exhibited a model of a very useful contrivance, by means of which he proposes to examine the soil of plants growing in large pots without inconvenience. His scheme is registered as the " West Kent Garden-pot."

At the meeting on March 3, amongst the new plants, was a species of Tropæolum with yellow flowers, from Messrs. Veitch and Son, of Exeter, who received it from their collector in Peru; a certificate of merit was awarded for it. Messrs. Loddiges, of Hackney, sent a new drooping-flowered plant, not before known in Europe, from Tropical Africa, for which a Knightían medal was awarded. It was named Ansellia Africana, in honour of Mr. Ansell, who when he was out with the Niger expedition found it growing on the trunk of the Oil Palm, in the island of Fernando Po. It proves to be a very handsome thing, and will be an acquisition to the orchidaceous house. Mr. Robertson, gardener to Mrs. Lawrence, sent Schomburgkia violacea, a beautiful South American species; a new Odontoglossum, with spotted white flowers; and the rare Phalaenopsis amabilis, or white Butterfly-plant; a Knightian medal was awarded.

The meeting held on April 7 was most distinguished by the production of a new species of Fuchsia from Messrs. Veitch and Son, of Exeter, which it was stated was originally discovered about 200 miles from Lima in Peru by Mr. Lobb, their collector. It proves to be a curious and rather handsome kind, producing an abundance of rose-coloured tubes, each being from about four to five inches in length, and entirely destitute of petals; the large silver medal was awarded. We hope to publish a figure of it shortly.

Mr. Robertson, gardener to Mrs. Lawrence, sent a splendid plant of the Indian Phaius Wallichii, with seven flower-stems of about five feet in height, rising from among the widely spreading dark-green foliage; two plants of the rare and delicate Phalaenopsis amabilis, which were stated to have been in bloom for these six weeks; two Azaleas, named Decora and Minerva, both good, but the latter especially so, being covered with large bright-red, well-formed blossoms; and others for which a Knightian medal was awarded. A small group of Orchids came from Mr. Don, gardener to F. G. Cox, Esq., consisting of Burlingtonia rigida, a rare species; Coelogyne ochracea; the showy Cattleya Skinneri; and Epidendrum selligerum. Several groups of seedling Cinerarias were produced. Mr. Henderson, of St. John's Wood, sent four sorts, remarkable for their dwarf habit and large spreading heads of bloom; they were named Royal Crimson, Royal Purple, Isabella, and Beauty of St. John's Wood; a certificate was awarded. Other seedling Cinerarias came from Mr. Best, of Reading, and from Mr. Ivery, of Peckham, all of them exhibiting some improvement on the kinds now in cultivation. From the garden of the Society we noticed Coburgia incarnata, a stove bulb recently sent from Peru by Mr. Hartweg, having a strong stem of about two feet in height, surmounted by a bunch of drooping red flowers; Maxillaria suaveolens, somewhat resembling M. aromatica, and, like it, possessing an agreeable perfume. A pretty little new Himalayan primula, somewhat in the way of denticulata, and possessing a very agreeable fragrance; it was considered to be hardy, but from its only having been recently received this had not, however, been directly proved. It was named P. involucrata, and it was mentioned that there are several varieties of it in the gardens. We also observed a cut specimen of Habrothamnus fasciculatus, which fully realised all that has been said of the beauty of this noble shrub; many have failed to grow it to perfection; these failures may, however, be referable to two causes-first, to the plant not being Habrothamnus fasciculatus at all, but Cestrum roseum, or some spurious variety; and, second, to its having been grown with too much care; it will not stand much heat; a cold greenhouse, free from damp, suits it best, and from its blooming at this season, when every itinerant blossom is a desideratum, it is likely to turn out an invaluable plant for the conservative wall.

We must not omit to notice a very large Erica favoides elegans, measuring at least five feet in height and as much in breadth, sent by Messrs. Fairbairn, of Clapham; it was a finely grown specimen, exhibiting, in a striking degree, what can be done with such things under skilful management; a Banksian medal was awarded.

GARDENERS' ASSOCIATIONS FOR MUTUAL INSTRUCTION.-In former Numbers of this Magazine we have remarked upon these very useful societies; and it is pleasing to notice their extension throughout the country. The following details of the meeting of the Stamford Hill, Clapton, and Stoke Newington Gardeners' Association has been forwarded to us, and which, we doubt not, will be useful to our readers.

