July  )5,  1B97. 
WURXAL  GF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
53 
raised  by  Messrs.  Cooling  &  Sons,  most  floriferous  and  likely  to  prove 
a  most  useful  flower  both  for  garden  purposes  and  exhibition. 
In  the  amateur  division  Mr.  A.  Tate  of  Leatherhead  occupied  the 
chief  position,  and  amongst  his  flowers  were  Alister  Stella  Grey,  which 
was  very  well  shown,  and  is  an  exceedingly  pretty  garden  Rose,  very 
free  flowering  and  very  vigorous.  There  was  also  a  good  bunch  of  the 
Crested  Moss,  a  Rose  which  is  not  very  often  Been  and  always  attracts 
people  by  its  curious  buds.  Mr.  Campion  of  Reigate  and  Miss  G. 
Carter  of  Ryde  were  also  successful  exhibitors.  People  sometimes 
wonder  that  there  are  not  more  exhibitors  in  this  class,  but  the  flowers 
require  a  great  deal  of  trouble  in  bringing  them  to  the  exhibition  tent. 
There  are  one  or  two  regrettable  incidents,  one  in  which  Messrs. 
Frank  Cant  &  Co.  were  disqualified  for  a  Rose,  unnamed,  and  marked  as 
a  sport  from  Susanne  Marie  Rodocanachi.  It  was  only  last  season  that 
a  somewhat  similar  case  occurred,  and  the  Committee  decided  that  it 
was  irregular ;  the  sport  may  not  be  a  fixed  one,  and  may  revert  to  the 
type.  The  other  case  was  that  of  a  local  exhibitor,  where  duplicates 
were  shown,  two  blooms  of  Charles  Lefebvre  being  in  the  stand  and  one 
bearing  the  name  of 
Camille  Bernardin. 
The  exhibitor  stated 
that  she  had  received 
it  from  the  grower  of 
whom  she  purchased 
it  under  the  name  of 
Charles  Lefebvre,  and 
consequently  the  case 
was  a  very  hard  one, 
but  still  the  Committee 
can  have  but  one  rule 
by  which  to  go,  how¬ 
ever  hard  its  applica¬ 
tion  may  seem  at  times 
The  Judges  and 
exhibitors  were  hos¬ 
pitably  entertained  in 
the  beautiful  new 
Town  Hall,  which 
adjoins  the  park  where 
the  Exhibition  was 
field,  by  Mr.  Alderman 
Evans, who  introduced 
the  happy  innovation 
of  dispensing  with 
toasts  ;  in  fact  every¬ 
thing  was  done  that 
lay  in  the  power  of 
the  local  people  to 
remedy  those  evils 
over  which  they  had 
no  control. — D,,  Beal. 
BRIEF  NOTES 
ON  ALPINE 
FLOWERS. 
{Continued from  p.  11.) 
Dianthus  alpinus. 
The  dwarf  Dianthi 
are  deservedly  favour¬ 
ites  with  growers  of 
alpine  flowers,  and  a 
good  collection  of  such 
plants  generally  contains 
Fig.  9. — Three  New  Roses. 
at  least  a  proportion  of  these  Pinks.  Some 
growers  are  rather  unsuccessful  in  retaining  them  for  more  than  a  year 
or  two,  and  the  species  under  notice  is  one  which  gives  some  trouble  lo 
these  cultivators.  I  do  not  pretend  to  offer  a  panacea  certain  to 
remove  these  difficulties,  but  if  one  can  state  the  conditions  under 
which  Dianthus  alpinuB  succeeds  in  some  gardens  it  may  be  a  help  to 
those  who  have  hitherto  failed  with  it. 
In  order  to  raise  a  satisfactory  stock  of  plants  to  begin  with  it  will 
be  found  a  good  plan  to  obtain  a  packet  of  seeds.  Seedlings  are,  as  a 
rule,  more  vigorous  than  plants  from  cuttings  or  divisions.  Seeds  can  be 
procured  from  some  seedsmen,  and  with  proper  treatment  germinate 
quickly  and  satisfactorily.  ‘Take  a  pot  or  pan  and  fill  it  nearly  half  full 
of  drainage,  composed  of  broken  pots  properly  laid  so  as  to  allow  free 
drainage.  Fill  up  to  within  an  inch  of  the  top  of  the  pot  with  light 
soil  composed  of  equal  parts  loam  and  leaf  mould,  with  a  good  dash 
of  silver  sand  thoroughly  mixed.  Press  the  soil  firmly  so  as  to  make  it 
level,  but  not  too  hard. 
On  this  sow  the  seeds  thinly,  and  cover  these  with  about  a  quarter  of 
an  inch  of  similar  soil,  sifted  through  a  flue  sieve.  Press  this  gently 
down  with  a  flat  piece  of  wood  or  metal,  water  gently,  and  place  the 
pot  or  pan  in  a  cool  shady  frame  or  in  a  cold  greenhouse.  Take  care 
that  the  surface  of  the  soil  does  not  become  too  dry.  To  prevent  this, 
without  giving  too  much  water,  it  is  a  good  plan  to  cover  the  pot  with 
paper,  removing  this  gradually  as  soon  as  the  seedlings  appear.  When 
these  make  their  appearance  they  ought  to  have  air  and  light,  but  need 
to  be  shaded  from  strong  sun.  As  soon  as  large  enough  to  handle  the 
seedlings  should  be  pricked  out  about  an  inch  apart  in  other  pots  or 
boxes  filled  with  similar  soil.  When  a  little  larger  they  may  be  planted 
out  in  the  places  they  are  intended  to  occupy.  Care  must  be  taken  to 
prevent  the  young  plants  from  being  destroyed  by  snails  or  slags,  which 
are  often  destructive  to  both  young  and  old  plants. 
