February 19 , 1898. 
395 
TH 
blue, in fact—and as delicate looking as it is beauti¬ 
ful. Always an early bloomer this plant has this 
year got out of its bed of earth uncommonly early. 
On the open rockery we met with an old friend in 
Potentilla alba,which will flowerat any season if there 
is any chance at all. This season has been exactly to 
its liking, and the white flowers are correspondingly 
abundant. Cyclamen Coum, C. C. lilacinum, and 
C. ibericum roseum were also in flower. 
The Christmas Roses have been having a royal 
time of it, and although they were much past their 
best when we saw them the plants made a brave 
show from a distance. Helleborus niger, the Bath 
variety, was the most conspicuous form, and a fine 
free-flowering one it is. 
The Lenten Roses take up the tale where the 
Christmas Roses lay it down. Mr. J. W. Barr 
informed us, upon enquiry, that he had never known 
them do better, for the weather had been exactly in 
their favour. The Long Ditton collection is one of 
the finest in existence, for it not only includes all the 
most noteworty species, but the best of the hyDrids 
and varieties from the Continent, notably Germany, 
where Hellebores have been systematically taken 
up. 
H. punctatus, which was represented by a large 
break of plants in full flower, is one of the finest and 
most useful of the hybrids. Viewed on a sunny day 
the effect, when seen in the mass of its rose-purple 
flowers is exceedingly bright. 
H. orientalis, the species which is the parent of so 
many fine varieties, and one of the parents of a 
number of hybrids is in itself a very ornamental 
plant. The flowers are of medium size, pure white, 
and produced in great abundance. 
Amongst the seedlings from this species one of the 
best is Modesty, a new one not yet put into commerce. 
The plant is dwarf in habit, and bears large 
white flowers heavily spotted with maroon. Mozart, 
another new variety, has large, full, light rose flowers,' 
spotted heavily with maroon. Of the older forms 
which we noticed in capital condition mention should 
be made of Lady Leonora, rosy-blush; Queen 
Victoria, green-white, spotted maroon at the base, 
flower of good regular outline, and very compact; 
Afghan Prince, dull green-purple, a curious and 
fascinating colour; Frau Rene Heinemann, dull 
purple, heavily spotted with purple-maroon; and 
The Geisha, white. H. o. antiquorum is a well- 
marked variety that is not infrequently accorded 
specific rank. Both it and H. o. roseus were ex¬ 
ceptionally full of flower. 
The rich plum-coloured H. colchicus has given 
rise to several fine forms of which H. c. coccineus is 
perhaps the finest. The flowers are large and of a 
rich blood-crimson hue that is splendid when the 
sun is shining upon it. Otto Froebel is another 
splendid variety with large purple-crimson flowers. 
In the viridis section we get a lot of plants that 
may, perchance, be thought to be more curious than 
pretty, but they are interesting, nevertheless. H. 
Bocconi has large bright green flowers possessing a 
strong Elder-like perfume H. cupreus has flowers 
representing a peculiar shade of slaty purple. H. 
torquatus is a very rare plant of very lowly habit 
suitable for the rock garden. It has dull green- 
purple flowers. H. viridis erubescens is really a 
rosy-coloured " viridis,” for habit and build of bloom 
are identical. H. v. laxus has rather smaller flowers 
than the type, and the habit, as the name suggests, 
is more lax and spreading. 
Of the Crocuses which were in flower at the time 
of our visit none was more beautiful than a bright, 
orange-yellow, sweet-scented form of C. chrysanthusj 
called Canary Bird. The type was also in capital 
condition. C. etruscus, with its delicate white 
flowers lined and veined with black, was exceedingly 
good. C. tommasinianus is one of the finest of the 
early spring-flowering species. At Long Ditton it 
does remarkably well, as was evidenced by the 
brilliant effect produced by some large beds of the 
delicate lavender-hued flowers. C. t. atropurpureus 
exhibits a rich shade of blue. C. versicolor striatus 
is a handsome purple variety with deeper purple 
stripes. C biflorus argenteus is very conspicuous 
with its snow-white flowers, feathered prettily with 
black. 
