742 
THE GARDENING WORLD. 
July 20, 1889. 
gardeners of the present day if they conld have a year 
or two of training under such a good kitchen gardener 
as Mr. Rowlands ; many valuable lessons might be 
learned for their future use. A good, clean, well- 
cropped vegetable garden should be as interesting as 
any other department. — Visitor. 
-“>X<-- 
THE FEAST OF ROSES AT 
REGENT’S PARK. 
This festival, so long announced, was held on Monday 
afternoon at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Regent’s Park. 
Nothing like this parade and feast has ever been 
previously attempted in England, and there was a 
special appropriateness in the fete because it celebrated 
the jubilee of the society. Some very charming 
spectacles were offered, but, upon the whole, they were 
not so numerous as had been expected. The public 
failed somehow to catch that hint of the society which 
recommended a display of Roses on the part of the 
spectators, in harmony with that provided by the 
management. But 'whatever was lacking in the co¬ 
operation of the visitors, no fault could be found with 
the preparations in the gardens themselves. Half way 
up the corridor a lovely little bower had been con¬ 
structed by Miss Ada Bell. The interior was furnished 
with white and cream muslin, looped up with a touch 
of yellow in the hangings, and on the walls were 
upwards of thirty pictures of flowers in vases or pots. 
The furniture consisted of ottomans, rustic chairs, and 
occasional tables, all made out of Indian grass. Upon 
the walls were climbing evergreen Roses — white, 
yellow and red. The whole of the furniture was 
adorned with Roses, and in all upwards of 3,000 of 
these blooms were used in this pretty bower, besides a 
van-load of hardy plants. A covered passage ran all 
round the grounds, beginning and ending at the con¬ 
servatory. From this covered way entrance was had 
to the several exhibition tents and the flower gardens, 
and a triumphal arch to the west of the dais, through 
which drove the horses and competing carriages. Those 
portions of the entertainment which fell within the 
province of the professional Rose-grower were magnifi¬ 
cently carried out, of course. Messrs. W. Paul & Son 
filled all the arena of the show-tent with parterres of 
cut blooms, arranged in a sort of carpet-bedding. 
Mr. B. S. Williams displayed many fine Orchids ; 
Messrs. J. Laing & Sons had a trophy of Begonias ; 
Messrs. Rumsey, Cant, Keynes Williams & Co., and 
others sent a mass of Roses. The crown or bower, for 
its design was not evident at a glance, offered by 
Messrs. Keynes, Williams & Co. made a very striking 
effect with Duke of Edinburgh and Niphetos. Upon 
the lake were three boats—a canoe, a pair oar, and a 
double pair oar. Mr. H. 0. Garford sent the pair-oared 
boat, which was adorned with a canopy richly orna¬ 
mented with flowers. Messrs. Smith & Larke furnished 
a single-sculling boat, which was also decorated with a 
bower covered with flowers, and Fuchsias lined the out¬ 
side of the boat. Mr. J. R. Chard sent a canoe, which 
was daintily hooped and adorned with Gladioli, 
Clematis, Paris Daisies, Roses, and Larkspur. In 
different parts of the lawn before the conservatory were 
maypoles, triumphal arches and canopies, and a 
wedding bell by Mr. W. Gardiner. The great “marriage 
bell ” of Stephanotis, Lilies, and Sweet Peas, suspended 
over a cake to correspond, sent by Messrs. Hill, the 
confectioners, drew much admiration. With these 
pleasant sights, and triumphal arches, maypoles, flower¬ 
decked boats, and so forth, spectators passed the time 
agreeably until the hour of the “Judges’ parade” 
arrived. 
