52 
THE GARDENING WORLD 
September 22, 1894. 
placed them ; but we do not believe in 
that theory. Gardeners come in contact 
with society in the highest walks of life,and 
they are unfairly handicapped if a proper 
education has been denied them when 
young and possessing the time to study 
without enjoying the means. In the matter 
of brains, all should be placed on absolute 
equality with regard at least to a good 
elementary education, otherwise school- 
boards, compulsory and free education, are 
relatively meaningless terms, and wanting 
when placed in the balance. The value of 
a practical education to him who is de¬ 
ficient in book learning is practically 
nowhere when he attempts to express him¬ 
self on paper; and his particular kind of 
knowledge which is really valuable, is 
imponderable by the examiner’s bal¬ 
ance. 
-- 
Mr. John Cameron, late of Edinburgh, has been 
engaged as gardener at Bysthorn, Corbridge-on-Tyne. 
The Battersea Chrysanthemum Society’s Annual 
Show will be held in the New Town Hall, Lavender 
Hill, on Friday and Saturday, November 2nd and 
3 rd. 
The First Hybrid Nymphaea raised in England was 
the magnificent N. Devoniensis, by Sir Joseph 
Paxton at Chatsworth ; and N. Sturtevantii, raised 
by Mr. E. D. Sturtevant, was the first one obtained 
in this country. So says Mr. Wm. Tricker.—- 
Gardening [American). 
The Jersey Potato Crop.-The importance of the Potato 
crop to Jersey agriculturalists will be gathered from 
the following particulars in reference to this year’s 
shipments. The season began on the 30th of April 
and ended on the 14th of July, a period of a little 
over ten weeks, during which time 60,605 tons were 
shipped, the amount realised being ^462,896, an 
average of £7 12s. gd. per ton. The first week’s 
average price was £18 2s. 6d. per ton, after which 
prices gradually declined, the lowest weekly average 
price being £6 r 3 s. 4d. per ton. 
Flowering of Yucca gloriosa in Aberdeenshire.—The 
flowering of the Adam's Needle on the west coast of 
Scotland this season has already been recorded in 
our columns, but a still more remarkable occurrence, 
its flowering at Dales near Peterhead on the east 
coast, has just been brought to our notice. This 
particular specimen it seems was planted at the 
Dales by Mr. William Dyce, Florist, Peterhead, on 
the 17th of March, 1879, and it has flowered this 
season for the first time. Its flowering so far north 
is a very rare occurrence, and consequently we are 
not surprised to hear that the portion of the spikes 
exhibited by Messrs. James Cocker & Son, in their 
window in Union Street, Aberdeen, has attracted 
considerable attention. 
The Proposed National Potato Show.—Mr. A. Dean, 
writes :—“ I have already received so many promises 
of support for the proposed National Potato Show, 
that having the sanction of the Crystal Palace 
authorities to hold a meeting for the purpose in the 
Board Room, I venture to invite not only my corres¬ 
pondents, but all others interested to meet in the 
Board Room, at 4 o'clock on Saturday, September 
29th, the first day of the great fruit show. One 
esteemed gardener urges that vegetables should be 
included with Potatos. With that opinion I have 
great sympathy, and a special national exhibition 
of vegetables, with Potatos for the primary feature, 
would, I think, command very wide support indeed. 
It would form at once a most worthy and splendid 
addition to the National Fruit Show.”— 62, Richmond 
Road, Kingston-on-Thames. 
Lime as a Top Dressing for Ferns. —Mr. Simpson in 
his essay on Fertilisers the other day before the 
Society of American Florists, gave this interesting 
bit of experience:—"I had a peculiar experience 
this spring in the use of lime. Two benches of 
Ferns planted out for cutting became infested with a 
black fungus growth which threatened the destruc¬ 
tion of every plant; we scratched it off, but it grew 
again, and the plants got smaller daily, when it 
occurred to us to use air slacked lime as a top dress¬ 
ing ; I was sure it would kill the fungus, and didn’t 
know but it would kill the Ferns too; but we tried 
it, a good covering, over crowns and all, and strange 
to say that while it did not kill the parasite, only 
checking it, it started the Ferns into active growth, 
and since then we have picked in large quantities 
the longest and finest Adiantums I have ever seen 
grown on a bench. It is hardly necessary to say I 
shall not be afraid to use lime on Ferns in the 
future. 
