Fobruary 10, lo87. ] 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
109 
in berry, and, as Mr. Barker says, dull-looking, it has an agreeable and 
refreshing flavour, which decidedly improves with keeping. It is a 
first-class doer, and on the whole a most useful companion to the 
Hamburgh and Madresfield Court. Duke of Buccleuch, although it may 
have its failings, when it can be placed on the board in presentable 
form surely should be placed before Buckland Sweetwater, for when 
well ripened it has a flavour, I believe, peculiarly its own, and though 
it may not suit all palates, is to my taste much superior to Buckland 
Sweetwater, fine in bunch and general appearance though the latter 
may be. What a pity that Mrs. Pince does not colour quite perfectly, 
otherwise I have long thought that it must eventually prove one of 
our very best late Grapes, for in flavour and keeping qualities it is cer¬ 
tainly first-rate ; but when even at Longleat it does not quite colour I have 
not much hopes of seeing it generally finished elsewhere. Mr. Taylor, 
I think, expressed a strong hope that it would regain its vigour, which 
he believed had been impaired by excessive propagation ; but we do not 
see very much signs of this at present. Possibly colour may be gained 
by grafting, but then flavour may be partially lost.— Wm. Jenkins. 
The twenty-ninth Annual Exhibition of the Gkeat Yoek Gaea 
and Horticultural Society takes place in June next, when more 
than £G00 is to be given in prizes. The schedule is a most liberal one, 
and we notice that in addition to the Society’s ordinary Orchid prizes, 
further special prizes of £21, £15 15s., £10 10s., and £5 5s. are offered 
for sixteen Orchids. The trustees of the Veitch Memorial Fund give 
their Yeitch Memorial Medal and £5 as a first prize for six varieties 
of fruit, and the Gala Society add good second, third, and fourth prizes. 
The Lord Mayor of York is the Chairman of the Committee, and Mr. 
John Wilson, 13, New Street, York, is the Secretary. 
- A MEETING of Auricula growers and others interested in the 
formation of a Scottish Auricula and Primula Society will be 
held in the Bible Society’s Rooms, 5, St. Andrew’s Square, Edin¬ 
burgh, at two o’clock on Saturday the 12th February, 1887, to take into 
consideration the desirability of holding an Auricula Exhibition. As a con¬ 
siderable number of gentlemen have intimated their intention, if it 
should be resolved to hold an exhibition, of sending plants either for 
competition or exhibition, and some for both, while others who cannot 
exhibit have offered subscriptions towards a guarantee fund, it is hoped 
there will be as large a gathering as possible. It is also desired those 
who cannot attend would send their opinions as to the most suitable 
date for holding the Exhibition to Mr. Wm. Straton, Annfield, Broughty 
Ferry. 
-At a meeting of the Linnean Society on Thursday, 
February 3rd, Dr. J. E. T. Aitchison read a most interesting paper 
on the Flora and Fauna of Northern Affghanistan, where he accom¬ 
panied the Delimitation Survey Expedition in the capacity of naturalist. 
Large numliers of plants were collected, about 10,000 admirably pre¬ 
served specimens having been brought to England, representing over 
300 species, of which it is said that about 100 are new to science. Some 
important investigations were also made respecting the Asafoetida ) 
Galbanum, and other plants employed in medicine. Dr. Aitchison’s ob¬ 
servations and discoveries were too numerous to be dealt with satisfactorily 
in one paper, as the botanical portion alone would have more than 
sufficed for the evening. There was a large attendance of Fellows, and 
in the discussion which followed, Sir Joseph Hooker, Mr. W. T. Thiselton 
Dyer, Mr. J. G. Baker, and others took part, all highly complimenting 
Dr. Aitchison on the results of his expedition. 
- Mr. Owen has sent us from Maidenhead a truss containing 
four blooms of his Golden Gem Chrysanthemum. The colour is as 
bright and clear, rich yellow, as we have at any time seen in a Chrysan¬ 
themum, and the stem is clothed with deep green foliage, as fresh as wc 
usually see in November. We are informed the plant from which the 
truss was cut was, with others, raised from a cutting in April, the plants 
having been thrice topped, the last time during the first week in July, 
and grown and flowered in 48 and 32-size pots. Judging from the 
specimen before us this variety must be pronounced a great acquisition 
for winter and early spring decoration. In character it appears inter¬ 
mediate between a rettexed and Japanese bloom, the florets being 
slightly recurved but not twisted. It was well shown at the National 
Chrysanthemum Society’s January Exhibition this year. 
