6i6 



GARDENERS MAGAZINE. 



September 



24, 1898. 



striking novelties taken out for early publication in HoowTT " 

 The novelties are numerous, but no distinct or obviously n ****** 

 detected in the sorting. Messrs. Bourne, Carles, Ford and w gene " C type 

 correspondents, have sent smaller, though not less interest!™ „ ock) other 

 nwiii,.+i nn n f Pi..,*,. »i_ t, . _ un &» collections to Ke^ 



names, and be thus in a position to obtain them if he so desires ? The 

 answer to each of these questions is obvious, and we trust that something 

 will be done to improve matters in the direction indicated. Within the 



past few weeks we have visited several exhibitions, at which not a single . p . - — vouug, colle 



object other than trade collections had a name attached to it, and in the Fertilisation ot Plants. -Mr. Francis Darwin discussed at ^ , 

 course of the present summer we have observed at exhibitions con- ^ "^J^ Ano ^* ^ 



, .1 ? _ _ j „„ : r of the knight-Darwin law, which has been rend*r«1 f„ m ;i:._ ' , t 0n ? ln and * 



to botanists thro* 



law would appear to be that he made the general statement 0" the' S? ° f *» 

 cross fertilisation among hermaphrodite plants. In considering Ch 7 * 



share Mr. Darwin gave an interesting sketch, illustrated b Y numerr!! . 

 of the definite statements of opinion on the question of flower T*** 

 appeared in Charles Darwin's works. The point emphasiS wis te ^ 



The statement that " Nature £ 

 perpetual seit-temnsation ' would be a I more correct enunciation of the t 7d 

 the statement that "no organic being fertilises itself for an eternity of eJZ , 

 though the latter was the more generally accepted as correct. Charles n. • , 

 generalizations might be stated as follows : (1) Fertilisation of some ki^TJ 

 paramount importance ; (2) the vast majority of flowers being open justifies 



conclusion that there is some »Hva tarr« ;« « r. . - . ," WUI 



rtilisa 



siderably increased numbers, as compared with previous years, of collec w * ell . known WOrk on ^ J™ 



tions unnamed. There is some difficulty in putting into force a rule that - - - wraiisation of flowers. 



shall be effective in making naming imperative ; because the omission of a 

 single name through inadvertance, or the removal of a card in the 

 interval between the exhibitor putting the finishing touches to his pro- 

 ducts and the judges making their awards, would be followed by dis- 

 qualification. We have no wish to increase the risk of disqualification, the expression of the Knight-Darwin law. 



and therefore would not penalise collections in which a few of the 

 objects were not named ; but we would suggest that a rule be put into 

 force preventing those entering into competition which are wholly 

 unnamed. It should also be insisted that the names be legible, and so 

 placed that no doubt can arise as to which objects they belong. In the 

 naming of dahlias there is much room for improvement, and we hope the 



p — ^ w . viuvm, nuu »y uuuc uic , 1 J i i . - — I ~~ owi-iciUii5au 



time will soon come when the dahlia growers will substitute for the w ^ch advantage makes it worth while for flowers to run the risks and hcnfc 



cumbersome, and otherwise unsatisfactory slips now in use, neat labels f^ ndlt " re necessar,I y connected with openness, but avoidable by cleistogonj 



such as are employed by exhibitors of roses and chrysanthemums <3) dir ^ e *P e r. ent dem ° nst .' a t<* the nature of this surmised advantage of a» 



over self-fertilisation. 



Finally, 



said that these generalisation!. 



which were in substance to be fo und in Darwin's works, were still the founds 



biology 



never been formulated. What 



Her Majesty's Horticultural Exhibits are always looked upon with 



the greatest interest, whether displayed at the Drill Hall, the Crystal Palace, or . c , . - / 



the Waverley Market, for not only are they from the gardens of the Queen but n™* u u * ° f CharleS Darwin ' s writin 2 s the Knight- 



they are examples of high horticultural skill, while considerable artistic merit is ? u \a 7 e * Ceptlon from that Iaw occurred, to declare that it 



displayed in their arrangement. Readers will be interested to learn that Her 5 t0 thr ° W ° Ver not onIy theiIaw > but a11 those principles ud 



