I 54 
occupied by the affected bushes. Some¬ 
times nearly all or the whole of a Black 
Currant bush will wither and die. The 
cause of this is generally found to be the 
caterpillars of the Currant sphinx. The 
moths, towards the end of May and early 
in June, lay their eggs in cracks in the 
bark of the young shoots. When the 
caterpillars are hatched they enter the 
centre, or pith, and so cause the death 
of the bush in an apparently mysterious 
manner. The only remedy is to kill both 
moths and caterpillars, the former while 
on the wing, and the latter in the branch. 
Varieties.— Red: New Red Dutch, 
Scotch Early, Fay’s Prolific, Raby 
Castle. White: White Dutch, Trans¬ 
parent, or La Versaillaise. Black: Bos- 
koop Giant, Baldwins, and Victoria, for 
very late use. G. 
Horticultural Societies’ 
Diary 
of Forthcoming- Meeting'. 
Abbreviations used. 
A.—Association 
Am. — Amateurs 
Oby.—Chrysanthemum 
c.m. — Committee meeting 
Cott.—Cottage or Cottagers 
D. — District 
G.—Gardening or gardener 
Thus :—The. Templeton 
Gardeners, Amateurs’ and 
ment Horticultural Society. 
H.—Horticultural 
M.I.—Mutual Improve¬ 
ment 
m.m.—Monthly meeting 
S.—Society 
w.m.—Weekly meeting 
G. Am. and Cott, M.I.H.S. 
Cottagers’ Mutual Improve 
NOTICE TO SECRETARIES. 
Will secretaries of horticultural societies 
kindly send us at their earliest convenience 
dates of shows and meetings to he held 
during iqoj ? 
March. 
4th. — Walsall Florists’ S. (m.m.); Four 
Elms G. S. (m.m.); Kirkby Malzeard 
H. S. (m.m.) ; Mansfield H. S. 
(m.m.); Horsforth G. M. I. S. (w.m.). 
5th. — R. H. S. (bi-m. exhibition and meet¬ 
ing) ; Sevenoaks G. and Am. M. I. S. 
(bi-m.m.); Barking and Ripple 
(m.m.) ; Bournemouth and D. G. M. 
I. A. (bi-m.m.); Addlestone, Chertsey 
and Ottershaw G. M. I. A. (m.m.); 
Professional Gardeners’ Friendly 
Benefit S . (m.m.); Coydon and D. 
H. M. I. S. (bi-m.m.); Loughborough 
G. M. I. A. (bi-m.m.); Dulwich Chy. 
S. (bi-m.m.); Yeovil and D. G. S. 
(m.m.) ; Rotherham Chy. S. (m.m.) ; 
West London (Hammersmith) H. S. 
(m.m.); Dundee H. A. (m.m.); Craw¬ 
ley and D. G. M. I. A. (bi-m.m.); 
Seaton Delaval and New Hartley FI. 
and H. S. (m.m.). 
6 th. — Wargrave and D. G. A. (bi-m.m.) ; 
Wood Green and D. Am. H. S. (m.m.) ; 
Woburn and D. Cott. G. S. (bi-m.m.) ; 
Bideford and D. H. S. (m.m.); Tib- 
shelf FI. H. and Rose S. (m.m.); 
Terrington and Marshland H. S. 
(m.m.) ; Newport (Mon.) and D. G. 
M. I. A. (m.m.); Ipswich and D. G. 
and Am. A. (bi-m.m.). 
7th. — Batley and D. Chy. and Paxton S. 
(m.m.) ; Woolton G. M. I. S. (m.m.) ; 
Greenstreet and D. G. and Cott. S. 
(m.m.). 
8th. — Ambergate Cott. G. S. (m.m.) ; Wey- 
bridge and D. H. S. (m.m.). 
9th. — Leeds Paxton S. (w.m.) ; Thornton 
Heath and D. H. S. (m.m.). 
THE 0 ARDEN / NO WORLD. 
THE 
Alpine Wallflower. 
CHEIRANTHUS ALP1NUS. 
Most, if not all, of the Wallflowers are 
peculiarly rock plants or plants of the 
wall. Our native wild species is never 
more at home than on a wall or on the 
dry chalk cliffs near Dover, where it is 
much longer lived than in the rich soil of 
a garden. The wild one has pale yellow 
flowers. 
The alpine Wallflower under notice has 
sulphur yellow flowers of large size and 
handsome in appearance. Indeed, they 
are much larger than the common Wall¬ 
flower in its unimproved condition, and 
we are surprised that no attempt appar¬ 
ently has been made to improve the al¬ 
pine species which seems more capable of 
enduring our winters than the common 
one. The stems are spreading and the 
March 2, 1907. 
leaves evergreen like the other, but it is 
always dwarfer in habit than the commor 
Wallflower, and capable of resisting a 
low temperature as becomes an alpine 
plant. 
No doubt the other would be equall) 
hardy if it were as dwarf or grown in t 
dry situation, having its roots in the cre¬ 
vices of rocks or walls. Even in the soi. 
of a rockery, how'ever, the alpine Wall 
flower seems to resist our winters and t« 
flower year after year with perfect free 
dom. 
It is easily propagated by cuttings dur 
ing summer if the operator takes care u 
select shoots from the base of the plan 
which have not flowered. If this is dom 
early in the season, a second crop of cut 
tings can be had from the first, and the - 
will root more freely and sooner thai 
those taken from the open. A few plant 
will be sufficient on a rockery, and beinj 
long lived, frequent propagation is un 
necessary. 
Cheiranthus alpinus. \Maclaren and Sons. 
BIG BLOOMS 
OF 
I am sorry that Mr. R. Barnes puts 
difficulties in the way of readers trying 
the system of cutting-striking advised by 
me in your issue of December 29th. In 
spite of what he says I hope readers will 
follow my advice, for that it will lead to 
splendid results—short of exhibition 
blooms—I am confident. Of course, the 
flowers I referred to were 9 inches across 
when spread out. I never knew a gardener 
but measured his own flowers so; in mea¬ 
suring other people’s he follows a different 
system. 
If you, Mr. Editor, and you, indulgent 
reader, will bear with me, I would just 
like to discuss this matter a little more 
fully. I have not the honour of Mr. 
Barnes’ acquaintance, neither do I know 
how far his memory goes back in the 
world of Chrysanthemums. If, however, 
he was, as I was, taking an active mtere: 
in exhibiting in 1894 and 1895, he wi 
doubtless remember the sensation: 
groups with which Mr. W. Wells, th 
Merstham specialist, won the first prk 
at the Crystal Palace in those years. T 
us gardeners who had grown Princess < 
Wales 10 feet high, Volunteer 14 fei 
high, and had seen the 17 feet hig 
flowers of Mr. Atkinson peeping out of 
vinery ventilator, the plants then stage 
by Mr. Wells were a revelation. 
Mr. Wells’s plants were somewhat aboi 
a yard high, and in 6 and 8 inch pot: 
carrying blooms varying from one blooi 
to three blooms per pot. The bloon 
themselves were magnificent, as ma 
readily be-imagined to win first prize : 
such a show, but Mr. Wells stated th; 
the plants had all been struck froi 
March and April cuttings; if my memoi 
serves me correctly, he even hinted th. 
cuttings had even been struck in the fir 
week of May. However, as I trust 1 
memory alone, I hope Mr. Wells will fo 
give me if I have misrepresented hin 
This should go to prove that good flowe: 
can be got from cuttings taken at the tim 
I recommended. 
I scarcely know what Mr. Barnes woul 
