THE FLORAL 



MAGAZINE. 



known (or will be) by the names of " Miss Wheeler " 

 (raised in 1876) and " Mrs. Bateman " (fixed in 1879) ; 

 the former j a full-centred, hybrid Pompon, a rich rosy- 

 cinnamon ; while the latter is the counterpart of the 

 former in size and habit, differing only in the colour, 

 which is orang'e-red ; the pair having descended, so to 

 speak, from that beautiful Pompon " Rose d'Amour." 



To "fix a sport"" great care and patience is needed, 

 as is proved by the number of sports reported on, and 

 the few permanently secured. In our case (and we 

 claim to having secured three varieties in this way), as 

 soon as we .discover any change in colour on any 

 particular branch, we proceed to mark that branch by 

 attaching a piece of coloured wool, so as to be able to 

 determine what part of the plant was affected ; and, as 

 soon as the flowers are fully developed, we cut away 

 every particle of stem or undergrowth, in order to 

 secure the full strength of the sap into the affected 

 branch, probing even the roots to prevent any under- 

 growth. As the stem will naturally break into eyes, 

 a careful watch is kept, and any appearance of a green 

 shoot is rubbed off, which generally ends in getting a 

 few breaks near the end of the branch affected, which 

 are taken off and propagated, and there the matter 

 ends, only care is further needed, as, in potting in a 

 too rich soil, the sport may, perhaps, " go back/' Our 

 own success we have attributed to the fact that our 

 plants have always had a rough-and-ready mode of 

 treatment, the soil at our command being generally 

 what is known as the u rid things o' creaton." 



In the case of " Mrs. Bateman," plants were dis- 

 tributed, during 1880, to several friends to test its 

 character and habit ; and it is pleasing to record that 

 the testimony of each and all was to the effect that " it 

 was a most distinct and desirable addition to the 

 Pompon class, and appeared a fortnight earlier than 

 ' Miss Wheeler ' or * Rose d'Amour.' " 



While on this subject, it may be interesting to refer 

 to some popular varieties that have been remarkable as 

 manifesting this " sportine " character ; and first we 

 name " Queen of England," an old variety which has 

 given no less than six distinct sports from the original 

 blush, viz. rose, golden-yellow, blush pencilled rose, 

 ivory-white, pure white, and variegated foliage, beside 

 other minor changes ; next comes Cedo Nulli, with its 

 golden, white, lilac, and brown forms; Bob has thrown 

 out three distinct sports ; Dr. Brock, three ; Beverley 

 (white) has given us Golden Beverley, and Rotundi- 

 flora, lilac ; while the ever-popular Mrs. Geo. Rundle, 

 George Glenny, and Mrs. Dixon, are simply pure white, 

 primrose, and golden forms of one and the same variety. 



We all admire Rose Trevanna, and like her none the 

 less because her family likeness has extended to the 

 white and golden forms bearing the family name ; and 

 we would ask in how many chrysanthemum growers' 

 breasts there lurks the desire to become possessed of 

 that new arrival, " Miss Oubridge," a fair, yellow- 

 haired daughter of Mdlle. Marthe, of snow-white fame ? 



Whether that grand white variety, Princess Teck, 

 is a sport from Hero of Stoke Newington, or vice versa, 

 we are not in a position to determine ; but the similitude 

 of character so impressed a writer in a contemporary 

 last season, that he declared that " under certain 

 treatment it produced both white and pink flowers." 



We might extend the list, but proceed to observe 

 that most florists are acquainted with the golden, 

 bronze, or buff sports of John Salter, orange-red ; 

 Christine, rosy-blush ; Empress of India, white ; and 

 Jardin des Plantes, yellow ; to which we may add a 

 new candidate for favour named " Gerda," a bright 

 orange-coloured sport of that old garden variety, J ulia 

 Lagravere, rich velvety-crimson ; while, among Pom- 

 pons, not noted above, we may refer to golden forms 

 of Aurora Boreale and St. Thais, the latter raised by 

 Mr. T.Howlett, Oxford, in 1877. 



Cultivators will note with pleasure the recent splendid 

 introduction among Japanese. We refer to the pure 

 white sport of James Salter, now known as " Lady 

 Selborne," and which, if perpetuated, will prove the 

 grandest acquisition of modern times. A grower near 

 here had, in 1879, the same white sport of James 

 Salter, but failed to secure it. Mr. Turner, Royal 

 Nurseries, Slough, promises a real gain in the form 

 of a " striped Princess Teck and it is not a little 

 remarkable that another novelty was, during the last 

 blooming season, to be seen at Mr. Turner's — nothing 

 less than a plant bearing blooms in which two distinct 

 halves of the flower, in one and the same involucre, were 

 yellow and pinkish-white, the latter petals longer than 

 the other half, and presenting the types Mrs. Dixon 

 and Mrs. G. Rundle, a curiosity in its way, but not 

 likely to be perpetuated. 



One word, and we have done, as our purpose has 

 been to introduce to the readers of the Floral 

 Magazine our progeny — our second daughter — Mrs. 

 Bateman ; in doing which we have been greatly 

 interested in calling over the names of many of the 

 same family, who like her have come into existence 

 under the designation of " Chrysanthemum Sports." 



William Greenaway. 



Oxford. 



