192 



THE GARDENERS' CHRONICLE. 



[August 18, 1888. 



and putting together those which are at about the same 

 stage of development, very even nicely filled pots 

 may be had. This method gives excellent results 

 for market purposes, but where the longevity of the 

 flowers is of first importance they are better grown 

 from the first in the flowering pots, having in each 

 lot as many bulbs as can be conveniently got in ; 

 6-inch pots are a favourite size. In filling the boxes 

 no more room need be left between the bulbs than 

 is just sufficient to allow of a thin layer of soil being 

 placed round them. In both cases the bulbs should 

 be planted so as to be just covered with the soil, 

 which is best when of a rich loamy nature with 

 plenty of sharp sand in it. Avoid the use of rank 

 or half-decayed manure in the compost ; it has a 

 tendency to cause the roots to decay. 



After planting the bulbs the boxes or pots should 

 be placed on a dry or well drained bottom, and 

 covered over with cocoa-nut fibre refuse, coal-ashes, 

 or similar material, to the depth of several inches. 

 If the soil has been properly moist when the bulbs 

 were put in, it rarely happens that watering will be 

 required until after they are removed from the 

 plunging material ; but if it is thought they are 

 getting too dry, a slight damping of the plunging 

 material will be sufficient. 



The bulbs which should have immediate atten- 

 tion are the early white Roman Hyacinths, the 

 Paper-white and double Roman Narcissus, which, 

 with comparatively little forcing, may be had in 

 flower by November. Of late years Narcissi or Daf- 

 fodils have come to the front, and large quantities 

 are now forced into flower in the winter, which, in the 

 case of the earlier sorts, such as pallidus pracox, 

 may be had not much behind the Roman Hyacinths. 

 But although pallidus prajcox is exceedingly neat, 

 early, and useful, it is in the large trumpet sections 

 that the most noble-looking flowers are to be found 

 — such as Ard Righ, Golden Plover, maximus, 

 princeps, &c. The Tenby Daffodil, obvallaris, with 

 its shortened trumpet and compact habit is an ex- 

 cellent thing for forcing. Of the bicolor section 

 there are some splendid forms, such as Empress and 

 Horsfieldi, bicolor, and. the broad-leaved Emperor 

 and Rugilobus ; of whiter Daffodils there are the 

 various forms of moschatus, cernuus, and tortuosus ; 

 of the incomparabilis, Nonsuch or Peerless varieties 

 Leedsii, Princess Mary, albidus, and Stella, are well 

 known varieties. Then there are the Jonquilla, 

 Poeticus, and Polyanthus Narcissus groups, from 

 which large selections might be made. If these 

 Daffodils are got in at once, they should, if treated 

 similarly to the Roman and Italian Hyacinths, be fit 

 to fill their places as they go over ; in any case there 

 should be no difficulty in their being plentiful by 

 Christmas. 



Violets. — Young plants which were put in in the 

 early part of the season, and which have since been 

 grown on in the nursery quarters, should now be 

 placed in their winter-flowering position. If this 

 operation is delayed much later the plants will not 

 have time enough to thoroughly establish them- 

 selves before the dull short days are on us. A 

 capital place in which to grow them is in an 

 ordinary garden frame ; and if a slight bottom-heat 

 for a short time after planting can be had so much 

 the better, a small quantity of fresh fermenting 

 material being best. It sometimes happens that the 

 heat has not quite gone out of the frames in which 

 Melons have been grown ; and if such can be had, 

 they will do very well ; moreover, they would not 

 require fresh moulding over, as the soil would not be 

 exhausted. In any case, having prepared the frames 

 there should be not less than about 8 inches deep of 

 good loam inclined to be heavy rather than 

 light ; spread it evenly, and make it tolerably 

 firm. All being now ready, carefully lift the plants 

 in the nursery, with as much soil as possible ad- 

 hering to the ball of roots. Plant them firmly in 

 rows in the frames, allowing from 6 — 8 inches 

 between the rows and plants, according to their size. 

 After planting give them a good watering, but avoid 

 watering all over with a rough rose, as this plasters 

 down the surface of the bed and renders it uncon- . 

 genial to the growth of the plants — rather water 

 them individually ; and unless the weather should 

 prove extra dry, it rarely happens that much future 

 watering is required. If the weather be cold or wet, 

 the sashes may be kept over them, but always giving 

 plenty of air — indeed, if the weather is fine, the 

 sashes may be kept off, but again putting them on 

 as the autumn advances, until in winter very little 

 watering or airing will be required. If they are 

 grown in pots the treatment is practically the same 

 — merely plunging the pots in the frames instead of 

 planting them out ; they can then be removed from 



the frames as required, 32-sized pots being a very 

 suitable size to use. The double sorts " are best 

 adapted for this purpose ; perhaps the best of them 

 is Marie Louise, but some prefer the white Comte 

 de Brazzas, and others the Neapolitan or Parma 

 Violets. F. Boss, Bletchingley. 



