382 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
May  f,  188?* 
The  fondness  of  the  Germans  for  standards  was  evidenced 
again  with  the  Fuchsias.  Three  parts  of  the  plants  were  of  that  class. 
The  most  popular  type  appear#  to  be  a  plant  on  a  stem  of  2  to  3  feet. 
We  might  not  call  them  handsome  in  this  country,  our  preference 
being  for  more  natural  material  in  the  form  of  untrained  bushes. 
But  they  are  too  well  grown  to  be  other  than  attractive.  There  is 
nothing  particular  to  be  said  about  varieties,  but  it  might  be 
remarked  in  passing  that  there  is  at  least  one  thing  in  common 
between  florists  of  the  two  countries.  A  question  as  to  the  meaning 
of  the  word  “  verbessert  ”  drew  the  reply,  “  that  is  imbroved,”  and 
then  a  fat  “  ha,  ha  !  ”  There  have  been  recent  jokes,  it  is  said,  in 
the  German  papers  as  to  the  “  improvements  ”  of  the  florists,  but 
we  regard  that  subject  as  too  sacred  for  mirth.  A  group  of  plants 
of  Fuchsia  triphylla  hybrida,  a  cross  between  triphylla  ^  and 
corymbi flora,  received  a  great  deal  of  attention  and  an  honour 
from  the  Judges.  The  plants  were  only  in  bud  unfortunately, 
but  the  foliage  is  handsome  in  a  quiet  reposeful  way. 
There  is  nothing  to  be  said  about  hardy  plants  generally,  which 
were  sparse  indeed  as  compared  with  our  leading  shows.  The  same 
with  bulbs.  There  were  a  few  Narcissi,  but  there  is  perhaps  no 
German  Barr  or  Engleheart  ;  anyway,  most  of  the  varieties  were 
old,  old  friends.  Amaryllis  (Hippeastrums)  were  fair  rather  than 
great.  Ismene  (Hymenocallis')  calathina  was  well  shown,  and  it 
is  unquestionably  a  most  useful  spring  blooming  plant.  There 
were  giants  amongst  the  Myrtles,  of  which  marvellous  examples 
were  shown  ;  but  Crotons  and  Dracaenas — indeed,  foliage  plants 
generally — were  more  noteworthy  for  health  and  cleanliness  than 
size. 
To  sum  up  the  main  difference  between  a  great  German  and 
English  exhibition  it  is  grace  versus  solidity.  There  are  no  blocks 
of  huge  specimen  Azaleas  such  as  Mr.  Turner  and  others  have 
exhibited  ;  no  fine  bushes  of  Clematis  like  the  noble  plants  with 
which  Messrs.  Richard  Smith  have  delighted  us  ;  no  large  bush  Roses 
like  those  of  Mr.  George  Paul  and  others  ;  no  stately  Caladiums  of 
the  type  exhibited  many  times  by  Messrs.  Laing.  The  vast  bulk 
of  the  material  was  “  stuff  ”  of  the  market  type,  healthy,  very  freely 
flowered,  admirably  grown,  but  small.  It  might  perhaps  be 
thought  that  mere  market  plants  would  be  altogether  lost  in  the 
huge  permanent  buildings,  each  nearly  double  the  size  of  the  Drill 
Hall  and  far  more  lofty  ;  but  the  Germans  are  too  gpod  artists  for 
that.  There  was  not  a  pillar  but  what  was  draped  to  a  height  of 
12  feet  or  so,  and  the  side  walls  were  covered  to  the  same  height 
with  a  sort  of  arras,  or  tapestry  of  greenery.  In  the  corners  and  at 
each  end  were  either  groups  of  Palms  or  sloping  banks  of  large 
flowering  and  foliage  plants.  There  was  turf  everywhere.  The 
whole  of  the  centre  of  each  large  building  was  covered  with  it,  save 
where  groups  of  plants  stood.  The  floors,  in  fact,  were  turned 
into  lawns,  from  which  circles  and  triangles  were  cut,  as  it  were,  to 
admit  of  the  plants. 
There  was  no  attempt  whatever  to  keep  classes  together  ;  on 
the  contrary,  there  was  every  endeavour  to  keep  them  apart.  One 
or  two  J udges  seemed  rather  inclined  to  growl,  but  the  vast 
majority  accepted  ij  in  the  most  philosophic  way,  marching  placidly 
from  one  place  to  another.  'Sometimes  it  was  a  little  awkward. 
