294 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
September  24,  1903. 
Appointment. 
Mr.  G.  Pike,  as  head  gardener  at  Craven  Lodge,  Melton 
IMovbray. 
Potatoes  above  Ground. 
A  singular  freak  of  Nature  has  been  grown  by  Mr.  W.  Meek, 
at  Gayton,  King’s  Lynn.  Instead  of  bearing  tubers  at  the  root.s, 
several  Potato  plants  have  grown  the  tubers  on  the  stems  above 
ground,  like  Gooseberrie.s.  On  one  plant  alone  between  fifty 
and  sixty  tubers  developed  into  a  good  size. 
Garden  City  Pioneer  Company,  Limited. 
The  prospectus  of  the  First  Garden  City,  Limited,  is,  at  pre¬ 
sent,  only  being  issiued  to  the  shareholders  of  the  Pioneer  Com¬ 
pany,  members  of  the  Garden  City  Association,  and  those  who 
have  shown  some  interest  in  the  movement.  On  October  9  and  10 
there  will  be  a  public  inspection  of  the  site,  which  is  at  Hitchin, 
thirty-four  miles  from  London,  and  embraces  3,8000  acres. 
Purification  of  the  River  Seine. 
Someone  has  sent  a  marked  copy  of  “  Le  Patriote,” 
August  27,  containing  particulars  of  a  scheme  for  purifying  the 
Seine  on  its  course  through  the  Brabant  communes,  in  the 
province  of  Anvers.  It  would  seem  that  the  river  is  somewhat 
malarial  and  darigerous  to  the  public  health.  The  purification 
system  being  attempted  is  the  employment  of  “  Pompes 
Elevatoires  ” — elevating  pumps  which,  by  means  of  a  rotary 
wheel,  carry  up  the  water  to  suitable  reservoirs,  where  the 
sewage  (substances  nocives  en  suspension)  is  held  and  the  purified 
water  escapes.  The  re.sidue  is  subsequently  conveyed  away,  and 
seems  likely  to  be  used  as  fertilising  material  for  market- 
gardens  around  Paris  and  elsewhere. 
Croydon  Gardeners’  Society. 
Cryptogamic  plants  formed  the  subject  of  a  lecture  delivered 
before  the  members  of  this  society  at  their  rooms.  Sunflower 
Temperance  Hotel,  on  September  15.  The  lectui-er  was  Mr. 
G.  W.  Shrubshall.  The  exhibits  at  the  meeting  also  proved  very 
attractive,  and  unanimous  thanks  were  freely  expressed  to  the 
exhibitors.  Mr.  A.  Edwards,  Ambleside  Gardens,  brought  a 
good  collection  of  Apple.s;  Mr.  E.  Kromer,  Brandon  Hill 
Nurseries,  bringing  a  flowering  specimen  of  Watsonia  humilis; 
Mr.  J.  Gregory,  a  flower  of  Cereus  triangularis;  Mr.  A.  C. 
Roffey,  Croydon,  Cucumbers,  saved  for  seed  purposes ;  and  Mr. 
M.  E.  Mills,  Coombe  House  Gardens,  who  brought  varieties  of 
Fern  fronds  and  splendidly  grown  Dahlia  blooms.  The  next 
paper  will  be  by  Mr.  J.  Cheal,  Crawley,  on  October  6,  when 
“  Horticulture  in  America  and  Canada”  will  be  his  subject. 
The  Gardeners’  Dinner. 