Jan. 19.-Mr. MERRY in the chair.—Mr. CRICHTON, gardener to J. Foster, Esq., read a paper on the culture of Achimenes and other plants belonging to the natural order of Gesnerads. This order Mr. C. stated to contain several genera of great interest, five of which, namely, Achimenes, Gesnera, Gloxinia, Sinningia, and Niphea, he would treat of collectively. Beautiful, says Mr, C., as are the whole of them, the Achimenes are the most attractive; their dwarf bushy habit, brilliant flowers, and the length of time they continue to bloom, render them worthy of our care in cultivating them for the greenhouse or conservatory, The species longiflora, grandiflora, pedunculata, rosea, and picta, come from Guatemala; and coccinea from Jamaica; the other four genera are natives of the West Indies and of South America. They all like a stove heat, but they may also be grown without such convenience; for most of, the Achimenes, and several of the Gloxinias, will attain a high degree of perfection in a cucumber-frame. The compost I employ is light sandy loam, turfy peat, and rotten dung, in equal parts, with a little silver sand; these are mixed well together in the autumn, previously to being used, allowing the mixture to remain exposed to the action of the air till wanted, but protected from rain. These plants are all readily propagated from under-ground tubers and from leaves; where the latter are preferred, they should be inserted in sand and peat, and covered with a bell-glass, plunging the pots in a hotbed; the bell-glass should be wiped dry every day until the plants are rooted, when it should be removed altogether, and air given to encourage their growth. In order to keep up a succession of blooming plants from April till the dark months of the succeeding winter, some are started at different times in spring, commencing about the middle of January. The bulbs are taken out of the dry soil in which they have been stored, and are potted singly (choosing the strongest), in 3-inch pots, well drained and filled with the above-mentioned soil, placing a little silver sand round each bulb. Gloxinias, Gesneras, and others which 'grow from the same bulb every year, are placed in pots just large enough to admit of their annual growth. After receiving a little water they are placed in a hotbed or house, where the temperature ranges from 60° at night to 70° by day, and the fermenting material in which they are plunged from 75° to 80°, not higher, as either excess of heat or water at this early stage of excitement would be injurious. When the pots become filled with roots they are shifted at once into those in which they are to be flowered. The Achimenes have the best effect when grown in masses; this is done by taking four plants out of small pots, and planting them in a larger one, or in a pan, of a foot in diameter or so, in proportion to the size required, with two or three inches of potsherds in the bottom, to secure perfect drainage; the top as well as the bottom heat is now raised to about 80°, keeping up a moist atmosphere. The Achimenes are syringed frequently, and air is given at every favourable opportunity, and water when necessary; but the latter with care, as many of the fleshy-leaved kinds are easily injured by too much water. When small pots are employed, liquid manure is given twice a-week, but never before the roots have completely filled the pots; while growing they are kept as near the glass as possible, removing them when in bloom to the greenhouse, but taking care not to expose them to cold draughts; shading is sometimes necessary to preserve the flowers. For winter blooming, Achimenes picta, Niphea oblonga, Gesnera zebrina, lateritia, oblongata, and bulbosa, are employed; but, although the others are not seen in bloom in the dark months of winter, Mr. C. believed them to possess capabilities for that purpose, provided a proper course of treatment were adopted. After they have done flowering, water is partially withheld; and, when the tops have died down, the roots are removed to any place free from frost and moisture till they are wanted.-Mr. MERRY remarked, that he started the bulbs before he took them out of the store-pots; he then planted three in a 5-inch pot (three of

which pots he shifted into a 9-inch pot as soon as they were filled with roots); he believed that they might be flowered throughout the whole year.-Mr. KENDALL recommended pans for Achimenes. He said that the best method of propagating Gloxinia was to lay the whole leaf under sand, and from it a number of plants would be produced.-Mr. CREXFORD disapproved of much shading or syringing, as both tended to elongate the young shoots; the best specimen of Achimenes he had ever seen was grown in a pan. If pots were used the soil should be poor and porous, or the plants would expend their energy in the formation of tubers.-Mr. TANT remarked, that out of a number of very healthy plants of Achimenes grown by him, the only one that did produce tubers at all grew in nothing but sand and charcoal. Mr. WREN had always found the different kinds of Gesnera to do best in soil rather stiffer than what he used for Achimenes. He never syringed his plants.-Mr. M'DONALD thought the bulbs of Gloxinia should not be kept in a low temperature while at rest; he had lost several, and attributed it to the temperature of the place not being above 40°, but had never lost any when placed on a shelf in the stove.-W. Sherwood, Hon. Secretary.

CHENOSTOMA POLYANTHA. This is a greenhouse plant, of a slender, partially upright habit, attaining from 9 to 12 inches in height, and readily trained to a dwarf and compact growth. It forms a valuable addition to the flower-garden, being well adapted for beds, or for individual effect upon rock-work, producing a profusion of purplish-lilac flowers, with a yellow eye or centre, during the months of July, August, September, and October, From its extreme disposition to form premature flower-buds, a rigid adherence to the rule for obtaining a vigorous undergrowth, by shortening the extremities of its fore-shoots, is indispensable. The cultivator will readily recognize in this plant a similarity in character to the useful Lyperia pedunculata and p. alba (Buchnera pedunculata). The latter, though a more robust plant, is inferior to the former, when properly "got up, in its larger and more lively-coloured flowers, and in its natural tendency to ex cessive fertility; so much so, that I anticipate nothing less than that an entire restriction of one or two plants from bloom will give a supply for successive seasons. In common with many others, this interesting plant is seen to disadvantage in the greenhouse during the spring months, with its prematurely scattered bloom; it is, nevertheless, one of those autumnal ornaments which contributes its share of interest when our summer friends are gone, and which, if less gay, is more constant, and, like those objects in nature whose highest qualities are only discernible in a strong light, it loves to expand its beauty beneath the bright sunshine. It is, moreover, a plant that is not to be valued singly, by comparison. It possesses a value and interest peculiarly its own, answering well for masses in the flower-garden, where it forms a distinct and essential feature. The profusion of its flowers, the pleasing variety of its colours, and the long continuance of its bloom, fully compensate for the absence of more brilliant but less valuable properties.-Gard. Chron.

