May 8, ISCfi. ] 



TOUBNAL OF HOBTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GA^p^f^llB. 



339 



some will be fonnil. Search for the marauders at night with a 

 lautern, or sprinkle a little dry soot around the insides of the 

 frames, around the plants, and on the surface of the pots or 

 pans. 



Mir.DEw is too well known to Cineraria-growers. Dust the 

 infected parts with sulphur vivum, and wash oS in a few days. 

 •rrG. Abbey. 



OJJK'J ilt It. r. 1- 



NEW PLANTS 



AS-SE^N* AT Jin. W. BLXI.'s, CffELStiA. 



AnouT two years ago I visited this now well-known establish- 

 ment, and endeavoured to describe the large collection of novel- 

 ties that were then to be found there ; and now again " the cry 

 is still, They come." From all parts of the world, and from all 

 departments of the veg'jtable kingdom, it not "from the Cedar 

 of Lebanon to the Ilyhsop that groweth on the wall," at any 

 rate from the raagniticeut Palm to the tiny Lycopod, are con- 

 tributions levied to satisfy the ever-increasing cry for new 

 things. Wherever anything good is to be obtained Mr. Bull 

 is sure to have arms long enough to reach it, and the result is 

 seen in the constant change of novelties that Ins houses dis- 

 play. 



Of those which I spoke of last year I am glad to find that a 

 large number have established the reputation that was then 

 predicted for them ; and of those which I have now seeu I 

 am sure that many will bo found as great favourites as their 

 predecessors. Let not any one imagine that it is only the 

 owner of some large cstablisliment who need apply here, for 

 while there are denizens of the stove and Orchid-house, the 

 lovers of Ferns whether iM-itish or ex.otie will find something 

 to gratify their taste; the " bedder-out" may see some of tho 

 very best strains of Geraniums in existence ; the exhibitor 

 will linl Verbenas ■.vhich will help his stands : and the lover 

 of herbaceous plants may add to his stock of gems. The diffi- 

 culty is really where to begiu, and how to obtain a supply of 

 adjectives which shall be adeijuate for the demand made on 

 them. However, to the Palms must, I suppose, be accorded 

 the first place, especially as the taste for their cultivation 

 seems to be rising in EugUvnd. Foremost amongst these was 

 Yerschalfeltia spleudida, a beautiful fottthery-looking Palm, 

 with the stem completely covered with thickset and sharp 

 spines. Equally good is the plaut now popuUirly known as 

 the Thief Palm, a namo which I should think had better be 

 dropped, its true name being Phujnicophorum sechellarum. 

 Here I would also mention among Cycads Zamia cycadifolia 

 from Port Natal. Here, too, is the true Latania rubra or 

 Bourbon Palm, the one ordinarily sold as such being Com- 

 mersonii (?), very handsome ; audCycas plumosa, very feathery 

 and beautiful. 



Of the now very popular family of Maranta, a good example 

 was Maranta spleudida, from Para, whicli has been already 

 exhibited and obtaiued a first-class certificate : it has light 

 green foliage banded with darker green. Amongst Orchids 

 was Schistocasia Portei from the Philippines. Amorphophal- 

 Ins nobilis, from .Java, was a remarkabledookiug plant, with 

 stems 4i inches in circumference. Of those plants remarkable 

 for their variegated foliage tlie greatest gems were Bertolonia 

 margaritacea, a name thoroughly well deserved, for the leaves 

 look as if dotted over with pearls ; and Eranthemum argyro- 

 neuron, similar in its habit of growth to Gymnostachyum Ver- 

 sohatfeltii, but entirely dift'ereut in colour,- which is a very 

 bright lively green, and the nervures of a beautitid silvery whitt . 

 This has been obtaiued from the High Amazons, and the entire 

 stock of it is in Jlr. BulPs hands. Peperomia argyrea has a 

 large ovate leaf beautifully marked with spiral hands, while 

 Dioscorea amectocliilus is now well known. Its large leaves, 

 8 inches in length by 44 in diameter, are jiroduced first quite 

 green, but gradually change to a bright olive and gold, very 

 similar to some of those little beauties from whence its specific 

 name is derived. Bignonia argyrea violascens has been so fre- 

 quently exhibited lately by Mi-. Bull that it ought now to be 

 well known. It may suffice to say that it fidly maintains its cha- 

 racter for its beautifiU soft colouring ; and a variety of Trades- 

 cantia, white and green, will form a nice contrast to zebrina, 

 so wtll seen and so much used in baskets. There was also 

 Ananassa Porteana, fi-om the Philippines, variegated olive, 

 green, and white. 



