596 
THE GAKDENING WORLD 
May 22, 1886. 
store, we must also not forget that such late 
disastrous visitations are possible. However, to 
have done with the gloomy side of nature, let us 
look rather at the fact that now at, least, the 
prospect in garden and field vegetable crops 
is good, and full of promise. Already there is 
ample work being provided, and the rains make 
the weeds grow apace. Seeds, too, where they 
have done well, have furnished plenty of 
plants, and there is anxiety to get these out 
whilst the soil is moist. Early planting of 
these things means an abundant crop for next 
winter. Rarely have we had a season when 
labour was more in request and more needed. 
"With ample employment comes back national 
prosperity, and we have sincere hopes that the 
present season will materially conduce to that 
end. 
---- 
GARDENING MISCELLANY. 
Meetings for Next 'Week..— Tuesday : Royal 
Horticultural Society; Meeting of Fruit and Floral 
Committees—Sliow of Pot Roses, Azaleas, &c. 
The Exhibitions at the Royal Aquarium. 
—Mr. R. Dean writes:—I Rave just received an in¬ 
timation from the manager of the Royal Aquarium 
Company that the exhibitions fixed for July 9th and 
10th, and August 20th and 21st, are unavoidably 
withdrawn for this season owing to the number of 
exhibitions arranged to take place during the summer. 
I shall be obliged if you will make this announcement. 
National Tulip Society.— The annual ex¬ 
hibition of this society is fixed for Saturday June 5 th 
as usual in the Botanical Gardens at Manchester. So 
far it is a late season with the Tulip bloom, and unless 
a great change takes place in the weather, not a few of 
the northern flowers will not be in. Gardeners every¬ 
where, and among them the Tulip growers, are anxiously 
looking for a change that shall bring a higher tem¬ 
perature, bright sunny skies, and soft southerly winds. 
Mr. T. S. Ware, of Tottenham, intends, we 
understand, to make a fine display of Tree Pseonies and 
other choice plants in the conservatory at South Ken¬ 
sington, in conjunction with the show of pot Roses, 
&c., on Tuesday next. 
Herbaceous Calceolarias. — From Messrs. 
Kelway & Son, Langport, we have received a box of 
blooms of herbaceous Calceolarias, of which they have 
now about 5,000 plants in flower. The flowers before 
us have all the characteristics of a good strain—viz., 
size, shape, rich clear colours, and plenty of variety. 
Wall Fruit Culture.— Mr. Robert Smith, gar¬ 
dener, Kenward, Yalding, Kent, who is known as 
an experienced and successful cultivator of Peaches, 
Nectarines, and Pears on open walls, has embodied the 
results of his many years’ experience in a 6 d. brochure, 
which is published by Simpkin, Marshall & Co., and a 
perusal of which, we hope and believe with the author, 
will lead to more high-class fruits being grown on walls 
than is the case at present. 
Mr. Henry Mayne, who has been gardener for 
the last five and a-half years at Stoke House, Stoke 
Fleming, near Dartmouth, has left that place to take 
charge of the gardens at Newton College, Newton 
Abbot, South Devon. 
A New Adenocarpus.— A few days ago Mr. 
W. E. Gumbleton, brought rrnder our notice a very 
fine new shrub, which is now flowering in his garden 
at Belgrove, Queenstown, and which deserves the 
attention of all lovers of good hardy plants. Adeno¬ 
carpus decorticus, for such is the name it at present 
bears, was introduced some years ago by Messrs. Thibaut 
and Keteleer of Paris, from the Sierra Nevada of Spain, 
but until quite recently its propagation has been a 
matter of some difficulty ; this, however, has now been 
overcome, and the plant is being offered at a cheap 
rate. In its native country it is said to form the scrub 
under Pinus Pinsapo, and differs only as a genus from 
the common English Broom in having pods covered 
with glands. Its leguminous blossoms are of a very 
bright shade of yellow, produced profusely in racemes, 
and with Mr. Gumbleton the plant has proved to be 
perfectly hardy. 
The Potato Crop in Jersey promises to be a 
good one, and several London salesman have already 
'been among the growers securing ware in large quan- 
titles. 
