March I, 1888. J 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
171 
things that makes all the clifferenee between the man who is continually 
adding to his stock of knowledge and to his attainments, and his 
neighbour who with the same advantages never gets a step further 
forward. Speaking from personal experience, I can safely say that I 
taught myself more after 1 began work than ever 1 was taught at 
school. But even personal teaching is not sufficient. Thanks to the 
strict editorial supervision which obtains in the conducting of the 
Journal, I found that it was possible to make mistakes. I was not too 
proud to ask the help of a better educated man than myself, who kindly 
taught me more in the course of a few lessons than I had taught myself 
in many j'ears. The plan was a very simple one. An essay was written 
out, and we went over it together, the result being that I found it 
possible to express my thoughts more briefly, more clearly, in more 
simple language, and, above all, without these slight mistakes arising 
from the wrong use of little words which is so prevalent. A very great 
help to writing correctly is found in a correct mode of expression in 
speaking. I occasionally have letters from persons in a high social 
position, which, correct enough in spelling, are badly written and of the 
poorest composition. The only reason I know for the latter fault is to 
be found in the bad English spoken by the upper classes. 
There is, however, a point to which “ Experientia docet ” did not 
allude to, and which is of as much importance as spelling—I refer to 
the pronunciation of plant names. If the name of a plant is badly 
spelled it will have at least a phonetic approach to what it ought to be, 
but in the case of pronouncing it, it is somerimes impossible to conclude 
as to what is meant. This applies in a degree to specific and generic 
names, but more particularly to the names of varieties ; and here, 
again, not so much to English cognomens as to those of imported intro¬ 
ductions. When it is considered that the majority of Koses, Gladiolus, 
Chrysanthemums, double Zonal and double Ivy Leaf Pelargoniums, 
double Begonias, besides the names of many other flowers in smaller 
proportion, are French, and pronounced by the employers of gardeners 
as the French do, how ridiculous must the attempts of gardeners be 
to name these to their employers! French itself is worth while ac¬ 
quiring so far as to be able to read it, for every .'i ear brings gardeners 
into a closer relation with French growers, and it is of much advantage 
to be able to consult their catalogues, and to obtain some knowledge of 
their garden literature ; but a knowledge of the language does not 
enable us to speak it, and the only wise method is to simply ask those 
w'ho can speak it to tell us the names. That is an incomparably better 
way than to stumble on as so many do. 
What I would therefore advise young men to do while their minds 
are still in a receptive condition, and while they have leisure, is to make 
a free use of the pen, take notes of work done, names of plants, and 
descriptions of the same, write essays, and ask the opinion of a well- 
educated man—not a schoolmaster—as to faults. Teach yourself to 
draw by compass and freehand, learn L.atin, and above all French, and 
in doing these and in carrying out other pursuits which you will be 
sure to engage in, you will have taught yourselves to employ your eyes 
to some effect with honour to yourselves and credit to your calling. 
I have no hope for the older men to whom “ Experientia ilocet ” 
directs his remarks. They are unaware of their failings, and therefore 
incapable of applying his strictures to their own cases.—A North 
Briton. 
EARLY FLOWERS. 
Mr. W. B. Hartland of Cork sends me N. poeticus prsecox, the most 
timely purple-ringed Daffodil of the “ old masters”—viz., Lobel, Dodoens, 
Geraiii, and Parkinson. It is Italian, and flowers very early in a cool 
sunny greenhouse ; and along with it came N. poeticus angustifolius, of 
the “ Bot. Mag.,” which I take to be “ the timely purple ring ” of the 
aforesaid old writers. 
The big Irish yellow Daffodil, called “ Ard High,” or “Yellow King,” 
is now fine in pots indoors, alons with N. variiformis (pale sulphur), N. 
pallidus prsecox (pale sulphur), N. princeps (pale lemon perianth, chrome 
trumpet), N. moschatus (true), from the Val d’Arras, and the whitest 
and smallest of all the “ Swan’s Neck,” or “ Bent Head ” Daffodils. N. 
(Corbularia) monophyllus, the white African “ Hooped Petticoat,” or 
“ Crinoline Daffodil ” is now fine in pots in cold frame along with N. 
Cyclamineus, N. minimus, N. “ Saragossa maximus,” a very dwarf and 
floriferous Daffodil imported from Italy (Saragossa) by Mr. Ware. N. 
minutiflorus, the smallest of all the Narcissi, is blooming here as the gift 
of Mr. A. W. Tait of Oporto, an ardent and successful collector of 
Spanish and Portuguese species of Narcissi. This bonnie little gem is 
much smaller than N. juncifolius, with which, as a sub-species, Mr. 
Baker quite rightly unites it in his latest arrangement of these flowers. 
