246 
March  19,  1903.- 
JOURNAL 
CF  HORTICULTURE  AND 
CO  TTA  GE  GAR  DEFER. 
in  stove  and  greenhouse  of  to-day,  made  it  a  rule  never  to 
throw  away  the  “tiniest  and  weakest  seedling,  for  his  faith 
in  the  weakling  often  gave  him  an  ample  reward.  In 
some  instances  a  space  of  years  stood  between  the  tiny 
seedling  and  its  first  flower,  but  I  believe  the  greater 
the  interval  of  time,  the  more  valued  the  prize  at  the  winning 
goal.  This  does  not  apply  to  Glesneras  except  in  principle, 
for  they  are  easily  raised  and  flowered  in  a  season ;  but  is 
mentioned  to  show  the  need  for  a  little  reflection  in  dealing  with 
a  superabundant  stock  of  such  flowers.  They  are,  strictly 
speaking,  stove  plants  requiring  warmth  at  all  times.  As  room 
or  table  decorating  plants  they  are  well  known,  and  afford  in 
winter  a  change  of  colour  that  is  much  appreciated,  not  more 
so,  perhaps,  by  rea.son  of  their  bright  flowei's  as  for  the  lustre 
of  their  velvety  leaves  and  stems. 
Everyone  who  has  cultivated  these  Gesneras  knows  how 
important  it  is  to  keep  the  foliage  free  from  water  likely  to 
have  a  chalky  deposit.  Syringing  should  never  be  allowed 
when  the  plants  are  in  an  advanced  state,  for  this  is  sure  to 
have  a  blemish  more  or  less  pronounced  on  the  foliage  and 
stems.  Once  they  are  well  established,  a  little  stimulant, 
either  from  liquid  or  artificial  manures,  is  advantageous.  In 
potting  up  dormant  roots  some  group  them  in  threes,  and  by 
these  means  make  large  specimens.  Seedlings  are  better  kept 
singly  the  first  year.  The  month  of  February  is  a  suitable  time 
for  seed-sowing,  and  a  gentle  bottom  heat  will  accelerate  an  early 
and  more  certain  germination  of  the  seed. — W.  S. 
- - 
Hardy  Rhododendrons. 
Rhododendrons  are  known  even  to  those  whose  ignorance 
of  plant  names  and  plant  life  is  so  astonishing  as  to  pain 
those  who  do  love  and  understand  the  wonders  of  vegeta¬ 
tion  •,  and  the  notes  which  are  here  to  follow  were  written 
in  the  popular  vein  for  a  weekly  paper,  read  by  that  section  of 
the  public  we  allude  to,  and  the  writer  has  furnished  some 
interesting  facts  about  these  much-prized  shrubs. 
The  life  of  the  Rhododendron  is  curious.  The  pure  species 
came  mainly  from  North  America  and  India,  though  there 
are  smaller  kinds  indigenous  to  Switzerland,  Siberia, 
Western  Asia,  and  South  Spain.  The  original  Indian  type 
“  arboreum,”  from  which  the  first  and  best  hybrids  have 
sprung,  was  red,  whilst  the  American  was  pale  lilac.  It  is 
by  the  crossing  of  these  species  that  there  are  now  so  many 
dazzlingly  beautiful  specimens.  The  method  of  hybridising 
the  flowers  is  practically  similar  to  that  used  in  the  crossing 
of  most  other  flowers.  In  every  separate  bloom  on  a  Rho¬ 
dodendron  bush  there  are  a  number  of  male  stamens,  and 
what  is  called  the  female  pistil.  In  crossing  two  plants  the 
powdery  covering  on  the  petals  is  taken  from  a  bloom  on 
one  bush  and  applied  to  the  pistil  in  the  other,  from  which 
the  male  stamens  have  been  removed.  In  the  case  of  the 
wild  plants  the  function  of  carrying  the  pollen  from  one 
bloom  to  another  is  said  to  be  filled  by  the  bees.  The 
flowers  presently  drop  off,  and  gradually  the  seed  bulb  near 
the  root  of  the  flower  begins  to  expand.  The  seed  ripens 
in  the  winter  and  then  cracks  up.  It  is  extremely  fine, 
and  when  sown  on  the  top  of  the  ground  is  liable  to  be 
burnt  up  by  the  sun.  The  young  plant  begins  to  show  in 
the  course  of  a  few  weeks,  and  is  then  replanted. 
