December  20,  1900. 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER, 
5G5 
At  no  time  are  flowers  more  valued  than  at  Christmas,  and  it  is 
then  that  most  gardeners  try  their  best  to  have  an  ample  supply. 
Chrysanthemums  are  specially  grown  to  produce  such,  therefore  the 
names  of  a  few  sorts  not  generally  known  perhaps  may  be  of  some 
use.  White  is  the  first  desirable  colour,  as  this  plays  so  important  a 
part  in  decorations  at  the  period  named.  Nivous  is,  of  course,  well 
known,  and  it  can  hardly  bo  beaten,  but  the  variety  that  will,  I 
think,  supersede  it  is  Madame  E.  Cadbury.  The  quality  of  the 
flowers  is  so  fine,  and  it  is  a  sturdy  and  easy  one  to  grow.  Mrs. 
C.  Bown  has  blooms  of  a  green  tinted  white,  but  only  slightly  does 
the  green  show  itself,  and  they  fade  to  pure  white.  This  is  in 
every  respect  a  capital  variety,  so  dwarf  and  free.  Madame 
P.  Rivoire,  Princess  Victoria,  and  Mdlle.  Th^r^se  Panckoucke  are  the 
three  oldest,  each  of  which  is  excellent  for  late  use. 
I  have  discarded  the  once  popular  L.  Canning  and  Lady  Lawrence, 
Either  they  do  not  grow  so  well  as  they  did  a  few  years  back,  or  it 
is  our  own  fault,  but  both  produce  so  many  flower  buds  which  come 
“  blind  ”  and  do  not  open  properly.  However,  with  the  sorts  named 
they  are  not  wanted. 
In  yellows  I  like  R.  Hooper  Pearson  better  than  any.  Its  blooms 
are  of  such  a  rich  yellow,  and  they  have  rare  substance.  The  flowers, 
too,  are  of  pretty  form,  and  the  plant  so  dwarf  and  sturdy.  Major 
Bonaffon  has  flowers  more  incurving  in  shape  than  the  former,  and 
is  a  really  good  late  variety.  Neither  Golden  Gate  nor  W.  H.  Lincoln 
is  liked  so  well  as  the  above,  although  they  are  still  popular.  A 
really  good  pink  is  wanted.  I  think  the  old  generally  discarded 
Mons.  Freeman  still  as  useful  as  any.  It  is  so  free  and  dwarf,  whilst 
the  shade  of  colour  is  pleasing.  Madame  Felix  Perrin  (Framfield 
Pink)  is  tall  in  growth,  otherwise  it  is  capital  for  the  purpose  of  late 
flowers.  Madame  Rosain  and  Etoile  de  Lyon  are  both  worth  growing, 
although  the  former  in  some  hands  refuses  to  do  well. 
Reds  are  desirable,  but  as  yet  we  cannot  obtain  them.  Highly 
coloured  sorts  seem  to  fade  more  or  less  after  November.  The 
variety  J.  Chamberlain  keeps  its  rich  shade  as  well  as  any  sort  I 
know.  Master  H.  Tucker  is  another  most  excellent  variety  late  in  the 
year.  These  two  are  capital  in  regard  to  growth.  Matthew  Hodgson 
is  valued  on  account  of  its  bushy  habit  and  the  rich  colour  of  the 
blooms.  Sometimes  we  see  it  with  quite  a  scarlet  tint,  but  in  any  of  its 
shades  it  is  one  of  the  best  for  late  flowering.  King  of  the  Plumes  is 
worth  mentioning  because  of  its  distinct  formation.  The  florets  are 
short  an<l  thread-like ;  in  colour  a  rich  orange  yellow.  It  is  so  free 
to  bloom,  and  the  flowers  stand  up  so  well  on  long  stems,  that  as  a 
late  sort  for  decoration  it  is  commendable.  Pretty  little  things  for 
light  arrangements  are  the  Pompons — Snowdrop,  white,  and  the 
yellow,  sometimes  called  Primrose  League.  These  should  be  cultivated 
for  late  flowering,  and  they  make  first-rate  miniature  pot  plants. — S. 