Societies. 



ROYAL HORTICULTURAL. 



August 14. — Last Tuesday's show was evidently 

 influenced by the holiday time, as it was the smallest 

 exhibition yet held in the Drill Hall. Messrs. Paul 

 & Son and Mr. T. S. Ware were the leading ex- 

 hibitors before the Floral Committee, and Messrs. J. 

 Veitch & Sons' and Mr. Walker's collections of 

 Gooseberries were points of interest in the fruit 

 section. 



Floral Committee. 



Present: G. F. Wilson, Esq., in the chair; and 

 Messrs. W. Wilks, J. Fraser, J. Walker, H. Herbst, 

 W. Goldring, W. Holmes, C. Pilcher, H. Ballantyne, 

 J. Dominy, J. O'Brien, E. Hill, G. Paul, C. Noble, 

 and Dr. M. T. Masters. 



Messrs. Paul & Son, Cheshunt, contributed a large 

 collection of cut flowers of hardy herbaceous plants, 

 and also nine boxes of cut Roses containing some 

 very creditable blooms of the usual popular exhibition 

 varieties. The blooms were of large size, well 

 coloured, and in very fair condition. Among 

 the best blooms were the following varieties : — 

 Paul Neron (large), Victor Verdier, Madame Cusin 

 (good colour), W. A. Richardson, Bruce Findlay, 

 Madame Ch. Wood, Comtesse de Rosebery, and 

 Captain Christy. There were several varieties of 

 Carnations and Picotees, among which Mrs. Reynolds 

 Hole, a terra-cotta coloured flower, stood out con- 

 spicuously. Autumn flowering Phloxes and Poppies 

 in variety made a bright show. A mass of flowers of 

 Campanula carpatica was very attractive, and so also 

 were the flowers of Polemonium Richardsoni and 

 Arnebia echoides. Centaureas were numerous ; 

 there were C. macrocephala, which makes a 

 fine show in the border, but is somewhat 

 unwieldy when cut ; C. ruthenica, smaller ; 

 and C. montana, a very useful one. Other good 

 plants were Montbretia Pottsii ; Geum coccineum, 

 very bright ; several Potentillas ; Harpalium rigi- 

 dum ; Oenothera speciosa, white, very faintly suffused 

 with rose ; and Gypsophila paniculata, which is very 

 useful for intermingling with more heavy flowers in 

 epergnes, &c. 



From the Hale Farm Nurseries, Tottenham, Mr. 

 T. S. Ware contributed a group of cut flowers of a 

 varied nature. The most conspicuous object was a 

 salmon-pink variety of Papaver orientale, which was 

 awarded a First-class Certificate under the name of 

 Blushing Queen. There was also a specimen of 

 the typical plant. Shirley and Iceland Poppies and 

 Phloxes made a gay display. A Canna, named 

 Victor Hugo, deserves attention ; it is rich red, with 

 deep red-brown spots, and the leaves are flushed 

 with the same colour. C. Hippolyte Flandrin was 

 also shown, rich yellow and orange-brown spots, and 

 as shown of a very dwarf habit. Other noteworthy 

 plants were Lilium elegans, Batemanniaj, L. cana- 

 dense, L. c. rubra, Milla biflora, Iris Koempferi vars., 

 Monarda didyma, Pentstemon heterophyllus (?), 

 with very pretty bright blue flowers, freely pro- 

 duced ; and Ferraria undulata, a singular- looking 

 Irid. 



G. F. Wilson, Esq., Heatherbank, Weybridge, 

 showed a few interesting plants, as Gentiana ascle- 

 piadea, in white and blue forms ; G. ornata, a small- 

 flowered species, and the pretty little Stenogaster 

 concinna, with Gesnera-like flowers of white with 

 the two upper lobes of the corolla lilac ; also Lilium 

 longifolium and a white Maurandya, from the Sand- 

 wich Isles. The old-fashioned white Rose, La Biche, 

 was represented by a large boxful of cut blooms 

 from Mr. J. Walker, Thame. Its chief merit lies in 

 its floriferous nature. 



A few double tuberous Begonias came from Messrs. 

 H. Cannell & Sons, Swanley, Kent, C. Showell being 

 the finest flower, it is rich rose, and the plant shown 

 bore a flower quite 4 inches in diameter, of very fine 

 form. Mrs. Cornwallis West, rich yellow flushed 

 with salmon on the centre segments ; and Mr. F. 

 Jenkins, pale sulphur, were also good forms. 



From the Royal Gardens, Kew, there were sent 

 Mucuna imbricata, a leguminous plant, which was 

 shown at South Kensington last year and attracted 



considerable attention, with its racemes of large 

 purple-black flowers (about 2 inches in length) ; 

 Pereskia bleo, with pink Rose-like flowers not 

 frequently seen in bloom ; Eucomis bicolor, green, 

 edged with purple, and the stem spotted with the 

 same — a very pretty flower ; Littonia modesta was 

 also shown. 



