October 3, 1891. 
THE GARDENING WORLD 
G5 
Fr^Uiip Hotes. 
Apple Devonshire Quarrenden. 
The free fruiting nature of this variety in most 
seasons has made it a regular market Apple, and 
every year sees it in greater or less abundance in the 
fruit shops, where it fetches as a rule a good price. 
They are plentiful this year, and the fruits are larger 
than usual and equally brightly coloui-ed, but the 
quality is inferior, as indeed the complaint is with 
many hardy out-door fruits. It is a dessert variety 
but usually considered of second rate quality. The 
dark red colour of the skin, the name of English 
Quarantine, and its earliness are qualities that 
usually ensure a good sale for it, but the quantity at 
command and the poor flavour seem to be telling 
against it somewhat. Another thing is that they are 
put upon the market before being properly matured. 
When that is the case it should be tender, crisp, and 
sweet, with a greenish-white flesh. Some indivi- 
dualshave the flesh tinted with red under the skin, but 
more especially in the neighbourhood of the eye, and 
they are of better quality than those devoid of it. 
Apple Duchess Favourite. 
The fruits of this variety are small or of medium 
size and globular, but very deep, almost inclined to 
be conical in the larger specimens, and heavily 
shaded with red over the greater part of the surface. 
It is a dessert Apple of fine flavour, and the wonder 
is that so few collections of trees include it. There 
is no better evidence of its free fruiting nature than 
the fact that it appears regularly in the market every 
year about this time. It is superior to several of the 
early Apples from the fact that it keeps for a longer 
period after being fit for use ; nor is it liable to 
suffer much injury from carriage, owing to the firm¬ 
ness of the flesh, which is yellow or whitish, and 
more or less tinged with red in various parts near 
the skin, with occasional red streaks running from 
thence to the centre. When in season it is rich and 
sugary. 
Pear Souvenir du Congres. 
At the Pear Conference, held in the gardens of the 
Royal Horticultural Society in October, 1885, a poll 
was taken for the whole of Great Britain. The 
variety Souvenir du Congres came 34th in the list 
with twenty out of a possible hundred votes, whereas 
Williams' Bon Chretien was 3rd in the list, with 
eighty-six per cent, of the votes. Now, the latter 
Pear is described as having a melting and rich juice 
with a strong musky flavour, while the former is 
described as melting, juicy and good. There were 
only thirteen dishes of Williams' Bon Chretien at 
the Conference, and fourteen dishes of the other. 
These facts can easily be disposed of seeing that 
both ripen in August and September, but the dis¬ 
crepancy in the number of votes for the respective 
kinds is less easily accounted for, from this year's 
experience at least. Williams’ Bon Chretien is 
popular as an orchard tree from its free bearing 
nature, and being a good early Pear finds a ready 
sale in seasons of ordinary abundance. This year, 
however, shows that we may, and have had too much 
of it, from the simple fact that it reached a state of 
decay before consumers were able to cope with it. 
In this state the flavour becomes positively disagree¬ 
able, with a dry and half mealy flesh. Souvenir du 
Congres at the end of September was rich, sweet, 
and juicy, resembling the melting, buttery Pears. It 
has borne well on the old pyramids at Chiswick, 
while on the oblique cordons it has attained a won¬ 
derful size, measuring 4 in. to in. long, and 3 in. 
c 3 J in. at the widest part. 
Apple Benoni. 
The fruit of this variety is small, globular, slightly 
angular, and now yellow, marbled and streaked with 
bronzy-red on the exposed face. It is described as 
a mid-season Apple and pretty, but worthless. This 
year it ripened about the middle of September, when 
the flesh was yellow, tender, and very sweet, but not 
particularly juicy. The trees in the gardens of the 
Royal Horticultural Society at Chiswick bore well 
this year, and the fruit was all sold in a remarkably 
short space of time. It would be highly interesting 
if a consensus of opinion could be obtained from the 
buyers as to the merits of the variety for dessert 
purposes. The old adage is “many men, many 
minds,” and if their minds could be ascertained on 
the subject it would help to decide the question 
whether we require a large number of varieties for 
public use, or whether the public would be perfectly 
satisfied with a smaller number of the conven¬ 
tional market kinds. 
AUTUMN ROSES. 
What beautiful Rose blooms are to be seen almost 
everywhere this autumn. We owe much of this 
abundant blooms to the rainy summer, which created 
such beauty through the free production of growths. 
It is encouraging in Rose culture thus to get such 
robust summer shoots, as they give fine flowers 
through the autumn, and properly shortened a 
luxuriant bloom the next year. 
Tea Roses of all kinds seem to be more than 
usually floriferous, and the flowers are vieing with 
Dahlias in richness of colour, whilst excelling the 
Queen of Autumn blooms a long way in perfume. In 
such a time as the present, what with Roses, Dahlias, 
Asters, and Early-blooming Chrysanthemums, we can 
have gardens wondrously gay, and yet there are 
myriads of other plants blooming profusely also. The 
glorious sunshine, whilst it has made all nature so 
joyous, has also made it lovely. 
Bush Roses or plants in any dwarf form having 
thrown up strong growths carry on them flowers 
which almost vie in size and quality with the best 
blooms of mid-summer. The Teas, whether out in 
the open or on walls, have been giving us all 
through the season, and will for some time give us, a 
wealth of deliciously perfumed buds. What popular 
flowers these are for common wear! How much 
the public seem to prefer these buds to those of all 
other flowers. There is a status or position in the 
Republic of flowers held by the Rose which is 
universally recognised. No other flower can 
dislodge it from its pride of place. 
