August 29, 1S72. ] 



JOUBNAL OF HOETICULTTJEE AND COTTAGE GAEDENEB. 



163 



present about my Victor Verdier received from them ; how- 

 ever, the fault may be mine, as I ought to have sacrificed 

 bloom to growth — at all events for a time. Perhaps, too, I 

 should have waited until June before planting it out. 



I have always hitherto planted Eoses from October to 

 January, whether tender or otherwise ; this year, however, I 

 planted Beve d'Or, Souvenir d'un Ami, Belle Lyonnaise, and 

 a climber which Messrs. Lane recommended, but of which I 

 know nothing, Princess Louise Victoria, as soon as the frosts 

 were over, and they are all making marvellous progress. They 

 were transferred at once from the forcing house to the base 

 of a south wall, and seem quite at home in their new 

 quarters. 



As I have touched upon climbers, I may mention that no 

 Eose this year has done better with me than the Bev. H. 

 Dombrain, a Eose first brought to my notice by Mr. Wright, 

 the well-known foreman of Messrs. Lane, now unhappily de- 

 ceased. Another of his nominees, Madame Deslongchamps, 

 classed among the Noisettes, ought not to be overlooked by 

 those who want a free climber combined with good form. 

 Ophirie and Solfaterre, said to be among the best of the 

 Noisettes, are at present with me rather failures, but possibly 

 I am wanting in patience. Nor must I forget Pierre de St. 

 Cyr, a fast climber, with a flower whose glossy pink is often 

 very charming; nor Blairii No. 2, which, when it blooms, is 

 simply superb. I have not succeeded in inducing Triomphe 

 de Bennes to mount my walls, but a poor neighbour of mine 

 has a specimen on his cottage which I would walk five miles 

 to see when in full bloom ; it is, I should think, 10 feet high. 

 Senateur Vaisse, I suppose, would never be called a climber ; 

 I have a specimen, however, which must be 6 or 7 feet high. 

 Neither Celine Forestier nor Lamarque has been a success 

 with me, but I am convinced that my mistake has been that 

 I have planted in November instead of the end of May. 



- 1 have been very much struck of late with what seems to me 

 the want of skill among Bose-growers in keeping up a con- 

 stant succession of blooms all through the season. Wander- 

 ing round the grounds of Castle Ashby, in Northamptonshire, 

 a few days since, I did not observe a dozen blooms among the 

 hundreds of Eose trees there. Gloire de Dijon, of course, was 

 to be seen, but was alone in its glory. The weather, it is true, 

 has been as bad as is possible ; all Boses have been peculiarly 

 short-lived this season ; still, I am persuaded that much may 

 be done by keeping a proper selection, by taking off all the dead 

 blooms, removing suckers, and feeding liberally with liquid 

 manure to insure a regular succession. Our gardeners supply 

 us with Peas from the end of May to the middle of October ; 

 why not with Boses ? This point I cannot but think is often 

 overlooked by those who recommend us lists. 



The leaves of many of my Eose trees this season have been 

 as it were perforated with holes in a strange fashion, the evil 

 being occasioned, I believe, by a wretched little caterpillar 

 which has attacked other flowers in the same way. I have 

 directed my gardener to try the hellebore powder, which I often 

 see recommended in the Journal ; but he seems afraid of the 

 cost, as well as doubtful of its efficacy. As I am-writing away 

 from home I cannot say whether the recipe has succeeded 

 or not. 



. I have often seen the claims of Homere advocated in your 

 columns. Permit me to add my testimony to its merits. It 

 is a very free bloomer, has a tint and a colour quite its own, 

 and never fails to please when presented to a stranger. It is 

 curious that this Eose is missing in some of our nurserymen's 

 lists. 



How long will a standard Eose last? This is a question 

 which I have never seen discussed in the Journal. A friend of 

 mine, who is famous for his Boses, declares that they ought to 

 be got rid of after three or four years ; but I have seen blooms 

 on standards which must have been planted from ten to twenty 

 years. Then' gnarled and knotted stems seemed to indicate 

 a great age, but possibly they were in this state when first 

 budded. 



Tour columns contain so many lists of Hybrid Perpetuals 

 that I will not encumber them further than to say that Antoine 

 Ducher, John Hopper, Madame Clemenee Joigneaux, Alfred 

 Colomb, and Madame Therese Levet have done particularly 

 well with me this season. 



