380 
THE GARDENING WORLD 
May 6, 1905. 
A Rare and Choice Group of Daffodils. 
The finest individual group of Daffodils exhibited at the 
meeting of the Royal Horticultural Society on the 25th ult. 
was put up by Miss Willmott, Warley Place, Great War ley, 
Essex. It was unique in its way on account of the scarce 
character of a very large proportion of the varieties exhibited, 
and on account of their quality, representing many of the most 
advanced types, few of which have yet found tneir way into 
many collections. A large proportion of them were the result 
of cross-breeding and hybridisation with some of the best types 
in cultivation. When we say hybridisation, we mean that 
different so-called species have been employed as parents. In 
many cases, however, these were advanced types, so that' the 
resulting seedlings represent improvements that were 
altogether unknown amongst Daffodils fifteen or twenty years 
ago. Unfortunately, time did not permit of taking detailed 
descriptions of a large number of them scarcely yet to be found 
in collections of any except the most enthusiastic collectors. 
Warley Scarlet is a Daffodil of the Narcissus Barrii type, 
with broad, creamy-white segments and an orange-scarlet 
crown. Another splendid Daffodil belonging to the same 
section was Albatross, with broad overlapping segments and a 
canary-yellow crown with a distinctly outlined orange rim. 
Shorter-crowned varieties than the above are classed with N. 
Burbidgei, and several of these were exhibited in the group of a 
high-class order of merit. For instance, Oriflamme had white 
segments and a fiery-scarlet cup. Firebrand would come into 
the same category, and it is notable for its dark fiery red cup 
set off by the cream segments, which are shaded with lemon 
at the base, as if the colour were beginning to creep up the seg¬ 
ments from the cup. It is characteristic of the group that the 
segments are white, as N. poeticus was one of the parents-of 
the N. Burbidgei group. N. poeticus itself was represented 
by a highly improved variety named Cassandra, notable for 
the substance of its flowers, the purity of the segments, and 
the intensely red colour of the rim to the very shallow cup. 
Several very beautiful forms of N. Leedsii were included, 
notably White Queen, which is often spoken of as the White 
Sir Watkin. It has very broad white segments, and a very 
large pale lemon-yellow chalice fading away to pure white. 
Another handsome improvement in this group is Ariadne, 
-which was recently accorded an Award of Merit by the R.H.S. 
The segments are ivory-white, and the very wide, beautifully 
formed cup is of a soft' ivory-white. A new departure in this 
oroup is the production of varieties with salmon or apricot 
tints of colour. One of these is that named Peach, with an 
apricot chalice. Seagull has white segments of great size, 
making a large flower, and forming a fine setting to the canary- 
yellow cup, which is edged with apricot. 
Varieties of the N. incomparabilis type were also numerous, 
including the beautiful variety named Torch, having broad 
yellow segments and a large chalice suffused with orange-red. 
A much brighter orange chalice is also met with in Lucifer; 
and if these orange and orange-scarlet shades of colour could 
be communicated to the segments as well, we should then be 
on the way to have a scarlet Daffodil, and there would be no 
necessity on the part of florists to dye and otherwise fake their 
flowers. An older and more easily obtainable variety is Lul- 
worth, which, although not a large flower, has a very wide 
chalice edged with orange, forming a compact and graceful 
flower that stands high in the estimation of many. 
Trumpet Daffodils were represented by some of the finest in 
cultivation. We cannot but offer a large amount of praise to' 
King Alfred, a magnificent golden-yellow Trumpet Daffodil 
that stands head and shoulders above its compeers when grown 
in the open ground. The segments are very broad and over¬ 
lapping, while the large and bold trumpet is beautifully rolled 
backwards at the rim, taking the fancy of connoisseurs of this 
class of plants. Altogether paler in its way was Mrs. R. Syden¬ 
ham, with white segments and a very pale lemon, almost white, 
trumpet. It is classed amongst the white Daffodils, taking its 
place alongside of Mme. de Graaff, Mrs. George H. Barr, and 
others of that class. Altogether, seventy-three varieties, were 
staged in this unique group, a veiy large number of which are 
quite new and not in general commerce. Indeed, many of them 
are only in the "hands of a few specialists and enthusiastic 
amateurs. A Gold Medal was awarded for this very deserving 
exhibit. 
Too Clever. 
What gardener practising in a large establishment has not 
been troubled with the too' clever young man? Dunces there 
are in abundance, but they are comparatively harmless, and 
generally try to do> as they are wished. On the other hand, 
the too clever young man is never safe; he will always be 
trying to improve the situation, but he can only look at one 
side of a question, and frequently comes to wrong conclusions. 
I have known many such, and they are always getting them¬ 
selves and somebody else into scrapes. True, there is occa¬ 
sionally something to be learned from them, as they may by 
accident stumble across unexpected developments, and in hor¬ 
ticulture more than in anything, perhaps, because of our veiy 
imperfect knowledge, it is the unexpected that frequently 
happens. 
But commend me to the safe young man, who may appear a 
little slow in comparison, but tries to' take in all the surround¬ 
ings, and will not start running away before lie fully under¬ 
stands his instructions. The too clever young man is asked 
why he has the Mushroom house too- hot. “ Oh ! I am going to 
cany in material for a new bed and must have the door open; 
you won't find it too hot in half an hour’s time.” Probably 
not. The same young man waits till the middle of the day 
when the sun is hot before leaving doors open to- shift plants 
from one house to another, instead of doing it on a mild morn¬ 
ing before the temperatures have risen high. In both cases 
the result is the same, viz., a chill to' the Mushroom beds and 
also to the plants in the houses, caused by the rapid egress of 
warm, moist air. 
The too clever young man has heard old-fashioned people 
say you must not water a plant overhead during sunshine. 
He finds that is all wrong when he goes visiting and sees a 
successful man deluging his flower-beds with a hose 1 during the 
brightest and hottest day of summer. On the next' similar day, 
in endeavouring to' profit by the lesson, he sprinkles his droop¬ 
ing plants overhead, and is surprised at the result, dhe little 
moisture he applies is immediately sucked up by the thirsty 
atmosphere, and the consequence is that the plants are chilled, 
or what gardeners for some unaccountable reason call scoiched. 
Let him tiy the experiment by placing a little ethei on his 
hand and allow it to evaporate, and it will give some idea of 
the discomfort experienced by the plants he has tried to be so 
kind to. On reflection he may remember that the man with 
the hose was drenching paths and turf as well as the flower¬ 
beds, so that the evaporation would not be confined to the 
leaves of the plants. . 
Another case of chilling is caused when on entering a. truit- 
liouse the temperature has risen rapidly with sun-heat after a 
cold spell, and the fruit, is, as it is called, sweating—that is, 
the air has warmed faster than the fruit, and moisture has 
condensed on the surfaces of the latter. He immediately gn es 
abundance of air, and in a short, time the moisture disappears 
with no apparent untoward results, excepting it may be e 
flagging of a. few leaves. But certainly more or less mischiet 
has been done according to the comparative hardiness of the 
fruit. If it is a house of Vines with the fruit just set, an 
consequently veiy tender-skinned, it will surely produce ru 
on the berries, which will afterwards be attributed to some 
other cause. . . , 
Though it should always be guarded against and shows v ■ 
of timely attention, the condensed water being perfect y P U1 
would do little harm of itself on the berries, supposing they 
are free from dirt, but as is the case with frost in a p an , 
slower it is removed the less will be the injury. 
WM. lA^LOK. 
