908 
THE GARDENING WORLD 
November 12, 1904. 
seeds at intervals' ever since. Many of the varieties have taken 
a, long time! to produce blossom and a longer time to come into 
bearing, but nevertheless we cannot say that he has not been 
rewarded for the trouble' he has taken as far as the success of 
obtaining fine varieties is concerned. 
During the period indicated he has raised eighteen varieties 
of considerable merit, for three of them have secured First- 
class Certificates, and eight have been accorded Awards of 
Merit. Although we stated that lie commenced in earnest in 
1884, we may further allude to the fact that he reared one 
variety ini 1872, and this was described by the late Dr. Hogg 
in his “Fruit Manual ” under the name of Welford Park Non¬ 
such. 
At the meeting of the Royal Horticultural Society on the 
1st inst. Mr. Ross exhibited these eighteen varieties, and was 
awarded a. Hogg Memorial Medal. Several of his - varieties 
have been finding their way into' cultivation from time to time 
as nurserymen or fruit growers have been impressed with the 
qualities! of these new Apples from Berkshire. There are; so' 
many varieties of Apple in; cultivation that most people hesitate 
before adding another to the already lengthy list- We had 
never previously seen all of these varieties, although a number 
of them have come under our notice from time to time in 
different establishments and at different shows;. 
The most recent addition to' his splendid record of varieties 
was Hector Macdonald. Unfortunately, the parentage of this 
variety is mot known, 'although the fine crop it produced this 
past season has enabled the raiser to form a good opinion of 
its merits. It, indeed, fruited two years; ago, but' on this 
occasion more abundantly. He considers it the second- best 
Apple he has 1 ever raised 1 . It will keep 1 till March, and he 
thinks it will prove a. rival to Lane’s Prince Albert- The R.H.S. 
honoured it' with an Award of Merit at the great show of 
British-grown fruit in, tine- new Horticultural Hall on 
October 4th last- The* variety, we understand, has passed into 
the collection of Messrs. J. IL Pearson and Sons', Lowdbam, 
Notts. 
The fruit is ovate, regular in outline, about 3 in. deep 1 and 
the same width a little below the middle. The skin is pale 
yellow, shaded and splashed or striped with bright red on one 
side;. The small eye is nearly closed and set in a. moderately 
deep, very slightly plaited cavity. The stalk isi extremely 
■short' and set. in a shallow, evenly rounded cavity at' the base. 
As. the. fruit, ripens so late, it cannot yet be described in season, 
but the opinion expressed of it. by the raiser and those who 
have had an opportunity of testing it will warrant that we 
shall see it again- At. the present tune it presents a very 
handsome appearance, and is. evidently a. good keeper, judging 
from its firmness; at the present time. Our illustration and 
description have been prepared from a. fruit of only average 
size and by no> means 1 the largest. 
When the variety Charles Ross, named after the raiser, 
first appeared, attention began to be directed more seriously 
to the success of Mr. Ross’ endeavours. a.t Welford Park. It. 
was a. cross'-between Cox’s Orange Pippin and Peasgood’s. Non- 
such, taking after tire latter in size and beautiful colour. It 
just missed being possessed of the flavour of Cox’s Orange, 
although the latter has 'greatly modified the flavour and char¬ 
acter of Peasgood’s Nonsuch. It is a round Apple and inter¬ 
mediate between the parents. 
Another variety from the same parentage is The Houblon, 
which takes more after Cox’s Orange Pippin in size;, colour, 
quality, and keeping properties. Indeed, the raiser regards 
this as the best-flavoured Apple he lias ever raised. When, 
shown at. the exhibition of British-grown fruit at the Crystal 
Palace in 1902 in a, class for any other variety not named in 
the schedule, it won the first place as a dessert Apple of first- 
class quality. Berks Pearmain is conical, somewhat smaller 
than Hector Macdonald, though similar in, colour, having a 
yellow skin, splashed and blotched with red on the sunny side. 
