July 29, 1880. ] 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER, 
89 
Houtte, La France, SirG. Wolseley, Perle des Jardins, and Francois 
Michelon being the finest blooms. Fourth, C. W. Newmann, Esq., 
Wyncote, Allerton (gardener, Mr. Mease). The finest bloom in this 
box was Marechal Niel, and without doubt the finest in the Show of 
that variety. Sir G. Wolseley and Marie Baumann were also good. 
The blooms were smaller than those shown by the previous prize- 
takers, but very good considering the locality in which they were 
grown. There were seven entries in this class. 
For twelve varieties, single blooms, of Teas or Noisettes, Messrs. 
T. Jowitt and J. P. Hawtrey were each awarded equal first prizes, 
the former having good fine examples of Niphetos, Alba Rosea, 
Rubens, and Marechal Niel; the latter excellent blooms of Caroline 
Kuster, Catherine Mermet, Souvenir de Mons. Paul Neyron, and 
Amazon. 
Amateurs’ classes for Roses grown within the Hundred of Wirral. 
—For twenty varieties, single blooms, first, T. B. Hall, Esq., whose 
stand included Eugene Furst, a fine dark flower and much admired ; 
although much resembling Louis Yan Houtte, the wood was quite 
distinct; Etienne Levet, Thomas Mills, Mdlle. Marie Finger, and 
Sdnateur Yaise were also good. Second, Mr. Joseph Meyer ; Mdlle. 
Marie Rady and Prince Camille de Rohan being the finest blooms. 
Third, Mr. T. Griffiths with a good stand containing fine blooms of 
Paul Neyron and Charles Lefebvre. For twelve varieties, single 
blooms, first, W. Just, Esq. (gardener, Mr. McMaster), with a good 
stand of blooms which included a very large example of Mdlle. 
Hippolyte Jamain. This bloom was also awarded the prize for the 
premier Rose. Second, Mr. Hodgson; third, Mr. J. Hargreaves ; 
fourth, Mr. J. T. Raynes. For twelve varieties, single blooms, 
Messrs. D. Walford, J. Myers, and T. B. Hall, were awarded the 
prizes in the order named. Six varieties, single blooms, Messrs. Just, 
Hodgson, Raynes, and Gaman were the prizetakers respectively. 
For three varieties, single blooms, the awards went to Messrs. Just, 
Hodgson, and Hargreaves. 
Miscellaneous Exhibits. —Mr. J. Smith, nurseryman, Claughton, 
exhibited a collection of flowering and foliage plants, which occupied 
one end of the tent. The other end was occupied with plants from 
Messrs. F. and A. Dickson & Sons, Chester, and Mr. Smith, Dell Nur¬ 
sery, Rock Ferry, both collections including some clean well-grown 
decorative plants. Messrs. F. and A. Dickson & Sons also exhibited a 
box of Roses, which included good blooms of Richard Wallace, 
Alfred Colomb, Due de Rohan, Horace Yernet, and Jean Liabaud ; 
Mr. Griffiths, Hereford, a box of Marie Baumann and of Comtesse de 
Serenye, the latter being remarkably good. The Committee of 
Management and Mr. Smith, the Honorary Secretary, laboured assidu¬ 
ously to render the Show a success. New societies, however, do not 
always adopt the best system of managing the exhibitions in respect 
of the numbers, prize cards, etc.; but experientia docet. 
The Judges were the Rev. H. H. D'Ombrain; Messrs. Elliott, 
Francis, and Prince. 
PRIMROSES. 
The common Primrose, when well grown in rich light soil, will 
in the third year become a large plant and most useful for early 
spring flowering. Seedling plants will be found near any old 
clump, and these should now be planted out in the borders. Next 
year they will form good flowering clumps, producing a dozen 
flowers or so, and the year following if properly grown they will 
bear flowers by hundreds. I have counted as many as 350 flowers 
at one time on a single three-year-old clump of the common yellow 
Primrose. The coloured varieties of this flower are a so very well 
worth attention. I have at least fifty well-marked varieties here, 
varying from the deepest crimson to the purest white, and from 
the deepest purple to rose colour, and all these are of our own 
raising over the last five years from carefully selected seed. 
Originally I commenced with choice Irish seed, which was sown 
along the two sides of a beechwood fence running north and 
south, so that the seedlings were in shadow half the day. The 
small plants thus raised were pricked out in different situations, 
some in the open borders and others in shade, but I do not see 
that one place suits better than another. In two years they are 
fine plants, and they remain good for four years, after which I 
remove them to the wild garden. The flowers from old plants 
become smaller ; and where so many are grown, it is too much 
trouble to divide them when they can be replaced so easily with 
seedlings which we expect to be of finer quality. 
To maintain a progressive improvement in the strain I carefully 
weed out all inferior colours the moment they flower, and take 
great care of the best. I do not trouble to gather seed, but allow 
the plants to scatter their seeds around them, raking the ground 
and shaking out the seeds when ready. The seedlings are thus 
grouped around the parent plant, and as the good varieties are 
known the seedlings are safe. I believe we have thus obtained 
as good qualities in every colour as are to be found anywhere. In 
the early spring nothing can be more lovely than thousands of 
Primroses of every shade of colour. All our beds are edged with 
them, and they are also pricked out on the rockeries and on the 
permanent borders. They do not do well for massing, so we 
have discarded them from the more formal spring bedding.— 
W. Brockbank, Broclihurst, Didsbury. 
HAWK HURST HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 
The tenth annual Exhibition of the above Society was held under 
very favourable circumstances. As a consequence of the district 
comprising a very extensive and much-favoured part of Kent, the 
competition was and invariably is very keen throughout the Show. 
