282 
THE GARDENING WORLD 
December 31, 1898. 
played out, but is capable under the direction of 
skilled hands of furnishing fresh surprises. Begonia 
hybrida marmorata The Butterfly is well named, 
as it bears a distinct resemblance to some of 
the highly-coloured butterflies. Seedlings give 
rise to scarlet or bright carmine flowers, beautifully 
dappled with white. Having been raised and care¬ 
fully selected for a number of years this new and 
striking type seems reliably fixed, and true to colour. 
This being so it will be an acquisition to the race of 
tuberous Begonias. The figure at the lower right-hand 
corner represents a single yellow Begonia, the yellow 
of which gives place to a rich rosy-carmine edge. 
The variety blooms abundantly, and may be regarded 
as a yellow Begonia with a heavy Picotee edge, and 
certainly a novel combination of colours. 
The accompanying illustrations were lent us by 
Mr. F. C. Heinemann, to represent some of his 
novelties for the coming year. 
DEVANHA HOUSE, ABERDEEN. 
Within easy distance of Union Street, but out 
Ferryhill way, that is, on the south side of Aberdeen, 
is Devanha House, the residence of Sir William 
Henderson. It is situated on a gentle slope looking 
towards the valley of the River Dee. There is a 
considerable amount of glass in various situations, 
but at no great distance from the mansion itself; and 
here are reared the plants that make their appear¬ 
ance at the Aberdeen shows, for Mr. John Proctor 
the gardener is a frequent and successful exhibitor. 
A storm of hail, sleet, and rain, the degenerated 
remains of the biggest snowstorm that has occurred 
in the north during November for many a year, was 
raging during the day of our visit, and time being 
also very limited, we had to hurry from range to 
range of glass, giving the contents a very casual in¬ 
spection. There is a fine conservatory here, being 
the largest and most roomy structure on the estab¬ 
lishment. Palms and Ferns are the tallest subjects 
in the house, beneath and amongst which is a rich 
assemblage of other foliage as well as flowering 
plants. Most notable amongst the Palms are two 
large specimens of Areca Baueri, grown in tubs. A 
grand tree of Dicksonia antarctica had a trunk 13 ft 
high, and 7 ft. 3 in. in girth at the base ; but being 
too tall for the house it had to be cut and lowered 
considerably, so as to afford room for the great 
spreading head of fronds. The operation has had no 
bad effect upon it, for the fronds are as fine as ever, 
A massive piece of Dasylirion glaucum, with its 
thicket of spiny-drooping leaves, is a notable object. 
Many flowering subjects also serve to keep the house 
gay even in November, including many pieces of 
Oncidium varicosum with its showy panicles of 
flowers. Laelia autumnalis, Cypripedium Charles- 
worthii, and other Orchids may also be mentioned. 
Eucharis grandiflora does well in pots; and the 
Otaheite Orange may be reckoned amongst flower¬ 
ing and fruiting subjects, it being in fruit at that 
time. A grand piece of Strelitzia regina flowers 
regularly every year, and when we saw it six flower 
scapes were pushing up for bloom. A frame 
specially built for the purpose accommodates some 
masses of the Killarney Fern (Trichomanes radicans) 
in robust health. Todea superba, one of the noblest 
of Filmy Ferns, does well in company with the 
Killarney representative of the class. 
Another house contained Chrysanthemums grown, 
in bush form for decorative purposes and cut 
flowers. On the roof was a large Lapageria rosea 
bearing massive and richly-coloured flowers, being a 
fine variety of its kind. 
Fine foliaged stove plants are evidently favourites 
here, a warm house being almost entirely devoted to 
them. A large old plant of Anthurium Veitchii 
carried leaves a yard long, or more. There were 
also fine pieces of A. crystallinum and A. waroc- 
queanum, the velvety olive-green of whose leaves is 
always conspicuous amongst a collection of its 
congeners. A plant of Alocasia sanderiana, more 
recently added to the collection, is making satisfac¬ 
tory progress. Maranta Lindeni is a giant amongst 
its kind, a healthy and massive plant standing 2J ft. 
to 3 ft. high. Anthurium scherzerianum, seldom 
absent from a collection of stove plants, is here 
represented by a grand piece of A. s. grandiflorum 
in a large tub. A fine dark variety of Dendrobium 
Phalaenopsis schroderianum is worthy of mention. 
