116 
THE GARDENING WORLD. 
Oct. 25th, 1884. 
The Strawbeeey Teee, Arbutus TJnedo, is 
just now, perhaps, the most effective evergreen 
slnuib in our gardens. It is one of those few 
trees which postpone their flowering until late in 
the autumn. It forms a compact round hush of 
dai’k shining green, and the leaves are beautifully 
serrate. The pendulous panicles are produced 
in abundance, and the ovoid corollas are white. 
They are followed in the next summer by small, 
red, tubercled fruit, which almost exactly 
resemble a full-sized wild Strawberry. It is 
never unsightly except when damaged by severe 
frost, and is eminently well suited for a specimen 
on the lawn. It is truly wild at Killarney, in 
Ireland, but not indigenous to Great Britain. 
It is frequent in hilly districts in South and 
West Europe, and extends eastward almost or 
quite to the Caucasus. 
Peince of Orange Tomato. —As showing how 
rapidly large sorts of Tomatos are being produced, 
we may mention that the fine new golden-coloured 
variety shown at South Kensington the other 
day by Mr. K. Dean, and well named Prince of 
Orange, is almost an exact duplicate of the fine 
red Stamfordian which Mr. Miles shows so well in 
his vegetable collections. Whether yellow skinned 
kinds are as popular and saleable as reds or not, 
at least they are far more taking in appearance 
than are those kinds of the brick-red or squashed 
Strawberry hue we sometimes see. Prince of 
Orange is a product of Stamfordian crossed with 
Greengage, and is a fine handsome variety that 
should become popular because of its size, free- 
bearing qualities, and rich colour. 
--wH-- 
Autumn Tints. —What more beautiful effects 
are to be seen in the pleasure grounds and woods 
at any season, than the glorious tints of the 
ripening leaves in autumn. At the present 
moment these are everywhere the prime feature 
of the landscape, and thanks to the beautiful 
weather, have a charm not always enjoyed in 
“chill October.” Mr. McLellan, writing from 
the gardens at Merthly Castle, Perthshire, gives 
a glowing account of the brilliant hues of the 
dying leaves of some of the varieties of the Oak 
and Maple at that place ; of the great beauty of 
the wild Cherry tree, dotted here and there in 
the Fir plantations ; and of the splendid patches 
of bright scarlet “ amang the Heather,” afforded 
by the foliage of the common Whortleberry. 
Another fine contrast noted by our correspondent, 
is seen in a straight avenue of Limes and common 
Yew trees, planted alternately ; the dark sombrous 
Yews, with the yellow leaves of the Lime, and a 
clear blue sky above, rendering the whole scene a 
picture of great beauty. 
The Feuiteeebs’ Company.— On Friday, the 
17th inst., the Lord Mayor entertained at the 
Mansion House, at dinner, the members of the 
Court of the Fruiterers’ Company, and, in accord¬ 
ance with a very ancient custom, the Court of 
the Company presented the Lord Mayor with a 
splendid collection of choice fruits. The Master 
of the Company, George Hopcroft, Esq., being 
absent on account of indisposition, his place 
was filled by Edward Tidswell, Esq., who, in 
a very able manner, made the presentation to 
the Lord Mayor. At the conclusion of this part 
of the ceremony, Mr. Tidswell, as Treasurer of 
the Gardeners’ Koyal Benevolent Institution, 
presented the Lady Mayoress with a magnificent 
basket of flowers (prepared by Mr. T. A. Dickson, 
of Covent Garden), which her ladyship was pleased 
to accept. During the evening, we understand 
that Mr. Tidswell was successful in enlisting the 
services of many gentlemen as stewards for the 
anniversary festival to be held in July next; and 
in this good work he was ably seconded by Mr. 
Cutler, the Secretary of the Institution, who was 
a guest of the Lord Mayor upon the occasion. 
(Snxkmng Ip&tclhmu 
Me. B. S. Williams is preparing for the press a new 
and greatly improved edition of The Orchid Growers' 
Manual. The last (the fifth) edition being out of 
print, it is to be hoped the new one will soon be 
issued. 
Messes. Chaeles P. Kinnell & Co., 31, Bankside, 
Southwark, have recently issued an illustrated Price 
List of Hot-Water Appliances, which contains also some 
very useful instructions on the principles of heating by 
hot water, practical hints on which amateurs are very 
often in want of. 
Mr. Aldeeman Charles Wisbey, in whose honour 
the late Mr. Richard Headley named a well-known 
show Auricula, died at Cambridge on the 20tli inst., 
aged seventy-seven. 
A Dictionary of English names of plants “ applied 
in England and among English-speaking people to 
cultivated and wild plants, trees, and shrubs,” by 
Wm. Miller, will shortly .be published by Mr. John 
Murray. 
The many friends of Mr. Richard Gilbert, of 
Burghley—and their names are legion—may be 
interested to know that an excellent portrait of the 
worthy man was published in The Garden of Saturday 
last. 
Dr. Wilhelm Gonnermann, the joint author with 
Professor Rabenhorst of The Mycologia Europcea 
(“ The European Eungi ”), a highly esteemed work, 
died a few days ago at Coburg, at the age of seventy- 
eight years. The last few years of his life were spent 
in an extended study of the cryptogams, and it is 
supposed that his notes will be a very valuable 
accession to existing knowledge on the subject. 
Dr. Roden, of Kidderminster, well known as a raiser 
of new varieties of Strawberries, died on the 12tli inst., 
aged seventy years. 
A Committee has been formed at Bridge of Allan, 
ti promote a testimonial to the famous Orchid-grower, 
Dr. Alexander Paterson, in consideration of his forty 
years’ valuable services as a medical practitioner at 
that place. 
