selected for certificates. The report on these collections will be found in the number of the Journal just issued.

The collection of Hardy Herbaceous Perennials has been enriched during the season by the presentation of three hundred species and varieties from the Royal Gardens, Kew, and of numerous species of Aster from the Floral Director. Of these latter plants it was hoped that a large collection might be got together with a view to their examination by the Professor of Botany; and contributions for this purpose will still be gladly received by the Gardener-in-chief.

A very handsome new Fern, which sprang up in one of the propagating houses a year or two since, and which is now a welldeveloped specimen, has been described and figured during the past year in the Journal under the name of Pteris serrulatotremula. It is very remarkable that this plant, supposed from its compound appearance to be a hybrid between P. tremula and P. serrulata, though forming spores in abundance, cannot, so far as yet experienced, be increased by this means, the typical P. tremula only being produced from them. It is probably, therefore, after all, only a spore-sport of this well-known plant. Of other matters which have come before them, the Directors think it only right to mention that the Gardener-in-chief has reported most favourably to them of the action of a new wroughtiron boiler, erected by Messrs. T. Green & Son, which has done its work most efficiently and economically; and they are informed that a similar boiler is now most satisfactorily heating the Conservatory at Kensington.

Professor Thiselton Dyer's lectures to the young gardeners at Chiswick, on elementary matters of science bearing upon horticulture, and which were briefly referred to in the Report of 1873, were listened to with attention and advantage by the young men to whom they were addressed. It is much to be desired that instruction in the higher branches of horticulture should also be given.

STATEMENT OF ACCOUNTS from January 1st to December 81st, 1873.
EXPENDITURE.
£ 8. d.
376 19 9

Balance brought forward from 81st December,
1872

By Chiswick Garden Expenses :

Rent, Rates, and Taxes.

Labour

Implements, Manure, &c..

Repairs..

Trees, Plants, &c.

Miscellaneous....

By Expenses of Management:—

£ 8. d.

198 11 9

1202 18 8

Salaries..

529 8 2

Horticultural Directors, Fruit and Floral

Committee

459 7 11

Foreign Importations

500

122 16 10

24 8 9

25 17 10

for Prizes, 1873

1768 8 0 1883 0 0

on Current Account, 1872..

391 3 1

Total

2,241 15 6

500 0 0

1400 7 6

8905 19 10 125 19 0 83 12 7 33 13 4 1956 2 0

12,493 12 9

3487 6 1 15,980 18 10

I REMARK, in THE JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE of January 29th, an article on the process indicated by my friend Mr. Daniel Hooibrenk, of Vienna, for facilitating the fertilisation of plants by touching the stigma with a pencil dipped in honey.

Although Mr. Daniel Hooibrenk has done everything in his power to make this process known, and has advocated it energetically, it is but just to state that he is not the inventor of the process, and that it was previously made known by the late Mr. H. Lecoq in 1862 in his work entitled "De la Fécondation Naturelle et Artificielle des Végétaux, ou de l'Hybridation.” Mr. H. Lecoq was at that time and till his death the Director of the Botanical Garden of Clermont-Ferrand.-JEAN SISLEY, Lyons.

CELERIAC OR TURNIP-ROOTED CELERY

CULTURE.

THIS delicious vegetable is very seldom seen in perfection in our gardens, and yet it is one of the very easiest to grow, and one of the most useful. It can be used as a second-course vegetable, and also as a salad, boiled and sliced like Beetroot, while for flavouring soups it is almost, if not quite, equal to ordinary Celery; besides, it can be had in good condition when good Celery is not procurable. It is also very hardy; it takes a great amount of frost to injure it, and it is not so likely to suffer from insects and diseases as the ordinary Celery; indeed, I have observed Celery grown close to it quite ruined with a fungus similar to that which attacks the Hollyhock, and Celeriac was perfectly free from it.

