702 
THE GARDENING WORLD 
July 4, 1896. 
Accompanying the above was a branch of the 
handsomely coloured Oncidium curtum, with its in¬ 
tricate marbling of rich brown and bright yellow ; it is 
always a handsome and much appreciated species on 
account of its lively colours. Miltonia vexillaria was 
notable for the great size of its rosy flowers. The 
large orange-scarlet flowers of Epidendrum vitellinum 
majus also testified to the cultural skill of Mr. 
Lindsay. A dark coloured and good form of Odonto- 
glossum maculatum bore five flowers of good texture 
on a spike. 
The houses at Rosemount have been very gay for 
some time past, as indeed they are at present. Good 
things are appreciated at their value here, and receive 
the best cultural attention, judging from the speci¬ 
mens sent us on this and previous occasions. Two 
months ago one of the cool houses was gay with 
Dendrobium thyrsiflorum, Odontoglossum crispum, 
O. Rcssii majus, O. triumphans, Miltonia vexillaria 
and other useful things, as a photograph before us 
shows. Odontoglossum polyxanthum bore fifteen to 
twenty flowers each on spikes 4 ft. long. Another 
photograph represents a grand piece of Lycaste 
Deppei, in a 10-in. pot, and bearing eighty-nine 
flowers, all fully expanded. Most of them were twin 
flowers, bearing silent yet demonstrative evidence of 
Mr. Lindsay’s cultural ability. 
-- 
GERANIUM PYRENAICUM. 
The specific name of this plant would seem to imply 
that it is common in the Pyrenees. Whether that 
be so or not I am unaware, but it is not common in 
this country ; i.e., it is not found on every rubbish 
heap one comes across, or in every churchyard one 
rambles through. But plants that are not common 
generally, may be common specifically ; and such I 
found to be the case the other day when examining 
the sacred enclosure of Shiplake Church. 
There 'twas growing in abundance 
’Midst the tombstones gray and old ; 
And I wondered why “ God’s Acre ” 
Should include this in its fold. 
It is a pretty little Crane’s-bill with reddish-purple 
flowers and soft reniform leaves that are seven to 
nine-lobed. It is, I suppose, a plant that most 
people would call a "weed,” but what that is I am 
not prepared to say—it depends upon temperament. 
Whether it be a weed or otherwise matters not just 
now, it is a British plant and merits note. 
If the late poet laureate had apostrophised it, it 
would doubtless have held its head much higher in 
public estimation. But the inevitable always comes 
to pass, and the flower remains uncared for and 
unsought except by hobbyists. It must, however, 
have been known to the late Lord Tennyson as he 
was at one time a frequent visitor there, his 
“ favourite chalk pit ” is close by—and, moreover, as 
his visits were of that beautiful soul-stirring order, the 
wonder is that he did not poetise everything floral 
that came under his observation.— C. B. G., Acton, W, 
-»a«- — —- 
SWEET WILLIAMS FROM HOLMES- 
DALE NURSERIES. 
A large bunch of flowers of Sweet Williams was 
handed in at our office the other day, and which had 
been grown by Messrs. Young and Dobinson, 
Holmesdale Nurseries, Stevenage, Herts. The free¬ 
dom with which these hardy flowers can be grown, 
their beauty and variety gives us cause for wonder 
that they are not more extensively cultivated for 
garden decoration. Were they not so easily grown, 
we should imagine the florist would take them in 
hand and develop some fine strains, not along any 
one particular line of development but several ; at 
least we hope that would be the case. Those grown 
at the Holmesdale Nurseries contained an Auricula¬ 
eyed type which was characterised by a bread 
crimson zone of even outline, situated midway between 
the centre and the circumference of the flowers. 
This is one of the most refined of the single types. 
Others were self-coloured varieties in rose, pink, and 
crimson hues. Some of them had a beautifully 
marbled central zone. Double varieties are also well 
worthy of cultivation, particularly those which are 
of some simple but decided colour. The size of the 
trusses gives the flowers a massive appearance in the 
aggregate. Beds of these things on the grass have 
a fine effect planted in mixture or selected colours. 
No flowers are more suitable for making a bright 
display in cottage gardens during the month of June. 
