4 
THE GARDENING WORLD. 
September 4, 1886. 
to be at tbe first some retrogressive force in 
operatic n, and it was but natural that florists 
should fear their labours through many years 
were about to be set aside and even despised. 
Happily, no such result has occurred, and we 
have even already seen ample evidence of the 
stamp of the florist being set upon the single 
kinds. A few, perhaps, yet admire the starry- 
pointed petalled forms found in some of the 
earlier flowers ; but, as a rule, the natural course 
of floral improvement has its way, and gaps 
between the petals are filled up, so that good 
form and breadth of petal is developed. Hap¬ 
pily, these developments detract in no way from 
the merits of the flowers for domestic decorative 
purposes. Just as much now as at the first they 
admit of unstudied arrangements, which, being 
graceful and elegant, naturally give pleasure. 
There has been an error in producing rather big 
flowers ; but whilst big flowers would inevitably 
come, and to some seemed attractive, yet it is 
evident that size is in these single Dahlias 
hardly allied to gracefulness ; hence smaller but 
even more beautiful ones are desirable and 
forthcoming. Let those who have undefined 
tastes with respect to single Dahlias take stock 
of the various beautiful flowers of diverse sizes 
seen at the Crystal Palace, on Tuesday nest at 
South Kensington, on Thursday next at the 
Royal Aquarium, or at the numerous shows 
yet held in the provinces, and they will have 
little difficulty in deciding as to their fancies in 
the matter of size and form in these flowers. 
As to colours and markings, these are already 
legion, and are being wondrously multiplied. 
Probably, none are more beautiful than the 
seifs, and certainly none are more useful. The 
whites, lemons, yellows, carmines, reds, scarlets, 
purples, crimsons, and other hues offer lovely 
contrasts, and those who employ these flowers 
for domestic decoration know how very effective 
may a few decisive colours prove. Still, some¬ 
thing must be said for the edged, striped, and 
flaked flowers, for they , are so quaint and at¬ 
tractive that they command attention, and in 
not a few cases admiration. Each section 
happily finds its own admirers ; for whilst 
our tastes may be thus defined, we feel that 
absolute uniformity would be a misfortune. 
The Dahlia is now almost everybody’s flower. 
It fitly follows the Rose, and links to it the 
Chrysanthemum, thus forming a trio of summer, 
autumn, and winter floral queens. 
-- 
Mr. John Thorpe, formerly of Stratford-on-Avon, 
has been elected secretary of the New Yoke: Horti- 
cultural Society, in succession to Mr. Murkland, 
whose death we recorded in a recent issue. 
Messrs. William and John Stewart, senior partners 
of the firm of John Stewart & Sons, nurserymen, 
Dundee, intimate that in future they will conduct the 
business on their own account. 
An International Horticultural Exhibition is 
to be held in Dresden in May next, in the fine old park 
of the royal residence, near to the city. 
Messrs. Barr & Son, Covent Garden, have just issued 
a complete list of all the Old and New Daffodils 
in cultivation up to the present time, and which num¬ 
ber over 250 distinct varieties. 
The annual Fungus foray of the Yorkshire Natu¬ 
ralist’s Union will take place on the 30th inst. 
Sir Herbert Eustace Maxwell, Bart., M.P., has been 
elected President of the Scottish Arboricul- 
tural Society, in succession to Dr. Cleghorn, of 
Stravethie, St. Andrews. 
Sweet Peas are stated to be very popular at Phila¬ 
delphia this season, but the cut flower trade there is 
not good. 
Mrs. Frost, relict of the late Mr. Thomas Frost, 
Bower Nurseries, Maidstone, died on Sunday evening 
last. 
Mr. N. Molyneux, for several years foreman to his 
brother at Swanmore Park, Bishops Waltham, has 
been engaged as gardener to C. Willock-Dawes, Esq., 
Barton Hill, Petworth, Sussex. 
Mr. Stevens has returned to Trentham, and is, we 
are pleased to hear, making good progress towards 
complete recovery from his recent severe illness. 
Mr. George Maw, of Benthall Hall, Broseley, who 
for many years has been diligently collecting and cul¬ 
tivating Crocuses, has prepared a monograph of the 
genus, which is complete for publication. 
