134 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
February  14,  1901. 
Liverpool  Horticultural  .Association. — “  Vegetables  for  Exhi¬ 
bition  ”  was  the  title  of  a  most  valuable  paper  read  before  members  of 
the  above  association  at  the  last  meeting  by  Mr.  B.  Ashton,  gardener  to 
the  Earl  of  Lathom,  Lathom  House,  Ormskirk.  Mr.  T.  Foster  occupied 
the  chair.  Everyone  present  acknowledged  the  paper  to  be  one  of  the 
most  practical  ever  delivered  there.  The  preparation  of  the  ground, 
times  of  sowing,  and  valuable  wrinkles  on  staging  were  fully  detailed. 
A  long  discussion,  carried  on  by  Messrs.  Rainford,  Stoney,  Waterman, 
and  Pinnington,  brought  out  many  points. 
Taunton  Deane  Horticultural  Society. — Amongst  the  West 
of  England  shows,  that  held  annually  in  The  Park,  Taunton,  stands 
very  high.  Its  exhibitions,  thanks  to  an  energetic  committee,  are 
almost  invariably  striking  successes,  and  it  is  hoped  that  the  coming 
one,  to  be  held  on  August  15th,  will  prove  no  exception  to  the  rule. 
The  schedule  embodies  about  180  classes,  and  sections  are  devoted  to 
all  grades  of  cultivators.  The  prizes  in  many  of  the  classes  are  so 
handsome  that  they  can  scarcely  fail  to  bring  keen  competition.  The 
secretary  is  Mr.  John  S.  Winsor,  16,  Hammet  Street,  Taunton. 
Liverpool  Amateur  Gardeners’  Annual  Meeting:.  — 
Mr.  A.  W.  Ardran  presided  over  the  annual  meeting  held  in  the 
Common  Hall,  Hackins  Hey,  Liverpool,  on  Thursday  last.  The  report 
was  read  by  Mr.  Muir,  in  the  absence  of  the  treasurer.  The  prize 
money  was  larger  than  last  year,  and  the  subscriptions  also,  and 
according  to  the  good  work  done  the  deficit  of  £1  3s.  6d.  was  more 
than  creditable  to  all  concerned,  for  the  entries  had  been  more 
extensive,  as  shown  by  the  fact  that  members  gained  244  points  in 
1899,  and  last  year  the  great  increase  to  622.  Mr.  J.  M.  Smythe  was 
elected  president  for  the  ensuing  season  ;  Mr.  McGregor,  who  has  done 
such  valuable  work  as  secretary,  was  unanimously  re-elected ;  as  was 
Mr.  Robins,  the  treasurer. 
Chester  Paxton  Society. — On  account  of  the  death  of  our  late 
beloved  Queen  the  usual  fortnightly  meeting  was  postponed  to  last 
Saturday,  when  Mr.  John  Jackson,  Capenburst  Hall  Gardens,  read  an 
able  and  instructive  paper,  entitled  “ The  Cultivation  of  the  Vine  in 
Houses  Constructed  for  Plant  Culture.”  In  the  course  of  his  remarks 
he  dealt  with  the  various  phases  of  the  culture  of  the  Grape,  from  the 
time  of  planting  to  the  ripening  of  the  fruit,  and  described  in  a  lucid 
manner  the  results  of  his  experience,  extending  over  a  period  of  twenty 
odd  years.  The  troublesome  insect  and  fungoid  pests,  with  which 
Grape  growers  are  so  much  troubled,  were  also  included,  and  valuable 
hints  as  to  exterminating  and  keeping  in  check  were  given.  A  discussion, 
which  was  led  off  by  the  chairman,  Mr.  John  Weaver,  followed  the 
reading  of  the  paper  ;  and  on  the  proposition  of  Mr.  N.  F.  Barnes, 
seconded  by  Mr.  Miln,  a  hearty  vote  of  thanks  was  accorded  to  Mr. 
Jackson. 
Brixton,  Streatham,  and  Clapham  Horticultural  Society. — 
At  the  annual  general  meeting  of  this  society  an  interesting  incident 
occurred.  The  hon.  sec.,  Mr.  W.  Roupell,  had  intimated  to  the 
committee  that  it  was  not  his  intention  to  seek  re-election,  as  he  no 
longer  felt  equal  to  the  work.  The  president,  N.  N.  Sherwood,  Esq., 
Y.M.H.,  proceeded  to  state  that  he  had  been  requested  by  the  committee 
to  present  a  testimonial  to  Mr.  Roupell  in  the  shape  of  a  cheque 
contributed  chiefly  by  members  of  the  society,  and  to  thank  him  for 
his  valuable  services  as  hon.  sec.  rendered  during  the  past  ten  years. 
