72 
THE GARDENING WORLD. 
October 1, 1887. 
PRACTICAL PAPERS ON 
GARDENING. 
This is the title of a publication of some 100 pages, 
demy 8vo., just issued by the Birmingham Gardeners' 
Mutual Improvement Association, which contains 
eleven papers read before the members during the last 
twelve months. Ten of them are by working gar¬ 
deners ; the other is by a well-known amateur. We 
have pleasure in drawing the attention of our readers 
to this little volume ; and we may add, it is not only 
interesting but instructive, for it embodies the ex¬ 
perience of men who have been particularly successful 
in growing the plants they treat of. Most of our 
readers will remember that this young society came 
into being no longer ago than February 4th, 1886. Its 
first meeting was attended by 174 persons—most of 
them professional gardeners. Od that occasion 153 
members were enrolled, and the number now is some¬ 
thing like 300. The first session was occupied by 
the lectures chiefly of gentlemen amateurs, and the 
average attendance was about 100. Mr. A. W. Wills 
discoursed on “The Mutual Belation Between Plants 
and Insects”; Professor Hillhouse took for his subject 
“ The Scientific Value of Gardeners’ Experience”; then 
came lectures by Mr. Oliver on “ Leaves and Boots : 
Their Belation to the Air and Soil;” by Mr. W. Dean, 
on a “Fifty Years Betrospect of Horticulture”; and 
the last lecture of the first session was by Mr. E. W. 
Badger, on “Practice with Science,” in which he 
showed how dependent successful practice is on a know¬ 
ledge of the science of horticulture. 
The autumn session (1886) was commenced by a 
most valuable and elaborate paper on “Plant Food,” 
by Mr. Edmund Tonks, B. C. L., in which formulie were 
given of artificial manures useful to the gardener, based 
on the teachings of M. Georges Ville. This and the 
papers which will be subsequently mentioned, have 
just been published by the society in a well-edited 
volume of 100 pages, price Is. 6 d., which may be 
obtained of the publishers, Messrs. Cornish Brothers, 
New Street, Birmingham. 
The next paper was by Mr. Croobe on “Mushroom 
Growing ” ; this was followed by one on “ Carnivorous 
Plants ” by Mr. Latham, Curator of the Birmingham 
Botanic Gardens. Mr. Cooper, gardener to the Bight 
Hon. J. Chamberlain, M.P., next discoursed on some 
of his favourite Orchids, namely, “ The Varieties and 
Cultivation of the Cattleya.” This was followed by 
‘ * The Cultivation of the Chrysanthemum ” by Mr. 
Page, a local winner of numerous first prizes. A 
Birmingham nurseryman, Mr. John Pope, supplied 
the next paper, entitled “Contrast and Harmony in 
Special Beference to Flowers,” in which he gave 
evidence of advanced taste in the arrangement of 
flowers in bouquets, epergnes, &e. Mr. Petch (a well- 
known exhibitor of Grapes), next gave his experience 
in a valuable paper on “ The Grape Vine : Its History 
and Cultivation.” The next paper was by Mr. C. H. 
Herbert, who at the time was foreman plant grower in 
Mr. Hans Niemand’s nursery, on “The Cyclamen and 
the Bouvardia,” two of our most valuable winter¬ 
blooming plants. Mr. J. H. Horton, gardener to Mr. 
E. Chamberlain, M.P., then gave his experiences 
—which are considerable—in growing “ The Chinese 
Primula.” “The Cape Heath, Erica,” was the subject 
of the concluding paper of the session, the author being 
Mr. William Jones, a well known local gardener. The 
papers are all thoroughly practical, and have been 
carefully edited by Mr. William Dean. 
-=■*£<-- 
THE AUTUMN-FLOWERING 
AMARYLLIS. 
Vert few new plants of recent introduction can 
compare with the hybrid autumn-flowering Amaryllis, 
introduced in 1882 by Mr. B. S. Williams, of the 
Victoria and Paradise Nurseries, Upper Holloway. 
The crosses were made between the old A. reticulata 
and a garden variety, named Defiance ; but the progeny 
seems to partake more of the first-named parent’s 
character, except as regards vigorous growth and free- 
flowering. The first variety that appeared was named 
Mrs. Garfield. It has long, broad, reticulated leaves, 
and throws up flower-scapes about 2 ft. high, with 
from four to five flowers on each, which are of a pleasing 
rosy pink colour, netted and veined with soft rose. 
