340 
THE GARDENING WORLD 
Jan. 31st, 1885. 
season could be more delightful. We have a 
dry, cool time, 'which so far has not been 
materially affected, and the soil works wonder¬ 
fully well, in fact for the time of the year it never 
worked better. Under the circumstances it 
seems perhaps as if we were endowed with a 
pessimist vision, that we should thus seek to 
cast any shadow over the present fair prospect. 
If the winter continues as it has begun, and the 
spring is open and dry also, we shall have the 
finest seeding and cropping time imaginable, 
and what more can we need? Well, it un¬ 
happily happens that we may sow and plant, 
but all will be in vain unless the rain of the 
heavens fertilize. Unless we should have the 
misfortune to be afflicted with a real wet summer, 
we can hardly look for such a season as shall by 
means of summer rains equalize the deficiencies 
of the past year, and so far of the present winter, 
and though the surface crops may not materially 
suffer, the trees and bushes must inevitably do 
so, and that largely. We look with some con¬ 
fidence to a grand fruit season, and we may have 
all the foundation of such laid in the spring, but 
to be destroyed by the earth drought of the 
summer. If we were to get a thorough soaking 
during the coming month the discomfort would 
be far outweighed by the resulting good. 
Ants and Teopical Vegetation. —Amongst 
the most remarkable phenomena of the Tropics 
may be classed the curious swellings of stem, 
branch, or petiole, in which a colony of Ants is 
located. The recently issued number of Malaisia, 
a work devoted to the Botany of New Guinea 
and the Indian Archipelago (which has now 
commenced a second volume), contains a long 
account of these peculiar productions, from the 
aforenamed regions, and of the plants on which 
they occur. The work—which is from the pen 
of Signor 0. Beecari—is illustrated by a number 
of beautiful plates. These Ants take possession 
of a plant, and very soon a swelling may be 
observed, in which a colony of these industrious 
insects have taken up their ahode. They are by 
no means limited to one or two classes of plants, 
for we find the Nutmeg family, the Euphorbiaceae, 
Verbenaceae, Leguminosse, Araliacese, the Palm 
family, and the Bubiaceae, all have their tenants. 
In the majority of cases the illustrations show a 
cavity in the branches to be the chosen site, but 
one or two instances, in the Eubiacea; it is a 
swelling of the stem at the ground level, the 
swollen mass being covered with spines, which, 
doubtless, serve some protective purpose. Some 
of our readers will no doubt remember the 
interesting account given in Belt’s Naturalist 
in Nicaragua, of the species of Ant which 
tenants the spines of certain Acacias. These 
thorns are hollow, and situated in pairs on the 
branches. The Ants make an entrance near one 
end of one of the thorns, and bite through the 
partition which separates the two thorns from 
each other. Here they rear their young, and in 
the wet season every thorn is tenanted. On 
the mid-rib at the base of each pair of leaflets 
is a crater-formed gland, which, when young, 
secretes a honey-like liquid, on which the Ants 
feed. These Ants form a standing army—for 
they sting severely—and protect the leaves from 
leaf-cutting Ants, and also deters the mammalia 
from brousing on the leaves. 
Inteenational Potato Exhibition. — The 
trial culture of new seedling varieties entered 
for the International Certificates will be carried 
out, as in former years, at Chiswick, by the 
generous permission of the Eoyal Horticultural 
Society. Persons intending to enter seedlings 
for trial are requested to send not less than 
six tubers of each sort, with names and pedigrees, 
to the care of Mr. A. E. Barron, Eoyal Horti¬ 
cultural Society’s Gardens, Chiswick, before the 
81st of March. 
(forkning; |Histcl(;mn. 
The splendid baronial estate of Fyvie, Aberdeen¬ 
shire, is announced for sale by auction in June next. 
Fyvie Castle is an edifice of great historical interest, 
and the estate comprises some 10,700 acres. 
It has been decided to hold another Apple and 
Pear Exhibition in Exeter, on October 22nd and 23rd 
next. Mr. Pengelly, the Hon. Secretary, to whose 
exertions the success of last year’s Show was largely 
due, was recently presented by the Committee with a 
handsome timepiece, as a mark of their appreciation 
of his services. 
Lovers of the Daffodil may be interested to know 
that “ Ye Narcissus or Daffodyl,” by Mr. F. W. Bur- 
bidge and Mr. Peter Barr, is now being published. 
The Gardeners' Year Book and Almananc for 1885, 
has come to hand rather late, but better late than 
never, as besides the usual information expected in 
such an annual, it contains in a useful form a valuable 
record of the new Plants, Fruits and Vegetables intro¬ 
duced or certificated last year. 
The Treasurer of the Gardeners’ Royal Benevolent 
Institution has received the £500, less legacy duty, 
left to the Institution by the late Mrs. Dodgson, 
Beardwood, Blackburn. 
Messrs. Baer & Son announce that their Daffodil 
grounds at Lower Tooting will be thrown open to 
visitors every Wednesday, Thursday, and Saturday, 
during Februaiy, March, April and May. 
The Compagnie Continentale d’Horticulture of 
Ghent propose to publish in March next, the first 
part of a new publication to be called “Lindenia,” 
and which is to be devoted exclusively to the illus¬ 
tration of Orchids discovered or introduced by M. 
Linden. 
“Evolution and its bearing on Christianity” is 
the title of a paper read recently by Mr. William 
Thomson, Tweed Vineyard, Galashiels, before the 
Caddonfoot Young Men’s Guild, and published in 
The Border Advertiser, of January 21st. 
Mr. Robert Wilson, lately gardener to the Earl of 
Desart, Desart House, Kilkenny, has been engaged 
as gardener to the Countess of Kingston, Mitchels- 
town Castle, in succession to Mr. Whibberley, who 
has succeeded Mr. Ward as gardener at Oulton Park, 
Tarporley, Cheshire. 
