September 9, 1836. ] 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
238 
In looking at the two collections we could perceive at once the 
deficiencies of both, and their excellencies as well. Mr. Burrell’s collec¬ 
tion, which was placed rightly first, exhibited great depth of colouring, 
well finished spikes, and good quality, while Messrs. Harkness’ were 
deficient in colour, there being a too great preponderance of light flowers, 
a fault which was found with Mr. Campbell’s collection last year. The 
flowers, too, had been too much shaded, although this is perhaps more 
necessary in Yorkshire than it would be further south. All the collec¬ 
tions, whether in the nurserymen’s or amateurs’ class, exhibited the 
effects of the recent very hot weather. It was the same with them as with 
Rises af:er the hot weather in the early part of July—they were rushed 
into bloom and were consequently small. I know that in my own case 
many flowers that I had fondly hoped would have stood by me on the 
show day had to be rejected, as the lower blooms had all passed. 
Taking, then, the collection which gained the first prize, I may remark 
that it was a most even lot; the spikes had from six to ten flowers ex¬ 
panded. They were rich in colour, but would have gained a little, I think, 
if the stands had been covered with baize, and a little foliage had been 
added. Amongst the most noticeable flowers were the following :—Ovide, 
a very bright carmine-coloured flower, tinted with lilac. I was surprised to 
see this in such good form, as I had almost discarded it. Leviathan, a 
very large light-coloured flower; Duchess of Edinburgh (Kelway’s), this 
very much surprised me, not by its excellence, for that I knew it always 
possessed, but by its being there at all. I have never been able to get it 
into bloom until October, but here there were three or four spikes of it in 
excellent condition. ; it is without question a very grand flower. In the 
same way I was surprised to see Phoebus, a grand high-coloured flower of 
Souchet’s, but which I discarded long ago for the same reason. Mount 
Etna, a grand high-coloured scarlet flower ; Flamboyant, another of the 
same type ; Grand Rouge, a splendid flower in the way of Meyerbeer, 
perhaps even brighter in colour, but I question if it is superior to that old 
and grand flower ; Le Vesuve is another of the same type, very brilliant, 
but not so large as Mount Etna and Grand Rouge ; Atlas, a very fine 
light-coloured flower, white, striped with lilac ; Crepuscule, a flower which 
I did not think a great deal of when it came out, but here it was very 
pretty, a delicate soft porcelain white ; Cervantes, bright and good rose, 
tinted with lilac ; Legouvd, the best bloom of this old and once f ivourite 
flower that I have seen for some time; Cameleon, slatey lilac flamed 
orange ; Mabel, this I think is, taking it all in all, the best Gladiolus we 
have, it is very close and compact in form of spike like Meyerbeer, the 
colour is a clear beautiful waxy white, with delicate carmine markings, a 
most chaste and lovely flower ; Dr. Fostain, another very bright flame 
colour ; M. Mann Me^s, very good, but one of the most delicate kinds we 
have ; Baroness Burdett Coutts, a very large flower, forming a grand 
spike of lilac. It is very attractive, although perhaps it may to 
some extent dominate the other flowers in a stand, and serve them the 
same as Paul Neyron does a stand of Roses ; Dalila, a very favourite 
flower of mine, with a soft pleasing shade of salmon rose, a good spike, 
and undoubtedly the finest we have of that shade of colour ; Archduche3.se 
Marie Christine, a fine large flower, but somewhat too loose both in the 
flower itself and in the spike ; Addin, a very bright flower of dark 
amaranth colour, with white lines; and Rossini, another old flower which 
I had long since thought ought not to be grown, but here it was very 
bright and good ; Mdlle. Marie Nines, bright and clear, but my experience 
of the variety is that it is very difficult to keep ; Horace Vernet, a very 
favourite flower of mine, with its rich deep crimson colour ; Colorado, a 
very bright flower; Andre Leroy, deep cherry red, striped with a darker 
shade with white lines ; Hesperide, white ground with rosy salmon stripes, 
and Lacepede, rosy violet, shaded white, and striped with lilac. Besides 
these Mr. Burrell had some promising seedlings, one in the way of 
Shakespeare, and another light colour with a margin which was intended 
to be permanent, and if so would be likely to be very valuable. Before 
dismissing Mr. Burrell’s exhibits, I may state that many of these flowers 
were cut from bulbs which he had collected for three years, thus disposing 
the idea of deterioration, and that a large proportion of them were from 
bulbs which had been cut in two previous to planting. The soil and 
climate of Cambridge are no doubt favourable, with a rainfall of only 
22 inches and a higher temperature in autumn than most places possess ; 
it seems more to resemble that of Fontainbleau and Montereux, where the 
great bulk of Gladioli is grown in France, than any climate in England 
with which I am acquainted. I have always thought that parts of Lin¬ 
colnshire around Spalding would be favourable, and this seems very 
like it. 
