THE GARDENING WORLD 
231 
December 10 , 1892 . 
Hardening Miscellany. 
CORNISH BROCCOLI. 
It has not unfrequently occurred that, 
whilst the market gardeners of the North have 
been deluged with rain this year, those in West 
Cornwall were complaining of drought, and 
many acres of freshly planted Broccoli were only 
kept alive by diligent and careful hand-watering. 
The field and garden hands were kept busy at their 
work of making a hollow round the " davered ” plant 
by the vivifying water, and their industry has been 
rewarded, for "spring” broccoli, fine and well- 
flavoured, are now in the market. What a harvest 
could be reaped if Cornish broccoli could be pre¬ 
served in some way to enable them to be sent to 
Chicago, where the crop is said this year to be an 
entire failure, and the retail price is to rise from 2\d. 
to is. this season 1 It is just worth the considera¬ 
tion and trouble of the Cornish gardeners to see 
what can be done to meet such a want.— X. 
NEW VARIETIES OF COLEUS BLUMEI. 
About the beginning of this year, seeds of a beau¬ 
tiful species of Coleus collected in Chili were sent to 
Messrs. Linden, L’Horticulture Internationale, Brus¬ 
sels. Some of them were sent to different corre¬ 
spondents, and amongst others to the School of 
Horticulture of the State at Ghent. Here the seeds 
germinated abundantly and grew vigorously. The 
colours of the leaves were most varied, and after 
considerable sifting out of worthless kinds, eighty 
were retained, all absolutely different from one 
another. These were potted on, and grown under 
the influence of all the. light possible. They were 
very vigorous, producing leaves for the most part 
over a foot in length and 5 in. in width. Four of 
the varieties are illustrated by a coloured plate in 
L'Illustration Horticole, pi. 164. The leaves of Doc- 
teur Alphonse Willems vary considerably, but 
generally are of a bronzy green in the lower part, 
and lively rose in the upper part, blotched with 
white and emerald in patches of varying size. In 
our opinion Paul Rodigas is the finest and richest in 
colour. The leaves are of a beautiful rich mulberry- 
purple, except the base of the mid-rib and primary 
lateral veins, which have an irregular whitish yellow 
band on each side of the ribs themselves, which are 
of a clear reddish purple. The margins of the 
leaves of Mademciselle Alice Vanden Berghe are 
indexed ; the centre and base are green, while the 
apex and outer margin are of a dark brownish purple. 
Those of Mademoiselle Yvonne Linden are smaller 
and white with a little of a yellow tint, and marbled 
round the margin with deep green blotches. 
DRAC/ENA ALEXANDER LAING. 
For table decoration the narrow-leaved varieties of 
Dracaena, as well as Crotons, are the most popular 
because they are light and graceful. The aim of 
hybridists in recent years has therefore been to 
secure plants of this habit. The leaves of the 
variety under notice are lanceolate, narrowed to a 
sort of sheathing petiole at the base, and of a deep 
bronzy green with a narrow red edge. This margin 
seems to increase in width as the leaves get older, 
but more especially on the upper leaves of the plant. 
No part of the plant is bulky, and it can in fact be 
grown sufficiently large in 48-size pots for decora¬ 
tive work of various kinds. It is as a table plant, 
however, that it is best suited, and a supply of it 
for use all the year round can be kept up by propa¬ 
gating a few batches at different times of the year 
so as to be coming on in succession. The top when 
taken off and rooted will form a plant at once, while 
the small side shoots produced later on will give a 
quantity of small plants for succession. We noted 
the variety in the nursery of Messrs. B S. Williams 
& Son, Upper Holloway. 
NEPENTHES RAJAH. 
Relatively little progress seems to be made in the 
cultivation of this magnificent but intractable 
Nepenthes. In its native habitat of Bornea the 
pitchers attain a length of 12 in. or more, but 
hitherto in this country a few pitchers 1 in to 2 in. 
long is all that the plant can be induced to make. 
