218 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AXD  COTTAGE  GARDENER,  September  4,  1902. 
CARDEOIrEAmN(^ 
V'S'fsZ, 
Maranta  insignis. 
This  is  a  very  distinct  and  striking  Maranta  introduced  from 
Brazil.  It  has  long,  semi-erect,  lanceolate  leaves  of  a  light  green 
colour,  darkly  shaded  on  the  margins,  and  ornamented  on  the 
central  portion  with  very  dark  green  oval  blotches,  arranged 
alternately,  a  small  round  blotch  being  oppositely  placed  on 
each  side  of  the  midrib.  The  under  sides  of  the  leaves  are  of  a 
bright  maroon  red  colour.  Messrs.  Win.  Bull  and  Sons,  of  the 
Establishment  for  New  and  Rare  Plants,  536,  King’s  Road, 
Chelsea,  London,  S.W.,  exhibited  a  specimen  of  this  Maranta 
before  the  Royal  Horticultural  Society’s  Floral  Committee,  on 
July  22,  when  they  received  an  Award  of  Merit.  (See  illustra¬ 
tion.) 
Sternbergia  lutea. 
Included  amongst  the  most  beautiful  of  flowering  bulbous 
plants  is  Sternbergia  lutea,  the  Yellow  Star  Flower,  or  WTinter 
Daffodil.  The  yellow  perianth,  or  flower  tube,  is  from  If  in  to 
2fin  long,  and  funnel  shaped.  The  flowers  shoot  up  from  tho 
dark  green  linear  foliage,  and  give  a  handsome  effect.  It  is  a 
popular  and  beautiful  flower.  For  pot  culture,  or  for  sandy 
loams  in  sheltered  borders  out  of  doors,  it  is  to  be  recommended. 
Mr.  Robinson  says  :  “  One  source  of  failure  with  Sternbergias  and 
other  bulbs  is  moving  them  at  the  wrong  time,  or  before  growth 
has  fully  developed.  What  they  want  is  thorough  ripening  in 
summer  and  a  slight  protection  during  the  winter.”  The  bulbs 
of  S.  lutea  must  be  large  before  they  will  flower  freely,  and 
imported  bulbs  are  generally  small,  and  will  take  a  year  or  two 
to  attain  flowering  size. 
Application  of  the  Word  Bergamot. 
A  useful  lesson  is  afforded  (says  “  Meehans’  Monthly  ”)  by  the 
Bergamot  as  to  the  employment  of  common  names.  Botanists 
complain  of  the  trouble  they  have  to  identify  plants  under  these 
names,  yet  take  little  pains  to  ascertain  priority,  but  adopt 
whatever  the  fancy  of  the  moment  may  suggest.  Thus  Dr.  Gray, 
in  his  “  Synoptical  Flora,”  employs  the  name  “  Horse  Mint”  for 
the  whole  genus,  while  but  one  species,  Monarda  punctata,  is 
so  designated  by  common  people.  Britton  and  Brown,  in  the 
“  Illustrated  Flora,”  class  most  of  them  as  “  Bergamot,”  which 
is  really  the  most  generally  accepted  of  by  the  people,  yet 
excluding  Monarda  didyma,  which  of  all  in  gardens  is  known  as 
the  Bergamot  plant.  However,  the  term  Bergamot  is  applied 
in  some  form  or  another  to  most  of  the  species,  though,  as  in 
the  one  now  illustrated,  the  peculiar  scent  implied  by  the  name 
is  confined  to  but  a  few.  Bergamot,  in  pharmacy,  is  obtained 
from  the  rind  of  a  species  of  the  Lemon  family,  and  is  known 
as  the  oil  of  Bergamot.  This  odour  is  especially  characteristic  of 
Monarda  didyma. 
Japanese  Irises. 
Every  year  sees  the  demand  increase  for  Japanese  Irises,  as 
they  have  so  many  valuable  qualities.  They  do  not  interfere 
with  the  possessing  of  other  sorts,  as  they  flower  in  July,  after 
other  kinds  have  done  blooming.  While  single  clumps  are  lovely, 
it  is  only  when  seen  in  great  masses  that  one  realises  their 
availability  for  the  producing  of  grand  effects.  Put  together  a 
hundred  of  them,  or  half  this  number,  let  the  group  be  all  one 
colour  or  a  combination  of  colours,  and  for  a  spectacle  of  grandeur 
I  do  not  know  of  any  other  flower  that  could  produce  it.  There 
are  early  and  late  sorts,  tall  and  medium  growers,  so  that  by 
attention  to  these  points  a  year  in  advance,  a  superb,  sym¬ 
metrical  bed  could  be  formed.  Still  another  thing  in  their  favour 
is  their  water-loving  habits.  Many  a  low,  moist  piece  of  ground, 
in  which  hardly  another  plant  will  grow,  would  be  found  an 
ideal  place  for  this  species.  In  this  respect  it  is  in  accord  with 
our  wild  species,  Iris  versicolor,  which  is  always  looked  for  in 
such  wet  situations.  Those  wishing  to  propagate  these  Irises 
can  do  so  at  this  time  to  advantage.  Split  them  apart,  reset 
them  firmly,  reducing  the  foliage  a  little,  and  by  autumn  each 
will  be  a  nice  clump.  Other  Irises  can  be  treated  in  a  similar 
way,  but  unless  in  damp  ground  they  do  not  “  take  hold  ” 
as  quickly  as  the  others  do. 
Waldsteinia  trifolia. 
A  pretty  yellow  flowered  little  hardy  plant,  with  leaves  not 
unlike  those  of  a  Geum,  the  flowers  being  carried,  and  of  the  form 
and  size  of  those  shown  in  the  illustration  on  another  page. 
