292 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
September  24,  1903 
Lettuces  at  the  Drill  Hall. 
to  your  report  of  our  exhibit  of  Lettuces  at  the 
fi  e  a  °T  September  15,  your  paragraph  stating 
n  1  0“  ^ncl  dibbled  into 
beds  5ft  by  4ft,  should  have  read  :  “  These  Lettuces  were  all 
.sown  ^on  May  30,  in  bed.s  L5ft  by  2ft,  drilled  12in  between  the 
rons.  — Dickson  and  Robinson,  Manchester. 
Hedges  for  Ornament,  Shelter,  and  Profit. 
Notwithstanding  the  fact  of  depredations  even  amono-st 
fenced-in  orchard  crops,  we  still  think  fruit-tree  hedges  are 
possible  in  soine  parts.  In  its  proper  place  we  answer  the  follow¬ 
ing  letter,  which,  however,  for  the  subject  it  introduces,  deserves 
the  prominence  we  give  it.  Our  querist  writes  ; — “  Now  that  we 
are  liard  driven  to  make  the  land  pay,  I  shall  be  glad  if  you  will 
tell  me,  in  your  ‘  Answers  to  Correspondents,’  what  hedge  I  can 
plant  to  pay  me  best.  I  want  a  quick-growing  hedge  for  shelter 
and  the  situation  is  an  exposed  one.  I  have  thought  of  Cob 
r^uts  lairleigh  Damsons,  and  Cherries.  Which  of  these  do  well 
in  this  part  (St  Albans)  of  Herts  .?  I  do  not  see  why  our 
hedges  should  yield  nothing.— E.  R.” 
Edible  Fungi— Potato  Disease. 
A\  hilst  thanking  you  for  your  courte.sy  in  sending  me  a  copy 
ot  the  Journal  for  17th  inst.,  it  is  but  justice  to  congratulate 
you  on  the  report  of  the  Fungus  Show  and  Lecture  at  the  R.H.S. 
meeting  as  one  of  the  best,  if  not  the  best,  of  the  many  which 
have  come  under  my  notice ;  and  I  shall  look  out  for  the  con- 
T  ™ay  observe  in  reference  to  the  last  paragraph, 
that  British  Edible  Fungi,”  with  twelve  coloured  plates  of  over 
a  P^iblished  by  Kegan  Paul,  Trench  and  Co.,  and 
Fdible  and  Poisonous  Mushrooms,”  with  eighteen  coloured 
plates  of  forty-eight  species,  by  the  Society  for  the  Promotion 
ot  t  hri.stiaii  Knowledge,  at  half-a-crown. 
I  have  noted  the  remarks  of  “  R.  H.  S.,”  page  264,  on  “Potato 
-Disease,  and  shall  take  the  first  opportunity  of  p'ublicly  stating 
my  opinion  on  the  subject.  My  experience  accords  with  that  of 
th«.  writer. — M.  C.  Cooke. 
- - 
Transplanting  Large  Trees. 
I  have  had  some  experience  in  transplanting  large  trees,  on 
one  occasion  iilanting  about  seventy  Elms  of  from  six  to  fourteen 
inches  in  diameter.  About  half  of  the  number  were  frozen  balls 
of  roots.  The  remainder  were  dug  after  the  frost  left  the 
ground  with  as  long  roots  as  possible,  the  roots  being  followed, 
and  after  digging  being  bagged  and  kept  moist.  The  latter 
method  is  the  better  of  the  two,  and  is  the  one  adopted  by  O.  C. 
feimonds  with  the  large  Elms  transplanted  into  Graceland 
cemetery,  Chicago,  of  which  Mr.  Olmstead  speaks.  In  the  case  I 
refer  to,  roots  often  twenty  feet  long  were  procured,  and  the 
H^s  planted  in  clumps  on  the  surface  of  well  prepared  ground. 
Ihe  roots  were  carefully  laid  out,  the  trees  guyed,  and  loam 
wheeled  in  to  cover.  Not  one  tree  so  treated  was  lost;  on  the 
contimry,  all  grew  well.  This  w'ork  was  done  under  the  best 
possible  TOnditions,  the  trees  being  selected  in  summer  from  open 
pasture  lands,  carefully  dug,  the  roots  kept  moist,  and  care¬ 
fully  planted  and  mulched. 
