118 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER . 
February  6,  1896. 
-  Sierra  Leone  Botanic  Garden. — For  the  newly  established 
Botanic  Garden  at  Sierra  Leone  Mr.  Frederick  Enos  Willey  has  been 
appointed  as  Curator.  Mr.  Willey  has  been  in  the  employ  of  the  Kew 
Gardens  for  some  three  years,  part  of  which  time  was  spent  by  him  as 
Curator  of  the  Botanic  Station  at  Abusi,  Gold  Coast,  during  the  absence 
of  the  late  Mr.  Crowther.  Mr.  Willey’s  manifested  skill  and  experience 
are  recognised  by  his  appointment  by  the  Secretary  of  State  for  the 
Colonies  to  this  new  post. — (“  Kew  Bulletin.”) 
-  Eipe  Cranberries  in  January, — These  are  most  unusual, 
but  a  contemporary  says  that  some  were  gathered  recently  in  Aberdeen¬ 
shire.  A  spray  bearing  a  number  of  perfectly  grown  and  ripe  fruits 
was  gathered  by  Mr.  John  Cray,  Boghead,  Birse,  some  fifty  miles  from 
Aberdeen,  up  Deeside,  near  the  roadside  at  the  Forest  of  Birse.  The 
ripening  of  this  fruit  at  this  time  of  the  year  is  phenomenal,  as  Cran¬ 
berries  are  generally  ready  for  pulling  about  the  month  of  August.  The 
occurrence  certainly  illustrates  the  mildness  of  the  season. 
-  Polyanthuses  at  Hampton  Court.— Never  since  it  first 
became  the  rule  to  fill  numerous  beds  and  a  long  narrow  border  in 
these  gardens  with  Polyanthuses  for  the  winter  and  spring,  have  the 
plants  ever  looked  more  fresh,  robust,  and  promising  than  now.  Apart 
from  the  comparative  excellence  of  the  strain,  which  still  admits  of 
much  improvement,  the  filling  up  of  the  beds  with  these  plants,  Tulips 
of  various  colours  being  intersected  amongst  them,  gives  a  pleasant 
touch  of  freshness  and  greenery  to  the  beds  that  would  otherwise  be 
wanting.  During  the  month  of  April  they  will  repay  a  visit  to  Hampton 
Court,  because  in  few  places  can  greater  quantities  be  seen,  as  there 
must  be  some  5000  to  6000  plants  put  out.  When  rich  colours  are  added 
to  the  whites  and  yellows  the  effect  will  be  much  enhanced. — D. 
-  Early  Cabbages  — I  herewith  send  you  a  Cabbage  (Ellam’s 
Early),  and  I  think  you  will  be  of  the  same  opinion  as  myself  as  to  its 
earliness  this  year.  It  was  cut  on  the  31st  of  January.  In  other  seasons 
I  have  cut  my  first  Cabbage  about  the  middle  of  March.  I  also  send 
you  some  Improved  Batavian  Bound-leaved  Endive,  which  has  withstood 
our  winter  here  wonderfully  well.  The  plants  are  still  where  they  were 
sown,  as  they  keep  better  with  me  than  lifting  and  storing  in  frames.  I 
may  say  the  winter  here  has  been  very  open  with  the  exception  of  10°  of 
frost  on  a  few  mornings.— Wm.  Boberts,  The  Gardens ,  Peniarth, 
Towyn,  Wales.  [The  Ellam’s  Cabbage  was  a  capital  little  specimen, 
and,  with  the  fine  Endives,  afforded  conclusive  evidence  of  the  mild 
weather,  combined  with  good  culture.] 
-  Primula  obconica. — Seeing  a  considerable  number  of  this 
most  useful  Primula  in  a  garden  the  other  day,  I  inquired  whether  any¬ 
one  of  the  staff  suffered  in  any  way  from  handling  it.  I  learned  that 
the  second  man  in  the  houses  did  so  severely,  his  hands  swelling  and 
suffering  exceedingly  from  itching.  That  was  the  only  case  there.  This 
fact,  one  of  many,  goes  to  show  that  the  irritant  properties  of  the  plants 
affect  those  persons  only  whose  blood  is  in  an  impure  state  or  particularly 
susceptible  to  irritation.  No  doubt  these  would  escape  that  trouble  if 
they  wore  soft  gloves  when  handling  or  repotting  the  plants.  Still,  it  is 
best  whenever  practicable  to  allow  such  work  to  be  done  by  those  who 
will  not  suffer,  as  the  irritation  is,  if  not  painful,  yet  very  distressing. 