To grow it well it should be sown thinly on a hotbed in the last week of March or first week of April. As soon as the seedlings are up the lights should be taken quite off on every favourable day, and, when large enough to handle, the plants should be pricked-out about 3 inches apart in equal parts of rotten dung and loamy soil. If it has a little warmth under it, it will do all the better. When it fairly is established in this, before the leaves touch, it should be planted in its permanent quarters.

The ground to receive it should be quite as liberally dressed as for the other Celery-that is to say, it should have 3 or 4 inches of good manure spread over the top and forked-in, keeping the ground level. Take the plants carefully up with a trowel; or cut into squares with a spade, and plant in rows 2 feet apart and 15 inches from plant to plant in the row. Very little attention will be necessary after this, unless the ground is light and the weather dry, when the plants may require water once or twice. They will be fit for use by the end of September, and may be taken up as required till there is danger of their commencing to grow a second time, when they should be taken up and kept in a similar way to Beetroot.

The treatment I give to this vegetable is exactly the same as that given to the main crop of Celery up to the final trans. planting. The first week in April is the best time in the

whole year to sow for producing really good Celery, and not February or the beginning of March, as many would now have one believe. Sow late and thinly, prick-out as soon as large enough to get hold of, transplant finally with good balls before the leaves touch, and never allow it to receive a check. These are the only secrets in growing Celery or Celeriac.-W. TAYLOR.

VARIETIES OF POTATO.

On reading his remarks on "Varieties of Potatoes" in last week's Journal, I have been greatly amused with the self-sufficiency of a contributor signing himself "A.," and I have no doubt the Royal Horticultural Society and Irish Farmers' Gazette will be equally so.

"A." professes to have great knowledge, and on the strength of this assumes at once the attitude of censor and of judge. What his qualifications are to either of these positions I do not know, but he betrays in his communication such an amount of ignorance on the subject upon which he writes, that I am led to think that his pretensions cannot be supported. To justify what I say, I ask you to refer to his communication. "A." asks, "What is Kentish Ashleaf ?" He ought to have acquainted himself of this before he wrote and presumed to call in question the decision of the Committee who do know it. I will tell him. Kentish Ashleaf is that form of the Ashleaf which has been grown in Kent and by the great market gardeners round London for years before "A." was born, unless he is more than a century old, and is quite distinct in many respects from the old Ashleaf. It is a much stronger grower, and greatly more prolific than the old Ashleaf, which is easily distinguished by its dwarf growth, small leaf, and earlier maturity, on account of which it is preferred for forcing in frames. I find the true characters of the different Ashleaf varieties well described in the "Gardeners' YearBook" for this year, to which I refer "A.," as he does not seem to know that there are three types, perfectly distinct, known by the name of Ashleaf.

In speaking of "Lapstones," "A." says that Yorkshire Hero was raised from the seed of that variety, and does not appear to know that Mr. Almond raised, or believes he raised, it from a graft-hybrid. So long as "A." confines himself to write on subjects he understands he writes well and instructively; but when he goes out of his way to run a tilt at such a body as the Committee of the Royal Horticultural Society, and sets up his limited means of observation against the infinitely greater advantages of the Society, he is doing himself an injustice, while he does the Committee no harm.

Does "A." know that, in making the attack upon the Committee of the Society, that he is setting his opinions against such men as Dr. Hogg, Mr. Barron, Mr. Fenn, Mr. Dancer, Mr. Douglas, Mr. Record, Mr. Earley, Mr. Woodbridge, Mr. Perkins, Mr. Beale, Mr. Barr, Mr. Nash, and a host of other practical men, whose sole object in these trials is to elucidate the truth from data which "A.," unless he has extraordinary opportunities, cannot possibly possess?-J. P.

FLOWERS FOR OUR BORDERS.-No. 26.

MITRARIA COCCINEA.-SCARLET MITRARIA.

MITRARIA COCCINEA has the merit of being the only hardy plant of its order yet discovered. We do not, however, use the term "hardy" in its most extended sense; in very severe winters some protection would, doubtless, be necessary: but Messrs. Veitch, of Exeter, the importers of this fine plant, are of opinion that it would bear ten or twelve degrees of frost without injury.

