June  3,  !>■  97. 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
481 
-  Well-grown  Cinerarias. — Mr.  Thomas  Weager,  Hill  Grove 
Gardens,  Abergavenny,  sends  us  a  photograph  of  Cinerarias.  The  plants 
were  evidently  very  fine,  and  we  cannot  think  they  are  adequately 
represented  in  the  impression  before  us.  One  plant — a  close  head  of 
bloom — we  are  informed  measured  8  feet  24  inches  in  circumference,  in 
which  case  it  must,  judging  by  relative  proportions,  be  in  a  very  large 
pot  indeed.  The  size  is  not  mentioned,  but  it  is  stated  that  the  plants 
were  raised  from  seeds  (Kelway's)  sown  during  the  first  week  of  July 
last.  They  represent  excellent  cultivation. 
-  The  Devon  and  Exeter  Gardeners’  Association. — The 
summer  excursions  of  this  Association  have  been  so  invariably  enjoyable 
and  profitable  to  the  members  that  the  Committee  have  arranged  for  the 
next  one  to  take  place  on  Wednesday,  July  14th,  the  destination  being 
Plymouth.  By  permission  of  the  Right  Hon.  the  Earl  of  Mount 
Edgcumbe,  the  party  will,  an  hour  after  arrival  at  Plymouth,  proceed  to 
Mount  Edgcumbe,  where,  under  the  guidance  of  Mr.  Richards,  the  head 
gardener  there,  the  beautiful  grounds  and  gardens  of  that  famous  estate 
will  be  inspected. — Andrew  Hope,  Hon.  Sec. 
-  The  Pear  Midge. — It  does  not  appear  to  be  generally  known 
that  the  abnormally  large  Pears  met  with  at  this  season  in  the  bunches 
or  in  trusses  of  bloom  are  infested  with  a  number  of  white  maggots,  and 
owners  sometimes  are  filled  with  dismay  when  I  have  advised  picking 
and  burning  every  one  that  can  be  reached  in  order  to  prevent  the  flies 
developing  and  causing  mischief  in  the  future.  I  have  not  followed  up 
their  life  history,  and  would  read  with  interest  any  remarks  respecting 
them,  and  no  doubt  it  would  be  a  seasonable  subject  to  others. — 
J.  Hiam.  [This  paragraph  waB  inadvertently  omitted  from  our  last 
issue."! 
-  Veronica  Hulkeana.  —  Although  many  of  the  shrubby 
Veronicas  will  not  live  out  of  doors  through  a  severe  winter,  the 
protection  of  a  cold  frame  is  sufficient  to  insure  their  safety.  The  little 
protection  required  warrants  a  few  of  the  best  a  place  in  most  gardens, 
as  they  come  in  nicely  during  spring  to  help  to  furnish  the  cool  green¬ 
house — -some  in  the  capacity  of  foliage,  and  others  as  flowering  plants. 
Of  the  latter  the  one  under  notice  is  the  best.  It  is  a  native  of  New 
Zealand,  and  forms  a  loose-growing  shrub  about  2\  feet  in  height.  The 
leaves  are  oblong,  sometimes  inclined  to  be  ovate,  with  serrate  margins, 
and  are  rather  sparingly  produced  on  the  branches.  The  flowers  are 
produced  on  terminal  branched  racemes,  8  inches  in  length  ;  the  lowest 
branches  of  the  raceme  are  2  inches  in  length,  and  carry  about 
eighteen  flowers  ;  as  they  get  nearer  the  apex  they  gradually  become 
less,  until  at  the  top  they  are  half  au  inch  in  length,  and  carry  six 
flowers.  The  flowers  are  quarter  of  an  inch  across,  and  lilac  in  colour  ; 
they  begin  to  open  during  March,  and  last  from  six  to  eight  weeks  if 
in  a  cool  house.  To  grow  them  well,  cuttings  should  be  rooted  in  spring 
and  kept  growing  all  through  the  summer,  with  frequent  stoppings 
until  the  end  of  July  ;  they  should  then  be  left,  to  get  the  wood 
ripened  for  winter.  Six  or  7-inch  pots  are  large  enough  to  grow  good 
plants  in.  They  should  be  grown  outside  until  the  end  of  October, 
— D.  K. 