BROMPTON STOCKS.-Two sowings of these should be made annually; the first about the middle of May, and the second about the end of June. Sow in beds of a nice sandy loam, in an open situation, and about the end of August, if the weather is moist, or the beginning of September; transplant them into a border, placing five in a patch; at the same time pot off a store, to be kept in a frame over winter, for planting out in spring; as winters like the past invariably destroy them, except in very sheltered situations. Use 6-inch pots for the purpose, which should be filled with good loam, mixed with a little rotten dung; the more airy the situation is, and the dryer the plants are kept in dull weather, the better they will succeed. Plants that survive the winter in the borders are always finest; but those kept in pots are well worth the trouble. Seed three or four years old is better, and more likely to produce double bloom than that of one year old. If there be more single-blossomed in the patch than one, pull them up; as it is too late to raise plants to bloom the coming season, they can be procured of florists for a trifle. C.

Floral Operations for May.

TENDER OR STOVE ANNUALS.-When it is desired to have some plants to bloom late in autumn, as Balsams, Cockscombs, Browallis, &c., seeds should now be sown, and the plants potted off into small sized pots, as soon as they are large enough, using a rich soil.

GREENHOUSE.-Ďuring the early part of May a few frosty nights generally occur; in consequence of which, it is advisable not to take out the general stock of plants before the middle of the month, or even, in cold situations, before the 25th. Whilst the plants, however, remain in the greenhouse let them have all the air that can be given during the day, and at nights, if no appearance of frost. Particular attention will now be required to afford an ample supply of water to free growing kinds of plants. Frequently syringe them over the tops at evening just before sun set. If any of the plants be attacked with green fly, or any other similar insects, apply a sprinkling of tobacco water, diluted with water, by adding to one quart of the liquid five of water; in applying which to the plants, syringe them at the under as well as upper surface of the leaves: a repetition will rarely be required. This mode of destroying the insects is far preferable to fumigation, no injury being sustained by it even if applied in a pure state. The liquid can be obtained of tobacconists at 10d. or Is. per gallon. Inarching Orange or Lemon trees may still be performed. Pelargoniums must be encouraged (see Articles upon). Ericas, strike cuttings this month, if the young shoots be firm enough. It is a good time for increasing most other plants by cuttings, striking in moist heat. Greenhouse Annuals, as Salpiglossises, Globe Amaranthuses, Balsams, &c., should be encouraged by a little warmth, and shifted into larger pots, early in the month, so that the plants may make a show, to succeed the removal of the general collection of greenhouse plants. Cuttings or suckers of Chrysanthemums should now be taken off, if not done before. Achimenes coccinea, longiflora, rosea, &c. plants should be potted singly into a light rich soil, and be forwarded in the stove, and repotted as they advance in growth, not too much at a time, but as root room appears necessary. Lobelias for the greenhouse should be similarly treated as to potting, &c. Seeds of greenhouse plants may still be sown. Repot any plants which require it, and not defer to any general potting, as is often done to the great injury of particular ones requiring it at present. Camellias now making their growth should be duly encouraged (see Articles in former volumes). Calceolarias be encouraged (see Articles in former volumes).

FLOWER GARDEN.-Continue to protect beds of Hyacinths, Tulips, &c. Carnations in pots should be encouraged by manure water, &c., in order to grow them vigorously; care in striking them will be required. By the middle of the month, half hardy annuals, as China Asters, Marigolds, &c., may be planted out in the open borders. Some of the best kinds may be potted, as done to the more tender sorts. Many kinds of greenhouse plants, as Petunias, Salpiglossises, Salvias, Fuchsias, Heliotropes, &c., should now be planted out in the open border. Dahlias that have been forwarded in pots, frames, &c., may be planted out towards the end of the month. Seedlings may be pricked out in a warm situation, having a deep, fresh, rich soil. When Stocks, Mignonette, China Asters, &c., are wished to bloom late in the year, seeds may now be sown, either under a frame or on a warm border. Slips of double Wallflowers should now be put in under a hand-glass. Seeds of biennials, as Sweet Williams, Scabious, Campions, &c., should now be sown. Tuberoses, for late flowering, should now be planted, either in pots or warm borders. Offsets of Campanula pyramidalis should be planted in rich soil, and placed in the greenhouse. Repotting must be continued till they cease to grow; by this means the plants will reach eight feet high, and be very branching. Double Rockets, pinch off leads of some plants to induce the production of laterals for future years supply.

In every previous Volume there are articles upon the Auriculas, Polyanthus, Carnations, Ranunculuses, Anemones, Tulips, Violets, Pinks, Heartsease, &c. We refer our readers to them, as affording directions and precautions valuable, especially at this early part of the season.

UNIV. OF CALIFORNI