The habit and general appearance of the Mitraria will be sufficiently understood by a reference to our figure. Its stems are unusually slender, branched, and, in specimens of sufficient age, reach the height of about 3 feet. The foliage is small, and somewhat brittle and succulent, with a number of short hairs scattered over its upper surface. The flowers are numerous, and produced singly from the axil of the leaves, on footstalks 2 inches long, with a ventricose corolla, from the mouth of which protudes the long slender style. Its season of blooming extends from May to the end of June.

The soil most suitable for its cultivation is a mixture of good turfy peat and loam, in the proportion of three parts of the former to one of the latter. Where this is not at hand any soil containing a tolerably large proportion of leaf mould may be used, avoiding those of a poor sandy character, as well as pure loams deficient in decayed vegetable matter. When

grown out of doors it must be planted under a north wall, or screened from the sun's influence by a fence, for it will not flourish except in the shade. Until its hardiness in the northern and eastern counties has been more fully tested we would not recommend its exposure during the winter months without some protection. A small hand-glass or a large inverted flower pot will offer a ready means of warding-off the effects of frost; and to these may be joined, as an auxiliary, a small heap of coal ashes. Where there is the convenience of a cold frame, the roots may be potted in the autumn and preserved with less risk.

Mitraria coccinea.

If grown as a pot-plant it will be necessary to provide it with a cool, shady window; and an arid atmosphere must at all times be avoided. Especial attention must be paid to the drainage, for the soil in which it appears to succeed best being of a retentive nature, too great an excess of moisture must be guarded against by a good supply of broken crocks.

Gesneraceous plants, as well as all others with tuberous roots, usually require to be kept quite dry when at rest; but with the Mitraria a somewhat different treatment will be necessary, for its fibrous roots will not bear the complete withdrawal of moisture. It will, therefore, need an occasional watering during the winter months, though the soil must be kept only in a slightly moistened condition, and the plant should be placed in a cool situation-by no means in a warm apartment.

Its propagation presents no greater difficulties than that of the other plants of its order. The easiest mode of increasing it is by division of the roots in spring; but cuttings may also be taken at any time during the spring and summer months, and struck in any light vegetable soil under a bell-glass or tumbler.

It is a native of the Island of Chiloe, a circumstance which will explain both its comparative hardiness and its preference for a cool moist atmosphere and partial shade.-(W. Thompson's English Flower Garden, Revised by the Author.)

ALARUM THERMOMETERS.

WHEN in Edinburgh recently Mr. Bryson, philosophical instrument maker, Prince's Street, called my attention to a most ingenious arrangement of thermometers and galvanism, by which the temperature of the external air, or that of any glass

happily all are not sceptical, and such theories are followed by a certain number, merely on the faith of high scientific authorities.

I need hardly suggest the variety of ways in which such an arrangement would be useful to gardeners, and more especially to amateurs, in the management of hothouses. For instance, when the weather is variable and sudden frosts set in, especially towards morning, the thermometer outside the window could be set to indicate 36°, and this would give a margin in order to get up heat before the freezing point was reached. In the case of amateurs who heat their small greenhouses with gas, they could have an arrangement in their bedrooms by which they could turn on more gas, and when the minimum point was exceeded the bell would cease, and they would know that all was safe. On the other hand, when the heat exceeded what was required, the damper could be dropped into the flue, or the gas shut off, as the case might be, by a simple arrangement like bell wires. In this way much trouble as well as fuel could be saved.-W. THOMSON, Tweed Vineyard, Galashiels.

ROUGH PLATE GLASS.

