12 



JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



t July 6, 1876. 



can convey an adequate idea of D.Goldieana to those who have 

 not had an opportunity of seeing the plant. 



It is not only not like any other known species or variety, 

 but is altogether unlike them. In the recognised type the 

 leaves of Draosenas are more or less lanceolate, and are erect 

 or drooping ; but of this species the leaves are cordate, 6 or 

 7 inches long by 5 to 6 inches broad in the wideft part, and 

 are nearly horizontal. Hitherto, also, the colouring in the 

 foliage of Dracamas has been arranged longitudinally, but in 

 this plant it is transverse. It is difficult to say which of its 

 two colours preponderate, the zebra-like markings of silvery 

 grey occupying as much space as the olive green. 



The accompanying figure, drawn on a reduced soale by per- 

 mission of Mr. Bull from one of his plants, gives a correct 

 representation. 



As an exhibition plant in a collection of Dracaenas this 

 species is very conspicuous, while as a decorative plant it can- 

 not fail to command attention by its stateliness of habit and 

 by the conspicuous yet chaste markings of its glossy marbled 

 foliage. 



The history of the plant is remarkable. It was discovered 

 by Mr. Goldie in Africa, and sent by him to the Botanic Gar- 

 dens at Glasgow. On its being proved there a description of 

 it was written by the Curator, Mr. Bullen ; and on this de- 

 scription and in relying on the judgment and character of the 

 Curator, Mr. Bull without seeing the plant purchased it. It 

 is not yet in commerce. 



ROSE STOCKS. 



The experience of Mr. Peach, page 341, as to the comparative 

 merits of Briar and Manetti stocks may be quite what he 

 describes it; but it must not be supposed that the Briar is 

 everywhere an inferior stock, or tender. 



I followed a gentleman tenant of mine here (Cheshire S.) 

 who had budded largely on the Briar, and then (ten years ago) 

 purchased his stock of Roses. I have many of them still, and 

 they must be at least thirteen years old. Most of them are in 

 great vigour, and promising to continue so. The difficulty with 

 some is to keep them in reasonable bounds. A Gloire de Dijon 

 is now covering a considerable space of wall, and a picture of 

 health and beauty ; and another, which has been left uncut 

 (exoept taking out old wood), is equally large and flourishing. 

 As to the hardiness of the Briar, do not Mr. Peach's facts of 

 the winter in Northamptonshire of 1860 prove too much ? If 

 " large Oak trees which had stood ' the battle and the breeze ' 

 two or three hundred years " were killed by that frost, it must 

 have been a singularly exceptional case. 



The Dog Rose grows here naturally very fine ; I never saw 

 it anywhere finer. I have many Roses on the Manetti. They 

 neither do as well generally as RoseB on the Briar, and I find 

 the stock shoots from the Manetti so like many of the Roses as 

 to be difficult to distinguish. 



Attraoted by Mr. Prince's (Oxford) catalogue of RoBes on 

 the seedling Briar, I last winter obtained and planted some 

 twenty of them. All nearly are now in fine healthy growth, 

 and with a promise of bloom that would not disgrace Roses 

 which had been in position two years. I observe Mr. Peach 

 says the seedling Briar as a stock is not open to the same ob- 

 jection as the "hedgerow or mop-headed" stocks. With 

 what he says about those I quite agree, and as to their unsight- 

 liness, except the flowers. Mr. Prince's method of raising 

 stocks promises ,1 think, a great advance in Rose culture, and I 

 shall not be surprised, with all deference to Mr. Peach, if the 

 seedling Briar does not put his pet Manetti's " nose out." 



I observe on reading the Journal of Horticulture that a 

 diversity of opinion and experience is not confined to growing 

 Roses, and may teach us to be thankful that we have so much 

 choice, that what will not succeed in one situation and soil 

 will in another. Indeed it would be scarcely possible to find 

 the place where something will not really flourish, and that is 

 the thing when found out to cultivate. Some of our most 

 beautiful plants badly grown are little better than weeds, and 

 so the converse of common things. — V. 



flowered, although ingrowth and appearance they seem to have 

 done the best. I conclude they have run to leaf. But what 

 makes it the more remarkable that this kind should alone have 

 failed is, that the half of the plants have received rather different 

 treatment to the other half. One row (about fifteen plants) 

 was removed (owing to being in the way of some alterations) in 

 November, and the other row remained where first planted in 

 the beginning of August. I received the runners from a friend, 

 and know that they were taken from fruiting plants. 



I shall not layer from these plants, but as the perusal oT 

 your Journal has caused me to estimate this variety as one of 

 the very best I shall let my present plants remain another year, 

 and I write to ask whether I should submit them to any special 

 treatment, such as cutting off the leaves. My soil is a light- 

 coloured virgin loam (Bracken and Foxgloves preceded the 

 Strawberries), and the ground was well trenohed and manured 

 for planting, but no manure has been applied since. I shall bn 

 glad to have the opinions of practical correspondents on this 

 matter. — J. T. 



