90 
THE GARDENING WORLD. 
October 8, 1887. 
ARDENING MISCELLANY. 
A Gardeners’ Union. — I see that a corre¬ 
spondent proposes the formation of a National Union for 
the gardening profession on the grounds that other 
trades and professions combine and form societies for 
the common benefit of their members. My personal 
opinion is that an attempt to form such an union 
amongst the gardeners scattered throughout the length 
and breadth of this country would most signally fail, 
not from any want of good and able men to lead the 
way, but upon quite different grounds. Of the reasons 
apparent to my mind against the success of the scheme, 
the first is the very fact of the gardeners being so much 
scattered about through the country, which could not 
ensure the natural cohesion necessary to succeed in 
such a combination. Another, and a much weightier 
reason I think, is that gardeners are in general, I am 
afraid, looked upon by employers only as luxuries— 
expensive luxuries, too—which in too many instances 
are curtailed enough already. Opinions may differ 
upon another point also—namely, as to whether the 
supply of gardeners is or is not in excess of the demand. 
For myself, I may candidly say 1 believe the excess 
of the former to he nearer the truth, and this may 
be the real cause of many a man having to struggle 
along in the dark, although worthy of a better position 
than may fall to his lot. I remember such an organis¬ 
ation being started in Edinburgh some sixteen or seven¬ 
teen years ago ; hut I do not think it met with much 
support from the general body in the country districts, 
being more confined to the jobbers in the city and 
neighbourhood. Perhaps some northern correspondent 
may be able to inform us as to w r hat measure of success 
attended it. — R. Stevens, Paston. 
Tomatos at Chiswick.— Just a brief word on 
these. I cannot for the life of me understand the result 
of the trial you publish atp. 70. Let me take section 3, 
large red ; according to the report, seven varieties 
have been manufactured out of this, and amongst these 
Webb’s Sensation and Glamorgan are mentioned. Now 
these are two varieties I know as well as I know any¬ 
thing, and I am prepared to say with certainty that 
the person or persons who find them synonymous does 
not possess either of them. The Glamorgan was raised 
in this county by my friend Mr. Crossling, then 
gardener to Lord Windsor, at St. Fagan’s, near Cardiff. 
I have known the Glamorgan from the first. It is very 
prolific, large, and prominently ribbed, whereas Webb’s 
Sensation, which I knew before that firm possessed it, 
is quite round and smooth. They are different in 
foliage, different in habit of fruiting, and different in 
colour of fruit, and I am writing of the original and 
true types. I do not doubt but that the Chiswick 
authorities arrived at a correct estimate according to 
the so-called varieties before them, hut for a trial of this 
kind to be absolutely conclusive, the utmost care should 
he taken that the seed is obtained from a trustworthy 
source, and one having some original connection, but 
this I see has not been observed in the trial in question. 
— J. Muir, Margam, Taibach. 
Hartland’s Little Book of Daffodils.— 
It is out of our usual practice to notice trade catalogues ; 
but we are induced to do so in this case by the beauty 
and handsomely-defined character of the illustrations, 
prepared from sketches by Gertrude Hartland and Mr. 
F. W. Burbidge. A full-page illustration of Ard-Righ, 
or the Irish King Daffodil, is an admirable piece of 
work from the pencil of Gertrude Hartland, and 
exhibits, in a free-and-easy way, the general character 
of the Daffodil in question. There is an absence of 
stiffness in the numerous illustrations of the Ajax, or 
Single Trumpet section, that is most agreeable, and the 
shading is such as to bring out the natural forms of the 
trumpet and perianth segments with great exactness. 
The figures of Henry Irving, Maximus, or Hale’s Yase 
of Beaten Gold, Minnie Warren, Johnstoni, and Bicolor 
of Haworth are examples of this. There are several 
admirable sketches of other types of Narcissus and a 
number of other popular flowers. For the quality of 
the draughtsmanship and engraving, we have seen few 
trade catalogues to equal this. 
Tomato, Sensation. —Mr. Muir has doubtless i 
ere now, read the report of the Tomato trial at Chiswick, 
and found that whatever may be the local nomenclature 
there is no Sensation in Tomatos. [See letter above.— 
Ed.] It is classed with other large-fruited sorts, and is 
no novelty—in fact, it has been difficult to show that 
anyone has a novelty of any kind in Tomatos. I do 
not wish to be rude, but I affirm that no one has yet 
seen a Tomato producing heavily all up the stem fruit 
averaging 10 ozs. each. Some allowance may, perhaps, 
he made for the climate of South Wales, but Tomatos 
do not fruit quite so enormously as that generally. 