Allow me in conclusion to ask some of your readers to re- 

 commend a good white Bose which does not bloom in clusters, 

 but singly. Baronne de Maynard and Louise Darzens I have 

 already, but Alba Bosea, Niphetos, Boule de Neige, &c, are 

 " shadows of a name " only. I want a few white standards, 



and have no more room on my south wall. — E. Barteusi, 

 BerJcJiamsted, Herts. 



WINTER-FLOWERING PLANTS.— No. 3. 



CENTEOPOGON LUCYANTJS. 



This is an evergreen herbaceous plant with pale green rather 

 large leaves, and terminal heads of bright red, long tube-like 

 flowers. It is of moderate growth, attaining a height of about 

 2 feet ; but small plants may be flowered at a height of from 

 9 to 15 inches. 



Cuttings of the young shoots may be put in at any time, 

 and in a gentle heat they root freely. I usually insert the 

 cuttings in April, early in May, or as soon as shoots 3 or 

 4 inches in length can be had. They are cut over below the 

 lowest joint, the leaves removed 2 inches up the cutting, 

 and then inserted singly in pots 2J inches in diameter, using 

 a compost of two parts fibrous loam, one part leaf soil, and 

 one part sandy peat, with a free admixture of silver sand. In. 

 putting in the cuttings make a hole in the centre of the pot, 

 drop in some silver sand, and fill up round the cutting with 

 the same material ; then water gently, and place the pots in a 

 close frame with a temperature of 70° to 75° at night, keeping 

 close, shaded, and moist until the cuttings begin to grow ; 

 afterwards admit air, and gradually harden them off. They 

 will root all the more freely if they have a bottom heat of 75°. 



When the roots are matting the sides of the pots shift the 

 plants into 4J-inch pots, using the same kind of compost as 

 before, and place them in a house with a temperature of from 

 65° to 70° at night, having a moist well-ventilated atmosphere. 

 The shelf of a stove so situated that the plants may be 15 inches 

 from the glass will answer well. They will need to be encou- 

 raged by a gentle sprinkling overhead two or three times a-day, 

 and moderate watering at first, increasing the supply as the 

 pots become full of roots ; but when the plant has taken to 

 the fresh soil after having been potted, the shoot ought to be 

 cut back to within three or four joints ef the surface of the 

 soil, which will render watering less necessary for a time, and 

 yet the moisture must be sufficient for free growth. By August 

 the plants should be in their flowering pots, which for this 

 class of plants may be 7 inches in diameter. The drainage 

 should be good, but need not be excessive, and the plants 

 must have a moist atmosphere and due supplies of water to 

 keep them in a free state of growth. This kind of treatment 

 should be continued until they have made a good growth, and 

 as it will be of no use for flowering unless it is strong, stiff, 

 and short-jointed, they must be kept close to the glass and well 

 attended to in point of ventilation. 



No training is required, for by turning the plants round 

 frequently and exposing opposite sides to the light, they will 

 grow evenly. Lregular growth, however, may need some re- 

 gulation, which should be seen to in time ; a peg at first may 

 give the required direction to a shoot, which, if allowed to grow 

 unassisted, might require a stake to bring it to the position 

 desired. 



After October the plants should have the lightest and 

 most airy position in the stove, and the watering should be 

 no more than is sufficient to keep the foliage fresh. This 

 will cause the wood to ripen, and the terminal head or point of 

 the shoot to set for flower. When the plants show signs of 

 flowering water more freely, but avoid making the soil sodden, 

 or syringing much overhead. Though sprinlding overhead 

 once or twice a-day does good, yet when it is heavy, and the 

 leaves remain long wet, they become spotted and fall. The 

 plant usually flowers in January, and the blooming continues 

 until April. The heads of bloom are excellent for cutting, 

 and though it is not so attractive a plant as many, it is never- 

 theless useful for decorative purposes, and deserves extended 

 culture. 



Centropogon Lucyanus is a stove plant, but may be grown 

 in a house having a winter night temperature of 50° to 55°. 

 The main point is to secure good growth in summer by giving 

 plenty of heat and moisture, and in winter it endures dryness 

 and coolness, and flowers all the better under these conditions. 



Should plants in small pots be wanted, the points of the 

 strong-growing shoots may be taken off in July, inserted in 

 small pots, and struck in heat, shifting them in August into 

 4-inch pots, and keeping them on shelves near the glass. 

 Thus treated they will flower on stems from 6 to 9 inches 

 high, and are very pretty. 



The old plants need only have the worn-out and weak wood 

 cut out in April, and after they have pushed fresh shoots a few 



