December 25, 1884. ] 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
669 
or beds could bo made gay without at all disturbing the bulbs, or even 
injuring them. This also raises another question. Many growers lift 
their bulbs and store them when they have flowered, and no doubt this 
answers well where there is nothing else to be done; but it appears to me 
that the success obtained by leaving them undisturbed is as great, and 
possibly greater, than in the other case, the trouble infinitely smaller, and 
all chance of mixing the bulbs avoided. Deep planting in well-drained 
soil is the main essential to their success. 
T. ELEGANS.—This plant originated first in gardens, and said to be a 
probable hybrid, T. acuminata having something to do with the parentage. 
It grows about a foot, sometimes more, in height, with Campanula-shaped 
flowers 3 or 4 inches in length, of a bright or intense red, and having 
a yellow ring at base. Very distinct, and a most useful plant for mixed 
border, or for centre of bed or designs. Flowers in April. 
T. Gesneeiana.— This is supposed to be the original parent of the late- 
flowering garden forms, and, in company with T. suaveolens, may have to 
do with all of them. It is hardly so tall as the above, but has larger 
flowers, bright red, but varying sometimes with and without basal blotch. 
It also includes T. Schrenkii, T. fulgens, and others, dififering from the 
type in points not of little interest to the gardener. It flowers in May, 
and is a native of Caucasus and Armenia. 
Tolipa Oephanidea.— This is undoubtedly one of the finest and most 
useful Tulips of the T. sylvestris group, a charming plant for grouping, and 
quite hardy. ^ It likes a rich, light, and open soil, and always best coloured 
in exposed situations. It grows about a foot in height, one flower being 
produced on each peduncle. They are bright shining yellow, suffused with 
red on the outside, and having reddish-purple blotches on the claw. The 
leaves are longish, glaucous green, and channeled down the face. It is a 
native of the mountains of Greece, flowering in May and June. 
T. BiFLOEA.— Though not one of the showiest, this recommends itself 
from its free-flowering habit, as many fine flowers are produced on each 
peduncle ; also perfectly hardy, and perhaps increasing about the quickest 
of those in general cultivation. It seldom exceeds a foot in height, pro¬ 
ducing two leaves not above half an inch broad. The flowers are small 
compared with the former, white inside with a yellow eye, the outside 
being tinged green and purple. A native of the Caucasus and Siberia, 
flowering early in March and April. 
T. iLiENSis, which, however, belongs to another group, and one of the 
new central Asian species, will be hardly distinguishable from T. biflora 
from a garden point of view. 
T. AusTBALis and the variety Celsiana are gems for the rockery, where 
their long-continued flowering from May onwards renders them always 
attractive. They do well on shelves, and are useful amongst Ferns, The 
leaves are narrow, dark green in the centre, edged with a crimson border ; 
very neat. _ It flowers freely, the blooms being bright yellow, flushed or 
streaked with red on the outside. A native of southern Europe.—M. S. 
PRUNING VINES. 
December, January, and February a/e the principal Vine-pruning 
months, and as all but late vineries are' now cleared of their fruit, the 
wood ripe, and the leaves gone, much pruning may be done just now. 
Amateurs are often not sure when to begin. So long as a leaf remains 
they think the sap is flowing, and to prune then would be injurious, 
but when the leaves are quite yellow and the wood hard no harm will 
follow cutting, especially at this season. As spring advances there 
is plenty of other work, and if the Vines are left unpruned until then 
they may have to be done hurriedly and very imperfectly, but now 
there can be no excuse for failing to do them properly. There is no 
time when Vines in a cool atmosphere are more at rest than at present. 
As the days lengthen the sap soon begins moving, and then it may 
flow and run out as the Vines commence growing. If pruning is 
done when the Vines are quite at rest the wood soon heals. 
In pruning strong healthy Vines every one of the side shoots may 
be cut-in to two eyes or buds from the old wood. When perfectly 
dormant these buds are very small and not easily injured, but when 
growth has begun and they have swelled a little they are very easily 
rubbed off, and the utmost care must be taken that they are not 
removed. Young canes which are being left a considerable length 
should have the small side growths cut from them, and the small or 
unripe tops as well. Very old Vines with weak shoots should not be 
hard pruned ; if they are, and only one or two eyes are left on each 
spur, the shoots which come from these will often be quite sterile, and 
those with old and weak Vines may lose a crop in this way, whereas 
had they left the shoots longer in pruning—that is, four or five 
buds, many bunches .would be produced. This long-spur system will 
soon cause the spurs to become long, but it is better to do this for a 
year or two and let the Vines gain strength and bear fruit than have 
no crop. There are some Vines, such as Duke of Buccleuch, Golden 
Champion, and Gros Guillaume, which fruit much more freely on long 
spurs and young wood than when closely pruned. Indeed this is the 
only way to insure a crop on those varieties. 
