198 
THE GARDENING WORLD 
November 26 1898. 
if timely precautions had been taken, might have 
been averted by the use of petroleum. 
A friend has secured a good crop in a district 
where in every other case Celery is more or less a 
failure. His plan is syringing the Celery daily for a 
month or so after it is well established with a mix¬ 
ture of two gallons of water to one tablespoonful of 
petroleum. He finds it most efficacious, and in 
these proportions holds that the time of day in which 
it is done is a matter of indifference, not having 
at any time detected any harmful results. He 
claims, moreover, that by its daily use for a few 
weeks the maggots in the leaves are killed. 
This is not a new plan, for we have had recourse to 
it ourselves, and were well satisfied with the results, 
but at the same time we were always careful not to 
apply the solution till after 4 p.m. The same plan 
is adopted by our market growers of Marguerites, 
who frequently apply it several times during the day, 
regardless as to whether or no the sun is shining 
upon them, and our friend during this summer has 
used it for the same purpose among his Chrysanth¬ 
emums.— W. B. G. 
--*•- 
CACTUS DAHLIAS. 
The Cactus Dahlia is now, perhaps, the most 
popular of the various sections of this variable 
flower. Moreover the season, in this neighbourhood, 
has been almost unexampled, the flowers running 
well into November without loss of vigour or colour. 
This was very noticeable, both on the 1st and 2nd 
inst., respectively, when Mr. H. Denison, gardener 
to F. G. Gledstanes, Esq., Manor House, Acton, W., 
exhibited cut blooms of some very beautiful varieties 
at the Ealing Gardeners’ Society’s Meeting, and also 
at the Chrysanthemum Show the following day. 
The collection of twenty-four bunches, in nearly as 
many varieties, caused quite a flutter of excitement 
among the visitors to the show, many of whom would 
not be convinced that they were cut from the open a 
few hours before. The colours, too, were a strong 
contrast to the ’Mums, the darker and richer tints of 
the Dahlias being most effective. 
Some of the most striking were Charles Wood- 
bridge, bright crimson; Matchless, rich velvety 
maroon ; Earl Pembroke, dark plum ; Beatrice, pale 
rose; Fusilier, deep salmon-pink ; and Mrs. A. Peart, 
pearly-white. Starfish, Cinderella, and others con¬ 
tributed to produce such a wonderful bit of colour as 
is seldom seen in these tender plants so late as 
November. 
Everybody had a word of praise for them, and 
everybody marvelled at their colouring and contour, 
while I really believe there were many persons who 
regarded the grower as a sort of magician, whose 
skill in interpreting the processes of nature and 
evolving therefrom such a wealth of beauty, was 
different to that of other men.—C. B. G. 
--- 
DHRYSflNTHEmUIII NOTES. 
GARYALD, PEEBLES. 
Having recently had the pleasure of viewing the 
fine greenhouses belonging to W. A. Woddrop, Esq., 
of Garvald, Peeblesshire, I was especially struck by 
the really magnificent display of Chrysanthemums 
grown by Mr. Haig, gardener. 
These beautiful plants comprise a wide range of 
colour. The flowers, moreover, are of unusual size, 
most of them measuring 7 ins. and 8 ins. across, and 
some even exceeding this, par exempli, Etoile de 
Lyon, a superb bloom of lilac-rose, being quite 9 ins., 
are ranged in a commodious vinery, and form a truly 
splendid spectacle. 
Notable among the lighter blooms are Made¬ 
moiselle Therese Rey, a decided beauty, ivory-white 
and very large ; Madame Ad. Chatin, a fine creamy- 
white, with broad and incurved petals; Edith Tabor, 
a lovely golden-yellow, and an extremely graceful 
flower ; Monsieur Panckoucke, a grand flower of a 
bright yellow hue; and Lilian S. Bird, a flesh-pink 
with quilled petals. 
In the darker varieties particularly worthy of note 
President Borel, a fine large bloom, in colour a 
bright carmine-rose, with yellow reverse, holds a 
prominent place. 
Deserving of attention also are John Shrimpton,a 
rich reflexed crimson,quill-petalled,a beautiful flower; 
G. W. Childs, a deep velvety-crimson; G. C. 
Schwabe; and Charles Davis, a glorious bloom, in 
colour yellow and bronze. 
