518 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
December  4,  1902. 
against  a  number  of  the  glass  houses.  Such  species  as  Gatesi 
ancl  susiana  of  the  Cushion  Irises  are  already  established  in  their 
comfortable  quarters,  and  quite  evidently  happy.  The  hand¬ 
some  proportions  of  the  flowers  of  the  Oncocyclus  group,  and 
the  beautiful  veining  in  the  segments,  made  them  most  valuable 
garden  plants,  though  their  culture  demands  considerable  know¬ 
ledge  and  care.  The  bulbous  Iris,  as  alata,  reticulata  (and  its 
varieties),  Bakeriana,  Vartani,  and  orchioides  were  all  found  to 
be  doing  well,  and  growths  were  already  prominent  peering 
through  the  soi.  Each  species  has  a  little  cubicle  to  itself. 
Along  with  these  Irises  there  are  some  brilliant  species  of  lulipa, 
and  also  the  choicer  varieties  of  Daffodils.  The  rarely  grown 
Iris  japonica  is  in  pots  under  glass,  but  will  be  planted  out 
very  shortly.  -  _  .  . 
At  this  season  of  the  year  the  crimson-red  Ixia-like  flowers 
of  Schizostylis  coccinea  are  very  generally  prized  for  conservatory 
embellishment,  but  with  fair  winds  and  mild  airs,  at  Ivillerton 
it  is  massively  planted  in  the  open.  From  one  degenerated 
clump  of  this  Iridaceous  plant  the  offsets  were  secured,  and  were 
planted  at  equal  distances  apart  and  in  lines  in  a  sheltered 
border.  The  result  is  a  gay  crop  of  utilisable  blossoms  now,  but 
a  light  wooden  framework  has  been  erected  over  the  whole  body 
of  the  bed,  so  that  a  tiffany  screen  may  be  rolled  over  in  case 
of  frost.  Iris  stylosa  has  been  treated  on  the  same  lines,  and 
the  large  bed  is  now  yielding  a  supply  of  the  beautiful  flowers, 
and  will  continue  on  till  March.  Iris  Ksempferi  has  been  planted 
around  a  water  fountain  and  pool  in  the  centre  of  the  kitchen 
garden. 
The  fruit  trees  having  been  neglected  during  latter  years,  the 
new  gardener  has  begun  a  work  of  improvement.  Old  trees  are 
in  places  giving  place  to  new  ones,  and  the  best  of  the  established 
trees  are  receiving  treatment  in  accordance  with  their  require¬ 
ments.  Brown  Turkey  Fig  crops  freely,  and  finishes  its  fruits 
on  open  sunny  walls.  Peaches,  of  course,  are  as  common  as 
Pears  and  Cherries,  while  Apples  are  cultivated  in  every  form. 
Most  of  the  trees  are  named.  Amongst  novelties,  the  Japanese 
Wineberry  is  somewhat  liberally  grown.  The  fruit  walls  are 
good  on  the  whole.  Some  parts  of  them  are  plastered,  and  have 
a  smooth  surface,  with  wires  for  the  trees,  In  the  fruit  room 
Mr.  Coutts  was  able  to  show  me  some  beautifully  modelled  fruit — 
large  clean,  and  bright.  He  speaks  highly  of  Roundway’s 
Magnum  Bonum  Apple  as  a  cropper  at  Ivillerton,  and  referred  to 
Mr.  George  Bunyard’s  opinion  of  it,  which  in  his  firm’s  fruit 
catalogue  I  find  expressed  thus: — “Large;  an  old  variety  almost 
fallen  out  of  culture,  we  have  no  hesitation  in  calling  it  the  best 
dessert  kind.  It  is  melting  in  flesh,  very  aromatic  and  richly 
flavoured,  brisk,  and  agreeable;  fruitful  on  Paradise,  and  worthy 
of  a  place  in  the  most  select  garden  list.  Much  richer  in  flavour 
than  Cox’s  Orange  or  Ribston,  and  only  needs  to  be  tasted  to 
secure  appreciation.  Do  not  gather  too  early,  and  try  on  a  wall, 
in  cold  soils.  In  tarts  or  baked  it  is  a  perfect  sweetmeat.  It 
is  in  use  from  November  till  February.” 
