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GARDENERS' CHRONICLE 



wide field to work in yet and open to all comers. Some 

 amateurs could better give time and attention to this 

 than the majority of their professional brethren. What 

 has been accomplished in the past should be but a stimu- 

 lus to take up this fascinating work, especially as the 

 scientific principles of plant-breeding are now more 



widely known. 



•■:■• ■:• * 



Orchids have a great fascination for most people and 

 are quite commonly regarded with a kind of mysterious 

 awe, induced perhaps by thrilling stories of the experi- 

 ences of some orchid collectors as well as by the large 

 sums of money that have been ]5aid for certain varieties. 

 There are many notable collections in this country and 

 abroad and whenever orchids are placed on public exhibi- 

 tion they are sure to attract a good deal of attention. 

 Alany of the species require the attention of expert grow- 

 ers, but there is at least one that may be grown to per- 

 fection by anyone having a greenhouse, and that is the 

 well-known Lady's Slipper, Cypripcdium insignc. Grown 

 in a mixture of fibrous peat, lumps of turfy loam, sphag- 

 num moss and charcoal, in well drained pots so that the 

 abundance of water required at all times may not stag- 

 nate, it is as easy to grow as a geranium and will reward 

 with a good crop of flowers around the Christmas season, 

 which in a cool house remain fresh for many weeks. It is 

 just a hundred years ago since this useful plant was intro- 

 duced into English gardens from India, and during that 

 time it has given rise to numerous varieties. One of the 

 best is the lovely pale yellow and white Sandcnc which 

 never fails to e.xcite the admiration of all who see it. It 

 appeared as a chance plant amongst a lot of newly-im- 

 ported C. insigne in the famous Sander nursery at St. 

 Albans, England, about thirty years ago. It proved to 

 be a lucky find for in the first few years of its division 

 several pieces were sold for one hundred guineas apiece. 



Some of our friends go south for the winter and write 

 back of green growing things, but we don't envy them so 

 much if we have a greenhouse in which we can spend 

 some of the time when the thermometer is flirting with 

 zero. When there is only a pane of glass separating 

 arctic weather from tropical plants that is the time 

 we a]5preciate a greenhouse most of all. As time goes on 

 we shall expect to see more people wanting a small green- 

 house to make their garden more complete, so that they 

 may continue their gardening activities the year round. 

 A great deal of pleasure can be obtained in this way at 

 moderate cost. There are a number of plants from 

 which to choose that grow and flower well in a house 

 with a night temperature of about 55° F. and in the case 

 of a conservatory attached to the residence it is often 

 possible to heat it from the house system with little e.xtra 

 expense. A greenhouse may become a very personal 

 thing where the owner can enjoy intimate association 

 with a few favorite plants. A friend of mine had such 

 a one as a hobby and filled it mostly with orchids, of kinds 

 not too exacting in their requirements. They were the 

 joy of his life and a source of pleasure to his friends and 

 neighbors. These little glass structures are useful in 

 many ways. Plants for the flower garden can be carried 

 over or raised from seed in good season, also early vege- 

 table plants. Rhubarb and chicory can be forced under 

 the benches for use in early spring, while later on a crop 

 of melons or tomatoes can be grown to maturitv. so that 

 it need never remain empty. 



Ciood light is a most important factor in the growing 

 of flowering [ilants in the greenhouse at this time of 



year, and the location of a greenhouse should always be 

 carefully determined with this fact in mind. One can 

 alw"ays shade against the sunshine if necessary, but you 

 can't get all the desired sunshine in if the house is 

 wrongly placed. Under the best of conditions a con- 

 tinued spell of dull weather makes a noticeable difference 

 in the production of flowers. But in this respect we are 

 much more fortunate than our English brethren, who 

 labor under the disadvantage of gray skies most of the 

 time from November till March. \'isitors from overseas 

 are greatly impressed with the wealth of cut flowers we 

 have here in the winter months, and are especially enthu- 

 siastic over the fine Roses and Carnations. In the neigh- 

 borhood of London especially, the grower of winter- 

 flowering plants is greatly handicapped by the poor day- 

 light, while once in a while a thick, penetrating, evil- 

 smelling fog envelopes everything, making matters still 

 worse. The poisonous gases of a genuine London fog 

 have a 'very injurious effect on some greenhouse plants, 

 Begonias in particular being very sensitive. Their flow- 

 ers wither and fall off, frequently the buds as well, and 

 many a bright disjilay has been shorn of its glory over 



night. 



^ ^ '^ 



The Begonia ranks as one of the most important of 

 the ornamental plants and anyone wishing to specialize 

 with one particular genus could get a lot of pleasure in 

 gathering together a representative collection from 

 amongst the hundreds of species and varieties. One of 

 the most noteworthy of the species is Begonia socotrana, 

 introduced into British gardens from the island of So- 

 cotra by Professor Balfour of Edinburgh Botanic Gar- 

 den in 1880. It is a very distinct species, as would be 

 expected from its natural environment, its chief dis- 

 tinguishing character being the cluster of bulbils at the 

 base of the stem by which means this species is propa- 

 gated annually. As a winter flowering plant it is well 

 worth growing for its own beauty, but it is as a parent of 

 the beautiful winter-flowering hybrids that it is most 

 famous. Previous to its introduction, growers had had 

 visions of a new and wonderful race if only a cross 

 could be effected between the shrubby section and the 

 large handsome flowered tuberous-rooted section, but all 

 attempts to bring this about had failed until it began to 

 be regarded as an impossibility. But five years after the 

 introduction of B. socotrana the first of the new race of 

 hybrids was distributed, the variety John Heal, named 

 for the famous plantsman with James ^'eitch & Sons, of 

 London, who made the cross between socotrana and a 

 tuberous-rooted variety. Thus was originated that new- 

 race that had long been dreamed of, and as the years 

 went by John Heal followed up his initial success with 

 many other fine kinds, both singles and doubles. In more 

 recent years Messrs. Clibran of Altrucham, England, 

 have raised some very choice double varieties, adding to 

 the range of colors. 



It is interesting to note that these varieties are be- 

 coming more widely known on this side of the Atlantic 

 and one may count them a decided acquisition to the list 

 of choice greenhouse plants. They are propagated by 

 stem and leaf cuttings and so far as known none of this 

 new race have yet produced seed. 



In 1891 Lemoine crossed B. socotrana with B. Drcgii 

 and obtained the popular variety Gloire de Loraine. of 

 which there are now several improved forms. Another 

 fine Begonia, also an ofTspring of B. socotrana is Gloire 

 de Sceaux. This is a particularly handsome plant with 

 its large bronzy leaves and soft pink flowers and well 

 grown specimens five to six feet high, are something to 

 be remembered. 