-Flowers of Williams’ Magenta Queen Primula have 
been sent for our inspection from the Holloway Nurseries. They- are 
very fine indeed—large, well formed, of good substance ; and the colour, 
rich magenta, showing as well under artificial light as in the day, 
renders this excellent Primula equally valuable for conservatory and 
for room decoration. 
-A New Foe of the Pear.— Last June Mr. Inchbald, F.L.S.. 
received from a Sussex grower a sample of Pears that had been in¬ 
juriously affected by the maggots of the small fly Cecidomyia nigra. 
These are yellowish white and legless ; they lurk at the core of the 
young Pear, from which they throw off tunnels leading to the surface, 
Marie Louise was the variety chiefly attacked. When the fruit falls 
immature they enter the soil to appear as flies in the spring, at what 
date is unknown as yet. 
- We have received the following announcement :—“Died, on 
December 24th, 1886, at Clunes, Melbourne, Australia, where he had 
gone for the benefit of his health, Archibald Sinclair, aged forty- 
nine, for many years with Messrs. James Yeitch & Sons, the Royal 
Exotic Nursery, Chelsea, and formerly at Patterdale Hall, Westmore¬ 
land.” Mr. Sinclair was well known by many horticulturists, and was 
much respected. 
- Mr. J. Douglas writes in reference to Auriculas as 
follows:—“ I have taken a little trouble to find correct references. 
The Scotch green-edge and my variety must be different. I now 
refer “Northern Amateur” to Journal of Horticulture, vol. xxviii., 
new series (1875) page 403, where it is described by me with the 
other seedlings sent by Campbell. I had the plant sent in the autumn 
of that year. John Cunningham, Brookfield Cottage, Kilbarchan, died 
at Paisley, March 28th, 1878, aged eighty. Three years subsequently 
Mr. Campbell gave me a small plant in exchange for something else, 
and made no conditions.” 
- A lamentable occurrence took place at Trentham on Friday 
last, by which the widow of the late Mr. Z. Stevens lost her life. Mrs. 
Stevens had been suffering from a complaint which required external 
application as well as internal remedies, and in the night she wished to 
be served with the draught. Her daughter, who occupied the same room 
with her and was in attendance upon her, unfortunately administered 
the contents of the wrong bottle, which it appears was of a poisonous 
nature, and Mrs. Stevens shortly afterwards died. 
- Mr. Quintin Read, late of Thornbury, Sheffield, has been 
appointed gardener to J. Craven, Esq., Whilton Lodge Daventry ; and 
Mr. G. Abbey, late of Paxton Park, St. Neots, is now gardener to 
J. H. Sanders, Esq., Porter’s Park, Shenley, Herts. 
- A correspondent sends us flowering specimens of Pitto- 
SPORUM undulatum, and.remarks that “ It is a very free-flowering 
plant, its value being considerably enhanced by the blossoms being pro¬ 
duced without forcing at a season of the year when flowers are most 
welcome. These are white, bell-shaped, prettily reflexed, and are borne 
in bunches on the terminal shoots. They are, moreover, slightly 
fragrant, and the leaves of the plant, too, when bruised emit a distinctly 
balsamic odour.” The plant is an old inhabitant of our greenhouses, 
and in some districts out of doors. There is also a rather pretty varie¬ 
gated form. The genus Pittosporum is especially interesting for its 
geographical distribution, spaces being found in Australia, Cape of Good 
Hope, Mauritius, China and Japan ; P. Tobira from the last-named 
country being familiar to many gardeners. 
_ Mr. C. Prinsep, Hammerwick, sends the following note on 
the Bulb Mite —“Time will not allow me to write all I can on 
the above pest, but I hasten to warn growers against the use of bones 
in the compost. The creature is similar in structure to the cheese mite, 
with this difference, it is larger and more sluggish when taken from 
bulbs. Recently I found them of all ages and sizes on the Vallota, and 
I shall more fully write next week.” 
_ We are requested to state that a paper on the Florists Tulip 
and its Characteristics, illu trated by diagrams, will be read at the 
