524 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COUAGE GARDENER. 
[ June 25,1835, 
4 inches high. The sepals are light bluish-purple outside and 
white within, the outside thickly clothed with long silky hairs. 
A good figure is given in Sweet’s “ British Flower Garden,’’ 
pi. 205. It requires a well-drained position with very sandy 
loam; a deep cleft is just the position for it, as it occurs in deep 
crannies under natural conditions. Other congeners of this 
species, and all of which thrive under similar conditions, and are 
well worth the attention of those who grow alpines, are A. 
Pulsatilla, Halleri, and patens ; the last is a very fine but com¬ 
paratively rare form, with large deep purple flowers, usually 
appearing rather later than this (June 4th). 
A strangely named Onion (Allium Ostrewskianum), but 
a very handsome one, indeed I know of no other I like better. 
I have had it now three seasons, 1 think from the New Plant 
and Bulb Company of Colchester. It is planted in a border 
facing the west, rather dry, as it is well drained both artificially 
and naturally. One bulb has developed into four, each of which 
has a stout scape supporting a good umbel of flowers, but owing 
to the recent very dry weather they are not more than 
6 inches high; other seasons the scape was nearly 12 inches in 
height. There are several flowers on the umbel, each about 
three-quarters of an inch across, of a clear magenta pink colour, 
and stoutish substance, looking extremely pretty. I believe it 
is a native of Turkestan, and is one of Dr Regel’s many intro¬ 
ductions from that part of the world. 
The Italian species, A. neapolitanum, is also very pretty, now 
in full blossom. 1 have about 200 bulbs, many of which are 
flowering, but it does not do its best until well established. Some 
say imported bulbs will not flower, or, indeed, scarcely grow the 
first season, but to me that appears mere nonsense, as I have 
repeatedly tried such bulbs. A hundred were planted in No¬ 
vember, and many of them are now in flower. Those not bloom¬ 
ing I imagine were too weak to do so. The pretty pure white 
flowers from good strong bulbs are nearly or quite an inch 
across, each umbel carrying a large number, and they last a 
long time in a cut state, and prove most useful for all kinds of 
floral work. Unlike most of the family, we get no disagreeable 
odour from them, as in the bright A. Moly for instance. It is 
the flowers of this which are imported in such enormous quan¬ 
tities to our market from the south of France early in the year. 
An excellent figure of it is given in Sweet’s “ British Flower 
Garden,” pi. 201. It has also been named A. album and A. 
lacteum. Its culture is of the easiest, provided a well-drainad 
warmed border is selected, well raised, with light rich sandy 
soil. The bulb should be put in a good depth, say 6 inches, when 
there will be no fear of frost. 
Hybrid Columbines. —These are so beautiful that the wonder 
is we do not see them in every good garden. Graceful in form, 
most easily grown, and with such a diversification in colouring, 
most exquisite tints, combined or in contrast, yet if a good strain 
is secured. I have to thank the Rev. Wolley Dod for mine, and 
although few in number, they are a source of great interest and 
pleasure. I believe that gentleman has been rather busy for 
some years selecting and trying to improve these beautiful hardy 
flowers. The bees, no doubt, have assisted him materially, at 
the same time great patience and constant selection are neces¬ 
sary to maintain such a good strain, as Columbines rapidly 
degenerate. Several of the so-called species of Columbines 
are good, such as A. chrysantha, cosrulea, californica, Skinneri, 
one of the best, Ac., but I am sure a good selection of hybrids 
will give the best general satisfaction.—T. 
THOUGHTS ON CURRENT TOPICS. 
As I perceive I write too much for Mr. Iggulden, I will give him a 
week’s grace, perhaps more. This will afford him time to get the opinion 
and help of his neighbour, Mr. William Taylor, and if he can do this 
without flattering him so much the better ; also if he can whip round 
and secure the support of other of his gardening friends, I shall be well 
pleased. I particularly wish Mr. Taylor would throw in his whole weight 
against the “ endosmose theory,” and argue the point on behalf of my 
doughty assailant. We should then have something a little more precise, 
as it is not easy to follow a line of argument in which some half-dozen 
“ primary ” causes are adduced as having one and the same effect. I will 
only say further now in reference to another of my critic’s assertions— 
namely, “ No one can afford to experiment with a house of Grapes,” that 
he will very likely find he has made another mistake. Scientific men 
“ afford ” a great deal in the acquirement of knowledge, and I hardly feel 
myself competent to sneer at them for doing so. Mr. Iggulden’s letter 
on page 498, I should remark, is not in the slightest manner disagreeable 
to me, but quite the reverse; and now, as ha is fond of finding 
associates in the animal world to strengthen him in discussing a subject 
pertaining to fruit, I must leave him for a little while to make 
himself as contented as he can amongst his “ aristocrats, frogs, and 
washerwomen.” 
I have been observing with interest of late the progress of some 
Liliums in relation to the production and purpose of stem roots. In one 
particular clump four bulbs of equal size were planted in January, each 
of them alike bristling with proper roots, as incited by cocoa-nut fibre. 