There is now no occasion for any open classes for plants to “ make 
a show p ” the local plant-growers being quite equal to the emergency. 
There is yet, however, still room for improvement in the fruit and 
vegetable classes. Collections of vegetables were staged in numbers 
in two classes, but many were much too coarse, especially the roots. 
Liberal prizes were offered to cottagers, and a very creditable display 
of fruit and vegetables sufficient to fill a large tent was produced. 
The premier six stove and greenhouse flowering plants were staged 
by J. C. Fisher, Esq. (gardener, Mr. C. Nicholls). Some of the best 
of these were the well-flowered examples of Bougainvillea glabra, 
Erica Thomsonii, and Statice imbricata. The best four exhibited by 
W. J. Neve, Esq., Cranbrook (Mr. F. Dean), included good plants of 
Clerodendron Balfourianum and Allamanda Schottii. Fine-foliaged 
plants were well shown by Mr. Nicholls ; the Right Hon. G. J. 
Goschen, Hawkhurst (Mr. Gilmour) ; Mr. F. Dean ; Captain Oakes, 
Sandhurst (Mr. Hodgkins) ; SirE. T. Hardinge (Mr. Rummery), Hawk¬ 
hurst, and others. The specimen of Acalypha musaica shown by Mr. 
Gilmour was strikingly beautiful. This exhibitor was also awarded 
the first prize for six exotic Ferns and four Caladiums. Of the former 
the specimens of Davallia Mooreana, Adiantum gracillimum, and 
Gymnogramma peruviana were very praiseworthy. The premier prize 
group of Fuchsias staged by Mr. Nicholls included beautifully grown 
specimens of Lucy Mills and Wave of Life. Lady Herschell, Hawk¬ 
hurst (Mr. L. Barnes), also staged good Fuchsias. Mr. Hodgkins 
secured the first prizes for Gloxinias and Zonal Pelargoniums. Dr. 
Newington, Ticehurst (Mr. W. Salcombe), was awarded the first prizes 
for both twelve and twenty-four cut Roses. The blooms were fairly 
good in both instances. 
The best collection of ten varieties of fruit shown by Mr. Barnes 
included good examples of Buckland Sweetwater and Mrs. Pince 
Grapes. Two other collections were staged. Mr. Milham, Rol- 
venden, secured the first prize for eight dishes of fruit. The best 
two bunches of black Grapes were shown by Mr. B. Reekes, Wad- 
hurst Castle Gardens, the variety being Black Hamburgh. Mr. 
Barnes was a close second with Mrs. Pince, and in a corresponding 
class for white Grapes was placed first with well-coloured clusters of 
Buckland Sweetwater. The Melons shown as a rule were very poor, 
the notable exceptions being the premier prize fruit of Turner’s Scarlet 
Gem and Earl of Beaconstield, green flesh, shown by Mr. Gilmour 
and Mr. Hodgkins respectively. Cucumbers also were second-rate. 
Mr. Barnes had the best collection of vegetables, but was very 
closely pressed by Mr. Gilmour. The latter put up a very fine dish 
of Stamfordian Tomatoes. Other successful exhibitors of fruit and 
vegetables were Mr. Milham; Canon Jeffreys, Hawkhurst; Mr. Iggul- 
den, Mr. Willards, and others. Mr. W. Apps, Clive Yale, Hastings, 
exhibited, not for competition, some very fine Early Red Tomatoes, 
Tender and True and Earl of Beaconsfield Cucumbers, and some very 
close heads of Dean’s Snowball Cauliflower. 
Mr. Potten, Sissinghurst Nurseries, brought a good collection of 
plants, which added much to the variety of the Show. Among these 
we noticed the double-flowering tuberous-rooted Begonias Comtesse 
Horace de Choiseul, Phosphorescent, and Emilie Lemoine ; and good 
single-flowering varieties were W.E.Gumbleton, Zambezi, ar. :i Potten’s 
Exquisite. The most striking‘tricolor Pelargoniums were Master¬ 
piece, Prince of Wales, E. R. Benyon, Empress of India, and Pr-.teus. 
Good Zonal varieties were Gathorne Hardy, Dr. Denny, New ! .ife, and 
General Grant; and of doubles Madame Thibaut, Nymph, Madame 
Thiers, and Lucie Lemoine. Mr. W. Knight, nurseryman, Battle, 
exhibited three boxes of cut Roses, many of which were very good, 
notably Marie Baumann, Dr. Andry, Camille Bernardin, Mdlle. Marie 
Rady, Alfred Colomb, and Exposition de Brie. Messrs. G. Bunyard 
and Co., Maidstone, sent six boxes of very fine cut Roses, the colour 
of the majority being remarkably bright. Some of the best blooms 
were Capitaine Christy, Baron Haussman, Beauty of Waltham, La 
France, Etienne Levet, Madame Charles Wood, Elie Morel, Marie 
Baumann, Alfred Colomb, Duke of Edinburgh, and Magna Charta. 
An exhibition of arts and manufactures was held in connection with 
the Flower Show, and the grounds adjoining the residence of Sir E. T. 
Hardinge, Bart., were, with the park, open to the public. 
POTATOES. 
Never since I have been in the county of Wilts have I seen 
such an abundance of garden produce as there is in this neigh¬ 
bourhood at present. Cottage gardens especially are a pleasure 
to look at, and the contrast between this year and last is very 
remarkable. Potatoes, the poor man’s vegetable, were last year 
quite a failure, while Groundsel and other quick-growing weeds 
seemed to have entirely taken possession. Hoeing was useless, 
and weeding seemed to be labour thrown away, for the weather, 
which proved so disastrous to the cultivated vegetables, was 
