Marcb 21, ISM. 



JOUKXAL OF HOKTICULXTJBB AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



227 



there were Feruck IChan, Prince Albert, Havelock, and Mi- 

 mosa. Koning von Holland. Ida, and Due de Malakoff were 

 the only yellows, and Haydn the only mauve. 



In the Amateurs' Class the only exhibitors wore Mr. 

 Young, gardener to K. Barclay, Esq., Highgate, and Mr. 

 Wheeler, gardener to Sir F. H. Goldsmidt. Regent's Park, 

 who Tvere respectively first and second, and the spikes were 

 a ^eat improvement on those shown last year. 



Early Tulips were exhibited by Messrs. Cutbush and W. 

 Paul, both in the class and in numerous coUeotions, the 

 former taking the highest awai-d in both cases with very 

 large flowers. The kinds shown by Messrs. Cutbush were 

 chiefly White Pottebakker, Proserpine, Fabiola, Coulenr Car- 

 dinal, a fine reddish scarlet, Keizevkroon, and Duchess of 

 Parma, very showy, Touvnesol, and Termilion BriUianc. In 

 Mr. Paul's collections, in addition to several of the above, we 

 noticed Eoi Pepin, a very showy white and red, Archduc 

 d'Autriohe, a very fine crimson and yellow, and Cerise Gris 

 de Lin, lilac rose, margined with yellowish white, very 

 distinct in colour. Tail der Neer was also a good purplish 

 violet. 



Roses in pots came from Messrs. Paul & Son ; conspicuous 

 among these was John Hopper, which stood alone in the 

 ftilness of its beauty, and dazzling in colour. Madame 

 Falcot and President were also very good. Mr. TT. Paul 

 contributed three excellent boxes of cut blooms, among 

 which were escellent examples of Gloire de Dijon, President, 

 George Paul, Madame "\'ictor Verdier, Lord Macaulay, Rev. 

 H. Dombrain, Marquise de Poucault, Senateui', Comtesse 

 de la Barthe, a pretty yellow Tea, Safi-ano, and Alba Rosea, 

 very pretty and delicate in colour. 



Cut Camellias in fine condition were numerously shown 

 by Messrs. Lee, Hammersmith, W. Paul, B. S. WQliams, 

 Mr. Trnssler, gardener to D. J. Kay, Esq., Hoddesdon, and 

 Mr. Todd, gardener to Sir C. Isham, Bart., Lamport HaU; 

 and Mr. Bull sent a collection of very good specimen plants, 

 among which the most remarkable were Mrs. Abbey Wilder, 

 Raffia, and Valtevaredo. 



Collections of flowering and fine-foliaged plants were 

 exhibited by 3Ir. Wheeler, Mr. Young, and Mr. B. S. 

 Williams. Among those from the latter were Hedaroma 

 Hookeri in fine bloom, and a fine plant of Glei- 

 ohenia semivestata; whUe Mr. Wheeler had Thyrsacan- 

 thus rutuans and a weU-bloomed specimen of Azalea 

 Broughtoni, besides Marantas, a Dieksonia, and other plants 

 with ornamental foliage, Deutzia, Cytisus, >ie. Mr. Williams 

 likewise showed a small collection of new and rare plants, 

 <diiefly consisting of Agave, Yucca, andDracsna, togetherwith 

 Beaucarnea strieta ; also a new Azalea, Souvenii' de Prince 

 Albert, rose, broadly-edged with white, and Pandanus Linnsi. 

 From Mr. Bull came the collection of Aucubas fully noticed 

 in our Floral Committee report of last week, the female 

 Aucuba and A. himalaica in fruit, Camellia Prince CamUle, a 

 finely imbricated red ; Asplenium myriophyllum, from South 

 America, with very graceful finely-divided fr-onds ; Anthu- 

 rium augustioranum ; Aglaonema commutatum in fruit, 

 and a double Chinese Primula with large rosy purple flowers. 



Mr. Veitch sent Rhododendrons, Princess Helena and 

 Princess Alexandra, both of them pretty hybrid varieties 

 apparently obtained fr-om Jasminiflorum, partaking of that 

 character, but having a long tube, in Princess Alice, bright 

 rose, the flower a rosy blush ; whdst Princess Alexandra is 

 pale blush with orange stamens and very pretty. 



Messrs. E. G. Henderson sent Aucubas in flower and 

 berry, and the male plant of the variety pictui-atum, Eudgea 

 leucocephala with large green foliage and terminal clusters 

 of pure white flowers ; excellent collections of Cyclamens, 

 including several very pretty varieties of pei-sicum. Fern- 

 leaved and Anemone-leaved Chinese Primulas, and a pretty 

 variety called carminata splendens with salmon rose flowers. 

