January  16,  190?. 
JOURNAL  OF  Hour  TCU  LTV  RE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
59 
Star  Petunias. 
Those  who  undertake  to  evolve  new  races  of  flowers  must 
necessarily  have  great  patience  and  ardour.  Star  Petunias  are  a 
case  in  point  in  whicli  Messrs.  A  .li.  Howard  and  Son,  of  Belclier- 
town,  Massachusetts,  have  spent  twenty  years  improving  and 
developing.  “  Twenty  years  is  a  long  time,  measured  by  an 
individual  life,  to  give  to  the  work  of  improving  a  favourite 
flow  er.  That  this  effort  invest  needs  have  been  a  ‘  labour  of  love,’ 
no  one  would  doubt,  had  they  themselves  bestow'ed  the  labour 
and  time  necessary  in  order  to  secure  the  desired  results.  It  w'as 
bj'  a  long  course  of  close  selection,  cross  fertilisation  and  breed¬ 
ing  covering  these  many  years,  before  final  success  Was  ensured 
in  bringing  the  single  flowered,  medium-size  multiflpra  Petunias 
to  the  ideal  which  w'as  sought.  Success  was  gained  at  an  early 
period,  by  close  ‘in-and-in’  breeding,  in  securing  the  desired 
colouring  and  markings,  but  when  these  results  were  secured, 
the  plants  produced  but  little  if  any  seed.  Twice  during  twenty 
years  it  has  been  found  necessary  to  introduce  stock,  not  so 
clo.sely  related  or  in-bfed  in  order  to  secure  seed-producih^  .stock. 
The  plants  are  free  growers,? branching  freely  and  attaining  an 
average  height  of  18in  by  24in  or  28in  in  diameter.  They  are 
remarkably  prolific  bloomers,  single  plants  producing  from  fifty 
to  100  or  more  fully  expanded  flow  ers  at  a  time.  The  blooms  are 
about  2^in  in  diameter.  Their  ground  colour  is  a  deep  crimson 
maroon,  with  a  velvety  depth  and  richness  which  cannot  be 
described.  From  the  centre  start  the  points  of  a  five-rayed  star, 
which  broadens  half-w'ay  up,  narrowing  to  a  point  at  the  margin 
of  the  flower.  The  star,  from: which  the  name  is  taken,  is  a  very 
light  blush  pink,  some  almost  wdiite  ;  which  deepens  in  colour  as 
it  reaches  the  margin  and  finally  blends  wuth  the  maroon  ground 
colour.  The  outline,  however,  is  sharp  and  decisive.  Over 
80  per  cent,  of  the  plants  from  seed  will  produce  the  .star  mark¬ 
ings.  Others,  with  veined  and  feathery  markings,  on  dark  or 
light  ground,  are  not  le.ss  surprisingly  beautiful.”  In  Englana, 
here,  Messrs.  Hender  and  Sons,  of  Plymouth,  devote  very  con¬ 
siderable  care  to  all  strains  of  Petunias. — D. 
Cultural  Memoranda:  Cucumbers. 
With  the  night  temperature  maintained  at  GOdeg  to  65deg, 
70deg  to  75deg  by  day  and  80deg  to  90deg  with  sun  heat,  the 
plants  make  fair  progress.  When  the  air  outside  is  mild,  a  little 
ventilation  may  be  given  at  80deg,  closing  before  the  house  is 
reduced  to  that  degree,  so  as  to  advance  to  90deg  or  95deg.  If 
the  external  air  is  cold,  although  the  sun  shines,  it  is  better  to 
allow  the  temperature  to  advance  a  little  beyond  the  above  limits 
than  to  admit  cold  air,  which  injures  the  foliage,  also  causing  the 
fruit  to  become  stunted,  and  to  curl  at  the  end.  Examine  plants 
in  bearing  about  twice  a  week,  removing  all  weakly,  superfluous, 
and  exhausted  growths,  reserving  as  much  of  the  young  bearing 
wood  as  is  necessary  to  fill  the  allotted  space,  stopping  the 
shoots  above,  or  two  joints  beyond,  the  show  for  fruit. 