These few examples may, perhaps, convey some 
idea of the perfection and beauty of this collection. 
The plants reflect the greatest credit on the grower, 
and are, I think, well worthy a paragraph in your 
journal.— B. K. 
THE SWANLEY COLLEGE. 
A good deal of all-round gardening is practised at 
that unique establishment, the Swanley Horticul¬ 
tural College, and not to be behind the times the 
culture of the Chrysanthemum, both as a show 
flower and a decorative subject, has been taken up 
with right good will, and it may be added, with con¬ 
spicuous success. The cheery gardener, Mr. Bud- 
worth, in whose charge is the practical management 
of the gardens pertaining to the college, may fairly 
congratulate himself upon a successful season, for 
in addition to a capital display of flowers at home, 
he has come off well at the various Chrysanthemum 
shows at which he was permitted to compete. 
With so many ways in which energy has to be ex¬ 
pended operations are not conducted on a very large 
scale, but what is done is done well. 
We were very favourably impressed with the ex¬ 
cellent samples of bush culture that are to be seen 
at the College. A great many plants are grown in 
the open, and some of the best of these are lifted at 
the approach of frost and planted in the borders of 
the houses which, by that time, are cleared of the 
Cucumbers and Tomatos, which form staple cultures 
here. 
As the result, we found some very fine batches of 
such varieties as Mrs. Dixon, Mrs. Geo Rundle, and 
Geo. Glenny, than which, indeed, we have never 
seen better, the flowers being numerous, large, rela¬ 
tive to their number, and exceedingly bright and 
clean. Source d’Or and Elsie are two other varieties 
that respond readily and well to this treatment, 
whilst W. H. Lincoln and Souvenir d'une Petite 
Amie must not be forgotten. 
In the large span-roofed vinery the major portion 
of the plants grown to produce large flowers are set 
out. 
There we noticed very fine flowers of Viviand Morel, 
Lady Hanham (which seems to do particularly well 
in this district), Mutual Friend, Phoebus, Mme. 
Gustave Henry, Emily Silsbury, Mrs. Mease, G. J. 
Warren, Dorothy Seward, M. Cbenon de Leche, 
Oceana, Edith Tabor, Pallanza, M. Panckoucke, 
Edwin Molyneux, N.C.S. Jubilee, and Col. W. B. 
Smith among the Japanese varieties. Robert Powell, 
that grand incurved Jap., is deserving of a special 
mention, for we have never seen finer flowers of it 
than those that have seen the light at the Swanley 
College. The hirsute section is well represented by 
some flowers of Hairy Wonder, which, for size, 
solidity and richness of colouring, would take a lot 
of beating. 
The best of the incurves are represented by Ma 
Perfection, Yvonne De^blanc, Mme, Ferlat, Major 
Bonnaffon and C. H. Curtis amongst the newer type 
of flower. Very neat blooms of Bonnie Dundee and 
D. B. Crane also excited our approval. The new 
Topaze Orientale, which is not entirely above sus¬ 
picion as a good incurve, when its general behaviour 
is considered, at Swanley has produced very closely 
incurving blooms of capital shape and more than 
ordinaiy size. The full, rich yellow hue is not the 
least important quality that this flower possesses. 
ST. JOHN’S NURSERIES, PUTNEY. 
Mr. Geo. Stevens grows about three thousand 
plants of all sorts at St. John’s Nurseries, Putney. 
As a considerable quantity of flower is required to 
keep the florist's shop going, Mr. Stevens grows 
entirely for the purpose of supplying cut flower. 
This does not mean that all the plants are treated as 
cutbacks, for there is a demand for large flowers as 
well as for small ones, and thus about 1,500 plants 
are disbudded and grown to produce large flowers. 
The number of varieties dealt with on the bush 
system is limited, for although there seems no end to 
the number of varieties in cultivation (and their 
ranks are continually being increased), what may be 
termed the sorts that best lend themselves to market 
culture may be counted on the fingers of the hands. 
Hitherto, W. H. Lincoln has been Mr. Stevens’ 
favourite yellow, a position to which the brilliancy 
of its flowers has entitled it, but the brittleness of 
the growths is a serious disadvantage, and one that 
is likely to militate against its continued popularity. 