Mr. C. Turner, Royal Nurseries, Slough, showed a 

 stand of Carnations and Picotees, exhibiting well 

 grown flowers ; Terra Cotta, Annie Douglas, and 

 Dorothy being the best blooms. 



A collection of numerous varieties of Iris Koemp- 

 feri came from Mr. W. Gordon, Twickenham, em- 

 bracing a great range of colour, and all of large size. 

 One of a purple-lilac colour, and another similar 

 but with a white centre to each segment, were good. 

 Also Coquette, rich blue ; Red Gauntlet, white, with 

 lilac margin ; and The Bride, pure white. He also 

 had Lilium Leichtlinii. 



Lailia elegans was sent by Malcolm S. Cooke, Esq., 

 Kingston Hill (gr., Mr. Cullirnore), with two spikes 

 of richly coloured flowers. 



Odontoglossum crispum, Heaton variety, a form with 

 large brown spots, was sent by Mr. J. Charlsworth, 

 Heaton, Bradford. He also had Bifrenaria cornuta. 



The new hybrid Cypripedium Charles Canham, 

 recently fully described in our columns, came from 

 Mr. Cowley, gr. to F. G. Tautz, Esq., Studleigh 

 House, Shepherd's Bush, W. The sepal is green- 

 brown with a white margin, petals lilac-purple with 

 a hairy edge, lip green with brown suffusion, the 

 flower being of good size. 



Messrs. H. Low & Co., Clapton, showed two small 

 Cypripediums, one called C. concolor Regnieri and 

 the other C. c. unicolor, pure pale yellow ; and a well 

 flowered plant of Oncidium splendidum came from 

 G. C. Raphael, Esq., Castle Hill, Englefield Green, 

 Staines (gr. Mr. W. Swan). 



Messrs. R. P. Ker & Sons, Aigburth Nursery, 

 Liverpool, sent Croton Aigburth Gem, which 

 resembles interruptus, but is rich crimson with green 

 blotches, while the young foliage is yellowish ; it is a 

 very pretty new Croton, justly deserving the certifi- 

 cate awarded. A similar award was made to Messrs. 

 J. Laing & Sons, Forest Hill, S. E., for a Carnation, 

 R. H. Elliott, yellow ground with rich crimson 

 flakes, and good in form. 



Mr. W. Williams, Walcot Nursery, Ryde, sent two 

 good border Carnations. Mr. G. Davidson, Amman- 

 ford, South Wales, showed a white Lobelia ; Miss 

 Hope, a large-flowered sort, of tall habit ; and a blue- 

 and-white one, — a sport from Bluebeard — came from 

 Mr. T. Williams, Devizes. Mr. R. Dean, Ranelagh 

 Road, Ealing, showed Phloxes, Stocks, Carnations, 

 &c, the Mauve Beauty, double Stock, showing very 

 well, and Rosa alba was a delicate rose Phlox. 



Messrs. J. Cheal & Son, Crawley, Sussex, had a 

 wire frame suitable for displaying a bunch of single 

 Dahlias, Narcissi, &c. 



Fibst-class Certificates. 



Papaver orientale var. Blushing Queen, from Mr. 

 T. S. Ware. 



Croton Aigburth Gem, from Messrs. Ker & Son. 



Carnation B. H. Elliot, from Messrs. Laing & 

 Mather. 



Begonia C. Showell, from Messrs. H. Cannell & 

 Sons, 



Medals. 



Silver-gilt BanJcsian. — To Messrs. Paul & Sons, 

 for collection of cut flowers. 



Bronze BanJcsian. — To Mr. T. S. Ware, for collec- 

 tion of cut flowers. 



Fruit Committee. 



Present : -T. F. Rivers, Esq., in the chair ; and 

 Messrs. W. Warren, R. D. Blackmore, G. W. Cum- 

 mins, J. Cheal, J. Lee, W. Marshall, A. H. Pearson, 

 J. Smith, and J. Wright. 



Messrs. J. Veitch & Sons, Chelsea, showed a col- 

 lection of about a hundred dishes of Gooseberries, 

 also a few cordon trees in fruit, and a few dishes of 

 other fruit, as La Constante Currant, very large ; 

 Citron des Carmes Pears, Waterloo Strawberry, 

 Early Julien, Irish Peach, and Red and White Jun- 

 eating Apples. Of the Gooseberries it is difficult to 

 select any for special mention. We laid before our 

 readers last year illustrations and remarks on a se- 

 lection of the best varieties, most of which were 

 shown on this occasion. The fruits were remark- 

 ably clean and plump. Some of the best examples 

 shown were Ironmonger, London, Warrington, 

 Yellow Champagne, Railway, Telegraph, Thumper, 

 Pitmaston Green Gage, Village Green, &c. 



