April 21 , 1881. ] JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 315 
- A correspondent sends the following note upon Stre- 
litzia parvifolia :—“ This plant, while bearing an inflorescence 
equal to and almost the same as S. reginse, is remarkable for its 
tiny leaf blade in comparison with that species. This is a very 
ornamental genus, and is interesting for the curious extremes of 
its leaf development. In S. angusta the leaf blades are several 
feet in length, while in S. juncea, if we remember rightly, there 
is no blade at all. The leaf blade of S. parvifolia is about 
1£ inch long ; in S. ovata it is much larger, and in S. reginae it is 
of still greater size. S. angusta is least to be brought into com¬ 
parison, being a very distinct species with tall stem, but the 
others are very nearly related. S. parvifolia is now attractive in 
the Cambridge Botanic Garden.” 
- Of late years the cultivation of Liberian Coffee 
(Coffea liberica) has been energetically pushed in English 
Coffee-growing colonies and possessions. This has been due to 
two causes :—First, the cultivation of Arabian Coffee (Coffea 
arabica) has been severely crippled in the New World by the 
“white fly,” and in the Old by the “leaf disease” (Hemileia vas- 
tatrix). Secondly, Liberian Coffee being a more tropical plant, 
grows well at a zone of altitude below that which Arabian Coffee 
requires. The produce of the plantations of the new species is 
now coming into commerce. At present it does not find much 
favour apparently in England, but in America it is better appre¬ 
ciated. Recent sales at New York of Ceylon-grown Liberian 
Coffee have realised 935. per cwt., or 125. above the current 
quotation for middling plantation Coffee (Arabian) in the London 
market. This is a result of great importance for the West Indian 
Islands. Liberian Coffee has been found in Dominica to possess 
a comparative immunity from the attacks of the white fly, the 
ravages of which had all but completely extinguished the Coffee 
cultivation of the island. Not merely therefore can West Indian 
Coffee cultivation be revived with reasonable prospect of success, 
but there is the additional encouragement of a ready market easy 
of access in the United States.— (Nature.) 
THE NATIONAL AURICULA SHOW (SOUTHERN 
SECTION).— April 19th. 
Once again the great alpine tournament has been held, and the 
day could not have been much less keen than the progenitors of the 
flowers must often have experienced on the mountains of Switzerland, 
for a biting easterly wind prevailed, which was the more felt since it 
followed several days of genial weather. Those days have had a 
wonderful effect on vegetation generally, and have been undoubtedly 
of great benefit to the flowers .exhibited at the Show under notice. 
Had there been no favourable break in the prolonged cold of March 
and early April it would have been well nigh impossible for northern 
growers to have exhibited on the 19th ; and as it was they have only 
been able to do so by more forcing than the Auricula likes, and 
which weakens the flower stems and flowers, and deprives the colours 
of their gloss and freshness ; and not only are the Auriculas that are 
exhibited impaired by too much forcing, but unfortunately those 
left behind, hundreds of cherished plants, are in a corresponding 
degree weakened. Those, therefore, who make these efforts and incur 
the risks in the public interest—for the fame of the chief contributors 
is established—deserve a large meed of public approbation. Un¬ 
questionably the southern growers had the advantage this year, but 
they were not allowed to have all the honours of the day, as will be 
seen by the awards. The Show was perhaps not quite so large as 
that of last year, but it was better. The plants were generally 
dwarfer, and fewer sticks were employed; and if all the flowers on 
the trusses were not fully expanded the majority of those that were 
open were very fine, and the freshness of youth pervaded the Show. 
In the class for twelve distinct varieties the prizes were awarded in 
the same order as last year—namely, Rev. F. D. Horner, Kirkby Mal- 
zeard, Ripon, first; Mr. Douglas, gardener to F. Whitbourn, Esq., 
Loxford Hall, second; and Mr. B. Simonite, Rough Bank, Sheffield, 
third. Mr. Horner’s collection contained such nearly new and beau¬ 
tiful varieties as the exhibition seifs Ringdove and Heroine, which 
will bear his name to posterity ; Simonite’s Frank Simonite (very fine), 
Horner’s Ajax, Walker’s J. Simonite, &c., with some seedlings, 
including Snowdrift (white-edged), which is referred to below 
Intrepid, and Erebus, a fine dark self. Mr. Douglas’s plants were 
larger—indeed he grows Auriculas stronger than any other ex¬ 
hibitor, and thus, while he loses a little in the refinement of the 
flowers, does not lose many prizes, which after all is the real test 
of cultural skill. His plants and flowers were very fine, and in¬ 
cluded excellent examples of George Lightbody, Heap’s Smiling 
Beauty, Colonel Champneys, Lancashire Hero, Campbell’s Pizarro, 
Douglas’s Silvia, Taylor’s Glory, Douglas’s Hilda, Read’s Acme, 
and a seedling named Mabel, which obtained the premier prize 
as the best Auricula selected from the whole Exhibition. It closely 
resembles George Lightbody, was very fresh, bright, and well 
formed. It deserved its position. Conspicuous in Mr. Simonite’s 
collection was his grand self Mrs. Dodwell, which ought to be grown 
by the dozen for conservatory decoration ; a charming example of 
Ringdove, Booth’s Freedom, Richard Dean, and Frank Simonite were 
also good, but the majority required another week at least to bring 
them into the cultivator’s usual exhibition form. J. T. D. Llewelyn, 
Esq., Penllergare, had the fourth prize with small plants and large 
flowers of excellent colour. It is a little surprising how this exhibitor 
contrives to produce such fine flowers from plants so small. 
