160 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
August  15,  1895. 
Taking  Stock. 
Now  that  the  great  Rose  shows  are  over,  and  the  queens  of  our 
gardens  are  resting  on  their  laurels,  is  the  time  to  take  stock  of  their 
past  achievements,  note  what  varieties  have  done  well,  and  are  deserving 
of  permanent  places  in  the  beds  which  are  reserved  for  their  exclusive 
use. 
It  must  be  upwards  of  twenty  years  since  I  first  specially  cultivated 
Roses,  owing  my  first  instructions  in  the  art  to  the  fascinating  pages  of 
Dean  Hole’s  popular  “  Book  about  Roses”  in  1872  ;  and  about  this  time,  or 
rather  later,  I  was  much  attracted  by  a  series  of  letters  in  a  local  paper, 
chiefly  on  the  Rose,  from  the  able  hand  of  one  who  is  now  on  the  staff 
of  the  Journal  of  TIortiovltnre,  and  who  has  given  us  the  benefit  of  an 
extensive  experience  in  several  directions  in  works  whose  value  practi¬ 
cally  can  scarcely  be  over-estimated,  I  select  two,  “Profitable  Fruit 
Growing”  (prize  essay),  and  another  “Garden  Flowers  and  Plants,” 
with  fifty  illustrations,  by  J.  Wright,  F.R.H.S.  The  letters  on  the  Rose 
I  carefully  preserved,  and  I  use  them  with  pleasure  and  advantage  yet. 
But  I  am  wandering  from  my  point. 
Nearly  five  years  ago  wm  migrated  from  more  northerly  regions, 
leaving  the  favourites  of  years  behind.  I  would  not  risk  their  lives  by 
moving  them,  and  besides,  it  is  much  better  to  start  with  strong  new 
plants,  which  I  did,  counting  now  my  Roses  only  in  dozens  in  the  very 
small  and  at  first  most  unpromising  garden  which  they  occupy. 
My  Rose  trees  were  planted  in  November,  1891.  About  three 
dozen  sufficed  to  fill  the  four  small  beds  1  was  able  to  allot  to  them, 
all  H.P.,andall  of  them  varieties  I  had  already  grown  and  tested  (of  Teas  1 
do  not  now  speak),  so  that  my  town  experience  of  nearly  four  years 
is  I  think  a  fair  period  from  which  to  speak  of  their  suitability  or 
otherwise  for  town  cultivation.  I  subjoin  separately  a  complete  list 
of  those  I  have  tried,  but  name  here  only  those  that  successfully 
triumphed  over  adverse  conditions  of  vicinity  of  trees,  close  air,  and 
other  drawbacks,  smoke  excepted.  We  are  on  high  ground,  with  only 
one  line  of  houses  between  us  and  the  fields,  so  “  blacks  ”  seldom  if 
ever  trouble  us. 
Of  light  Roses,  then,  Boule  de  Neige  (two),  SDUvenir  de  Malmaison 
(two),  and  Merveille  de  Lyon  have  done  grandly,  especially  the  last. 
Mrs.  John  Laing,  Madame  Gabriel  Luizet,  and  Ulrich  Brunner  left 
nothing  to  be  desired.  Very  fair,  too,  have  been  Captain  Christy  and 
Madame  la  Baronne  de  Rothschild.  La  France,  Queen  of  Queens,  and 
some  others  failed,  and  from  Royal  Standard  no  good  bloom  could  be 
had.  Fisher  Holmes,  Abel  Carriere,  La  Rosi^re.  and  Dr.  Hogg  did  well. 
A.  K.  Williams.  Lord  Dufferin,  and  Sultan  of  Zanzibar  were  uncertain, 
so  w'as  Charles  Lefebvre  ;  the  white  and  light  Roses  did  the  best. 
The  soil,  heavy  and  very  full  of  clay,  was  diligently  lightened  and 
■carefully  manured  with  short  stable  litter,  supplemented  with  a  good 
•chemical  dressing  occasionally.  Such  is  the  history  of  these  H. P.  dwarfs 
on  the  Manetti.  I  ougnt  to  add  that  they  had  ample  soakings  of 
water  at  the  roots  now  and  again,  and  syringings  of  qudssia  chips 
■steeped  in  boiling  water  and  applied  cold  repeatedly,  it  being  difficult 
to  keep  aphides  down.  I  hardly  know  whether  it  \s  en  regie  io  not\Q.Q 
books,  but  one  more  contribution  to  Rose  literature  I  must  mention — 
“  The  Book  of  the  Rose,”  by  the  Rev.  A.  Foster-Melliar,  M.A.,  which  will 
be  hailed  by  all  cultivators  of  the  Rose  as  at  once  most  practical  and 
exhaustive,  a  very  treasury  of  experience  and  information. — A.  M.  B. 
OLLA  PODRIDA. 
