378 



THE GARDENERS' CHRONICLE. 



[October 6, 1888. 



to get at an approximate equivalent in our pre- 

 sent coin the figures should be multiplied by six, 

 or even eight. 



The records whence Professor Rogers derived 

 his data afford the interesting facts that Id. per 

 day was paid in 1326 for felling trees, and that 

 Id. was paid for the hoeing of an acre of land. 

 Also, that in 1502 twenty trees for gardens were 

 sold for Ad. at Oxford, but we are left to conjec- 

 ture as to whether these trees were ornamental 

 or fruit-bearing. In 1537 a garden spade was 

 sold at Cambridge for Id., and there are several 

 shovels mentioned in the records. 



Professor Rogers is strongly inclined to 

 believe, from the absence of proof to the con- 

 trary in his researches, that there was no such 

 thing as horticulture until the last two decades 

 of the sixteenth century. He advances some 

 remarks of Hartlib's to the effect that English 

 gardening was very backward, and that the 

 better kinds of fruits and vegetables were 

 imported from Holland, though the English soil 

 and the English climate were quite adequate to 

 supply what came from a foreign land. 



We may take for granted that none but rich 

 people indulged in the luxury of vegetables 

 until the seventeeth century. The diet of pre- 

 vious times was "copious but coarse," and 

 through several months of winter hundreds and 

 thousands of people subsisted on salted meat. 

 The fact is in many ways an interesting one. 

 It shows, for example, that the almost universal 

 predilection for vegetables is a comparatively re- 

 cent one, that the strongly urged principles of 

 vegetarianism are purely of modern growth, and 

 that in many respects our scientific efforts to live 

 longer are not, after all, much more conducive 

 to that end than the " copious but coarse " cur- 

 riculum of the Englishman of four or more 

 centuries ago. It must be clearly understood 

 that the present writer has no wish to disparage 

 vegetarianism, but the fact or two indicated 

 above could not but induce a reflection upon 

 " some certain truths." " The familiar vege- 

 tables of our experience," writes the Professor 

 (iv., 653), " were generally unknown up to 

 nearly the end of the sixteenth century." 

 Onions were, apparently, in common use. There 

 are numerous entries of garden Peas, and a few 

 of edible Beans. I have found one record of the 

 purchase of Cabbage-seed. But garden roots, 

 the Turnip, Parsnip, and Carrot, are, as far as 

 my researches supply me with information, un- 

 known, and remained unknown until, in the 

 reign of James I., they were introduced from 

 Holland. Potatos came in at about the end of 

 the sixteenth century, for I have found pur- 

 chases made on the great Queen's account at two 

 shillings and sixpence per pound. The only 

 native flavours were a few wild plants." 



It is perhaps of more importance to know when 

 a particular vegetable was actually in commerce 

 than the mere date of its introduction — which in 

 many instances occurred first in a dried state. 

 The following facts, therefore, are of considerable 

 interest and importance. In 1593 a London 

 merchant purchased seeds of certain pot-herbs, 

 such as Hyssop, Thyme, Marjoram, and Winter 

 Savory. There is a record of the New College, 

 Oxford, buying, in 1644, Cabbage plants at Is. 

 per 100, Carrot seed at Ad. per ounce, and Turnip 

 seed at 2d. per ounce. The first reference to Cauli- 

 flower is 1655. In 1653 the owner of Mount- 

 hall, near Saffron Walden, is recorded to have 

 bought seeds of Carrot, Radish, Cabbage, 

 Lettuce, Parsnip, Spinach, Colewort, curled 

 Radish, Succory, Cucumber, Skirret, Rounse- 

 falls, Clove Gillyflowers, Gillyflowers, Clover, 

 Sainfoin, and Asparagus plants. In the follow- 



ing year the same individual purchased, in addi- 

 tion to the foregoing, Striped Lettuce, Smooth 

 Spinach, Parsley, Scurvy-grass, Leek, Purslane, 

 Musk Million seeds, Cabbage plants, Artichoke 

 plants, Sandwich Peas, Winter and Summer 

 Savory, Sweet Marjoram, Short Cucumber, 

 and Turnip seed. 



