May 1J, 1887. ] 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
375 
Victoria and Paradise Nurseries, Upper Holloway, was opened yesterday 
(Wednesday), and will be continued until June 25th. The large span- 
roof bouse, 100 feet long by 22 feet wide, is devoted to the Orchids, 
which are tastefully arranged with foliage plants, and comprise a num¬ 
ber of rare and beautiful species and varieties. There are, as usual, 
many other attractions in the nursery at the present time. We learn 
that Mr. B. S. Williams has been awarded two gold medals and prize 
of honour for collection of Orchids, new and rare plants, Cyclamen, 
Amaryllis, Imantophyllums, books, &c., exhibited by him at the Dresden 
international Horticultural Show, which was opened on the 7th inst. 
- By the accident of inserting the figure 8 instead of 3 in our re¬ 
ference to Mr. Simpson’s Waterproof Labels on page 354 last week, 
these labels are represented as being 8 inches long. Their length is 
-3 inches—a much more convenient size for use in gardens. 
- Lewisham and District Floral Society.—T he usual 
years in Zanzibar he has rendered most important services to the various 
expeditions despatched by English and foreign Governments and by 
private bodies for the exploration of Central Africa, directing their 
routes, superintending their equipments, and encouraging them in the 
formation and transmission of zoological, botanical, and ethnological 
collections. 
- It is stated in a recent issue of Le Jar-din that during fetes of 
the Battle of Flowers at Nice this year, about 80,000 francs were 
expended in flowers in two days, chiefly Roses (Safrano and Comte 
Bobrinsky), Chrysanthemum Etoile d’Or, Anemones, Wallflowers, Roman 
Hyacinths, Jonquils, Pinks, Violets, and Acacia dealbata. The decoration 
of one Victoria required 1500 dozens of Jonquil flowers and 300 dozen 
bunches of artificial Cherries. On the 1st of January this year there 
arrived at the Halles in Paris from Nice 18 millions of Roses, 1,200,000 
Camellias, and 15,000 trusses of Lilac. 
•quarterly meeting of this Society took place on Friday evening last, when 
am excellent paper on the cultivation of the “ Zonal Pelargonium ” was 
Tead by Mr. Bryant in the absence of Mr. T. W. Sanders. Mr. Sanders dealt 
with his subject in masterly style, and treated fully on the culture of the 
plant from the cutting and seed to the exhibition table. At the close of 
the paper a discussion ensued, in which Messrs. Jupp, Drake, Needs, and 
Nunn took part. An additional interest attached to the meeting in the 
shape of a highly creditable display of plants and flowers exhibited by 
the members. Notably among these was a fine group put up by Mr. 
Needs of Catford, consisting of Zonal Pelargoniums, Cinerarias, 
Spiraeas, Arum, Lilies, tree Carnations, and foliage plants. Mr. 
Searle showed some very pretty Cinerarias, Azaleas, together with 
•some neat little foliage Begonias. Mr. Drake, the indefatigable 
Hon. Secretary, was represented by some good specimens of Azaleas 
very fully flowered, his plant of Ceres being specially fine. Messrs. H. 
Cannell & Sons of Swanley showed some splendid trusses of Zonal Pelar¬ 
goniums and remarkable spikes of Mignonette, as well as beautiful 
blooms of the Pride of Penshurst, yellow Carnation. Votes of thanks 
were accorded to the various exhibitors, also to Mr. Sanders for his 
paper. 
-“ The rich Flora of the Philippine Islands has hitherto 
ibeen most imperfectly known,” says Nature, “in fact it has been 
practically only represented in European herbaria by the collections of 
Cuming, which, though rich, were made in a limited area. It was only 
therefore to be expected that the explorations made by Dr. Sebastian 
Vidal, of Soler, director of the Botanic Garden at Manilla, and of the 
Commission for studying the forest flora, would add to our knowledge a 
profusion of new and interesting species. Dr. Vidal has on two occasions 
visited Kew with his collections, which have quite realised the expecta¬ 
tions that had been formed of them. There was some reason to fear 
that the work might, on financial grounds, have to be interrupted. But 
from a communication made to Kew by the Spanish Minister, we are 
•glad to learn ‘that although the Botanical Survey Commission intrusted 
to Dr. Sebastian Vidal had been at one time suppressed in the Budget of 
1887-88, it was afterwards re-established in view of the great importance 
•of the work.’ ” 
- Amongst the fifteen candidates nominated for election as 
Fellows of the Royal Society on June 9th, the two following are 
•well-known botanists and naturalists :—George King, M.B., F.L.S., 
•superintendent of the Royal Botanical Gardens, Calcutta, and of the 
Government Cinchona plantations of Darjeeling ; formerly superinten¬ 
dent of the Botanical Gardens of Saharunpur ; author of “ Notes on the 
Lion of Aboo ” (Proc. Asiat. Soc. Beng., 1868) ; “ On the Birds of the 
•Goona District ” (Journ. Asiat. Soc. Beng., 1868) ; “ Notes on the Vege¬ 
table Products and Farm Foods of Rajpootana and Marwan “ Obser¬ 
vations on the genus Ficus, and on the'Fertilisation of F. hispida “ A 
Monograph of Indian Fici” (in course of publication). Eminent as 
«n Indian botanist and quinologist, and for the services he has rendered 
to IsvtanisU and naturalists in India. Sir John Kirk, G.C.M.G., M.D., 
F.L.S. ; H.M. Agent andiConsul-General, Zanzibar; chief officer and 
naturalist of Dr. Livingstone’s Government expedition to the Zambesi, 
Nyassa Country (1858-63), during which he made large collections, 
•observations, and drawings of great scientific value ; author of numerous 
■contributions to the botany, zoology, and geography of Eastern Tropical 
Africa, published in the Journals of the Linnean and Zoological SocieJ 
ties, the K Ibis,” Ac. During Sir John Kirk’s residence of nearly twenty 
ORCHID3 AT CAMBRIDGE LODGE. 