Fruiting  Plants. 
Young  plants  coming  into  bearing  should  not  be  allowed  to 
bear  too  soon,  and  by  no  means  be  overcropped.  They  are 
greatly  assisted  by  removing  the  staminate  blossoms,  also  super¬ 
fluous  pistillate  flowers  as  they  appear.  Tendrils  should  also  be 
pinched  off.  The  supply  of  moisture  both  at  the  roots  and  in  the 
atmosphere  must  be  regulated  by  circumstances  and  external 
conditions.  Syringing  should  not  be  practised  on  the  foliage 
except  a  light  sprinkling  in  the  early  part  of  bright  afternoons, 
damping  the  floor  moderately  at  about  8  a.m.  and  2  p.m. 
Encourage  the  roots  to  spread  on  the  surface  of  the  bed  by 
adding  lumpy  loam  from  time  to  time,  wdth  w'hich  may  be  in¬ 
corporated  a  little  wmll  decompo.sed  cow  manure  or  fresh 
sweetened  hor.se  droppings. 
The  Roots— The  Pests. 
When  roots  are  had  in  this  manner  the  plants  may  be  fed  to 
any  extent  by  sprinkling  a  mixture  of  three  parts  bone  super¬ 
phosphate,  two  parts  pow’dered  saltpetre,  and  one  part  ground 
gypsum  on  the  surface,  at  the  rate  of  2oz  or  3oz  per  square  yard 
every  fortnight,  with  a  light  dressing  of  soot  between  times. 
Keep  a  keen  eye  on  the  plants  for  aphides  and  thrips,  and 
fumigate  several  times  moderately  and  consecutively  rather  than 
once  severely.  The  evening  is  the  best  time  for  fumigating,  fol¬ 
lowing  it  up  by  another  dose  the  following  morning.  If  mildew 
appear,  dust  with  flowers  of  sulphur,  and  paint  the  hot-water 
pipes  with  a  cream  formed  of  it  and  skim  milk.  The  fumes  given 
off  will  kill  w'hite  fly  and  mildew,  also  red  spider.  Canker  is  also 
unusually  prevalent;  freshly  slaked  lime  mbbed  into  the  affected 
parts  will  arrest  its  progress. — A.  G. 
Notes  on  Aquatics. 
The  horticultural  display  at  the  late  Pan-American  Ex¬ 
hibition  was  highly  delightful,  and  satisfactory  from  the 
spring  onwards  ;  but  among  the  decorative  plants  there, 
none  compared  with  the  aquatics.  They  did  not  vie  with 
the  brilliant  Gannas,  or  the  Rudbeckia  Golden  Glow,  which 
no  visitor  could  help  seeing  at  long  range  ;  but  water  in  the 
landscape  in  any  form,  ponds,  lakes,  fountains,  or  cascades, 
is  indispensable,  always  attractive,  and  there  was  plenty 
of  it  at  the  Exhibition  ;  but  what  would  all  this  be  without 
‘the  aquatic  plants  1  The  mirror  lakes  with  the  bayous  and 
marginal  plantings  of  Water  Lilies,  Reeds,  Rushes,  and  Cat¬ 
tails  surpassed  anything  ever  before  attempted  in  water 
gardening,  and  these  were  resplendent  with  flowers  of  deli¬ 
cate  hues  from  early  in  the  season,  and  continued  right  into 
the  early  autumn.  These  were  wonderfully  attractive, 
especially  to  those  who  viewed  them  from  the  gondolas  as- 
they  went  gliding  by.  The  bridges  were  another  point  of 
vantage. 
The  two  large  basins  in  the  Court  of  Lilies  and  Court  of 
Cypresses  were  planted,  one  with  tender  Nymphaeas  and 
Victorias,  the  other  with  hardy  Nymphaeas  and  Nelumbiums. 
In  the  former  such  grand  Nymphaeas  as  N.  O’Marana,  N. 
