134 
THE GARDENING WORLD 
October 81, 1891. 
■' and make your own selection, having regard to i. 
Quality; 2, Abundance and certainty of cropping ; 3, 
Size and appearance, and then plant those varieties 
that prove most suitable for the district. If this 
were always done I feel certain Apple growing would 
pay, but the planting of sorts haphazard, and many of 
■ questionable quality, is one of the reasons why our 
importations are so large. I feel sure we can even 
in seasons like the present grow finer flavoured and 
: better Apples than we can import, and to bear out 
this statement I would ask who would eat (if he could 
get anything different) the vile old crabs one often 
meets with in very many farm orchards.— D. Hill, 
■ “ H‘iga," Watford, 
-- 
AUTUMN FLOWERS. 
Chrysanthemum carinatum (tricolor). 
I note this at this season being quite to the fore as 
a late flowering annual. I saw in Messrs. Hurst & 
■ Son's trial ground at Chelmsford, on October 23rd, 
' a large patch of it in good bloom, and from which an 
admirable bunch of flowers could have been 
■ gathered. There are several single forms of this 
species, and all are charming hardy annuals. The 
- seeds can be sown in the open early in March, or 
later according to the weather. The plants soon get 
into blooming size, and flower with the greatest free¬ 
dom. Some years ago a double variety was raised 
under the name of Dunnettii fl. pi. ; this has been 
greatly improved upon in course of time, and 
Messrs. Hurst last season exhibited some very fine 
varieties indeed. Both the single and double types 
are well worth growing, and they give a great 
variety, the group being much given to sportiveness. 
Dianthus Chinenses. 
The varieties of the Indian Pink were also very 
gay at Chelmsford, and I could have cut some of the 
fine single blooms of Heddewigii as good as could be 
' produced in summer. The double forms were also 
quite gay, and could there be more sunshine would 
be gayer still. The wonder was that after the 
drenching rains and storms of the previous week, so 
much that is bright in the way of flowers yet re¬ 
mained. Among the hardy annuals to which one 
can pay a tribute of the highest praise, I place D. 
chinenses, and particularly the fine varieties of 
‘ Heddewigii and its variety laciniatus; and they do 
well sown in any soil, but always well repay culture 
in a good one. 
Helichrysums. 
The varieties of maximum were very gay indeed, 
the enduring character of the flowers and the me¬ 
tallic stoutness of the petals causes them to be less 
’ injured by rain than other flowers of a more fragile 
* character. While the two foregoing annuals can be 
’ sown in the open ground, it is best, unless the soil is 
light and sandy and there is a warm sunny time, to 
sow in a frame or in pans, and transplant the 
Helichrysums; they want good soil to come finely. 
I think a very pretty feature could be made at 
Chrysanthemum shows if prizes were offered for 
these in bunches. At the September exhibition of 
the Royal Oxfordshire Horticultural Society, prizes 
were" offered for a stand of twenty-four blooms, dis¬ 
tinct varieties ; but they never get so many quite 
distinct in character, and they make a poor display 
as single flowers, like Carnations. If they were 
shovm in stands of six bunches, with a dozen blooms 
of each forming a bunch, that number of varieties 
could be obtained without trouble. I have seen 
shown at Oxford blooms of the previous year—quite 
dry of course and well preserved. But I do not 
think that was contemplated by the framers of the 
schedule. 
Marigolds. 
The French varieties were still very gay on the 
above date, as no frost had come to mar their beauty. 
The French Marigolds are very tender and soon show 
its effects. I think it is very unusual to have them 
blooming so freely so late in October. The hardy 
garden varieties are so persistent and enduring, that 
if the winter be at all mild, they will bloom all the 
way through. They seem to take on a rich colour 
in winter. I think a great deal could be done in the 
way of improving the single varieties by means of 
careful selection, if some-one would take them in 
hand. 
Phlox Drummondii. 
But of all the subjects I have named, nothing else 
was so gay and so full of bloom as Drummond’s 
Thlox. I was astonished to see how full of bloom 
the large patch was, and the straw very fine, I could 
have cut a collection of bunches much better in 
quality than I saw at flower shows during August. 
