April 7,1888. THE GARDENING WORLD 
503 
We have made experiments, in some cases largely, and 
watched the behaviour of many other species of Pines 
in various parts of Great Britain, but beyond the fore¬ 
going, few are worthy of special remark, or fitted for 
profitable planting in this country.— A. D. JFebster. 
(To be continued.) 
-~>X<~- 
SPRING FLOWERS AT HIGH¬ 
GATE. 
The conservatory at Messrs. IVm. Cutbush & Son’s 
nursery at Highgate, London, is now very gay with a 
great variety of forced subjects and such as are properly 
termed spring flowers, although it seems we are not 
destined to enjoy many of them during spring in the 
open air this year. 
Hyacinths. 
The Hyacinths, however, are very appropriate at this 
season, and make a fine show, as they are not arranged 
in the usual style on a flat staging which exhibits the 
pots, but plunged in an undulating bed very neatly 
covered with green and fresh moss, above which only 
the foliage and flower-scapes project, as they were when 
exhibited at Regent’s Park on the occasion of the 
Spring Exhibition. There are several white varieties, 
including Mont Blanc, La Grandesse and Lord Shaftes¬ 
bury, the second one being notable for the great size of 
its spike, and is undoubtedly the best white, while the 
latter has drooping flowers of unusual size. The two 
darkest flowers are The Sultan, intense violet, and 
Masterpiece, which is almost black with violet edges. 
The flowers of Marie are also deep violet, with white 
edges. Amongst blue varieties there is Grand Master, 
with a pale edge, and grown in considerable quantity, 
as are many of the best kinds. King of the Blues 
produces larger spikes, with flowers of a deeper tint 
and a pale margin. A dark self-coloured blue is Baron 
von Tuyll, while Garrick is perfectly double, about the 
colour of Marie Louise Yiolet, and apparently the only 
double grown, as they are not popular at Highgate. 
Allied to this group is the intense purple-flowered 
Challenger, with a stem of the same colour. 
Red kinds are by no means overlooked, but include 
Macaulay, Vuurbaak, intense scarlet-red ; Gigantea, 
pink and densely flowered ; and Prima Donna, crim¬ 
son and edged pink. Blondin might be described as a 
bicolor, being white internally and pale blue exter¬ 
nally, spotted with purple. Spikes of good size for a 
yellow variety are produced by Ida; while Marchioness 
of Lome might be described as a mixture of amber, 
yellow, and flesh colour. The whole bed is edged with 
Crocuses and Lily of the Yalley, giving it a tasteful 
and attractive appearance. 
Narcissi. 
Prominent amongst other bulbous subjects is a group 
of Polyanthus Narcissi exhibiting the tints of colour 
and exhaling the odour peculiar to Narcissus Tazetta. 
The largest-flowered is perhaps Bazelman major with a 
yellow corona. A new variety is Louisa le Grand, with 
white segments and a yellow corona, differing from 
Bathurst which has deep yellow segments and a golden 
cup. Gloriosa is worthy of its name from the unusual 
size of its orange crown. 
Tulips. 
A collection of spring-flowering bulbs would be in- 
incomplete without a group of the decorative varieties 
of Tulip, which are now grown to perfection. 
Whether grown under glass or out of doors Keizers- 
kroon with its great cups of scarlet and yellow is 
always a grand thing. Rose-coloured tints are charm¬ 
ing, and include Proserpine, Rose Luisante, rose, 
feathered red ; and Rose Gris de Lin, pink, feathered 
with rose. Bruid van Haarlem is crimson, feathered 
with white at the base, while Joost van Yondel is 
similar in colour, but not feathered, and Hector is 
distinct in reddish brown with a yellow border. Ophir 
d’Or, as its name implies, is a splendid yellow flower. 
Epacris, Heaths. 
Epacris may properly be said to be in season during 
winter and spring, while some or other of the Heaths 
are in season at any period of the year, and are most 
useful for cut flowers and decorative purposes. A 
general collection of the former are grown, but space 
forbids enumeration of them. Suffice it to say that 
Alba odorata, Her Majesty, Hyacinthiflora candidissima, 
and Lady Panmure are beautiful white kinds, varying 
greatly in size ; and Wilmoreana is rose with a white 
lamina. Curiously enough, there is a well-known 
hybrid Heath of the same name, and somewhat similar 
in colour, but larger. Erica hyemalis, E. colorans. 
and E. melanthera are also very gay. 
Azaleas. 
