SRANGCH YDS 
860 
THE 
GARDENERS 
CHRONICLE. 
Kronen Garpexs. 
Show-house for Forced Flowers, §c. 
A superb collection of Chrysan- Fuchsia corymbiflora 
themums arranged in the », fulgens 
background ” 
globosa major 
x formosa elegans 
A large quantity of Mignonette 
filled the House with the fra- 
‘rance of its blossoms. 
Calceolarias, many kinds 
Roses, White China 
Banksia australis 
Heliotropes 
Primula sinensis,red and white, 
in great profusion, edging the 
clumps of plants in flower 
Oxalis floribunda », Pauline Plantier 
Cineraria Greenii x, Devoniana 
pulchella », Duchesse de Palma 
§6 i P i Compactum 
wn King ” ehu 
a Queen ” Prima Donna 
Verbena Hendersonii ” Alexandrina 
” Neillii ” Victoria 
Cliffordiana ” Eliza 
»  Tweediana carnea ¥ i 
ms Melindres latifolia * Louise 
Abutilon striatum om ylph 
Alonsoa incisifolia ” Orange Boven 
Manettia bicolor ” Nosegay 
Gloxinia speciosa, several vars, i Annette 
hlox Drummondii ” Lumsden’sMag- 
Epiphyllum trancatum 
Fuchsia Chandlerii 
racemiflora 
” Masterpiece and 
many others 
Lance Greennouse. 
Cytisus racemosus 
»  cruenta ” hodopnea 
»  cerinthoides Pheenocoma prolifera 
superba, Acacia platyptera 
edinilla erythrophylla 
Statice puberula 
Erica colorans 
intermedia 
x  verticillata 
»  filamentosa Oxalis Bowieana 
» arbuscula »  bipunctata 
xy exsurgens x floribunda 
” Ps coccinea, Correa speciosa 
sy scabriuscula » bic 
x» gracilis ” Lindleyana 
2. vernix )— Grevi 
3; Westcottia > Harrisii 
eS i ” ampullacea 
+ 9 coccinea, ” ‘osea 
7” i purpurea ” rufa 
»  hyemalis Tamus sylvatica 
x» Caffra Camellia Hume’s Blush 
»» Bowieana ” striped red 
Donkelaerii 
” Gray’s Invincible 
Campanula garganica 
fragili 
»» Archeriana ” 
” gs a s 
pe a lingui- 
0. 
r 
Leonotis Leonurus 
Salvia fulgens 
Passiflora czeruleo-racemosa 
Fuchsia radicans 
” ” ic 
%, coccinea 
»» pyramidalis autumnalis 
x) formosa 
» sanguinea 
ys divaricata 
»» Magnifica 
” 1 a major 
Primula sinensis, double white 
Pimelea decussata 
” ‘byan: 
Rosa Devoniensis 
” hispid 
Solly linearis 
L ia fi 
Grevillea formosa 
” buxifolia Chorozema cordata 
” Baueri Crowea saligna 
Epacris grandiflora olygala grandiflora, 
» autumnalis ordifolia 
Stenochilus yiscosus 
Rhodochiton volubile 
Quantities of Mignonctte, 
x» paludosa 
» campanulata alba 
rubra 
, » 
Andromeda floribunda 
Ir any one thing is more likely than another to 
hasten the cultivation of Pine-apples without pots it 
is the tank-system of heating. We entertain no doubt 
of its driving the present plan out of the field, not- 
withstanding some of the difficulties connected with 
it. r. Rendle, too, to whose zeal in advocating the 
tank system we are all so much indebted, entertains 
the same opinion; indeed he goes further, for he 
authorizes us to make known his willingness to give 
a prize connected with the subject; and we now 
announce, on his behalf, that at the June show in the 
garden of the Horticultural Society in the year 1845, 
he will give a cup, value five guineas, for the heaviest 
and handsomest Queen Pine grown on the plan men- 
tioned in his “ Treatise on Tank-heating.” 
ROT IN THE AURICULA. 
Your correspondent ‘ O.,”’ of Leeds, inquires what is 
the cause of the rot in his Auriculas. One reason is, 
because he does not read the Chronicle so diligently as he 
ought to do, especially the essay on the Avricula in vol. i. 
He should, in the first place, repot his plants annually, 
taking care to shorten the tap-root*(a part peculiarly 
liable to canker and disease) to within an inch or an inch 
and a half of the insertion of the leaves. Secondly, he 
should fill the pot nearly one third with broken crocks. 
