48 JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. [ January 19 , im. 
placed by different authors in four genera— i.e., Marica, Morsea, 
Tigridia, and that under which it is now mentioned. It was 
originally imported early in the present century from Buenos 
Ayres by the Earl of Carnarvon, and it was named by Dr. 
Lindley in honour of the Rev. G. Herbert. The woodcut (fig. 9, 
page 47) represents the flowers faithfully. 
Phalocallis plumbea, though not one of the most attractive 
plants, deserves a word of note. It is chiefly remarkable for the 
very short duration of the flowers, which commence fading a few 
hours after they expand. The sepals are broad at the apex, of a 
bluish lead colour, with a blotch of yellow sometimes fading to 
white at the base. It is a Mexican plant, and can be grown 
under similar treatment to the preceding. 
MARICA. 
Several species of Marica are really useful and beautiful plants. 
The flowers are brightly coloured, of good size, very freely pro¬ 
duced, and mostly last longer than the majority of their allies. 
About nine species are known, but not more than three or four 
are grown in gardens, and even they are far from common. The 
genus is chiefly confined to tropical America, but some repre¬ 
sentatives are found in tropical Africa and India. It will be 
seen from this that a higher temperature is needed for Maricas 
than most other Irids. The cool house or open border is unsuited 
for them, and the most fitting position is either in an intermediate 
house or stove. A well-drained moderately rich compost of light 
turfy loam, a little well-decomposed manure, and a liberal pro¬ 
portion of sand is requisite. When the plants are growing water 
must be freely supplied, and at the flowering period the soil 
should never be allowed to become dry, or the production of 
flowers will be checked. The plants are easily managed with 
attention to these cultural items, and the three species mentioned 
below will under such treatment usually bear a large number of 
their bright flowers in succession. It may be further remarked 
that Maricas differ from their other relatives already described in 
possessing rhizomes instead of bulbs ; they are on this account 
more easily propagated, as the rhizome can be cut into small 
portions, inserted in sand m a high bottom heat, when shoots and 
roots are soon produced, the young plants then being potted and 
treated similarly to the others. 
M. gracilis. —An elegant plant, and attractive even when not 
flowering. The leaves are light green, an inch or more broad, 
tapering, closely resembling Irises in form, and especially like a 
miniature 1. germanica. One peculiarity of the plant is its pro¬ 
duction of what may be termed runners. Narrow leaf-like pro¬ 
longations from near the root, 6 inches or more in length, bear at 
their extremities young plants, which when placed in contact 
with soil speedily form roots, and the species is thus even more 
readily propagated than by dividing the rhizomes. When, how¬ 
ever, it is not desired to increase the stock these runners are best 
allowed to remain on the plants, as, if they can be arranged near 
the margin of a shelf or elevated on another pot, the pendulous 
plantlets have a graceful and striking appearance. The flowers 
are of moderate size with white or bluish ovate sepals variously 
marked at the base, the petals small, strangely curved and spotted 
with reddish brown. 
M. casrulea. —A few words of reference to this species will 
suffice, as a good woodcut appeared in vol. i., page 143, of this 
series of the Journal, accompanied by some excellent cultural notes 
by Mr. James Udale, gardener at Shirecliffe Hall, Sheffield, who 
grows the plant remarkably well. The flowers are large with 
broad rounded sepals, bright blue and marked at the base with 
brown and yellow. The petals are curved and prettily veined 
with deep blue. 
M. Northiana. —An attractive form, not so well known as the 
two preceding, and to some extent intermediate in characters. 
The flowers are larger than those of M. gracilis, but not so large 
as M. caerulea, and they resemble the first-named rather more 
nearly in colouring. The sepals are ovate in shape, white, the 
base yellowish and elegantly mottled with deep red. The petals 
are similarly curved to those on the other species, barred with 
blue at the apex and veined with red at the base. It can be easily 
grown under the same treatment as M. gracilis and M cserulea. 
HIRBERTIA. 
