Jane 2G, 1866. ] 



JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



473 



tantalieing becaase the plant was the only one of its kind in Enrope. 

 When the Society got into difiicultiea, among other assets was this 

 nniqne plant of Fremontia califomica, and the narserymen thinking 

 that they conld do what the Society could not, there was a lively com- 

 petition for it, and it was sold to Messrs. Henderson, of the \YeUing- 

 ton Road. By them it was passed from propagator to propagator 

 without success, and at last the plant died. Messrs. Veitch, however, 

 having received a few seeds from the native habitat of tho plant, suc- 

 ceeded in raising several plants, some of which were turned out of 

 doors to rough it, at Coombe Wood and in tho King's Road, and he 

 had seen a plant of it 5 or 6 feet high, on a wall, and which had been 

 there all last winter and the winter before, and had triumphantly 

 withstood the test. We might, therefore, venture to conclude, that we 

 have here a beautiful hardy plant. As already stated, it belonged to 

 the natTiral order Sterculiacete, and as seen in this country is remark- 

 able for its small leaves, somewhat resemblinj^ those of the Shamrock, 

 but in its native country the leaves are as large as those of the Fig 

 tree ; and Torrey describes the plant as having much the appearance 

 of that tree. It must, however, be considered much more handsome 

 when covered with its yellow tlowers, one peculiarity of which is, that 

 they have no petals, what are seen being divisions of the [calyx, or 

 sepals. The plant is found in various parts of the northern portion 

 of the Sierra Nevada, and is named after Colonel Fremont, who at 

 the head of a band of daring men fonght his way through hostile 

 Indians and took the site of San Francisco, and the territory thus 

 acquired was annexed to the United States. Colonel Fremont, however, 

 was not only a soldier, but also a good naturalist, and in his first 

 expedition collected three hundred plants, in a second nearly one 

 thousand, but the mule which carried them fell over a precipice and 

 they were dashed to pieces, and in a third expedition the fate of his 

 collections was more disastrous still. Col. Fremont, he might add, 

 had become a candidate for tho Presidency of the United States, bnt 

 had been defeated by Buchanan. Botanists had lately been taken to 

 task for their method of naming plants, and among other grievances 

 complaint was made that tho native names were disregarded ; but 

 the charge could not be established, for botanists where they could 

 did associate such names with plants. Thus in Jonesia asoca. asoca 

 was the native name. Sometimes, again, something connected with 

 the history of the plant was preserved in the name, and in this way 

 plants would furnish a mnemonic key to a multitude of facts. What 

 3 world of history, for instance, there was in the name Fremontia 

 califomica. There was another plant he might cite, the elegant Httlo 

 Linna?a borealis, which was selected to be so named by the celei>rated 

 LinnBBUS. He knew that some pupil of his would name a plant after 

 him, and fearing that it would be some of the gay flowers, such as 

 ■were in the room, he chose a very distinct, a very humble, and a very 

 modest plant to bear his name — a little Alpine creeper trailing over 

 rocks and crags in Sweden and the Highlands of Scotland, and which, 

 with a little care, would succeed in more southern parts of this 

 country. With regard to native names botanists had done much to eu- 

 phonise them, and had in many cases adopted them ; but there are few, 

 he thought, who would prefer such a name as corticoatzontecoxotchil, 

 which actually was borne by a La-lia, to that which science had given 

 it ; and as a further instance that botimists had not neglected native 

 names, he mentioned Angrsecum which had been euphonised from the 

 native name angrec. 



With respect to the Orchids exhibited, he would first direct at- 

 tention to a few from Mr. Anderson, gardener to T. Dawson, Esq., of 

 Meadow Bank, near Glasgow ; and to account for their appearance at 

 the meeting, Mr. Batemau said, that having visited that place a few 

 months ago he remonstrated at the fine specimens which he there saw 

 being kept on the north of the Tweed, and he was glad to find that 

 his call had been responded to. He would first direct attention to a 

 magnificent spike of Odontoglossum Pescatorei consisting of about 

 sixty flowers, and of which the first blossom had opened on the IHth of 

 Sfarch ; and this was not a solitary spike, for the plant had produced 

 as many more blossoms on others, some of which came out of the top 

 instead of the bottom of the pseudo-bulbs. Mr. Anderson had, in a 

 paper read at the Botanical Congress, strongly advocated watering 

 Orchids with warm water, but the extraordinary spike, the vigour of 

 the plant, the size of tho blooms, almost made one suspect that some 

 stronger drink, mayhap ammonia, had been given. Odontoglossum 

 Pescatorei from the colour and long endurance of its flowers was 

 peculiarly a bridal Orchid, and one, too. well adapted for dinner- table 

 decoration, for both of which purposes Orchids offered peculiar re- 

 sources, and were rapidly rising in favour, and he might add, that the 

 Princess Mary's wedding bouquet chiefly consisted of Orchids. An 

 epergne at a dinner party at which he had lately been particularly 

 struck bim by its effect, it being dressed with one species of Saccola- 

 bium. To return, however, to Mr. Anderson's Orchids, there was a 

 beautiful specimen of Oncidinm crispum, and another of Dendrobium 

 albo-sanguineum, also a bridal Orchid, its colours being pure white 

 and orange. Mr. Bateman then drew attention to the pretty nankeen 

 and pink Aerides testaceum, and to tlie tine specimens of Leelia and 

 Cattleya exhibited by the Chairman, and remarked that though Lnelia 

 purpurata is a native of St. Catherina, in Brazil, such had been the 

 greed of collectors, that if the inhabitants want plants of it they must 

 send to London for them. He desired to impress on the meeting that 

 though three Cattleyas were exhibited, Warueri. Pilcheri, and Knckcri. 

 theett were not species but varieties— lyell- marked varieties to which 



all due honour should be given, bat which, to prevent confusion, ha 

 would repeat, should never he rtgarded as species. 