THERE are, no doubt, those among our readers who are old enough to remember well nigh forty years ago. They will be able to call to remembrance some of what may be termed the curious incidents of gardening practice, as well as some of the many principles or theories promulgated during that time by those who regarded themselves as the legitimate teachers of the science of our profession. They will remember how ridiculously absurd were some of the schemes and systems which were expected to send horticulture bounding forward on the royal road of improvement. The Royal Horticultural Society of London had hollow pillars of brick built in its gardens, and filled with little besides bones and charcoal, in which to plant Vines and show practical men how to grow Grapes ad libitum in this unfavourable climate of ours. The next swing of the Vine-growing pendulum landed us up to the nose in dead pigs and slaughter-house refuse as the prime powers for producing fine Grapes. By means of planting a single row of White Providence Pine Apple 4 feet apart in pits of rich soil heated with stable litter, some extra large fruit were produced, and hence an economical champion steps into the ring of gaping and wondering practical gardeners, and tells them that all that is needed to produce the finest Pine Apples are a few bricks, and boards, and glass lights, and some stable manure; and promulgates the theory, so complimentary to practical men, that whoever amongst them put their employers to the expense of hot-water pipes, &c., for Pine culture, could only do so with the pure motive of getting a per-centage out of the bill! Another wrote articles in the papers by the ell, to prove that the intermediate or progressive system of shifting pot plants was all wrong, and that the soundest and most sensible theory was to transfer them out of thumb pots into the largest size required at once.

Then rough and comparatively obscure plate glass was recommended as the panacea for all the ills to which plants are heir in ordinary glass houses. Among other wonders which this glass was to work, it was to render shade in bright summer weather entirely unnecessary, and yet it was not to intercept the light in winter! But we are not writing for the amusement of our readers, else we could well nigh fill our whole number with the absurdities which have been propounded. Of course, such advanced notions, when brought to the test of public utility, were found to be indebted to imagination for their rose-coloured virtue; and so such projects, and even their projectors, are speedily well nigh forgotten by an ungrateful generation of men who have the opportunity of practising the science of horticulture. But of course we must not forget

Our experience with Vines under rough plate is that they require the most exact treatment in the matters of air-giving and air-moisture to prevent the under sides of the leaves from becoming one mass of blotchy warts; and even with such care we have never been able to wholly avert this affection--said by some to be produced by something amiss at the root, but which, we venture to say, is brought on in ninety-nine cases out of a hundred by overmuch moisture in the atmosphere and deficient ventilation in dull weather, and of course obscure glass favours the malady. And for Orchid culture we do not find it so good as ordinary ground sheet-glass.

We could find a much more extended catalogue of faults with rough obscure glass, but we do not consider it necessary in order to warn our readers, who may be building or glazing, against it, more particularly north of the Tweed, where gardeners are not troubled with overmuch light, as a general rule.

Rough plate is recommended for horticultural purposes chiefly because scalding sometimes occurs to Vines and Pines under clear sheet-glass when the sun is powerful in our few bright months. Where such is the case, and the evil cannot be obviated otherwise than by slight shadings, we should recommend shading for a few weeks in preference to glazing with glass sufficiently obscure to keep light from the plants for three-fourths of the year. We have never experienced scalding under the clearest sheet when it is, as it ought to be, free from specks. Foreign sheet-glass is generally very specky, and all such glass should be rejected; and where a few specks do occur, they are easily obscured in summer, so as to prevent their acting on the foliage like lenses.

Unless it be in exceptional circumstances, and during the very brightest sun, we consider shading to healthy Pines and Vines, as well as many other things, a great evil. To increase the evil by using glass which prevents the fullest passage of light (for the sake of preventing any bad effects that may arise from its intensity for a very short time of the year, while such can be temporarily effected), cannot be sound practice. Light is the great consolidator and colourist of our flowers and fruits; besides, flowers and fruits may be called for in vain, like spirits from the vasty deep, unless vegetation is first perfectly matured by the agency of light.-(The Gardener.)

GARDENING VICTIMISED BY SMOKE.
"Each day the wind rising with sooted wings,
A sable cloud athwart the welkin flings."