BURTON-ON-TRENT SHOW. 



This Show, held on the 28th inst., was the finest the Society 

 ever bad ; from fifteen to twenty thousand people were on the 

 ground, all of whom seemed to thoroughly appreciate the beau- 

 tiful plantB and fruit that was collected together. 



Mr. Cypher of Cheltenham was first for the twelve stove and 

 greenhouse plants, the most noticeable being Anthurium Scher- 

 zerianum, forty-six spathes, a beautiful plant ; Gleichenia rupes- 

 tris, 5 feet through ; Stephanotia floribunda, very superior ; 

 Croton WeiBmannii, 6 feet by 5 feet ; Dracopbyllum gracile, 

 very good; Allamanda Hendersonii and A grandiflora, &c. Mr. 

 Pilgrim, Cheltenham, waB second ; Phcenocoma prolifera, Croton 

 pictnm, Dipladenia Brearleyana, Bougainvillea glabra, Croton 

 longiflorum, Dracopbyllum gracile, &c, being in admirable condi- 

 tion. Mr. Tudgy, Worcester, being third ; Dipladenia amabilis, 

 Anthurium Scherzeriannm.with over forty spathes ; Cocos Wed- 

 deliana, a Bougainvillea, and Allamanda grandiflora being the 

 best plants in his collection. The other exhibits do not call for 

 especial mention, being mainly contributed from the neighbour- 

 ing gentlemen's seats; but certainly without them the Show 

 would have lost most of its interest, as the plants were admir- 

 able specimens of culture. The Rangemore collection is always 

 a special feature of this Show — in fact is a show in itself. 



Grapes were sadly in want of colour, but very fine in bunch 

 and berry. Peaches and Nectarines were very fine, the winning 

 balf-dozen Peaches weighing i lbs. The Pines were very good, 

 the winning Queen weighing 5 lbs. The Cherries and Straw- 

 berries were not good. Vegetables were not quite so good as in 

 other years, yet many collections deserved much praiae. — J. 



STRAWBERRIES. 

 Last year I planted runners of about nine varieties of Straw- 

 berries, selected from the " election " lists in your Journal. 

 With one exception the greater proportion of plants of each 

 variety have flowered, and are setting their fruit. The excep- 

 tion is Sir Joseph Paxton, of whioh not a single plant has 



GARDENERS' ROYAL BENEVOLENT 

 INSTITUTION. 



The anniversary dinner of the Gardeners' Royal Benevolent 

 Institution was held at the Albion Tavern, Aldersgate Street, 

 on the evening of Friday last. The chair was occupied by Dr. 

 Hogg, Secretary of the Royal Horticultural Society, who was 

 supported on the right by Lord Alfred S. Churchill, Rev. C. P. 

 Peach, Mr. Robert Wrench the Treasurer, Mr. Frank Fuller, 

 Mr. Richard Smith, Mr. T. F. Rive's, Mr. J. Bolton, &c. ; and 

 on the left by Mr. G. F. Wilson, F.R.S., Dr. Masters, F.R.S., 

 Professor Bentley, Mr. Marnock, Mr. William Paul, Mr. E. J. 

 Beale, Mr. Charles Lee, Arc. ; and among the rest of the company 

 were Rev. Canon Hole, Mr. T. Moore, Mr. B. S. WilliamB, Mr. 

 Charles Turner, Mr. Weeks, Mr. Deal, Mr. James Gray, Mr. 

 Weston, Mr. H. J. Adams, Mr. A. C. Wheeler, and a large 

 gathering of horticulturists to the number of a hundred or more. 



This was one of the finest — some say the finest — meeting the 

 Institution has ever had. The room, which is far superior for 

 the purpose to that at the London Tavern where the dinners 

 have been held for many years, was splendidly decorated, Mr. 

 B. S. Williams, Messrs. J. & C. Lee, MesBrs. Veitch & Sons, and 

 Mr. Charles Turner having contributed most liberally and gra- 

 tuitously handsome specimen plants of Palms, Cycads, Tree 

 Ferns, Dracajnas, Caladiums, and other fine-foliaged plants 

 interspersed with other plantB in bloom, and whioh were not 

 lumped together in a mass as formerly, but distributed all over 

 the room wherever they could be introduced with the greatest 

 effect. The table was richly furnished with the ample resources 

 of the establishment, which were greatly helped by several 

 elaborate plateaux and groups of fruit and flowers presented for 

 the occasion by Mr. Buck and Mr. Dickson, the two great florists 

 and bouquetists of Covent Garden. Nothing could exceed in 

 beauty and richneBS of quality the group sent by Mr. Buck," 

 which graced the head of the table in front of the Chairman ; 

 and the general effect of the whole was such as to call forth the 

 admiration of everyone who waB present. Even the toastmaster 