The  trees  dug  with  frozen  balls  did  not  compare  nearly  so 
favourably  in  results.  About  10  per  cent,  died  within  three 
^  large  percentage  showed,  in  five  years,  their  in¬ 
ability  to  recover  from  the  murderous  treatment  of  the  roots  at 
digging,  the  ba.]ls  being  dug  from  6ft  to  8ft  in  diameter. 
Now  while  such  good  results  may  be  had  in  transplanting 
Elms,  Millows,  or  soft  IMaples,  there  are  no  other  trees,  in  my 
experience,  from  which  as  good  results  might  be  expected.  I 
have  seen  hundreds  of  thousands  of  dollars  spent  in  the  planting 
of  large  tree.s  in  Chicago,  and,  I  think,  nearly  all  wasted.  The 
same  amount  of  money  spent  in  the  proper  preparation  of  the 
ground,  with  the  planting  of  young  nursery  stock,  would  have 
been  infinitely  better. 
There  are  times  when  the  horticulturist  has  to  do  violence  to 
his  better  judgment;  and  in  such  case,  in  the  transplanting  of 
large  trees,  I  would  recommend  the  getting  of  all  roots  possible; 
never  mind  the  ball  of  earth  if  you  can  get  roots  and  keep  them 
moist.  Thin  out  a  portion  of  the  branches,  but  do  it  without 
seeming  to  have  done  it.  Thoroughly  prepare  the  bed  for  the 
tree;  and,  I  ought  to  add,  only  attempt  it  with  the  trees  I  have 
previously  enumerated,  with  the  possible  inclusion  of  red  and 
hard  Maples. 
Conifers  of  loft  or  20ft  in  height  are  no  little  things  to  trans¬ 
plant.  As  to  what  trees  it  is  better  to  transplant  in  fall  and 
'vhich  in  spring,  I  have  found  it  best  to  leave  Oaks,  Beeches, 
Magnolias,  Tulips,  Thorns,  and  Cornus  florida  for  spring  planting. 
— J.  A.  Pettigrew,  New  England  Park  Superintendent. 
The  Country  Show. 
The  unfavourable  season  for  bedding  and  flowering  plants  in 
general  has  naturally  left  its  mark  on  the  country  flower  shows. 
Moreover,  the  difficulties  to  be  overcome  only  make-  exhibitors 
all  the  more  eager  to  display  their  products.  Some  people 
urge  the  amalgamation  of  small  country  shows,  but  it  is  to  be 
hoped  that  the  day  when  the  small  country  .show  will  be  a  thing 
of  the  past  Ls  far  distant.  The  local  show  is  an  event  of  the  year, 
and  it  gives  encouragement  to  small  farmers  and  cottagers  to 
grow  the  best. — S.  D.  N. 
Recipe  for  Elderberry  Syrup  or  Wine. 
In  reply  to  “W.  A.,”  page  265;  Take  any  quantity  of  ripe 
berries;  strip  roughly  from  stalks,  put  into  a  stew-pan  or 
enamelled  .saucepan  ;  place  by  side  of  fire  until  all  the  juice  is 
extracted  ;  strain  through  muslin  and  put  juice  into  clean  pan  ; 
and  to  each  pint  add  IJlb  preserving  sugar,  some  bruised  cloves, 
and  root  ginger,  tied  in  muslin  :  these  .should  be  added  according 
to  taste.  Boil  about  half  an  hour  (or,  if  the  quantity  is  laxge, 
until  it  thickens),  stirring  well.  When  done,  bottle  it.  About 
two  tablespoons  to  a  tumbler  of  hot  water,  and  a  little  grated 
nutmeg,  makes  a  delicious  drink. — (Mrs.)  E.  Marlow,  Green¬ 
wich  Park. 
- - 
Recipe  for  Marrow  Jam. 
