April  7.  1898. 
302  JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
Weather  in  London. — In  our  last  issue  we  had  to  tell  of 
wintry  storms  of  snow  and  rain,  but  since  then  there  has  been  a  return 
to  the  spring-like  weather.  Scarcely  any  rain  has  fallen  during  the  week, 
and  on  most  days  the  sun  has  shone  with  great  brilliancy  and  power. 
One  or  two  nights  have  been  frosty,  while  the  wind  has  occasionally  felt 
rather  keen.  At  the  time  of  going- to  press  on  W^ednesday  it  was  bright 
and  warm. 
-  Weather  in  the  North.— The  last  two  days  of  March  were 
variable,  although  pleasant  on  the  whole,  with  6°  of  frost  on  the  31st. 
April  opened  with  a  very  slight  frost,  and  one  of  the  finest  days  of  the 
season.  A  rather  squally  wind  and  heavy  showers  followed  on  Saturday 
and  Sunday,  and  Monday  was  rather  cold,  but  the  evening  somewhat 
milder.  On  the  morning  of  Tuesday,  which  was  bright  and  fine,  6°  of 
frost  were  recorded. — B.  D.,  S.  Perthshire. 
Admission  to  Kew  Gardens.  —  Mr.  Akers-Douglas,  in 
response  to  a  question  in  the  House  of  Commons  on  Monday,  said  he 
had  decided  to  admit  the  public  to  Kew  Gardens  (not  including  the 
plant  houses)  at  an  earlier  hour  than  noon  on  week  days  in  the 
ensuing  months  of  June,  July,  August,  and  September.  He  should 
thereby  be  in  a  l)etter  position  to  judge  of  the'  extent  of  the  demand 
by  the  general  public  for  the  earlier  opening.  There  were  many 
details  involved  in  the  proposal,  into  which  he  was  having  an  inquiry 
made,  and  he  hoped  to  give  further  information  in  a  few  weeks’  time. 
He  hoped  that  the  Queen’s  Cottage  grounds  might  be  formally  added 
to  the  gardens  about  the  1st  of  June,  but  he  could  not  absolutely  bind 
himself  as  to  date. 
-  The  Amaryllis. — For  a  number  of  years  Mr.  W.  J.  Ireland, 
gardener  to  J.  Wakefield,  Esq.,  Sedgwick  House,  near  Kendal,  has 
devoted  considerable  attention  to  cross  fertilisation  and  raising  improved 
forms  of  this  gorgeous  plant.  On  the  invitation  of  the  Bradford 
Paxton  Society  Mr.  Ireland  read  an  interesting  and  practical  paper 
at  the  bi-monthly  meeting  of  the  Society  on  the  26th  ult.  The 
essayist  exhibited  upwards  of  thirty  cut  blooms  of  high-class  named 
varieties,  and  several  splendid  seedlings  raised  at  Sedgwick.  The  self- 
coloured  varieties  were  especially  conspicuous  for  enormous  size  and 
brilliance  of  colour.  One  of  the  best  of  this  class  received  the  Society’s 
certificate  of  merit,  and  was  at  once  named  the  Bradford  Paxton 
Society  by  Mr.  Ireland  in  return  for  the  compliment.  The  substance 
of  this  valuable  paper  will  be  found  on  page  300. 
