IRISH CARDl, Nl N(i. 



JANL'AkV 



chicr> or Siunvv Mcspilus i^ioiip ;iio duMit 

 rlowerinjr shrubs or sm.ill trees whicli liouei 

 wlien comparatively small, ami are doubly 

 valuable. In the latter part of Aj-iril ;tncl ucll 

 into May they are smothered uitli iKuids o\ 

 delicate white llowers. and in autnnui ilu 

 foliaj;e turns red. yellow ami oraiij^e. .\ \iil- 

 j^aris and A. canadensis ;ire the Ixst lor i;eneral 

 purposes. ["nrortnnately they are t;enerally 

 i^rafted oil the whitethorn, which does ni't seem to 

 suit them. They are much better on their o\\ n 

 roots. Durint^ .\pril the many varieties oi 

 Mahonia are at their best. The terminal, closely- 

 crowded clusters oi flowers in \aiious sh.ides ol 

 yellow ;ire sweet and attractive, and iho ioliai^e 

 invaluable during; the dull winter moiillis. v.iry 

 ing^ in shades from deep bronzy i^reen to dark 

 red, and lastinjj: well when cut. Added to all 

 this, Mahonias are hardy and onduriiii;, and 

 do well in towns. Some of ihe best \arie- 

 ties are B. aquifolium rotundifolia, A. a. nilens, 

 B. a. atrovirens, and B. mag"nificum. In the last- 

 named the flowers are not onl) in terminal 

 clusters but they extend well down the stems. 



The Californian flowering- currant, Ribes san- 

 g-uineum, and its varieties are charming old- 

 fashioned garden shrubs which commend them- 

 selves to every one, and which require but little 

 attention. The two best varieties are R. s. 

 atrosanguineum and R. s. flora pleno. If the 

 old stems are occasionally cut out at the base 

 space is made for young and more vigorous 

 shoots which flower better. Prunus triloba and 

 the " Gean " prunus (Cerasus) avium open in 

 April, as also do the first barberries, Berberis 

 Darwinii and B. stcnophylla, and the first 

 Spirtea s. arguta, which is not only the first but 

 also one of the very best of the group. It is simply 

 covered with small white flowers borne in dense 

 clusters on delicate twigs. The skimmias are 

 nice dwarf bushes from China and Japan, per- 

 haps a little fastidious in disliking lime in the 

 soil, but well worthy of a little preparation and 

 special attention. They are apparently quite 

 hardy, and in April, when they are in flower, the 

 air near them is sweetly redolent with the scent 

 of the very numerous white or greenish-white 

 flowers, and in autumn and all during the win- 

 ter healthy plants are covered with bright red 

 berries. In Skimmia japonica, still more gene- 

 rally known in gardens as S. oblata or S. Fore- 

 mani, the flowers are unisexual. 

 (To be con turned.) 



C A pripudiiini Insignc. 



Till': Iii;ils and diHi.ullies which formerly 

 soemed to suriinnn.! tlie cultivation of 

 orchiils h;i\e now. for iIk' niosl |->ail, been 

 o\ei\vMnc, so that with cue :iik1 a certain 

 amount iil' knowledge of their liabits these plants 

 ;ire found to be cjuitc e.isy to grow. .Amongst 

 the easiest to cultivate i-f this class is Cypri- 

 pediiiin insii^iie. or l.;ui\'^ .Slipper, giving no 

 more troul^le llian.in iTdinarv g^reenhouse plant . 

 Tills is an amateur's orchid, and is the best tor 

 Ix'i^inners. and it can frci-iuently be met with in 

 ,1 salisfactorN- condition, its freedom o'i flower- 

 ing making it a universal favourite where an\- 

 nuniber ol orchids are grown. If |-)roperly 

 treated it will, at the beginning ot' winter, w hen 

 flowers ;iie not o\er-pIent iliil, reward the culti- 

 vator by throwing up IMooms which last a long 

 time in beauty. The lea\ es are about nine inches 

 long, and green in colour ; the scapes about one 

 toot high, bearing a single flower, generall\- f\nir 

 inches across, and shining as if varnished. The 

 dorsal sepal is large, oval, and the apex is bent 

 forward, yellowish-green in colour, with dull 

 purple spots and a white margin. The petals 

 are broad, spreading, wavy, and pale green in 

 colour, with purple longitudinal lines, the lip 

 being green and brown, paler near the mouth. 

 The true characteristics of a cypripedium are 

 not observable until the plant has reached speci- 

 men size and the flowers have come of the 

 fullest size. '\o keep the flowers well up above 

 the leaves, so that they may be seen to the best 

 advantage, it may be necessary to tie each 

 flower to a neat stake. This operation should 

 be done very carefully, because the roots, being- 

 fleshy, may be easily injured by the points of the 

 sticks. This orchid flowers more abundantly 

 when not subjected to frequent disturbances 

 at the roots, as they, being very brittle, fre- 

 quently snap off at the least touch. It is when 

 the growths become crowded that divisions are 

 necessary, and the spring is the best time to per- 

 form this work. This cypripedium grows fast, 

 and quickly fills its pot with roots ; therefore 

 when repotting- them afford plenty of room for 

 development of both roots and g-rowths. Pots 

 two sizes larger should be given to strong, 

 healthy plants, and should be about one-third 

 full of drainage, and over that a layer of sphag- 

 num moss in order to preserve the drainag-e 

 from becoming choked. Preserve all the roots 



