March  21,  1901. 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
245 
The  Pen  Districts. — The  fossil  remains  of  a  large  grizzly  bear 
have  been  unearthed  at  Boilrne  from  the  clay,  level  with  the  roots  of 
the  prehistoric  foreBt  trees  that  then  oovered  the  Fens.  The  fossil,  we 
learn,  has  been  sent  to  the  Geological  Society’s  museum  in  Jermyn 
Street,  London. 
Obituary. — The  American  horticultural  papers  record  the  death  of 
Mr.  John  Galvin,  who  was  born  in  the  Medway  district  of  Kent  over 
seventy-eight  years  ago.  By  his  death  at  his  late  home,  511,  Washington 
Street,  Dorchester,  Massachussets,  Boston  loses  her  oldest  florist  and 
horticulturist.  Mr.  Galvin  emigrated  to  America  at  eighteen  years 
of  age. 
Empirical  Gardening:.  —  A  correspondent  of  the  “Country 
Gentleman  ”  notes  that,  in  some  parts  of  the  country,  garden  quacks 
do  a  good  business  by  boring  holes  in  trees  and  placing  insect 
powders,  sulphur,  and  so  on,  into  the  trunks  as  “  certain  death  to 
bugs  and  caterpillars.”  At  fifty  cents  a  tree  profitable  returns  are 
made.  The  wide-spread  ignorance  of  matters  appertaining  to  gardening 
is  lamentable. 
Sweet  Pea  Society. — Mr.  Charles  E.  Wilkins  writes  to  say : — 
“  I  shall  be  obliged  if  you  will  announce  in  your  columns  that  the 
adjourned  meeting,  to  be  held  next  Tuesday  at  Winchester  House,  E.C., 
has  been  abandoned,  as  the  Bi-centenary  Committee  are  calling  a 
meeting  for  2.30  on  the  same  day  at  the  Hotel  Windsor,  Victoria 
Street,  S.W.,  to  form  a  National  Sweet  Pea  Society.” 
Daffodil  Exhibition. — At  the  Royal  Horticultural  Society’s 
meeting  to  be  held  on  April  9th  in  the  Drill  Hall,  Buckingham  Gate, 
speoial  prizes  will  be  offered  for  Daffodils,  open  to  amateurs  and  gentle¬ 
men’s  gardeners  only.  First  prize,  a  £7  7s.  silver  cup,  presented  to  the 
society  by  Messrs.  Barr  &  Sons;  second  prize,  R.H.S.  silver  Flora 
medal.  Group  of  Daffodil  blossoms  (Polyanthus  varieties  excluded), 
must  include  some  of  each  section,  Magni,  Medi,  and  Parvi  coronata, 
must  contain  at  least  fifty  varieties,  distinct,  of  thirty  of  which  at  least 
three  blooms  each  must  be  shown,  not  more  than  nine  blooms  of  any  one 
variety  may  be  put  up ;  to  be  staged  in  bottles,  vases,  or  tubes  not 
exceeding  3  inches  in  diameter  at  the  top  (inside  measurement) ,  and  all 
the  stems  must  touch  the  water.  Quality  of  flower  will  count  more 
than  quantity,  and  correct  naming  and  tasteful  arrangement  will  be  duly 
considered.  Any  foliage  may  be  used,  Daffodil  or  otherwise.  No  prize 
will  be  awarded  unless  there  are  two  competitors  at  least. 
Proposed  National  Sweet  Pea  Society — Important  Notice. 
— Under  the  chairmanship  of  Mr.  George  Gordon,  V.M.H.,  the  executive 
committee  of  the  Bi-centenary  Celebration  held  a  meeting  at  the  Hotel 
Windsor,  Victoria  Street,  on  Tuesday  afternoon.  The  publication  of 
the  complete  report  was  first  dealt  with,  and  tenders  having  been 
received  and  discussed,  that  of  Mr.  W.  Etherington,  Central  Printing 
Works,  Wandsworth,  was  accepted.  The  work  will  be  put  in  hand 
immediately.  The  question  as  to  the  desirability  of  forming  a 
National  Sweet  Pea  Society  was  unanimously  deoided  in  the  affirmative. 
