Maroli 21, 1872. ] 



JOUBNAIi OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



251 



tion for a group of neiv plants ; Mr. Jaqiies, gardener to P. 

 Cunliffe, E.sq., Hoolcy House, Coulsdou, a first-class certificate 

 for Ocloutoglossum AJesandriB roseum, with flowers as large as 

 in the ordruary form, but rosy lilac, yellow, and bro^\Ti. Mr. 

 Denning, gardener to Lord Londesborough, exhibited seedling 

 plants of Dendi'obium Devouianum, three years old, and in 

 flower, and Mr. Chambers, gardener to J. Laurance, Esq., Bed- 

 dington, had a cultui-al commendation for a plant of Beaumoutia 

 grandiflora, bearing a number of its large, wax-like, pure wliite 

 bells. 



Seedling Polyanthuses came from Mr. Reid, Twickenham, 

 a.nd Mr. Watson, Fulwell ; Mr. Barr, Covent Garden, sent a 

 large collection of cut flowers of Narcissus which excited con- 

 siderable interest ; and Mr. Green, gardener to W. Wilson 

 Saunders, Esq., Reigate, several interesting plants. 



MESSES. CUTBUSH'S SPBING SHOW. 



For the last three or four years Messrs. Cutbush have held 

 their show of spring-flowering plants at the Crystal Palace ; 

 this year they have returned to their old home at Highgate, 

 where the accommodation had been too small, but now it has 

 been increased. A new conservatory, 50 feet long by 26 wide, 

 has been erected, specially with the view of forming a show 

 bouse, and for that purpose it is admirably suited. The house 

 ■where in former years the annual show was held has been re- 

 modelled to accord with the new one, to which it forms a useful 

 -and ornamental adjunct. 



The fame of Messrs. Cutbush in connection with Hyacinths, 

 TuUps, and other bulbous plants, has been too long established 

 to render it necessary to say that the exhibition opened on 

 Saturday last is otherwise than good. It well maintains their 

 •credit — that is enougli. We are not going to weary our readers 

 with a long enumeration of varieties that are good — a tolerably 

 accurate index to these will be found in the reports of the public 

 shows, but we will just name a few. Double Blue : Garrick, 

 Van Speyk, Laurens Koster. Double Bed : Duke of Welling- 

 ton. Single Med : Cavaignac, Florence Nightingale, Macaulay, 

 Omement de la Nature, Princess Charlotte, SoUaterre, Von 

 Schiller. Man ve : Haydn. Single Wliite : Mont Blanc, Gran- 

 deur a Merveille, Snowball, Queen of the Netherlands, Gigantea. 

 Single Blue : Argus, Grand Lilas, Charles Dickens, Baron Von 

 Tuyll, Lord Palmerston, Marie, and Leonidas. Single Black : 

 General Havelock and Prince Albert. 



Among the new kinds the best appeared to be Charles Dickens , 

 single pale rose, with a rosy pink stripe down the centre of each 

 segment ; George Peabody, deep crimson ; Lord MelviUe, dark 

 purple, with a white eye, fine beUs ; and La Franchise, with 

 large pure white bells. Some of these have already appeared at 

 exhibitions. 



The Tulip, Narcissus, and Crocus are also well represented in 

 numerous varieties, and Camellias, Azaleas, Rhododendrons, 

 PrunuB triloba, and other plants are effectively arranged in the 

 centre of the house, as well as at the ends. It is an exhibition 

 highly to be commended, and the only regi^et is that it will close 

 on the 30th of this month. 



VISIT OP THE EOYAL HOBTIOULTUEAL 

 SOCIETY TO BIEMINGHAM. 



A MEETING of the Local Committee was held at the Great 

 "Western Hotel on Thui-sday. The chair was taken by the 

 Marquis of Hertford. The minutes of the last meeting of the 

 Committee, held on the 2jth .January, were read and confirmed. 



The Hon. Secret.\ry (Mr. B. W. Badger), read the following 

 letter : — 



'* Koyal Horticultural! Society, 

 " South Kensiugton, "W.. 18th Mal-ch, 1872. 



'* Dear Sir, — I have the pleasure to inform you that His Royal Highness 

 Prince Ai'thur has signlfieJ his intention of opening our Show, at the Lower 

 Grounds, Aston, Eirminghaiu, on Tuesday, June 25th next. — I am, &c., 

 JAMES BICHAKDS, Assistant Secretary." 



The Hon. SECRET.tRY then reported the acceptance of the ofBce 

 of Vice-President of the Committee by the Mayor of Birming- 

 ham, and moved the addition of several gentlemen to the Com- 

 mittee, including Mr. Bromley-Davenport, M.P. 



The motion was carried unanimously. 



Mr. Badger then read a report of the business transacted by 

 the various sub-committees, except that appointed to arrange 

 for the exhibition of horticultural buildings, implements, etc. 

 He stated that the subscriptions to the special prize fund then 

 amounted to £723 19s., and urged members of the Committee to 

 obtain further subscriptions from their friends, as, if a less sum 

 than i'lOOO were raised, the scheme of the Special Prize List 

 Committee would be incomplete. That Committee, he tuid, met 

 last Friday, and agreed to the very comprehensive, and, as far 

 as it went, satisfactory schedule of prizes. 



