492 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
[ June 30, 1852. 
plants grown by Mr. Young. His system of increasing his stock of 
plants is by cuttings taken off with a heel from the stems of beheaded 
plants, inserting them in cocoa-nut fibre refuse and sand, in a propa¬ 
gating case, with a bottom heat of 70° to 80°. With care the cuttings 
strike readily ; afterwards when rooted they are potted singly in GO-size 
pots, in a mixture of half peat and half loam and silver sand. They are 
then plunged in a frame to start them into growth, and afterwards 
repotted in the same mixture of soil with a little charcoal added into 
5 and 6-inch pots. By growing the plants in a brisk heat they are soon 
serviceable. Mr. Young showed me some cuttings in the propagating 
case which were just emitting roots, also others in 3-inch pots, and a 
quantity of beautiful plants from 9 inches to 2 feet 6 inches raised 
from cuttings. 
Aralias are often infested with scale, but a little timely attention 
with a camel’s hair brush will keep the pe-t under. I have found Lemon 
oil a most useful insecticide amongst this class of plants. The sorts best 
adapted for table plants are Veitchi and its variety gracillima. They 
take longer to root than A. elegantissima and A. Chabrieri, which are 
also good for table plants. A. leptophylla and reticulata are more hardy 
and of stronger growth, so that they can be used for vases in rooms, 
whilst A, Sieboldi and A. Sieboldi variegata are most useful for halls 
or sub-tropical bedding, their fig-shaped leaves producing a good effect. 
—John Chinnbey. 
WINCHESTEK ALLOTMENTS. 
Wednesday the 15th of June will long be remembered by allot¬ 
ment holders in the neighbourhood of Winchester. An exceptionally 
sharp frost was experienced there on that date, sufficient to injure the 
haulm of Potatoes, in some instances most seriously ; Dwarf Kidney and 
Scarlet Runner Beans were also killed, which is to be much deplored. 
I have no means of knowing how low the thermometer actually fell on 
that dale, but, judging from appearances, there could not have been less 
than 4° of frost. At Swanmore the thermometer fell to 33°. It seems 
somewhat strange that the allotments in the Winchester suburbs 
suffered so much as they did, when we consider that the majority of 
them lie high and dry—too much so this year—ihe subsoil being chalk. 
The reason, of course, is the extremely low temperature, added to the 
fact that the situation is somewhat exposed to the north-west, from 
which quarter the wind was blowing at the time. In one field of not 
less than twenty acres, situated at Winnall, the whole being laid out in 
quarter acre patches, it was difficult to find an instance where the 
crops had escaped the frost. 
Much credit is due to the allotment holders of Winchester for the 
exemplary manner in which they cultivate and manage their plots. 
I have not seen any on such a large scale so well managed as those in 
question, the crops being well arranged and there being an almost 
entire absence of weeds, which, considering the mixed daily employ¬ 
ment of the owners, is most satisfactory and deserving of every praise. 
Me tenants have the option of sub-letting part of their allotment in 
Hired pieces, an arrangement which appears to give great satisfaction, 
as in many instances that amount is found quite sufficient for those 
whose spare time is somewhat limited. £1 per quarter acre is the rent 
charged, 10 per cent, being returned on the prompt payment of the 
rent, an arrangement which appears to work satisfactorily. This price 
may be considered high by some, but in conversation with some of the 
holders I find where the land is well managed a profit can be made; 
one pers'^n declaring that £5 net profit can be made from 40 rods by 
good cultivation. Potatoes and Cabbage are the main crops. Of the 
former Beauty of Hebron, and its white form, with some White 
Elephants, are regarded as the most satisfactory. Fifty sacks of Potatoes 
are considered to form a good average crop from 60 rods of ground. 
It is computed that not less than 130 acres of land are under culti¬ 
vation as allotments within a radius of two miles from the centre 
of the City, which speaks well for the energy of the holders of the 
plots in a population just under 20,000.—E. Molyneux. 
THE PANSY AND VIOLA AS POPULAR FLOWERS. 
The widespread popularity of these flowers often leads to papers and 
discussions on the Pansy at meetings of florists, and Mr. George McLeod 
of Chingford, Essex, has done good work in this way in the metropolitan 
distric s. Another good amateur cultivator, Mr. Wm. H. Morton, 
solicitor, Shep on Mallet, Somerset, very recently read an admirable 
paper with the above title at a meeting of the local Gardeners’ Association, 
in which he gave the early history of the Pansy from 1813 or so, when 
the wild Pansy of the fields collected by the late Lord Gambler was 
taken to his head gardener, the late Mr. Thompson, afterwards a famous 
cultivator of the Pansy, to see if he could effect any improvement upon 
these wild forms. In Mr. Thompson’s hands this Pansy made con¬ 
siderable headway, and he and other cultivators soon created a collection 
of greatly improved forms, of which lists and coloured illustrations 
exist, and so the work of improvement went rapidly on in the hands of 
Mountjoy, Thomson, Hale, Turner, and a host of o hers. 