Thirdly, let him stand his pots, in summer and autumn, 
in a shaded airy part of the garden, and elevated two feet 
above the ground. And fourthly, let him place them, in 
winter and spring, in such a frame as is represented in the 
essay just alluded to: q. ¢. d.—he will have no more rot in 
his Auriculas. 
The disease is not contagious ; it is simply the result of 
mismanagement : what produced it in one plant, produced 
it in all; yet, because the plants begin to die, or show the 
ill effects of the same bad treatment about the same time, 
he resignedly refers his sweeping loss to the mysterious 
mtagion. Want of drainage, old tap-roots, 
onfinement, are, severally and collectively, 
i Ay cases of rot in the Auricula.—r. Rf. 
> wtomoLocy. No. LI. 
iE sey nN Frre-riy, or LuccroLA.—Whatever 
C88 0) 
AE: 
differen pinion may be entertained concerning the 
— luajinons’ pi perties of plants, there can be none with 
eat hcrts 
insects; yet marvellous as this power is, lam 
that any one, in this country at least, has taken 
the pains to ascertain the exact quality of the matter 
which gives out the light; philosophers are satisfied with 
calling it phosphorescent. From the appearances which 
the bodies of many exotic insects exhibit, there is reason 
to believe that this power of emitting light is extended to 
numerous species, but they are all Beetles, excepting the 
Lantern-flies ; one of these, the Mulgora lanternaria, is a 
very handsome and magnificent insect, inhabiting the 
largest trees of Surinam and Cayenne ; the lantern which 
adorns its head is beautifully painted, and measures in 
length 14 inch and 1% in. in circumference. Madame 
Merian states that during the night it spreads a light 
brilliant enough to enable one to read the smallest print, 
but this has not been confirmed by subsequent travellers ; 
another species is very abundant in China, and as great 
doubts are entertained regarding their phosphorescent 
nature, it is to be hoped that this curious and long-disputed 
point will be settled, now that vast and interesting coun- 
try is opened to men engaged in scientific pursuits, 
The three insects most celebrated for their luminosity, 
are the Firefly of the West Indies and America (called 
Elater nocliluca); the Glow-worm of the north of 
Europe (Lampyris noctiluca®); and the Firefly of Italy 
(the Lampyris Italica), All these species the writer has 
had the gratification of seeing alive. The light of the 
Elater is the strongest and most constant, affording suffi- 
cient to read by, when a single Beetle is carried along the 
lines ; and if a number be confined in a decanter, it will, 
in a measure, illuminate a room ; the second insect, our 
native Glow-worm, gives a sweet but pale bluish light, 
resembling that of the moon; whilst the Italian Firefly 
shines like the planets in the pure atmosphere of a 
southern sky. 
An imported specimen of this insect having been found 
in a greenhouse in Norfolk, 1am induced to give its his- 
tory, which I am able to do from having often seen it in 
its native haunts in Italy ; the French also claim it as an 
inhabitant of the South of France, but we can never hope 
to seeit naturalised in England. To describe the magical 
effect which the Fire-fly produces is impossible—it is a 
spectacle which far surpasses the imagination—and I 
shall never forget the delight and astonishment I expe- 
rienced the first time I beheld the coruscations of this 
glorious living gem. I was wandering one evening in 
June in the neighbourhood of Mentone, along the banks 
of ariver whose pebbly bed was dried up, and where the 
Lemon and Orange groves rendered it, with one exception, 
the most enchanting spot I have ever seen, when suddenly ] 
saw lights, like electric sparks, emanate from the grass ; 
as night advanced their numbers and beauty increased, 
until they swarmed in a plantation, where they seemed to 
be enjoying the lovely evening, chasing one another and 
playing about like troops of fairies, alternately hiding and 
emitting their brilliant lights, until the air sparkled with 
glittering meteors: it appeared as if the serene and 
beautiful heavens of Italy were reflected upon the earth, 
and the stars were dancing for joy. As I returned, the 
Fire-flies were pursuing each other in the streets of the 
town, and having caught two in my hat, they were secured 
in a quill, and thick as the medium was, their light was 
sufficient to ascertain the hour by my watch during the 
night. No wonder that poets have sung in praise of the 
« Tucciola;’? and those who have visited Italy without 
seeing them have missed one of the most beautiful objects 
to be met with in that interesting country. The Vire-flies 
are only to be seen in June and July ; their light is most 
brilliant during their vigour, and it becomes extinct with 
life: they commence their excursions at sunset, and in 
the middle of asummer’s night one cannot set a step in 
any direction without seeing these little animals darting 
from one side to the other; their flight appears undu- 
lating: they seem to shine by intervals, their luminous 
effusions being excited by their movements. In the day 
they rest concealed amongst herbage, and are difficult to 
find. The Italian Fire-fly differs essentially in form and 
likewise in its habits from the Glow-worm, as will be shown 
when we give the history of that insect. The larvee are 
considerably alike ; but both sexes of the perfect insects 
of the former species can fly, and are similar in appear- 
ance, the male being the smaller. 
