THE GARDENING WORLD 
December 11 , 1897 . 
228 
In 1892 there were no Malmaisons except 
the original type,'"and such as have arisen 
from it by sporting. The ovary is per¬ 
fectly barren in the old Malmaison, so that 
other varieties, having similar characteris¬ 
tics, can only be obtained by utilising it as 
a pollen parent ; but it took many years 
before cultivators recognised this fact. Mr. 
Martin R. Smith, who writes the chapter, 
has certainly been the most active raiser of 
new varieties of this huge and deliciously 
fragrant type. The new varieties already 
exist in all the leading shades of colour 
except, perhaps, yellow, which is almost 
certain to come in a few years if not already 
in existence. The marked similarity of the 
seedlings to the original, in all its more 
characteristic traits, is due to the prepo¬ 
tency of the pollen parent, a fact which we 
have proved in other races of flowers, so 
that it can no longer be said that the pollen 
parent imparts merely its colour to the pro¬ 
geny. Mr. Smith finds the first crosses to 
be the best, but that merely proves that 
seedlings raised in this way have already 
lost part of their stability and prepotency. 
That a large proportion of the seedlings, 
particularly of second and further crosses, 
should be practically worthless, is not 
at all surprising, but what we should 
expect. He further states that one layer 
in a pot and one flower to a plant is the 
usual method adopted by growers in order 
to secure the largest and finest blooms ; but 
that two-year-old plants will develop from 
ten to fifteen equally fine flowers, under 
good treatment. This entails systematic 
and regular feeding, otherwise a small pot 
of soil would be unable to supply the 
nutriment requisite to develop a perfect 
flower of the desired size. 
-- 
Royal Gardeners’ Orphan Fund. —We are pleased 
to learn that Mr. P. C. M. Veitch, of the Royal 
Nurseries, Exeter, will preside at the friendly dinner 
of the committee and friends of the Royal Gar¬ 
deners’ Orphan Fund, to be held at Anderton’s 
Hotel, on the 18th February, 1898. 
Royal Horticultural Society.—The last meeting 
this year of the above society will take place next 
Tuesday, the 14th, in the Drill Hall, James Street_ 
Westminster, when the fruit, floral, and Orchid 
committees will meet as usual at 12 o’clock. A 
lecture on “ Sporting in Chrysanthemums ” will be 
given by the Rev. G. Henslow, M.A., at 3 o'clock. 
A Royal Forester.—King Oscar, of Sweden poss¬ 
esses Mr. Gladstone’s ability as a tree feller. King 
Oscar is never happier than when roaming about 
among the Pine forests of Sweden, axe in hand, and 
he will often spend a whole day hard at work chip¬ 
ping away at some specimen that he has decided to 
bring down. 
Chester Horticultural Show.— Diamond Jubilee 
year has been anything but a blessing to not a few 
institutions which depend upon public support for 
their existence, and on no such institution has the 
burden fallen more severely than upon the Chester 
Horticultural S:ciety. At the recent general meeting 
of the subscribers and officers of this body it tran¬ 
spired that there was a loss of some £400 over the 
last show. This loss is fully accounted for by the 
fact that the aggregate of gate money was fully 50 per 
cent, less than that of last year, and that the prizes 
were £100 in excess of those given in the same year. 
Defective organisation and administration has also 
to been blame to some extent. By private subscription 
the debt of £400 has been reduced to /g8 10s. 7d., and 
efforts are being made to rid the society entirely of 
the incubus. In this laudable intention we wish the 
workers all possible success, for a city like Chester 
should easily be able to support even such a big 
affair as the Chester Fete. It would seem, however, 
from remarks made by Alderman Charles Brown at 
the meeting that a thorough reorganisation is 
necessary if the society is to go on its way and 
prosper. 
Omnipresent. —Teacher : “ What is that which 
pervades all space, which no wall, or door, or other 
substance can shut out?” Johnnie Sharpe (a flat 
dweller): “ The smell of Cabbage, miss.” 
The name” Stock” explained—Our contemporary, 
The Orcadian, says “ The Stock received its name 
from the fact that it was principally sold in the old 
Stocks Market, in London, the market itself having 
derived its title from a pair of stocks that stood 
there.” We are much obliged, Orcadian, but have 
got the idea that stock meant the woody portion of 
the plant, and was so used to distinguish the Stock 
Gilliflower (Matthiola incana) from the Clove Gilli 
flower (Dianthus Caryophyllus). 
