472 



Garden and Forest. 



[November 28, 1888. 



New or Little Known Plants. 



Pentstemon rotundifolius. * 



TO the red-flowered Pentstemons, which are among 

 the most ornamental species of this showy genus, 

 Mr. Pringle last year made an interesting addition, of 

 which Mr. Faxon has now given us an excellent figure. 

 As found growing from the crevices of cliffs in the moun- 

 tains about Chihuahua, with its large panicles of scarlet 

 flowers drooping over the rocks, its habit seems very 

 unique. In the character of the flowers it appears to be 

 most nearly related to P. centrantliifolius of Southern Cali- 

 fornia and Arizona, having the same narrow, tubular 

 corolla, with a nearly equally lobed, erect limb, though in 

 this respect it is also much like P. Eatoni The plant is 

 very glabrous and glaucous throughout, woody at base, 

 and the stem quite leafy. The thick leathery leaves are 

 rounded and entire, and, except the lowermost, are closely 

 sessile. Pentstemon rotundifolius flowered during the pre- 

 sent season in the Royal Gardens, Kevi^, from seed collected 

 by Mr. Pringle. 6". W. 



Foreign Correspondence. 



Loudon Letter. 



THE season has come when not a single important 

 class of plants is in full bloom. I went through 

 some of the great nurseries this week, and was surprised 

 to find them so flowerless. Chrysanthemums, which from 

 November through the winter occupy the attention of 

 all gardeners, have, it is true, a few very fine forerunners, 

 which tend to enliven our green-houses, and it is satisfact- 

 ory to see that every season brings new early varieties of 

 this flower. Frenchmen seem to be very active just now 

 in raising new October-blooming sorts of the Japanese and 

 other large flowered sections, and at the meeting of the 

 Royal Horticultural Society on Tuesday last there was 

 quite an array of new varieties, of which four only were 

 considered worthy of first-class certificates. Having re- 

 gard to the enormous number of varieties now in cultiva- 

 tion, and the obvious difficulty in comparing the new with 

 the old, the committee are wise in not awarding certifi- 

 cates precipitately. Of the four certificated, the finest by 

 far was one called Sunflower belonging to the Japanese 

 section. It has large flowers and ver)' long florets, which 

 hang gracefully like a tassel. The color is the brightest 

 yellow imaginable. It was shown by W. Flolmes, the 

 Secretary of the National Chrysanthemum Society, who 

 considers it not only the finest early yellow, but one of the 

 best of all yellow Chrysanthemums of its class. Another 

 first-rate novelty is Lincoln's Inn. It is a large flower with 

 shortish florets, which are a rich, brown crimson on the upper 

 side, and jrellovvish below. Edwin Molyneux, also certifi- 

 cated, is a large and not very beautiful flower, being coarse 

 in the opinion of many. It is like that named Comte 

 de Germin)^ but is of a brighter chestnut-crimson. The 

 fourth sort was Magicienne, with large flowers and reflexed 

 florets of a reddish orange hue. Besides these a fifth 

 sort named Capucine was selected on account of its flori- 

 ferousness. The flowers are small, the color bronzy 

 orange, and the habit of growth good. It is called a 

 " decorative variety." Among the other new sorts shown 

 I singled out the following (all Japanese sorts) as the best : 

 C. j. Quentus, pink ; Charlotte de Montcalrier, long florets, 

 pink ; Madame C. Souchet, chestnut-crimson, reflexed ; 