 Mr. Todman, gardener to E. Hudson, Esq., Clapham Park, 

 exhibited some good double and single Chinese Primroses ; 

 Mr. Weatherell, Finchley, Primulas and Cinerarias in ex- 

 cellent bloom ; Mr. Paul, a collection of Crocuses and Nar- 

 cissus, and some pots of LUy of the Valley, very fine both 

 as regards flowers and foliage ; Mr. Young, Tulips ; and, 

 lastly, Mr. Laing, Twickenham, two plants of the com- 

 mon Aucuba, bearing an abundance of its beautiful coral 

 red fr'uit, and in this state formiug highly decorative objects. 

 There can now be little doubt that when the male plant 



becomes more widely disseminated, the Aucuba will be as 

 much valued in ornamental gardening for its fruit as it now 

 is for its foUage. 



EOYAl HORTICULTFR.iL SOCIETY. 



WEEKLY SHOW, MAKCH IStH. 



Ox this occasion Messrs. Lee sent a very handsome 

 specimen CameUia Madonna, also some beautiful cut blooms 

 of Countess of Orkney, Jenny Lind, Leeana superba, and 

 others ; Lyeaste eruenta and Skinneri, Dendrobium nobilCj 

 and five standai'd Azaleas in excellent bloom. From Mr. 

 BuU came Brahea dulcis, Cypripedium barbatum giganteum 

 and villosum, Dracienas, Platycei"ium aleicorne, a fine speci- 

 men, and plates of his new Chrysanthemum Sensation, vrith 

 variegated foliage, and Verbena Popular, also with variegated 

 leaves. Messrs. A. Henderson sent a small miscellaneous 

 collection of spring floweringplant3,includingGastrolobiums, 

 a GrevUlea, Rhododendron ciliatum, &c., and HebecUnium 

 giganteum, with lavender Ageratum-like flowers ; Mr. 

 Harding, Maddox Street, five very dwai-f and compact weU- 

 bloomed standard Azaleas for the dinner-table; the Rev. 

 G. Cheere, Anne Boleyn Pinks ; Messrs. Lucking & Greeves, 

 similar exhibitions to those of previous weeks ; Mi-. Boyce, 

 Stoekwell, Chinese Primulas ; and Mr. Long, gardener to Sir 

 H. Hume Campbell, a flower of the Life Plant. Mr. 

 Brown, gardener to Mrs. Ashton, Elmdon Hall, exhibited 

 some fine Easter Beurre Pears fr-om a small tree on a south 

 wall, the crop numbering 130; and Mr. Melville, Dalmeny 

 Park, two heads of " Improved Milan Sprouting Cabbage " 

 obtained by crossing with Brussels Sprouts, and having the 

 same appearance and being as compact as the latter vege- 

 table ; also a green-leaved Sea-kale, said to be easier to 

 blanch than the purple kind. 



LivEKPOOL FiiOWEE Show. — There was an excellent exhi- 

 bition of spring flowers, but we must defer o-ar report till 

 next week. 



MUSHROOM POECmG. 



As my mode of Mushroom growing with chanibers under- 

 neath is somewhat different from the common mode, per- 

 haps some of your numerous readers will be glad to know 

 how I succeeded. Between the time of writing to you 

 and seeing your answer, which was given in your Journal 

 of the 2Sth ult., page 173, my Mushrooms had begun to 

 appear by thousands. I then allowed the dung in the 

 chambers to cocl down as it would, and I buUt up a lining 

 with a mixture of stable-dung and leaves, -i feet high by 

 2i feet wide, along the front of the beds and outside the 

 chamber doors. I covered with straw and long dung, and 

 the result has been that I now have Mushrooms in abun- 

 dance, which for size, thickness, and flavour by far sur- 

 pass all others that ever I saw grown in a Mushroom-house 

 or elsewhere. The chambers underneath the beds form an 

 excellent place for forcing Sea-kale in pots, from which I 

 have cut a dish every other day since the Sth of Novem- 

 ber.— H. L. 



SUNK HOUSES WITHOUT FIRE HEAT. 

 In your Journal (No. 206), Mr. Geyelin has given a plan 

 for a sunk pit, which is most ingenious, and, I think, quite 

 practicable. He will, however, pardon me for suggesting 

 the following alterations. No benefit, but rather the reverse, 

 is obtained by raising the hotbed so high above the ground. 

 It should be level with the surface, and then the walls of 

 the sunk greenhouse or pit need not be more than 2 feet 

 above the level of the sod. The coping on the top of the 

 walls should be removed, and a wall-plate, fr-amed to the 

 rafters, substituted in its place, so that the sashes might be 

 drawn up or down from the outside, in the same manner, 

 and with the same ease as in a common Cucumber-frame. 

 Many persons, however, might object to the hotbeds at the 

 sides. I would, therefore, suggest instead, that a sunk area 

 2 or 3 feet wide, reaching down to the tbundations of the 

 walls, should surround the building on all sides, to be filled 

 with fresh stable-dung or tan, and boarded over to keep off 

 rain. This would confer a double benefit — viz., warmth 



