326 
THE GARDENING WORLD. 
January 23, 1897. 
THE ROYAL HORTICULTURAL 
SOCIETY’S VICTORIA MEDAL. 
In the report of the Council of this society for 1896- 
97, we note in the three concluding paragraphs that 
some communications have passed between Sir 
Trevor Lawrence, Bart., and the Queen, through the 
Rt. Hon. Sir Fleetwood J. Edwards, K.C.B., con¬ 
cerning a Victoria Medal of Horticulture, honoris 
causa. The proposal to strike a medal or medallion, 
bearing the above legend was submitted to Her 
Majesty, who "has no possible objection to raise," 
either to the proposal or the name to be given to the 
medal. The following are copies of the letters on 
the subject : — 
Royal Horticultural Society, 
117, Victoria Street, S.W. 
December 18 th, 1896. 
Sir, —I am desired by the Council of the Royal 
Horticultural Society to ask you to lay before Her 
Gracious Majesty the Queen, Patron of the Society, 
a proposal which they beg leave to bring before their 
Fellows, for the establishment of a medal or 
medallion in celebration of the attainment, by Her 
Majesty, in 1897, °f the 60th y ear of her happy, 
prosperous, and beneficent reign. With Her 
Majesty’s gracious permission and approval, the 
Council wish to name their medal " The Royal 
Horticultural Society’s Victoria Medal”; and their 
proposal is that it should be awarded by the society, 
honoris causa, to a certain number of persons dis¬ 
tinguished for their services to horticulture, or 
eminent in the science and art of gardening. The 
Council express a confident belief that no such dis¬ 
tinction exists at present, and that the institution of 
such a " Medal of Horticulture " would be received 
with marked favour by Her Majesty's garden-loving 
subjects. They, therefore, venture humbly to hope 
that their proposal may meet with Her Majesty’s 
gracious consent and approval. I have the honour 
to be, your obedient servant, 
* (Signed) Trevor Lawrence, 
President. 
The Rt. Hon. Sir Fleetwood J. Edwards, K.C.B. 
Osborne, 
December 23rd, 1896. 
Dear Sir, —In reply to your letter of the 18th 
inst., which I have laid before the Queen, I am com¬ 
manded to express Her Majesty's regret that she can 
only refrain in this instance, as in all similar cases, 
from giving any personal opinion with reference to 
any specific proposal for the commemoration of the 
60th anniversary of the reign. 
At the same time, the Queen has no possible 
objection to raise to the establishment of the medal 
referred to, or to the name that it is proposed should 
be given to it, and they would appear to be points 
that rest with the Council of the Royal Horticultural 
Society. I am, dear Sir, yours faithfully, 
(Signed) Fleetwood J. Edwards. 
To Sir Trevor Lawrence, Bart. 
-- 
WINTER-FLOWERING PLANTS AT 
WEST DEAN HOUSE, 
CHICHESTER. 
Marvellous improvements have been made these 
last few years in the beautiful estate of W. D. James, 
Esq , West Dean House, Chichester, both inside and 
out. The grounds have been, in many respects, 
remodelled ; some grand fruit and plant houses have 
been erected, and horticulture is being carried on in 
a spirited manner. At the present time there is 
a grand display of winter-flowering Carnations of all 
the leading kinds, beautifully grown and flowering 
freely. Many dozens of this now popular flower are 
cut daily. A house of Begonias Gloire de Sceaux 
and Gloire de Lorraine is now in perfection and worth 
a long journey to see. Calanthes and Poinsettias, 
are also extensively grown ; and grand spikes of the 
former, and large bracts of the latter, are found most 
useful for decoration work. 
A house of young Crotons, Palms, Dracaenas, etc., 
is worth special notice, for they are very clean, 
splendidly grown, and well coloured. A splendid new 
range of fruit houses will give a good account of 
themselves, for the Vines, Peach trees, Nectarines, 
and Figs have made splendid growth the past season— 
everything one could desire. A house of scarlet 
zonals in full blaze makes one forget it is winter. 
There is also a house of Cyclamen well grown and 
profusely flowered. All-round gardening is carried 
out in a thoroughly practical manner by Mr. W. H. 