In  giving  this  name  to  some  short  notices  on  various  subjects 
connected  with  horticultuie  I  do  not  at  all  mean  to  imply  that  the 
papers  will  partake  of  the  savoury  character  of  this  favourite  Spanish 
dish  ;  the  only  resemblance  to  it  is  that  it  will  be  made  up  of  small 
scraps  of  various  ingredients.  I  had  thought  of  heading  it  hotch-potch, 
but  the  idea  that  term  conveys  to  most  people’s  minds  is  that  of  a 
muddle,  and  that  is  the  last  thing  I  should  wish  them  to  be  ;  but 
occasionally  matters  come  under  one’s  notice  of  which  a  brief  account  is 
all  that  is  required — in  fact,  in  these  days  of  hurry-skurry  the  people 
are  easily  satisfied,  and  do  not  complain  if  the  account  is  short  ;  some  of 
them,  indeed,  perhaps  may,  from  one  motive  or  another,  prefer  that 
they  should  be  so — reminding  me  of  the  publican  of  this  parish  at  whose 
house  the  Benefit  Club  used  to  be  held.  The  Club  used  to  attend  church, 
and  once  when  I  had  obtained  the  services  of  .a  friend  to  preach  to  them 
be  came  up  to  him  when  he  w'as  entering  the  church  and  said  “  he  hoped 
he  would  not  keep  them  long,  as  the  boys  wanted  to  get  home,”  home 
being  his  public  house.  But  without  any  reminder  of  this  kind  from 
either  Editor  or  readeis  I  intend  that  the“notices  should  be  brief. 
Clematis  Montana. 
I  have  often  wondered  why  this  rapidly  growing  plant  is  not  more 
frequently  used.  I  planted  one  some  four  or  five  years  ago,  and  my 
difficulty  now  is  to  keep  it  within  bounds.  It  is  not,  in  the  true  sense 
of  the  word,  a  climber,  because  it  has  nothing  by  which  to  lay  hold.  I 
tried  last  year  to  let  it  hang  down  in  long  festoons  without  cutting  it, 
but  came  lo  the  conclusion  that  I  preferred  treating  it  as  I  had  done  the 
year  before — namely,  nailing  it  close  in.  It  very  nearly  covers  now  the 
front  of  my  house,  and  when  it  is  covered  with  its  beautiful  white 
flowers  in  May  it  is  a  most  pleasing  object,  and  being  so  easily  grown  I 
think  it  ought  to  be  more  in  favour  with  those  who  wish  to  cover  up 
houses  and  outbuildings.  It  has  one  drawback — the  perfume  is  not  very 
pleasant ;  in  fact,  to  some  disagreeable. 
Zephyranthes  carinata. 
A  few  years  ago  my  friend  Mr.  J.  F.  Strange  of  Aldermaster,  near 
Reading,  well  known  in  Rose-growing  circles,  gave  me  a  few  blooms  of 
this  under  the  name  of  the  Bombav  Lily,  It  has  nothing  to  do  with 
Bombay,  being,  in  fact,  a  native  of  N.  America,  but  it  is  another  curious 
instance  of  the  wrong  localisation  of  English  names.  Why,  for  instance, 
should  Vallota  purpurea  be  called  a  Scarboro’  Lily,  or  Nerine  sarniensia 
go  by  the  name  of  the  Guernsey  Lily  ?  This  pertains  to  other  things 
as  well  as  flowers,  poultry  for  example.  You  might  search  Spain  through 
before  you  v^muld  find  a  Spanish  fowl  such  as  we  know  them,  while 
Cochin  never  produced  the  birds  called  Cochin  China.  But  to  return 
to  the  Zephyranthes.  My  plants  of  it  have  been  in  flower  for  the  last 
two  or  three  months,  and  as  they  are  continually  sending  up  a  succession 
of  blooms,  I  expect  they  will  remain  a  good  while  longer  a  thoroughly 
soft  and  pleasing  delicate  rosy  white  colour,  reminding  one  somewhat 
of  a  fully  expanded  Crocus.  The  old  species  Candida  is  well  known 
in  our  gardens,  but  I  have  rarely,  if  ever,  seen  cariaata.  It  increases 
rapidly,  and  requires  very  little  care  or  attention. 
Seedling  CARNATioNb  and  Ficotees. 
