li'loi al JYotes. 221 



Scotlisli Chief, upper petals pink, dashed with carmine ; lower, pure white tipped, 

 and sometimes dashed with carmine, a large flower, but not perfect in form. 

 They were awarded the Society's Silver Medal. 



i^loml Jiecomtions for the Table. 



Ferns and Mosses are among the most useful things for the decoration of the table, 

 and even such a common thing as the Male Fern {Lastrea FilU-mas), which may be 

 found in the hedgerows in almost every parish, is of great value for forming a fringe 

 to the dish of a stand or centre piece. Equally valuable is the native Welsh Poly- 

 pody {Polypodium vulgare cambricum), which makes a nice change with the Male 

 Fern, the handsome fimbriated edging to the fronds adding to its worth. It is by no 

 means so common as the Male Fern. That charming greenhouse Moss, Selaginella 

 deiiticidata, is another useful thing for the purpose. 1 use plants taken out of small 

 pots to fill the base of a stand, and.fill up between the balls with silver sand, usinn- 

 about four plants for the purpose ; and with the sand I mingle some powdered 

 charcoal to neutralize the eff'ect of any offensive smell that will sometimes arise after 

 the plants have been placed in the sand several days. After a sprinkling has been 

 given to settle the sand about the roots of the Moss, the branches should be pegged 

 down neatly with small hair-pins. If watered about once a week, the Selaginella 

 will grow very nicely, and keep beautifully green for two or three months together. 

 Scarlet Pelargoniums and other flowers can be stuck in the sand by their stalks to 

 give a finish to it. That popular form of the Maiden-hair Fern, Adiaitlum cuneatum 

 — perhaps one of the most lovely of the Fei-ns, notwithstanding that it is common, 

 and always a great favorite with the ladies — is also of great value, and makes a beau- 

 tiful fringe for the top dish of a design, it being so light and graceful. Some five or 

 six years ago Mr. Charles Turner, of Slough, was a competitor at one of the Crystal 

 Palace exhibitions with a vase of Hoses, and by way of giving a finish to his vase he 

 used fronds of the Maiden-hair Fern among his Roses, which was a great improve- 

 ment on the formality of a bunch of this favorite flower, but the vase was disqualified 

 by the judges in consequence. Now, it is the custom for the schedule of prizes to 

 state Ferns can be used, and no disqualification follows as a consequence ; and the 

 same thing also holds good at South Kensington as well as Brighton. 



There are certain plants that are very useful for twisting round the upright stem 

 of a stand used for the decoration of the dinner-table ; and branches of these should 

 be stuck in the sand, and then be neatly and elegantly twisted round the stem ; and 

 a few ties should be placed up the stem at intervals to keep it in its place — fine thread 

 or wire can be used. The Japanese Honeysuckle, Lonicera aureo-reticulata, is one 

 of the best for the purpose ; so is Dioscorea batatas. The common Ivies I find to be 

 too heavy. Tradescantia zebrina is a nice thing to hang over the top dish, especially 

 if some cuttings are placed in a 32-sized pot in some light sandy soil, and allowed to 

 hang over the sides of the pots till rooted, and then shaken from the soil and laid 

 round the dish, with a little silver sand about the roots. The heads of the plants 

 should hang over the sides, and they will grow freely, and last for six months if 

 required. Of pendulous growth, and variegated foliage, the efi"ect is charming and 

 efl'ective. The silvery-leaved Centatireas candidissiina and argeiitea vera make a 

 nice change, and the leaves can be used to make a layer inside the Ferns in the bot- 

 tom dish. Besides the scarlet-flowering Pelargoniums, the white-flowerino- ones, like 

 Madame Vaucher, as well as the sweet scented kinds for the perfume the leaves yield, 

 are also very desirable. The flowers of the scarlet and yellow Nasturtiums last 

 a long time in the wet sand. Verbenas make a nice change in their season, and 

 especially Roses ; the flowers of these should be cut young in the morning when the 

 dew is on them. 



Such stands as these are never complete without light-gi*een foliage of some sort 

 or other, such as the different kinds of ornamental grasses in their season, and the 

 tops of some of the meadow grasses in the autumn. In the same way sprigs of 



