September 3 



> 



1898 



GARDENERS' 



MAGAZINE. 



571 



A 



Morning mixture. 



Diluculo surgere saluberrimum est. 



ONE thousand pounds a-year ! Where is the man who still says there are 

 no openings in our profession ? Is the sum indicated a mere bagatelle in 

 these days ? I venture to prophecy that the appointment of Dr. Morris by 

 the Colonial Secretary, to the superintendence of the botanical investiga- 

 tions in the West Indies, will have a result not anticipated by either of 

 the two gentlemen. Hundreds of fathers, harassed by the old problem 

 —"What shall we do with our boys?" — will read the paragraph with 

 watering mouths, and straightway devote young Verdant to gardening. 

 And then they will wait expectantly for another important colony, or set 

 of colonies to get into difficulties, so that Verdant, now doctor or professor, 

 ay help them out. 



It may be a long time before another plum drops as juicy and well- 

 flavoured as this. When it does, may there be another man ready to 

 catch it, who is as earnest and competent as the Kew second in com- 

 mand. I have had some little intercourse with Dr. Morris, and I have 

 observed in him, quiet self-command, sound mental equipment, and 

 obvious sincerity of purpose. He is not a showy man, perhaps not even 

 a brilliant one, but he is an excellent botanist and a sensible man of the 

 world. ^1,000 a-year is a good deal of money, but he is worth it. 



It is pleasant to find such swift corroboration ot my recent remarks 

 on the black currant mite. It is equally pleasant to be in such good 

 company as that of Mr, T. F. Rivers. I daresay someone will be coming 

 along very soon to declare that we are both wrong, but I beg to give the 

 gentleman who does so fair warning in advance that he has a third party 

 to reckon with m the fight. The bridge of culture will be held by no less 

 a trio than Horatius Rivers, Herminius Lux, and Lartius Peter. (Being 

 somewhat proud of this classical simile, I mentioned it to Peter, who 

 remarked that, for his part, he'd rather handle a bit of blackthorn in a 

 shindy than larch.) We do not believe any grand remedy for the evil is 

 called for, either in the way of stocks or vaccination. We believe the 

 bushes want growing. And even in the case of black currants perfectly 

 free from the mite, feeding and knifing are beneficial. 



tn ,L e u are . an f i " 1 P9 rta , nt £ ar den crop, and we are all very much obliged 

 £n cular lit ^ 1C l t " re for J s t uin S a leaflet about them and their 



V ' 'J 6 thnps - , If the Board cou,d tel1 us how to have 



s ' it S h e J f °'"f a ^"a' service. -But the Board does not do 



quis'sia if S tellmg US to s P ra y our P e as with soft soap and 



Sn rn tL r C t n ' and not to sow on tbe same spot the fol lowing year 



« "g quitfas lh effiS? aWe B -° ard V But 1 bdie " e 1 Can »eS g so£J: 

 abl/bJtter fo the ££Z fPllf ^l pS f the and immeasur- 



by uench sow n^Sh heal ? ° f the plants " Water a t the roots. If 



owing to Vol drvnes l tW V - ^ P °° r ' pinched S rowth - 



5 o root uryness, they will fail, spraying or no spraying. 



