690 
THE GARDENING WORLD 
June 27,1896. 
three already mentioned, for it really surpasses all of 
them in the intensity of this particular division of 
colour. We refer to Sutton’s Giant Brilliant Scarlet 
which has self-coloured flowers of an intense, glowing, 
scarlet-crimson, and which keep their bright hue to 
the last, inspite of sunshine, wind, drought, or rain. 
It is the darkest we have seen of the scarlet types. 
For cut flowers it is exceedingly handsome. 
Sutton’s Giant Striped is white with scarlet flakes, 
and the flowers attain a large size. Sutton’s Butter¬ 
fly is remarkably distinct and pretty, for it is 
practically a Picotee-edged variety, being white with 
a narrow blue edge to the standard and the wings. 
It is unique in its way, for we saw nothing else like it 
in the collection. Countess of Radnor with its soft 
and uniformly pale blue flowers will always remain 
a favourite. What shall we say of Sutton's Giant 
Sky Blue which has very much larger flowers of a 
sky blue tinted with mauve on the standard. 
Sutton’s Giant Dark Blue, is the darkest and brightest 
blue in the field ; the wings are the best in this 
respect. Imperial Blue is paler, and the standard is 
dark purple. The glowing bronzy-purple of 
Boreatton has not yet been surpassed in this particu¬ 
lar line of colour. The old Purple Invincible has 
wings of a violet-purple, and is very useful in its 
way. 
The above list could be greatly lengthened, but 
might well form the nucleus of a collection even of 
the best modern types. In the matter of sweetness 
they do not belie their name; for the combined odour 
of the collection on trial fills the air with a balmy 
fragrance that may be discerned for some distance 
down the wind. The flowers are most useful at all 
times for cutting ; and they should be used alone, 
mixed with a few sprays of their own foliage. 
--*•- 
FALKLAND PARK. 
Out-of-doors gardening has been carried on under 
great difficulties in the garden of T. McMeekin, Esq., 
Falkland Park, South Norwood Hill; S.E., owing to 
the severe and long-continued drought, yet the 
growth of perennials does not seem to have been 
much interfered with. The rainfall from January 
ist to the beginning of June of the present year has 
only been 5 in. so that there is a considerable 
deficiency even for the London district. The elevated 
situation of the establishment on the crown of 
Norwood Hill, and the gravelly soil have a telling 
effect in the absence of an average rainfall. The 
rain clouds often part at the foot of the hill, and the 
air current passes round on either side of the same, 
leaving the upper portions high and dry. The 
gardener, Mr. A. Wright, has no difficulty, however, 
in managing the indoor department, so that there is 
always an abundance of flowers, whatever the 
weather may be. The Orchids particularly have 
been flowering with great profusion for some time 
past. 
Orchids. 
The Orchid rockery is constructed of Derbyshire 
tufa, and is of very varied outline, though the general 
contour is circular. It is kept gay with material 
from other houses, particularly from the cool Odonto- 
glossum houses. O. crispum is represented by 
numerous very choice varieties, including O. c. 
album, as well as numerous finely blotched varieties. 
The flowers in some instances are of great size, and 
the blotches give them a handsome appearance. 
We noted more than one remarkably fine form of O. 
polyxanthum, with prominent dark brown blotches 
on a golden-yellow ground. One in particular is as fine 
as we have seen this species. O. Ha'lii has flower 
stems 3 ft. loog. Others here are O. andersonianum, 
O. hebraicum, and O. luteo-purpureum sceptrum, 
all fine of their kind. O. odoratum and O. 
Edwardi have finely-developed panicles, the latter 
having stems 3J ft. in length. Epidendrum vitellinum 
majus furnishes a fine contrast to the other colours. 
The same may be said of Oncidium concolor, 
with its uniformly yellow flowers. A large plant of 
O. macranthum has also flowered finely. Cymbidium 
lowianum has kept in bloom for the past three 
months. A dripping well, which may be made to 
play or stopped at will, serves to keep the plants 
cool, Ferns, Selaginellas, and Begonias furnish a 
setting of greenery. Altogether 120 plants were in 
bloom amongst the tufa in this small house on the 
occasion of our visit. 
