastward  from  the 
Crystal  Palace,  and  they  may  be  seen  on  a  clear  day  from  the  top  of 
Parliament  Hill,  or  even  from  Harrow.  The  view  from  them,  says  a 
writer  in  a  contemporary,  is  less  known,  but  to  the  lover  of  woodland 
it  is  more  interesting;  for  here,  within  a  circuit  of  a  few  miles,  are 
clustered  some  genuine  remains  of  the  Andredesweald.  Hereabouts 
the  forest  retained  its  pristine  character  certainly  later  than  Eliz  i- 
bethan  times;  and  within  the  memory  of  men  still  in  the  prime 
of  life  the  Oudham  Woods  (a  spot  hallowed  by  its  association  with 
Charles  Darwin)  enjoyed  much  of  their  ancient  wildness. 
Flower  Farming’  in  the  United  States. — There  were  in  the 
United  States  last  year  no  fewer  than  9000  farms  on  which  flowers 
for  cutting  were  grown  under  glass  for  sale,  the  total  areas  actually 
under  glass  aggregating  22,500,000  square  feet.  The  Department  of 
Agriculture  at  Washington  estimates  that  the  retail  value  of  the  cuC 
flowers  sold  from  these  flower  farms  annually  is  no  less  than  £2,500,000, 
apportioned  as  follows  : — 
Number  of  cut  Value 
flowers.  per  100. 
Roses  ..  ..  ..  ..  ••  ••  100,000,000  ..  243. 
Carnations  ..  ..  ..  ••  ••  100,000,000  ..  16s. 
Violets .  76,000,000  ..  4s. 
Chrysanthemums  . .  .  . . 
Miscellaneous  flowers,  Lilies,  &c.  . .  - 
Total  value. 
£1,200,000 
800,000 
150,000 
100,000 
260,000 
Total . £2,500,000 
In  addition  to  this  it  is  further  estimated  that  the  retail  value  of  the 
plants  sold  from  these  flower  farms  is  £2,000,000,  and  the  number 
about  100,000,000.  The  total  retail  value  of  the  annual  output  is 
thus  £4.500,000,  or  just  4s.  for  each  square  foot  of  glass.  On  the 
average  one  man  is  required  for  every  1500  feet  of  glass,  making 
15,000  employed  in  the  industry  in  all.  The  State  of  New  York 
comes  first  in  connection  with  this  industry,  having  4,500,000  square 
feet  of  glass ;  Illinois  is  second,  with  4,250,000  square  feet ;  and 
Pennsylvania  third,  with  4,000,000  square  feet.  The  amount  of 
capital  invested  in  the  industry  over  the  entire  country  is  over 
£2,250,000,  and  it  is  estimated  that  this  sum  is  actually  received  br 
the  growers  each  year  for  the  plants  and  flowers  sold. 