Imagine  having  one  group  at  the  Drill  Hall,  a  second  at  the  Hotel 
Windsor,  and  a  third  at  the  Army  and  Navy  Stores,  then  you  are 
fairly  near  getting  an  idea  of  the  state  of  affairs.  Whether  the 
system  is  good  or  bad  depends  on  the  point  of  view  taken.  An 
English  judge  in  a  hurry  would  say  it  was  as  bad  as  bad  could  be  ; 
a  visitor  who  simply  wanted  to  admire  a  spectacle  would  pronounce 
it  very  good  indeed.  And  as  shows  are  presumably  arranged  less 
for  the  benefit  of  judges  in  a  hurry  than  for  pleasing  the  public 
there  is  perhaps  no  good  ground  for  criticism. 
It  is  pleasant  to  be  able  to  vouch  for  the  deliberative  care  with 
which  German  judges  do  their  work.  We  were  allowed  a  day, 
and  we  filled  it  out  somehow.  We  gave  tremendous  reflection  to 
everything.  Nothing  could  have  been  more  impressive  than  the 
nice  adjustment  of  points.  In  the  writer’s  section  there  were 
about  fifteen  classes.  These  were  disposed  of  triumphantly  in 
ten  hours.  Occasionally,  it  is  true,  we  had  a  siesta,  but  that 
freshened  our  reflective  faculties,  and  enabled  us  to  attack  our 
work  with  renewed  energy.  There  was  no  indecent  haste,  no 
slipshod  workmanship.  We  examined  the  plants  from  petal  to 
root.  There  was  something — this  is  said  with  all  modesty — almost 
sublime  in  the  profound  conscientiousness  with  which  every  man 
of  us  discharged  his  judicial  functions. 
Over  all  there  reigned  an  infinite  good  humour.  The  sense  of 
our  responsibilities  did  not  weigh  on  our  spirits  as  it  might  have 
done  under  duller  skies.  There  was  sunshine  on  the  dancing 
waters  of  the  adjacent  Spree,  there  was  sunshine  on  the  visages  and 
in  the  hearts  of  every  member  of  the  great  jury.  The  lunch  was 
a  festive  gathering,  not  a  solid  swallowing  exhibition.  There  was 
endless  chatting,  but  very  little  speechifying,  and  that  lays  enough. 
The  most  prominent  orator  was  a  Court  official  and  distinguished 
amateur  botanist,  Mr.  St.  Paul  Illaire,  and  he  was  brief  and 
sparkling.  Every  person  present  was  resolutely  determined  on 
two  things — to  do  his  duty,  and  to  do  it  joyously. 
Hamburg. 
By  a  coincidence  that  starts  one  “  furiously  thinking,”  the  chief 
political  and  the  chief  maritime  towns  of  Germany  have  a  cele¬ 
bratory  exhibition,  not  only  in  the  same  season,  but  starting  in  the 
same  week.  Fortunately  for  judges,  writers,  and  such  like,  the 
two  centres  are  sufficiently  near  each  other  to  be  reached  by 
expresses  in  about  four  hours,  consequently  there  is  no  difficulty 
in  getting  quickly  from  one  to  the  other.  At  a  pinch,  the  two 
great  shows  could  be  done  in  a  day  ;  but  it  is  a  pinch  that  no  one 
with  due  regard  for  his  own  comfort  would  subject  himself  to. 
The  Hamburg  Exhibition  is  not  a  solitary  show,  lasting  a  few  days 
only  ;  it  is  a  permanent  exhibition,  lasting  the  whole  summer,  and 
strengthened  by  special  shows  at  certain  intervals,  just  as  was  done 
at  Earl’s  Court  a  few  years  ago.  There  is  a  difference,  how¬ 
ever,  between  Hamburg  and  Earl’s  Court — a  difference  of  some 
significance,  inasmuch  as  the  cost  of  the  affair  has  been  subscribed 
in  advance.  There  is  talk  in  Hamburg  of  the  Exhibition  costing 
over  £100,000,  and  yet  the  promoters  maintain  a  cheerful 
demeanour.  Perhaps  if  it  all  had  to  come  back  again  in  the 
shillings  of  a  fickle  public  there  would  be  less  complacency. 
