December 9. 18C9. ] 



JOURNAL OF HOBTICULTORE AND COTTAGE GAEDENEH. 



453 



plants near the glass in a stove, repotting them ^ben it was 

 ueoes£ary, and using a compost of sandy loam, peaf, and a 

 liberal quantity of silver sand, with the addition of some well- 

 decomposed cj-,v dang. The plants are now in 11-inch puts, 

 show a multitude of flowers, and are '3i feet in diameter, and 

 one leaf measures nearly 9 inctes across. In addition to the 

 plant'3 beautiful flowers, its foliage is the admiration of all who 

 see it. — WiLLiiu Jokean, Cannhefo Gardens. 



CLASSIFYING GRAPES— THOMSONS WHITE 

 LADY DOWNE'S. 



GRArE-cuLTivATor.s have long felt the want of a really good 

 late white Grape — one that could worthily tdke its place as a 

 fitting companion to our present magt)ifl;ent race of black 

 varieties. We have, of course, had the Muscat of Alexandria 

 itself, a white, without a black companion until quite lateiy ; 

 but in almost every other instance the black varieties have 

 largely predominated over the white, and pr.ived not only 

 superior in quality, but in appearance als®. To produce a 

 really handsome dessert it is always necessary, to give proper 

 efieot, to employ two dishes of Grapes, one white, the other 

 black. The most useful of our black Grapes is, no doubt, the 

 Black Hamburgh, and of the white, Muscat of Alexandria. 

 The first, however, although it may be kept tolerably late, is 

 not particularly handsome in the early spring months, or a 

 profitable variety for that season. We have had, therefore, to 

 call in the aid of the Black Alicante (Dlack Tokaj) and Lady 

 Downe's. The Muscat of Alexandria, again, requiring a diffe- 

 rent treatment, and being more expensive of cultivation, is 

 frequently not available, even if it were wanted ; so that the 

 burden of the entire late supply of Grapes rests with the 

 black sorts, which have been without a suitable white com- 

 panion until the advent of the subject of my notice — Thom- 

 son's White Lady Downe's. 



The following classification of Grapes, 'clack and white, 

 suitable companions the oce for the other, may prove of some 

 interest. It includes only the leading varieties : — 



Class 1. — Black Ham'uurgh and its v.^rieties Black. 



Golden Hamburgh, Golden Champion, 



Backland Sweetwater "^hite. 



— 2.— Madxesfield Court, Mrs. Pince Black. 



Muscat of Alexandria IVliite. 



— 3.— Alicante or Black Tokay Black. 



Wiite Tokay V/hitc. 



— 4. — Gro3 Guillanme (BarLarossa) Black. 



Trebbiano, Eaisin ds Calabre ^Yhite. 



— 5. — Lady Downe's Black. 



Thomson's "White Lady Downe's "Wliite. 



Grapes should thus, I think, be grown in classes— ic , a 

 black and white variety of each class. It will be seen at a 

 glance how much of similarity, both in af pearanoe, quality, 

 season, and requirements of cultivation, is borne by each 

 variety in its class to the other. In the first, (he black has 

 somewhat the advantage, if we except the superior flavour of 

 the Golden Champion. In the second the white is, un- 

 doubtedly, superior to the black. In the third the appearance 

 ia in favour of the black, the flavour, of the white. In the 

 fourth it is so likewise ; and iu the fift'ii the black, which is 

 well known, is now surpassed both in flavour and in its keep- 

 ing properties by the white variety. 



It is a fact which has often been noted t'aat white Grapes, 

 Grapes with light skins, keeplongar plump .',nd fresh iu spnng 

 than those with black skins. White surfaces, we know, do not 

 so readily absorb heat as black ones, and it appears to be so 

 with Grapes. In March and April the white sorts do not 

 absorb so much heat, which causes decay, as the black ; conse- 

 quently the former keep better, and in this way Lady Downe's, 

 which is the latest blac't, is superseded in its keeping proper- 

 ties by its white offspring. 



I cansider Lady Downe's the best late black Grape jet in 

 existence, and its companion is the White. Hasing now had 

 for two seasons the pleasure of tasting the qualities of this 

 new Grape as grown at Dalkeith, comparatively with the Lady 

 Downe's growing alongside, I consider it in flavour superior to 

 the old variety. It appears, also, to be entirely free from that 

 peotiliar tendency to scald, so annoying with the black variety. 

 With the exception of the colour, the fruit v.hen well grown 

 is quite the same in all its appearances as the black, and the 

 habit of growth, foliage, &e., of the plant are altogether the 

 same. 