Lastweekthe gardeners of Kingston-upon-Thames and 
district, captained by Mr. J. Puttoek, played a Cricket 
Match with the gardeners of Walton-on-Thames, at 
Ashley Park, the residence of J. 'S. Sassoon, Esq. The 
Walton men won by fifty-eight runs. 
Mr. Samuel Heaton, of Astley Bank Gardens, Dar- 
wen, will read a paper on Window Gardening, at the 
fifth monthly meeting of the Preston and Fulwood 
Horticultural Society, this (Saturday) evening. 
The Yeitch Memorial Medals and accompany¬ 
ing money prizes of £5 each offered for competition at 
the Stoke-upon-Trent flower show last week, were won 
by Mr. C. Roberts, gardener to A. Nicholson, Esq., 
Leek ; and Mr. W. Stevens, gardener to W. Thomp¬ 
son, Esq., Walton, Stone. Details will be found at 
p. 13. 
The first exhibition of Early-blooming Chrysan¬ 
themums, organised by the National Chrysanthemum 
Society, will be held at the Royal Aquarium on 
Thursday and Friday next, and the floral committee 
meetings of the same society are announced to be held 
on October 13th and 27th, November 10th and 24th, 
and December 8th. 
The annual Trade Sales of Heaths, &c., con¬ 
ducted by Messrs. Protheroe and Morris, will take 
place the week after next, in the following order :— 
14tli, Mr. B. Mailer’s, Burnt Ash Lane, Lee ; 15th, 
Mr. John Fraser’s, Lea Bridge ; 16th, Mr. John Mai¬ 
ler’s, Tottenham ; 17th, Messrs. Gregory & Evans, 
Sidcup; and 18th, Mr. H. B. May’s, Dyson’s Lane, 
Edmonton. 
The third of the series of reports on Insects In¬ 
jurious to Crops, prepared by Mr. Charles Whitehead, 
Barming House, Maidstone, for the Agricultural 
Department of the Privy Council, has just been issued, 
and being devoted exclusively to those insects which 
are injurious to fruit crops, is of special interest to 
gardeners. It can be obtained for 7 \d., and every 
observant worker in a garden should possess a copy. 
Scottish arboriculturists consider it desirable that 
they should have a special journal devoted to the in¬ 
terest of Aboriculture, and have appointed a com¬ 
mittee to consider the matter ; but as Forestry died 
for lack of support, and Woods and Forests was only 
saved by incorporating it with another paper, the 
prospect of success does not seem particularly bright. 
With regard to the emission of black Coal Smoke 
from chimneys, Mr. Fletcher, Chief Inspector of Alkali 
Works, states in bis recently issued report for 1885 that 
“it is a curable evil, and therefore ought to be cured. 
In order to purge the air of our manufacturing districts 
of its black soot, to remove the pall of smoke which 
shuts out the sunlight, and enfeebles both animal and 
vegetable life, pressure is needed from outside, a deter¬ 
mination on the part of the public that the evil shall 
cease.” Whatis theSmoke Abatement Committee doing? 
Messrs. W. H. and H. Le May’s annual report of 
the state of The World’s Hop Crop states that after 
a most exhaustive and thorough examination of the 
hop grounds of England, they estimate the probable 
yield to be equal to £300,000, or an average of 
9 cwt. per acre. The quality will be equal to any 
growth on record ; fully nine-tenths of the gardens 
look magnificent, being perfectly free from any disease 
whatever, the cones are large, and of a most beautiful 
colour, and full of aroma. The quality of the crop is, 
without doubt, the best grown since 1876. 
The Kentish Fruit Crop is now being rapidly 
gathered. On the whole it has been very large, and, 
considering the enormous quantity, Cherries had a fair 
sale. Raspberries, Gooseberries, and black Currants 
sold badly, and Strawberries were not a paying crop. 
There is a very large growth of Plums and Damsons, 
which are now selling at very low prices—so low indeed 
that several farmers have discontinued picking the 
fruit. Pears are an average, but the Apple crop is 
short in quantity, though the fruit is well grown out ; 
the yield will be larger than was at one time expected, 
notwithstanding the ravages of the maggot. Nuts, 
with the exception of Walnuts, are short. 
