382 



JOURNAL OF HOBTIOUIiTURB AND COTTAGE GAEDENER. 



[ May 18, 1876. 



made very secure. When the tie fails before the bnncli is cut 

 the wood often breaks and the fruit is lost. — J. Mum. 



THE AURICULA IN TOBKSHIRE.-No. 1. 



One of the greatest pleasures that falls to the lot of an 

 Auricula grower is that of being able to compare notes with a 

 brother fancier. Hours of keen enjoyment pass unheeded, 

 and the interest grows as time flics. I visited Yorkshire on 

 the 2Dd of May, when the bloom was in perfection. At that 

 time the flowers in the more favourable climate of Essex had 

 passed their best, although many fine trusses of the late sorts 

 were in good condition. 



At Kitkby Malzeard, near Eipon, I received a most cordial 

 reception from the Rev. F. Horner, and had the pleasure of 

 inspecting his floral gems. Of course it is impossible to visit 

 any collection when all the flowers are at their best; the 

 earliest had become faded, and some few of the very latest 

 were not yet in. It was, I think, in the autumn of 1871 that 

 Mr. Horner wrote a series of most excellent articles in this 

 Journal, and at that time he very fully described the best 

 flowers. A canny Scotsman writing to me in reference to the 

 articles said that " better described they could not be;" but, 

 be added with characteristic caution, "I do not quite agree 

 ■with him in all he says." Of course it was not to be expected 

 that he would ; every grower has particular flowers that he 

 grows better than others, and the sorts that succeed best at 

 Kirkby would not be the best at Slough, and the favourite 

 flowers in Scotland would not be those most esteemed with us 

 in Essex. However, there are some flowers always good alike, 

 and to begin, let us take Freedom (Booth). What trusses Mr. 

 Horner had of this ! A celebrated grower, writing of it in 

 1857, says, " Where number of pips is not regarded this is the 

 best green edge, the green being the most deep and pure, and 

 the contrast between that and the black velvety body colour 

 being so perfect;" but this grower had never but once seen 

 seven pips on a truss. Mr. Horner's plant had nine, and such 

 pips! each of them large enough to cover half-a-crown. Anna 

 (Traill) may well take the second place. It much resembles 

 Freedom, has the same paste and body colour ; perhaps more 

 rounded. Prince of Greens (Traill) is a grand flower, and has 

 the best edge of all, but its pale tube, which bleaches before 

 the flower is at its best, is a sad defect. Col. Taylor (Lee) was 

 very fine, one pip on a small plant being perfect in form and 

 ap to the mark in all the points. Page's Champion was rather 

 past its best ; the green of the edge is not surpassed by that 

 ■of any other, but the flowers were just a little crumpled ; the 

 body colour is a very attractive violet, and withal it is a fine 

 exhibition flower which no collection should be without if it 

 can be obtained. Imperator (Litton) was not up to the mark 

 either north or south ; it is an inconstant flower. I once saw 

 it grand in Mr. Dombrain's collection. Lady Ann Wilhraham 

 (Oliver) had larger pips than I had seen of it, and Lady Blucher 

 (Clegg) had a very pure green edge. 



In grey-edged flowers there are, as has been previously 

 noted, many of the best Auriculas, and the highest on the list 

 this year, taking constancy into account, is Lancashire Hero 

 (Lancashire). I have had it very fine, and Mr. Horner's plants 

 were quite constant. Many of the pips of George Lightbody 

 (Headly) have been set this year, and the trusses have been 

 badly formed ; it sometimes comes better than Lancashire 

 Hero. Richard Headly (Lightbody) was also opening badly. 

 Beauty (Traill) was the most effective truss amongst the greys. 

 It may not be quite so refined as some, but it is a useful stage 

 flower. Dr. Horner was not quite so good as it has been ; it 

 had the appearance of a large pip of George Lightbody, but 

 not quite so smooth in outline. Complete (Sykes) was in 

 wonderful health. It is usually of weakly growth, but aa 

 grown at Kirkby it is fit for any exhibition. The body colour 

 is black and the petal beautifully rounded. 



Mr. Horner's collection is very strong in white-edged flowers 

 — indeed I may say that I never saw Smiling Beauty (Heap) 

 until I saw it here. The edge was very pure, pips large and 

 flat ; it worthily heads the list. John Simonite was better 

 last year than it has been this season ; the pips were very 

 large. Ann Smith (Smith) was the purest white of any ; the 

 petals are pointed, which is its greatest fault. Earl Grosvtnor 

 (Lee) is rather a late flower, and some half dozen trusses of 

 it were grand ; it has been very fine indeed. There were aleo 

 a few fingularly beautiful pips of True Briton (Hepworth). 

