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THE GARDENERS' CHRONICLE. 



[-March 16, 1912 



&: 



The Week's Work. 



.^8 



THE ORCHID HOUSES. 



By J. Collier, Gardener to Sir Jeremiah Culman, Bart., 



Gatton Park, Surrey. 



L>ELIA~ AND L/elio - Cattleya. — Lselia 



Enmila, L. praestans, L. Day an a, L. amoena, and 

 ,. Grav iae, also such La-lio-Catt leyas as 

 Rubens, Give, hyhrida. Cornelia, and epicaste 

 are pushing forth new roots, therefore specimens 

 that require new rooting materials should re- 

 ceive attention. The smaller-growing kinds 

 should be accommodated in well-drained, shallow 

 pan*, and suspended from the roof-rafters in the 

 coolest end of the intermediate hou . The 

 strong-grow i n g varieties, such as L.-C. epicaste, 

 should be mown in pots and placed cm the stage. 



A mixture of equal parti Osmunda fibre, Al 



fibre and Sphagnum-moss, chopped rather small, 

 is a suitable comp tVr potting. After having 

 been potted, and until they are w<ll rooted in the 

 new materials, the plants" should be given only 

 Sufficient water to prevent the psnido-hulbs from 

 shrivelling j subsequently they may n ive 

 copious supplies of moisture at the roots until 

 their growth is finished. 



Brassia. — Many of the spech s of Brassia, 

 such as B. brachiata, B. Lawrenceana tasgissima, 

 and B. maculata, are sending up new 

 growths from the base of the List-formed pseudo- 

 bulbs, and as they commence to emit new roots 

 the plants should, if they require it, be repotted. 



A compost similar to that recommended for 



Ladiae is suitable. The plants may be grown 

 either in pots, and pis 1 on the stage, or in 

 pans and suf ended from the roof in a house 

 naving an intermediate temperature. 



Anquloa. — Anguloas, such as A uniflora, 

 A. Ruekeri. A. eburnea. and A. Cliftonii, are be- 

 coming active after their season of rest, and, if 



requiring new compost, should be attended to in 

 this respect. They are strong-rooting plants, 

 and require a compost coinjKJsed of equal parts 

 mod, fibrous loam, broken up and rubbed 

 through a i inch sieve to remove the small par- 

 ticles ; and Al fibre, cut up rather roughly, add- 

 ing a little Sphagnum -m< - and some crushed 

 crocks. Place some crocks in the bottom of the 

 pot to insure efficient drainage. Anguloas should 

 be grown in a light position in the intermediate 

 house. 



Ccelogyne. — Ccelogyne Massangeana, C. 



Day ana, C. Lowii, C. tomentosa, C. ilooreana, 

 C. Cumingii, C. barbata, and others of their 

 class are making new growth, and the plants 

 may be potted if this operation is necessary. A 

 suitable compost is formed of equal parts Al 

 fibre and Osmunda fibre, with a small quantity 

 of Sphagnum moss. The plants are best grown 

 in pans, and suspended from the roof in the 

 warmest end of the Cattleya house. C. pa nd li- 

 ra ta also ia making new growth, and plants that 

 have overgrown their receptacles may be potted 

 also if the old compost is sour. A suitable com- 

 post in which to pot this species is a mixture 

 of Osmunda fibre, good fibrous loam, from which 

 all the small particles have been removed, and 

 Sphagnum-moss, the whole chopped up rather 

 small, and well mixed with crushed brick. The 

 plants should be grown in pans suspended from 

 the roof-rafters in the warmest hoose. In the 



{>rocess < f repotting remove the old pseudo bulbs, 

 eaving only two pseudo-bulbs behind the leadim 

 growth. Plenty of room is necessary in the pans, 

 as the rhizomes will extend some inches each 

 year after being potted. The plants should be 

 watered sparingly, until they have rooted freely 

 in the new compost, after which they should re- 

 ceive liberal supplies of moisture until the new 

 pseudo-bulbs are completed. 



Chysis. — Chysis Limminghii, C. bractescens, 

 C. Chelsonii, C. aurea, and C. la?vis are develop- 

 ing young growths, and should produce flower- 

 spikes in conjunction with them. The plants 

 will require more moisture at the roots, but 

 water should not be applied too freely, or they 

 may fail to produce their flower-spikes. These 

 plants should be suspended near to the roof- 

 lass in the warmest end of the intermediate 

 ouse. They should not be potted until after 

 they have passed out of flower. 



stage. 