We  have  not  found  any  difficulty  in  its  culture,  it  thriving  in  any 
ordinary  garden  soil  on  dry  banks,  or  in  the  rock  garden. 
Conference  Pear. 
This  most  useful  variety  w7as  named  in  commemoration  of  the 
National  Pear  Conference  of  1885,  and  has  gradually  won  a  way 
for  itself,  till  to-day  it  is  probably  grown  in  every  collection. 
Messrs.  Rivers  and  Son  were  the  raisers  of  it.  As  a  show  Pear  it 
has  great  merits,  being  elegant  in  form,  and  in  colour  a  dark 
green,  the  skin  being  dotted  with  russet.  The  flesh  is  melting, 
juicy,  and  rich,  yellow  in  tint,  the  fruits  being  in  use  from 
November  1  to  third  week.  The  raisers’  description  is  as  follows  : 
“  Fruit  large,  pyriform ;  skin  dark  green  and  russet ;  flesh  salmon 
coloured,  melting,  juicy,  and  rich.  Tree  robust  and  hardy.  Very 
prolific,  a  good  garden  and  orchard  fruit,  and  a  valuable  market 
sort.  November  1  to  third  week.  F.  C.” 
Blood-leaved  Weeping  Beech. 
The  European  Beech,  Fagus  sylvatica,  has  given  us  many 
nice  varieties.  Besides  many  green-leaved  forms  other  than  the 
cut-leaved  and  the  Fern-leaved,  there  are  the  green-leaved 
weeping,  the  blood-leaved,  and,  later,  the  blood-leaved  weeping, 
the  one  to  which  these  notes  are  principally  intended  to  refer. 
This  subject,  has  been  before  the  public  for  some  time,  yet  but 
very  few  collections  have  it.  It  is  a  beautiful  tree,  in  my 
opinion  (says  Mr.  Meehan).  The  appearance  of  its  drooping 
branches  please,  drooping  gracefully,  which  cannot  be  said  of 
all  weepers.  Then  add  the  blood-coloured  foliage,  and  a  very 
meritorious  tree  is  obtained.  It  does  not  seem  well  known  in 
nurseries  as  yet,  so  that  would-be  purchasers  have  no  oppor¬ 
tunity  of  securing  it.  Those  who  have  it  and  wish  to  propagate 
it,  could  inarch  it  on  any  other  Beech  near  enough  to  it  for 
the  purpose.  If  not  now,  a  few  suitable  plants  of  green-leaved 
ones  could  be  planted  around  it  in  the  fall,  ready  for  the  work 
of  inarching  in  the  following  summer.  Inarching  and  grafting 
are  the  two  principal  methods  of  increasing  Beeches. 
Are  Plant  Diseases  Hereditary? 
A  discussion  of  this  question  lias  lately  occupied  some  of  the 
readers  of  the  “  American  Florists’  Exchange,”  and  Mr.  F.  C. 
Stewart,  of  the  New  York  Experiment  Station,  contributes  the 
letter  which  we  print  as  follows  :  No  plant  disease  with  which 
I  am  familiar  can  properly  be  said  to  be  hereditary.  However, 
there  are  several  fungous  and  bacterial  diseases  which  attack 
directly  the  seeds,  cuttings,  bulbs,  tubers,  &c.,  used  in  propa¬ 
gation;  and  in  such  cases  the  resulting  plants  are  exposed  to 
infection  almost  from  the  beginning  of  their  growth.  The  Bean 
pod-spot,  or  anthracnose,  is  a  good  example.  A  Bean  plant 
affected  by  this  disease  may  produce  some  perfectly  healthy 
beans  and  some  diseased  ones  showing  brown  spots.  When 
planted,  the  healthy  beans  will  produce  healthy  plants  unless 
infection  occurs  from  other  sources  than  the  seed.  But  the 
diseased  beans  are  likely  to  produce  diseased  plants,  for  the  reason 
that  the  fungus  which  is  the  cause  of  the  disease  is  already 
present  in  the  tissues  of  the  seed  in  such  close  proximity  to  the 
stem  of  the  seedling  that  the  latter  is  almost  certain  to  become 
infected.  Thus,  we  have  here  not  a  case  of  heredity,  but  simply 
infection  passing  from  seed  to  seedling,  in  practically  the  same 
manner  that  it  would  pass  from  one  plant  to  another.  Car¬ 
nation  rust  is  caused  by  a  parasitic  fungus  which  thrives  much 
better  upon  some  varieties  than  upon  others.  Varieties  especi¬ 
ally  susceptible  to  rust  should  be  avoided  by  the  originator  of 
new  kinds,  because  plants  from  the  seed  of  such  varieties  are 
likely  to  inherit  a  tendency  to  rust.  It  seems  to  me  very  impro¬ 
bable  that  Carnation  rust  can  be  transmitted  by  means  of  the 
seed  except  in  cases  where  the  spores  of  rust  are  accidentally 
brought  into  contact  with  the  seeds  and  adhere  to  them.  This 
is  not  heredity.  To  the  second  sentence  in  the  quotation  from 
Professor  Hartig  I  take  exceptions.  Diseased  seed  often  causes 
loss  in  crops.  In  some  cases  the  fungus  causing  the  disease 
attacks  the  seed  directly,  like  the  Bean  anthracnose,  while  in 
others  the  spores  merely  adhere  to  the  seed,  as,  for  example, 
the  grain  smuts.  While  it  is  true  that  with  some  diseases  there 
is  no  danger  of  transmitting  them  by  means  of  the  seed,  there 
are  many  others  which  are  commonly  disseminated  in  that  way. 