-  Isle  op  Wight. — The  Isle  of  Wight  Horticultural  Improve¬ 
ment  Association  held  its  second  annual  show  of  Daffodils  and  spring 
flowers  at  Shanklin  on  Saturday  last.  Mrs.  White-Popham,  who  was 
introduced  by  Dr.  J .  Groves  (Chairman  of  the  Association),  opened  the 
exhibition  with  a  few  appropriate  remarks.  Amongst  the  principal 
exhibitors  (the  exhibits  were  non-competitive)  were  Messrs.  Barr  &  Sons 
London,  with  nearly  two  hundred  vases  of  Daffodils.  This  exhibit  was 
much  appreciated,  and  fully  deserved  the  Association  certificate  for 
cultural  merit.  First-class  certificates  were  also  given  to  each  of  the 
following  varieties — Duchess  of  Westminster,  M.  J.  Berkeley,  and  Barri 
conspicuus.  Mr.  John  Gell,  Home  Farm,  St.  Lawrence,  staged  a 
collection  of  Narcissi  which  fully  merited  the  award  of  certificate  for 
cultural  merik  Mr.  F.  Woods,  Steephill  Castle,  Ventnor,  exhibited  well 
grown  Cinerarias,  which  received  the  Association  certificate  for  cultural 
merit.  Mr.  W.  H.  Jobling,  Spring  Hill,  East  Cowes,  exhibited  a 
miscellaneous  collection  of  hardy  cut  blooms  and  several  fine  pots  of  the 
Blue  Primrose.  It  fully  deserved  the  Association  certificate  for  cultural 
merit.  Mr.  J.  H.  Silsbury  exhibited  a  collection  of  Daffodils  which 
received  the  certificate  for  cultural  merit.  Amongst  other  exhibits  which 
added  to  the  interest  of  the  show,  which  was  visited  by  over  a  thousand 
people  (admission  free),  were  Palms  and  Dracmnas  from  Mr.  F.  Silsbury, 
Clarendon  Lodge,  Shanklin  ;  a  miscellaneous  collection  of  pot  plants, 
effectively  arranged,  from  Mr.  C.  H.  Snook,  Westhill,  Shanklin  ;  cut 
blooms  of  Tulips  from  Mr.  J.  H.  Perkin,  Los  Altos,  Sandown  ;  blooms 
of  seedling  Amaryllis  and  fine  spikes  of  Iris  fimbriata  from  Mr.  W. 
Tribbick,  h.R.H.S.,  Brooke  House,  Brooke;  and  floral  decorations  by 
Mrs.  A.  Carter,  Rosendale,  Shanklin. 
-  Royal  Horticultural  Society. — The  next  Fruit  and 
Floral  meeting  of  the  Royal  Horticultural  Society  will  be  held  on 
Tuesday,  April  12th,  in  the  Drill  Hall,  James  Street,  Westminster, 
1  to  5  P.M.  A  lecture  on  “  Blight  and  Blessing,”  illustrated  by  lantern 
slides,  will  be  given  by  Mr.  F.  Enock,  F.L.S.,  at  three  o’clock. 
-  Station  Nurseries,  Horsham.— We  are  requested  to  state 
that  Mr.  Riley  Scott,  for  upwards  of  twenty  years  gardener  and  steward 
to  Miss  Foster,  The  Holme,  Regent’s  Park,  and  Oakover,  Ticehurst, 
Sussex,  has  purchased  this  business.  We  wish  Mr.  Scott,  who  is  well 
known  as  a  constant  exhibitor  at  the  shows  of  the  Royal  Botanic  Society, 
every  success  in  his  new  venture. 
-  Cucumber  Every  Day. — We  learn  that  the  new  Cucumber 
Every  Day,  raised  by  Mr.  Owen  Thomas  of  the  Royal  Gardens,  Windsor, 
and  exhibited  by  him  at  the  Royal  Horticultural  Society’s  meetings  on 
December  14th,  February  4th,  and  March  4th,  will  be  sent  out  next  year 
as  a  novelty  by  Messrs.  Sutton  &  Sons  of  Reading.  On  February  4th 
this  variety  received  an  award  of  merit,  and  on  March  4th  the  Fruit 
Committee  thought  so  highly  of  it  that  a  first-class  certificate  was 
awarded. 
-  Doronicum  plantagineum. — Among  the  early  flowering 
plants  now  showing  themselves  in  the  gardens  is  the  Plantain  Leopard’s 
Bane,  which  is  always  welcomed  as  being  the  forerunner  of  many 
bright  flowers.  As  clumps  along  the  borders  the  plants  are  highly 
effective,  and  will  last  in  bloom  for  some  weeks,  while  for  indoor 
decoration  this  Doronicum  has  no  superior  in  the  early  spring.  The 
long  footstalks  and  yellow’  starlike  flowers  are  well  suited  for  furnish¬ 
ing  light  vases,  and  though  the  flower  is  old  and  well  known  it  is 
nevertheless  welcomed  with  a  fresh  interest  as  each  spring  rolls  round. — H* 
-  Birmingham  Gardeners’  Association. — The  final  fort¬ 
nightly  meeting  of  the  winter  session  took  place  on  the  4th  inst.,  Mr. 