Mr.  Sherwood  spoke  warmly  of  the  progress  the  society  had  made 
under  Mr.  Roupell’s  management,  and  expressed  regret  that  the  society 
would  lose  the  benefit  of  it  for  the  future.  He  added  that  it  would 
have  afforded  Mr.  Roupell  great  pleasure  to  have  read  the  many  kind 
things  said  of  him  in  the  letters  that  accompanied  the  subscriptions. 
Mr.  Roupell,  with  much  emotion,  thanked  the  president  and  all  who 
had  so  generously  contributed,  and  while  regretting  his  inability  to 
longer  undertake  the  duties  of  secretary,  assured  the  members  that  he 
would  always  give  them  all  the  help  he  could,  and  as  a  vice-president 
ever  take  an  active  interest  in  the  society.  The  annual  show  was  for 
a  series  of  years  held  in  the  Congregational  Hall  on  Brixton  Hill  and 
elsewhere  in  the  neighbourhood,  but  in  1890,  when  Mr.  Roupell  became 
hon.  sec.,  it  was  decided  to  hold  the  show  for  the  first  time  in  the  large 
Hall  at  Streatham.  Since  then  the  society  has  steadily  prospered,  and 
every  year  the  prize  money  has  been  paid  in  full.  It  is  now  thought, 
however,  that  the  time  has  arrived  when  the  show  might  be  removed 
this  year  from  Streatham  to  Brixton.  The  meeting  was  then  adjourned 
till  30th  nit.,  and  the  report  of  the  sub-committee  proving  to  be 
favourable  it  was  at  that  date  finally  resolved  that  the  annual  festival 
(the  forty-second)  for  this  year  shall  be  held  at  the  Brixton  Hall. 
Primulas  at  Perry  Hill. — The  annual  display  of  Primulas  and 
other  winter  flowers  at  the  Perry  Hill  Nurseries  of  Messrs.  J.  Carter 
and  Co.  is  now  in  fine  condition.  Those  who  would  like  to  see  it  should 
lose  no  further  time;  the  nearest  station  is  Forest  Hill. 
A.  Gloomy  January. — January  has  succeeded  in  dispelling  any 
false  impression  given  us  by  the  previous  month.  Nineteen  sunless 
days  and  only  nineteen  hours  of  bright  sunshine  (in  1899  we  had  sixty- 
six  hours),  ten  foggy  days,  three  days  of  snow  and  twelve  frosts, 
leave  us  little  doubt  as  to  the  season,  and,  despite  its  closing  bright  days, 
have  not  tended  to  lighten  the  gloom  which  overshadows  us.  The 
mean  night  temperature,  34°,  was  below,  and  the  mean  day  tempe¬ 
rature,  44°,  slightly  above,  the  average  for  the  month,  the  highest 
reading,  55°,  occurring  on  the  28th,  and  the  lowest,  21°,  on  the  9tb. 
At  Oxford  it  fell  to  17°  in  the  screen  on  the  night  of  the  8th.  The 
rainfall  was  7-lOthsof  an  inch,  leaving  us  with  a  deficit  of  li  inch,  which 
compares  favourably  with  4J  inches  measured  in  1877. 
January  Weather  at  Belvolr  Castle. — The  wind  was  in  a 
southerly  direction  twenty  days.  The  total  rainfall  was  1'07  inch, 
which  fell  on  sixteen  days,  and  is  0-7l  inch  below  the  average  for  the 
month ;  the  greatest  daily  fall  was  0’23  inch  (snow)  on  the  25th. 
Barometer  (corrected  and  reduced)  ;  highest  reading,  30  621  inches  on 
the  23rd  at  9  a.m.  ;  lowest,  29’232  inches  on  the  27th  at  9  p.m. 
Thermometers  :  highest  in  the  shade,  52°  on  the  21st ;  lowest,  21°  on 
the  9th  ;  mean  of  daily  maxima,  41’58°  ;  mean  of  daily  minima,  31'77° ; 
mean  temperature  of  the  month,  36-67°  ;  lowest  on  the  grass,  15°  on  the 
9th ;  highest  in  the  sun,  84°  on  the  20tli ;  mean  temperature  of  the 
earth  at  3  feet,  38'22°.  Total  sunshine,  61  hours  55), minutes.  There 
were  thirteen  sunless  days. — W.  H.  Divers. 
