310 
THE COTTAGE GARDENER. 
July 2L 
of some long-tubed white Crinum, and from five to ten 
of them in a head. It is, or “ used to be,” a winter- 
flowering plant; but I suppose, by pruning “out of 
time,” Mr. Carson managed to turn this “ upside down.” 
He had also, in his collection, Jatropha pandur refolia, 
the very worst plant in all England to grow into a good 
| specimen, in most excellent order and scarlet bloom ; 
i also Lemonia spectiibilis, which is not so show r y as was 
: expected of it a few years back ; and Ttoupelia grata, a 
l kind of strong stove climber, with heads of nearly white 
flowers ; but I shall give a whole list of all the plants in 
i the different collections, and only remark here simply 
; that there was not a single bad-looking plant among the 
whole of them, that none of them were too big to be 
really showy; I mean such out-of-the-way plants as 
those with which Mrs. Lawrence kept all the best 
growers at bay for so many years, to the great detriment j 
of our London exhibitions, and to the great scandal of : 
the societies who encouraged her to spend her money so I 
foolishly. Nevertheless, the gardening world will be 
pleased to hear that this lady is now hale and hearty, 
that she pulled down the useless old houses in which 
i she kept the more tliau useless “ collections,” and that 
really useful new houses are now up in their stead, for 
domestic use and ornament only ; and gardeners every¬ 
where will be glad to learn that all those who took their 
notions of growing plants from Ealing Park will be in 
the hack-ground for the rest of the chapter, or else form 
a “ society ” to give prizes to otic another, just as the 
florists have been obliged to do at last, to their own 
great comfort, and to the satisfaction of all those who 
have a leaning that way ; and that we and ours will be 
always glad to see part of their labours at each and all 
of our exhibitions and shows wherever they are, or may 
be held. 
Now to the said florists in right earnest, and Mr. 
Turner, of Slough, at the head of them again with Pelar¬ 
goniums and Fancy Geraniums, with Mr. Gains closely 
at his heels as anywhere this season. The first of note 
was Cassandra (Ayres) in the Fancies, by Mr. Turner, 
as a single specimen. Cassandra was a beautiful woman, 
a king’s daughter, and she had sixty-one brothers and 
sisters, as numerous as the Fancies, but she lost her 
father, Priam, in the prime of life, and w r e hear no more 
1 of her, after the siege of Troy, till Mr. Turner placed her 
up on that corner, in advance of his own fair ones, and 
in a scarlet and white dress; his collection included 
Celestial, Plectra, Delicatum, Caliban, Perfection, and 
Conspicuum, all of the very best stamp of Fancies. 
Mr. Gains had Delicatum, Eclipse, Prindess Alice 
Maude, Madame Rosali, Conspicuum, and John Bull, I 
think. These great florists are sure to pick out the 
i best kinds to make the best show, therefore the names 
«f their kinds must be of more use to the young aspirant 
than those from private growers. 
Mr. Maher, gardener to J. M. Strachan, Esq., Ted- 
; ding Grove, near Kingston, had a first prize in the 
! Fancy and in the large Geraniums with these kinds, 
which were remarkably well grown: — Fairy Queen, 
j Queen Victoria, Princess Maria Galitze, Magnifica, Per- 
I fection, and Delicatum. Magnifica is too dark, and 
j should bo changed, another year, for Plectra, or Perfec¬ 
tion, or Miss Shepherd, or Lady Hume Campbell; at any 
; rate, those dark ones after Jehu ought to be kept apart 
from the French breed of Anais and Ibrahim Pacha. 
