April  17,  1902. 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
345 
one,  and  the  judicious  introduction  of  a  bold  and  good  contrast 
sharpens  the  critical  faculties.  Restfulness  is  the  characteristic 
aimed  at  by  those  n’lio  adopt  the  one-colour  mass,  Avhile  a 
quickening  or  reactionary  impulse  is  conveyed  to  the  sense  of 
sight  and  colour  vhen  contrasting  shades  are  viewed.  The  ques¬ 
tion  arises  that,  This  being  so,  would  not  a  medley  mixture  of 
colours  act  in  the  same  manner  on  the  sense  of  sight  that  a 
discord  in  music  does  to  the  sense  of  hearing,  which  is  to  sharpen 
its  perceptions  and  prevent  inaccuracy  or  insipience?  Probably 
so ;  but  a  discord  in  music  soon  passes  out  of  mind,  whereas  a 
discord  in  colours  remains  persistently  for  weeks  or  months. 
Mr.  Peter  Barr. 
While  writing  of  Long  Ditton  and  the  Peter  Barr  Daffodil, 
it  niay  be  of  interest  to  some  of  my  friends  to  learn  that  the 
veteran  gentleman  is  still  happy  and  verj'  busy.  I  received  a 
letter  from  him  a  few  days  ago,  dated  from  Cape  Town,  in  which 
he  tells  me  a  great  deal  about  the  war,  but  very  little  in  regard 
to  horticulture.  South  Africa  is  at  present  very  prosperous, 
and  Cape  Town,  he  says,  is  a  sample  of  the  whole.  It  is  the 
busiest  and  most  moneymaking  place  Mr.  Barr  has  visited  on 
his  travels.  He  is  endeavouring  to  learn  what  the  future  possi¬ 
bilities  of  South  Africa  are  when  the  diamonds  are  all  collected, 
and  the  gold  all  crushed  out,  and  the  only  asset  is  the  land.  He 
has  contributed  two  papers  to  the  Sea  Point  Horticultural 
Society  on  Liliums  and  Daffodils,  and  has  another  hatching  in 
his  mind  on  Irises.  Whether  it  ever  becomes  “  hatched  ” 
depends,  he  says,  on  the  war ! 
Barr’s  of  Long  Ditton. 
A  showerjr  day  while  at  Long  Ditton  recently  drove  me  under 
glass,  and  there  I  saw  long  beds  of  Dahlia  tubers  sprouting  into 
growth,  these  in  turn  being  severed  to  be  rooted  for  cuttings. 
Tlie  collection  embraces  the  best  of  the  double  Cactus  varieties. 
I  was  also  delighted  to  view  the  new  trumpet  Daffodil  named 
Peter  Barr,  and  most  worthy  is  this  flower  to  receive  the 
patronymic  of  he  who  is  the  Daffodil  King.  We  will  figure  a 
specimen  bloom  very  shortly,  whence  its  form  and  character,  at 
any  rate,  can  be  judged  by  all  the  readers  of  the  Journal;  but 
beyond  the  handsome  form,  it  is  unmistakeably  distinctive  in 
colour — an  ivory-white  perianth,  and  palest  primrose  or  sulphui’y^ 
corona.  But  as  the  bulbs  are  not  yet  offered  in  commerce,  it 
will  be  time  enough  to  write  at  great  length  about  it  in  another 
season.  I  saw  a  beautiful  Leeds!  variety,  as  I  presume  it  was, 
named  Mountain  Maid,  almost  the  same  colour  as  the  Peter 
Barr,  but  in  shape  more  like  the  Eucharis  Lowi  than  any  other 
Narciss  I  have  hitherto  seen.  It  possesses  a  graceful  drooping 
habit,  and  is  quite  an  acquisition.  Sensation  is  another  of  the 
newer  Narcissi,  one  of  the  Barri  section,  with  large,  pure  white 
perianth,  and  a  handsome,  open  cup,  margined  with  orange, 
generally  producing  two  blooms  on  a  stem,  and  is  otherwise  free- 
flowering.  This,  in  time  should  prove  a  great  favourite,  and 
during  the  coming  season  note  should  be  made  of  it.  The  incom- 
parabilis  Gloria  Mundi  was  also  seen  in  good  condition,  alongside 
the  pretty  N.  cyclamineus  (which  was  also  flowering  bravely  on 
the  rockery),  with  triandrus  calathinus  and  N.  t.  albus. 
It  may  not  be  generally  known  that  there  is  a  pink  Roman 
Hyacinth  with  the  early  flowering  proclivities  of  the  section. 
