JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
580 
[ December 9, 1880. 
of course, requires stove heat for its successful cultivation.”— 
{Ibid., t. 6525.) 
Scabiosa PTEROCEPHALA. —“ A densely-tufted perennial, form¬ 
ing large low cushions, perfectly hardy, and when in flower very 
ornamental. It has been long cultivated in Kew in the open 
border of the herbaceous ground. It is a native of the mountains 
of Greece, growing in dry rocky places at elevations of 3000 to 
6000 feet, and extends from the Ionian Islands (Mount Nero in 
Cephalonia) to Mount Athos in Macedonia, and Parnassus in 
Attica. At Kew it flowers in July and August.”— {Ibid., t. 6526.) 
Calochortus pulchellus. — “ The Calochorti, of which 
between twenty and thirty species are now known, belong exclu¬ 
sively to California, British Columbia, the Piocky Mountains, and 
Mexico, and one and all seem to require greater heat than an 
English summer gives them to mature their bulbs properly. The 
present species and C. albus are well marked from all the others 
by their more robust habit and numerous large drooping globose 
flowers, which never expand fully and are much less fugitive than 
in the more brilliantly coloured C. venustus and its neighbours. 
Calochortus and Cyclobothra slide into one another so gradually 
that it is not worth keeping them up as distinct genera, C. pui- 
chellus was one of those introduced by Douglas about 1830, when 
travelling for the Royal Horticultural Society, and was originally 
described and figured by Mr. Bentham half a century ago.”— 
{Ibid., t. 6527.) 
PEARS IN CHESHIRE. 
“Wiltshire Rector” asks for the experience of amateurs 
respecting Pears grown as pyramids. It takes many years to 
form any experience that is worth having. In the first place, 
the trees are several years before they begin to bear, and when 
they are in a bearing condition you must have several crops before 
you can form a fair opinion concerning the quality of the fruit. 
I have found that no fruit varies so much from year to year. Some 
few varieties, it is true, appear to be pretty constant—Marie 
Louise and Winter Nelis for example. Both of them I grow 
against a wall. The former is a shy bearer as a standard, and the 
fruit is of course smaller, but the quality is good. I have not 
tried it as a pyramid, but it is a straggling grower and requires 
careful pruning, so I prefer to grow it, if away from the wall, as a 
standard. Winter Nelis cankers as a pyramid, and 1 have been 
obliged to graft it with another variety. Other varieties, however, 
vary much with the season, being in one year so bad that you feel 
inclined to root them up, and in another good enough to win a 
reprieve. 
I have not yet discovered many varieties which do thoroughly 
well without a wall to help them. My experience, however, is at 
the service of “Wiltshire Rector,” though I fear it will not 
be of much use to him, since my soil and climate must differ 
considerably from his, Jargonelle, for instance, which he de¬ 
scribes as the Gloire de Dijon among Pears, is anything but satis¬ 
factory here. As a pyramid it cankers badly, and the fruit is 
nothing to speak of. Grown against a wall, as “Wiltshire 
Rector ” grows it, it would no doubt be much improved, but I 
devote all my wall space to winter Pears of higher quality. I should 
not place Jargonelle in the first dozen, perhaps not in the first 
twenty. Williams’ Bon Chretien I grow as a standard. It is a 
healthy grower and good bearer; as a fruit I do not like it, 
but it comes in at a useful time. Seckle as a pyramid would be 
small and probably unhealthy ; grown against a wall it is of good 
size and very delicious : so very distinct as to be almost indis¬ 
pensable in a collection. Beurre Diel grows well here as standard 
or pyramid, but the fruit is apt to crack and does not always 
ripen satisfactorily. When well grown and ripened this is a fine- 
flavoured juicy Pear. Louise Bonne of Jersey with me grows 
excellently, and is a thoroughly good bearer as a pyramid ; indeed, 
if the fruit were a little better I should describe it as thoroughly 
satisfactory. The fruit is moderately good, but is not of the 
highest class. I have found it answer to gather this Pear before 
it is quite ripe ; if left too long on the tree the flesh is apt to 
become mealy. 
