May 18, 1912.] 



THE GARDENERS' CHRONICLE. 



341 













R. sericea is one of the most beautiful garden 

 plants we have. Unlike most Roses which have 

 five petals, this Rose has only four, arranged like 

 a Maltese cross. There is scarcely any time of 

 the year when this Rose is not attractive. It 

 makes a large bush, throwing up tall, stiffish 

 stems 7 or 8 feet long, from which their lateral 

 branches are put forth, carrying very finely-cut, 

 Fern-like foliage, each leaf having from 9 to 13 

 closely -packed leaflets ; the lovely white flowers 

 are produced on the axils of the leaves. When 

 in full flower the plant is a most charming object, 

 though, unfortunately, the flowering period is all 

 too short, lasting only about a fortnight. Later 

 on the plant is covered with orange-coloured ber- 

 ries, which are then very decorative. After this 

 it begins to push up its strong root-shoots, which 

 are one of the most interesting parts of the 

 plant. They are thickly covered with bright- 

 red thorns and setae, which are almost trans- 

 parent, and produce a beautiful effect in the 

 autumn or winter sunshine. Li the cultivation of 

 this plant our great object should be to get it 

 covered with its beautiful foliage down to the 

 base and prevent it from becoming leggy. The 

 varieties of this Rose are certainly very numer- 

 ous. Crepin suggested they would be found to 

 rival R. canina in number. One very curious form 

 called R. sericea Pteracantha has the thorns very 

 dilated at the base an inch or inch and a half 

 broad. Then, though the most beautiful form is 

 white, the colour of the flowers may vary con- 

 siderably. Hooker describes them as white or 

 straw colour, while Lindley illustrated a form 

 with five petals and pink in colour. I was at one 

 time much puzzled by the berries, which, in the 

 forms in my own garden, are bright orange, but 

 in other cases I have seen are quite red. I found 

 the explanation of this, however, in a note of 

 Mons. Vilmorin, who states that seeds from Yun- 

 nan have always given varieties with red fruits, 

 while those from Se Tchuan (or Schu Chuan), fur- 

 ther north on the Western Chinese border, give 

 varieties with red fruits. Of the plants I have 

 myself seen, I think the yellow or orange-fruited 

 sorts have been the most decorative. 



R. Fedtschenkoana is a tall, rampant grower 

 from Turkestan, producing numerous root shoots 

 and bearing characteristic foliage of a greyish 

 tint. I refer to it principally in order to mention 

 a hybrid between this and R. rugosa, which was 

 sent me a year or two ago. This hybrid is a 

 really fine garden plant producing fine white 

 flower-heads, followed by beautiful bunches of 

 red berries, which partake of the rugosa charac- 

 ter. It has the great advantage from the gar- 

 dener's standpoint of giving a second period of 

 bloom. The plant grows to about 5 feet in 

 height, and is of quite easy culture. 



(To be continued.) 



NORTH OF ENGLAND HORTI- 

 CULTURAL. 



April 24. — The meeting and exhibition of the 

 N.E.H.S., held at Leeds on this date, was not 

 so large as usual. Few Orchids were shown, but 

 rockwork and Alpine exhibits were numerous. 



A specially-fine exhibit was shown by Mr. W. 

 Allsop, Superintendent of Public Parks, Leeds, 

 representing a rock-garden with miniature hills 

 °i gorse in the dist 



ance 



. ,- - x — — ww«v.v, and dells planted 



with Polyanthus and slopes of Alpines coming 

 aown to a base of boggv land planted with 

 moisture-loving subjects, while in the middle dis- 

 tance and foreground were more miniature moun- 

 tains of varying size well arranged and planted. 



AWARDS. 



Plant and Floral Committee. 



Gold Medals were awarded to Earl Grey, 

 Uowick Hall (gr. Mr. Lambert), for an exhibit of 

 many choice and rare varieties of Narcissus, in- 

 citing Weardale Perfection and Mrs. Camm. 

 ml* l 1 i Al ; LSOP > Le «ds, received a Silver-gilt 

 wrJ? r th ?, A1 P ine garden referred to. A 

 Fvnt bllver "8 lIt ^dal was awarded to Mr. C. 

 Sff*^*' Saffron Walden, who showed Car- 

 S?n' . • Ii"^ 8 Regina and Sunstar being 

 prom^ent m the collection. Large Silver Medals 



LeSc if ded to Messr s- Aldis & Rowntree, 



tion nf tS° S - ag - a large and Cresting collec- 

 DeiX JN ^ rcissus m pots; Mrs. Whitehead, 



tion frtn i e ' York ' for a ^ell-grown collec- 

 oi Cyclamens ; the Cookridge Nurseries, 



Messrs. S. Broadhead & Sons, Huddersfield, re- 

 ceived a Silver Medal for Alpines; Messrs. G. 

