April  29,  1897, 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER . 
359 
blue  and  orange,  violet  and  yellow,  the  delicate  shades  of  Azalea  molliB 
together  make  a  charming  whole,  but  in  mixing  for  harmony  avoid  dark 
shades  of  any  colour,  and  have  not  less  than  three  colours  in  harmony. 
I  noticed  a  fine  bed  of  Hyacinths  in  Regent’s  Park  two  extreme  shades 
of  blue  in  contrast — viz.,  Charles  Dickens,  dark  blue,  and  Czar  Peter, 
pale  porcelain  blue. 
In  arrangements  for  effect  every  branch,  leaf  and  frond  must  have  its 
place,  and  the  hand  should  be  used  to  relieve  any  overlapping.  But  at 
the  same  time  our  arrangements  must  not  be  too  thin,  because  Nature, 
even  in  temperate  climes  like  our  own,  is  profuse  and  luxuriant.  Plants 
flowering  without  leaves  ought  to  be  arranged  rising  as  it  were  from  a 
bank  of  greenery. — F.  Street. 
PRIMULA  CALYCINA.  . 
This  Primula  has  long  been  known  in  gardens,  where  it  is  often 
confounded  with  P.  Wulfeniana,  a  totally  different  plant,  and  from 
which  it  is  easily  distinguished,  even  without  the  aid  of  flowers,  by  its 
longer  and  very  irregularly  margined  leaves.  It  grows  readily  enough 
on  the  rockery  in  almost  any  position,  but  unless  in  exposed  situations 
is  rather  a  shy  flowerer,  and  some  can  only  manage  to  flower  it  by  giving 
it  a  good  roasting  during  the  summer  months,  meanwhile  supplying 
water  very  sparingly.  It  seems  to  prefer  being  wedged  in  between 
hard  pieces  of  granite  in  rich,  stiffish  soil.  It  forms  rosetteB  of  long 
ovate-lanceolate  leaves,  of  a  half-weathered  green  colour,  perfectly 
glabrous  and  shining,  with  a  curiously  wavy  margin.  The  flowers  are 
large,  of  a  beautifully  clear  lilac,  generally  three  or  four  together  on 
short  stalks,  at  the  base  of  which  are  long  linear  bracts.  The  calyx  is 
about  an  inch  long  with  narrow  bluntish  sepals.  It  is  a  native  of  the 
Southern  Alps,  and  usually  flowers  in  May  and  June.  This  brief 
description  with  the  woodcut  (fig.  74)  will  no  doubt  be  what  “  Primula  ” 
requires. 
FORCED  BEANS  AND  EARLY  RADISHES. 
On  the  21st  inst.  thirteen  members  of  the  Fruit  and  Vegetable  Com¬ 
mittee  of  the  Royal  Horticultural  Society  examined  a  collection  of 
French  Beans  growing  and  bearing  in  one  of  the  houses  at  Chiswick. 
About  thirty  varieties  were  grown  under  identical  conditions.  Five 
seeds  of  each  were  sown  in  10-inch  pots  on  January  15th,  three  pots  of 
each  variety.  There  was  great  diversity  in  growth  and  bearing.  Some 
of  the  plants,  such  as  the  Crimson  Flageolet  or  Canadian  Wonder,  with 
others  not  half  so  good,  were  considered,  except  under  special  circum¬ 
stances,  fully  too  tall,  and  certainly  did  not  give  such  a  good  yield  of 
pods  as  some  of  the  dwarfer  and  sturdier  growers. 
But  while  a  few  were  regarded  a3  too  tail,  considering  the  number  of 
pods  they  produced,  still  more  were  too  dwarf,  several  of  these  having 
a  stunted  appearance,  and  though  the  pods  of  some  of  them  were 
numerous  they  were  entirely  too  small  for  approval.  Most  of 
these  diminutive  varieties  were  sent  from  Germany,  and,  with 
•one  exception,  are  not  in  the  least  likely  to  find  favour  with  British 
cultivators.  There  were  a  few  of  a  similar  character  from  France,  but 
these  on  the  whole  were  better,  but  did  not  reach  the  Committee’s 
standard  of  usefulness — long,  deep  green,  substantial,  fleshy,  brittle 
pods,  and  plenty  of  them.  Mottled  pods  found  no  favour,  one  of  the 
members  of  the  Committee  observing  that  if  he  took  such  to  the  French 
cook  he  had  to  supply  the  chef's  shoulders  would  go  over  his  head. 
Many  varieties  had  waxy-yellow  pods,  but  most  of  them  miserably 
small,  and  only  one  stock  merited  recognition.  Three  marks — equivalent 
to  awards  of  merit — were  given  to  the  following,  whether  any  of  the 
varieties  had  been  previously  honoured  or  not. 
Veitch’s  Early  Favourite. — A  free  yet  sturdy  grower,  and  good 
bearers  of  fine  green  pods.  Ready  April  14th. 
Ne  Plus  Ultra. — Too  well  known  to  need  description,  and  not  easy 
to  excel.  Ready  April  12ch. 
Osborne's  Forcing. — Dwarf  and  free  ;  an  old  favourite,  not  likely  to 
soon  go  out  of  fashion.  Ready  April  12th. 
Wythe's  Improved  Mohaioh.  —  A  free  yet  sturdy  grower,  and 
abundant  bearer  of  large  green  pods.  Ready  April  14th. 