A farmer at Northop recently lost four valuable 
milch cows from eating the poisonous roots of the 
Hemlock. Lord Donnington has also lately lost six 
valuable beasts from eating Yew. 
At the annual general meeting of the Essex Field 
Club, to be held this (Saturday) evening, the President 
will read a paper on “ The Life and Work of John 
Ray, and their Relation to the Progress of Science.” 
New French Asparagus arrived in quantity in 
Covent Garden during the past week. 
Mr. F. Day, for the last five years fruit foreman at 
Lockinge, has been promoted to the position of 
gardener at Colonel Sir R. Lloyd-Lindsay’s other 
seat, Overstone Park, Northampton, in succession to 
Mr. Thomas. 
Mr. E. F. im Thurn, the well-known explorer of 
British Guiana, has made another expedition to the 
interior of that colony, with a view to ascend the 
Roraima Mountain. In a communication to a friend 
in Georgetown, written in the early part of December, 
he states that he had ascended the slope of the 
mountain to a height of 5,COO ft., and describes it as 
a lovely spot, “ a very garden of Orchids, and of most 
beautiful and strange plants.” New plant importers 
should make a note of this. 
Mr. John Bradner, of Alley Hill Nursery, Bristol, 
gave an admirable lecture in the Institution Hall, 
Yeovil, on Friday evening, January 23rd, on “ Chry¬ 
santhemums and their culture.” Local gardeners 
attended in good numbers, the lecturer’s success as a 
prize winner having made his name famous amongst 
growers of the queen of autumn flowers. The lecture, 
which was full of valuable information from beginning 
to end, was ably delivered and heartily applauded. 
As Mr. Bradner has given up exhibiting, he freely 
gave the results of his long and varied experience, and 
answered a host of questions after the lecture. At the 
unanimous request of those present, he consented to 
publish the lecture in pamphlet form, and has already 
arranged to do so, as will be seen by an announcement 
in our advertising columns. 
ALOCASIA SAN DERI AN A. 
Under this name Mr. William Bull last year put in 
commerce a very handsome new Avoid, which is 
destined to take a leading place among the numerous 
noble leaved plants which have been introduced into 
our stoves during the last few years. The name has 
been questioned by one authority who states that the 
plant is not an Aloeasia, but belongs to the genus 
Eehizocasia. Be that as it may, the plant, as will be 
seen by the annexed illustration, has a handsome and 
striking appearance to recommend it. Adopting Mr. 
Bull’s description, we may say that “ It has erect 
petioles, which are brownish-green, and striately 
mottled; on the young leaves, the colour is bright 
glossy green, and on the older leaves the surface has 
a metallic blue reflection. The leaf blade is arrow- 
shaped, the front portion with three triangular lobes 
on each side, the basal portion with one or two 
smaller lobes, the thick ccsta and stout cross veins 
are white, conspicuously bordered with ivory-white, 
the margins also being white.” 
The plant was introduced from one of the Islands 
in the Eastern Archipelago, and under cultivation is 
found to succeed admirably in a good moist stove 
temperature, and, like the Alocasias generally, it does 
well in a compost of rough peat, charcoal and 
sphagnum moss, the major portion of course being 
peat. 
a-- 
FLORAL DECORATING. 
To a gardener of refined taste who is strongly 
attached to his calling, there is probably no branch 
of his profession which brings such a large amount of 
real and infinite pleasure, or affords him such scope 
and so wide a field wherein to display his talents as 
does the art of floral decorating. With equal truth 
it may also be said to be work to which no race of 
people or any section of society can lay any special 
claim to as being peculiarly their own, seeing that 
it has been practised from the earliest times by all 
classes, and is easily within reach of the rich and 
the poor, but that England is the pioneer, so to 
speak, at the present time, and that of late years 
very great and almost unprecedented progress has 
been made, few people who are fully acquainted with 
the subject will, I think, attempt to deny. 
Of the intense love of flowers amongst the inhabit¬ 
ants of the United Kingdom, alien persons could be 
furnished with positive and overwhelming proof were 
they to visit the cottage homes of our rural population, 
or the dwellings of the artisans in our large centres of 
industry, hospitals, and other public institutions, but 
to meet with it in its most technical and elevating 
character, we must go to the banqueting halls of 
London, to the dining-rooms of our nobility and 
gentry in their town residences and at their country 
seats, where we find floral decorating assuming 
such forms as give it some claim to take rank as a 
high art. Notwithstanding the fact that at the present 
say it has attained a very high standard of excellency 
and is far in advance of much which was regarded as 
being very good years ago, it must not for a moment 
be supposed that such a state of perfection has been 
arrived at as will admit of no further improvement. 
He would be a bold man indeed who would venture to 
day that it is now at the zenith of its power; for any 
one to argue thus would merely be to fall into a very 
grave error and to betray a want of practical acquaint¬ 
ance with the subject he was talking about. 
Who would have thought until quite recently that 
to enhance the effect and beauty of a bouquet an 
electric lamp would have become a necessary adjunct? 
Again, it may be asked, who would have thought 
thirty years ago that the time would come when in 
many of the leading private establishments specialists 
would be employed for this kind of work as is now the 
case ? and where to decorate a dinner-table for a 
single night only, the said person with two or three 
subordinates is employed four or five hours doing 
the work, passing through his hands floral treasures 
amounting to an aggregate value of from £100 to 
£200 in some cases. When we come to look at all 
this, and consider that it is matter of absolute fact, 
and that floral decorating is—what shall we saj 
well, a luxury which has progressed in proportion to 
the wealth of the people of our country, we should 