The body of the pitcher is short relatively to its 
width, and of a deep crimson-red. The annulus, or 
collar, is of a bright brownish crimson, and sharply 
toothed on its inner edge, and wavy on the outer 
edge. The leaves are thick and leathery, and the 
mid-rib runs off into the stalk bearing the pitcher 
some distance below the apex of the blade. This is 
quite an unusual feature amongst the Nepenthes. A 
high temperature with a close atmosphere has fre¬ 
quently been given it as well as other treatment, but 
all to no purpose. We have seen it in more than 
one establishment, but in that of Messrs. J. Veitch 
& Sons, Chelsea, who originally introduced it in 
1881, it seems to do as well as anywhere. 
A VARIEGATED NIDULARIUM. 
As a rule when the species of Nidularium exhibit 
any other colour than green, it is some shade of red 
confined mostly to the large bracts surrounding the 
spike of flowers. In the case of Nidularium stratum 
the leaves are of a bright light green, with a broad, 
pale yellow band running along the centre of each, 
and this band is itself more or less striated with 
narrow green lines. Something similar is met with 
in C.ryptanthus vittatus, but here the plant is alto¬ 
gether of dwarfer habit and not so effective for 
decorative purposes as Nidularium striatum. The 
latter is about 8 in. to 10 in. high, and does well for 
decorative purposes at any time, whether in flower 
or not, whereas the other species are most useful 
when they have arrived at the flowering stage. It 
may be seen in the nursery of Messrs. B. S. 
Williams &Son, Upper Holloway. 
THE SHROPSHIRE HORTICULTURAL 
SOCIETY. 
We understand that this most flourishing provincial 
society, which during the seventeen years of its exist¬ 
ence has contributed from its accumulated funds an 
average yearly sum of nearly £400 to various purposes 
of public utility in the town of Shrewsbury, has now 
under consideration a proposal to purchase for the 
sum of £3,150 the Crescent Fields, comprising some 
14 acres of rich meadow land, lying between the 
Town Walls and the river Severn, and in close 
proximity to the beautiful Quarry in which the 
society's shows are held. If the scheme is carried 
through, as we sincerely hope it will be, it is the 
intention of the society to lay out the ground on 
lines that will embody ornamental and recreative 
features, for which the site is admirably adapted. 
NEPENTHES DICKSO NI AN A. 
As far as size is concerned, one of the luckiest hits 
that have been made in the raising of hybrid 
Nepenthes was that of N. Dicksoniana. The 
pitcher is oblong or cylindrical, not much narrowed 
upwards, and variously splashed with light crimson 
on a pale green ground. It measures g in. to 12 in. 
long without the lid, and holds over a pint of water, 
thus rivalling in dimensions the notable N. Rajah, 
so much reputed for its carnivorous propensities in 
the wild state, and on the other hand so untractable 
under cultivation. N. Dicksoniana is now in splendid 
condition in the nursery of Messrs. J. Veitch & Sons, 
Chelsea. 
NEPENTHES KENNEDYANA. 
The pitchers of this variety are of good average size 
and neat in form, cylindrical, and contracted in the 
middle. The lower portion is green, while the upper 
one is more or less splashed with red, and the lid is 
also of the same hue. The wings, sometimes a very 
conspicuous feature of the pitcher, is here of minor 
importance, being narrow and fringed only in the 
upper part. The plant is easily grown when 
suspended from the roof of the house in a basket. 
Numerous plants of it so treated may be seen in the 
nursery of Messrs. B. S. Williams & Son, Upper 
Holloway. 
BEGONIA MARIE LOUISE. 
Of the numerous forms or varieties of Begonia Rex 
to be met with in gardens, one of the most pleasing 
is that named Marie Louise. The leaves are of good 
average size, obliquely heart-shaped, and dark olive- 
green traversed in the middle by a broad, lighter 
green zone ; in addition to this the whole surface is 
marked all over by silvery white blotches of oval or 
orbicular outline. The under surface is more or 
less suffused with red, as in the case of so many 
other varieties of Begonia. A fine lot of small 
plants may be seen in the nursery of Messrs. J.Veitch 
& Sons at Chelsea. 
ALOCASIA LINDENI. 
