THE 



GARDENERS 



MAGAZINE. 



SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 12, 1898. 



FADING CHRYSANTHEMUM SOCIETY —ANNUAL SHOW of 



Chrysanthemums and fruit, town halls, Wednesday, Novkm- 



L W. L. Walker, Secretary, Bulmershe Road, Rerding. 



VORK CHRYSANTHEMUM SHOW.— The NINETEENTH ANNUAL 



Y SHOW will be held November 16, 17, and 18, 1898. Upwards of ^200 offered in Prizes, 

 • i wl proportions, for Plants, Cut Flowers, Fruit, and Vegetables. 

 10 sSedules, &c, to be had from 



# J. Lazenby, 13, Feasegate, York. 

 Challenge Prize, value ^20, added to 1st Prize C£io)for 36 Cut Blooms. £ft nl Cup (^5) for 

 Group. Entries November 9. 



GEORGE 



TO SCOTTISH AMATEURS AND GARDENERS 



1 RUN YARD AND CO. beg to intimate that they are EXHIBITING KENTISH 

 FRPIT at the EDINBURGH CHRYSANTHEMUM SHOW, 17th, 18th, an1 19th inst. 



The Royal Nurseries, Maidstone. 



HORTICULTURAL CORRESPONDENCE CLASSES.— For PROS- 

 PECTUS and LIST of PRIZES apply T. H. Smith, 18, Somerville Road, Small 

 Heath, Birmingham. First Examination Paper ready November 5. Join early for the whole 



course, 



NOTICE TO ADVERTISERS. 



occasion the vases, baskets, epergnes, and other arrangements formed a 

 large and highly attractive feature that was evidently much appreciated 

 by the general public. 



FRONDLESS FERNS 



Ferns, as we generally know them, being composed entirely of fronds 

 and roots, the latter of which are simply feeders to the former, ferns 

 without fronds would seem to be an absurdity, yet Dr. W. H. Lang's 

 recently issued monograph, entitled " On Apogamy and the Develop- 

 ment of Sporangia upon Fern Prothalli * (Philosophical Transactions of 

 the Royal Society, series B., vol. 190, 1898, pp. 187-238), demonstrates 

 their actual existence. Until quite recently the normal forms of ferns 

 were alone deemed worthy of the attention of the scientific botanist, 

 but this most interesting paper embodies the result of some two years' 

 active research into the phenomena of reproduction of varietal forms, the 

 result being, as might have been expected, that the varietal character was 



Notes of the Week. 



THE NATIONAL CHRYSANTHEMUM SOCIETY'S EXHIBITION. 



Owing to continued increase in circulation, the " Gardeners' Magazine 0 found to be by no means confined to the obvious and external types of 

 now goes to press on Wednesday. No advertisement can be guaranteed frond, but extended also to the minuter details of the reproductive 

 insertion, or altered, unless received before Four p.m. on that day. phenomena which present themselves on the little green scale produced 



by the spore, and upon which the sexual organs or flowers of the fern are 



developed. Normally this small green scale or prothallus is heart- 

 shaped, and about the size of a herring scale ; it attaches itself to the 

 soil by a number of root hairs, and bears upon its under side two types 

 of organs, the antheridia, or male, and archegonia, or female, the former 

 THE great exhibition which has been held under the auspices of the scattered about in considerable numbers among the root hairs, and the 

 National Chrysanthemum Society during the past week has been of i atter? much fewer in num ber, being seated on a thickened cushion near 

 special interest to those who fully appreciate the importance of the work t h e indentation of the hearts. The antheridia burst when ripe, and a 

 to which the society is engaged, and are jealous of the reputation it number of organisms, equivalent to mobile pollen grains, are thrown out, 

 enjoys as the foremost chrysanthemum society in the world. This which subsequently fertilize the embryo seed contained in the archegonia. 

 gathering has marked an important event in the history of the society, This then develops into a fern with fronds, and a new generation is 

 and it has proved to demonstration the remarkable influence the latter launched into being. Professor Farlow found that in some cases young 

 has upon those who aspire to honours as exhibitors of the Golden Flower p i ants were f orme d by simple non-fertilised buds on the site of absent 

 ' 5 many forms. Two years ago the society celebrated its jubilee in a archegonia, and to this mode of reproduction the descriptive name 

 ng manner, and this year it has celebrated its twenty-first year at apogamy (or no marriage) was given. Dr. Lang's researches have shown 

 Westminster. With the exception of one class, no special provisions that this apogamic method can be induced by preventing norm. il fertilisa- 

 were made to distinguish this exhibition from the shows held in Novem- t j on b y withholding the water, in which alone the antherozoids can make 

 t*r under normal conditions, and it is therefore more useful for purposes t h e j r way to the ovum or embryo seed. The proth.illi then continue 

 of comparison than would have been the case had the prize list been to grow, often in the most eccentric fashion, and eventually find outlets for 



