November 8, 1893.] 



Garden and Forest. 



469 



one of the most beautiful of all the Firs which are hardy here ; 

 it ought to be more often seen. 



The fine plant of Ouercus dentata, described by our corre- 

 spondent four years ~ago, never recovered after having been 

 removed to a new position, and is dead. Pueraria Thun- 

 bergiana and the Japanese form of Viburnum Opulus were still 

 in bloom on the 30th day of October. In a neglected corner of 

 the garden is a colony of self-sown plants of Viburnum Sie- 

 boldii, furnishing another evidence of the power possessed by 

 some Japanese plants to naturalize themselves in our climate. 



Providence, R. 1. E. W. Davis. 



Autumn in a West Virginia Garden. 



To the Editor of Garden anif Forest : 



Sir, — During the last week we have gathered blossoms from 

 twenty varieties of outdoor Roses, and several more are full of 

 buds. Isabella Sprunt is blooming as profusely as though it 

 were June, and we have had many tiowers from such standard 

 varieties as La France, Hermosa, Bougere, Homer and Sou- 

 venir d'un Ami. A few mild days have opened the buds of 

 Hypericum Moserianum, which is strikingly handsome in one 

 of the flower-borders. These, are bright with Marigolds, Pe- 

 tunias, Portulacas, Asters and Morning-glories running riot 

 everywhere. Chrysanthemums are opening, and Dahlias 

 blooming profusely, so that the garden is still a cheerful 

 place. 



Locust sprouts that were cut down with a scythe have fringed 

 themselves most fantastically with delicate vine-like sprays 

 and tendrils and minute foliage, giving them a graceful and 

 airy appearance, as of some rare product of a horticulturist's 

 taste and skill. These sprays are very effective in bouquets, and 

 form an exquisite bordering for vases and baskets of flowers. 



Another outdoor pleasure that we are now enjoying is the 



harvesting of our crop of Elaeagnus-berries from one small 



tree or bush of Elseagnus umbellatus. This tree is loaded down 



with the pretty speckled berries, which can be picked off in 



handf uls, and are pleasant eating when made into a sauce. They 



are still acid, but will be sweet and ripe later in November. 



They are now in best condition for cooking purposes. This 



Elaeagnus is a charming and valuable addition to the choicest 



shrubbery. a n ^ -v 



Rose Brake, W. Va. Umtske Dandridge. 



Exhibitions. 



Chrysanthemums at Short Hills, New Jersey. 



WHETHER owing to the great popularity of the Chrysan- 

 themum, or to a constantly increasing appreciation of the 

 flower-shows now regularly offered by Pitcher & Manda, I 

 found on Saturday a very host of visitors thronging the paths 

 and greenhouses at Short Hills. It is fortunate that at this sea- 

 son the greenhouses are filled with the masses of high-colored 

 Chrysanthemums, for other flowers would seem dull to visit- 

 ors who arrive at this stafion on a bright autumn day and find 

 every vista glowing with autumnal tints. However, there are 

 no color masses which can vie with the Chrysanthemum, and 

 at the United States Nurseries one always finds these flowers 

 in bewildering profusion. The houses of the hill-range, being 

 200 feet by 25 feet, make excellent show-places, and three of 

 these were utilized for the Chrysanthemums, the upper one 

 containing the specimen and other plants arranged for effect, 

 while the two adjacent ones were packed as closely as possi- 

 ble, mostly with tested seedlings grown to single stems and 

 specimen flowers. 



The show-house was arranged with winding paths leading 

 among groups of plants irregularly disposed and breaking all 

 extensive vistas. The effect of this disposition is excellent, as 

 one is less distracted by overpowering masses of color andean 

 the better enjoy each good specimen or special composition 

 of various plants. I cannot but think that our exhibitors do 

 not yet do the best possible with their wealth of material, per- 

 haps because of this very wealth. A well-grown specimen 

 Chrysanthemum-plant of great dimensions and covered with 

 countless noble flowers is a fitting adornment for a palace, but 

 it certamly requires a foil of space or foliage if it is to be 

 thoroughly enjoyed. To mass these plants ever so artfully 

 and harmoniously is to detract from their beauty very mate- 

 rially. Like a good statue, a noble plant should have a niche 

 where its beauty of form and color could be enjoyed without 

 disturbing influences. However, there is a limit to green- 

 house space, and there possibly may be refinements not pos- 

 sible, especially so early in the season, before the requirements 

 of the numerous outside exhibitions have thinned out the plants. 



Among fine specimens, especially notable ones were A. G. 

