210 



JOUBNAIi OF HORTICULTUBE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



[ Muoh 16, 1876. 



and f ally maintained its character for flavour, &c. Can yon tell 

 me if it has any synonym ; or if not, why it should be entirely 

 unnoticed in the new edition of the " Fruit Manual ?" Several 

 Apples quite as novel are mentioned in it. — C. E. 



NOTES AND GLEANINGS. 



In the programme of Exhibitions announced to be held 

 at the Boyal Botanic Gardens, Regent's Park, is included an 

 Exhibition of Flowek Beds. This is to be held from June let 

 to 8th, the prizes being offered by His Serene Highness the 

 Duke of Teck, G.C.B., and the Society. " These designs for 

 geometric and other flower beds and borders are to be laid in 

 actual beds of the natural size on the lawn, and composed of 

 living plants in pots plunged in sand." The new wing of the 

 conservatory is to be opened on the first day of this Exhibition. 



Aeotilok Boule de Neioe, which is effective as a 



subtropical decorative plant for the flower garden in summer, 

 is perhaps still more valuable for affording a supply of cut 

 flowers during the winter and early spring months. If the 

 plants are kept growing in a genial temperature they will pro- 

 duce flowers freely at every joint, and these flowers are even 

 more pure in the winter than they are in the summer. They 

 are very valuable for bouquets, vases, &<:., and keep fresh for 

 a considerable time in water. White flowers are always in 

 demand, and few plants wUl produce them more easily and 

 certainly than this chaste white Abutilon. Cuttings struck at 

 the present time wiU make fine plants for flowering in winter. 



Beoonia nitida is a valuable old winter and spring- 

 flowering plant, but of a somewhat loose and straggling habit 

 of growth. This characteristic of the plant has been turned 

 to account in an effective manner by Mr. Ollerhead in one of 

 the stove3 at Wimbledon House. Plants of this Begonia are 

 there grown in large pots, and the shoots are trained to wires 

 on the back wall. This waU is about 9 feet in height, and is 

 completely covered with shining foliage and immense trusses 

 of pinkish white flowers. There are many fine wall and climb- 

 ing plants in the houses at Wimbledon, but none are nearly 

 BO striking at the present time as this Begonia. The plants 

 have been flowering all the winter. This beautiful wall of 

 Begonias expresses a happy idea well carried out, and is worthy 

 of imitation. 



TnE gardens at Loxford Hall are always both at- 

 tractive and instructive. In the conservatory the Camellias 

 Jubilee, Alba plena, and Fimbriata are in splendid health 

 and bloom, their white flowers being enhanced by the juxta- 

 position of large plants of Donckelarii and Chandlerii. As 

 white Camellias the sorts named should be in all collections. 

 The greenhouse is exceedingly gay, the Hyacinths and Tulips 

 being in " exhibition form ; " very beautiful also is Iris siberica, 

 while Primula nivaUs is charming. The vineries also are very 

 promising, the foUage of the Vines being thinly trained, very 

 healthy, and scrupulously clean. The Black Hamburgh house, 

 which has produced more " first-prize " fruit than perhaps 

 any house of its size in England, is not this year likely to 

 perfect bunches quite so large as usual; but the adjoining 

 Muscat house is showing a splendid crop. The berries have 

 set as freely as Black Hamburghs, even the Canon Hall Muscat 

 having several full bunches. There is something of interest 

 also for Auricula growers. Never were the Loxtord plants in 

 better condition. But more noticeable than the established 

 plants are the fine batches of seedlings. Many of these are 

 ahowing their first trusses, and other seedlings are springing 

 np as "thick as Cress." From the fact that these seedlings 

 are the result of intercrossing the best varieties, and especially 

 varieties that have proved to be the best " breeders," some- 

 thing really new and good may be anticipated. The fruit 

 crops indoors and out are highly promising, and good garden- 

 ing and neatness everywhere prevail. A stroll through the 

 houses and gardens at Loxford attests that Mr. Douglas 

 practises all that he teaches. 



A VERT good authority, resident in Cornwall and in 



a district where Babbits abound, says that they will not eat 

 ANY of the Lilies. They occasionally nibble off a leaf, but 

 the flavour is not agreeable to them, and they leave it. 



The Wimbledon Gaedeneks' Society held their third 



meeting in the Lecture Hall on Wednesday evening, March 8th, 

 Mr. Lyne, gardener to A. Schlusser, Esq., Belvedere, in the 

 chair. Mr. Jordan read a paper on the cultivation of Eucharis 

 amazonica ; after which Mr. Ollerhead read a short article on 

 the same subject, which led to a very pleasant discussion. Mr. 



