564 
THE GARDENING WORLD. 
May 5, 1888. 
The Show in the Inner Temple Gardens. —We 
understand that the Council of the Royal Horticultural 
Society have decided that this exhibition shall be kept 
open for two days, viz., May 17th and 18th. 
Chiswick Garden. — We are informed that Mr. 
Shirley Hibberd and Mr. H. Herbst have been added by 
the Council to the Chiswick Garden Management 
Committee. 
L’Horticulture Internationale, Parc Leopold, 
Brussels (Societe anonyme). —This remarkable horti¬ 
cultural establishment, which owes its existence to the 
enterprise of the Messrs. Linden, father & son, and 
which has been built and equipped in such a com¬ 
paratively brief space of time, is to be formally opened 
on Thursday next. We hope to be able in the following 
week’s issue to give some account of the nursery, and 
of the opening ceremony. 
Gardening Engagements. — Mr. S. White, from 
Adel, Leeds, as gardener to G. Watson, Esq., Donnes- 
thorpe House, Leeds ; Mr. C. W. Chard, as gardener 
at Bygrove House, Clapham Park, S.W. ; Mr. C. 
Ensole, as gardener at Elford House, Hawkhurst; Mr. 
J. Ford, as gardener at Violet Bank, Langside, N.B. ; 
Mr. T. Richards, as gardener at King’s Meadows, 
Peebles, N.B. 
Late Seasons.—The Times states that “favourable 
weather in May and June may counteract the effects of 
a late seed time. This fact is well brought out in the 
history of the Rothamsted experiments on Barley. 
Out of thirty-two years the best year was that of 1854 
—a year of lower temperature than usual, with a 
severe winter, and cold lasting almost to July. May, 
however, was a good growing month, while early in 
August a few heavy showers and plenty of heat 
finished up one of the most productive harvests on 
record. On the other band, the worst year was in 
1856, a year of high temperature, excessive rainfall, 
and cold nights in June.” 
Self-mutilation of Hyacinths.—At the last meeting 
of the Scientific Committee, specimens of this not 
uncommon phenomenon were exhibited by Colonel 
Urquhart, of Rosebay, Broughty Ferry, for information 
as to the cause. The spikes have the appearance of 
being pinched off when first emerging from the bulb. 
The cause is apparently twofold ; on the one hand, the 
bud-scales at the top are too rigid, while on the other 
the spike was well nourished, the result being that the 
insufficient expansion of the scales checked the develop¬ 
ment of the spike at the place where it becomes 
decapitated. The probable explanation was the ex¬ 
cessively fine season of 1887, the “ripening off” bringing 
about the rigidity of the bulb-scales, at the same time 
favouring the formation of the spike within. Mr. 
Burbidge observed that it is a noticeable fact that the 
Chinese gash their bulbs with three slits at the top, to 
allow of the free escape of the spike, and to prevent 
such constrictions. 
Flowers and the Fine Arts.—Mr. F. T. McFadden, 
writing in the American Florist, says :—The divinest 
of all decorations, interior or exterior, in all ages and 
by all nations, has been done in living foliage and 
living flowers. Art in marble, in metal and on canvas 
caught its finest forms and fairest colours from this 
prolific source ; but artists who have ever appropriated 
the fairest graces in forms from nature, cannot steal 
her fragrance, her freshness, her unending, ever- 
changing beauties, which rest and elevate the soul of 
man. Commercial statistics demonstrate a startling 
decrease within the past two decades of time in the 
money outlay of the worldin the direction of the so-called 
fine arts, while the governments and the peoples of 
civilisation in both hemispheres are looking higher, 
worshipping fairer gods, and growing in knowledge of 
more elevated tastes. In a word, these statistics point 
to the fact that we are to have more parks and gardens 
and winter palaces for plant life, and fewer picture 
galleries, public and private. Truly this is a step 
upward and onward, another evidence that the human 
race is in pursuit of happiness, and at last the highest 
intelligence has pointed out Paradise, again a garden. 