In another house we noted two varieties of 
Coelogyne dayana, one of which has clear yellow 
flowers, and the lip brown inside. The other is C. 
d. grandis, with larger flowers tinted brown, and 
having longer racemes of twenty to thirty-seven 
flowers each. This is always a graceful and attrac¬ 
tive species. Miltonia vexillaria is here grown in 
quantity and variety. Laelia purpurata alba with 
white sepals and petals and L. purpurata with a dark 
lip are very fine. Cattleyas include C. Skinneri, C. 
Mendelii and C. Mossiae in variety ; one of the 
latter has a lip verging very closely on C. gaskelliana 
in colour. A large but dwarf plant of Sobralia 
macrantha Wooley’s var., is flowering very finely. 
The large flowers of dendrobium dalhousieanum are 
very conspicuous. The sweetly-scented Odonto- 
glossum citrosmum, with its long, pendent racemes 
of bloom, is grown in quantity. The soft colours 
and the yellow blotch on the lip of Cattleya 
walkeriana are charming. 
The East Indian house close by contains Orchids 
of a different class, and requiring a higher tempera¬ 
ture. The large panicles of Oncidium ampliatum 
majus are very conspicoous. Very choice is Sobralia 
xantholeuca, with its yellow and white flowers. A 
very prettily-marked Vanda suavis is notable for the 
bright purple spots changing to brown with age. 
Vanda tricolor planilabris with a large purple lip is 
another fine form. The profusion of flowers pro¬ 
duced by Burlingtonia pubescens should make it a 
favourite with a large number of growers. Cypri- 
pediums are a feature of this house, and some or 
other of them are in bloom at every season, while 
some never appear to be absent. For instance C. 
chamberlainianum is continually in bloom, and the 
plants often have two or three blooms open at the 
same time. A large piece of C. superciliare is very 
fine. The long twisted petals of C. philippinense 
are conspicuous, as are those of C. grande, which 
reach a length of 14 in. C. dayanum is also well- 
grown and flowered. C. bellatalum and C. niveum 
are not forgotten. Aerides Lobbii hangs out its long 
pendent racemes. 
The cool Orchid houses are kept in fine order, and 
the plants are making capital growth; but as the 
plants are, to a great extent, taken elsewhere when 
in bloom, there is never a great display. Neverthe¬ 
less, some fine varieties of Odontoglossom crispum, 
including O. c. guttatum are to be seen here, as well 
as O. luteo-purpureum. A well-flowered piece of 
Oncidium hastiferum, from the Downside collection, 
has made splendid growth. These houses are shaded 
with Messrs. Waters & Co’s. Lath Roller Blinds, 
which answer the purpose admirably by keeping the 
house cool and excluding the burning rays of the 
sun. 
Other Plant Houses. 
The conservatory No. 7 is kept gay at all times of 
the year with the plants that may in season. At 
present the Fuchsias, Malmaison Carnations, 
Spiraea astilboides floribunda and a dwarf, fioriferous 
strain of Calceolarias, are conspicuous features. The 
varieties of Japanese Maples are very numerous and 
make themselves attractive by their finely-cut foliage. 
A hybrid of Rhododendron Veitchi has large and 
deliciously fragrant flowers. The roof is festooned 
and rendered gay with Cobaea scandens variegata, 
Lonicera sempervirens, and the white-flowered 
Solanum jasminoides. 
Caladiums are certainly a feature of the stove, for 
in this structure something between sixty and 
seventy varieties of them are grown, including all 
the best and most popular in cultivation. The 
colouring is extremely varied as may be imagined 
and it would be futile here to attempt a description 
of them. A large proportion of the plants is very 
dwarf. Plants of Begonia Gloire de Sceau are 
grown to a great height and flower well. Interesting 
and attractive is the edging of Clerodendron balfour- 
ianum, the stems of which are trained round the 
edges of the side benches, and flower profusely. The 
pretty Hoya bella is flowering very freely in another 
house, as is Medinilla magnifica. A fine strain of 
Gloxinias is a feature of another structure. Some 
blue varieties with a white throat are very notice¬ 
able. 
There are several greenhouses kept at a low 
temperature in accordance with the requirements of 
the contents. ’ At the entrance to the Fern rockery 
we noted a variety of Scolopendrium vulgare which 
had entire or undivided fronds last year. While 
making growth this season the fronds have become 
from one to four times forked. The long corridor 
connecting all the houses is always gay with 
climbers, including Fuchsias, Trachelospermum 
jasminoides, scarlet Pelargoniums, Abutilons, 
Solanum jasminoides, Heliotrope, Tropaeolum Ball 
of Fire, and many others. The Tropaeolum covers 
all the roof in places, and the long, pendent shoots 
are covered with fiery scarlet flowers that have a 
splendid effect. 
