March SI, 1870. ] 



JOURNAL OF HOKTICULTUBE AND COTTAGE GARDENEE. 



get one sort twice alike, and I have tried many. Cole's Crystal 

 White and Seymour's Solid lied of years ago, are good standard 

 sorts if they can be procured true. I think they are not ex- 

 celled by any recent introductions. Those I have grown lately 

 are Henderson's White Conqueror for the earliest crop — it is 

 very tender and not so apt to run to seed as some sorts ; — and 

 Veitch's Silver White as a second early. This is a very Eolid 

 crisp Celery, which as yet is very true, and this season is the 

 best-flavoured sort I have cultivated, lleid's Matchless Red is 

 a thoroughly good-keeping variety, and fit for winter nse ; while 

 Turner's Incomparable Dwarf White fur a late crop is not, I 

 think, even equalled ; it keeps well, and is longer than any other 

 in running to seed in spring. I have hni this variety good np 

 to the middle of May. — Tnos. Record, LiUesden. 



ROYAL BOTANIC SOCIETY'S FIRST SPRING 

 SHOW. 



This opened yesterday and will be continued to-day; and it is a 

 well-arranged and, for this season, pay exhibition, the only drawback to 

 which is, that it is held in a long narrow tent adjoining the conserva- 

 tory, an arrangement which is not very comfortable in this month of 

 keen north-easters. 



Of greenhouse plants in flower Mr. Wright, of Avenue Road, St. 

 John's Wood, has a collection rather deficient in briehtness containing 

 Heaths, among which is Elegaris in good bloom, three Azaleas, and 

 a large plant of Boronia pinnata not yet well covered with flowers. 

 Mr. Wilkie has a collection in which are Rbynchospermum jasmin- 

 oidea and a standard Azalea Iveryaua in fine bloom, Epacris Eclipse, 

 two plants of Phajus grandiflorus, and Franciscea calycina. Sir. 

 Wheeler, gardener to Sir F. Goldsmid, Bart., Regent's Park, has fine 

 specimens of Azalea Prince Albert and Triumphans, and well-bloomed 

 plants of Chorozema cordatum, Aphelexis macrantha pnrpnrea, and 

 Acacia armata, together with a small plant of the pretty rose-flowered 

 Boronia serrulata, the whole forming a neat group. 



Messrs. Rollisson, of Tooting, have a charming miscellaneous 

 collection, containing Yandas, Cyjnipediums, Ccelogyne testacea. Ly- 

 castes, Odontoglossums in tine bloom, the brilliant scarlet Sophronitis 

 coccinea, the new Drae;ena Guilfoylei, and several Palms. Along 

 with this collection, and lending it great brightness, is a large basket 

 of their new Epacris hyacinthiiiora carminata, which was awarded a 

 first-class certificate. 



Mr. W. Paul, of Waltham Cross, has about a score of Camellias in 

 5-inch pots, consisting of several fine varieties; likewise an extremely 

 interesting collection of Ivies, several of which are well worthy of 

 special mention, and a lot of the beautiful new Double Scarlet Thorn ; 

 also of his new Rose, Princess Christian, which takes a first-class 

 certificate. Mr. Wright, of St. John's Wood, has half a dozen plants 

 of the pretty Hoteia japonica. Messrs. Paul & Son exhibit a splendid 

 collection of Hoses in pots, of which Marie Banmann is most beau- 

 tiful ; Horace Yeruet, Princess Mary of Cambridge, and Elie Morel, 

 are also fine. 



Of forced trees and shrubs, collections come from Mr. Wheeler, 

 M>. Wright, and Mr. Wilkie, and consist of Hydrangeas, Lilacs, 

 Sloes, Weigela rosea, Gneldres Rose, and Rhododendrons. 



Among collections of forced hardy herbaceous plants, Mr. Ware, of 

 Tottenham, has a tastefully-arranged group of Dielvtra spectabilis, 

 Double Yellow Wallflowers, Lily of the Valley, Hoteia japonica, 

 Trillinm grandiflorum, the large white flowers of which are very 

 showy, and the variegated-leaved Crown Imperial. Another group 

 from Mr. Wheeler, contains, besides several of the plants above 

 mentioned, Polyanthuses, Solomon's Seal, and Saxifraga rnbra. 



Azaleas in 8-inch pots come from Mr. Wright, Mr. Wheeler, and 

 Mr. Wilkie, and are for the most part fairly bloomed plants of well- 

 lnown varieties. 



Of Hyacinths Messrs. Rollisson have a very even lot of thirty-six 

 with excellent spikes ; whilst among amateurs Mr. Searle, gardener to 

 B. C. Steel, Esq., Hammersmith, has good spikes of Charles Dickens, 

 Baron von Tuyll, and some others. Mr. Wright and Mr. Wheeler 

 also exhibit twelve. The only exhibitor in the nurserymen's class is 

 Mr. C. Edmonds, of Hayes. 



Cyclamens form a gay bank of bloom. Those from Mr. James, of 

 Isleworth, Mr. Edmonds, and Mr. Stevens, of Ealing, include some 

 Tery fine and bright-coloured varieties. Mr. James also sends a very 

 fine specimen plant of a rose-coloured variety. Messrs. Dobson like- 

 wise have Cyclamens and a small collection of Polyanthuses. Mr. 

 Edmonds has some very fine Chinese Primulas, and Mr. James and 

 Mr. Tibbies have very well-bloomed plants. rood Cinerarias are 

 shown by Mr. James and Messrs. Dobson, and the former has an 

 excellent specimen plant. Of cut Camellias Messrs. A. Henderson, 

 of Pine Apple Place, have a fine stand ; and there are stands from Mr. 

