April 10, 1897. 
THE GARDENING WORLD. 
507 
Hardening ||iscellany. 
DORONICUM PLANTAGINEUM HARPER 
CREWE AS A FORCED PLANT. 
Flowers for decorative purposes, either for con¬ 
servatory as pot plants, or cut for rooms, are never 
too plentiful at this time of year. Frequently early 
in March a difficulty is experienced in making supply 
meet demand ; and the list of suitable subjects for 
forcing purposes is always open to receive additions. 
For this purpose few things are more easily forced 
and prepared than Doronicum plantagineum var. 
Harper Crewe. Having a good stock in my borders, 
I lifted large clumps of the above mentioned variety, 
and also D. Clusii, and when the blooms were 
required I placed in gentle heat, and useful flowers 
were obtained for very little outlay and trouble. The 
variety, Harper Crewe, is much more easily forced, 
and has larger flowers ; indeed, whether forced or 
grown naturally, this is a splendid decorative flower. 
Small roots, planted out in good ground now, would 
make capital material for lifting and potting in 
autumn. For cutting, I lift and put the roots into 
boxes, finding it unnecessary to use pots.— A. P. 
MONOCHAETUM SERICEUM MULTIFLORUM. 
This is a good, amateur's plant, and a valuable 
addition to any collection of greenhouse subjects, 
flowering during the winter months when, with the 
exception of Primulas, Cinerarias, and forced bulbs, 
flowers are scarce. It is closely allied to the Pleromas 
and Lasiandras. Its flowers are very similar in form 
to those of Pleroma, and of a purplish-mauve 
colour. The habit of the plant is good, and free 
flowering. It is readily propagated in spring, using 
sandy peat when placed in bottom heat under a bell 
glass. Light sandy peat, with just a very little yellow 
loam, is a good compost for it. During the winter 
months a damp atmosphere should be avoided, as 
under such conditions it is liable to damp off — 
W. B. G. 
FRENCH BEAN, VEITCH S EARLY 
FAVOURITE. 
This is a very useful variety for forcing, and 
establishes its claim to early fruitfulness. The sam¬ 
ples sent you were from the second picking from a 
sowing made on February 2nd, and grown in a tem¬ 
perature of 65° to 70®. The time was six weeks from 
sowing till the first gathering of the pods. I allow 
five plants to a 16-sized pot. The variety is also very 
productive.— /!. P. [The samples were very good 
indeed, of medium length, straight, smooth, 
practically stringless, brittle, and appetising.— Ed.] 
RHODODENDRON LADY ALICE FIT Z WILLIAM. 
A short time ago we received a spray of this 
hybrid Rhododendron from Mr.J.Mayne, gardener to 
the Hon. s Mark Rolle, Bicton, Budleigh Salterton, 
Devon. The spray carried five of its immense 
flowers in one cluster, each bloom measuring 4 in. to 
5 in. across, and pure white with the exception of a 
pale lemon stain towards the base of the tube. The 
truss of bloom was cut from a small plant growing 
in the Orangery at Bicton, and bearing in the agre- 
gate three dozen heads of bloom, though not then all 
open. A few of such flowers are, however, capable 
of producing a fine effect on account of their size and 
delightful shade of white. They are also powerfully 
and deliciously fragrant. Mr. Mayne tells us that 
the plant is easy to strike from cuttings taken in the 
spring, with a little heel of the old wood attached, 
and put under a bell glass with a slight bottom heat. 
Along with the above came a spray of Lonicera 
fragrantissima, and contrary to expectations, the 
scent of the Rhododendron had not overpowered the 
Honeysuckle, which had a distinct and grateful 
scent of its own. 
AZALEA ROSAEFLORA. 
The habit of this Azalea is dwarf, very bushy, and 
closely branched. The leaves are in keeping with 
the rest of the plant, in being small, though a size 
or two larger than those of the well-known Azalea 
amoena. The plant, as far as we have seen it, never 
attains the size of the latttr, and it is therefore well- 
adapted for growing in small greenhouses where 
space is limited and at a premium. The flowers are 
perfectly double, of beautifully compact shape, re¬ 
sembling a rose, as expressed by the name, and like¬ 
wise of a charming shade of rose. It has been 
flowering for some time past in one of the houses of 
Messrs. J. Carter & Co., at F'orest Hill. It is usually 
grown in pots and kept in the greenhouse, but has 
been proved to be hardy in the open air. 