Geo.  Huster,  N.  rubra  rosea,  N.  dentata,  and  N.  Jubilee,, 
among  the  night  bloomers,  and  N.  zanzibariensis,  N.  zan- 
zibariensis  rosea,  N.  gracilis,  N.  Mrs.  C.  W.  Ward,  N.  Wm. 
Stone,  and  N.  pulcherrima,  day  flowering  varieties,  were 
well  represented,  also  Victoria  regia  and  V.  Trickeri ;  but. 
through  unavoidable  conditions  did  not  attain  to  the  high- 
state  of  perfection  anticipated,  and  such  as  marked  the 
basin  containing  the  hardy  Nymphaeas  and  Nelumbiums. 
Although  much  trouble  was  experienced  with  this  basin, 
the  result,  however,  was  most  gratifying,  thanks  to  the  inde- 
fatierable  superintendent  of  floriculture,  Wm.  Scott.  At  na 
time,  and  in  no  place  in  America,  was  there  ever  seen  such 
a  magnificent  display  of  hardy  Nymphaeas,  embracing  all 
the  new  American  and  French  hybrids,  including  the  very 
prominent  and  unique  dark  colours. 
The  basins  were  125ft  in  diameter.  The  N5Tnphaeas  were 
planted  in  groups,  mostly  eight  plants  in  each  group,  and 
reached  about  12ft  across.  These  were  well  furnished  with 
large,  handsome,  and  perfect  flowers  of  intense  colour  for 
many  weeks,  although  one  or  two  of  them,  such  as  N. 
Richardsoni,  were  earliest  past  their  season.  In  comparing 
these  high  coloured  Nymphseas  with  the  same  varieties 
grown  in  other  sections  of  the  United  States,  I  am  inclined 
to  think  there  is  much  in  favour  of  the  location.  Buffalo, 
being  situated  on  Lake  Erie,  experiences  cool  breezes  and 
has  cool  nights,  even  in  midsummer.  There  is  also  great 
difference  in  the  temperature  of  the  water.  These  differ¬ 
ences  should  be  borne  in  mind,  and  taken  into  account, 
when  planning  and  planting  a  water  garden.  They  do 
much  to  prolong  the  season,  and  give  high  colour  in  the 
flowers.  Among  the  best  of  dark-coloured  Nymphseas,  men¬ 
tion  must  be  made  of  N.  James  Brydon,  brilliant,  rosy 
crimson;  N.  Wm.  Falconer,  intense,  bright  garnet;  N. 
Arethusa,  brilliant  crimson  pink,  an  improved  N.  Laydekeri 
fulgens  ;  N.  gloriosa,  very  dark  red  ;  N.  Robinsoni,  purplish 
red,  yellow  ground  colour ;  N.  Ellisiana,  brilliant  carmine 
purple  ;  N.  lucida,  rosy  vermilion ;  N.  Marliacea  ignea, 
rosy  purple  ;  N.  Marliacea  flammea,  amaranth  red  ;  N.  Mar¬ 
liacea  rubra  punctata,  deep  rosy  purple  ;  N.  Aurora,  rose 
yellow  and  orange. 
Among  introductions  of  1901  (French  novelties),  mention 
is  deservedly  made  of  N.  atro-purpurea,  flowers  large,  of  a 
deep  brilliant  crimson,  sepals  of  the  same  dark  rich  colour, 
with  stamens  of  bright  yellow,  and  N.  Arc-en-ciel  (rainbow), 
leaves  variegated  with  rosy  tints,  flowers  salmon  white. 
This  variety  answers  this  description  grown  under  glass 
early  in  the  season,  but  when  planted  out  the  leaf  is  of  a 
reddish  tint,  and  flower  very  poor.  N.  colossea  is  described 
as  enormous,  both  leaves  and  flowers,  the  latter  flesh  colour, 
but  with  us  it  is  insignificant.  N.  gracillima  alba  is  a  pure 
white,  and  N.  odorata  Caroliniana  no  better  than  our  N. 
odorata.  These  three  varieties  were  a  great  disappoint¬ 
ment,  and  inferior  to  existing  varieties. — (Wm.  Thicker,  in 
“  The  Florists’  Exchange.”) 