Primula  obconica  is,  however,  far  too  useful  a  plant  to  be  put  aside 
because  it  needs  special  care  in  the  handling. — D. 
-  Plants  for  Walls. — The  prettiest  and  best  covered  wall  I 
ever  remember  seeing  is  in  the  well-kept  gardens  of  Earl  Manvers, 
Thoresby,  where  the  back  wall  of  a  Palm  stove  fully  20  feet  high  is  com¬ 
pletely  covered  with  Cissus  discolor  and  Asparagus  plumosus.  The  effect 
is  charming  and  the  sprays  most  useful  to  cut  for  decorative  purposes. — 
T.  H.  Crasp,  Osherton. 
-  For  damp  stone  or  brick  walls  in  the  stove  house,  there  are 
few  things  prettier  than  the  curious  plant  which  is  best  known  under 
the  name  of  Marceravia  paradoxa.  It  is  an  Aroid  from  Brazil,  and  in 
its  young  state  climbs  with  its  leaves  so  close  to  the  wall  that  they  look 
as  if  pasted  on.  The  roots,  says  a  writer  in  “American  Gardening,” 
take  a  firm  hold  of  damp  surfaces.  The  leaves  are  oval  in  shape  ;  length 
from  3  to  6  inches.  A  simple  way  to  start  it  on  a  wall  is  to  drive  in  a 
few  tacks  or  small  nails,  and  fix  the  cuttings  in  place  with  copper  wire, 
using  a  little  sphagnum  moss  to  encourage  it  to  send  out  roots  quickly. 
It  does  best  in  a  house  where  the  temperature  does  not  fall  below  00°  F. 
Philodendron  Andreanum  fixed  in  the  same  manner  is  a  good  companion 
to  it.  This  handsome  species  has  the  leaves  shaped  like  the  old 
Anthurium  Waroqueanum,  but,  instead  of  being  green  they  are  of  a  deep 
olive  colour. 
-  Weather  in  Glamorgan, — The  following  is  a  summary  of 
the  weather  here  for  the  past  month  : — Sunshine,  hours  ;  there  were 
seventeen  sunless  days.  Total  rainfall,  1‘82  inch  ;  greatest  fall.  0  54  inch 
on  the  24th  ;  number  of  days  on  which  rain  fell,  sixteen.  Taken  on  the 
whole  it  has  been  a  favourable  month  for  all  outdoor  operations,  with 
the  exception  of  the  week  ending  on  the  24th  and  the  last  few  days  of 
the  month,  when  the  frost  was  very  sharp. — W.  Mabbott,  Gwernllioyn 
House ,  Glamorgan. 
-  Sussex  Kainfall.  —  The  total  rainfall  at  Abbots  Leigh, 
Haywards  Heath,  for  the  past  month  was  0-76  inch,  being  P37  inch 
below  the  average.  The  heaviest  fall  was  0-23  inch  on  the  25th  ;  rain 
fell  on  nine  days.  The  maximum  temperature  was  56°  on  the  19th  ; 
minimum,  27°  on  the  20th  and  30th  ;  mean  maximum,  43  28°  ;  mean 
minimum,  35-23°  ;  mean  temperature  39'25°,  which  is  3-31°  above  the 
average.  The  month  has  been  remarkable  as  being  both  mild  and  dry, 
more  fogs  than  usual,  and  but  little  sunshine.  Snowdrops  and  Crocuses 
on  south  banks  are  in  bloom. — R.  I . 
-  The  Weather  Last  Month. — January  was  mild  until  the 
17th,  with  very  little  sunshine.  Afterwards  we  had  more  frost  and  more 
sunshine  until  the  end.  Fog  was  recorded  on  fifteen  days  during  the 
month.  The  wind  was  in  a  southerly  direction  eighteen  days.  Total 
rainfall,  1  inch,  which  fell  on  twelve  days,  the  greatest  daily  fall  being 
0  24  inch  on  24th.  Barometer,  highest,  301 698  on  9th  at  noon  ;  lowest, 
29-050  on  15th  at  noon.  Thermometer,  highest  in  shade,  52°  on  2nd 
and  25th  ;  lowest,  21°  on  23rd.  Mean  of  daily  maxima,  43  67° ;  mean 
daily  minimum,  34-41°.  Mean  temperature  of  the  month,  39  04°. 