Leeds  Gardeners’  TrlendlyJ  Society. — The  members  of  the 
Professional  Gardeners’  Friendly  Benefit  Society  met  last  week  at  the 
Green  Dragon  Hotel  for  the  thirty-fourth  annual  dinner.  Mr 
J.  Inman  occupied  the  chair.  After  the  loyal  toast  had  been 
honoured,  the  secretary  (Mr.  G.  Carver)  presented  the  annual  report. 
It  stated  that,  owing  to  the  great  amount  of  sickness  which  had 
occurred  amongst  the  members  during  the  year,  the  expenditure  had 
considerably  exceeded  the  income.  The  amount  paid  out  in  sick 
allowance  was  £139  19s.  2d.,  and  in  funeral  allowance  £37,  the  tota 
payments  for  the  year  being  £200  9s.  The  income  from  all  sources 
came  to  £150  14s.  3d.,  thus  leaving  a  deficiency  on  the  year’s  working 
of  £49  14s.  9d.  This,  deducted  from  the  amount  of  capital  at  the  end 
of  1899,  left  the  latter  at  £1200  2s.  4d.,  which  was  equal  to  £8  12s.  8d. 
per  member.  After  mentioning  that  the  present  membership  of  the 
society  was  139,  the  report  stated  that  during  the  year  Mr.  W.  Sunley 
was  presented  by  the  members  with  a  cash  testimonial  of  £6,  as  a 
token  of  respect  and  appreciation  of  the  valuable  services  rendered  by 
him  as  secretary  of  the  society  for  upwards  of  thirty  years.  Among 
the  toasts  which  followed  were  “  Success  to  the  Professional  Gardeners’ 
Friendly  Benefit  Society,”  submitted  by  Mr.  W.  Green,  and  acknow¬ 
ledged  by  Mr.  H.  Wright ;  “  The  City  and  Trade  of  Leeds,”  given  by 
Mr.  W.  Goodchild,  and  replied  to  by  Mr.  T.  Clough  (Messrs.  Green  and 
Son,  Ltd.);  and  “The  Honorary  Members,”  proposed  by  Mr.  J.  W. 
Frankland  (treasurer),  and  responded  to  by  Mr.  E.  J.  Batchelor. 
Meteorological  Observations  at  Chiswick. — Taken  in  the 
Royal  Horticultural  Society’s  Gardens — height  above  sea  level  24  feet. 
Date. 
Direction  of 
Wind. 
Tempsrature  of  the 
Air. 
Rain. 
Temperature  of 
the  Soil. 
At  9  A.M. 
Lowest 
Temperature 
on  Grass. 
1901. 
February. 
At  9  A.M. 
Day. 
Night 
At 
1-ft. 
deep. 
At 
2-ft. 
deep. 
At 
4-ft. 
deep. 
Dry 
Bulb. 
Wet 
Bulb. 
co 
© 
bfi 
5 
CO 
* 
O 
J 
Sunday  ..  3 
Monday..  4 
Tuesday  5 
Wed’sday  6 
Thursday  7 
Friday  ..  8 
Saturday  9 
E.N.E. 
K.N.E. 
N.N.E. 
N.N.E. 
N.N.W. 
S.E. 
W.N.W. 
deg. 
36-2 
30-8 
33  0 
35-4 
30-9 
34-0 
36  8 
deg. 
345 
30 ’2 
31  8 
34-2 
29  4 
32-9 
36-2 
deg. 
39-0 
36-9 
35-2 
38- 0 
39- 3 
39-6 
41-3 
deg. 
35-2 
23-8 
30-3 
315 
30-2 
29  8 
34-0 
ns. 
-048 
deg. 
38-0 
376 
37-3 
37-3 
37T 
36-8 
380 
deg. 
41-2 
41-2 
40-8 
40-6 
40-5 
40-3 
40-3 
deg. 
45  T 
44-9 
44'7 
44-7 
44'4 
44-2 
44-2 
deg. 
30-0 
16-3 
30-5 
26-2 
22-4 
22'3 
83T 
Means  .. 
33-9 
32-7 
38-5 
30-7 
Total 
0-48 
37-4 
40'7 
44-6 
25-8 
Dull  weather  and  cold  winds,  principally  from  the  north  and  east, 
have  prevailed  during  the  past  week.  A  heavy  fall  of  snow,  mixed 
with  rain,  occurred  on  the  night  of  the  4th  inst. 