KALE FOR GARNISHING. 
A considerable advance has been made of late years 
in the forms of Scotch or Curly Kale, that are used 
for garnishing. The plants form beads of brightly 
and variously coloured and variegated heads by the 
autumn, and these colours defy any ordinary winter, 
lasting well on into the spring. But they may be put 
to another use than ornamentation in the kitchen, for 
if properly manipulated they make effective and de¬ 
cidedly unique bedding plants. The lower leaves 
should be stripped off and holes dug deep enough to 
allow of the stems being let well in, so as to bring the 
heads of coloured leaves close to the soil. If lifted 
with a fair amount of roots the plants do not suffer 
in the slightest and will last until they begin to run 
in the spring. Messrs. Barr& Sons have a very fine 
strain of these Kales, for not only are the plants 
dwarf and sturdy but the range of colours is great 
passing from various degrees of variegation to shades 
of rose, deep red, and dark purple. 
A YELLOW RAMBLER ROSE. 
The name attached to this Rose is Aglaia. Though 
closely allied to the Crimson Rambler, it is of hybrid 
origin, if its reputed parentage is correct. It is 
stated to have been raised from Rosa multiflora 
sarmentosa, the parent type of the garden " polyan- 
tha ” Rose, crossed with the pollen of Reve d’Or, 
belonging to the Noisette section. Now, this type 
was originally obtained by crossing the Musk Rose 
(R. moschata) with a form of the China Rose (R. 
indica). Aglaia was raised by Mr. Peter Lambert, 
the rosarian of Trier, Germany, who kept it for eight 
years before sending it out. It is very hardy and 
produces fragrant, cup-shaped flowers that are so 
nearly double that they only show a small opening 
ia the centre when fully developed. They are pro¬ 
duced in great abundance, in pyramidal panicles or 
trusses like those of Crimson Rambler, but are of the 
golden-yellow hue of Madame Falcot. The plant is 
a vigorous grower, developing shoots 8 ft. to 
10 ft. long in a season. 
- -** - 
THE NURSERYMEN, MARKET 
GARDENERS’, AND GENERAL HAIL¬ 
STORM INSURANCE CORPORATION 
LIMITED. 
The second ordinary annual general meeting of this 
corporation was held at “Simpson’s,” Ltd., Strand, 
on Friday, April 2nd, Mr. H. J. Veitch presiding. 
After the notices convening the meeting had been 
read, and the minutes of the last general meeting 
read and signed, the report and financial statement 
was presented by the secretary, Mr. Alexander 
James Monro. The report announced the gratify¬ 
ing fact that the first issue of 5,000 £5 shares had 
all been subscribed for, and 10s. on each share 
called up. Whilst the income had been largely 
augmented, the working expenses were less than in 
the previous year. Dealing with the appointment 
of agents, it stated that twenty-five additional ones 
had been appointed during the past year, making a 
total of seventy-two. 
The special advantages offered by the society were 
drawn attention to—viz., that of b/ingable to insure 
the contents of the glasshouses by increased insurance 
of the glass ; also that insurers had the option of 
replacing the glass themselves, the corporation 
paying them at the rate of insurance per sq. ft. of 
glass. 
One very gratifying fact was touched upon—viz., 
that although there had been hailstorms in various 
parts of the country, none of the glass insured with 
the corporation had been damaged. Altogether the 
directors had to report a very satisfactory year of 
steady progress. 
The financial statement showed the total income 
to be £993 10s. 6d.. made up of premiums amount¬ 
ing to £889 ns. 5d , interest on investments, 
£54 6s. id., and balance from last year, £49 13s. 
The total sum charged against the revenue was 
£670 gs. iod., consisting of the following items : — 
Commissions on insurances, £92 8s, id. ; working 
expenses, including secretary’s salary, £ig 4 is. gd. ; 
20 per cent, written off formation expenses, /8a ; 
10 per cent, written off office furniture, £4 ; reserve 
for unexpired risks, /300. A balance is carried to 
the balance sheet of £273 7s. 8d. A dividend of 5 
per cent, on the paid-up capital was declared. 