S'x species are now included under this genus, the name of 
which perpetuates that of the Hon. and Rev. W. Herbert, who 
studied the Irids, Amaryllids, and allied plants so closely and 
carefully in the early part of the present century. Two forms— 
namely, H. Drummondiana and H. cmrulea, are natives of Texas ; 
the remaining four—H. umbellata, H. brasilensis, H. unguiculata, 
and H. pulehella—are found in South America. It will be unneces¬ 
sary, however, to describe more than one—viz., the last, H. pul- 
chella, as most of the others are either not in cultivation or 
very scarce. This, though a native of a warm climate, is found to 
succeed well in a cool house or frame where frost can be excluded, 
and a little heat afforded in very damp weather. It is best grown 
in pots well drained, a compost of peat, a little turfy loam and sand, 
being adapted for it, supplying water carefully. In habit it is 
slender and graceful, with narrow leaves and pretty flowers pro¬ 
duced singly on a scape 8 or 9 inches high. The sepals are about 
half an inch broad, 3 or 4 inches long, curving downwards, deep 
blue with a light streak extending down the centre. The woodcut 
(fig. 10, page 51), shows these characters very well. It may be 
observed that the figures of some varieties of H. pulehella given in 
the “ Botanical Magazine ” some years ago by the gentleman whose 
name the genus bears, differ considerably from that represented 
here, the sepals being shorter, broader, and duller in colour.—L. C. 
APPLES AND PEARS. 
I suspect that there are more persons who will agree with 
“ E. L. 0.” than “Wiltshire Rector” is aware of, and that 
there are many who have the vulgar taste to appreciate the 
Seckle Pear. At least, I must own I am one of those who do 
not think it a sweet vulgar, or a vulgar sweet Pear, fit only for a 
huckster’s shop, though I have no doubt that it would command 
a ready sale when found there. I can only say, as far as my 
experience of it is concerned, that though Beurre Hardy may 
under favourable conditions be both a handsome and a good- 
flavoured Pear, that I had much rather have the Seckle (small 
and insignificant though it may be in the eyes of “ Wiltshire 
Rector ”), as compared with the other. I can very well re¬ 
member, I shall not say exactly how many years ago, my first 
eating some Seckles grown in my father’s garden in Notts, on 
espalier trees obtained from the late Mr. Rivers of Sawbridge- 
worth—rather more, I should say, than forty years ago. It may 
have been a schoolboy’s fancy at the time, perhaps I had a sweet 
tooth, but I can very well remember saying that it was one of 
the best Pears out of some seventy varieties which we were then 
growing, and that my father, who was very interested in the cul¬ 
tivation of Pears, quite came to the same conclusion. I certainly 
have not altered my opinion yet. I much prefer it still to Beurre 
Hardy, and it is certainly a much surer bearer and hardier 
even than that variety, at least with me. Although I have the 
latter both on walls and espaliers as well as bush fruit, I find it 
a most uncertain bearer, and if the autumns should be cold and 
wet, only inferior in point of flavour. However, there is an old 
saying in an old play, “Comparisons are odorous, and “Wilt¬ 
shire Rector ” must pardon my standing up for an old favourite, 
especially as I find it is much valued in our house by the rising 
generation, more so, I think, than any other Pear. 
I am also inclined to think that he is wrong to try and limit 
the varieties of Apples and Pears grown. No doubt Cox’s Orange 
Pippin is a better Apple than the old Golden Pippin, but there 
are some years when the latter succeeds when the other does not 
bear, and vice versa. So, too, the Irish Peach is a very good 
Apple and far superior to the Joanneting, but then it is not 
ready in this climate for at least six weeks after the latter, nor so 
soon as Early Margaret. Lord Suffield, again, is a larger and 
finer Apple than our old friend Keswick Codlin, but the tree is 
not so hardy, and the fruit does not keep so well. When speaking 
of Peais being too sweet, I have known the same complaint made 
against Williams’ Bon Chretien, which, in my mind, is a much 
more highly perfumed Pear than Seckle, and also against Gansel’s 
Bergamot. There is an old proverb, “ Chagun a son gout so 
there are some who even like Beurr6 d’Amanlis and Beurr6 Diel, 
which when grown on walls make beautiful dishes of fruit to 
look at, but—and that is a great defect—are not fit for much else. 
“Wiltshire Rector” says he only knows of two small Pears 
worth growing, Winter Nelis and Knight’s Monarch. Does he 
think Zephirin Grdgoire a large Pear, or Comte de Lamy ? for 
both the latter are superior in the north to either of the former, 
both of which require a south wall or a south-west aspect to bring 
them to produce them in good condition. Another good Pear 
in its season is Madame Treyve, but it is rather uncertain. When 
last writing to the Journal of Horticulture about Apples I forgot 
to mention Alexander and Golden Reinette. The latter is a very 
good bearer and has almost always a crop, and I find that 
Alexander keeps much better than I had anticipated. We have 
some very fine specimens still sound and good from a small 
standard tree even now at the commencement of a new year. 
New Hawthornden and Golden Noble are also keeping well, and 
are well worth growing. I will take some other opportunity of 
saying a few words with regard to the pruning and training both 
of Apples and Pears, as it seems to me there is a great diversity 
