48S 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
November  27,  1S02. 
should  be  to  make  it  closer  in  texture,  and  thus  more  capable 
of  holding  the  food  of  crops.  Notwithstanding  the  above 
facts,  there  are,  however,  some  able  cultivators  who  practise, 
and  strongly  recommend  to  others,  a  course  of  procedure 
diametrically  opposed  to  that  outlined  above.  They  say 
that  it  is  only  light  soils  that  should  be  dug  during  autumn  ; 
the  heavy  ones  they  prefer  to  dig  or  trench  just  before 
planting  is  done  in  spring  ;  advancing  as  their  reason  for 
such  a  practice  that  the  freshly  turned  up  heavy  soil  dries 
quicker,  and  is  ready  for  sowing  or  planting  at  an  earlier 
date  than  that  thrown  up  in  the  autumn. 
There  is  a  good  deal  of  truth  in  this  assertion,  and  if  it 
was  only  a  question  of  getting  the  soil  dry  quickly  some 
advantage  might  be  claimed  for  late  digging  ;  but  here  the 
crux  of  the  whole  matter  comes  in,  because  by  allowing  a 
stiff  soil  to  lie  undisturbed  till  spring  the  influence  of  frost 
as  a  pulverising  agent  is  entirely  neglected.  A  stiff  soil 
thrown  up  roughly  in  the  autumn  absorbs  and  retains  a 
great  amount  of  moisture,  and  the  greater  amount  it  retains 
the  more  beneficial  will  be  the  action  of  frost  upon  it.  The 
surface  may  take  a  few  days  longer  to  dry  in  spring  than  in 
the  case  of  a  soil  recently  dug,  but  when  the  former  is  dry 
it  crumbles  to  a  fine  powder,  and  a  little  hoeing  and  forking 
soon  brings  it  into  a  fine  condition  of  tilth. 
Matters  are  far  different  with  the  spring-dug,  stiff  soil. 
After  being  turned  up,  the  lumps  dry  quickly,  but  as  no  pul¬ 
verising  influence  has  been  at  work,  the  crumbling  condition 
is  entirely  absent.  The  lumps  when  broken  up  are  still 
lumps,  though  smaller  in  size,  because  the  particles  of  soil 
have  not  been  forced  apart.  In  such  a  soil  the  tender  roots 
of  seeds  are  unable  to  work  freely,  and  although  after  a  time 
it  crumbles  on  the  surface  under  the  influence  of  weather, 
that  influence  is  only  exerted  to  the  depth  of  an  inch  or  so, 
and  the  mechanical  condition  of  the  soil,  instead  of  being 
improved  each  year,  remains  stationary. 
In  conjunction  Avith  this  autumn  cultivation,  if  the  manure 
applied  is  used  in  a  rough,  fresh,  undecayed  condition  better 
results  are  obtained  on  a  stiff  soil  than  when  w7ell  rotted 
manure  is  employed.  But  in  the  case  of  light  soils  dug  in 
spring,  the  manure  should,  of  course,  be  thoroughly  decayed, 
or  if  not  the  rougher  portions  ought  to  be  removed.  The  old 
practice  of  burning  the  surface  of  a  stiff  soil  is  perhaps  the 
quickest  method  of  all  in  bringing  it  into  a  good  working 
condition  ;  but  unfortunately  it  is  not  often  practised  now  on 
account  of  the  expense  and  the  general  scarcity  of  labour. 
Liberal  application  of  lime  or  soot  will  also  do  much  toward 
bringing  about  the  amelioration  of  a  stiff  soil,  in  addition  to 
supplying  essential  plant  foods. 
In  regard  to  the  best  methods  to  adopt  in  trenching  soils, 
there  are  still  not  a  few  misleading  statements  advanced  by 
men  who  claim  that  such  ideas  have  been  forced  upon  them 
by  the  result  of  their  own  experience.  Let  us  examine  one 
of  those  ideas,  and  see  how  misleading  it  may  become  if 
advanced  for  general  acceptance. 
A  prominent  cultivator  may  be  noted  for  the  excellence 
of  his  vegetables,  or  crops  generally.  He  attributes  his 
success  to  the  systematic  practice  of  trenching,  and  in  talking 
or  writing  of  trenching  advises  that  when  that  operation  is 
performed  the  position  of  the  soil  should  be  reversed — bury¬ 
ing  the  surface  soil,  and  bringing  that  from  beneath  to  the 
top  ;  and  if  a  word  is  said  against  the  practice,  points  to  the 
results  he  obtains  by  following  it,  quite  ignoring  the  fact  that 
a  practice  which  may  be  right  in  his  case  would  mean  disaster 
if  followed  under  other  circumstances.  Land  which  has 
been  well  manured  for  years,  and  trenched  at  regular 
intervals,  after  a  time  becomes  very  uniform  in  character 
from  top  to  bottom.  Then  if  at  trenching  time  the  position 
of  the  soil  is  reyersed  during  the  operation  it  gets  consider¬ 
ably  “  mixed,”  and  that  brought  up  from  below  being  fully 
charged  with  plant  food,  is  improved  by  full  exposure  to  the 
atmosphere,  and  the  practice  of  continually  reversing  such 
soils  brings  them  into  that  condition  in  wrhich  almost  anything 
will  grow  in  any  portion  of  the  soil  down  to  the  cultivated 
point. 