The  brightly-coloured  Devonshire  Quarrenden  crops  well ;  and 
of  Newton  Wonder  the  opinion  here  is  that  it  will  take  the  place 
of  Dumelow’s  Seedling  (Wellington).  Bramley’s  Seedling  is  very 
reliable;  Fearn’s  Pippin  is  grown,  and  produces  nice  fruits; 
Egremont  Russet  is  certainly  one  of  the  best,  ancl  has  a  rich 
flavour;  Belle  de  Pontoise — a  large  Apple;  also  Emperor  Alexan¬ 
der,  of  which  some  beautiful  specimens  were  on  view.  Wyken 
Pippin  was  another  of  the  favourites,  and  is  a  good  old  orchard 
variety  well  deserving  of  further  attention.  Peasgood’s  None¬ 
such  and  Cox’s  Orange  Pippin  received  the  usual  commendations. 
Of  Lady  Henniker,  a  December  fruit  good  for  dessert  or  cooking, 
some  fine  fruits  were  shown  to  me,  and  Blenheim  Orange  has  a 
great  reputation  as  a  marketable  variety.  Having  a  large  sur¬ 
plus  stock  of  its  fruits,  Mr.  Coutts  sold  one-and-a-half  tons,  and 
received  at  the  rate  of  8s.  per  cwt.  for  them.  These  were  sold 
locally,  with  little  incumbent  expense,  and  at  that  price  Apple 
culture,  he  says,  would  pay  him.  Mere  de  Menage,  as  orchard 
trees,  produces  good  saleable  fruits.  Amongst  varieties  of  Pear 
I  specially  took  note  of  his  samples  of  Verulam,  Catillac,  Vicar 
of  Winkfield,  Winter  Nebs,  Glou  Morceau,  Duchesse  d'Angou- 
leme,  Beurre  Hardy,  Eyewood,  and  Beurre  Ranee. 
Violets  are  successfully  cultivated  in  frames,  the  usual  popular 
sorts  being  seen  in  an  abundantly  floriferous  condition.  Border 
Carnations  are  somewhat  largely  grown,  and  hardy  flowers  in 
general  receive  great  attention.  Wall  gardening,  on  a  limited 
scale  at  least,  will  be  another  feature  of  Ivillerton  as  time  ad¬ 
vances.  My  visit  to  Sir  Thomas  Acland’s  beautiful  estate  will 
long  be  pleasantly  remembered,  being,  as  it  was,  a  first  visit  to 
Devon,  and  made  at  a  period  of  glorious  autumn  sunshine. — 
J.  H.  D. 
The  Difficulty  of  “Chrysanthemum.” 
During  the  hearing  of  a  charge  at  Thorpe  (Essex)  Petty 
Sessions  recently  of  damage  to  flowers  the  prosecutor  stated 
that  the  defendants  had  smashed  his  greenhouse  and  pulled  up 
his  “  Christian  anthems.”  The  magistrates’  clerk,  mildly : 
“  Chrysanthemums,”  you  mean.  Prosecutor  (firmly  and  with 
dignity) :  “  Christian  anthems,”  I  said,  sir. — Daily  Mail.” 
Mr.  Godfrey’s  Collection  at  Exmouth. 
The  show  season  for  Chrysanthemums  is  past,  but  the  memory 
of  the  flowers  is  present.  I  was  fortunate  to  be  at  Exeter  three 
weeks  ago,  when  exhibition  Chrysanthemums  were  meeting  the 
gaze  at  every  turn,  and  from  Exeter  the  train  journey  along  the 
left  bank  of  the  estuary  to  Exmouth  is  but  half-an-hour.  Mr. 
W.  J.  Godfrey  has  given  Exmouth  a  fame  in  the  minds  of  Chrys¬ 
anthemum  growers  from  his  export  of  novelties  remarkable  for 
their  fine  build,  and  the  brightness  of  colour  in  most  of  them. 
On  page  449  of  the  Journal  for  November  13,  reference  was  made 
to  the  gems  of  1901-02,  and  the  subjoined  notes  convey  my  im¬ 
pressions  of  the  latest  comers,  some  of  which  are  already  exceed¬ 
ingly  popular.  Take  for  instance  the  lovely  Bessie  Godfrey,  than 
which  no  unitary  Chrysanthemum  is  prettier.  The  blending  of 
palest  straw  or  primrose  on  the  edges  and  tips  with  the  rich 
canary-yellow  overlay  in  the  middle  part  of  the  florets,  endows 
the  bloom  with  the  greatest  charm,  and  the  elastic  curve  of  the 
petals  is  another  point  of  attraction.  Everywhere  during  the 
closing  season  I  have  heard  praises  of  Bessie  Godfrey,  and  seen 
good  flowers  of  it.  Both  late  and  early  buds  yield  good  blossoms. 
