March 23, 1901. 
THE GARDENING WORLD. 
4t 5 
best time for the latter operation is during the 
middle of the day when the shoots are more limp 
than in the morning, and there is less liability in 
snapping the shoots from the basal joint. Thinning 
must be attended to directly the berries are set, at 
least in the case of all free setting kinds. Remove 
all the weak, small and badly placed bunches. This 
gives the others a better chance and also prevents 
overcropping. It requires s. mi firmness and decision 
to do this, as most gardeners have an eye to a heavy 
crop and an imposing appearance; but it is possible 
to overdo this at the expense of the Vines the year 
following. The thinning of the shy setters should 
be deferred for a time till the berries show the true 
state of matters. If many of the tendrils show 
signs of producing tendrils rather than flowers it is 
a sign of weakness and should be counteracted by 
somewhat increasing the heat during the day so that 
more ventilation can be given, and a drier atmo¬ 
sphere maintained. This latter condition always 
holds good when the Vines are in flower to insure 
setting. They should be kept dry, particularly during 
the middle of the day when the temperature is 
highest and the caps are falling off the flowers. 
Shy setting varieties should be assisted by tapping 
the rods occasionally during the middle of the day. 
A bunch of very light feathers or a rabbit’s tail tied 
to a stake and passed lightly over the bunches assists 
greatly in distributing the pollen and causing such as 
Alicante, Alnwick Seedling and Black Morocco to set 
more ireely. 
Melons. —Remove all flowers that appear on 
plants which are swelling ofi their fruits in the early 
house. This, of course, applies also to superfluous 
growth not now required and for which no room is 
now available. Feeding with weak liquid manure 
may be resorted to in order to assist the plants in 
developing good sized fruits according to the variety. 
Do not go too near the stem of the plants as moisture 
about the neck of the plant encourages fungi and 
other evils; besides the feeding roots are at some 
distance from that point. In successional pits fresh 
soil may be added to the mounds from time to time 
so as to encourage vigorous growth. Stop, thin and 
tie the shoots wherever necessary, and syringe twice 
daily. When the flowers intended for setting are in 
bloom, the atmosphere may be kept drier for a day 
or two, till setting has been accomplished. Keep a 
sharp look out for greenfly and fumigate before it has 
obtained a strong footing. Maintain a night tem¬ 
perature of 70°, rising to go° by day with sunheat. 
A bottom heat of 85° to 90° should be maintained 
and will create no difficulty where plenty of piping 
and a good boiler are at command.— M. I. 
(©leanings fttmtt f^e Dmifb 
of Science. 
The subjects mentioned below came up for discus¬ 
sion at the Scientific Committee Meeting of the 
Royal Horticultural Society on the 26th ult. 
Double Tulips.—Mr. Houston exhibited and com¬ 
mented upon an early double Tulip, pointing out 
that the filaments of the stamens became petals (as 
in the Water Lily), and that from his experience a 
dry poor soil appeared to be conducive to the process 
of doubling. Stock seed, for instance, gave 90 per 
cent, of doubles under those conditions. On the 
other hand, Mr. Wilks observed that Papaver 
Rhoeas became double in a rich garden border, but 
rarely, if ever, so in the wild state. Prof. Boulger 
remarked that be bad found Ranunculus acris and 
Geum rivale dtuble in moist places; Cardamine 
pratensis has al o occurred double in similar situa¬ 
tions. Mr. Douglas' experience was that Carnations 
raised in pots gave many more doubles than when in 
'he open border, only 10 to 12 per cent, being single. 
This would seem to agree with Mr. Houston's ex¬ 
perience. Mr. Henslow drew attention to the fact 
that it was loog ago asserted by Mr. William 
Masters that a suspension of vitality must take place 
before a flower is formed, whether single or double ; 
that mere vegetative vigour is not the cause of 
doubling, but that when once the doubling has been 
developed and, as Mr. Masters said, "is constitu¬ 
tional or in the blood," then abundant food will 
favour the development of double flowers. Mr. 
Masters gives the following instance in the case of 
Balsams:—"One year we did not pot off from the 
betd pots for many weeks after they were ready. 
