THE FLOEAL WORLD AND GARDEN GUIDE. 



70 



by amateurs ; the plants were nicely 

 bloomed, and the foliage in good con- 

 dition. 



A lovely bank of crocuses was 

 put up by Messrs. Cutbush, planted 

 out in the greenest of moss, and artis- 

 tically grouped to show off the 

 various shades of colour. Mr. 

 Blogg took first position for pot cro- 

 cuses, and well deserved it. 



In the class for the best eighteen 

 forced flowers, Messrs. Veitch stood 

 first, with a charming collection ; in 

 the centre was a huge pot of Lily of 

 the Valley, behind it Amaryllis deli- 

 cata, behind that again E-hododendron 

 Amazon, with a fine head of rosy 

 purple blossoms, and at the b:ick of 

 the stage, a potted tree of Wistaria 

 sinensis, with five bunches of blos- 

 soms. On either side of the Lily of 

 the Valley, Azalea pelargoniflora, a 

 charming mass of large rosy blossoms, 

 Azalea Etandre de Flandres, snow 

 ^hite with rosy stripes; hyacinths. 

 Grand Vainquer, and Charles Dickens. 

 Azaleas rubens, mutabilis, with small 

 whitish and creamy blossoms, and 

 Taylor's Ked ; Citrus aurantium, llho- 

 dodendron fragrans, a lovely blush 

 with rosy edges ; Syringa persica, 

 Amygdalis persica rubra, a glowing 

 mass of red peach blossom ; Eibes 

 sanguinea alba, and Andromeda fiori- 

 bunda. Second in this class were 

 Messrs. Cutbush and Sons, of High- 

 gate. 



Messrs. Veitch obtained first prize 

 for six pots of Lily of the Valley, 

 smothered with bloom, but poor iu 

 foliage. Mr, Salter came second with 

 a like number of plants of the varie- 

 gated leaved variety, poor in bloom, 

 but marvellously beautiful in foliage, 

 forming more attractive objects than 

 the winning plants. Primulas were 

 shown in plenty, but generally grouped 

 with but little regard to efi'ect. In 

 this class the amateurs beat the 

 nurserymen by sheer good culture; 

 Mr. G. Taylor, gardener to C. A. 

 Hanbury, Esq., bearing off the first 

 prize with plants which were perfect 

 models, and all of the same shape 

 and size. 



The class for the best miscel- 

 laneous collection of plants in flower, 

 was well filled ; Messrs. Cutbush 



took two equal first prizes for fifty 

 hyacinths and fifty tulips ; and Mr. 

 W. Paul an equal first for fifty 

 hyacinths. 



Miscellaneous and Novelties. 

 — Tlie most interesting of these was 

 a collection of small hollies in pots 

 from Mr. W. Paul, sufficiently aged 

 to show their permanent characters. 

 A few seedling Cinerarias attracted 

 some attention as being very promis- 

 ing, among which was one from Mr. 

 Tillery, of Weibeck, called Purity, a 

 paper white ; the equal to which it 

 would be diflicidt to find. The 

 choicest oi the novelties were those 

 submitted to the Floral Committee. 

 The most important was Messrs. 

 Low's plant of Limatodes rosea 

 alba, the only white variety of this 

 highly prized orchid yet exhibited. 

 Mr. Day sent a fine plant of Cypripe- 

 dium Dayanum, which obtained a 

 first class certificate ; Mr. Bull ob- 

 tained first class certificates for 

 Yucca lineata lutea and Trichomanea 

 anceps ; and a second class certificate 

 for Ansectochilus argyrea. Messrs. 

 Veitch sent a pan of a new variegated 

 leaved Hibiscus, called rosea sinensis 

 fol. var., which will prove a perfect 

 gem for culture under bell-glasses. 

 Mrs. Stodart, of Pimiico, exhibited 

 samples of rice paper flowers, which 

 are the best of the class ever yet pro- 

 duced. 



Maech ISth, Second Sprino 

 Show. — There was a very brilliant 

 display of flowers of various kinds, 

 although the number of camellias and 

 azaleas was by no means large. The 

 greatest subject of interest was the 

 competition for hyacinths, in which 

 Mr. W. Paul, of Waltham Cross, has 

 at length come off' conqueror, after a 

 continued perseverance of some years. 

 The judges must have had no easy 

 task to award in this case, as the 

 flowers were so nearly equal. In the 

 class for eighteen hyacinths, the com- 

 petition was closest, and the opinions 

 of the visitors seemed to differ as to 

 the respective merits of the two col- 

 lections. In the elass for IGO hya- 

 cinths, Mr. Paul was again first, and 

 also with six new varieties. 



' Camellias. — Messrs. Veitch and 

 Son, of Chelsea and Exeter Nurseries, 



