NOVEMBER, 257 



PELARGONIUMS : NEW AND FIRST-RATE VARIETIES. 



The remarks of " Orion" at pages 253-4 demand the con- 

 sideration of those who act as judges at our metropolitan 

 exhibitions. It lias often surprised us to see old and com- 

 paratively worthless flovvers awarded the prizes offered for 

 " new and first-rate varieties." We think that no collection 

 containing old varieties should receive these prizes, because 

 we believe one object in offering them was to provide for the 

 exhibition of plants which had previously appeared as seed- 

 lings ; and a very useful exhibition it would be, if it were 

 insisted upon that nothing but new and first-rate varieties 

 should appear in it. That the new sorts are out long enough 

 for this purpose has been shewn by the exhibitions of Mr. 

 Cock, who only requires a well-rooted small plant in Septem- 

 ber or October, to make a specimen for the following June 

 shows. We do not say that all seedlings will in the second 

 year make fine exhibition-plants, but most of them will do 

 so for one part of the season. To refer to Orion's paper. 

 Brilliant was shewn very fine at Chiswick in July by Mr. 

 Staines. Crusader brings plenty of flower, though not all 

 together, and the petals want dressing ; and Delicatissimum was 

 shewn by us twice last season (Orion says once), and it well 

 deserves its " high character." Mount Etna and Painted Lady 

 we can say nothing about ; but Cavalier, a plant of weak habit 

 and bad to winter, is a most profuse bloomer, and has been 

 frequently shewn in the Worton-Cottage collections. Indeed, 

 it has been a rule with us to justify the selection of seedlings 

 sent out from here by exhibiting them, and with them alone 

 to compete in the class above referred to. During the last 

 season, for instance, we have shewn Blanche 3 times (Orion 

 says once), Rosamond 3, Gustavus 2, Mont Blanc 7, Rosalind 

 4, Gulielma 3, Cuyp 6, Painter 5, Star 5, Emily 4, Delica- 

 tissimum 2, Emilia 2, Governor 4, Centurion 2, and Sarah 3 ; 

 and we should have shewn them oftener, had the schedule of 

 the Horticultural Society, as at Regent's Park, required 12 

 plants instead of 6. With the above, Mr. Dobson invariably 

 obtained the first prizes in the nurserymen's class. 



We have felt our situation as the Superintendent of this 

 publication to be a delicate one; and it has often prevented 

 the appearance of articles on this our favourite flower, and 

 remarks upon the exhibitions of them, which under other cir- 

 cumstances we should gladly have volunteered. We have 

 now before us advertisements of a number of seedlings, giving 

 them higli characters; and we advertise ourselves half a dozen, 



VOL. III. NO. XXXV. Y 



