May 8, 1915 



HOETICULTURE 



621 



BRITISH HORTICULTURE. 



The Highbury Orchids. 

 As foreshadowed in a previous let- 

 ter the dispersal of the unique collec- 

 tion of orchids, got together as the re- 

 sult of many years' continuous efforts 

 by the late Joseph Chamberlain, one 

 of Britain's famous statesmen, aroused 

 wide-spread interest in the horticul- 

 tural world. The sale took place in 

 the London auction rooms of Messrs. 

 Protheroe & Morris, where in former 

 years notable collections of orchids 

 have come up for competition amongst 

 eager buyers. Undoubtedly the time 

 selected for the sale when everyone is 

 economizing owing to war conditions, 

 was not altogether favorable. Even 

 the prospect of obtaining a souvenir of 

 one of the most noted orchid collec- 

 tions in the country, and of the former 

 personal possessions of a man whose 

 name had loomed largely in modern 

 history was not sufficient to cause an 

 inflation of prices. Shillings were 

 more numerous than pounds in the bid- 

 ding. The first substantial price was 

 paid for Schroderae Highburyensis, a 

 hybrid raised in the late Mr. Chamber- 

 lain's conservatories, this realizing four 

 guineas. The top price was paid by a 

 Birmingham Vesident — this being the 

 district with which Mr. Chamberlain 

 was honorably associated for many 

 years — the sum of twelve guineas be- 

 ing paid for Odontoglossum Insleayi 

 splendens. The second day's sale also 

 aroused considerable interest, but 

 there were no sensational prices to 

 record. 



The Carnation Year Book. 

 A glance through the edition of this 

 work for 1915 indicates that the cult 

 of the carnation in Britain is increas- 

 ing in popularity. A point which is 

 emphasised is the hardiness of the 

 English raised varieties of the Amer- 

 ican type. C. H. Tauderiu, who has a 

 nursery near Chester specially de- 

 voted to out-door carnation culture 

 contributes his experiences. Active 

 arrangements are now in progress for 

 the Perpetual Flowering Carnation 

 Spring Show which is to he held at 

 Leed's in Yorkshire which will have 

 the effect of creating an interest in 

 the flower amongst provincial growers. 

 Details as to the Society's work are 

 obtainable from T. A. Weston, the 

 Secretary, whose address is at Flora- 

 dale, Orpington, Kent. 



W. H. Adsett. 



A TULIP GARDEN. 



Guarded within tbe old red wall's embrace, 



Marshalled like soldiers in gay company, 



The tulips stand arrayed. Here infantry 



Wheels out into the sunlight. What bold 



grace 

 Sets off their tunics, white with crimson 

 lace ! 

 Here are platoons of gold-frocked cav- 

 alry. 

 With scarlet sabres tossing in the eye 

 Of purple batteries, every gun in place. 

 Forward they come, with flaunting colors 

 spread, 

 With torches burning, stepping out In time 

 To some quick, unheard march. Our ears 

 are dead : 

 We cannot catch the tune. In pantomime 

 Parades that army. With our utmost 



powers 

 We hear the wind stream through a bed 

 of flowers. 



— Boston Transcript. 



FRIENDS OF THE TRADE. 



FRUITS AND FLOWKRS FESTIVAL 

 PLANNED. 



Glendale, Cal. — A festival of fruits and 

 flowers, centering about the high school 

 buildings and extending for a block, will 

 be held here May 27, 28 and 29 under the 

 auspices of the Tuesday Afternoon Club. 



All fraternal organizations, schools, the 

 Parent-Teacher Federation, Chamber of 

 Commerce, city trustees and other bodies 

 will assist in making the festival a success. 



Mrs. M. B. Jones is chairman in charge 



of the festival, Mrs. Warren Roberts, sec- 



retary-treasuier, and Mrs. Charles H. Toll 



is in charge of the reception committee. 



— Los Angeles Express. 



MILLBROOK FLOWER SHOW. 



A list of classes of the Second Flower 

 Show of the Milbrook Garden Club to be 

 held at the Thorne Memorial Hall on Sat- 

 urday, June 19, from 3 until 7 o'clock, In- 

 clude the following: Two for Peonies, 

 three for Roses, Annuals, Perennials, Pan- 

 sies; two for Delphiniums, Foxgloves, Can- 

 terbury Bells, Lilies; two for Irises, 

 Flowering Shrubs, Ferns and Wild 

 Flowers, Vase or Basket of Flowers, Table 

 Decoration. 



'The Executive Board Invites any owner 

 of a garden to exhibit. 



— Millbrook, A". Y. Mirror. 



SPRINGFIELD (N. Y.) FLOWER SHOW. 

 The flower show does not come until 

 August, but this is the time to prepare 

 for exhibits. This year the show will be 

 under the auspices of the committee ap- 

 pointed by the Improvement Association, 

 and it is expected that It will surpass all 

 previous ones. 



Spring Lake, (N. J.) Gazette. 