I READ with great interest your articles on "Villa or Suburban Gardening," and try to glean what information I can from them; but, unfortunately, they fall short of what I require, for I have the misfortune-and it is a misfortune to all who love flowers-to live near a large manufacturing town, and my efforts to render my beds gay and flourishing are entirely frustrated by the volumes of smoke that pour over them from the tall chimneys in the neighbourhood. This evil is not touched upon by the writer of the articles in question, and I, for one, should esteem it a great boon if he, or any of your readers, would occasionally give the names of a few plants hardy enough to resist this abominable nuisance. Some flowers I find will thrive in spite of it, but very few. That lovely flower Phlox Drummondi does well, and a few more common annuals, such as Clarkia, Eschscholtzia, Convolvulus minor, but not major, Marigolds, Mignonette, Asters, Stocks, &c.; but these last only a short time, and I try in vain to make anything of Scarlet Geraniums or Verbenas. The same with Roses, except a few, and those do only moderately well. Pinks and Carnations I can grow, and for this I am thankful; but as I have a large garden just in front of the drawing-room

window, I am most anxious for a few hints as to any addition it would be possible to make under these unfortunate circum. stances. I may add that the garden is on a hill, and much exposed to the west and south-west. The kitchen garden presents the same difficulties, and although I have sown Peas over and over again they never pay for the trouble. I have a good wall fronting the west, and on this I have occasionally a few Pears. Cherries I can make nothing of, except a small crop of Morellos on a south wall; the same with Apples and Plums, although we have many trees.-A LADY GARDENER. [Many besides our correspondent would be benefited by such information as she seeks for, and we will readily give insertion to communications on the subject.-EDS.]

THE VALUE OF FUEL.-No. 2.

Ir was shown in the last paper on this subject that the theoretical amount of heat yielded by different species of fuel was enormously modified in practice by the nature of the arrangements for combustion and for the utilisation of the heat. It is quite possible, in consequence, that the cheapest of fuels might become the dearest in use. Still, before considering the best mode of extracting the heat, it will be as well to ascertain which species of fuel is really the most economical at existing prices, supposing its full degree of heat could be employed. The prices will of course vary according to localities, but each person may correct the figures for himself. Taking coal at 20s. per ton, the price per pound is about one-ninth of a penny. A ton of coal yields from 55 to 80 per cent. of coke-according to its quality-or say on an average fifteen hundredweight, which is about the weight of a chaldron of thirty-six bushels. It may be convenient to remember that as coke swells in making and thus occupies more bulk than the coal from which it is made, its weight is somewhere about half that of the same bulk of coal. The price also varies, but generally it is about 30s. per ton, or say one-sixth of a penny per pound. Of gas about 9500 cubic feet are made from each ton of coals-it is of specific gravity from 50 to 55 (air being 1.0, and 13 cubic feet of air weighing 1 lb.), and this quantity of gas therefore weighs about 365 lbs. At 4s. per 1000 cubic feet, as furnished by the companies, its cost is therefore about 11d. per pound. Petroleum at 28. per gallon costs about 3d. per pound, and colza oil 6d. per pound.

If, therefore, we range these substances according to the cost of the quantity of each required to yield 10,000 units of heat we shall obtain the following results in pence and decimals of a penny :