Smith, the gardener, and it must be gratifying to his 
employer to see that his liberal encouragement 
is in good hands, for satisfactory results present 
themselves in every department.— A. 0 . 
VEITCH MEMORIAL FUND. 
The Veitch Memorial Trustees have decided to 
present, this year, their large Silver Medal for dis¬ 
tinguished service to horticulture, to each of the 
following gentlemen :— 
To Norman C. Cookson, Esq., of Oakwood, 
Wylam-on-Tyne, for his successful hybridisation of 
Orchids, extending over many years, by which a 
large number of new and beautiful forms have been 
added to this remarkable family of plants. 
To Martin R. Smith, Esq., of Warren House, 
Hayes, an eminent amateur, who has been most 
successful in the raising of Carnations. By his 
efforts many new and beautiful varieties have been 
raised, especially in the Malmaison section, and 
among those which, on account of their hardihood 
and beauty, are adapted for culture in the open 
border. 
To Professor L. H. Bailey, of Cornell University, 
Ithaca, N.Y., in recognition of his efforts, by means 
of his lectures and his writings, to place the cultiva¬ 
tion of plants on a scientific basis ; to promote the 
extension of horticultural education, and, by nume¬ 
rous trials and experiments, to improve and render 
more productive, plants grown for economic 
purposes. 
To M. Charles Naudin, of Antibes, a distin¬ 
guished French botanist and horticulturist, who, by 
by his prolonged series of experiments and observa¬ 
tions, has much advanced the theory and practice of 
hybridisation. M. Naudin has also been highly 
successful in introducing, cultivating, and distribu¬ 
ting a large number of plants of great economic 
importance, and of thus enhancing the resources not 
only of his own, but of other countries. 
To Herr Max Leichtlin, of Baden-Baden, as 
one who has rendered eminent service to horticulture 
by the introduction of a large number of interesting 
plants, and who has displayed equal sagacity and 
skill in their cultivation. 
The Trustees have also decided upon placing a 
medal and prize of £5 at the disposal of the Shrop¬ 
shire Horticultural Society, to be competed for at 
their Great Commemorative Exhibition in August 
next ; and have allotted a similar Medal and prize of 
£5 to the Trentham Horticultural Society. 
- H- ■ ■ — 
ORCHID NOTES k GLEANINGS. 
By The Editor. 
A Valuable Odontoglot. — At the Central Sale 
Rooms of Messrs. Protheroe & Morris, Cheapside, 
considerable excitement was caused on Friday, the 
15th inst., by the appearance, on the table, of an 
Odontoglossum, a supposed natural hybrid between 
O. crispum and O. luteo-purpureum. Bidding went 
on keenly until finally it was knocked down to H, T. 
Pitt, Esq., Rosslyn, Stamford Hill, for the sum of 
105 gs. It is really as handsome as it is rare. The 
flowers measure 3 in. by 3 in., and are as round as 
those of a first-class form of O. crispum, after which 
it takes in form of bloom and the blotches, which, 
however, differ strongly in colour. The sepals are 
broadly elliptic, with one large, deep chestnut-brown 
blotch covering almost a third of the surface at the 
upper end, with a few smaller blotches run together 
in irregular masses on the lower portion. The ground 
colour is clear, bright yellow. The petals are elliptic- 
ovate, toothed at the edges about the middle, and 
crisped upwards. Towards the apex is a large 
horse-shoe-shaped, rich chestnut-brown blotch, with 
a few smaller ones down the sides, on a bright yellow 
ground. The lip is broadly oblong, obtuse, wavy, 
and crisped, with a large curved blotch around 
and in front of the crest, which has short teeth like 
those of O. crispum. The pseudobulbs are 3 in. to 
in. long. From the Sale Rooms, this valuable 
plant went into the hands of Mr. J. McBean, of 
Cooksbridge, Lewes, Sussex, who is an expert 
grower of Odontoglots, having a large collection of 
them amongst his other cultures. He is to grow it 
for H. T. Pitt, Esq., and acclimatise it, so to speak, 
or in other words accustom it to the treatment 
usually accorded to such cool house Orchids in this 
country. 
