The Dorset County Express and Agricultural Gazette.
Dorchester, Dorset, England, 1859-06-14 00:00:00

agriculture

CRTICrAL PALACE FLOWER Snow.—The second and
the best flower chow of the MINOR took place Wealu
day at the Crystal Palace, under the must favourable
auspices. The weather, for once, was all that could be
desired, and a stream of visitors continued to arrive 4
the ;mince, both by rail and road, throughout the day.
The flower, were disposed in two large batiks through-
out the entire length of the nave, thus leaving along
the centre an ample promo:a:le for the CrOMIA that were
circulating up and down all day. Toward* the evening,
however, even this wide space W 3% scarcely sutlicicnt to
accommodate the many visitsirx, %heat one time mustered
to the number of 14,V00 or 10,1100. A fair proportion
of these found ample amusement, after inspecting (lie
regular flower show, hy wandering through the tsrracie
gardens, where Mr. Eyles has created a permanene
flower chow which hi superior in effective beauty, and
not such inferior in point of ezaellence, to any display
which the Crystal Palace has yet brought together.
The show on Wednesday, however, was of its kind be-
yond all praise. Very rarely is • collection so extensive
seen together in which all the various classes display
such superb specimens. Under the centre transept was
a rallied bank of stove and greenhouse plants, which
formed a centre of attraction to the judges 4 horticul-
tural perfection such as is seldom seen. The 80 plants
which formed this bank were generally considered by
the judges as the fittest specimens of their kind which
had ever been exhibited. The gems of the show, how-
ever, were the geranium, of which the rarest kinds
were displayed in such abundance, and in such perfec-
tion of growth and bloom, as to elicit universal admira-
tion. Six of these plants were of unequalled beauty,
every leaf being entirely obscured by the mass of bloc-
soles, which in some cases were so crowded together as
to prevent many opening. The specimens of fruits were
good and very numerous, the peaches and grapes on
vines being remarkably fine. Prizes to the amount
of upwards of e,300 were distributedamong the success-
ful competitors. All the other arrangements of the
palace were of the best kind, and gave variety and inte-
rest to the whole. The music was excellent, and con-
tinuous throughout the day. In the evening the anni-
versary dinner of the Gardeners' Benevolent Society
took place in the south wing of the palace. Judge Hal-
liburton presided, and Sir Joseph Paxton, with some of
the leading patrons of horticulture, were present. The
table, we need scarcely say, was profusely decorated
with the choicest fruits and flowers, and the evening
was spent most pleasantlY, and with the best results to
the deserving charity in the aid of which the festival
took place.

THE MANCHE TRADE.—There are no accurate data
for arriving at a conclusion se to the actual quantity of
commercial, as distinguished from farm-yard manure,
used in these countries; but we may approximate. In
1858 the imports of Peruvian guano amounted to
312010 tons, and taking the consumption at 300.0tX)
tons, and the retail price at 4:13 :Is. per ton, we have in
this article an outlay of 1:3,073,000, or very nearly four
millions sterling. It is exceedingly difficult to arrive at
an accurate conclusion as to the conisutoption of manures
such as superphospates ; but I do not think we can
over-state the quantity manufactured if we take the
number of tons to be at least equal to that of imported
Peruvian guano, or, may 300,000 tons, at 4:7 10s. per ton,
which gives the commercial value of what may be
denominated the unsophisticated manures turned out by
the manufacturers at 4.'2,210,000 annually. We thus
obtain the aggregate value of imported Peruvian guano
and home-made superphospate to be about six millions
and a quarter sterling. As a very interesting piece of
statistim for a "Blue Book," we may suggest to some
industrious individual to ascertain the extent to which
fraud is practised on this capital in passing through
nefarious hands. In the absence of accurate data, we
may assume that British fanners are annually swindled
by the didionest practice of iminure dealers to the
amount of a million and a half sterling, over and above
the legitimate profit of respectable manufacturers of
superphospates and the importers of guano.—Balfria.

THE STATE OF THE CROPS.—itaving travm•sed during
the past week many of the western and midland coun-
ties we are able to say that the country generally has
rarely at this season exhibited a finer premise. Our
grain crops are generally of good colour and well cover-
ing the ground ; wheat is almost everywhere strong and
dark, and barley and oats are generally full of leaf, and
sufficiently forward. Perhaps the sandier parts of
Cheshire should be excepted as suffering over all its late
sown spring COM from want of rain. But on the more
clayey lands in that county nothing Can look finer than
the wheat crop and the potato creo, and the abundant
growth of grass in the pastures. In Northamptonshire
and Bedfordshire, again. the promise is everything that
could be wished.—Gardriarri Chronicle.

STEAM PLAWGIIING.—Mr. F.D%dee% steam plough was
successftilly at work on Monday last on a farn, belong-
ing to M. T. Bass. Esq.. $1.1'.. near St. Albans. Seven
acres of ploughing were Effected sk inches deep in a
long day. and twenty acres of grubbing done in two
days. We were lately across the red, gravelly, and
manly district lying to the south and west of Stafford. in
which Mr. Byril's farm at Littywood is situated—where
70 acres were ploughed, eight inches deep, last autumn
in 15 days by Fowlees apparatus. The wheat leeks
well after the work, and on the steam cultivate., land
near Bedford, worked by Smith's apparatus, there is
the same superiority manifest in the min after stesut
cultivation as compared with that which has been cnlti-
vated and trodden under horse-labour. There see-ins
every reason to believe that on every kind of land, awl
especially on the clay, wherever it is laid out in fields of
reasonable size, the soil can be cultivated so much more
efficiently by steam-power as to ran-her the necessary
outlay an ecouinnical investment.—lbid.

ANTICIPATKII EMILY HAIVEMT.—in this district,
South E.iC X . there are vast breadths of thickly planted
and early town "much chaffed" wheats, this day. May
3lst, in full ear, but it ix to be regretted a very diminu-
tive size en.l length. The thinner planted, however,
will not be so forwanl for • week or nine days to come,
resulting in about two-thirds, and in some cases not
more than half the number of ears on equal spates of
land, but of full size, very large and long, consequently
of greater productiveness. On a whole, should not a
dripping June deteriorate the crops by lodging them,
and injuring them in their blooming season, a very early
end abundant harvest may reasonably be expected.
Never in uy recollection of 50 years can I remember
wheat in eal• on Whitsun-Tuesday hut once, and in that
year I saw a field of the Tal sverian variety in full bloc-
loin on that day. 'This year it will then be generally in,
of all varieties of wheat. It must he borne in mind
however, that Whitsuntide cannot pricsilily fall to late (I
think) only once in two centuries ax in the present year
1959, though in the year above alluded to, it fell within
two days as late.—A. Harefg, Muldua.