That  enthusiastic  lover  of  these  beautiful  flowers,  Mr.  Martin 
R.  Smith,  is,  I  think,  likely  to  revolutionise  the  culture  of  this  long- 
established  favourite.  He  has  for  the  past  two  or  three  years  been 
distributing  to  the  members  of  the  National  Carnation  and  Picotee 
Society  packets  of  his  carefully  hybridised  seed,  and  this  gratuitous 
act  of  kindness,  while  it  hasentailed  upon  him  a  vast  amount  of  trouble, 
has,  at  the  same  time,  given  great  pleasure  to  a  number  of  lovers  of 
their  gardens.  Two  years  ago  I  received  a  packet  of  his  seed.  There 
were  120  seeds,  and  every  one  of  them  produced  a  good  sturdy  and 
vigorous  plant.  They  were  planted  out  in  a  bed  last  autumn  ;  they  had 
to  withstand  the  severe  frost,  and  long  drought  of  this  year ;  and  yet 
they  have  produced  an  immense  quantity  of  beautiful  and  fragrant 
blooms.  All  classes  seem  to  be  there  represented,  and  in  some  instances 
it  is  difficult  to  class  at  all.  There  was  a  pure  white,  some  pale  yellow, 
some  brilliant  red,  some  deep  edged  Ficotees,  and  some  light  edged  ; 
while  seifs  of  various  colours  were  to  be  found  amongst  them.  Probably 
the  class  that  is  most  deficient  is  that  of  Carnations,  and  the  old  bizarre 
and  flaked  varieties.  I,  as  an  old  florist,  should  be  very  sorry  to  see  this 
long-cherished  favourite  put  on  one  side,  but  I  rather  think  this  will  be 
the  result  of  Mr.  Smith’s  zealous  labours  and  liberality  ;  what  those 
labours  are  may  be  inferred  from  the  fact  that  he  will  this  year  give 
to  the  members  of  the  National  Carnation  and  Picotee  Society  about 
250  packets  of  seed.  The  floriferous  character  of  these  seedlings  is 
another  point  worth  noticing,  the  flower  stems  being  so  numerous 
that  it  is  diflicult  to  get  layers  of  them. 
Ripened  Wood. 
If  there  be  one  point  more  than  another  that  is  put  forward  by  those 
who  advocate  fruit  growing,  it  is  the  absolute  necessity  of  having  a  dry 
autumn  for  the  ripening  of  the  wood  which  is  to  produce  fruit  next  year. 
But  how  stands  the  case  now  ?  We  had  an  exceptionally  wet  autumn  in 
1891,  and  growers  looked  with  some  degree  of  dismay  upon  their  trees  so 
full  of  sappy  growth,  which  we  were  also  told  would  suffer  tremendously 
if  we  had  a  severe  winter.  Well,  we  did  have,  as  everybody  knows,  a 
very  severe  winter  ;  when  our  Apple  trees  came  through  it  they  were  a 
perfect  picture  of  beauty,  so  full  were  they  of  blossom.  Yes,  we  were 
told  then,  “  It  may  be  so,  but  you  will  see  that  the  young  fruit  will  drop, 
and  there  will  not  be  vigour  enough  in  the  trees  to  swell  them.”  We  had 
succeeding  to  our  hard  winter  a  long  period  of  drought  ;  this  it  was 
thought  would  conduce  to  the  diminution  of  the  crop,  but  it  has  not 
turned  out  so.  I  never  saw,  in  this  neighbourhood  at  any  rate,  a  more 
abundant  crop  of  large  and  sound  fruit.  Pears  one  did  not  expect  after 
such  an  enormous  crop  as  that  of  last  year,  and  consequently  there  is 
only  a  sprinkling  of  these  ;  and  I  should  very  much  like  to  know  how 
this  contradiction  of  universally  received  theories  is  to  be  explained  ? 
Of  course  I  shall  be  told  I  am  a  duffer,  or  else  I  should  not  ask  such 
questions.  1  suppose  I  must  submit  to  the  accusation,  but  none  the  less 
I  should  like  to  know  what  the  explanation  is. 
Judging  at  the  Crystal  Palace  Rose  Show. 
It  might  be  as  well  sometimes  before  complaining  on  such  matters 
to  inquire  what  are  the  real  facts  of  the  case;  thus  a  writer  in  a  con¬ 
temporary  falls  foul  of  the  Judges,  not  the  judging.  He  says  that  they 
were  late  in  beginning  their  work,  and  that  there  were  too  many  of 
them.  As  a  matter  of  fact  they  were  not  more  than  ten  minu'es  or  a 
quarter  of  an  hour  late,  and  cnusidering  that  the  greater  portion  of  them 
were  exhibitors  I  do  not  think  there  can  be  much  blame  attached  to 
them  ;  and,  moreover,  it  is  a  most  difficult  thing  in  a  large  open  space 
like  the  Crystal  Palace  to  collect  people,  and  when  it  is  considered  that 
more  than  sixty  classes,  containing  some  5000  lo  6000  flowers,  have  to 
be  adjudicated  upon  in  a  short  space  of  three-quarters  of  an  hour,  it  is 
impossible  that  this  could  be  done  unless  there  was  a  numerous  staff  of 
Judges,  to  whom  the  N  R.S.  is  deeply  indebted  for  giving  their  services 
so  cheerfully  as  they  do.  Why  not  give  them  more  time?  it  may  be 
said.  Just  simply  for  this  reason,  that  the  N.R  S.  does  net,  and  cannot. 