There is yet another important phase of early 

 gardening which finds place in Professor Rogers' 

 valuable contributions to the history of British 

 commerce; and that is in reference to gar- 

 deners' wages. We believe we are safe in saying 

 that this subject has hitherto been wrapped in 

 the most complete obscurity. The wages were 

 low, — as low, in fact, as those of the ordinary 

 labourer. At Oxford, in 1589 and 1591, 6s. per 

 week was the amount paid ; in 1599, and until 

 two years later, the sum had dwindled down to 

 4s. ; it rose to 5s. Ad. in 1602, only to fall back 

 in 1609 to 5s. ; and still further, in 1610, to 4s. 

 All Souls' College gardener received 6s. per, week 

 in 1612 and in 1617, but he of the New College Is. 

 less in 1621. A certain Lord Spencer " beat the 

 record " with his munificent allowance, in 1621, 

 of 3s. The wages of gardeners in London 

 appear to have been best, for in 1593 and 1595 

 7s. 9^. and 8 s. were paid to those who worked in 

 or near the metropolis. A movement for the 

 better transpired at the end of the first quarter of 

 the seventeenth century, when 9s. appear to have 

 been the average weekly wage of a gardener. 

 W.R. 



New or Noteworthy Plants. 



CATTLEYA GUATEMALENSIS (T. Moore) VAR. 

 WISCHHUSENIANA, n. var. (See T. Moore, 

 Floral Magazine, 1861, pi. 61.) 



The earliest record we have of this little known 

 variety is to be found in Dr. Lindley's Herbarium. 

 There are to be seen on the same sheet flowers of 

 Cattleya Skinneri guatemalensis, and of Barkeria 

 Skinneri, with the remark — "All from one stock; 

 Guatemala, Skinner." 



The plant was exhibited by Messrs. J. Veitch in 

 March, 1861, as coming from Mr. Skinner. It has 

 the bulbs nearly like those of Cattleya Skinner, or 

 Epidendrum aurantiacum, a rather well-developed 

 acute spathe, and a corymboid raceme with flowers 

 as large as those of Cattleya Skinneri, sepals and 

 petals more acute, and au oblong acute lip, rather 

 obscurely trilobed in the middle, with blunt angles, 

 convolute at the superior half, showing then a yellow 

 basilar disc, with some radiating series of dark 

 blackish-purple spots, purple around, and at the 

 apicular part. The sepals and petals are light yel- 

 low, with light purple margins. Later on I had just 

 the same form from my late friend, Mr. John G. 

 Veitch, who imported it from Panama, and from Lord 

 Londesborough's collection near Combe Wood, in 

 April, 1873. Both have the yellow disc of the lip. I find 

 a memorandum with the last, declaring it a hybrid 

 between Epidendrum aurantiacum and Cattleya 

 Skinneri, it having been collected among the two 

 species. This is a very good suggestion, which I 

 prefer by far to Mr. Skinner's first-mentioned 

 statement. 



Finally, Mr. B. S. Williams has favoured me with an 

 inflorescence and a photograph of the plant prepared 

 by Messrs. H. Johnson & Co., of Wood Green, N. 

 The flowers have very light reddish-purple sepals, 

 rose-purple petals, and a browu lip without a yellow 

 disc, but at the very base with a small white place. 

 Column white. The lip is not so distinctly lobed, 

 but rhomboid or oblong-acute. It flowered with Mr. 

 W. Wischhusen, whose name it bears, and who sent 

 flowers and a photograph to Mr. B. S. Williams, who 

 kindly favoured me with them. 



I have to thank Mr. F. Sander for a copy of the 

 plate quoted, and Mr. J. Godsefffor information from 

 the description, obtained through Mr. Nicholson at 

 Kew Gardens. H. G. Echb. f. 