Here are also the names of Mr. Strachan’s large Pelar¬ 
goniums, seeing he was so successful. They are very 
distinct ones : — Monteith, Alderman, Centurion, Ignea, 
Narcissus, Butterjly. Prince of Orange, Rubens, Village 
Maid, Ajax, Pearl, and Emily. All these were on a 
; stage of three shelves, rising one above the other, and 
i this is how the florists placed their plants from front to 
buck. Mr. Turner began with— 
1. Rosa 
4. Virginia 
7. Zeno 
10. Eugenea 
2. Topsy 
5. Carlos 
8. Enchantress 
11. Governor Gen 
3. Queen Eleanor 
(). Azin 
9. Magnet 
12. Mochanna. 
Mr. Gains had his plants thus— 
1. Arethusa 
4. Rosa 
7. Mochanna 
10. Ajax 
2. Governor 
5. Constance 
8. Romulus 
11. Lady Julia 
-3. Beauty of Mont 
pelier 
0. Fete Noir 
9. Exhibitor 
12. Nandee. 
This is as they would place or plant the colours in a 
Tulip or Ranunculus bed, 1 suppose; and I have been 
wondering to myself how the Queen liked this arrange¬ 
ment. I did not see her Majesty, but a friend at Court 
told me that her Majesty was especially struck with 
the new French seedlings from Air. Gains, and par¬ 
ticularly pointed to Lamoricierc and James Odier; and I 
would risk a kingdom on the chance of her Majesty 
having ordered these and the whole collection of the 
new French Geraniums before this sees the light. Mr. 
Turner staged Ronena and Vesper as specimen Gera¬ 
niums, or, l should say gems of the first water in that line. 
Vesper, it will be recollected from my former account, 
is three parts white. 
Fruit. —Pier Majesty competed here with the very 
best persons in all her dominions, and beat them most 
triumphantly by many odds, with a large collection of 
Pines, Grapes, Peaches, Nectarines, Apricots, Plums, 
Strawberries, Cherries, Figs, and I know not what 
besides; and, as usual, everybody was so pleased to hear 
it, except, perhaps, the great ones whom her Majesty 
surpassed so completely. 'The Dukes of Sutherland, 
Marlborough, and Northumberland, Earl de Grey, and 
Lord Clarendon, Lady Charlotte Guest., and Lady Gren¬ 
ville, Sir John Cathcart, and a long list of other lords, 
ladies, and gentlemen, entered the fruit lists in great 
numbers. 1 recommended two sorts of the Strawberries 
to my late worthy employees, Sir William and Lady 
Middleton, as most useful in the dessert, but whether 
they are of good flavour is more than I know; the kinds 
were the Bicton White Pine Strawberry, a large white 
berry, that will make a most useful change in a dessert 
for great or small parties; aud a very dark one, from 
near Birmingham, the name is Sir Harry. This was sent 
by Mr. Underhill, of Edgbastou, near tlie Botanic 
Gardens, Birmingham. But the very best Strawberries 
at the Show, after those from her Majesty, was a basket 
of British Queens, from Mr. Bates, of Moolsey, very 
near where I am now writing ; and I recollect Mr. Bates 
having surprised the Londoners, last spring twelve- 
months, with such white Brocoli as Covent Garden 
could not then produce. 
The Queen sent the best-looking Pine-Apple; and 
tlie best Grapes were an enormous bunch of Cannon 
Hall Muscat, seut by Mr. Strachan, gardener to K. B. 
Hill, Esq., of Bache Hall, Cheshire, down near Mr. 
Erringtou, whose Peaches, from the great tree, I ex¬ 
pected to seo by the dozen. 
The Disa grandiflora, which I mentioned lately, was 
there, and was the lion of the day, and was sent by 
Charles Leach, Esq., of King’s Road, Clapham Park— 
the only man in England, or elsewhere, who has suc¬ 
ceeded in growing it to perfection. It caused as much 
surprise among the best growers of plants in the world 
as the Neilgherry Balsam ( Impatiens Jerdornce) delighted 
the first ladies in the land; but I shall pass it this 
week, as well as other things at these exhibitions, in 
order to give a full account of how it was managed, from 
first to last, by Mr. Leach, to whom I am indebted for 
many useful experiments in crossing and in growing 
bulbs, as well as for the proper cultivation of this 
charming plant; and shall conclude with the follow- 
