150 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
[ February 23, 1888. 
- “ H. C.” sends us flowers of some uncommonly fine Cinekaeias, 
evidently of a good strain and well grown. The flowers are rich and 
varied in colour, some being of great size, nearly 3 inches in diameter, 
the florets over an inch broad. Our correspondent states that “ out of 
100 plants grown from seed supplied by Messrs. Sutton & Sons not one 
is of indifierent quality.” 
- The Livekpool Cheysanthemum Show is to be held on 
November 2l3t and 22nd, and Lindfield (Sussex) on November 
15th and 16th. 
EOYAL HOETICULTURAL SOCIETY. 
Febeuaey 14th. 
Scientific Committee.— Present: Mr. F. Pascoe, in the chair; 
Messrs. Murray, Wilson, O’Brien, Ridley, Michael, Smee, Bennett, Smith, 
Boulger, Morris, Dr. Lowe, and Rev. G. Henslow, Hon. Secretary. 
Orchids. —Mr. O’Brien remarked on a so-called Masdevallia culex, 
but which is really Pleurothallis Barberiana, bearing minute delicate 
flowers. A Dendrobium Kingianum, var. albidum, was also exhibited. 
The inflorescence bore eighteen flowers. The original specimen, figured 
in the “ Botanical Magazine,” 1845, No. 61, bears pink flowers, and in 
the description two only are said to have then been the average number. 
It is refigured in 1850 in the “ Botanical Magazine,’’ No. 4527. 
Ponthieva, Drawing of. —Mr. Ridley showed a drawing of this genus 
by Lehmann, from Ecuador, which was figured and described in the 
Gardeners' Chronicle. 
Wallflower, Jlonstrovs. —Mr. Henslow reported upon the specimens 
exhibited by Mr. Lynch at the last meeting, known as “ Miss Hope’s.” 
They were not gynantherous, but a form of “ double ” flowers. The 
calyx was normal, but contained more or less than ten petals, that is to 
say, the usual four, and six others representing the stamens. Instead of 
a pistil, the axis was prolonged, and terminated with a double flower, 
having a normal calyx, but a corolla of an indefinite mass of petals. 
This case, therefore, resembled the double form of Helianthemum vul- 
gare, only in that flower the calx and corolla are repeated three or four 
times. 
.^eidmm gy.sevdo-columnare (J. Kiihn).—At the last meeting of the 
Scientific Committee some specimens of the Silver Fir were exhibited 
which showed the injury done to the extreme tips of their branches by 
an MCcidium. Having in my herbarium some specimens of the fungus in 
question which Mr. Munro had sent me some years ago, I submitted 
them to Professor Julius Kiihn, with the request that he would examine 
them and report whether they were the true AScidium columnare of 
Albertini and Schweinitz, which has its teleutospores of Vacciiiium 
Vitis-idma as Cal 3 'ptospora Goeppertiana, or whether they were the 
recently described jEcidium pseudo-columnare into whose life cycle the 
Calyptospora does not enter. Professor Kiihn in reply says, that they 
belong to his jEcidium pseudo-columnare, a fungus which has not pre¬ 
viously been recorded as British.— Charles B. Plowright. 
JIo7iey from Biicalyjjtus globulus.—A specimen had been sent from 
Adelaide, South Australia, to Mr. T. Christy, as possessing similar pro¬ 
perties to those of the tree itself ; being, for example, antiseptic in its 
nature. It is found to be very efficacious in cases of lung disease. The 
honey can only be procured every other year, as the tree flowers bien¬ 
nially. One peculiarity is that, though liquid on arrival, it rapidly 
crystallises in this climate. It has a very peculiar flavour and scent. 