Other good things turning up at the same sale 
were O crispum var., with large, round, pure white 
flowers, with the exception of a large rosy blotch on 
each sepal; Laeliocattleya Ino, and Laeliocattleya 
Cornelia, both bigeneric hybrids. These three were 
sold for 8 gs., 5 gs., and 4J gs. respectively. 
--*■- 
PLANTS RECENTLY CERTIFICATED, 
The awards mentioned hereunder were made by the 
Royal Horticultural Society, on the 12th inst. 
Orchid Committee. 
Cattleya Loddigesii superba. Nov. var — The 
plant of this new variety exhibited by Baron 
Schroder (gardener, Mr. H. Ballantine), The Dell, 
Egham, was an agreeable surprise to those who are 
familiar with the ordinary form. The stems were 
2 ft. high, independently of the massive raceme of 
flowers which extended to another 9 in. The flowers 
individually were of magnificent proportions, and 
the spathulate sepals and ob ovate petals were warm 
pink, occasionally splashed with purple. The tip 
also was large and widely expanded, but notable for 
the shortness of its much crisped lamina, of a rosy 
pink at the apex, and round the edges of the lateral 
lobes as well. The disc or central area of the lip 
was creamy white. Altogether, the variety may be 
described as handsome indeed. Award of Merit. 
Mormodes labium luteum.— The pseudobulbs of 
this variety are very vigorous, and 6 in. to 8 in. long. 
The sepals and petals are lanceolate, incurved, and 
wholly of a bright yellow. The lip is transversely 
oval or oblong, cuspidate, and similar in colour to 
the other organs. Weil-flowered plants are con¬ 
spicuous and highly ornamental on account of the 
decided colour of the flowers, and curious on account 
their form. Award of Merit. The Hon. Walter 
Rothschild (gardener, Mr. E. Hill), Tring Park, 
Tring. 
Laelia Lucy Ingram. Nov. hyb. — The seed parent 
of this distinct and pretty hybrid was Laelia 
purpurata, and the pollen bearer L. Perrinii. The 
sepals are white, and the oblong-elliptic petals white, 
shaded with pale pink, especially on the veins. The 
tube of the lip is white externally, with a few short, 
purple lines near the base, and more numerous and 
longer purple lines on the white interior. The lamina 
of the lip is ovate, slightly crisped, and of an intense 
crimson. The flower is intermediate in size, form, 
and colour, between the parents ; the lip, as far as 
size and shape are concerned, taking after Lj 
Perrinii. Award of Merit. Chas. L. N. Ingram, 
Esq. (gardener, Mr. Bond), Elstead House, Godai¬ 
ming. 
Cypripedium Lilian Greenwood. Nov. hyb. —The 
seed parent in this case was C. bellatulum, of which 
it bears the imprint pretty strongly ; while the pollen 
parent, C. barbatum Warned, has modified it con¬ 
siderably. The upper sepal is round and rosy-purple, 
with numerous crimson spots near the base, and a 
few scattered over the rest of the surface. The 
petals are oblong, somewhat deflexed, slightly 
twisted above the middle, and pink, thickly spotted 
with crimson all over. The laterally compressed lip 
is of a deep purple in front, and the staminode is pale 
purple. It is really a very handsome Cypripedium. 
Award of Merit. Hy. Greenwood, Esq., Highfield, 
Haslingden, Lancashire. 
Cypripedium lebandyanum. Nov. hyb. —Here we 
have a beautiful hybrid of a type that i^ not particu¬ 
larly common. The seed parent, C. haynaldianum, 
was pollinated with C. philippineDse, better known 
as C. laevigatum. The dorsal sepal is ovate and 
white, with rich crimson-purple spots on the lower 
third of its length, and heavy lines or bands of that 
colour on the upper two thirds. The petals are 
linear, pendant, twisted, and greenish yellow on the 
lower third of their length, blotched with brownish- 
purple, the rest being wholly brownish-purple. The 
lip is short and greenish-yellow, lightly suffused with 