 Glory (Taylor) has not been quite up to its usual good quality, 

 the edge has been irregular. Mies Arkley (McDonald) was very 



neat, and makes a good truss. It has a fair white edge. 

 Others in my note-book are Bright Venus (Lee), and Ashworth's 

 Regular. 



Passing to selfs, Kay's Topsy was very fine amongst the 

 dark flowers; and of Marquis of Lome (Campbell) there were 

 some admirable trusses. This is a crimson self, and worthy 

 of Campbell. William Lightbody is a crimson maroon, 

 similar in colour to Campbell's Lord Clyde. It opens out 

 quite flat, and has a more rounded paste and petal than Lord 

 Clyde. Marquis of Lome, another crimson self of Campbell's, 

 was not out. Charles J. Perry (Turner) was also fine in its 

 class, but the greater proportion of the selfs were over. In 

 all, Mr. Horner grows about six hundred plants of named 

 flowers. Very interesting also was the collection of seedlings, 

 of which I calculated there were about two thousand plants. 



The vagaries of the Auricula from seed are, as Mr. Horner 

 said, amusing in their absurdity. Charles Edward Brown has 

 given many yellow selfs ; it has evidently been crossed with 

 Gorton's Stadtholder ; they have nearly all thin watery paste 

 like that variety. Next we have a few pots containing self 

 flowers, very dark, large, and fringed like Sims' Vulcan — so 

 like, that they might be mistaken for that sort. They must 

 certainly be raised from it. Not at all. Look at the label ; it 

 reads — Regular (Ashworth), a small white edge. Here is yet 

 another pot with crimson selfs with mealy foliage like Lord 

 Lome, but that is not the parent ; they have been raised from 

 Charles E. Brown. Highland Laddie (PoUite) gives large 

 goggle-eyed dark selfs. The fine white edge of Smihng Beauty 

 has thrown crimson and dark selfs. Lord Lome has given a 

 repetition of itself, a fine crimson but with a more circular 

 paste than its parent, and as the paste may become denser it 

 will be a fine variety. Raising seedling Auriculas is a most 

 interesting occupation, and will, if followed out, yield a large 

 revenue of pure enjoyment. 



Polyanthuses were at their best, and a very fine lot of plants 

 were staged in the greenhouse. Cheshire Favourite was the 

 best flower. This and Lord Lincoln have very dark lacing ; 

 Kingfisher was the best of the crimson-laced flowers. The 

 centre and edge of a Polyanthus should be the same colour, 

 if they are difierent it is a fault. 



The Tulips at Kirkby are, notwithstanding the cold nights, 

 looking very well. The thermometer registered 8' of frost on 

 the 2nd of May, but the beds were of course covered with 

 canvas. It will be a fine eight to see the two beds in flower 

 comprising about one thousand plants. 



The Carnations and Picotees are grown in beds, and they 

 are evidently tended by careful hands, as the plants are quite 

 clean, and with a few exceptions are in excellent health. 



The Ranunculus also finds a home in the vicarage garden. I 

 did not observe any labels to the rows, and on remarking 

 this to Mr. Horner he said that he knew them all when they 

 flowered. So with the Auriculas, Tulips, and Carnations, they 

 can all be distinguished and named if the labels should be 

 lost. As Robert Southey, a late poet laureate, said of hia 

 books, BO the florist can truly say of his flowers — 



" fily never-failing friends are tliey 

 ^Vitb whom I conv*^rse uight and day." 



There are many other objects of interest in this famous 

 garden, amongst them a collection of the different species of 

 Primula, comprising Primula intermedia with pale purple 

 flowers, and a large number of the diminutive alpine species. 

 I also noticed a variety of P. acaulis with very large double 

 crimson flowers. — J. DonoLis. 



MARGOTTIN'S NEW BOSE TRIOMPHE DE 



FBANCB, H.P. 



I WAS anxious to see the first blooms of this gold-medal 

 novelty, to which the French Judges have given so proud a 

 title, and I held our friend Mr. Camm'a view that it was to be 

 a grandly improved Marquise de Castellane. I was, however, 

 much surprised, not to say a little disappointed, to find when 

 the first three blooms opened on the original plants from the 

 raiser that it was a highly-coloured Colonel de Rougemont, 

 nearly .5 inches over, having a full composite or rosettc-like 

 centre, but withal keepitig a circular outline, presenting a very 

 showy mass of light crimson or bright rosy carmine petals 

 arranged in the form of an improved Baron Prevost, or more 

 correctly Colonel de Rougemont. I think this fine and dis- 

 tinct Rose might have been well named Rougemont le Grand. 

 It has a sweet scent of the Baron Prevost type, with short 



