362 
THE LADIES' FLORAL CABINET. 
moved ? The plant forms a lovely bed, with its mass of 
green covering the stones entirely, its long branches 
wave gracefully iu the breeze, aud when adorned with 
the little red cups it is indeed a beautiful sight. 
The white prairie Moss I have described to the readers 
of the Cabinet in a previous article, but I did not tell 
them how nicely it could be dried, for I was ignorant at 
the time of this fact, but now I have experimented with 
a few bunches, I find it valuable for winter decoration : 
it looks lovely with Ferns and Grasses and crystallizes 
beautifully. It grows everywhere, and during the 
month of May when it is fully opened the green grass 
of the prairie, among which it mingles, seems tinged 
with snow. Another vine, which I have found, is a 
singular combination. Its flowers are shaped like those 
of the Thunbergia. the outer edge pearly white, and the 
center carmine ; it grows naturally upon the ground, 
trailing for a long ways, but this summer I succeeded 
in making one grow trained to an upright trellis: the 
leaf is usually similar to the Maurandya, only much 
thicker, but 1 notice every plant docs not have the same 
shaped leaves, although the flowers and seed-pods are 
the came; some are perfect Maurandya leaves, aud 
others are bipinnate. The seed-pods are like thoso of 
the Morning Glory. The vine grows in sunshine, and 
seems to flourish in the shade as well. Finding one in 
the grass I lifted up a spray; it was a yard n length, and 
the pretty white and carmine blossoms seemed glad of 
the gentle touch, and nodded their thankfulness as they 
swayed back and forth in (he breeze. 
The Mosquito bushes 1 mentioned have very beautiful 
leaves; for spatter-work, they are superior to Ferns. I 
made a table-cover, spatter-work, with pressed leaves 
of the Mosquite. “ Oh ! - ’ said a friend, “ where did you 
get those beautiful Ferns?” Ferns are not found in this 
part of Texas, though Mosquite is so plentiful that the 
cattle feed upon it. Daisy Burns. 
Fort Worth. 
NEW YORK HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 
CHRYSANTOELMTil SHOW. 
Flowers hare had the most enthusiastic.and, we might 
say, devout admirers since the time the Greeks considered 
them possessed of souls and endowed with thought. 
It is safe to say that from that day to this flower-lovers 
have not had a much greater treat than was afforded them 
by the Chrysanthemum show, held under the auspices of 
the above society, in their hall on the 7th and Sth of 
Jsovember. A more gorgeous floral feast it would be 
almost impossible to conceive in a space so limited. A 
Eose exhibition is generally supposed to be the extreme 
limit of floral display and beauty; yet we never have 
seen half the interest or enthusiasm manifested as was 
shown at this exhibition of Chrysanthemums. There 
are no idle, listless spectators, and the disappointments 
often noticed at floral exhibitions were not seen here; 
on the contrary, an agreeable surprise was visible in the 
countenance of every one; it even extended to those 
who failed to secure the first prizes—a most remarkable 
circumstance. From the opening to the close of the 
exhibition the hall was at all times well filled with an 
audience, not so much remarkable for its numbers as 
for the interest manifested. A stranger might well 
have thought the company had resolved itself into an 
army of reporters, as nearly every one had note-book 
and pencil in hand making out a list of varieties that 
they were to order at the proper time. The more ap¬ 
preciative, knowing the danger of delay, gave their 
orders then and there for a stock, with which they ex¬ 
pect or hope to make their gardens, in a great measure, 
resemble Horticultural Hall; if they do not, it will not 
be the plants’ fault, for each and every one, if well 
treated, will make as fine a show as their parents which 
were on exhibition. 
The great interest culminated at the sale of the 
plants on the morning of the last day. Then excitement 
wa3 at fever heat; it was fairly epidemic. The older 
florists, men who had never before lost sight of cool 
business calculation, quite forgot themselves for the 
moment, and gladly bid fifteen dollars for the same 
plant they could have bought six months before for as 
many cents. And at this extraordinary price very many 
specimens were quickly sold. The high prices brought 
were, in a measure, due to the fact that the principal 
exhibitors gave the receipts of the sale of their plants to 
the society. This is a move in the right direction, as it wil 
enable the society to continue these special exhibitions 
and offer liberal premiums, which will, in return, more 
than repay the exhibitors in the demand made for their 
plants, establishing a good rule, one that works u'ell 
both ways. 
The profits of any business depends in a great meas- 
urd upon the demand for the products of the business. 
If we were asked, “What will contribute most to the 
promotion of first-class cultivation in plants and flowers?” 
we should unhesitatingly answer, The public exhibitions 
of plants and flowers. These exhibitions are healthy 
stimulants to the gardeners, they tend to develop the 
plant, to bring it up to its greatest perfection, which 
increases the demand for it, at the same time destroying 
the market for poor plants. . Many of our gardeners 
assert these exhibitions are, in reality, of no special 
benefit, and profess not to be influenced by them in the 
pursuits of their business. Yet, there is no question 
that one great cause, and an important one in the devel¬ 
opment of plants, and the increase and improvement in 
varieties, is the noble examples of skill in hybridization 
and cultivation periodically brought together under the 
auspices of the various societies organized for the pro¬ 
motion and encouragement of floriculture and horticul¬ 
ture in their various branches. It is upon these socie¬ 
ties that the popular taste looks for its gratification. 
Hence, a plant that has received a society’s stamp of 
merit, has more value than one unknown, and its grower 
is brought in immediate contact with the purchaser. 
But for these societies the grower of new varieties 
would have but little encouragement; by their aid his 
persistent labor is rewarded. This was plainly shown 
at the Chrysanthemum show, where John Thorpe, Esq., 