Outside on the open borders odd blooms of N. cyclamineus, N. minor, N. 
minimus, N. pallidus prsecox, ,and N. minor, are in bloom. N. nanus is 
in bud, but much later than usual this season, as also is the giant N. 
maxitnus. The earliest double Daffodil now showing coloured buds is 
N. “ Silver and Gold,” the N. albus aureus of Messrs. Baarnaart & Son. 
It is similar to N. Telamonius plenus, but has white perianth segments 
interspersed among the deep yellow segments, into which the trumpet 
part of the flower is divided. Mr. Barr suggested to me long ago that 
this is “ Gerard’s Double,” or the true double English form of N. pseudo- 
Narcissus enlarged and developed by cultivation. In other words it is 
simply the cultivated “phase” of the little double yellow N. pseudo- 
Narcissus of Devonshire and the Isle of Wight. I have grown the latter 
for years, and as they are now large and bi-coloured 1 believe Mr. Barr 
is right. 
Snowdrops have been very fine. Galanthus Imperati. G. nivalis, 
G. nivalis minor, G. nivalis fl. pi., G. n. bracteatus, G. Elwesi, G. E. 
major, G. Mclvillei, G. M. serotinus, G. plicatus, G. plicatus major, 
G. plicatus elegans, are all now in bloom. Our earliest Snowdrop this 
year flowered early in October. It is supposed to be different to the 
type of G. octobriensis, and came direct from Jlount Hymettus in 
Greece, along with the fine Greek Anemone fulgens, the true dark blue 
A. blanda, and a form of Scilla bifolia, which blooms six weeks earlier 
than the type—viz., in December and January. 
A pale turquoise blue Gr.ape Hyacinth is now in full flower here. 
Can anyone suggest a name for it ? It is by far the earliest form of 
Muscari, and was sent from South Europe a year or two ago by some 
kind friend I know not. The fine large twin-blossomed Lei.cojum 
vernum and carpathicum is now in flower, and is the best of all the 
forms of L. vernum. It has a very large Narcissus-like bulb, while the 
bulb of the typical L. vernum is Snowdrop-like, and the smaller solitary 
flowers are green, not yellow, dotted at their apices. Both forms are 
figured in the great “Hortus Eystettensis (a.d. Kill!) so that they have 
long been known in gardens. Blue Squills (Scilla siberica and S. bifolia) 
are just peeping, and the “ Lenten Boses,” as the various forms of Helle- 
borus orientalis, H. olympicus, 11. ,atro-rubens, H. purpurascens, H. col- 
chicus, and H. gnttatus, together with the spotted Berlin seedlings, are 
Fig. 23.- Narcissus obvallaris. 
at their best. I never saw bulbs, hardy plants, and fruit trees so sturdily 
vigorous, well-budded, and promising.—F. W. Burbidge, 
[The illustration (fig. 23) represents a flower of the favourite early 
Daffodil, Narcissus obvallaris, which was excellently shown by Mr. T. S. 
Ware, Tottenham, at South Kensington early in February. It is one of 
the N. pseudo-Narcissus major type, but is of medium size with well- 
formed bright gold corona and lighter perianth divisions.] 
ARTIFICIAL MAXURES FOR PLANTS. 
That artificial manures are of the utmost utility to plant growers 
there is no disputing ; but in regard to their various qualities, composi¬ 
tion, and action there is a wide field for discussion. Your correspondent 
Mr. H. Dunkin (on page 128), while admitting the convenience of such 
plant food, seems to be somewhat puzzled as to their erratic behaviour 
when he says, “ Where one kind of manure is continued for some weeks 
the plants do not respond to its stimulating influence so readily as when 
it was fij-st given ; when such is the case give a few waterings with clear 
water, and then apply some other kind of manure.” T our correspondent 
unfortunately leaves us in the dark as to the loss of apiietite on the part 
of the plant, unless he presumes that members of the vegetable kingilom 
arc similar to those of the animal kingdom, inasmuch as a sameness of 
food causes distaste, but such I hold is not altogether the case. Where 
such occurrences are observed I should be inclined to doubt the quality 
of the manure. 1 do not jn-ofess a deep knowledge of chemistry, but as 
far as my observations go 1 am led to believe many of the artificial, 
manufactured, or patent manures—whichever we like to call them 
arc overcharged with ammonia-yielding substances, which is not a 
manure in the strict sense of the word—merely a stimulant that, unless 
backed up by something more substantial, is apt to leave the plant in a 
very debilitated state after its influence is expended. 
What may be the object of mixing Teruvian guano with Clay s Fer¬ 
tiliser 1 Is it simply on account of economy, or to add to the efficacy 
