32 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
[ January 18,1887. 
The Peach houses and vinerie3 are also well attended to, Mr. Lock 
haying shown some of the finest bunches of Madresfield Court Grape I 
have ever seen, besides extra good examples of Lady Downe’s, and other 
late Grapes. Pine Apples may be said to be a speciality, and of these 
Mr. Lock has grown some of the largest yet recorded. Two rather small 
houses are devoted to their culture, and they are rarely without ripe or 
ripening fruit, all large in size. Great size in this case does not appear 
to have been attained at the expense of the quality, as it sometimes does 
when the fruit are swelled to an extra large size. It may be early cut¬ 
ting has a beneficial effect. Directly they commence colouring they are 
cut and suspended in the same house, this improving the colour, and Mr. 
Lock thinks the quality too. Queens are usually very fine and good, one 
of these alluded to on page 187 of this Journal weighing 7 lbs. 14 ozs. 
Smooth Cayenne and Charlotte Rothschild are grown for the autumn and 
winter supply, the heaviest of the former yet cut scaling 9 lbs. 10 ozs., 
and a Charlotte Rothschild weighed 8 lbs. 1 oz. Mr. Lock considers 
there are inferior forms of the latter, and is weeding out his stock. He 
also considers Black Jamaica worthless. The plants for fruiting this 
year are very strong. They are about 42 inches high, yet remarkably 
broad leaved and sturdy. The 12-inch pots in which they are fruited 
are crowded with roots, the compost consisting of equal parts of turfy 
loam and peat, with a liberal sprinkling of bonemeal and river sand 
evidently suiting them well.— Visitor. 
RHUBARB FORCING. 
When I penned the sentence that “market gardeners never use 
anything but a hotbed of manure for Rhubarb forcing,” I was discussing 
the most simple and expeditious plan of appropriating fermenting mate¬ 
rials in general use for the purpose, and not enumerating and criticising 
the various methods of forcing Rhubarb in structures heated by flues or 
hot water, such as your correspondent “ W. T.” refers to. I was fully 
aware of the existence of such forcing sheds, and have only to take a 
reasonable walk to see them ; but as they were outside the pale of this 
controversy I did not allude to them, and I consider your correspondent’s 
remarks irrelevant, and I cannot conceive how ho came to take the word 
“ anything ” as referring to methods or systems instead of materials or 
things. The following sentence of mine perplexes your correspondent, 
“ Lukewarm is the temperature required in Rhubarb forcing.” It was 
written in reply to a remark made by “ A Working Gardener ” as to 
placing the Rhubarb roots on “ a heating dung mass,” and I fail to see 
that there is anything in it very profound. In the remarks that follow 
“ W. T.” has, however, unwittingly explained it. He says, “ Heat no 
doubt ascends, and no one, I consider, would think of placing the heating 
material oa a high shelf.” The fact, that heat ascends was the very 
reason why I contended for placing the fermenting materials or heat 
under the roots, as opposed to the old plan of placing them on the top. 
Further on in the same sentence he remarks, “ But a great heat at the 
roots of anything while the tops were in a much lower temperature would 
be detrimental.” The danger of applying too much heat to the succulent 
roots of the Rhubarb was my reason for recommending “ lukewarmth ” as 
a safe course, and as we may reasonably conclude that this warmth will rise 
into the tubs, and if they are covered as they ought to be, the tem¬ 
perature will consequently be as high, if not higher in them, than in the 
material below.—W. P. R. 
THE BIRMINGHAM GARDENERS’ MUTUAL IMPROVE¬ 
MENT SOCIETY. 
The first general meeting of this Society took place on Wednesday 
evening, the 5th inst., to receive the Secretary’s report from the forma¬ 
tion of the Society in February last to the present time, and for the 
election of officers and Committee for this year. The Society has met 
with very great success, and now numbers 250 members, and is in posses¬ 
sion of a good library of standard works on horticulture and general 
gardening. A branch Society has also been established at Sutton Cold¬ 
field, near Birmingham, and sixty members have joined since the branch 
Society was formed about nine months since. The unanimous re-election 
of Mr. W. B. Latham, Chairman; Mr. J. Hughes, Secretary; Mr. W. 