Mrs.  D.  V.  West,  a  white  Australian  seedling,  retains  its 
foliage  better,  and  comes  easier  than  Madame  Carnot,  and  is  in  all 
respects  a  good  variety,  Wilfred  H.  Godfrey  has  flat  reflexing 
florets,  rich  crimson  on  the  surface,  and  gold  reverse,  and  is  one 
of  the  most  promising  of  the  novelties.  The  constitution  is  good. 
Loveliness  was  sent  out  last  year,  and  has  been  seen  in  many  places 
during  this  autumn.  The  flowers  are  massive,  the  petals  very 
broad,  not  smooth,  but  lined,  and  the  colour  is  a  delicate  canary- 
yellow.  It  is  one  of  the  very  best  exhibition  flowers,  and  good 
for  purely  decorative  uses,  and  large  blooms  seem  to  be  easily 
obtained  from  the  plants,  they  being  decidedly  pleasing  to  the 
eye. 
Colonel  Weatherall,  a  Japanese  incurved,  has  a  robust  consti¬ 
tution,  the  plants  at  Exmoutli  having  heavy  green  leaves  and 
stout  stems,  and  is  of  medium  height.  The  broad  petals  are 
bronzy-orange,  the  centre  of  the  flowers  being  bright  yellow. 
Wallace  E.  Vowden  bears  good  blooms,  with  abundance  of 
incurving  florets,  but  the  colour  seems  rather  dull.  Durban’s 
Pride  is  a  Californian  variety,  one  of  the  few  good  Americans 
that  have  succeeded  here.  It  has  something  of  the  Madame 
Carnot  or  Mrs.  T.  W.  Pockett  stamp  upon  it,  and  as  it  is  a  pretty 
lilac-pink  with  a  white,  centre,' I  shall  look  to  seeing  Durban’s 
Pride  largely  grown  by  the  end  of  next  autumn. 
Duchess  of  Sutherland  has  obtained  a  considerable  reputation 
this  year,  and  is  one  of  the  best  up-to-date  yellow  exhibition 
flowers.  At  Exmouth,  however,  the  plants  were  of  rather  stragg¬ 
ling  habit.  Nellie  Stevens  throws  massive  blooms  of  a  bronzy- 
buff  colour,  and  is  an  attractive  incurved  var.  ;  while  Maf eking 
Hero  is  undoubtedly  one  of  the  best  varieties  for  large  flowers 
in  existence.  On  page  448  of  this  Journal  Mr.  E.  Molyneux 
says:  “The  blooms  when  fully  developed  measure  9in  in  dia¬ 
meter,  carrying  a  depth  of  quite  6in,  which  is  a  good  proportion. 
The  colour  is  dull  red,  the  reverse  being  gold.  The  tips  freely 
turn  upwards,  giving  added  character  to  the  flower.”  It  has 
already  won  repute.  Kimberley,  now  well  knoAvn,  is  another 
producer  of  huge  blooms,  and  is  a  reliable  early  yellow.  In  the 
same  category  comes  Calvat’s  F.  S.  Vallis,  of  which  splendid 
blooms  have  been  exhibited  this  year  by  the  champion1  whose 
name  it  bears.  But  F.  S.  Vallis  has  been  shown  by  Mr.  Godfrey 
much  better  than  by  the  “  champion.”  The  latter  admits  that 
the-  Exmouth  flowers  were  much  superior.  Mr.  Godfrey  had 
twelve  flowers  in  his  stand  (as  a  centrepiece)  at  the  Aquarium  in 
November.  It  does  not  require  “a  lot  of  doing”;  indeed,  it  is 
one  of  the  easiest  to  do,  and  will  become  very  popular  from  this 
fact.  It  is  a  decided  beat  on  G.  J.  Warren.  Mrs.  John  Balfour 
is  a  pretty  pink  seedling  from  Madame  Carnot,  with  long  re¬ 
flexed  petals,  and  is  one  of  the  Exmouth  novelties  for  1903.  It 
was  much  admired  at  the  Aquarium,  where  it  was  shown  as  a 
“  seedling  from  Madame  Carnot.” 
I  would  conclude  these  notes  on  the  Chrysanthemums  by 
noticing  a  few  of  the  foremost  purely  decorative  sorts.  Scarlet 
Prince  is  of  dwarf  habit,  with  flowers  that  are  quite  scarlet  in 
the  height  of  the  season.  When  Chrysanthemums  are  brightly 
coloured,  they  are  ;  that  is  to  say,  the  richness  of  their  tones 
is  intense,  and  we  have  had  quite  a  goodly  selection  of  fine 
things  during  the  last  three  years.  Goacher’s  Crimson  conies 