Majesty was an exhibitor at Edinburgh a few days ago, as a result of the work 

 done by the Gardeners' Magazine. It came about this way. A copy of the 

 Gardeners' Magazine for October 9, 1897, was placed in the hands of Mr. P. 



generalisations which could only be obtained from a 

 Charles Darwin's works. 



understand!!* 



Forest Education of a scientific character has hitherto received but litik 



Murray Thomson, the new and energetic secretary of the Royal Caledonian att ^ntion in America as in this country, but its value is now recognized in tbt 

 Society, and that issue contained an illustration, from a photograph, of the Queen's Unit ^d States and in April of the present year the New York State LegislaW 



son 



passed 



Exhibit of Fruit at the Crystal Palace Fruit Show a week previous. Mr. Tho 



was so pleased with the display as represented and described in our columns, that lish a de P*rtment in the university to be known as, and called, the New York 

 he wrote to Mr. Owen Thomas, Her Majesty's gardener-in-chief, desiring him to State College of Forestry, for the purpose of education and instruction in tin 

 make a display in loyal Scotland at the autumn exhibition of 1898. The request ' * * ----- 



was laid before Her Majesty and readily granted, much to the delight of Edin- 

 burgh horticulturists. We believe that Her Majesty will also make a display of 

 horticultural produce from Frogmore in Ireland at an early date. 



In the same Act, provision wis 



Wasp 



West Hill, Sydenham 



writes as follows : Referring to your note about wasp stings in your issue of the 

 iyth inst. I don't think it would be wise to try hypodermic injections of cocaine 

 in the tongue without medical advice, for several reasons ; among others, because •« f . . 



the risk of collapse from such is a serious consideration with some peoole • ™ systematic instruction in 



principles and practices of scientific forestry." 



also made to establish a Demonstration Forest of not more than 30,000 acres it 

 the Adirondacks, to be purchased out of the funds set aside for the Forest Present 

 Board, and to become the property of the Cornell University for the term of thirty 

 years, and to be used for demonstrations of practical forestry. The sum of 10,000 

 dollars has been granted for the organisation and maintenance of the College and 

 Demonstration Forest. This institution, the director of which is Professor 

 B ',. E 1 Fernow > has been organized and the prospectus shows that the coOep 



the science and art of forestry. The 



secondly, the danger of using a needle which has not been sterilized ; and again, 

 it is not a very easy operation in that place, and the application of a fairly strong 

 solution on the surface ought to suffice, as the mucous 



cocaine rapidly. 



embrane absorbs the 

 ugh 



but for general use a twenty per cent, solution might be kept in readiness, and, of 



course, by adding an equal quantity of water at the time this would be available 

 for tender parts. If the solution is made in camphor water it will keep 

 well. But I certainly think the application of some alkali, such as ammonia 

 should at first be the rule. 



Perpetual 



« -"^...wcf, " « Wk jwon-jriu^ UICll UlblinCtlVe 



title Dy producing an abundance of fruit throughout the year, give a continuous 

 supply during the summer and autumn months, and are consequently useful in 

 gardens where a supply 0 f strawberries is required after the usual summer crop has 



been gatherer* Tk« ai«:«« .< 1 • _ _ i_ 1 _. . ... . r 



. 1 " 1 ■■■■■ uuujiii(,i CI Up lie 



Deen gathered. The Alpine strawberries, which have not as yet attained to l 

 nigh a deeree of nnnnlant., ir. iu;„ . tt „ , 



provisions for teaching the science relating to forestry in the university « 

 ample, while the connexion of the demonstration area within the College of 

 Fcrestry will furnish additional advantage for original work, research, and eiperi- 

 mentation, in advancing the science and art of forestry. Some time must eUp* 

 before the College Forest is in the best shape for demonstrative purposes, bat 

 there is every promise that the institution will prove a success. 