The White Lady Downe's Grape is a seedling r.iised by Mr. 



Thomson, of Dalkeith, from seed taken from a bunch of black 

 Lady Downe's, over which was shaken the pollen of Bowood 

 Muscat. The cross, however, if there wos any, seems to have 

 been very slight. The progeny seems to partake more of the 

 character of an ordinary sport from the old variety. Several 

 other seedlings from this bunch were raised at the same time. 

 One was named Golden Lady Downe's, and it had fine large 

 berries and a fine bunch, but it proved of inferior quality, and 

 its growth was discontinued. That name — Golden Lady 

 Downe's, would have been the most appropriate for the variety 

 under notice, but having been once awarded could not be again 

 adopted. Some attempts are made to confound this variety 

 with the former and inferior sort, from which it is totally dis- 

 tinct. I have also seen it advertised as Foster's White Seed- 

 ling, or White Lady Downe's, the former being an early Grape, 

 and possessed of no relation thereto whatever, further than its- 

 having been raised by Mr. Foster from seed out of the same 

 berry as the black Lady Downe's. 



The White Lady Downe's ia a welcome addition to our stock 

 of Grapes, and one which, when once its merits are known, 

 will be extensively cultivated. — A»cni:LiEAUii. 



AUTUMN RAMBLES.— No. 2. 

 O.^E main object that I propose to myself in jotting down 

 these few notes of an autumnal tour is, that if any brother 

 horticulturist be led into the same 'oyways as myself, he may 

 know where to see what will suit his taste, and perhaps give 

 him a hint in some of the many departments of our loved art. 

 Nothing can be more provoking than in going to a place, to 

 trudge off, it may be on a hot summer's day, to some place with 

 a grand name, which you have picked out from a directory, 

 and then to find that the owner has no care or love for flowers, 

 and that ii is only because it belongs to a lord or 'oarouet that 

 it has been inserted in the list ; almost equally annoying is it 

 to find that you have omitted some place where the owner is 

 an enthusiastic lover of flowers. It is not every one who has 

 an acquaintance in a strange place, or who knows exactly what 

 you want ; so it might have been at Norwich, but my son 

 knew my wishes, and so prepared for me the treat I enjoyed so- 

 much. I do not pretend to give full descriptions of the gardens 

 visited — in the first place, because they always seem to me to 

 convey at best a poor notion of them, and secondly, because 

 very few people care to read them. Thus my notes of Mr. 

 Colman's were very brief, but I hope sufficient to induce others 

 to visit his place ; equally so will be those of the other two 

 places I saw on the same day. Crossing the river close to Mr. 

 Colman's the road leads up to Thorpe hamlet, one of the 

 suburbs of Norwich, where a large number of those who are 

 engaged in the city have their residence, and after a short 

 walk we come to 



THE RESIDENCE OF I5AAC B. CO.^KS, ESQ. 



The house ia situated on an eminence and overlooks the 

 velley, while the towers of the cathedral and city churches, the 

 citadel, &o., are to be seen in the distance. The house and 

 grounds are both new, and a few years ago the place was a 

 roug'u uncultivated piece of ground, but its present aspect 

 betokens both a considerable amount of skill and perseverance, 

 and also good taste. In the front of the house there are some 

 good plants of Conifers which, after they have been there for 

 a few years, will have a fine appearance. Amongst them I 

 noticed some good plants of Thuja aurea and Wellingtonias. 



The house stands on a terrace, and on one side is a fine con- 

 servatory of an ornamental character, in which were, amongst 

 other usual occupants of such situations, some good plants of 

 the new Golden Culeuses, which are very well suited for conser- 

 vatory decoration, the finest being, perhaps. Baroness Kothe- 

 chiid. Her Majesty, and Princess Koyal. On the other side of 

 the house is a small sunken parterre, which is the extent of 

 the bedding-out. I have never seen Mrs. Pollock Pelargonium 

 in such robust health as in these beds ; if it always did look 

 like that no one would ask for a finer one in its class, or rather 

 style, for there are two distinct styles— the pointed serrated 

 leaf, such as Mrs. Pollock, Sophia Dumaresque, and, indeed, 

 all Mr. Grieves's strain, and the round-leaved one, such as Sir 

 Robert Napier, Mrs. Dunnett, Moonstone, i-c. 



Passing round by this parterre, you come on a range of low 

 houses most admirably suited for the cultivation and growth 

 of plants, and filled with a capital selection of stove and green- 

 house plants. Orchids, and Ferns. Mr. Coaks is a very bt.c- 

 cetsful exhibitor ; and although it is the fashion to find fault 