A handsome piece of Coelogyne dayana grandiflora 
has found its way here, and some idea of its vigour 
may be gleaned from the fact that it carried seven or 
eight spikes, each bearing twenty-six to thirty 
flowers last spring. 
Orchids and fine foliaged plants may be regarded 
as the specialities here, though various other sub¬ 
jects go to make up a general and representative 
collection. Dendrobiums being rested in a vinery 
included D. crassinode, well set with buds; well 
grown basket plants of D. suavissimum, D. 
wardianum, D. fimbriatum oculatum and D. devon- 
ianum, all grand pieces of their kind. A massive 
piece of the latter carried between 200 and 300 
blooms last spring. Some of the plants had been 
grown in heat and were characterised by long, 
slender stems. Other plants housed in a much 
cooler structure during the growing season, have 
much shorter and stouter stems. A massive piece 
of Dendrobium nobile in a large pan carried about 
700 blooms last spring. 
The next house entered contained a collection of 
Odontoglossums and others requiring a similar 
temperature. There are some beautifully blotched 
varieties amongst O. crispum, now rapidly approach¬ 
ing the flowering stage, as are O. maculatum and 
Oncidium macranthum, the long, twining spikes of 
which are supported on wires. 
Stanhopea oculata grandiflora was one of the 
favourites pointed out to us by Mr. Proctor in the 
next structure entered. A large piece of a richly 
coloured variety of Cattleya labiata was flowering 
freely here. A magnificent piece of Dendrobium 
thyrsiflorum walkerianum in an Orchid pot must be 
many years old, but is still vigorous. The last time 
it bloomed there were fourteen of its showy racemes, 
each 12 in. to 15 in. long, upon it. Laelia purpurata 
alba, Vanda suavis, and others, are also represented 
by large pieces. The above are merely some of the 
subjects to be seen, but November is not the season 
to see them in their prime. The size and health of 
the plants show that Mr. Proctor understands their 
requirements. 
- 4 >—- 
THE RICHMOND NURSERY. 
For many years the name of Russell has been well 
known in horticultural connections,but it is only some 
six years ago that the firm entered into possession of 
the Richmond Nursery and commenced to work 
up a business in that fashionable south-western 
suburb of LondoD. In six years, however, wonders 
have been accomplished by the energy and business 
ability of Mr. W. Russell, who holds the reins here. 
Mr. Russell has about 44 acres of land under culti¬ 
vation in Richmond, broken up into four sections 
lying in different parts of the town. The Richmond 
Nursery, which lies close to the Old Deer Park, with 
its frontage to the Kew Road, is the business centre, 
and here it is that the seed shop and offices are 
located. The seed shop, which was built and opened 
in 1892, is a roomy and well-ordered building, and 
cannot fail to attract passengers between Kew and 
Richmond. 
Behind the seed shop there are about one and a-half 
acres of land, which contain the glass houses, and a 
selection of the various ornamental trees, shrubs, 
Roses, etc., that are in constant demand for the 
supplying of orders. These latter literally roll in at 
this time of the year, for planting is all agog in all 
parts of the country, and the season has so far 
proved an almost phenomenally busy one. The long 
and severe drought of last summer and the early part 
of the autumn has proved disastrous to many orna¬ 
mental shrubs, and thus the demand is brisk and 
prices correspondingly good. Moreover, the quality 
of the stuff sent out by Mr. Russell is very high, 
thanks to the thorough cultivation given, and the 
care and pains bestowed on everything taken up. 
The Glass Houses. —No pretence is made at 
keeping up a large glass department. There is a 
number of houses, it is true, but these are chiefly 
required for propagating the huge stocks of the 
various subjects taken up. 
In addition to these there are quantities of the 
more saleable hard-wooded greenhouse plants. One 
house in particular contains a lot of very fine 
samples, in 48's and 32’s, of Boronia megastigma, 
B. heterophylla, and the comparatively rare but 
beautiful B. elata. Of such succulents as Agave 
americana, Yucca aloeifolia variegata, and Y. 
gloriosa variegata there is a large stock of plants of 
all sizes. 