It is practically a mid-season variety, being fit, for use during 
October and November. The yellow flesh is crisp, juicy, 
slightly, but pleasantly, acidulated when just at its best- Some 
would regard it as a cooking Apple, but there are some who 
would relish its brisk flavour. 
Mrs. Phillimore is another variety of his raising which found 
its way into commerce in 1900. The fruit is of medium size, 
handsome hi appearance, and the flesh is amongst the sweetest 
of any of the Apples in cultivation. It is regarded as a dessert 
Apple in season from November to Februaiy. Armorel was 
one of the varieties which received a Firshclass Certificate from 
the R.H.S. The fruit is very moderate in size, and has nothing 
in. the way of colour to recommend it, but was; put into com¬ 
merce after being thoroughly tested and tasted and approved 
as an Apple of the highest quality for dessert purposes. Being 
a late Apple, it comes into use during February, keeping good 
until May. It thus forms a succession to> Cox’s Orange Pippin. 
An Award of Merit was accorded Atalanta when exhibited 
by Mr. Ross. Like Berks Pearmain, the fruit, is conical, from 
medium to large size, and lemon-yellow when mature. It is 
suitable either for dessert or culinary purposes, and keeps 
from November to January. The fruit of Paroquet is also 
conical, but small and of a rich red colour - much suffused with 
russet, on the top- At the present time it is quite firm and 
may be used for culinary purposes, but it is stated to remain in 
useful condition until April. It is of good flavour and might 
be used for dessert purposes in spring, when it becomes mellow 
and delicate eating. 
Another Apple of which the raiser is justly proud is Rival, 
which was raised from the same parentage as Charles Ross, 
and, we believe, came; out, of the same Apple. It is a, more 
solid Apple than. Charles Ross, and therefore keeps for a longer 
period. The fruit takes after Peasgood’s Nonsuch to a con¬ 
siderable extent in being beautifully striped, while the; flesh 
is of excellent flavour. An Award of Merit was accorded this 
variety by the R-H.S. on October 9tli, 1900. Another variety 
named Gospatrio is a cooking Apple, in season from October 
to January. The fruit is of medium size, conical, green,ish- 
yellow, and in, favourable seasons produced in abundance. 
Other varieties included in the eighteen raised and exhibited 
by Mr. Ross are Ruddy, Redwing, The Vernon, Bertha,, Lady 
Alice Eyre, Bella, and Tyro. These latter doi not seem yet to 
have been taken up by cultivators, but they are evidently 
sufficiently meritorious to 1 be retained in the private collection 
at Welford Park. The whole of the eighteen, foamed a very 
interesting* exhibit on the day mentioned. 
Torenia Fournieri grandLlora alba. 
We fail to' see a, reason, for attaching grandiflora to the name 
of this plant, for the flower's are not in any way larger than 
those of T'. Foumieri, which, has some large violet blotches on 
a white ground. The variety under notice lias more right to 
the title; of alba,, for the flowers are white, faintly tinted with 
blush in certain, stages at least of their development- With 
this addition to the type; and by means of T. Bailloni we have 
a, trio of subjects for the adornment of the greenhouse and con¬ 
servatory. Being raised from seeds, their flowering period can 
be retarded till late in, the, season, and by sowing seeds at in¬ 
tervals a long succession is ensured. The white variety has 
been flowering for some time past in the greenhouse at Kew, 
and though we can scaa'cely regard it as superior to the type, 
it certainly affords variety and makes an interesting com¬ 
panion to the ordinary form. A high temperature is un¬ 
necessary for either of the above, although we have occasionally 
seen, all of them grown in, a warm house. 
Ckaiube Tatabia.— The new vegetable, concerning which so 
much has, been said lately, is now described by a northern con¬ 
temporary a,S' Crarnbe Tataria, an “ umbelliferous plant resem¬ 
bling; Seakale.” The botany' of this description requires a little 
revision, as no umbelliferous plant is at all likely to resemble 
Seakale. 
