December  5,  1901. 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
517 
ledges  the  help  she  has  had  from  Miss  Willmott,  Mr.  G.  F. 
Wilson,  Mr.  R.  Wallace,  and  Mr.  E.  T.  Cook,  while  the  assist- 
-ance  of  the  works  of  Mr.  J.  G.  Baker  and  Mr.  H.  Elwes  are  also 
notified.  Chapters  then  ensue  on  “  Lilies  as  classified,”  with 
illustrations  of  the  types,  and  the  five  sub-genera  are  each 
■allowed  a  chapter.  In  all  there  are  nineteen  chapters  devoted 
to  culture,  propagation,  so. Is,  arrangement  of  Lilies,  diseases, 
and  selections  for  town  gardens,  together  with  a  variety  of  other 
information 
There  are  sixty-two  illustrations,  most  of  them  beautifully 
executed  in  half-tone  blocks,  showing  the  characters  of  a  very 
large  number  of  Lilies  from  one  or  more  points  of  view,  or  in 
different  conditions.  The  cultural  notes  are  thorough,  and  of 
good  practical  guidance.  We  observe,  however,  that  no  reference 
is  given  when  to  plant  L.  longiflorum,  the  “  Bermuda  ”  Lily, 
which  receives  extended  notice  in  the  text.  The  end  of  March 
or  early  April  may.  be  chosen  as  the  most  considerate  season  to 
plant,  or  October,  in  warm,  sandy  loams.  Miss  Jekyll  does  not 
•attempt  to  he  dogmatic  in  stating  any  one  particular  cultural 
practice  for  the  White  Lily.  Readers  of  her  book  will  discover 
an  interesting  selection  of  contradictory  evidence  from  many 
parties  about  the  treatment  of  this  beautiful  yet  awfully 
capricious  old  favourite.  L.  auratum,  so  prone  to  fasciation,  is 
very  ably  detailed,  the  writer  mentioning  how  that  the  young 
growths  are  sometimes  eaten  off  by  mice,  which  injury  the  Lilies 
seem  to  accept  philosophically,  and  devote  the  energy  that  has 
been  checked  above  ground  to  storing  a  year’s  additional  strength 
in  the  bulb.  The  Golden-rayed  Lily  is  one  of  those  with  stem- 
roots,  and  should  be  planted  deeply.  Shelter  from  spring  frosts 
is  necessary. 
Miss  Jekyll  is  usually  very  careful  in  applying  her  descrip¬ 
tions,  but  ambiguity  of  expression  she  is  not  totally  free  from, 
as,  for  instance,  in  her  repeated  references  to  the  Lilies  as 
“  things  ” — ■“  it  is  a  handsome  thing,”  or  “  a  lovely  thing,”  and 
such  similar  choice  of  words.  Again,  the  use  of  capital  letters 
to  adjectival  names  in  the  middle  of  sentences  is  contrary  to 
the  etymological  rules  of  botanical  nomenclature.  The  “  strong, 
faint,  disagreeable  smell  ”  of  L.  pyrenaicum,  as  described  on 
page  33,  is  a  delightful  instance  of  extremes  that  meet! 
While  enjoying  the  book,  and  learning  a  good  deal  from  it, 
one  would  still  have  liked  to  find  a  larger  amount  of  information 
that  could  be  strictly  applied  to  Lilies  away  north  of  the 
Tweed,  and  even  north  of  the  Trent,  for  the  references 
to  the  Lilies  as  grown  up  North  are  considerably  too 
meagre.  The  completion  of  the  details  savours  too  much 
of  local  experience,  and  one  of  two  famous  Lily  growers’ 
names  are  too  much  played  upon.  This  is  not  what  the  practical 
gardener,  at  any  rate,  will  appreciate,  or  our  experience  of  the 
fraternity  is  faulty.  With  its  fine  illustrations,  its  up-to-date 
information,  and  the  numerous  varied  chapters,  this  book  ought 
to  prove  a  means  whereby  the  culture  and  enjoyment  of  Lilies 
in  our  Isles  will  be  stimulated  and  increased. 
Figs  Under  Glass. 
To  force  pot  Figs  successfully,  the  trees  must  be  brought  on 
gradually,  and  not  subjected  to  too  much  heat  in  the  early 
stages.  This  is  apt  to  occur  with  bottom  heat,  the  heat  about 
the  pots  exceeding  70deg;  then  the  trees  and  embryo  fruit  come 
on  too  rapidly,  and  often  fall  instead  of  setting.  Until  the 
leaves  are  unfolded,  the  heat  at  the  roots  should  not  exceed 
70deg  at  the  base  of  the  pots,  then  it  may  be  increased  to  70deg 
or  80deg,  thus  giving  a  mean  of  70deg  to  75deg  about  the  pots. 
