March  17,  1904. 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
237 
intellectual  welfare.  Of  course  their  morals  must  look  after 
themselves — feudalism  in  lamb’s  clothing.  But,  of  course, 
it  is  every  gardener’s  policy  to  procure  healthy  sinews  to  per¬ 
form  the  work  at  a  minimum  cost,  hut  the  economic  element 
must  never  be  exchanged  for  young  men’s  intellects. — 
Dicutalis. 
Notes  on  Apples. 
Your  correspondent,  on  page  168  of  the  Journal,  does  well 
to  draw  attention  to  the  merits  of  Duchess  of  Oldenburg.  It 
may  be  an  old  variety,  and  may  be  surpassed  in  some  respects 
by  newer  sorts,  and  it  may  also  be  too  soft  for  market  purpo.ses, 
yet  it  is  not  by  any  means  out  of  date.  For  private  use  it  is  a 
good  Apple,  a  sure  cropper,  and  it  succeeds  well  on  cold,  wet 
.soils — which  is  a  great  deal  to  say  in  its  favour.  It  is  one  that 
■should  not,  at  any  rate,  be  dispensed  with  for  some  time  to 
come. 
His  remarks  on  Potts’s  Seedling  are  not  in  accordance  with 
my  experience.  I  have  had  no  knowledge  of  it  as  a  standard, 
but  as  a  bush  I  have  seen  it  succeed  on  stiff,  heavy  .soil,  making 
good  growth  and  fruiting  well.  It  is  a  fine  variety  and  an 
excellent  cooking  Apple,  and  should  be  grown  where  it  succeeds. 
The  Old  Irish  Peach,  though  rarely  seen,  is  a  dessert  Apple  of 
some  merit,  early,  and  of  good  flavour;  and  this  variety,  grow¬ 
ing  in  the  same  garden  as  Potts’s  Seedling,  produced  annually 
good  crops  of  fine  fruits  that  ofttimes  formed  choice  food  for 
wasps.  No  pruning  was  given  to  the  tree  except  an  occasional 
thinning  of  branches. 
Peasgood’s  Nonesuch  is  familiar  on  the  exhibition  table,  but 
that  is  not  its  only  merit ;  it  is  an  excellent  Apple  for  culinary 
purposes,  and  should  be  found  in  every  garden  where  hardy  fruit.s 
are  grown  to  any  extent.  By  a  ijroper  and  rational  method  of 
pruning  this  sort,  and  some  attention  paid  to  its  roots,  I  hava 
-seen  good  crops  produced.  In  pruning  Apples  some  knowledge 
is  required  of  the  peculiarities  of  some  varieties,  if  the  best 
results  are  to  be  obtained.  There  can  be  no  doubt  that  many 
sorts  are  rendered  shy  in  bearing  by  the  adoption  of  a  ruthles.s 
.\v.stem  of  pruning. 
I  have  not  penned  the  notes  for  the  sake  of  adding  supplemen¬ 
tary  praise  to  the  varieties  mentioned  by  “Provincial,”  but 
rather  to  ask  him  where,  in  his  list  of  culinary  Apples,  he  places 
the  following; — Lord  Grosvenor,  Lane’s  Prince  Albert,  Ecklin- 
ville,  Stirling  Castle,  Warner’s  King,  and  many  others  of  like 
fame.  Of  course,  they  may  have  been  mentioned  by  “  Provin¬ 
cial ’’  in  previous  notes  ancl  have  e.scaped  my  notice;  if  so,  well 
and  good. — S.  P.,  AVilts. 
A  Potato  Plot. 
In  his  sanctum  .sat  the  editor,  publisher,  and  proprietor  of 
the  “  Tattieville  Times  and  Speckedtater  ” — Tattieville  (as 
everybody  know.s)  across  the  Hub,  ’way  down  Tuber  County. 