Seeing  your  invitation  to  readers  to  send  receipt  of  Vegetable 
Marrow  jam,  I  am  sending  mj'  wife’s.  Nearly  all  the  ladies  ask 
for  the  receipt  when  they  have  tasted,  and  I  can  .say  it  is  very 
good  :  “  lib  of  sugar  to  each  pound  of  Marrows ;  two  lemons  and 
4lb  of  ginger  to  51b  of  Marrows.  Cut  the  Marrow  into  squares  an 
inch  thick;  put  them  into  a  pan  and  stew  part  of  the  sugar 
over  them.  The  following  day  pour  off  the  juice  and  add  the 
ginger.  Let  it  boil  well,  then  add  the  Marrow,  lemon  juice 
and  remaining  sugar;  boil  until  it  sets,  then  take  o'ut  the  ginger 
and  put  the  jam  into  jars.  The  Marrows  ought  to  be  ripe. — 
W.  Bygrave,  22,  Blatherwycke,  Wansford,  Northants. 
In  answer  to  query  on  Vegetable  Marrow  jam,  I  have  made 
it  for  years  in  the  following  way,  and  it  has  always  turned  out 
well :  Take  the  Marrows  after  they  have  been  cut  for  a  month  ; 
peel  them,  taking  out  all  seeds;  cut  them  up  into  2in  squares, 
and  to  every  pound  of  Marrows  put  6oz  of  best  loaf  siugar.  Peel 
off  half  a  lemon,  and  take  its  juice,  add  a  good  grating  of  nutmeg, 
also  a  piece  of  whole  ginger.  The  lemon  peel  mmst  be  cut  very 
fine,  without  any  of  the  white  on  it.  When  the  jam  has  boiled 
fast  for  one  hour  and  a  quarter,  take  it  off,  and  take  the  ginger 
out.  This  jam  must  boil  quickly,  and  be  kept  stirred  all  the 
time.  P.S.— On  no  account  put  more  than  6oz  of  siugar  to  the 
pound. — Mrs.  Pike,  Melton  Mowbray.  [Is  it  not  better  to  boil 
slowly  ? — Ed.] 
I  send  you  herewith  a  receipt  for  Vegetable  Marrow  jam 
which  I  have  found  most  excellent.  Take  Vegetable  Marrow 
which  is  too  old  for  use  as  a  vegetable,  but  not  quite  ripe.  Cut 
it  up  in  blocks  about  lin  cube ;  remove  the  seeds  and  the  outer 
skin.  Of  this,  place  71b  in  pre.serving  pan,  and  with  it  two 
lemons  sliced  right  through,,  and  very  thin  (with  the  pips  re¬ 
moved),  and  over  all  put  71b  of  best  preserving  sugar,  and  allow 
the  whole  to  stand  in  a  cool  plac/C  for  at  least  twenty-four  hours.: 
After  this  put  in  2oz  of  crushed  dried  ginger  in  a  muslin  bag,- 
and  boil  the  whole  slowly  till  it  is  quite  clear,  and  the  Marrow 
quite  soft;  it  will  take  about  four  hours.  The  bag  of  ginger 
may  be  removed  when  the  whole  is  nicely  flavoured.  No  water 
need  be  added. — A.  H.  Williams. 
In  answer  to  “  E.  C.  C.  D.,”  page  265:  Peel  and  remove, 
seeds  from  Marrow  (which  should  be  thoroughly  ripe);  cut  into 
lin  pieoes,  and  put  into  large  vessel,  and  let  stand  for  twelve 
hours.  To  each  pound  of  Marrow  add  11b  preserving  sugar, 
and  to  every  51b  Marrow,  the  rind  of  three  lemons,  cut  very 
thin,  and  about  ^Ib  bruised  ginger,  tied  in  muslin.  Boil  until 
the  Marrow  is  transparent  ;  pot,  and  tie  down  while  hot,  which 
prevents  the  jam  from  crystallising.  The  leinon  rind  can  be 
omitted  if  desired.  I  have  always  found  this  jam  most  delicious, 
and  I  .should  be  pleased  to  forward  a  recipe  for  Marrow  pickle 
if  cared  for.  [By  all  means. — Ed  ] — (Mrs.)  E.  Marlow,  Greenwich 
Park. 
