24 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER 
[ January 14, 1886. 
familiar to ns that sometimes from the effects of a trifling ailment a man 
suddenly dies, and the explanation often is that under previous apparent 
health there lay an actual unsoundn=ss. This may be the case in the 
plant world, aud a specimen be secretly diseased which we think is 
flourishing. Again, he argues that another proof the mischief is caused 
by insects is the success he has found in local applications of a suitable 
kind, but the process employed by its cleansing effect might be equally 
good in curing a vegetable disease. I will concede, and in so doing 
perhaps may put a weapon into the hands of the other side, that there are 
mites which to the best of our knowledge do attack plants in health, 
though unhealthy ones may run greater peril of injury. As examples I 
may cite the too common red spider and the whole group of gall mites that 
s(veil or disfigure buds, leaves, and twigs. But it has long been r:cognised 
as a truth by entomologists, that in the economy of Nature hosts of other 
mites are constantly busy in the work of disintegrating what has begun to 
decay. Some come, therefore, to the moist patches to be seen in cankered 
Apples and Pears, and feast on the juices that exude, or, possibly, to feed 
on a microscopic fungoid growth that is developed on branches thus 
diseased. One naturalist tells me that he has examined cankered samples, 
but found no mites at all ; still I would not argue from this, because they 
might have been washed off, or have migrated, or been devoured by 
parasitic enemies. Then there is this noteworthy and positive fact to he 
considered, that little parties of mites maybe found upon the bark of fruit 
trees that are neither cankered nor diseased in any way. One of these is 
the tolerably abundant beetle mite called Damseus geniculatus, which 
occurs in parties made up of specimens of all ages, and which has been 
thought by the Germans beneficial to the trees rather than the reverse. 
This, I suspect, is not the species which Mr. Hiam has brought to light 
and elsewhere noticed, but probably Boisduval’s Acarus Pyri, which 
would occur on both Pear and Apple. It appears to have been hitherto 
overlooked by entomologists here, and I hope shortly to be able to get its 
name determined by a competent authority in this division.— Entomo¬ 
logist. 
NOTES ON CHRYSANTHEMUMS. 
I do not agree with Mr. Iggulden that Anemone Japanese Chrysan¬ 
themums are eligible to be staged with the ordinary Japanese forms, as 
this would be setting a precedent which, in my opinion, is wrong. The 
name of Anemone Japanese was given to these newer forms as indicative 
of their distinctness, and I am not aware that any Japanese variety is in 
any way sufficiently allied to the Anemone Japanese in construction as 
to be admissible in a stand of Anemone flowers. If Anemone Japanese 
are to be allowed in Japanese stands, why cannot the ordinary Japanese 
flowers be staged with Anemone Japanese ? Fancy an exhibitor staging 
a bloom of Madame C. Audiguier, for instance, in conjunction with Fabian 
de Mediana ! Mr. Iggulden would be compelled to pass this in the same 
way as he considers j ustiflable in the other case, and a pretty state cf 
things we should get into soon. I do not think our regular Chrysan¬ 
themum judges are likely to allow this. I think judges are more to 
blame than exhibitors in some cases for allowing such mistakes to pass. 
Intending exhibitors see that Mr. So-and-so was awarded first prize, 
having such and such varieties in his stand, and when hard pressed to 
find the necessary number of blooms of the proper kinds fall back on these 
convenient auxiliaries. I know that no rule has been laid down for strict 
guidance, nor can I see how rules can be made to meet every extreme 
case that may crop up ; but I do not mean the case in question to be one 
of the?e extremes. It was simple enough to my mind. 
Chrysanthemum societies with any pretensions to greatness should 
make separate classes for the Anemone and Anemone Japanese type, be¬ 
cause the latter are so much more attractive that the former is almost 
sure to get elbowed out of the exhibition room ; at any rate, they are too 
stiff in appearance alongside of their more gracefully dispoeed brethren, 
and public taste is more in favour of freedom or even fantastical shapes 
than strictly formal outlines. The cause of so few additions to the in¬ 
curved section is through seed being produced so sparingly I presume, 
and the present general system of growing Chrysanthemums is certainly 
not adapted to the production of sports, therefore I am not at all surprised 
that so few new ones appear. Some persons speak disparagingly of 
sports. I have yet to learn why they are not so good as seedlings. Take 
Lord Alcester, for instance, which was a sport, I believe, from Golden 
Empress, and has worked its way quite to the front. It is a grand 
variety, producing more first-class flowers on a given number of plants 
than any other variety in existence when grown under favourable circum¬ 
stances, which cannot have been the case in Mr. Iggulden’s hands, or he 
would not be compelled to dub this variety “ tricky,” and his blooms 
must have been in a bad state when “ all the dressing in the world ” failed 
to restore their lost form. I am afraid Mr. Iggulden’s experience of Lord 
Alcester during the last season is not encouraging to persons who con¬ 
template growing his lordship duriog the coming season. I advise them 
not to hesitate, as perhaps the “ trickiness ” was in the hands of the 
grower, and not in the variety ; and also that “ all the dressing in the 
world ” was not applied to the flowers in question. 
Double centres in flowers are in my opinion the result of a check 
some time during the early stages of the growth of the buds, probably by 
lack of water in hot weather. I am strengthened in this idea by the 
fact that more complaints are heard of double centres after hot dry 
seasons than after those moderately dry. Ripe wood must be had if 
high-class flowers are desired, but it must not be prematurely effected ; 
regularity must be the order of the day if success is to be obtained. 