They were, in fact, starved before being transplanted, 
and only produced single flowers. I treated them 
liberally, and they then bore flowers as double as 
could be wished." Mr. G. Duffield some years ago 
produced double Lapagerias, and remarked that both 
a white and a red-flowering plant, growing side by 
side, bore double flowers in the same year, and 
remarked that it seemed curious, as the plants were 
by no means remarkable for vigour. This, however, 
was apparently the cause. Mr. Laxton has also 
observed [with regard to double Peas:—"I am of 
opinion that a check during the growth of the plant, 
either from drought, frost, or even injury to the stem, 
may produce it. Hitherto all the double-flowered 
forms have been produced later in the season, just 
as late or second blossoms of Apples and Pears are 
frequently semi-double, while the early flowers of 
Zonal Pelargoniums have often from six to ten 
petals." From Gosbel's obervations double-flowered 
Stocks can be raised from seed of single-flowered, up 
to 90 per cent., if the smaller and abnormally formed 
seeds are selected. Other testimony of a similar 
kind might be quoted in corroboration. 
Diseased growth of Yews.—Mr. J. W. Odell 
exhibited specimens, and observed that Yew trees in 
his district (N.-W. Middlesex) are very much dis¬ 
figured by the formation of cone-like galls. These 
are due to the gall fly Cecidomya Taxi (Inchbald). 
The specimens were from several trees. On the 
young trees the gall seems to be more persistent 
than on the older trees. On the former the leaves 
forming the cones appear to recurve after the pupae 
escape, assuming a rosette appearance, and teyond 
the arresting of the growth of the shoots affected no 
great harm seems to be done. Oa the older trees 
the cones and rosettes drop off rather freely, and this 
often gives a shabby look to the tree as the shoots 
die back and decay. Dr. Masters observed that 
these galls are commoner upon the golden-leaved 
varieties of Yew. 
Crested Ferns, &c.—Mr. C. T Druery exhibited 
the following specimens :—r, Fronds of Phegopteris 
hexagonoptera truncata, found by Mr. Maxon 
(Smithsonian Institute) on the banks of the Potomac 
in 1900. Living plants are in the exhibitor's pos¬ 
session. All the terminals are abruptly truncated 
with excurrent midribs like slender thorns. 2, 
Fronds of a partially bipinnate form of Nephrolepis 
exaltata, from Mr. Roupell. Many of the central 
pinnae are much elongated and thoroughly bipinnate, 
resembling small fronds. These fronds were taken 
about three years ago, but Mr. Roupell states that 
the plant has since resumed its normal pinnate type. 
Sowing the spores was suggested with a view to 
obtaining a decompound strain of this species. 
3, Fronds of three distinct varieties of three distinct 
species, found growing together in one clump in a 
wood near St. Austell, Cornwall, by Mr. Williams. 
They represent :—(ct) A small crested form of 
Lastrea pseudo-mas, and it is worthy of remark, 
that the well-known L, p -m. cristata (king of male 
Ferns) was found in the same locality ; ( b ) a polydact) - 
lous foliose form of Polystichum angulare of very 
distinct type from the normal, but imperfectly poly- 
dactylous ; (c) an extremely fine bipinnate form of 
Polypodium vulgare, with basal pinnules over 2 in. 
long and d.eply cut throughout. Mr. Williams 
stated that the remaining fronds were very much 
larger but damaged, which indicates a very abnormal 
size, as well as development. Such an association 
of varieties is certainly quite unique so far as any 
record is concerned, and as all three are redundant 
the conditions of growth must be peculiarly favour¬ 
able, which may have induced the "sports." The 
P. vulgare is quite distinct from previous finds ; the 
other two have been closely paralleled. Pteiis aquilina 
cristata, found by Mr. C. B. Green, Acton, at Fay- 
gate, Sussex. Some acres of this form exist near the 
ra lway station (half a mile) intermingled with about 
50 per cent, of normal fronds. 
Rhamnus, sp.—Mr. E. M. Holmes exhibited a 
a specimen of Rhamnus californica, showing that the 
leaves in this species are evergreen, whilst the nearly 
allied species, R. purshiana, loses its leaves in the 
autumn, the majority of the species of this genus 
being deciduous. The bark of both species is col¬ 
lected, and is known in commerce as “cascara 
sagrada." Attention was also directed to the fact 
that the bark, met with in commerce under the 
name of Salix nigra, dees not possess the appear¬ 
ance of the bark of that species, of which the young 
twigs are black ^nd polished, and have at first a 
waxy bloom cn them. The bark of commerce more 
nearly resembles that of Salix alba. Mr. Holmes 
also brought seeds (stones) of Prunus nepalensis, 
which he had received from Dr. Geo. Watt, C l £. 
