JOURNAL OF HOETICULTUEE AND COTTAGE GARDENEB. 



[ March 8, 1877. 



for an enemy which may itself be an exterminator. — John 

 T. D. Llewelyn. 



EXHIBITION TANSIES.— No. 8. 



Of the older fhow flowers it is somewhat difficult to speak, 

 their name being legion ; but if I narrow the area of disserta- 

 tion to the varieties I grow myself, and only refer to a few of 

 the most meritorious, I may hope to succeed in not wearying 

 your readers. 



By common consent selfs are placed first in order, and follow- 

 ing the rule I will refer to them first, though briefly. Of dark 

 selfs those nearest perfection are free from shading and lack 

 that shadowy blotch which so often surrounds the eye, though 

 there are many very beautiful flowers which have not this dis- 

 tinction. Finale has stood its ground for many years, and is 

 not likely to be ousted at present, and the same may ba said 

 of Locomotive, Eobert Black, Alexander MeNab, Eev. D. 

 Taylor, and Miss Muir. The darkest I know is Erebus (Dick- 

 sons), and is an intense black of good substance; Count Bis- 

 marck, too, is black, but not by any means so good a flower as 

 Erebus. Of good yellow selfs there is a large number, and 

 selection is not easy. Cherub has long held its place as one of 

 the finest, but its raiser (Mr. Henry Hooper of Bath) sent one 

 out in 1875 which, though slightly deficient perhaps iu quality, 

 is a really good flower : I refer to Capt. H»yter, and it will bo 

 found to be very smooth, large, of the finest form, and with a 

 splendid blotch. King Koffee came out with honours from 

 Oxford, Manohfster, and the Royal Botanic Society, but to 

 my mind, of Mr. Hooper's two flowers, the Captain is the beat. 

 Golden Qaeen is a chaste light yellow of high merit, and Indian 

 ■fellow, Ophir, and Cloth of Gold are worthy of a place iu the 

 most select collections. The last-named has long been rele- 

 gated to the ranks of bedders, but that does not cause it to bo 

 any the worse flower, and many inferior sorts even now pass 

 muster at exhibitions. The host light self I know is Hooper's 

 Duchess of Edinburgh, a beautiful cream with very large dark 

 purple blotch, of exquisite form and wonderful substance. 

 Cyril, though but of medium size, is a good flower, and George 

 White, Hilen Douglas, Marquis of Bute, Mrs. Tnrufr, Mrs. 

 Felton, and Koyal Charter are admirable examples of this 

 type. Though there are so many selfs and of so many hues, 

 including black, white, cream, yellow, violet, purple, mauve, 

 maroon, plum, blue, and mulberry, there is still room for im- 

 provement, and I hope that some day we may have a bright 

 Ecarlet, rose, or crimson self to give additional attractiveness 

 to exhibition pans. The desired colours are already in some 

 fancies, such as William Melville, rosy purple ; Michael Scott, 

 dark rosy red; GeorgeWood, light crimson ; Leith Walk Hero, 

 carmine; and David Dickson, crimson, and we may reasonably 

 hope that the busy bees or systematic hybridisation may pro- 

 duce selfs of the colours named. 



Yellow grounds form a very laiga family, and there are bo 

 many of escelleuca that improvement seems scarcely possible. 

 For a long time Robert Burns was the most esteemed, and not 

 without cause, for its lemon ground and chocolate belt kept it 

 distinct from its myriad purple-belted competitors. Defoe, 

 too, held its place until Dickson's Christopher North discovered 

 itself, and I may safely say a mora handsome yellow ground I 

 do not know. Walter McKay is an excellent flower, and 

 William Catley (Hooper) is indispensable, being large, smooth, 

 and constant. Beauty of B:tth when caught is very beautiful, 

 but with me it has proved as " fickle as fair." Amongst other 

 good varieties John Downie, Miss L. Murray, Dr. Wood, 

 Acme, Atlas, Senator, Sparkler, Perfection, and William 

 Campbell are very dlBtinct, and fulfil in addition all the require- 

 ments of good flowerp. The kinds I have mentioned are for 

 the most part constant, and this ia a strong recommendation 

 in Pansies. Last year I raised a seedling with a bright yellow 

 ground and a broad brown belting, of medium size, perfect 

 form, and good substance, but as inconstant as a flower could 

 poesildy be. Now and then it came true, but sometimes the 

 belting came in spots, and sometimes there was. no belting at 

 all. Of course under these circumstances it was worthless, 

 but I shall try it again ; and if I can persuade it to be true, an 

 excellent flower of wonderful distinctness will be added to the 

 list of yellow grounds. 