Mr. Morton expressed indebtedness to much information from the 
history of the Pansy, writted by William Dean, in Simkin’s “ Book on 
the Pansy.” Some forms of Fancy Pansies existed as far back as 1846 
to 18i8, Introduced from France by the late Mr. John Salter, at one time 
a nurseryman at Versailles, near Paris, but who at the date mentioned 
had settled down as a florist at Hammersmiih, London. But these 
varieties were scouted as “ French rubbish ” by our old florists, and were 
never received into favour. About the year 1858 some improved forms 
were met with at Lille in France by Messrs. E. G. Henderson & Sons of 
the Wellington Road Nurseries, London, and were placed in Mr. W. 
Dean’s hands for cultivation, and he at once saw there was a future for 
this new race of Pansy, despite the forebodings of many a brother 
florist. And what is the Fancy Pansy now? Those who had the 
privilege of seeing the grand flowers of newer kinds at Birmingham, 
Leicester, York, or Edinburgh, can testify to the immense improvement 
in this most popular flower. Mr. Morton treated his subject in an 
exhaustive manner, showing the marked difference in the two classes of 
“Show” and “ Fancy,” their properties, and cultivation. The lovely 
Violas also came in for a good share of notice. A very hearty vote of 
thanks was accorded to Mr. Morton. 
Events of the Week. —This week’s Show list is a very heavy 
one. To-day (June 30th) there are Rose Shows at Canterbury, Eltham, 
and Winchester. On Saturday, July 2nd, the National Rose Society’s 
Metropolitan Exhibition takes place at the Crystal Palace. On Tuesday, 
the 5th, there are Rose Shows at Bagshot, Gloucester, Sutton, Diss, and 
the International Horticultural Exhibition, the latter being continued 
on the following day. On Wednesday, the 6th, there are Exhibitions of 
Roses at Hitchin, Farnham, Brockham, and a general Show at Croydon. 
A meeting of Gardeners’ Associations is to be held at Tunbridge Wells 
on the same day, and in the evening the Royal Botanic Society’s Fete 
takes place. On the 7th there are Rose Shows at Norwich, Windsor, 
Bath, and Woodbridge, together with general Exhibitions at Ware and 
Lee, the latter being continued on the following day. The summer 
Show of the Royal Horticultural Society of Ireland also takes place on 
the 7 th. 
- The Weather in London. —The weather in the Metropolis 
and its neighbourhood has undergone some changes during the past 
week. The 26th and 27th were dry and very hot, as also was the 28th 
until the evening, when a heavy storm, of which the rapidly falling 
barometer had given warning, broke over the city. Vivid flashes of 
lightning and heavy peals of thunder continued for an hour and a half, 
rain falling in torrents. After this the storm abated, but there was a 
recurrence of it in the early hours of the morning. Full reports have 
not been received at the time of going to press, but the storm does not 
appear to have confined its area to the immediate neighbourhood of the 
Metropolis, and it is to be feared that considerable damage has been 
done to the Roses, while the Strawberry picking, now in full progress 
in Kent, will probably have been greatly interfered with. The 
barometer now shows an inclination to rise, but the weather is cloudy, 
and further showers are expected. 
- Floral Fete at the Mansion House. —A Rose Show and 
Floral Fete was held at the Mansion House on Friday, June 25th. The 
saloon and Egyptian ball were full of flowers, and when the fete was 
opened at half-past two by the Princess Christian a beautiful effect was 
presented. Lady Bective, Lady Parker, Mrs. Grimwood, Mrs. Poster, 
Lady Monckton, the Lady Mayoress, Lady Arthur Hill, Mrs. Aste, and 
Miss Eastwood had well furnished stalls, from which flowers and fruit 
were sold, the proceeds going to the Royal Hospital for Children and 
Women in Waterloo Bridge Road. 
- Royal Botanic Society’s Certificates. —The following 
certificates were awarded by the Royal Botanic Society on June 22nd :— 
Floricultural.—To Messrs. Kelway & Sons for Delphinium Salamander, 
Pteonies Cavalleria Rusticana, Lady Alexandra Macduff, and 
Paderewski ; to Messrs. Barr & Sons for Pmonies Snowball an^ 
Madame Breon; to Messrs. Collins & Gabriel for Pmony Arthur 
Collins; to Messrs. G, Paul & Son, Chesbunt, for Pasonies Felix 
Crousse, Madame Loise, and Madame Fore I ; to Messrs. W. Paul and 
Son, Waltham Cross, for Rose (Tea) Corinna and Hybrid Tea Lady 
Henry Grosvenor; and to Messrs. Turner & Son, Slough, for Pelar¬ 
gonium Rosy Gem and climbing Rose Crimson Rambler. Botanical.— 
To Messrs. J.Veitch & Sons for Cornus alba Spathi, Cupressus Lawson- 
iana Westermanni, Hydrangea japonica Mariesi, Abies orientalis aurea, 
and Cypripedium Telemachus ; to Messrs. Hugh Low & Co. for Cypri- 
pedium Chamberlainianum and C. volonteanum Lowianum ; to Mr. 
James for Anthurium Austiniaua X Wardi ; to Mr. H. B. May for 
Adiantum cuneatum grandis and Nephrolepis recurvata. 