Shirley and District Gardeners’ Improvement 
Association. —-There was an exceptionally good 
attendance at the Monthly Meeting at Shirley, 
Southampton, on Monday, the 17th inst., the 
President, Mr. W. F. G. Sprayer, presiding. The 
Lecture was given by Mr. A. Dean, F.R.H.S., 
Lecturer on Horticulture for the Surrey C.C., the 
subject of his discourse being “ Hardy Flowers for the 
Garden and House. ” The subject was a very large one, 
Mr. Dean, however, after one and a-half hours spent 
in talking, had gone through a list describing the 
cream of this very numerous class, commencing with 
the spring blooms and ending with December flowers. 
Mr. Dean w'ho was many years a resident here, was 
very attentively listened to, and was most enthusias¬ 
tically thanked for his exhaustive and interesting 
lecture. To illustrate the lecture, 284 species and 
varieties of hardy flowers were staged by Mr. B. 
Ladhams, Shirley Nurseries, containing a large 
number of rare and interesting varieties. Mr. Jones 
and Mr. Wilcox also exhibited specimens, and the 
Vallata purpurea shown by Mr. F. Bartlett was a 
magnificent plant. The Lecture next month will be 
given by Mr. E. Molyneux, Swanmore Park Gardens, 
on “ Wall Trees and Espaliers.” 
Property in Growing Mushrooms. —An important 
case has been decided in Chester Ccunty Court with 
regard to the nuisance and heavy loss sustained by 
pasture farmers from mushroom trespassers. Mr. 
Thomas Smith, Beacon Point, Chester, sued James 
Currell, shoemaker, Chester, to recover nominal 
damages for trespassing for mushrooms. Mr. 
Mason, solicitor for Mr. Smith, said considerable 
damage had been done to his client’s property by 
mushroom trespassers. Hedges had been broken 
down, gates left open, and horses disturbed and 
driven into fields of mowing grass. Mr. Smith 
cultivated mushrooms for sale, and notices to this 
effect were posted in the fields, but without effect. 
The Criminal Courts did not appear to have power 
to stop the wrongdoing ; this the trespassers knew, 
and they defied all attempts by Mr. Smith and his 
men to stop their depredations. John Lunt, Mr. 
Smith's gamekeeper, said he had seen forty mush¬ 
room trespassers in his master’s fields at one time. 
The Registrar, before whom the case was heard, 
gave judgment for the amount claimed and costs, 
remarking that the defendant had aggravated his 
case by disregarding the notices, and had rendered 
himself liable to exemplary damages. 
Proposed Rose Show at Chelmsford. —It has 
occurred to Mr. Edwards, the worthy secretary of 
the Chelmsford Horticultural Society, that it would 
be an excellent thing to hold a Rose Show in that 
town next year under the auspices of the National 
Rose Society, and proceeding from thoughts to acts 
he sounded his fellow townsmen on the subject, 
with the result that he soon received more promises 
of pecuniary support than would be required to 
meet the expenses of such a show, and no doubt he 
rejoiced accordingly. But he reckoned without the 
Mayor of the neighbouring town of Colchester, and 
must now regret his temerity. Colchester did not 
think of a Rose Show until Chelmsford had “ booked 
the order”; then the dander of the worthy Mayor 
was ‘‘riz,” as Artemus Ward would say, and at a 
recent meeting of the local Town Council he com¬ 
pletely gave himself away. Said Mr. Goody —" they 
had heard much of a neighbouring town trying to 
affiliate itself with the National Rose Society, but so 
long as Colchester had the names of Cant and Prior 
as growers, and Orpen, of Bergholt, as an amateur, 
he thought they could hold their own not only 
against the country but against the world.” A 
lovely bit of municipal drumming truly, but hardly 
worthy of so exalted a drummer. No, Mr. Mayor, 
the Messrs. Cant and the Messrs. Prior do not grow 
Roses to glorify the town of Colchester, nor would 
it be wise of the N. R. S. to go to that town, so we 
hope to hear no more of such stupid jealousy. 
Hardy Ornamental Flowering Trees and Shrubs, by 
A. D. Webster. A valuable guide to planters of beautiful 
trees and shrubs for the adornment of parks and gardens. 
Price, 3s.; post free v 3S. 3d. Publisher, Gardening World, 
1, Clement's Inn, Strand, London, W.C. 
