BARR & SONS, 12 & 13 King Street, Covent Garden, London, 
3 
regarded as among the very finest at the moment of our visit. Possessing a good constitution, this is a 
kind that will be sought after much in the future, when a selection of Daffodils of the highest standard of 
excellence becomes a necessity. Another very fine display was created by Victoria, »also a bicolor 
Daffodil, which may be said to belong to the Glory of Leyden group in so far as the shape of the trumpet 
is concerned, that is to say, a trumpet, slightly widening at the rim and beautifully frilled, but not 
recurving ; the segments of the perianth creamy white, and broadly overlapping, and the whole flower 
very solid and sturdy-looking. Not less bold and telling are Golden Queen and Golden Nugget, 
both novelties of last year of the self-yellow class, and with the fine bold character and sturdy qualities 
of Emperor in the foliage and growth generally. Another very handsome form, still scarcely without 
equal, is M. J. Berkeley, the colour that of Maximus in a flower of greater and, indeed, nobler pro- 
portions generally. The huge flange-like rim of this kind, broadly reflexed and beautifully as well as 
heavily frilled, renders it at once conspicuous. Other beautiful novelties are Grace Darling and Lady 
Somerset. Here, too, we find the lovely Mme. de Graaff, the most prominent of this fair race of 
Daffodils. Matson Vincent, Mrs. Thompson, Mrs. F. W. Burbidge, with Mrs. J. B. M. 
Camm, are other gems in this section that satisfy and fascinate most lovers of the flower, and constitute 
the very cream of the white and sulphur sorts. 
‘The Chalice-cupped Narcissi. 
‘It is among these that the remarkable Gloria Mundl shines out so well and so conspicuously, the 
rich orange-stained cup being of large size and well expanded. C. J. Backhouse is of the same hue, 
but a smaller flower and much earlier, while other notable kinds include Commander (a novelty of 
1896), Goliath, Gwyther, and Autocrat (a distinct form of excellent habit and very vigorous). 
Beauty also is a conspicuous kind, showing well among the hosts of these kinds. 
‘Among the newer kinds of Barrii, Dorothy E. Wemyss is exquisite. Flora Wilson is also an 
extremely pretty flower, the segments so very pure. Another very beautiful kind is Maurice Vilmorin, 
with a cup heavily stained with orange-scarlet. Siddington, a variety of 1896, is also free and good, 
and frequently produces twin flowers in a scape. Of course, there is the world-renowned B. conspi- 
cuus, perhaps the most deservedly popular of all the Barrii strain. It is to be seen in the open fields 
by many thousands in a batch. In one quarter alone there were just fifty beds of this, and each bed 
contained 1,000 bulbs, a similar lot gracing what is known as the New Field— a valuable adjunct of many 
acres devoted to blocks of the most popular sorts. 
‘ Perhaps one of the fairest sights among Daffodils — certainly in the writer’s opinion— was the beds of 
Leedsii Duchess of Westminster and Mrs. Langtry, then a mass of nearly pure white, exquisitely 
crimped flowers, the biscuit-toned cups in some of these being charming against the pearly delicacy of the 
perianth. Minnie Hume, Princess of Wales, Katherine Spurrell, and Beatrice are all 
good and distinct among these, and worthy every care. One other kind, and this a Poet’s Narcissus — 
N. poeticus poetarum — was very fine indeed, many handsome flowers just opening. 
‘The above naturally only represent a very few kinds out of some 20 acres of these flowers, some of the 
kinds, as, e.g., Barrii consplcuus, appearing in overwhelming numbers, and, as viewed from the 
upper end, revealed not less than 70,000 or 80,000 of its handsome and graceful flowers ; large numbers of 
bulbs bearing three and others even four flowers each — truly a wondrous sight. ’ E. J. 
CULTURE AND; ADAPTATION OF THE DAFFODIL OUTDOORS . 
SOIL. — The Daffodil will thrive in any ordinary loamy garden soil, but prefers a deep, rather moist 
loam, and dislikes peat. When the soil is of a dry sandy nature, it should be deeply dug, rotten stable 
manure should be added, and a potato or other crop be taken off before planting. If this is not con- 
venient, then place the manure at least 12 inches deep, so as to be out of the reach of the bulbs ; the 
manure is used not as a stimulant but as a sponge to hold moisture in the soil. The ammoniacal 
properties of manure are poison to the Daffodil, hence great care is necessary in the use of it. 
Freshly dug Soil should be allowed to stand vacant two to three weeks before planting, to allow 
the ground to settle down, otherwise the freshly planted bulbs are often drawn under considerably below 
their proper depth, and the bloom in consequence is weakened. 
Best and Safest Manure to use is Crushed Bones or Basic Slag (for price see page 24). This 
should be applied at planting time, and may be mixed with the soil and placed next the bulbs ; the 
Crushed Bones may be applied at the rate of 4 cwt. to the acre, or i,i oz. to the square yard, and Basic Slag 
may be applied in same manner at the rate of 1 ton to the acre, or 7^ oz. to the square yard. We 
recommend the Basic Slag in preference to the Crushed Bones , it being more reliable, and a good manure for 
all lands ; on very poor and DRY SANDY SOILS we recommend in addition SULFHATE OF POTASH (for price 
see page 24), to be sprinkled annually over the surface of the ground, after planting, at the rate of 2 cwt. to 
