March  SB,  i89$. 
JOURNAL  OR  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
279 
-  Royal  Meteorological  Society.— At  the  meeting  of  this 
Society  on  Wednesday  evening,  the  18th  inst.,  Mr.  E.  Mawley  (Presi¬ 
dent)  in  the  chair,  Mr.  Frederic  Gaster,  F.R.Met.Soc.,  of  the 
Meteorological  Office,  delivered  a  most  interesting  lecture  on  “  Weather 
Forecasts  and  Storm  Warnings — how  they  are  prepared  and  made 
known,”  which  was  illustrated  by  numerous  instruments,  diagrams,  and 
lantern  slides. 
Wakefield  Paxton  Society. — There  was  a  large  gathering 
of  the  members  at  the  Society’s  room  on  the  14th  inst.  Mr.  J.  G.  Brown 
presided,  and  Mr.  J.  Thomas  occupied  the  vice-chair.  Mr.  W.  H.  Vere, 
gardener  to  Aid.  Stewart,  J.P.,  Milnthorpe  House,  read  an  excellent  and 
practical  paper  on  “  The  Mushroom,”  dealing  fully  with  the  preparation 
of  the  beds,  spawn,  and  after  culture.  A  very  animated  discussion  took 
place  on  the  subject,  over  a  dozen  members  asking  questions  or  referring 
to  their  experience  of  Mushroom  growing. 
Streptosolen  Jamesoni. — This  charming  greenhouse  plant 
deserves  to  be  more  widely  known  than  it  appears  to  be  at  present.  It  is 
quite  a  feature  here  with  its  drooping  foliage  and  bright  orange-coloured 
blossoms.  Several  baskets  of  it  in  the  Palm  house  have  been  flowering 
continuously  since  November,  and  have  received  general  admiration. 
The  cuttings  should  be  taken  during  March  or  early  April,  and  be  rooted 
in  a  temperature  of  65°,  the  young  plants  being  then  potted  in  60-pots 
in  a  compost  of  loam  and  leaf  mould.  They  are  subjected  to  cool  treat¬ 
ment  during  the  summer  months,  but  must  be  placed  in  warmer  quarters 
about  October,  when  they  will  soon  produce  brilliant  umbels  of  flowers. 
These  are  very  effective  mixed  with  a  few  Fern  fronds,  for  decorating 
vases  during  the  winter.— F.  0.,  Royal  Gardens ,  Osborne. 
-  Woolton  Gardeners’  Mutual  Improvement  Society. — 
The  last  meeting  of  the  session  was  held  on  the  19th  inst.,  Mr.  J.  Rae 
presiding.  A  discussion  ensued  as  to  the  best  method  of  treating 
Cattleya  citrina.  Mr.,  R.  Todd,  Woolton  Wood  Gardens,  advised 
importing  fresh  plants  every  year  as  they  did  not  become  well  established, 
but,  on  the  other  hand,  reference  was  made  to  a  plant  at  Allerton 
Priory,  which  had  grown  and  flowered  well  for  the  past  five  years.  To 
cultivate  it  successfully  it  requires  heat  whilst  growing,  and  great  care 
must  be  taken  not  to  let  a  second  growth  start.  Mr.  W.  Disley,  the 
winner  of  the  prize  offered  by  the  Society  for  the  best  essay  on  the 
“Cultivation  and  Forcing  of  Strawberries  with  Varieties  Suitable  for 
the  District,”  then  read  his  paper,  which  was  most  practical,  giving 
thorough  details  as  to  preparation  of  ground,  layering,  planting, 
and  kinds  of  structures  suitable  for  forcing,  and  showing  him  to  be 
thoroughly  conversant  with  his  subject.  It  may  be  mentioned  that  the 
season  has  been  very  successful,  and  no  doubt  with  the  activity  displayed 
by  many  members  of  the  Committee  the  next  session  will  contain  many 
attractions  worthy  of  the  high  standard  of  the  Societv  in  the  past. 
— R.  P.  R. 
