May 15, 1897. 
THE GARDENING WORLD 
589 
Messrs. A. W. Young & Co, Stevenage, Herts, 
had a group of Gloxinias set up with Adiantum 
cuneatum (Bronze Banksian Medal). 
Mr. Geo. Mount, The Rose Nurseries, Canterbury, 
again gave an effective demonstration of his powers 
as a Rose grower. It would be difficult to over¬ 
praise the blooms shown in this instance, varieties 
like Mrs. John Laing, Ulrich Brunner, Prince 
Arthur, Captain Hayward, The Bride, and Catherine 
Mermet, were enough to rejoice a rosarian’s heart. 
Catherine Mermet cut with stalks about 18 in. long 
was very noteworthy. A Silver Gilt Flora Medal 
was awarded in recognition. 
Sprays of flowering shrubs were sent by the 
director of the Royal Gardens, Kew. Every portion 
of this exhibit was noteworthy. It included Rhodo¬ 
dendron Fortunei, R. cinnabarinum, R. kewense in 
two shades, Cytisus kewensis, and Amelanchier 
alnifolia. 
Nine dozen superb Marechal Niel Roses came 
from Mr. J. Walker High Street, Thame, Oxon. 
Mr. John R. Box, West Wickham, had an exten¬ 
sive display of Gloxinias. The strain which they 
represented was a good one, and the range of colour 
was considerable. 
Messrs. James Veitch & Sons, Ltd., Chelsea, 
staged a large collection of cut Tulips comprising 
most of the leading May flowering forms. An 
exhibit of Tritonias of various colours, and the 
white Iris florentina was also very interesting. 
(Silver Banksian Medal). 
A group of miscellaneous plants was forthcoming 
from Messrs. Paul & Son, The Old Nurseries, 
Cheshunt. It included well-flowered plants of 
Rhododendron caucasicum ochroleuchum, Trollius 
europaeus, and Saxifragas and Phloxes in variety ; 
likewise sprays of the grand Rhododendron Fortunei 
(Silver Flora Medal). 
A Silver Banksian Medal went to Messrs. Kelway 
& Son, Langport, Somerset, for cut blooms of 
Paeonies. The blooms were large and of good sub¬ 
stance, whilst the colours generally were good. 
Mr. B. Ladhams, Shirley Nurseries, Southampton, 
had samples of the new perpetual flowering Pink, 
Diamond, a group of it being edged with Phlox 
amoena in full flower. Mr. Ladhams also contri¬ 
buted a quantity of cut blooms of Tulipa flava. A 
vase full of grand flowers of Himenocallis macroste- 
phana arranged with their own foliage and sprays of 
Asparagus was sent by Mr. Hudson, gardener to the 
Messrs, de Rothschild, Gunnersbury House, Acton. 
Messrs. J. Veitch & Sons, Ltd., had cut blooms of 
Rhododendron Manglesii, and sprays of Rubus 
deliciosus. A basketful of Carnation Admiration, a 
large yellow-flowered form, came from Mr. T. 
Whillans, gardener to the Duke of Marlborough, 
Blenheim, Woodstock. 
The work of the fruit and vegetable committee 
was not so great as that of the floral and Orchid 
committees. 
Mr. J. M. Empson, gardener to Mrs. Wingfield, 
Ampthill House, Ampthill, Bucks, received a Silver 
Knightian Medal for an excellent collection of veget¬ 
ables. It comprised Peas in pots, Tomatos, 
Asparagus, Broccoli, Turnips, Leeks, Onions, new 
Potatos, French Beans, and SaladiDgs of all descrip¬ 
tions, the Cucumbers being specially good samples. 
Mr. Wythes, gardener to Earl Percy, Syon 
House, Brentford, was awarded a Cultural Com¬ 
mendation fcr a dish of Peach Hale’s Early, and 
and dishes of Figs St. John and Brown Turkey. 
Mr. James Barkham, Longford Gardens, Isle of 
Wight, made an extensive exhibit of Cucumber 
Longford Hall. Mr. Russell, Halfield, Farnborough, 
Hants., sent two boxes of fine Strawberries. The 
variety was Russell’s Early Giant. 
There were eight dishes of Apples submitted for the 
Veitch prizes. Mr. J. C. Tallack, Bury St. Edmunds, 
was first with Court Pendu Plat ; and Mr. A. J. 
Reid, Farnham Chase, Bucks, second with Golden 
Reinette. There were no Pt ars shown, which is 
not surprising. 
-«*.- 
OBITUARY. 
Mr. Robert Owen. 
It is with much regret that we announce the un¬ 
timely death of Mr. Robert Owen, the well known 
nurseryman and florist of the Floral Nurseries, 
Castle Hill, Maidenhead, Berks., on the 8th inst. 
