Jim (, I86T. ] 



JOUBNAL OP HORTICULTURB AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



398 



Donald, Mr. Weir, and Mr. James, also showed pretty collections of 

 Fancy kinds. 



New Plants were Tery nnmeronsly shown by Messrs. Veitch, Bull, 

 Williams, E. G. Henderson, and others, as may be judged from the 

 fact that some ninety certificates were awarded for them ; but they 

 have nearly all been noticed in previous reports. Amorphophallus 

 oobilis, exhibited by Mr. Bnll, deserves, however, special mention, on 

 account of its singular-looking flower, which was in course of develop- 

 ment, and which formed a fleshy mass about 7 inches in height, and 

 4 or 5 inches in diameter, and was of a deep chocolate colour becoming 

 paler towards the base. Like most of the genus the flower will pro- 

 bably have a very offensive odour when fnlly developed. From Mr. 

 Wilson, garden to W. Marshall, Esq., came a pretty variety of Mil- 

 tonia fipectabilis, called rosea, and from J. Gray, Esq., Ashridge 

 Park, a variegated form of Deotzia gracilis. 



First-class certificates were awarded for the following new Show 

 Pelargoniums — viz., Man of Mark, Example, and Victor, raised by 

 Mr. Hoyle, of Reading, and exhibited by Mr. Turner ; to Hermit and 

 Lady of Quality Lnproved from Mr. Wigging ; and to Grandee, Rob 

 Roy, and Emperor from Mr. Nye, gardener to E. Foster, Esq., Clewer. 

 Certificates of the same class were also given for Marmion, Pink of 

 Perfection, and East Lynn, three Fancy varieties, shown by Mr. 

 Tamer. Of Nosegay varieties Emmeliue, from Messrs. Downie, 

 Laird, & Laing, and Dr. Hogg and Waltham Nosegay, from Mr. 

 William Paul, had first-class certificates, and a similar award was 

 made for Lord Derby, a Zonal variety, shown by Mr. Mann, of Brent- 

 wood, and noticed at page 373. 



Of other subjects, Messrs. Downie, Laird, & Laing had a very good 

 ■tand of cut Pansies, and good blooms were likewise exhibited by Mr. 

 Hooper, Bath, Mr. Kingston, and Mr. James, of Isleworth, who had 

 also some fine herbaceous Calceolarias. A pretty group of flowering 

 and fine-foliaged plants, edged with the silvery-leaved Meadow Grass 

 and Golden Feverfew, came from Messrs. E. G. Henderson ; some 

 beautiful Aucubas and other variegated hardy plants, as well as some 

 very fine standard variegated Pelargoniums, from Mr. W. Paul ; Lilium 

 anratnm, from Mr. Turner and Mr. Bnll ; Aniectochilus, from Mrs. 

 Glendinning & Sons ; a fine pair of Agave filifera, from Mr. Bull ; a 

 large and handsome specimen of Iresiue Herbstii, from Mr. Hill, gar- 

 dener to R. Hanbury, Esq. ; a magnificent group of Sarracenias, from 

 Mr. Baines ; cut flowers of Ixias and other Cape bulbs, from Messrs. 

 Hooper ; and variegated Bamboo and other plants, from Messrs. Barr 

 and Sugden. 



ENTOMOLOGICAL SOCIETYS MEETING. 



The May meeting, held on the Gth ult., was presided over by Pro- 

 fessor Westwood, V.P. Amongst the donations to the Society's library 

 received since the last meeting were several works of considerable 

 interest — namely, M. Snellen Van Vollenhoven's two volumes on the 

 insects of the Dutch settlements in the Spice Islands, belonging to the 

 families ScuteUeridie (Hemiptera), andPieridae (Lepidoptera Diuma) ; 

 and Mr. Stainton's volume on the Tineina of the Holy Land ; and the 

 tenth volume, completing the first series, of his great work en the 

 Tineina of England, a second series of ten volumes being announced. 

 Some valuable works by Dr. J. Leconte on the Coleoptera of the 

 United States of America were also presented by their author. A 

 new part of the Society's " Transactions " was announced as ready 

 for distribution among the members. 



Mr. Bates read a communication from Dr. Felder, of Vienna, in 

 which he made some observations on the priority in date of publication 

 •f some of the species of Butterflies contained in the volumes of the 

 Novara expedition. He also made some very severe comments on 

 Mr. F. Walker's catalogues of Lepidopterous insects published by the 

 Trustees of the British Museum. 



Mr. Stainton exhibited some larva-cases of Colesphora lexella, which 

 kas the remarkable habit of feeding when in the young state of the 

 lArva on Thymus serpyllum, but at a later period it transfers itself to 

 ft species of grass. This species had been forwarded to him by Herr 

 Heinemann, of Brunswick. He also exhibited the larva of Hypono- 

 meuta egregiella first found in the south of Spain, and afterwards at 

 Cannes by Mr. MilUere, and at Fontainbleau by Mr. Stainton feeding 

 •n Erica cinerea. The specimen was then engaged in spinning its 

 •ocoon. 



Professor Westwood mentioned that he had recently received some 

 CimicidsB (Enicocephalus Tosmanicns), from New South Wales, which 

 •ongregate in the air like Ephemerae, and emit a pleasant scent like 

 musk, which had communicated itself even to the letter in which the 

 ■isects had been forwarded. 