This  Alpine  Pink  succeeds  best  in  a  rather  gritty  soil,  with  a  good 
admixture  of  peat  or  leaf  mould  and  sand.  Here  it  is  found  to  thrive 
best  on  a  rather  elevated  terrace  of  the  rock  garden,  and  where  it  has 
full  exposure  to  the  S.,  S.W.,  and  W.  It  is  thriving  admirably  in  this 
position,  whereas  on  lower  and  moister  terraces  it  could  not  be  persuaded 
to  live  long  after  flowering.  It  has  also  been  seen  to  do  well  only  a 
little  above  the  ordinary  level,  but  facing  due  south,  and  in  dry  gritty 
soil,  in  front  of  a  greenhouse.  It  appears  to  be  partial  to  dry  soil  in  the 
climate  of  Great  Britain,  and  provided  the  arch  enemies — the  slugs — are 
kept  from  it,  there  should  be  little  difficulty  in  many  gardens  if  this 
advice  is  followed.  This  note  is  long  enough  to  be  hardly  in  keeping 
with  the  word  “  brief  ”  at  the  head  of  these  notes,  but  the  beauty  of 
this  exquisite  little  flower  warrants  one  in  straying  somewhat  from  our 
usual  in  speaking  of 
its  requirements.  Its 
beautiful  deep  rose 
flowers  with  crimson 
spots,  and  produced  so 
freely  on  the  dwarf 
stems  as  to  cover  the 
foliage,  are  worthy  of 
our  highest  praise 
amid  the  rival  claims 
of  the  gems  of  the 
alpine  flora.  So  charm¬ 
ing  a  flower  deserves 
full  notice. 
Onosma 
ALBO-ROSEUM. 
It  is  unfortunate 
that  this  pretty  and 
distinct  alpine  is  even 
•  less  amenable  to  culti¬ 
vation  in  our  climate 
than  the  more  showy 
0.  echioides,  which 
was  spoken  of  on  p.  10, 
and  illustrated  on  the 
following  page.  What¬ 
ever  may  be  the  reason. 
It  usually  succumbs 
after  having  been 
grown  for  a  year  or 
so,  even  if  protected 
overhead  from  the 
winter’s  rain.  The 
leaves  appear  to  dry 
up  gradually,  and  the 
plant  in  time  becomes 
weaker  until  it  finally 
dies  off.  One  would 
like  to  be  able  to 
say  that  this  can  be 
avoided,  but  so  far  as 
we  know  the  plant 
can  only  be  depended 
upon  as  a  biennial,  to 
be  raised  from  seed, 
which  is  not  readily 
obtainable.  Sometimes 
young,  fresh  shoots  may  be  taken  off  with  a  heel  and  struck  in  a 
similar  manner  to  those  of  O.  echioides  ;  but  these  are  seldom  produced, 
and  cannot  be  relied  upon,  so  far  as  it  has  come  under  the  writer’s 
observation  in  his  own  garden  and  elsewhere. 
0.  albo-roseum  is  much  less  robust  in  its  habit  of  growth  than 
0.  echioides,  and  its  pretty  white  flowers  have  a  tendency  to  hide  them¬ 
selves  more  than  those  of  the  better  known  species.  Altogether  it  cannot 
be  said  that  it  is  a  satisfactory  plant,  nor  one  to  be  recommended  to  the 
ordinary  grower  of  alpine  flowers.  The  flowers  are  simdar  in  form  to 
those  of  0.  echioides,  and  the  foliage,  which  is  lighter  and  more  greyish 
in  colour,  is  also  hairy.  0.  albo-roseum  is  a  native  of  Asia  Minor,  &c. 
Saponaeia  c^espitosa. 
It  is  not  to  be  supposed  that  high-priced  or  rare  plants  are  neces¬ 
sarily  the  best  of  those  in  the  genera  to  which  they  belong.  Unless 
in  the  case  of  newly  introduced  plants  a  high  price  is  generally  an 
indication  that  the  species  offered  is  difficult  of  propagation,  or  is  not 
very  satisfactory  under  cultivation.  This  little  Soapwort  may  be  included 
in  the  latter  class,  and  those  who  wish  to  have  a  satisfactory  representa¬ 
tive  of  the  Alpine  Saponarias  cannot  do  better  than  grow  S.  ccymoides 
splendens,  although  this  also  presents  difficulties  in  some  gardens. 
The  one  under  notice  comes  from  the  Pyrenees,  and  its  defects  in 
gardens  are  its  shy  flowering  and  liability  to  destruction  from  slugs.  I 
grew  it  for  several  years,  but  had  only  the  pleasure  of  seeing  a  flower 