FRUITS UNDER GLASS. 



By E. Harkiss, Fruit Foreman, The Royal Gardens, 



Windsor. 



Pineapples. — Fruits of Pineapples which 

 are ripening must not be syringed, and the atmos- 

 phere of the pit must be kept dry. If the plants 

 are cultivated in pots those which are ripening 

 their fruits mav be taken to a warm, dry house, 

 and placed in a position near to the roof-glass. 

 The roots will not need much moisture, and 

 stimulants must be withheld entirely at that 



Plants of the Queen variety which are 

 throwing up their fruits must be afforded plenty 

 t heat and moisture. The night temperature 

 should not fall below 70°. During the day it 

 may rise to 85° or 90°, at which point a little 

 fresh air mav be admitted by the top ventilators. 

 The atmosphere should be kept moist by fre- 

 quently damping the walls and other bare sur- 

 faces in the house. Close the house early m the 

 afternoon, after syringing the plant* with tepid 

 rain water. Stimulants may be afforded two or 

 three times weekly, diluted farm-yard drainings 

 and weak guano water being suitable. Weak 

 guano or soot-water syringed about the bases 

 of the plants at closing time will also be bene- 

 ficial. When the plants are flowering the 

 " fruits " must not be wetted, neither should 

 the atmosphere be kept so moist as usual. Young 

 plants which were potted last month will now be 

 rooting freely. It will be safe to afford them a 

 thorough watering with clear, tepid water : they 

 will need careful treatment in the matter of 

 watering for some time to come. The growth of 

 the plants should be hastened as much as possible, 

 treating them the same as advised above for 

 Queen variety. They will not require stimulants 

 till the pots are filled with roots. The house 

 should be ventilated carefully during the fore- 

 noon, closing the ventilators quite early in the 

 afternoon, after syringing the plants and charg- 

 ing the atmosphere of the house with moisture. 

 Any suckers that are large enough on plants 

 which have fruited may be potted and placed in 

 a warm, moist house. " Shade them from bright 

 sunshine till they are rooted. 



Mid-season Vines. — The disbudding of 

 mid-season vines will demand early attention, 

 removing first all weak, useless shoots. Later, 

 when it can be seen which shoots are carrying 

 the best bunches, the final thinning of the 

 growths may be done. Considerable care is 

 necessary in this operation for, although it is 

 bad practice to have the trellis too sparsely 

 covered with foliage, it is equally injurious to 

 overcrow r d the shoots. Every lateral should 

 have ample room to develop without encroaching 

 on its neighbour, so that the foliage may become 

 large and firm in texture, and thus better able to 

 resist attacks of red spider. In addition, the fruit 

 and wood will be more likely' to finish perfectly. 

 If the roots are in need of moisture, the border 

 should be watered before the vines commence to 

 flower. Old-established vines, having plenty of 

 roots, will require plenty of stimulating manures. 

 Pinch the shoots at the second leaf beyond the 

 bunch. Rub out the laterals below the bunches, 

 and keep all subsequent lateral growth pinched 

 at the first leaf. 



THE HARDY FRUIT GARDEN, 



By F. Jordan, Gardener to Lady Nunburnholme, 



Warter Priory, Yorkshire. 



Newly-planted Wall Trees. — Wall trees 

 that were planted last autumn may be pruned 

 and trained, the soil having settled about their 

 roots. Tie in the main branches, but not too 

 tightly, or they may be injured. There is a 

 great difference of opinion as to the way in which 

 the pruning should be carried out. If the plant- 

 ing has been done carefully, and the trees are 

 good specimens, the object of the pruning should 

 be the balancing of the loss of roots by a corre- 

 sponding amount of top growth. Also to con- 

 tinue the training of the trees, cutting back the 

 leading branches to one-third or one-half their 

 lengths according to circumstances. 



