December 22, 1888. 
THE GARDENING WORLD. 
261 
Chinese Primulas. As is well known, all of these are 
well (lone at Swanley by the Messrs. Cannell ; 
but those who see the Pelargoniums for the first 
time as they are done here in winter, cannot fail to be 
impressed with the value of this old-fashioned flower 
for winter decoration. ¥e say old-fashioned because 
some of them have been cultivated in our hothouses 
since 1632, while the varieties of which we are going to 
speak are descended chiefly from Pelargonium Zonale, 
which was introduced in 1710, and P. inquinans in 
1774. The best varieties of ten years ago, however, 
are altogether unworthy of cultivation in pots when 
compared with recent improvements. 
New Double Varieties for 1889. 
Nowhere is the improvement more marked than 
amongst the double varieties, both in regard to size, 
rich and attractive colouring, and short-jointed flori- 
ferous habit. The coarse foliage, long-jointed, straggling 
stems, and scanty flowers of the earlier varieties have 
been altogether superseded, and may be considered as 
things of the past. 
The low, span- 
roofed houses at 
Swanley are cer¬ 
tainly conducive 
to good results 
with all classes of 
soft-wooded sub¬ 
jects. 
We cannot omit 
mentioning Gold- 
finder here, al¬ 
though it was sent 
out last year. 
There is a large 
batch of it pro¬ 
ducing orange- 
scarlet flowers, 
bordering on yel¬ 
low, and very 
distinct. Gloire 
de France pro¬ 
duces large trusses 
of flowers which 
are red in the 
centre, white out¬ 
wards, and always 
good. Swanley 
Double White 
describes itself, 
and although sent 
out last year is 
one of the dwarfest 
and best of its 
class. It is now 
grown, in quan¬ 
tity, as is Snow¬ 
drop, which has 
the same habit 
and was derived 
from the same 
source — namely, 
West Brighton 
Gem, and that 
again from Cerise 
Unique. The 
foliage and stems 
of Snowdrop are, 
however, variegated somewhat similarly to those of 
Happy Thought, and the young drooping buds being 
well developed and white, even before expansion, have 
suggested the name Snowdrop. We give an illustration 
of this variety. 
Another new and white variety of great merit 
is Silver Queen, the flowers of which are large, pure, 
and handsome. Beaute Poitevine offers a strong 
contrast in its large trusses and flowers, which are 
scarlet-pink, so to speak, and paler towards the margin. 
The stems are short jointed. Then there are M. Cars, 
lilac-pink, dense truss and fine ; Nydia, pink in centre 
and white outwards, with a close truss, and forming a 
compact, short-jointed bush ; Miss Bright, purple with 
a tint of scarlet in the centre, and equally bushy, as is 
Lady Emily Peel, lilac-pink, clear and bright, and Dr. 
Butler, deep salmon-red, dwarf, bushy and floriferous. 
Californian is a new orange-scarlet variety, approaching 
the yellow seen in the same class as Goldfinder. 
Single varieties for 1889. 
Here again we have great excellence in the size, 
regularity or rotundity of the flowers, as well as in 
substance. Fiery Cross bears good trusses of large, flat, 
circular, intense fiery-scarlet flowers. The darkest 
crimson kind we noticed is named Sam Jacoby, which 
bids fair to oust Henry Jacoby from its noted position 
as a bedder in wet, sunless seasons like the past. The 
flowers are very persistent and wither on the plant 
some time before they fall. 
A very showy variety is one named Lady Brassey, 
which bears trusses of large, circular, mottled 
salmon flowers. The best single white is Swanley 
Single White, with a close bushy habit, large green 
leaves, orbicular, pure white flowers, with a small tuft 
of yellow stamens in the centre. Lady Francis Russell 
is rosy pink with a white blotch on the base of the 
upper petals ; the plant is dwarf and short jointed. A 
striking scarlet-yellow flower is Rev. Dr. Morris, with 
a white eye. An improvement upon the purple shades 
is seen in Dr. Tucker, which is slightly tinted with 
scarlet at the base of the upper petals, but the flowers 
are nearly twice the size of those of the older variety, 
named R. Dean. Several batches of seedlings of great 
merit are standing about, but have not yet been 
Pelargonium Snowdrop : Flowers double white. 
honoured with names. The rigorous selection to 
which they are subjected, prevents anything but the 
finest flowers from receiving that distinction, or from 
getting disseminated over the country. 