Spinks, Treasurer, and Mr. J. Crook, Librarian; and a Committee of 
tried men on the Society, is a guarantee of its future well-doing. About 
£70 has been contributed towards a library fund, and a goodly portion 
of this amount has already been spent in the purchase of gardening 
books. The establishment of a good permanent library has been the 
aim of the energetic Secretary, Mr. Hughes, and it is to his efforts chiefly 
that so large a sum has been collected in so short a time. 
Prizes were offered by Mr. A. Wood of Sutton Coldfield and two 
other members of the Siciety, in sums of 203., 103., and 5s., for the best 
Chrysanthemum plant to be exhibited at the general meeting, the young 
plants being given by Mr. Wood in March last, and to be grown by 
young journeymen gardeners. The variety is Belle Paule, but the 
growers were unaware of the name until they came into flower. Three 
excellent examples were staged, all grown in a natural form. The first 
prize was awarded to Mr. C. Phinix, with a rather tall plant, but well 
foliaged to the pot, and with nine fine flowers. Mr. G. Mumford was 
second with a plant running close in quality and with the same number 
of blooms, and Mr. H. Dix was third with a shorter well-grown plant 
with twelve stems and five flowers, but they were getting stale and 
showed age. The three specimens were highly creditable to the young 
men who grew them. 
Mr. Wood also offered a special prize for the best collection of dried 
specimens of British plants indigenous to the district, and Mr. James 
Bisiton, gardener and groom to a gentleman in the district, exhibited 
300 specimens excellently preserved and mounted, and named and col¬ 
lected by him last year. It was a very meritorious exhibition indeed. 
Messrs. Cannell & Sons sent blooms of some new coloured Chinese 
Primulas, some remarkably pretty in shades of colour and others for size 
and substance. Cut blooms of a very pleasing new Japanese Chrysan¬ 
themum, Golden Gem, were sent by Mr. Robert Owen, and met with 
much approval. 
ROYAL HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 
January 11th. 
The first meeting of the year was chiefly remarkable for the 3uperb col¬ 
lection of Primulas from Messrs. Sutton & Sons, Reading, though several 
interesting novelties were included from trade and private growers. 
Fruit Committee. —Present : Dr. Robert Hogg in the chair, and 
Messrs. T. Francis Rivers, William Warren, G. Norman, Wm. Denning, F. 
Burnett, T. J. Saltmarsh, J. Roberts, G. T. Mi!e3, J. Fitt, J. Willard, J. 
Woodbridge, Wm. Paul, A. H. Pearson, R. D. Blackmore. Harrison Weir, 
Arthur Sutton, T. B. Haywood, Harry J. Yeitch, and Philip Crowley. 
Mr. Roberts, The Gardens, Charleville Forest, Tullamore, Ireland, ex¬ 
hibited three bunches of the new Grape Whit9 Gros Colman, with globular 
berries, but not like Gros Colman, and close bunches. The Committee re¬ 
quest to have it exhibited again. Mr. Roberts, The Gardens, Gunnersbury 
Park, Acton, showed two handsome Pine Apples. Mr. Norman, The 
Gardens, Hatfield, exhibited a basket of fine Mushrooms, for which a 
cultural commendation was awarded. Mr. Myles, gardener to General 
Hutt, C.B , Appley Towera, Ryde, Isle of Wight, showed fruits of Diospyros 
Kaki, res“mbling large yellow Tomatoes (cultural commendation). Mr. W. 
Horley, Toddington, and Messrs. W. Paul & Son, Waltham Cross, sent 
seedling Apples that were passed. Messrs. J. Wrench & Sons, London 
Bridge, E.C., sent some good samples of curled Borecole. The Permanent 
Enamel Company, Plaistow, Essex, had specimens of neat enamelled iron 
labels for trees and walls. 
Floral Committee. —Present: G. F. Wilson, Esq., in the chair, and 
Messrs. H. Turner, A. J. Lendy, E. Hill, J. O’Brien, H. M. Pollett, G. Paul, 
J. Dominy, H. B illantine, C. Pilcher, C. Noble, Richard Dean, Amos Perry, 
B. Wynne, W. Holmes, A. Bradshaw, T. Baines, G. Duffield, H. Herbst, 
J. Walker, W. Goldring, G. Maw, W. H. Lowe, H. Bennett, J. Douglas, 
J. Fraser, and Dr. M. T. Masters. 
Messrs. Sutton & Sons, Reading, had a surprise for many visitors 
in their magnificent groups of Primulas, which formed one of the best 
displays of these useful winter-flowering plants that has been seen at South 
Kensington. Over 400 plants were exhibited, mostly in 48-size pots, and 
the varieties were arranged in little groups of their respective colours, giving 
a very pretty appearance generally. The plants were healthy specimens, 
stout and vigorous, with good trusses of fine flowers mo3t varied in colours. 