-  Royal  Meteorological  Society.— The  monthly  meeting  of 
this  Society  was  held  on  Wednesday  afternoon,  the  19th  ult.,  at  the 
rooms  of  the  Royal  Astronomical  Society,  Burlington  House,  Mr.  E. 
Mawley,  F.R.H.S.,  President,  in  the  chair.  Mr.  F.  Gaster  of  the 
Meteorological  Office  read  a  paper  by  himEelf  and  Mr.  R.  H.  Scott, 
F.R.S.,  on  the  “Mean  Monthly  Temperatures  of  the  British  Isles.”  The 
authors  dealt  with  the  means  of  the  daily  minimum,  average,  and 
maximum  temperatures  for  the  various  months  of  the  year  in  the 
twenty-five  years,  1871^95.  They  pointed  out  that  there  is  a  great 
difference  between  the  amount  of  range  of  temperatures  at  the  coast 
stations  and  that  recorded  inland.  The  range  between  January  and 
July  amounts  to  about  16°  at  coast  stations,  but  to  more  than  23°  at  the 
inland  stations.  The  contrast  between  the  temperature  of  the  air  at 
inland  and  at  coast  stations  at  different  times  of  the  year  is  due  to  the 
following  causes : — (1)  The  constant  tendency  of  the  sun  to  heat  the 
surface  of  the  earth  ;  (2)  the  equally  constant  tendency  of  the  earth  to 
radiate  its  heat  into  space,  both  of  these  being  modified  greatly  by  the 
aqueous  vapour  and  the  clouds  suspended  in  the  atmosphere  ;  (3)  the 
fact  that  the  solid  portions  of  the  earth  absorb  and  reflect  heat  much 
more  rapidly  than  the  water  ;  and  (4)  that  while  the  ocean  to  the  west¬ 
ward  is  of  enormous  size  and  great  depth,  the  sea  to  the  eastward  is, 
comparatively  speaking,  limited  in  area  and  shallow,  and  separates  the 
eastern  shores  of  the  British  Islands  from  those  of  continental  Europe 
by  a  small  distance.  A  paper  by  Mr.  C.  V.  Bellamy  on  the  “  Rainfall  of 
Dominica,  West  Indies,”  was  also  read. 
-  Churchyard  Bottom  Wood,  Highgate.— We  learn  that 
towards  the  purchase  of  this  wood  as  a  public  open  space  the  Middlesex 
County  Council,  at  a  recent  meeting,  promised  to  give  a  sum  not 
exceeding  £5000,  provided  that  Parliamentary  powers  are  obtained  to 
enable  them*to  do  so.  The  St.  Pancras  Vestry  has  also  been  approached 
by  a  deputation  in  support  of  a  petition  for  a  grant  of  £2000  towards 
the  purchase  of  Churchyard  Bottom  Wood.  A  motion  to  refer  the 
matter  to  the  Parliamentary  Committee  was  unanimously  agreed  to,  and 
at  the  same  time  the  Vestry  expressed  a  desire  that  the  wood  should  be 
preserved  as  an  open  space.  We  understand  that  since  these  meetings 
the  promise  of  £1000  towards  the  purchase  of  this  bit  of  old  Middlesex 
woodland  has  been  made  by  a  lady  who  does  not  wish  her  name 
published. 
-  Sun  Roses. — These  plants  are  very  delightful,  and  it  is  a 
matter  of  surprise  that  they  are  so  seldom  teen.  It  is  true  the  flowers 
are  extremely  fugacious,  but  then  they  are  succeeded  by  others  day 
after  day  for  a  considerable  time,  so  that  a  good-sized  bush  is  in  the- 
mornings  of  fine  days  covered  with  the  small  saucer-shaped  flowers  of 
various  shades  of  pink,  red,  white,  and  yellow.  The  plants  like  a  sunny 
position  and  a  dry  soil,  but  they  should  not  be  allowed  to  become  too 
dry,  as  this  would  shorten  the  blooming  period.  They  are  very  readily 
raised  from  seed,  and  a  small  packet  will  supply  plants  enough  and  to 
spare.  Old  plants  do  not  remove  satisfactorily.  They  are  hardier  than 
the  Rock  Cistus  and  flower  earlier. 