Tomatos are in most cases so much alike, and have in 
some four or five sections the same characteristics, that 
it seems absurd to further name them than to describe 
them as large smooth red, large rough red, carmine 
red, yellow, cherry, plum, and other descriptive appel¬ 
lations. More seems needless.— A. D. 
Seedling Fuchsias. —Some remarkable Fuchsias 
have been sent us by Mr. George Fry, of Lewisham, 
who is well known as a veteran raiser of this class of 
plants. Seedling No. 1, is the most extraordinary 
Fuchsia we have seen, especially with regard to the 
sepals, which measure about 2f ins. exclusive of the 
tube, and the whole flower-hud just before expansion 
measures about 3J ins. long. The sepals are scarlet, of 
great substance, and somewhat corrugated on the upper 
or inner surface, and after expansion becomes revolute 
in the same manner as some well-known Liliums do, 
giving the flowers a very artistic effect. The violet- 
purple petals are erect, and of great substance. The 
seedling No. 2 is as remarkable for the shortness and 
breadth of the scarlet corrugated sepals, which are 
closely and sharply reflexed and straight. This flower 
is double, with violet-purple petals, splashed with 
purple at the base. No. 3 is a double of great size, 
and is light in colour, hut may be described as varie¬ 
gated. The leading colour is white or blush, suffused, 
splashed, or veined with rose, and scarlet at the base. 
The tube is remarkably short, and the scarlet sepals 
are united for some distance at the base, causing them 
to stand erect, forming a cup to the petals. 
Violet Culture in Frames.— No time should 
he lost now in planting out Violets in the frames 
destined for their accommodation, and a few notes 
respecting a mode of culture may be of service to some 
readers of The Gardening World. A week or two 
in advance, the frames should be filled with litter, 
trod down firmly, which can be done during the process 
of filling, so that when the planting time comes the 
frames will have cooled somewhat, as well as sunk 
several inches. This space should be covered with a 
mixture of loam, leaf-soil, and sand, which, as a 
compost, suits Violets admirably, and also retains its 
sweetness. When in the frames, the plants will almost 
or quite touch the glass, which is necessary, as the 
frames will be sure to subside as the heat decreases, and 
as such a position for Violets is beneficial in many 
ways, the reason is obvious. Thus treated, they will 
flower profusely from now during the winter and early 
spring. Water must be used carefully, little or none 
being required during the short days. Protection must 
he afforded in the way of mats and litter to keep the 
frost out in severe weather. In May they should he 
transplanted to a border, dividing the clumps if thought 
advisable. Water should be given freely during the 
warm weather, to keep up a constant supply of nourish¬ 
ment, and to ward off the attacks of red-spider, to 
which they are frequently liable. The best varieties 
are Marie Louise and Neapolitan (doubles), the former 
being the earlier of the two ; and The Czar and Comte 
de Brazza (singles), the latter being white and very 
much admired.— F. R. S. 
Tacsonia insignis. —Compared with T. Van 
Volxemii, this must be considered a rare plant in 
Britain ; but why it should be so is a mystery. It is 
true the species iu question is a much newer introduc¬ 
tion, having been introduced about fourteen years ago 
from Peru (or as some say, Bolivia); but we must not 
overlook the fact that newer introductions are spread 
all over the country, and are to be found in almost 
every garden we may enter. Primula obconica and 
Impatiens Sultani are examples of this, but it would 
be unfair to compare these with the Tacsonia in 
question, whose habit is altogether different, requiring 
entirely different treatment, and far more house room. 
The old T. Van Volxemii is a universal favourite as a 
greenhouse climber; and from what we have seen of 
T. insignis at Errol Park, near Perth, its cultivation is 
not more difficult than the better known species, while 
the flowers are conspicuously larger, and the colour 
bright and attractive. In the latter respect the colour 
seems variable, as the flowers in the type are described 
as crimson, whereas the fine specimen at Errol Park 
has fine deep rose-coloured flowers. The leaves, how¬ 
ever, are very characteristic and distinct from those of 
other species we see in cultivation, being ovate or 
oblong-ovate from a cordate base, and very noticeable 
from their being covered beneath with a rusty woolly 
felt similar to that seen in Rhododendron Edgeworthii. 
