1G8 
THE FLORIST AND POMOLOGHST. 
t November, 
house, occupied with bedding plants; they 
were all placed in “ stands ” or water-pans, 
to keep the Cresses well fed with water; 
and they were all as near the glass as they 
could be conveniently placed. The pans were 
filled with strong loam, mixed with a small 
allowance of Clay’s Fertiliser, and the cuttings 
consisted of the smallest tops of strong Cresses 
of out-door growth. As for after-management, 
none was wanted; they were treated to an 
occasional shower from the syringe, but would 
probably have done as well without it. 
Although a strong heat is never needed in 
the ordinary way in the cultivation of this 
elegant vegetable, it is, nevertheless, possible to 
force Water-cresses advantageously, as a case in 
point will show. There was a sudden demand 
here for a large lot of home-grown Cresses, for 
a particular purpose. We managed to secure 
a peck or so of cuttings from our neglected 
pans, and these were inserted in pans newly 
prepared, with good fresh loam and Clay’s Fer¬ 
tiliser. The pans were put into a moist heat 
of 70°, and within three days there was a rich 
growth of about four inches, and we cut a bushel 
of the loveliest home-grown Cresses ever seen 
or tasted. After this the plants sprouted 
weakly, and we made another cut at about 
eight days from the first, and then threw them 
away, as worn out. The forcing soon ruins the 
plant, but in the event of an emergency a 
temperature of 70° will do wonders.—S. H. 
NOTES ON FLORISTS' FLOWERS. 
M tfmERHAPS a few gossiping notes on one 
1 JT of our floral pets, the Tulip, may not 
be uninteresting at the present time, 
for latterly no one seems to have had much 
to say about this showy flower, though during 
the greater part of my time it has figured 
as one of the most prominently recognised 
amongst the pets of the florist. During the 
last twenty years, most of the old staunch 
growers and fanciers have died off, without 
leaving others to fill their places. The cases 
wherein a father has left a son to take up the 
fancy in earnest are quite exceptional; at pre¬ 
sent, I can only count two such persons, Mr. 
Barlow, and Mr. Horner, who have both in¬ 
herited the taste, and are both amongst the 
most earnest of florists. I wish we could see 
or hear of a goodly number of young recruits 
taking up the culture of florists’ flowers as a 
hobby. 
I have, on previous occasions, ventured to 
say a few words respecting the classification 
of the Tulip. At present, the varieties are 
classed as Roses, Bybloemens, and Bizarres. 
The Roses and Bybloemens have their dif¬ 
ferent coloured markings on white grounds, 
making two white-ground classes, while the 
Bizarres, which have their equally varied 
markings on yellow grounds, have been kept 
as one class. Now, why should we not have two 
classes on yellow grounds, as well as two classes 
on white grounds ? This is a point for the 
Royal National Tulip Society to take up. My 
opinion is that it would be quite as plausible 
in the one case as in the other. There would 
be quite as much variation to be found among 
Bizarres to form two sections, as there is amongst 
the Bybloemens and Roses. My idea is that we 
should separate the red-marked flowers with yel¬ 
low grounds from those which are dark-marked, 
as we do the red-marked white-grounds—Roses, 
from the dark-marked ones—the Bybloemens. 
Then they would be seen as they ought to be 
seen on the exhibition-tables at the National 
or other shows. 
Whether my views on this matter may be 
adopted or not, I hope, at least, to see some 
one take up the subject, and let us have a 
little friendly discussion thereupon. True, we 
have now no Midland Florist , but we have 
the Florist and Fomologist , and other floral 
and horticultural publications, which would, 
no doubt, take up and ventilate this and other 
subjects in the interests of floriculture, if the 
florists themselves would but lend their as¬ 
sistance. 
One cause of the too frequent lagging behind 
in these matters of the modern florist, is the 
falling-off of the country shows. Years ago 
there were held in at least half-a-dozen towns 
in Yorkshire, and more than that number in 
Lancashire, three shows annually—one for the 
Auricula and Polyanthus, a second for Tulips, 
&c., and the third for Carnations, Picotees, <fcc. 
These shows, together with the friendly meet¬ 
ings held in the intervals, brought florists to¬ 
gether frequently, and there was thus always 
something fresh to be talked about, enough to 
keep the fanciers on the move. Now, we have 
none of these shows or meetings. True, we have 
three so-called National Shows, the Auricula. 