Chrysanthemum  Boxes. 
To  every  exhibitor  of  Chrysanthemums  a  good  travelling  box  for 
the  blooms  is  of  the  utmost  importance,  and  doubtless  most  gardeners, 
when  first  making  a  start  at  exhibiting  the  “autumn  queen,”  have 
experienced  some  considerable  difficulty  in  making  or  obtaining  a  box 
for  their  requirements  that  will  carry  the  large-sized  Japanese  varieties 
without  any  damage.  Messrs.  W.  Wood  &  Son,  Ltd.,  Wood  Green, 
N.,  have  just  made  me  a  box  to  hold  thirty-six  Japs  that  I 
think  will  be  difficult  to  improve  upon.  Ample  space  is  provided 
the  whole  way  round  the  box,  so  that  the  largest  blooms  will  not 
touch  the  sides  when  placed  in  their  final  positions  on  the  show  boards. 
There  are  two  slides  fixed  to  the  inside  of  the  box,  which  allow  the 
show  board  to  go  in  quite  easily,  and  when  once  slid  into  position  it  is 
absolutely  impossible  for  the  board  to  move  in  any  direction  with  the 
door  locked,  no  matter  how  much  it  may  be  turned  about.  “  The 
Compactum”  show  board  (another  specialty  of  the  firm)  is  used. 
This  has  folding  sides,  which  allow  the  board  to  travel  level  when 
in  the  box.  The  travelling  box,  and  “  The  Compactum  ”  show  boards 
are  lightly  yet  strongly  made,  and  will  be  a  boon  to  both  those"  who 
have  already  started  or  intend  to  make  a  beginning*' at  ^exhibiting 
this  popular  flower. — A.  J.,  Moor  Ball,  Essex.  ‘  “  \ 
Chataworth. 
As  a  bush  plant  Chatsworth  is  remarkably*  good  [when*  grown 
without  the  buds  being  unduly  thinned.  Its  colour  is  a  pleasing  rose 
pink  marked  white,  and  the  tiniest  bloom  comes  double.  The 
form  generally  is  better  than  when  the  flowers  are  grown  big  ;*“and  it 
isolate,  which  makes  it  valued  as  a  midwinter'variety. 
Mr.  G.  Carpenter. 
Probably  this  variety  was  seen  by  only  a  few  persons  this  year, 
as  I  believe  only  one  big  bloom  was  grown,  and  that  by  Mr.  W.  Mease, 
who  had  it  in  the  back  row  of  his  forty-eight  at  the  Aquarium.  Itjis 
without  a  doubt  one  of  the  best  novelties  of  the  season.  Of  large  s’ze 
and  remarkable  for  its  depth,  it  gives  a  colour,  bright  rosy  purple,  not 
over-abundant  in  Chrysanthemums.  The  form  is  of  the  true  Japanese, 
long-petalled  and  drooping.  Raised  by  the  gardener  at  West  Hall, 
Byfleet,  from  whom  it  takes  the  name,  it  is  a  genuine  English 
seedling.  This  early  success  should  be  an  inducement  to  continue 
in  his  efforts  of  cross-fertilisation  with  a  view  to  still  further  improve 
a  popular  flower. 
Pink  Madame  Carnot. 
Has  any  grower  a  good  word  to  say  of  the  above-named  novelty, 
distributed  this  spring  at  the  modest  sum  of  half  a  guinea  a  plant  ? 
To  ourselves  it  is  disappointing.  It  is  in  fact  an  absolutely  indifferent 
variety,  and  in  the  bloom  most  distinct  from  the  type  in  other  respects 
besides  colour.  The  shade  is  barely  a  pink,  but  rather  a  dirty  white, 
and  the  florets  are  short  and  straight,  compared  to  the  long,  slightly 
curling,  and  drooping  ones  of  its  questionable  parent.  '1  here  is  a 
resemblance  in  the  foliage,  so  that  it  may  be  a  seedling  from  Madame 
Carnot,  but  not  a  “sport,”  which  word  caused  us  to  purchase  it. 