A Handy Water-pot. —At the last meeting of 
the Committees at South Kensington, Mr. J. Haws, 
16, Mayola Road, Clapton, exhibited samples of a 
water-pot which he has patented, and of which, for 
convenient and handy use, those who have tried them 
for a time speak highly. The main feature of the 
patent is the application of the power required in using 
them near the centre of gravity and as close to the body 
as possible ; and other advantages claimed are the 
canister-like shape of the cans, which prevents slopping; 
the introduction of a carrying-handle connected with 
and supporting the spout, which allows of the vessel 
being carried with the hands in a natural position : and 
the curved shape and position of the tipping-handle, 
which allows of the can being used with ease with one 
hand. The principle upon which they are constructed 
bids fair to become universally adopted. 
Mr. J. Burn, gardener at The Abbey Park, 
Leicester, in consideration of valuable services rendered 
during the winter months to the Committee of the 
Mayor’s Subscription Concerts, has recently been pre¬ 
sented by the Mayor of Leicester and his friends, with 
a handsome silver tea and coffee service. 
M. Ambroise Verschaffelt, of Ghent, died on 
the 16th inst., aged 61 years. M. Verschaffelt was one 
of the most distinguished and successful of Belgian 
nurserymen, and the founder of the large business in 
the Rue du Chaume, Ghent, now carried on by the 
Compagnie Continental d’Horticulture, of which M. J. 
Linden is Director. 
The Braintree and Booking Horticultural 
Society of which Sydney Courtauld, Esq. is treasurer, 
and Mr. H. Gibbs secretary, fixes July 8tli for their 
Exhibition of Plants, Flowers, and Fruit to be held at 
Stisted Hall, the residence of O. S. Onley, Esq. The 
Show is always a good one, and the 3 guinea Silver 
Cup given by Mr. Courtauld, for the most tastefully 
arranged group of plants in a space of 6 ft. by 4 ft. 
should bring something different to the flat and dense 
mixtures we usually see entered under this heading. 
A Silver Cup, value 3 guineas, is also offered for the 
best six stove and greenhouse plants, besides other 
good money prizes. 
Mr. W. P. Thomson, who for several years past 
has ably assisted Mr. Barron in the capacity of foreman 
intheRoyalHorticulturalSociety’sGardens at Chiswick, 
was on Tuesday last presented by his fellow employes 
with a handsome time-piece, on the occasion of his 
marriage. The respect entertained for Mr. Thomson, 
was also, we understand, recorded in an address pre¬ 
sented with the clock, and signed by Mr. John Barry 
and Mr. S. Summers, foreman of the fruit department, 
on behalf of the men. 
Agave Americana. —At the last meeting of the 
Royal Botanic Society of Jersey, there was submitted 
for examination a specimen of the Agave Americana, 
whose offsets, starting from the parent plant, and foiled 
in their endeavours to reach the surface by coming in 
contact with the sides of the pot, had performed a series 
of spiral ceils, in one instance attaining a length of 6 ft. 
before appearing above ground. 
The Veitch Memorial Medal. —We are in¬ 
formed by Mr. Barron that the Veitch Memorial Medal 
offered for salads at South Kensington last week was 
not awarded as stated by us in our report of the meet¬ 
ing, and hasten to correct the error with all due 
apologies. 
Cottagers’ Allotment Gardens Bill.— The 
text of a Bill ordered to be printed by the House of 
Commons to encourage and facilitate the provision of 
allotment gardens for cottagers has just been published. 
The Bill consists of seventeen clauses, of which the 
most important is the seventh, containing the following 
regulations as to the acquisition of land by county 
authority :—(1) Subject to the provisions of this Act, 
the county authority shall have the like powers of 
acquiring lands for the purposes of this Act as local 
authorities under the Public Health Act, 1875, have 
of acquiring lands for the purposes of that Act ; and 
sections 176 to 178, 297 and 298 of that Act shall apply 
to the acquisition of lands by the county authority, 
and to the making and confirmation of provisional 
orders under this Act, with the substitution of ‘ county 
authority’ for ‘local authority.’ (2) In the con¬ 
struction of the Land Clauses Consolidation Acts for 
the purposes of this Act, the expression 1 the special 
Act ’ includes this Act, and any Order confirmed by 
Parliament authorising the’purchase of lands otherwise 
than by agreement for purposes of this Act. (3) In 
making any order for the acquisition of lands otherwise 
than by agreement for the purposes of this Act, the 
Local Government Board shall not authorise the taking 
of an unfair quantity of land from any one person, 
having regard to the quantity of land owned by dif¬ 
ferent persons in the parish respectively, and to all the 
circumstances of the case.” The Bill is backed with 
the names of Mr. Chaplin, Sir W. Hart-Dyke, Mr. 
