December 19, 1891. 
THE GARDENING WORLD 
247 
more definite, and quotes Miss Wood, the author of 
Letters of Royal and Illustrious Ladies," as relating 
an amusing anecdote as to the fondness for it of 
fickle and never satisfied Henry VIII. In 1539 the 
new Queen, Ann of Qleves, desired to engage a maid- 
of-honour. Lady Lisle, seeking to propitiate his 
Majesty in favour of her daughter Katherine, made 
him a present of some Damson cheese and some of 
this identical Quince jam, then called “ Cotiniac.” 
Whether the object was attained or not we are left 
in doubt. So acceptable, however, to the royal 
epicure were Lady Lisle's sweetmeats, that Anne 
Bassett, by whose hand they had been conveyed, 
writes offhand : “ The King doth so like the con¬ 
serves you sent him, that his Grace commandeth me 
to send to you for more, and that as soon as may 
be.” 
An old recipe for making Quince marmalade in the 
days of Queen Elizabeth reads as follows :—“ Take 
faire Quinces, paire them, cut them in pieces, and 
cast away the core, then put into every pound of 
Quinces a pound of sugar, and to every pound of 
sugar a pint of water ; these must be boiled together 
over a still fire till they be very soft, then let it be 
strained or rubbed through a strainer, or an hairy 
sieve which is better, and then set it over a fire to 
boil againe, until it be stiffe, and so box it up, and as 
it cooleth put thereto a little Rose water, and a few 
graines of Muske mingled together, which will give a 
goodly taste to the Cotiniat.” 
" The Quince,” says Mr. George Bunyard, ” de¬ 
lights in damp soil, and can therefore be planted on 
swampy land, or on pond margins, or odd corners on 
ordinary soil; a good watering with liquid manure 
will swell the fruit to a large size.” I have seen in 
Kent Quince trees in exposed positions where it 
would appear to be difficult for a plant to flourish 
and yet doing well, and bearing remarkably fine 
fruit. But it is a very accommodating tree, and will 
do well in almost any soil. Mr. Bunyard recom¬ 
mends The Champion, an Apple-shaped American 
variety, Reay’s Mammoth and Meech's Prolific, 
two other American varieties, are highly spoken of. 
But our old standard varieties are the apple-shaped, 
which is considered one of the most profitable to 
grow, as it bears abundantly and stews well. The 
Pear-shaped is drier and tougher in the flesh than 
the foregoing, and therefore of less value for culinary 
purposes; but it is not such a good keeper. For 
quality and flavour the.Portugal Quince stands first, 
and it is preferred because the flesh becomes of a 
crimson colour when cooked. The tree is a strong 
grower, but is not such a good bearer as some of 
the foregoing ; and as quantity is often preferred to 
quality, the Portugal is less grown. It is said to make 
the best stock to graft Pears upon. 
The Quince as a ripe fruit is not eaten raw, but 
prepared in some way by cooking. It is stewed 
occasionally with Pears and other fruits ; it is added 
to Pear and Apple pies, and manufactured into jam, 
jelly, or marmalade, and even into wine. But the 
housewife can also employ it in other ways, and I 
think the usefulness of the Quince is not enough 
regarded.— R. D. 
THE NATIONAL 
AMATEUR GARDENERS’ 
ASSOCIATION. 
Members and friends of this association, to the 
number of nearly one hundred, celebrated its estab¬ 
lishment—some ten months ago—by dining together 
on Tuesday evening last, at the Guildhall Tavern, 
E.C., under the chairmanship of Mr. T. W. Sanders, 
the President of the association. The dining room 
was very tastefully decorated for the occasion. A 
number of ladies were present; and besides the 
usual amount of speechmaking a capital musical 
programme was got through in good time. In pro¬ 
posing the toast of the evening, “ Success to the 
National Amateur Gardeners’ Association,” the 
chairman warmly congratulated the members on the 
remarkable success which had attended their efforts 
during the few months the association had been in 
existence. It originated at a meeting of a few per¬ 
sonal friends held in November of last year, who 
considering that none of the horticultural societies 
then existing specially met the circumstances and 
requirements of the bona fide amateur, determined to 
attempt the organisation of an association of ama¬ 
teurs for their common benefit. The success which 
had attended their efforts was beyond their most san¬ 
guine expectations. They had on their roll of 
membership at the present time nearly 250 persons, 
and their members were not confined to residents in 
the British Isles, for they had members in Australia, 
Japan, and Italy, and there could be no doubt that 
a few months hence would see the number doubled. 