-  Swainsonias. — Different  species  of  Swainsonia,  particularly 
S.  Greyana  and  S.  galegifolia,  which  are  largely  grown  for  cut  flowers 
now,  are  plants  which  are  greatly  dreaded  by  the  stock  growers 
in  Australia.  Chemical  analysis  does  not  show  any  toxic  prin¬ 
ciple  in  the  plants,  and  yet  when  sheep  and  other  animals  eat  them 
they  acquire  a  habit  for  them  and  will  eat  nothing  else ;  their  brains 
seem  to  become  affected,  they  never  fatten,  and  finally  die.  Sheep 
addicted  to  this  habit  are  known  as  “  Indigo  eaters,”  and  they  separate 
from  the  flocks  and  wander  about  listlessly.  A  case  is  recorded  where 
horses  hobbled  for  the  night  at  a  place  where  Swainsonia  was  growing 
were  difficult  to  catch  the  following  morning,  their  eyes  were  staring 
out  of  their  heads,  and  they  pranced  about  against  trees  and  stumpi. 
Two  out  of  nine  died  the  second  day  after,  and  five  others  had  to  be  left 
in  the  camp,  for  when  driven  they  would  suddenly  stop,  turn  round  and 
round  for  a  time,  then  fall  down,  rise  again  and  repeat  the  performance- 
No  experiments  as  yet  give  any  reason  for  the  complicated  effects  which 
this  forage  has  on  stock,  but  there  certainly  is  much  testimony  to  the 
fact  that  it  causes  a  sort  of  madness  which  induces  creatures  who  feed 
upon  it  to  attempt  to  climb  trees  or  commit  other  eccentricities.  Baron 
Mueller  believed  that  Swainsonia  possesses  the  deleterious  properties 
attributed  to  it,  and  he  publishes  this  view  in  the  Transactions  of  the 
Royal  Society  of  Victoria. — (“  Garden  and  Forest.”) 
BAMBOOS. 
The  Bamboo  of  commerce,  which,  I  believe,  is  botanically  known  as 
Arundo  donax,  is  a  grand  subject  for  outdoor  decoration.  My  experience 
of  the  plant  is  as  follows : — Three  years  ago  last  March  I  bought  a 
plant,  and,  as  far  as  my  memory  serves  me,  one  humble  shilling  was  the 
medium  of  exchange.  The  produce  of  last  summer’s  growth  is  twenty- 
three  grand  Rceds,  averaging  10  feet  in  height ;  the  tallest  is  11  feet 
6J  inches 'to  the  tip,  and  more  than  half  were  between  that  and  10  fept. 
If  it  were  not  ridiculous  I  should  say  that  the  position  was  unsuitable, 
that  the  land  is  rather  too  “heavy;”  but,  on  the  other  hand,  it  has 
perfect  drainage,  and  also,  as  being  within  7  feet  of  a  large  ditch,  into 
which  a  small  ditch  runs,  plenty  of  moisture.  The  waste  water  from  a 
tub  that  is  kept  full  (to  soften  in  the  sunshine)  for  use  in  frames  is 
turned,  the  ditch  ending  at  the  Bamboo,  through  the  roocs  of  which  the 
water  passes. 
I  do  not  know  the  proper  cultivation.  My  plan  is,  when  the  first 
new  shoot  appears  above  ground,  to  cut  off  all  the  previous  year’s 
growth  ;  this  prevents  a  certain  untidy  look  in  the  summer,  which  is  the 
only  drawback  to  this  most  decorative  family  of  plants.  As  my  first 
shoot  appeared  to-day  (May  20th),  I  should  suggest  that  this  is  a  good 
time  to  plant.  I  may  further  say  that  the  shoots  which  come  up  early 
in  the  Beason  are  nearly  as  hard,  when  dry,  as  those  we  buy  as  flower 
sticks. — Y. 
[Arundo  donax  is  a  strong-growing  Reed.  In  Italy  and  the  South  of 
France  the  young  shoots  are  eaten  as  Asparagus,  the  woody  stems  used 
as  Vine  supports  and  fishing  rods,  for  which,  and  other  purposes,  they 
are  imported  to  this  country.  Bambusa  arundinaria  is  the  common 
Bamboo,  and  is  used  for  manifold  purposes,  including  house  building, 
ladder  making,  furniture,  fishing  rods,  and,  when  split,  into  baskets, 
mats,  and  screens.  Arundo  donax  imparts  a  tropical  appearance  to 
gardens,  and  the  variegated  form,  A.  d.  versicolor,  is  regarded  by  many 
persons  as  particularly  attractive,  but  is  less  hardy  than  the  type.] 