only transmit a fixed amount of the heat applied to it in a given time, and if we want more heat we must increase the extent of iron exposed. But, over and above this, coal needs space for its combustion, for its nature is such that in a confined space it distils instead of burning. Now a large space is not always to be had, and in such cases either coke or gas may prove more convenient. But I may point out that in burning coal another element of great value is wasted, and might be preserved without loss of heat. Your readers are all aware that in gasworks a large amount of ammoniacal liquor is produced, the value of which as manure is immense. Each ton of coal (if of average composition) yields thus about 30 lbs. of ammonia, the money value of which at present prices is about 25s. I have shown in a recent number of the Agricultural Gazette of what enormous importance to the country it would be to save this waste, and I have also suggested that the general use of private gasworks would be a measure which would do something in this direction. Attached to gardens such apparatus would cost little trouble, and indeed in many establishments they already exist. But the resulting gas need not be purified when intended only for heating purposes (although it might be if desired also for lighting), since it would be equally available for heating although not thoroughly purified. In ordinary gasworks about one-third or one-fourth of the coke produced is used for heating the retorts in which the gas is made, but in gardens a large proportion of the heat thus expended could be recovered, either by the use of a flue, or of a boiler to utilise the heat from the furnace in which the retort is heated. The practical result would be that each ton of coal would yield about half a ton of coke for combustion in the regular stokeholes (over and above the coke employed in the retort furnace), about 9000 cubic feet or 350 lbs. of gas for use in heating whenever found convenient, and at least 20s. worth of ammoniacal liquor for application to the garden crops. In future papers I shall deal with the arrangements for conveying the heat to the places where it is required, and the amount of heating surfaces necessary for given amounts of cooling surfaces.-J. BOYD KINNEAR.

Or, in other words, a given amount of heat which can be obtained from coal of ordinary quality for 1d. would cost nearly 2d. if derived from coke, 6d. if derived from gas, 1s. 6d. if derived from petroleum, and 3s. if derived from colza oil.

Obviously, then, coal is the fuel which economy points to, provided only we can burn it economically. The fact that other descriptions of fuel ever compete with it only shows the points in which we mismanage it. Coke yields no waste in the form of smoke, and gas no waste in the form of unconsumed carbonic oxide, while the oils, if used, are generally employed in lamps, or in an apparatus which extracts the whole of their available heat. Thus dealt with they may easily become more economical than coal, thrown in masses into a furnace which vomits forth unburnt gas and soot, and which is placed beneath a boiler so small as to let nine-tenths of the heat escape into the chimney. But these errors may be remedied. A wide and long range of furnace bars on which the fire may be kept thin and bright, and the coal gradually coked as it is pushed forward from the front, while air enough is admitted to consume fully the hot gases at the back, the admixture of clay balls to prevent caking and to make combustion slower while equally perfect, and a large increase of boiler-surface exposed to the flame and effluent gases, aided, if necessary, by the addition of a flue through which they may give off their heat in the house before entering the chimney, would enable us to use coal with the certainty of giving the full advantage which its real heating power and low price can afford.

But it must be kept in view that to permit this result space is absolutely essential. It is true, indeed, that whatever the fuel a large boiler-surface is alike indispensable, for iron can

April
May..
June
July..
August
September
October
November
December

Total

-H. HARRIS.

NASH COURT.

I HAVE only lately seen an interesting communication on Nash Court in Kent, from Mr. J. Robson, in the number of THE JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE for October 9, 1873. As the great grandson of the last Thomas Hawkins, of Nash Court, and a party to the sale of this old family place to Mr. Lade, the present owner, I send you a correction which you may like to notice. There are in Kent two estates, both of which bear the name of Nash Court-one in the Isle of Thanet and the other near Boughton-under-Blean, Faversham; and these have been inadvertently confounded in the history of Mr. Lade's house. The descent, I believe, is correctly stated through various families down to the Turners, of the Nash Court in Thanet, which, as long ago as when Hasted wrote his history of Kent (1790), had ceased to be a gentleman's mansion, and was used as a farmhouse and granary. But the error is in applying that descent to Nash Court at Boughton. That estate never passed away (for more than five hundred years) from the Hawkins family. It came to them by the marriage of Joan de Nash with Andrew Hawkins, as appears by the inquisition post mortem taken 17 Edward III. (1343). It descended from

father to son until it came to the Thomas Hawkins mentioned by Mr. Robson, who rebuilt the mansion, and who died June 21, 1766, at the great age of ninety-two. He was the grandfather of the last Thomas Hawkins, of Nash Court, who died September 23, 1800, leaving four daughters and co-heirs1. Bridget, married to Henry Roper, 14th Baron Teynham. 2. Mary, married to Sir Edward Knatchbull, Bart, of Mersham Hatch, Kent.

