Jone 8, 1912.] 



THE GARDENERS 



CHRONICLE. 



379 



HOME CORRESPONDENCE. 



[The Editors do not hold themselves responsible for 

 the opinions expressed by correspondents.) 



The Royal International Horticultural 

 Exhibition.— I do not apologise for asking the 

 honour of a little space in your valuable paper 

 in connection with the above matter, inasmuch 

 as your columns testify generously to the impor- 

 tance you attach to the Chelsea demonstration 

 The chief results of the Exhibition, to my mind, 

 are : (1) A general appreciation of the solidarity 

 of the interests of the horticultural community ; 

 (2) the formal recognition by the Government of 

 the claims of horticulture; (3) the bestowal of 

 the honour deservedly gained by Sir Harry 

 Veitch; (4) the great impetus given to the in- 

 dustry of horticulture by a tour de force; (5) 

 the alleged financial success of the venture, and 

 finally the complete uplifting of the plane upon 

 which horticulture rests, as well as a great 

 triumph for the principle of holding an inter- 

 national exhibition. A period of nearly half a 

 century has divided the two great efforts in this 

 direction m Great Britain, and it is obvious that 

 no such interval can be allowed to separate the 

 Exhibition of 1912 from its successor. It would 

 be an equal mistake to invite too frequently such 

 exhausting efforts as have been entailed in bring- 

 ing to perfection the Show at Chelsea. Although 

 the support of the public could be confidently 

 counted upon, it is certain that neither the trade 

 exhibitors nor the amateur element necessary 

 for the organization of such a great undertaking 

 would face the labour involved. An interval of 

 10 years at the most, or of seven at the least, is 

 generally held .to be reasonable, and it would ap- 

 pear to be of advantage to the science and in- 

 dustry of horticulture if it were fore-ordained 

 that every decade should bear its own witness 

 to progress. During this limited number of 

 years the lessons of the last exhibition could not 

 be easily forgotten or mislaid, and such regu- 

 larly-disposed guide-posts would sufficiently indi- 

 cate the ground already covered, while the 

 next " exhibition wouid always be a goal for 

 the ambitious. The difficulty ever present in the 

 organisation of such an affair is the question of 

 finance. If rumour is correct, a fairly substan- 

 tial surplus has been realised on this occasion, 

 but if the Director* were pressed they would pro- 

 bably admit that they consider themselves won- 

 derfully lucky to have come so well out of their 

 enterprise. Financial failure is a contingency 

 always to be faced, and it would be most unwise 

 on a future occasion to count upon a simultaneous 

 recurrence of all the fortunate circumstances 

 which have favoured the Exhibition at Chelsea. 

 It would appear from a preliminary pronounce- 

 ment that it was proposed to devote any surplus 

 lunds to some worthy project germane to horti- 



♦iT* u" The pith of my letter is the suggestion 

 tnat the profits, if any, may be used to form the 



nucleus of a fund for decennial international hor- 

 ticultural exhibitions. The Royal Horticultural 

 t i in would doubtless consent to act as trustees. 

 yi '0 years, if left to accumulate, the surplus 

 funds might provide the wherewithal to ensure 

 tne financial success of the next venture and to 

 J*y the foundation for triumphs recurring after 

 the manner of the Quinquennial Exhibition of 

 Wient, naturally, however, upon a scale of 

 greater magnitude. Excelsior. 



* 



The International Exhibition, and the 



gardener.— The high excellence of the many 

 varied exhibits brought together at Chelsea dur- 

 ing, the past week has been a subject of much 

 Praiseworthy comment. Horticulture is slowly 

 out surely gaining the full recognition which it 

 aeserves. It is at such times as the period of this 

 great Exhibition that the social position of the 



th n £i 1S b ° Und to be discUMed - Thanks to 

 j-ne noble and just bearing of many owners of 



* ar ge gardens, the conditions under which the 

 gardeners labour have of late years been much 

 unproved. Unfortunately, however, there is still 

 for much further improvement in this direc- 

 Circumstances over which many of the 

 present generation of gardeners have no control 

 am unfortunately, it is to be feared, do much to 

 uesLroy confidence between employer and em- 



EffiV n * rivate service, an«l for some unac- 

 countable reason the gardener was looked upon 



SI ♦V? 1 !!* Slnner - SureI y a11 must full y wcog- 



nise that the nrnf*« c ^« A /«.~iw— :. * 31* 



tion. 



ployer and employee, and due consideration must 

 bo given by the employer to the conditions under 

 which his employees are labouring. It is obvious 

 to all that the most noted gardens are those 

 whose owners take a real interest not only in 

 the gardens themselves, but in the general wel- 

 fare of those entrusted with their care. Eoamer. 