 Wilkie, Mr. James, Mr. Joseph Wheeler, and other amateur growers. 



Mr. Ware sends the only collection of twelve Liliaceous plants, and 

 a very pretty one it is, the whole in pans 8 inches across. Among 

 them we noticed Triteleia unitlora, Scilla bifolia. Bibirica, and pras- 

 cox alba, and Erythronium dens-canis, as the most effective. Mr. 

 'Ware likewise exhibits two charming baskets of Primulas. Mr. Par- 

 sons has a new large -flowering Mignonette, called Eximia, very com- 



pact and very sweet-scented. This received a first-class certificate. 

 Mr. Osman, gardener to R. Holland, Esq., exhibits a new Solanum, 

 from Japan, with small roundish, pointed, shining leaves, and a Maple, 

 also from Japan, with claret-coloured leaves. Mr. Turner, of Slough, 

 contributes baskets of Mrs. Headly Tricolor Pelargonium, and Mrs. 

 Turner Azalea, a very fine variety, and takes first-class certificates 

 for both ; while Mr. W. Paul has baskets of Euonymus flavescens and 

 Waltham Bronze Pelargonium ; the former, a very effective yellow- 

 leaved variety, received a first-class certificate. A similar award wa3 

 made to Cupressns Lawsoniana erecta viridis, from Messrs. Waterer 

 and Son ; to Dtemonorops plumosa and Peristrophe angustifolia aureo- 

 variegata, from Mr. Williams, of Holloway ; and to Dracaena Guilfoylei, 

 from Messrs. Rollisson. 



We most add that the conservatory presents a more than usually 

 gay appearance this season, numerous Hyacinths, Azaleas, and other 

 plants forming gay masses of bloom. 



FRUITING OF THE ELM. 



The following bears upon this subject. In drawing the plates 

 in illustration of your " Wild Flowers of Great Britain," I 

 found it impossible to obtain perfect fresh fruit of this tree. 

 The late Mr. James Ward, of Ely Court, Staplehurst, took 

 special interest in oar native trees, and collected fruiting speci- 

 mens of every British tree, except the Elm, for the above work. 

 This tree he never found in perfect fruit, after searching for 

 many years, neither could I obtain it from any of the numerous 

 subscribers to the work, who are in the habit of sending speci- 

 mens to be figured. 



Of all trees about London, the Elm (TJlmus campestris) is 

 the most common ; it abounds in the parks and hedgerows 

 everywhere, yet I have never- seen it produce any iruit other 

 than the imperfect membranous seeds referred to by some of 

 your correspondents. In short, after repeated trials, I was 

 totally unable to obtain & fresh British specimen of the perfect 

 fruit, and the plate in your "Wild Flowers of Great Britain," 

 was consequently published without it, or with leaves and 

 flowers only. — W. G. Shith. 



THE NOMENCLATURE OF CONIFERS. 

 There is a good deal of confusion on this head in nursery 

 gardens of the highest standing, and consequently amongst 

 amateurs. I do not refer only to recognised synonyms. 

 These are too common in zoology as well as in botany, but 

 must continue until we have some central scientific society, of 

 which all nations will recognise the authority, to fix the no- 

 menclature. In this way we find in the catalogues Abies Alber- 

 tiana, Albertii, Williamsonii, tsxifolia, and Mertensiaua, all 

 given as synonyms for the Fraser River Hemlock Spruce. 

 Abies or Picea lasiocarpa appears also as Lawii, Lowiana, 

 and Parsonii ; Abies or Picea cephalonica as Apollinis ; A. 

 Smithii also as Khutrow and Morinda. But the trade do not 

 agree to what species these synonyms, confusing enough in 

 themselves, are to be referred. One leading firm sells as 

 P. amabilis what another calls grandis, and vice versa; a third 

 sells lasiocarpa as grandis. I cannot rind amabilis or grandis 

 named at Kew. Again, one of the most beautiful Conifers at 

 Dropmore is called by the gardener, Mr. Frost, Abies taxifolia. 

 I never saw it anywhere else. In its foliage and appearance it 

 is between A. DoQglasii and A. Menziesii. It is very unlike 

 A. Albertiana, of which taxifolia is one of the recognised 

 synonyms, but I find in one of the many trade catalogues I 

 have searched, taxifolia given as a variety of A. Douglasii, 

 which I presume is this tree. — C. W. D. 



NAMES OF PLANTS. 



A friend at our house last week was discussing the question, 

 whether in the Phlox Drummondii the termination should have 

 two i's or only one ; of course the meaning of the thing is Drum- 

 mond's Phlox; and this puts the matter in the "genitive" or 

 " possessive " case, as we say in grammar. So we turned to 

 the Latin grammar, and we found that Latin nouns ending in 

 us made i in the genitive, and when ending in ius made it in the 

 genitive. Our puzzle then was to know whether Drummond, when 

 rendered into Latin, should be Drummondus or Drumrnondius. 

 My friend insisted that the only rule in making new Latin words, 

 as these plants' names really are, is to go by sound. It will de- 

 pend on whether the accent is on the first or second syllable. If 

 Drammond it should be Drummondus, and of course Phlox Drum- 

 mondi ; but if Drummond, then Drumrnondius, Drummondii. He 

 thought that the first was most likely to be the proper sound of 

 Drummond, and therefore Phlox Drummondi would be correct. 