Linneus, who gave the name of Jéalica to the European 
Fire-fly, describes it as having a black spot upon the 
thorax ; but I have never taken one so marked : this dif- 
ference, however, led Bonelli to separate them, and he 
designated the species we have figured Lampyris pede- 
montana. Charpentier seems to have described the same 
variety under the name of LL. lusitanica. Whatever the 
scientific appellation may be, itis the Lucciola of Italy, 
and known by our countryman as the Italian Fire-fly, 
which we will now describe, merely observing, that owing 
to the structure and other characters above alluded to, it 
has been separated from the genus Lampyris by modern 
systematists, and Dejean has included it in his group 
Colophotia. 
The Italian Fire-fly varies a little in size: the head is 
1 Zool. Journ. V. iii. p. 379. 
2 Curtis’s Brit. Ent. fol. and pl, 698, 
black; the eyes large, hemispherical, and not very remotes 
especially beneath ; the antenne are eleven-jointed, shorty 
filiform, and black; the basal joint fulvous; or! 
is of an orange colour, transverse, semicircular, 
angles lobed ; the scutel is of the same colour; 
side of the thorax and breast are deep ochraceous; 
abdomen is blackish: the two last segments are of an 
opaque cream-colour, and emit the light ; the elytra are 
much longer than the body, elliptical, and black of 
fuscous; the wings are ample and smoky, longer than the 
elytra, the tips being folded in repose ; the legs are browns 
the thighs ochraceous. Fig. 1 is the under side; Fig. 
isa male flying: the lines denoting the natural sizes. 
Ruricola. 
LOUISE BONNE (OF JERSEY) PEAR. 
Synonyms —Lowise Bonne d’ Avranches, Beurré 
. Bonne Louise @ Araudoré, William the Fourth. 
nt 
Sy 
the 
and 
ite 
Although the Pear they describe, obtained, in Franc® ‘ 
good character in the time of Louis XIV., yet, even 
in that country, subsequent writers describe it a8 D®% 6 
sometimes but half-melting, and good only in dry soils 
whilst in England it is found to be not adapted for bearing 
as a standard, and unworthy of a wall. La Quintin 
enumerates the particulars of its merit, including among, 
them, “ and above all, that it pleases much his Maa 
tion. 
was received from General Gordon, from Jersey, an¢ *™. 
to the Horticultural Society by the Marquess of Ails% 
1820. Subsequently, in the same season, fruit was also 
sent tothe Society by Major-General Le Couteur, fe 
Jersey ; and grafts of the variety were obtained throug 
him for the Society’s collection in the following seaso” d 
having obtained the name of Louise Bonne in Jerseys” 
Glossy; 
Greenish- 
Brownish-red, 
yellow. 
with numerous 
pale-brown 
dots. 
(J 
being found different from the old Louise Bonne of i 
French, it was considered proper to distinguish ! 
Louise Bonne of Jersey. According to som. 
accounts, however, the original tree is stated to ex's 
Avranches. 
The accompanying outline rep 
size, from a standard. When newly gathered, the 
side is of a greenish colour ; but it becomes paler: ee aes is 
aslight tinge of yellow as it gets fit for use. —. icy 
whitish, buttery, melting, exceedingly rich and ju yatbet 
perfection in October. The tree is of vigorous) 
upright growth, and adapted for bearing a8 4 eine than 
As such, it succeeds in the northern counties a 
the Marie Louise. Against a wall with a good @ 1 
fruit becomes large, handsome, and finely oO Bethe suns 
shoots are dark olive, with a chesnut uae Worthy of & 
leaves oblong, oval, slightly acuminate. 
place in every collection.—R. 7. 
50 Ob Shit) eee 
AMATBUR’S GARDEN.—No- SUI% ctty 
In recording the articles which have appe ei r 
under this head, it has been a rule se 
recommend anything which I had not either yr tberss 
from mature consideration and the success “abled, from 
about to practise myself ; consequent. Tam 
ly hich 
experience, to deny the whole of the 
[ Dec. 9, 
} 