Cultivators  at  a  distance  from  London  have  to  depend  so  much  on 
catalogue  descriptions,  and  these  are  sometimes  so  vaguely  worded, 
that  nothing  will  make  me  buy  another  Chrysanthemum  novelty 
without  having  first  seen  flowers  of  the  same. — Specialist. 
The  Rust. 
I  HAD  intended  writing  my  experience  with  the  rust  in 
Chrysanthemums  before,  but  pressure  of  other  work  prevented  my 
doing  so.  In  response  to  “  W.  S.’s  ”  note  on  page  509,  asking  the 
opinion  of  others,  I  am  pleased  to  send  mine.  No  one  could  have  had 
plants  more  seriously  attacked  than  ours  last  season,  and  I  was 
almost  persuaded  to  burn  the  lot ;  but  after  consideration  I  decided 
to  give  them  another  trial,  which  has  been  fairly  successful.  I  made 
up  my  mind  to  retain  my  own  stock,  which  had  the  disease  so  badly. 
I  tried  different  things  that  had  been  recommended  for  it,  none 
of  which  seemed  to  have  any  good  effect.  At  last,  it  being  suggested 
to  me  that  Jeyes’  disinfectant  might  he  a  good  thing,  I  decided  to 
give  it  a  fair  trial,  and  there  is  nothing  I  have  tried  that  can  in  any 
way  compare  with  it,  but  it  must  be  used  with  care.  When  my 
cuttings  were  taken  they  were  dipped  in  a  mixture  of  a  wineglassful 
of  the  disinfectant  to  a  gallon  and  half  of  water;  they  were  then, 
shaken  and  inserted  at  once.  I  had  rather  an  unpleasant  experience 
with  my  first  cuttings.  Several  had  been  taken  and  dipped,  when  the 
man  was  called  away,  and  they  were  left  on  the  potting  bench  all 
night.  To  my  surprise  the  next  morning  much  of  the  foliage  was 
spoilt  through  lying  together  wet,  whilst  those  which  were  put  in  the 
previous  day  were  not  injured  in  the  least.  When  the  cuttings  were 
rooted  I  had  them  dipped  in  the  same  mixture,  and  also  before  shifting 
into  S-inch  pots,  and  again  before  putting  them  in  their  final  pots.  After 
that  they  were  sprayed  once  a  week  with  the  same  mixture  until  the 
middle  of  August,  then  the  spraying  was  done  twice  a  week  until  just 
before  the  time  for  housing,  when  the  plants  were  all  laid  on  their 
sides  and  well  syringed  with  the  mixture.  In  spraying  care  was  taken 
that  they  did  not  get  enough  for  it  to  run  down  the  stems  to  the  soil, 
as  I  consider  it  would  be  injurious  to  the  roots. 
I  cannot  say  that  I  have  no  rust  in  any  of  the  plants  treated  in 
this  way ;  there  may  be  a  dozen  that  have  shown  a  few  spots,  but 
as  soon  as  they  were  syringed  the  spores  turned  black,  which 
shows  the  effect  of  the  mixture.  I  can  quite  agree  with  “  W.  S.”  that 
the  pest  is  not  caused  by  overfeeding,  as  my  bush  plants  have  been 
grown  in  the  ordinary  way,  and  they  have  the  disease  very  badly  ; 
these  were  dipped  when  potted,  and  not  sprayed  afterwards.  I  am 
sending  some  shoots  of  each  for  you  to  see.  I  think  if  attended  to  as 
above  there  is  little  to  fear  from  the  disease. — G.  Lock,  Newcombes, 
Crediton. 
[We  congratulate  Mr.  Lock  on  his  success  in  combating  the  rust 
fungus.  The  leaves  sent  were  of  excellent  size  and  substance,  and 
showed  scarcely  any  signs  of  infestation.]  j 
