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JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER , 
April  18,  1901. 
of  the  “  Frnit  Manual,”  presented  “  In  remembranoe  of  the  pleasant 
meeting  I  had  with  you  at  Hereford,”  &o.,  &o. 
The  new  Northern  Greening  is  not  included  in  that  edition ;  but 
apropos  of  the  old  variety,  curiously  to  relate,  it  was  one  of  the  varieties 
the  trio  of  judges  particularly  remarked  upon,  as  a  very  fine  dish  of  it 
came  under  their  notice  at  the  show,  and  both  of  my  oolleagues  agreed 
that  no  other  variety  could  excel  its  cooking  properties.  I  also  have  a 
vivid  recollection  of  the  Doctor’s  exclamation,  “  Here’s  a  grand  dish  of 
John  Apple.”  I  venture  further,  at  the  risk  of  being  too  prolix,  to 
quote  the  description  of  the  Apple  in  question  from  the  edition 
mentioned  :  “  Fruit,  medium  sized  ;  .  .  .  flesh,  greenish  white,  tender, 
crisp,  and  very  juicy,  with  a  brisk  and  somewhat  vinous  flavour.  The 
tree  is  a  very  strong  and  vigorous  grower,  attaining  the  largest  size, 
and  is  an  abundant  bearer.”  And  were  it  necessary  to  further  my  own 
description  and  estimate  of  the  Northern  Greening,  permit  me  to  quote 
a  few  abbreviations  from  Thompson’s  “  Gardener’s  Assistant.”  “  John 
Apple  of  some.  Shoots  long  and  vigorous ;  leaves  large,  and  oval  or 
ovate ;  fruits  middle  size,  or  rather  large ;  stalk  short,  frequently 
inserted  obliquely,  the  base  of  the  fruit  forming  a  projecting  curve  on 
one  side.  The  tree  is  vigorous,  hardy,  and  a  good  bearer.” 
Thus,  altogether,  I  fail  to  agree  with  Mr.  Pearson’s  ipse  dixit 
relative  either  to  the  shape  of  the  fruit  or  the  constitution  of  the  tree, 
and  the  probability  is,  that  his  own  experience  must  be  with  trees  of  the 
Northerii  Greening,  grafted  upon  unsuitable  stocks,  or  growing  in  too 
light  a  soil,  unless,  indeed,  that  he  refers  to  a  spurious  variety. 
Neither  also  am  I  quite  clear  as  to  his  assumption  that  I  am  in  error 
regarding  my  estimate  and  description  of  Dumelow’s  Seedling  or 
Wellington — the  latter  cognomen  by  which  the  variety  is  and  has  been 
familiarly  known  in  the  London  markets  ever  sinoe  its  introduction  to 
commerce  in  1815,  and  commemorative  of  the  battle  of  Waterloo — and 
in  the  last  edition  of  the  “Fruit  Manual ’’the  primary  name  is  that 
of  Wellington. 
Well,  Mr.  Editor,  after  the  foregoing  lengthened,  and  I  trust,  so  far 
convincing  rejoinder  to  my  respected  censors,  they  will  pardon  my 
comparative  laudation  of  the  Apples  in  question,  and  not  with  the 
view  of  depreciating  other  tq  ially  good  and  large  kinds,  even  at  the  risk 
of  being  considered  too  discriminatory  when  remarking  that  if  the 
“  best  Apple  on  earth  ”  possesses  one  defect,  it  is  its  deep  though 
shapely  eye — as  once  remarked  to  me  by  a  well-known  Birmingham 
nurseryman,  a  defect  not  shared  by  either  Lane’s  Prince  Albert  or 
Northern  Greening. 
As  Mr.  Pearson  so  freely  appended  his  own  name  and  address,  it 
is  a  duty  incumbent  upon  me  to  follow  suit,  and  subscribe  as — 
William  Gakdineb,  Harborne,  Birmingham. 
- <♦©•* - 
Certificated  Plants. — No.  9. 
The  Gaillardia. 
Both  the  annual  and  perennial  types  have  undergone  great 
improvement  of  late  years,  and  the  naming  of  distinct  varieties  has 
become  necessary.  G.  picta  Lorenz  ana,  with  its  double  flowers 
full  of  quilled  florets,  certificated  in  1882,  marked  the  introduction  of 
a  distinctly  new  type,  follow  d  by  G.  splendid issima  plenissima.  Six 
years  later  modern  tastes  gave  the  preference  to  the  large  and  striking 
single  varieties. 