Older Single Varieties. 
Two houses, each 100 ft. in length, are devoted to the 
cultivation of the new kinds, and at least one other 
house of the same length is wholly occupied with 
older kinds now in full flower, and forming a magnifi¬ 
cent display. A large conservatory filled with these 
alone would be very effective, and certainly interesting 
at this season of the year. A sort named Hyacinth is a 
good clear scarlet, with large circular flowers having a 
white eye, and produced in great profusion. A variety 
of this year named Bridesmaid, bears large trusses of 
pink and white flowers. A charming blush-white 
variety, quite distinct from the last, produces large, flat 
and circular flowers. It was also new this year. A 
curious and very distinct French variety, named Gabriel 
Host, has salmon flowers striped or rayed with scarlet. 
Equally distinct and more handsome is Lady Reed, the 
flowers of which are white, with a very prominent 
salmon zone in the centre. The habit is also good, and 
the leaves have a bronzy zone as in Vesuvius. Brilliant 
was sent out this year, and has large trusses of brilliant 
scarlet flowers. Of good habit is Countess of Derby, 
the flowers of which are large, mottled salmon, darkest 
in the centre, and handsome. Equally choice and 
meritorious is Lady Churchill, with large trusses of deep 
salmon flowers. One of the best purple kinds is named 
H. Cannell, Junr., which has great depth of tint, shaded 
with scarlet at the base of the upper petals only. 
Cyclamens. 
More than one house is occupied with Cyclamens, 
which have been gay for weeks past ; but since the 
cutting of the flowers has been stopped and the plants 
sorted into batches of one colour, the effect will be 
greatly enhanced in the course of a few weeks. Owing 
to the favourable position near the glass the plants are 
dwarf and sturdy, with ample, beautifully variegated 
foliage of great substance, from amongst which the 
flowers rise in masses, and stand erect without any 
artificial support. Large plants of pure white varieties 
are already ex¬ 
tremely floriferous 
and handsome. 
Crimson, rose, 
magenta, and 
spotted varieties 
serve to make up 
a very showy col¬ 
lection. Amongst 
some of them we 
noticed curious 
instances of terat¬ 
ology. The flower 
stalks bore one, 
two, and three 
perfectly de¬ 
veloped leaves, an 
occurrence which 
is quite abnormal. 
Chinese 
Primulas. 
Some of the older 
varieties and the 
doubles are well 
flowered ; but the 
greater bulk of 
the choicer kinds 
are j ust commenc¬ 
ing to flower. 
They all, however, 
exhibit unmis- 
takeable evidence 
of what they will 
be in a few weeks’ 
time. The great 
size and substance 
of the flowers of 
the more recent 
improvements are 
something re¬ 
markable, and 
show the skill of 
the English hy¬ 
bridist as com¬ 
pared with that 
of the Chinese, 
with whom the 
species had been cultivated for a long time like the 
Chrysanthemum, and until recently, at least, was 
unknown in a wild state. 
'White Perfection is still the best single white, with 
flowers of great purity and size, and robust Fern-leaved 
foliage having dark red petioles. Cannell’s Pink, 
recently certificated, is a great improvement upon 
Bridesmaid, having large, much-imbricated and deeply- 
fringed rich pink flowers, measuring 1 j ins. to 2J ins. 
in diameter. The foliage is of the ordinary type, but 
short and robust, above which the flowers are well 
thrown up. Miss Cannell is another meritorious and 
vigorous variety, having white flowers slightly tinted 
with mauve, beautifully fringed and fine. Bridesmaid 
is now in full flower, and very fine it is ; but the pink 
shade is paler than in Cannell’s Pink. Swanley Blue 
is indispensable amongst a collection, where the blue 
flowers afford a strong contrast to anything else in the 
genus. Swanley Red and Swanley Purple are 
also excellent kinds, the names of which describe 
them ; and Cannell’s Improvement, with crimson- 
red flowers, may be described as an improvement 
upon Swanley Red. The Queen is a pink-flowered, 
Fern-leaved variety that should take rank with the 