In rising to move the formal adoption of the 
report, Mr. H, J, Veitch commented upon the satis¬ 
factory conditon of affairs generally. The sum that 
they had carried forward would enable them to have 
declared an additional 5 per cent., but they thought 
it wiser to form a substantial reserve fund, for the 
company was not formed with a view to making large 
profits. They had issued 346 policies, covering 
13,885,875 sq. ft. of glass, valued at /179,33s 16s. id. 
The increase for the year of insured property repre¬ 
sented a value of £47,000. Mr. Veitch touched 
upon the necessity for agents to seek business, and 
deprecated the practice of waiting until business 
came to them. With regard to the directors’ fees, 
he assured them that no fees were desired by the 
directors. 
Mr. Coblay seconded the report, which, on being 
put to the meeting, was carried with unanimity. 
Mr. H. B. May proposed Mr. Henry Estill Till¬ 
man, of Covent Garden, as successor as trustee to 
Mr. James Webber, deceased. Mr. Piper seconded, 
and no other nomination being made, Mr. Tillman 
wes duly elected. The six retiring directors were 
re-elected on the motion of Mr. Cull, seconded by 
Mr. Kay. On the proposal of the last-named 
gentleman, the auditors, Messrs. Baker and Haward 
were reinstated. Votes of thanks to *’ the working 
members of the corporation,” proposed by Mr. 
Piper; “ the Press,” by Mr. A. J Monro ; and the 
“ Chairman,” by Mr, G. Monro, were dealt with, all 
of them being carried with the full assent of those 
present. 
-— 
SOCIETIES. 
ROYAL BOTANIC, March 31st. 
The spring show of this society was held on 
the above named date in the corridor and part 
of the conservatory in the society’s gardens at 
Regent’s Park. Some excellent material was 
forthcoming on this occasion, but with the usual 
luck attending the society’s shows the proceedings 
were somewhat marred by showery weather. The 
competition was very small, many of the classes not 
calling forth any exhibits, and no really keen com¬ 
petition apparent throughout. Consequently the 
miscellaneous exhibits were by far the more impor¬ 
tant and interesting portion of the show. 
In the classes according to the schedule Mr. T. S. 
Ware, Hale Farm Nurseries, Tottenham, received a 
first prize for a very nice collection of hardy her¬ 
baceous plants, which included Primulas, Anemones, 
and Saxifragas in strong force. Mr. W. Rumsey, 
Waltham Cross, was the only exhibitor of six pot 
Roses, and was therefore awarded the first prize. 
His plants were in meritorious condition. Twelve 
pots of Cyclamen were best shown by the St. 
George’s Nursery Co., Hanwell, W., who had large 
and finely flowered specimens. Mr. Thos. Pestridge, 
Boston Park Road Nursery, Brentford, was second. 
Mr. J. G. Mowbray, gardener to Major the Hon. H. 
C. Legge was the only exhibitor of six Chinese Primu¬ 
las ; and Mr. H. Perkins, gardener to the Hon. W. 
F. D. Smith, Greenlands, Henley-on-Thames, the 
solitary exhibitor of twelve Amaryllis. Both re¬ 
ceived first prizes. Messrs. Morle & Co., Finchley 
Road, sent twelve good Hyacinths, and also obtained 
the first award. 
Messrs. Barr & Sons, King Street, Covent Garden, 
had announced their gift of a Silver Daffodil Vase, 
specially designed, for the finest display of cut 
Daffodils, forced or otherwise, of the three groups, 
Magni-coronati, Media-coronati, and Parvi-coronati. 
This fell to the lot of K. Maitland, Esq., Wardour 
Lodge, Sunningdale, who staged a very comprehen¬ 
sive collection. 
The greater part of the corridor was filled with 
the miscellaneous exhibits. Messrs. B. S. Williams 
& Son, Victoria and Paradise Nurseries, Upper 
Holloway, N., had a fine display of Orchids, 
Amaryllis, Boronias, Clivias, Azaleas, Staphyleas, 
and forced Guelder Roses (Small Silver Medal). 
Mr. T. S. Ware sent a very comprehensive lot of 
cut Daffodils. The Leedsii and poeticus types were 
in fine form here, and Sir Watkin was surpassingly 
rich (Large Bronze Medal). A very showy group of 
mixed flowering and foliage plants was contributed 
by Messrs. John Peed & Sons, Roupell Park Nur¬ 
series, Norwood Road, S.E. Some grandly flowered 
