504 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
November  28,  1885. 
transparent ;  we  must  therefore  have  the  flesh  coloured,  and  this  cannot 
happen  till  the  fruit  is  ripe.  If,  unfortunately,  the  skin  of  what  should 
he  black  Grapes  is  transparent  they  will  not  be  black  at  all,  but  some¬ 
thing  between  a  brown  and  a  snuff  colour.  Black  Grapes  grown  in 
the  open  air  become  quite  black  if  they  approach  maturity.  Black 
Grapes  grown  inside,  with  abundance  of  air  and  plenty  of  healthy 
foliage  well  exposed  to  the  light,  generally  also  become  quite  black  if 
the  houses  are  such  as  to  prevent  the  possibility  of  too  great  and  too 
rapid  fluctuations  of  temperature. 
On  the  other  hand,  what  should  be  black  Grapes  if  grown  in  a  rather 
close  atmosphere,  such  for  instance  as  is  necessary  to  ripen  Muscats 
during  a  cool  season,  will  swell  to  a  large  size,  but  the  skin  will  be  very 
thin,  and  probably  red  or  some  other  undesirable  colour.  I  take  it  then 
that  a  certain  amount  of  exposure  to  the  rougher  elements  is  necessary 
to  induce  the  fruit,  for  its  own  protection,  to  put  on  a  thicker  covering, 
and  generally  speaking  the  thicker  and  firmer  the  skin  of  any  given 
variety  the  blacker  it  is. 
During  colouring,  and  especially  the  earlier  stages  of  it,  which  with 
Tinea  that  are  not  hard  forced  takes  place  during  the  hottest  part  of 
the  year,  much  damage  is  frequently  done  by  withholding  moisture  both 
in  the  border  and  the  atmosphere.  There  is  an  idea  handed  down  from 
our  forefathers  that  water  caused  cracking,  spotting,  loss  of  flavour, 
want  of  bloom,  and  many  other  ills.  I  do  not  believe  in  any  of  this. 
It  is  true  it  has  never  been  my  fortune  to  have  charge  of  a  house  of 
Duke  of  Buccleuch,  and  it  is  one  of  the  things  for  which  I  often  break 
the  Tenth  Commandment,  so  that  I  cannot  claim  to  have  had  the 
amount  of  experience  with  this  noble  Grape  that  some  of  your  readers 
have  ;  but  I  have  a  strong  opinion  that  it  is  possible  to  use  a  fair 
amount  of  moisture  even  for  this  variety  both  in  the  atmosphere  and 
the  border  ;  but  it  must  be  applied  at  the  proper  time  and  in  a  proper 
manner. 
I  believe  the  mischief  is  done  by  closing  with  too  much  moisture, 
especially  if  the  temperature  is  allowed  to  rise  after  shutting  up  or 
before  opening.  When  a  considerable  amount  of  damping  is  necessary 
I  always  do  it  at  the  time  of  opening  the  ventilators  or  as  soon  after  as 
possible,  and  if  a  second  damping  is  required  it  is  done  not  much  after 
the  middle  of  the  day  ;  then  the  superfluous  moisture  will  be  evaporated 
before  closing  time. 
This  is  necessary  for  all  varieties  of  Grapes  if  you  would  put  the 
highest  possible  finish  on  them,  and  although  there  is  a  tendency  just 
BOW  to  ignore  finish  for  size  I  have  great  faith  that  it  will  again  take 
its  proper  place;  Let  us  have  size  by  all  means — I  am  strongly  in 
favour  of  it — but  let  us  have  finish  as  well.  I  for  one  shall  not  be 
satisfied  till  I  reach  the  highest  possible  point  in  both. 
We  read  of  Madresfield  Court  cracking  badly,  and  the  grower  is 
given  the  stereotyped  advice  to  “  water  sparingly  and  keep  a  drier 
atmosphere.”  Well,  I  have  grown  Madresfield  Court  with  cracking  and 
without.  The  way  to  make  it  crack  is  to  withhold  water,  check  its 
growth,  harden  its  skin,  then  give  it  a  driblet,  and  let  the  temperature 
rise  a  few  degrees  in  the  morning  before  giving  air.  The  way  to  prevent 
it  cracking  is  to  grow  it  as  fast  as  you  can  ;  never  let  it  lack  water  with  a 
little  of  something  in  it  in  the  border.  Moisten  the  atmosphere  as  I  have 
indicated  above  ;  reduce  ventilation  gradually,  and  be  rather  too  early 
than  too  late  in  putting  it  on  in  the  morning. — Wm.  Tayloe. 
(To  be  continued.) 
THE  FLORISTS’  TULIP. 
(By  Jas.  W.  Bentley,  Hon.  Secretary  of  the  Royal  National  Tulip  Society.] 
Descriptive  Catalogue.  (^Continued  from  page  433.') 
Earl  Douglas  (Delaforce). — Bizarre.  Pure ;  shape  good.  Much 
fisteemed  forty  years  ago  by  the  Southern  growers  as  a  feathered  flower, 
the  marking  colour  being  a  rich  glossy  brown,  and  the  yellow  ground 
dense  and  bright.  Syn.,  Bartlett’s  Wallace. 