GARDEN CLUB BUSY. 



Princeton, N. J., April 27. — A flower mar- 

 ket is to be held in Princeton on May 20, 

 under the auspices of the Princeton Gar- 

 den Club. The plan to hold a flower mar- 

 ket was considered and arranged by the 

 Village Improvement Society several years 

 ago, but was deferred in order to give way 

 to more pressing matters. It is particu- 

 larly fitting that tbe project for the mar- 

 ket, to be given this year, should have 

 been made by the first Garden Club of 

 Princeton, The president of the club is 

 Mrs. A. D. Russell, and its members num- 

 ber twenty-five. 



The object of the flower market is to 

 further an interest in gardening and bring 

 together all who are interested in gardens 

 and once a year to give an opportunity of 

 showing some result of the year's work. 

 It is planned to have a sale of cut flowers, 

 potted plants, ferns, vines and vegetables. 

 The proceeds received from the sale of re- 

 freshments are to be used to pay the sal- 

 ary of an expert gardener who will come 

 to Princeton and start the school gardens. 

 — Trenton fN. J.J Times. 



THE FUTURE OF THE IRIS. 



Of irises there are 170 native sorts, 

 besides hybrids, which swell the num- 

 ber up to 500 or more. We have been 

 engaged in producing new sorts and 

 the results are very encouraging. Our 

 experiments have largely been with 

 dwarf hybrids, I wish you could see 

 some of our new creations. One is a 

 mass of gold. The whole plant com- 

 pletely flooded and overwhelmed with 

 flowers almost entirely hiding the 

 foliage. Such a mass is seldom seen. 

 The next row is royal purple, intense 

 in color and radient in beauty. How 

 such small plants can product so much 

 splendor is a marvel. We are now 

 preparing a new edition of the iris 

 manual, to be a companion of the last 

 edition of the peony manual. We have 

 an expert at work on the classification 

 of names, which have been badly 

 muddled. 



C. S. H,\RUISON, 



York, Nebr, 



HERBACEOUS CALCEOLARIAS. 



Seeds of the herbaceous calceolarias 

 may be sown in May, June or July, but 

 plants raised from June sowings gen- 

 erally give the best results. Equal 

 parts of loam and leaf mold, to which 

 has been added a little sand, make a 

 suitable soil, and this should be well 

 watered before planting the seed. 

 These are very small and must be han- 

 dled carefully. They should be sown 

 thinly in pots, covered very lightly 

 with soil, and, if no cold frame is avail- 

 able, each pot covered with a piece of 

 glass which should be turned over 

 daily to prevent the condensed mois- 

 ture dropping down on the seed. The 

 glass will keep the soil moist and also 

 hasten germination. It should be re- 

 moved altogether after the seedlings 

 have broken through the soil. Some- 

 times it is a good plan to place the 

 pots containing the seed on inverted 

 flower pots standing in saucers of 

 water. This will keep the surround- 

 ings moist and likewise prevent cer- 

 tain crawling insects from feeding 

 upon the young seedlings. The plants 

 should be transplanted as soon as they 

 produce a second leaf, for if left too 

 long in the seed pan they fail to make 

 good plants. Soil similar to that in 

 which the seed germinated should be 

 used for the potting, since calceolarias 

 need a rich porous medium in which 

 to develop. Care should be taken to 

 select the weaker as well as the strong- 

 er seedlings, for the best colors are 

 often found in the seedlings developed 

 last; it is a general belief among grow- 

 ers that the stronger seedlings produce 

 the greatest percentage of plants with 

 yellow flowers, or flowers in which yel- 

 low predominates. The young seed- 

 lings should not be exposed to the di- 

 rect rays of the sun and the roots 

 should not be allowed to become dry. 

 When the young plants have four or 

 five leaves, they should be repotted 

 and allowed to develop until Septem- 

 ber, at as low a temperature as pos- 

 sible and under conditions of good 

 ventilation. By this time the calce- 

 olaria plants are ready to be trans- 

 ferred to larger pots in which they 

 may remain over winter. High tem- 

 peratures should be avoided, from 45 to 

 50°P. being ample. As soon as growth 

 begins in the spring the plants are 

 ready for their final shift into six or 

 eight-inch pots. Pot firmly hut do not 

 pack the soil so that it will prevent 

 free ramification of the roots. When 

 the pots are filled with roots, manure 

 water may be added occasionally, but 

 as soon as the flowers appear, clear 

 water only should be given. Herba- 

 ceous calceolaris grown in this way 

 and kept in a cool moist atmosphere 

 with an abundance of light and air 

 will produce an abundance of flowers 

 in March or April. — Missouri Botani- 

 <al Garden Bulletin. 



Central Isljp, N. Y. — The Conserva- 

 tion Commission has made arrange- 

 ments to utilize some of the State 

 ground for the cultivation of trees. 

 About 250,000 pine and fir trees will 

 be planted. The sub-nursery nearest 

 Long Island heretofore has been in 

 Westchester County. 



