May  9,  1901. 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
391 
Sir  George  King,  to  whom  the  Linnean  Society  has  awarded  its 
gold  medal,  given  alternately  to  a  botanist  and  zoologist,  is  the  late 
director  of  the  C  alcutta  Botanical  Gardens.  He  has  published  numerous 
and  important  papers  dealing  with  Indian  and  Malayan  floras.  Sir 
George  was  president  of  the  section  devoted  to  botany  at  the  Dover 
meeting  of  the  British  Association  in  1899,  on  wh  ch  occasion  he  gave  in 
his  address  a  masterly  account  of  the  history  of  Indian  botany.  The 
medal  will  be  presented  on  24th  May. 
Australian  Birds. — The  indigenous  flora  and  fauna  of  New  South 
Wales  excite  much  attention  in  scientific  circles,  owing  to  many  of  the 
species  being  quite  different  from  those  found  in  other  parts  of  the 
world.  An  eminent  naturalist  has  reokoned  that  there  are  690  distinct 
species  of  birds  in  Australia,  being  more  than  the  number  found  in 
Europe,  and  nearly  as  many  as  inhabit  and  visit  North  America.  In 
Gould’s  work  on  the  “  Birds  of  Australia  ”  are  figured  many  of  the 
most  beautiful  kinds  inhabiting  the  continent,  such  as  the  paradise  bird, 
lyre  bird^  mound-builder,  and  a  large  number  of  parrots  and  pigeons. 
Express  Forcing. — Some  of  the  daily  papers  have  been  ventilating 
what  we  presume  they  imagine  to  be  a  new  system  of  Asparagus 
forcing.  The  paragraphs  tell  us  that :  “  Successful  •  xperiments  have 
been  made  recently  in  the  forcing  of  the  growth  of  Asparagus  in 
the  field  in  the  winter  by  the  help  of  steam.  Narrow  trenches  about 
4  inches  deep  are  dug  between  the  rows,  and  oovered  with  boards,  so 
as  to  form  little  tunnels.  Steam  from  a  boiler  is  forced  into  the 
tunnels  through  a  hose,  penetrating  the  soil,  and  keeping  the  latter 
moist  and  warm.  The  process  has  to  be  performed  only  once  a  day, 
for  five  minutes  at  a  time,  and  the  results  obtained  have  been  quite 
remarkable.”  Possibly ;  yet  we,  in  this  country,  have  known  of  the 
system,  and  have  not  seen  the  advantage  of  employing  it. 
Variorum. — We  notice  that  the  Leek  Agricultural  and  Horti. 
cultural  Association  have,  during  1900,  added  to  the  previous  balance 
they  had  in  hand.  Their  surplus  funds  are  now  £170  13s.  2d.  *  * 
The  German  Bose  Society  has  just  published  a  select  list  of  300 
Roses,  embracing  the  best  varieties  of  the  several  classes  and 
selections.  *  #  Near  Mickelour,  in  Scotland,  there  is  a  Beech  hedge 
nearly  half  a  mile  in  length,  and  100  feet  high,  planted  in  1745.  It 
is  still  trimmed  about  every  ten  years,  and  to  all  appearance  is  in 
perfect  health,  “  one  of  the  arboreal  wonders  of  the  world.”  *  * 
The  Chicago  florists  are  agitating  against  street  flower  sellers.  Petitions 
have  been  signed  and  presented  to  a  “Judiciary  Committee”  for 
consideration. 
The  Sugar  Tax. — Writing  to  a  morning  contemporary  on  the 
question  of  a  probable  sugar  tax,  a  correspondent  says  he  could 
not  believe  the  Government  would  put  a  tax  upon  this  important 
article.  He  goes  on  to  write : — “  Thanks  to  oheap  sugar,  several 
industries,  including  that  of  fruit  production  for  jam,  have  been 
developed  in  the  most  extensive  manner,  and  as  jam  making  opens  up 
an  outlet  for  surplus  fruit,  enabling  growers  to  grade  out  the  finest 
specimens  for  sale  fresh,  at  higher  prices  in  the  market,  it  is  clear  that 
a  tax  upon  sugar  would  seriously  injure  English  fruit  growers.  I  fail 
to  see  how  the  Colonial  Secretary,  of  all  men,  could  sanction  any  such 
tax.  He  has  subsidised  the  shipment  of  fruits  from  Jamaica  at  a  total 
cost  of  £400,000,  spread  over  a  term  of  years.  It  seems  to  me 
impossible  for  any  political  party  to  subsidise  a  colonial  fruit  industry 
at  the  same  time  that  the  home  fruit  trade  is  to  be  seriously  handicapped 
by  a  tax.  Preferential  patronage  and  protection  simply  hinder  the 
natural  expansion  of  all  industries.” 