 Othello, yellow and crimson ; C. Wagstaffe, good, large, 

 pure white ; T. Stevens, pale pink ; Mad. Louise Leroy, 

 white and pink ; and C. Delmas, crimson. Some of these 

 were scarcely forward enough to allow us to judge ade- 

 quately of their merits, and consequently were passed 

 over by the committee 



A few Orchids of exceptional interest were shown, and 

 three of them were certificated. The most remarkable was 

 the Cattleya Lamberhurst Hybrid, a cross between C 



citrina, which always grows downvvfards, and has large, 

 wax-like flowers of deep yellow, and C. intermedia, a well- 

 known old species. The hybrid has its growth with a 

 decided downward tendency, the flowers are not so large 

 as those of C. citrina, the sepals and petals are blush-pink, 

 while the labellum is prettily marked with rose-pink and 

 white. Though not a gorgeous Orchid, it is extremel)^ 

 pretty, and possesses a great interest for growers. An- 

 other new hybrid, also raised by the late Dr. Harris, of 

 Lamberhurst, wasCtf/Z/ey (J Harrisii, a cross between C.Mendelii 

 and C. superha. In this case, too, the characters of the 

 parents are strikingly blended in the cross. The flowers 

 are about as large as those of C. superha, and resemble 

 those of that species in form. The sepals are rose-colored, 

 the broader petals deep rose, while the lip is a beautiful 

 crimson-carmine. These two hybrids came from Baron 

 Schroeder's rich collection at Egham, and are extremely 

 rare. Another certificated Orchid was a new Oncidium, 

 shown under the name of 0. Mantieri. It is a supposed 

 natural hybrid between 0. Forbesi and 0. Marshallianum. 

 It much resembles the first named in growth and in flowers, 

 though there are evident traces in its features of the showy 

 yellow of 0. Marshallianuin. It will, no doubt, prove a 

 valuable plant if it habitually flowers in October, when 

 Orchid-houses require enlivening. 



One of these Orchids came from Messrs. Veitch, who 

 also won a certificate for their new Javanese Rhododendron 

 named Yellow Perfection, which is far the finest pure 

 yellow sort yet raised. The truss is enormous, and the 

 flowers are two inches across, with broad, overlapping 

 petals which are of the clearest chrome-yellow. Messrs. 

 Veitch themselves think that this is one of the greatest 

 strides they have made in this race of green-house Rho- 

 dodendrons. These shrubs are now a most important 

 class of green-house plants, and, since their culture is be- 

 coming better understood, they are becoming popular in 

 all good gardens. In an intermediate house, not an ordi- 

 nary green-house, they require the simplest treatment, 

 and they may be called perpetual bloomers, as they sel- 

 dom are out of flower. At Veitch's nursery one can see, 

 at the present time, a large house full of flowering speci- 

 mens, representing a large number of sorts, every one 

 beautiful. In color some of the older kinds have not been 

 excelled by the newer hybrids. None are now more pleas- 

 ing in color than the old Taylori, one of the earliest 

 hybrids, and Princess Royal, also one of the first. But 

 the improvement has been in size of truss and bloom, as 

 well as in the shape of the flower. I look upon these 

 Rhododendron hybrids as one of the best among the many 

 great things accomplished by the Veitches during the pres- 

 ent generation, and their name will always live in connection 

 with these beautiful plants. The great desideratum now 

 is a new Rhododendron of a distinct color which would 

 hybridize with the present race. 



London, October 35th, 1SS8. 



W. Goldring. 



* p. ROTUNDIFOLIUS, Gray, Pj-cc. AfU€7-. Acad., 

 ser., iv. 264, f. 31. 



x.xii. 307. Gardeners^ Chronicle, 3 



Cultural Department. 



The Flower Garden. 



AS oiu' garden is on the north shore of Long Island, it is not 

 visited by frosts so early as are those of our more inland 

 neighbors, and this year has been exceptionally mild. Until 

 to-day, Nov. 15th, but two slight frosts have occurred. The 

 garden, therefore, is still gay with the blossoms of many plants. 

 Chrysanthemums are now in their glory, and make a 

 magnificent dispay where massed in banks against the south 

 side of buildings, and even in open garden beds where they 

 have been grown all summer. Wind and rain batters them 

 about and injures the flowers if left unsupported, but where 

 well tied up to a stake, the flowers are held steady and 

 kept clean, and are in fine condition. Under out-door cultiva- 

 tion the colors are deeper than when the flowers are produced 

 under glass, and in the case of some white-flowered varieties 

 like Domination they display quite a lilac or purple tint. With 

 Elaine, Fair Maid of' Guernsey and some other whites, how- 

 ever, this rule does not hold good. Among our finest out-door 

 varieties this year are Gloriosum, Gloria Mundi and Golden 

 Dragon, yellow; Elaine, Jessica, Falconer's Early, Dominadon 