A  deputation  from  the  meeting  at  Winchester  House  last  week  was 
received,  with  a  view  to  collaboration ;  and  the  promoters  were  invited 
to  attend  a  publio  meeting,  to  be  held  at  the  Hotel  Windsor  on  Tuesday, 
March  26th,  at  2.30  p.m.,  when  the  matter  will  be  fully  discussed,  and  a 
society  be  duly  constituted.  The  promoters  of  the  City  meeting 
decided  to  abandon  their  scheme  in  favour  of  that  of  the  committee. 
The  committee  trust  that  the  meeting  will  be  a  thoroughly  representative 
one. 
East  Anglian  Horticultural  Club. — Three  practical  papers 
were  read  upon  “  The  Cultivation  of  Mignonette  in  Pots,”  and  were 
discussed  before  the  above  club  on  the  6th  inst.  After  the  reading  of 
the  papers  the  judges  awarded  first  place  to  Mr.  D.  Howlett.  Mr. 
W.  Rush  was  a  very  close  second,  his  paper  being  thoroughly  practical, 
but  not  so  exhaustive.  Mr.  C.  Matthews  was  awarded  third.  A  lengthy 
discussion  followed,  Mr.  Chettleburgh  (Worsted)  advocating  something 
new  for  those  who  wished  to  grow  trained  specimens  of  Mignonette- — ■ 
viz.,  that  of  striking  them  from  cuttings.  Mr.  Bolton,  a  successful 
grower,  said  he  found  sowing  the  seeds  in  small  pots  and  keeping  from  too 
muoh  wet,  with  subsequent  “  pottings  on,”  his  best  plan.  An  impromptu 
discussion  was  next  started  upon  the  subject,  “  Why  Hollies  bloom 
and  not  ripen  fruit.”  Great  interest  was  taken  in  the  subject.  Some 
fine  cut  flowers  and  a  well  flowered  plant  of  Streptosolen  were  staged 
by  Mr.  G.  James,  gardener  to  Mr.  E.  T.  Boardman.  Mr.  Matthews 
exhibited  very  fine  sticks  of  Rhubarb.  Mr.  D.  Howlett  and  Mr.  W. 
Rush  staged  well  grown  flowering  and  foliage  plants.  Mr.  C.  Hines, 
as  usual,  had  good  vegetables  and  fine  fruit. 
Seed  Germination. — From  experiments  by  M.  Demoussy  it  appears 
that  seed  germinate  in  distilled  water  if  the  distillation  is  made  in  glass, 
not  in  copper,  as  copper  checks  the  growth. 
Trees  for  the  Strand. — We  have  a  Utopian  picture  presented  to 
our  imaginations  by  the  announcement  in  the  “  Westminster  Gazette  ” 
that  the  north  side  of  the  widened  Strand  is  to  be  planted  with  trees. 
Pennsylvanian  Horticulture. — We  learn  from  an  American 
co  ntemporary  that  the  Bill  establishing  a  bureau  of  horticulture  and 
pomology  in  the  Department  of  Agriculture  of  the  State  of  Pennsylvania, 
with  a  chief  at  a  salary  of  2500  dole.,  and  one  clerk  at  1500  dols. 
annually,  has  been  defeated. 
Crystal  Palace  Prult  Show. — The  prize  schedule  for  this  show 
will  be  issued  in  a  week  or  ten  days  by  the  Royal  Horticultural  Society, 
and  will  contain  an  authoritative  list  of  dessert  and  cooking  Apples, 
Pears,  and  Plums,  post  free  Id.  Donations  towards  the  prize  fund  will 
be  gratefully  received  by  the  society. 
Richmond  Park. — The  First  Commissioner  of  Works  was  asked 
by  Mr.  Pilkington  in  the  House  of  Commons  on  Friday  last,  whether 
the  complaints  made  by  the  Kingston  Municipal  Society  about  the 
careless  throwing  away  of  glass  bottles  by  picnic  parties  in  Richmond 
Park,  could  not  be  adequately  attended  to. 
Primulas  from  Porest  Hill. — The  Primula  season  is  at  its 
heyday  for  the  year — that  is,  so  far  as  the  Chinese  Primulas  are 
concerned.  We  have  to  acknowledge  the  reoeipt  of  a  nice  boxful  of 
blooms  from  Messrs.  John  Laing  &  Sons  of  Forest  Hill,  S.E.  Laing’s 
Gigantic  in  the  red,  white,  and  rose  varieties  are  really  handsome,  and 
of  good  form  and  substance.  Blue  has  been  secured  in  this  and  other 
strains,  so  that,  taking  all  kinds,  one  can  have  almost  all  colours  of  the 
rainbow.  The  stellata  hybrids  please  us  exceedingly  well,  especially 
the  crimson  and  the  pink  varieties.  The  blooms  of  Laing’s  double 
Primulas  are  as  fine  as  any  we  have  recently  seen. 