They are about 6 ins. in diameter, and last a long time 
in perfection—much longer than those of the ordinary 
Amaryllis. 
Mrs. Wm. Lee was the next to be sent out, and this 
seems to have a more vigorous constitution than the 
former, though similar in habit of growth, with more 
colour in the flower, being deep crimson towards the 
base. The last variety put into commerce is Comte de 
Germiny, which is of a still richer colour—a rosy 
carmine and crimson, having a broad white stripe in 
the centre of each petal. All the varieties may now 
be seen in flower at the Victoria and Paradise Nurseries, 
and at the time of writing several dozen plants were in 
bloom. They have been gay for several weeks, and 
present every appearance of continuing so for some 
time, as fresh spikes are constantly coming up. 
As these hybrids belong to the evergreen section, 
it is necessary to keep them in a moist stove temperature, 
with a plentiful supply of water, and to avoid over¬ 
potting them. A good rich fibrous loam, mixed with a 
little rotted manure, is the best compost to grow them 
in. These Amaryllis make a capital contrast with 
such things as Nerines, of which some large specimens 
were just going out of flower. 
--sax-- 
MIMICRY IN FLOWERS. 
To me, one of the most interesting articles I have 
read for a long time was that published in The Gar¬ 
dening World of last week, under the above title. 
Truly some plants are full of mimicry, and our native 
Orchids, which unfortunately, perhaps intentionally, 
were excluded from the list, are no exception to the 
rule ; indeed, it is questionable if any other native 
tribe of plants imitate, in structure of flowers, insects, 
and animals in so marked a degree as these most 
interesting of nature’s floral productions. What can 
be more like a bee than the brown velvety labellum of 
the Bee Ophrys (O. apifera) ? Indeed, in my own 
garden I have more than once cheated the unwary 
beholder. 
The Fly and Spider Ophrys (O. muscifera and O. 
aranifera) have certainly a great resemblance to the 
insects whose name they bear, as every person will 
at once see who examines the lovely plates of British 
Orchids in Somerby’s English Botany. Again, what 
can more fancifully resemble a lizard than the lip and 
its curious appendage as seen in the Lizard Orchid 
(Orchis hircina)? Even the very colour and fantastic 
wavy lines heighten the resemblance. 
The Man Aceras (A. anthropophora) is certainly a 
well-bestowed popular name, for the fancied resemblance 
to a hanging man in the flower of this singular Orchid 
is very apparent; the lateral lobes of the lip representing 
his arms, and the middle one, which is much longer 
and two-cleft, his body and legs. “ What a lot of little 
hanging men ! ” has more than once been the remark 
passed by friends]on seeing a plant of the Man Aceras 
in full bloom in my garden. Then the Monkey Orchid 
(O. tephrosanthos) with its gaudy colours is no mean 
representation of the animal whose name it bears, and 
only differs from the Man Aceras in having that 
lateral appendage—-the tail. What about the Butter¬ 
fly Habenaria (H. bifolia) ? It has certainly a great 
resemblance in the formation of flower to one of those 
pretty creamy white butterflies that one so frequently 
sees flitting about at dark in our gardens and 
shrubberies. 
The Frog Habenaria (H. neride) is, undoubtedly, a 
curiously formed and coloured Orchid—we mean the 
flower—and well enough sustains the name with which 
it has been endowed. The Military Orchid (O. 
militaris) and the Buffoon Orchid (O. morio) have 
both associations which a study of the flowers can alone 
betray. Again, the Corallorhiza derives its name from 
two Greek words meaning (coral and root, on account 
of the much-branched roots, which resemble coral. 
The Bird’s-nest Neottia (N. nidus ovis), from its 
tangled interwoven roots has got its popular name ; 
while the Lady’s Slipper (Cypripedium calceolus) 
derives its popular name from the slipper-like form of 
the labellum. In the Lady’s Tresses (Spiranthes 
autumnalis) the resemblance to a coil or curl of hair, 
on account of the disposition of the flowers on the spike 
is very apparent. The Irroy Blade (Listera ovata) 
has flowers, the formation of which puts one forcibly 
in mind of an old woman in her night-cap, the sepals 
and petals forming a hood-like protection to the repro¬ 
ductive organs. 
Other instances might be quoted of the similarity of 
some part, and particularly the flowers of our native 
Orchids, to an animal, insect, or inanimate object ; and 
it is a study of the deepest interest to watch, during 
the flowering season, the development of such peculiar 
floral objects as the Spider, Fly, and Bee Ophrys, the 
latter being described by one of our poets :—- 
“ Perhaps his fragrant load may bind 
His limbs ; we’ll set the captive free. 
