December 2, 1869. ] 



JOUBNA.L OF HORTICULTUBE AND COTTAGE GAEDENER. 



445 



that of Nerine nndalata ; the Pinas, P. Pallaeiana, and the Picea, 

 P. grandia. 



CrPRESSCS VARIEGATED (J. B.). — VTe do not know a Cnpressns of the 

 name you give, but it would likely succeed from cattiugs put in now in 

 sand in a cool house, covering them with a hand or bell-glass, and keep- 

 ing the soil moist but not saturated. It would have been better had the 

 cuttings been put in earlier in the season, but they will yet Bucceed. 

 They would no doubt retain the variegation the branch at present exhibits. 



Ptramidal Pass foe SELAoraELLis (E. L. J.).— We do not know where 

 these may be had in London, but they may be had of most dealers in 

 flower pots. 



LnrCM ADBATCM AND LANCrFOLltJM PoTTING (Ut'l'. IT. ff.).— It iS nOW 



a good time to pot these bulbs if not done before, giving them an in- 

 creased size of pot, and in potting do not disturb the ball beyond re- 

 moving any loose soil without injury to the roots. The soil ought to be 

 kept moist during the winter, and when the plants are growing they 

 should have a light, airy position. They succeed in a cold pit, protection 

 being given from frost, or they may be kept in a cool greenhouse. Your 

 other question is answered in *' Our Letter Bos." 



lyDIANEOBBER PLANT'S SHOOTS DYING (Amateur).— It is owing to the 

 plant not having sufficient heat to mature the growth, and it dies back 

 from the cold and damp. Give more heat and moisture in summer, so as 

 to secure a good growth ; it will then succeed in a greenhouse tempera- 

 ture in winter. 



CvcLAMEN Seed Sowing (Mem).— You do not say what variety you 

 wish to grow; but we advise the seed to be sown now in pans well 

 drained and filled with a compost of two 'parts fibrous sandy loam, one 

 part peat and leaf soil, and one part sandstone, broken small, and silver 

 sand, the whole well mrxed. Level the surfice. scatter the seeds evenly, 

 and cover with fine soil. Water gently, covering the pan lightly with 

 moss, and place it in a house with a temperature of from 50 to 55 . Keep 

 the soil moist and near the glass, admitting air freely when the plants 

 appear. When they have made two or three leaves, pot them off singly into 

 small pots, and in summer remove them to a cold frame, keeping moist, 

 and shaded from bright sun. Pot as may be necessary into larger pots, 

 and take in-doors at the end of September, placing the plants on a shelf 



in a house with a temperature of 45^ ; and with due supplies of water, and 

 potting as required, yon may probably flower them the spring after next ; 

 if not, let them go to rest in' summer, potting them when they begin to 

 grow. They will flower in autumn, winter, or spring, according to the 

 sort. In potting cover the corm with soil. A little old cow dung may be 

 mixed with the soil. Good drainage should be given. 



Tea Roses in Pots (CnJcaria).— There is very little doubt that Tea 

 Roses would succeed very well planted in the open ground and protected 

 during winter with a curate's ground vinery. Care should be taken to 

 keen the air as dry as possible, and to raise the sides of the ground vinery 

 sufficiently to allow plenty of ventilation. During severe weather a little 

 clean straw might be thrown to the sides of the frames, and it would ba 

 better if they were placed to face east and west, so as not to have the fuU 

 sun from the sou'h in the spring. The soil should be well forked over 

 and manured, and if at all heavy a liberal supply of leaf mould should be 

 added, the whole mulched for the winter with short manure, and in the 

 summer with cocoa-nut fibre, as under a frame the roots would bo more 

 inclined to draw to the surface and would suffer from the summer's sun. 

 The plaut3 ought not to be nearer than 18 inches, and the stronger 

 shoots might be pegged. The following sorts on the Manetti stock would 

 answer well with this treatment:— La Boule d'Or, Louise de Savoie, 

 Madame Willermoz, Maiamo de Vatry, Siuvenir d'un Ami, Monsieur 

 Furtado, Narcisse, Niphetos, Adam, Josephine Malton, Madame Bravy, 

 ani Madame Margottin. „, . t 



Leaf of Seedling PELABaojnoM [A. H.).— The diameter, 8J inches, 

 is very large. .,.,,. , i,. 



Border Tiles.— "E. ff." and " C. Pnn^ep" wish to know where tha 

 border tiles mentioned in page 419 are to be obtained. 



Names of Plants (liei'. It. B. C.).— Asclepias curassavlca. {Filiceij.— 

 2, Polypodium appendiculatum ; 6, Pteris serrnlata ; 9, P. erotica, the 

 typical green form. The other numbers not received by us. (A Surrey 

 ,S'u6.sm6(>rj.— Lamium maculatum. (IF.).— Dendrobium Gibsoni and 

 Maxillaria Parkeri. (jfnra).— Asplenium Adiantum-nigrum. (Deronia). 

 1, Asplenium Adiantnm-nigrum, the typical form ; 2 and 3, A. Adiantum- 

 nigrum, var. obtusum ; 4, A. Tricbomanes. (ii. Bur;.-).— Vallota purpurea. 