The  Bulb  Industry  In  Bast  Anglia. — There  seems  to  be  a 
prospect  that  before  very  long  the  eastern  counties  will  oust  Holland 
from  the  position  it  has  so  long  held  of  chief  contributor  of  bulbs  to 
the  English  market.  Every  year  immense  quantities  of  Snowdrops, 
Daffodils,  Narcissi,  and  other  bulbous  flowers  are  poured  into  the  London 
and  great  provincial  markets.  Where  the  Norfolk  and  Lincoln  marshes 
once  existed,  there  is  now  one  of  the  richest  alluvial  tracts  in  England. 
The  soil  is  light  but  not  dry,  and  is  very  easy  to  till.  In  the  early  spring 
there  are  acres  of  Daffodils,  Narcissi,  Snowdrops,  and  Violets  to  be 
seen.  The  bright-looking  Pheasant’s. eye  and  the  stately  N.  Emperor 
help  to  make  the  scene  very  picturesque.  For  early  markets  the 
Daffodils  are  plucked  as  soon  as  they  have  what  is  termed  a  “  crook  ” 
neck,  and  are  then  placed  in  sheds  heated  to  a  temperature  of  between 
70°  and  80°.  They  are  put  into  troughs  of  soft  water,  and  in  two  or 
three  days  the  blooms  are  ready  to  be  tied  up  in  bunches  of  dozens 
and  despatched  by  rail  to  Covent  Garden  and  elsewhere. 
The  Gardeners’  Royal  Benevolent  Institution. — The  Dean 
of  Rochester,  Earl  Egerton  of  Tatton,  and  Charles  E.  Keyser,  Esq., 
J.P.,  will  be  amongst  the  supporters  of  Lord  Llangattook,  who 
presides  on  the  occasion  of  the  annual  festival  of  the  Gardeners’  Royal 
Benevolent  Institution  at  the  Hotel  Metropoleon  Wednesday,  May  22nd. 
Early  intimation  should  be  given  to  the  secretary,  at  175,  Victoria  Street, 
S.W.,  by  gentlemen  who  desire  to  be  present. 
Grafting  Up  to  Bate. — The  “  Fruit  World  ”  is  responsible  for  the 
following  : — “  At  a  recent  meeting  of  the  Aoademy  of  Science  in  Paris, 
Mons.  G.  Bonnier  presented  a  note  concerning  some  very  interesting 
experiments  in  grafting  plants,  the  results  of  which  contradicted  the 
generally  acoepted  opinion  that  only  plants  belonging  to  the  same 
botanical  family  can  be  successfully  grafted  upon  one  another.  Mons. 
Bonnier  showed  that  recently  plants  of  entirely  different  families  had 
been  grafted  with  success — for  example,  the  Maple  upon  the  Lilac,  the 
Kidney  Bean  upon  the  Castor  Oil  Bean,  and  the  Cabbage  upon  the 
Tomato.” 
