July 18, 1880. ] 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
49 
small conveyance adorned with Marguerites and Poppies, other compe¬ 
titors being Mrs. and Miss Gilbev, Miss Ada Bell, Mrs. Bryant, and Mr. 
W. Goldsmith. In one case La France Roses were employed almost ex¬ 
clusively and with good effect, while in most instances Roses were used 
for the wheels, giving them quite a kaleidescopic appearance as the 
carriages were driven past at a smart pace. Few horses or ponies were 
sent, but most of these were tastfully adorned with flowers in wreaths 
and chains. Upon the lake were one or two boats florally decorated, 
but most of the other outdoor productions were very unsatisfactory. 
Within the great marquee the groups of Roses from Messrs. W. Paul 
and Son, Waltham Cross, which were arranged on the five central banks 
In graceful scrolls, bands, and beds, the colours contrasting or har¬ 
monising charmingly, were the chief feature. Large numbers of blooms 
were employed, and the style adopted was a most welcome attempt to 
break away from the monotonous exhibition methods generally adopted. 
A large gold medal was awarded. Messrs. Keynes, Williams & Co., 
Salisbury, also had a pleasing contribution in the shape of a Rose 
bower, consisting of two arches, crossing at the apex, and with a central 
column, Reynolds Hole and Niphetos Roses being chiefly employed 
with admirable effect. Extensive groups of Rose blooms were shown 
by Messrs. Rumsey and Frank Cant, and it was a surprise to many to 
•see such fresh substantial flowers thus late in so trying a season. 
There were not many baskets of Roses arranged for effect, and these 
were nearly, all too heavy, the best being one containing La France 
Roses and Cissus discolor sprays from Mrs. M. H. White (silver medal). 
Of. miscellaneous groups and collections a group of Tuberous 
Begonias, Ferns, and Palms from Messrs. Laing & Co., Forest Hill, was 
one of the most tasteful. This Srm have proved abundantly how well 
these Begonias can be grouped if a little care and thought are exercised. 
A central basket of the handsome drooping single variety pendula was 
most telling. Groups of Orchids came from Mr. B. S. Williams, Upper 
Holloway (silver medal), and Messrs. Low & Co., Clapton (bronze 
tnedal) ; Crotons from Mr. Offer, Roses and Poppies from Mr. R. Miller, 
of Shorehamj Ferns from Mr. H. B. May (silver medal) ; and Gloxinias 
from Mr. W. Grundy (silver medal); so that the marquee was well 
furnished. 
In response to the invitation of the Secretary the majority of the 
lady visitors wore Rose wreaths and sprays, and there must have been a 
heavy demand for flowers that morning, and some of the florists had 
been busily employed in furnishing so many thousands of tasteful pro¬ 
ductions. 
TABLE PLANTS AND GLOXINIAS. 
Two short papers on the above subjects were read by Messrs. Tranter 
and Collier at the last meeting of the Sheffield Floral and Horticultural 
Society. The following are some notes of both papers :— 
TABLE PLANTS. 
Tastes differ in the selection of plants for table decoration. Among 
the best for this purpose are small Palms, and it is generally admitted 
that the lightest and most elegant in growth are the most suitable. 
Palms are raised from seed, and can be bought of any required size from 
nurserymen. Other suitable plants for tables are Crotons, Dracaenas, 
Aralias, and Pandanuses, all of which strike readily from cuttings. 
Plants of the two former that are too large for the tables may be cut 
down and the tops inserted in a mixture of light loam, leaf mould, and 
sand, and placed in a propagating case in a stove, keeping them close 
for two or three weeks and sprinkling occasionally. When the old 
p ants have thrown out side shoots sufficiently long these may be taken 
off and treated in the same way as the larger cuttings. The best time 
for propagating Dracamas and Crotons is May or June. It is of great 
importance to never place table plants in too large pots ; 6-inch are 
large enough, and with the aid of a little liquid manure the plants may 
be grown of the size required. The narrow-leaved Dracaenas are the 
best, and in all cases they should be confined to a single stem ; any¬ 
thing approaching a bushy habit renders them too heavy. 
Pandanuses are increased chiefly from side Ishoots, which the plants 
produce very freely, particularly when kept well syringed. Good varie- 
ties of table plants are Pandanus Yeitchi ; Crotons Lord Wolseley, 
v\ arreni, and aigburthiensis ; Dracaena terminalis ; Aralias regma and 
v eitchi. . Plants suitable for amateurs who have only a cool greenhouse 
are Grevillca robusta and Aspidistras. The Aspidistra is one of the 
best of room plants, the foliage remaining in good condition in a dry 
atmosphere. It does well in ordinary loam, and is increased by division 
■of the roots.^ The Grevillea may be raised from seed, also from cuttings, 
but it is difficult to strike except in a strong bottom heat, such as that 
afforded bv a hotbed. 
' GLOXINIAS. 
