August  13,  1903. 
JOUPiXAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AXD  COTI'ACE  GABDEXER. 
145 
brilliant  red  fruit,  soft  fleshed,  and  oval  in  form.  This  seed¬ 
ling  appears  to  me  quite  good  enough  to  introduce  into 
commerce.  For  the  nonce,  however,  its  presence  and 
fame  are  confined  to  the  spot  it  emerged  from,  and  its 
name  is  that  of  its  sponsor  in  the  flesh,  the  gardener  Avho 
sowed  it,  “  Atkins’  Seedling.”— J.  A.  Carnegie-Cheales. 
Figs  under  Glass. 
Early  Forced  Trees  in  Pots. — Immediately  the  second  crop 
of  fruit  is  gathered  examine  the  trees  for  red  spider  and  scale, 
as  keeping  the  soil  and  atmosphere  somewhat  drier  encourages 
the  pests.  They  are  almost  certain  infesters  of  Fig  trees  in 
heated  structures,  and  get  ahead  during  the  ripening  of  the 
fruit.  When  that  is  cleared  off  the  trees,  recourse  must  be  had 
to  cleaning.  If,  therefore,  these  pests  have  made  undesirable 
progress,  it  will  be  advisable  to  syringe  the  trees  with  a  paraffin 
oil  solution,  one  part  .softsoap  dissolved  in  eight  parts  boiling 
soft  water,  and  to  three  gallons  of  this  solution  add  a  wineglass- 
ful  of  paraffin  oil,  and  churn  with  a  syringe  until  well  amalga¬ 
mated  ;  then  use  at  a  temperature  of  l3odeg,  wetting  every 
part  of  the  tree,  the  under  as  well  as  upper  side  of  the  leaves, 
and  all  the  wood.  Paraffin  oil  emulsion  diluted  with  ten  parts 
hot  water  may  be  used  for  the  purpose.  To  prevent  the  solu¬ 
tion  soaking  into  the  soil  a  little  dry  moss  may  be  tied  round 
the  stem,  and  then  a  sort  of  pyramid  of  the  same  placed  about 
the  plant  and  extending  over  the  rim  of  the  pot.  In  severe 
infection  repeat  this  in  the  course  of  three  or  four  days,  after¬ 
wards  syringing  thoroughly  with  tepid  water.  The  trees  will 
only  need  water  to  prevent  the  foliage  becoming  limp,  venti¬ 
lating  to  the  fullest  extent  day  and  night,  but  protect  the  trees 
from  heavy  rains. 
Early  Forced  Planted  Out  Trees. — ^As  the  second  crop  is 
ripening  a  circulation  of  air  constantly  is  imperative,  more,  of 
course,  by  day  than  at  night.  If  dull  weather  prevail  a  gentle 
heat  in  the  hot-water  pipes  is  necessai’y  to  secure  well-ripened 
fruit  and  prevent  spot,  a  fungus  disease  attacking  the  Figs  at 
the  eye.  Watering  at  the  roots  should  be  diminished  and 
syringing  discontinued ;  but  a  moderate  air  moisture  may  be 
maintained  for  the  benefit  of  the  foliage.  If  red  spider  is 
present  heat  the  hot-water  pipes  to  from  loOdeg  to  200cleg,  and 
paint  them  with  flowers  of  sulphur  formed  into  a  cream  with 
skim  milk,  keeping  the  house  closed  for  the  night,  but  allowing 
the  pipes  to  cool  after  about  an  hour.  As  soon  as  the  fruits 
are  all  gathered  the  trees  may  have  a  good  washing  with  the 
syringe  or  garden  engine  to  clear  the  foliage  of  dust  and  red 
spider,  otherwise  a  free  circulation  of  warm,  rather  dry,  air 
.should  be  maintained  in  the  house  until  the  foliage  commences 
falling  naturally,  which  mu.st  not  be  accelerated  by  allowing  the 
soil  to  become  dust  dry  at  the  roots. 
Unheated  Houses. — The  fruit  is  advanced  in  swelling,  and 
ripening  commencing.  Admit  air  early,  increasing  it  with  the 
sun  heat,  maintaining  through  the  day  a  temperature  of  80deg 
to  85deg,  with  free  ventilation,  closing  early  so  as  to  run  up  to 
90deg  or  95deg,  even  lOOdeg ;  and  when  the  sun’s  power  is 
declining  a  little  air  may  be  admitted  at  the  top  of  the  house, 
so  as  to  allow  the  pent  up  moisture  to  escape,  the  temperature 
gradually  cooling  down.  AVater  or  liquid  manure  will  be  neces- 
.sary  for  keeping  the  soil  properly  moist. — Grower. 