Gardeners’  Charity  Guild. — Last  year,  and,  in  fact,  for  the  past 
three  years,  the  body  o?  men  who  constitute  the  Gardeners’  Charity 
Guild  have  done  praiseworthy  work  in  promoting  an  annual  concert  for 
the  purpose  of  drawing  in  money,  that  was  afterwards  handed  over  to 
either  of  the  gardening  oharities  as  a  donation.  Last  year  the  handsome 
sum  of  £30  odd  was  raised  from  the  Guild’s  concert  at  Cannon  Street 
Hotel,  E.C.,  and  this  was  held  during  the  month  of  March.  Is  the 
Guild  still  in  union  P  and  are  efforts  being  made  for  any  concert  or 
festival  this  year  P 
Sussex  Weather. — The  total  rainfall  at  Abbot’s  Leigh,  Haywards 
Heath,  for  April  was  2-45  inches,  being  0‘74  above  the  average.  The 
heaviest  fall  was  0'72  inch  on  the  3rd  ;  rain  fell  on  fifteen  days.  The 
maximum  temperature  was  71°  on  23rd,  the  minimum  28°  on  the  2nd ; 
mean  maximum  53T50,  mean  minimum  38'02°,  mean  temperature  45‘58° 
which  is  1'57°  below  the  average.  The  first  half  of  the  month  was  wet 
and  oold,  rain  falling  every  day  till  the  16th.  The  “  mat-warr  ”  then  set 
in,  drying  the  ground  extremely  fast.  The  maximum,  71°,  was  reached 
on  the  23rd,  but  the  wind  got  baok  into  the  N.E.  on  25th,  and  on  the 
27th  the  maximum  temperature  was  only  54°,  with  slight  frost  on  the 
grass  on  several  mornings  at  the  end  of  the  month. — R.  I. 
April  Weatber  at  Belvolr  Castle,  Grantham. — The  wind 
was  in  a  southerly  direction  nineteen  days.  The  total  rainfall  was 
1'70  inch;  this  fell  on  fifteen  days,  and  is  0T0  inch  below  the 
average  for  the  month ;  the  greatest  daily  fall  was  034  inch  on 
the  3rd.  Barometer  (corrected  and  reduced)  ;  highest  reading, 
30256  inches  on  the  17th  at  9  p.m.  ;  lowest,  29390  inches  on  the 
15th  at  9  A.M.  Thermometers :  highest  in  the  shade,  75°  on  the 
22nd  and  23rd ;  lowest,  31°  on  the  17th ;  mean  of  daily  maxima, 
56'16°;  mean  of  daily  minima,  37  00°;  mean  temperature  of  the 
month,  46'58° ;  lowest  on  the  grass,  24°  on  the  11th ;  highest  in  the 
sun,  128°  on  the  22nd ;  mean  temperature  of  the  earth  at  3  feet,  43‘13°. 
Total  sunshine,  191  hours  51  minutes,  which  is  34  hours  19  minutes' 
above  the  average  for  the  month.  There  were  no  sunless  days  in 
April. — W.  H.  Divers. 
Meteorological  Observations  at  Cblswlck. — 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. 
© 
1901. 
April. 
and 
May. 
rection 
Wind. 
At  9  A.M. 
Day. 
Night 
Rain. 
At 
At 
At 
s  cs  8 
llo 
^  §_o 
s 
Dry 
Bulb. 
Wet 
Bulb. 
Highest 
Lowest. 
1-ft. 
deep. 
2-ft. 
deep. 
4-ft. 
deep. 
H 
Sunday  .  .28 
N.N  E. 
deg. 
464 
deg. 
40-7 
deg. 
54-9 
deg. 
31-0 
Ins. 
deg. 
60-0 
deg. 
60-5 
deg. 
48-2 
deg. 
264 
Monday.  .29 
E.S.E. 
51*4 
444 
69-2 
32  5 
— 
60  0 
60-3 
48 '6 
254 
Tuesday  30 
N.  E. 
61  4 
467 
61-4 
39-6 
— 
50-6 
50-3 
48’6 
31-8 
Wed’sday  1 
E.S.E. 
62-6 
47-2 
61-7 
83-8 
— 
49-8 
60-3 
48-8 
27-9 
Thursday  2 
N.E. 
494 
47-6 
67-4 
46'2 
— 
60-9 
60-2 
48-8 
43'5 
Friday  ..  3 
E.N.E. 
62-9 
49  0 
67-0 
463 
— 
61 ’6 
50-2 
48-8 
39'0 
Saturday  4 
N.E. 
49-7 
40-8 
69-2 
38-9 
— 
52-3 
50-9 
49-0 
29’6 
Means  .. 
50-6 
454 
604 
38'2 
Total 
60-7 
60-4 
48-7 
31-7 
The  greater  part  of  the  week  has  been  dull,  with  rather  keen 
north  and  east  winds. 