Ollerhead also read a paper on the cultivation of Azalea indica, 

 which created a spirited debate. [We shall pubUsh this paper 

 next week.; Votes of thanks to the Chairman, Mr. Jordan, 

 and Mr. Ollerhead, brought a very enjoyable evening to a 

 close. Several new members have joined the Society. 



The nineteenth annual Exhibition of the Clay Cross 



HoRTicuLTDRiL SOCIETY is announced to be held on August 15th. 

 Prizes of £25, £20, £15, £10, and £5 are offered for twenty 

 plants, the competition being " open to all England." The 

 total amount offered in prizes is £363. Mr. StoUard is the 

 Secretary. 



Yorkshire has long been noted for the excellence of ita 



horticultural exhibitions, and many successful gatherings are 

 anticipated during the ensuing season. Tempting schednlea 

 are arranged by the Leeds and York Societies, the Exhibition 

 of the former commencing on June 28th, with prizes amount- 

 ing to £500; and of the latter the "grand floral fC-te" com- 

 mencing on June 16th, when nearly £000 will be offered in 

 prizes. 



In the " Annales de Chimie et de Physique " for 



January, M. Dumas has a valuable paper entitled " Studies 

 ON Phylloxera and Shlpho-carbonates," which may be taken 

 as representing the present state of the Phylloxera question. 

 His conclusions are briefly as follows : With regard to the 

 Phylloxera of the roots — 1, Sulpho-carbonate of potassium is 

 a rapid insecticide, the only one which surely destroys the 

 insect at the roots, and also supplies to the Vine a strong 

 reconstituent element. 2, Sulpho-carbonate of sodium offers 

 the same advantages used only as insecticide. 3, Sulpho-car- 

 bonate of barium, being anhydrous and little soluble, is re- 

 commended for its resistance to the action of oxygen and of 

 carbonic acid, bo that it is a poison less prompt but more 

 durable in effect. With regard to the winter eggs— 4, The 

 heavy oU of gas tar, and especially the oil called anthracene, 

 seem to be best for washing the stocks and destroying the 

 eggs. 5, The treatment with tar for the stocks and sulpho- 

 carbonates for the roots, should be effected especially in 

 February and March. 



A good authority writes to us, "Do not advise your 



readers to make the Cement in the way described by the 

 'Engineer' (page 198), for if they follow the instructions 

 therein specified they wUl soon find to their cost that spUt 

 sockets are rather expensive to replace, while the annoyance 

 and risk attending leaky joints will cause much anxiety to 

 the proprietor. Better by far advocate the use of indiarubber 

 ring joints, which can be used in any sockets of hot-water 

 pipes, even those immediately next the boiler, and are per- 

 fectly water-tight even under severe pressure." 



GUINEA FELLOWS OF THE KOYAL 

 HORTICULTUKAL SOCIETY. 



In the verbatim account of the proceedings of the Boyal 

 Horticultural Society's last meeting, furnished by our Journal, 

 there is one remark made by Mr. Wilson (I presume the ' Lily 

 Wilson'), which is of much interest to horticulturists living 

 in the country. He proposes that country Fellows shall be 

 admitted on a payment of one guinea per annum. At present 

 we pay two guineas, and I think that such a sum is out of all 

 proportion to the benefits which we receive from being Fellows. 

 Take my case for instance. I never go near South Kensington 

 except on the day of the Rose Show (and this year there is no 

 proper exhibition of that flower). My pass as an exhibitor 

 admits me, so I reaUy gain no advantage except that I can go 

 and read, and I suppose write, in the reading-room if I know 

 where to find it ; but as I never knew there was one nntil I 

 saw it mentioned in the list of privileges of Fellows I have 

 not, as can be easily imagined, availed myself as yet of that 

 privilege. I cannot send a ticket for the Rose Show to any 

 friend, because the packet of tickets only admits on days 

 when there is nothing to see or hear. These packets, too, are 

 now things of the past. 



I rejoice exceedingly that there is a chance now of the 

 Society's tiding over its difficulties, and I cannot but think 

 that a liberal treatment of country Fellows would do more 

 to help the Society than anything else. The principle of 

 making a difference between the subscription of town and 

 country members is already acknowledged by a few of the 

 clubs, and should be ceded by all. There are numbers of men 

 who would pay a guinea who will not pay two guineas. The 

 Royal Agricultural Society, of which I am a Fellow, only 