Lowest  on  grass,  14°  on  23rd  ;  highest  in  sun,  82°  on  18th.  Mean  of 
earth  at  3  feet,  41-29°.  Total  sunshine,  46  hours  10  minutes.  There 
were  thirteen  sunless  days. — W.  H.  Divers,  Belvoir  Castle  Gardens , 
Grantham . 
- Carnation  Uriah  Pike. — This  rich  crimson-flowered  variety 
may  well  claim  the  honour  of  being  the  best  advertised  Carnation  of 
modern  days.  But  it  is  no  doubt  a  first  rate  one,  especially  for  pot 
culture,  all  the  same.  Mr.  G.  May  at  Teddington,  who  has  done  so 
much  to  extend  the  variety  and  popularity,  has  of  it  an  immense  stock, 
not  meagre  plants,  but  thousands  of  very  strong  ones,  in  from  6-inch  to 
8-inch  pots  ;  whilst  of  course  he  has  also  plenty  of  small  ones.  He  also 
has  thousands  of  seedlings  from  it.  Uriah  Pike  is  better  fitted,  because 
of  its  semi-tree  habit,  for  pot  culture  than  for  border  work.  Mr.  May, 
however,  plants  out  large  breadths  of  it  to  layer,  as  layered  plants  are 
much  preferred  to  those  raised  from  cuttings.  Deep  and  rich  in  colour 
it  has  a  delicious  perfume,  and  is  a  valuable  as  well  as  a  free  blooming 
addition  to  our  Carnation  stocks. — D. 
-  Keep  your  Plants  Free  from  Insect  Pests. — Insects 
increase  with  wonderful  rapidity  at  this  season,  unless  active  means  are 
taken  to  check  them.  The  aphis  will  soon  cover  such  plants  as  the 
Pelargonium  and  the  Bose  if  not  met  with  effective  weapons.  Fir-tree 
oil  soap  is  the  best  insecticide  I  have  ever  used  in  fighting  this  pest.  It 
is  sure  death  to  the  insect  if  it  reaches  it,  and  is  harmless  to  all  plants  if 
the  infusion  is  made  and  applied  according  to  the  directions  on  the  can. 
It  is  also  very  effective  with  mealy  bug  and  scale.  The  red  spider — 
which  is  the  most  destructive  insect  I  have  ever  had  trouble  with — can 
only  be  conquered  by  the  use  of  water  in  liberal  quantities.  It  should 
be  applied  every  day,  and  all  over  the  plant.  The  spider  locates  himself 
on  the  under  side  of  the  leaves,  and  is  dislodged  only  by  forcible  and 
repeated  syringing. — (“  American  Agriculturist.”) 
-  Birmingham  and  District  Amateur  Gardeners’  Asso¬ 
ciation.  —  This  Association  commences  the  new  year  under  very 
auspicious  circumstances.  The  place  of  meeting  has  been  moved  to  a 
much  larger  room,  lighted  with  electricity,  at  the  Municipal  Technical 
School,  Suffolk  Street,  where  there  is  abundant  and  suitable  space  for 
the  meetings.  The  Society  has  a  larger  balance  in  hand  than  any 
previous  year,  and  the  Hon.  Treasurer  (Mr.  B.  F.  Bees)  and  Hon. 
Secretary  (Mr.  W.  B.  Griffin)  have  both  been  re-elected  for  the  fourth 
time.  If  only  they  are  supported  by  the  amateurs  in  the  district  we 
venture  to  predict  that  the  year  1896  will  be  far  ahead  of  any  of  the 
three  previous  ones.  At  the  annual  meeting  held  recently  Mr.  Alderman 
Wm.  White,  J.P.,  was  re-elected  President  for  the  fourth  year,  and 
Mr.  J.  W.  Oliver  was  added  to  the  list  of  Vice-Presidents.  The  following 
were  elected  to  serve  on  the  Committee  : — Messrs.  A.  Boe,  W.  H.  Wilks, 
C.  Daniell,  W.  H.  Peake,  W.  A.  Sarsons,  W.  H.  Twist,  G.  Pressly, 
T.  P.  Cope,  A.  Stanford,  C.  F.  Franklin,  W.  England,  and  W.  Glover. 
All  communications  to  the  Secretary  should  be  addressed  to  Mr.  W.  B. 
Griffin,  Wychbury,  Alcester  Boad,  Moseley,  Birmingham. 
