458 JOURNAL OF THE ROYAL HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



Partially disbudded sprays are beautiful in the extreme, and naturally 

 grown plants produce charming sprays useful for many decorative 

 purposes. The miniature-flowered pompons come into blossom rather 

 later than the ordinary large -flowered mid-season varieties. The latter 

 half of November may be considered their proper season of flowering, 

 although it is quite an easy matter to have them in good form in early 

 December. 



The miniature-flowered pompons are seldom seen in public displays, 

 except perhaps at the December shows of the National Chrysanthemum 

 Society, where they are exhibited in vases and in a class for six bunches 

 without any restriction as to varieties. 



The same may be said of the spider-web-like and thread-petalled types 

 of the flower. In this group there are several varieties that have little 

 to commend them. There are, however, a fair number of most interesting 

 ones, of which far too little is known. This section has been neglected 

 by the vast majority of growers whose knowledge of the charms of these 

 quaint flowers is very limited. It may be that an opportunity of seeing 

 the flowers has never presented itself, and this may account for the 

 apparent lack of appreciation of them. For December flowering the 

 spidery varieties are extremely useful, more especially in decorations 

 where they may be disposed in sprays with long stems. ' Mrs. Wm. 

 Filkins,' 'King of Plumes,' and 'Mrs. James Carter' are three interest- 

 ing varieties, of quite distinct form. Market growers are now cultivating 

 a few of the better and stronger-growing ones, and this may have the 

 effect of creating more interest in the section. 



Neglect of the single-flowered types can no longer be laid to the 

 charge of growers. In most gardens these free-flowering decorative 

 Chrysanthemums are now represented. They are divided into two 

 sections, viz. small-flowered, and large-flowered. The small- flowered 

 type includes varieties having flowers two inches or less in diameter, and 

 the large-flowered section includes all single Chrysanthemums exceeding 

 a diameter of two inches. By far the larger proportion of singles belong 

 to the latter section, and are of varying form, colour and size. 



A true single should not contain more than a double row of ray 

 florets and these should form a dense fringe round a not over-large disc 

 or centre. Many popular varieties of to-day possess considerably more 

 than two rows of florets. In recent years encouragement has been given 

 to varieties that flower in profusion, in which the number of rows of 

 florets is not regarded in quite the same light as formerly. The 

 decorative value of the variety is of primary importance, and in this 

 connection colour, of course, plays an important part. The rigid lines 

 laid down by the older florists do not receive the respect formerly accorded 

 to them ; instead, a more practical view is taken of the newer varieties 

 when they are submitted for adjudication, and their decorative qualities 

 are considered of paramount importance. Some of the awards of recent 

 years have been quite inexplicable to the older florists, many of whom fail 

 to see the slightest claim to distinction in the newer varieties. But 

 when regarded as plants for greenhouse and conservatory decoration, 

 where their profuse flowering is of primary importance, the justice of the 

 decisions in their favour is unquestionable. 