The  temperature  of  the  house  started  at  the  beginning  of  the 
month  should  be  increased  gradually  to  60deg  at  night,  65deg 
by  day  by  artificial  means,  and  70deg.  to  7odeg  with  sun  and 
moderate  ventilation,  closing  at  75deg.  In  mild  weather  a 
“  chink  ”  of  air  should  be  admitted  early  in  the  day,  or  between 
60deg  and  65deg,  always  at  the  top  of  the  house,  so  as  to  allow 
the  pent-up  moisture  to  escape  and  insure  a  change  of  air,  a 
circulation  in  the  house  being  favourable  to  evaporation  and 
solidification  of  the  growths.  In  cold  weather  the  heat  from 
the  hot  water  pipes  will  keep  the  air  in  motion,  and  the  moisture 
will  be  condensed  on  the  glass,  therefore  ventilation  is  not  then 
required.  Be  careful,  however,  not  to  bring  on  the  growth 
too  rapidly,  especially  in  dull  weather,  as  foliage  produced 
under  such  conditions  is  not  of  stout  texture,  but  large  and  thin, 
possessing  little  elaborating  power,  and  very  susceptible  to 
external  changes,  often  scorching  and  becoming  infested  with 
red  spider.  Afford  water  whenever  necessary,  always  equal  in 
temperature  to  the  mean  of  the  house,  or  that  of  the  fermenting 
material  about  the  pots.  Syringe  the  trees  in  the  morning  and 
early  afternoon,  so  as  to  have  the  foliage  dry  before  nightfall: 
but  avoid  excessive  moisture,  damping  the  house  only  in  dull 
weather,  and  only  when  the  paths  and  walls  become  dry. — 
GltOWER. 
Pyrus  japonica  nivalis. 
At  this  busy  planting  season  some  of  the  most  beautiful 
of  the  flowering  shrubs  and  wall  plants  that  one  may  have 
intended  to  select  are  sometimes  forgotten.  Do  not  let  this 
be  the  case  with  the  Pyrus  tribe,  some  of  which  are  so 
exceedingly  beautiful  as  to  baffle  adequate  description.  The 
present  illustration,  on  this  P'tge.  of  Pyrus  j-rpooica  nivalis 
(Cydonia  japonica),  admirably  depicts  a  charming  little 
branchlet  studded  with  the  freshly-criso  mire  white  flowers. 
There  are  several  other  varieties,  including  a  semi-double 
one,  but  when  nivalis  is  seen  in  a  perfect  condition  it  is 
indeed  a  subject  of  foremost  elegance  and  merit.  Small 
pot  plants  flower  freely  in  conservatories  early  in  the  year. 
Pyrus  japonica  nivalis. 
Other  varieties  of  the  Japanese  Quince,  as  Pyrus  japonica 
is  otherwise  and  more  popularly  named,  include  P.  j. 
Maulei,  an  exceedingly  bright,  scarlet-flowered  variety  that 
ought  to  be  in  every  garden ;  P.  j.  princeps,  resembling 
Maulei ;  and  others  named  coccinea,  atro-purpurea,  and 
rosea.  The  white  varieties,  alba  and  albo-cincta,  are  largely 
grown,  but  nivalis  is  before  either  of  these.  The  latter,  as 
we  have  said,  is  easy  to  force,  and  by  placing  a  few  plants 
at  intervals  of  a  week  or  ten  days  into  a  warm  house  a  suc¬ 
cession  of  flowering  plants  can  be  maintained  for  some 
time.  Occasionally  a  few  leaves  are  produced  along  with 
the  flowers,  but  as  a  general  rule  the  latter  come  first.  The 
usefulness  of  the  Japanese  Quince  out  of  doors  (on  south 
walls  mostly  in  Scotland)  is  too  well  known  to  require  any 
remark. 
An  Orchid  Wreath. 
A  romantic  American,  once  a  prosperous  business  man  of 
Cleveland,  after  living  as  a  hermit  for  fifteen  years  in  conse¬ 
quence  of  an  unhappy  love  affair,  has  been  buried  in  a  silk-lined 
grave.  Mr.  W.  C.  Whitney,  an  old  friend  of  his,  put  on  the 
coffin  a  wreath  6ft  wide,  consisting  of  1,000  Orchids. 