Many of the species of Alocasia taken in hand by 
gardeners are modelled more or less upon the same 
plan, but that under notice is entirely different. The 
leaves are heart-shaped, broad at the base, drawn 
out to a point at the apex, and of a soft leathery 
character. The upper surface is of a rich dark 
green, with pale yellow lines radiating from the base 
along the midrib and the principal nerves. The 
petioles are relatively long, smooth, and almost white. 
The metallic character associated with so many 
species is here entirely absent, and the pliable nature 
of the leaves enables them to be readily sponged 
without injury. Owing to their smooth and glossy 
surface they seldom, however, look dirty. It may 
be seen, in association with numerous other and 
better known kinds, in the nursery of Messrs. B. S. 
Williams & Son, Upper Holloway. 
ANTHURIUM ANDREANUM WAMBEKEANUM. 
A white variety of the old A. Andreanum has at 
last made its appearance, and should find favour 
with those who admire those stately Aroids, but 
particularly by those who take pleasure in making 
collections of them. There are several white Anthu- 
riums already in cultivation, but that under notice 
preserves its own characteristic resemblance to A. 
Andreanum, except in colour. The spathes are 
broadly heart-shaped, suddenly narrowed to a point, 
and undulated or sunk into shallow cavities all over 
the surface. The cylindrical and slightly curved 
spadix is wholly of a clear yellow. The variety 
originated with M. Charles van Wambeke, a well- 
known amateur of the town of Brussels. A beauti¬ 
fully coloured illustration of it is given in L'Illustra¬ 
tion Horticole, pi. 163. 
A VARIEGATED MAIDENHAIR FERN. 
We have now several variegated Ferns, but they are 
mostly species and varieties of Pteris. There is 
now a form of Adiantum cuneatum, named A. c. 
foliis argenteis variegatis, in which the pinnules are 
variegated with silvery white blotches. We noted 
it recently in the nursery of Messrs. Pitcher & 
Manda, Hextable, Swanley, who have proved that 
it can be raised true to character from spores. If it 
is easily grown and managed it will no doubt find 
admirers when it comes to be better known. 
ABELIA FLOR 1 BUNDA. 
At a short distance off this beautiful plant is strongly 
suggestive of a Fuchsia in the way of F. dependens 
or even of Cantua dependens, only the flowers are 
shorter and more richly coloured than those of the 
latter. The leaves are small, oval or elliptic, 
leathery and evergreen, which is not the case with 
A. rupestris, the only other species grown to any 
extent in this country. That under notice is the 
least hardy of the two, as it comes from Mexico and 
requires greenhouse treatment. The evergreen 
leaves, and the fact that it flowers early in the year, 
would prevent it from being so hardy as A. rupestris, 
which drops it leaves in winter and flowers in 
summer. The flowers of A. floribunda are produced 
rather closely together in the axils of the upper 
leaves of the shoots, and, being pendent, resemble a 
drooping raceme at a short distance. They are long, 
tubular, with a slightly bent tube and a five-lobed 
lamina, all deep rose-purple with some white mark¬ 
ings in the throat. The usual season of flowering 
is March, but some plants have been flowering for 
some considerable time in the nursery of Messrs. 
H. Low & Co., at Bush Hill Park, Enfield. So 
showy is it that cultivators might well add it to their 
collection, especially in face of the fact that it can 
be grown and flowered in 48-size pots. 
ALOCASIA EDWARDI. 
Numerous species of Alocasia have been introduced 
to cultivation within relatively a few years past. 
That under notice was collected by Mr. Boxall for 
Messrs. H. Low & Co., Clapton. Although very 
robust it is nevertheless dwarf on account of the 
shortness of its petioles. The real stem at present 
hardly rises above the surface of the pots. The 
leaves are broadly sagittate, of a deep metallic green 
with a glaucous or grey hue on the upper surface 
and of a uniform soft purple beneath. The lamina 
alone measures 12 in. long, by 8 in. wide, while the 
petioles are 8 in. or 9 in., glaucous, spotted with 
black, with a few scattered markings of a similar hue. 
The young leaves are rolled up, showing the under 
surface, which even at this stage is of a reddish 
purple. 
