2P5 
^cptcinbei  24,  1903.  JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
prices,  but  do  not  sell  so  freely,  and  the  most  prolific  varieties 
exist  amongst  the  shorter  fruited  kinds.  A  “Cue”  from  a  foot 
to  18in  in  length  does  not  exhaust  the  plants  so  much  as  a  longer 
one :  thus  more  can  be  grown  in  a  given  space. 
The  four  best  varieties  for  market  purposes  are  Western 
Wonder,  Masters’  Prolific,  Tender-and-True,  and  Cardiff  Castle, 
the  latter  being  the  best  of  the  four.  In  conclusion,  I  will  say 
that  the  quality  of  the  produce  must  be  first-class;  and  its  con¬ 
dition  when  unpacked  in  the  market  must  be  the  same,  as  only 
the  best  articles  obtain  the  highest  prices.  They  should  be 
packed  tight,  so  that  they  will  not  shift  about  in  the  flats.  As 
I  mentioned  before,  the  better  the  fruit  looks,  the  higher  prices 
it  will  obtain,  and  in  all  market  work  appearance  is  really  as 
important  as  quality. — (Read  before  the  Cardiff  Gardeners’  Asso¬ 
ciation  on  February  24,  by  Mr.  Waller,  Cucumber  grower  to 
Messrs.  Nurton  and  Co.,  Djmas  Powis,  Glamorgan.) 
Shelter  Hedges. 
Not  only  shelter  hedges,  but  hedges  for  ornament  as  well  ;  and 
the  purpose  of  the  illustration  which  accompanies  these  notes  is 
to  draw  attention,  ere  the  planting  season  begins,  and  plans  have 
Gadding  and  Gathering. 
Richard  Smith  &  Co.,  Worcester. 
,  W orce.Aer  is  a  quiet  little  town,  at  the  present  time  undergoing 
a  transition  from  the  horse  tram-car  system  of  transit,  to  an 
electrified  one.  The  township  lic«  in  the  mid.st  of  a  fertile 
country,  in  the  valley  of  the  Severn,  the  Malvern  Hills  being  in 
.sight  .south-westerly;  and  within  twenty  or  thirty  miles  are  the 
renowned  fruit  lands  of  Evesham  (southward);  Shake.speare's 
bjrthplace  to  eastward;  and  Warwick,  Birmingham,  Dudley,  and 
Kidderminster  nortlnvardly.  The  county  of  Worcester  is  like 
Cromartyshire  in  Scotland'  in  this,  that  many  of  its  parts  are 
quite  detached  from  the  main  area,  and  are  surrounded  by  other 
shires;  yet  they  are  fragments  of  Worcestershire.  The  mineral 
springs  and  brine  baths  of  Droitwich,  a  few  miles  from  the  county 
tojvn,  have  a  European  reputation. 
So  much  for  a  general  statement;  .and  now  for  a  few  notes 
on  Richard  Smith  and  Co^.’s  nur.series,  a  name  known  every¬ 
where.  The  visit  to  which  the.se  notes  pertain  was  only  of  one 
hour’s  duration,  which  enabled  one  to  see  only  the  hardy  plants 
and  some  of  the  shrubs. 
Elseagnus  aurea  variegata  was  pointed  out  as  being  one  of 
the  shrubs  for  whieh  a  bri.sk  demand  has  been  made.  The  Elseag- 
5heltering  Yew  Hedges  and  Grass  Walk. 
been  made^ — to  draw  attention  to  the  cosy,  clothed  effect  pro¬ 
duced  by  Yew  hedges.  They  are  alway.s  clean,  and  are  not,  to  our 
knowledge,  subject  to  blights  or  insect  peste.  They  do  get 
dusty,  and  may  catch  .soot  in  smoky  di.stricts,  but  on  the  whole 
the  Yew  is  one  of  the  best  ornamental  hedge  plants  we  have. 
Planted  a  foot  and  a  half  apart,  in  a  well-dug  soil  (almost  any  soil 
will  suit  the  Yew)  the  plants  speedily  establish  themselves,  and 
make  rapid  growth.  They  need  hardly  be  touched  with  the 
shears  for  three  years  ;  but  when  they  have  interlaced  and  are 
becoming  thick-set,  the  lateral  growths  may  be  shorn  evenly  in. 
Thi.s  will  be  continued  annually  afterwarcls.  It  is  well  to  cut 
pretty  hard  at  first,  in  order  to  get  a  good  centre  to  the  hedge. 
A  mulch  of  short  dung  is  very  beneficial.  On  dry,  poor  soils  the 
Yew  sometimes  dies  unexpectedly,  but  generous  treatment  can 
do  much  to  prevent  this.  With  a  doublet-lined,  hedge,  and 
borders  for  “old  and  new  fashioned”  hardy  plants,  the  most 
fitting  path  is  a  grass  one  :  a  firm  .sward. 
- - 
Large  and  Heavy  Peaches. — A  large  Peach  was  lately  ex¬ 
hibited  at  McKinney,  Tex.,  mea-suring  13in  and  weighing  13oz. 
Dr.  Trimble,  of  Duplex,  twelve  miles  north  of  there,  exhibited  a 
Peach  which  measured  13in  in  circumference  and  weighed  exactly 
14oz. 
nuses  are  ornamental,  .showy,  and  not  deciduous,  so  that  a  place 
can  alway.s  be  found  for  them.  Another  subject  of  much  grace 
is  the  cut-leaved  weeping  Birch,  of  which  some  lovely  trees  of  a 
mature  age  were  noticed  in  Messrs.  Smith’s  grounds.  Their  weep¬ 
ing  Beech  near  the  offices  is  quite  a  specimen  figure,  and  is  Avidely 
kn"own.  A  figure  of  it  appears  in  the  firm’s  catalogue  of  general 
nurserj'  stock. 
While  Avriting  of  the  arborescent  members,  it  is  fitting  to 
allude  to  certain  Bamboos,  including  amongst  them  the  folloAv- 
ing : 
Phyllostachys  Marliacea,  Avhich  is  a  beautiful  sub,ject.  niaking 
8ft  to  Oft  of  groAvth  in  a  sea.so'ii  at  Worcester.  It  is  said  to  be 
rare.  . 
Arundinaria  nobilis  and  Simoni,  forming  handsome,  feathery, 
irregular  masses  lOft  high. 
Phyllostachys  sulphurea,  having  bright  golden  yi  IIoav  .stems, 
slender  reed-like  groAAth,  and  narroAv  light  green  foliage.  The 
stock  of  this  is  limited  and  valuable. 
Phyllostachys  heterocylca.,  another  slender  kind,  is  also  rare. 
Phyllostachys  C'a.stillonis,  a  robust  plant,  and  very  beautiful 
at  St.  John’s  Nurseries,  aa-rs  other  to  Avhich  attention  Avas 
directed.  Some  of  these  are  groAvn  in  tubs  and  pots  under  glass, 
Avhile  many  of  the  hardier  sorts  flourish  in  the  open-air  collection. 
For  those  aa  lio  may  Avish  a  list  of  1  hese  plants.  I 
print  from  Cook’s  book'on  “Trees  and  Shrubs”  the  folloAving, 