Still the Rose is entitled to that homage because 
of its inherent beauty and sweetness. Something, 
too, may be due to sentiment, as it is our national 
flower. It is, however, in a garden sense one of our 
hardiest, most easily and most widely cultivated. It 
is singularly tractable or amenable to diverse forms 
of training, and may be seen as beautiful on a mud 
wall as anywhere else .—Paul Neyron. 
THE WILLIAM HOLMES 
MEMORIAL. 
As a member of the National Chrysanthemum 
Society, present at a meeting held soon after Mr. 
Holmes’ death, in the Royal Aquarium, I am 
tempted to ask what has become of the proposed 
memorial which that crowded meeting determined 
should be provided. So far as am I aware from that 
time to the present, and a full year has elapsed, 
nothing has been heard of the memorial, and I have 
never learnt that any circular has been issued inviting 
subscriptions on that head, and plead ignorance. 
I should not have asked the question I do but for 
the publication in your last issue of the announce¬ 
ment of the erection of a memorial stone to Mr. 
Holmes in Abney Park Cemetery by some local 
friends. That act has very naturally brought to 
mind the meeting to which I refer, the committee 
appointed to carry out the resolve of the meeting 
and the election of an honorary secretary to the 
committee. To what is the absolute inaction of this 
committee to be ascribed. Did the sentiment so 
strongly displayed at the meeting in respect to the 
late Mr. Holmes suddenly die out; did the committee 
collapse ; have circumstances arisen which made the 
taking of any action in the direction indicated un¬ 
desirable ; or what is the cause of the evident failure 
of the memorial movement ? 
I hope no false delicacy will interpose to prevent a 
full statement of the causes, whatever they may be, 
which has led to this collapse being brought to light. 
I take it that after this unfortunate failure it will be 
very difficult to make proposals of a similar nature 
in reference to others who may in the future pass 
away. It does so happen in spite of frequent aspira¬ 
tions to bury with their bones the evil men sometimes 
do in life, and let only the good they do be seen, 
that vve do the reverse. Perhaps something of that 
kind has operated in the present instance.— A Member 
of the N. C. S. 
_ _ . _ 
- 
ORCHID NOTES AND GLEANINGS. 
Cattleya intermedia alba. 
The sepals are oblong as in the type, but they are 
pure white with exception of a small amount of 
green at the apex of the midrib The oblanceolate 
petals are pure white. The lip is also pure white 
with exception of a greenish tinge along the edge of 
the middle lobe, and even that disappears after a 
time. The middle lobe is also bifid, finely crisped 
along the edge, and sometimes reflexed there. In 
all other respects this variety resembles the typical 
form. A plant of it was exhibited at the Drill Hall, 
Westminster, on the 22nd ult., by T. Statter, Esq., 
(gardener, Mr. R. Johnson), Stand Hall, Manchester, 
when a First-class Certificate was awarded it. 
Grammatophyllum Fenzlianum, Osmer’s var. 
We described this beautiful new variety in The 
Gardening World, Vol. vii., p. 689, suggesting the 
above name for it in compliment to the introducer 
The description we drew up from dried specimens 
and from imperfect flowers which opened upon 
plants in the cases in which the pseudo-bulbs 
were brought home. The production of imperfect 
flowers having only four segments and no lip is 
habitual whether in the wild or cultivated state, and 
such flowers are always borne on the lower part of 
the scape. Since we made that description we have 
ascertained that the plant soon gets established and 
occasions no difficulty in its cultivation. Evidence 
of this might be seen from the plant exhibited by 
Messrs. Seeger & Tropp, East Dulwich, at the 
meeting of the Royal Horticultural Society on the 
22nd ult., and from which our illustration was taken. 
The flower scape varies from 3 ft. to 5 ft. in length 
according to the strength of the plant, and bears 
from forty to sixty or more flowers, 3m. to 3jin. in 
diameter. The ground colour of the sepals and 
petals is yellow, heavily blotched with round or oval 
purple blotches often running together in large 
masses, as may be seen from the illustration. The 
side lobes of the lip are heavily lined with sepia 
brown stripes, and the three ridges of the disc 
terminate in as many forking lines upon the small 
terminal lobe, while the throat is bearded. It 
requires stove temperature and the treatment 
accorded other kinds in cultivation. 
Vanda Hookeniana. 
The stems and leaves of this species are terete, and 
in general appearance resemble those of V. teres, 
but are more slender. The flowers of the two are, 
however, very distinct from one another. Hooker's 
Vanda has the lateral sepals white, with a few pur¬ 
ple spots, while the upper one is purple, shaded 
with violet. The petals are broadly ovate, twisted 
round so that the rose coloured back comes into 
full view. The lip is three lobed with the lateral 
lobes oblong and of an intense purple, deepening to 
crimson on their basal half; the large terminal divi¬ 
sion is again three lobed, blotched with purple on a 
white ground upon the upper portion, and striped 
with crimson-purple on a purple ground at its base. 
The species is a native of Borneo, and flowers in 
this country during September and October. It is 
therefore doubly welcome at this dull period of the 
year, when Orchids in bloom are by no means plenti¬ 
ful. Hitherto it has been scarce in collections, and 
flowers rather seldom seen, but there is some evi¬ 
dence that cultivators are getting better acquainted 
with it, judging from its more frequent appearance 
at the monthly meetings of the Royal Horticultural 
Society, and in collections such as those of Messrs. 
Hugh Low & Co., Clapton, Messrs. F. Sander & Co., 
St. Albans, and Messrs. J. Veitch & Sons, Chelsea, 
to whom we were indebted for an opportunity of 
figuring it last week. See p. 53. . . ■■ 
i ‘■T v . t .1 . . 
