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HORTICULTURAL AFFAIRS. 



OYAL Horticultural Society's Azalea Show, April 17. — This was 

 in every way an attractive exhibition, notwithstanding the entire absence 

 of any striking features. Cyclamens were shown in good condition by 

 Mr. Wiggins and Mr. James, Isleworth, and Mr. Fair bairn, Sion House. 

 Oineraiias were not plentiful, Mr. James and Messrs. Dobson and Son 

 being the principal exhibitors. The best varieties staged were Lord Elgin, Snow- 

 flake, Conqueror, Perfection, Lady Theodore Grosvenor, Candidate, William Reeves, 

 Agiippa, Uncle Toby, and Mrs. Eeeves. 



Auriculas were exhibited by the two veteran growers, Mr. C. Turner, Slough, 

 and Mr. James, in very good condition, though not equal to those staged by them iu 

 former years. The best of the varieties shown were — Selfs : Turner's George Light- 

 body, Turner's Prince Alfred, Spalding's Metropolitan, Lightbody's Meteor Flag, 

 Smith's Mrs. Smith, Headly's Royal Purple. White-edged: Summerscale's 

 Catherina, Lightbody's Countess of Dunmore, Heap's Smiling Beauty. Grey-edged: 

 Turner's Competitor, Wild's Bright Phoebus, Turner's Colonel Cliampneys, Olliver's 

 Lovely Ann, Chapman's Sophia, Warris's Union. Green-edged .• Traill's General 

 Neil, Dickson's Prince Albert, Partington's Trafalgar. Alpines : Mr. Turner sent 

 a splendid collection of new varieties. We regret we cannot just now describe 

 them, for want of space, but the cultivator cannot do wrong in adding to his list 

 any of the following as soon as they are let out. The Alpines have many advan- 

 tages over the show varieties ; they are easy to propagate and grow, and also have 

 larger and more richly- coloured flowers. Many of the undei mentioned varieties 

 have flowers exceeding two inches in diameter. We give the names of twenty-four 

 of the I ist, which would make a good collection of distinct varieties : — Midnight, 

 Tenniel, Millais, Neatness, Mabel, Conspicua, Negro, Landseer, Borealis, Etty, 

 Neptune, Herbett, George Fordham, Emblem, Nimrod, Demon, Eclat, Godfrey, 

 Harry, John Gair, Merrimac, Arthur, Ardent, Goldfinder. 



The Azaleas were mostly half specimens. Those from Mr. Turner, which took 

 first in the nurserymen's class for six, were round-headed standards, so densely 

 flowered as scarcely to leave a leaf perceptible. The leading prize-takers in the 

 amateur's classes were — Mr. Wheeler, Regent's Park ; Mr. Fairbairn, Sion ; and 

 Mr. Wilkie. The best of those staged were — Rosea odorata, Baron de Pret, 

 Souvenir de l'Exposition, Triumphans. Hovibrenki, Due de Nassau, Etendaid de 

 Flandre, Marie Vervaene, Stella, Sir C. Napier, and Roi Leopold. 



Royal Botanic Society's Second Spuing Show, April 27.— This exhibition 

 was rendered particularly attractive by the introduction of a class for flowering and 

 fine foliage stove and greenhouse plants. This was well contested by Mr. Fairbairn 

 and Mr. Wheeler, Regent's Park, who were awarded equal firsts ; and Mr. Wright, 

 St. John's Wood, and Mr. Wilkie, Kensington, who were secund and third 

 lespectively. 



Good Cinerarias and Pelargoniums were contributed by Messrs. Dobson and Son, 

 Isleworth, and Auriculas by Messrs. Turner, James, and Butcher. 



Pot Roses formed a large and important feature of the show, Mr. W. Paul, 

 Waltham, taking first for nine, and also for three new varieties ; Messrs. Paul and 

 Son being second in both classes ; Mr. James first for six in the amateur's class. Of" 

 the established varieties, Francoise Lacharme, Victor Verdier, Madame Willermoz, 

 Madame W. Paul, Vicomtesse de Cazes, Souvenir d'un Ami, Paul Ricaut, Madame 

 de St. Joseph, Se"nateur Vaisse, Glory of Waltham, Alba rosea, John Hopper, Pierre 

 Notting, Souvenir d : Elise Vardon, Baron Adolphe de Rothschild, Madlle. Therese 

 Jjevet, Celine Forrestier, Madlle. Rady, President, and Princess Mary of Cambridge, 

 were the best. 



The new varieties were — Horace Vernet, large and globular, crimson scarlet,. 

 fine ; Mons. Furtado, light yellow, good ; Antoine Ditcher, too globular to show 

 the face of the petals ; Madame Margoltm, flue tea; Imperatrice Charlotte, rosy 

 pink, inferior to others in the same way. 



Grand collections of miscellaneous plants came from Mr. B. S. Williams, Hollo- 

 way, Mr. W. Paul, and groups of exotic ferns from other exhibitors. 



Royal Horticultural Society's Rose Show, May 8. — This was a capital 

 show, but as the varieties were chiefly the same as those enumerated in the pre- 



