March 25, 1916 



HORTICULTURE 



SPRING EXHIBITION AT BOSTON 



Spr 



The Massachu- 

 setts Horticultur- 

 al Society en- 

 countered some 

 pretty rough 

 treatment by the 

 weather man in 

 its well-meant ef- 

 forts to give the 

 people of Boston 

 an advance treat 

 of spring verdue 

 and floral beauty. 

 With unseason- 

 able low temper- 

 atures and snow 

 piled up every- 

 where during the 

 week it was al- 

 most impossible 

 to transport ex- 

 hibits except in 

 big heated vans. 

 N o t withstanding 

 all this, however, 

 the determination 

 and loyalty of the 



old stand-by exhibitors was equal to the 

 task and a splendid exhibition was put 

 up, which comfortably filled the three 

 halls in Horticultural Building, and the 

 admiring public did the rest, especial- 

 ly on Sunday, when it is said the at- 

 tendance numbered 5,000. 



Taking up the exceptional things 

 first we would first mention the spa- 

 cious garden arranged by R. and J. 

 Farquhar & Co., which occupied one 

 end of the large exhibition hall. It 

 was a well-arranged formal garden 

 with a fountain and basin in the centre 

 around which nodded the lovely flow- 

 ers of I-iliuni regale, filling the whole 

 area with perfume. The various beds of 

 bright bulbous material were laid out 

 with encircling tan-bark walks and the 

 whole parterre set in a forest of lilacs, 

 tall standard laburnums and wiste- 

 rias in bloom, great masses of rhodo- 

 dendrons and azaleas, etc. This was 

 awarded a gold medal. The bulb flow- 

 er display arranged with Phoenix 

 Roebeleni, by Weld Farm, gardener 

 Duncan Finlayson. was the richest in 

 composition, quality and arrangement 

 we can recall having seen here. Many 

 of the newer tulips were here seen. 

 Equally sensational was the great col- 

 lection of narcissi by A. W. Preston, 

 gard .T. L. Smith. Merman Hartsch of 

 the W. W. Edgar Co. was as proud as 

 a peacock over his success in the prize 

 competitions, every prize awarded to 

 him being a 1st. and this including 

 the premier honor on big group of fo- 

 liage and flowering plants and that for 

 hard wooded greenhouse plants which 

 was on this occasion wrested from the 

 private gardeners — first time on rec- 

 ord, we believe. Acacia venticillata 

 and Rhododendron White Pearl were 

 among the outstanding ornaments of 

 the Edgar groups. 



The orchids were a prime attrac- 

 tion. Much interest attached to a 

 plant in flower under a glass case, 

 of Sophro-Cattleya Thwaitsii. which 

 won a first-class certificate of merit. 



Pl.\xt Gkoii' by Wm. T. Wauke of Saiem. 

 iag Show of Massachusetts Horticultural Society. 



and a specimen plant of Odontioda 

 Bradshawiae bearing a spike of sixty- 

 five flowers, for which a silver medal 

 was awarded. This and the preced- 

 ing, as well as a superb collection of 

 rare blooms came from C. B. Dane, 

 gard. Donald McKenzie. A first- 

 class certificate was given to a no- 

 ble collection of varieties of Dendro- 

 bium nobile in pots, from Walter Hun- 

 newell, gard. T. D. Hatfield. 1st prize 

 for orchard i)lant group was won by 

 Mrs. C. G. Weld, gard. W. C. Rust. 

 This exhibitor got a first-class certifi- 

 cate for a vase of superb antirrhinums. 

 Calanthe Wm. Murray, shown by Mrs. 

 J. L. Gardner, gard. Wm. Thatcher, 

 made a fine show; long spikes of 

 bloom, white with crimson blotched lip. 



Of all the novelties shown none im- 

 pressed us more forcibly as having a 

 splendid commercial future, than the 

 beautiful little Primula malacoides 

 rosea, sent by F. H. Lemon Co., of 

 Richmond. Ind. It received a well- 

 merited certificate of merit. Cineraria 

 stellata made a much greater showing 

 than C. hybrida. This graceful spe- 

 cies has taken the lead in these exhi- 

 bitions each year more and more. 

 Our picti:re shows a group of plants 

 by W. T. Walke, florist, of Salem, 

 which included some exceptional 

 French hydrangeas,not for competition. 



The list of awards in the competi- 

 tive classes for cinerarias, cyclamen, 

 (always grand in Boston), schizan- 

 thuses. ericas, hyacinths, tulips, nar- 

 cissi, lilies, palms, primulas, etc., 

 was quite lengthy, the names of Weld 

 Garden, .Miss Cornelia Warren, Mrs. .1. 

 L. Gardner. A. W. Preston, Mrs. C. G. 

 Weld and Mrs. Lester Leland being oft 

 repeated. The special prize offered by 

 the Gardeners' and Florists" Club of 

 Boston, for ten cyclamen, was won by 

 by Mrs. Lester Leland. gard. Eric 

 Wetterlow. 



The cut flower section was well 

 represented, especially in the carna- 



tion exhibits 

 which were of a 

 very high quality. 

 A. A. Pembroke, 

 Strouts, S. J. God- 

 dard and Mrs. E. 

 K. Farr were the 

 principal exhibit- 

 ors. Honorable 

 mention was given 

 to S. J. Goddard 

 for carnation 

 Doris, to W. R. 

 Nicholson for 

 seedling No. 51 

 and F. Dorner & 

 Sons Co., for vase 

 of seedlings. In 

 roses, Waban Con- 

 servatories made 

 an unbroken 

 record for Ists in 

 every class and 

 we never expect 

 to see Killarney 

 Queen in more 

 royal splendor 

 than on this occasion. Wm. Sim had it 

 all his own way with sweet peas, Ed- 

 ward Bingham won 1st in all the vio- 

 let classes, and Osgood Bros, of Ever- 

 ett showed pansies, in selfs and bronze 

 colors of an unusually fine strain. 

 There were quite a few unusual things 

 shown in the various groups, such as 

 perennial delphiniums and Buddleia 

 magnifica, and T. T. Watt came in with 

 some fine blooms of Moutan peonies. 

 Rhododendron Kaempferi made its 

 first appearance forced In quantity in 

 the plant groups and is evidently "in it 

 to stay." 



Henry R. Comley, Caplan, Houghton 

 & Gorney Co. and Boston Cut Flower 

 Co., were represented by other retail- 

 ers' arrangements. Houghton Gorney 

 Co., were represented by table decora- 

 tions and other retailers' arrange- 

 ments. Houghton Gorney Co. showed 

 a bridal bouquet of lily of the valley 

 and Phalaenopsis amabilis which was 

 a gem. The painted wooden parrots 

 and other bird effigies which "adorned" 

 their collection must have been in- 

 vented by somebody afflicted with a 

 bad case of brain storm. Such things 

 might go in a toy shop, but they have 

 no place in a flower show. The next 

 big show in Boston comes May 10 to 

 14 and it will be a big one for sure. 



MASSACHUSETTS HORTICUL- 

 TURAL SOCIETY. 



The concluding lecture in the Horti- 

 cultural Hall Course of winter lectures 

 on subjects of horticultural interests 

 will be given Saturday, March 25, at 

 two o'clock, by Frank N. Meyer of 

 Washington, D. C. Mr. Meyer is the 

 explorer of the United States Depart- 

 ment of .\griculture and will give some 

 of the results of his travels in North- 

 ern China and Siberia in search of 

 hardy plants suitable for cultivation in 

 the United States. The lecture is free 

 and will be illustrated by lantern 

 slides. Wm. P. Ricn. 