“ Jambul,” Eugenia Jambolana. — Mr. T. Christy sent a growing 
plant as well as seeds of this important drug. Its peculiarity resides in 
the power of its seeds to arrest the conversion of starch into sugar; 
hence its value in diabetes. The seed appears to contain about 31'4 per 
cent, of oil and 4-32 per cent, of a.sh ; also yellow-green resin and a 
crystalline principle are present. Experiments with starch and malt 
extract, with and without jambul, showed that while 22'4 grains were 
converted into sugar where no jambul was pre.sent, only 9‘8 grains were 
charged with 15 grains of the seed ; and 6'3 grains of starch became 
sugar with 25 grains of jambul. It is now used very extensively in 
America and Germany, and has begun to be employed in England ap¬ 
parently with very beneficial results. From a preliminary analysis, the 
seed does not appear to contain any starch, and therefore the question 
arises whether the particular ferment which emulsivises oils in seeds 
may not generally have a sort of anti-diastatic action. Further details 
will be found in No. 10 of Med. Com. PI.-and Drugs, by Mr. Chri.»ty. 
Oranges, CultiratUm of, in England. —Mr. T. Christy contributed 
the following remarks upon Orange growing :—“ In discussing the 
question of Orange growing in this country with Dr. Amadeus he tells 
me how much has been done by grafting in Porto Rico. He recom 
mends the graft to be made on the strong stems, and the plants do so 
much better when not grafted too young. With regard to the transport 
of the fruit, he believes that the sixteen days’ sea journey will be fatal 
to the quality and flavour of the thin-skinned Oranges, so that it would 
be better to send some cases of plants of the best varieties for growth in 
houses here. Sinco the receipt of the large shipment from Bahia many 
growers have bought stock of the Orange trees, with the view of so 
doing, and some correspondents have already contributed some very 
interesting information, showing how well the culture is understood 
(see communications from Mr. Jas. Douglas and ‘ M. F.,’ Gardeyiers' 
ChronUde, vol. iii., January 14, 1888, pp. 46, 47), and it only remains for 
the commercial question to be threshed out. One grower informed me 
that he got so much juice in his fruit that it burst in ripening ; so this 
fact sets at rest the question of hard ‘ woody fruits ’ only being produced 
in this country. Mr. H. Dixon, of Cherkley Court, Leatherhcad, has 
two Orange trees, each bearing more than 200 fruits; and from his 
Pomeloes he says that he is able to make a delicious preserve. With 
regard to foreign fruit, a captain in the Mediterranean trade tells me 
that from his experience in collecting Oranges from most parts of the 
world where they are grown, he believes the palm for delicately 
flavoured varieties must be awarded to those from Malta. This 
he attributes to the great care bestowed in their cultivation. When 
attending the display of fruit at the Agricultural Show in Paris every 
year, I have been struck with the fine exhibitions of these fruits, 
together with Citrons and Limes from Algeria ; and I was informed 
that the French Government obtained thence the best -farieties for 
their botanical gardens, and that ihe trees were in full bearing.” 
A fine series of home-grown Oranges, Lemons, Citrons, and kindred 
fruits was exhibited by Mr. Rivers, who has cultivated them for the last 
twenty years. Mr. Michael corroborated the difficulty of importing 
Oranges from Bahia—one of the best Orange-growing districts. 
Ilhododcndron Hybrids .—A series was exhibited by Mr. Veitch at the 
exhibition as follows :—R. Imogene, between R. Teysmanni, male (pure 
yellow), with R. Taylori (red), itself a hybrid. It retained the foliage 
of the male, the blossoms being pale lemon-coloured, tinged with red in 
the filaments and anthers alone. The red tint was thus almost entirely 
eliminated. R. Ruby.—This is a cross between R. jasminiflorum, R. 
carminatum (crimson, female), with R. multicolor, var. Curtisi (male)— 
this being a crimson variety of the normally lemon-coloured R. multi¬ 
color—both parents being red, the offspring was ruby-coloured. Two 
effects gained were a dwarfer habit and a freer blooming. R. (unnamed). 