Of Azalea mollis there are several fine varieties, but 
that named Lord Shaftesbury is a beautiful soft orange- 
yellow, with curious greenish segments on the upper 
segments, and was recently certificated. Some mag¬ 
nificent varieties of the Indian Azalea are smothered 
with bloom, particularly Madame Van der Cruyssen, a 
rose and crimson spotted variety, whose foliage is com¬ 
pletely hidden by the flowers. Specially fine is Mrs. 
Turner, with pink flowers and a white margin ; and 
Reine des Pays Bas has half of the bush covered with 
flowers of the same colour, while those of the other 
half are rosy purple. A flower of each kind, in one 
instance, springs from the same bud. Punctulata is 
splashed and striped in the most irregular manner with 
red on a pink ground, and some of the flowers are self- 
coloured reds. A most intense and brilliant crimson- 
red variety is Flambeau. Other scarcely less meritorious 
and fioriferous varieties are grown. 
Hardy Shrubs. 
A rich and varied display is produced by hardy shrubs 
that have been brought into flower by forcing. These 
are Deutzias, Lilac, Snowball, Guelder Rose, Staphylea 
colchica, the deliciously scented Boronia megastigma, 
Tree Pseony, such as Pieonia Moutan Queen Elizabeth, 
red-coloured, and Prince Troubetzky, pink. The beau¬ 
tiful Lily of the Yalley-like flowers of Pieris japonica 
are very acceptable at this season, as are the pendent 
golden yellow racemes of the common Laburnum. 
Several beautiful varieties of the Hawthorn are grown, 
such as the pink, double white, and Paul’s new scarlet, 
so called, and which is certainly fine at a season of 
the year when there is little prospect of their being 
any on the first of May in the open air. No less 
interesting and beautiful is a collection of differently 
coloured fruited varieties of Pernettya mucronata. 
These are mostly or all named according to the colour 
of the fruit, there being flesh, crimson, purple, violet- 
purple, red, rose and pink varieties, with considerable 
diversity in size of the berries themselves. The pure 
white Lily of the Valley-like flowers will also expand 
in a week or two, and decorate the bushes contempor¬ 
aneously with the fruit. 
_ -">X<-- 
ffoTEs from Scotland. 
—-j-— 
A week in Norway with the Scottish 
Botanical Club. —This was the subject of a lecture 
given by Professor Trail (Chair of Botany, Aberdeen 
University) before a meeting of the members of the 
Natural History Society of Aberdeen, held recently in 
one of the class rooms, Marischal College, Aberdeen. 
In the course of his remarks, Professor Trail stated 
that he had accepted an invitation from the Scottish 
Alpine Botanical Club to take a trip to Norway. The 
party numbered fifteen in all, of whom eight were 
guests of the club, and it included the three Professors 
of Botany in Scotland, viz., Professor Dickson, of 
Edinburgh ; Professor Bower, of Glasgow ; and the 
lecturer. The party sailed from Aberdeen in the ‘ : St. 
Sunniva,’’a steamer built purposely by the North of 
Scotland and Orkney and Shetland Steam Shipping 
Company to undertake trips to Norway. After 
describing the incidents of the voyage, which was an 
exceedingly rough and stormy one, Professor Trail pro¬ 
ceeded to detail their proceedings in the vicinity of 
Hardanger. A number of expeditions had been made, 
and during these, not only was particular attention 
paid to the botany of the districts visited—the primary 
object of the trip—but notes were also taken of the 
general conditions of the country. On entering the 
Hardanger fjord—the party’s destination—it was found 
to be very shallow, but the channel gradually deepened 
towards the head until it attained a depth of about 
4,000 ft., and had very abrupt sides ; the rocks coming 
down to the very edge of the water, allowing vessels to 
get close to the shore ; this, probably, being due to the 
scooping action of the ice. It was noted that the 
variations of the tide were scarcely perceptible at the 
head of the fjord, and the water was mostly fresh, 
owing to the large number of streams pouring into it. 
