September 24, 1892. 
THE GARDENING WORLD. 
55 
were perfect specimens—clean, bright, handsome, 
even in size, and well finished. 2nd, Mr. Wilkins, 
gardener to Lady Theodora Guest, Inwood House, 
Blandford, with twelve fine examples of Rousham 
Park weighing 18 lbs. 3rd, Mr. Copp, gardener to 
J. S. W. S. Drax, Esq., Holnest House, Sherborne, 
with twelve bulbs of Lord Keeper of the same 
weight, but not quite so well finished. 4th, Mr. W. 
Pope, gardener to the Earl of Carnavon, Highclere 
Castle, Newbury, with twelve of the same variety 
weighing 17J lbs. A beautifully finished dozen of 
Royal Jubilee from Mr. R. Lye, gardener to W. H. 
Kingsmill, Esq., S>dmondton Court, Newbury, 
scaling 15 lbs., was highly commended. 
The next Class was for twelve specimens of any 
one kind of the three following : Ailsa Craig, Cocoa 
Nut, or the Original Excelsior. Here Mr. Bowerman, 
gardener to C. Hoare, Esq., Hackwood Park, 
Basingstoke, came in first with a dozen Ailsa Craig 
turning the scale at 26 lbs.; these were large, even 
and very solid, but wanted a little more time to 
finish. But they were marvellous Onions, and the 
weight, it was said, had been excelled only in 1890, 
when specimens were grown and exhibited weighing 
28J lbs , 30 lbs., and 34 lbs. to the dozen. Ailsa 
Craig is a Scotch variety raised by Mr. David 
Murray, gardener to the Marquis of Ailsa, Culzean 
Castle, Maybole, N.B., the origin not stated, but it 
is a large somewhat globular shaped variety, though 
some will come of flatter shape, while still preser¬ 
ving certain distinct characteristics. Mr. Wilkins 
came second with a dozen weighing 23J lbs , rather 
more matured. Mr. Pope was third with 22 lbs., 
and Mr. Lye fourth with the Original Excelsior 
weighing 20 lbs., a very fine form of the Spanish 
type. The reason why it is designated the Original 
Excelsior is that, as Mr. Deverill states, the stock of 
Excelsior has from some cause degenerated, and 
what he has is the stock in the fine character in 
which it was originally distributed. A special Gold 
Medal was offered by Mr. Deverill for the best dish 
exhibited in the two foregoing classes, and the judges 
selected Mr. Kneller’s Anglo-Spanish for this 
distinction. 
Class 3 was for twenty specimens of Deverill’s 
Improved Wroxton, said to have originated as a 
cross between Magnum Bonum and the White 
Spanish, globe or egg shaped, sometimes tinted 
with red, the bulb heavy, the flesh firm and solid, 
and generally recognised as one of the best keeping 
Onions of the day. Here Mr. Wilkins was first with 
twenty weighing 26^ lbs ; Mr. Pope was second with 
23 lbs. ; Mr. Lye, third with 22 lbs. ; and Mr. 
Bowerman, highly commended, with 21 lbs. 
Class 4 was for twenty specimens of anyone of the 
following kinds : Main Crop, Improved Wroxton, or 
Improved White Spanish, shown by allotment 
holders, mechanics and cottagers generally. Mr. 
Moss, Hackwood, Basingstoke, was first with Main 
Crop, weighing 18 lbs. ; second, Mr. W. Winfield, 
Shutford, Banbury, with Improved White Spanish, 
17 lbs.; third, Mr. G. Bliss, Church Lane, Banbury, 
with the same, 13 lbs. ; and fourth, Mr. Geo. 
Summers, Adderbury, Banbury, with Main Crop of 
the same weight. 
A large number of persons were attracted to the 
show, and as no charge was made for admission, 
prominent among the Onions was a collecting box of 
the Gardeners' Orphan Fund; let us hope this 
deserving institution will be a gainer therefrom.— 
R. D. 
- — - 
SILENE SCHAFTA. 