Peoplu ia the country, Mr. Bateman obsi-ned, are often asked by 

 their friends to bring or suud to town plants suitable for table deco- 

 rations, and are at a loss to know what will prove suitable. He there- 

 fore begged to bring under the notice of the meeting a plant introduced 

 some two or three years ago — one of tho Anioor Vinen, and though 

 his own garden had every disadvantage, being cold, high, and in & 

 most wretched climate, the plant was perfectly hardy there. Tho 

 leaves, as would be seen, had considerable claims to favour in a deco- 

 rative point of view, and the tips of the shoots were tinged with red. 

 The banks of tho Amoor jtiver, the Himalayas, and parts of tbo 

 Rocky Monutaius. are, it was remarked, all that remain from which 

 it conld be hoped to gather much in the way of new plants. 



Mr. Bateman then directed attention to a ft-w more Orchids, among 

 which were Maxillaria venusta with exactly the fragrance of Gardenia 

 radicans, a species of Burlingtouia, likewise very fragi'ant, Eriopsia 

 mtidobulbon. and the showy Epidendrum vitellinum. 



Passing from the domains of Flora to those of Pomona, said Mr. 

 Batemau, Mr. Peake had exhibited two Granadillas, from Antioquia, 

 but though he (Mr. Bateman) had not learnt the opinion of the Com- 

 mittee, he believed that the fruit had proved agi-eeable. Tho pulp 

 and seeds enclosed in the rind had much tho appearance of frog's 

 spawn. Of tropical fruits not generally gro^^ii, he believed that tho 

 Granadillas were the only ones likely to repay the cultivator. He had 

 himself a house devoted to the purple Grauadilla, and his family 

 were very fond of the fruit. Recently a Mr. Hnllett had been sending 

 about an account of what ho termed Passiflora macrocaqm splendens, 

 which was described as an extraordinary species from South America, 

 forming a tree that fruits readily in our stoves, and producing flowers 

 7 inches in diameter, and fruit weighing upwards of 10 lbs. It was 

 also described as a climber. It had been offered to half the peerage, 

 and, Mr. Bateman added, he did not know how many of tho dii 

 minoret, himself among the number, and the price asked for so ex- 

 traordinary a plant was high — five pounds. Xow, as no one k-new 

 anything of Passiflora macrocarpa spleudens. except by Mr. Hullett's 

 description, and as botanists were unacquainted with any such speciea 

 as Passiflora macrocarpa, or %vith any Passiflora approaching to that 

 in the size of the fruit which it is said to produce, Mr. Bateman 

 hoped that Mr. Hullett would come forward at the next meeting and 

 give the history and particulars of so extraordinary- a fruit, and 

 especially the collector's name, and where and when the plant was 

 found. This would be the best possible advertisement, and it would, 

 therefore, be to Mr. HuUett's interest to do so. 



Mr. Bateman then directed attention to tho fruit of the Zizyphus 

 vulgaris, sold in Covent Gardent Market as " Japonicas," and which 

 constitute a pleasant addition to the dessert. From these the jujubes 

 of the shops are supposed to be made ; but, as in the case of some 

 which he had purchased at a chemist's shop that morning, it had been 

 found more easy and profitable to concoct a mixture of liquorice and 

 gum arabic and sell it as the veritable jujube. In concluding his re- 

 marks, Mr. Bateman said that he hoped to bring before the next 

 meeting a culprit which had done great mischief in certain P^ris of 

 Cheshire— Sirex juvencus, a large boring insect, which was figured by 

 Curtis thirty or forty years ago when it attacked the roof pf York 

 Minster, and at the time it was predicted that it would greatly mcreaso 

 the danger in case of fire, and singularly enough a year or two after- 

 wards the Minster roof was burnt. 



The President's Conversazione.— The Duke of Bucclench issued 

 invitations for a conversazione on the 19th, and it was attended by 

 about two thousand of the Society's Fellows, and others. A more 

 brilliant assembly conld not be easily derised, The euturo floor of tho 

 consenatory was cleared of plants, and carpeted ; the pillars sustain- 

 in" the roof were surrounded by flowers pyramidally grouped m 

 baskets encircling the pillars. These flowers were gorgeous, yet most 

 artisticaUy arranged, and admirably reUeved by the healthy foliage ot 

 the giant Ferns, Conifers, and climbers, which are tho permanent 

 tenants of the conservatory. The statues embowered among the 

 foliage, and the whole illuminated from above by tho close beadmg ot 

 lights round the entire architrave within the roof, was so effective as to 

 realise the descriptions which we read in oriental tales. Iho Prmco 

 of Wales was one of the visitors. 



To Market Gardeners, Vegetable Growers, &c.— A series 

 of large drawings is being prepared for the food department 

 of the South Kensington Museum, to consist of some of our 

 principal kitchen-garden plants, the object being to show what 

 perfection and magnitude certain plants will attain under judi- 

 cious and careful cultivation. Any of our readers possessing 

 specimens of the following are asked (if so disposed) to forward 

 them for painting, carriage paid, with roots and all leaves 

 attached, to the artist engaged, Mr. AV. G. Smith, 12, North 

 Grove West, Mildmay Park, London. The grower s name will 

 in every instance be attached to the portrait of the particular 

 plant painted. List of specimens re<iuired-Cabbage. Broccoli, 

 or Cauliflower, any sort, Turnip any sort, Carrot, larsmp, 

 Celery, and Sea-kale. 