Now,  let  us  turn  to  the  other  side  of  the  question.  How 
could  anyone  more  easily  court  disaster  than  by  attempting 
this  reversal  of  soil  on  land  which  had  not  previously  been 
trenched,  and  which,  although  good  on  the  top,  is  poor, 
sandy,  gravelly,  or  stony  beneath  1  Such  a  soil  is,  of  course, 
immensely  benefited  by  being  trenched  and  heavily  manured, 
provided  the  inferior  soil  is  kept  beneath  and  the  good  on 
the  top. 
After  a  few  years  in  a  case  of  this  description  a  little  of 
the  soil  in  the  second  strata  may  be  mixed  with  that  imme¬ 
diately  above  it,  and  thus  by  degrees  the  whole  is  improved 
to  a  great  depth  ;  but  it  is  slow  work,  and  the  man  who 
attempts  to  improve  it  at  one  bold  stroke  lays  a  “  lash  ”  on 
his  own  back  which  will  cut  deeply,  and  provide  “  stinging 
pin-pricks  ”  for  years  after  the  “  stroke  ”  is  driven 
home. — H.  D. 
The  Horticultural  Hall. 
Some  of  the  plans  for  the  Royal  Horticultural  Society  s 
Centenary  Hall  are  furnished  on  page  504,  and  these  afford 
information  of  the  selection,  disposition,  and  sizes  of  the 
various  offices  and  rooms,  and  of  the  exhibition  hall.  On 
the  ground  floor  plan  we  observe  that  the  site  extends  in 
front,  facing  St.  Vincent’s  Square,  to  a  length  of  150ft, 
Avhile  the  sides  are  almost  130ft. 
This  space  would  seem  to  be  sufficiently  extensive  for 
the  purpose  of  a  suitable  exhibition  hall  with  offices  for 
the  fortnightly  meetings  of  the  Royal  Horticultural  Society 
and  of  the  London  special  floricultural  societies,  but  the 
question  has  arisen  whether  the  best  use  has  been  made 
of  the  space.  Three  distinct  committee  rooms  are  provided 
on  the  first  floor.  Plant's  and  objects  for  the  respective 
committees  will  therefore,  we  presume,  require  to  be 
carried  up  one  storey,  and  down  again,  necessitating  the 
expenditure  of  much1  time  and  energy.  Might  not  the 
annexes  of  the  exhibition  hall  have  been  utilised  as  places 
for  the  committee  meetings,  the  duration  of  which  is 
seldom  longer  than  one  hour  in  each  fortnight  1 
This  would  have  freed  three  rooms,  or  the  space  of  the 
same,  to  be  placed  at  the  option  of  the  Gardeners’  Royal 
Benevolent  Institution  and  the  Royal  Gardeners  Orphan 
Fund,  with  one  room  for  the  occasional  meetings  of  the 
committees  of  the  floricultural  societies,  each  contributing 
a  small  rent  for  the  use  thereof.  Failing  the  acceptance  of 
these  societies  of  the  rooms,  a  club  room  would  surely  have 
been  welcome.  This  would  then  appear  like  the  true 
Home  of  Horticulture  for  which  so  many  have  been 
waiting,  and  become  a  source  of  revenue  to  the  Council. 
The  external  appearance  of  the  hall,  as  showm  in  the 
plans  approved  by  the  Council,  is  such  as  to  excite  some 
feeling  of  alarm  that  this  projected  building  may  be  sanc¬ 
tioned  and  completed  without  alteration,  and  stand  foi  ages 
as  an  everlasting  cause  of  lamentation  to  all  who  are  lovers 
of  the  stately  or  elegant  in  architecture.  Insomuch  as 
space  is  limited,  every  effort  of  the  Council  should  be 
directed  toward  increasing  the  utilisable  area  in  the  base¬ 
ment,  and  creating  more  space  in  the  roof.  By  the  addi¬ 
tion  of  a  five-foot  parapet,  the  attics  of  the  hall  could  most 
easily  be  converted  into  a  domed  or  skylighted  museum,  by 
which  the  outward  semblance  of  the  building  would  be 
completely  revolutionised  and  beautified. 
A  museum  appeals  to  us  imperatively  as  an  indispensable 
adjunct  of  a  Royal  Horticultural  Hall.  It  may  be  said  that 
a  society  distinguished  by  the  possession  of  a  Scientific 
Committee  would  find  itself  lacking  in  dignity  if  it  could  not 
also  boast  of  a  museum  in  vdiich  objects  of  interest  charac¬ 
teristic  of  the  deliberations  of  such  a  body  might  be 
accumulated.  '  It  is  quite  conceivable  that  hereafter  the. 
labours  of  this  Committee  will  result  in  an  accession  to  the 
Society  of  models  relating  to  fruit,  specimens  of  plant 
diseases  or  of  injurious  insects,  and  other  interesting  objects 
transmitted  by  enthusiastic  Fellows  during  their  migrations 
in  foreign  lands.  In  case  the  glazed  and  vaulted  chambers 
on  each  side  of  the  caretaker’s  apartments  remain  unused  as 
a  museum,  it  will  not  be  difficult  to  find  some  other  purpose 
for  them,  and  the  present  unsightly  roof  of  slate  would 
disappear. 
Apple,  Coronation. 
We  learn  that  the  Apple  named  originally  Edward’s  Corona¬ 
tion  is  hereafter  to  be  named  simply  Coronation. 
