HORTICULTURAL NOTES.

Otago Witness, Issue 2914, 19 January 1910, Page 10

HORTICULTURAL NOTES.

By J. Gebbie.

ROSE DESCRIPTIONS. The descriptions as given in catalogues and other .horticultural publications are not always correct. This season I havo heard a good many complaints among rosegrowers, who bought and waited patiently for their novelties to bloom, and then found them to com© far short of what was expected. Soil, situation, and other causes may be responsible for this, but in other instances tho descriptions are overdrawn. I have before mo two of the leading horticultural papers published, both describing a new rose, Marquise de Sinety. In one of these it is described as “ a charming rose quite remarkable for its distinct colour which is a golden orange shaded with bronzy red the buds ochre-carmine. The flowers are fragrant, fairly large, and of cup form set off by dark glossy foliage.” The other publication gives a coloured . plate and the following description:—“ln Masfquise do Sinety we have a flower with the rich golden hue ’ of the deep-coloured trollius, and what a maas of it will be like may bs imagined. Tho flower has a shapely globular build, with just slightly reflexed edges to the petals. The rich-coloured foliage in the young state, almost like ■beetroot, gives a grand contrast to tho flower.” What it may turn out to be in the Dominion when distributed it is hard to say, but it is to ba hoped that it will prove more satisfactory than the Lyon rose has done in North Otago and South Can ter bu ry d is t riots. TELEMLY SWEET PEAS. This is an interesting race of sweet peas introduced two or three years ago from. Algiers. Sweet peas are amazingly popular, and are flowers which one never tires of. These new Telemly sweet peas are gaining popularity, and .have much to recommend them, their chief feature being their winter flowering habit. They are easily grown, and flower as profusely in the greenhouse all winter as the ordinary sweet peas in summer. There is a good range of colour among them, and several new varieties have been added tiiis season. The cultural directions are to sow th© seeds about the month of April in Sin pots, placing six seeds in a pot; stand on a shelf near tho glass or in a. cold 1 frame until frost comes. When they are 12in high, pot into Tin pots, j.md when 2ft high into 10m pots. Always keep them ns near the glass as possible. This will ensure sturdy growth and plenty of bloom. A homegrower considers that these winter-flowering sweet peas have a great future before them, and advises these who oan do so to have a sweet pea house this winter, try the Tele inly, and bs is sure they will be delighted with them. SWEET PEA NOVELTIES. Few who grow sweet peas are aware of the way in which new varieties are brought into being, and it may interest some to learn-of the trouble and care, and the time necessary to fix a new variety so that it may b© introduced into commerce. Th© hybridist crosses two standard varieties, and saves th© seeds. The result from these seeds will gave flowers of on© colour only. The seeds from these are again sown when- a mixture of colours will result; the original colour of tho first cross having disappeared, or if not it will appear only in small quantities. Two or three good novelties may appear, and providing they are of more than ordinary merit, the plants are carefully tended, and the others discarded. Seed saved from plants thus selected may the- following year be expected to produce plants that are true, and should more than 10 per cent, of rogues appear the variety is discarded as useless, unless it is something very special indeed. This shows that it takes three or four years to originate a new variety, and be able to send, it out as a first-class novelty. Sweet pea specialists are continually working at th© improvement of those popular flowers, and) are able to place- a few novelties on th© market each season. These are ©agerly purchased by growers throughout the world. FLOWER SHOW. The Waimate Horticultural Society held an exhibition of fruit, flowers, and vegetables -on the 13th of January, and. taking the- dry weather into consideration, the exhibits, though fewer than on former occasions, were up to the average in quality. Town residents had th© advantage of an abundant water supply, thanks to th© generosity of th© borough council, who as yet have placed no restrictions upen the quantity used for garden purposes. The country horticulturalists who generally exhibit were, owing to the drought, debarred from making their usual display. The weakest section in the show was pot plants, only two exhibitors staging: but in these lots were -good examoles of fuchsias, begonias, pelargoniums, palms, ferns, and asparagus. The cut flowers in amateur and open sections contained many choice things. For a collection- of hardv cut- flowers grown in the open, not less than 25 varieties, to be exhibited in- separate vases, there were four competitors, the first award going to a collection in which 10 out of 25 were annuals, a collection of 25 choice perennials being awarded second. Giad'i-01-i in great variety made an attractive display. They belonged to tho classes known as Ghiklsi and Groffs hybrids. The flowers are of large size, enlivened by stains and blotches of the richest colours. These are the best -of all gladioli for garden decoration. Roses call for no special comment, only a few stands being’ set up. Carnations were very goed, some beautiful blooms being on view. Vegetable's were well represented-, and competition was keen. Fewer entries of fruit were staged, but what was exhibited was of average quality. Cherries were particularly fine. A few plates of splendid strawberries looked tempting. Peaches, plums, and smaller fruits were represented by -a few exhibits of each kind 1 . For tho best- collection of open-air fruit only one exhibitor came forward, and made a nice display. For an- exhibition of fruit and other horticultural products, early in March would, I arn confident, bo a- better time than January; March .may bs laie for a few things, but dbhjtey, gladioli, and a

■host of other flowers, besides fruit and vegetables, would furnish better material for a show than can be obtained at this time. BULB CATALOGUE. H. C. Gibbons and Co., of Wellington, remind us that the time for bulb planting will soon bo round by forwarding their bulb catalogue for the planting season of 1910. As usual, its 60 pages are filled with .the names and descriptive notes of a host of bulbous and tube roue-rooted plants, many of which are indispensable for creating a floral display in our gardens from ■early spring till late in autumn, and with pot .culture many may bo had in bloom during the dull months of winter. ' Herbaceous plants for autumn planting, and novelties in bulbs and seeds, also' find a place.