Hessle  Gardeners’  mutual  Improvement  Society. — Members 
of  the  above  society  held  their  fortnightly  meeting  in  the  Parish  Schools, 
March  5th,  Mr.  Blair  in  the  chair.  Mr.  Moody,  gardener  to  —  Laetham, 
Esq.,  Newland,  near  Hull,  read  a  very  instructive  and  interesting  paper 
entitled  “  Items  of  Interest  for  the  Advancement  of  General  Gardening.” 
Mr.  Moody’s  remarks  were  of  a  practical  nature;  in  his  opinion  every 
young  gardener  should  become  thoroughly  grounded  with  plain,  practical 
experience  before  they  ventured  upon  the  study  of  science. — J.  F.  D. 
Newport  Horticultural  Association  (Dundee). — At  the  last 
meeting  of  this  Association  a  paper  was  read  by  Mr.  James  Reid,  of 
Dudhope  House  Gardens,  on  the  subject  of  “  The  Artificial  Means  of 
Propagation.”  Low-growing  or  spreading  herbaceous  plants  and 
alpines  are  best  propagated,  he  said,  by  a  simple  method  of  division. 
In  other  cases  “  layers  ”  is  the  only  one  whioh  is  satisfactory.  In 
grafting  success  depends  upon  keeping  the  inner  bark  of  the  scion  in 
contact  with  that  of  the  stock  until  union  took  place.  In  the  modifica¬ 
tion  of  grafting,  known  as  “  arching,”  neither  is  the  scion  separated 
from  the  parent  nor  is  the  head  of  the  stock  cut  away.  In  “  budding  ’’ 
a  T-shaped  slit  is  made  in  the  stock  where  the  bad  is  to  be  inserted, 
and  the  bud  slipped  into  the  opening. 
meteorological  Observations  at  Chiswick. — Taken  in  the 
Royal  Horticultural  Society’s  Gardens — height  above  sea  level  24  feet. 
Date. 
O 
Temperature  of  the 
Air. 
Temperature  of 
the  Soil. 
At  9  A.M. 
CD 
h 
1901. 
rection 
Wind. 
At  9  A.M. 
Day. 
Night 
Rain. 
At 
At 
At 
SR 
t>.  Jr!  m 
JSg 
March. 
s 
Dry 
Bulb. 
Wet 
Bulb. 
Highest 
Lowest. 
i-ft. 
deep. 
2-ft. 
deep. 
4-ft. 
deep. 
H 
Sunday  ..10 
N.N.E. 
deg. 
340 
deg. 
33  3 
deg. 
42-9 
deg. 
30-0 
Ins. 
deg. 
41-2 
deg. 
43-0 
deg. 
44-2 
deg. 
23T 
Monday.  .11 
N.N.E. 
32  2 
30-6 
45*1 
30-0 
'  - 
40-0 
42'8 
44-2 
21-8 
Tuesday  12 
N.N.E. 
40-9 
39-9 
53-3 
31*9 
— 
40-3 
42-5 
44-2 
30*2 
Wed’sday  13 
N.N.E. 
37-5 
36-3 
42T 
31-5 
- - 
41 ’6 
42-9 
44-2 
24-3 
Thursday  14 
E.N.E. 
40-2 
38-8 
47 '3 
36-7 
-T- 
41-0 
42-7 
44-2 
30-5 
Friday  . .  15 
E. 
39’9 
37-9 
42-1 
37-7 
0-09 
41-5 
42-8 
442 
.  36 ’3 
136-2 
Saturday  16 
N.E. 
33-2 
37-6 
45  T 
36*8 
— 
41-5 
42-8 
42'2 
Means  .. 
37 ‘6 
36  "3 
45-4 
33-5 
Total 
0-09 
41-0 
42-8 
42-2 
28-9 
A  week  of  dull,  sunless  weather,  with  very  cold  winds  from  N.E. 
A  small  quantity  of  rain  fell  on  the  night  of  15th. 
