39 2 



Garden and Forest. 



[Number 502. 



features of the outdoor displays. The greater number of 

 exhibitors have been Germans, but there has been con- 

 spicuous cooperation on the part of Belgians, English, 

 Italians, French and other nationalities. America has been 

 represented by but few displays, the most prominent being 

 a very large and fine exhibit of evaporated and prepared 

 fruits from California, and displays of various florist's 

 stock by W. A. Manda. The Americans have certainly lost 

 a distinct opportunity to push their fruit and inventions 

 into European markets. We are looking to Europe to 

 consume our apples and evaporated and canned fruits, and 

 cranberries and other fruits must eventually find an outlet 

 there. The authorities of the exposition urged the Ameri- 

 cans to exhibit, and certain Americans endeavored to 

 second their efforts. The apathy of our people in this 

 matter does not speak well for the much-vaunted American 

 thrift. The influx of American apples into Germany last 

 year has thoroughly aroused the people there, and the 

 pomological display at Hamburg represented the abun- 

 dance and excellence of the fruits of Germany and the 

 Tyrol. The effort was made largely for the purpose of 

 showing that the pomological resources of the Old World 

 are competent to meet the advances of the New World. A 

 thousand barrels of American apples and twenty-five bar- 

 rels of American cranberries should have been placed in 

 storage in Hamburg in 1896, and the entire course of the 

 exposition should have seen these products on exhibition, 

 and every public function should have seen them supplied 

 to the tables. It would be inexcusable if another great 

 European exhibition should be so completely ignored by 

 the American public. 



While the Austellung has been a continuous display 

 from the first of May until the early part of October, there 

 have been several great events, of which the spring exhi- 

 bition, the autumn exhibition and the pomological display 

 have been chief. The autumn show (Herbst-Austellung), 

 opening late in August and lasting a week, was undoubt- 

 edly the grandest display of plants and flowers ever made. 

 Over five hundred exhibitors were represented, and others 

 were turned away because of lack of room. It would be 

 futile to attempt to designate particular exhibits of great 

 merit, but one could not help observing the great Palm 

 exhibit of Winter, of Brodighera, Italy, the choice and rare 

 plants of Sanders, the incomparable Gladioli of Lemoine, 

 and the prodigal display of cut bloom by the Erfurter 

 Handelsgartner. The Erfurt display received the Laeisz 

 prize of one thousand marks for cut flowers. Prominent 

 features in this display were China Asters, tuberous Be- 

 gonias, Gladioli, Marigolds, Petunias, Dahlias, Verbenas, 

 Pansies, Zinnias. Celosias, Immortelles and Phloxes. 



Dahlias were profuse in the autumn display. Many 

 exhibits were permanent plantations in the grounds, but 

 not all of these were successful. It was apparent — as it is 

 to all Dahlia growers — that soil, season and date of plant- 

 ing exert most powerful influence upon the prolificacy and 

 character of bloom. In the Dahlia plantations the Cactus 

 and single classes were deservedly most popular. Match- 

 less was, perhaps, the leading variety. Three novelties 

 deserve special mention for great individuality and merit : 

 Perle de la tete d'Or (an unfortunate name for a white 

 variety) is a most beautiful clear white semi-Cactus French 

 novelty, of good habit and very floriferous, larger than 

 .Matchless, and, to my taste, the best introduced novelty 

 displayed at the exposition ; Cannell's Gem, a very fine 

 salmon-red Cactus Dahlia ; Stolzer Riese, a large and broad- 

 rayed single, with very long stems, maroon-claret shading to 

 rose. The hauptpreis of 100 marks was awarded to a collec- 

 tion of cut Dahlias comprising 800 varieties. Two striking 

 novelties exhibited as cut blooms were Loreley, a large shell- 

 pink Cactus, and Hohenzollern, a very lar^e salmon-buff 

 Cactus. The former is to be introduced in 1 898, and the latter 

 in 1899. Cannas were poor, and none of the prizes offered 

 for novelties were awarded. This does not prove that the 

 novelties may not have had distinct merit, but they did not 

 reach expectations in the grounds at Hamburg, a circum- 



stance which may have been due to soil, lateness of plant- 

 ing, or other local causes. 



