i8 7 o.] NOTES OF THE MONTH. 55 



than with those of the south. He came prominently on the public scene 

 at the time of the establishment of 'Gossip of the Garden,' in 1856, 

 by <Iohn Edwards and E. S. Dodwell, and the first article of the first 

 number bore that signature which remained with • Gossip ' till it 

 ceased to exist in 1863 — A. S. H. ; and in the ' Florists' Guide/ which 

 succeeded ' Gossip ' for a brief season, his signature also appeared. 

 Though known to us by sight, we had no personal intercourse with 

 him, but he wrote like a man with genial kindly sympathies, and with 

 a heart full of regard for those attracted to the culture of flowers, like 

 himself. During the past two or three years he made the culture of 

 the Gladiolus his special study, and exhibited at the meetings of the 

 Royal Horticultural Society when opportunity served, and had suc- 

 ceeded in raising some very promising seedlings. May his memory, 

 like the flowers he loved, dispense a pleasant fragrance ! 



The schedule of prizes of the Grand National Horticultural Exhibi- 

 tion to be held at the Manchester Botanic Gardens, on the 3d of 

 June next, has just been issued. In addition to fourteen classes, in 

 which all the prizes are special gifts, there are seventy-three other classes 

 giving in the aggregate a sum of .£900 as prizes, independent of the 

 special classes. This is one of the most popular, as one of the best, meet- 

 ings of the year, though there seems to be a probability that the Manches- 

 ter gathering will not have in the future the magnificent plants belong- 

 ing to H. L. Micholls, Esq., by means of which Mr Baines has gained such 

 a high reputation as a successful grower, seeing that Mr Micholls has 

 recently removed from Manchester to the neighbourhood of London. 



Mr W. Egerton Hubbard, jun. of Leonardslee, Horsham, has placed 

 at the disposal of the Royal Horticultural Society the sum of £8, of 

 which the sum of <£5 is to be given for the best ' Essay on the Manage- 

 ment of Cottage Gardens/ and a further sum of £3 for the best ' Essay 

 on Window Gardening.' These essays are to be sent in to the Secretary 

 of the Royal Horticultural Society on or before Wednesday the 16th 

 of February next. The object of these essays is thus stated by Mr 

 Hubbard: — "By putting together some plain directions in a form that 

 uneducated people can understand, to enable cottagers to make the 

 most of their gardens ; and it seems to me that hints as to the 

 best kinds of seeds, or the best paying vegetables and fruit-trees, 

 will be the most valuable part of the essay, but the main object will 

 be simplicity of language and clearness of expression." This informa- 

 tion is intended to be printed on cards, and placed in the hands of the 

 secretaries of cottage garden societies, &c., for distribution. We hope 

 that competent men — men with the special knowledge required for the 

 purpose — will be selected to examine the essays and make the awards. 