Galanthus  or  Snowdrop. 
The  present  generation  have  probably  forgotten  the  labours  of 
Mr.  Melville  in  improving  and  adding  to  the  varieties  of  the  common 
Snowdrop.  He  s-ent  a  collection  of  leedlings  to  the  Chiswick 
Gardens,  and  they  showed  a  succession  of  blooms  ;  one  or  two  displayed 
remarkable  precocity,  and  there  were  quite  late  flowered  forms.  One 
named  Melvillei,  awarded  a  certificate  in  1879,  hands  the  name  of  the 
raiser  down  to  posterity.  That  giant  form,  G.  Elwesi,  is  probably  the 
finest  of  the  group.  Varieties  ot  it  have  appeared,  but  their  claim  to 
variation  seems  to  be  based  on  a  slender  foundation. 
The  Gardenia. 
The  Gardenia,  once  so  popular,  is  now  mainly  grown  for  marketing 
in  a  cut  state.  The  gardeners  of  1850  probably  little  dreamed  the 
day  would  come  when  a  scented  Gardenia — like  the  Camellia,  once  the 
gentleman’s  buttonhole  par  excellence — would  be  hawked  in  the  streets 
of  London  at  one  penny  per  bloom,  and  a  good  bloom  too ! 
Gilla  rosea 
Is  the  once  popu’ar  Leptosiphon  rosaceus,  which  received  a  certificate 
of  merit  as  far  back  as  1870.  It  was  a  lovely  annual,  needing  to  be 
sown  on  a  warm  border  in  a  s  imewhat  light  sandy  soil.  It  doubtless 
came  out  of  a  strain  of  French  hybrids  of  dwarf  growth,  which  had 
originated  some  time  previously. 
The  Haemanthus. 
Up  to  the  present  year  the  last  award  made  by  the  Floral  Committee 
to  a  Haemanthus  was  in  1894,  when  M.  Linden,  Brussels,  exhibited 
H.  Lindeni,  which  does  not  appear  to  be  included  as  a  species. 
H.  cinnabarinus  was  the  first  to  obtain  an  award  when  shown  by  the 
late  Mr.  C.  Pilcher  in  1869  ;  it  had  been  imported  from  West  Africa 
some  fourteen  years  previously.  This  was  followed  by  H.  Cooperi  in 
1874 ;  H.  rupestris  and  H.  Kalbreyeri  in  1878,  and  H.  Lindeni  as 
above  staled.  The  singularly  fine  forms  from  the  Congo,  recently 
exhibited  at  the  Drill  Hall  by  M.  Lucien  Linden,  seem  to  accentuate 
the  fact  that  these  bulbous  plants  vary  considerably  in  a  state  of 
nature.  The  handsome  pendulous  form  of  the  heads  of  bloom  of  the 
new  forms  add  to  their  attractiveness.  They  require  stove  or  warm 
greenhouse  culture. 
Helianthus. 
The  perennial  Sunflowers,  and  especially  the  group  included  under 
H.  multiflorus,  which  is  now  comprehended  under  the  head  of 
H.  decapetalus.  The  Floral  Committee  has  been  somewhat  chary  in 
granting  awards  to  new  varieties,  for  the  obvious  reason  that  they 
have  increased  somewhat  rapidly  of  late  years,  and  show  a  certain 
sameness  of  character.  The  last  to  receive  an  award  from  the  Floral 
Committee  was  Wantage  Star  in  1896,  as  set  forth  in  the  published  list, 
but  it  does  not  appear  to  have  found  its  way  into  plant  lists  under 
this  name.  A  variety  named  H.  G.  Moon  received  an  award  of  merit 
last  year,  and  is  one  of  the  finest ;  Isetiflorus,  Bouquet  d’Or,  Meteore, 
Queen  Victoria,  and  Soleil  d’Or,  among  others,  are  all  very  fine  border 
plants.  The  old  single  and  double  annual  Sunflowers  still  claim 
attention,  on  the  ground  of  their  showy  character ;  a  fine  double 
variety,  under  the  name  of  Stoke  Park  Favourite,  received  an  award 
of  merit  in  1895.  The  fine  and  showy  form  of  Harpalium  rigidum, 
named  Miss  Mellish,  might  be  appropriately  included  with  Helianthus. 