Gardeners’ Orphan Fund.— At the usual monthly 
meeting of the Executive Committee held on April 
27th, the chairman, Mr. George Deal, before proceeding 
with the business of the meeting, alluded in feeling terms 
to the loss the committee has sustained by the death 
of Mr. Woodbridge, of Syon House, and moved that a 
letter of condolence on behalf of the committee be 
sent to Mrs. Woodbridge by Mr. Barron. The resolu- 
lution was seconded by Mr. Herbst (who bore testimony 
to Mr. Woodbridge’s many good qualities of both head 
and heart), and carried unanimously. The honorary 
secretary stated (1) that during the preceding month, 
subscriptions had been received from 136 new sub¬ 
scribers ; (2) that one local secretary had sent in a list 
of sixty subscribers ; (3) that of the sum of £1,562 12s. 
which had been promised, £1,357 3s. 6 d. had been 
received ; and (4) that besides £500 invested in Consols, 
there was a balance at the bank of £735 3s. "Id. Mr. 
A. J. Brown, gardener, The Finches, Lindfield, Sussex, 
one of the honorary local secretaries, who was present, 
reported that a concert had been held at Lindfield a 
few nights previously in aid of the Fund, and the 
result was a balance of £7 in their favour. The sum 
of £2 2s. 8 d. had also been obtained by Mr. Wildsmith 
in a similar manner. The committee then considered 
the applications made on behalf of ten candidates for 
the benefit of the Fund, and all were considered in 
every way eligible for election. 
-- 
NOTES OP A TRIP TO 
AMERICA. -II. 
Brooklyn. —On March 30th I paid a visit to Mr. Fred. 
Scholes at Brooklyn, who has several houses of Orchids. 
Cattleyas and Lselias are grown in great quantities, and 
chieflyAn blocks. They were flowering very freely, and 
several fine blooms of Lfelia elegans, Cattleya Triante, 
C. speciosissima, and C. Lawrenceana attracted my 
attention. I was most agreeably surprised to find 
some splendidly grown Phakenopsids. Plants with as 
many as fourteen good fat leathery leaves 15 ins. long 
are not often met with, but on one here there were two 
spikes and 140 finely-expanded flowers. There are 
several other specimens not quite so large, and P. 
amabilis and P. grandiflora seem to do equally well. 
From Mr. Scholes I learnt his mode of treatment, 
which is well worth noting, for I have never seen 
stronger or more healthy-looking plants. They are 
grown in wire baskets suspended from the roof of one 
of his Orchid houses, and in nothing else but good 
sweet sphagnum moss, not a particle of peat, charcoal 
or crocks being used, but during the growing season 
they are frequently watered with liquid cow-manure. 
If such satisfactory results can generally be obtained 
from such simple treatment, I would strongly recom¬ 
mend other growers to give the plan a trial, for certainly 
I never saw such fine plants and such magnificent spikes. 
Another matter worthy of mention is Mr. Scholes’ 
mode of propagating the Phalienopsis. The old 
flower-spikes, when cut off, are inserted in the propa¬ 
gating house in sand, like ordinary cuttings, and from 
these young growths are produced, which are easily 
taken off, and soon make nice young plants. Several 
examples, in various stages of development, were pointed 
out to me as the result of this method of treatment, and 
the old spikes were still producing young plants. 
Many fine Oncidiums, Epidendrums, Cypripediums, &c., 
were also in flower, and the innumerable sheaths upon 
the Cattleyas and Laelias speak well for a grand display 
for some time to come. 
Mr. Scholes has also an extensive collection of stove 
plants, amongst which I noticed many old favourites. 
A house of Azaleas consisted of plants in full beauty, 
which were required for Easter decorations. I must 
congratulate Mr. Scholes upon his success in growing 
such magnificent Phaltenopsis, and hope that the hints 
I have given respecting his mode of treatment may be 
of service to such of your readers as do not succeed 
well with these charming plants.— A. Outram. 
-- 
THE CHARACTER OF THE 
SPRING-. 
A gardener, who has to do a great deal of forcing, 
and who has many glass-houses under his charge, said 
the other day, in our presence, that the amount of his 
coke bill during the last quarter was really startling, 
and one could not be surprised that such was the case, 
considering how untoward the season has been for 
forcing operations. For many weeks cold and wither¬ 
ing northern and easterly winds blew, and frequently 
the clouds were thick, dreary, and gloomy, with but 
little of sunshine, and the result was, of course, that 
gardeners had to make fire heat do the work of the 
more genial element—an unsatisfactory and expensive 
substitute, and one that neither gives satisfaction to 
the gardener nor to his employer. Inferior produce 
cannot impart any satisfaction to any painstaking 
member of the craft. ”VVe are now in the midst 
of a very retarding season ; April has been very 
like unto March, and it is now necessary that a 
spell of mild, genial, growing weather should set in 
without delay, and cause vegetation to come with a 
rush. Spring tarries, and continues “ to mix polar 
night with tropic glow,” and so seemingly guards 
“-— with surface cold 
The garnered heat of ages old,” 
waiting for the warm sunlight to dissolve the crust, 
and display to view the flowers. 
