Mai 11, 1912.] 



THE GARDENERS' CHRONICLE. 



315 









A full account oi ihe discovery and history of 

 Rosa gigantea is given in the Gardeners' 



Pines, Chestnuts, Cypresses, Bays, Laurels, 



Vines, and Arbutus. Above it all arises the 



Chronicle, March 4, 1905, p. 136. The figure in square crenelated fortress villa, which withstood 



the Botanical Magazine, tab. 7972, does not 

 convey any adequate idea of the beauty of the 

 flowers, which are depicted as being of a dirty, 



greenish white. 



The plant was originally discovered by Dr. 

 Watt in 1882 during the Government demarca- 

 tion survey in Manipur at altitudes of 5-6,000 

 feet. It was later discovered by General Sir 

 Henry Collett in the Shan Hills, Upper Burmah. 

 It has ainee been collected by Dr. Henry, Mr. W. 

 Hancock, and recently by Mr. George Forrest in 

 North-West Yunnan, China. Mr. Forrest has 

 discovered specimens with rose-coloured flowers, 

 which have been described as variety erubescens 

 by Focke in Notes of the Royal Botanic Gardens, 

 Edinburgh, v., p. 68. The variety was found in 

 shady situations in the Lang-kong, Hocking, and 

 Lichiang valleys, and is described by Mr. Forrest 

 m " a semi-scandent scrub of 10-20 feet, with 

 rose-pink, fragrant flowers." Whilst this plant 

 closely resembles Rosa gigantea in many respects, 

 notably in its calyx lobes and in several minor 

 details, I am of the opinion that it is distinct. 

 The fruit and seed, which are important charac- 

 ters in determining Roses, are wanting in the 

 herbarium material of Focke's plant, and I have 

 little doubt but that, when these are obtained, 

 the plant will prove to be distinct. 



An interesting account is given in the Journal 

 of the Linnean Society, xxviii., p. 6, by General 

 Collett, of the conditions under which he found 

 R. gigantea. Dealing w r ith the flora of the dis- 

 trict where it grows, he says that it " was found 

 on a plateau, at altitudes of 4-5,000 feet, where 

 the traveller was at once struck with the tem- 

 perate character of the flora. The trees were 

 mostly Oaks and Pines, whilst the herbaceous 

 plants were represented by species of Ranunculus, 

 Viola, Hypericum, Clematis, &c. ,> Dealing with 

 the giant Rose, he says : — " Only tw 7 o species of 

 Rosa were seen, and both were new. The beau- 

 tiful R. gigantea is particularly conspicuous, 

 climbing over the tall forest trees, from the tops 

 of which the long, pendulous branches, covered 

 with very large, white flowers, hang down in rich 

 profusion. This Rose, which has larger flowers 

 probably than any other wild species, is seen 

 from a considerable distance in the jungle, re- 

 minding one more of a large Clematis than of a 

 Rose. ... It is only locally abundant, 

 chiefly in dark, shady valleys." The other Rose 

 referred to was R. Collettiana, which, I believe, 

 h not yet in cultivation. C. P. Raffill. 



AN ITALIAN GARDEN. 



On a projecting spur of the lower Fiesole Hills, 

 some two miles east of Florence, stands the old 

 Castello di Poggio Gherardo, once a mediaeval 

 fortress, now a modern residence — so far as its 

 interior is concerned — and surrounded by a very 

 charming garden. The estate was purchased in 

 1889 by the late H. J. Ross, Esq., an enthusiastic 

 horticulturist, who had spent many of his early 

 days in the East, and who made it the home of 

 one of the finest collections of Orchids that has 

 ever been brought together in Italy. This collec- 

 tion is in part maintained by his widow, Mrs. H. J. 