Ailsa Craig Onions at Edinburgh.—The competi¬ 
tion for the prizes offered for Onions at the Chrjsan- 
themum show, Edinburgh, was very keen, but the 
judges had no difficulty in awarding the premier 
position to Mr. P. Melville, gardener to J. G. Baird 
Hay, Esq,, Rosemont, Monkton, Ayr. His samples 
were large, firm, and well ripened, each weighing 
over 2 lbs. Besides weight and quality, the Onions 
also had the recommendation of being true to the 
Ailsa Craig type. Mr. Melville is a good vegetable 
and fruit gardener, being particularly successful with 
Onions, of which he grows a large quantity. We 
understand that Mr. John Downie, 144, Princes 
Street, Edinburgh, has secured the stock of Ailsa 
Craig Onions, which he intends growing for seed. 
Ealing Gardeners’ Society—On the 23rd ult., at 
the Municipal Buildings, Ealing, the chairman, Mr. 
C. B. Green, gave an informal address entitled, 
” Some Scottish Notes,” which dealt with some re¬ 
cent observations and experiences in the land o’ 
Burns. The Botanical Gardens of Edinburgh and 
Glasgow were dilated on, and a comparison with 
Kew instituted. Notes from private gardens like¬ 
wise held a place, as also much matter concerning 
the Western Highlands, and the glories of the 
Heather, the Bracken, and the mountain plants. 
Some Scotch flower-pots were exhibited and recom¬ 
mended as superior to the ordinary English manu¬ 
facture, but the meeting would not have them. John 
Hughes, Esq., F.R.H.S., presided over a fair atten¬ 
dance, and the customary votes of thanks were duly 
accorded. The weekly exhibits were not numerous 
owing to the foggy state of the weather. There was, 
however, one interesting exhibit, which showed a 
better condition of things elsewhere, and that was a 
collection of cut flowers from Mr. John Fraser, The 
Gardens, Ardenlee, Dunoon, N.B. These were 
gathered the previous day out-of-doors, and consisted 
of Roses in variety, Violas in variety, Antirrhinums, 
hybrid Primroses, and P olyanthuses, Nasturtiums, 
summer - flowering Chrysanthemums, Clematis, 
Jasminum nudiflorum, Myrtle, Euonymus euro- 
paeus, etc., the scarlet fruits of the latter being ex¬ 
ceedingly showy. 
The Smithfield Show, 1897 .—The Berners Gallery is 
in some respects a sort of home from home for our chief 
chemical manure manufacturers. It is here that we 
regularly find our friends from Griffin Mills, Ipswich. 
Mr. William Colchester’s Gold Medal Fertilisers 
have sustained such a reputation, that, naturally 
without them, the show at Smithfield would lose 
something of its familiarity. Here the various 
grades of phosphate and ammonia in all manner of 
forms are shown as the constitutents which the 
chemists of to-day make use of in the preparation 
and manufacture of these manures, which, al¬ 
though not bulky, have such a concentrated va’ue 
and such emphatic result on nearly every crop and 
every soil. Be it remembered also that this science 
of chemical manure manufacturing is not a century 
old, and what is regarded as extraordinary to-day, 
may be looked upon to-morrow as a matter of 
ordinary interest. Messrs. Colchester's big Gold 
Cup Competition for the best samples of 1898 Barley 
will probably afford still one more opportunity for 
our best Barley growers to try their mettle in this 
respect. The competition is sure to be a popular 
one, because, so far as we observe from the condi¬ 
tions laid down in the firm's new catalogue, the 
essentials are so fair and legitimately drawn, that 
growers cannot fail to appreciate them. We are 
interested to learn that within the last twelve 
months, this firm has added to their list of awards 
no less than four Gold and Silver Medals, in addition 
to the Grand Diploma of Honour from Orleans. 
The Wheat Crop in the Darling Downs district of 
Australia is estimated at 40 bushels per acre, being 
quite a record. The area under wheat is dcuble 
that of last year. 