In Class B, for six plants, dissimilar, the Rev. F. D. Horner was 
again placed first with six regular plants of Horner’s Ajax, Lancashire 
Hero, Horner’s Sapphire, Campbell’s Pizarro, Horner’s Phantom, and 
Simonite’s Frank Simonite. Mr. Douglas was second, his notable 
plants being Simonite’s Frank Simonite, Trail’s Prince of Greens, 
Lancashire’s Lancashire Hero, and Headly’s George Lightbody; 
S. Barlow, Esq., Stakehill House, Castleton, Manchester, third, 
exhibiting Horner’s Ringdove, Lee’s C. R. Taylor, Simonite’s Frank 
Simonite, Oliver’s Lovely Ann, Campbell’s Pizarro, and Sam Barlow 
in good condition. R. K. Penson, Esq., Denham House, Ludlow, was 
placed fourth, and J. T. D. Llewelyn, Esq., fifth with highly creditable 
examples. 
Five competitors staged in Class C, for four plants, dissimilar. Mr. 
R. K. Penson secured the first prize with a fine and bright collection, 
both the paste and colours being very fresh and clear; a fine truss of 
Turner’s Yulcan bearing eleven good pips was very conspicuous. His 
other varieties were True Briton, George Lightbody, and Col. Taylor. 
These plants were altogether excellent, and the exhibitor deserved 
the honour he won so well—we had almost said easily—which is no 
small achievement when we consider to whom the remaining prizes 
in the class went. Mr. Douglas was awarded the second prize with 
Turner’s Chas. Perry, Headly’s George Lightbody, Taylor’s Glory, 
and Leigh’s Col. Taylor. The trusses in this collection were bold 
and erect, but lacked that clearness and brilliancy of the first- 
prize collection. Mr. B. Simonite was a very good third. This col¬ 
lection contained a magnificent truss of Frank Simonite bearing 
eleven finely developed pips. S. Barlow, Esq., secured the fourth 
prize, and J. T. D. Llewelyn, Esq., the fifth. In the class for two 
plants there were nine contributors, Mr. Douglas being first with 
Heap’s Smiling Beauty and Lancashire’s Lancashire Hero ; Mr. B. 
Simonite second with Frank Simonite and Brilliant; Rev. F. D. 
Horner third with Lancashire Hero and Horner’s Ringdove ; R. 
Gorton, Esq., The Woodlands, Golden Brook, Eccles, Manchester, 
fourth with Robert Trail and C. J. Perry ; R. K. Penson, Esq., fifth 
with Kay’s Topsy and Robert Trail ; J. E. Hay, Esq., Newcastle-on- 
Tyne, sixth with a grey-edged seedling and Trail’s Beauty. 
In the class for a single plant of green-edged the Rev. F. D. Homer 
was first and eighth with Lancashire Hero. Mr. Penson second and 
fourth with Prince of Greens and Simonite’s Talisman. Mr. S. Barlow 
was third, Mr. Simonite fifth, and Mr. Douglas sixth and seventh. 
For grey edges Mr. Penson was first and eighth with George Light¬ 
body and Confidence ; while Mr. Douglas secured the other six prizes 
—viz., second, third, fourth, fifth, sixth, and seventh respectively, 
with Headly’s George Lightbody, Kay’s Alex. Meiklejohn, Read’s Dr. 
Horner, and Headly’s E. A. Brown. This was a very fine class indeed. 
For white edges Mr. Douglas was awarded the first, second, third, 
sixth, seventh, and eighth. With Heap’s Smiling Beauty he secured 
the first, second, sixth, and seventh prizes ; Trail’s Beauty gained him 
the third, and Smith’s Ann Smith the eighth. Mr. B. Simonite was 
here placed fourth with Trail’s Beauty, and Mr. Penson fifth with 
True Briton. 
In the self class R. Gorton, Esq., secured the first, third, and fourth 
prizes with Blackbird; the fifth with a seedling. Mr. Penson re¬ 
ceived the second prize with Lord Lome; Mr. Bolton, 84, Wilderpool 
Road, Warrington, was sixth with the same variety ; Mr. B. Simonite 
seventh with Pizarro ; and the Rev. F. D. Horner eighth with Horner’s 
Daphne. 
In the large class for fifty plants, not less than twenty varieties, to 
include Alpines, Messrs. Douglas, Turner, and Llewelyn were placed 
first, second, and third respectively. The collection to which the 
post of honour was awarded (Mr. Douglas’s) was remarkable for their 
vigour as well as their substance of bloom. Noticeable among 
other varieties were Spalding’s Metropolitan, Douglas’s Silvia, Kay’s 
Trophy, Kay’s Alexander Meiklejohn, Taylor’s Glory, Hepworth’s 
Smiling Beauty, Turner’s Charles Perry, Headly’s Alderman Wisbey, 
Trail’s Beauty, fine ; Lady Sophia Dumaresque, Cunningham’s John 
Waterson, Smith’s Lycurgus, as well as some good seedlings. The 
Slough second-prize plants were beautifully fresh and bright, but 
fully a week behind the first-prize collection, but they gained in 
sturdiness what they lacked in size. A dark self, Sims’ Yulcan, was 
