August  17,  1899. 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
145 
-  Celosias  at  Bache  Hall. — In  a  recent  visit  to  the  gardens  of 
Mrs.  Hudson,  Bache  Hall,  Chester,  I  noticed  a  fine  stock  of  healthy 
looking  plants  of  Celosia  pyramidalis  plumosa  in  various  shades  of  red 
ranging  from  deep  crimson  to  light  pink,  and  in  yellow  ranging  from  deep 
orange  to  light  canary,  all  of  which  were  particularly  bright  and  graceful. 
In  close  proximity  to  these  were  well  furnished  specimens  of  Eulalia 
japonica  zebrina,  both  of  which  Mr.  Stubbs  informed  me  were  most 
useful  for  decorative  purposes  and  in  exhibition  groups.  — George 
Paxton. 
-  Indian  Gardening. — Our  Indian  contemporary  continues  to 
make  progress  such  as  must  be  gratifying  to  everyone  who  is  interested 
in  it.  Since  we  saw  the  first  number  we  have  carefully  perused  it  week 
by  week,  and  have  seen  it  grow  in  interest  and  value  with  every  issue. 
The  Editor  is  keen  in  introducing  such  new  features  as  he  is  of  the 
opinion  will  be  acceptable  to  his  readers,  and  though  the  cultural  con¬ 
ditions  differ  from  those  that  prevail  at  home  it  is  easy  to  see  that  the 
advice  is  sound,  and  it  is  moreover  generally  enclosed  in  pleasing  literary 
wrappers.  The  first  instalment  of  a  series  of  articles  entitled  the  “Pro¬ 
fitable  Cultivation  of  Vegetables  ”  commenced  in  the  issue  of  July  20th, 
and  il  the  promise  therein  contained  is  fulfilled  we  feel  sure  that  the  infor¬ 
mation  will  be  valuable,  not  only  to  market  growers,  but  also  to  private 
gardeners  and  amateurs  throughout  the  great  Indian  continent. 
-  Notes  'from  Ireland.— The  usual  Council  meeting  of  the 
Horticultural  Society  of  Ireland  was  held  on  the  8th  inst.;  there  was  a 
good  attendance  of  members.  Arrangements  were  then  finally  settled 
relative  to  the  flower  and  fruit  display  on  Tuesday  next,  22nd  inst.,  in 
Merrion  Square.  Several  members  were  elected  ;  Judges  were  also 
selected,  which  brought  the  business  of  the  Society  to  a  close.  The  Council 
has  retained  the  services  of  the  band  of  the  1st  Life  Guards  ;  this  is 
the  first  appearance  here.  The  members  of  the  Dublin  Naturalists 
Field  Club  will  journey  to  the  Murrough  of  Wicklow  on  Saturday  next, 
the  19th.  The  excursionists  will  be  under  the  leadership  of  Dr.  N.  H. 
Alcock.  The  five  hours  allotted  for  collecting  should  prove  a  valuable 
medium,  both  for  gathering  new  specimens  and  refreshing,  if  not  re¬ 
awakening,  some  pleasant  but  fading  knowledge. — A.  O’Neill. 
-  A  Handsome  Gift  to  the  Fruiterers’  Company. — A 
beautifully  wrought  gold  badge  for  the  use  of  the  Master  for  the  time 
being  has  recently  been  presented  to  the  Fruiterers’  Company  by  Mr. 
W.  Strang  Steel,  of  Philiphaugh,  Selkirk,  N.B.,  the  immediate  Past 
Master.  The  background  of  the  medallion  is  of  burnished  gold,  and 
from  it  stand  out  in  bold  relief  the  arms  ot  the  Company.  Eve,  standing 
under  the  shadow  of  a  tree,  is  in  the  act  of  presenting  the  forbidden  fruit 
to  Adam.  The  enamelling  of  the  serpent,  whose  coils  are  to  be  seen 
around  the  trunk  of  the  tree,  is  an  exceedingly  cunning  piece  of  work- 
ship.  The  medallion  is  set  in  a  wreath  composed  of  clusters  of  Grapes  and 
Figs,  in  diamonds,  the  brilliance  of  which  is  relieved  by  the  entwining 
enamelled  Vine  leaves.  A  large  olivine  stone  has  been  set  at  the  base, 
and  beneath  are  the  words,  “  Deus  Dat  Incrementum together  with  the 
figures  1606,  the  date  of  the  Company’s  charter.  On  the  reverse  side 
is  the  inscription  :  “Presented  to  the  Fruiterers’  Company  by  W.  S. 