 {W. S., Birkenhead).— Denirobiam heterocarpum, otherwise D. aureum. 

 The other Orchid we have not yet recognised. 



METEOROLOGICAL OBSERVATIONS in the Suburbs of London for the week ending November 30th. 



Wed... 24 

 Thnrs. 25 

 Fri. ... 23 

 Sat.... 27 

 Sun. . . 28 

 Mon.. . 29 

 Tues. . 30 



Ueas.. 



BABOUETEB. 



29.793 



29.616 45 



THEBUOUETER. 



42 

 51 

 60 



46 

 51 

 4) 

 41 



43 

 23 

 35 

 22 



31.71 



1 ft. dp. 2 ft. dp. 



44 

 43 

 45 

 45 

 46 

 44 

 44 



44 



44 

 43 

 44 

 44 

 44 

 43 



N. 

 K,W. 

 W. 



s.w. 



N.W. 

 W. 

 N. 



Rain in 

 inches. 



.00 

 .00 

 .00 

 1.04 

 .CO 

 .41 

 .00 



44,43 43.71 



1,44 



General Reuabeb. 



Densely overcast ; overcast; densely overcast ; froit. 



Frosty fog ; very fine ; clear and line. 



Overcast; densely overcast ; clumly and overcast. 



Bain ; heavy rain ; exceedinely heavy rain. 



Cloudy; very fine; clear and cold ; frosty air. 



Overcast ; frosty air ; densely overcast ; ram ; dnzz ing i»i i 



Overcast and cold; very damp; clear and frosty. 



POULTR Y, BEE, AND PIGEON CH RO ITICLE. 



A QUID PRO QUO. 



Knowing that ponltry shows very seldom pay, " Egoiiet " 

 might admit that committeemen work hard and put their 

 hands in their pockets for the improvemerit of onr pets and 

 the good of the poultry world generally, and that committeemen 

 consider that improvement and good a quid pro quo. 



Thus far admitted, " Egomei " might allow a committeman 

 the pleasure of a silver cup if he can fairly win it. He has to 

 pay the same entry fees, is subject to the same rules and regu- 

 lations, has had the same chance of trouble and expense to 

 procure, has the same desire to improve, his stock as his fellow 

 amateurs, and is subject to the dictum of the same judge. 

 Then why should he not honestly exhibit ? Having paid his 

 entry fees, &e., why should he not have the quid pro quo— a 

 fair chance of the prizes '? " Oh ! Committeemen should be 

 above suspicion," is usually the answer. Bat should they be 

 suspected? If they are, it must be imagined that our judges 

 are corrupt, conniving at some secret arrangement of awarding 

 the prizes to as corrupt committeemen. If they are not to be 

 trusted in this, are they to be trusted in auj^thing? and the 

 wonder is that the suspicions should trust their property in 

 their h»nds. 



In the spirit of an enthusiastio brother amateur I argue that 

 it is better to allow committeemen to exhibit at their pleasure 

 than for poultry shows to deeUne, for decline they must and 

 will if this obstructive course be persisted in. Exhibiting com- 

 mitteemen would rather be off than on a committee if they 

 could not show with a fair chance of the prizes. Their pride is 

 their prize fairly won. Supposing it were arranged to " Ego- 

 met's" satisfaction, and a committeeman never showed again 

 at his own show, what would be the result ? Why, Birming- 

 ham, that is strongest in one or two particular breeds, would 

 never show her best birds in those breeds. Bristol Spanish are 



known the poultry world over, but then you would have to visit 

 ' some other town to see them, as they could not be shown at a 

 Bristol show. Nearly all the great shows follow suit, and where 

 you would expect the strongest native exhibition you would 

 find little or none. Would this be fair to honest men, saying 

 nothing about the knaves beyond ? Watch them, prove them, 

 expose them ; after exposure let exhibitors decline to_ enter 

 again at that show as long as that man is connected with it, 

 and it will tell its own tale and gratify— An Old CoMsinTEEMAU. 



I I THINK it will be admitted that, a? a rule, the members of a 

 committee are greatly interested in the various varieties of 



' poultry and Pigeons ; then why should they, simply because 

 they give their time and interest in promoting an exhibition m 

 their neighbourhood, be debarred from showing, and thus be pro- 

 bably deprived of the pleasure of success, which would doubtless 

 be considered greater at home than abroad? What does it 

 signify to whom the prizes are allotted, provided the best birds 



I win ? and it appears to me to be casting a slur upon the judges, 

 who are generally well known to the public, to attempt to 

 insinuate they would be partial in their awards. I am an ex- 

 hibitor, and certainly care but little to whom the birds belong 

 that win, if they are superior to mine, and think that, whether 

 committeemen or otherwise, they are fairly entitled to the 

 merit and advantages derived from the superiority of their 



stock. — No COMHITTEEIIAN. 



BIRMINGHAM POULTRY SHOW. 



We must reserve our reporter's notes until next week but 

 will now publish a few remarks aud statistics with which we 

 have been favoured : — , ., -i a • j i.i 



The reduction in the number of pens exhibited is, doubt- 

 less, owing to the additional sixpence, for there was an increase 

 in the number of Pigeons, on which no advance of charge for 