To remarkable-foliaged plants there were also some fine addi- 

 tions, such as Paudanus latissimus, a rare plant, with the 

 broadest foliage known in this family, and Pandanus Porteanns 

 item the Philippines. There waa likewise from Madagascar a 



very pretty plant, like Pavetta borbonica, but trifoliate. There 

 was also to be seen Cossignia borbonica, not a new but a rare 

 plant, with orange midribs and cinnamon-coloured stem, ex- 

 ceedingly handsome. Amongst curious-foliaged plants were 

 some remarkable productions : — Nidularia Pinehi, with its in- 

 florescence almost like a nest settled down in the heart of tho 

 plant, and Coccoloba pubescens, with a most curious character 

 of foliage. The leaves are .3'2 inches by 28, slightly pubesxent, 

 and are produced apparently one above tho other, giving, doubt- 

 less, to the plant naturally a most curious appearance ; not 

 more singular, however, than Pitcairnia tabula>formis, a plant 

 about 11) inches across and as Hat as a table, from the centre 

 of which rises a spike of orange-coloured flowers. Amongst 

 Orchids was a variegated-leaved variety of Phajus grandifolius, 

 and Vanilla phabtnopsis, very remarkable for its flowers. 



In plants that come more within the reach of everybody 

 Mr. Bull has a varied assortment of novelties, in Verbenas, 

 Fuchsias, Pelargoniums, and Petuuias. Many of these I have 

 seen, and about their value there can be little doubt. His 

 new Lobelias, for instance, open out quite a new field, and we 

 cannot do better than quote the opiniou of a contemporary, 

 which says, " AVe hail these as great acquisitions; for the 

 Lobelia is one of the good old summer flowers which have been 

 elbowed oat of tho garden by the bedding system, though few 

 subjects are more brilliant than it under good management." 

 The colours of these new seedlings comprise many quite new, 

 such as pink, carmine, apd ruby ; and we certainly see no 

 reason why we should not have as great varieties in this flower 

 as have rewarded the labour and skill of the hybridiser in 

 other departments of floriculture. When the Italian Verbenas 

 were introduced, poor as they doubtless were, I hailed their 

 advent as being, I hoped, the precursors of a new race, and 

 these anticipations have soon been realised. Mr. Bull has this 

 season several, which I look upon as a great improvement on 

 any that have been as yet sent out. They wiU not from their 

 very character be of much service for the garden, but will be 

 very pretty for pot culture and for the exhibition table, where 

 their contrasts will be much valued. His double Mimnli are 

 too well known now to need any comment. Their value is 

 greatly increased by the lengthened duration of their blooms, 

 the single Mimulus lasting only a very short time ; whereas 

 the calyx of these, equally ornamental as the flower, remains 

 on for a long period. 



I have more than once alluded to the superior strain of 

 bedding Pelargoniums which Mr. Bull has possession of, some 

 of those of last season being wonderfully fine in colour, and 

 the individual flowers very large. He has this year again 

 eight new varieties to send out, among which Edith, Cherub, 

 Peach Blossom, and Speaker are spoken of as being very fine. 

 Of Hybrid Nosegay varieties he has also a selection ; and 

 having chosen Clipper as one parent and Stella as the other, 

 he has obtained for those who admire this class some telling 

 novelties. 



Fern-lovers are so niunerous that acquisitions to this tribe 

 are sure to be of interest, but where they arc to stop one hardly 

 knows. Thus, for example, from a crested f.um of Nephrodium 

 moUe, the spores of which air. Bull saved in the hope of ob- 

 taining the same variety, he found that when once the di- 

 vergence begins there is no Icnowing how far it may go ; for a 

 number of varieties have been produced, some of which have 

 been named, as ramosissimum, grandiceps, ramosum crista- 

 tum. Athyrinm Fdix-fcemina cemtributes a very beautiful 

 variety called sagittatum, with very sharp arrow-shaped fronds, 

 somewhat in the style of Fieldia>. Polystichum angulare gran- 

 diceps is a fine form of that well-known species ; while amongst 

 exotic Ferns, both tree and herbaceous, are many fine sorts. 



It is well known that Mr. Bull has a large collection of oSi- 

 cinal and medicinal plants. Here may be seen the various 

 spices, such as Pepper, Allspice, Ginger, Cinnamon, and Clove ; 

 the fruits of the tropics, the delicious Mangosteen, the Loquat, 

 the Mango, and tlie Date; the plants from which castor oil, 

 ipecacuanha, sarsaparilla, and all such "nasties" are ob- 

 tained ; the pl.ints or shrubs that produce our beverages, tea, 

 coffee, chocolate, &c. ; those in wliich ladies, and even men, 

 like Hotspur's fop, " perfumed like a milliner," delight as 

 Bcents — that queer " opoponax," who.se letters puzzled the town 

 last winter, and patchouli, suggestive always of a dread of soap 

 and water in those who use it ;,— in fact plants (mtny of them 

 small, doubtless), whose interest is derived not from their 

 extreme beauty but from the uses to which they are put. 



Some people say you never can bo tirSd of a good thing. 

 Well, I honestly confess, grp^t «8i^ -n|y love of flowers and 