Steel,  Esq.,  Past  Master.  June,  1899.’’  Each  leaf  of  the  encircling 
wreath  stands  out  clear  from  the  medallion,  the  many  parts  being  so  com¬ 
bined  as  to  form  a  harmonious  whole.  — (“  City  Press.”) 
-  Groups  of  Plants  at  Great  Marlow. — Included  in  the 
festivities  of  the  “  Great  Marlow  week  ”  was,  very  appropriately,  an 
excellent  horticultural  show,  in  which  groups  of  plants  figured  con¬ 
spicuously  ;  two  of  these,  at  least,  were  much  above  the  average  of  merit  as 
seen  at  local  shows.  Mr.  J.  Sharpe,  gardener  to  Sir  W.  Clayton,  Bart., 
Harleyford  Park,  secured  the  premier  prize  with  quite  an  up-to-date  and 
picturesque  arrangement  in  the  form  of  mounds  and  dells,  in  which  there 
was  no  crowding,  but  every  p'ant  displayed  its  individual  beauty.  The 
central  object  was  a  telling  plant  of  Cycas  circinalis,  forming  a  canopy  to 
Liliums,  Gloriosa  superba  and  other  flowers,  while  tufts  of  Blue  Grass, 
Festuca  ovina  ccerulea,  were  used  with  charming  effect  in  the  smaller 
front  mound.  Mr.  J.  GibsoD,  gardener  to  R.  W.  Hudson,  Esq.,  Danes- 
field,  was  an  excellent  second  with  an  extremely  bright  and  cheerful 
association  of  well  grown  foliage  plants  and  flowers,  pleasingly  margined 
with  small,  well  coloured  plants  of  Bambusa  Fortunei  and  Isolepis 
gracilis.  Mr.  T.  Blackmore,  gardener  to  R.  H.  Murray,  Esq.,  Spinfield, 
followed  with  well  grown  Carnations  as  a  prominent  feature,  the  remain¬ 
ing  prize  being  taken  by  Mr.  J.  Woods,  gardener  to  Lord  Boston, 
Hedsor  Park,  with  a  creditable  arrangement.  Besides  the  groups  there 
was  a  g-'od  representative  display  of  fruit,  cut  flowers,  and  vegetables. 
Arthur  D.  Cripps,  Esq.,  is  the  active  Honorary  Secretary  of  the  Horti¬ 
cultural  Society. 
-  Gardening  Appointment. — Mr.  Alexander  Wright,  gardener 
toT.  McMeekin,  Esq.,  Falkland  Park,  South  Norwood,  has  been  appointed 
head  gardener  to  Arthur  W.  Sutton,  Esq.,  Bucklebury  Place,  Wool- 
hampton,  Berks. 
-  Shirley  and  Freemantle  Horticultural  Society. — 
Favourable  weather  attended  the  thirty-fourth  annual  show  in  connection 
with  the  Shirley,  Millbrook,  and  Freemantle  Horticultural  Society,  which 
was  held  on  Bank  Holiday,  at  Withedwood  Park,  Shirley  Avenue,  kindly 
lent  for  the  occasion  by  Mr.  G.  Harris.  Speaking  of  the  show  generally, 
the  exhibits  fell  rather  short  of  the  number  of  last  year,  but  having 
regard  to  the  drj'  season  they  were  of  excellent  quality.  In  the  floral 
tent  there  were  some  exceptionally  beautiful  specimens.  Fuchsias  and 
“  Geraniums  ”  made  a  particularly  strong  class.  In  the  fruit  section  a 
feature  was  the  magnificent  show  of  Grapes.  Apples  made  a  brave  show, 
The  vegetables,  taken  as  a  whole,  were  very  good,  the  Onions  and 
Potatoes  being  remarkably  fine. 
-  The  Manresa  Vine. — Once  again  this  splendid  monument  of 
man’s  skill  and  patience  has  borne  its  yearly  burden,  amounting  to 
945  bunches  of  an  average  weight  of  1  lb.  each.  Never  before  have  I 
seen  it  carrying  such  handsome  berries— perfect  in  form  and  flavour, 
and  as  black  as  Sloes.  What  size  this  mammoth  of  the  Grape  world 
would  eventually  attain  to  if  there  were  space  for  its  accommodation,  it  is 
impossible  to  estimate,  as  it  now,  when  only  thirty-six  years  old,  covers 
an  enormous  area.  It  cannot  be  a  matter  for  surprise  that  the  number 
of  visitors  to  see  it  increases  yearly,  especially,  when  in  addition  to 
seeing  the  Vine  one  has  the  pleasure  of  a  chat  with  its  raiser  and  culti¬ 
vator,  Mr.  M.  Davis,  whose  pride  in  his  handiwork  is  much  more  than 
justified. — G.  H.  F. 