It  is  a  stately  border  plant,  throwing  very  large  and  striking  yellow 
blossoms  with  a  dark  disc,  on  long  stems,  which  renders  it  suitable  for 
cutting  purposes.  It  propagates  itself  very  freely  by  means  of  its 
roots. 
The  Hellebores. 
The  varieties  of  Helleborus  niger,  and  also  such  as  have  been 
obtained  from  H.  colchicus,  H.  olympicus,  H.  orientalis,  and  H.  viridis, 
have  so  greatly  increased  during  the  past  few  years  that  the  Floral 
Committee  have  come  to  be  very  sparing  in  making  awards.  H.  niger 
give  us  a  group  of  Christmas  Roses,  that  known  as  the  Bath  Christmas 
Rose  is  regarded  as  a  great  improvement  upon  the  old  white  for  general 
garden  purposes.  The  other  species  named  furnish  the  Lenten  Roses, 
of  course  later  in  blooming,  and  showing  considerable  range  of  colours. 
Other  species,  or  sub-species,  have  been  utilised  to  add  to  collections, 
and  it  would  not  be  difficult  to  make  up  a  list  of  over  one  hundred 
distinct  varieties.  They  are  of  great  value  for  flowering  in  pots  in 
the  early  part  of  the  year,  and  new  varieties  are  frequently  putting  in 
appearance  in  their  season. 
Hemerocallls. 
Under  this  generic  name  there  is  furnished  a  group  of  showy,  bold, 
and  striking  hardy  perennials,  one  of  which,  IT.  ticha  flore-pleno, 
received  a  certificate  of  merit  in  1860,  followed  ty  II.  rubra  variegata 
in  1862,  picta  in  1868,  and  then  such  newer  forms  as  H.  aurantiaca 
major,  H.  Middendorfiana,  &c.  Day  Lilies  is  an  appropriate  designation 
for  the  group,  as  they  are  highly  ornamental  flowering  plants,  bold 
and  striking  in  the  border. 
The  Hippeastrum. 
Dean  Herbert,  in  his  “  Preliminary  Treatise,”  sets  forth  ten  features 
or  particulars  by  which  Hippeastrum  is  divided  from  the  Linnaean 
Amarj  His  Bella  Donna.  The  very  different  nature  of  the  seeds  appeared 
to  be  a  dominating  feature  in  the  differentiation.  In  the  list  of 
certificated  plants  all  the  forms  which  have  received  awards  during 
the  past  forty  years  as  Amaryllis  are  now  classed  as  Hippeastrums, 
and  there  is  a  formidable  list  of  them.  The  first  hybrid  Hippeastrum — 
so  we  learn  from  Dean  Herbert — was  H.  Johnsoni,  said  by  Mr.  F.  W. 
Burbidge  to  have  been  named  after  its  raiser,  a  nurseryman  who 
fertilised  H.  vittatum  with  H.  regium.  This  was  employed  oarly 
in  the  century  to  cross  with  other  forms  in  cultivation,  but  the 
great  movement  in  the  direction  of  advance  commenced  with  the 
introduction  of  H.  pardinum  in  1867,  and  H.  Leopoldi  in  1869, 
both  of  which  received  first-class  certificates  of  merit  from  the 
Floral  Committee.  Messrs.  Veitch  &  Sons  have  accomplished  a 
remarkable  work  in  improving  this  magnificent  flower,  the  great 
majority  of  the  awards  made  to  varieties  during  the  past  thirty 
years  falling  to  the  Chelsea  firm.  Of  late  years  Messrs.  R.  P. 
Ker  &  Co.  of  Liverpool  ;  Messrs.  B.  S.  Williams  &  Son,  Holloway; 
Mr.  Henry  Perkins,  gardener  to  the  Hon.  W.  F.  D.  Smith,  Henley- 
on-Thames  ;  and  Mr.  Chapman,  gardener  to  Capt.  Holford, 
Westonbirt,  have  all  contributed  advanced  varieties  obtained  from 
seeds.  This  year  both  Capt.  Holford  and  Messrs.  Veitch  &  Sons 
have  exhibited  and  received  awards  for  varieties  that  seem,  from  their 
size,  form,  substance,  and  colour,  to  reach  perfection,  only  that  the 
possibilities  of  the  Hippeastrum  are  so  great  that  the  ideal  flower 
increases  in  beauty  as  our  standard  of  perfection  is  reached,  only  that 
the  advance  is  made  much  more  slowly. — R.  Dean,  V.M.H. 
