1S73.] A REMEDY FOR MILDEW. 379 



with the same ^treatment as D. nobile. When making its growth it 

 luxuriates in the East Indian house, and requires a good supply of 

 water. The material in which it thrives is very similar to that gene- 

 rally used for D. nobile, viz., libry peat, a little very turfy loam, and 

 some sphagnum. When it has completed its growth it should have a 

 decreased amount of water, and be inured gradually to a lower tempe- 

 rature to rest in. 55° is sufficient for it after it has ripened and shed 

 its leaves, when it must be kept dry at the root, but'not so absolutely 

 dry as to cause shrivelling of the tissues. After resting for two or 

 three months it should be introduced into a higher temperature, accord- 

 ing to the time it is required to flower. But little water should be 

 given until it shows signs of throwing up young growths from the base 

 of the previous year's ones. When in bloom it will last for five or six 

 weeks in beauty, in a moderate temperature and comparatively dry 

 atmosphere. The proper time to shift it is when it is done blooming 

 and beginning to grow freely. Orchis. 



A REMEDY FOR MILDEW. 



A CORRESPONDENT, in your last issue, complains of his Eose-trees being 

 attacked by mildew. Some few months ago, I was asked by a nursery- 

 man if I could not make him some composition for checking it ; and as 

 dusting with flowers of sulphur is a somewhat tedious and wasteful use 

 of material, I hit upon the idea of dissolving sulphur in alkaline, and 

 thus use it as a dip or wash. I am of opinion, so far as a few experi- 

 ments have gone, that sulphur is an effectual antidote to mildew — 

 provided it be properly applied. Perhaps the following may be of 

 some use to your many readers. Take, say, 1 quart of strong alkaline 

 (which you can buy at a manufacturing chemist at l^d. per lb.), and 

 add to it 1 quart of water. Pour the alkaline solution into a glass or 

 earthenware vessel, and bring it to a boil. Add, by degrees, flowers of 

 sulphur (keeping the mixture well stirred) ; add sulphur till you can 

 see that the alkaline will not dissolve more. This you will know by 

 the sulphur depositing at the bottom of the vessel, or the mixture 

 looking muddy. Allow to settle, and on cooling, pour the clear liquid 

 (which is a full deep brown) into bottles, which ought, for its better 

 preservation, to be corked. It is now ready for use. Take half-a-pint 

 of this solution, and add it to 1 gallon of water. You can now either 

 dip your plants or syringe them, whichever is the most applicable. 

 Tobacco-water could be added — if it is of any use, which is doubtful, 

 besides adding to the expense. The sulphur, although dissolved in 

 the alkaline, is only loosely held, so that when plants are syringed 



