SWEET PEA NOTES.

New Zealand Graphic, Volume XLVIII, Issue 7, 14 August 1912, Page 37

SWEET PEA NOTES.

Mr. Walter I*. Wright, in referring to the new sweet pea. Edith Taylor, says: —“I like it better than Audrey Crier by natural light, and under artificial light, it simply killed everything. I have never seen anything more beautiful under a lamp than this exquisite sweet pea. The llowois shine with a tender and bewitching glow. The wings ere rose, but the standard is earmine.” Mr. Wright thinks that .Etta Dyke’s long reign as the best white sweet pea is nearly over. In writing to the "Gardener” he says:-—"Cp to this yeyr I bad never seen Moneymaker anything like as well waved as Etta Dyke’ and have always noted it as ’slightly waved.’

My observation of it this year leads me to wonder whether I have done it scant justice in the past, for, as grown by Mr. E. W. Alsen, it is beautifully waved, as large and graceful as Etta Dyke, and with considerably greater substance. I wonder if many of my readers saw the glorious bunch of it in Mr. Alsen’s •cup collection at the International? it was perfectly lovely. I went back to it and revelled in it again and again. 1. am agoing to keep a particularly sharp look-out for Moneymaker at the forthcoming shows.” Moneymaker has been in commerce since ISO!), and some very fine blooms have been exhibited at shows in the .Dominion.

of the very earliest sorts, good quality, requires staking, but generally gives only a poor erop, and many say it is not worth all the trouble for all that it produces. Well, then, what about the small, round seeded earlies? They are quite as early as Gradus, require also staking, but are of poor quality. But the people in this Dominion demand something better, so we must turn to the dwarf section, and here American Wonder used to be first favourite. Later William Hurst ousted it owing to its more productiveness, then English Wonder came in and to-day there is very little of the real American Wonder or William Hurst to be had. A selection of English Wonder is often sold as William Hurst. The rea-

Daisy is still a favourite in many localities; it gives a good crop of large pods, and grows only 2 feet high. Main crop peas are -what the majority of people grow, for although longer in maturing, they shell out so much better and generally are of superior quality. Yorkshire Hero and Veitch’s Perfection are the most largely grown, whilst Stratagem, when the true dark green podded variety is procurable, is very hard to beat. Daneby Stratagem and the ordinary stock bear little resemblance to the true variety and cannot be compared with the true in quality, although good croppers. Dwarf Defiance resembles very much the true Stratagem. There are few peas more difficult to keep up to the

bition varieties such as Quite Content, but unless a grower wants peas for the exhibition bench, we do not consider them profitable sorts to handle. GREEN PEAS.