-  Grassendale  and  Aigburth  Spring  Show.— The  Grassen- 
dale  Parish  Room  presented  a  bright  and  attractive  appearance  on 
Saturday  last  on  the  occasion  of  the  sixth  spring  show.  In  comparison 
to  former  shows  it  was  far  in  advance,  and  if  anything  might  be  singled 
out  for  special  mention  it  must  be  the  exceptionally  fine  display  of 
Hyacinths,  which  were  as  near  perfection  as  one  could  wish,  while 
Azaleas  were  excellent.  A  group  of  magnificent  Amaryllis,  not  for 
competition,  was  staged  by  Mr.  T.  Johnson,  gardener  to  G.  W.  Moss, 
Esq.  So  thoroughly  pleased  was  the  President  (A.  L.  Jones,  Esq.) 
with  the  show,  and  recognising  the  good  work  done  by  the  Society, 
that  he  announced  his  intention  of  giving  a  10-guinea  silver  cup 
for  competition  at  the  Chrysanthemum  show  next  November.  It 
is  not  my  intention  to  go  into  detail  with  the  classes,  but  mention 
ought  to  be  made  of  the  success  of  an  old  veteran,  Mr.  J.  Kelly,  gardener 
to  R.  Singlehurst,  Esq.,  who  took  the  lead  for  Hyacinths  and  Tulips, 
hardy  Rhododendrons,  three  Azaleas  in  8-inch  pots,  Palms,  Cinerarias, 
Lily  of  the  Valley,  and  table  plants.  Mr.  J.  Bounds,  gardener  to  A.  L, 
Jones,  Esq.,  was  successful  with  Orchids,  stove  plants  in  bloom,  Ferns, 
and  Roses  in  pots.  Mr.  G.  Leadbetter,  gardener  to  W.  J.  Davey,  Esq., 
with  six  pots  Hyacinths  (three  bulbs  in  a  pot),  greenhouse  Rhododen¬ 
drons,  Palms,  Spiraeas,  and  pots  of  herbaceous  plants.  Mr.  E.  Taylor, 
gardener  to  E.  Pryor,  Esq.,  for  greenhouse  plants  in  bloom,  Primulas, 
cut  flowers,  bouquets,  and  a  hamper  of  plants  arranged  for  effect. 
Cyclamens  and  forced  hardy  plants  to  Mr.  T.  Ankers,  gardener  to  W.  B. 
Bowring,  Esq.  ;  other  miscellaneous  classes  falling  to  Messrs.  R.  Fawkes, 
T.  Hughes,  and  G.  Jenkins.  A  splendid  Amaryllis  won  for  Mr.  Johnson 
the  prize.  A3  on  a  former  occasion  the  musical  attraction  was  great,  and 
Mr.  R.  Fawkes,  the  energetic  Secretary,  deserves  hearty  commendation 
for  his  duties  and  obliging  manner. — R.  P.  R. 
-  Newcastle-on-Tyne  Flower  Shows.  —  The  Newcastle 
spring  show  will  be  held  on  Wednesday  and  Thursday,  15th  and  16th 
April,  in  the  Town  Hall  and  Corn  Exchange.  Shows  will  also  be  held 
under  the  same  auspices  on  July  8th,  9th,  and  10th  (summer),  and 
November  18th  and  19th  (Chrysanthemum).  Room  is  reserved  for 
attractive  trade  exhibits. 
-  Pennsylvania  Botanic  Garden.— The  Botanic  Garden  of 
the  University  of  Pennsylvania  is  hardly  more  than  a  year  old,  and 
consisted  originally  of  6  acres  of  very  rough  land.  Already  a  little  lake 
takes  the  place  of  what  was  a  gravel  pit ;  there  are  bog  and  aquatic 
gardens,  a  rock  garden,  a  bulb  garden,  an  Iris  garden,  an  herbaceous 
garden,  and  a  great  many  trees  and  shrubs,  so  that  more  than  3000 
species  are  already  represented.  Professor  J.  H.  Macfarlane  is  Director, 
and  Mr.  Alexander  MacElwee  the  head  gardener. 
-  A  Record  Tear  of  Sunshine  and  Rain. — The  year  1895 
will  probably  long  be  a  red-letter  year  in  meteorological  annals  for  its 
amount  of  sunshine,  which  greatly  exceeded  the  mean  in  nearly  every 
district  in  the  British  Isles.  In  the  Channel  Islands  the  total  for  the 
year  amounted  to  considerably  over  2000  hours — in  round  numbers, 
about  250  hours  in  excess  of  the  average.  South-west  England  had  a 
total  of  1825  hours — about  230  in  excess  ;  South  England  (in  which 
London  is  included),  1776  hours — over  200  in  excess;  and  even  North 
Scotland,  the  lowest  record  of  all,  had  a  total  of  1083  hours.  The  rain¬ 
fall  has  been  proportionately  small.  The  highest  number  of  rainy  days, 
240,  was  reported  from  North  Scotland,  where  the  fall  amounted  to 
about  50  inches — 3  inches  less  than  the  average.  The  eastern  counties 
of  England,  with  168  rainy  days,  recorded  25  inches — nearly  2  inches 
less  than  their  mean  ;  and  midland,  southern,  and  south-western  districts 
also  experienced  more  than  half  a  year  of  rainless  days. 