Messrs. Harkness & Sons’ exhibit was a most creditable one, and for a 
ddbflt at a metropolitan show, I think nearly as remarkable as Mr. 
Burrell’s. There were two defects in it; there were too many white and 
light-coloured flowers, and too much foliage. This gave it a dull appear¬ 
ance, especially when contrasted with Mr. Burrell’s close to it, while at a 
little distance the flower appeared hid in the too great quantity of greener} - . 
These are drawbacks which can be easily remedied. There was one 
noticeable feature in this collection, the manner in which some of the old 
flowers came to the front—such flowers, for instance, as Colbert, a bright- 
looking red flower ; Didon, an old white; Orphde, of which there were 
some of the best spikes I have seen for some time ; Pactoli, an old yellow 
in very good condition, were very good, and proved that some of the old 
flowers, when well cultivated, can still hold their own. Africaine was 
very fine, and is unquestionably a very desirable variety, contrasting so 
well with light flowers. Leviathan and Celume were also good, while 
Ondine, pure white, was shown in remarkably good form, being probably 
the best white we have. 
With regard to the amateurs’ class little need be said. I do not think 
the writer will be accused of “ bumptiousness ” when he says his own were 
very far ahead of the others, although they were not equal to those he exhi¬ 
bit-d last year. The stand included Dalila, with ten flowers expanded; 
Abricote, a most lovely shade of clear apricot colour ; Meyerbeer, with 
fourteen expanded flowers ; Mabel, white seedling ; Tamerlane, very dark ; 
Pyramide, bright and good ; Baroness Burdett Coutts, large and well 
coloured ; Horace Yernet, Adolphe Brongniart, Mount Etna, and Grand 
Rouge. The second prize was taken by Mr. Whetton, Bedale. His flowers, 
both in their excellencies and defect 1 , bore a striking similarity to those 
of Messrs. Harkness. Owing, no doubt, to their being neighbours and 
friends the same system of shading had apparently been adopted. Mr. 
Catley of Bath gained the third prize, and among6t the flowers were 
some of Mr. Kelway’s varieties, but they were not in good form. It is 
much to he wished that more encouragement were given to this fine 
autumn flower, which seems to be taken up warmly in the noith, as all 
florist’s flowers are.—D., Deal. 
ROYAL HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 
September 7th and 8Tn. 
The Fruit and Dahlia Shows at South Kensington formed an extensive 
display in the conservatory on Tuesday and Wednesday last, Grapes being 
particularly well shown. Groups of plants and flowers also added consider¬ 
ably to the interest of the occasion. 
Fruit Committee. —Present: John E. Lane, Esq., in the chair, and 
Messrs. John Burnett, T. J. Saltmarsh, G. T. Miles, J. Roberts, W. Warren, 
William Paul, G. Goldsmith, G. Norman, J. Willard, P. Crowley, R. D. 
Blackmore, and G. Bunyard. Mr. Bannister, Cote House, Westbury-on- 
Trym, showed a seedling Grape, said to be a cross between Muscat of 
Alexandria and Black Hamburgh, the berries oval, of medium size, and of a 
fine golden colour. The Committee wished the Grape to be shown again in 
two months’ time. Mr. W. Carmichael, Bignor Park, Pulborough, also 
showed a seedling Grape, said to he from Muscat Champion. It was sown 
in April, 1881, and fruited at midseason, 1886; the berries were large, 
globular, and red. Mr. G. T. Miles was awarded a cnltura' comm -ndation 
for large handsome fruits of President Strawb rry, which wore much 
admired. Mr. Burnett, Deepdene Gardens, showed fruks of Pear Biurre 
Pres d’Artois. Mr. J. Blundell, West Dulwich, exhibited dishes of Boddaert’a 
Green Gage and Cox’s Emperor Plums, also Cox’s Pomona Apples. Mr. W. 
Allan, Gunton Park Gardens, Norwich, sent a bunch of Grapes under the 
name of Foster’s Seedling, which it was thought resembled White Tokay. 