All these are real gems for the garden, as those 
who have seen them planted in masses in the nursery 
grounds at Long Ditton would not be slow to admit. 
Autumn tints in January. —A correspondent to 
E GARDENING WORLD 
The Globe discusses the autumn-tinted foliage of 
Mahonia Aquifolium that is used so extensively for 
associating with Roses, and other flowers in button¬ 
holes. He is evidently disgusted at having to remove 
with soap and water the autumn tints that remain 
upon his fingers after handling the dyed foliage. The 
practice of dipning the leaves of the Mahonia in a 
bath of dye in order to produce that rich shade of 
bronze-purple seems to have become a fairly common 
one of late. It is only an enlargement of the idea 
that has given us gaudily-dyed grasses, and ever¬ 
lastings. 
-- 
READING AND DISTRICT GARDENERS. 
Although the Fern is one of the most popular 
plants with gardeners, both professional and 
amateur, yet an evening had not been devoted to 
this subject by the members of the above association 
previous to Monday, the 7th inst., when Mr. Powell, 
foreman at Park Place Gardens, Henley-on-Thames, 
read a paper before a crowded attendance of mem¬ 
bers, presided over by the president, Mr. C. B. 
Stevens, in the club room, British Workman, 
Mr. Powell, in introducing his subject referred to 
the great popularity of Ferns, and to their being 
grown by every gardener ; for, no matter how small 
the garden they were required, their uses being 
numerous. They were plants that could be grown 
under various circumstances ; for it was not only in 
the greenhouse and stove that you saw excellent 
specimens, but in the cottage gardens in town and 
country you very often met with splendid examples 
of the hardy varieties. After dealing with the 
varieties most suitable for the out-door rockery, the 
greenhouse and stove, and the soils best adapted for 
their successful culture, he impressed upon the 
younger members in particular the great advantage 
and pleasure derived from making a study of the 
various classes of Ferns, especially in the drying 
and mounting of specimens in books, which would in 
after years be a source of profit and assistance. 
At the request of the lecturer, Mr. Stanton made 
some very interesting remarks respecting the various 
varieties, the growth of the spores, and the fertilisa¬ 
tion of Ferns, illustrating his remarks by dried 
specimens of crested Ferns; Ferns with distinct 
fertile and barren fronds ; Ferns showing the various 
kinds of spore arrangements, whereby botanists 
were able to determine the genera and species of the 
family; specimens of peculiar interest such as the gold, 
silver, variegated and transparent varieties, some of 
which the speaker had collected thirty-seven years 
ago. 
A discussion took place, bearing chiefly on the 
culture of Adiantum farleyense, in which Messrs. 
Martin, Turton, Woolford, Neve, Phipps, Bright, 
Tunbridge, &c., took part. Mr. Woolford exhibited 
some seedling crested Ferns of various forms, raised 
at East Thorpe ; whilst Mr. Stanton brought a beau¬ 
tiful specimen of Adiantum Capillus-Veneris (the 
British Maidenhair) growing on the outside of an 
Egyptian earthenware pitcher. Six new members 
were elected. 
- rnfm— -— 
GLASTONBURY THORN. 
It may not be deemed inappropriate at this season of 
the year to send you the following as quoted from a 
well-known periodical of the year 1752 :—" We hear 
from Quainton, in Buckinghamshire, that upwards 
of 2,000 people came on the 24th December at night 
with lanthorns and candles, to view a Blackthorn, 
which grows in that neighbourhood, and which was 
remembered (this year only) to be a slip from the 
famous Glastonbury Thorn ; that it always budded 
on Christmas eve at night, was full blown next day, 
and went all off at night. But the people finding no 
buds, nor the appearance of any, it was agreed by 
all, that the 25th December, N.S., could not possibly 
be the right Christmas day ; and accordingly refused 
going to Church, and treating their friends on that 
day, as usual. At length the affair became so 
serious, that the ministers of the neighbouring 
villages, in order to appease the people, thought it 
prudent to give notice, that the old Christmas day 
should be kept holy as before.” 
