December  51,  1903.  JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
GOl 
Trade  v.  Private  Exhibitors. 
On  .seeing  a  catalogue  of  Chrysantlieiuum,s.  sent  out  by 
a  prominent  Wiltshire  grower,  it  struck  me  as  rather  remark¬ 
able  that  such  men  were  allowed  to  enter  into  competition  with 
private  gardeners  at  the  various  exhibitions  held  up  and  down 
the  country.  I  do  not  know  what  the  feelings  generally  are  with 
exhibitoi'S  in  this  respect.  Personally,  I  think  it  is  entirely 
out  of  oi'der. — Fairness. 
[Such  matters  entirely  depend  on  the  rules  and  wording  of 
the  schedules.  If  these  do  not  specifically  debar  the  Trade, 
then  inu-st  the  private  gardener  he  prepared  to  encounter  the 
commercial  growers,  and  if  they  can  be  beaten,  as  they  somo- 
tirae.s  are,  then  the  private  man  wins  the  greater  honour. — Ei).] 
- - 
Violets,  Princess  of  Wales  and  La  France. 
That  Princess  of  Wales  takes  u))  a  great  deal  of  room  (as 
stated  on  page  uo4),  and  that  we  should  prefer  smaller  leaves 
and  shorter  leafstalks,  which  would  allow  us  to  get  moie 
jilants  into  the  frames,  has  long  been  recognised  by  Violet 
growers.  I  therefore,  for  one,  welcomed  La  France  as  being 
ju.st  what  was  wanted  in  this  respect,  and  during  the  winter 
before  la.st  tested  it  against  Pi'incess  of  Wales.  The  result  was 
that  I  was  able  to  get  a  third  more  plants  of  La  France  into 
a  frame  than  I  could  of  the  other;  but  as  Princess  of  Wales, 
even  then,  produced  decidedly  the  greatest  number  of  flowers 
per  fi-ame  during  the  winter,  I  have  discai’ded  lai  France. 
W.  P .  ■  Raillem . 
Mealy  Bug  v.  Hose. 
This  loathsome  “  insect,”  such  a  degrading  and  dreaded  pest  to 
the  gardener,  cannot  easily  endure  the  force  of  cold  water  drawn 
from  the  hydrant  and  passed  through  small  bore  hose  pipe.  But 
it  might  be  said  the  mealy  bug  is  that  insidious,  resourceful  sort  of 
insect  that  even  with  the  hose  pipe  turned  on  his  haunts  it  will 
evade  some  of  it.s  cold  force.  Many  a  young  gardening  proba¬ 
tioner  has  spent  hours  of  uninteresting  labour  on  an  effort  to 
rid  Vines  and  plants  from  mealy  bug,  and  many  times  it  would 
seem  to  him  impo.ssible  for  even  a  stray  insect  to  remain  in 
])os.session.  Disappointment  has  awaited  many  after  a  .short 
lapse  of  time  to  find  the  old  enemy  still  in  evidence,  demanding 
further  retaliatory  measures  to  be  taken  to  combat  him.  Mr. 
Xash,  so  long  and  so  honourably  associated  with  Badminton, 
once  assured  me  that  the  hose,  ivith  plenty  of  water  force,  would 
ho  lio^jed  be  to  him  a  “  haven  of  rest  ”  from  the  constant  worries 
bug  had  given  him  in  his  vinerie,s  in  the  past.  The  water  supply 
in’ior  to  this  date  had  been  totally  inadequate,  and  local  in  its 
.soui’ce  :  but  since  water  is  now  laid  on  from  a  company’s  mains, 
to  use  his  own  words  “  Conveying  a  force  sufficient  to  drive  all  the 
glass  out  of  the  roof  .sashes,”  he  became  fully  convinced  that  the 
mealy  bug  had  but  a  short  life  allotted  to  it  at  Badminton. 
Calling  on  Mr.  Rye,  Captain  Belfield’s  gardener  at  Frenchay, 
more  recently,  I  found  further  proof  of  the  efficacy  of  the  hose 
pipe,  and  in  this  instance  repetition  with  cold  water  alone  main¬ 
tains  freedom  from  infestation.  Mr.  Rye  is  a  successfid  grower  of 
specimen  .stove  and  greenhouse  plants,  and  among  these  neces¬ 
sarily  Crotons  occupy  a  due  prominence.  With  a  mixed  collec¬ 
tion  of  plants,  and  some  of  them  of  tender  foliage,  it  needs  no 
stretch  of  imagination  to  remember  or  to  understand  that  all 
cannot  be  dealt  with  on  similar  lines,  hence  plants  once  clean 
may  soon  be  infested  by  stock  that  affords  cover,  because  the 
delicate  nature  of  their  leaves  demands-  individual  treatment. 