13 



ra 



specially augmented. There may be some difficulty in comparing the 

 tsdnbitions held during the week with those of the past two or three 



their reproductive energies, not merely by apogamic buds, which develop 

 into typical ferns, but in some cases they go the wrong way to work, as it 



years, more especially as in 1896 the society's jubilee was celebrated, were, and throw out strong roots (as distinct from root hairs) into the 



here is none in determining with exactitude the enormous advance 

 has been made since the society migrated from the north-east to the 



growths, in which, of course, all the potentialities of fern life must exist, 



[ities broke out, not only in the form of both types of sexual 

 also of roots, viviparous buds, and, finally, the most 



organs, but 



nal 



backs 



of mature plants. Here, of course, is an absolutely frondless fern, since 

 no approach to frond formation precedes their appearance, and assuming 

 such spores to be capable of germination (which has yet to be demon- 

 strated), and their progeny inherited this peculiar precocity, we should 



naked 



be distinguished from liverworts. 



soil prior to, or, so far as the examples examined were concerned, without 



forming a fern plant at all. Other prothalli budded out into bunches of 



I of London. The Assembly Rooms at Stoke Newington and the prothalli; others again, and these were the most interesting, formed 

 ^kney Town Hall were considerably less spacious than St. Stephen's thick cylindrical outgrowths from the heart indentation, and upon these 



^ which was no more than sufficient for the display of the specimen ' # r '~ ,M * * 



s an d vegetables, and yet there was no overcrowding of either pro- 

 or visitors in the suburban buildings. For two or three years 

 ' the exhibitions were held at the Royal Aquarium the products 

 a portion only of the ground floor when supplemented by palms 

 ot her plants hired for the purpose of enhancing the display. This 

 Wnot only was St. Stephen's Hall filled to its utmost capacity, but the 

 r fi° oran d the two immense galleries of the Royal Aquarium were 

 fiffir I occu P^ ec * that, had the entries been more numerous, no small 

 ty would have been experienced in finding room for the exhibits. 

 ' ls j of course, a matter of common knowledge that these exhibitions 

 thich^ r ° Wn *° * mmense Proportions ; but in view of the criticism to 

 '^ard^ 6 S0C ' et y ^ as k een subjected during the past twelve months we 

 tm * aS a ^ Uty to P°^ nt to *ts enormous growth during the past 

 »iu/ yCarS aS a proof tyjM the executive has not been so wanting t 

 ■Kat vv Cnt ^ Some °^ ^ e cr itics have endeavoured to show in remain- 

 tefi'll eStminsten Of the details of this great gathering we must leave 

 r!a rnifi and s P ec 'al report given in this issue to speak. It was a truly 

 ^trib^ 111 dlSplay ' worth y alike of the society and those who so liberally 

 diracter^ products of their skill > and lt was > b y reason o{ its varied 

 ^tobdh °^ mUC ^ i nterest - Very wisely the chrysanthemums are supple- 

 lH^j y fruits an d vegetables, and although these are not, as we are 

 Ut int eS t0 ^' re * ate d to the golden Flower, chrysanthemum growers 

 ^foplifM m the P roducts °f the kitchen and fruit gardens, and as 

 honours^ ma ? y s ^ ows j it is possible for exhibitors to simultaneously 



tfceouiv • ctlr y sant hemums, fruits, and vegetables. But this is not u F -/ nr'hono"' 



lay, th y P0mt i visi tors have to be considered, and, speaking in a general stances where the U11 > • 



••CUI BONO?" 



phrase 4 



pressed 



the 

 such 



. m ° St Succ essful exhibitions are those of which the attractions 

 linfcacv* 5 t0 k satlsf y diverse tastes. We were pleased to find that our 



vulganrconsidered as poking and prying into the secrets of Nature to 



Vohle nuroose whatever, and the most provoking part of the 

 ZZZte oSZ* pryer ! that it is usually prec.sely that class of 



oersois who put the question who are least capable of comprehending a 

 P , I reply Very often, too, the investigations partake so much of a 

 fishing ^ chapter ha no definite reply can be given, the belief, based on 



g fexoe ience vicarious or personal, that something may turn up 

 prev.ou expe nence ^ ^ ^ induccmcnL lf> how . 



being all tha the ex, r ^ ^ ^ ^ 



ever, * ^ * ^£ refinements, and luxuries, has been built 

 ovduat-on w,th . c o , ^ ^ ^ 



up ^SSLi^A bono?" seemed most justifiable, he or she would 



tiousness which usually underlies the 

 ~ , . _ .«cran« r.. ~onderful array of flowers, fruits, and 



question 



***** in th dlvers e tastes. We were pleased to find that our question. ia ^' it ; s trUC , has fashioned a host of these all by 



*pects of Pages of the importance of encouraging the decorative foliage plants. . > ^ far ^ thcif prcscncc hcrc gocs , we 



ine chr ysanthemum is bearing good fruit, and that on this herself, as it were , dih 