The committee had under consideration a 
proposition to establish branches of the association 
in various parts of the country, and also to admit 
other amateurs’ societies into affiliation. Their 
monthly meetings had been exceedingly enjoyable to 
the members, and of the greatest benefit to many 
who had attended them with the object of gaining 
information and advice ; and the system they had 
adopted of giving marks to subjects exhibited by 
members according to merit bad been found to work 
exceedingly well, and to create a great amount of 
interest among the members. Mr. Sanders con¬ 
cluded by remarking that although their annual 
subscription was exceedingly small, and it was 
advisedly made so, they had been able to meet all 
liabilities, and at the end of their first year would 
have a small balance in hand. They intended in 
every way to make the association of use to bona 
fide amateurs in looking after their interests, and he 
hoped all would do their best to bring in additional 
members. 
During the evening the prizes awarded during the 
past season were distributed. Mr. H. J. Needs took 
the Silver Medal given for the highest aggregate of 
marks, and Mr. W. S. Sach, the Bronze Medal for 
the second highest, while Certificates of Merit were 
obtained by Mr. ,G. A. Maynard, Mr. D. B. Crane, 
Mr. J. S. Whaley, Mr. G. McLeod, Mr. E. F. Wicks, 
Mr. E. G. Neisigh, Mr. John Biddick, Mr. W. E. 
Kenny, Mr. L. Brown, Mr. M. Burgess, Mr. A. J. 
Foster, Mr. G. Hayward, Mr. H. Kerry, Mr. A. J. 
Launder, Mr. A. McWilton, Mr. Munday, Mrs. H. 
W. Percy, Mrs. Stevenson, and Mr. F. Watson. A 
considerable number of special prizes to be given 
next year was also announced. 
-—- 
ORCHID NOTES AND GLEANINGS, 
Zygopetalum rostratum. 
In general appearance this species bears some resem¬ 
blance to those which in gardens are classed under 
Warscewiczella. The remarkable beak of the 
column, and to which the specific name refers, soon 
attracts the attention of the onlooker, and the large 
white wings of the column itself are no less remark¬ 
able. The spreading sepals and petals are linear- 
lanceolate, whitish at the base, and greenish yellow 
upwards. The lip on the contrary is very large and 
white with about ten lilac-purple lines radiating on 
to it from the curious toothed or ridged crest at the 
base, and which is marked in the same way. The 
plant as a whole is dwarf in habit, bearing a single 
flower on the scapes. To do it well this plant 
requires rather more heat than is generally given to 
the other species. It is now in season, and different 
individuals will keep up a succession for some 
months to come. 
Odontoglossum Insleayi. 
The large-flowered O. grande has mostly given place 
to O. Insleayi in its various forms, which may be 
seen in collections everywhere. When the first 
flowers expand after a twelvemonth's growth since 
the previous flowering, they have a fresh appearance 
which is very welcome at this dull period of the year. 
The reddish brown blotches or bars on a greenish 
yellow ground is characteristic of the type, but this 
is intensified to chestnut brown barred with yellow 
in the variety O. I. leopardinum, and O. I. 
pantherinum is characteristic by the whole lip being 
blotched with red on a bright yellow ground. The 
sepals and petals of O. I. splendens on the contrary 
are of a uniform ochreous-yellow, and the lip sur¬ 
rounded by a band of blotches on a bright yellow 
ground. 
Cattleya maxima. 
The flowers of this species are very distinct from 
any of the C. labiata type, but notwithstanding their 
beauty and variety the species is not particularly 
popular with cultivators. It blooms at various times 
during the autumn months, and has large flowers, 
but hardly such as would warrant the specific name, 
seeing that in several of the varieties or forms of C, 
labiata we have much larger flowers, particularly if 
the width of the segments is taken into consideration, 
The sepals are lanceolate, the petals oval-oblong, all 
greatly elongated and of a soft, satiny rose. There is 
a white variety (so-called) in which the sepals and 
petals are white, but the lip retains its usual mark¬ 
ings. The latter organ is the most variable part of 
the flower, and although never showing the intense 
colouring characteristic of so many forms of C 
labiata, yet the distribution of the colour is very 
pleasing. This consists of lines of pale or dark pur¬ 
ple, following the principle veins of the terminal 
lobe ; sometimes the lines are very broad, of a deep 
rich purple, and traverse the whole of the lamina 
with exception of the margin, which forms a pale 
lilac border surrounding the rest, as in the garden 
variety known as C. m. peruviana. The species 
comes from Ecuador and northern Peru. 