“White”  Blackberry. 
A  “  white  ”  Blackberry  is  reported  from  Santa  Rosa,  Cali¬ 
fornia.  It  has  been  grown  by  a  well-known  breeder  of  new 
fruits,  Mr.  Luther  Burbank,  and  is  a  ci’oss  from  the  Lawton 
Blackberry.  It  is  called  the  Iceberg,  and  is  quite  hardy  as  well 
as  prolific. 
The  “Daffodil  King’’  on  Tour.— No.  8. 
{Continued  from  i')age  78.) 
Melbourne. 
Melbourne  has  one  of  the  finest  botanical  gardens  in  the 
world,  and  Mr.  AV.  R.  Guilfoylo,  the  superintendent,  is  an  artist 
A\dio  has  brought  his  abilities  to  bear  in  the  laying  out  and  plant¬ 
ing  of  the  grounds.  These  contain  a  large,  ugly  reservoir,  which 
rises  up  to  a  peak  like  that  of  a  small  crater.  He  has  treated  this 
as  it  stands,  by  covering  the  surface  with  weather-worn  stones 
to  rejiresent  the  flow  of  lava,  and  planted  amongst  these  stones 
metallic-grey  Agaves  and  similar  plants.  Melbourne  has  made 
a  new  entrance  to  their  Botanic  Gardens,  and,  in  doing  so,  a  large 
slice  had  to  be  taken  from  the  elevated  ground  on  which  the 
Government  house  is  built,  and  from  the  railway  this  looked  from 
its  smooth  surface  as  if  an  immenS'e  slice  had  been  cut  from  a 
gigantic  cheese  ;  the  bad  effect  is  being  shrouded  off  by  the  plant¬ 
ing  of  suitable  .shrubs  and  the  building  of  an  elegant  temple. 
There  is  a  good  botanical  collection  of  plants  maintained,  and 
Mr.  Barr  says  he  knows  of  no  finer  public  resort  in  any  part  of 
the  world  he  has  travelled  in.  The  grass  is  in  large  expanses,  and 
always  kept  in  perfect  trim.  The  garden  is  lacking  in  glass 
structures,  but  there  is  one  conseiwatory  with  a  goodly  assortment 
of  well-attended  plants. 
Mr.  Guilfoyle  suffers  from  the  way  in  which  his  labour  .supply 
is  provided.  Instead  of  being  allowed  to  have  a  staff  of  his  own 
choosing,  he  has  men  supplied  to  him  often  from  the  public  office 
— men  who  are  simply  messengers,  and  worthles.s  as  garden 
labourers,  and  frequently  after  he  has  had  the  trouble  of  training 
this  raw  material,  back  they  go  to  indoor  service.  This,  of  course, 
handicaps  him  very  much. 
There  are  some  parks  in  Melbourne  all  of  considerable  interest, 
while  street  planting  is  becoming  a  very  important  feature. 
Melbourne  is  far  and  away  the  finest  laid  out  city  in  the  southern 
hemisphere,  and  the  citizens  are  determined,  so  far  as  that  is 
practicable,  to  make  it  the  most  attractive  city.  Great  progress 
in  this  respect  was  made  even  during  Mr.  Barr’.s  stay  in  Australia. 
The  old  horticultural  gardens  of  Burnley  are  close  to  Mel¬ 
bourne,  and  are  at  the  present  time  in  the  hands  of  a  very  efficient 
superintendent,  a  man  likely  to  make  his  mark  in  A'ictorian 
fruit  culture.  This  is  Mr.  Luffmann ;  Mr.  Barr  attended 
a  number  of  his  lectures  to  the  students,  and  speaks  in  the 
highest  praise  of  his  ability  to  command  the  keenest  attention  of 
his  audience. 
The  soil  of  A'ictoria  is  admirably  adapted  for  agriculture,  but 
the  original  gifts  of  locations  have  now,  Mr.  Barr  thought,  largely 
fallen  into  the  hands  of  a  few  large  holders.  The  irrigation 
scheme  for  capturing  the  water  of  the  Goulburn  river  is  a  magni¬ 
ficent  piece  of  work,  and  done  quite  irrespective  of  co.st.  Un¬ 
fortunately.  all  the  farmers  will  not  use  the  water,  with  the  result 
that  the  promoters  cannot  meet  the  interest  on  the  outlay. 