 Ross. The place was graphically described a few 

 years ago by a niece of Mr. Ross. " Animals and 

 punts all thrive at Poggio Gherardo in a remark- 

 able way, because much love is lavished on every- 

 thing within its walls. The Wistaria grows at 

 such a pace that it threatens to pull down the ter- 

 race staircase ; the Camphor tree and Eucalyp- 

 tus battle valiantly through severe winters, and 

 rare southern plants are enticed to show their 

 bloom. As for Roses, they tumble in great cas- 

 hes over the walk above the carriage drive, 

 ™ng their pink and white blossoms with the 

 yeuow Banksia and pale or dark-blue Irises, 

 ^way f r o m the wall the monthlv Roses form 



Jon<T g6S windin g U P the hill toward* the 

 *se, near where they merge into a apinney of 



the arms of Hawkwood and his Pisan soldiers, 

 survived even earthquakes, and after more than 

 500 years still stands proudly on a spur of the 

 Fiesole hills full in sight of the Arno Valley." 



The house is approached through a grove of 

 Vines and Olives by a long, steep, winding drive, 

 bordered with hedges of Roses, which, in the first 

 fortnight of May, when the writer had the plea- 

 sure of staying there for some days, on the occa- 

 sion of the International Horticultural Exhibition 

 at Florence, were covered with thousands of pink 

 blossoms. Roses luxuriate everywhere; yellow, 

 white and red, single and double, on pergolas 

 and arches, fences, tree trunks, and walls, form- 

 ing a wealth of floral tracery, and the double 

 white and yellow Banksians recalled our own 

 Crimson Ramblers in their wealth of flowers. 

 One mast visit the sunny South to see the Bank- 

 sian Roses in perfection. Lizards abound ; one 

 sees them everywhere in the sunshine, where the 

 Caper plant luxuriates in the fissures of the old 

 walls, on stony banks and amongst the Roses, 

 w r hence they emerge to stalk the flies when one 

 remains quiet for a few moments. 



Among many familiar scenes there is much that 

 is novel. Large blue bees flit about amongst tho 

 flowers ; blue, red, and yellow dragon-flies, and 

 many kinds of butterflies — white, brimstone, deep 

 yellow, blue, and red — impart a gaiety to the 

 scene, while the beautiful swallow-tail butterfly 

 floating gracefully in the sunshine furnished a 

 sight to be remembered. And in the evening, 

 when the garden is cool and delightful after the 

 burning sunshine, the place was harmonious with 

 nightingales — indeed, one may both hear and see 

 them in the day-time in the adjoining woods. 

 The fire-flies, again, afforded a surprise. On a 

 May evening, a soft flash was noticed that 

 for a moment recalled the flash of an electric 

 wire. But there were no wires, and quickly came 

 a second flash, which left no doubt of the cause. 

 Soon there were dozens, and during the next few 



i 



promising a fine display of deliciously fragrant 

 white flowers. Solanum jasminoides covered an 

 old arbour with a profusion of flowers. Sweet 

 Peas w-fere flowering in abundance, and many 

 other plants, more or less familiar at home, are 

 grown very successfully. I have already referred 

 to the Roses : there is a fine plant of Marechal 

 Niel, which, fr6ni the size of the stem, must be 

 many years old; it flowers profusely. The Aus- 

 trian Briar looked a picture, with its peculiar cop- 

 pery red and yellow flowers on the same bush, 

 and the Persian double-yellow Rose was a mass 

 of blossoms. There is also a large single red Rose 

 which blooms most profusely ; its name is not 

 known, but it is said to be used as a stock in 

 Lombardy. 



The Orchids are contained in five large houses, 

 with various stove plants, and consist almost en- 

 tirely of warm-growing kinds, for cool Orchids can- 

 not be grown successfully in such a climate. Cypri- 

 pediums, Vandas, and others of the Aerides group, 

 Dendrobiums, Cattleyas and allies, Coelogyne cris- 

 tata, Stauropsis Batemaniana, Sobralia macrantha, 

 and numerous others are grown successfully. 

 Plants of Coelogyne Dayana were w r reathed in 

 flowers. Many hybrid Cypripediums have been 

 raised. A detailed account of the collection of 

 Orchids was given in Orchid Review, 1911, pp. 

 202-205. In a w r ood behind the house numerous 

 handsome plants of Orchis purpurea were in 

 bloom; they are indigenous, and have pro- 

 bably grown there from time immemorial. The 

 place must have been in the possession of the 

 Gherardo family for hundreds of years, for there 

 is an old monument erected to the memory of 

 Bartolommeo di Gherardo Gherardi, magistrate 

 of the Republic of Florence from 1390 to 1409. 