The merit of the Austellung lay quite as much in its gen- 

 eral plan and effect as in the technical details, and it was 

 this general character which contributed mostly to its 

 wonderful financial success. Thousands of persons who 

 are not interested in horticulture itself must have been 

 touched with the possibilities of the art by visiting the 

 exposition, and must have received an insatiable desire to 

 enjoy the beauties of plants and to introduce them into 

 their own homes. 



Cornell University. -L. H. Bailey. 



Foreign Correspondence. 



London Letter. 



Hibiscus Manihot. — When treated as a greenhouse plant 

 this old annual species of Hibiscus grows to about a yard 

 in height, and is pyramidal shape, clothed with palmately- 

 lobed, dark green, smooth leaves about six inches long, 

 and produces in autumn handsome cup-shaped flowers, 

 five inches in diameter, colored golden-yellow with purple 

 centre. It is a native of China, but has long been natural- 

 ized in Bengal, and is commonly cultivated in tropical 

 countries. It was introduced into English gardens nearly 

 two hundred years ago, and has been tried as a summer 

 bedding plant. Recently it has attracted attention through 

 some plants that were sent to a meeting of the Royal Hor- 

 ticultural Society by Mr. Lambert, of Cookham, who sowed 

 the seeds in heat in February and grew the plants outside 

 in summer. They were shown in August, and received an 

 award of merit. 



Lilium Harrisii. — The Bermuda Lily is an extremely 

 popular garden plant in this country, large quantities of 

 the bulbs being annually imported from Bermuda, where 

 they are grown in fields for the American and European 

 markets, the annual output being estimated of the value of 

 ■^"20,000. The appearance of a fungoid disease in the fields 

 there has somewhat crippled the industry, still quantities 

 of the bulbs are being received from Bermuda now, full- 

 sized bulbs realizing about fifty shillings a hundred. This 

 bulb is also being grown on a large scale in Natal, from 

 whence an experimental importation was received in London 

 in April last and sold by auction. These were equal in size 

 and quality to the best samples from Bermuda. Two hun- 

 dred were secured for Kew, and were planted in pots and 

 placed on a cinder bed in the open air. They grew and 

 flowered perfectly in August and September, and proved 

 most valuable for open-air beds and in the conservatory. 

 The Bermuda bulbs flower in April and May. 



Macrozamia spiralis. — Of the numerous species of Macro- 

 zamia that have been introduced from Australia this is the 

 most useful for ordinary garden purposes, as it grows freely 

 and soon forms an elegant pot-plant. Its dark lustrous 

 green fronds are plumose, and it is almost as graceful as 

 Cocos Weddelliana. It is being grown in quantity by one 

 of our leading market growers, who imported seeds of it 

 from Australia, and is now offering it under the name of 

 Zamia elegans. All the Macrozamias are ornamental, but 

 they do not all grow freely. M. spiralis is the type of a 

 group of species which in stem and foliage closely resemble 

 each other, namely, M. Fraseri, M. Moorei, M. corallipes and 

 M. Dyeri. These are all grown in the stoves at Kew. M. 

 Fraseri is abundant in Victoria, often occupying large areas, 

 generally where the soil is poor. It sometimes forms a 

 thick trunk six feet high. These stems are easily imported, 

 and seldom fail to grow with ordinary care. A few years 

 ago I bought for sixty shillings two stems, each of which 

 weighed half a hundredweight. These are now handsome 

 specimens in the Palm-house at Kew. 



Bougainvillea glabra Sanderiana. — I lately saw some 

 beautiful examples of this plant which had been treated 

 differentlv from the usual method. Cuttings had been 

 struck and the plants grown on in heat, but the shoots were 

 kept pinched until a shrub a yard high had been formed. 



