28 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
[ Janaary 8,1891. 
favourable position, being on the north side of a shrubbery border, much 
shaded by tall evergreens. “ W. B.” says this Deutzia “ grows freely in 
good soil where lime does not abound.” In our case chalk is very freely 
mixed with the soil. Chalk, I am told, contains 80 per cent, of lime, 
therefore it cannot be said that lime is at all injurious to the Deutzia. 
The plant has not received any manure for the last ten years. I 
question if any was given at planting time, yet still it flourishes.— 
E. M. 
- Mr. .John Clark, late Gardener at Brodie Castle, 
Morayshire, died at that place on Christmas Day, after over a 
quarter of a century of faithful and valued service, 
- The Weather in December.—T his was a dull month, with 
much fog, and a low temperature, with a very severe frost on 22nd, 
and the ground covered with snow from llth to the end of the month. 
We had only two bright days. Wind was in an easterly direction 
twenty-five days. Barometer, highest 30 36 on 27th at 9 A.M. ; lowest, 
29 27 on 19th at noon; average height, 29 93. Highest shade tempe¬ 
rature, 44° on the 4th ; lowest, 5° on the 22nd ; lowest on grass, 7° on 
the 22nd. Mean temperature of the month, 29 53°. Total rainfall, 
0 51 inch, which fell on twelve days. The greatest daily fall was O il 
as snow on the 19th. The garden spring ran 9 gall ms per minute 
on the 31st.—W. H. Divers, Kttton Hall Gardens, Stamford, 
-The Weather in North-east Lincolnshire has been 
the most severe recently that has been known for many years. On 
December 19th there was about 15° of frost, followed by about 3 inches 
of snow. On Dec. 21st the thermometer registered 7°, on the 22nd 4°, 
and the thermometer has never risen above 33° during the past ten 
days, and there are not the least signs of any change in the weather 
yet. The east winds (which are so prevalent and disastrous here), and 
the frost, have done great harm to all kinds of garden produce in the 
open ground. 
- In the December number of the “Botanical Magazine” an 
excellent illustration is given of Rhododendron Boothi (t. 7149). 
This is one of the most handsome yellow-flowered species from the 
Bhotan Himalayas we have yet seen ; the flowers are large, the petals 
broad and rounded, bright clear yellow, with which the rich crimson 
anthers contrast admirably. The flowers are borne in a compact head 
at the points of the branches, the leaves being green with a few brownish 
hairs on the upper surface and lighter beneath. E. Boothi was found 
in Bhotan at “an elevation of 5000 feet epiphytic on Oaks, and is 
described as a straggling shrub 5 to 6 feet high.” 
- Other plates in the same issue of the work named above 
represent the following—Rhodostachys andina, a strong growing 
Bromeliaceous plant from Chili with dense heads of pink flowers; 
Arisrema fimbriatum, an effective species from the Malay Islands, with 
reddish brown and white striped spathes, the spadix long, slender, and 
drooping, and strongly filamentous. Scaphosepalum pulvinare is a 
small brownish flowered Orchid of the Pleurothallis family chiefly 
remarkable for the length of time it continues in flower ; and Thalictrum 
Delavayi from the mountains of Yunan, the flowers pale purple in 
loose panicles. 
- Old People’s Gathering.—O n New Year’s Day a most 
interesting gathering took place at Astwood Bank, in connection with 
the Astwood Amateur Gardeners’ Society, when about a hundred 
persons, in spite of the severe weather, met to tea and an entertainment. 
Mr. J. Hiam, the President of the Society, was elected to the chair, and 
gave a five-minutes opening address, after which an enjoyable evening 
was spent, and many a wish was expressed for similar annual 
gatherings. 
-- The Winter Moth.—J ust a line to thank Mr. S. T. Wright 
for his note on page 4, which I have read with much interest. If we 
only differ on one point in our extensive researches and observations 
we will not quarrel. I only wanted to prove that the egg-laying insect 
was “ assisted ” into the trees by actual observation, but this I have 
never been able to do, although I have burnt many a pound of dips. 
I have certainly made a hundred visits at night in hopes of satisfying 
myself on the point. I heartily reciprocate the good wishes for the 
coming season.—J. Hiam. 