nderstood onltthLL SL°f? t0 prCpare - ° Ur ground for ,ate P eas it is 

 no common t en h , 1 P 1 mKS ™l g ° lng to hum ' We tre » ch with 

 b °w we go to work g T™ • nUre WltI ? n ° COmmon manuring. This is 

 • forked into the third Z rT " rf ke • °^ and a dressin S of m anure 

 *cond spit is placed h^l I r, hkeW,SC laid on the to P of The 

 ^nure.Thetot?sDrt isl^ an ? Jf W1Se surmoun ted with a layer of 

 '» the winter is Tumbled fhZ 8 ^ ^ ° n tW ° ° r three se P arate occasions 

 ^bish. House ^^sTons are nnn ai !f pe PP ered Wlth soot and burnt garden 

 s P*ach and early & a °V S °PP ortu t nit y offers. In February 



na ted with fertiksalS ?w? t T ° thoro ^Y is the ground impreg- 

 •■thout suffering exhausdon wL SUP ?i° rt qmck growin « cro P s like these 

 inches are draw, and Thi^ ^ PCaS are t0 be sown, shallow 

 ^ nn pt grow peas on this ,v,tl ayed manUre forked in - A ™" who 

 jonderfm results^ not the le«. 1 grow them a t all. It gives 



^orts m ay be^own ^here irt^ Smg H bemg the fact that admitted.y 

 J ,e j- For instanceTone of n, t ordinar y way only earlies could be 

 Section. CC ' n0ne of our June-sown peas do better than Veitch's 



lfr lL^<^GS&lit S "F rC ° f attenti ° n J* ust now - Wh at 

 !r K.ddell g ivin flaying * on to each other vigorously, and 



*? y V«ne. I ob * ~ ,C' ,U article on general culture, we are having: a 



SSP s ESS S a W5sa =a= 



5S, 5 F '' quie?ly smiL tLTSS e J ac «Iation of horror the 

 35 ha, r°° ks barbarous bu^ it ZJ* ( J urfi «» l roots are raked oft" in 

 fewer ' f more vegS 's ? ° Ut a " ri & ht 1 thi "k it quite 



^ C ° m ^ : - afSffS ^£^5 peach .Orders there wild 



receive 



Frui 



55Jj 



^ aC? th « PioughuUeen 7^X PenSat, ° n in tlie form ^ food. 



^ it s ,,,an >' p^e^Ld^rrs reguiari >- and heav -y 



"^viL K ^ y ea " Past we tnt . Urface culture is fe tal to the 

 $ C a S ers > a «d S ^vTnes are Stt^ ^ ° f earI y ceIe ry off one 

 & cei J Utle trough the c,?l f ,f r ?i better . than tbey ever were. They 

 ^ the bu t thatS mS^SSSX em P ,0 yed in connection^ 



Var,0l >s fluids whkh are LntTl* l Y the benefit the y deri ve 



are applied to the other crop. Theoreti- 



ssr: if we §et s °> d ceier ^ and g °° d g - p - 



subiect a is 0 nninnT Wend " A " ' 5 a little out. However, the 

 JSSiin^h 5;- aild ? CXpeCt a Httle w arn>th,even briny tears, in 

 Cra"f on th^ 5, 65 n^ 1 * S ° aCUte are Mn D -' s feelin g s about Ailsa 

 ^5^^,,, a lotments tha t be is constrained to tell us about it 



I hoDe he is nn f T ek l' n the M ^A2INE and once in another quarter. 



is r? a „«L' 7 t hng b f ter * Ailsa Crai & is a very fine onion, and so 

 L^ft s Ex «lsior ; but has anyone yet proved them to be good 

 keepers when au umn-sown ? It would be good news if they had. My 



tfXl r rZ C l 15 £ athCr in the other direction, and I prefer Sutton's A i to 

 eitner, although that even is not absolutely reliable. If "A. D." really 

 wants to see the culture of Tripolis and Roccas abandoned by cottagers 

 and growers generally let him persuade show committees to knock them out 

 ot schedules. Or let him induce judges to give up their preference for a ripe 

 Kocca to an unripe Ailsa Craig in July or August. Most judges regard 

 ripeness and " fimsh" as all- im portant with autumn-sown onions, and 

 while they hold these views it is no use getting angry with the poor 

 cottager. L 



Notes from Edinburgh. 



Calceolaria alba. 



THIS is an old plant introduced from Chili more than fifty years ago, 

 but almost lost to cultivation when lately re-introduced by Herr Max 

 Leichthn. It is a pretty perennial bush, with slender wiry stems and 

 narrow linear leaves, that are two or more inches lcng, of a light green 

 colour. The terminal erect panicles are about a foot long, the flowers 

 being almost round and pure white. As a greenhouse decorative plant 

 it is well adapted if due atttention is paid to pinching and a sturdy habit 

 obtained. At Kew, this plant is said to grow to a height of five feet upon 

 a wall, and if sufficiently hardy to withstand our climate, would form a 

 most welcome addition to our shrubby herbaceous plants. 



Episcia erythropus. 