Those who knew him personally, would readily have 
predicted a long and useful life for him ; but he 
passed away quite suddenly in the midst of his work 
last Saturday afternoon at the age of 57. The 
suddenness of his decease indicates pretty plainly 
that he had been suffering from heart disease. 
Few men were better known than the late Mr. 
Owen. Being a fellow of the Royal Horticultural 
Society, and a member of the Floral Committee, he 
attended the meetings frequently. He was also a 
member of the Floral Committee of the National 
Chrysanthemum Society, and that again brought 
him frequently to London, where he came in contact 
with gardeners, amateurs, and nurserymen from all 
parts of the country, who had come up to exhibit 
their Chrysanthemums, or to see the exhibits of 
others. As an exhibitor he was best known for the 
numerous new varieties which he brought before the 
public every autumn. 
Mr. Owen had several specialities, but latterly, at 
least, the Chrysanthemum was his favourite flower. 
As it became known that these plants could be raised 
from seed in this country he soon became a leading 
exponent of this art, and at many of the meetings of 
the National Chrysanthemum Society, he proved 
himself the most successful exhibitor, taking the lion’s 
share of the First-class Certificates for new varieties 
till o'.her cultivators took the field in earnest. He 
introduced many American varieties of a high 
standard of merit, and settling himself to cross some 
of the finer types succeeded in raising quite a 
number of first-class exhibition varieties, very largely 
of the incurved Japanese type. Robert Owen, 
Viscountess Hambleden, Lady Esther Smith, and 
Rose Wynne, will attest the truth of this. No less 
important amongst the Japanese types were Thos. 
Wilkins, Wilfred Marshall, Graphic, Richard Dean, 
Eva Knowles, G. C. Schwabe, Col. Bourne and 
others. Amongst the incurved types he raised Wm. 
Tunnington, Robert Petfield, Owen’s Crimson, Lord 
Rosebery, John Fulford, Baron Hirsch, Bonnie 
Dundee, and others. Nor did he forget the 
decorative class, for several of which he received 
awards. 
His nursery at Castle Hill was almost wholly 
devoted to the raising and proving of new 
varieties. 
Tuberous Begonias were another of his specialities 
to which he devoted a considerable amount of atten¬ 
tion in the early days of their improvement, though 
latterly they were largely displaced in his favour by 
the absorbing work of raising new Chrysanthemums. 
A fine strain of Chinese Primulas also demanded 
some space and attention in his nurseries. The Ivy¬ 
leaved Pelargoniums also recall his labours in several 
fine varieties which he put into cultivation. To 
meet the wants of his customers, Mr. Owen also 
grew Palms, Cyclamens, Ferns, Conifers, and other 
subjects ; but undoubtedly his memory will long live 
in the names of the handsojne varieties of Chry¬ 
santhemums which he called into existence, and put 
into commerce widely. 
At the meeting of the Floral Committee of the 
Royal Horticultural Society on Tuesday last, the 
chairman, Mr. Marshall, called the attention of the 
members to the loss they had sustained by the un¬ 
timely death of this well-known benefactor to the 
horticultural community. The deceased leaves a 
wife and a family, some of whom are still quite 
young and unable to care for themselves. The 
funeral took place at Maidenhead on Thursday last 
at 11 30 a.m. 
-- 
Questions add adsorbs 
*,* Will our friends who send us newspapers he so good 
as to mark the paragraphs or articles they wish us to see. 
We shall he greatly obliged by their so doing. 
[ Correspondents , please note that we cannot undertake to 
name florists' flowers such as Carnations, Pelargoniums, 
Chrysanthemums, Roses, nor such as are mere garden 
varieties, differing only in the colour of the flower, 
Florists' flowers, as a rule, can only be named by those who 
grow collections of them.'] 
Pulmonaria.— J. T. Thurston : The species you sent 
was P. officinalis, a native of Britain, but very 
scarce in the wild state. It belongs to the Bora- 
ginaceae, with which you will find it agrees in 
character. The species has been cultivated in 
gardens from time immemorial, beiDg formerly used 
medicinally by the herbalists who thought it a cure 
for the lung disease; but it is now entirely dis¬ 
regarded in that respect, and is merely grown as an 
ornamental border plant, flowering early in the sea¬ 
son. It used to be more grown in cottage gardens 
than at the present day, probably because more 
showy kinds are plentiful, The white flowered speci¬ 
mens (Arabis albida) are common in cottage gardens 
and valued for early spring flowering and easy cultiva¬ 
tion. The species is a native of Tauria and the 
Caucasus, and has been cultivated for many years. 
Its botanical characters refer it to the Cruciferae. 
Exhibitors’Handbook. — E. S. Merrett : It is about 
two years since this book was reviewed in our 
columns, not merely some months. The full name 
is “ Horticultural Handbook and Exhibitors’ Guide.” 