 Ramsay, a very dark Indian red, and Louis Menand, deep 

 madder-brown, both valuable as among the best of the darker 

 varieties. Dr. Julius Cullendrear is a striking flower of the 

 largest size, perfectly incurved, with pale primrose tints. Some 

 single specimens of these were especially good. There were 

 also numerous specimens of the better-known earlier introduc- 

 tions of the establishment, as Hicks Arnold, Mrs. Alpheus 

 Hardy, Miss Anna Manda, Mrs. E. D. Adams, Mrs. J. H. Wright 

 and Mrs. W. L. Kimball. Such is the inherent love of sim- 

 plicity in civilized man that one variety here has for several 

 years attracted great admiration at these shows and other ex- 

 hibitions. It is called the Daisy, and well-grown plants of it 

 are now covered with simple daisy-like flowers with yellow 

 centres and white petals. They grow this into fine specimen 

 plants here, and one always notices that visitors greet it with a 

 murmur of pleased surprise, even though its individual flow- 

 ers, from the fanciers' point of view, are of the weed, weedy. 

 Perhaps the striking distinctness of tliis flower among the mas- 

 sive ones accents a specimen so that it stands out more boldly 

 than the larger kinds as a separate entity. 



The contiguous houses seemed to contain about as many 

 plants as last year, when 33,000 new seedlings were producing 

 flowers ; however, the number of varieties had been reduced to 

 1,200, with numerous specimens of each, all in a high state of 

 cultivation, though comparatively few of them had yet per- 

 fected their flowers, and it was yet too soon to do justice to 

 their merits. The most striking one in a forward state was 

 No. 1500, named Pitcher & Manda. This is a sensational 

 flower of great distinctness, and evidently a prize of the first 

 class. It is a massive reflexed flower of largest size, very full, 

 crowded with petals of medium width. The general effect is 

 of pearly white, with a telling vivid chrome-yellow centre. In 

 some of the flowers this color also showed on the tips of the 

 petals, outlining the flower with a thin circle of yellow. Mrs. 

 James B. Crane was a glistening pink flower, very closely in- 

 curved, and of the largest size. This variety seemed to rep- 

 resent an advance in the abundance of narrow-ridged petals, 

 and promises to be the largest of incurved flowers. Other fine 

 new pinks were named Mrs. S. R. Van Duzer, Adele Merz, 

 Dorothy Toler, Mrs. Howard Rinek, very hairy. 



The most striking general feature of the collection was the 

 abundance and variety of first-rate yellow flowers, perhaps the 

 most valuable and satisfactory of all Chrysanthemums. I 

 should say that there were a score of these, any one of which 

 would have made a sensation only a few years ago, and there 

 may be prize-takers among these, but one hesitates to forecast 

 yellows on a casual scrutiny. Some very promising ones were 

 No. 323, a yellow Harry May ; Mrs. George Morgan, very dark ; 

 Mrs. Zena Crane, soft pure yellow ; Mrs. Georgiana Bramhall, 

 fine lemon-yellow, incurved ; No. 222, rich yellow, very deep, 

 with drooping florets, and Mrs. George M. Pullman, a niedium 

 yellow, incurved. No. 515 was a less regular flower, with 

 broad golden petals lined terra cotta, and twisted and curled in 

 delightful disorder. White flowers there were in profusion, 

 many very fine ones, but possibly none which would prove a 

 distinct advance, judging from present condition, of course. 

 No. 561 may prove an exception from its earliness, being 

 already nearly over. The best have been named Mrs. Mar- 

 shall Crane, Miss Florence Pullman, Mr. H. McK., Twombley 

 and Dunscomb. 



Of the fancy colors there was an especially good terra cotta. 

 No. 557, from Mrs. Hardy, and No. 485, a shaded rose; Nos. 

 131 and 218 were two good incurved pink kinds, the latter hav- 

 ing glandular hairs. A most disfinct flower was Mrs. Florence 

 P. Lang, having a white flower, shading to light rose-pink, and 

 having a most peculiar crystal-like glistening effect. The Liv- 

 ingston is a brownish spotted variety in the way of Leopard. 



It is curious that Anemone-flowered Chrysanthemums have 

 lost their popularity among the growers. It cannot be because 

 they are lacking in size. There is one here, Mrs. F. Gordon 

 Dexter, as large as an annual Sunflower. They are certainly 

 lovely flowers if not grown too formally, and there is a new 

 importation here from Japan which is worth inspection. Those 

 who grow Chrysanthemums for their pleasure will find a selec- 

 tion of these and the less formal kinds most pleasing in a col- 

 lection, and very useful in a decorative way. They are great 

 favorites, evidently, with the Japanese. 



Of other flowers hybrid Tuberous Begonias were most in 

 force, there being about 2,000 square feet of plants in fine 

 flower. Those massed to color were especially effective. Tlie 

 Orchid-houses contained the usual supply of plants with the 

 flowers of the season, perhaps the most notable plant being 

 an especially richly colored Cattleya labiata. 



New York. G, 