3. Anne, married to Lt.-Colonel Woodroffe, of Poyle Park, in Surrey.

4. Eleanor, married to Henry Goold, brother of Sir George Goold, Bart, of Old Court, Co. Cork, whose descendants in 1864 sold the estate to Mr. Lade.-G. F. DUNCOMBE.

PORTRAITS OF PLANTS, FLOWERS, AND
FRUITS.

FRAGRÆA ZEYLANICA. Nat. ord., Loganiaces. Linn., Pentandria Monogynia.-Flowers white. "A native of the central province of Ceylon, where, according to Dr. Thwaites, it abounds on the banks of the river at Balangodde. It is one of the handsomest species of a fine tropical Asiatic and Polynesian genus, of which some twenty species are enumerated by Bentham in his notes on Loganiaceae, published in the Linnæan Journal' in 1857, to which several more are now to be added from the Malayan Islands."-(Bot. Mag. t. 6080.) GAILLARDIA AMBLYODON. Nat. ord., Composite. Linn., Syngenesia Frustranea.-Flowers crimson. "A very handsome October-flowering annual, a native of sandy plains in Texas and New Mexico, where it blossoms from the beginning of summer until the winter's frost cuts it off. The genus to which it belongs inhabits both temperate North America and extra-tropical South America, and consists of about eight species. The present species was discovered by Berlandier in 1827, and collected subsequently by Lindheimer in 1844, and by Drummond in 1845."-(Ibid., t. 6081.)

STAPELIA CORDEROYI. Nat. ord., Asclepiadaces. Linn., Pentandria Digynia.-Native of South Africa. Flowers green and purple-tipped. Dr. Hooker says, "I have named this very curious and distinct species after Mr. Justus Corderoy, of Blewberry, near Didcot, an old and an eminent cultivator of succulent plants, and for many years a valued correspondent of the Royal Gardens. It flowered at Blewberry in September of last year."-—(Ibid., t. 6082.)

IRIS DOUGLASIANA. Nat. ord., Iridacea. Linn., Triandria Monogynia. Flower lilac and white with purple veins. "Discovered by Coulter in California, and subsequently collected by David Douglas in 1833 in New California, but unknown to me from any other locality and collector, except from a mention of the plant in one of the reports of the United States' surveys, where it is stated to be found on hillsides in the Grass Valley, California, together with a large-flowered variety (how large it is not said), and longer pedicels (1 inch) at the Corte Madera, also in California."-(Ibid., t. 6083.)

ODONTOGLOSSUM ROSEUM. Nat. ord., Orchidacea. Linn., Gynandria Monandria.-"In its rose-coloured flowers this forms a remarkable contrast to the prevalent colour of the genus to which it belongs. It was discovered by Hartweg near Loxa, in the Peruvian Andes, in a quite cool region, and was introduced by Mr. Linden from that region by his able collector, Mr. Wallis, in 1865."-(Ibid., t. 6084.)

STRAWBERRY-The Amateur.-"We have to thank Mr. Barron, of the Royal Horticultural Society's Garden, Chiswick, for the examples of this fine and useful Strawberry. It is another of the triumphs of Mr. Bradley, whom we have had to thank already for Oscar, Dr. Hogg, and others of our finest fruits, amongst which this last is not by any means the least. During the past season abundant evidence has been educed to prove it one of the most useful of its class. It has been named Amateur by Mr. Bradley, in consideration of its enormous cropping qualities, its free growth, and general suitability for amateur cultivators. The appearance of the plant is somewhat like that called Sir C. Napier, a stronger grower, however, better constitutioned, and with the leaves larger and of a deeper green, but somewhat subject to mildew. It is a very heavy cropper; and the fruits, which keep well, are very large, obovate, and cockscombed in shape, of a fine deep red colour, frequently with a heavy coating of glaucous bloom, like the Hautbois. The seeds are small and prominent. The flesh is firm and solid, of a deep red colour, and of a fine, rich, sparkling, sub-acid flavour, exceedingly pleasant to the palate. It is in all respects a very excellent Strawberry, and well

