October 9, 1897. 
THE GARDENING WORLD. 
85 
■On. .... . — - ■ — i ■' ■ ■' 
Nearly £300 daily passes across the counters of 
fashionable West-End florists. 
Hawick Working Men’s Horticultural Society.—The 
treasurer of this society, Mr. Geo. Davidson, is to be 
made the recipient of a handsome timepiece to¬ 
night (October 9th) at the hands of his fellow 
members. 
Ealing Gardeners’ Society —The ninth annual 
general meeting of this society was held on the 31st 
ult., in the Municipal Buildings, Ealing. Mr. Chas. 
Jones, C E., presided over a large attendance of 
members, the report and balance sheet being of a 
very satisfactory character. While the report stated 
that " the society was in a healthy and progressive 
condition,” the balance sheet showed a result of 
£6 18s. 6d. on the year’s work. The chairman said 
the report was in every way an admirable one, and 
proved that the society was very successful and use¬ 
ful. He recommended the younger members, 
especially, to enter into the spirit of research, which 
the writing of essays and papers necessarily involved. 
The following officers were then elected -.—President, 
J. Harris, Esq., F.R.H.S.; vice-presidents, Messrs. 
R. Callard, R. Dawes, H. C. Green, J. Hughes, H. 
W. Peal, Chas. Jones, Mrs. Slade, S. A. Sewell, 
Rev. Dr. Oliver, W. Owen, and W. W. Richardson ; 
committee :—Mr. C. B. Green (chairman), Mr. H. 
Burgess (vice-chairman), and Messrs. J. Baird, D. 
Cooper, H. J. Cox, C. Edwards, R. Green, C. F. 
Harding, A. Hawkins, H. Stiles, and W. J. Simpson ; 
W. W. Richardson, Esq. (hon. treasurer), and Mr. 
W. Roberts (hon. secretary). 
Royal Horticultural Society at the Crystal Palace.— 
Sir Trevor Lawrence presided at the gardeners' 
luncheon which took place, as usual, in the Garden 
Hall on the opening day of the fruit show. After 
the toast of " The Queen” had been honoured at the 
invitation of the president the toast of the " Crystal 
Palace Company” was given. Mr. Rait, the chair¬ 
man of the company responded. He alluded, in the 
course of his remarks, to the rumour that had been 
circulated that the Palace was to be sold to a syndi 
cate. This he said was untrue, for beyond an attempt 
to induce the London County Council to buy it 
nothing had been done, and the company's flag still 
flew from Sydenham Hill. He thought, however, 
that the Palace should be a national institution. 
The jubilee year had been a very trying one to them 
but the directors did not intend to shirk what they 
believed to be their duty. In conclusion he was 
pleased in the name of his brother directors to wel¬ 
come the Royal Horticultural Society to the Crystal 
Palace, and should be pleased to welcome them on 
future occasions. The last toast, which was also 
proposed from the chair, was that of the judges, 
coupled with the name of Mr. Owen Thomas, the 
Queens' gardener at Frogmore. Mr. Owen Thomas 
responded. 
Dutch Horticultural and Botanical Society.—At a 
meeting of this society on the nth ult., the Floral 
Committee awarded First-class Certificates to 
Messrs. Corn. Ottolander & Son, of Apelloorn, for 
Abies concolor fastigiata, Aucuba japonica longifolia 
dentata, and Pseudotsuga Douglasii pendula ; to Mr. 
C. G. van Tubergen, Junr., of Haarlem, for Cactus 
Dahlia Harry Stredwick, and Cactus Dahlia 
Ensigne; to Mr. K. Wezelenburg, of Hazers- 
woude, for Daphne Laureola foliis atropurpureis, 
and Physalis Francheti; to Mr. A. T. Hendriksen, of 
Zeist for Pennisetum macrurum ; and to Mr. D. 
Keuchenius of Hoogeveen for Rosa Gloire de 
Deventer. Certificates of Merit were accorded on 
the same occasion to Mr. Jac. P. R, Galesloot, of 
Amsterdam, for Callistephus sinensis aureus ; to Mr. 
C. H. B. Alsche, of Velp, for Medeola asparagoides 
var. ; to Mr. G. T. Hemerik, of Leiden, for Cactus 
Dahlia Beatrice, and Dahlia Mahala Sheriff; to Mr. 
