Maye, : 



JOUKNAL OF HOBTICULTDKB AND COTTAGE GAllDKNEB. 



306 



bloomiog pots, and tbeee they should have when the 0, 7, or 

 8-inoh pots become filled wiih roots. Pots 'J or II inches in 

 diameter are largo enough for good ppecimeus. Add to Iho 

 compost at the last potting one part of old lime rubbish, so that 

 the soil will bo composed of two parts of loam from turf, one 

 part sandy fibrous peat, one part old cow dung, and one part 

 lime rubbish, the whole well mixed and used rather rough. Up 

 to this period of their growth, the plants ought to have had u. 

 hotbed where there is a temperature of from (10° to Co° at night, 

 and from 70° to 7o° by day, or 80° to H5° with sun and abun- 

 dance of air. 



The stakes or the wire trellis necessary for training the plants 

 should be put in after the last potting, and training must at 

 once begin. I do not care for very tall plants, but compact 

 dense masses, hence the stopping ; but if tall )>lants are wanted, 

 more than one stopping must not bo given. The plants, after 

 being shifted into their blooming pots, may bo placed in any 

 light airy house where they can be kept closo to the light, 

 allowing them room to grow ; and give air plentifully, and a 

 sprinkling of water overhead morning and evening. Maintain 

 a moist atmosphere by frequently sprinkling the paths, walls, 

 and other available surfaces. A better place than any other is 

 a cold pit, whore the plants should be continued until they are 

 coming into bloom, when they may he moved to the greenhouse 

 or conservatory. They should, after the pots become filled with 

 roots, have liquid manure at every alternate watering, and that 

 will tend to keep away red spider, give greater vigour, and in- 

 crease the size of the flower, the colour being dependant on 

 their exposure to light, of which they cannot have too much. 



For baskets the plants should be put in them when of a size 

 fit for placing in the blooming pots, and the basket ought to 

 be lined with moss, and filled with the compost used for the 

 final potting. Care should be taken to keep them well supplied 

 with water, and if this cannot be done by means of the water- 

 ing pot, dip the basket in a vessel of water every evening for a 

 lew minutes, and syringe twice a-day with soot water. 



For trellises. the plants should only be stopped once, and 

 onght to be planted out when they need the ihird potting. 

 Pursue the same treatment for those that are required for vases, 

 though for the latter purpose the stopping may be continued 

 longer. To preserve the plants longer in beauty, remove the 

 pods as the flowers go off. — G. Abbey. 



FLOWER SHOWS. 



" Flower shows do not pay," is the melancholy refrain we 

 hear from time to time, and about which we see so constantly 

 BO many articles written and so many suggestions made. I 

 dare say all will remember the story told of that miserable king 

 of ours, Charles II., propounding to the wiseacres of his profli- 

 gate conrt why, if you put a live fish into a bucket of water, 

 the weight was in no way increased. They set to work to guess 

 and shake their heads and look wise, until some one thought 

 he would try first, and of course found out that the premises 

 of the king were wrong. Now, I do not at all think that the 

 various writers who have given us their opinions on this sub- 

 ject are not quite so wise as I am — nay, 1 think them a great 

 deal more so ; but I also think they have done wrong in taking 

 the premise for granted, and, starting on the idea that flower 

 shows do not pay, they have arrived at varying conclusions as 

 to the way to make them do so. I am not at all prepared to 

 give in to this axiom, and not being of an imaginative turn of 

 mind, prefer looking at the whole subject in a very downright, 

 it may be dogged, sort of way, and will therefore endeavour to 

 clear away what I believe to be some of the mist which prevents 

 iolks from seeing clearly in this matter. 



What is meant by saying flower shows do not pay ? Is it 

 this, that the receipts at the doors do not cover the expenses of 

 the day ? for if so, I contend that is not the way to look at it. 