Some of the best varieties were the following :—Reading Blue, single, large 
flower, good bluish tint; Double Blue, a remarkable novelty, with semi¬ 
double flowers, tinted blue, very distinot and free. There was also Fern- 
leaf, double and single varieties, each with the blue tint well developed ; 
Reading Scarlet is a free-flowering single variety of brilliant colour; Ruby 
King, a rich crimson single; Double Rose, a charming delicate shade and 
neat flowers ; Pearl, single white, very faintly tinted, handsome ; Rosy 
Queen (Fern-leaf), single, of similar colour, bold flowers and large hand¬ 
some trusses ; Gipsy Queen (Fern-leaf), single, white or faintly tinted, leaves 
very dark purplish hue, especially the petioles ; Double Scarlet is rich in 
colour; Double Carmine, a softer shade ; Moss-curled White, semi-double, 
Fern-leaf, beautifully crisped; Moss-curled Lilac, with very curiously 
curled and crisped bronzy or metallic leaves, and double pinkish flowers ; and 
Giant White, a very large single, pure flower. A silver-gilt Banksian medal 
was awarded for the group, and six first-class certificates were awarded for 
the best varieties. 
Mr. T. S. Ware, Tottenham, exhibited plants of Heileborus niger well 
flowered, also spikes of the white and fragrant Freesia refracta alba, the 
constant flowering Primula poculiformis and the yellow P. floribunda, the 
White Hoop Petticoat, Narcissus monophyllus, with Lachenalia pendula, 
the curious Korolkowia discolor, and the late Chrysanthemum Mrs. H. J. 
Jones, which was certificated. Messrs. H. Cannell & Sons, Swanley, showed 
several Primulas and a number of flowers representing their numerous fine 
highly coloured varieties. Queen of the Stripes, a single variety, has very 
large flowers curiously spotted and striped with crimson or rose on a white 
ground ; another named Jubilee, also a single variety, has large deep 
crimson flowers and a yellowish centre. Mr. R. Clark, Twickenham, showed 
a plant of Cyclamen Albert Victor, a very dark red variety, certificated in 
1885; he also had plants of C. giganteum oompactum album and Advance, 
both fine forms. 
F. G. Tautz, Esq., Studley House, Goldhawk Road, Hammersmith (gar¬ 
dener, Mr, Cowley), sent plants of Odontoglossum Luoiniauum, with neat 
white flowers,spotted with brown (vote of thanks); Cypripedium Marshalli- 
anum, a form apparently of the C. concolor type, with a yellowish lip, the 
dorsal sepal and petals dotted with crimson ; and Camellia Lady Dolby,with 
single flowers, pale rose streaked with red. Mr. C. G. Hill sent a plant of 
Odontoglossum Arnottensis, with small yellowish flowers, spotted with 
chocolate. MM. Masereel Freres, Ghent, showed an Odontoglossum with 
creamy white flowers, heavily blotched with chocolate, a curious little Res- 
trepia veined with gold and bronze, and Odontoglossum crispum guttatum, 
white spotted with brown. Baron Schroder, The Dell, Egham (gardener, 
Mr. Ballantine), contributed a choice collection of Orchid flowers, several oi 
which were certificated. They comprised the following—Cattleya Percival- 
iana superba, very richly coloured lip ; Laelia triophthalma, rich crimBon lip ; 
Cypripedium microchilum superbum, spotted and steaked in the centre 
with dark purple ; Lmlia anceps Percivaliana, faintly tinted with purple ; 
L. anceps Dawsoni, very handsome; L. anceps alba, pure white, and L 
anceps Williamsi (vote of thanks), whit?, veined with red in the throat of 
the lip. H. M. Pollett, Esq., Bickley, showed a spike of Oncidium coronarium, 