Now to speak of some others not mentioned by “Wiltshire 
Rector.” Has he tried Doyenne du Comice, Comte de Lamy, 
Thompson’s, Beurre d’Aremberg, Glou Monjeau, Beurre Superfin, 
and Beurrd d’Amanlis ? These all do well with me as pyramids 
or standards, and the fruit is very superior. Glou MorQeau, 
oddly enough, does better here in most years as a pyramid than 
against a south-east wall. It is not so large of course, but ripens 
better, and is altogether a better Pear. Doyenne du Comice is a 
very fine Pear and healthy grower ; I have not had it long enough 
to say if it is a good bearer, but am told that it requires time. I 
have two different trees both named Beurre d’Aremberg, but very 
different both as to growth and fruit. One is a slender grower, 
but quite healthy against a wall, bears large fruit of first-rate 
quality, and this year is quite my best Pear ; the other, a strong 
and healthy grower, does well as a pyramid, is a good cropper, 
and the fruit is very useful. I think this is the true Beurre 
d’Aremberg. Beurrb d’Amanlis is usually good, but when the 
fruit is extra large it is apt to be coarse. Marechal de Cour I 
have discarded; the fruit was not good enough. Bergamotte 
Esperen does well with me against a wall, but 1 rank it inferior 
to Winter Nelis and Josbphine de Malines, which ripen with it. 
Winter Nelis is my type of a good wall Pear ; it is first-rate in 
every respect. Beurre Bose I have tried several seasons, and 
have at last condemned it as not good enough. Brockworth Park 
has fruited this year for the first time against a south-east wall. 
It is something like a Louise Bonne of Jersey, but inferior. It, 
too, is condemned. I am trying many other varieties, but as yet 
have no further experience to offer, except that I have been 
obliged to do away with Knight’s Monarch as a pyramid. I 
never could ripen the fruit; it constantly fell off before its time 
and shrivelled. 
As to Apples, if “Wiltshire Rector” wants a really first- 
rate kitchen and dessert variety let me strongly recommend 
Maltster. As a dessert Apple it is Al, while it is also very good 
for baking. It should be allowed to hang on the tree as long as 
it will, and is then scarcely inferior to a Newtown Pippin. I 
have found the Calville Blanche on the French Paradise stock 
quite worthy of a place on the best wall. It is a sure cropper, 
and the fruit very fine.— Cheshire Rector. 
NOTES ON BIRDS—TRAPPING BULLFINCHES. 
“ When a man has a hobby he is apt to ride it a little too 
hardly.” So wrote “ A PARSON ” in a neighbouring county on 
page 310, April 22nd. This is no doubt true in many cases ; and 
I would not venture to ride mine again so soon over the pages of 
the Journal—although I am pleased to find I have interested at 
least two readers—were it not for the suggestion of Mr. Harrison 
Weir on page 460. It is not my wish or intention to carry on a 
paper war over so trifling a matter as the bill of the blackbird 
with so eminent a naturalist, whom all must admire who have 
seen his excellent life-like drawings of birds and animals ; still I 
find it hard to give up honest fixed ideas, and must retain my 
opinion, from observation on hundreds of specimens I have 
handled, that the variation of colour of bill and plumage in this 
locality is due as a rule to age. Sometimes we have exceptions 
in colour, as I have a pied specimen nearly half white, and I 
have read of white ones. A pure white house sparrow was reared 
here a few years ago ; a cream-coloured starling was also reared 
in this neighbourhood. 
Mr. Harrison Weir’s communication opens up so many subjects 
of interest that I hardly know which to reply to without going 
through the whole, which I shall not be able to do on this occa¬ 
sion, but must confine my remarks to the bullfinch. He asks, 
How are they best trapped 1 As no one has replied to it, and I 
have ventured on two occasions in the Journal to advise catching, 
I feel it a duty to give my experience, as theory without practice 
is not worth much. The statement made on page 436 that bull¬ 
finches are unusually plentiful this autumn is being borne out by 
numbers which I was hardly aware of, as acting myself upon the 
advice then given I commenced catching those which were 
visiting me, and during the last three weeks I have cleared my 
garden of exactly a score. As we are so accustomed to the annual 
grumbling and writing in the Journal about fruit buds being 
destroyed in the winter by bullfinches, I believe it will prevent 
most of it if gardeners will adopt the means I have, and will 
probably save tons of the best fruit, as bullfinches are no mean 
judges of the best Plums, my Green Gage, Golden Drop, and 
Damson buds always being preferred to the somewhat insipid 
Orleans. Those readers of the Journal who have the number for 
April 29th, 1880, page 336, will find that I stated I had only been 
troubled with one bird during the last two winters. As the spring 
advanced the sprays on my Gooseberry bushes referred to, which 
had been attacked, stood out bold and clear with scarcely a leaf 
on, like “ churchwarden ” pipe stems, and looked very con¬ 
spicuous, as the foliage was developed on the other part of the 
bushes. 
I find the best way to trap bullfinches is to procure a caged 
bird. I borrowed one for a start this year, also what is known as 
a trap-cage, putting the tame bird in the lower part, placing a 
bunch of Blackberries or Privet berries in the top part; hang the 
cage against a wall or tree out of the reach of cats. I have 
reserved a stock of bunches of Blackberries by inserting their 
stems in water Grape-fashion for a succession of food for bait 
(see page 336 above referred to). I have also caught scores, if 
