October 4, 1893.] 



Garden and Forest. 



417 



regulated somewhat as to their requirements. Few, if any, of 

 this class of plants thrive under great changes of temperature 

 or survive aridity or contamination of atmosphere. It is only 

 those plants witli harder leaves and wood which have a ca- 

 pacity of endurance in a house heated by a furnace and lighted 

 by gas. A plant which will not accept cheerfully the usual 

 morning airing at anything above the freezing-point and pre- 

 serve its serenity as the temperature marks eighty degrees, 

 under the influence of heat and lights, is of no use to us for 

 permanent service. Under such conditions I grow a few well- 

 known plants, and while, after several years'growth, they have 

 not the fine appearance of those grown under glass, they are 

 always in good condition, and amply repay the little care re- 

 quired by them. Nothing is more restful to the eye and more 

 decorative in the house than a noble plant of good form and 

 foliage. 



Areca lutescens, one of the most commonly grown Palms, 

 is one of the handsomest and most useful in the house. Once 

 secured in a thrifty condition, it makes a regular growth, and 

 with a fair amount of light will prove superior to very adverse 

 conditions. My plant, four or five years old, is established in 

 a glazed jar without drainage, which is not the best environ- 

 ment for the roots of any plant. Next I fancy Pandanus 

 Veitchii for its all-round good qualities. It has handsome 

 foliage and a somewhat compact habit of growth. It does not 

 grow as rapidly as P. utilis, though this is a very useful plant, 

 of great hardihood, and if grown carefully, to retain its lower 

 leaves, very ornamental. It is apt to outgrow available space 

 very soon, and its serrated leaves are cruel ones to handle in 

 the necessary cleansing.=i. The Chinese Palm, Rhapis ffabelli- 

 formis, is a species of distinct character, and well adapted to 

 house-culture. Coryphea australis, in a young state, has 

 striking characteristics, and has proven a desirable plant. 

 Phoenix reclinata has rather soft foliage, and seems specially 

 subject to scale. Livistona Chinensis, while making a hand- 

 some specimen, is not a plant which will do as well as the 

 above-mentioned kinds under same conditions and treatment. 

 Of course, no collection of house-plants would be complete 

 without India Rubber-plants, the green variety of which will sur- 

 vive any treatment short of actual desiccation. There is, how- 

 ever, a choice among the varieties of this plant, that with the 

 reddish midrib being the best. The variegated Ficus, well 

 colored, is a handsome plant, which not only resents neglect, 

 but is a difficult one to cultivate in good specimen condition. 

 Plunged in full sunlight in the open, with plentiful supplies of 

 water, it thrives, and the leaves become high-colored. At this 

 season, however, with change of temperature or some other 

 cause, the lower leaves are apt to brown on the edges, and in 

 some cases ripen off without browning. Aside from this an- 

 nual check, however, it is a serviceable plant for the house. 

 Aspidistras seem to have sunk into well-merited neglect and 

 caf^ ornaments. They are undoubtedly proof against every 

 contingency fatal to most plant-Ufe, but are not a joy to the eye. 

 For a formal effect in low front windows I have tried small 

 potted plants of Arbor-vitae in tile boxes. These did capitally, 

 and the green lines of these plants were a grateful sight in win- 

 ter. The above list might be enlarged, of course, but the ob- 

 ject of this note is only to mention a few tried plants sure to 

 prove satisfactory, as a hint to those who have not given this 

 class of plants a trial. Any of the above-mentioned plants may 

 be had at a very reasonable price, but it will pay to secure 

 well-established sturdy plants which have been grown in pots 

 under glass. An examination of the roots, to see that they are 

 in order, will not be amiss at the time of purchase. As to cul- 

 ture, they require daily attention in the way of water, being 

 kept moist, but not wet, at the roots. Once a week they should 

 be taken to the sink and every leaf thoroughly washed with 

 water slightly soapy. In the spring the top soil should be 

 forked out and replaced with good open loam, into which 

 should be mixed a liberal supply of bone-meal. It is not 

 usually important that these plants should be much stimu- 

 lated, as in this case they will outgrow their quarters. If in 

 porous pots they may be plunged out in the borders for the 

 summer in a place where they will have a few hours' sun and 

 be protected from high winds. Plants in glazed fancy pots will 

 require overhead covering to prevent them becoming water- 



Elizabeth, N. J. 