—A hybrid between R. Monarch (salmon-coloured, female), and R. 
malayanum (pale crimson, male). The influence of the male overpowers 
the female, as there is no salmon colour in the hybrid, though it has the 
habit of the male with an increase in the number of flowers. R. (white, 
unnamed).—A cioss between R. Princess Beatrice (rosy-pink), and R. 
multicolor (lemon). In this case the union of two colours caused the 
total disappearance of both, the result being a pure white. 
IRIS SUSIANA. 
It is not everybody who can grow this “ Guinea Hen ” Iris, imported 
300 years ago from Susa, one of the towns in Persia, although it is now 
very cheap, and may be bought by the dozen or the hundred at a low 
rate. I knew a lady very fond of flowers who knew little or nothing of 
Iris, but she read in a g.mdening paper that they were as fine as tropical 
Orchids, and that anybody could grow them anywhere. So she went to 
a bulb shop and told the man behind the counter that she wanted the 
best Iris he had. The bulb man recommended her English, Spanish, 
and German galore, but said he, drawing a few nubbly brown roots out 
of a bag, “ This is a very rare and beautiful thing, I can strongly recom¬ 
mend this.’’ It was included, and home went the lady full of hopes for 
the future. “ John.” who is groom and poultry keeper, swineherd, and 
gardener in chief, was summoned, and he, good man, being always busy, 
dug holes anywhere among the bushes, and in went the Iris. Holes and 
earth were, all they had, and away he went to his pigs and Cabbages. 
An anxious eye was ca.st on the roots by their ownef from time to 
time, and one morning the lady saw something like a speckled chicken 
fluttering among the leaves, and on looking closer she found a flower— 
the Iris Susiana was in bloom. Imagine her delight, you who have 
struggled with this Iris as earnestly as Charles Dudley Warner struggled 
with the “ pussley ” weed in his garden. But the lady was not de¬ 
lighted ; she loved I’ansies and Roses, or any flowers with a sweet smell 
and a bit of colour about them, but this ugly spotted thing fluttering 
in the sunny breeze she did not like at all. “ The dirty, ragged-looking 
thing,” said she, “why talk about Orchids ; this ‘ lovely Susan,’ as the 
man called it, is the colour of a well-worn hearth brush, and smells like 
bad Mushrooms.” “ There’s more of the sooty brute,” said she, as 
another flower or two caught her eye among the bushes. Then she 
ealled “John” from the stables and showed the flowers to him, and 
spoke her mind. “ Yes’m,” said John, “ the—the thing certainly is a 
bit sooty-lookin’, and they do smell of Toadstools surely.” But then a 
lucky thought jumped into her mind, and she wrenched off leaves and 
flowers together and drove into town to sec the seedsman. “ Why did 
you sell me this dirty stinking thing ? ” she said ; “ looks like an Orchid, 
doesn’t it I ” she gasped in her anger. “ Madam,” said the shopman, 
“ you surprise me. We have sold a great many of this Susiana, but we 
never saw it in flower before. Believe me, your excellent culture h.as 
worked wonders ! Pardon me,” he said, as she was about to ask if his 
senses had left him, “ Pardon me 1 I’ll call the proprietor.” 
The shopmen came round her and gazed at the flowers, and just as 
she was doubting their sanity, the proprietor appeared—florid, white- 
haired, dignified, and bland. “ My foreman informs me, Madame,” said 
he, w'ith a bow, “ that your gardener has succeeded in blooming the rare 
and beautiful Iris Susiana, and that you have been so kind as to bring 
us the flowers. They are most handsome ! ” he ejaculated, as he saw a 
sort of lax and helpless look in her face. “ Most handsome ! ” ejaculated 
the shopmen in a chorus. “And I hope,” said the big man, “ you will 
do us the honour to allow your beautiful flowers to bo placed in watpr 
and exhibited in our window ; for, believe me, such handsome blossoms 
have never been produced before.” Not quite convinced as to the 
“ most handsome,” she resigned Ihe flowers, and for days they were the 
talk and wonder of the town. I’eople blocked the i^athway in front of 
the window, and even a policeman went over to see “ what was up,” and 
