1883 .] 
CAMELLIA EUGENE MASSINA,-THE HOLLYHOCK, 
113 
CAMELLIA EUGENE MASSINA. 
[Plate 
ci UR drawing of this charming Camellia 
| | was made some two or three years 
since from flowers recommended to our 
notice by Mr, W. Paul, of Waltham 
Cross, as one of the best of tho modern or 
little known varieties. The Waltham Cross 
Nursery, now carried on by Messrs. W. Paul & 
Son, has a well-established reputation for its 
collection of Camellias, which is, we suppose, 
by far the best now existing in the vicinity of 
London. This collection is, moreover, re¬ 
nowned as much for its admirable management, 
the plants being kept in a robust state of 
health, as it is for its extent and variety, and 
we do not know of a morning call better worth 
591.] 
the effort than a visit to inspect Messrs. 
Paul’s collection of Camellias during the 
blooming period. 
The variety Eugene Massina , which is the 
subject of our illustration, is a large full im¬ 
bricated flower, of the very highest quality. 
The colour is particularly pleasing, being a 
soft shade of deep rose, shading off to a paler 
tint at the edges of the smooth evenly-imbri¬ 
cated petals. The plant is of moderately vigo¬ 
rous habit, with broad and effective foliage. It 
will be found to be a very pleasing addition 
to any collection of these highly decorative 
evergreen shrubs, in which it does not already 
exist.—T. Moore, 
THE HOLLYHOCK. 
f OME of us had great hopes that the in¬ 
sidious disease which has almost driven 
this grand autumn flower out of the 
country, had well-nigh disappeared ; hut 
again are we doomed to disappointment. Our 
small collection of named Hollyhocks was 
thoroughly cleansed from the pest, and the 
plants brought over to our new place, where 
I had great hopes to save seeds from them, 
and get up a good collection which was to be 
quite isolated. I did not think of the disease 
being on the common Mallows, hut Mr. 
Worthington Smith kindly sounded a note 
of warning, and on looking round, true enough 
the Mallows were found within easy distance 
of our garden, quite smothered with the pest. 
The Hollyhocks are growing freely as yet 
and show no signs of it. The way they were 
cleaned after the disease had attacked them 
was, to pick off all leaves showing the small 
brown spots ; the plants were then dipped over¬ 
head in soapy water thickened with flowers 
of sulphur; and as often as a single spot was 
seen, off came the leaf, followed by the plants 
being dipped. This was repeated often enough 
to entirely clear the leaves from the pest. One 
would fain hope that the disease would utterly 
destroy the Mallows, and leave nothing for it 
to feed upon. 
Those who are the fortunate possessors of 
a collection of Hollyhock plants, ought to be 
proud of them, and give them careful atten¬ 
tion. They are now growing freely and ought 
to be tied to the sticks as they advance in 
growth. The lateral shoots ought to be cut 
off and will form good eyes to put in as 
cuttings in a spent hot-bed. Indeed any 
cuttings that can be obtained from the base 
or sides of the stem will root freely enough, 
and all of them make good plants to be 
wintered in pots, and they come into flower 
early next season. In dry weather they ought 
to have a mulching of rotten manure and be 
freely supplied with water at the roots ; and it 
is a great help to them to he syringed over¬ 
head. The water should be applied to the 
under sides of the leaves, for the red spider 
is very fond of them, and it is on the under 
side of the leaf that it makes its home. 
Seedling Hollyhocks make a grand show, 
and it is now (July) a good time to sow; the 
seeds may be sown on the open border, but 
many of them will fail to vegetate there, and 
it is better to sow them in boxes or pots, 
and these should be plunged in a hot-bed 
where there is just a little bottom heat. The 
young plants will soon appear, and ought to 
be pricked out into a border of fine soil, about 
six inches apart. By the end of August or 
early in September they may be planted three 
feet apart in rich deep soil. If planted at 
that time they become thoroughly established 
before the winter, and are seldom injured by 
our ordinary winters. The choice named 
varieties ought not to be wintered out of doors, 
but be potted or planted out in cold frames, 
H 