W.  B.  Latham  presiding  over  a  very  good  attendance  of  the  members, 
when  Mr.  E.  J.  Mustin,  gardener  to  A.  F.  Bird,  Esq.,  The  Firs,  Moseley, 
Birmingham,  read  a  practical  paper  on  the  cultivation  of  the  herbaceous 
Calceolaria,  accompanied  by  a  robust  specimen  in  a  10-inch  pot  as  illus¬ 
trative  of  the  system  of  culture  that  he  has  proved  to  he  so  successful. 
An  instructive  discussion  followed  thTe  essay,  and  a  hearty  vote  of  thanks 
was  accorded  to  the  essayist.  Messrs.  C.  R.  Bick  and  Walter  Jones 
exhibited  stands  of  cut  blooms  of  fine  Cinerarias,  and  not  the  least  inter¬ 
esting  feature  was  a  flower  of  the  quaint  and  sombre-looking  Chalce- 
donian  Iris  Susiana — known  also  as  the  Widow,  the  Mourning,  the  Sad, 
and  the  Guinea  Fowl  Iris — shown  by  Mr.  W.  Gardiner,  obtained  with  a 
consignment  of  other  cut  flowers  from  ihe  South  of  France.  The  flower 
had  been  kept  for  over  a  week  in  a  room,  and  this,  combined  with  the 
fact  of  the  time  in  transit  from  abroad,  goes  far  to  prove  the  durability  of 
the  flower  in  a  cut  state. 
-  Mr.  Peter  Barr,  V.M.H.,  and  His  Travels. — For  some  years 
it  has  been  the  custom  of  the  founder  of  the  well-known  and  highly  reputable 
firm  of  Messrs.  Barr  &  Sons,  King  Street,  Covent  Garden,  to  spend  his 
summers  in  different  parts  of  the  Continent  of  Europe.  His  quest  origin¬ 
ally  was  for  new  forms  of  Narcissus  for  enriching  the  remarkable  collec¬ 
tion  at  Long  Ditton,  and  the  great  bulbarian  eventually  became  known  as 
the  “  Daffodil  King.”  More  recently,  however,  he  seems  to  have  travelled 
for  seeing  the  sights  and  studying  the  manners  and  customs  of  the  people, 
not  in  the  cities  alone,  but  also  in  the  rural  districts  of  the  countries  which 
he  visited,  Spain  having  been  one  of  his  happy  hunting  grounds.  Mr. 
Barr  has  just  commenced  an  extended  tour.  He  was  booked  to  sail  on 
Tuesday  last  by  the  ss.  “Scythia”  from  Liverpool  to  Boston, U.S. A.,  with 
the  intention  of  passing  from  there  to  Vermont,  Middleton,  and  New 
York,  thence  to  Philadelphia,  Baltimore,  and  Washington,  doubling  back 
to  New  York.  He  designs  seeing  what  he  can  in  Canada,  crossing  the 
Niagara  into  the  States  again,  visiting  Buffalo,  Cleveland,  Chicago, 
Milwaukee,  and  other  places.  Then  he  goes  to  Salt  Lake  City  to  see  the 
Mormons,  from  thence  to  California  and  on  to  Vancouver,  there  shipping  for 
Japan,  China,  New  Zealand,  and  Australia,  returning  by  the  Cape  of  Good 
Hope  in  about  two  years.  Such  is  the  plan  and  programme.  It  is  suffi¬ 
ciently  comprehensive,  one  would  think,  even  for  a  much  younger  man, 
though  few  young  men  are  more  active,  physically  and  mentally,  than  the 
energetic  explorer,  and  it  is  hoped  that  nothing  will  occur  to  impede  his 
progress.  Mr.  Barr  has  departed  with  the  best  wishes  of  a  host  of  friends, 
who  will  be  glad  to  see  him  home  again.  He  was  chosen  as  one  of  the 
sixty  recipients  of  the  Victoria  Medal  of  Honour  in  recognition  of  his 
unwearied  efforts  and  success  as  a  pioneer  in  the  improvement  and 
popularisation  of  the  Narcissus  mainly,  and  other  flowers  on  which  he 
concentrated  his  attention.  The  business  of  the  firm  has  long  been 
conducted  by  his  diligent  and  competent  sons. 