A large number of the species of Catchfly are 
sufficiently ornamental for cultivation in gardens, 
and some of them, including the present species, are 
naturally well adapted for rockwork. The plant 
only grows 3 in. to 6 in. high, and has relatively large 
rose-coloured flowers with obcordate petals. Many 
of the perennial species have the habit of running so 
extensively to flower that the ground becomes prac¬ 
tically bare after they have flowered. Numerous 
stems of this species do not flower at all, but remain 
leafy and green, forming a dwarf cushion. In pro¬ 
pagating this species, division may be resorted to in 
spring, or cuttings taken early in the season long 
before they attain full growth, otherwise they root 
with difficulty. Unlike several of the species of 
Catchfly, which are short-lived and easily lost, this 
plant is very long-lived and will occupy the same 
position for years if grown in a sunny exposed place. 
/£>-> 7'T^v 
Hardening JjIiscellany. 
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DAVALLIA RETUSA. 
Many of the Davallias bear a close resemblance to 
one another, but D. retusa well merits the name 
given it, as the pinnae are all cut short and wedge- 
shaped, rendering the plant very distinct from its 
congeners. The fronds of old plants attain a large 
size and are three or four times pinnate,but small plants 
are more easily accommodated. The petioles are red, 
and the leafy portion of a light glaucous green and 
pleasing in appearance. A specimen is planted out 
on the new rockery recently constructed in one of 
the houses in Messrs. J. Veitch & Sons’ nursery. 
NEPENTHES CURTISII SUPERBA. 
The pitchers of this variety are of good average 
size, cylindrical and of a deep blackish crimson with 
numerous small, light green spots. The annulus or 
collar surrounding the mouth is of a deep brown. 
Altogether this Nepenthes is very distinct, and where 
a collection is grown it should not be omitted. It 
produces pitchers freely and stands out prominently 
amongst those of lighter or even brighter hues. 
Some of the more renowned species of recent intro¬ 
duction are difficult to grow and give rather unsatis¬ 
factory results, but such is not the case with N. 
Curtisii and its variety N. C. superba. It may 
always be seen in fine condition in the collection of 
Messrs. J. Veitch & Sons, Chelsea. 
VERONICA BIDWILLI. 
The species of shrubby Veronicas in New Zealand 
are very numerous, and a considerable number of 
them have been introduced to this country on account 
of their neat habit and foliage. A fair proportion of 
them are worthy of cultivation for the sake of the 
quantity of flowers they produce. That under notice 
is recommendable on account of its flowers, the neat¬ 
ness of its foliage and dwarf habit. The leaves are 
very smali, wedge-shaped, sharply serrate along the 
upper edge, and leathery in texture. The flowers are 
relatively large for the size of the plant, white with 
faint purple rays, and are produced on axiliary 
racemes like those of our native V. Chammdrys and 
V. officinalis. The whole plant is only about 3 in. or 
4 in. high, as the slender stems are more or less pro¬ 
cumbent. It may be seen planted out in a bed 
amongst several other species in the gardens of the 
Royal Horticultural Society at Chiswick. 
IXORA MACROSTACHYA. 
As a rule before this gets sufficiently strong to flower, 
it attains a height of 3 ft. to 5 ft., and then produces 
a large, branching head of bloom 10 in. to 12 in, 
across. It is a vigorous growing sort, and in order 
to get it in bloom it must not be stopped. We 
recently noted a piece of it flowering in the nursery 
of Messrs. J. Veitch & Sons, Chelsea, and the stems 
were only 18 in. high. We suspect that a strong top 
shoot had been taken off and rooted, and that it had 
flowered after making a season's growth. 
OXALIS SMITHIANA. 
Of the numerous species of Oxalis which are known 
to science, and which can mostly be grown in green¬ 
houses and some in stoves, few of them are hardy 
enough to rough it in the open air. That under 
notice is an exception, as it may be grown readily 
enough in sheltered positions under a wall, or on 
well-drained rockwork in the same way as O. flori- 
bunda, a rosy flowered species which seems to be the 
most popular for outdoor work. The leaves of O. 
Smithiana are very curious, inasmuch as they are 
divided to the base into linear segments, and there¬ 
fore appearing like six leaflets. The flowers are rosy 
pink with a white throat and just rise above the 
leaves. The whole plant is only 3 in. to 5 in. high. 
RUBUS ODORATUS. 
