September 29, 1881. ] JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 295 
good Grape for growing with the Black Hamburgh, and few vineries 
should be without at least one rod of it. 
Of the white Fro n tig nans Early Saumur Frontignan, Chasselas 
if usque de Sillery (Salomon's Frontignan), Early Auvergne Frontignan, 
Troveren Frontignan, Josling's St. Albans ( Chasselas Musque) are all 
early, with rather small tapering bunches, and small to medium 
berries of rich flavour ; not much grown in England—too small gene¬ 
rally—but occasionally fruited in pots. The best in this section, but 
a little later, are Dr. Hogg (the best of all), and Duchess of Buc- 
cleuch, both of which have much larger bunches than those named 
above, and of excellent flavour. The Frontignans first named are as 
early as the Sweetwaters—earlier than the two popular varieties last 
named in that section, and are useful for pot culture. 
LARGER EARLY WHITE GRAPES. 
Golden Hamburgh. —Bunches of good size, loose; berries large, 
oval; skin thin, pale amber ; juicy, sugary, and vinous. Rather 
delicate, and must not hang long. Cool house. 
Golden Champion. —Bunches good ; berries very large, oval; 
skin thin, pale amber; very fleshy and juicy, with Hamburgh flavour. 
A shy bearer, but when well grown a remarkably fine Grape. First- 
class certificate by the Royal Horticultural Society. One Vine should 
be grown in the Black Hamburgh house for trial. 
Duke of Buccleuch. —This is the finest and at the same time 
most capricious white Grape in England. In some places it grows 
well, producing its good bunches and magnificent berries freely ; in 
other places it will not grow and fruit at all. Under the charge of 
the brothers Messrs. William Thomson (the raiser) of the Tweed 
Vineyard, and David Thomson, gardener to the Duke of Buccleuch, 
it grows luxuriantly, and fruit is produced by the ton. The berries 
are round, of enormous size, and thin skin, amber ; quality delicious, 
like a sweetmeat, very juicy, and of a rich Hamburgh flavour. The 
Duke of Buccleuch will not eat any other white early Grape. It 
ripens before the Black Hamburgh in the same house. The Vine is 
of a succulent nature, hence requires plenty of water; and then 
the wood must be well ripened and not pruned too closely. 
Mrs. Pearson. —It has large bunches—indeed very fine—and 
large, nearly round, clear amber berries, sometimes with a faint tinge 
of pink when in the best condition. The fruit is fleshy, juicy, with a 
rich sprightly flavour. The Vine is a very good grower and bearer. 
Hamburgh treatment. Certificated. Golden Queen of the same 
raiser is neither reliable in appearance nor quality, and is only very 
rarely seen in excellent condition. 
WINTER GRAPES (MUSCATS). 
Muscat of Alexandria. —This is unquestionably the prince of 
white Grapes for winter. It is not necessary to describe it. There 
is no real difference between this and the Bowood and Tyninghame 
Muscat. The distinction is a “ fancy ” one, and all are often pro¬ 
pagated from the same stocks and labelled according to the orders 
received by nurserymen. I do not know that there is anything wrong 
in this, as purchasers get a good Grape whatever name is written on 
the label. The alleged differences are wholly due to soil and culture, 
as they do not exist when all the Vines are grown in the same house 
and border. The Canon Hall Muscat is quite distinct, having larger 
berries, but not of such high quality ; it is also a very bad setter, 
and requires the treatment suggested for Alnwick Seedling. These 
Muscats must have a high temperature. 
Note. —Will you accept a hint ? If you have any Vines (varieties) 
that do not grow freely, graft them on Muscat of Alexandria stocks. 
This is, generally speaking, the best stock that can be had, and there 
are few varieties that do not thrive on it. 
LATEST WHITE GRAPES (NOT MUSCATS). 
Syrian. —Very large bunches, fine berries, and when grown in heat 
of good quality ; grown in a cool house inferior ; a very strong grower, 
and fairly good keeper. Largest bunch exhibited, 25 lbs. 15 ozs. 
Raisin de Calabre (Calabrian Raisin). —Very large bunches, 
and fair-sized roundish berries. Vine a good grower and bearer ; 
fruit not rich, but juicy and pleasant. A good keeper and useful. 
Largest bunch 26 lbs. 4 ozs. 
Trebbiano. —Bunches large and well shouldered ; berries of good 
size and nearly oval generally, but in this respect variable ; colour 
greenish white ; fruit fleshy, juicy, and refreshing, but not rich. A 
good keeper and serviceable. Growth free, and bears well. 
White Tokay. —Bunches of good size and well shouldered ; berries 
large, nearly oval; skin rather thin, pale amber ; quality good, juicy, 
refreshing, and sometimes rich. A good grower, bearer, and keeper. 
One of the best late Grapes. 
White Lady Downe’s. —A good Grape when well grown, which 
is not often, as it is delicate and shy, and in no respect by any means 
equal to the typical black variety ; indeed white late Grapes are 
inferior in keeping properties and general usefulness to the black 
varieties. A reliable and really good late-keeping white Grape is 
yet a desideratum. 
WHEN TO PLANT STRAWBERRIES. 