Presentation to Mr. F. Q. Lane, J.P.— At the annual 
meeting of the Berkhamsted Chrysanthemum 
Society, of which Mr. F. Q. Lane is the Vice-presi¬ 
dent, aDd Earl Brownlow, President, at the King’s 
Arms Hotel, on Saturday, Mr. Lane (of the 
Nurseries, Berkhamsted), was presented with a 
silver cigar box, bearing the inscription : '■ Presented 
by the Committee of the Berkhamsted Chrysanthe¬ 
mum Society, 1886—1897” on one lid ; and on the 
other F. Q L.” Mr. A. Prudames, M.R.C.K.S. 
made the presentation. Mr. Lone, who was taken 
by surprise, expressed his thaDks for the kindness 
shown him, arid was much pleased. 
Marriage of Mr. Archibald Forbes. —This event 
tcok place at Marlfield, Hawick, the residence of tb e 
bride’s father, on the 3rd iDst. The Rev. Chas 
Allan, M.A., East Bank, U P. Church, Hawick, offi¬ 
ciated, assisted by the Rev DuDcan Stewart, M.A., 
St. Andrew’s F. Church, Hawick. The bride was 
Eleanor Snowdon, eldest daughter of Mark Currie, 
Esq., of the firm of Currie & Gawn, tweed merchants, 
Hawick and London. She was married in a brown, 
travelling dress, with shot bodice, and looked very 
neat, carrying a shower bouquet composed cf 
Orchids, Roman Hyacinths, and Asparagus. Her 
bridesmaids weie her two sisters, who looked very 
attractive, being dressed in dark skirts with silk 
blouses, and carrying Orchid shower bouquets. The 
bridegroom, Mr. Archibald Forbes, is the only son 
of Mr. John Forbes, Buccleuch Nurseries, Hawick, 
The presents, which were considerably over 100, 
were handsome, varied and costly. They included 
a handsome aneroid barometer from the employees 
of the Buccleuch Nurseries, and a beautiful silver 
salver Lorn the office bearers of the Grand Masonic 
Lodge No. Ill, of which the bridgegroom is junior 
warden. The bridegroom’s presents to the brides¬ 
maids were lovely gold bangles. The happy pair 
are off to the no^th to spend their honeymoon. 
Aberdeen Chrysanthemum Society. —It is satisfac¬ 
tory to learn that the show held on the 26th and 
27th ult., under the auspices of this society, 
has been a great success compared with that 
held last year by a provisional committee. At the 
opening ceremony, the chairman, Councillor Mait¬ 
land, said that the entries had risen from 250 last 
year to 400 on this occasion, a most satisfactory 
increase indeed, while the quality showed a decided 
improvement. The main object of the society was 
to encourage the cultivation of the Chrysanthemum, 
which, like the robin amongst birds, came to cheer 
the earth when its fellows had departed. The open¬ 
ing ceremony was performed by the Right Hon. 
James Bryce, M.P. for the city of Aberdeen, who 
compared tbe show with those held in various other 
great centres of the country. He made a slip, how¬ 
ever, when he spoke of the display of Chrysanthe¬ 
mums in the Temple Gardens, seeing that their 
cultivation has now been abandoned in these historic 
gardens for some two or three years past. He 
explained to his audience that although we had 
more than one native Chrysanthemum, the object of 
their care was a native of China, and had been 
cultivated for centuries both there and in Japan 
before its introduction to this country a little over 
100 years ago. In conclusion, he congratulated the 
society for their admirable show, the prize givers 
and prize takers, and formally declared the show 
open. The total amount taken at the gate for the 
two days was £22, as compared with £14 last year. 
This is good, but might be largely augmented if the 
society would cast aside that undue caution which is 
so characteristic of the Granite City, and create a 
guarantee fund to cover any loss, as was done at 
Edinburgh and Dundee with such excellent results. 
By similar means it would be possible to offer an 
attractive prize list that could hardly fail to call the 
existing talent into play, and ensure a splendid show, 
simply on account of the friendly riva'ry and com¬ 
petition which would ensue amongst gardeners far 
and near. The society would also be in a position to 
secure the services of a good band or other attrac¬ 
tion to draw the presence of the local gentry and 
townspeople, many of whom could scarcely have 
heard of the show until it was a thing of the past. 