C. G. van Tubergen, Junr., of Haarlem, for Cactus 
Dahlia Beatrice, and Cactus Dahlia Miss Webster ; 
to Mr. W. van. Veen, of Leiden, for Cactus Dahlia 
Beatrice; and to Messrs. J. W. Wigman & Son, of 
Zutphen, for the Cactus Dahlias, Miss Webster, 
Crimson King, Green’s Gem, Jessie, Mrs. Allhusen 
and Princess Ena. The Vegetable Committee 
awarded Certificates of Merit to Messrs. Sluis 
Brothers, of Enkhuizen, for Bean, Hollandsche 
Witte Reuzen; and to Mr. A. Wulfsche, of 
Zwijndrecht, for a collection of Tomatos in fourteen 
varieties. 
Mr. T. S. Ware, Hale Farm Nurseries, Tottenham, 
has been awarded a Gold Medal at the Hamburg 
Exhibition on the 17th September last, for a splen¬ 
did collection of tuberous Begonias and Dahlias. 
West Wickham Nurseries.—Mr. John R. Box, of 
Croydon, continues to develop and organise his new 
nurseries at West Wickham, about four miles from 
Croydon. In the open ground he plants about 
250,000 tuberous Begonias, which remain in the 
open from May to October, and continue in bloom 
from August till well into October. Several green¬ 
houses are monopolised by the cream of the collec¬ 
tion in pots, including many fine named varieties. 
The Begonias occupy about two acres, and since the 
rain came and long, dewy nights prevailed, the 
Begonias have made wonderful growth, and kept up 
a fine display. He grows a large collection of Roses, 
which have also been more or less floriferous during 
the autumn months. Herbaceous and alpine plants 
occupy several acres of the nursery. Ornamental 
and forest trees, Conifers, evergreen and deciduous 
flowering shrubs and fruit trees also make up a large 
and varied assortment. The nurseries are reached 
from Charing Cross to West Wickham station, 
breaking the journey or changing trains at Elmer's 
End, which is the terminus of the branch line at the 
end towards London. 
The King of Siam at the Crystal Palace —It was 
arranged that the King of Siam was to dine at the 
Crystal Palace at 7.30 p.m. on Friday, October 1st, 
but the time was altered to 7 p.m. to meet his 
Majesty’s convenience. The table was laid by 
Messrs. Bertram & Co., of the Palace, and we had 
the pleasure of inspecting the table just before the 
arrival of the King. On the table were some magni¬ 
ficent Pineapples from the Royal Gardens, Windsor. 
Other fruits were Grapes, Durondeau Pears, 
Bananas, &c. Some large vases along the centre of 
the table were filled with flowers in season, including 
Chrysanthemums and Pancratium fragrans, the 
latter diffusing a strong fragrance through the room. 
The table and all parts of the room were covered 
with red cloth The room itself was situated im¬ 
mediately behind the Royal boxes, facing the grand 
organ in the central transept. At ten minutes past 
7 the King and his party, including the Crown 
Prince of Siam, and some of his Majesty’s eldest 
sons and nephews, made their appearance and were 
ushered into the dining room. This must have been 
his last dinner before leaving this country ; for he 
left the Siamese Legation in four of the Queen’s 
landaus on Saturday morning at 10.45, travelling by 
Victoria and Dover on his way to Brussels. He will 
reach Paris on the 9th, after which he will visit 
Spain and Portugal. 
" The House " (Horace Cox ; sixpence monthly), a 
Magazine of Domestic Art, in its Octobsr issue, 
covers an exceptionally wide field. Leading off with a 
lengthy illustrated review of “ The Arts and Crafts ’ ’ 
exhibition at Lancaster—with admirable full-page 
portrait of the Countess of Bective, the President of 
the Council—it touches upon almost every phase of 
applied art. Lovers of needlework are appealed to 
in a chapter on Ecclesiastical Embroidery ; the 
amateur worker will find much to interest and 
instruct in " Hints on Decorative Wood-staining,” 
and the production of ” A Carved Jewel Casketfor 
collectors there are articles on " Chinese Porcelain,” 
“APiece of Pepys’ Silver,” “ Heppelwhite Furni¬ 
ture,” and " Bookbindings the theatre-goer will 
appreciate “ A Scene from • Rosemary,’ ” and by 
those to whom James Russell Lowell has become a 
“ fireside friend," a plate illustrating an incident in 
"An Interview with Miles Standish ” will be highly 
treasured. “ Trafalgar Day ” is not forgotten, for in 
■' Some Furniture Associated with Lord Nelson ” 
appears the great Admiral’s portrait; his picturesque 
birthplace; the "Nelson” Room at the Star Inn, 
Yarmouth, and bis table from the "Victory.” The 
lady of the house will find her anxieties lightened by 
the recipes and menus fully set forth in ” The Cook’s 
Instructions,” as also by the " Scheme for Table 
Decoration for the Month,” and even serviette 
folding is not forgotten The ventilation and warm¬ 
ing of the home are exhaustively dealt with ; door and 
window draping for the winter is illustrated and ex¬ 
plained ; the overcoming of" Household Difficulties” 
is made easy ; ■' Chess Problems ” are set and solved, 
and the humours of amateur cabinet-making have a 
page to themselves. Last, but not least, in " Illus¬ 
trated Answers to Correspondents,” the editor acts 
as guide, counsellor, and friend to all in trouble with 
reference to matters of furnishing, decoration, house¬ 
hold management, and the like. 