Mr. Stevens has serious intentions of discarding it 
entirely in favour of Phoebus, which has all the good 
qualities of Lincoln, and some that the latter variety 
does not possess. This season large batches of both 
sorts have been grown, but Phoebus has proved con¬ 
siderably the earlier of the two, for Lincoln is only 
just commencing to open its flowers freely. 
Niveus is the favourite white and is grown exten¬ 
sively at St. John’s, the plants, each and all of them, 
carrying a lot of capital flowers. Boule de Neige is 
another good market white, but a much smaller and 
more compact flower than Niveus. The yellow 
Lady Selborne is a favourite early variety, and it has 
done exceptionally well this season. 
An important feature is a grand batch of some 800 
plants or so of that splendid late white, L. Canning. 
The flowers are just now opening, but it will pro¬ 
bably be Christmas before they are at their best,and at 
that season, when white flowers are in such request 
for all sorts of decorative purposes,they should prove 
a gold mine. 
The greater part of the large flowers are massed in 
the large house, which is situated close to the road, 
and which was recently put up for Mr. Stevens by 
Mr. Duncan Tucker, of Tottenham. Mrs. R. C. 
Kingston has proved the best of the incurves, and 
amongst the ranks of the Japanese, Modesto, Colonel 
Chase, Mary Molyneux, and Golden Gate have done 
particularly well. That erstwhile fine and much 
sought after variety, Edwin Molyneux, has proved a 
complete failure this year, and Mr. Stevens informed 
us that he does not feel inclined to try it again. 
SYON HOUSE. 
There are many gardeners in private establishments 
who do not attempt to court success—or failure— 
upon the show board, and who only grow the 
Autumn Queen for the wealth of flowers she offers 
during the autumn months. This does not neces¬ 
sarily mean that in such gardens the plants are all 
grown on the natural system, and that big flowers 
are not wanted or striven for. On the other hand, 
the large flower has a majesty and beauty of its own, 
and however much he may deride and revile it as a 
monstrosity, many a gardener knows from experi¬ 
ence that his employers are not satisfied unless a 
few of them are forthcoming to augment the display 
afforded by the smaller flowers. 
Mr. G. Wythes, who manages the princely gar¬ 
dens of Syon House with such benefit to his em¬ 
ployer and credit to himself, grows about 1,500 
Chrysanthemums, of which 1,000 are grown to pro¬ 
duce large flowers, and the remaining 500 are 
treated as bush plants. 
As the everyday necessities of the establishment 
call for vast quantities of flower, only a few varie¬ 
ties are grown on the bush system, Mr. Wythes 
preferring to grow substantial batches of a few of 
the best varieties for the purpose rather than to go 
in for more sorts and fewer plants of each. At the 
time of writing there is a grand batch of upwards of 
fifty plants of that fine yellow, W. H. Lincoln, that 
it would be difficult, indeed, to beat. Vald’Andorre 
and Souvenii d'une Petite Amie are other sorts that 
are in high favour for bush work. Prince's Victoria, 
King of the Plumes, and Princess Blanche are also 
grown in quantity, and Etoile de Lyon, although, 
perhaps, rather coarse as a large flower, is found to 
adapt itself kindly to bush culture. 
The large flowers are remarkably good this year, 
for size, form, and colour are all much above the 
average. The plants are accommodated in a range 
of roomy vineries and Peach houses, and all through 
the present month have presented a glorious mass 
and variety of colour. On the 20th and 27th of 
October last Mr. Wythes cut no fewer than thirty-six 
dozen large blooms for a bazaar, and an idea of the 
excellence of these flowers will be gathered from the 
fact that they fetched a shilling apiece. To cut so 
many large flowers at one time would severely tax 
the resources of any establishment, but the Syon 
House collection had still plenty of good flowers 
left after the sacrifice. 
The collection comprises the best of the legions 
of varieties in cultivation. Phoebus, Sunflower, 
Pride of Madford, Chas. Davis, Miss Elsie Teich- 
mann, Robert Owen, Madame Carnot, Madame C. 
Champion, Miss M. Simpkins, and General Roberts 
have proved the biggest successes of the season 
amongst the Japanese section. Australie particularly 