To  put  matters  in  some  preliminary  order,  the  Exhibition  is  an 
international  one  of  horticulture  and  horticultural  product*,  open¬ 
ing  on  the  first  day  of  May,  and  closing  at  the  end  of  September. 
The  special  shows  are  (1)  May  1st  to  May  7th,  principally  for 
groups,  specimen  plants,  novelties,  and  miscellaneous  exhibits  ;  (2) 
from  May  30th  to  June  3rd.  principally  for  Pelargoniums,  floral 
work,  and  early  vegetables  ;  (3)  July  2nd  to  6th,  Gloxinias,  Roses, 
trees  and  shrubs  (cut  twigs),  and  floral  work  ;  (4)  July  30th  to 
August  3rd,  tuberous  Begonias,  Carnations  in  pots,  cut  flowers,  and 
fruit  trees  in  pots  ;  (5)  plants  generally,  including  groups,  speci¬ 
mens,  collections,  novelties  and  market  plants,  floral  work,  and 
vegetables  ;  (6)  fruit.  Thus  there  is  provision  for  all  classes. 
There  will  protably  be  sufficient  in  the  permanent  Exhibition  to 
reward  a  visit  at  any  time  ;  but  as  visitors  from  England  will 
naturally  prefer  to  go  when  there  is  a  special  show  the  hint  may  be 
dropped  that  they  are  likely  to  do  best  for  themselves  by  selecting 
No.  3  or  No.  6. 
There  are  many  ways  of  getting  to  Hamburg,  amongst  which 
are  the  following  : — (1)  by  Queenborough  and  Flushing  (L.  C. 
and  D  Railway  in  L  >ndon)  ;  (2)  by  Hook  of  Holland  (Liver¬ 
pool  Street  in  London) ;  (3)  by  express  to  Harwich  (from 
Liverpool  Street),  and  thence  by  General  Steam  Navigation 
Company’s  boat ;  (4)  by  boat  direct  from  Grimsby.  By  way  of 
variety  the  present  writer  tried  the  Hook  of  Holland  route  going, 
and  the  Hamburg-Harwich  route  returning,  and  was  well  satisfied 
with  both.  The  Hook  of  Holland  route  means  a  short  sea  and  a 
long  railway  journey  ;  the  General  Steam  Navigation  Co.’s  route 
means  a  good  deal  of  sea  and  a  very  small  modicum  of  train.  It 
is  largely  a  matter  of  taste  which  is  the  better.  Both  ways  there 
is  comfort  and  convenience,  and  the  two  companies  work  in 
friendly  harmony.  A  horticulturist  might  enjoy  a  most  pleasant 
holiday  by  running  over  to  one  or  other  of  the  shows.  There  are 
special  tickets  issued,  the  shows  are  very  fine  ones,  and  the  town  is 
full  of  interest.  A  sprinkling  of  visitors  from  England,  more  or 
less  familiar  in  horticultural  circles,  foregathered  at  the  opening 
show,  amongst  them  being  Mr.  Ballantine,  Mr.  Geo.  Gordon,  Mr. 
J.  Hudson,  Mr.  F.  Sander  and  his  sons,  and  Mr.  W.P.  Wright. 
One  of  these  gentlemen  made  the  following  round,  and  recom¬ 
mends  it  to  others  : — Liverpool  Street,  Hook  of  Holland,  Haarlem, 
Amsterdam,  Berlin,  Hamburg,  Harwich,  London. 
The  pleasantest  part  of  the  pleasant  city  of  Hamburg  is  that 
surrounding  the  beautiful  Alster,  and  here  are  situated  a  series  of 
excellent  hotels,  such  as  the  Hamburger  Hof,  Streit’s,  and  the 
Belvedere,  any  of  which  may  be  chosen.  It  is  a  bare  ten  minutes’ 
walk  from  any  of  them  to  the  Exhibition,  which  is  in  the  Heiligen- 
geist  Feld,  or  in  plain  English,  Holy  Ghost  Fields.  But  as  the 
average  Briton  likes  to  board  something  or  other,  it  may  be  men¬ 
tioned  that  he  can,  if  it  so  please  him,  enter  an  electric  tram-car, 
have  a  penny  ride  all  round  the  town,  and  alight  at  the  gates.  He 
will  have  a  novel  experience  if  he  does,  for  the  cars  are  far  ahead 