The Olive is grown largely on the hill-sides ; 

 there are trees in the district which are hun- 

 dreds of years old, and in some cases the trunks 

 divide by the decay of the centre, forming what 

 at first looks like a group of separate trees. 

 They are pruned to what may be termed cup 

 shape, the centres being left hollow, so as to 

 admit all the sun, light, and air possible. The Olive 



nights, after which the writer bade them a re- is harvested in November and December, and the 



gretful farewell, the groves were lighted as by 

 myriads of fairy lamps, not stationary, as our 

 own glow-worms, but flashing everywhere, and 

 affording a sight never to be forgotten. 



The situation slopes to the south, in full expo- 

 sure to the sunshine, and many plants thrive in 

 the open which in this country require to be 

 grown indoors. One of the first things noticed 

 was the Lemon trees, planted in large tubs, and 

 bearing fruits in various stages, as well as 

 flowers. They are, however, brought inside for 

 protection during the winter, as is usually prac- 

 tised in this part of Italy, for the proximity of the 

 Apennines renders the climate cold in winter. Near 

 by were two Kaki trees in bud ; the larger is an 

 immense tree which bore 450 fruits the previous 

 year. The fruits are gathered and put in a fairly 

 warm place to ripen, when they are delicious, 

 as I have since had the opportunity of proving. 

 There is also a large tree of Eucalyptus globulus 

 in perfect health, and an immense Camphor tree 

 (Cinnamomum Camphora), which is one of the 

 economic trees of Southern Italy. Melia Aze- 

 darach is another large tree, bearing panicles of 

 purple flowers and numbers of old fruits. The 

 specimen is only 16 years old, and was 5 feet high 

 when planted, so rapidly does everything grow 

 in this genial climate. Paulonia imperialis is a 

 large tree, and purple with its beautiful blossoms. 

 Nerium Oleander forms an immense old bush, and 

 the Japanese Loquat fruits every year. There are 

 many fine old specimens of Chamaerops Fortunei, 

 both male and female, producing large panicles 



of flowers. 



Magnolias thrive, and a number of Azaleas of 

 various kinds and colours were covered with 

 flowers, while a few Rhododendrons were also in 

 bloom. Numerous plants of Pfflonia Moutan are 

 grown. The Wistarias, both blue and white, 

 flower in the greatest profusion, and with them 

 on the house is a fine plant of Trachelo- 

 spermum jasminoides, already in bud, and 



Olive oil produced by Mrs. Ross has become cele- 

 brated for its quality and purity. The vines are 

 trained on the Maple, because this tree will sub- 

 mit to the severest pruning, and thus admit the 

 maximum of light and air which are so essential 

 to the proper ripening of the Grapes. In Lom- 

 bardy the Elm is largely used for this purpose. 

 It may be added that* the prunings from the Vine, 

 Olive, and Maple furnish the firewood of the 

 peasantry in winter. 



By the side of the drive is a row of the purplo- 

 leaved Prunus Pissardii, which forms a hand- 

 some tree and fruits freely, and the fruit is ex- 

 cellent for stewing, so that the tree is interesting 

 both from an ornamental and a utilitarian stand- 

 point. R. A. R. 



FLORISTS' FLOWERS. 



WE 



SHOW. 



At the meeting of the Royal Horticultural 

 Society, on April 30 last, two fine collec- 

 tions of Sweet Peas were staged, both 

 showing skilful culture under glass. Mr. 

 C. W. Breadmore, Winchester, had, in Princess 

 Mary, a novelty with rathei a sensational 

 combination of colouring, mauve and blue, 

 reminding one somewhat of Afterglow, without 

 that variety's tendency to doubling. Aggie Elder 

 is a distinct new shade of Rose, a flower of good 

 form and substance. Messrs. Dobbie & Co., 

 Edinburgh, seem to have adopted a new method 

 of naming, as three fine novelties on their stand 

 were named respectively Scarlet (very brilliant), 

 Cream, and Lavender (a true, pure lavender, 

 without any mauve shading). A bunch which at- 

 tracted much notice was labelled Lavender 

 George Herbert — Fixed Stock. This will, if ihe 

 best type of H is really fixed, be a great f avourite 

 with exhibiton, who know its value. Visitor* 