Messrs. Charles Dickens & Evans have just 
published the second edition of the National Rose 
Society’s Catalogue of Roses, in an enlarged and 
improved form. 
Me. Thomas Plumb, lately foreman at Down House, 
Blandford, Dorset, has been engaged as gardener to 
Captain Vernon Carter, Hunsdon, Ross. 
Mr. James Dickie, lately general foreman at 
Dalkeith, has been appointed gardener to the Marquis 
of Waterford, at Curraghmore, Ireland, in succession 
to Mr. G. Fairbairn. 
We are informed that the Exhibition which will be 
held on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday next in 
the conservatory of the Royal Horticultural Society, 
being the last of the series of the most successful 
meetings which have been held in connection with 
the International Health Exhibition, will be of more 
than usual interest and extent. It has been decided 
by the authorities, as stated in another column, to 
allow it to remain open until the close of the 
“ Healtheries ” at 10 o’clock p.m. on Thursday, the 
30th inst. All exhibits to be removed on Friday 
morning, October 31st. 
The International Congress convened to deliberate 
upon the best means of preventing the spread of the 
Phylloxera vastatrix was opened on Monday last at 
Turin. After a short address of welcome from the 
Syndic of Turin, Signor Grimaldi, Minister of Com¬ 
merce, explained the object of the Congress, and 
dwelt particularly upon the necessity of common 
legislative measures being adopted in all infected 
countries in such a form as not to interfere with the 
liberty of trade. It was, however, most requisite to 
raise barriers to the spread of the Phylloxera. 
—— 
Asters and Dis-asters.— A neighbour who was asked 
by an enthusiastic grower of hardy plants whether he 
cultivated perennial Asters, replied that he knew 
most about “ disasters,” which seemed to be perennial 
enough, for they came a full crop much too often for 
his liking, and without cultivation. 
MICHAELMAS DAISIES. 
A large group of late summer and autumn Daisy¬ 
like plants is well-known in our gardens under this 
name. Daisy-like in the flowers at least, and very 
beautiful some of them are too. They flower at a 
period of the year when many other ornamental 
plants are over, and besides their showy appearance 
in the herbaceous border they are very useful for 
cutting, and stand well in water for a considerable 
time. 
But what are Michaelmas Daisies? Me ask this 
question because the term is somewhat loosely ap¬ 
plied. Perhaps the general acceptation is that they 
are a large group of composite plants, producing 
starry or Daisy-like flowers in the autumn. We have 
seen this definition applied to the genus Aster, in an 
excellent and recently published book; but it is 
scarcely necessary to point out that several true 
Asters cannot by any stretch of language be included, 
viz., the early-flowering species. There is an autumn¬ 
flowering plant cultivated in gardens under the name 
of Erigeron salsuginosus, and under this name it has 
been mentioned in the gardening papers. It is, 
however, certainly incorrect. We have no specimen, 
but it must be an Aster, for the involucral bracts are 
described as “in few rows”; not in one row, as in 
Erigeron. Hooker, speaking of the true plant ( Bot. 
Mag., t. 2942), remarks that it is “a Spring rather 
than Michaelmas Daisy.” There may be other plants 
sometimes included under this somewhat compre¬ 
hensive term, but for our purpose we will limit 
it to autumn - flowering species of the genus 
Aster. 
Of the genus Aster nearly 350 species have been 
described, and of these about 200 are now considered 
as distinct. It is widely distributed, though North 
America is the head-quarters of the genus; for no 
less than 124 species are enumerated by the illus¬ 
trious botanist, Dr. Asa Gray, in his latest revision. 
Mexico follows with 24 species ; Brazil has 11; a few 
are scattered about the Andes and region south of 
Brazil; Chili has four species; and one extends to 
the extreme southern point of Patagonia, occurring 
also in the adjacent Falkland Islands. Coming to 
the Old World, we find 18 species in Europe; 13 in 
the Levant; 16 in Japan; a few in China and Tem¬ 
perate Asia; and 14 in India. Four species occur in 
extra-tropical South Africa, but the genus appears 
to be wanting in Tropical Africa, and through the 
Indian Archipelago to Australia and New Zealand. 
Some of the above occur in more than one of these 
regions—some of the North American species extend 
to Mexico, and one to South Brazil and Uruguay. 
The same remark applies to the Old World, as our 
British A. Tripolium occurs through Europe and 
Temperate Asia to Japan, there as here preferring 
the coast region. 
We are now speaking of the genus as understood by 
Bentham and Hooker in their Genera Plantarum, 
and these authors divide it into thirteen sections. 
Several of these, comprising a considerable number 
of species, do not come under our heading. Nearly 
all the North American species, with a few from the 
Old World are autumn-flowering, and about half of 
this number, say some sixty to seventy species, are 
in cultivation. 
“ Aster is far the most difficult of our genera.” 
This is the remark of Dr. Asa Gray in his recent 
revision, and it applies with still greater force to our 
garden plants. Some of them have been cultivated 
for over a century, and it is with the greatest difficulty 
that many of them have been identified with the wild 
originals. Perhaps no genus is in greater confusion 
in our gardens. It has been questioned whether they 
will ever be put straight, but this can scarcely be 
considered as hopeless, provided they be carefully 
identified with wild specimens, and the true names 
adopted. 
This week we mention a few of the best Old World 
species, and next week propose to deal with a selection 
of the more showy American ones. 
Aster Amellus.— This is one of the best of the 
early-flowering species, and is about 14 ft. to 3 ft. high. 
The stems are robust, purplish, and covered with 
bristly hairs; the upper leaves are sessile, obovate- 
lanceolate, entire, dark green, and rough; the flower- 
heads are 2 ins. in diameter, with golden yellow disc 
and rich violet-purple rays. The plant spreads very 
