36 
THE GARDENING WORLD 
September 17, 1892. 
FiiORicUirnJRE. 
Violas from Rothesay. 
A box of Violas and bedding Pansies has reached us 
from Messrs. Dobbie & Co., Rothesay. The cool 
and moister climate of Scotland enables the flowers 
of this class of plants to be seen in their finest form, 
but the cool weather of the last six weeks or two 
months in the south has favoured them highly, and 
where they have been grown under suitable condi¬ 
tions, the flowers are as large as those from the north 
and as richly coloured. Several of the varieties sent 
were choice old favourites, but others are ne.v and 
will be sent out next spring for the first time. 
Amongst the older kinds were York and Lancaster 
and Columbine, which although Pansies are notable 
for their continuous blooming character, as they are 
now as profuse with us as at any time of the year. 
Those who like parti-coloured flowers should not 
omit them from their collection. Newer varieties of 
mixed colours are Rosine, rosy purple with blush 
upper petals ; Sunrise, deep purple with rosy upper 
petals and measuring nearly 2.Jin. across ; and Edina, 
of similar size but intense violet, with deep lavender 
upper petals in the way of Queen of Scots, but alto¬ 
gether darker. Peter Barr is a very pretty variety 
with a broad pale dull purple border all round a 
clear yellow centre in the way of Columbine as to 
arrangement, but the colours are entirely different. 
It is to be sent out in the spring of 1893, and so is 
Rob Roy, which has already taken two certificates. 
It is altogether larger and bolder than Vernon Lee 
but of the same strain. The three lower petals are 
of a deep golden yellow and the mahogany blotches 
on the upper petals nearly cover them. 
Annie King is not exactly a self, but very nearly 
so, and delicate lilac, darker on the upper petals, 
with a golden-brown blotch on the base of the lip, 
and some short violet rays at the base of the three 
lower petals. The large soft rosy flowers of William 
Niel are freely and continuously produced all through 
the season, and mark out the variety as the best of 
this colour. A fine flower also is Ravenswood, of an 
intense maroon purple shaded with violet round the 
eye. An attractive golden-yellow variety is Rothes. 
Usually it is rayless, but like the well-known 
Countess of Hopetoun it sometimes shows three or 
four faint rays on the lip under certain conditions. 
We hope it will prove an easy one to grow, but 
require a longer acquaintance with it. Of the 
freedom and vigour of Goldfinch we have no doubt. 
It is one of the types sometimes spoken of as pro¬ 
cumbent. The brassy and purple edgings on a 
yellow ground are peculiar and attractive. The 
flowers attain their fullest size under English skies, 
and like Violetta the variety is of true Viola type. 
The last named is deliciously fragrant, a quality 
that is prevalent to a certain extent in several of the 
others. 
--**-- 
THE PREVENTION OF 
POTATO DISEASE. 
Although the present season has not been very 
promising for experiments as to the value of the 
"Bouillie Bordelaise ” as a preventive for Potato 
disease, owing to the general absence of that malady, 
up to the present there are indications that one 
experiment at least is likely to show a striking con¬ 
firmation of those which for six years past have been 
conducted by Dr. Aime Girard on behalf of the 
French Government. We have already announced 
in The Times that at Bromley (Kent) Messrs. James 
Carter & Co., the well-known seedsmen, had put 
apart an acre of Potatos for the purpose of an experi¬ 
ment, the acre being planted in ten long rows of as 
many different varieties, and so planted as to allow 
of division into four quarter acres. In order that the 
experiment might be conducted on exactly the same 
lines as M. Girard's, their direction was intrusted to 
the care of the agricultural correspondent of The 
Times, who obtained exactly the same sulphate of 
copper (97 per cent, of purity) as that used by the 
French Government, while the applications were 
made of the same strength and applied as nearly as 
possible on the same dates. The Potatos were 
planted on April 8th in drills 36 in. apart, the plant 
proving a good one and fairly even. 