J. N. Gerard. 



Vegetable Notes. — The variety of Okra known as Velvet is 

 more valuable than the Density is, since the pods grow to edi- 

 ble size earlier in the season, and are of more symmetrical 

 shape. It does not yield " nubbins " toward the close of the 

 season, as the other variety is apt to do. In point of yield the 

 varieties are about equal. With me the Dreer or Kumerle 



Dwarf Lima has proved both earlier and more productive than 

 Burpee's ; but soils and seasons may reverse the matter. 

 Either of these Limas is superb, and will undoubtedly grow 

 in favor. One point, however, must be kept in mind — seed 

 must he carefully selected from the dwarfest plants only, as 

 both varieties show a tendency to revert to the running type 

 from which they were selected, and if care is not exercised 

 plants of dwarf habit will become the exception. One of the 

 best Cabbages for the home garden is the Winnigstadt, either 

 for second, early or late. It grows rapidly, and has good 

 quality and tender texture. Its distinguishing merit is its com pact 

 spiral growth, the leaves overlapping each other so quickly 

 and firmly that it seems a difficult matter for even the cab- 

 bage-worm to eat into the heads. On account of this same 

 compact habit, few leaves need to be removed when the heads 

 are cut for use. 



Geneva, N. Y. C. E. H. 



Correspondence. 



Dahlias not Blossoming-. 

 To the Editor of Garden and Forest : 



Sir, — So far as my observation goes, no horticultural journal 

 has noted the fact that the Dahlia has ceased to be a flower- 

 ing plant, at least in western New York. If Buffalo is not a 

 horal centre sufficiently well marked to determine the matter, 

 certainly Rochester is, and I have lately seen Dahlias in that 

 city acting exactly as ours do. The plants are thrifty enough, 

 but if buds form they all blast. 



For several years I have scarcely had three flowers to the 

 plant, and often none at all. This year I have some new sorts, 

 but no flowers. Sometimes the young shoots have the ap- 

 pearance of having been stung by insects, but often buds turn 

 black when half-grown, with no appearance of insect interfer- 

 ence. I find that such plants run heavily to tubers. Often an 

 ordinary-sized plant will produce as many tubers as can be 

 found in a good hill of potatoes; whether this is cause or effect 

 I am unable to say, and have failed to devise a means of find- 

 ing out. I have had no experience with the new single varie- 

 ties. Unless they or the experts do something for us the 

 Dahlia will have to be retired. 



Occasionally a notable exception is observed. At the cot- 

 tage on Goat Island, Niagara Falls, Dahlias grow higher than 

 one's head and blossom profusely. The soil is a peculiarly 

 rich black loam. On the other hand, a single plant at a farm- 

 yard door, with no apparent special advantages, was found so 

 full of yellow blossoms that it fairly lighted up the landscape. 

 These two instances are the only ones that have come under 

 my notice for years of the Dahlia flowering hereabout as of 

 old. Experienced cultivators of it in this city have been 

 obliged to discard it. Who will tell us what is the matter ? 



Buffalo, N. V. John Chamberlain. 



[We have inquired of Messrs. Elhvanger & Barry as to 

 the flowering of Dahlias with them, and they reply that for 

 several years these plants have not flowered to their entire 

 satisfaction in western New York. They attribute the fail- 

 ure largely to continued dry weather, and they also think 

 that growers allow too many stems to proceed from the 

 same plant. Where the suckers are cut oft" and the plant 

 is trimmed to a single stem a good growth and fine flow- 

 ers are usually secured. They have not noticed that the 

 plant has received any serious injury from insects or from 

 fungi. — Ed.] 



Spring Flowers in Autumn. 

 To the Editor of Garden and Forest : 



Sir, — It seems worth recording that a Horse-chestnut-tree in 

 Central Park is now, September 25th, in flower. The spikes of 

 bloom are somewhat smaller than those of the spring, and 

 delicately attenuated in all their parts, very closely after the 

 manner of the forced flowers of shrubs which florists offer in 

 advance of the natural season of blossoming. The odor of 

 these Horse-chestnut flowers, also, is most delicate, resem- 

 bling that of Lonicera Tartarica. 



The tree in question stands just above the bridle-path north 

 of the new reservoir, close by the little elevated rond-point or 

 circle of observation for equestrians, from which they may 

 look over the meadows below. About one-fourth part of the 

 tree is in flower and young leaf, the remainder being in the 

 usual condition of this season, save that it has no fruit. A 