PLANTS RECENTLY CERTIFICATED. 
The undermentioned subjects were awarded Certi¬ 
ficates according to Merit by the Royal Horticultural 
Society on the nth inst. 
Crocosmia aurea Imperialis.— A fine clump of 
this grown in a pot had stems 3 ft. to 4 ft. high, 
much branched and well furnished with large hand¬ 
some flowers of a rich orange colour. The segments 
are broadly, oblong-ovate, much imbricated, and 
altogether make up as fine a flower as we have seen. 
First-class Certificate. Exhibited by Sir Trevor 
Lawrence, Bart, (gardener Mr. W. Bain), Burford 
Lodge, Dorking. 
Nepenthes mixta saxguixea. —The pitchers of 
this beautiful and grand variety measure about 10 in. 
long, independently of the lid, and are cylindrical. 
The ground colour is crimson and blotched with a 
much darker shade of the same hue. The annulus 
or collar is very wide, wavy, rich brownish crimson 
or blood-red, shining and closely ridged transversely. 
The lid has numerous and smaller crimson blotches. 
The ground colour of N. mixta itself is pale green so 
that the new variety is amply distinct. First-class 
Certificate. Exhibited by Messrs. J. Veitch & Sons, 
Chelsea. 
Chrysanthemum Lady Fitzwigram.— When this 
becomes better known it should take the place of 
Madame Desgranges to a large extent as it is similar 
in form, about equally early and of a much purer 
white with a satiny lustre. The stems grow 2 ft. to 
2J ft high and are freely branched in such a way 
that the flowers are ail on the same level, and very 
freely produced. Award of Merit. Exhibited by 
Mr. H. J. Jones, Hither Green, Lewisham. 
Dahlia Mrs. Gordon Shaw. —The blooms of this 
Cactus variety are large with long, pointed florets, 
ultimately revolute at the sides and of a rich crimson- 
scarlet, getting brighter as they get older. Award of 
Merit. A stand of twelve blooms was exhibited by 
Messrs. J. Cheal & Sons, Crawley, Sussex. 
China Aster Eynesford Yellow. —The flower 
heads of this variety are semi-globular, quilled, neat 
and sulphur-yellow with creamy-white rays. A deep 
yellow in this useful race of garden flowers would be 
highly desirable. Award of Merit. Exhibited by 
Messrs. H. Cannell & Sons, Swanley, Kent. 
Dahlia Cannell's Velvet.— For description of 
this small and pretty Cactus variety, see p. 3 8. 
Award of Merit. Exhibited by Messrs. H. Cannell 
& Sons. 
Rose Queen Mab.— In this we have anew variety 
of China Rose of great distinctness and colour. Before 
the buds expand they are conical, deep salmon-red, 
fading to salmon-pink and then to fawn tinted with 
salmon. The blooms have pretty much the same 
odour as the old Monthly Rose. Award of Merit. 
Exhibited by Messrs. Wm. Paul & Son, Waltham 
Cross. 
-•$*- 
LESSONS FROM FLOWER SHOWS. 
In his interesting and suggestive communication in 
your last issue, “ X ” has touched upon a point of great 
interest to every studious gardener. I refer to the 
subject of note-taking. How many gardeners fall into 
the error of taking too many notes. Young gar¬ 
deners I think, especially err in this respect. When 
looking round a show, or visiting a good nursery or 
private garden, out comes the inevitable note-book 
and down goes the name of a plant, and generally 
nothing but its name is noted ; on goes the note-taker 
to the next plant, and the next, with the same result. 
He is so much absorbed in committing to paper a 
string of names that he has no time to notice the 
peculiarities or essential characteristics of any suffi¬ 
ciently to enable him to recognise these same plants 
when he sees them again elsewhere. And when, as 
in many cases, the note-book is thrown aside for a 
few days, or perhaps weeks, before it is again looked 
over, the would-be student finds himself at sea. 
True, he has a magnificent list of names, (as ” X ’’ 
phrases it, a plethoric note-book), but he knows 
nothing of the plants to which they refer. He has, 
in fact, thrown his time and labour away, and like 
the dog with the bone, in trying to grasp too much 
has lost all. 
Would it not be a far wiser plan for him to use his 
memory and powers of observation more, and the 
pencil just a little less. By all means take notes, but 
if you do it at all, do it thoroughly. The man who can 
