

X. [supplement.] 



THE GARDENERS CHRONICLE. 



[May 25, 1912. 



Messrs. Wm, Cutbush & Son, Highgate, 

 London, have displayed a large mound of 

 Rhododendron Pink Pearl, flanked bv specimen 

 Codiaeums, Dracaenas, &c, at one end, whilst at 

 the other this firm show a large number of 

 splendid Carnations in pots ; the varieties Bald- 

 win, Lady Coventry, King Arthur, and Goldfinch 

 are characterised by large, fresh blooms. The 

 new variety Queen Mary attracted the attention 

 of the Queen, who paused on her visit of inspec- 

 tion to admire its beauty. 



M. Boudbay Draps, Costdeen Kerke, Bel- 

 gium, exhibit a large number of plants in tubs 

 of Aspidistra lurida variegata, which bore 

 numerous, well-variegated leaves. 



M. Fibmin de Smet, Ghent, Belgium, exhibit 

 Tillandsias in flower. 



A fine plant of Puya chilensis, which has been 

 rown^ out-of-doors in the Abbey Gardens, Scilly 

 les, is shown bearing a tall, stout spike of its 

 interesting greenish-yellow flowers. 



In the class for two Cycads, Mr. W. A. 

 Manda, South Orange, New York, U.S.A., 

 obtained the 1st prize with two good specimens 

 of Encephalartos pungens glauca and Macro- 

 zamia Denissonii, and he has also been placed 1st 

 for two Kentia Palms, showing K. Fosteriana and 

 K. Belmoreana of considerable size and capital 

 form. 



Mr. Charles Turner, Slough, has won 1st 

 honours in the class for two large specimens of 

 Kentia Fosteriana in the class for two stove 

 and greenhouse plants. 



FERNS, BRITISH AND EXOTIC. 



Undoubtedly one of the most striking fea- 

 tures in the Exhibition is the exhibit of British 

 and exotic Ferns shown by Messrs. H. B. May 



6 Sons, of Edmonton. 



One section is mainly devoted to British 

 Ferns and their varieties, a speciality of the 

 firm, among which we notice many choice forms 

 of the Lady Fern, particularly of the finely-cut 

 and tasselled " superbum " section Aspidium 

 filix-foemina Pritchardii, cristatum, grandiceps, 

 congestum, acrocladon, Victorine, perserratum, 

 gemmatum, with ball-like crest on all terminals, 

 and many others. The Lastreas, or Male Ferns, 

 are represented by five specimens of L. filix- 

 fcemina polydactyla, Wills, and by cristata, the 

 king of the tribe, while L. montana, so rarely ex- 

 hibited, is shown as a pretty crispate variety. 

 Pretty forms of the Hard Fern, or Blechnum 

 spicant, are associated with a very large num- 

 ber of Hartstonguet, frilled and fringed and 

 branched and tasselled. Undoubtedly the pret- 

 tiest of all is the " crispum," or frilled section, 

 of which several distinct forms are shown. The 

 Shield Ferns or Polystichums are also well 

 represented, a fine specimen of recent intro- 

 duction, P. aculeatum gracillimum, Druery, 

 which, occupies a prominent position, in 

 association with a fine range of its specific 

 relatives, the plumose varieties of P. angulare, 

 which rank among the more charming Ferns 

 extant. Nearly all the British species are 

 shown : Osmunda regalis, plain and tasselled ; 

 Asplenium fontanum, now probably extinct as 

 a wild species though maintained in cultivation ; 

 P. aquilina, in its weird shape of P. a. glome- 

 rata, where all the fronds tie themselves up into 



knots. 



In the exotic section, Messrs. May display 

 genera, species, and varieties running into hun- 

 dreds, with few duplicates, save the smaller 

 growths used as filling for the specimens proper. 

 Probably the more striking features are the 

 diverse forms assumed by the genus Polypodium, 

 ranging from the magnificent pendulous forms of 

 P. Knightse, a deeper cut, almost lace-like im- 

 provement on the normal P. Vidgenii, from which 

 it is a wild sport on the lines of the Welsh 

 Polypods, as compared with our P. vulgare, but 

 even more ornate, apart from the length of its 



7 or 8 feet fronds. P. glaucum Mayii presents 

 a parallel sport on broader lines from P. glau- 

 cum, while P. g. crispum is very similar, but 

 perhaps of a more markedly glaucous tint. 

 Still in the same family we see as contrasts Tree 

 Fern stumps clothed with the comparatively 

 tiny fronds of P. piloselloides and P. vaocini- 

 folium but an inch or two long. Different again 

 are the quaint forms of P. irioides ramo-crista 

 turn and Niphobolus (Polypodium) lingua 

 corymbifera, closely resembling a ramo-cristate 



Hartstongue. In the Adiantum or Maidenhairs 

 we are confronted with a huge specimen of the 

 new A. Farleyense gloriosum, a hardier rival of 

 Farleyense itself, and hence more easily shown. 

 Nestling at the feet of it we see Adiantum 

 cuneatum micropinnulum, with very minute 

 divisions cheek by jowl, so to speak, with A. 

 macrophyllum albo-striatum with very large 

 divisions irregularly streaked with white, but 

 beautifully rosy-pink when young. Many other 

 varieties of Adiantum are interspersed as foils 

 to other types of frondage. 