Eliza  (Hunt).— Bybloemen.  Shape  good;  pure.  A  fine  feathered 
variety  forty  years  aeo. 
Elizabeth  (C.  Gill). — Bybloepaen.  Shape  good  ;  base  very  yellow 
when  the  flower  first  expands,  and  is  rarely  bleached  white.  It  is,  how¬ 
ever,  a  handsome  looking  breeder,  the  colour  being  a  dainty  pale  lavender ; 
of  little  value  when  rectified. 
Elizabeth  (Cotterill). — Bizarre.  Shape  good ;  base  pure,  delicately 
feathered  with  red  biown.  No  longer  grown. 
Elizabeth  (Jeffries). — Rose.  Shape  long ;  base  yellow,  and 
bleaches  with  great  difficulty.  A  favourite  feathered  and  flamed  flower 
fifty  years  ago,  but  now  discarded. 
Elizabeth  Pegg  (Camp). — Byblcemen.  Shape  good  ;  base  and 
filaments  of  exquisite  whiteness.  As  a  breeder  it  is  excellent,  the  fine 
white  base  and  the  bold  black  anthers,  with  the  petals  of  deep  lavender, 
make  the  flower  a  model  byblcemen  breeder.  As  a  feathered  flower  it 
can  scarcely  be  surpassed,  the  rich  dark  feathering  being  continuous 
and  beautifully  pencilled  ;  and  as  a  flamed  flower  it  is  often  first  rate, 
the  beam  being  of  a  deep  violet  shade.  It  is  a  vigorous  grower,  and 
increases  freely,  and  was  raised  about  twenty  years  ago  by  Mr.  Camp  of 
Swarkestone,  Derbyshire,  from  Groom’s  Victoria  Regina,  and  brought 
into  notice  by  Mr.  Pegg  of  Chellaston.  Like  Victoria  Regina  this 
variety  has  the  grave  fault  of  being  easily  injured  by  frost,  and  the  tips 
of  the  outside  petals  are  often  disfigur^  by  green  patches  from  this 
Einse.  Syn.,  Pegg’s  Seedling. 
Elthirox  (Lawrence). — Bybloemen.  Tall,  shape  good;  base  very 
vellovp,  almost  impossible  to  bleach  ;  the  flaming  very  correct.  Obsolete. 
Emily  (Lawrence). — Rose.  Shape  good  ;  base  pure.  A  well  marked 
flamed  flower,  but  so  dark  in  colour  as  to  be  sometimes  classed  as  a 
bybloemen.  Much  liked  fifty  years  ago,  but  no  longer  grown. 
Emma  (Ashmole). — Bybloemen.  Shape  good  ;  base  pare.  A  fine 
dark  feathered  bybloemen,  much  liked  in  Lancashire  twenty-five  years 
ago,  but  now  apparently  gone  out  of  cultivation.  A  seedling  from 
Louis  XIV.  Syn.,  Surprise. 
Emperor  (Goldham).  —  Bizarre.  Dwarf,  shape  good;  base  pure; 
ground  an  intense  yellow,  marking  colour  bright  red.  This  would 
have  been  a  fine  variety  had  it  possessed  correct  marking,  but  as  it 
almost  invariably  was  badly  marked  it  had  to  make  way  for  better 
kinds. 
Emperor  Nicholas  (Ashmole). — Bizarre.  Shape  good;  pure; 
ground  rich  yellow,  and  marking  colour  bright  red  brown.  A  good 
bizarre,  being  excellent  in  breeder  state,  and  useful  as  a  flamed  and  also 
as  a  feathered  flower.  Its  shy  constitution  has  caused  it  to  be  neglected 
in  favour  of  Dr.  Hardy,  which  combines  equal  or  superior  merits  with 
far  more  vigorous  growth. 
Empress  Eugenie  (H.  Goldham). — Rose.  Shape  fair ;  pure  ; 
flamed  with  soft  rose  on  good  white  ground.  Of  no  particular  merit  as 
an  exhibition  flower.  A  seedling  from  Rose  Brilliant  x  Lady  Lilford. 
Enchantress  (Gibbons). — Bybloemen.  Shape  good  ;  pure  ;  flamed 
in  the  style  of  old  (Jueen  Charlotte,  and  first  rectified  in  1840. 
Enchantress  (H.  Goldham). — Rose,  Shape  good ;  pure  ;  flamed 
with  red.  It  is  too  dark  in  colour  to  be  of  much  account  as  an  exhibition 
flower.  A  seedling  from  Maid  of  Falaise  X  Mary. 
Esther  (Strong). — Bybloemen.  Dwarf  ;  shape  good  ;  pure,  A  dark 
feathered  variety  much  esteemed  in  the  South  sixty  years  ago.  It  first 
broke  in  1827,  and  was  figured  in  Sweet’s  “Florist  Guide”  in  1831. 
Incidentally  it  may  be  remarked  that  the  carefully  executed  coloured 
drawings  in  Sweet’s  “  Guide”  form  a  valuable  record  of  the  Tulips  and 
other  florist  flowers  of  those  days.  It  is  little  to  our  credit  that  no  similar 
publication  exists  now. 