That very handsome Dracaena Russelli is worthy 
of a special mention, for, as a table plant, it is one of 
the very best of the narrow leaved Dracaenas. Tht 
colour of the leaves is dull purple crimson, and the 
plants carry their foliage right down to the base of the 
stem. The plants remain for a long time in condi¬ 
tion, as we could easily see from the six or eight 
grand specimens on view. One quality, particularly, 
of this Dracaena is worthy of note, and that is 
its hardiness, for it will stand from 6° to 8° of frost 
with impunity. 
Tree Ivies have long been a specialty with Mr. 
Russell, and he has worked up what is undeniably 
one of the best collections in existence. Amongst 
the seventeen varieties which he has in the tree 
form are to be seen plants of all sizes and ages from 
a couple of patriarchal specimens of Hedera Helix 
arborea variegata which have clean stems some 4 ft. 
in height, surmounted by spherical heads of. foliage 
a couple of feet through, to neat little samples well 
under 1 ft. in height, and eminently suitable for the 
filling of ornamental vases, window boxes, etc. 
The variety, Jubilee, which was sent out in the 1887 
Jubilee of Her Majesty is probably the best of the 
white and green foliaged sorts and we saw a big 
batch of it, which Mr. W. Russell assured us would 
all be gone in a month or two. H. H. a. russelliana 
is a remarkably handsome sample of the small¬ 
leaved varieties of columnar habit. The leaves are 
deep green, and somewhat adpressed to the stem. 
It is most closely favoured by H. H. a. conglomerata, 
from which it originated, but the two are quite 
distinct. H. H. a. minima makes up the third of 
this charming trio, its small green leaves with their 
conspicuous white veins being very ornamental. 
Amongst golden variegated varieties H. H. a. aurea 
stands out prominently, but when seen in its true 
character there is very little green about the foliage, 
for it is chiefly bright yellow,and thus we have a plant 
which for showiness and distinctness is quite unique. 
The noble-leaved H. H. a. dentata is too well known 
to need further description, for it is the best of the 
large-leaved Ivies, and it is equally as handsome in 
the tree form as when adorning bower and wall. H. 
H. a. palmata in the climbing state has distinctly 
palmate leaves, but in the tree form the leaves are 
are nearly or quite entire, and ovate in shape. 
H. H. a. fructa lutea represents a section in whuff* 
the chief point of attraction is the clusters of 
berries. This variety berries more freely than any 
other and the varietal name lutea well describes the 
colour of the large fruits. 
Shrubs for Forcing.— In this department Mr. 
Russell does a very big trade, and we were delighted 
with the samples shown us of the various shrubs which 
are in favour in this country for flowering in heat 
under glass. Staphylea colchica is an old favourite 
that is chiefly grown in the bush form. As a 
standard, with a clean stem of from 3 ft. to 4 ft. 
it is equally as great a success as it is in the bush 
form. Wistaria sinensis, on the other hand, is not 
often grown in pots under glass, but when properly 
looked after it does very well in this way, although 
the flowers are not, perhaps, so bright as those of 
their relatives outside, but this is only to be expected. 
We saw a stock of standard Wistarias that, thickly 
set as they were with bloom buds, gave promise of 
great things presently in the way of flower. W. 
multijuga, with its remarkably long and narrow 
racemes of bloom, is also stocked, but it does not 
appear to be going so well as A. sinensis. Standard 
Lilacs are another noteworthy feature that is as yet 
somewhat of a novelty, the bush form being generally 
favoured. 
Azaleas. —It would be hard indeed to find a 
garden in which some of the handsome Azalea mollis 
are not forced to supply flower in winter. At the 
Richmond nursery there is great store of dwarf, 
thickly-budded plants that look all that they should 
br In addition to these Mr. Russell has obtained 
a stock of the best of the hybrids raised between A. 
mollis and A. sinensis, including those grand forms, 
Davisii and Anthony Koster. The hybrid Azaleas 
are a great improvement upon the plants of the pure 
A. mollis type in that they hold their flowers over a 
much longer period, two or three weeks being quite 
a usual time. 
Climbing Roses are a big line, many thousands 
being turned out annually. The ubiquitous Crimson 
Rambler of course heads the list, followed by 
Marechal Niel, Carmine Pillar, and William Allen 
Richardson. 
Miscellaneous Shrubs. —Of course the very 
. limited area of the Richmond Nursery does not 
permit of more than a temporary lodging for some of 