If there are any lingering doubts that Orchids can be successfully 
rrown in the metropolitan district they would be effectually dispelled by 
l visit to the celebrated collection in the possession of R. J. Measures, 
Esq., Cambridge Lodge, Camberwell, which is remarkable not only for 
the number of°rarb, valuable, and beautiful forms it contains, but also 
[or the fresh vigorous health of the plants, so well grown by the gar¬ 
dener, Mr. Simpkins. The garden is within three miles of Charing 
Cross’ and is, we believe, the most centrally situated collection of 
Orchids in London, where fogs and smoke are far too abundant to be 
agreeable. Nearly the whole of the available space is covered with 
well-built and well-designed houses, of which no less than sixteen are 
exclusively devoted to Orchids, and it is becoming difficult accom¬ 
modate the frequent additions being made to the collection. Mr. 
Measures has not filled his houses with common species or varieties, but 
has made a most careful selection of the rarest obtainable, the value of 
which in many instances is increasing annually ; and especially is this 
the case with the hybrid Cypripediums and others like the celebrated 
C. Stonei platytmnium. Cypripediums are indeed a specialty at 
Cambridge Lodge, for the collection now comprises 235 species, hybrids 
and varieties, some of the better known being represented by excep¬ 
tionally large handsome specimens, while all are distinguished by their 
fine condition. One house devoted to Cypripediums in flower was very 
attractive at the time of our visit, the plants being arranged with 
Ferns and a few light graceful Palms like Cocos Weddelliana. The 
house is a small one, span-roofed, and not much more than 12 feet 
square, with a side stage extending from the door round the house and 
projecting in the centre opposite the door, where a beautiful bank is 
forrmed. Amongst those in flower were C. hevigatum ; Dauthien ; 
Warned" and variety biflorum; Harrisianum ; caudatum and the 
varieties Warscewiczi and roseum ; callosum ; barbatum pulcherrimum ; 
a very interesting plant, apparently a natural hybrid between Hookeri 
and hirsutissimum, the leaves resembling the former and the flowers the 
latter • Boxalli atrata, a handsome plant of this richly coloured dark 
variety • calurum superbum, beautifully coloured ; Curtisi; euryandum 
with six’ fine flowers ; Argus ; Hookeri and the light variety Bullerianuni ; 
niveum, and the rare variety punctatissimum; vernixium; Lowi ; 
Boxalli superba ; callosum; ciliolare, a very .handsome variety of this 
fine Cypripedium ; insigne sylhetensc, the summer-flowering variety of 
insigne • barbatum, a grand variety like one of the best Lawrencianums ; 
tonsum ’• Argus mosaica with large flowers and richly spotted petals ; 
Pearcei • superciliare; Warned ; and Swannianum. Most of these 
were flowering freely, and in other houses were more plants, the 
principal collection containing the rarities being in a long house in 
another portion of the gardens ; and there is a large plant of C. Wallisi 
with three spikes, one of which produced three flower buds one has two 
buds and the third has one ; when the flowers are expanded the plant 
will ’be remarkably handsome. There are scores of other rare and 
beautiful plants, but two deserve special notice ; these are Cypripedium 
Cambridgeanum and C. Ernestianum, which are represented in figs. 66 
and 67. These are imported plants, and have flowered for the first time 
this year C. Cambridgeanum was imported by Messrs. Hugh Low & Co., 
Clapton, and flowered last March. It is very suggestive of C. cenanthum 
both in shape and colouring, the dorsal sepal being particularly beauti¬ 
ful heavily veined, with dark crimson and a slight white margin, the lip 
greenish with a purple tinge, and the petals similar but darker, and with 
a slight fringe of hairs near the base. C. Ernestianum is a very striking 
f u rm of the Davanum type, which was introduced by Messrs, shuttle- 
worth A Carder, and flowered last February. The dorsal sepal is of 
elegant shape, white distinctly veined with bright green, the petals 
tinged with green at the base, veined with pale crimson, white at the tip, 