Everard  (Bowler). — Bizarre.  Shape  good  ;  pure  ;  flamed  with  red 
brown  on  a  good  yellow  ground.  Fifty  years  ago  it  was  so  much 
esteemed  that  the  late  Mr.  George  Glenny  gave  £140  for  the  whole 
stock,  which  consisted  at  the  time  of  seven  bulbs.  It  is  of  no  value  now, 
being  much  inferior  to  Dr,  Hardy. 
Ev£que  d’Amboise  (Dutch). — Bybloemen.  Shape  fair  ;  pure.  A  ' 
beautifully  marked  flamed  variety  much  liked  fifty  years  ago.  The 
name  is  still  retained  in  some  Dutch  bulb  catalogues. 
Excelsior  (IJardy). — Bizarre.  Shape  good ;  pure  base,  but  filaments 
often  stained.  A  red  bizarre,  generally  seen  in  breeder  state,  when  it 
is  red-brown  in  colour.  When  broken,  it  is  flamed,  and  can  make  a 
good  flower,  but  is  overshadowed  by  Storer’s  varieties  such  as  Dr. 
Hardy  and  Orion.  It  blooms  early,  and  is  a  vigorous  grower  and 
increases  well.  It  was  raised  about  thirty  years  ago  by  Dr.  Hardy  of 
Warrington. 
Fabius  (Lawrence). — Bizarre.  Shape  good;  base  pure,  filaments 
often  stained.  A  heavy  flamed  dark  bizarre,  formerly  in  good  repute, 
but  not  grown  now. 
Fair  Flora  (Buckley). — Bybloemen.  Shape  long;  base  creamy, 
well  flamed  with  dark  purple.  A  sister  seedling  to  Beauty,  and  like  it, 
obsolete. 
Fairy  Queen  (Slater).  —  Rose.  Shape  long;  base  pure.  First 
broken  in  1842,  and  was  about  that  time  much  liked,  both  as  a  feathered 
and  a  flamed  rose.  At  present  it  is  of  no  importance,  and  very  little 
grown. 
Fanny  (Camp.). — Bybloemen.  Shape  good  ;  base  and  filaments  very 
pure.  The  breeder  is  much  like  Elizabeth  Pegg  ;  when  rectified 
feathered  the  colour  of  the  feathering  is  also  like  that  of  Elizabeth 
Pegg  in  colour,  but  not  so  much  pencilled.  At  its  best  it  is 
one  of  the  finest  varieties  in  existence,  but  it  is  unfortunately  not  very 
steady,  having  a  tendency  towards  flaming.  As  a  flamed  flower  it  is  of 
little  value.  A  sister  seedling  of  Elizabeth  Pegg,  it  was  brought  into 
notice  by  the  late  Mr.  David  Barber  of  Stanton-le-Dale,  Derbyshire, 
about  ten  years  ago,  and  is  still  scarce. 
Fanny  (Tomlins). — Bybloemen.  Shape  good  ;  pure.  A  large  flowered 
showy  flamed  variety  of  little  value  now  as  an  exhibition  flower,  although 
twenty  years  ago  it  was  much  esteemed. 
Fanny  Kemble  (Clark). — Bybloemen.  Shape  fair ;  base  and 
filaments  extremely  white  and  pure.  A  variety  which  made  a  great 
sensation  as  a  feathered  flower  seventy  years  ago,  and  was  so  eagerly 
sought  after  that  the  late  Mr,  Davy  gave  £100  for  it.  At  his  death  it 
was  sold  to  Mr.  John  Goldham  for  £72  lOs.,  the  stock  then  consisting  of 
one  blooming  bulb  and  two  offsets.  It  is  a  shy  grower,  and  has  never 
become  common.  I  saw  this  variety  two  years  ago ;  it  was  flamed  and 
valueless  as  an  exhibition  flower. 
Fanny  New  (Goldham). — Bybloemen.  Shape  good  ;  base  pure ; 
petals  of  stout  substance.  Best  as  a  feathered  flower,  the  feathering 
being  jet  black  on  a  pure  white  ground.  It  suffers  sometimes  from  the 
presence  of  breeder  colour  low  down  in  the  feathering,  which  when  it 
occurs  is  a  serious  drawback.  A  fine  variety,  but  excessively  scarce. 
Fanny  Essler  (Goldham). — Rose.  Tall,  shape  good  ;  base  pure.  A 
well  marked  flamed  rose,  formerly  as  famous  (in  Tulip  circles)  as  the 
German  dancsr  after  whom  it  was  named,  and  now  as  completely 
forgotten. 
Favonius  (Battersby). — Bybloemen.  Shape  good  ;  pure.  A  fine 
variety,  beautifully  feathered  with  lilac  on  a  white  ground.  Mr. 
Battersby,  a  skilful  raiser  of  Tulips,  used  to  say  that  this  was  his  finest 
variety.  It  is  excessively  scarce. 
Favonius  (H.  Goldham). — Bybloemen.  A  flamed  variety  of  no 