This  pink  variety  is  named  Rosetti.  The  spikes  are  larger  and 
longer  than  the  white  Romans.  Dog’s-tooth  Violets  (Erythro- 
niums)  grown  and  flowered  in  pots  furnish  splendid  decorative 
material  for  conservatories  early  in  March,  and  the  question 
arises.  Why  do  gardeners  not  attempt  to  make  use  of  them 
for  this  puipose?  Writing  of  the  pink  Roman  Hyacinth  also 
brings  to  mind  the  pink  form  (rosea)  of  Chionodoxa  Lucilise.  It 
is  quite  pink  and  very  sweet,  though,  of  course,  the  blue  and 
white  of  C.  Lucilise  is  more  charming.  . 
In  the  open  ground  numerous  workmen  were  diligently  plant¬ 
ing  the  Gladioli  corms,  and  in  an  open  brake  in  one  of  the  nur¬ 
sery  sections  a  railed-in  space  prompted  me  to  inquire  its  pur¬ 
pose.  Within  this  “  hurdled,”  or  railed,  space  are  the  Pseonies, 
whose  yet  tender  growths  are  covered  over  on  the  top  with 
coarse  heather.  The  reason  of  these  outward  protectives  is  to 
ward  off  the  cold  ground  winds,  which  are  known  to  work  con¬ 
siderable  havoc.  Other  plants  of  interest  and  value  on  account 
of  their  earliness  in  flowering  were  the  Anemone  Hepaticas  in 
colours  red,  white,  and  blue  respectively  some  of  the  varieties 
being  double,  some  single.  The  pink  A.  H.  angulosa  is  a  delight¬ 
ful  little  plant,  and  one  that  is  not  too  common ;  nor  is  angulosa 
alba.  Saxifraga  apiculata,  S.  sancta,  and  S.  Boydi  were  all 
showing  well ;  and  the  dark,  shining  leaves  of  Galax  aphylla 
were  attractive  even  at  this  season.  The  Scillas  and  Crocuses 
had  suffered  from  the  rain,  but  one  could  not  but  admire  the 
beauty  of  Scilla  bifolia  and  its  varieties  alba  and  rosea.  The 
white  S.  siberica,  though  plainer  than  S.  b.  alba,  is,  neverthe¬ 
less,  quite  a  gem.  S.  amoena  is  early  flowering  and  distinct. 
Violas  at  Tamworth. 
The  Viola  season  has  not  yet  opened,  nor  will  it  for  about 
six  weeks  more.  However,  I  recently  received  a  letter  from 
Mr.  Milham  Sydenham,  the  renowned  cultivator  of  these 
brilliantly  flowering  little  border  plants.  This  letter  tells  me 
(and  I  transmit  its  information  for  the  benefit  of  the  practitionei') 
that  last  year  there  were  150  beds  at  Tamwoiffh,  each  of  which 
contained  two  dozen  plants.  From  early  in  May  till  the  end 
of  September  IMr.  Win.  Sydenliam,  accompanied  by  his  two 
head  men,  were  wont  to  stand  at  a  certain  point  of  vantage 
overlooking  the  beds  each  Saturday  or  Sunday  morning,  and 
note  on  each  occasion  which  twelve  or  thirteen  varieties  showed 
the  brightest  and  to  the  most  advantage  as  bedders.  Marks 
were  accorded  to  each  by  the  three  witnesses,  and  the  varieties 
came  out  at  the  end  of  the  season  in  the  following  order:  — 
20  Councillor  Waters,  dark  purple. 
20  Seagull,  white. 
20  Nellie  Riding,  yellow. 
19  Skipjack,  fancj’  bronze. 
19  Vrs.  11.  W.  Reunion,  pinkish  purple. 
19  Ralph,  grey  blue. 
19  White  Beauty,  white. 
19  Blanche,  cream  white. 
19  J.  B.  Riding,  mauve. 
18  Mrs.  Gerald  Moor,  black  purple. 
18  John  ('^uarton,  light  mauve. 
18  Golden  Queen,  dark  golden  yellow. 
18  Leda,  cream  edged  purple. 
No  better  Violas  exist  (for  colour)  than  the  first  three  on  the 
list.  The  whole  of  the  thirteen  are,  however,  very  reliable  sorts, 
and  growers  would  do  well  to  make  careful  note  of  them.  At 
10s.  per  100,  carriage  paid,  good  plants  are  cheap.  When  the 
beds  are  again  in  the  f-ull  beauty  of  their  rich  colours  I  hope  to 
go  to  Tamworth  and  enjoy  their  glories. 
Hippeastrums  at  Chelsea. 
