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BARR’S BEAUTIFUL “ ENGLISH AMATEUR” TULIPS. 
We regret to announce the death of our friend Mr. Joseph Lakin, of Cowley, one of the oldest Amateur 
Tulip growers, whose collection of English Amateur Tulips was one of the most typical in England. To 
prevent the loss of so rich a collection, the same was purchased by Messrs. Horner, Bentley, Needham, and Barr 
and Son. 
TWICE TEN THOUSAND TULIPS. 
“ No ; ' alliteration's artful aid ’ is not brought into requisition in the headline for the purpose of effect, nor 
as a mere ireak of fancy, but because it represents a simple fact in condensed form, which, being interpreted in 
prosaic amplification, means that 20,000 Tulips were seen flowering in the Long Ditton Nurseries of Messrs. 
Barr & Son. ' Then, why not have said so without so many tinkling ‘ t’s ’ ? ’ That, it may be assumed, is what 
some sharp critic of the ' Saynor ' type may be asking. Well, let him try to accomplish the literary feat, and if 
he succeeds not, to at once admit the necessity of the predominating consonants in the interests of veracity. 
But, again, it may be urged that the number of Tulips indicated is nothing extraordinary, that nearly as many 
may be seen in some of the London parks earlier in the season, and more in some market growing establishments, 
to say nothing of the hundreds of thousands of blooms glittering in the sunshine in the bulb farms of Holland. 
Granted, but with ait important qualification, that they are not the real, true, genuine, English Florists' 
Tulips, of which the Ditton collection numbers nearer 30,000 than 20,000, or probably the largest assortment 
in the world of ‘ English Amateur’ Tulips. 
“ Yet two other questions maybe asked. 1. Why are they grown in such numbers? 2. Why are they 
accorded the specific des ; gnation— English? To the first question it may be said that they afford much pleasure 
to the senior bold bulbarian and to his son, Mr. William Barr, who knows them and grows them so well. But 
this is not all, for others, many others, enjoy them too, and find their way to the canvas-covered beds at Tulip 
time. Nor is that quite all either, for it would seem as if a compact had been entered into and a determination 
arrived at to popularise these very distinct, often erratic, certainly beautiful, and in some respects wonderful 
flowers, and to distribute them far and wide. And why not ? The desire is perfectly legitimate. It w-as, to say 
the least, a bold step to buy collections, large or small, named and unnamed, at home and abroad, wherever 
obtainable, when the flowers were, if not on the down grade, certainly not in demand. 
“ And then the after labour in marking, sorting, selecting, rejecting, classifying, and naming has been such 
as few could conceive, and not one man in ten thousand would undertake and carry out as Mr. William Barr 
has done. Only an actual deep-seated love for the flowers and a sense of duty in attaining the object in view 
could have impelled him to persevere with untiring persistency year after year, for assuredly he could have 
spent his time more profitably if profit had been his immediate object, if ever this highest type and most 
distinguished class of Tulips should become popular and generally grown in gardens, the rtsult will be due to the 
critical acumen, care, patience, activity, and industry of this ardent young Tuliparian more than to any other 
man ; and if, perchance, he should at some distant day find the pursuit a commercial success, it will have been 
so well won that no one will begrudge him its enjoyment. 
“But to the second question, Why are these particular Tulips called English? The answer is very 
simple: Because they are English. All the best florists' Tulips at Ditton and elsewhere have been raised by 
English amateurs. They are the result of fertilisation and years of care in preservation and waiting for the 
development of their final characters. There are florists' or amateurs’ Tulips in their 'broken' form, as 
bizarres, with their golden ground and rich crimson to black markings ; bybloemens with their violet, purple, or 
maroon colouring on a white ground ; also the translucent roses, the white of which is more or less covered 
with the most delicate tracings of rose, crimson, and soft scarlet —there are also varieties of all these of Dutch 
origin, but it is rare to find one having the short smooth cup and clear basal disc of yellow or white that invest 
the English flowers with such value. Some of the Dutch flamed and feathered Tulips are showy enough, but 
in most the petals are too long, thin and irregular, while the flakes of colour run down to the base of the cup. 
These are faults which the true English fancier cannot endure. The clear central disc is the hall mark of 
excellence, and while the seedlings are in the self-coloured stage, imparts to them their value and beauty— in 
fact, some of the seifs are so charming that it seems almost a pity they should change. Yet change they will, 
and do, sooner or later ; but no one knows when nor what they will be when the mysterious transformation 
occurs. This breaking is sometimes a sudden, sometimes a deliberate process. In rare instances the 
colouring is first seen as if through a cloud ; in others, one or more petals may gain a year's start of the rest, 
then comes the period of rectification. Moreover, there is to the trained eye a change in the leaf when the 
breaking is in process, and then does the florist watch with interest the unfolding of the petals, as he may have 
a gem of the first water, or, on the contrary, he may have simply lost a charming ‘ mother ' flower by this 
change. 
“Just as Tulips are slow in showing their true character, so are the majority of persons who admire the 
flowers for decoration slow in turn to appreciate their highest attributes. It is as well so, or what would 
become of the varieties that are lacking in some of the essential properties which the advanced amateur seeks? 
These, in many respects beautiful fugitives, may be regarded as so many letters in the T ulip alphabet which 
play an initial part in floral education. The learner of music does not at first purchase the most costly 
instruments, but is content with those of moderate price. So it is with flowers including Tulips, and these are 
classed to meet the means of beginners in their culture. Time and the superior examples exhibited by experts 
at shows or in home collections, do the rest, and the new growers, if their love is strong, gain knowledge as 
they go, and eventually 1 break’ into florists. There is choice enough in Tulips in the Ditton collection, not 
alone in the English florists' varieties in the various grades, but in the gay 'Darwins' — valuable for borders 
and cutting, the gorgeous Gesnerianas, the delicate ‘ Picotees,’ the quaint ‘ Parrots,’ and sundry others, but 
while all are beautiful, and have their admirers increasing in number yearly, the refined and correct English 
florists' Tulips bear the palm. Varieties cannot be usefully named here, as price is a governing factor, and 
both the cheapest and the rarest can be found in lists which all who may desire can obtain and make their 
own selections.” — Journal of Horticulture , May 2 yd, 1895. 
THE ENGLISH “SHOW” TULIP. 
“ I learn with much pleasure that the enterprising seed and bulb grower, Mr. Peter Barr, of King Street, 
Covent Garden, is determined to give all amateur florists the opportunity of cultivating and exhibiting the old 
but much neglected * Show ' Tulip. Mr. Barr has, as many may know, displayed great efforts and spared no 
expense during the last few years in collecting a most valuable and extensive assortment of this most gorgeous 
class of florists’ show flowers, and which, from the simplicity of their culture, are specially adapted for amateurs 
who may have the florists’ fancies running in their blood ! The prices of the show Tulip now are not what 
they were half a century ago, 'five pounds to fifty pounds each bulb,’ for, according to 'Barr’s Catalogue,’ 
(Barr and Son, 12 and 13 King Street, Covent Garden, 189s.) 
