2 THE FLORIST AND POMOLOGIST. [JANUARY, 



older varieties. The plants may be either grown in pots or in the open 

 ground, but pot-culture is preferable. As soon as the flowers begin to expand 

 they should be protected from the rain, either by putting them into a greenhouse 

 or by placing glasses over them, but give them plenty of air and allow them to 

 have the sun, as plants bloomed under a covering in the shade produce little or 

 no seed, neither do those that are entirely exposed to the weather, because the 

 occasional showers of rain, and the night dews, keep the base of the petals con- 

 tinually moist, which, as a consequence, leads to mouldiness and decay. It is a 

 good plan, when the bloom is over, to extract the decayed petals, taking- 

 particular care in doing so not to injure the two stigmas or arms of the style, 

 which appear like horns projected from the seed-vessel. The plants should not 

 be layered until the seed becomes ripened, because this operation will most 

 certainly reduce, if not quite destroy the seed crop. 



The seed generally becomes ripe about the end of August. Care should be 

 taken not to gather it mitil it is quite ripe, and it should be kept in the seed- 

 vessel or pericarp until the time to sow it, which is about the first week in May. 

 The following varieties are all quite new and have bloomed very finely during 

 the last season, some of them having been honoured with certificates : — 



Mrs. Frederic Burnaby* (Turner).— Rose flake ; a fine largo full flower, with largo. 



smooth, finely-shaped petals ; the colom- a beautiful soft rose ; remarkably distinct, and a 



gi'eat favourite ; extra fine. 

 Campanini* {Turner). — Scarlet bizarre ; a good large flower, with largo smooth petals, and 



very bright colours ; extra fine. 

 SiTBiL {Holmes). — Rose flake, a very large flower, with fine broad smooth petals, woll 



marked with bright rose ; extra fine. 

 Isaac Wilicinson* (Turner). — Crimson bizarre; a fine large full flower, very smooth and 



well marked, ■with fine bright colours ; extra fine. 

 Saturn (Ilextall). — Scarlet bizarre ; a fine large smooth flower, very bright and pure in 



colour ; a grand novelty ; received a certificate of merit at Leicester. 

 Mr. Hextall (Tamer). — Rose flake; a good large beautifully marked flower, with fine 



smooth petals and very bright colour ; extra fine. 

 Goardsmax (Turner).— Scarlet bizarre; a large full flower, very bold and attractive, 



and quite distinct; fine. 

 Ajax* (Hexta//).— Purple flake; a fine large bold flower, well marliod with very bright 



purple ; quite distinct; extra fine. 

 Superb* (lni/r(im).—Soa,r\et flake ; a fine flower, with good smooth petals, and very nicely 



marked ; extra fine. 

 Mars (/fe^ii^a//).— Scarlet bizarre ; a good bright well-marked flower, much in the stylo 



of Admiral Carzon, but a stronger grower ; extra fine. 



Those marked * have been awarded first-class certificates during the past 

 blooming season. — John Ball, Slough. 



MASDEVALLIA CHIMil^RA. 



*E have here a novelty indeed, another of the Lindenian introductions 

 from western South America. It has been already described by Pro- 

 fessor Reichenbach in the Gardeners' Chronicle (1872, 463) in these 

 words : — " I cannot remember to have ever been more astonished than 

 ■when I obtained this remarkable flower ; it was botanically so unexpected. Such 