In  the  course  of  the  next  three  years  it  is  replanted 
several  times,  and  eventually,  about  seven  years  from  the 
time  the  seed  was  sown,  the  bush  displays  its  full  bloom. 
The  “breeder”  considers  himself  fortunate  if  he  gets  ten 
per  cent,  of  good  bushes  from  the  seed.  It  is  strange  that  the 
grower  can  never  depend  upon  getting  the  same  results 
from  identically  similar  mixtures.  There  is  a  deal  of  spe¬ 
culation  in  the  crossing,  and  it  is  never  known  what  the 
result  will  be.  Consequently,  when  the  grower  strikes 
what  he  considers  a  “  good  thing,”  he  grafts  every  possible 
shoot  of  the  bush  on  to  a  strong  trunk,  and  as  the  shoots  go 
on  spreading  more  are  grafted.  That  is  how  the  strain  is 
kept  in  existence.  It  is  calculated  that  a  seed  would  pro¬ 
duce  2,Q00  fully-developed  plants  in  17  years.  Messrs. 
Waterer,  of  Bagshot,  Surrey,  plant  from  15,000  to  20,000 
seedlings  every  year,  and  their  production  on  the  60  acres 
devoted  to  the  rearing  of  Rhododendrons  has  reached  .‘1,000 
trusses  annually. 
The  firm  has  been  in  existence  over  a  hiindred  years, 
and  various  branches  of  the  family  have  since  devoted  them¬ 
selves  principally  to  raising  Rhododendrons.  About  sixty 
years  ago  the  first  hybrids  came  into  existence,  and,  strange 
to  say,  some  of  the  earlier  mixtures  have  proved  themselves 
the  best  to  this  day.  It  is  peculiar,  too,  that  the  hybrids 
are  hardier  than  the  pure  plants.  Some  plants  when  taken 
from  the  native  element  in  deep,  dark  woods,  or  on  moun¬ 
tain  tops,  fade  and  die  ;  but  the  hybrids  are  much  easier  to 
manage,  and  can  be  grown  in  almost  any  climate.  Man¬ 
chester  has  many  fine  collections  of  Rhododendrons,  and 
the  suggestion  that  smoke  affects  them  detrimentally  is 
disproved.  Mr.  Waterer  assured  me  that  it  was  fallacious, 
too,  to  say  that  plants  reared  in  the  South  of  England 
cannot  stand  the  Manchester  climate.  He  mentioned  many 
instances  in  which  plants  had  been  sent  to  this  city  years 
ago,  and  had  to  this  day  suffered  ho  ill  effects. 
Attempts  are  made  every  year  to  produce  fresh  hybrids, 
and  hardly  a  season  passes  during  which  a  novelty  is  not 
discovered.  There  have  been  many  efforts  to  “  breed  ”  a 
Rhododendron  with  a  y^ellow  background  ;  but,  though  one 
is  said  to  have  been  in  existence,  Mr.  Waterer  very  much 
doubts  the  story.  The  yellow  Azalea  has  been  used  with  a 
view  to  realising  this  end,  but  the  only  result  so  far  has 
been  the  securing  of  yellow  and  orange  markings  on  the  cus¬ 
tomary  backgrounds.  Azaleas  give  off  a  delightful  per¬ 
fume,  but  hardy  Rhododendrons  are  in  most  cases  scentless. 