Odontoglossum Andeksonianuh lobatum var. 

 Lemoinierianum. 



This is an unusually fine variety (individual?) 

 Its flowers are very large. The sepals and petals 

 are bordered with fine yellow. There is some 

 yellow on the base of the unbordered lip. A very light 

 mauve hue spreads over the white disc of two of 

 the sepals. 



It was kindly sent me by Mr. A. Lemoinier, of 

 Lille, who raised that showy Cypripedium so much 

 admired at the Exhibition at Ghent. H. G. Bchb.f. 



Cattleya guttata Leopolui odoratissima, n. var. 

 This is very near the fine Cattleya guttata Leo- 

 poldi immaculata, which appeared in 1886 with Mr. A. 

 A. Peeters of St. Gilles, Bruxelles. The petals and 

 sepals are yellow on both sides. The side lacinia; of 

 the lip are white, its disc and anterior lacinia purple. 

 Column very strong, purple at the top and a little at 

 the base. The remaining part white. There is an 

 angle on each basilar side in front of the column, 

 which is remarkable. " The plant is not distinct 

 from the others in growth. As soon, however, as a 

 ray of sun shines on the plant the whole house (25 

 metres in length) is fully perfumed by a delicious 

 smell of Heliotrope, from five flowers only." This is 

 what Mr. A. A. Peeters writes me about this very 

 remarkable novelty. H. G. Echb.f. 



Oncidium maculatum (Lindl.) fsittactnum, Bchb.f., 

 in Lindl. "Folia Orchid." Oncidium, pi. 113 (1855). 

 This lovely variety was kindly sent me by Mr. 

 Alfred van Imschoot, from Mont St. Amand, Gand. 

 All the ground colour of the sepals, petals, and lip is 

 of the finest yellow ; sepals and petals much blotched. 

 Having named it as early as 1855, 1 felt very pleased 

 to see it again after thirty-three years. H. G. Bchb.f. 



Cattleya guttata munda, n. var. 

 Cattleya guttata Leopoldi immaculata is for the 

 Leopoldi variety what this is for the old typical 

 Lindleyan Cattleya guttata. It has both sepals 

 nearly green, without any spots. The lip and the 

 column are like those of the old plant. I should 

 have liked to name it in allusion to its green 

 colours, but, as so frequently happens, the colour 

 eventually changed to a light yellow. Messrs. 

 Seeger & Tropp kindly sent it to me. H. G. Bchb.f. 



Aerides Houlletianuh, Bchb.f. 

 Mr. Ortgies, the Curator of the Zurich Botanic 

 Gardens, kindly sends me a splendid inflorescence 

 and leaf of what he received from Paris as Aerides 

 Picotianum. There is no difference between the 

 two, excepting the priority of the name of Aerides 

 Houlletianum. H. G. Bchb.f. 



Roses. 



A PLEA FOR TEA AND NOISETTE ROSES. 



As the period of the year is now at hand when 

 lovers of a garden will be considering what altera- 

 tions shall be made, and what additions indulged 

 in, and as all gardeners are lovers of Roses, I make 

 no apology for putting in a plea for two classes of 

 Roses (running very often into one another) which 

 have greatly increased in popularity of late years, 

 about which erroneous notions have prevailed, and 

 concerning whose beauty there cannot be, I think, a 

 second opinion. 



Amongst the errors which have prevailed concern- 

 ing them is their great delicacy of constitution, and 

 this is a fallacy. Of course, we all can remember 

 the time when Tea Roses would die off, but that was 

 not in all cases the fault of the Rose so much as of 

 the stock it was budded on. There were, it is true, 

 delicately constitutioned Roses in those days, such 

 as Vicomtesse de Cazes, La Boule d'Or, Madame 

 de St. Joseph, Monsieur Furtado, and when 

 these died off it was concluded it was owing 

 to their weakly constitution, but other and 