It was published in 1895 by Messrs. Wm. Blackwood 
& Sons Ed nburgh and London ; in paper covers it 
is 2S., and in cloth covers 2s. 6d. A pamphlet more 
recently noted by us was " Rules for judging, and 
suggestions to Schedule makers, judges and exhibi¬ 
tors.” It is published by the Royal Horticultural 
Society, 117, Victoria Street, Westminster, London, 
S. W. It may be obtained post free for is. id. 
Pseudobulbs of Coelogyne cristata shrivelling.— 
Cobweb : It is no unusual thing for the pseudobulbs 
of this Orchid to shrivel more or less after flowering, 
some varieties of it being more prone to it than others. 
Provided they are not excessively shrivelled, they 
will plump up again by and by. Excessive shrivelling 
would mean that the plants had been kept too dry 
for a long time previous to and during the flowering 
period. After this is completed the plants begin to 
grow agaio, and this is an indication that they re¬ 
quire a greater supply of moisture. They should, in 
fact, never be allowed to become dry after renewed 
activity sets in. An increasing quantity of water 
should be given at the roots, and on fine days or 
when the weather is mild outside, the plants should 
be lightly syringed overhead during the afternoon. 
They must not be kept in too high a temperature. 
Potting Azalea indica —Azalea : You have done 
right in not being in toe great a hurry to repot your 
plants. From what you say, the plants do not yet 
require a shift, provided the soil is still in good con¬ 
dition. No doubt they have recently been put in the 
pots in which they were when you got them. The 
plants will ultimately occupy the whole of the soil 
in the pots provided you keep them in a healthy 
position. Seeing that they have already made their 
growth you are too late this year in any case. The 
best time to repot this class of plants is when they 
are just commencing to make fresh growth, not after 
it is finished, unless by any mischance the plants or 
the soil should have got into a bad condition. You 
cannot very well reduce the ball of soil in this class 
of plants without doing them injury, so that you 
should wait till the whole of the soil is getting 
crowded with roots. Then as they have finished 
flowering and are commencing growth, repot them 
into a slightly larger size of pot, using good fibrous 
peat and pressing it down firmly. 
Carpet Bedding. — Diagram No. 2 : We think the 
diagram you have sketched out would answer 
admirably with a slight re-arrangement of the plants 
you intend using. The broad bands or figures 
marked No. 1 may be planted with Iresine Wallsi; 
but No. 2, would look better, we think, if planted 
with Mesembryanthemum cordifolium variegatum. 
This would leave you at liberty to use Mentha 
Pulegium gibraltaricum as a ground work for the 
space marked No. 3, and would be continued round 
the whole circumference of the bed as well as in the 
space between No. 1 and No 2. The dark green of 
the Mentha would show all the other colours off to 
the best advantage. No. 4 might very well be filled 
with the Echeveria you name, provided the plants 
are just sufficiently large to show themselves clear 
above the surrounding plants. No. 5, we understand, 
would consist of four isolated plants, or at lea^t not 
more than three in a group of Pachypbyton 
bracteosum, that is, two plants or two groups on 
each side of the bed. If of fair size, say 6 in. or 
8 in. high, we consider that one plant would be 
sufficient, Thus, four of the different plants men¬ 
tioned would be distinct from one another, and more 
so from the ground work of Mentha. 
Names of Plants .—J. T. Thurston : 1, Pulmonaria 
officinalis ; 2, Arabis albida (see under Pulmonaria). 
T. A.: 1, Ornithogalum nutans; 2, Scilla hispanica 
alba ; 3, Scilla nutans alba; 4, Fritillaria imperialis ; 
5, Omphalodes verna; 6, Anemone fulgens.— 
A. K. M.: 1, Masdevallia Veitchi; 2, Masdevallia 
Lindeni; 3, Odontoglossum luteo-purpureum 
sceptrum; 4, Cypripedium Sedeni; 5, Odonto- 
glossom crispum andersonianum.— M. G. : 1, Cytisus 
purpureus; 2, Berberis stenophylla; 3, Kerria 
japonica flare pleno ; 4, Pyrus Malus floribunda ; 5, 
choisya ternata; 6, Picea Smithii.— J. C. S.: 1, 
Crataegus coccinea; 2, Crataegus punctata; 3, 
Luzula pilosa; 4, Luzula campestris; 5, Carex 
vulgaris.— G. W.: If the spikes of your Cymbidium 
are drooping it is C. pendulum ; if erect it would be 
C. sinense, as the two are closely similar; but we 
incline to the former. We hope to be in your neigh¬ 
bourhood in the near future and to call upon you.— 
H. R. : 1, Odontoglossum crispum andersonianum; 
2 and 4, forms of Odontoglossum crispum rucker- 
ianum, differing from the former, only in the rose 
ground colour; 3, Odontoglossum cirrhosum ; 5, 
Odontoglossum Pescatorei. All are handsomely 
blotched and well worthy of cultivation; but you 
must remember that there are varieties with broader 
segments and therefore considered finer. 