Pat’s Early Potatos —Pat was up one morning 
digging Potatos when the Laird came up and began 
conservation. Laird: "What sort of Potatos are 
those you’re digging ? ” Pat : "They’re raw ones, 
sir.” Laird : " But I mean are they early or late ? " 
Pat : " Sure sir, I think they must be early, for I’ve 
been up since four o’clock this morning at them.”— 
David Paton, Montrose, in The People's Journal. 
Mushroom Picking a Felony.—At Wrexham, on 
Monday, the 27th ult., a collier named Joseph 
Hughes, was charged with stealing Mushrooms, the 
property of Mr. William Charles Hughes, Pennant, 
Ruabon, agent to the Mayor of Wrexham. Accused 
was also charged with assaulting the agent, who, in 
explaining his case, stated that he cultivated the 
Mushrooms by dressing the field with salt. The 
Chairman (Captain Griffith Boscawen) asserted that 
a decision had recently been made to the effect that 
the gathering of cultivated Musbrocms was stealing. 
The defendant was fined 10s., with 15s. 6d. costs. 
At the same time the son of a collier, Thos. Williams 
by name, was fined gs., including costs for a similar 
offence. 
■- 
ORCHID NOTES & GLEANINGS. 
Cypripedium Charlesworthii Clarke’s var. 
Nov. var .—We are in receipt of a magnificent flower 
of this variety from Mr. J. O. Clarke, gardener to 
Ludwig Mond, Esq., The Poplars, 20, Avenue Road, 
Regent's Park, N.W. The dorsal sepal is the 
feature of the flower, and for that alone we think it 
well merits a distinctive name. It is orbicular, 
measuring in. across, either way ; and is of a rich 
dark purple, intensified along the centre and faintly 
tesselated with white towards the edges. The flower 
had be m cut more than a week when these notes 
were made, and was, of course, much darker when it 
first expanded. The petals are dark brownish-purple 
and netted, while the lip is a shade or two paler. 
The staminode is white, the conical boss in the 
centre being tipped with yellow. Both owner and 
grower may well feel proud of it. The variety is 
named in compliment to the grower. 
A FEW GOOD CREEPERS 
OR WALL PLANTS. 
Paying a visit a few weeks ago to an old friend and 
tutor, I was particularly struck with the charming 
appearance of the creepers and wall plants around 
the house. Many people who detest the sight of 
bare walls and fences fail at the same time to beautify 
these ugly spots and blanks, not because of a lack of 
suitable material surely, nor because of prohibitive 
prices. Why it is that more creeping and wall 
plants are not planted I cannot imagine, Nothing 
adds more to the charm of a garden, however small, 
than this class of plants; perhaps a simple arch or 
screen, or even a pole adorned with a Hop plant. 
Every device and form of training these creepers 
was to be found in this garden, and many a pretty 
picture presented itself. Walking around the house 
on the terrace, the first to catch my eye was a 
magnificent plant of Cbimonanthus fragrans, which 
as its name implies, is a winter flowering shrub. The 
plant in question, neatly trained to the wall having a 
south-western aspect, was at least 20 ft. high and 
covered a good breadth. Some fine fruits I noticed 
at the top caused me to break the tenth command¬ 
ment. The highly fragrant flowers are greatly 
esteemed in winter and may be gathered at any time 
except, perhaps, in severest weather from November 
to March. A good way of arranging these tiny but 
bright and fragrant flowers is to fill a shallow vessel 
with moss, green and fresh if possible, and stick the 
flowers in the tr.oss upright; and an occasional damp¬ 
ing will give a pretty and sweet dish of flowers for 
several days. Side by side with the foregoing native 
of Japan, was an equally vigorous Norih American 
subject Tecoma radicans apparently in perfect 
harmony, no political question of annexation dis¬ 
turbing their atmosphere; but having filled its 