Gloxinias rank among the finest of summer flowering plants. There is 
sufficient diversity of colour among them to suit almost everybody. They 
are very easy to grow, though not altogether amateurs’ plants, for at all 
times they require heat. There are many ways of raising them— 
sowing seed, dividing old tubers, and striking the leaves. Seed should 
be sown in January to have plants in bloom the same year. Prepare a 
well-drained 6-inch pot, and fill it with fine sandy soil, having among it a 
little peat, also fine. As the seed is very small it should not be buried 
but sown on the surface, gently pressing it down with the bottom of a 
flower pot. In a moist atmosphere and a good bottom heat the seedlings 
will appear in about a fortnight. When ready to handle transfer them 
an inch apart into pans filled with light sandy loam and peat. Return 
them to a stove or early vinery, the latter being*an excellent place. Do 
not allow them to become drawn or they never make fine plants. When 
they have made four or five leaves pot in 60-size pots, and subsequently 
transfer to 5-inch, and with good culture they will make fine plants 
the first year. At all times they must be kept very near the glass, 
almost touching ; and if gradually inured to the sun from the beginning 
it is astonishing what a great amount they will endure. I have grown 
plants suspended from the roof, and they have had a very pretty 
effect, particularly with drooping varieties. After blooming I usually 
place ours in a cool frame, gradually withholding water, then the old 
leaves soon change. I then place them out of doors, laying the pots 
on their sides in wet weather. The winter treatment during rest con¬ 
sists in housing them in any place free from much damp, but, on the 
other hand, it must not be too dry or the tubers will fail. Pome shake 
them out of their pots and winter them in cocoa-nut fibre refuse, but I 
find no better plan than keeping them in the same pots they flowered in. 
To have a succession start the first tubers in January, following at 
intervals to March or April. When the tubers have started into growth 
they should be shaken out of the old soil, and repotted in fresh in 
smaller sized pots. If increase of stock is desired large tubers may be 
divided, having a break to each portion of tuber detached. Another 
method of increase is by the leaves, which may be cut or nicked cross- 
ways on the under sides, and placed flat on any moist medium in a warm 
temperature. Tubers will develop from nearly every cut. The leaves 
may also be cut with a portion of stem attached, and rooted round the 
edges of pots like ordinary cuttings. 
The Chairman (Mr. F. Hardy) remarked on the method of growing 
Gloxinias without shade, saying he had grown them close to the glass 
from beginning to end without any shade, and found that they did very 
well. This method also keeps the plants dwarf and sturdy, and the 
drooping varieties do not drop their blooms so soon as they generally do 
when grown in shade. 
SHEFFIELD AND WEST RIDING CHRYSANTHEMUM 
SOCIETY. 
The quarterly meeting of the above Society was held at the 
Museum Hotel, Orchard Street, Sheffield, on Wednesday evening, 
July 10th. The chair was taken by Mr. J. G. New sham, who opened 
one of the, most successful and most numerously attended meetings 
ever held, by introducing to the members Mr. W. Tunnington of Liver¬ 
pool, who was received with the greatest enthusiasm, and it may be 
safely said that never within the annals of Chrysanthemum growing in 
Sheffield was the visit of any authority on the cultivation of the flower 
more eagerly anticipated. 
Mr. Tunnington, on rising, said he proposed dealing with the Chrys¬ 
anthemum in many of its stages, and would therefore describe his paper 
in general terms as :— 
ON CHRYSANTHEMUM CULTURE. 
Mr. Tunnington proceeded : It will be remembered by most of you 
that I strongly advised cultivators, if possible, to avoid what is known 
as the May bud, and in order to accomplish this, 1 must direct your 
attention to the old stools after flowering, and the striking of the 
cuttings. This bud is due in most instances to not looking after the 
plants well between the time of flowering and the time the cuttings are 
ready for insertion. The stools should be carefully watered and kept 
near the glass in a cool structure where frost cannot reach them. This 
will induce the formation of strong cuttings that have the appearance 
of vigour about them. If striking is delayed until November or 
December for Japanese, and a few late flowering incurved (the 
principal batch of incurved to be inserted during January and 
February), I maintain that cuttings derive more benefit by being left 
on the old plant during the dark days of December and the early part 
of January than they do when inserted in pots stood in cold frames 
and “ hang about ” for weeks. 
If the cuttings are placed in a gentle bottom heat, and never allowed 
to flag, they will root quickly and grow at once with freedom. One 
question should present itself to your mind, and that is, “ Why avoid 
the May bud?” If stopping is recommended, that is a natural question, 
and one arising out of the foregoing remarks. For some time it pre¬ 
sented to me some difficulties, which were only overcome by experience 
and observation. But to come to the question, “ Why avoid this 
bud and then stop the plant?” Where is the difference ? It is simply 
this : it is not merely wasting time, but the formation of the bud 
practically paralj ses the plant for a time ; this bud forces the laterals 
from every leaf down the stem of the plants, which checks the plant 
more than the removal of a small portion of the top. The formation of 
the bud causes the stems to harden more than I consider good for the 
well-being of the plants in this early stage of their growth. 
CHANGE OF CUTTINGS. 
There is another point of importance which influences this matter 
and one that should not be lost sight of—viz., a change of cuttings. 