Some gardeners say now is the time to plant Strawberries, but 
according to my experience it is too late. We have planted 
Strawberries from June until October, and the time we like best 
is about the end of July. At that time this year we planted out 
many hundreds of runners, and they are now most promising. If 
planted now little or no growth would be made this season, and 
would have little fruit next year ; but as it is they are thoroughly 
established plants, with plenty of healthy leaves and stout crowns 
which will stand the winter well. Judging from others we have 
had before, a full crop of fruit will be obtained from our young 
plants before they have been planted out a year.—J. Muir, 
Maryam. 
PORTRAITS OF NEW AND NOTABLE PLANTS. 
Bolbophyllum Beccarii. {Nat. ord., Orchideie).—“ This is 
in many respects one of the most gigantic of Orchids ; none is 
known with so stout a rhizome, so large a leaf, or such massive 
inflorescence. On the other hand, specimens of various species of 
Vanilla are far more bulky : and it has been credibly stated a 
single plant of Vanda teres in Birma is a sufficient load for an 
elephant ! In one character B. Beccarii transcends all other 
Orchids, if not all other vegetables, and that is in the foetor of its 
flowers, which is loathsome beyond description ; of the same 
nature as that of Amorphophallus and of other Aroids (that of 
putrid fish), but more widely diffused, penetrating, and enduring. 
This most singular plant was discovered in 1853 by Thomas Lobb, 
when collecting for Messrs. Veitch, in the Island of Borneo, and 
leaves collected by him are preserved in the Lindley Herbarium 
of Orchids, now at Kew ; but it was the celebrated traveller and 
botanist, Odoardo Beccari, who first obtained flowering specimens, 
which led to the determination of its genus, and to its being de¬ 
scribed by Reichenbach. It is singular that the Malayan Islands 
should present three of the largest-flowered and most foetid plants 
in the world—this, the Rafflaria of Sumatra, and the wonderful 
Amorphophallus Titanum, discovered in this last-named island 
by M. Beccari.”— (1lot. Mag., t. 6567.) 
Geum elatum. (Nat. ord., Rosaceie).—“ This belongs to a 
small section of Geum, separated from it by Willdenow as the 
genus Sieversia, the species of which differ from their congeners 
in the style, which elongates as the achene ripens, but does not 
become suddenly bent or twisted above the middle ; as, however, 
all its other characters are those of Geum, which the species alto¬ 
gether resemble in habit, Sieversia has been reduced to a section 
of that genus. It includes about a dozen species, natives of moun¬ 
tainous districts in Europe, northern Asia, and N. America, where 
one, S. Rossii, is a native of high arctic regions. Geum elatum 
inhabits the whole length of the Himalaya. In its typical form, 
as figured here, it ranges from Kashmir to Kumaon, at elevations 
of 9000 to 12,000 feet; further eastwards, in Nipal and Sikkim, it 
is replaced by a subalpine form, var. humile; Hoyle (Geum ad- 
natum, Wall.), a small plant, with usually a one-flowered scape, 
which inhabits elevations of 12,000 to 15,000 feet.”— (Ibid., 
t. 6568.) 
Kniphopia COMOSA. (Nat. ord., Liliacere).—“The genus 
Kniphofia is interesting geographically because like Gladiolus, 
Aloe, Philippia, Aristea, Geissorhiza, Morma, and many others, it 
has its head quarters at the Cape, and is represented in Abyssinia 
and other mountainous regions of tropical Africa by outlying 
representatives. Two of the Abyssinian species have lately been 
brought into cultivation—the present plant and K. Quartiniana, 
.4. Rich., which was figured lately in Regel’s ‘ Gartenflora ’ (Tab. 
907). K. comosa is much dwarfer in habit than the well-known 
K. Uvaria of the Cape, with narrower leaves and smaller flowers, 
with the stamens and style very much exserted from the perianth. 
Of the smaller Cape species it approaches closely K. pumila, 
Kunth, a figure of which, under the name Tritoma pumila, will be 
found at Tab. 764 of the ‘Botanical Magazine.’ ”— (Ibid., t. 6569.) 
Crinum Balfourii. (Nat. ord., Amaryllidacese).—“ This is a 
well-marked new species of Crinum, discovered by Dr. Isaac B. 
Balfour in his recent exploration of the Island of Socotra. Its 
nearest alliance is with two Himalayan species, C. amoeuum and 
longifolium of Roxburgh; but all the three sub-genera of 
Crinum, Stenaster, Platyaster, and Codonocrinum are represented 
in each of the three tropical continents, and also in Australia. 
The flowers are pure white and very fragrant, and the bulb and 
leaves are much smaller than those of the ordinarily cultivated 
kinds, so that it will be a decided acquisition from a horticul¬ 
tural point of view; and it is to be hoped, as Dr. Balfour secured 
a good supply of bulbs, that it will be permanently established as 
a memorial in our conservatories of his adventurous and success¬ 
ful expedition, in which about a hundred new species and twenty 
new genera of plants were discovered.”— (Ibid., t. 6570.) 
Homalonema Wallisii. (Nat. ord., Aroidem).— “H. Wallisii 
was discovered by the collector whose name it bears in the Andes 
of Columbia when travelling for Mr. Bull, to whom the Royal 