Apricots. — The mild weather has caused 

 buds on fruit trees to swell rapidly, and, if cold 

 wind or severe frosts prevail, there will be a 

 danger of Apricot blossoms receiving considerable 

 damage. On this account it will not be advisable 

 to leave the trees fully exposed after this date in 

 mild districts. In colder parts where the buds 

 are not so forward, the trees need net be pro- 

 tected for the present unless severe frosts 

 threaten. There may be a danger in covering 



the trees when it is unnecessary, as it might make 

 the blossoms more tender as well as exclude the 

 light and air. The protective materials should 

 always be removed during the daytime. If 

 netting is employed, two or three thicknesses will 

 generally suffice, and this material permits the 

 light and air to pass through freely, besides being 

 convenient to loop up during the daytime. But 

 whatever protective matt rial is employed it 

 should hang well away from the face of the wall, 

 and not nearer than 1 foot from the trees. 

 Branches of Spruce Fir if fixed lightly on the 

 wall form a very useful method of protecting fruit 

 blossom. 



Autumn -fruiting Straw berries.- Like the 

 ordinary Strawberry, the autumn fruiting kind 

 gives the best result when planted in a deep, iich 

 soil. Ordinary soils may be made suitable by a 

 liberal addition of manure. It is best to plant 

 the runners on a border, so that the plants may 

 be protected by lights when the fruits are ripe in 

 September and October from rains, as many of 

 the finest berries are often spoiled by damp. The 

 present is a suitable time to make new beds. 

 The young plants must not be allowed to flower 

 during the summer, and it is best to remove the 

 runners ; if desired a few cf the latter may be 

 selected and pegged into the soil. These will 

 produce plenty of fruit, but the berries will not 

 be of such good quality as those from the parent 

 plants, which have had early flowers and all 

 runners removed. 



Alpine Strawberries. — The best plants of 

 Alpine Strawberries are obtained from seeds sown 

 this month. Germinate the seeds in a moderate 

 temperature, and prick off the seedlings as soon 

 as they are large enough to be transplanted, 

 gradually hardening them so that they may be 

 planted out-of-doors in May. 



Aphides. — Stone fiuits, including Peaches, 

 Apricots, Cherries, and Plums should be syringed 

 with a suitable insecticide just before the flowers 

 open to destroy any aphides that may be present. 

 In many cases, especially during cold weather 

 and when drying winds prevail, this pest gains a 

 complete mastery over the trees causing the leaves 

 to curl, and it is then a difficult matter to eradi- 

 cate the creatures by spraying. 





FLOWER GARDEN. 



By J. G. Weston, Gardener to Lady Northcote, 



Eastwell Park, Kent. 



Sweet Peas. — In warm districts and in suit- 

 able soils, Sweet Peas may be sown in the 

 autumn, with a fair prospect of success. But, 

 generally, it is better to have autumn-sown plants 

 in pots for the production of early blooms, grow- 

 ing the seedlings under cool conditions, and plant- 

 ing them out-of-doors early in April in a warm, 

 sheltered position. Such plants in cold franus 

 should be afforded all the ventilation possible, re- 

 moving the lights altogether whenever the 

 weather ie favourable. By growing them hardiiv, 

 the plants will receive only a slight check when 

 thev are planted next month. A few twigs should 

 be placed around the pots, to support the snoots. 

 This will suffice till the plants are put in tneu 

 permanent positions, when twiggy sticks some 

 or 3 feet long should be placed in position a* 

 once; the sticks will give some measure of pro- 

 tection from cold winds, and will afford ampie 

 support for some time to come. A sowing snouia 

 be made now to provide olants for successicnai 

 blooming. The newer varieties should besowi 

 in pots, and afforded special attention. 3iany 

 growers raise all their plants of Sweet Feas h 

 pots, as by this system they may be easily pro- 

 tected from birds, slugs and pests. Some so 

 the seeds singlv in small pots, but here we place 

 about five seeds in each 5-inch pot. Ordinary 

 potting soil is suitable as a compost. Ine see _ 

 may be germinated in a cold frame, but ca 

 must be taken to protect them from mice, *i 

 may destroy manv of thsm in a single nignt, 

 present is a suitable time to sow Swee *, Peas ° n( j 

 of-doors for the main croo cf bloom. J-he gj „ 

 having been previous^ deeply trenched and 

 manured, should be forked over and afte . n ' a f ^ e 

 made fin-. Choose a drying dav for sowing u 

 seeds. Forking the ground lightlv early m u 

 dav. and raking the surface several times. .win b 

 the seed-bed into a good condition by the an* 



nnnn Poll +U* a£ ^A a ^ a litrlp red lead, nw* 