I am much surprised to hear of an incurved sport from Mrs. Forsyth, 
which is a reflexed flower. Is the parent rightly named ? Golden Queen 
of England gave some trouble last season through its persistency to reflex 
its petals instead of incurve them. This, agaiD, was not the fault of the 
variety, but was caused by the blooms be ! ng grown at the wrong time. 
Mabel Ward and Eve are fast becoming obsolete ; the petals are much 
too narrow, and they are so uncertain in producing blooms large enough 
for exhibition purposes. Jardin des Plantes, the finest of all the yellows, 
is somewhat spoilt by the habit it sometimes has in giving blooms with 
split centres, particularly when the flowers are grown large in size. Mr. 
Bunn is a capital flower, something like the former in colour, but Us 
great objection as a decorative variety is its tendency to droop when in 
bloom, the peduncles being so thin. 
Princess of Wales and Mrs. Heales have as usual caused some contro¬ 
versy ns to their distinctiveness. I consider exhibitors have themselves 
to blame often in this matter. When once known these varieties are 
easily recognisable. It is quite possible to cut flowers closely resembling 
both varieties from one plant of Princess of Wales. This is caused by the 
buds being “ taken ” at different stage 0 . Those resembliog Mrs. Heales are 
“ taken ” too soon, ’bus causing the paler colour. They are exactly alike 
in growth, colour of foliage, and shape of the buds. The colour of 
Princess of Wales is white suffused with a very pale shade of pink, and 
each petal is striped with the same colour ; this is when produced in its 
proper and natural character. Flowers not having these characteristics 
when staged lose a point when in competition, and when judged by men 
who know the character and quality of the variety. Mrs. Heales. is 
generally a little smaller in size than the Princess ; its colour is white, 
suffused with pale cream, no trace of pink being discernible except when 
the bottom petals get tinged with age. 
I do not yet know what class Salteri belongs to ; to me it does not 
appear to belong to any, so peculiar is it in shape. I imagine it will 
have a very short existence amongst the general growers. Japanese 
varieties are getting too numerous; there are many worthless forms in 
existence. I think catalogue descriptions of new varieties are much too 
elaborate; if more simple, I am sure it would be of greater service in 
select ng. It is impossible for gardeners to grow all the new kinds as 
they are introduced. Fascinated by the descriptions in catalogues, 
growers burden themselves with far too many varieties, which often end's 
in disappointment when the time for blooming arrives. 
Pompons and Anemone Pompons ought to be disbudded and staged 
with about 6 inches of stem with the foliage attached. These tied in 
bunches of three or five are very attractive. When they are disbudded 
the true character of each variety is brought out, and the work of award¬ 
ing the prizes is more simplified than when staged in bunches of perhaps 
ten or a dozen blooms on each shoot. I strongly recommend the dis¬ 
budding system for exhibition, but for home decoration I prefer some 
grown as bush plants with a profusion of flowers.—E. HOLYNEUX. 
POTATO EXHIBITIONS—COLOURING POTATOES. 
Some of the Potato growers who visited the Birmingham Cattle 
Show at Bingley Hall in December have a strong conviction that some 
of the samples of red and purple Potatoes exhibited there were artificially 
coloured, and that this led to their taking the leading prices. I did not 
see the exhibits, but a gentleman connected with a leading seed firm in 
Birmingham told me that he felt confident that some of the sorts had 
been dyed or painted to lighten their colour, and recommended me to 
write to a well-known seed firm in the midlands for further information. 
I did so—I enclose you their letter in reply—and their letter I take 
the following extract—“As regards the painted Potatoes at Birmingham, 
there were the usual sorts, such as Reading Russet, Prizetaker, Mr. 
Bresee, &c., which were very coloury even when the dust settled upon them, 
the colour almost equal to Venetian red, but of a more carmine ros9 
tint.” ... . . 
I mention the circumstance as I think it is fo desirable that a stringent 
rule should exist in every schedule that any attempt whatever to 
heighten the natural colour of the Potato shoald lead to disqualification. 
If it is a fact, and my informant is emphatic in his opinion, that the tubers 
in question were artificially coloured, what were the judges about not 
to have disqualified them 1 — Solanum. 
ROSE PRIDE OF REIGATE. 
Two or three years ago Mr. James Brown, gardener to A. J. Waterlow, 
Esq., Great Doods, Reigate, exhibited a bloom of a sport from Comtesse 
d’Oxford at one of the National Society’s Kensington shows, and it at once 
attracted much attention, though some doubt was expressed at the time 
as to whether it would prove constant. Since then it has been shown on 
several occasions, and the characters were each time found to be so true 
that on July 23rd of the present year the Floral Committee of the Royal 
Horticultural Society awarded a first-class certificate for it to MessrB. 
Paul & Sod, Cheshunt, who had purchased the stock. Like its parent, it 
is of good globular form and a pleasing light crimson colour, but this is 
strikingly diversified by regular pure white stripes through the petals, 
giving the bloom a remarkable and beautiful appearance. In a stand of 
Hybrid Perpetuals it is most conspicuous, and as the sport shares the 
characters of the parent, which is described by the National Rose Society 