Where young rods have been taken up during the summer to 
supersede the old ones these should be cut out before any of the real 
pruning begins. They may be sawn off, then dress the cut part with 
a sharp knife. Where parts of the stem have become bare of branches 
the shoot next to this vacancy may be left long enough to fill the 
space, but rods which have the spurs and buds clustered on one part 
and none for some distance again are neither sightly nor profitable, and 
the sooner a young rod is taken up from the base and the old one cut 
out the better. 
Vines recently transplanted should not be hardly dealt with in 
pruning until they have become established again. Close pruning 
only agrees with robust Vines, and this should never be forgotten. 
Some use pruning scissors, but as the wood is softer than that of 
many fruit trees, and very liable to be bruised by the scissors, we 
prefer a sharp knife.—A Kitchen Gardener. 
We have received the following Rose Show fixtures fob 1885 ;— 
Canterbury, July 27 ; Crystal Palace, July 4 ; National Rose Society, 
South Kensington, July 7; Sutton, July 8; National Rose Society, 
Manchester, July 11. 
-“ J. B. T.” writes on judging Tomatoes as follows :—“These 
should be j udged by the taste, and judges should acquire it to be qualified, 
as the same variety differs in flavour according to treatment, soil, and 
climate. The general use of the Tomato in an uncooked state is still in 
its infancy, and at present growers for profit only study those for culinary 
purposes. To bring under public notice those suitable for table use much 
may be done by exhibits in a dessert class.’* 
- Messes. William Paul & Son of Waltham Cross, whose special 
exhibitions of Rosea and other flowers have been twice honoured by visits 
from Her Majesty the Queen, and who supply Roses to nearly all the 
crowned heads of Europe, have lately received a Royal Warrant appoint¬ 
ing them Rose-growers to Her Majesty. 
- Mr. S. Windsor, Glangwna Gardens, Carnarvon, sends us flowers 
and foliage of Lapageria eosea and alba, the former an extremely good 
variety, and both remarkably well grown. One leaf of L. rosea is 5 inches 
long and 3| inches wide, exceedingly thick and strong. The flowers are 
3^ inches long, 2^ inches broad at the mouth, and very dark in colour— 
one of the best varieties we have seen. The white variety is smaller, 
but very pure. Accompanying these was also an excellent sample of 
Curled Parsley gathered in the open ground from plants raised from seed 
sown June 12th, 
- Mr. a. J. Brown, The Lodge, Finches, Lindfield, Sussex, 
wiites :—“ Being too late for an alteration to be made 'in the Horticul¬ 
tural Directory, wUl you intimate in the Journal that since the death of 
Mr. and Mrs. Procter this estate has been purchased by W. Saville, Esq., 
and I remain with him as gardener ?” 
- “E. B., Streaiham," writes :—“ Heckpield is noted formanygood 
things, but particularly for its Lady Downe’s Grapes, and these are fully 
up to the average this season, although the rods bearing them are ‘ stand¬ 
ing on their heads.’ These Vines have a history, so far as I know, 
peculiar to themselves, having once possessed two separate sets of roots. 
The Vines were originally planted on one side a span-house, the rods 
being trained over to the other side of the house, and rooted at the extreme 
ends into another border. After fruiting in this way for several years 
Mr. Wildsmith commenced to sever the rods at the top of the house for 
the purpose of removing the original portion to plant young Vines. I 
believe some visitors to Heckfield doubted whether the remaining portion 
of the canes would continue to do well after being severed from the parent 
stem; but Mr. Wildsmith has amply proved that Vines are as much at 
home ‘ on their heads ’ as in their usual position, for no one could wish for 
a finer lot of Grapes than these rods are carrying.” 
- The Exhibitions of the National Auricula Society and of the 
National Carnation and Picotee Societies (Southern Section) of 
1885 will be held by arrangement with the Council of Royal Horticultural 
Society in the gardens of the Society at South Kensington—the Auricula 
Show on April 21st and the Carnation and Picotee Shows on July 28th. 
The 21st of April is not a Committee day of the Royal Horticultural 
Society. An effort was made to fix the Exhibition for April 28th, but 
failed, owing to that date having been previously appropriated by the 