(reporter on economic products to the Indian 
Government), as worthy of cultivation in this 
country, the fruit having a pleasant acid taste, and 
being used as a fruit in Nepal. 
Croci, sp. and varsMr. E. A. Bowles ex¬ 
hibited the following interesting series of Croci. The 
type forms and albino varieties of C. reticulatus, 
pure white, except for a line or two of greyish blue 
at the base of the segments and extending down the 
perianth tube. (For some years I could not identify 
this variety with certainty, untii one bulb in 1899 
reverted to a striped form identical with the C. retie, 
v. albicans of Herbert, figured in " Bot. Reg." 
vol. xxxiii , 16 (17), fig. 2). 2, C. Imperaii.—Pure 
white internally, externally pale buff, almost white, 
and richly feathered with deep purple on the outer 
segments. The seedliDgs raised from this form 
produce the typical Imperati, with dipbyllous, 
proper spathe 3, versicolor.—A form often con¬ 
founded with Imperati and known as Imp. v. 
albidus. The inner segments distinctly show the 
feathering so characteristic of versicolor, the form of 
Maw’s, plate xvi., fig. x, d. I have wild forms, 
collected hear Mentone, which very nearly approach 
this, and like this, have a ligulate inner proper 
spathe. 4. C. biflorus v. Weldeni — A pure white 
form, sold as Weldeni v. niveus and dalmaiicus 
niveus. C. candidus.—Typical forms, white grained 
with blue externally, and the new yellow variety, 
clear orange grained externally with purple. Avery 
floriferous and beautiful form. C. cyprius.—A 
small blue species with rich purple bases to the 
segments oa the outer surfaces. The only species 
that has scarlet filaments. It, unfortunately, 
appears to have a delicate constitution in cultivation. 
C. corsicus.—Proper spathe monophyllous. C. 
minimus.—Proper spathe dipbyllous; both natives 
of Corsica, the former in mountainous regions, the 
latter in lower ground. C. reticulatus v. micranthus. 
A small-flowered form, much deeper lilac internally. 
5 Seedling varietiesof Crocus chrysanthus, approach¬ 
ing most nearly to the v. caerulescens. It is the first 
year of flowering, and this perhaps accounts for the 
small blossoms. Two of these, internally, pure 
white with a bright orange throat : the outer surface 
of the outer segments is suffused with a rich crimson 
purple with the exception of a narrow marginal 
band of a pa'e cream colour. The other has the 
outer segments sulphur yellow, slightly paler on the 
inner surface, and grained with dull purpla down the 
centre on the outer susface. The black spot at the 
base of the barbs of the anthers, so characteristic of 
C. chrysanthus, is present in this form and one of the 
former, but absent in the third specimen. 
Turnip budding from root.—Mr Wilks exhibi¬ 
ted a root with two or three tufts of shoots springing 
from apparently the true root. It is not a very un¬ 
common occurrence, and was probably due to some 
check from local injury, &c. 
Phalaenopsis weevil. —Mr Chapman brojght 
specimens of this insect. The only remedy that 
could be suggested was a care'u' search for them at 
night. 
Epidendrum longicolle —Mr. O Brienexhibited 
flowers in a malformed slate. Dr. Masters under¬ 
took to examine and report upon them. 
Prunus tuberculata.—Dr. Masters exhibited a 
branch with cones of this W. American Fine. It is 
one of the species the cones of which remain for 
some years upon the tree, and only shed their seeds 
affer a forest fire. 
Winter Aconite germinating—Mr. Henslow 
showed specimens to illustrate the aparently abnor¬ 
mal fact of the tuber being first formed on the 
slender tap root, and not on the radicle. 
TheArmonicae or Atlantic British plants — 
He commented upon these terms, the first given by 
Ed. Forbes to plants found in Normandy, the 
Channel Islands, and S. W. England, as well as up 
the west side to Scotland ; the latter name was H. C. 
Watson's. He pointed out that their true source is 
S. Europe or Mediterranean regions, ar d exhibited 
specimens of Ranunculus ophioglossifclius from 
jersey (now extinct), from Hjeres, and from Malia, 
as well as other plants illustrating the same fact. 
Scabious bracts virescent.—He ahoexhibited 
specimens in which the florets were suppressed, but 
the bracteoles had become elongated andsub-foliace= 
ous. It was comparable witn the green Dabl'a 
wheat-eared Carnation, &c. 