The propagating pits contain some choice fine 
foliage plants in excellent condition. We merely 
mention Leea amabalis, Anoectochilus Petola, 
Sonerillas, Bertolonias and others with beautiful 
markings. Close by is a fine collection of Celosia 
pyramidalis in full bloom. The nucleus of a collec¬ 
tion of British Ferns has just been formed and 
includes some beautiful and rare species and 
varieties. 
Fruit and Vegetable Garden. 
The orchard house consists of a long range of glass, 
divided into several compartments all entirely un¬ 
heated by artificial means. The back wall is mostly 
covered with Peaches and Nectarines, of which a 
few of the trees are sparsely fruited, but the rest are 
bearing heavy crops. The same may be said of 
Apricots. Some large Fig trees at one end always 
crop heavily. Plums, Cherries, and Pears are either 
grown in pots or planted out. Many of the trees, 
particularly the Pears are grown as oblique cordons 
trained to wires along the front of the house. Some 
of the Pears which bore heavily last year are rather 
thin, but the rest leave nothing to be desired. The 
vineries here are gradually being renovated, and the 
young canes in one of them are makiog vigorous 
growth. The old Pear trees and the youDg pyramidal 
Apple trees in the open ground are heavily fruited, 
and the clusters of fruit on the young trees have 
been thinned. 
On the open border the first dish of Strawberries 
was gathered from Royal Sovereign on the 6th inst. : 
and this was from runners planted out in August 
last. The old plantation of the same variety ripened 
its first fruits about a week later under the same 
conditions. At the same date Carter’s Lightning 
and William I. Peas were ready for use. Potatos 
grown in the open border and entirely unprotected, 
included Sutton's Seedling, Sutton's Early Border, 
and Beauty of Hebron, all of which were fit for use 
by the same date, though some of them might have 
been dug before. The first crop of Turnips had 
been nearly all pulled. Both autumn and spring- 
sown Onions have grown well and the same might be 
said of the Leeks. Owing to the mild winter, many 
of the autumn-sown Onions had bolted ; but this 
state of matters is prevalent elsewhere. 
Hardy Flowers. 
As at many other places the summer bedding has 
been accomplished under great difficulties. Hardy 
perennials, however, are flowering finely, although 
their season is usually curtailed by reason of the 
drought. Great quantities of flowers of all kinds are 
located on the mounds and banks, and amongst the 
roots and rocks variously disposed about the 
ornamental water. Iberis garexiana superba and I. 
correaefolia have been fine on rockwork at one end 
of the water, and Yucca filamentosa is making for 
bloom. On the damp margins of the pond, Primula 
japonica has kept up a display in various shades for 
some time past. P. rosea also does well under the 
same conditions. Kalmia angustifolia in a peat bed 
high above the water and in various shades of red 
has been most profuse. The Yellow Flag (Iris 
Pseudacorus) is thoroughly at home with its feet in 
the water, and a most conspicuous ornament. 
Nymphaea marmorata, with yellow petals and 
golden anthers, N. alba with rounder and blunter 
petals than usual, and Nupharfluteum are thoroughly 
at home and flowering freely on the water. 
Lilium umbellatum in the same beds for three 
years past has been increasing in vigour and flower¬ 
ing profusely. In the near vicinity of the water are 
beds or masses of Her Majesty, Fimbriata, and other 
Pinks, making a brave display; also Antirrhinums, 
Azaleas, Spanish Irises, Oriental Poppies, Sidalcea 
Candida, Pyrethrums, Hemerocallis flava, Lychnis 
Flos-Jovis, and L. Viscaria splendens. Varieties of 
Clematis clamber over the rockery, and Spiraea 
ariaefolia is conspicuous by reason of its large 
panicles of bloom. 
The shrubberies all round the margin of the wood 
and in the American garden, have been rendered 
very gay by means of a collection of hardy hybrid 
Rhododendrons in named varieties. They are now 
over, but very fine were Mrs. John Clutton, white; 
The Queen, blush with tawny spots on the upper 
segments ; Madame Carvalho, something in the way 
of the last ; Purity, white, but smaller than the first- 
named ; Princess Louise, white, and very early ; 
Michael Waterer, very dark red ; and many others 
of great merit, and ornamental to say the least of 
them, 
