198 



THE CANADIAN HORTICULTURIST 



TKree Good Begonias for Han^in^ BasKets 



A. yVlexander, Hamilton 



IN this large genus of greenhouse 

 plants, the three, of which illustra- 

 tions are given, have been found very 

 satisfactory for hanging baskets in an 

 amateur's greenhouse. They are grf)wing 



Begonia, "Mary" 



in wire baskets about 18 inches in di- 

 ameter. The baskets are lined with 

 sphagnum moss, and they are growing 

 in a soil composed of equal parts of 

 loam, rotted leaves and decayed hot- 

 bed material and a few handfuls of 





. -^-\ 



Begonia Manicata 



clean beach sand, the whole put 

 through a fine sieve. They were in 

 bloom, as shown in the photos, from the 

 middle of April to the beginning of June, 

 and made a very fine display in the house. 

 I am not quite sure if "Mary" is the 

 correct name of the one so called. Its 

 leaves are nearly round, of a rich olive 

 green on the upper side and reddish 



underneath. It sends up an immense 

 number of slender, delicate pink col- 

 ored flower stems, each with great 

 numbers of rosy pink blooms. 



"Manicata," whose foliage is not so 

 striking as its cousin "Manicata aurea," 

 is a more profuse bloomer. Its habit 

 and color of stem and flower is very 

 similar to "Mary." 



"Paul Bruant," which, when young 

 has some tendency to adopt the up- 

 right habit, when growing in a basket 

 seems to know what is expected of it, 

 and gracefully leans over the sides with 

 its very elegant foliage so beautifully 

 cut and sends out its heavy bunches 

 of bloom, which are beautiful in every 

 stage of their development. 



After blooming, these plants are 

 hung outside under the shade of an 



as near Toronto as Holland Landin; 

 and Bradford. 



"The best success can be had witi 

 these plants by collecting them imme 

 diately after they are done flowering, 

 said Mr. Manton, "or by marking th' 

 spots where the plants were located, am 

 digging after October 1. Spectabil 

 and acaule do not thrive under ordin 

 ary house culture. For forcing it i 

 advisable to dig them in October an( 

 plant them in pans as close togethe 

 as the crowns can be placed, or in pot 

 well drained and containing an abund 

 ance of sphagnum moss. They shouh 

 be put in cold frames where they cai 

 be got at when wanted. By puttinj 

 them in the greenhouse two month: 

 before Easter, bloom can be had al 

 most equal to the tropical orchids. 



"These wild specimens do exceed 

 ingly well in the open garden if the) 

 are given plenty of moisture and leaf 



Begonia, Paul Bruant 



apple tree during summer. About the 

 beginning of September some fresh soil 

 is added, and they are again hung in 

 the greenhouse. The plants shown have 

 been in the same baskets for two vears. 



"Wild OrcHids of Canada 



"Orchids can be found in Canada by 

 the thousands," said Mr. Thos. Manton, 

 of Eglinton, recently to a representa- 

 tive of The Canadian Horticulturist. 

 "Cypripedium spectabile, Cypripedium 

 acaule, Cypripedium pubescens, and 

 Cypripedium parviflorum," said Mr. 

 Manton, "are very common in the val- 

 leys of the Trent river, in Muskoka, in 

 the lagoon between Port Arthur and 

 Winnipeg, in New Brunswick, and in 

 Northern Quebec. They can be found 



soil or sphagnum. It is advisable tc 

 have them shaded from the afternoon 

 sun, but they need full light. Nearly 

 every hardy plant nurseryman in Eng- 

 land and in other European countries 

 catalogs Cypripedium spectabile and 

 Cypripedium spectabile alba, and offei 

 them at prices that prove they can be 

 grown successfully. Almost all col- 

 lections of herbaceous plants in Eng- 

 land contain specimens of these." 



The Canadian Horticulturist would 

 like to receive photographs of unusually 

 pretty window boxes, flower gardens, oi 

 plants and shrubs of unusual size cov- 

 ered with bloom. If you have any 

 favorite spot in your garden that h 

 Worth photographing give The Hor 

 Ticulturist a chance to enjoy it. 