 Gibson & Co., Bedale, who showed herbaceous 

 and Alpine plants ; Mr. J. Wood, Boston Spa, for 

 choice Alpine plants; and Messrs. Wm. Artin- 

 dale & Son, Sheffield, staging Alpine plants and 

 cut flowers, also received Silver Medals. Large 

 Bronze Medals were secured by Mr. Alva J. 

 Hall, Harrogate, for Alpine plants; Messrs. 

 Conway, Ltd., Halifax, for Alpines and forced 

 shrubs; and Mr. W. Sheepshanks, Arthincton 

 Hall, Leeds, for Alpine plants. 



Orchid Com: 



Large Silver Medals were awarded to Messrs. 

 Charles worth & Co., Hay wards Heath, who 

 staged fine Laelio-Cattleyas and Odontoglossum 

 hybrids; and John H. Craven, Esq., Keighley 

 (gr. Mr. F. Corney), who exhibited some very 

 choice plants, including Odontiodas. A Silver 

 Medal was secured by Messrs. A. J. Keeling & 

 Sons, Westgate Hill," Bradford, whose outstand- 

 ing plants were Lycaste Balliae, L. Skinneri alba, 

 and Cymbidium insigne. 



Sundries. 



Messrs. W. Dixon & Co., Leeds, were awarded 

 a Silver Medal for an exhibit of bees and bee- 

 keeping appliances. A Silver Medal was also 

 awarded to the Four Oaks Spraying Co., Bir- 

 mingham, for garden implements. 



First-class Diploma* to Carnation " Reaina," 

 shown by Mr. C. Engelmann, and Viola Craven 



Gem, shown by Craven Nuksery, Lancaster. 



Second-class Diplomas. — Carnation Sunstar, 

 shown by Mr. C. Engelmann, and Odontioda 

 Bradshawise " Rawdon variety, M shown by 

 Messrs. Mansell & Hatcher, Rawdon. 



Third-class Diploma to Cattleya Mendel ii 



" The Knowles variety," shown by J. Hartley, 



Esq., Morley. 



forced 



and bulbs ; 



SCOTTISH HORTICULTURAL. 



May 7. — The monthly meeting of the above 

 association was held on this date. Mr. Massie, 

 the president, was in the chair, and there w 

 an attendance of 110 members. 



Mr. James Whytock, the Palace Gardens, Dal- 

 keith, gave an interesting account, illustrated 

 by lantern slides, of a tour he made through 

 Ontario and New York State last summer. One 

 of the most important rural industries in Ontario 

 is fruit-growing, and the tract bordering Lake 

 Ontario is one of the most productive fruit 

 regions of America. Between Toronto and 

 Hamilton, for example, one may pass through 80 

 miles of orchards in one stretch. Apples and 

 Peaches are the chief fruits grown, and the latter 

 find a ready market in Toronto and the other 

 large cities. There are few important private 

 horticultural establishments in Canada, but some 

 of the public horticultural establishments are con- 

 ducted on an immense scale. At the Dale estate, 

 at Brampton (see Gardeners 9 Chronicle, March 

 25, 1911, p. 177), for example, 22 acres are covered 

 with glasshouses, each house being 800 feet long 

 by 25 feet wide, and heated by steam, and in 

 these Roses, Carnations, Chrysanthemums, and 

 other flowers are grown by hundreds of thousands, 

 and all planted out on benches running 

 the full length of the house. In the large 

 cities, decorative gardening is extensively prac- 

 tised, and much attention is given to street trees. 

 In Toronto, the public parks and gardens cover 

 1,600 acres, and the annual cost of upkeep is 

 £64,000, including the care of street trees. Those 

 of New York City cover 7,223 acres, and cost 

 £166,000 annually, and, in addition to this, 

 £8,000 is spent yearly on the upkeep of the street 



The exhibits were :— Fifteen vases of the 

 newest varieties of Sweet Pea, including Laven- 

 der George Herbert (fixed), Lady Miller, 

 Dobbie's Scarlet, and Mrs. Cuthbertson, from 

 Messrs. Dotbie & Co. (Silver-gilt Medal) ; 

 Darwin and late -flowering Tulips, from Mr. 

 D W. Thomson (Silver-gilt Medal) ; Tulips 

 from Messrs. James Grieve & Sons, Edin- 

 burgh: Rose Prince of Bulgaria, shown by 

 Messrs. Todd & Co., Edinburgh; hardy Rhodo- 

 dendrons, from Mr. A. Johnstone, Hay Lodge, 

 Edinburgh; Echium sp., from Mr Thos. 

 Nicholson, Joppa; Aquilegias, from Mr. 1. 