So long as the weather keeps open these annual 
Phloxes will continue to be very gay. 
Stocks, East Lothian. 
These were blooming freely, despite the drenching 
rains, and it w'as noticeable how few comparatively 
of single varieties appeared to be among them. I 
always think it would pay well to lift the plants of 
these, pot them and bloom them in a greenhouse 
from which the frost can be excluded, and a little 
fire heat put on when the weather is very damp and 
wet. These fragrant Stocks are very useful to cut 
from in the late autumn and winter months, and the 
spikes of bloom will last a long time. They are sold 
in four colours, viz,, crimson, scarlet, purple, and 
white.— R. D. 
HORTICULTURE AT THE 
WORLD’S FAIR. 
Mr. John Thorpe, chief of the horticultural section 
of the great World's Fair, to be held at Chicago in 
1893, thus discusses the possibilities of his depart¬ 
ment, as it should be. “ The loftiest ideas and the 
very highest aims only are compatible with the ad¬ 
vancement of the profession. Small exhibits cannot 
be expected to be effective. Groups of plants of all 
kinds will not be shown simply in hundreds, but in 
thousands and tens of thousands. 
“ The general massing of the plants will be on 
such a scale as to astonish even those who are ac¬ 
quainted with what has been accomplished. As a 
matter of fact, and one that is conceded by those 
best able to judge, the parks of Chicago have at this 
moment the finest displays of floricultural adorn¬ 
ments of all the cities in the world. The brilliant and 
effective colouring to be seen in the designs at 
Washington Park, and the superb Water lily displays 
at Lincoln Park, together with the fine displays at the 
other parks, have gladdened the hearts, and called 
forth the admiration of hundreds of thousands. Re¬ 
membering what Chicago has done and is now doing for 
floriculture in her parks, the Floricultural Department 
of the World's Fair must outstrip all previous 
attempts in all and every one of its branches, even 
to surpassing the magnificent work here mentioned. 
This can. only be obtained by a determination to 
eclipse all previous efforts ; not one moment must 
be given to looking backward. There is no time to 
look backward. 
“ In that magnificent building, Horticultural Hall, 
will be found space enough to make displays of 
nearly all exhibits requiring protection. The build¬ 
ing is 1000 ft. long, with an extreme width of 286 ft. 
The plan is a central pavilion, with two end pavilions, 
each connected to the outer pavilion by front and 
rear, curtains, forming two interior courts, each 
88 ft. by 270 ft. These courts are to be beautifully deco¬ 
rated in colour, and planted with ornamental shrubs 
and flowers. The centre pavilion is roofed by a 
crystal dome, 187 ft. in diameter, and 113 ft. high, 
under which will be exhibited the tallest palms, 
bamboos and tree ferns that can be procured. There 
is a gallery in each of the pavilions. The galleries 
of the end pavilions are designed for cafes, the 
situation and the surroundings being particularly 
well adapted to recreation and refreshment. The 
cafes are surrounded by an arcade on three sides, 
from which charming views of the grounds can be 
obtained. 
“ Of various tropical plants there will be large 
groups of Orchids, Palms, Ferns, and in fact nearly 
every known decorative species and variety. Out¬ 
door floriculture will be on such a scale of magnifi¬ 
cence as to eclipse all previous efforts, beginning 
with the showy Tulips and Hyacinths, ending with 
Chrysanthemums and Cosmos. Floriculture must 
be representative in every sense of the word." 
Sedum Sieeoldi.— The season during which this 
Stonecrop flowers varies greatly according to the con¬ 
ditions under which it is placed. A popular method of 
growing it is in pots hung up on the balconies of villas 
and other houses. Under such conditions the foliage 
often assumes a bright red hue by reason of being 
subjected to drought, and the flowers are produced 
in September. When grown in open positions on a 
rockery, the flowers are beautiful in October, when 
most things around show signs of going to rest. The 
petals are pink and the ovaries of a bright rose, 
while the roundly wedge-shaped leaves are of a deep 
sea-green or glaucous hue 
THE HERBACEOUS BORDER, 
Autumn Flowering Crocuses. 