Sadlv,  yet  fondly,  he  gazed  at  the  last  of  the  Eldorados,  a 
-hri veiled  specimen,  which  in  its  prime  had  been  too  precious 
to  i)lant,  now  sterilised,  fossilised,  and  blind  of  an  eye  as  it 
reposed  in  a  curio  case  at  his  elbow.  A  thoughtful-looking  man 
this  .  editor,  and  he  had  to  think  as  well,  as  “guess”  and 
“  calkerlate  ”  some  too,  for  times  were  bad,  circulation  was 
low.  and  .something  had  to  be  “  rai.sed  ”  even  in  the  editorial 
tiekl  of  vision,  which  comprised  a  big  Potato  patch  waiting  to 
be  planted.  Dig  he  could  not,  to  beg  such  help  as  he  could 
not  I'emunerate  he  was  ashamed.  However,  there  was  .a 
wrinkle  in  the  shrivelled  eye  of  that  withered  vegetable,  and 
i  ilvation,  for  Eureka!— he  had  found  it.  That  night  a 
“  sj^ecial  extra”  of  the  “Tattieville  Times”  went  out  with 
a  startling  notice  of  hidden  treasure.  It  was  the  announce¬ 
ment  thar  this  globe-famed  specimen,  the  last  of  its  kind  (all 
its  kith  and  kin  having  been  exterminated  by  the  great  Hum 
l?ng.  which  had  so  savagely  attacked  the  family)  was  hidden 
in  "the  editorial  patch  aforementioned,  and  all  Tattieville, 
:d*!aze  with  Potato  spirit  and  agog  with  greed,  wended  its  way 
with  pick,  spade,  shovel,  and  all  kinds  of  garden  implements 
to  seek  it.  And  the  earth  was  moved,  never  moved  .so  much 
before:  and  that  editor  smiled,  hadn’t  smiled  so  much  for 
years,  as  for  days  and  nights  liis  acre  was  stin-ed  and  re.stirred 
to  the  utmo.st  depths  of  good  soil  in  Tattieville’s  anxiety  to 
-<‘cure  the  prize.  Alas!  It  was  never  found— leastwavs. 
never  acknowledged,  and  when  the  hubbub  abated  that  editor 
went  forth  with  the  smile  which  wouldn’t  come  off.  and  a 
dibble,  fo  dibble  in  a  good  old  eatable  kind  of  Potato,  and 
1  xi.se  a  mio-htv  crop  with  but  small  pains  and  large  profit.  And 
tliino-^  went  well  with  him  ever  after— so  well,  indeed,  that 
massive,  manv-caratted,  gold-cased  pendant  soon  graced  the 
ditorial  watchguard,  which  he  jealously  guarded,  and  regarded 
n  ith  much  veneration.  Strange  to  sav,  it  was  singularlv  alike 
in  form  and  size  to  the  last  of  the  Eldorados,  and— but  that  s 
r.uother  story.  — Sol.  Anum. 
Societies. 
R.H.S.  Scientific  Committee,  March  8. 
Present :  Dr.  M.  T.  Masters,  F.U.S.  (in  the  chair)  ;  Messrs.  Chitten¬ 
den,  Nicholson,  Micliael  A’eiteh,  Bowles;  Drs.  liendle  and  Cooke; 
Revs.  W.  Wilks  and  C.  Henslow,  Hon.  See. 
Lobelia  nicotiaiKefoUa. — A  fine  plant  was  exhibited  by  Mr.  (i.  Paul, 
a  native  of  Neilgherry  Hills  and  Ceylon.  The  flowers  were  white,  but 
the  figure  (•■  Bot.  Mag.,”  tali.  5587 ;  1886)  w'as  violet-coloured.  A 
Botanical  Certificate,  proposed  by  Mr.  A’eitch  and  seconded  by  Mr. 
Chittenden,  was  unanimously  awarded  to  Mr.  Paul. 
Jasmine  with  tuberous  groictUs. — Specimens  received  from  Mrs. 
Street.  AVoodside,  Caterham,  were  examined  by  Mr.  Saunders,  who 
reports  as  follows  :  “  It  is  difficult  to  account  for  the  growths,  as  there 
are  no  signs  of  insect  or  fungus.  tirowths  of  a  similar  appearance 
occur  on  the  roots  of  Roses,  being  caused  by  the  irritation  set  up  )iy 
ants.” 
Palms  and  scale  insects. — Mr.  Hall,  of  Mowbray  Park,  Sunderland, 
sent  some  specimens,  upon  which  Mr.  Saunders  reports  :  “The  insects 
unfortunately  arrivecl  in  a  bad  condition.  (1)  a  parasitic  fly  (?),  nearly 
allied  to  the  Ichneumons.  (2)  undiscoverable.  (3  and  4)  two-winged 
flies  (fain.  Mycetophilidte)  or  ‘fungus  gnats,’  as  the  grul>s  feed  on 
fungi  or  decaying  vegetable  matter  ;  they  are  of  no  importance.  (5) 
scale  insects,  but  so  covered  with  germs  as  not  to  be  identifiable.” 