Park House, Cottingham, Hull. 
It is immaterial at what season of the year I chance 
to visit Mr. David Wilson’s lovely establishment, I 
am always impressed with its magnitude. During 
summer and autumn it is most delightful to ramble 
through the grounds, there is such variety, so much 
to interest the plant lover, as Mr. Wilson’s collection 
of choice trees and shrubs is one of the richest in the 
East Riding, but at the time of my visit, October 29th, 
the great centre of attraction was the houses. Not 
only is there a rich and extensive collection of Orchids, 
but there are fine collections of Palms, Crotons, 
Dracaenas, in fact all kinds of stove and greenhouse 
plants, far too numerous to be enumerated here. The 
Orchids noted in bloom were : Cypripedium insigne, 
C. i. Chantini, C. i. albo marginata, C. Harrisianum, 
C. calurum, C. Spicerianum, Dendrobium phalaen- 
opsis, D. chrysanthum, D. formosum giganteum, 
Cattleya Worocqueana, C. Bowringeana, C. maxima 
peruviana, Oncidium tigrinum, O. incurvum, O. 
Forbesi, O. crispum, Odontoglossum grande, O, 
crispum, O. Harryanum, O. pescatorei, O. Uro- 
Skinneri, O. Rossi majus, Pleione lagenaria, Calanthe 
Veitchii, C. vestita, C. v. oculata rubra, Phalaenopsis 
amabilis, Laelia Perrini, and Vanda coerulea, nume¬ 
rous representatives of each. Mr. Wright is the able 
gardener at Park House; he is an enthusiastic 
Orchidist, an excellent plant grower, and keeps well 
to the front as an exhibitor, as the Hull gardeners well 
know.— J. McNab. 
Cypripedium Leeanum giganteum. 
The upper sepal of this Cypripedium is the most 
conspicuous organ of the flower. It is nearly 
orbicular, somewhat wavy round the apex, very 
large, pale green in the lower half except at the 
edges and spotted with brown, while the upper half 
is white and spotted with purple along the midrib. 
The greenish-yellow petals are wavy on the upper 
edge, tinted with brown, and the midrib is of a dark 
brown. The lip is of a bright shining brown, which 
adds considerably to the lustre of the flower as a 
whole. The typical C. Leeanum, as is well-known, is 
a hybrid between C. insigne and C. Spicerianum, and 
partakes of the character of both parents, the influ¬ 
ence of the latter, which was the pollen parent, being 
very marked. The variety C. L. giganteum is dis¬ 
tinguished by the great size of the flowers, and the 
spotting is different both from that of the type and 
from C. L. superbum. It was exhibited by Sir 
Trevor Lawrence, Bart., M.P. (gardener, Mr. W. 
White), Burford Lodge, Dorking, and also by Messrs. 
F. Sander & Co., St. Albans, at the meeting of the 
Royal Horticultural Society on the 8th inst., when 
an Award of Merit was accorded in each case. 
Calanthe versicolor. 
The most striking feature of this Calanthe is the 
great size of the flowers, w'hich are white with excep. 
tion of some colour on the lip. The sepals are 
lanceolate ; the petals oblong-elliptic ; and the large 
lip is three-lobed, the side lobes being rounded and 
the middle lobe reniform, bifid. The throat is rose 
coloured and yellow lower down. The habit of the plant 
is similar to that of C. vestita, the pseudo-bulbs being 
leafless at the time of flowering. The scapes of the 
plants exhibited at the Drill Hall, Westminster, on 
the 8th inst. by Sir Trevor Lawrence, Bart., M.P. 
(gardener, Mr. W. White), Burford Lodge, Dorking, 
bore twelve to fourteen flowers each, and the great 
size of the latter compared favourably with the 
numerous other varieties and hybrids of Calanthe§ 
shown, An Award of Merit was accorded it. 
Schomburgkia Sanderiana, 
The species of Schomburgkia hitherto introduced [to 
cultivation have purple flowers variously shaded 
with crimson, brown or dull brick-red, rarely white, 