For a long time the four plants were exactly alike, and there was no 
measurable difference in the height of them. Eventually one of them 
lagged behind until the others headed it by 5 inches, and this plant alone 
is now producing roots from the stem. By some cause, not ascertainable, 
it received a check, while the others continued growing uninterruptedly ; 
therefore it seems that stem roots were necessary in the case of one plant, 
and it produced them, but adventitious roots have not yet been required 
for the adequate support of the other three, hence there are none. I feel 
convinced if the stem roots were cut off this particular plant that its 
growth would be less free. So they will be left on, and the bulbs will be 
carefully examined in due time. Had two plants fortunately been 
checked and rooted from the stems, one of them would have been divested 
of the supernumerary feeders. At present I conclude the safe course is to 
nourish the stem roots when they form, and the plants will be benefited, 
whatever the effect may be on the future bulbs. 
I Am now going to indulge in a brief reflection on a subject that has 
not appeared in the Journal ; it is a very “ current topic,” nevertheless, as 
it relates to a little calamity that has happened to some Roses under my 
control, and may be worth recording. Ten days ago the foliage of these 
Roses was fresh, clean, and satisfactory, and the buds were swelling freely : 
now nine-tenths of the plants are scorched, the leaves rusted, and the 
buds hard. Nothing but pure water bad been used as an insecticide. 
The injury, then, was not done by any noxious application. It was done 
by the sun acting on the leaves suddenly and powerfully when wet. All 
the plants exposed to the full sun are seriously scorched, those partially 
shaded less scorched, those quite shaded perfectly fresh. After several 
hours of rain the sun suddenly cleared at midday, hence the injury. In 
order to test the matter I was profane enough last Sunday (after church) 
to sprinkle a number of trees and keep them wet from one till two o’clock 
after noon, and now there is scarcely a clean healthy leaf to be found 
on them. They are scorched, rusted, worthless, and the flower buds 
mu 3 t be picked off. The day was bright and hot, hence the injury. We 
cannot prevent the showers falling, but we can do without syringing Roses 
late in the morning of a hot day, and that is why this little mishap and 
experiment is mentioned. Whether the injury was done by the sun 
heating the water on the leaves to scalding point; whether the evapora¬ 
tion of the moisture was so great as to extract the heat from them, causing 
a severe chill; whether the injury resulted from an expansion of moisture 
in the cells by heat; or whether it was “ endosmosic” in its nature, I 
will leave our practical friend Mr. Iggulden to determine ; he knows 
most things, and shall have the honour of solving the problem. I have 
only to say the case is stated with exactitude. 
Just as I am writing, a postcard reaches me from some kind friend, 
who did not seem to have room for his name and address ; but that is of 
no consequence, the matter is everything, and has amused me. It is to 
the effect that I am not to take too much notice of Mr. Iggulden, who is 
only “ drawing you out a bit.” That, I may remind my informant, is the 
object of mod critics, and if anything good can be drawn out of a dis¬ 
cussion I do not suppose anyone sharing in it will object to a little opposi¬ 
tion being offered to his own views ; if he does he should not enter the 
literary arena. 
To resume. I was thinking about Roses, and am pleased to observe 
the miniature Roses—varieties, I think, of Rosa polyantha—have at last 
received the prominence they merit. When well grown in 5-inch and 
6-inch pots, with fresh clean foliage and clustered with diminutive flowers, 
it is questionable if there are any plants more charming for decorative 
purposes in summer; and those cultivators who “go in” for winning 
prizes in groups arranged for effect might do worse than try their hands 
at growing these pretty varieties in the mariner described by Mr. Bardney 
on page 480. He omitted, however, to name one variety that should be 
included—Anna Maria Montravel, which has pure white, imbricated, 
smooth-petalled flowers, and is particularly attractive ; so much eo, that if 
I were condemned to grow only one of these miniatures I think that would 
be the variety, and if your correspondent does not possess it he had better 
precure it at once. 
The advocates of cutting down Dendrobiums appear to have had the 
best of the argument on that subject recently. It certainly seems very 
unreasonable that a successful grower should be expected to drag his 
plants “ scores of miles ” to some exhibition to convince sceptics, yet 
Mr. Prinsep appears to have been tempted to do so, and has triumphed, 
for a cultural commendation would presumably not have been granted 
for a plant that was not meritorious, and the photographic illustration 
that has been published shows that his specimen was unusually fine. I 
have had to cut flowering growths of these plants “very much against 
the grain,” but must confess that better pseudo-bulbs followed than I 
expected, except from late-flowering and not very strong examples. It 
seems to me that we must have constitutional vigour, with plenty of time 
and plenty of heat, for the production and maturation of growths when 
the pruning system is adopted. Mr. Prinsep obligingly says he will be 
glad to give particulars of his method of treating his plants if any readers 
would be interested by the record of his experience. I, for one, shall be 
pleased if he will do so, and his notes can hardly fail to be acceptable to 