-  The  Recent  Rains. — Whilst  all  who  are  associated  with  the 
cultivation  of  the  soil  realise  the  inestimable  value  rendered  by  the  recent 
rains,  it  is  most  odd  to  find  persons  presumably  endowed  with  brain* 
lamenting  a  wet  day,  just  because  it  interferes  with  their  pleasures  or 
some  allied  pursuit*.  Thankful  for  nothing  seems  to  be  such  persons’ 
motto,  for  they  seem  quite  oblivious  of  the  fact  that  we  have  not  only 
had  relatively  a  wonderfully  dry  winter,  but  also  a  remarkably  mild 
open  one,  a  great  weather  privilege  for  which  we  cannot  be  too  thankful. 
Wet  days  have  been  less  than  5  per  cent,  since  the  new  year  began,  and 
yet  there  are  people  who  grumble  when  the  much-needed  rains  fall. 
Gardeners  and  others  who  cultivate  the  land  have  found  in  these  recent 
rains  veritable  godsends.  They  have  come  in  most  admirable  time,  they 
have  not  been  so  persistent  as  to  hinder  work  materially,  they  have 
thoroughly  moistened  the  soil  without  saturating  it,  and  they  have 
afforded  to  the  roots  of  trees  and  shrubs,  especially  those  newly  planted, 
greatly  needed  moisture.  We  are  very  thankful  for  the  rains,  but 
we  shall  need  many  more  such  soakings.  Beyond  the  dry  winter  there 
was  the  unusual  long  continued  drought  of  last  summer,  broken  by  heavy 
rains  in  the  early  autumn,  then  resumed  again  later  and  for  a  long  time. 
No  wonder,  then,  that  good  soaking  rains  are  both  desired  and  welcomed. 
Only  on  heavy  or  clay  soils  have  the  recent  falls  in  any  way  hindered 
sowing  and  planting.  Rarely  have  we  had  a  spring  when  the  soil  was 
in  bo  good  condition  to  receive  seeds  so  early  as  this  present  one. — A.  D. 
-  The  New  South  Wales  Flower  Farming  Industry.— 
This  is  by  no  means  flourishing,  because  the  natural  resources  of 
the  colony  have  not  been  developed  properly  in  this  direction. 
Although  the  colony  has  been  described  as  a  floral  paradise,  from 
the  abundance  and  luxuriance  of  its  native  and  cultivated  flowers, 
the  manufacture  of  floral  perfumes  and  essences  is  unknown,  although 
experimental  scent  farms  have  been  established  in  the  adjoining 
colony  of  Victoria.  The  quantity  of  Eucalyptus  oil  annually  ex¬ 
ported  from  the  colony  is  insignificant,  yet,  writes  Mr.  J.  Plummer  in 
a  contemporary,  the  rich  abundance  of  the  trees  from  which  it  is 
obtained  should  enable  the  Australian  trade  to  rival  that  of  Algiers  and 
California,  from  whence  the  world’s  supplies  are  principally  obtained. 
The  abundance  of  Citrus  fruit*  may  at  some  future  time  lead  to  the 
establishment  of  manufactories  for  the  preparation  of  candied  Citron, 
Orange,  and  Lemon  peels,  as  well  as  of  Lemon  oils  and  essences.  The 
crystallisation  of  Mandarin  Oranges  and  the  manufacture  of  Orange 
marmalade  are  also  coming  industries  ;  in  fact  the  latter  has  already  been 
initiated  on  a  limited  scale.  At  present  the  chief  obstacle  to  the 
development  of  the  marmalade  industry  consists  in  the  absence  of  the 
Seville  Orange,  which  could  be  introduced  and  acclimatised  without 
difficulty.  The  Olive  is  very  sparingly  cultivated,  notwithstanding  the 
fact  that  the  soil  and  climate  of  New  South  Wales  are  identical  with 
those  of  the  leading  Olive  growing  countries  of  Europe, 