An Interesting Fern.— Mr. A. C. Seward has prepared an account of the 

 external characters, internal structure, and geological history of a rare speaes 

 belonging to the genus Matonia. The anatomical investigation of this fern vu 

 founded on some material received through the kindness of Mr. Shelford, of tM 

 Sarawak Museum, Borneo. Matonia is now represented by two specw-* 

 pectinata and M. sarmentosa— both confined to the Malay Peninsula and P 



—I " " "~ * ~ **o auauicu IU SO 



rngti a degree of popularity in this country as in France, are more continuous in 

 fruning than are the garden varieties which have descended from the Chilian and 



Virginian forme on^ fk„ / i_i > .. • i • 1 1 • . , , 



. - - o .^.^u^o uv.«,w 1U cu Hum mc \_nman and 



v irginian forms, and the refreshing fruit is highly appreciated by those who have 

 acquired a taste for it. For some years past efforts have been made by the French 

 raisers to combine the perpetual character of the Alpine varieties with the large 

 fruit and luscious flavour of the ordinary varieties, and the success achieved has 

 been sufficient to encourage them to persevere with the work in which they are 

 engaged. One of the most important of the results of inter-crossing the two 

 sections is the variety known as St. Joseph, which was so well shown ac West- 

 minster, on Tuesday, when an Award of Merit was made in its favour. This has 

 fruit and foliage similar to those of the varieties of which the Chilian and Virginian 

 strawberries were the progenitors and the continuous fruiting character of the 

 Alpines. The fruits remind one of small examples of Keen's Seedling, and they 

 Z^fT Y ^ V0 T^ ™ d k was interesting to observe that they were being 



5w£ X? h c 1 h i the old plants and the runners of the current seas °* 



SssJUS^-ffiSi- sac a distinct acquisidon to iate 



The Flo ^eement with him. 



se who detote*L?!S5i? S °, ^ as to invoIve a large amounl of work U P°" 



ultimate segment?. The sori consist of fi'-e to eleven sporangia, co 

 circular indusium. The stem of Matonia pectinata is characterised by an 



the Rhjetic, Upper Jurassic, and Cretaceous rocks several closely allied to 



have been found. Matonia pectinata occurs at high altitudes-three thousand » 



to five thousand feet-growing in damp places in the jungle. Its rhirome creep 



along the surface of the ground and gives off long and slender petioles tour ^ 



to six feet long, which are divided into about twenty pinn* with slightly o • 



- vered Of • 



is. The 

 tod the 



;"" u,ue 1S ll »ckly covered with a felt of dark brown muiticenuu*. 

 leaves are not given off in the usual regular order of succession. N* ^ 

 far known only as regards its external characters-has usually been consi ^ 

 a type apart, and some writers have assigned it to a separate tribe of tt 

 anatomical characters fully bear out the isolated position of the genu>- • 

 ferns Matonidium and Laccopteus agree very closely with the receni ^ ^ ;< 

 fern. There can be little doubt that the two living species of Matonw 

 survivors of a tribe of ferns which in the Mesozoic period had a wide g«* r 

 distribution. ... ^ 



The Royal Caledonian Horticultural Society * 



those who devote anv , . aS l ° mVOU ' e a largC amOUDl of worl 



enumeration of Chine J ^ share ° f attention to ^ investigation. 



Majesty 



3 » — . 

 wardwM*^ 



accumulation 



original 



Plants in the Tournal of the Linnean 



The 



was awarded her able gardener, Mr. Owen Thomas ; a similar a^ 



»» M r ... o _ . ^ whik sHvei .uedaU -ere S«-- 



Lewisham: Messrs. W. _ 



material C an be worked out. Dr. A. Henry has 



Royal Gardens, Kew, a further collection of some 2,500 



from Eastern Yunna^","!!?^ contai ° 5 about 2,000 species. This collection is 



°» and r h as ^ r(n1f , hlv classified ^ o£ the ^ 



™ «^ 3a r 5 . j . veitch and Sons, Chelse 



r - H, J. Jones, Ryecroft Nurseries, , - . 



Sons, Clovenfords ; Messrs. R. WaUace and Co., Colchester ; ana 



«de to Messrs. w- 



• Do) 



Blanty 



ia nan, Ki pp 



Special awards were 



and 0 



Rolhesa 



Dicksons and Co., Edinburgh; J. Downie 



is and co., r,umouig U , j- ~- f )r bes 



er and Sons ; M. Cuthbertson, Rothesay ; I _ 



^ , . t-ji u . k'«rr Brothers, D ja """' 



H»* ,ekf 



J. Grieve and Sons ; C. Irvine, Jedburgh ; Kerr Brother 



A 