For the purposes of the experiment the plot was 
divided into four quarter acres, the first and third 
being dressed with the Bouillie Bordelaise on July 
11th and August 2nd, and the second and fourth 
being left undressed. Early tbis month it was clear 
that disease had appeared in the undressed portions, 
and on September 6th one root was dug from the 
centre of each row in the first three sections, and 
with results that, should the whole experiment 
support them, will conclusively prove that (when pro¬ 
perly applied) the mixture is clearly a preventative 
of this dreaded malady. In the following table the 
results are given of the state of each root dug in 
each row of two dressed sections and one undressed 
section: — 
Row. 
Quarter acre No. i. 
Dressed. 
Quarter acre No. 2. 
Not dressed. 
Quarter acre No. 3 
Dressed. 
Quarter acre No. 4. 
Not dressed. 
1 
Two tubers 
) 
1. Myatt’s 
slightly 
diseased 
- All diseased 
f 
A 1 sound 
2. Snowdrops 
3. Beauty of 
Hebron ... 
4. White Ele- 
All sound 
»• 
1) 
II 
II 
If 
phant 
5. King of the ) 
u 
I Slightly 1 
II 
S 
cs 
Russets ) 
6. Co^mopoli- 
\ diseased j 
It 
0 
tan 
7. Magnum ) 
Bonum j 
11 
f v ery ) 
slightly 
( diseased ) 
ll 
O 
2 
8. The Bruce... 
9. Carters’ 
All sound ... 
»• 
Surprise ... 
,, 
10. Imperator... 
” 
The above shows that in the dressed sections only 
two disea c ed tubers were found in the twenty roots 
dug, and those were in the one root of Myatt’s Ash- 
leaf, a sort peculiarly liable to disease. On the 
other hand, of the ten roots dug in the section not 
dressed, in four cases all the produce was found to be 
diseased, in two cases slightly diseased, in one case 
very slightly diseased, and in only three cases (new 
and vigorous sorts, it should be noticed) were the 
produce found to be all sound. In other words, 90 
per cent, in one of the dressed sections was found to 
be all sound and good produce, and 100 per cent, in 
the other dressed section ; in the case of the un¬ 
dressed section only 30 per cent, were sound. This 
is a greater success than has attended even M. 
Girard's experiments, and is most noteworthy. 
It should be added that the experiment has been 
solely devoted to one object—the prevention (and 
not the cure) of Potato disease .—From " The Times,” 
Sept. 12. 
FLOWER SHOW CARDS. 
A few words in one of your leading articles last week 
leads me to send you copies of the cards in use here, 
and I think that if the views of exhibitors could be 
ascertained they would vote unanimously for clear 
distinctive cards on which the names and addresses 
of the exhibitors were legibly written so as to be 
easily read, and for all such cards to be filled up and 
placed against the productions before the public are 
admitted. It is too often the case that exhibitors’ 
names are written on the cards in pencil and in a 
slovenly manner. 
If the exhibits are not very numerous I fill in a 
card with the name of each exhibitor and particulars 
of the class, leaving the assistants who follow to 
place the adhesive strips of first prize, second prize, 
third prize, fourth prize, or extra prize in the space 
left for them. Where the exhibits are very numerous 
as in the cottagers' classes especially, only the 
necessary prize cards are filled up first, second, third, 
fourth, extras, &c., and a gummed prize slip fastened 
to each, the judges taking these and placing them to 
the successful exhibits, simply writing on each the 
exhibitor's number, of which I enclose you a copy. 
Each exhibitor is furnished with one of these for each 
exhibit on the morning of the show, with instructions 
to see that every exhibit of his has a number 
attached. These and his exhibition pass is handed 
to him in an envelope, so that he may have them 
safely. 