A Curious Nesting-place.— This spring a 

 grey wagtail has built a nest in a tub containing 

 a large Agave in a greenhouse in these gardens. 

 The parent bird hatched the five eggs and reared 

 the young birds successfully, taking practically 

 no notice of the attendant when performing his 

 various duties in the house. I find, on the 

 authority of W. Swaysland, that such an instance 

 is not unique, but it may bo of sufficient interest 

 to record in your pages. J. Gardner, Batiford 

 Park Gardens, Moreton-in-Marsh. 



Saxifraga Probynii (see p. 367).— I was 

 pleased to read the remarks of W. I. in reference 

 to this Saxifrage, which is apparently none other 

 than the well-known S. valdensis (of gardens), or, 

 as your correspondent puts it, S. cochlears minor. 

 Upon what grounds it has been raised to specific 

 rank I do not know, hence, probably, the 

 authority for the name will enlighten those who 

 desire to be up-to-date in these and kindred 

 matters. I, for my part, have been unable to 

 detect any difference in the plants bearing the 

 above names. E. H. Jenkins. 



existing 



em 



SOCIETI 



ROYAL HORTICULTURAL. 



June 4.— The attendance and exhibits at this 

 meeting of the Royal Horticultural Society ex- 

 ceeded expectations. Orchids were well shown, 

 and amongst the many hardy flowers the 

 Delphiniums and Paeonies excited admiration. 

 Messrs. Dobbie & Co. exhibited a large collection 

 of Sweet Peas and were awarded a Gold Medal. 

 Messrs. Bees Ltd. won the " Farrer M Cup, which 

 was offered for six new or rare dwarf rock plants, 

 with a meritorious collection of novelties. 



The Orchid Committee awarded one First- 

 class Certificate and four Awards of Merit. 



The Floral Committee awarded 22 Medals, a 

 First-class Certificate, 11 Awards of Merit, and 

 a Cultural Commendation. 



At 3 p.m. in the Lecture Room Prof. Bayley 

 Balfour, F.R.S., delivered the Eighth Masters' 

 Memorial Lecture before a large audience; the 

 subject, " Problems of Propagation," was illus- 

 trated by lantern slides and specimens. 



Floral Committee. 



Present: H. B. May, Esq. (in the Chair); 

 Messrs. C. T. Druery, G. Reuthe, J. Dickson, C. 

 Dixon, W. Cuthbertson, F. Pag# Roberts, C. E. 

 Shea, Chas. E. Pearson, J. T. Bennett-Poe, 

 R. C. R. Nevill, W. P. Thomson, E. H. Jenkins, 

 W. J. James, George Paul, W. B. Cranfield, 

 W. J. Bean, J. W. Barr, C. Blick, W. Howe, 

 C. R. Fielder, Arthur Turner, J. Jennings, Geo. 

 Gordon, W. T. Ware, J. F. McLeod and R. 

 Hooper Pearson. 



Messrs. Dobbie & Co., Edinburgh, staged a 

 large number of varieties of Sweet Peas. The 

 flowers were exceedingly fine, and displayed a 

 wide range of fresh, distinct colours. Dobbie's 

 Scarlet, with intense colour, compelled admira- 

 tion. Rosabelle, Earl Spencer, Mrs. Cuthbert- 

 son (large blooms of shades of pink), and In- 

 spector are only a few of the excellent varieties 

 shown, of which three received Awards of 

 Merit. (Gold Medal.) 



Messrs. E. W. King & Co., Coggeshall, Essex, 

 arranged Sweet Peas in a novel and attractive 

 manner. The blooms were stated to have been 

 cut from the open fields. (Silver Banksian 

 Medal.) 



Messrs. S. Bide & Sons, Farnham, Surrey, 



also exhibited many different varieties of Sweet 



Peas. 

 Mr. James Douglas, Great Bookham, showed 



choice border Carnations and Pinks. The Pinks 

 possessed delightful markings, and a most 

 pleasant perfume. Carnation " Daffodil M is 

 well named as regards its colour ; the flowers are 

 large and of good substance. 



Mr. H. Burnett, Guernsey, again exhibited 

 Carnations. As is usual in his collections, the 

 blooms were large and fresh, and were borne on 

 long, stout stalks. (Silver-gilt Flora MedaL) 



(Silver 



Mr. Charles Blick, The Warren Nurseries, 

 Hayes, Kent, arranged a choice collection of 

 cut Carnation blooms. Two varieties received 

 Awards. 



Messrs. Stuart Low & Co., Bush Hill Park, 

 Middlesex, exhibited Carnations in pots, as well 

 as many cut blooms. 



Messrs. G. Paul & Son, The Old Nurseries, 

 Cheshunt, who filled one length of staging with 

 decorative varieties of Roses, included the varie- 

 ties Irish Glory, Double Scotch Rose and 

 Thusnelda. Messrs. Paul also showed Peonies 

 and many fine spikes of Heuchera. (Silver-gilt 

 Flora Medal.) 