Seeds sown at the present time and planted in their 
permanent positions sometime during autumn will 
require little or no attention, except keeping the 
ground clear and the surface loosened occasionally 
with the hoe, till the plants come into bloom. If 
planted in full exposure to sunshine, the stems are 
short-jointed, stout, and require no staking, especi¬ 
ally when grown in the mass. 
-- S. - 
FRUIT NOTES. 
Never have we seen small fruits and Apples more 
plentiful than at present. Though Plums, Cherries, 
and Apricots are attacked severely by grubs, black 
and green fly, Apples, Currants, and Gooseberries, 
are clean and the foliage healthy. The continued 
use of Tobacco powder and Helebore powder with 
soapy water syringed on the trees attacked with 
vermin, keeps them well preserved from injury. 
Preventive measures are best. Black Currants lifted 
and re-planted two seasons ago are fruitful and free 
from crowding of growth. A good mulching to trees 
treated so increases the size of fruits. I notice that 
Raspberry canes bent over forming arches of 3ft. in 
height, and kept nearly their whole length, give 
heavy crops of fruit from the base to the extreme 
ends of the rods. When canes are strong, and left in 
bunches of four and five they require no staking; and 
the gathering of the fruit is easily performed from 
the arched canes.— M. Temple, Carron, N.B. 
-—- 
READING AND DISTRICT 
GARDENERS. 
A party of about 100 members of the Reading and 
District Gardeners' Mutual Improvement Associa¬ 
tion, paid a visit to Messrs. Sutton & Son's Seed 
Trial Grounds in the London Road on Thursday 
evening, June 25th. The visit was arranged to see 
the Pea Trials of Messrs. Sutton, it being thought 
by the Association that they would be of great 
interest and profit to the members. Consent was 
obtained from the firm and on Thursday evening Mr. 
Leonard G. Sutton was present to welcome the 
members, among whom were Mr.T. Neve, Chairman. 
Mr. C. Burton, vice-chairman, Mr. Phipps, 
treasurer, Messrs. Woolford, Lees, Stanton, Turton, 
Dockerill, Webb, Smith, Gibson, Bright, Dearlove, 
&c., &c. Before proceeding to inspect the trials, the 
company sat down to an excellent tea provided by 
the firm. Afterwards, the party being a large one, 
was divided, one portion going to view the Culinary 
Peas first, the other to inspect the Sweet Pea 
trials. 
In drawing the attention of the visitors to the 
culinary Peas it was pointed out that the trials, 
which numbered 590 and comprised 334 varieties, 
were all sown on the same day and grown under 
treatment and with no artificial watering. -They had 
not been grown to see what size pods could be 
obtained, but to compare one variety with another 
on exactly equal terms, therefore, there were many 
of the older varieties growing alongside the more 
recent introductions of the firm, and thus it was 
possible to judge the varieties most suitable to grow. 
The sorts that attracted most attention were the 
large podded first-early wrinkled Peas, Sutton's 
Seedling and Excelsior, and many of the members 
present who had successfully grown Sutton’s 
Bountiful agreed that this variety was one of the 
most suitable for early work. It being early in the 
season only the first and second earlies were seen at 
their best, although a hasty glance through the 
latter kinds showed that there were some useful 
seedlings which the firm had in hand, notably two or 
three of the Duke of Albany type. Space would not 
permit to give descriptions of the many novelties 
seen, but each member was impressed with the great 
strides which had been made in the improvement of 
the first and second earlies, and in the future could 
expect something as remarkable in the maincrop 
\ arieties. 
The sweet Peas consisted of 125 trials all repre¬ 
sented by different names and filled 350 rows 16 ft. 
long, the following being perhaps those that claimed 
most attention :—Sutton's Double White, Emily 
Henderson, Mrs Sankey, Duchess of York, Sutton's 
Giant Primrose, Lady Beaconsfield, Sutton’s Delicate 
Rose, Delight, Duke of York, Mrs. Joseph Chamber- 
lain, Apple Blossom, Princess Beatrice, Mrs. 