 Thomson, Craigiehall Gardens, Cramond 

 Bridge ; Auriculas, from Miss Burton, Polton ; 

 and varieties of Myosotis and Daisy, from Mr. 

 C Comfort, Broomfield, Davidson s Mams. 



ROYAL GARDENERS' ORPHAN FUND. 



ANNUAL FESTIVAL DINNER. 



May 8. — The 24th anniversary gathering of 

 the members and friends of this institution )ok 

 place at the Hotel Cecil on Wednesday the 8th 

 inst. Sir Henry Dnrning- iwrence, Hart, pie- 

 sided, and there were about 150 guesta pw sent, 

 including Sir Edward Stun, Lieut. -Col. the Rt. 

 Hon. Mark Lock wood, M.P., and Messrs. N. N. 



Sherwood, V.M.BL, Edward Sherwood, Harry J. 

 Veitch, V.M.H., T. Goldney, Leonard G. Sut- 

 ton, W. Barr, G. Barr, VY. [ceton. A. E. Bun- 

 yard, A. Watkins, W. Bates, W. Poupart, D. 

 Ingamells, G. Cuthbert, J. F. McLeod. A. W. 



Metcalfe, G. J. Ingram, W. } Baker, ll. Casel- 

 ton, \V. Howe, H. B. May, J. Vert, E. Beale, 



F. A. Bevan, W. Collins, George Gordon, 

 V.M.H., R. Hooper Pear tn, and Brian Wynne 



(secretary). 



The loyal toasts having been given and hon- 

 oured, Sir Henry Darning Lawnn.e proposed 

 the toast of the evening "The Royal Gardeners* 

 Orphan Fond." He was, he said, a great be- 

 liever in bringing people together to dine as a 

 good and friendly spirit was thus encouraged. 

 The charity was a useful and 



ry one. 



There were charities maintaining large institu- 

 tions with staffs demanding big salaries, in which 



the individuality of the orphans was sunk in a 

 number. The Royal Gardeners' Orphan Fund did 

 not do those things; on the contrary, the children 

 were supported in their own homes where this 

 was possible. The cost per week per child was 

 5s., and the speaker believed that there was 

 not a workhouse in England that maintained a 

 child for less than 7s. 6d. per week. He would 

 make all gardeners missionaries in so excellent 

 a cause, and urged them all to bring in at least 

 one fresh subscriber during the ensuing year. 

 There were at present 130 orphans on the fund 

 at 5s. a week and 14 others receiving 2s. 6d. a 

 week pending their election to full benefits. 

 The annual income was insufficient, hence th 

 imperative necessity of missionary efforts. The 

 fund should not have so largely to depend upon 

 its annual festival dinners for the wherewithal 

 to carry on its splendid work, but, on the con- 

 trary, the assured income which annual subscrip- 

 tions alone could bring. 



The treasurer, Mr. Edward Sherwood, in re- 

 sponse, said that during its history the Royal 

 Gardeners' Orphan Fund had disbursed upwards 

 of £25,000, and was now supporting 130 children 

 with full benefit of 5s. a week. He regarded 

 the rules which empowered the committee to 

 grant half benefits and to make donations of 

 £10 to give orphans a start in life as of great 

 good. The assured income of £375 from trust 

 funds practically sufficed to meet the expenses 

 of management. He urged gardeners and local 

 secretaries to enlist the sympathy and assistance 

 of all lovers of gardening, of all members of 

 gardeners' societies and mutual improvement 

 associations with a view to increasing the amount 

 of £380 per annum now received in subscrip- 

 tions. He thanked the chairman for his presence 

 and his admirable speech, and accepted the 

 heartiness with which the toast had been re- 



ult 



ceived as a good omen for the result — the 

 which would bring light and hope into the lives 

 of the orphans. 



To Mr. N. N. Sherwood, V.M.H., was en- 

 trusted the toast of " The Visitors," and he put 

 it most genially. There were visitors and visi- 

 tors, but all those who came to the gatherings 

 of the Royal Gardeners' Orphan Fund were wel- 

 come, and he hoped that if they had never been 

 before, they would spare no efforts to come 

 again. In reference to Col. Lockwood, whose 

 name was coupled with the toast, he said there 

 was no one more interested in gardeners and 

 gardening, and he was delighted to see him 

 present. 



Responding, Lieut. -Col. the Rt. Hon. Mark 

 Lockwood, M.P., said that it was his first visit, 

 but it would not be his last. He hoped that 

 all the visitors would do their utmost, and 

 he regarded those who gave quietly what they 

 could afford as the backbone of institutions of 

 this nature. His comparisons of visitors were 

 most humorous, and the speech w T as warmly 

 greeted. 



Mr. H. B. May gave the health of the 

 Chairman, and Sir Henry Darning Lawrence 

 suitably responded, again urging the claims of 