It will be remembered that the "New Style” of 
reckoning, and which was universally strongly com¬ 
mented upon, came into force on the 2nd September 
of the above year. It will be noticed that the writer 
of the above designated the Glastonbury Thorn, a 
Blackthorn, by which I presume he means Primus 
spinosa, while the Glastonbury Thorn, known to me 
is a variety of Crataegus Oxyacantha, namely, C. O. 
praecox— D. Chisholm. 
- *§— - 
GOOSEBERRY PRUNING. 
This is a much debated subject considering the 
common-place character of the plant in question. 
Possibly the thing which imparts the greatest inter¬ 
est to the question is, shall we say, the bird question • 
for were it not for a few members of the feathered 
tribe I venture the assertion there would not have 
been one-fourth of the correspondence in the gar¬ 
dening papers respecting Gooseberry pruning there 
has been if they would kindly leave our fruit trees 
and bushes alone, and content themselves with the 
insect fodder they are credited with being so partial 
to. It would simplify the task of many a one whose 
patience with this branch of animal life is often 
sorely tried. We are told on the one hand to prune 
late so as to run the chance of a few fruits from the 
few buds which our kind friends have so generously 
left us. On the other hand we have the advice to 
prune early, so that the energies of the plant will be 
thrown into the buds we ourselves leave. Further 
than this our advisers direct us to periodically con¬ 
vert ourselves into a kind of hybrid between a 
miller and a sweep by dusting over our bushes with a 
mixture of lime and soot. Now, briefly, my ex¬ 
perience has taught me that where birds are trouble¬ 
some the almost only, and certainly the best way is 
to grow Gooseberries trained to stakes about 5 ft. 
high, and soon after the leaves have fallen to draw 
all the shoots closely round the stakes with tar twine, 
and let them remain so till the buds are too far 
advanced for the birds to meddle with them. I 
then untie and thin out the wood. By this plan a 
good crop may always be secured, unless a late frost 
of unusual severity occurs. Once or twice I have 
delayed, with advantage, the untying, because of the 
prevalence of frosty mornings, till a later period than 
would otherwise be desirable. Their being close 
together serves to protect the young shoots to some 
extent from injury by frost.—IF. B. G. 
•«» - 
MUSA CAVENDISHII. 
On p. 360 in your issue for 5th February, you give 
"Rob” some little information respecting this 
plant, admitting it may be grown and fruited in 
fairly large pots in a house where there is abundance 
of heat and moisture. This is very true as far as it 
goes, and to those who have only just one corner in 
a stove, where a plant may be placed, it is just 
worth adopting. Fruit will probably be developed, 
some of which will ripen; but I fear the result will 
not be so satisfactory as could be desired. The fact 
is an ordinary stove is too moist, and too much 
shaded to grow Bananas well. So many other 
things are occupants of the same house that constant 
shading and moisture must be given to the greater 
number to the detriment of those that revel in heat, 
light, and at times a drier atmosphere. 
It has often appeared to me somewhat surprising 
that a house specially devoted to the culture of 
Bananas is not more often erected, when ranges of 
fruit houses are being put up. If, however, it would 
be considered out of place among the Vineries, 
Peach houses, &c., well then devote a separate spot 
to one such house ; and if made at all suitable, I 
venture to say the results after successful treatment 
will be that Bananas will become one of the prime 
factors in the fruit department. 
For rich, luscious fruit'commend me to some fine 
English-grown, thoroughly ripened pods ; and, when 
they are cut from a cluster grown in the garden, 
there seems to be a double pleasure in eating them. 
Of course, I by no means seek to slight the grand 
clusters that are constantly coming over to our 
ports ; they are fine, and if it were not for these we 
should seldom'have a chance of tasting the Banana. 
M. Cavendishii is the one usually met with in gardens, 
and answers well for all purposes ; but M. para- 
disiaca, a taller grower, with much longer leaves, is 
a most delicious fruit. It has scarcely as long a pod 
as the former, but it is somewhat stouter. Its 
height, however, somewhat militates against its 
culture for fruiting purposes. To those who may 
purpose growing Musas for fruit, I have in my mind s 
eye a most useful house adapted to this purpose, and 
any one putting up one such would find growth and 
fruiting follow in due course with comparative ease. 
This house is against the garden wall, somewhat 