Really good white grounds are scarce, though the number of 

 kinds grown is great. Uusually there is some irregularity iu 

 the belting, which, though apparently trivial, is to the florist 

 an eyesore. In one the field ia not well defined, the belting 

 on the lower petal intruding upon the liuo laid down by the 



side petals, and in others want of constancy is the leading 

 fault, especially it the belting is a narrow one. Jane Grieve 

 is the best variety I have grown, and is, as it claims to bs, the 

 finest flower in its class. I have never seen a deficient bloom, 

 and, unlike many, it is a good grower, though not a profuse 

 bloomer. Mrs. Galloway is a good flower with a deep bluish 

 purple bolting, and close up is The Mede with a broad purple 

 belt. Dawn of Day, too, has no mean claim, its narrow bright 

 purple belt rendering it very distinct and valuable. Mrs. 

 Hogarth, Miss Addison, Miss IBessy McAslan, Ladybnrn Rival, 

 Patroness, Bonny Jean, Mrs, Wrigley, Lady Paley, Mrs. Eyles, 

 Mary Harper, and Tickler have merit, and are more or loss to 

 be depended upon. I have found that of all Pausies white 

 grounds are the shyest bloomers, and last year this was espe- 

 cially the case, though, perhaps, the dryness of the season 

 may have been the cause. Next week I will conclude my re- 

 marks with a few practical observations on cultivating and ex- 

 hibiting. — M. H. MiLLEK, Leek. 



As a florists' flower how little we see or hear of the Pansy — 

 a flower that deserves to bo more widely known and to be 

 more largely loved. What can be more beautiful than the 

 black velvety texture of Dux, or of the rich yellow of Golden 

 Emperor? to say nothing of Alma, Princess Beatrice, Midland 

 Beauty, John Currie, and other light and yellow grounds. I 

 am not much in favour of fancies except as bsdding Pansies, 

 They are very pretty and afford a contrast to the solid colours 

 of the more beautiful show Pansies. No doubt, as your corre- 

 spondent has said in his article on page 98, that the Pansy has 

 been a neglected flower, yet in our district it ia never omitted 

 from the schedules of flower shows. We have here Pansy 

 enthusiasts, and I know men wha have spent years of toil in 

 cultivating their favourite flower. 



I am glad that your correspondent admits having had a 

 narrow escape of diequaliflcatiou at the Nottingham Show. 

 If he had been exhibiting at one of our local shows, where the 

 Pansy is appreciated, he would have been — not almost, but 

 altogether disqualified. I, with many others, went to that Show 

 to see the Pansies and Rosea, expecting to have seen the first 

 prize for Pansies awarded to a pan worthy of the honour, and 

 not to a mixed lot. The best pan of Pansies, exhibited by Mr. 

 Taywell of Nottingham, was passed by altogether. I could 

 have understood the award had the blooms been either all 

 fancy or all show Pansies, but awarding the flrst to a mixed 

 collection waa past my comprehensiin. I find your oorre- 

 apondent considers that a pan has not that disliaotnesa in a 

 twelve show pan as iu a mixed lot. I contend that a good 

 Pansy judge can see a distinction iu show Pansies without the 

 aid of Bolgiau fancies; if not, then either the judges or the 

 Pansies are at fault. Then, again, he aajs that in the oata- 

 loguea of floritti' flowers you see fancies introduced. I would 

 aek him if he finds them mixed or whether tbey are separate? 

 Every florist knows that there is a wide difference between a 

 fancy and other varieties. What would be the result, for 

 instance, it a stand of forty-eight Dahlias was composed partly 

 of fancy and partly of show kinds, and another stand was 

 wholly composed of show varieties v The answer is obvious. 



I should like for all Pansy fanciers to read the characterietios 

 of a good Pansy as described in " Flonats' Flowers," sent out 

 from the office of your journal, and they will there find what 

 constitutes a good flower. I wiU quote the last oharaoteristio, 

 No. 7, aa some of your many readers may not have seen it: — 

 " Ragged or notched edges, crumpled petals, indentures on the 

 petal, indistinct markings or penoillings, and flushed or run 

 colours are great blemishes ; but if a bloom has one ground 

 colour to the lower petal and another colour to the side ones, 

 or if it haa two shades of ground colour at all, it is not a 

 show flower ; the yellow within the eye is not considered 

 ground colour." That is what constitutes a good Panay, and 

 not the same as some your correspondent exhibited at Not- 

 tingham. — C. E., Notts. 



PETDNIAS AND THEIR CDLTDBE. 



The Petunia and Tobacco do not at the first glance appeal 

 to be relatives, jet Petunia and Nieotiana are genera placed iu 

 the same natural order — Nightshades (Solauaccie). The very 

 name, indeed, of Petunia ia derived from the Brazilian name 

 for Tobacco {piiini), hence lovers of the " weed " should have 

 a certain amount of respect for Petunias apa>.'t from their in- 

 trinsic boauty. 



Ia ^cy fewplants has Iho improv«ment besa ao great and so 