The  Government  of  Australia  have  not  yet  settled  on  a 
Capital.  Mr.  Luffmann,  their  superintendent  of  horticulture, 
had  made  some  useful  suggestions,  and  was  one  of  those  who  were 
chosen  to  select  a  suitable  site. 
Adelaide  is  unquestionably  the  most  beautiful  town  in 
Australia.  It  is  not  very  large,  but  it  is  .so  splendidly  laid  out, 
and  the  situation  was  well  chosen  in  the  midst  of  hills.  It  is 
seldom  that  the  nights  are  warm  in  Adelaide,  as  there  are 
cool  breezes  from  the  sea.  The  town  has  its  botanic  garden,  con¬ 
taining  some  fine  specimen  trees,  glass  houses,  and  ruled  by  a 
efever  director.  A  few  miles  out  a  large  tract  of  land  has  been  laid 
out  as  a  fruit  farm,  and  this  also  comes  under  the  botanic  garden 
director’s  care.  If  the  people  of  Adelaide  do  not  possess  the 
bustle  of  those  of  Sydney  and  Melbourne,  they  are  yet 
very  hospitable,  and  Mr.  Barr  declared  that  there  is  more  genuine 
horticulture  in  and  around  this  city  than  in  any  other  in  the 
Island  Continent. 
Freemantle,  in  AA’c-stern  Australia,  is  a  very  primitive  place, 
but  Perth,  where  the  Government  House  is,  furnishes  a  really 
beautiful  city,  being  admirably  situated,  and  having  a  fine 
natural  park,  carriage  drives  are  laid  throughout.  Here  the 
”  Kangaroo  Paw  ”  may  be  seen  in  its  native  excellence,  and  .some 
of  its  varieties  are  of  extraordinary  beauty.  This  natural  park 
forms  a  plateau — overlooking  a  wide  expanse  of  water,  “  without 
exception  it  is  the  prettiest  bit  of  landscape  I  almost  ever  saw  ”  ; 
and  here  tlie  interviewer  smiled,  as  the  reader  now  smiles,  and  as 
Mr.  Barr  will  smile,  when  he  notices  “a  contradiction  in  terms” 
which  his  Scottish  bump  of  caution  has  led  him  into.  The  slopes 
of  the  park  are  terraced  and  are  nicely  planted. 
Here,  at  Perth,  on  the  Swan  river,  the  black  swan  can  be 
seen  in  its  native  liabitat,  and  large  flocks  sail  up  and  down,  it 
being  a  protected  bird.  The  Swan  river  is  a  noble  sheet  of  water, 
but  is  at  present  only  deep  enough  for  small  vessels  to  navigate, 
and  on  one  of  these  Mr.  Barr  sailed  from  Freemantle  to  Perth. 
Some  large  P.  and  O.  steamers  go  as  far  up  as  Freemantle,  hut 
many  of  the  Australian  steamers  take  in  or  land  passengers  at 
Albany,  on  King  George’s  Sound,  in  the  south-west  of  the  colony. 
The  governor’s  garden  is  of  considerable  size,  but  not  greatfv 
attractive.  Taken  all  in  all,  Mr.  Barr  classes  Perth  third  among 
Australian  cities  of  note  for  beauty. 
Albany  was  a  prosiu-rous  place  till  Freemantle  became  a  port. 
It  possesses  a  fine  ba.v,  in  which  ships  of  the  largest  size  can  safely 
anchor.  Close  to  Albany  there  can  be  seen  the  Boronia  mega¬ 
stigma  in  its  wild  state  growing  in  marshy  ground. 
Australian  Nurseries. 
Starting  with  Bri.sbane,  Mr.  Barr  observed  that  this  city  is 
practically  without  a  garden  nurser.v.  Sydney  and  Fi-eemantle 
had  had  nurseries,  but  are  almost  extinct.  Melbourne,  however, 
is  fairly  well  supplied,  and  Mr.  Cheisman’s  is  decidedly  the  finest. 
Adelaide  possesses  a  nursei'y  which  is  managed  by  an  old  English 
gardener  who  seemed  to  appreciate  specimen  plants  rather  than 
monejq  and  our  traveller  considered  this  man’s  nursery  unique 
amongst  those  of  Australia.  If  Perth  should  ever  take  to  growing 
Hyacinths  and  Tulips  it  should  become  the  Holland  of  the  Southern 
Hemisphere,  the  conditions  being  the  most  favourable  of  any  place 
found  during  the  Daffodil  King’s  travels. 