There  were  500  named  sorts  of  Rhododendrons,  and  in 
addition  to  these  many  came  into  being  yearly  that  weie 
not  worth  naming.  These  are  sold  cheap  to  planters  of 
large  quantities.  The  named  varieties  have  been  christened 
in  the  majority  of  instances  after  well-known  and  sometimes 
famous  people,  who  have  shown  an  interest  in  the  rearing 
of  Rhododendrons.  For  instance,  amongst  those  grown  by 
Messi’s.  Waterer  we  find  such  noted  names  as  Baroness 
Lionel  Rothschild,  Countess  of  Cadogan,  Duchess  of 
Sutherland,  Duchess  of  Edinburgh,  Duke  of  Connaught, 
Duke  of  Portland,,  the  Princess  of  Wales,  Mr.  Gladstone, 
and  many  others.  There  is  a  certain  amount  of  cleverness 
displayed  in  the  nomenclature  of  the  hybrids.  It  is  in¬ 
teresting  to  note  that  the  bloom  called  Duleep  Singh  is  very 
dark  chocolate  crimson,  and  Tipoo  Sahib,  the  darkest  choco¬ 
late,  Sappho  is  white  with  black  spot,  whilst  Old  Port  is 
porty  crimson.  Again,  Lord  Wolseley  is  scarlet,  and 
Madame  Carvalho  is  a  “  fine  clear  white,  and  greenish 
spots  ;  very  fine  shape.”  Hector  (obviously  a  compliment 
to  Hector  Macdonald)  is  dazzling  crimson.  Lady  Godiva 
is  garbed  in  “fine  white,  with  yellow  spots.”  Mention  of 
celebrities  elicited  the  fact  that  amongst  the  most  enthu¬ 
siastic  of  Rhododendron  growers  was  Mr.  Cecil  Rhodes,  who 
has  had  considerable  dealings  with  the  Bagshot  firm. 
The  Rhododendron  has  properties  which  few  are  aware 
of.  The  “  arboreum  ”  (Indian)  is  eaten  by  natives,  and 
Europeans  have  been  known  to  make  a  very  delectable  jelly 
from  the  blooms.  On  the  other  hand,  a  species  which 
grows  in  Northern  India  poisons  goats  who  eat  of  it,  and 
when  burnt  causes  inflammation  of  the  face  and  eyes  of 
tuose  who  come  in  contact  with  the  smoke.  In  the  Alps  of 
Switzerland  there  grows  a  kind  of  Rhododendron  from 
which  oil  is  obtained.  It  is  used  for  gout  and  rheumatism 
with  considerable  success.  In  recent  years  many  scientists 
have  devoted  time  to  the  discovery  of  new  means  of  hybrid¬ 
ising  Rhododendrons^  and  some  have  been  successful.  Mr. 
Waterer  admits  that  he  is  not  a  botanist,  but  he  knows  how 
to  find  novelties  in  hybrids.  He  thinks  that  comrnon-sense 
should  enter  into  the  breeding  as  much  as  anything  else  ; 
and  that  scientific  botany  is  not  always  attended  with  the 
greatest  successes  is  proved  by  the  achievements  of  his 
firm. 
“Index  Kewensis.” 
It  is  important  to  point  out,  in  order  to  remedy  a  misconcep¬ 
tion  which  appears  to  exist  amongst  many  persons  who  liave  used 
the  book,  that  the  “Index”  is  in  no  sense  intended  to  be  a 
standard  of  nomenclature,  or  to  represent  the  views  of  Kew  in 
the  matter.  It  is  nothing  more  than  what  it  professes  to  be — an 
index  of  published  plant  names,  with  reference  to  the  works  in 
which  they  were  first  promulgated,  and  the  countries  of  which  the 
plants  themselves  are  nativ'es.  Where  it  has  been  pointed  out 
by  competent  authority  that  the  names  cited  are  “synonyms'” 
the  fact  is  indicated.  As  to  the  remainder,  no  attempt  whatever 
has  been  made  to  ascertain  their  validity.  To  have  done  this 
would  have  been  to  have  undertaken  a  task  which  could  not  have 
been  completed  in  any  reasonable  time,  even  with  the  aid  of  a 
large  staff  of  competent  botanists. 