A communication from Mr. Fereday, corresponding member in 

 New Zealand, was read, mentioning the capture of Cynthia Cardni in 

 that colony. Mr. Bates, however, stated that it was the Australian 

 form of the species, diifering permanently from the European one, 

 and likewise that the so-called C. Cardni of South America was a pink 

 Tariety of C. Huntera. 



A letter was read from Mr. C. A. Wilson, corresponding member 

 at Adelaide, in which the writer gave an account of a Centipede having 

 been killed by the excessive heat (114° to IKi'), in Cockatoo Valley. 

 He also announced the discovery, on the banks of the Gawler River, 

 of a species of Strepsiptera, by Mrs. Ki-ensler, being the first instance 

 •f that order being detected in Anstralia. Mr. F. Smith added some 



farther information respecting this parasite, and exhibited specimens 

 of the Wasp Paragta decipiens, in the body of which it is parasiticaL 

 It was also stated that Mr. Holiday had noticed the genus Stizus to 

 be infested with these parasites in Italy. 



A paper by Mr. H. W. Bates was read, on a collection of 

 Butterflies formed by Thomas Belt, Esq., at the mines of Monies 

 Aureas, in tho interior of the province of Maranham, about 160 miles 

 south-east of Para. During three months Mr. Belt had collected not 

 fewer than 364 species of Butterflies, amongst which eight were new 

 to scienee. 



Mr. S. Stevens exhibited some very interesting Carabidfe, collected 

 by Herr DameU in the district of Cape York, on the north coast of 

 New Holland. 



ALICALINE SALTS AS MANURE FOR POTATOES 

 —FEATHER- STEMMED SAVOY. 



Last year I intended proving the utility of alkaline salts as 

 manure for Potatoes, but circumBtances prevented my carrying 

 out the experiment as I wished. I had about three roods of 

 ground for the purpose, and planted eight varieties of Potatoes, 

 using the salts on each alternate row of all the varieties, so that 

 there could be no difference in the soil. There was scarcely 

 any difference in the appearance of the small-topped sorts, such 

 as Daintree's and Handsworth ; but the stronger-growing varie- 

 ties, such as Fairbairn's Pink Seedling, Ambassador, and King 

 grew remarkably strong in the haulm, the colour being of tho 

 darkest green. The tubers of the rather late varieties grew 

 again before being ripe much more than those not treated with 

 the manures referred to. As to flavour, mealiness, &c., I fear 

 the good effects of alkaline salts are all a myth. It is very 

 probable, I think, that alkalies may be advantageously used in 

 growing early varieties ; but as regards the general crop o£ 

 Potatoes, they do not return a tithe of the expense. This i« 

 not my first acquaintance with saltpetre, &c., as manure. 



My limited experience leads to the following conclusions : — 

 Alkaline salts are good for Trefoils and Grasses generally ; in 

 fact, wherever foliage is the main object of the cultivator. 'With 

 cereals they grow large crops of straw at the expense of the 

 grain. I shall at some time try their effects as hurrying ma- 

 nures for early crops, and when I can state the results with 

 scientific accuracy I will send you an account. 



I also wish to call the attention of your readers to a vegetable 

 which is not grown so extensively as it deserves to be ; I refer 

 to the Feather-stemmed Savoy. It has a rather coarse appear- 

 ance during the autumn and early winter months, but after the 

 heads have been cut the stems continue to throw an abundance 

 of sprouts, which when cooked are exceedingly tender and well- 

 flavoured. It is so hardy that the severe weather last winter 

 had very little effect upon it, although Kale, Brussels Sprouts, 

 and Eoseberry Sprouts were very much destroyed.^F. Flittok. 



ORCHARD-HOUSE MANAGEMENT. 



In reply to the request of " Subscribek," page 347, I must 

 first say that I merely threw out the hint respecting orchard- 

 houses for the Editors of the Journal to take up, not at alt 

 expecting my letter to be published in full. I feel quite unable 

 to advise others, being myself only a learner ; but as far as I 

 can I will offer such explanations as " Subscriber" asks for. 



I have roughly measured my ground, and find that I have in 

 lawn 1400 yards, in kitchen garden and frame ground about 

 one acre, and the remainder in carriage-drive and shrubbery. 

 I turn out this year seven hundred pots of flowers. I work 

 ten lights of frames. I have an orchard-house 42 feet long by 

 14 feet wide, a vinery 12 feet by 9, a Fig-house 12 feet by 9, a 

 Cucumber-house 18 feet by 6, and a Mushroom-house 18 feet 

 by 5. 



I think that in gardens of ordinary size like mine, where no 

 skilled gardener is kept, much labour may be saved by carefully 

 attending to a few points like these. 



First, let the master who intends to help in any way really 

 do the work he attempts. I never call a man from his work to 

 bring me this or that. I take the tools, ladder, iS;c., which I 

 may want, and thus my help is really of service. 



Secondly, I always have- help when it is really wanted, and 

 thus the work is done at the proper time. In hot weather, for 

 example, I have every weed cut down ; an extra man is worth 

 much then, and will save labour for weeks afterwards. 



Thirdly, I save labour by having plenty of room for putting 

 things into their right place. For example, I have room in 

 my frame ground for the manure to lie ready for the beds. I 