Isle  of  light  Horticultural. 
The  monthly  meeting  was  held  at  the  Guildhall,  Newport, 
on  Saturday,  February  6.  The  usual  meeting  room  was  not 
comsidered  large  enough  to  accommodate  all  it  was  thought 
would  avail  themselves  of  attending  this  important  meetimg. 
In  the  unavoidable  ab.sence  of  the  chairman  of  the  association, 
Air.  AY.  AA^.  Sheath  made  a  most  capable  sub.stitute,  presiding 
over  a  distinctly  good  attendance  of  members,  and  the  public 
had  been  invited  by  advertisements  in  the  Pre.ss.  The  lecturer 
was  Air.  F.  AAk  Shrivell,  the  well-known  authority  and  expert 
on  chemical  manure.s,  and  who  has  delivered  many  lectures  on 
this  subject  before  most  of  the  gardeners’  associations  in  the 
kingdom.  He  dealt  with  their  use.s,  and  the  advantages  derived 
by  their  application  to  all  garden  crops. 
The  next  monthly  meeting  was  held  on  Alarch  o,  under  the 
presidency  of  Dr.  J.  Groves,  J.P.  There^  was  a  good  attend¬ 
ance  of  members  to  hear  a  paper  by  Air.  AA^.  Triblick,  F. R.H.S. , 
Brooks  House  Gardens,  on  winter-flowering  Begonias.  The 
lecturer  gave  a  brief  outline  of  the  histoiy  and  introduction 
of  the  several  species  and  varieties  dealt  with,  which  included 
all  the  newer  forms  raised  at  A'eitch’s  Nunseries,  Chelsea,  and 
elsewhere,  and  after  dealing  with  all  cultural  details  remarked 
that  no  class  of  plant  had  come  so  prominently  to  the  front,  or 
been  so  imj)roved  by  hybridisers  in  recent  years.  These  .should, 
therefore,  be  extensively  grown  in  gardens  where  there  was  no 
limitation  as  to  space  aiid  appliances,  and  in  smaller  ones  should 
take  precedence  over  other  subjects  for  winter  display.  Alany 
of  them  could  lie  grown  in  an  ordinary  greenhouse.  The  next 
meeting  will  take  place  on  April  2,  when  Air.  A.  AA  .  Kime  will 
read  a  paper  on  some  subject  to  be  selected. — AA  .  T. 
Chester:  Pests  and  Parasites. 
Alarch  5,  at  the  Grosvenor  Aluseum,  Che,ster,  Air.  R.  New- 
stead  delivered  a  lecture  on  “  New  and  Noteworthy  Pests  and 
Parasites,”  being  the  fifth  lecture  of  the.  session.  As  an  intro¬ 
duction  to  the  .subject,  the  lecturer  gave  a  brief  review  of  the 
external  characters  of  some  typical  insects,  and  also  called  atten¬ 
tion  to  their  salient  physiological  features.  Several  life-histories 
of  the  pests  were  given,  with  special  reference  to  their  occurrence 
in  the  county  of  Cheshire.  Some  new  and  interesting  facts  were 
given  concerning  the  economy  of  the  “leather  jacket”  or  latwa? 
of  the  crane  fly,  and  the  birds  which  were  found  to  prey  upon 
them:  tlie  observations  were  made  during  an  alarming  outbreak 
of  “leather  jackets”  on  golf  links  near  Chester,  where  many 
acres  of  gras.s  had  been  destroyed. 
In  the  mo.st  thickly  infested  portions  of  the  ground  an 
average  of  ten  grubs  were  found  to  the  square  foot:  tlie  crovvns 
of  the  plants  were  so  thoroughly  cut  through  that  the  turf,  with 
little  trouble,  could  be  rolled  up  into  large  masses.  But,  strange 
to  sav,  the  frequent  patches  of  white  clover  proved  immure,  and 
were  left  untouched  by  the  larvae  throughout  the  whole  of  the 
infected  area. 
Some  observations  on  the  common  wasps  were  also  given,  and 
special  reference  was  made  to  the  Tilbury  outbreak  of  the 
Colorado  beetle.  Among  the  plant  parasites  reference  was  made 
to  the  comparatively  new  Potato  disease  caused  by  Chrysophlyctis 
endobiotica.  which  had  caused  severe  lo.^s  on  the  Potato  crop  in 
one  or  two  localities  in  Chediire  during  the  pa.st  three  years.  (See 