Numerous huge flowers made the plant an object of 
admiration at the time of our visit, and we should like 
to see the species establish itself wherever there is a 
cool conservatory or greenhouse for its accommodation. 
Rudgea macrophylla.— There is a large plant 
of this uncommon stove plant about 4 ft. or 5 ft. high 
at Redlands, the seat of J. B. Mirlees, Esq., Kelvinside, 
near Glasgow. Whether in flower or not the satiny 
silvery lustre of the large leathery leaves entitles it to 
a share of the cultivator’s attention in that respect ; 
and when grown as a specimen about 1 ft. or 2 ft. high 
it takes the rank of a stove ornamental-foliaged plant. 
It will also flower at that height, when its masses of 
creamy white flowers appear different from anything 
we know, or, at least, are accustomed to see, and no 
one from a casual inspection of it would recognise in it 
a member of the same family as the Coffee plant, yet 
such is the case. 
Tropgeolum, Mrs. Ellis. —The autumn rains 
have had little effect on this dwarf-growing, bedding va¬ 
riety, for even now the plants do not exceed 6 ins. in 
height. It is true that the quantity of bloom is by no 
means great, but the cold nights with occasional frosts 
recently, and the absence or small amount of sunshine 
are sufficient to account for the poverty of bloom in 
this class of plants in the declining autumn months. 
In the early part of the year, and during the heat of 
summer, the plants of this variety bedded out at Style 
Hall, Gunnersbury, looked like little tufts of leaves 
almost concealed by a brilliant mass of scarlet bloom. 
The individual flowers are comparatively small, and 
the same might be said of the leaves ; so that all 
things considered, this variety may be looked upon as 
a veritable pigmy of its kind, which remains in a dwarf 
and manageable state to the last, independent of the 
weather, while its companions of the dwarf and bedding 
kinds have an inclination to become procumbent, and 
trail in the latter part of summer. Neither does it ruin 
itself in dry weather by running greatly to seed, and so 
preventing the production of bloom. As a bedding 
plant we should certainly recommend it to the attention 
of those who take delight in this class of plants. 
Chrysanthemum (Pyrethrum) uligi- 
nosum. —Regularly as autumn comes round, a 
magnificent display is produced by this handsome 
herbaceous plant. From the name we should imagine 
that the well-being of this plant required that it should 
be planted in a wet or boggy place, and front what we 
saw of it in some gardens of a dry and thirsty nature, 
it suffered greatly during the drought of last summer, 
which had the effeetof dimishing its stature considerably. 
The result is that in many gardens it is below the 
height it makes in average seasons. At Boston House, 
Brentford, however, no evil effects are now apparent, as 
a large number of plants, forming a row along the back 
of the herbaceous border, average 4 ft. in height, and 
are now a mass of bloom. The naturally rich soil of the 
garden may he accountable for this ; as for the splendid 
growth of other plants occupying similar positions 
alongside of the Chrysanthemums. The large heads of 
pure white blooms are very useful at this season for cut 
flower purposes, and the plants themselves are so con¬ 
spicuous as to constitute this species an indispensable 
subject in any good collection of herbaceous plants. 
Selaginella Braunii v. S. Willdenovii.— 
By some means or other, the first-named species has 
become widely disseminated in gardens under the name 
of S. 'Willdenovii or Lycopodium Willdenovii, until it 
now seems impossible to eradicate the error or induce 
gardeners to accept the proper name. S. Braunii 
grows from 12 ins. to 18 ins. in height ; whereas 
S. Wildenovii grows from 12 ft. to 20 ft., and has 
climbing stems. The name Lycopodium cresium 
arboreum is often applied to the latter on account of 
the blue tint perv.ading the leaves ; but it has no con¬ 
nection with Lycopodium caesium, more properly 
named Selaginella uncinata. S. pubescens is also 
sometimes applied to S. Braunii, but not nearly to the 
same extent as S. Wildenovii. The first-named species— 
viz., S. Braunii—is easily recognised when seen from 
either of the other two, with which it is confounded by 
its height, by being erect, and from the fine plumy 
appearance of the leafy branched stems, improperly 
named fronds. The miniature leaves that cover the 
stems are of a fine dark colour when partly shaded, or 
especially when young but of the full size, at which 
time they assume a leathery texture, and prove very 
useful for cutting purposes ; they also roll back at the 
edges, giving to the pinnules a crisped appearance, and 
rendering them withal distinct. It is to be regretted 
that so largely-grown a species should also be so widely 
disseminated under the wrong name. 