A plant of this is now in full flower here in the cool stove, associated 

 with such plants as begonias. In habit it is dwarf, with long, arching, 

 bright green leaves, the veins upon the under-surface being reddish in 

 colour. The flowers are produced in great numbers in the axils of the 

 leaves, the peduncles being about two inches long ; the corolla is a pretty 

 combination of pink and white, with yellow spots in the throat. This 

 native of New Grenada thrives well in a compost of a light character, 

 such as is usually in use for the order Gesneraceae. It was introduced by 

 the Messrs. Veitch a few years since. 



Eucomis. 



The members of this genus will be found most useful where a supply 

 of plants for decorative purposes are in requisition. They are natives of 

 the Cape and are said to be hardy in sheltered positions in the warmer 

 parts of the kingdom ; if planted rather deeply, and if in a rich soil, they 

 grow very strong. For pot culture they are well adapted, throwing up 

 from a rosette of long, spotted or striped foliage, tall [spikes of flowers, 

 from a foot to eighteen inches high. These are surmounted by a crown 

 of small leaves, in the manner usual to pine-apples. The flowers are 

 rather large, and of a greenish-white or yellow colour, and with purplish 

 ovaries. Of the few species in cultivation, E. punctata, E, undulata, and 

 E. regia, are perhaps the best known. Others are but seldom seen ; all 

 require a similar treatment, the principal factor of which is a very liberal 

 amount of water during the growing period, and a season of rest during 

 winter. They are all natives of South Africa, and are easily grown in 

 a greenhouse from which frost is excluded. 



Edinburgh. 



R. L. Harrow. 



The Yellow Picotee.— The necessity for a more correct classification of 

 the yellow-ground picotees was mentioned at the recent Midland Counties Exhibi- 

 tion. Mr. James Douglas made reasonable complaints that in the class for wire- 

 edged yellow picotees flowers were awarded prizes which had streaky petals, and 

 were not, therefore, wire-edged picotees ; and he further stated that the time has 

 come when some better classificadon should be taken in hand. Time was when 

 there was a distinct section of wire-edged yellow-ground picotees, but they were, 

 unhappily, so weak in constitution that it was with the greatest difficulty they 

 could be induced to grow and bloom. They disappeaj-ed entirely, to be succeeded 

 in later years by a new race of much stronger growth, and the group is multiplying 

 with rapidity. But so many of the yellow picotees have small flakes and bnes of 

 colour along the petals tnat they cannot be classed as wire-edged picotees Hence, 

 then, the necessity for commencing a section of yellow giound wire-edged p.cotees 

 which shall bring them into line with the white-ground type. At the Midland 

 Counties Carnation Show at Birmingham, there were classes for light wire-edge 

 and heavy wire-edge picotees, but not a few of the blooms staged left something 

 to be desired in the way of a greater concentration of colour on the petal edgeonly. 

 The following were selected in the order of merit : Mrs. Douglas. Seraph, Mohi- 

 „„ „ n(1 t „dls To these may be added, as coming nearest to the type, Mrs. K. 

 Sydenham Mrs Gooden, and Florrie Kenwood. The heavy-edged varieties were 

 VolS^rwSererrancl Eldorado. Taking the foregoing as illustrating the type, 

 I '";, i nniI(7 h of material to commence with, and the sooner the attempt is made 

 S? hrtterH the committee of the National Carnation and Picotee Society hesi- 

 Sf. rhis steo then the counc', of the Midland Society, which unites the 



SSte^taSnJU.. rnay probably do so, The properties of the white- 



' — — - - e " — -grounds, excepting, 



a great impetus 



^ fK7«r^nrrinn of new varieties. I hope that carnation exhibitors will ventilate 

 £ ^aSfSSS^S the Midland Society have originated distinct classes for 

 lieht and heavy edge yellow picotees ; and the contention of some at Birmingham 

 was that flowers were admitted as edged yellow picotees which were not so in 

 fact The best time to discuss such a matter is immediately the carnation shows 

 are over, and when the subject is likely to receive the greatest attention. K. 



Dean. 



northern and southern growers, may proD tDiy ao so. ine propen 

 ground picotees should be required m the « of the ye llow-gn* 

 of course, the tint of colour ; and were this done, it would impart 



