July 20, 1889. 
THE GARDENING WORLD. 
735 
“RELIABLE SEEDS” 
FOR 
Summer and Autumn Sowing. 
DANIELS BROS. 
B EG to draw attention of their customers to their 
Choice Stocks of VEGETABLE SEEDS for 
Present Sowing, all of which have been selected with 
great care and discrimination. 
CABBAGE 
Daniels’ Defiance Giant Early 
Marrow, the largest and best 
variety in cultivation. 
Ellam's Early Dwarf, very fine 
early kind . 
Enfield Market, improved stock 
Pkt. 
s. d. 
0 6 
4 
4 
ONIONS- 
grand 
0 6 
Daniels’ Golden Rocca, w 
new variety for exhibition ... 
Daniels’ Giant Rocca, large and 
fine; our true stock ... ••• 
White Spanish .. 3 s. 6 d. per lb. — 
White Lisbon ...‘Zs. 9cl. ,, — 
Daniels’ White Elephant Tripoli 0 6 
Oz. 
s. d. 
1 6 
0 10 
1 0 
1 0 
DANIELS BROS. 
16,18, & 20, Exchange St., NORWICH. 
(gf Terms of Subscription.— Post free from the office to any 
part of the United Kingdom, one copy, ljd!.; throe months, 
Is. S d. ; six months, 3s. 3d. ; twelve months, 6s. 6 d. ForeigD 
Subscription to all counties in the Postal Union, 8s. 8d. per 
annum. 
Next Week’s Engagements. 
Monday, July 22nd.— 
Tuesday. July 23rd.—Royal Horticultural Society’s Meeting of 
Fruit and Floral Committees at the Drill Hall. National 
Carnation and Picotee Society's Show at the same place. 
Christleton and Tibshelf Rose Shows. 
Wednesday, July 24th.— Luton Flower Show. 
Thursday, July 25th.—Flower Shows at Castle Ashby, Tren- 
thani and Southwell. 
Friday, July 2Gtli.—Wilmslow Rose Show. Sale of Orchids at 
Protheroe & Morris’s Rooms. 
Saturday, July 27th.-Crewe Flower Show. 
For Index to Contents & Advertisements, see p.746. 
“ Gardening is the purest of human pleasures, aud the greatest 
refreshment to the spirit of man.”— Bacon. 
SATURDAY, JULY 20, 1889. 
LAINC’S BEGONIAS. 
AWARDED FOUR GOLD MEDALS. 
A GREAT 
SPECIALTY. 
NOW 
A GREAT 
SPECIALTY. 
IN FULL BLOOM. 
Unequalled us a floral display. Visitors are 
cordially invited; free admission. Frequent 
trains from IRe City and "West End to Catford 
Bridge and Forest Hill Stations. 
Descriptive Catalogue post free. 
JOHN; LAINO & 
NURSERIES, FOREST HILL, LON DON, S.E. 
fIrnsTspeciality. 
The finest, most varied, choice, and interesting collection in 
the Trade. _ , _ , 
1,400 species and varieties of Stove, Greenhouse, and Hardy 
Ferns. „ ,. 
Partially descriptive Catalogue free on application 
Hlustrated Catalogue (No. 21), containing 120 illustrations, 
and much valuable information on the cultivation of Ferns, 
Is. 6 d., post free. 
W. & J. BIRKENHEAD, 
FERN NURSERY, 
SALE, MANCHESTER. 
Kelway&Son. 
NOW is the TIMETO PLANT 
PYRETHRUMS, of which we grow 3 acres 
DELPHINIUMS ,, „ 3 „ 
GAILLARDIAS „ ,, 2 „ 
PHLOXES 
PENTSTEMONS 
“The largest collection in the World,” for which the 
highest awards of the Royal Horticultural and the 
Royal Botanical Societies of London have been given. 
See our Manual for 1889, gratis and post free. 
langport, somerset 
CURRENT TOPICS. 
Tk’he Potato Disease. — There can be no 
' s ' cloubt whatever that we have reached a 
critical time in the growth of our Potato 
crops. It may be something to be congratu¬ 
latory over that the middle of July has come 
and there is no special evidence of the deadly 
disease; but somehow — and it has always 
remained a problem very difficult of solution—- 
the Peronospora seldom makes its appearance in 
the plants until a certain stage of maturity has 
been reached. Every week which passes now 
without evidence of disease is a week saved to 
the crop, and having regard to the great heat 
which has prevailed, and the present admirable 
condition of the soil generally—moistened as 
it has been by recent warm rains the tubers 
should be, indeed are swelling rapidly. 
Doubtless the comparative absence of the 
disease so far is chiefly due to the prevalence of 
warmth, as the Potato is a heat-loving plant, and 
given sufficient moisture seems to revel like any 
exotic in warmth. There is now, consequent 
upon this warmth and the previous dryness of 
the soil, an undoubted excellence of quality in 
the tubers, unripe as they may be, which was 
not to he found in any stock last year. A con¬ 
tinuation of the warmth would certainly ensure 
us tubers of the best quality this season. 