Periodical  “bouts”  with  the  hose  is  made  on  Crotons  of  all 
sizes,  and  particularly  the  large  specimens.  These  are  taken 
down  from  their  elevated  stations,  carried  outdoors,  and  laid 
on  their  sides,  and  the  cold  water  bath  zealously  applied  at  every 
angle.  This  is  even  continued  into  the  winter  and  spring  seasons, 
choosing,  of  course,  a  sunny  or  mild  day  for  the  work.  Heavy 
though  the  work  is,  it  is  infinitely  preferable  to  sponging, 
which  must  be  extended  over  such  prolonged  periods.  The  hosing 
can  be  carried  out  in  a  few  hours,  and  the  extirpation  of  the 
mealy  bug  may  be  felt  to  be  a.ssured  for  a  time  without  any 
further  expenditure  of  labour  or  material.  Roof-trained 
Steuhanotises  are  another  fertile  source  of  mealy  bug,  and  pro¬ 
viding  the  roots  and  .soil  can  be  protected  from  the  cold  water 
deluge,  and  other  plants  growing  beneath  removed  for  the  time, 
the  hose  may  do  as  useful  exccufion  in  the  case  cf  these  as  with 
Crotons.  High  water  pressure,  however,  is  tin-  one  desirable 
element,  it  matters  not  whether  the  water  bo  hot  or  cold  so 
long  as  there  is  the' continuous  and  forcible  stream  to  play  on  the 
insects  from  every  possible  direction.  Ncedle.ss  to  say  it  is  only 
hard-leaved  and  hard-stemmed  plants  that  submit  to  such  drastic 
measures. — W.  S. 
Ailantus  as  a  Town  Tree. 
The  Ailanto,  or  Ailantus  glandidosa,  of  which  some  250  speci¬ 
mens  are  about  to  be  planted  in  Kingsway  and  Aldwych,  is  a 
Chinese  plant  which  is  very  hardy  in  England,  and  will  probably 
be  able  to  survive  even  the  smoky  atmosphere  of  London.  It  is 
largely  used  as  food  for  the  Ailantus  or  Cynthia  silkworm,  and  is 
as  ornamental  as  it  is  useful.  It  is  a  stately  tree,  with  a  straight 
trunk  and  magnificent  foliage,  the  leaves  being  often  more  than 
three  feet  in  length.  The  Rusrian  Government  has  planted  a 
number  near  Odessa,  and  it  appears  to'be  the  best  tree  for  growth 
on  the  steppes.  In  France  it  is  used  as  a  timber  tree,  thriving 
on  chalky  soils.  Probably  no  better  choice  could  have  been  niade 
for  beautifying  two  of  the  finest  streets  in  London  or  the  world. 
Nevertheless,  at  certain  seasons  it  gives  off  a  most  loathsome 
odour.  It  is  to  be  hoped  that  the  L.C.C.  will  consider  this  point 
before  committing  themselves  to  what  would  be  a  public  nuisance. 
The  name  of  the  plant  is  not  formed  from  the  Greek,  as  one  is 
tempted  to  think  ;  it  is  an  approximation  to  the  original  C’hinese 
name.  Owing  to  the  odour  referred  to,  no  insects  infest  it. — F. 
A  Critique  on  New  Potatoes. 
As  a  Potato  grower  in  a  modest  way,  I  agree  with  Mr.  J.  A. 