Many hardy shrubs are seen to best advantage only 
when in flower, but R. odoratus is recommendable 
on account of the large size of its leaves, which are 
cordate, five lobed and very unlike either those of 
the Raspberry or Bramble. The flowers are of an 
intense rose when they first expand, gradually fading 
to a paler hue as they get older. By cutting down 
the stems annually and giving the plants liberal cul¬ 
tivation, the leaves attain such a size as to have 
uite a tropical appearance. Handsome effects can 
be produced with various other shrubs treated in the 
same way, as well as with some of the larger leaved 
trees which permit of this treatment. 
APPLE LADY SUDELY. 
Amongst the newer types of Apples that seem to be 
coming to the front is Lady Sudely, otherwise known 
as Jacob's Strawberry. It is an early Apple, has a 
prepossessing appearance, and is shortly conical or 
sometimes flattened on the top, and more or less dis¬ 
tinctly' angled round the top, with a closed eye in a 
moderately deep and rather narrow plaited basin. 
The skin is smooth and shining, and when well ri¬ 
pened and coloured it is of a bright crimson red and 
often splashed and striped with that hue on a green¬ 
ish ground. The flesh is firm, crisp, and sweet with 
plenty of watery juice, and is white or slightly tinted 
with yellow. It comes into use during September, 
and keeps for some time owing to the firmness of its 
flesh, a quality not possessed by all of the early 
varieties, some of which are liable to become mealy 
in a few weeks or even in a few days if left too long 
on the trees. 
ANTIRRHINUM GLUTINOSUM. 
The procumbent or trailing habit of this Snap¬ 
dragon recalls that of A. Asarina, but the foliage is 
altogether different. It would seem however to have 
some relation with it, as the leaves are opposite in 
both cases. Those of A. Asarina are heart-shaped 
and five-lobed, while those of A. glutinosum are 
ovate or oval, pubescent on both surfaces and 
glutinous or clammy on the under-surface as well as 
the stems. The flowers are of a large size and 
produced singly in the axils of bracts towards the 
top of the stems, and are white with a pale yellow 
palate and slender, purple lines on the tube. We 
noted a pan of it at Kew, where it is kept with other 
plants some of which are perfectly hardy but others 
requiring the protection of a frame during the winter 
months. * 
CALCEOLARIA KELLYANA. 
The dwarf and stemless Calceolarias are compara¬ 
tively seldom seen in cultivation, although several 
species have been introduced from time to time. 
That here noticed is a hybrid between two of them, 
namely C. Fothergillii, a native of the Falkland 
Islands, and C. plantaginea, a native of Chili. The 
flowers are larger than those of the latter and more 
conspicuously spotted. The lower lip of the corolla 
or pouch is triangular, crenate at the lower edge, 
and yellow spotted with crimson ; the exposed 
portion below the claw is wholly crimson. The 
upper lip is small, hooded, and yellow. Whether it 
will prove hardy remains to be seen, but it forms a 
dwarf, neat and pretty plant for pot culture. It may 
be stood in a slightly shady position out of doors 
during the summer in association with a collection 
of other choice and dwarf-growing subjects, as is 
done in the herbaceous grounds at Kew. It is 
probable that a frame or cool greenhouse will be 
necessary for its safe keeping during the winter 
months. 
APPLE GREENUP'S PIPPIN. 
This Apple might be more generally cultivated than 
it is on account of its excellent qualities. It is said 
to be in use from October to December, and that 
may hold good for the country of its origin, that is 
Keswick and the surrounding country. In the South 
it is evidently much earlier, as it was ripe and per¬ 
fectly fit for use by the beginning of this month in 
the gardens of the Royal Horticultural Society at 
Chiswick. It colours much better in the extreme 
south than it does in the vicinity of London, where 
it is pale yellow and dotted with green markings. The 
fruit is above the medium size, rather flattened, and 
always broader at the base, with a closed eye in a 
shallow, slightly plaited basin. The flesh is yellow, 
soft but crisp, with an agreeable briskness when at 
its best, and very good eating. The fruit may be used 
either for dessert or culinary purposes. The variety 
originated in the garden of a shoemaker named 
Greenup about the end of the eighteenth century 
and like many other varieties has proved very suit 
able for cultivation in the neighbourhood of its 
original home. It ripens sooner than some of the 
more recent choice kinds. 