Messrs. Hill & Sons, Edmonton, exhibit a 

 group occupying a space of 100 square feet with 

 an interesting and well-grown collection of 

 exotics, embracing fine specimens of Dicksonia 

 (Cibotium) Baronetcy and other Tree Ferns. 

 Asplenium nidus, the Bird's Nest Fern, Micro- 

 lepia polyphylla, Davallia epiphyta, Polypodium 

 giganteuim, P. quercifolium, Davallia fijiensis 

 robusta, Adiantum Farleyense gloriosum and 

 others, all the specimens being very large. 

 There are also several Gleichenia species, a speci- 

 alitv of this firm. Gymnogramma argyrophylla, 

 a silver Fern, P. Knightse, Crytomium falcatum 

 Rochfordii, and a bold, undulate, hard-grow- 

 ing form of Nephrolepis, N. exaltata Rooseveltii. 

 These, with a large, well-grown specimen of 



and is very similar in form to Messrs. May's 

 and Rochford's plumose varieties of the closely- 

 allied species of P. glaucum. It is, however, 

 distinct, and decidedly an acquisition, being of 

 bold, robust habit, requiring only cool culture, 

 and forming, in large pans or even on Tree 

 Fern stumps, extremely handsome specimens, 

 with fronds 5 feet long or more. 



Mr. G. E. Chapman is the winner of the 1st 

 prize in the class for a group of Exotic Ferns. 



The date of the exhibition is several weeks 

 too early for the full development of fine speci- 

 mens of British Ferns unless slightly forced. In 

 these circumstances, it is not surprising to find 

 that there is only one competitor, Mr. W. B. 

 Cranfield, Enfield Chase, who exhibits in 

 Classes 97, 103, 104, 105, 106, 108 and 110. The 

 specimens shown represent not only the choicest 

 of British Fern varieties, but in absolute 

 perfection. The plants include the fol- 

 lowing gems : — Scolopendriums vulgare var, 

 crispum, splendens, robustum, sagittatum, 

 muricatum, fimbriatum, sagittata, and grandi- 

 ceps ; Aspidium filix-foemina plumosum super- 

 bum, plumosum Drueryi and others of that sec- 

 tion ; and a number of the finest Lastreas. The 

 1st prize is awarded Mr. Cranfield for 

 each entry. A 2nd prize went to Lady Tate 



FlG* 6. LiELIO-CATTLEYA SA 



E JN THE WESTONKIRT COLLECTION. 



Platycerium grande, formed the bulk of the 

 group. 



Mr. McIntosh, Havering Park, Bromford, has 

 a good group of exotics, the chief feature of 

 which is an extraordinary fine specimen of 

 Microlepia hirta cristata, the finest we have 

 seen, as the crowning of a well-arranged collec- 

 tion, which obtained the 1st prize in the ama- 

 teurs' class for a collection of stove and green- 

 house Ferns. 



Mr. Amos Perry, Enfield, presents a good 

 collection of hardy Ferns, mainly British, and 

 representing a number of the choicest forms in 

 cultivation. A most interesting feature of this 

 exhibit is a number of pans and small pots 

 showing the development of the Fern from the 

 spore to the established plant, together with 

 explanatory notes. 



COMPETITIVE CLASSES. 



Mr. W. A. Manda, South Orange, New 

 York, U.S.A., is awarded the 1st prize in the 

 class for six stove and greenhouse Ferns, dis- 

 tinct, introduced into commerce since January, 

 1905, and also the 2nd prize for 12 stove and 

 greenhouse Ferns, distinct. Mr. Manda' s ex- 

 hibits are conspicuous for a number of very fine 

 specimens of a new plumose variety of P. 

 aureum, which has originated under cultivation, 



for a group of 12 hardy Ferns, and a 3rd P r ^ 

 for a collection shown by Messrs. Artindale & 

 Sons, Sheffield. 



GREENHOUSE PLANTS. 



COMPETITIVE CLASSES. 



There is only one competitor, M. L. PifcB 

 Van Hotjtte, Ghent, in the class for a collection 

 of Azalea indica arranged in a space of 200 square 

 feet, who has 55 plants, mostly in 8-inch and 10 

 inch pots, well flowered for the time of year 

 Amongst the whites are Niobe (semi-double) 

 Mdlle Fernande de Puynode, alba odoratissima 

 plena, Souvenir du Comte de Flandre, and Roi 

 des Blancs. The finest crimsons include Flam 

 beau, Vuylstekeana, Remembrance of Stephen 



larke, President A. d'Haene, and President 

 Roosevelt. The others consist of flaked and 

 speckled varieties. (2nd prize.) 



Messrs. Blackmore & Langdon, Twerton Hill 

 Nursery, Bath, obtain the 1st prize of a Gold 

 Medal for a space of 60 square feet filled witn 

 tuberous-rooted Begonias. The magnificence of 

 the flowers which are massive without being 

 grossly heavy, and of fine, delicate colours, is 

 remarkable. The beautiful soft salmon-pink Pro- 

 cess Victoria Louise, which obtained an Award ot 

 Merit, is exquisite. Some of the best whites 



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