The Commissioners of Western Australia contributed a collection of dried 
fruits, principally Raisins, which were highly commended. A vote of 
thanks was accorded to MM. Vilmorin, Andrieux & Co., Paris, for twenty 
varieties of Haricot Beans. Mr. Mortimer, Farnham, exhibited twenty-four 
fruits of Sutton’s Imperial Green Flesh,beautifully netted and o' fine flavour. 
Mr. T. Lockie had a seedling Melon, named Oakley Court Seedling, a green- 
flesh of good quality. Mr. T. Spencer showed a seedling Melon, a cross 
between'Hero of Bath and Munroe’s Little Heath. Messrs. James Veitch, 
Chelsea, exhibited a large collection of Carrots, comprising over twenty 
varieties, scarlet, yellow, and white. W. Roup 11, E^q., Haivey Lodge, 
Roupell Park, exhibited a collection of Grapes, comprising good bunches of 
Muscat Hamburgh and Madresfield Court, the latter being exceedingly 
fine ; ten bunches of these were shown in capital condition. A collection of 
highly flavoured Grapes was also shown, comprising Purple Constantia, 
Grizzly Fontignan, Dr. Hogg, La Bruxelloise, the Raspberry, the Strawberry 
Grape, and the Trebbiano. 
Floral Committee. —Present: G. F. Wilson, Esq., F.R S., in the chair, 
and Messrs. H. Bennett, W. Bealby, T. Baines, H Herbst, J. Hudson, R. 
Deau, A. L. Lendy, J. O. Brien, J. Dominv, C. Noble, H. Turner, G. Paul, 
G. Duffield, E. Hill, J. Douglas, W. B. Keflock, H. Cannell, J. Walker, and 
Dr. M. T. Masters. 
G. F. Wilson, Esq., F.R.S., W^ybridge, was awarded a vote of thanks for 
Lilium auratum, with five large flowers, the petals broad with numerous 
spots. A vote of thanks was awarded. A vote of thanks was accorded to 
Mr. R. Dean, Ealing, for a collection of very tine seedling Pentstemons, 
brightly coloured and large flowers. Messrs. J. Veitch & Sons, Chelsea, 
showed several new plants, for wh'ch certificates were awarded. They 
also had a fine specimen of Nephrolepis rufescens tripinnatifida, which has 
been previously certificated, and Selaginella gracilis, an elegant species 
from the South Sea Islands. Messrs. Laing & Mather, the Nurseries, Kelso, 
N.B , were awarded a vote of thanks for some seedling Carnations. Mr. 
Mortimer, Farnham, showed flowers of Chrysanthemum G. Werinig. Mr. 
G. Humphrey, Kingston Langley, Chippenham, had several distinct seedling 
Dahlias. Mr. Bannister, Cote House Gardens, Westbury-on-Trym, suit a 
good variety of Mignonette named White Perfection. Mr. John Walker, 
Thame, contributed a pretty stand of quilled Asters. Mr. Munday, Basing¬ 
stoke, sent flowers of Cactus Dahlia, named Empress of India, striped with 
crimson and maroon. Mr. Garlandvoy, Stanhope Park, Greenford, showed 
a dark-coloured single Dahlia, and Major General Carey de B avoir, 
Guernsey, showed a Cactus Dahlia named Fanny Carey, of a dark fcarlet 
colour. Messrs. Heath & Son, Cheltenham, exhibit d a plant of Olonto- 
glossum mirandum, not a verv good variety, and a plant of Dendrobium 
ciliatum, a curious species, with a brownish deeply fringed lip. Messrs. F. 
Sander & Co., St. Albans, showed a basket of p'auts of Galeandra Devonians, 
bea'ing a large number of its purple-lipped flowers. A vote of thanks was 
accorded. A cultural commendation was awarded to Messrs. Hooper & Co., 
Covent Garden, for a fine plant of Dasylirion glaucum. A vote of thanks 
was accorded to Mr. T. S. Ware fer cut flowers, and to Mr. Gore on ot 
Twickenham for a collection of Lilium auratum, representing several line 
Y&ri6tl6S« • • 
Certificated Plants. — Vanda Dearei (Baron Schroder). A distinct 
species with curving leaves 18 inches long. The flowers are nearly 3 inches 
in diameter, the sepals and petals obovate, creamy white petais and sepals, 
the column white, and the lip yellow. , , 
Phrynium jucundum (J. Veitch & Sons).—A handsome variegatei p ant 
from Dutch Malaya, the leaf-blades lanceolate, about 6 inches long, freely 
variegated with white. - 