The flora of the region was Alpine in its character, at 
less than 1,000 ft., intermixed with such plants as the 
Strawberry and Raspberry growing side by side with 
the Saxifrages and other Alpine plants. Proceeding 
to Odde the party explored the valley of Jordal, and 
ascended the Buer-bneen glacier, one of the glaciers of 
the Folgefonn. At this place the Moraines were very 
large, especially the central ones, a curious feature 
about them being that they were flat on the top and 
all cultivated. Every available piece of ground, how¬ 
ever small, was utilised by the inhabitants. On and 
about the Buer-brseen the plants found were :—Woodsia 
ilvensis, Saxifraga rivularis, S. oppositifolia, S. nivalis, 
S. aizoides, S. stellaris, S. caespitosa, S. cotyledon, 
this last with the tip of each tooth of the petals 
having a crystal of carbonate of lime left after 
the rain-water had evaporated. This was the most 
beautiful plant seen, having a rosette of leaves 1 in. 
or 2 ins. broad, with stems 6 ins. to 9 ins. long, 
bearing from fifty to sixty flowers each. Juncus fili- 
formis and Mulgedium alpinum—the Sow Thistle— 
were also got on the Buer-brseen glacier. On the mar¬ 
gin of the lake at Odde the following were gathered : 
Ranunculus reptans, with the internodes arched, and 
rooting at the nodes ; Isotes lacustris, Sparganium 
natans, Cornus suecica, 'VVoodsia ilvensis, Asplenium 
septentrionale, and Polypodium vulgare. This last- 
mentioned Fern when examined was found to have a 
peculiar sweet viscid secretion in the rhizomes, not 
found in our British species. This secretion was at 
one time used as a substitute for sugar by the inhabi¬ 
tants of Norway. 
Proceeding northward to Vik, the party visited the 
Voring Floss, a fall over 400 ft. in height, and here it 
was observed that some parts of the road were tunnelled 
out of the solid rock, showing the great difficulty the 
Norwegian engineers had to overcome. Near this place 
were gathered Asplenium septentrionale, Astragalus 
alpinus, Mulgedium alpinum, Bartsia alpina, and 
Linnaea borealis, which was found in profusion every¬ 
where. Goodyera repens was also seen growing in the 
open without any shelter. The absence of Heath was 
noticed here, as in other places visited on the Hardanger 
glacier. The flora was also very interesting, consist¬ 
ing of Mulgedium alpinum, Campanula rotundifolia, 
Epilobium angustifolium, Oxyria re niformis, Bartsia 
alpina, and Adoxa moschatellina, in flower at this late 
season (August) ; Andromeda polifolia, Saxifraga Coty¬ 
ledon, Silene rupestris, Alchemilla alpina, Potentilla 
argentea. Leaving Yik the party proceeded northward 
on foot, and then per rail to Bergen, from whence they 
sailed for Aberdeen. Professor Trail also gave a list of 
galls, and submitted for the inspection of those present 
some very interesting specimens of his gatherings 
during the journey. 
Mr. John Taylor read two papers, one on “ Drosera 
in Kincardineshire,” and the other on “Some Aquatic 
Plants.” As to Drosera, he mentioned some important 
facts in connection with their cultivation ; and con¬ 
cerning the aquatic plants, he gave some very interesting 
details of the specimens found in his district (Clash- 
farquhar). A discussion took place on the mode of 
fertilisation of the aquatic plants. Mr. Taylor also 
showed some rocks peculiar to the Kincardineshire 
coast. Hearty votes of thanks having been accorded 
Professor Trail for his admirable lecture, and a like 
compliment paid to Mr. Taylor, the proceedings 
terminated. 
The Scottish Horticultural Society.— 
The first meeting of the present session of the Scottish 
Horticultural Society was held on Tuesday night at 
5, St. Andrew Square, Edinburgh. Mr. D. P. Laird 
introduced the new president, Mr. Alexander M ‘Kinnon, 
Scone Palace Gardens, who afterwards delivered his 
inaugural address, his subject being “The Art of 
Gardening.” Having traced the art from an early age, 
he pointed to the pleasures it conferred alike on rich 
and poor. The increasing number of villas with 
attached gardens in the suburbs of large cities proved 
that as the people progressed the taste for horticulture 
advanced, and nowhere was that more observable than 
in the beautiful city of Edinburgh. The importance 
of a knowledge of science in horticulture was also shown, 
and the paper closed with a reference to the qualities 
required on the part of the gardener to ensure success. 
A letter was read from the Duke of Buccleuch, in¬ 
timating his Grace’s acceptance of the office of honorary 
president of the society for the next session, and 
thanking the members for the honour of election. A 
letter was also read from Professor Bayley Balfour, in 
reply to a communication which the society had sent 
him congratulating him on his appointment to the 
Chair of Botany. “ I fully appreciate,” he said, “ the 
cordial welcome to Edinburgh you give me, and I 
assure you that it will always be my endeavour to 
promote any effort in the interests of horticultural 
gardening, and thus continue the traditions so well 
maintained by my immediate predecessor in the Chair 
of Botany, and by my father, whose services, it is 
particularly pleasing to me to know, are so cordially 
recognised by your association.” 