Wall trees are now bursting into full bloom all along 
the line ; some of the early sorts in warm situations 
have well shed their blossoms, and are developing the 
embryo fruit. In the open quarters Pears lead the way 
in the order of blossoming ; Plums are close on their 
heels, followed by Cherries. As we write we can look 
on about two acres of Victoria Plums, over which is steal¬ 
ing a white glow, as if a gentle feathering of snow laid 
upon their branches. A day or two of warm sunshine 
will bring these and other trees into full bloom, and 
then we shall witness one of the pleasantest sights in 
the old country—the merry spring throwing wreaths of 
white and rosy blossoms over the branches of thousands 
of fruit trees. 
The great want in our gardens now is bright sunshine, 
alternating with occasional rain showers. Spring would 
speedily make up much lost ground, could this but 
happen. What will May bring forth ? is the anxious 
question which gardeners are putting to themselves. 
Will the kind earth take her children’s part, and suffer 
bud-crowned spring to go forth through “the merrie 
month” unharmed, its lustre undimmed by frost, and 
her bounty unreduced by nipping winds ? May is yet a 
treacherous month, and many a fair promise of crimson 
and golden fruit has been falsified by keen frosts 
occurring between the 18th and 26th of the month. 
Planters will be thankful for the April rains. They 
were truly needed. What a month March was ! with 
the easterly and northerly winds, as dry as a sirocco 
of the desert, and which seemed to rob every particle of 
moisture from the leaves of plants exposed to its 
withering influence. Newly planted trees and shrubs 
would have suffered greatly but for the welcome April 
rains. Some of those which had roots, unhurt and 
growing, to supply the daily waste of evaporation, have 
had hard work, indeed, to get through the trying 
ordeal. 
Gardeners are ever a hopeful class, always looking 
with something of sanguine expectation to the future. 
They labour to the end that they may reap what they 
have sown. Let us believe the worst has passed for 
this season—though doubt may struggle to find ex¬ 
pression also—and look forward with hope to gathering 
in abundantly the fruits of the earth in due season.— 
VARIEGATED EUONYMUS. 
E. japonicus latifolius-albus is a very fine and re¬ 
markably broad-leaved form of the Japan Spindle Tree. 
Its broad white margin shows itself finely during the 
winter months, and when the foliage is clean and 
healthy it forms a very attractive object amongst a 
collection of plants. The very easy way in which 
the Euonymus may be propagated in pots for decorative 
purposes should be an incentive to cultivators to 
work up quantities of these fine decorative plants for 
display during the winter months, when they will 
amply repay for the trouble expended upon them by 
the gay appearance they produce from their various 
tints of yellow, white, and creamy white foliage. 
The plant under notice is a vigorous grower, and may 
be made useful in any size, from that in the 60-size pot 
to specimens 4 ft. and 5 ft. in height. As a decorative 
subject for winter gardens, it has scarcely any equal for 
brightness of foliage and variegation, and may be seen 
to the best advantage when blended with Camellias and 
kindred subjects, always imparting a lively look to the 
darker foliage of its surroundings. 
When grown outside fully exposed to the sun its 
variegation becomes more distinct, and its foliage very 
much firmer in texture than when grown under glass 
all through the summer season, the autumn rains 
washing its foliage well, and keeping it clean from 
green-fly, which is very apt to attack the Euonymus 
when grown under glass. In the case of young plants 
they grow quicker, and give less trouble if planted out 
into nursery beds, lifting in the autumn, and potting 
them into pots of a convenient size to suit the ball of 
soil attached to them, and afterwards keeping close in 
a frame ; this is all they need until severe weather is 
likely to set in, when they must be removed to the 
quarters intended for them. 
E. japonicus latifolius aureus, sometimes called 
flavescens, is a capital yellow-leaved kind to go 
with the above ; the leaves are broad, and of a deep 
yellow shade, the habit of the plant being close and 