worthy of the first-class certificate awarded to it by the Royal Horticultural Society. In reference to this Strawberry we have received the following communication from Mr. Earley :The new seedling Strawberry named The Amateur has proved here to be a most valuable addition to existing_varieties. Black Prince, President (of two separate growers), Dr. Hogg, Keens' Seedling, and British Queen-which does well on this ground-all ripened in the order here noted, and they were followed at the nick of time by Amateur, which well filled-up the gap existing between the last named of the older kinds and the valuable Frogmore Late Pine. The fruit of The Amateur is firm, and good for travelling. It grows close around its crown, requiring a less amount than usual of netprotection, and possesses a flavour more brisk and refreshing than Strawberries generally have, and this without anything approaching to unpleasant acidity. Indeed, to those who think Strawberries somewhat insipid, The Amateur will prove a boon. Small runner-crowns dibbled out on to good soil somewhat late in the season, were able to produce a crop.'"— (Florist and Pomologist, 3 s., vii., 25.)

POINCIANA REGIA.

THERE are two well-marked varieties of this magnificent flowering tree in the East Indies, though I cannot say whether they are permanent or not. One has scarlet and yellow blossoms, and the other crimson and white. The former seems to be the most common, and is abundant at Madras, Secunderabad, Rangoon, and other places, while the latter prevails chiefly at Bangalore. Whether due to the climate or not I am unable to state, but it appeared to me that the foliage of the Bangalore plants was richer and more profuse, and consequently much more beautiful, than any that I saw elsewhere. Indeed, the luxuriance of the trees generally on the Mysore plateau seemed to indicate that there they had found conditions of soil and climate eminently favourable to their most perfect development. There are, however, many large and noble specimens at Coimbatore, near the foot of the Neilgherries; and in May, 1866, the road close to the town was all aflame with their gorgeous flowers. No object in the whole vegetable kingdom can, in my opinion, vie with this splendid Poinciana in the radiant wealth of its peerless bloom-not even the far-famed and glorious Amherstia nobilis, which I have seen in great perfection at Rangoon and Moulmein, in Burmah.

I have now and then heard the Poinciana regia called the Ostrich-feather Tree, without doubt on account of its beautiful foliage, which has much the appearance of broad spreading plumes; and at Bangalore it is occasionally known as the Flame of the Forest; but this name, though by no means inappropriate, is the prior property of another brilliant plant, the Ixora coccinea, to which it is also very applicable. Sometimes in India the term Gold-Mohur Tree is used to specify the Poinciana under notice, though it seems to be really owned by the yellow species Poinciana elata; and the name of Flamboyant is familiar to those who have seen the tree at the Mauritius.

Poinciana regia has apparently only been found in a wild state in Madagascar, whence it made its way many years ago to the Mauritius, and subsequently further east. It belongs to the Natural Order Leguminosa, and the genus was named by De Candolle in honour of M. de Poinci, once governor of the Antilles.-G. E. B.

CHATSWORTH,

THE SEAT OF THE DUKE OF DEVONSHIRE.-No. 2. THE other most remarkable feature of Chatsworth is to my mind, as I have already said, the Victoria regia house. There may be, for all I know, other houses for aquatics as large as this, but I am sure that none can ever equal it in interest. No one standing within it can forget that it is the little germ from whence arose the gigantic glass house of 1851 and the Crystal Palace at Sydenham; but whether or no there are others larger, there are none more attractive. We have not only the queen of Water Lilies in excellent condition and in full flower; but round the house are different varieties of Nelumbium and Nymphæa, while Palms with their graceful and elegant foliage placed at the edge of the tank add their charm to the scene. Suspended, too, from the roofs are large baskets of Achimenes, some radiant with their brilliant blue flowers, and others like a sheet of snow; and thus again artistic beauty and horticultural skill go hand-in-hand.