- Productive Strawberries. — A Wicklow correspondent 
writes :—“ I forced about sixty Strawberry plants last year and they 
fruited well; 1 afterwards turned them out of the pots in good soil. 
and I had a good erop on them in autumn. I lifted some, placed 
them in boxes in heat, and I have had ripe fruit up to a week ago. 
There are many green fruits on the plants, which I daresay will ripen 
when I start forcing again. I must thank you for good advice, as 1 
am indebted to the Journal for my success.” 
- Report of the Weather During December, 1890.—The 
weather during the past month was of unusual severity, only two- 
nights without frost, whilst 12° to 17° of frost have been registered 
each morning. The days for the most part have been very dull and 
cold, particularly the 29th and 30th. During eighteen days the tem¬ 
perature did not rise above freezing point, and during most of the 
eighteen days it remained many degrees below. Very little rain haa 
been registered. In fact, rain fell upon only one day throughout the 
month, whilst sleet has fallen frequently. On the 19th 3^ inches of 
snow fell, which is equal to 0-33 of rainfall, and on the 26th another 
slight fall was experienced which produced water equal to 010 of rain¬ 
fall. The total amount of snow and rainfall combined for the whole 
month was equal to 0'53, thus making December here a very dry 
month. Total amount of rainfall for the past year 2317 against 
27.81 of 1889. — B. Wallis, The Gardens, Hamels Park, Hunting- 
ford, Herts. 
- Christmas Roses. —This has been a bad season for having 
these plants in flower by Christmas, though generally we are enabled 
to cut abundance of charming flowers fully a week before that day 
from plants growing on an east border, having no protection beyond 
what is afforded by a cold frame placed over the roots at the end of 
October. At the present time there are hundreds of buds on the plants 
of Helleborus niger, but not one has yet opened, and not many have beeii 
gathered from the maximus variety, which is generally so much in 
advance of the ordinary H. niger. The severe frosts experienced this 
winter are no doubt the cause of the backward flowering of these plants 
this season. By lifting the roots and placing them in a warm tempera¬ 
ture we might have had a quantity of flowers, but this plan does not 
commend itself where but limited numbers of roots are available, and 
from which a full supply of flowers is expected every year. Plants of 
either of those named that are lifted and forced ever so gently do not 
recover from the check for two or three years afterwards, therefore if 
flowers are expeeted every year from a few roots the best means must be 
adopted. Our roots of H. niger are fifteen years old, and it is ten years 
since they were divided and planted on the border, so that a cold frame 
would cover them. To a strong soil peat and leaf soil were added, ia 
which the plants grew well. 
- When all the flowers are gathered early in March 
the frame is removed, the soil is pricked up ; after removing the seed 
pods, which are freely produced, a mulching 2 inches thick of partly 
decayed horse manure is spread on the soil about the plants and 
allowed to remain there until the following October, when the strawy 
parts are raked off. The plants while growing in the spring are 
well supplied with water, and occasionally with liquid manure, which 
induces plentiful foliage, without which it is useless to expect a full 
supply of high quality blooms. The manure laid on the surface is by 
the continual waterings partly washed into the soil, the roots receiving 
the benefit from the manure in this way. Daring dry weather 
Hellebores quickly suffer if not supplied with moisture ; it is injurious 
to the plan's if the foliage flags severely when growth is in progress. 
By following the few cultural hints as detailed anyone may make 
certain of plenty of flowers every year with but little trouble.—S. 
COTONEASTER FRIGIDA. 
In passing through the public gardens at Bournemouth in November 
last, which extend to the length of a mile or two along what may be 
I termed a beautified dell, many standard trees of this Cotoneaster grow¬ 
ing amongst shrubs on the southern slope arrested attention. These 
trees were from 10 to 20 feet high with heads about half that diameter- 
or less, as they were more upright than spreading, and densely laden, 
with large pendant clusters of reddish crimson fruit. Strikingly 
effective were these glowing masses of colour, and it is not conceivable 
that they could be equalled by any other tree in the winter months. 
This Cotoneaster is of robust upright growth with leaves 3 or 4 inches 
long and half that in width, and many of them remain through the 
winter. The sheltered position the trees occupied no doubt favoured 
their growth and fruitfulness, but it may be reasonably expected there 
are many other gardens in which this distinct Cotoneaster would 