Kindly  jjermit  me  to  make  a  final  remark  for  the  benefit  of 
all  attending  our  great  reception  dinner  at  the  Holborn  Restau¬ 
rant  on  the  29th  inst.,  that  of  the  seating  arrangement  is  in  the 
hands  of  a  small  committee,  of  which  Mr.  Jaques,  of  Pound  Street, 
Wendover,  is  chairman,  and  to  whom  all  requests  for  small  parties 
of  throe  or  four  to  sit  together  will  be  handed.  The  chairman’s 
or  long  table  will  be  reserved  for  distinguished  visitors  and 
speakers,  with  the  exception  of  those  who  may  prefer  to  sit 
with  the  vice-chairmen  at  the  ends  of  the  cross  tables.  A  large 
plan  of  the  tables  will  be  hung  in  the  reception  room,  and  on 
which  all  engaged  seats  will  be  written  so  far  as  is  possible.  That 
is,  of  course,  not  a  matter  to  be  left  to  the  last  moment.  Others 
making  up  their  little  parties  in  the  reception  hall  (a  large  room) 
can  thus  arrange  to  sit  together.  Small  parties  are  best  arranged. 
There  are  large  cloak  rooms  near  the  entrance  to  the  restaurant. 
This,  it  is  important  to  note,  is  in  Newton  Street,  on  the  left- 
hand  side  from  Holborn.  Newton  Street  is  exactly  opposite  the 
British  Museum  Station  of  the  Tube  railway. 
Ticket-holders  will  have  their  dinner  tickets  collected  at  the 
tables.  All  are  respectfully  invited  to  hand  in  their  name  cards, 
filled  up,  at  the  door  of  the  reception  room.  Ticket  members 
have  nothing  to  do  with  the  seating  arrangements.  All  speeches, 
it  is  urgently  desired,  should  be  short.  The  function  is  to  be  a 
social  one.  There  is  a  long  programme  to  get  through. 
Any  tickets  yet  unpaid  should  be  settled  for  at  once, 
any  not  sold  should  be  returned.  No  one  should  leave  getting 
a  ticket  till  the  last  moment.  They  are  going  fa.st.  Every  effort 
will  be  made  to  render  the  function  pleasant  and  enjoyable. 
Dinner  will  be  kept  waiting  for  no  one. — A.  Dean. 
The  Horticultural  Directory. 
The  editor  begs  to  remind  nurserymen,  seedsmen,  and  more 
particularly  head  gardeners,  that  additions  and  corrections  for 
the  1904  edition  of  the  “  Horticultural  Directory  ”  mu.st  be 
received  at  the  office,  12,  Mitre  Court  Chambers,  Fleet  Street, 
London,  not  later  than  October  5,  to  emsure  insertion. 
The  American  Florists’  Convention. 
The  nineteenth  annual  meeting  of  the  Society  of  American 
Florists  has  just  been  held  at  Milwaukee,  and  was  in  every  way 
a  pronounced  success.  The  exhibition  made  a  very  fine  appearance 
and  compared  favourably  with  the  best  ever  held  under  the 
au.spices  of  the  societj*.  At  the  meeting  much  good  work  was 
accomplished  in  every  department,  and  the  society  is  keeping  well 
abreast  of  similar  institutions  in  other  lines  of  industry.  The 
recent  ijrogramme  included  papers  on  many  important  subjects. 
Prescot  Dahlia  Society. 
The  third  show  in  connection  with  the  above  society  was  held 
at  Prescot  on  Saturday  last,  being  most  successful  from  every 
point  of  view.  It  is  in  no  way  connected,  with  the  Prescot  Horti¬ 
cultural  Society,  who  always  hold  their  show  too  early  to  see  the 
Dahlia  at  its  best,  but  is  managed  entirely  by  a  committee  of 
workers,  who  spare  no  efforts  to  bring  out  the  best  possible 
results,  the  classes  numbering  thirty-four.  The  flowers  of  both 
Show  and  Cactus  varieties  had  benefited  greatly  by  the  weather 
of  the  past  few  days,  and  many  fine  blooms  were  staged,  Messrs. 
J.  Lawton  and  R.  Ball  securing  the  awards  for  Show'  classes ; 
and  Mr.  W.  Rigby  both  classes  for  Cactus.  The  single  specimen 
bloom  classes  were  won  by  Messrs.  Lawdon,  Rigby,  and  Cropper. 