Emperor  William. — Very  dwarf,  with  broad,  flat,  dark  pods.  The 
earliest  of  all.  Ready  April  1st.  In  contrast  it  may  be  Btated  that 
Canadian  Wonder  was  not  ready  till  April  19th. 
Barr's  Golden  Wax. — A  good  grower  and  free  bearer  of  long  wax¬ 
like  pods,  distinct,  and  by  far  the  best  in  its  section. 
It  may  be  said  that  the  maximum  marks  were  granted  unanimously 
except  in  the  case  of  Emperor  William,  when  they  were  awarded  by 
7  votes  to  2.  Sopie  members  appear  to  have  been  neutral. 
[Pods  of  the  six  varieties  named  were  placed  before  the  Committee 
at  the  Drill  Hall  on  the  27th  inst.,  and  awards  of  merit  recorded.] 
Another  variety  deserves  mention — namely,  Covent  Garden  Early 
Negro.  Only  a  few  seeds  germinated,  but  some  of  the  resulting  plants 
produced  such  good  and  deep  green  pods  that  the  Committee  wished  the 
variety  to  be  tried  again. 
Radishes— Ann  Advance. 
Growing  in  an  unheated  brick  pit  in  the  Gardens  some  half  dozen 
varieties  of  Radishes  were  examined.  Three  of  these  were  from  France, 
and  for  comparison  were  also  sown  the  French  Breakfast  and  a  couple 
of  First  Early  varieties  from  home  stocks.  The  same  quantity  of  seeds 
of  each  were  sown  in  drills  the  same  distance  asunder  on  March  17th. 
During  their  whole  period  of  growth  the  plants  were  exposed  throughout 
the  day,  the  sashes  placed  over  them  at  night.  The  results  of  the  small 
trial  are  particularly  noteworthy,  and  without  doubt  two  valuable  new 
Radishes  have  now  had  their  merits  fully  tested.  These  are  what  may 
be  shortly  termed  Vilmorin’s  Extra  Early  Olive-shaped  S'arlet  and 
Extra  Early  White  Forcing.  These  were  grown  in  the  Gardens  last 
year  and  sent  to  the  Drill  Hall,  awards  of  merit  being  granted  for  the 
samples. 
On  seeing  them  growing  last  week  by  the  side  of  other  standard 
varieties,  the  superiority  of  the  two  “  Extra  Earlies  ”  from  France  was 
so  manifest  that  first-class  certificates  were  unanimously  granted  for 
them.  Sown  as  we  have  said  on  March  17th,  they  were  ready  for  useion 
April  21st.  The  others  could  not  be  ready  for  ten  days,  and  some  of 
them  a  fortnight  after  that  date  ;  and  further,  when  they  are  ready 
FIG.  74. — PRIMULA  CALYCINA. 
there  will  not  be  half  the  number  of  good  Radishes  that  were  produced 
by  the  “  Extra  Earlies.”  Nor  is  the  difference  due  to  any  imperfection 
in  the  seeds,  for  they  all  germinated  alike  well.  The  gain  in  the  one 
case,  and  loss  in  the  other,  is  wholly  due  to  the  leafage  of  the  plants. 
The  leaves  of  the  certificated  varieties,  though  stout,  are  very  small, 
so  much  so  that  when  expanded  their  surfaces  were  fully  exposed  to  the 
direct  action  of  light.  Each  leaf  was  thus  able  to  perform  its 
functions  in  the  preparation  and  deposition  of  organised  matter,  and 
hence  the  quick  formation  of  the  fleshy  bulb-like  roots. 
Very  different  were  the  leaves  of  the  ordinary  “First  Early”  varie¬ 
ties  ;  they  were  and  are  four  times  the  size,  the  inevitable  result  being 
a  crowd  and  a  crush,  with  consequent  spoliation  and  total  inability  to 
provide  the  necessary  material  for  the  formation  of  the  coveted  bold 
crisp  early  Radishes.  This  is  a  little  lesson  which  demonstrates  the 
importance  of  sound  unobstructed  developed  leafage — not  in  Radishes 
alone,  but  in  everything. 
The  practical  outcome  of  this  small  trial  of  Radishes,  under  absolutely 
the  same  conditions  in  every  respect — time  of  sowing,  soil,  exposure,  and 
distances  of  plants — is  that  the  “  Extra  Earlies  ”  represented  a  crop  of  at 
the  least  100  per  cent,  greater  value  (and  in  fact  a  great  deal  more) 
than  the  later  sorts. 
As  Radishes  cannot  possibly  be  too  early  these  new  extra  early 
French  introductions  may  be  expected  to  find  their  way  into  most 
gardens,  while  growers  of  Radishes  for  sale  will,  if  they  are  wise,  give 
them  a  good  trial  at  the  earliest  opportunity.  They  will  yield  far  more 
bunches  from  a  given  area  of  land,  at  a  decided  earlier  date,  than  the 
varieties  usually  grown,  and  in  quality  as  good — at  least,  those  were  at 
Chiswick — as  the  most  fastidious  could  desire. 
There  was  another  French  Radish  called  the  “  Leafless,”  and  nearly 
merited  its  name.  The  leaves  are  like  diminutive  abortions,  yet  produced 
early  roots.  It  is  a  mere  curiosity,  but  the  two  varieties  certificated  are 
serviceable  acquisitions,  and  as  such  well  worthy  of  the  attention  of 
cultivators. 