I do not believe in trumpery small cards, and feel 
that if an exhibit is worthy of a prize it is also 
worthy of a respectable prize card being placed upon 
it. Allusion was made in your leading article to the 
larger cards hiding the exhibits. Well this is the 
fault of the stagers or the committee in not providing 
sufficient tabling. In managing an exhibition I 
always insist upon the use of green baize to hide the 
underneath part of the staging and exhibitors 
impedimenta, and covering about a foot wide of the 
front of the top of the stage. For fruit I like the top 
also covered with baize, and this should be kept in 
stock for general use, and other shows not possessing 
it should hire it. 
Fruit and vegetables, or anything in dishes, should 
have sufficient space for the cards to lie in front, not 
on the exhibits, and cut flowers, collections of fruit 
or vegetables should have a space of 9 in. to 12 in. 
in front of tabling for the cards to lie upon. Over¬ 
crowded stages never look well and ought to be 
avoided, and injustice to all exhibitors their produce 
should be well displayed, and the prize cards also, 
bor plants, a few neat deal sticks should be 
provided by all managements for groups, specimens, 
etc., so that the pointed end could be pushed into 
the ground, and the card in a slit at the top. Good 
staging is a great essential in all exhibitions, the 
avoidance of crowding, a consideration for the 
general effect, and a breaking up of long banks of 
Ferns and ornamental plants by the introduction of 
groups of colour. Never mind following the schedule 
implicitly in order, but take care that the exhibits 
in each class are not too far away from each other 
so as to give the judges as little trouble as possible. 
A thorough cleaning up of tents whilst the judging 
is going on should be seen to, and packages and 
boxes kept out of sight, and any finishing touches 
put in, and any empty spaces filled as far as possible. 
Almost all our leading exhibitions are still disfigured 
by collections of vegetables being staged in large 
round nursery packing baskets. They are very un¬ 
sightly, and every committee should prohibit their 
use. Staging nicely on the ordinary tabling would 
even be much better.— IV. D. 
CHRYSANTHEMUMS 
FROM THE ANTIPODES. 
What has been talked of for some time past is now 
an accomplished fact. More than a month ago the 
consignment of frozen Chrysanthemums sent by Mr. 
John Earland, Wellington, New Zealand, arrived in 
the Thames, but it was resolved to keep them till the 
September show of the National Chrysanthemum 
Society, and accordingly they were stored just as 
they arrived in a cool chamber at Blackfriars be¬ 
longing to the shipping company which brought 
them from their distant home at the antipodes. 
They had been placed in meat cans, and the latter, 
after having been filled with water and the water 
converted to a solid block of ice, were packed in saw¬ 
dust for the journey. In this guise they made their 
appearance at the Royal Aquarium on the 7th inst., 
and were exposed to the public both on that and the 
following day. 
As related by an Ipswich paper a much-coveted 
bloom named Lady Bell was secured after earnest 
entreaty by Mr. Fison for the museum of that town, 
where it was made the subject of a lecture by Dr. 
Taylor. We hope it is true, as stated by our contem¬ 
porary, that hundreds of pounds’ worth of orders 
were booked for Chrysanthemums of the varieties 
brought before the British public by this new 
venture, but beg leave to doubt it. Of this we are 
certain, that a great many visitors to the Aquarium 
made a point of seeing the new comers in their icy 
prison. A certain section of the public, not being 
versed in vegetable physiology, wondered why the 
flowers were not utterly destroyed, seeing that 
Chrysanthemums at best are easily injured by a 
little frost. The mischief done only becomes visible 
after thawing, and so it was in this case. 
Eight blooms were sent of six varieties, two of 
them being duplicates. Evidently two of the best 
had been selected as that number is necessary to 
secure a First-class Certificate from the National 
Chrysanthemum Society. One of these was Zea- 
landia, a large, incurved, light purple variety, with 
broad florets as far as we could see it, but probably 
the flowers had been preserved just as they had 
grown and without any attempt at dressing them for 
exhibition purposes. The companion flower to this 
was discoloured and nearly white through some cause 
or other. A pale yellow, incurved Japanese variety 
named Tarawera was also certificated. 
Three of the best of the others were commended, 
which was all that could be done in the case of sin- 