It was unfortunate that the weather reached its 
worst at that moment, but the worst proved to be 
alarming rather than dreadful. The smart showers, 
which the desponding interpreted to mean a deluge, 
very shortly passed. The broad central walk had been 
railed in for the parade, and on either side at this time 
some thousands of ladies, in the brightest and most 
radiant hues, were seated, or standing on chairs behind 
full of expectation. First of the competitors to show 
was Mrs. E. Ledger’s victoria, preceded by a groom 
with epaulettes and scarf, and bow-pot of Roses. A 
grand beginning this vehicle made, perfectly equipped 
at every point. The prevailing tone was golden, and 
two ladies therein were attired to match. The harness 
of the two blacks, the whole body of the carriage, the 
wheels, the splash-board, and the steps were hidden 
under yellow Roses and Iceland Poppies, relieved by 
ropes of snow-white Lilies. Mrs. Ledger’s carriage 
would have been hard to beat at Nice. The dog-cart 
of Mr. W. West Neeve followed. Before it walked a 
cavalier in French grey velvet, plumed hat, silk 
stockings, and posy-crook, just such as Mr. Grossmith 
carried in Iolanthe. In the cart sat two gentlemen in 
similar disguise—the one in violet velvet with profuse 
feathers, the other golden brown. It made one shiver 
to think how very cold their, unaccustomed legs must 
be in the rain and wind. Mrs. Horner’s victoria came 
next with an iron-grey pair. Very handsome was this 
arrangement, lavish in dark red Roses, the lady wearing 
green silk ; many declared it the most tasteful, if not 
the most striking, of all. Pretty was Mrs. W. Gilbey’s 
carriage and pair of ponies, enveloped in blooms of 
La France. Miss Bryant’s victoria had an uncommon 
decoration of Midsummer Daisies (Chrysanthemum) 
mostly; Miss Scaigill’s, which succeeded, had an 
original effect, more striking, in garlands of large orange 
Zinnias, crimson-centred. Miss Ada Bell’s pony 
tandem, driven by a small jockey with scarlet cap, also 
put Roses in her second line of decoration, trusting 
especially to scarlet Tropieolums, with bunches of blue 
Cornflower. Messrs. Bourne & Underwood displayed 
the Royal Arms in red and white Roses in their 
tandem. 
The village cart and pony of N. N. Sherwood, Esq., 
succeeded, one of the prettiest certainly. The little 
girl (Miss Sherwood) was heavily crowned with Roses, 
red and pink ; the wheels were decked in a pattern of 
the same contrast, and a huge rope festooned the splash¬ 
board. The pony and cart of W. Glazier, Esq., that of 
Miss Ada Bell, and that of Mr. T. Fall, went by in this 
order. Especially charming was the last, with two 
children embowered in La France Roses. Miss Rose 
Gilbey’s tumbril carriage and pony followed, and then 
the pony and trap of Mr. J. R. Chard. A large and 
beautiful coronet of Marguerites, white Lilies, and 
scarlet-orange Pompon Lilies, set in evergreen, stood 
upon the latter. The pony phaeton of Mr. C. H. 
Sharman was canopied over in Lilies, red Roses, and 
pink Gladioli. Both of these drew great attention. 
A horse followed, bearing a few flowers, and after it 
Mrs. "W". Goldsmith’s pony, black, saddled, bridled, and 
cruppered with Roses. Master G. E. Paget-Bowman’s 
pony bore a young hero in armour, with an ostrich 
plume of chivalrous dimensions, carrying a spear which 
sustained the Union Jack in red and white Roses. A 
delightful little piebald of Mr. W. Gilbey’s brought up 
the rear, harnessed in yellow and white. A few bipeds 
followed—two little boys in pale blue costumes of the 
period, carrying their tiny sister in a glowing sedan 
chair ; and two boys, smaller still, in maroon, trundled 
a go-cart, hidden in blossoms. 
A few minutes after five o’clock, when the sun was 
shining, the strains of “God Save the Queen” announced 
the arrival of the Prince and Princess of Wales, who 
promptly occupied the chairs on the dais provided for 
them. This stretched across the centre walk, looking 
down the vista where the parade had just been held. 
The Princess of Wales wore a fawn silk dress, trimmed 
with plush ; a gold silk bonnet, with a black lace 
border and heartsease. Beside her sat the three 
Princesses, her daughters, the Prince of Wales, the 
Duke and Duchess of Teck, and the Princess Victoria 
of Teck. The Earl of Fife, Marquess of Bristol, Earl 
and Lady Annesley, Lord Walsingham, Sir Dighton 
and Lady Probyn, Lord Rendlesham, Hon. Miss 
Thellusson, Lord and Lady Willoughby D’Eresby, Hon. 
Mrs. Mitford, and others attended their Royal High¬ 
nesses. Forthwith the parade recommenced, to pause 
at the first step almost, as was expected. Mrs. E. 
Ledger’s attelage was so far superior, taking all 
points of view, that it secured the Princess of "Wales’s 
prize and the Gold Medal, of course. Mr. Sherwood 
won the first prize and a Silver-gilt Medal ; Mrs. 
Horner the second, with Silver-gilt Medal. A Bronze 
Medal fell to Mr. W. West Neeve and to Miss Ada 
Bell with the second prize. The first Silver Medal 
was obtained by Mrs. Faed. Mrs. W. Goldsmith, Mr. 
W. Gilbey, and Master G. E. Paget-Bowman also won 
Silver Medals .—From The Standard. 
--- 
The Amateurs’ Garden. 