The report was ordered to be entered on the minutes. 



Mr. B. a. Hallam, Honorary Secretary for horticirltural imple- 

 ments, &c., read a report from the sub-committee of that depart- 



ment recommending that the sum of £100, placed at their dis- 

 posal for prizes, shoiild be appropriated to the award of medals 

 as under : — Five gold medals, one to be given for the best horti- 

 cultural building ; one for the best heating apparatus ; one for 

 the best collection of vases or other garden decorations ; one for 

 the best collection of garden machinery, tools, &c. ; and one for 

 the best collection of garden "s^di-ework. They further recom- 

 mended that the Judges should be empowered to award silver 

 and bronze medals, not only to any meritorious exhibits in the 

 classes just enumerated which may not obtain gold medals, biifc 

 also to any others besides those which might appear to them to 

 deserve such a distinction. They were of opinion that the funds 

 at their disposal would enable them to offer five gold medals, 

 thirty silver medals, and forty bronze medals. Mr. Hallam also 

 reported that Mr. .Joseph Moore had been commissioned to pre- 

 pare designs for the medals. 



The report was adopted. 



Mr. Quieter handed in a copy of his aiTangement Vi-ith the 

 Council of the Royal Horticultural Society, which was referred 

 to the Finance and General Purposes Committee. 



A resolution was then passed appointingthe Rev. E. H. Kittoe, 

 Messrs. Wright, Marshall, Vertegans, and Badger, a sub-com- 

 mittee, ■v\*ith full authority to revise, amend, ciu-tail, or extend 

 the special prize list as circumstances may reqviire. They were 

 also empowered to issue the prize list when ready, and to pre- 

 pare and issue a second edition should it be found desirable to 

 do so. 



Colonel Ratclifp then moved : — " That, subject to the fore- 

 going resolution, the schedules of prizes, as prex ared by the sub- 

 committee, be approved of." 



Mr. Badger seconded the resolution, and it w.'.s adopted. 



PLANTING SMALL GROUNDS with OENAMENTAL 

 TEEES AND SHEUBS.— No. 1. 



pleasant employment for us all during our leisure moments 

 than the cultivation of trees and flowers ? Alike, the labourer 

 and the millionaire may enjoy this bountiful blessing. From 

 the simple grass plot with its solitary tree fronting the Vine- 

 covered cottage, the costly park surrounding the mansion of 

 the rich, up through a regular gradation, all can be made to 

 yield abundant food for enjoyment. To the latter class, how- 

 ever, I cannot in my remarks offer much advice ; but to those 

 whose taste for horticulture is sufiicient to induce a personal 

 superintendence of their own door-yards, I feel that my missioii 

 is to them. To aU such, upon every occasion, I invariably 

 commence with a stereotyped phrase, " Don't plant large trees 

 in small yards." 



One of the greatest of all eiTors, and one that is indulged iu 

 by so many of our planters in their horticultui-al infancy, is 

 that of setting out a first-class tree in a second-class yard. 

 Scarcely a town lot or a cemetery enclosure is laid out but this 

 mistake is made, although ignorance in nearly every instance 

 is the excuse, and justly so too. Taking, for instance, tho 

 labourer's cottage, with its few square feet of grass in front — 

 and, by the way, what is more attractive than a well-kept 

 sod ? — in the place of a Norway Spruce or Austrian Pine, I 

 would suggest what is termed a dwarf evergreen — one of the 

 smaller foi-ms of Arbor- Vitie, now becoming so popular, or a 

 Juniper with its vai'iety of outline, or perhaps a form of the 

 newer genus Retinospora. If the front should have a northern 

 aspect, the best plant for this purpese is either some hand- 

 somely variegated variety of Aucuba or Enouymus japonicus. 

 The newer introductions of these are exceedingly attractive, and 

 a group composed of distinct kinds forms an agreeable feature. 



Flowers and Flowering Shecbs. — To those whose taste for 

 flowers is predominant, I would recommend a eu'cular bed of 

 Roses, not planted promiscuously, but in hnes or ribbons, each 

 circle a distinct colour, all trimmed low, and consequently well 

 branched. If the entire bed should be of one variety, the 

 effect will also be very fine. For this purpose the China or 

 Bengal class cannot be excelled. The ribbon style must be 

 formed of prolific-blooming kinds. Another pretty adornment 

 for this smallest class of door-yards is the introduction of a 

 group of small-sized shrubs, such as white and rose-flowering 

 Almonds, Deutzia gracilis, Spirfea callosa alba, purple Ber- 

 ben-y, red and white Snowberry, tfec, with a Kilmarnock 

 Willow or dwai'f Weeping Cherry iu the centre. The shrubs 

 must be annually pruned into a rounded form, thus inducing 

 a close growth, and preventing a tall habit. Occasionally a 

 soUtary shrub of large size may be judiciously introduced into 

 a plot of this character, as, for instance, a purple-flowering 

 MaguoUa ; but iu this case the specimen should be such as will 