According to the recent revision of the genus Crocus 
by Mr. G. Maw, there are close upon seventy species 
independent of varieties whether found in a wild 
state, or of garden origin. Comparatively few of 
these are in general cultivation, and the display i n 
spring is chiefly produced by the blue, white, and 
purple varieties of C. vernus, the yellow forms of C 
aureus, the golden and brown C. susianus and the 
striped forms of C. bifiorus spoken of as the Scotch 
Crocus, and largely grown in some old-fashioned 
Scotch gardens. The cultivation of most of them is 
of the easiest; but as some or other of them keep up 
a succession of bloom from August through the 
autumn, and winter till April, the late autumn, winter 
and early spring kinds are liable to have their flowers 
destroyed by heavy rains, frost or snow according to 
the vicissitudes of our uncertain climate. To see 
those in their best form it is necessary to shelter them 
in pits or frames. All the other kinds may be suc¬ 
cessfully grown in any moderately good garden soil 
provided it is well drained. If the soil is at all heavy 
a considerable quantity of sand might be mixed with 
it before planting. In private gardens they might 
be planted to good purpose upon rockeries, but fail¬ 
ing those places, they could be groum in the spaces 
between the ordinary occupants of the herbaceous 
border, and preferably in the first or second line, 
where they would be shown off to best advantage. 
Crocus Scharojani.— The Crocus season is prac¬ 
tically commenced by th ; s Caucasian species, which 
has bright orange flowers that make their appearance 
about the end of July and continue to the middle of 
August. The old leaves sometimes persist till the 
flowers of the new eorm make their appearance. It 
is a showy species and full of interest to those who 
are acquainted with Crocuses that flower in spring 
only. 
C. vallicola. —The pale straw' yellow flow'ers of 
this species appear towards the end of August, form¬ 
ing a succession to those of C. Scharojani and 
continue till the middle of September or thereby, 
They precede their leave; for some time, but in 
that respect are similar to the Colchicums. Al¬ 
though lacking in bright colours, the species may 
be described as pretty and interesting; it is quite 
hardy, grows vigorously and comes from the Caucasus 
and high mountains in Asia Minor. 
C. nudiflorus. — As the name would indicate the 
flowers of this species are also produced in advance 
of the leaves, but they are bluish-purple, .large and 
showy. 'What might be considered a fault of this 
species, is its habit of producing creeping under¬ 
ground rhizomes by which the plant soon covers a 
considerable area in suitable soil. This might well 
be taken advantage of by planting the corms on 
grass by the side of drives, in shrubberies and other 
places where it might ramble at will, and keep up a 
display during September and October. The species 
has actually become naturalised in several of the 
midland counties of England. It is a native of the 
Pyrenees and the north of Spain. 
C. speciosus. — This is one of the largest and 
showiest of all the autumn flowering species, and one 
cannot help feeling surprised at its comparative rarity 
in gardens generally. The broad perianth segments 
are bluish-purple, beautifully feathered with darker 
veins which add greatly to the charm of the whole. 
The flowers make their appearance without leaves, 
and continue to be produced in succession during 
September and the early part of October. It enjoys 
a wide distribution in its native habitats and is easily 
cultivated. 
C pulchellus.— The large flowers and their plea¬ 
sing soft lavender colour, recommend this species to 
the lover of hardy plants, almost as forcibly as in the 
last mentioned species. They commence to appear 
about the middle of September, and continue to be 
developed in succession up to December. On fine 
days they spread open, exhibiting a bright yellow 
throat. The decorative value of this species is such 
that every garden should possess it. 
C. medius. — There is some resemblance between 
this species and C. speciosus, inasmuch as the rich 
purple flowers are of large size and feathered with 
darker veins at the base, but the botanical characters 
of the corm separate the two widely. The much 
branched stigmas are bright scarlet, The flowers 
are produced in October, 