—=*»— 
Sweet and Yellow Sultan. 
Now is the time to see these old-fashioned but showy 
annuals in their best form. There are two varieties of 
the Sweet Sultan (Centaurea moschata) in cultivation— 
namely, the typical purple and a white one. Both 
produce large flower-heads that are strongly and agree¬ 
ably fragrant, and prove very useful for cut-flower 
purposes. The Yellow Sultan (Centaurea suaveolens) 
is of a bright clear yellow, and the outer florets of the 
head being finely and deeply cut, they give the whole 
head a pleasing and fimbriated appearance. For cut- 
flower purposes it is decidedly the showiest of the three, 
and deservedly the most popular. Large quantities of 
it annually find their way to market and prove very 
attractive amongst the masses of other and differently- 
coloured flowers now in season. The two species 
above mentioned are annuals, and can be grown by 
anyone having but a limited knowledge of practical 
gardening. The seeds may be sown where the 
plants are intended to flower, or raised in boxes under 
a hand-glass or cold frame, in the same manner as 
stocks, and afterwards planted out. 
Coen Blue-bottle. 
Better known and even more popular than the Sweet 
and Yellow Sultan above mentioned is the Corn Blue¬ 
bottle (Centaurea eyanus), a well-known pest of corn¬ 
fields in many parts of the country. As a garden 
annual, however, it is most serviceable, especially for 
cut-flower purposes, and is grown in beds and borders 
to an annually increasing extent. There are now rose, 
pink, white, purple, pale blue, and other intermediate 
forms in cultivation, but all are inferior in point of 
beauty to the exquisitely fine rich blue of the typical 
form which grows as a weed in corn-fields, and comes 
into bloom after the corn has attained some height, 
but some time previous to its ripening. For the sake 
of variety, however, the numerous coloured kinds are 
generally grown iD mixture. Seeds may be sown in 
March or April directly where they are intended to 
bloom, and thinned out to 6 ins. apart after they have 
germinated, and fairly commenced to grow. 
Auriculas. 
Those who have not yet potted their old plants should 
lose no time in doing so, in order to let them get 
established before the advent of winter. See that they 
are thoroughly free from aphis and other insect pests 
before potting is performed. A camel’s-hair brush 
may be used to remove the green-fly from the crown of 
the plant, or fumigation with tobacco-paper may be 
resorted to. Keep close for a few days till the roots 
have taken to the fresh soil. If any seed has been 
saved sow it immediately, when small plants will be 
produced before winter, and come into flowering 
condition much sooner than if seed-sowing is deferred 
till spring. 
Hollyhocks. 
If the ground is dry Hollyhocks will well repay heavy 
watering, with occasionally a dose of liquid manure, 
and if the soil is mulched with farmyard manure so 
much the better. Attention in this way will be well 
repaid by the healthy condition of the plants, the 
greater length of stem, and the larger quantity of 
bloom. Should red-spider infest the leaves by reason 
of the drought, syringe them heavily and frequently 
with clean water. Should the Hollyhock fungus put 
in an appearance, remove the leaves showing the char¬ 
acteristic orange spots. Propagation by means of eyes 
or cuttings should now be commenced without further 
delay. Young shoots, not yet showing bloom, may be 
cut up into lengths of 2 ins. or 3 ins. with a good bud 
to each, and after removing the leaf-blade (if there is 
one) the eyes may he inserted in boxes in a light and 
sandy compost. Stand the boxes in some shady 
position behind a wall or under trees, and give a good 
watering with a rosed pot to settle the soil, after which 
they may be left to take care of themselves, with the 
exception of watering should the soil become dry. No 
frame or covering of any kind is necessary. The bud 
will push in about a fortnight, and soon grow into a 
nice little plant. 
Dahlias. 
In the more favoured parts of the country the earliest 
started Dahlias have been in flower for some weeks 
past. The duties to be attended to are pruning, tying, 
and watering. Liquid manure given pretty frequently 
will also prove serviceable. During dry weather slugs 
will not be very troublesome ; but earwigs will both be 
numerous and exceedingly annoying. A small flower¬ 
pot, with a little moss inside, should be placed on the 
top of each stake to which the plants are tied, and 
examined every morning in order to destro} r the earwigs 
hiding in the moss. 
Peas, Beans and Scarlet Runners. 
The long-continued drought that has prevailed since the 
early part of June is beginning to tell severely on 
various garden crops. The subjects above mentioned 
may continue to hold out for a time, especially the 
later sowings ; but the careful cultivator should not 
wait till the foliage is assuming a yellowish hue before 