Messrs. Frank Cant & Co., Braiswick Rose 

 Gardens, Colchester, displayed a great variety of 

 Roses largely of the free-flowering, garden types. 

 Braiswick Beauty, Anne of Geierstein and 

 Braiswick Fairy are good examples. The deep 

 yellow Tea Rose " Lena " possesses consider- 

 able merit. (Silver Banksian Medal.) 



Messrs. B. Cant & Sons, The Old Rose Gar- 

 dens, Colchester, had a delightful exhibit of 

 Roses. The tall plants of Blush Rambler, 

 Hiawatha and Minnehaha, were smothered with 

 flowers. The Austrian Yellow, a Briar variety, 

 bore rich-golden flowers, the colour of which was 

 equalled by the double variety Persian Yellow. 

 Amongst the large-flowered Roses we noticed 

 Claudius, Lady Reay (a new seedling H.T.) and 

 St. Helena. (Silver Flora Medal.) 



Mr. G. Prince, Longworth, displayed cluster 

 Roses in the annexe. (Silver Flora Medal.) 



Mr. E. J. Hicks, Twyford, also showed good 

 varieties of Roses. (Silver Banksian Medal.) 



Messrs. J. Veitch & Sons, Chelsea, made a 

 very effective display with profusely-flowered 

 standard Fuchsias and Heliotropes rising abov« 

 groups of Cannas, hybrid javanico-jasmini- 

 florum Rhododendrons, Calceolaria Clibranii 

 and Lobelia tenuior. A batch of Eheocarpus 

 cyaneus (reticulatus), which received a First-class 

 Certificate, attracted much attention. On the 

 opposite side of the pathway Messrs. Veitch 

 showed Nemesias in blocks of distinct colours. At 

 the end of this exhibit a small batch of Lavatera 

 assurgentiflora found many admirers. 

 Flora Medal.) 



Messrs. John Peed & Son, West Norwood, 

 London, contributed excellent plants of Gloxinia 

 and Streptocarpus. The Gloxinias were all of 

 the erect form, and bore numbers of high-qualitv 

 flowers. (Silver Flora Medal.) 



Messrs. Wm. Cutbush & Son, Highgate, Lon- 

 don, arranged a large semi-circular group of 

 Palms, Codiseums (Crotons), Dracaenas, and 

 Hydrangeas. 



Messrs. H. Cannell & Sons, Swanley, Kent, 

 again contributed trusses of Zonal Pelargoniums. 

 Next to these bright flowers, Messrs. Cannell 

 displayed a good selection of Fuchsias in pots 

 and some splendid Cannas. 



Messrs. H. B. Mat & Sons, Upper Edmonton, 

 showed Lantanas Drop d'Or and Chelsea Gem ; 

 Heliotropes bearing large trusses of bloom, 

 Ixoras in variety; Swainsonia galegifolia and 

 bedding Verbenas. (Silver Banksian Medal.) 



Vivian Phillips, Esq., Crofton Court, Or- 

 pington (gr. Mr. T. Hobbs), displayed a group 

 of excellent Calceolarias. (Silver Flora MedaL) 



Messrs. Bees Ltd., Liverpool, showed a small 

 but choice collection of rock plants nicely ar- 

 ranged in the annexe. Dracocephalum bulla- 

 tum, Weldenia Candida, Primula yunnanensis, 

 P. pulchella and P. membranifolia were all 

 good. This exhibit was awarded the Silver Cup 

 offered by Mr. Reginald Farrer (see Gardeners' 

 Chronicle, May 4, 1912, p. 304). 



Messrs. Whitelegg & Page, Chislehurst, 

 Kent, made a bright show with Geums, Heu- 

 cheras, Delphiniums, Anchusas and Calceolarias. 

 (Bronze Flora Medal.) 



Mt. Amos Perry, Enfield, Middlesex, showed 

 some exceptionally good varieties of the Oriental 

 Poppy, strong spikes of Dictamnus caucasicus 

 and other hardy plants. (Silver Flora Medal.) 



Messrs. Bakeb, Wolverhampton, exhibited 

 well-flowered spikes of herbaceous Lupins ; varie- 

 ties of Papaver orientale, and Iris. In the middle 

 of this good display we noted profusely-flowered 

 sprays of the Rambler Rose " Dorothv Jeavons" 

 — a desirable variety. (Bronze Banksian Medal.) 



Mr. L. R. Russell, Richmond > arranged a 

 very attractive length of rockwork nicely planted 

 with Alpines in quantity. The long stretch was 

 broken by batches of Campanula Backhousei with 

 large white blooms, and various rock plants. 