I sought the living bee to find, 
And found the picture of a bee. ” 
— A. D. Webster. 
THE SWEET WILLIAM. 
Possibly, the same slip of the pen which induced a 
correspondent, last week, to refer to Hunt’s and Dean’s 
Auricula-eyed strains of Sweet "Williams as being 
fimbriated and smooth-edged also led to the placing of 
"William Dean amongst the defunct, with Joseph Hunt. 
As far as my experience with Sweet Williams—a pretty 
lengthy one—has gone, I have always found Hunt’s to 
be smooth-edged, and the Auricula-eyed fringed or 
saw-edged. I never could well understand why the 
latter were termed Auricula-eyed, but for the fact that 
many of the flowers have distinct round white eyes or 
centres—a very pretty feature, but hardly the peeu- 
larity of an Auricula. However, the name was 
doubtless fairly expressive, and that was enough. 
It would puzzle a Philadelphia lawyer, or an expert 
in floriculture of exceptional ability, to tell now, in any 
good- mixed strain of Sweet Williams, where Hunt’s 
left off and the Auricula-eyed began. Selections of 
this kind look very well in a seed list ; but the fact is 
the public which dearly love Sweet Williams will 
always prefer the finest and most varied strain over 
one, however fine, which has all its flowers mottle- 
edged and ringed, or with white-eyed and saw-edged 
petals. Whilst we have now, in good mixed strains, 
crimsons and reds of fine form and substance, pure 
whites are scarce, and seldom show size. It is doubtful 
whether whites will ever be strongly fancied in Sweet 
Williams, as colour, in some shape or other, seems so 
much the more pleasing. 
Very marked now are the flaked, striped, or mottled 
forms, for these are wondrously varied and marvellously 
beautiful. The most distinctive sections, if they may 
so be termed where colours and markings run one in 
another so closely, are, besides the mottled, dark seifs ; 
ringed, having clear white margins ; and fimbriated 
seifs, with distinct white eyes. Last year I saved seed 
from dark seifs, including some of the latter, mottled, 
and ringed flowers, separately, and sowed them this 
year. 
I have now planted out several hundreds of 
plants from these sowings, and I shall look next year 
with much interest to see how far the selections have 
been rewarded. I do not think it is desirable that 
selections should be kept separate ; indeed, I think it 
doubtful if they can be, but by this method some care 
is taken that the strain has fairly equal quantities of 
each colour in it. 
If I wanted to obtain specially fine heads of bloom, 
I should sow seed late in May to have plants fairly 
strong, and having one good shoot each, to be planted 
out in the autumn ; these, as a rule, produce one fine 
truss each in the following yea?. On the other hand, 
if a good mass of bloom be desired, and in that way 
Sweet Williams really make a superb show, I should 
sow seed early in April and plant out into beds during 
July. Then plants put out about 14 ins. apart will 
carry some seven or eight good heads of bloom each, 
and a perfect mass of flowers is obtained that is both 
beautiful and effective.— A. D. 
-- 
CYPRIPEDIUM MEASURES- 
IANUM. 
This is the name of a new hybrid of which Mr. 
B. H. Measures originally held the whole of the stock, 
and of which a figure will be published in a forthcoming 
number of the Orchid Album. It is certainly a fine 
thing, the result of a cross between C. villosum and C. 
venustum. The leaves which are 5 ins. to 8 ins. in 
length, and 1 in. to H ins. broad, exhibit traces of the 
parentage in both cases, the upper surface being deep 
green, while the under surface is more or less distinctly 
marked with purple, as those of C. venustum are well 
known to be. The flowers are not only distinct, but 
large and handsome ; the traces of C. villosum are 
most distinctly visible in the shape and varnished 
lustre of the petals, which are pale brown, fading to 
orange, except the upper halves, which are shaded 
with purple. 
The standard or dorsal sepal is narrowly ovate and 
yellow, margined with white, and characterised by 
yellowish green veins along the centre, as in C. 
venustum. The labellum is also conspicuous for its 
size, and well-rounded pouch-shape ; the colour is 
orange, flushed and veined with purplish brown. It 
■was named after its first possessor, B. H. Measures., 
Esq., of Streatham, and Mr. B. S. "Williams, Upper 
Holloway, first put it into commerce in May last. We 
are indebted to Mr. B. S. Williams for our illus¬ 
tration. 