Gladstone, Her Majesty, Sutton’s Brilliant Scarlet, 
Countess of Radnor, and Boreatton. A few 
enthusiasts of “The Potato” spent some time 
amongst the Potato experimental plots' and were 
greatly interested in the growths of the various 
varieties. Before dispersing, a very hearty vote of 
thanks was, on the proposition of Mr.Neve, accorded 
to the Messrs. Sutton for their kindness in not only 
allowing them the opportunity of spending a most 
pleasant and profitable time amongst the various 
trials, but also for their hospitality. 
PLANTS RECENTLY CERTIFICATED. 
The following awards were made by the Royal 
Horticultural Society on the 23rd ult. :— 
Orchid Committee. 
Cypripedium superbiens. —A large and well-grown 
plant of this species, bearing nine huge flowers, was 
exhibited by Sir Trevor Lawrence, Bart., (grower, 
Mr. W. H. White), Burford Lodge, Dorking, The 
dorsal sepal was beautifully lined with green on a 
white ground, and the petals heavily spotted with 
purple on a clearer ground. The tip was dark 
purple. This fine species should be in every collec¬ 
tion. First-class Certificate. 
Cypripedium Neptune. Nov. hyb. —The seed 
bearer of this hybrid was C. Io grande and the 
pollen bearer C. rothschildianum. The light green 
leaves are heavily tessellated with dark green. The 
upper petal is straw-yellow and ornamented with 
twenty to twenty-four blackish brown lines often 
broken up into spots at the base. The petals are 
lanceolate, 4 in. long, slightly deSlining and are 
straw-yellow, with numerous purple and brownish 
black blotches recalling the female parent. In all 
the other characters except the blotches, the colours 
recall the pollen parent, C. rothschildianum, so that 
it is a fine thing. Award of Merit. Messrs. F. 
Sander & Co., St. Albans. 
Cirrhopetalum nutans.— The leaves of this 
little species are oblong, leathery, and tinted with 
purple. The flowers are small, white, and borne in 
close, umbel-like racemes. Botanical Certificate. 
Sir Trevor Lawrence, Bart. 
Gongora maculata.— The sepals and lip of this 
species are yellowish and closely dotted with small 
brown specks. The petals are colourless and shiniDg 
like isinglass. Botanical Certificate. A plant with 
a long raceme of bloom was shown by G. Soper, 
Esq., Harestone, Caterbam Valley. 
Floral Committee. 
Anthurium lawrenceanum. —The spathe of this 
hybrid is as large or larger than that of A. andrean- 
um and of the same shape but rather less wrinkled 
over the surface, and of a waxy, shining white. The 
spadix is flesh coloured and stout; and the leaves 
are large, heart-shaped, and leathery. First-class 
Certificate. Sir Trevor Lawrence, Bart, (gardener, 
Mr. W. Bain). 
Astilbe chinensis. —The leaves of this species 
are bi-tri-ternate like those of Spiraea astilboides. 
The flowers are in similar branching spikes, the 
latter arching gracefully, and of a pale flesh colour. 
It will make a beautiful border plant. First-class 
Certificate. Sir Trevor Lawrence, Bart. 
Anthurium andreanum Kelly’s var. —The 
spathe of this hybrid is of great size and of a beauti¬ 
ful salmon-flesh colour, slightly wrinkled. The 
spadix is yellow, fading to cream as it comes into 
blcom. The shield shaped, leathery leaves are of 
great size. First-class Certificate. Messrs. F. 
Sander & Co., St. Albans. 
Asparagus tenuissimus albanense. —The habit 
of this plant is like the type, but it is more slender 
in all its parts and exceedingly graceful. The so- 
called leaves are of a delicate green when they first 
expand, deepening with age, and they are never 
arranged in one plane like those of A. plumosus 
nanus. The variety was introduced from South 
Africa by Messrs. F. Sander & Co., who were the 
exhibitors. Award of Merit. 
Canna Italia. —This belongs to the same new 
hybrid type as C. Austria, described by us quite 
recently. The flowers are of great size, and funnel- 
shaped at the base, with a spreading lamina. Three 
of the segments are very large and yellow, with a 
scarlet base. The two smaller central ones are 
crimson-scarlet. The leaves are of great size and of 
a rich dark green, The huge flowers of this new race 
are very attractive. Award of Merit. Messrs. J. 
Veitch & Sons, Chelsea. 
Iris laevigata (Kaempferi) CHiGO.-^-The flowers 