But just at the moment of writing the skies 
are overcast with heavy clouds. They wear 
an appearance of gloom which is menacing, and 
although, generally, more rain may be benefi¬ 
cial to the soil, yet both Potatos and Com will 
be the better if the sun shines out warmly, and 
there be little rainfall. A few days’continuous 
wet and our present satisfaction with the ap¬ 
pearance of the Potato breadths may be changed 
into gloom. May our fears not be realised ! 
'he Eose, Her Majesty.— We have a vivid 
^ recollection of the sensation caused a few 
■ars since when at one of the gatherings of 
e National Pose Society, Mr. H. Bennett 
.owed a box of his grand new Rose, Her 
aiesty and secured with it the highest 
moors! Then, later, the Rose passed into 
her hands, and presently fell into bad odour, 
r it was pronounced shy, a bad doer, and 
L sorts of faults were found with it Tln s 
;ar the Eose has at length fully justified it s 
” r ly reputation, and added renown to th e 
ime of its raiser, Mr. Bennett. Her Majesty 
nas proved to be a grand addition to our show, 
as well as garden Roses. Its colour is 
exquisite, its form, if properly grown, perfect, 
and it possesses a habit which makes shoots like 
whip handles if the soil be rich. That, how¬ 
ever, is not a desirable feature, as it is com¬ 
plained that so robust is the growth it will 
actually force itself away from the stock. 
Now we, last week, in reporting the Crystal 
Palace Show, referred to the huge blooms of 
Her Majesty shown in the competing boxes as 
a little coarse, whilst reference was made to 
the smaller but exquisite flowers shown in a 
non-competitive lot from Mr. V ill Taylor, of 
Hampton. Mr. Taylor grows Her Majesty 
on hard soil, and where it is not too rich, 
hence his blooms, if none too large, had a 
beauty about them not to be seen in coarse 
flowers. Very likely when? this grand variety 
is grown under ordinary conditions as a garden 
Rose, we shall see amateurs showing blooms 
of the best form and most perfect beauty, 
because not grossly grown. Her Majesty is a 
distinct addition to the most delicate hued, and 
loveliest tinted of all the sections; and in 
admiring the flower we will not forget to 
honour its raiser. 
TTnnuals at Chiswick. —We referred in our 
Jr~ notice of the meeting of the Royal Horti¬ 
cultural Society’s committee last week to the 
annuals now growing so freely at Chiswick, 
and the subject is dealt with at greater length 
in another column. With the exception, per¬ 
haps, of the Tom Thumb Nasturtiums, we 
believe that the bulk of the seeds sown are 
of Continental origin, and it may occur. to 
some of our readers as rather odd that foreign 
houses should use the Chiswick Gardens as 
English trial grounds; but, of course, no con¬ 
tributions can be refused come whence they 
may. On the other hand, it is equally open to 
English houses to send seeds to Chiswick for 
growth if they choose. As we obtain the 
greater part of our annual novelties or improve¬ 
ments from the Continent, it is advantageous 
to English seedsmen to be enabled to note what 
those novelties are by seeing them growing at 
Chiswick. Still it does seem as if some 
systematic arrangement were needful by which 
if annuals are to be grown there they should 
be taken in groups or families ; contributions 
of choice selections or assumed novelties m 
those sections being invited from a wide area. 
We see for instance, the Tom Thumb Dwarf 
Nasturtium grown yearly at Chiswick, but 
the Tom Thumb form is not the only section 
of Dwarf Nasturtiums, and some effort should 
be made to secure representatives of all the 
dwarf strains for testing. Marigolds might be 
treated in the same w r ay; so also Asters, 
Stocks and similar things, until in the course 
of a few years the whole round in ordinary 
garden annuals had been gone through, whilst 
some line would be obtained as to the 
relative merits of strains generally, and also 
as to the merits respectively of those grown at 
home and abroad. Just now, however, we 
urge all who may be interested in annuals to 
look in at Chiswick, and note the merits of the 
various kinds there growing. 
Specimen Show Plants. —Now that we have 
P got through the chief of the summer flower 
shows, and the autumn ones are a few weeks 
remote, a favourable opportunity is offered 
to take stock of the general features of flow er 
shows, and of specimen plants in particular. 
As to general features, it must be admitted 
that since the introduction of the decoratij e 
group competitions, nothing whatev er nov el 
or specially attractive has originated. Plower 
shows still keep to their old dead level of 
non-originality. They are the re-productions 
of their former selves, going on just so from 
year to year. But there is this distinction, 
that at very many shows the fine old stove 
and greenhouse specimen plants seem to be 