-  Colours  of  Flowers  —  A  Colour  Dictionary.  —  On 
page  75  of  the  Journal  there  is  a  note  by  “A.  D.”  under  the  above 
heading,  a  comment  by  the  Editor,  and  an  extract  from  Miss  Jekyll’s 
book,  all  of  which  I  have  read  with  much  interest,  and  hope  to  benefit 
thereby.  Some  years  ago  I  ascertained  that  the  “American  Florist”  had 
published  “  A  Chart  of  Correct  Colours  of  Flowers,”  and  I  secured  several 
copies,  one  of  which  I  herewith  enclose.  My  difficulty  in  using  it  has 
always  been  the  vast  difference  in  richness  of  tone  between  the  colours 
of  the  natural  flowers  and  the  colours  on  the  chart.  Still  I  feel  that 
some  standard  of  colours  would  be  decidedly  an  advantage.  Drapers 
and  silk  mercers  have  extensive  ranges  of  colours  in  tbeir  business,  and 
they  make  up  very  beautiful  books  of  samples,  as  also  do  printers’  ink 
manufacturers.  This  American  chart  is  a  step  in  the  right  direction, 
and  some  day  I  hope  an  attempt  will  be  made  in  this  country  to  agree 
upon  and  adopt  a  standard. — William  Cuthbertson,  Rothesay.  [The 
chart  referred  to  by  our  contributor  is  a  suggestive  and  useful  production^ 
but  we  cannot  say  that  it  agrees  with  English  ideas  of  colour  entirely. 
Some  of  the  blocks  are  obviously  wrong,  but  whether  this  is  due  to 
fading  owing  to  exposure  in  strong  light  or  not  cannot  be  said.  The 
idea  is  an  excellent  one,  and  has  been  carried  out  in  a  partial  degree  by 
the  printing  ink  manufacturers  to  whom  Mr.  Cuthbertson  refers  ;  but  the 
colours  thus  shown  do  not  represent,  or  by  any  means  equal,  those  of 
many  of  his  Violas  and  Dahlias.] 
METHOROIaO  GlCiVIa  OBSERVATIONS  AT  CHISWICK. 
— Taken  in  the  Royal  Horticultural  Society’s  Gardens — height  above 
sea  level  24  feet. 
Date. 
Direction  of 
W  ind. 
Temperature  of  the 
Air. 
Rain. 
Temperature  of 
the  Soil. 
At  9  A.M. 
Lowest 
Temperature 
on  Grass. 
1899. 
August. 
At  9  A.M. 
Day. 
Night 
At 
1-ft. 
deep. 
At 
2-ft. 
deep. 
At 
4-ft. 
deep. 
Dry 
Bulb. 
Wet 
Bulb. 
-O 
tn 
<z> 
rd 
bC 
5 
In 
* 
O 
Sunday . .  6 
Monday..  7 
Tuesday  8 
VVed’sday  9 
Thursday  10 
Friday  ..11 
Saturday  12 
S.E. 
S.E. 
S.S.E. 
N.N.E. 
E. 
E.N.E. 
E.N.E. 
deg. 
68-5 
67-7 
63- 8 
60-1 
67  1 
64- 5 
65- 1 
deg. 
64-9 
62-9 
54-3 
57-1 
60-7 
56-8 
53-9 
deg, 
731 
711 
73- 1 
70-8 
74- 4 
75- 2 
74-5 
deg. 
62-9 
62-2 
57-5 
54-3 
61-9 
49-1 
61-8 
ins. 
0*04 
deg. 
69T 
67-7 
66-5 
06  T 
65-5 
64  9 
65-5 
deg. 
65  9 
66-6 
65-3 
65  T 
64-9 
64-5 
64-5 
deg. 
61-8 
61-9 
61-9 
619 
01-9 
61-9 
61-9 
deg. 
58-8 
56-5 
55-3 
48-6 
438 
39-3 
42-3 
Means  .. 
653 
58-7 
73-2 
55-7 
Total 
0-04 
66-5 
66-1 
61-9 
49-2 
The  weather  during  the  week  has  been  bright  and  very  hot,  with 
high  winds  mostly  from  the  east.  A  small  quantity  of  rain  fell  on  the 
morning  of  the  6th  inst. 