Although  the  Dahlias  formed  a  great  attraction,  there  were  other 
classes  devoted  to  flowers  in  season  and  vegetables,  Mr.  W.  Rigby 
scoring  with  Asters,  Marigolds,  and  collection  of  cut  flowers. 
Mr.  W.  Cropper  had  the  best  French  and  Runner  Beans,  and 
Mr.  Peet  Onions  and  Tomatoes.  The  Celery  was  magnificent, 
Messrs.  J.  C’rawley  and  W.  Cropper  taking  the  lead.  There 
were  many  special  prizes  offered,  the  contributors  being  Mr.  and 
Mrs.  Lyon  and  Messrs.  Mee,  Rogers,  Seddon,  Hatton,  Baker, 
Ellis,  Rainford,  and  Peet.  Mr.  J.  Waine  is  a  persevering 
secretary,  and  Messi’s.  J.  Appleton  and  S.  Waine  are  deserving  of 
credit  for  their  staging. — R.  P.  R. 
Reading  Gardeners’  Association. 
The  last  two  gatherings  of  the  members  of  this  association 
were  of  a  most  enjoyable  character,  visits  being  paid  to  Danes- 
field,  Marlow,  by  permission  of  Mr.  R.  H.  Hudson,  and  to  Hill¬ 
side,  Reading,  by  invitation  of  the  President.  The  onting  to  the 
former  place  was  by  steamer,  and  the  party  numbered  about 
.sixty.  Arriving  at  Medmenham,  the  visitors  were  met  by  Mr. 
J.  Gibson,  the  head  gardener,  and  conducted  across  the  meadows 
to  the  Polo  Ground,  where  lunch  was  partaken  of.  The  presi¬ 
dent,  Mr.  Leonard  Sutton,  presided,  and,  on  behalf  of  the 
members,  tendered  to  Mr.  Hudson  their  thank.s  for  allowing  them 
to  visit  Danesfield  for  the  second  time.  After  lunch,  the  party 
first  inspected  the  kitchen  garden,  and,  needless  to  say,  great 
interest  was  manifested  in  the  various  crops  of  vegetables,  speci¬ 
mens  from  which  have  made  the  name  of  Dane«field  famous  in 
horticultural  circles  throughout  England  and  Scotland  during 
the  present  year.  A  stroll  through  the  grounds  and  a  game  of 
cricket  made  the  remainder  of  the  day  pass  pleasantly. 
The  visit  to  Hillside  took  iDlace  on  the  14th  inst.,  and  was  the 
first  meeting  of  the  present  session.  Previous  to  the  meeting 
over  100  members  ,sat  down  to  a  substantial  tea,  afterwards 
making  an  inspection  of  the  garden.  The  subject  for  the  even¬ 
ing’s  discussion  was  “  Notes  on  a  Recent  Visit  to  the  Gardens  at 
Bear  Wood,”  questions  on  the  culture  of  crops  seen  to  be 
answered  by  the  head  gardener,  Mr.  W.  Baimes.  This  proved  to 
be  a  very  interesting  evening.  Tho.se  taking  part  in  the  debate 
were  the  president,  Messrs.  Powell,  Fry,  Exler,  Judd,  Burfit, 
Tunbridge,  Challis,  Hinton,  D.  Dore,  E.  J.  Dore,  Lever,  and 
Alexander.  The  subject.s  touched  upon  were  Strawberries, 
Begonias,  Peas,  Melons,  Carnations,  Vines,  Peaches,  Cauliflower, 
Potato,  Sea  Kale,  Onions,  Lily  of  the  Valley,  Beans,  Celery. 
Solanums,  Soils,  Ac.  Before  separating,  a  hearty  vote  of  thanks 
was  accorded  to  the  president  for  his  kind  hospitality,  and  to  Mr. 
Barnes  for  leading  the  meeting.  Several  new  members  were 
elected. 