Simpson  (page  400)  that  “  The  Factor  ”  is  a  first  class  variety ; 
but  on  my  heavy  soil  the  past  season  tried  it  sorely,  and  my  crop 
was  diseased  more  than  it  would  have  been.  On  other  points  it 
compare.s  most  favourably  with  any  high  priced  novelty,  and  it 
would  not  be  out  of  the  line  to  say  that  it,  along  with  Evergood 
and  Sir  J.  Llewelyn  are  the  be.st  for  the  garden.  Respecting  the 
remarks  of  your  Home  Farm  correspondent  (pages  409,  410),  I  may 
say  that  according  to  my  te.sts  the  Northern  Star  by  no  means 
equals  Mr.  Findlay’s  previous  sorts.  Royal  Kidney  is  a  remark¬ 
ably  productive  variety,  equalling  Evergood  in  that  respect, 
although  it  showed  about  10  per  cent,  of  di.sease  against  Ever- 
good’s  naught.  In  quality,  however,  it  surpasses  Evergood, 
being  beautifully  mealy,  and  re-quires  less  cooking.  As  to  Sir 
John  Llewelvn,  which,  by  the  way,  I  was  told  wa^j  a  Welsh  intro¬ 
duction,  it  is  by  far  the  best  early  of  the  day.  But  earlies 
should  not  be  grown  as  late  suppliers.  It,  however,  does  not 
equal  Duke  of  Rothesay  in  quality,  which  is  really  superb.  The 
tubers  are  large,  but  it  tends  to  disea.se.  more  than  the  above 
varieties  if  left  in  the  soil.  Respecting  Up-to-Date  there  were, 
and  are,  men  whO'  consider  it  a  bad  ffavoured  Potato.  I  myself 
have  di.scarded  it  owing  to  its  poor  crop  and  blightiness.  In  Lines, 
terrible  reports  are  to  hand  of  its  present  rotten  state  in  the 
clamps  (piesb  As  to  size.  Sir  John  Llewelyn  and  Royal  Kidney 
can  grow  large,  at  least  they  scored  over  the  “Star”  in  that 
respect,  and  a  market  man  I  am  acquainted  with  grew  the  “  Sir 
John  ”  for  stock-raising,  and  he  is  complaining  bt>cause  all  his 
stuff  is  so  large,  being  4in  to  Gin  in  length  ;  but  I  may  say  he 
cultivates  his  ground  well. 
.Vs  to  the  big  yields  mentioned  by  Home  Farmer,  G  tons  to 
half  an  acre  is  not  large.  I  have  bona  fide  reports  of  Northern 
Star  in  Lines,  coming  up  at  14  tons  and  18  tons  to  the  acre  ;  Ever¬ 
good  at  18  tons  per  acre;  and  King  Edward  VII.  at  18.)  tons  per 
acre  ;  and  by  his  own  showing  Evergood  runs  up  to  15  tons,  which 
at  IGs.  per  cwT.  w-orks  out  at  a  fair  figure,  and  I  dare  hazard 
that  were  he  to  plant  his  crop  again  the  yield  w-ould  pay  better 
tlian  the  same  value,  viz.,  £140  worth  of  Northern  Star.  As 
for  Ninetyfold,  it  has  a  peculiar  trait  of  coming  very  ugly,  and 
especially  was  tliks  so  this  season.  ,  It  is  a  heavy  cropper  and  very 
fair  quality,  and  for  some  rea.son  does  not  drop  below  IGs.  per 
cwt.  Personallv-  I  shall  drop  it.  A.s  Home  Farmer  remarks. 
King  Edward  VII.  is  a  heavy  cropper  and  of  largo  size,  but  this 
season  made  it  come  coarse,  except  on  poor  soil,  when  the  tubers 
were  like  wax  models.  The  colour  should  not  be  against  it  any 
more  than  Beauty  of  Hebron,  which  is  still  grown  for  market, 
and  I  hazard  a  guess  that  King  Edward  VII.  has  a  little  Beauty 
blood  in  it,  although  so  imich  more  vigorous.  We  cannot,  how¬ 
ever,  learn  its  pedigree,  for  the  raiser  (a  Durham  gardener)  is 
now  dead.  A  couple  of  tons  of  it  were  recently  sent  to  Spital- 
fields  Market  and  it  .sold  immediately,  the  buyers  coining  next 
day  for  more :  but  as  they  merely  sent  it  as  a  feeler,  no  more  w-ere 
to  be  had.  As  to  quality : — From  tests  I  have  made,  both  at  lift¬ 
ing  time  and  recently,  it  is  very  good :  but  not  so.  mealy  as 
Beauty  cf  Hebron.  Northern  Star,  which  I  tested  alongside  of 
Dobbie’s  Favourite,  was  many  points  behind  in  flavour,  and  to 
my  mind  it  will  not  gain  a  hold  like  Fi>-to-Date.  The  (Tcfter  is 
a  very  superior-flavoured  Potato,  being  the  be.st  of  all  bar  a  pair 
of  1903  novelties. — Grower. 
Numerous  letters  are  held  ever. 