Synchronously  with  the  advance  of  the  earlier  Hyacinths  and 
Daffodils  come  the  Hippeastrums  (Amaryllis),  thei  most  noble  of 
indoor  flowers  that  bear  the  sun  and  shade  of  April ;  and  all  of 
those  who  have  the  opportunity  and  are  within  hail  of  Messrs.  J. 
Veitch  and  Sons’  nurserj'  at  Chelsea  make  a  visit  to  this  collection, 
undoubtedly  the  finest  trade  show  in  the  three  kingdoms ;  and 
those  who  view  the  plants  in  the  splendid  span-roofed  house  that 
for  years  past  has  been  their  flowering  quarters,  will  do  so  for  the 
last  time  there,  as  the  work  of  demolition  of  one-half  of  the 
nursery  lias  already  commenced. 
After  this  year  most  of  the  Chelsea  houses  will  be  utilised  for 
show  purposes  rather  than  for  raising  and  cultivating  plants  in. 
The  corridor  leading  from  the  Fulham  Road  into  the  central  walk 
of  the  nursery  is  now  filled  with  beautiful  clean  Palms  in  place 
of  the  old  Camellias  that  formerly  occupied  the  borders.  But 
this  is  prophesying;  and  for  the  present  it  is  the  Hippeastrums 
that  call  for  notice.  Notwithstanding  the  fact  that  each  year 
sees  the  cream  of  the  Chelsea  seedlings  drawn  off  to  other  collec¬ 
tions  (mostly  private)  in  the  country,  there  are  always  an  inter¬ 
esting  crop  of  novelties  presented  as  spring  follows  spring. 
Since  the  lighter  coloured  varieties  have  been  so  frequently 
called  for  in  place  of  the  crimson  and  red-hued  seifs,  it  is  but  in 
accordance  with  reason  to  discover  a  very  large  percentage  of  the 
“  whites,”  white  and  reds,  and  pinks  among  the  galaxy  of 
flowers  now  at  their  best  at  Chelsea.  It  has  been  referred  to 
before,  and  may  once  again  be,  that  the  plants  are  grown  in  oin 
and  Gin  pots,  which  are  plunged  to  the  rims  in  a  bed  among  tan- 
bark.  A  flow  of  hot-water  pipes  are  situated  beneath  this  bed 
to  maintain  the  desired  warmth,  and  in  tan-bark  the  heat  diffuses 
readily.  A  very  considerable  difference  was  evidenced  in  the 
growth  of  perhaps  three  dozen  plants  plunged  in  sawdust  instead 
of  in  tan.  The  scapes  were  both  puny  and  much  later  than  their 
vigorous  neighbours,  to  whose  roots  the  heat,  air,  and  moisture 
could  more  readily  penetrate  than  in  the  case  of  the  sawdust 
section. 
From  amid  the  throng  of  over  a  thousand  plants  some  names 
were  chosen  (and  I  don’t  know  where  Mr.  Heal  obtains  his  names 
from,  but  they  are  exceedingly  classic),  and  with  slight  descrip¬ 
tions  of  the  varieties  they  designate,  are  as  follows :  — Nysa,  a 
variety  remarkable  for  the  great  depth  of  its  rich  dark  crimson, 
and  which  received  an  Award  of  Merit  on  April  8.  The  same  was 
accorded  to  Sylvanus,  a  flower  with  plenty  of  substance,  some¬ 
what  netted  with  white,  towai-ds  the  outer  parts  of  the  segments, 
on  a  bright,  scarlet-crimson  body-colour.  Otys  has  a  white 
edge,  with  white  beams  in  the  centre  of  each  segment,  and  is 
otherwise  coloured  crimson.  Lady  Buller  is  remarkable  for  its 
size,  being  9in  to  lOin  across  either  way.  The  edge  and  the  veins 
are  crimson,  the  rest  being  white.  Isara  has  a  longer  funnel  than 
most,  and  rosy-pink  veins  on  a  white  underlay.  The  Veldt,  a 
combination  of  green  and  brown,  is,  I  fear,  already  “  out  of 
stock,”  through  having  passed  into  other  hands.  In  Melas  we 
have  a  large-flowered  and  robust  Hippeastrum.  It  has  a  white 
edge  and  rosy  centre ;  very  attractive.  Cecilia  when  at  its  best 
is  a  charming  flower,  with  wavy  edges  and  an  enormous  amount 
of  substance  in  its  segments,  and  the  colouring  is  superb — pure 
white,  with  bright  rosy-carmine  veins.  Megara  is  white,  with 
reddish  veining;  while  in  Phoebus  the  beams,  or  main,  central 