HEATING GREENHOUSES. 
Now that the season is again close at hand when we 
shall have to contemplate the best means of keeping 
Jack Frost out of our greenhouses, a few notes from an 
amateur may, perhaps, be of assistance to some who 
are as yet not decided as to what they shall do. Four 
years ago I had my house put up, and the first winter 
I used an oil stove, one of the best which I could get, 
but which I found uncertain. One very serious dis¬ 
advantage with it was that it used up all the fresh air 
in the house, and instead of doing good did actual 
harm, by robbing the plants of their absolute necessity. 
I then, for the next season, put up a little shed at 
the back of the greenhouse, and had one of Hartley & 
Sugden’s Conical Star Boilers fixed with a flow and 
return of 2-in. pipe on three sides of the house, and a 
more satisfactory heating apparatus it would be im¬ 
possible to have. For fuel I use coke broken up rather 
small, and with it the ashes from the kitchen range— 
not riddled, but damped, and all mixed up together 
-with the coke. I tried it the first few days so as to get 
w T ell acquainted with the working of the dampers, and 
throughout the whole season the affair worked far 
beyond my expectations. Last season I lighted the 
fire in October, and the water in the boiler was never 
cold till after the middle of May, and the fire never out 
except I think three times when I raked all out to 
clean the smoke-pipe. 
I make up the fire about eight o’clock at night, close 
the dampers, and about eight the next morning rake 
out the dead ashes from the bottom, fill up with fresh 
fuel, and leave it again till eight at night, when I 
always find a nice glowing fire. The regulation of the 
dampers is the most important point in the successful 
management of the stove, but to do as I did, pay par¬ 
ticular attention to the way they want fixing, for the 
first few days is time well spent, and makes the after 
management as simple as A B C. The scove is fed 
from the top in the usual way, and regulated by the 
bottom doors, and I may say, always use the lowest of 
the two bottom doors, so that the draught goes into the 
fire from under the bottom grate, which is the only 
means of getting perfect combustion. 
The nice genial heat thrown off by the hot-water 
pipes enabled me to have such a display of bloom right 
throughout the winter, as anyone would be proud of, 
especially an amateur. I had Roses, Lilies, Pelar¬ 
goniums, Fuchsias, Abutilons, Genista, Coronilla, 
Carnations, Cinerarias, Primulas, Calceolarias, Cycla¬ 
mens, Heliotrope, Petunias, Verbenas, Tuberoses, Ran¬ 
unculus, and a lovely display of bulbs of sorts, and many 
others, which without the hot-water apparatus would 
have been quite out of the question. I kept the house at 
about 55°, and let it run up to 60° and 65° with sun-heat 
in the daytime, and never lower than 45° at night. I 
would strongly advise those about to warm their 
greenhouses, to go to the little extra expense in the 
first place, and have a boiler and pipes, which I am 
quite sure would never be regretted. As regards the 
cost of fuel, I found my oil stove cost me never less 
than tenpence a week, and the present coke stove never 
exceeds fourpence per week. 
If I have not made myself quite plain enough res¬ 
pecting the foregoing, I shall be pleased to explain 
further, or answer any question either through the 
columns of this paper, or directed privately to Ellis 
Palmer, Millbrook, Milford Hill, Salisbury. 
■ -- 
CANON BRIDGE’S GARDEN AT 
BEDDING-TON. 
Beddington House has been noted for its successful 
gardening for many years past, and consequently in its 
garden many fine old plants are to be found giving that 
rich display of flowers in their mature years which 
young plants of the same species never attain. AVe 
mean such plants as have the name of being shy flower¬ 
ing in young specimens or are of straggling growth, and 
are consequently not thought so much of in modern 
gardens as those which earlier attain symmetry and 
floriferousness. As illustrating the classes we refer to, 
we may out of the many such at Beddington House 
take two as fine examples—viz., Asclepias curassavica, 
which is usually seen with a few straggling shoots, but 
which Mr. T. Penfold, the gardener here, grows into 
large globular-headed plants 3 ft. across, and densely 
covered with scarlet and yellow flowers ; and Scutellaria 
Mocciniana, which he makes into a wall plant, and 
which forms a splendid object with its large heads of 