 I take the three great metropolitan purveyors of shows — the 

 Royal Horticultural Society, the Boyal Botanic Society, and 

 the Crystal Palace Company. Now, it is quite evident that in 

 the case of the two Societies it would be unfair to look at the 

 receipts on the days of show as all that is to be put to the 

 credit side of the account. The one Society numbers 8000 

 Fellows, the other 2500, and I should like to know if to-morrow 

 they were to announce that they would discontinue their shows 

 how many of these would continue as Fellows. Are not many 

 of them induced by the privileges offered to them on show days 

 to become members ? It is all very well to talk of the love of 

 soience and floriculture, and that sort of thing being enough 



to induce people to subscribe, but it is not. There is, perhaps, 

 a tithe of the Fellows who may bo so influenced, but I question 

 if it is more. With regard to the Crystal Palace, their flower 

 shows (to pay, but then it is hardly fair to take it as a ground 

 of argument, either ;)ro or con. The place is eo exceptionally 

 good, the other accessories of tho Palace so attractive, and the 

 visitors so independent of weather, that wo must put its shows 

 out of court. Coming from the metropolis to the country, we 

 must look at it in tho same way. I do not know of any pro- 

 vincial society which professes to expect that tho receipts at 

 the door will cover all expenses. Tho ijlan generally is to start 

 a society, to induce a certain number of persons to subscribe, 

 to offer them certain privileges in tho way of tickets, and then 

 to look for a substantial addition to the funds ou the show 

 day. 



But suppose we take for granted (under protest) that flower 

 shows do not pay, let us see the reasons which are adduced 

 for this. 



1. "There are too many of them." There are, unquestion- 

 ably, for the peace of tho exhibitors, who are hurried about 

 from post to pillar, and who never seem to get breathing time 

 when once the fit is on. This is telling on tht-m. MeBsrs. 

 Turner, Bailey, Fraser, and others, whose productions have 

 been the ornament of our shows have withdrawn, and I fear 

 more will follow, but as far as the company is concerned, I 

 think not. Look at the enormous population of London. See 

 how utterly separated from one another the different quarters 

 of the great city are. Why, with the exception of a few well- 

 known faces, you see a set of people at Kensington entirely 

 different from those at the Begent's Park; and, again, totally 

 different at the Palace, and, therefore, I am led to the con- 

 clusion that they do not interfere with one another ; and it 

 may be adduced as a case in point that when the Alexandra 

 Park at Muswell Hill was projected, while many objections were 

 made, I never heard it advanced that it would injure the Crystal 

 Palace. On the contrary, it was said that the north side of 

 London ought to have a palace for the people as well as the 

 south ; and so I fancy that the west, and north, and south of 

 London might very well each maintain their flower shows, and 

 I do not see why t,he other point of the compass should be left 

 out, and the cast of London not maintain its flower shows 

 as well. 



2. It is maintained that " the great sameness of flower shows 

 and their want of artistic arrangement tire people out, and that 

 hence the shows are not so well attended as formerly." The 

 first question I would aek is. Are they worse attended? Given 

 a fine day at the Begent's Park in cither May or June, and yon 

 will bring, 1 believe, as many people together as ever visited 

 Chiswick in the height of its glories ; and, moreover, when 

 such a statement as this is made, it is, I think, quite forgotten 

 that by far the greater number of those who attend flower shows 

 never see or care to see the flowers at all. I have purposely 

 stood at one of the Botanic days in front of the tent entrance, 

 where I could command the sweep of the broad walk leading to 

 the main entrance, and have been amused beyond measure to 

 see the crowds of people who never enter the tent at all, but 

 turn aside at once to the baud and ices ; in fact, they come to 

 see and to be seen, and whether it be a flower show, or a row- 

 ing match, or a horse race, matters but little to them. The 

 Begent's Park, or Mortlake, or Epsom are only places to air 

 the last new love of a bonnet, or see the very latest achievement 

 of Madame Sevilly's, while their male companions affect that 

 disregard of "all that sort of thing." I do not deny that some 

 alteration is required about flower shows, such as restricting 

 sizes of plants and other arrangements, of which more anon ; 

 but I question very much whether this would have any j ercep- 

 tible effect on the attendance. It would be more agreeable to 

 a cultivated taste, they might more commend themselves to 

 those who already enjoy them, but I question very much 

 whether the treasurer's account would be much profited by it. 



3. " That this sameness is so great, that one gets thoroughly 

 to know not only the exhibitors, but the plants they will ex- 

 hibit, and hence people will not come." This is perfectly true 

 as to the first point, but it is after all the result of marvellous 

 skill in culture. You may search the world over, and you will 

 never see anywhere such specimens of stove and greenhouse 

 plants. Azaleas, Pelargoniums, and pot Eoses, as are to be seen 

 at our metropolitan shows ; and it is perfectly manifest, that 

 unless a new exhibitor becomes the purchaser of some of these 

 large plants, it is impossible for him to compete with these 

 collections, and hence the competition is confined to a few 

 persons, who can afford the expense that it entails. And I 