Harcourt, Viscount Curzon, .and Mr. Charles Hall. 
--*X<-- 
SALPIGLOSSIS. 
We have many interesting and beautiful plants from 
Chili, and amongst them the subjects of this note and 
the illustrations opposite have secured a good share 
of the favour of horticulturists. Salpiglossis sinuata, 
which is described in the books as a biennial, but is 
usually treated under cultivation as an annual, has 
been grown in gardens for something like sixty years, 
and during that time a large number of varieties has 
been raised. In some old works on gardening, these 
are named like we now name varieties of other popular 
plants, according to some distinction of colour or mark¬ 
ing, but with the Salpiglossis this has now been dis¬ 
continued, and from a packet of carefully saved seed, 
as many varieties will be obtained as can be wished, 
the flowers coming most beautifully marked. 
The ground colour is usually yellow or reddish brown, 
with numerous veins of crimson, violet, purple, and 
other tints, which render them remarkably handsome. 
The}' are well adapted for culture in pots, and seeds 
sown now in mild bottom heat will produce plants that 
will flower abundantly before the summer is past; 
seeds can also be sown out of doors in good rich soil, 
but the plants must be supplied with water in dry 
weather, as they soon lose their beauty if allowed to 
become excessively dry; they are, however, rather 
more satisfactory in pots, and for that method they 
may be strongly recommended. — E. 
-- 
PROPOSED BOILER CONTEST. 
The Royal Horticultural Society has decided to hold 
a Boiler Contest in connection with the great Provin¬ 
cial Show at Liverpool, and the following are the 
conditions under which the competition will be con¬ 
ducted :—1. Competitions will be in three classes, 
viz. Class 1, 2,000 ft. ; 2, 1,000 ft. ; 3, 500 ft. 
2. Each competitor to supply and fix his own piping 
and boiler, with all necessary fittings complete, at his 
own expense. 3. The Royal Horticultural Society will 
supply the fuel and thermometers required for the 
contest. 4. All the hot-water piping to be 4-in. (inside 
size) ; the chimnies not to exceed 20 ft. in height, above 
the ground level. 5. The height of flow-pipe above top 
of boiler not to exceed 24 ins. (overall) at boiler, nor to 
rise more than 6 ins. in 100 ft. 6. Each boiler to have 
not more than one flow and two return connections. 
7. The piping to be fixed as follows :—In the 500 ft., 
three flows and three returns, three deep ; 1,000 ft., five 
flows and five returns, two deep; 2,000 ft., ten flows 
and ten returns, two deep ; with three, five, or ten 
syphons or boxes respectively at extreme end. S. The 
total amount of piping in each case not to be less than 
specified. 9. The competition in each class will begin 
simultaneously about mid-da}', and last for twenty-four 
hours—that for the 2,000 ft. on the first day of show, 
that for the 1,000 ft. on the second day of show, and 
that for the 500 ft. on the third day of show. 10. In 
the case of boilers set in brick-work, they must be fixed 
and the brick-work dried by firing, and thoroughly 
cooled down again by the time of competition beginning. 
11. Each competitor must be prepared to fix the ther¬ 
mometer on the part of the plain piping where directed, 
on the morning of the competition. 12. Every point 
for and against each boiler can be pointed out, and will 
be carefully considered by the judges, and may be em¬ 
bodied in the report of the contest, so that competitors 
should carefully avoid anything that might tell against 
them. 13. Intending competitors must send in, at 
time of entry, full particulars as to heating power, &c., 
of their boilers, with price at which they are prepared 
to supply the public, which will be published. 14. One 
or more Medals will be given in each class, if the judges 
consider the competition worthy of such an acknow¬ 
ledgment. 
